A bullet wizzes past the boys' heads, shattering the glass store window in front of them.
Sam yelps and dives behind Fred for cover. "Gee, thanks," Fred grumbles. "Glad to know I'm your favourite meat shield."
"Just keep running!" Joe pushes Fred and Sam forward. The last thing he wants is an argument to break out and prevent them from escaping. "Fred, why do you have a bag of gold?"
"I don't know!" They slip around a corner, barely dodging a crowd of people. The guards are still on their tails, and slam through the crowd without so much as an apology. "I don't remember stealing it. And I think I would remember stealing something like this." Fred holds up the heavy bag that magically appeared in his pocket moments ago, and tucks it away in his pants again. "At least we know we're in Paris now."
"We just need to find someplace to hide and lay low for a bit. Keep moving."
The trio runs down the streets of Paris, startling every pedestrian they pass. The shouts of the guards continue to follow them as they run. Joe spots a gap in between two buildings. He slips into it with ease, pulling Fred and Sam in with him. Their feet continue to pound the pavement as they bolt down the alley. They're forced to run in a single file line, and still their shoulders graze the walls.
Joe winces as the brick tears at his clothes, pulling fabric and skin off. He feels a warm liquid drip down his arm. As much as he wants to stop, he doesn't. He can't.
Another bullet blasts through the air. Flakes of mortar fall into the boys' eyes. Sam yelps, stumbles into Fred, and they both fall to the ground. Fred reaches for Joe in an attempt to catch himself, but only manages to pull Joe down with them. They slam into the earth.
The trio doesn't even have time to groan before they're pulled to their feet and find themselves face to face with five furious guards.
"You three are under arrest for theft, attempt to avoid capture, and assault of a royal guard." The guard huffs, taking a moment to lean against the wall. He has to pant between every word. "You are to be taken to prison forthwith, and to be tried in three days' time."
"Assault? We didn't assault anyone. And we didn't steal anything either!" Fred struggles and fails to get out of the guards' unrelenting grip.
The guards holding Fred rummage through Fred's pockets, pulling out the bag of gold coins. He shoves it into his own pocket. "Then how did you come into the possession of this? Did it magically appear in your hands?"
"You didn't get rid of it?" Sam shrieks at the same time Fred says, "Yes!"
The guards exchange raised eyebrows and chuckles. Their humor is short-lived. They shove the boys in front them, holding their guns to the back of their heads. "Nice try, boy. Now shut up, and come with us. Any more crazy-talk, and we'll lock you up in the looney-bin."
Joe, Sam, and Fred are unceremoniously dumped into a prison cell. It's dark and crowded, three other bodies already occupy the space. There's only one window, but it's too small for more than one person to see out of at a time. "You lunatics are going to wait here until your trial. And no more talk of magic!"
"But I didn't take the stupid- forget it." Fred crosses his arms and lets out a harsh breath of air. "Why does this always happen to us? We never even do anything wrong. I mean, how many times have we been thrown into jail?"
"And to think, if you had just listened to me, we could still be sitting in Joe's bedroom eating birthday cake." Sam glares at Fred. "Who knows if we'll ever find The Book now?"
Fred sticks his tongue out at Sam.
Joe sighs, sits back against the wall, and thinks through the situation. He hadn't meant for this to happen. All he wanted was to find his Uncle Joe. Why would The Book take him to old France to find his uncle? There must be something he's missing. But what?
"Why is it always my fault whenever we warp?" Fred and Sam's argument drags on in the background.
"Um, because it is?"
"That's not true. It's been Joe's fault at least three times."
"But you-"
A sharp voice cuts them off, "Will you two shut up? It's bad enough I must rot away in a prison cell. The last thing I want is to hear two morons fighting." The voice comes from a few cells down. "I shouldn't even be in here anyway. Don't they know who I am?"
Another voice, this one closer, scoffs. "That's what they all say. And yet, they all end up in prison just the same."
The trio jumps, moving closer together. The new voice came from inside their cell. For the first time, they get a good look at the three other people imprisoned with them. It's three girls, all of which appear to be around the boys' age. The one sitting in the middle squints at Fred and Sam, her emerald green eyes unimpressed. "Are you two crétins done? As annoying as the Comte is, he does have a point. You two are very annoying. I'm trying to get my beauty sleep."
Fred opens his mouth to respond, but shuts it quickly, taking a second look at the girl. "Hey, I know you. You're the girls who were running away from those guards. You're the ones they wanted, not us!" He pauses for a moment, the gears in his head slowly turning. "You put that bag of money in my pocket, didn't you? You're the reason we're in here!"
