[Fic Fragment, AU] Full Circle alternate universe opening

[dragovianknight]

Because myopicmirror04 asked what would happen in Full Circle if Rhapthorne's followers needed both Marcello and Jessica for the sacrifice, and because I need another AU like I need a hole in the head.

Work safe, with nothing that should require a warning.

Alexandria was not the same place Marcello had last visited mere months before. The gate, which had always stood open - indeed, he hadn't been certain it could be closed - was now barred against intrusion, with young guards positioned to either side. They looked down at him coldly, and he was surprised by the competence with which they handled their weapons. Alexandria was not a town of warriors. At his last visit, they had still been mourning the death of Alistair Albert, some two years gone, as much because he had been their protector as for the man himself.

Marcello wondered at the change, even as he theoretically approved of it...and hoped he knew its source. The only question remained as to whether he could get past the town's new-formed defenses and test his theory.

He moved closer, hands spread to the sides to show he was harmless. "I seek shelter for the night, and supplies," he called up to the guards. "Will you let me enter?"

"What business do you have here?"

"I'm looking for my brother." The admission was bitter on his tongue. "I have reason to believe he is here, and even if I did not, Port Prospect is too far to reach before dark."

The guards exchanged a long look - they should have known better, when they had at least one magic user in their midst, he could have cast a spell before either looked down and realized what he was doing - then the man on his left vanished from his position, and a moment later the gate creaked open just far enough for Marcello to slip inside.

"Who's your brother?" the guard who had opened the gate asked, even as he turned the mechanism to secure the town.

"His name is Angelo. The last I heard, he was a...guest...of Miss Jessica Albert."

From the corner of his eye, Marcello was aware of a child darting away, but he kept his gaze firmly on the guard. The man was less confident on the ground than he had been at his post; Marcello found it difficult not to use his height and the command presence which had kept his Templars in line to bully the fellow into taking him where he wanted to go. Ruthlessly, he throttled the instinct; it would be counter-productive, given that Alexandria was now possessed of competent leadership, and doubly so if the leader in question turned out to be Angelo.

"You seem human enough," the guard said after a few moments. "I suppose you can move along to the inn."

He pointed toward the far side of the town, and Marcello nodded his thanks, filing away the man's words and his failure to so much as enquire as to whether Marcello was armed. It would seem that whatever threat had pushed this peaceful little down into a defensive posture wasn't human.

Marcello squared his shoulders to suppress a shudder. That was information he would rather not have known.