Jessamine didn't like parties. Being expected to sit in the same seat for hours, legs crossed, back straight and chin up, just like a lady should sit, almost never allowed to leave her seat just wasn't fun for her. Oh, how she envied all the other women who got to sing and dance freely to their favorite songs, wear flat shoes, try every food twice, talk to all the other visitors and then leave whenever they pleased! She, of course had tried to sneak away once, and that ended horribly to say the least

Still, she could get through all that, but what bothered her the most were the guests. When they were done saying their half-hearted 'hello' to her, they would completely ignore her and focus on her father, acting as if she didn't exist. Why did they always do that? It frustrated her so much! She was the future Empress- their future Empress. She didn't need them to pour her with compliments, kisses and gifts, but couldn't they at least acknowledge her existence?

Of course not. They were too proud to pay attention to a little girl. She disliked almost all of them.

Still, she was convinced that this party would be different. After all, most of the guests would be from Serkonos, so they had to be different, right? They seemed nice enough, maybe she could even make a friend. Oh, that would be great!

She then wondered how many people would be there. All her father's friends, plus their families, plus all the other rich families, plus all the Serokonians- the Duke must have brought half the island with him! - plus all the entertainers and servants. Goodness, could they even fit so many people in the ballroom? Maybe they'd also open the entrance to the huge terrace. No, maybe not, it's cold this time of year. The guests would throw a fit! Maybe they'd let them wander around the entire tower? That would be-

Knock knock knock

Jessamine jerked her hand, almost spilling hot tea into her lap. Who could be looking for her now? Maybe Ellia had managed to slip away from her duties and decided to join her? Maybe her father wanted to ask her something? She turned her head towards the door, preparing a smile for whoever it may be.

"Come in, please."

Now, out of all the people she expected to be there, he was definitely the last

"Excuse me, my Lady, I hope I'm not bothering you?"

She couldn't force herself to answer right away. Dark hair, ice blue eyes-Corvo? What was he doing here? She couldn't say she minded it- quite the opposite, she was glad he was here- but she couldn't deny it was, well...weird. Jessamine stared at him for a moment before finally remembering that he was waiting for her answer.

"Uh... No, not at all," Jessamine said, trying to not sound flustered and failing miserably, "Please, come in"

He nodded in return, carefully closing the door behind him.

"His Imperial Majesty asked that I give you this", Corvo said, wasting no time to pull out a crisp white envelope from his coat pocket and hand it to Jessamine.

She took it with great curiosity, holding it as if it was as fragile as thin glass. Her father rarely wrote her letters when he was on the other side of the Isles, why write to her now? And if that wasn't strange enough, why send Corvo to deliver it? She was just about to break the blood-red wax seal when Corvo stopped her;

"My apologies, he has asked that you wait until the party tonight to open it."

Wait, what? The party? What on earth for? She didn't bother asking Corvo, she knew it would be pointless. Her father either hadn't told him, or asked him to act as if he hadn't. She frowned in frustration, putting the letter on her table with a huff.

The Serokonian, on the other hand,couldn't help but grin when he saw her child-like pout.

"My apologies for disturbing you, my Lady." He said, giving her a shallow, yet respectful bow. "I'll be going now".

She watched him turn around. It didn't look like he was in a rush, could she…?

"Wait," she said. What was she doing? This was stupid, but she couldn't just let him go, could she? Her mouth, as always, was faster than her brain, and she had managed to stop him just before he grabbed the doorknob. No point in turning back now

"Would you, uh, would you mind... drinking a cup of tea with me?"

Corvo put his hand down and looked back at her. Why did she want to talk to him? Did she find out about the arrangement? No, she couldn't have. Only him, her father and the Duke knew- who else could have told her?

Still, he couldn't say he minded her invitation, and even though he should be going back to the Duke, his curiosity overtook him. The Duke would understand, wouldn't he? After all, getting to know the girl he would be protecting for the rest of his life didn't seem like a bad idea.

A soft smile placed itself on his lips, "I'd love to"

The mixture of relief and joy on her face was immediate, though the nervousness didn't seem to go anywhere. She returned the smile, not wasting time to pour him black tea in the unused china cup as he took his seat to the other side of the small table.

As he sat down, he realized this was the first time he was given an opportunity to get a good look at her face. She was a cute girl, that was for sure. Her lips were painted a soft red color that complimented her warm skin tone, while a pair of large, pale green eyes that reminded him of the color of early spring decorated her face right above soft cheekbones. Her black hair was tied in a braided ponytail that just reached a third of her shoulder, contrasting the white-and-gold outfit that she so elegantly wore.

Simply put, she truly did look like a young Empress.

He gladly accepted when she handed the tea to him, and only when the hot cup had placed itself on his dry lips was he reminded that he had forgotten to drink all day. Had he been so distracted? He watched as she took a sip, careful not to get too much lipstick on the brim and spilling a bit on her lap in the process. It took all his willpower to not chuckle as she cursed under her breath while dabbing the yellowish stain with a napkin

"So, uh, tell me," She said, trying to take the attention off of herself, "what do you, well, do for the Duke?"

Corvo choked in his tea. Now it was Jessamine's turn to chuckle.

"Me?", He tried to keep a straight face, hoping she wouldn't see right through his lie, "I'm his bodyguard, my Lady"

Jessamine looked up at him, a soft smile on her face, "You don't have to call me that, y'know", she said, shrugging her shoulders, "I mean, when no one is around, you can just call me Jessamine."

Corvo paused a moment. This was the first time in his life that a nobility allowed him to call them by name, let alone ask him to do so. The fact that he had known her for such a short time added to his surprise, but he didn't object. Jessamine, he whispered to himself, trying her name on his lips. He couldn't explain why, but it fit her for some reason.

"Very well, Jessamine. Is there anything else you'd like to know?"

The two sat there for a while, her throwing questions and him answers back and forth as if they were playing a game of tennis. As usual, Jessamine tried to not her child-like curiosity get the better of her, but she couldn't help it. She made him describe every detail about Karnaca, the capital of Serkonos, letting herself get lost in his words. Goodness, it was almost alien to her, the way he spoke about crystal blue water that lightly caressed the white sand, the way women would carry woven baskets on their heads filled with fruits she had never heard about in her life, how the red, purple and orange colors of a sunset sky would reflect off the sea, perfectly mirroring each one as though it was a mirror. Did such a place even exist? Dunwall tower suddenly seemed very, very plain to her.

Corvo, on the other had, felt… was comfortable the word? It was strange, how he didn't hold back on anything, nor did he feel the need to watch his words in fear being judged by the noble in front of him. He didn't expect to like Jessamine so fast, and after that ever so friendly encounter with Jax, it was nice to feel welcome with someone.

They were on their third cup of tea when they heard the doorknob click open.

"S'cuse me Jess, bu- Oh, pardon me, I hope I'm not botherin' anything?" The maid asked, not even knocking on the door

The atmosphere in the room violently shifted. "Oh, well…" Jessamine trailed off, looking at Corvo, waiting for him- why him?- to give an answer. She had to have figured out that he wasn't allowed to be here by now.

"Not at all," he said, standing up from his chair, "I should be going now, either way"

He saw the look in her eyes, asking him to reconsider. In all honesty, he wanted to, but the Duke would have had his head if he stayed longer. "Thank you very much for the tea, My Lady", he bowed.

Jessamine watched his every step as he sheepishly walked out the door.

When the two friends were left alone, Ellia stared at Jessamine in complete confusion.

"What in earth wus that 'bout?"

"Nothing," Jessamine said, sighing, "Absolutely nothing"

A/N: As always, reviews are appreciated! After all, I'd love to hear what you think!