Maria Auditore da Firenze

Maria Auditore da Firenze (née de' Mozzi) was the wife of Giovanni Auditore, a prominent Florentine banker and member of the Order of Assassins. She is the mother of three sons – Federico, Ezio and Petruccio – and a daughter named Claudia and the sister-in-law of Mario Auditore. Born into the noble de' Mozzi family, Maria liked to mix with "real citizens" when she was younger, leading her to a chance of meeting with the man who would become her husband. As part of the Auditore family she continued to fraternise with the lower classes, developing a working relationship with the artist Leonardo da Vinci.

Aware of her husband's allegiances to the Assassins, Maria kept it a secret from her children up to his death, and upon her grieving silence did not mention it either. As she married into the family line of Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad, she became an ancestor of Desmond Miles.

Assassin's Creed: Lineage
In 1476 Maria Auditore da Firenze lived happily with her husband, three sons and daughter in the heart of the city. Close to the de' Medici family, Maria was by this time aware of her husband's duties as an assassin, and would tend his wounds should he receive them.

With their second son, Ezio, then seventeen Maria felt it time for Giovanni to tell him of his heritage.

Assassin's Creed II
The day following Ezio's fight with Vieri de' Pazzi on the Florentine bridge, Maria had him walk with her to collect a number of commissioned paintings from the artist Leonardo da Vinci, introducing the two in the process. She was at home when the city guards arrived to take away her husband and sons; when she protested, it is suggested that the guards sexually assaulted her. When Ezio returned home he discovered that his mother's assault had shocked her into silence. She and Claudia were then taken to safety by their maid, Annetta.

The next day Ezio returned, wearing the robes of his father and bringing the fateful news of the execution.

She then followed Ezio and Claudia to the Villa Auditore in the town of Monteriggioni. Arriving in the town, Maria took up residence in the Villa, refusing to speak and constantly praying over the feathers her youngest son, Petruccio, used to collect. Eventually, Ezio had collected one-hundred white feathers for his mother to watch over, Maria hugged him and spoke once more, thanking her son for not forgetting about her.

As a reward for his collection of the feathers, Maria bestowed Ezio a cloak embossed with the Auditore family crest.

In the official novel 'Assassin's Creed: Renaissance', Maria does not spend all her time in prayer over Petruccio's feathers, but spends time within Monteriggioni's convent. It is stated that it helps her to do simple tasks, though a full recovery is never shown, and it is unsaid as to whether she goes to the Auditore villa with Claudia. She is mentioned very little after settling into her new life at Monteriggioni.

Trivia

 * She is one of the characters whose appearance never ages.
 * Maria prays for 10-23 years since all of the places that have feathers aren't unlocked until Sequence 9 of Assassin's Creed II.
 * She seems to be a skilled surgeon as she is seen stitching up Giovanni's near-fatal wound in Lineage.
 * Maria married Giovanni (16 at the time) when she was 18.