An Unusual Sight... ¦Open¦

[Jared Tempest]

"What on earth is he doing?"

"Has that boy gone mad?"

"He's going to break his legs if he keeps that up..."

These and countless others were statements and questions which Jared Tempest had long ago grown used to hearing. The citizens below watched him intently, muttering words of confusion and disapproval in equal measure. After all, it isn't every day one sees a boy of about seventeen running across the rooftops, jumping from building to building; especially with a confidence and ease of poise that would tell a spectator he'd done this before.

Jared, however, ignored the comments and questions coming at him from the streets. He cared not for the opinions of people who held no influence over him, and the way he saw it this was the fastest way of getting from place to place. He'd been all over the city, delivering goods from his mother's bakery to customers around Camelot, and was now on his way back with the money with which those customers had parted. The problem was that he was now running late, and the horribly congested streets would only slow him down further. So it was with the intention of making sure he got back on time that the boy had secured the numerous purses and pouches on his belt and scaled a blacksmith's shop to get onto the rooftops.

The decision had made perfect sense in his mind, and with nothing slowing him down he'd gotten back to the bakery with a good few minutes to spare. He was now perched upon the roof of that humble little bakery like a bird in a tree, leaning tentatively forward to peer over the edge of the building and make sure the drop below was clear. He smiled to himself to see that it was. Time to drop in on mother; he gripped the edge of the roof and vaulted over the edge, using his handhold to rotate as he swung down, then kicked off the wall and released the roof to drop to the ground.

While her colleague, a recently hired girl of fifteen, gasped at the sight as Jared suddenly dropped in from above, Emilia offered no reaction but a smile.
"Rooftops again, I see," she stated matter-of-factly, as if this was a frequent occurrance - which, truth be told, it was.
"The streets were packed," Jared retorted apologetically. "I'd never have gotten back in time." He reached to his belt, undoing the strings that kept the three purses in place, and dropped them on the counter. "Paid with a smile, as usual." Emilia smiled herself to hear this, taking the purses and placing them on a shelf beneath the counter.
"Good work, my boy," she responded, reaching into a pocket and withdrawing a handful of gold coins. She extended her hand towards Jared, who accepted the payment with a grateful smile. Unfastening his own leather pouch, he dropped them in before closing the container. It was getting full; might soon be time to head home and empty its contents into the chest that held the rest of his accumulated wages for these odd jobs. He'd cut his hand on his last delivery run; perhaps some gloves were in order...

[alexis]

A bay gelding made his way down the packed streets. He picked his way along with the surefooted ease of his breed, avoiding stalls with vendors shouting their wares and carts and wagons transporting goods. His rider never even twitched a finger on the reins or putting any pressure on the horse's barrel. One had rested on the horses withers with the reins held loosely, the other rested near a rucksack and water skin slung over her shoulder and a knife in its sheath on her belt. A casual pose for protecting against pickpockets. She swayed in beat with the horse's hoof falls, riding bareback.

Murmurs reached Lexi's ears about some kid leaping over the rooftops. She straightened a bit, looking around. And there he was, leaping from rooftop to rooftop with ease that only practice brought. Lexi pulled slightly on her leather reins and the bay stopped, patiently awaiting command to continue on. Lexi craned her neck to watch the boy, a couple years younger than herself, jumped out of sight. Lexi squeezed her horse’s barrel slightly and he continued on.

So the kid was headed to the bakery too? Well, they might meet up there! Lexi already had several questions about rooftop-jumping to ask, and she really wanted to try it. It seemed like just the thing she’d do for the heck of it! Lexi stopped her horse in front of the bakery and dismounted smoothly and patted his back. Dropping the reins on the ground, she moved around to his head and spoke sternly. ”Now, I taught you how to stand still while I’m gone, and if anyone but I comes too near you, you make suck a ruckus as could wake the dead, yes?” Brown eyes met her own green/brown mix with the look that only a horse can give. Lexi sighed. ”Stay.” Then she counted out a few coins into her hand and entered the bakery.

”Hello? I’d like to buy some bread, please,” she called. She made sure to keep her horse in sight out of the corner of one eye. Still have to name him, she thought to herself. He stood, watching everything going on around him and occasionally looking back to her, calm as could be. Lexi waited.

[Jared Tempest]

The ever-recognisable clip-clop of horses' hooves reached Jared's ears and he looked around for a moment. It seemed odd to him that someone would ride a horse through these crowded streets; odder still that there was even room for a horse. The rider, a female with a knife upon her belt, rode bareback towards the bakery. Some distance away she dismounted and spoke to the horse for a moment. Perhaps she was training the animal.

Jared remained in place as she approached the building. Emilia, wearing her usual smile, saw only another customer. At the woman's request she gave a nod, turning on her heels and disappearing into a back room. It was where most of the shop's stock was stored, for the conditions were ideal for preserving fresh bread as long as possible; finding a loaf that had been baked an hour or so previously, she returned to the counter and handed it over.
"Here you are, my dear," she stated with a warm smile.

Jared watched the proceedings with faint interest, as if he had nothing better to do than observe his mother at work. He glanced down at his money pouch, opening it for a moment and peering in at the contents. Definitely time to empty it into the chest back home. He fastened the flap shut again, rubbing his hands together. Why was he standing around? It was freezing out here.

[alexis]

Lexi took a quick peek back behind her at the bay while the lady disappeared into another room. He was fine, of course, just trying to keep himself out of trouble. She turned back and saw the boy who seemed to take enjoyment out of leaping buildings. She repeated her question in her mind so she wouldn't forget it and get distracted, as was a bad habit of hers.

