Edward was perched on one of Nassau's rickety roofs, waiting for Mary to finish killing the Templar inside, when he realized he was being visited. It was the man in the hat, who wouldn't tell Edward his name.

"Ahoy, Hat Man," he whispered. "If you'd like, I could use a little assistance watching for these guards."

"Indeed," the other man said, crouching beside him. Long minutes passed in silence, and just as Edward was about to try to pry some personal details out of his mystery visitor, Mary climbed out of a window and jumped into a tree.

"Didn't quite go as planned, Kenway," she warned, pitching her high-heeled sandals into a stream nearby as Edward and the visitor followed her into the tree. He noticed his visitor had some trouble with the tree branch-not as much as Altair had with water, though. Mary ripped most of her skirt off as guards began to surround the tree, and held the balled-up fabric in one hand. "Ready?"

Edward had to force himself to stop staring at her thighs (the hat man cleared his throat loudly) and picked a likely target to leap down on. "Your feminine charms not charming enough?"

Mary threw the flimsy cloth on a guard, and while he was trying to pull it out of his face, she assassinated him from the tree. And then she was in the thick of it, whirling from one to another, blades flashing silver and red. "Not feminine enough, Ah think."

"Perhaps they saw her hidden blades," the hat man muttered as Edward killed one with his own blades, and drew his swords for the rest.

It was brutal, and Edward and Mary were both drenched in blood by the time they'd dispatched them all. "Could have stood to have Ezio or Altair help us out," she said pointedly as they took off for a small house she maintained in town.

"Afraid all you've got today is Edward Kenway and the hat man."

"The hat man?"

"Won't tell me his name," Edward explained, feeling a little defensive. "Carries a hidden blade, but I don't think he's one of you lot, somehow."

The man in question laughed. "Hardly."

"Just what the world needs, more impostor Assassins," Mary grumbled. "Can't wait to get back in my proper breeches," she added, slapping a drunken pirate who had unwisely seen her legs as an invitation.

Edward followed her, both because he didn't quite remember where her little house was, and because the view was spectacular. "Uh..." he replied intelligently.

"Too much charms for the likes of you, Kenway," she scoffed. "Think Ah'd rather talk to your hat man, or is he as handsy as Ezio?" She opened the door, and practically dove into her masculine clothing. Edward watched a few seconds too long, which earned him a thump on the head from the hat man.

"He's too classy for Nassau, I'll tell you that," Edward said, rubbing the back of his head.

"Then Ah definitely want to meet the classy fool'd hang around with the likes of you."

"What say you, Hat Man? Hop on in." And just like that, he was watching himself lean closer and whisper something in Mary's ear. Her eyes widened, then narrowed, then her high cheekbones shaded pink underneath her deep tan.

"Oh. Ah've never gotten a compliment like that before," she murmured through her smile. The hat man tipped his hat, and she bowed, grinning.

"What did he say?" demanded Edward. "What did you say?" His visitor simply smirked, and faded.

Mary laughed. "Can't tell ya," she told him smugly.

"That's it, not again! I won't have anyone else talk to you!"

She just kept laughing. "Weren't nothin' of the sort, Kenway."

"Please!"

"You'll find out in due time."

Many years later, Haytham Kenway sat in his son's cabin, on his son's ship, reading. And then, his father was sitting on the bed. "I've been thinking, Haytham," Edward began.

"Have you, now?" Haytham asked with a small smile. "I hear it's good exercise."

"What did you tell Kidd-Mary-that day?"

Haytham laid down the book. "I told her my name, Father. My full name."

"But the compliment? What was that?"

Haytham weighed his words for a second. "I told her I would have been proud to call her Mother."

"No wonder she blushed."

"Indeed."

When Edward vanished, Connor entered his cabin. "You were lying to Grandfather."

"There are things he doesn't need to know, son."

"What did you really say to her?"

"That I wished she had been my mother."

"Why?"

"That is a story for another time."