The girl smirks and scans Fred up and down. "So we are. What are you going to do? Have us arrested?"
Fred's fists clench, a low growl emitting from his throat. Joe swiftly slides in front of him, changing the focus of the room to him. "What my friend here is trying to say is, hi. His name is Fred. I'm Joe, and the other uh, crétin is Sam. We're sort of new to the area, and we were hoping for a warmer welcome."
Another girl, with brunette hair so messy it makes it seem like she's been in prison for years, speaks up, "Well, that's obvious. Look at how you're dressed. I'm surprised they didn't drag you into an asylum." She eyes the trio with grey-blue eyes, a crease forming in her brow.
"What's wrong with our clothes?" Fred looks down at himself. He's wearing his standard jersey and blue jeans. "Not a Giants fan?"
"No."
The third girl, whose glasses seem too large for her face, but enhance the size of her hazel eyes, finally joins the conversation. "And what our friend is trying to say is, it's nice to meet you. Her name is Arwen. I'm Juniper, and the girl who singlehandedly got us all arrested is Tessa."
"Wait, how did you three end up here if you escaped the guards at the market?" Joe steps forward and sits down across from the new girls.
"Forgery. Apparently, my document making skills have declined a bit. I'm a little out of practice." The girl with the green eyes, Tessa, lays her arms across her chest, like this is an everyday occurrence for her and her friends. She tosses a sly wink at Joe. "Don't worry. They can't keep us here for long. We'll be out in no time."
Joe looks away with a sudden desire to get out of the cell and away from these strangers.
"How are you so sure?" Sam raises an eyebrow at Tessa.
"Haven't you heard the rumors? Today is July fourteenth." The smallest girl, Juniper, says.
The boys stare at her with blank faces.
"Wow, just where are you three from exactly?" The blue-eyed girl, Arwen, tilts her head to the side. She hasn't looked away from the trio once.
"New York. Perhaps you've heard of it?" Fred's chest puffs up. "It's like a million miles away, but it's pretty much regarded as the greatest city in the world."
"Actually, New York City is only 5,834 kilometers away," Juniper says as if this is a well-known fact.
Again, the boys give the girls blank stares.
"Sorry, do you guys use the imperial system? Then it's 3,625 miles away." When everyone continues to stare at her, Juniper blushes and studies a chip in the wall. "Sorry."
"How do you know that?" Fred's mouth is slightly agape.
"Juniper here is our little mathmagician. She can do any math problem or number conversion in her head in thirty seconds, tops." Arwen throws a pale, muscular arm around her tiny friend. The praise only makes Juniper's cheeks redder. Her long black hair falls in front of her face, and she presses herself against the wall.
"Not that it's ever been useful," Tessa mumbles under her breath, earning a glare from Arwen. Tessa rolls her eyes, stands up, and looks out the window. She taps her long fingers along the edge, and pulls out a pocket watch, checking the time.
Without their cloaks on, the girls seem like any other Parisian citizen. Joe watches Tessa, not really knowing why, but he feels an urgent tugging in his gut, like Tessa is pulling on an invisible leash. The slim rays of sunlight reflect off her warm brown skin and make her auburn hair look more red than brown. She tosses her hair over her shoulder, and it nearly falls to her waist.
Joe's eyes are drawn to the pocket watch in her hands, trying to find the source of the tugging sensation. Something about it seems familiar to him, but he can't figure out why.
Arwen continues to talk to Juniper, trying to pry her out of her shell. Juniper's hair is as long as Tessa's, and she uses every inch of it to shield herself from view.
As soon as silence settles over the group, it's shattered by angry shouts coming from outside.
"Finally." Tessa beams.
"What's that?" Sam's fingers twitch as he backs away from the window.
"The French Revolution!" Tessa punches a fist into the air. "We are getting out of here."
"The French…" Sam's face pales to snow white. "Oh no. Oh no. Are we in the Bastille?"
"Where else would you be?" Arwen and Juniper stand, both look as happy as Tessa. The three girls gather by the window, clamoring to get a good look outside.
"This is bad. This is really, really bad." Sam runs to the door, rattling the bars.
"Um, why is this bad? If we're getting out, isn't that a good thing?" Fred puts his hands on his hips. "Do you want to spend the rest of your days in a tiny prison cell?"
"No! But I don't want to die either. This place is about to be stormed with soldiers."
"So?"
"And blown to pieces by canons."
"Oh."
The shouts outside gradually grow louder and louder, reaching a thunderous crescendo. A gunshot pierces the air, and all hell breaks loose.