"Thank you," she said as she took the loaf of bread. She passed the coins she already had in her hand to the lady, who seemed very nice. She nodded once, then walked over to the rooftop leaper. She decided to call him that until she learned his name.

"Hey there! My name's Alexis Gadia, but just call me Lexi." She grinned up at him, for he was a couple of inches taller than her. "I saw you jumping buildings, and it looked fun. I'd like to try it! But I don't know anywhere to get up on the roofs." Irrepressible curiosity burned in her like fire. She forgot for a moment about her horse, but quickly remembered him and checked on him again, then turned back to the rooftop leaper.

[Jared Tempest]

A chirpy female voice drew Jared's attention and he turned to see the horse rider grinning up at him like a child. Taken aback by the sudden attention, not to mention her proximity, he couldn't help but blink incredulously as she spoke.

So she wanted to learn his personal art? Fair enough. His face softened, his initial surprise replaced with a faint but warm smile. First things first: introductions.
"A pleasure, Lexi," he responded politely. "Name's Jared Tempest."" He paused for a moment, looking at her as if measuring her sincerity about this. He was honestly quite surprised that she wanted to learn how to free-run rather than looking down on him like everyone else. Then again, she did look quite the free spirit...

"And I thought I was the only person with a flagrant disregard for society's opinions," he chuckled, mostly to himself. "The first thing you need to know is that this isn't a hobby that just anyone can pick up. It takes a lot of physical strength and endurance, months - maybe years - of practice, and a total lack of fear. If you think you've got what it takes, then feel free to give it a try. The second thing is that, with enough practice and knowledge, you can climb almost any building."

He looked around for a decent building upon which to demonstrate before remembering that the side of the bakery was quite easy to scale. There were a number of ledges and handholds in the form of windowsills and protruding bricks that one could use to climb the wall at a good speed if one knew the quick routes. Jared had that knowledge, for he always used the bakery to get onto the rooftops when he was running an errand that didn't require him to carry anything bigger than a large pouch.

He stepped around Lexi, circling the bakery until he was at a decent angle from the wall, then took a run-up and leapt up onto the surface. His hands darted up to catch a brick and the top of a low window and he pulled himself up until he found the usual footholds. From there he scaled the building with an ease borne of frequent practice, moving with a great deal of confidence. It took him less than twenty seconds, from when he first secured his grip on the protruding bricks and ledges, to climb up onto the roof, and as he hauled himself up onto the edge of the building he gave a triumphant laugh.

"It's all about learning the fastest sequences," he called down to Lexi. "Analyse the surface. Find a set of solid handholds and ledges that you can use to climb all the way to the top. Windows, bricks, signs, scaffolding - whatever's there."

[alexis]

Lexi followed Jared to the side of the bakery, excited like a little girl with who just got her first pony. She was quite sad to not have a good reason to call him rooftop leaper anymore. It was funny to her, a private joke between herself and herself. Those were always the best ones, especially when you burst out laughing for no apparent reason and everybody looked at you funny. That always made her laugh even harder.

She watched with interest as he scaled the side of the building, going up quickly and easily. She was very impressed, and itched to try. But she waiting until he finished his instructions, and took a close look at the wall. She tucked the loaf of warm bread into her rucksack for safe keeping.

Yes, there was a couple of foot- and handholds she could use. She plotted her route up the side. No, she was too short to reach that hold without risking a fall. And she couldn't use that brick, it looked a bit too rickety. She could use that window instead though, she she didn't have to make a detour.

Lexi looked back down at the lower part of the building, then approached the wall and stuck her feet into position. She grabbed a hold and made sure to test the bricks before continuing a step up.

One step, test, another step, test, another step, test. She slowly but surely made her way up the wall. Three-fourths of the way there, a brick suddenly gave way under her right foot as she reached for holds on her left side. She bit back a startled cry and dangled by only one hand. She scrabbled for a second to find another hold. It wouldn't have hurt nothing to jump back down, but she'd have to start all over again, and she was almost there!

Lexi regained her holds and continues up, then clambered onto the top of the building, slightly winded. It'd taken her a couple of minutes, four to be honest, but she convinced herself it was three and a half. She looked at Jared and grinned broadly. "That was awesome!" She looked around and down at the city. It was beautiful. "The view is fantastic from up here!"

[Jared Tempest]

Jared leaned forward upon his perch at the edge of the roof and looked down the wall at Lexi. She was making progress; slowly, but with a sure-footed confidence, she was ascending the building, taking heed of his advice and scaling the wall using a vaguely pre-planned route. He stiffened, a frown of concern crossing his features, as a weak brick gave way beneath her weight and she temporarily lost her footing. Fortunately she maintained her grip and held fast; an unexpected fall from that height could injure her if she didn't gather herself and land properly. The boy's warm smile returned as Lexi recomposed herself and kept climbing, her confidence momentarily shaken but not diminished.

"Impressive for a beginner," came his words of praise as she pulled herself up beside him. She'd taken quite a while, but at least she'd managed it with just the one unforseeable slip-up. Slowly, making sure of his footing on the snow-covered roof, he got to his feet. Gleaming cerulean eyes scanned the surrounding buildings. "Watch your footing up here, and concentrate on where you're going. The rooftops are more dangerous in the snow."

[alexis]

Lexi looked back down at her feet for a second. She hadn't thought about the snow being very dangerous. With her tendency of slipping on nothing, she'd have to be careful. But she itched to run and jump like Jared was able to, but she knew, like anything, it could take time and practice. The cold wind was stronger up here, and it bit her face with needles. Slightly annoyed, she glared north, as if that would help. Of course, it didn't. It never did. She shrugged to herself and turned back to Jared.

"Yeah, true. So what next?"