backyardbbq | LUCA AND NAVEEN'S RAD ADVENTURE

"Somewhere that is not here," Luca said quickly, and then he was off, looking for Naveen's shoes. He assumed they would be by the door, so he went that way.

About five seconds later, soldiers ran by the window, shouting in English about how 'they just saw him' and 'he couldn't have gone far.' Since the window was closed, they ignored the house Naveen was in entirely, not even looking inside. But it was definitely English soldiers, their uniforms were English.

It took Luca about a minute to actually find shoes that looked like they could be Naveen's, what with it being dark and there being another occupant to the home. But hopefully by the time he found them and came back, Naveen would be dressed and ready to go. If not, well, Luca was not above yelling to get him moving.

The flurry of activity invigorated Naveen's sense of spontaneity, or it would have, on any other night. He dressed himself diligently, mind buzzing with possibilities. What did the man have to gain from this? Why did he pick this place, of all places, to come looking for him?

Or did he intend to look for him at all? The rumble of English soldiers -- here, in France, even with the occupation... -- made his blood boil. Part of him wanted to jump out and chase them down with questions, but what little good sense he had funneled into pulling up his trousers.

By the time Luca returned, Naveen was dressed, albeit a little rumpled.

"If I go with you, you must tell me why once we've reached safety. Yes?"

Luca was more than a little on-edge, mostly from being shot at and hearing those same soldiers run around outside. Each second that ticked by was one less second for them to make their escape, and if they waited too long, then the English would sniff them out before they set one foot out the door.

The question wasn't unexpected, and Luca probably would have answered it right then and there, if he hadn't heard the sounds of dogs barking in the back alley. Dogs were even worse than soldiers, now they would have to find a way to cover their scent too.

"I promise," Luca said, offering the shoes to Naveen, "Just stay with me, and please trust in me for at least a little while."

A second later, Luca heard a door being kicked in. It wasn't one to the house they were in, thankfully, but it was close. They couldn't risk going out the front door. "Ah...does this house have roof access?"

If Naveen took the time to think about it, this man could have been an English soldier himself. Perhaps an assassin. Some sort of kidnapper. Any number of bad men out to grasp what little remained of the Maldonian royal family for themselves.

Any number of threats were possible. But at the sound of a door kicking open, Naveen realized that he didn't have it in him to care. Cautiousness was never his policy, and while the painful memory of his parent's home burning before him was enough to instil a sense of self preservation, the scales were tipped in Luca's favor for the moment.

After all, the man wasn't trying to kill him at this moment. As long as that remained true, the details didn't matter much.

"Ah... it depends what you mean by roof access." Naveen didn't pause to explain himself, motioning for Luca to follow. "Hurry!"

The 'roof access' in question was a single window upstairs, opening out onto the neighbor's roof... provided they could jump the several foot distance.

Well, close enough, given the circumstances. That jump wasn't looking too promising, though. Even accounting for the height differences between the buildings, it would be a bit of a leap, and without a running start too.

"Please tell me you have a sfeer," Luca said, looking back to Naveen. A sfeer, the ability to extend one's own boundaries and do magic, might be able to help them across. Or, well, it could get Naveen across, at least. Luca would still have to make the jump, but the last thing he needed was the crowned prince dying from a fall while trying to run away from the military.

The look on Naveen's face answered the question even before he spoke.

"I am sorry, I do not--no, no, I don't." He looked down at the road below, then back to Luca. "But I can throw you. Come!"

He gestured to himself and his larger arms, ready to assist in whatever misguided way he could.

Luca quickly held up a hand to stop Naveen. "No, no, that is not necessary!" The last thing he needed was to fall and break his neck because he was too much of a wimp to try and jump.

"Here, I will go first," he said, and he climbed up onto the window, stepping just outside of it. Then he used his feet to push off of the side of the building and hope for the best.

Thankfully, most of himself landed on the roof with a dull 'thud', so he only had to scramble to turn and get his legs onto it entirely. Then he stood up, and he held a hand out to Naveen, to hopefully get him to go next. "Come now, I made it across, so surely you can as well."

At that same time, the door to the house Naveen was in was suddenly kicked open. Though they might not be visible from where the men are, a pair of soldiers have entered the house and are searching the first-floor rooms.

LUCA AND NAVEEN'S RAD ADVENTURE

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