They didn't see Stefan and Elena until they came over. Elena looked as nervous as everyone else really., but Stefan was evidently more confident. "Hello again, this is my wife Elena, Elena this is Jess- the girl I met earlier in the park. "

"Hi! I'm really pleased to meet you, this is Holly my roommate, and this is Mel."

Elena said hello and the conversation stalled a bit until Jess said "we were just educating Mel on Essex slang, she says i'm making her ears bleed."

Holly, Mel and Stefan all laughed along with Jess, poor Elena looked left out. "So Essex is a county of two halves, in the south you have rolling fields as far as the eye can see and the prettiest villages. The cities and the north where it borders South London have a reputation for being rough and it's a place where a lot of the girls are caked in fake tan and make up applied with a trowel, fake hair and their own language that generally makes your ears bleed."

"Can you do an Essex accent though?" asked Stefan.

Jess laughed, "so, right, me and my mate were going to lakey but when we got there, right, me ex Dave showed up and started giving it all of that, right, so I told 'im to shuu' up, right and, right, he said it's just a bit of banter and there's no need to be like that, right. But it's like oh my god, he literally gets on my nerves and at the end of the day he shouldn't speak to me like that, right?"

Stefan looked appalled and laughed and Elena looked blank, "I have no idea what you just said."

"Neither did we," laughed Holly.

"A girl went shopping at Lakeside- an indoor shopping centre and she bumps into her ex who starts trying to act like the big man, mouthing off at her. She tells him to shut up and he tells her he's only joking and not to take him too seriously."

"Wow," she said, "you couldn't have just said that?!" Jess laughed. "So do you two come from Essex as well?" she asked Holly and Mel.

"I'm from Devon, so way down South, the countryside. It's really pretty there, but it's known for its cream teas. A scone, with cream and jam on top with a cup of tea on the side. Although the Cornish do it backwards, they have the jam on the bottom and the cream on the top, it's all highly controversial."

"Now that I can relate to! I make it this way, she makes it that easy, but we all know our families' way is the right way. I guess it's one of those traditions that some people can't let go of," Elena laughed.

"Where are you from Holly? You sound like a Londoner," prompted Stefan.

"I'm from Surbiton, it's South West London. It's not anything special really, I mean there was an old 70's sitcom about a couple who were trying to live off the land and trying to appease their snobby neighbour, but that's it really," she shrugged.

"Actually one of the last battles of the Civil War took place there and Charles II's best friend Francis Villiers died in it," piped up Jess.

Holly looked surprised and then she went "ah! There's a Charles road and a Villiers road, but I never knew about any battle."

"There you go, it's never too late to learn something. It was lovely to meet you, but we'd better go and meet the others." Stefan and Elena wandered off, Jess could've kicked herself for being such a boring geek but then Matt and Bonnie came over to say hi, it was Matts' first time in London and he couldn't believe how big and sprawling it was. They'd been over here for a couple of weeks and he'd dragged Bonnie round the Tower, "it was pretty gruesome and there was even a bar opposite called the hung, drawn and quartered. Ugh!" she shuddered.

"It's a nice little pub actually" said Holly, "still got the original Victorian interior, or at least some of it."

Matt laughed, "I told her it wouldn't be bad. I think all this history is awesome and the food! Fish n chips every night for me, although I'm not sure about the battered sausage." Bonnie was barely holding it in, Holly, Jess and Mel were trying not to look at her but it failed and the four of them started giggling uncontrollably. Matt held up his hands in surrender and shook his head, Bonnie looked up at him and burst into giggles again which set the girls off, Matt walked over to Stefan and Elena to complain good naturedly while Bonnie made an effort to walk away without giggling.

The girls finished their drinks and Mel expressed her disappointment, so she was packed off with three glasses to get more prosecco. "Do you think we should've told him about deep fried Mars Bars?" Asked Jess.

"Nah, I'm sure Bonnie knows if her grandmother's Scottish," said Holly. "Anyway, look at you getting all chummy with Stefan! I'm so jealous!" she whispered.

"I'm not getting all chummy with him! He carried my bag and we had a chat, that's all. He's just being friendly. Shall we go and see where Mel is?" Jess was desperate to change the subject, Holly was snickering, and nodded over to the table where the prosecco was.

