By god, he was even more beautiful than I had expected.

The glimpses I had caught before of his bare flesh did not do justice to the vision that he was. I…well, I must sound ridiculous, but I cannot help but be in awe of his perfection, can I? He was mysterious, deadly, fascinating in every way. He was everything I hadn't known I wanted, and suddenly he…he was mine. Perhaps not for long, perhaps only tenuously, but he was mine. I did not know at the time how much this meant to not only me but him as well. It was more than laying aside professionalism and years of living by the blade. In any case, let me get to the part you are no doubt most eager to hear.

My heart was thudding loud in my chest, clearly set on beating its way through my sternum. Every detail of what was unfolding before me played out in excruciating slow motion, and every little movement was noted with an inexplicable pleasure so sharp it pained. The way Altair raised his arms, slipping his robes over his head. The soft rustle of cloth on skin. How his hair was ever so slightly tousled when he tossed his clothes aside. My gift glittered on his chest, the charm threaded onto a thin gold chain. To see it there made me swell with inexplicable pride. My gift, around his neck. His eyes seemed to gather in the light, fill with a burnished glow. The warmth and softness they radiated made my breath hitch. I swayed drunkenly, as though dealt a physical blow. Unprecedented. Altair kissed me then, tangling strong fingers in my hair and pulling me close. He was so gentle! Afraid to hurt me. I did not know how to assure him that I trusted him, that I was not afraid of him. Well, not when he was like this. Altair could snap my neck like a twig if he took it into his mind to do so.

I turned my thoughts to what was at hand. My robe was slowly starting to slip off my shoulders. My skin, no longer damp, did not adhere to the silk. Something Altair took delicate advantage of. He tugged at my sleeve, and the way his eyes ran up along the bare skin of my shoulder and neck before meeting mine made me flush hot. It was a raw, needy gaze. No one had ever looked at me like that before. Lecherous leers, sure, but this sort of appreciative want was something new to me.

I liked it very much.

He ran his fingers very lightly over my exposed flesh, making me shiver involuntarily. The feathery touches continued for a while, and I was happy to luxuriate. After several minutes of thoroughly examining the few square inches of skin I was baring, Altair shifted slightly and kicked off his boots. Things were getting serious…

I bit my lip nervously, and he made this little noise, like he had been holding his breath. I glanced up to see him staring.

"I like it when a girl bites her lip. It's very…enticing" he explained, his voice taut.

Of course, that just made me blush a deeper red. Gods, even when we were both out of sorts he managed it with grace where I acted the fool! When Altair tugged at the tie around my waist I let him pull the bow loose with nothing more than a coquettish look from under my lashes and a soft smile. The sable silk pooled around my waist when I let it slide off my arms, and for the first time in my life a man got to see my naked self. I was self conscious, gods yes, but I wanted him to look.

"I'm afraid I can't offer much in the way of comfort, but I'm sure we'll be able to make do with more humble tangled sheets…"

He lifted me slightly and laid me back on the robe he had so recently discarded. Had it been scant minutes ago? It seemed years had passed. My hair spilled around me in a dark halo, glimmering dully in the flickering light like oil. He brushed it aside carefully, murmuring something I only half-caught. It sounded like my name.

Altair turned my head slightly and leaned down to nuzzle my neck. The sensation made me inhale sharply and audibly, and I squirmed against my will. He had no intention of stopping, though, and used his body to press me to the floor and one hand to pin my arms above my head. His weight was not crushing, as he supported himself partially with the free arm, but it effectively stopped me from moving unless he let up. All I could do was make pitiful little noises. When Altair paused his affectionate ministrations to bite, I couldn't help but moan. My teeth clicked shut in mortification, but the accursed man seemed bent on drawing out everything I had to offer. He renewed his efforts with great vigor, kissing and licking and biting in turn. It drove me crazy, and I found myself begging weakly for him to stop. When he finally pulled back for a second, I was flushed and panting for breath.

"And to think, all I've made use of so far is my mouth"

It was only the fact that I liked him so damn much that stopped me from breaking his nose with my forehead. Also because that would have probably hurt a whole lot but never mind that. I decided to turn the tables the only other way I knew how.

