Chapter 1
"Hot" groaned a collapsed young women of the age of fifteen in the desert. This was just not her day, Jasmine thought to herself with another groan. She just had to forget to bring enough water with her to cross the desert, because dammit she should know better than that by now having traveled for the past nine years.
"Hey, are you ok miss?" a young man's voice called out just above the near unconscious form of Jasmine.
Squinting her eyes open Jasmine spotted a blonde teenage boy about the age of seventeen with concerned golden eyes leaning over her. Looking around her she spotted a wagon to her far left and came to the conclusion that the boy had "Water" she croaked out the word.
"Oh, here" replied the blond handing her a water jug "What are you doing out here? And what happened?"
Grabbing the jug Jasmine began to drink soothing her parched throat. Sighing as she removed the jug from her mouth Jasmine looked at her unlikely savior. He had stopped his job just to check on her and it looked liked it might have never occurred to him to just leave her here judging from his expression of genuine concern. She owned him a debt now so she guessed he deserved the truth, no matter how embarrassing.
"I'm a traveler and I just forgot to pack enough water for this trip." Jasmine smiled sheepishly up at him.
The boy looked relieved and replied "That good… Not that it good you forgot water! But just good that bandits didn't attack you. Um, I'm Alibaba, nice to meet you." The blonde smiled a bright smile that struck Jasmine by how much kindness was in it and that it was directed at her, cold, unfeeling, assassin Jasmine.
Reaching up Jasmine grasped the hand the blond… no his name was Alibaba stretched out to her and let him pull her up. "My name is Jasmine and I thank you for saving my life Alibaba" she spoke as she felt her smile become more genuine.
"Well it nice to meet you Jasmine. Do you want a ride to Quishan?" offered Alibaba gesturing to his wagon that now that she looked jasmine could tell was coming back from a delivery for it was empty of goods, but not the necessary traveling gear.
"If it's not too mush trouble, I don't have much money just enough to get a cheap meal."
"It alright keep your money, I'm the one who offered" replied Alibaba as he headed towards the wagon with Jasmine following a minute after.
Once on the road to Quishan he interrupted the peaceful atmosphere to ask," So you don't have anywhere to stay the night?"
Bewildered at the reason for what she saw as a pointless question Jasmine nodded her head and let out a "yes."
"Because if you don't have a place to spend the night you could stay at my place till you need to leave at least if you help with some jobs every now and then."
Shocked at the kind offer Jasmine turned to stare at Alibaba who had a serious and cunning face on. Despite his selfish desire, which she could understand for she was using him for a place to stay same as he was using her for a worker, there was an underlined kindness to his request and she could tell that being cruel would never cross his mind if she accepted.
Letting out a real smile, thus small Jasmine said, "It's a deal."
Alibaba let out a laugh and confirmed, "It's a deal." Together the blonde and the white head talked and laughed the rest of the way on the road now that the wall of being strangers was brought down by an agreement between them.