Mel was deep in conversation with a girl who had long, dark brown hair and a very tight black dress that left little to the imagination, although the term conversation could be used in the loosest sense as they were flirting up a storm.

"Would you ladies care for another glass?" Jess turned around and saw Damon standing there, clearly enjoying the effect he was having on the people here. Jess saw that even Holly was having problems breathing. "Thank you, our friend went to get some but I think she got a bit distracted." She had no idea why she was being so bold, it must be the drink because just standing there he had such a presence, almost a magnetism about him.

"So I see. Forgive my manners, I'm Damon and you two beautiful creatures would be?"

"I'm Holly!" she finally found her tongue and it all came blurting out "oh my god! You are so sexy!" Jess stared at her new friend Holly. She had her hand over her mouth and her eyes went wide. Damon laughed and Jess began grinning like an idiot. "Thank you for the compliment my dear." He gave them two glasses of prosecco that someone just brought up to him without asking and then turned to Jess, "I didn't catch your name."

"Jess, pleased to meet you."

"The pleasure is all mine. What's the pattern on your dress?"

"Clockwork, it's a bit of a steampunk type dress."

"It's very pretty and you look wonderful in it, I do like people with a bit of originality about them. So tell me Holly, are you studying?"

"I, uh, no. I, uh, work in a music shop."

"Ah, hence the wonderful blue hair. What's your favourite band? Or is it a singer?"

"Nightwish."

Damon nodded, he obviously knew of them at least. "How long have you worked there?"

"A couple of years, I'm a supervisor."

"It's an important first step towards management. I feel it's very important to gain experience in the company or in the industry at least." Holly seemed thrilled with this and went a nice shade of pink, then Damon turned his attention on Jess, "so what do you do?"

"I'm studying history at St Marys in Twickenham."

"Fascinating. Let me guess, your favourite period is the Renaissance."

"It's the Restoration in England actually."

"Really?" One eyebrow went up in surprise, "what makes you so interested in that particular period?"

"The behaviour of the people at court mainly, the King included. It's just so fascinating. You had Pepys trying to have his wicked way with every female he laid eyes on, the mistresses with their backstabbing pettiness, Charles and his close relationship with the Duke of Buckingham, so much drama."

Damon laughed, "your passion is evident. Will you be studying this?"

"Possibly in our next module about revolutions and rebellions, but not as an entire module."

"What module are you studying at the moment then?"

"The Mediterranean world. So we're just starting to look at it from late Medieval through to High Renaissance and how significant it is."

"I am very aware of how historians regard it as significant and it was a great period of time to live in," he said seriously. "But I do think sometimes that applying your modern values and ideas to it, defeats the purpose of studying it."

"Oh don't get me wrong it's fascinating, but I think it's going to be a heavy one," Jess confessed. "We obviously have to understand Roman and Ancient Greek thought before we can understand the main players. Less SPQR, we the people, and more Sono Pazzi Questi Romani"

Damon laughed loudly. "These Romans are mad? I understand perfectly. Why don't we go and sit down over there, I might be able to help." Holly looked dejected but Mel came over, her new love interest had just come out of a relationship and Mel didn't want to be a rebound girl, so she dragged Holly over to a couple of boys on the other side of the room.

Damon led Jess out of the ballroom and into the lobby where they sat at a table in the bar. "There are three others doing a history degree and all of them have made it their mission to know as much about the Renaissance as possible to impress me. That's why I'm going to help you, because I like an individual. Especially someone like you, who has a great sense of humor and is so pretty."

Jess blushed, she was taken aback by his remarks. "Thank you. That's very kind."

"Now, my room number is 232. I'll be there at ten, I'm leaving early to get something to eat. Do you have any study materials with you?"

"Yes."

He laughed softly, "you brought a pen and paper to write down anything interesting that you might find out and a book to double check it with didn't you?" Jess blushed bright red and couldn't look him in the eyes making Damon laugh. "Good girl, the sign of a brilliant historian in the making- critical and analytical and no doubt why the bag my brother carried for you was so heavy."

Great, she was going to be that girl with the bag. "Yes."

"So, ten pm, bring your book and anything else you need and I will help you."

"Thank you very much, I really appreciate it. I'm going to go to the loo so we don't go back in together, otherwise people might get the wrong idea."

Jess headed off to the loo feeling Damon's stare on her. He headed back into the ballroom to find his brother waiting for him outside.