"Let me up, Altair"

A cheap shot, but what else was there to work with? I kept my voice stern, but could not manage to keep it very steady. I was still breathing quite heavily, after all. When, concerned, he let go of my wrists and made to rise, I made use of his upward motion to push him off and over to the side. I never would have accomplished this had he not already been moving away, and had I not caught him off guard. Hell, it was amazing I succeeded anyway. I flipped us, and now he was under me. Altair looked as shocked as he was capable of looking, which amounted to slight wide-eyed-ness. It figured. I explained as casually as I could that I had asked him to let me up, not to leave me altogether. I then used my now freed hands to thoroughly explore him in a way I had only dreamed of before. Running hesitant fingers over his cheeks, brushing the scar that crossed his lips, down over his neck, over strong shoulders, across his broad chest. A myriad of scars marred his torso, thin white lines in a dozen places. On his side was a more vicious mark, a gnarled line about two inches in length, and colored the angry red of a recent injury. Altair tensed when I touched it, so I quickly moved on. It must have been a very painful memory to make him react so. He bore my examination with impeccable patience, his eyes following me the only movement he made the whole time. I would never tire of examining him so, following the lines and curves of his body, feeling where he yielded and where there was only hard muscle. His skin was hot beneath my hands, almost feverish. I draped myself over him, dwarfed by his stronger and taller form, and listened to his heartbeat.

Hours, I could have lain there, distant thudding in my ears and his rough fingers running up and down my spine. It was only out of an instinctual desire for more that I moved. I slid up, seeking another kiss, another touch. He gave me what I wanted, of course. Another flip and he was over me again, predatory and lusting for more. Who was I to deny him his wish? He became increasingly rough, frantic.

I was not…particularly well informed on what exactly a man a woman did in the bedroom, but whatever it was I wanted it. My knowledge of anatomy was rudimentary at best, and what I knew of sex I learned from hushed stories Sudha relayed to me. Things she had heard men and brothel girls speaking of. When she told me such snippets they had sounded filthy and wrong, but this was completely different. It felt exactly right.

Altair suddenly moved, sitting back on his haunches. I was self conscious, and it took effort not to immediately pull my robe on. I did not realize what he was doing until sudden darkness enveloped us. He had doused the fire. My nerves sang, the encroaching night making everything sharp. Silence, utter silence. A touch, along my throat. A kiss, so soft I thought I might have imagined it. A whisper of breath over my skin. Altair taunted me like this until he could resist no more. The touches became rough and possessive, and I cried out his name. He murmured mine in my ear in response.

"Akilah, are you sure this is what you want?"

It was a question I had been expecting, and there was absolutely no hesitation when I gave my answer.

"I have never wanted anything more"

A pause, a rustle, a moment of quiet. I felt his naked form settle above me, electricity sparking where our bodies met. He was…not nervous, not afraid…just unsure. Unsteady. It had, no doubt, been a long time since he had given himself to a woman. I felt a warm glow at the thought. I was special to him. Altair buried his face in the crook of my neck, and I felt something brush the place I suddenly realized I most wanted to be touched. He warned me that it would hurt the first time, but heedlessly I urged him on. Whatever pain there was would be well worth the pleasure in my eyes. He moved forward, slow and patient though I realized it was difficult for him. Incredibly difficult, if the way his back muscles knotted beneath my fingers was any indicator. Altair was right; there was pain, and he soothed my cries with apologetic kisses. It did not take long for me to get acclimated to his motions, though, and return to my previous needy moans and desperate pleas. I do not know how long we lay together, locked in passionate embrace. Intense pleasure rocked me more than once, setting every inch of my skin on fire. I was lost to myself, finding his name on my lips with every cry. Altair himself was quite vocal, and more than once I felt him tense and peak as I did. Time had no meaning to me when I was in his arms.

It was only much later, exhausted and covered in a thin sheen of sweat, that I saw that light was breaking through the swiss-cheese wall. It was dawn. We had whiled the night away quite effectively. Altair was on his back, eyes shut and breath even. I knew he was still awake in spite of this, and when I curled up against his side he wrapped an arm around me and pulled my robe up to cover us. Through lidded lashes I watched him until we fell asleep, his visage the last thing in my eyes. He was perfect to me in every way. Of course, I am no fool. I knew even then that he had flaws, and that I simply did not care about them. It mattered not. He was perfect all the same, in heart and body and soul. I slept more peacefully that night than I ever have before, and when I woke I found Altair watching me with that dagger-sharp stare of his. Good. I wanted him to look into the depths of my spirit and see that I practically worshipped the ground he walked on. I wanted nothing more than him, forever.

"Altair, I think I love you"

The words were soft, and hoarse. I had not had anything to drink for a long time, and my throat felt dry. In the yawning emptiness of the room they seemed small. And yet, Altair smiled.

He smiled an earnest, relaxed smile of a sort I had never imagined he would wear. He smiled like all was right in the world.

"I think I love you too"

((* This took a lot longer than I expected guys. I'm sorry! I just…eh. I had such trouble with this chapter, and I spent ages agonizing over it, and it STILL came out crummy. D: I WILL TRY HARDER, FAITHFUL READERS. Also, up till now I had been following the events in the game to the T, and trying to weave Akilah into the story (The Merchant Kings speech was word for word! :O ), but now I stray from canon. I KNOW. Blasphemy! But that is how it shall be. Please do not lose too much sleep over it. *))