|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 Posted: Mon Apr 13, 2009 7:55 pm
All but shrieking with laughter, Sovann pushed at Okassis, trying to dislodge the trader. "Kas! Kas, scorch it! Get off of me!" He was not weak by anyone's standards, but boy did Okassis know how to hold on. Struggling beneath his friend, he reached for a bit of mud, and attempted to fling it at the already mud soaked candidate. "Kaaaaaas, come on!" He bucked, and fussed, trying to get free. "Geeze, how many herdbeasts have you eaten to get so heavy?" he complained, concealing his amusement over the entire situation.
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Apr 13, 2009 8:06 pm
"Only a couple," Okassis replied between chuckles. "Shards, stop making such a fuss, Sovann - it's good for your skin, remember?!" Years of rough living and wrestling with the other boys in the caravan were paying off for the Trader now; he grabbed for Sovann's arms, trying a maneuver to pin his squirming friend in the mud.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Apr 13, 2009 8:10 pm
"It might be good for my skin, but it's definitely not good for my clothes!" Sovann protested, once again attempting to budge Okassis off of him. Of course, as lucky (or misfortune) would have it, he only managed to squash the trundlebugs in his sack a little more. "Apparently a couple was enough! You're heaaaavy!" Ugh, so heavy. Making a few carefully times thrashes, he afforded himself a little freedom-- but alas, with his arms pinned, he couldn't manage to get Kas with the mud. Scorch it. If only he could turn the tables on him...
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Apr 13, 2009 8:14 pm
"Or your hair," Okassis noted gleefully, releasing one of Sovann's arms long enough to grind in a small handful. Laughing at his friend's muddy exterior, the trader released him at last, secure in his victory. "I dunno, Sov - at this rate, we might both be destined for browns!"
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Apr 13, 2009 8:18 pm
That was, until Sovann pounced him in return-- and pinned him into the mud. "I might be destined for a brown, but you're destined for a green. For sure." Grinning from ear to ear, he kept Kas pinned as well as he could, using the strength he had developed from hauling nets since he'd been big enough to do so. "My hair and my clothes can be washed, thankfully." Now Okassis was nearly as muddy as he was, and he didn't intend to stop until they were both tired of the game and covered in mud.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Apr 13, 2009 8:28 pm
Okassis didn't seem to give much fight when Sovann pinned him - but the determined grin on his face was enough to tell why. Sovann was a tough kid, sure; and seaholders weren't folk to mess with! But Okassis wasn't just a Trader who'd grown up on the road - he was his father's son, and that made him a breed apart. He'd been wrestling the other boys in the caravan since he was old enough to crawl, and winning. He was bulkier than the other boy, and a decent share of that weight wasn't fat. If Sovann thought he could keep him pinned, he was chasing a Harper's tale.
"You wanna lay money on that?" Okassis bared his teeth, throwing all his strength into breaking Sovann's hold. There was only one way this was going to go, and he knew it from the moment he walked into the Weyr. Okassis was strong, nimble, able, and determined. He didn't give up at anything, and he was here to prove it!
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Apr 13, 2009 8:32 pm
"Do you think I'm stupid? You never bet with a Bitran... and I swear there's some Bitran in you, 'cause how else would you win practically every bet you've ever made?" Sovann's bruised pride could handle being beaten... but only because it was Okassis. "Fardling traders and their benighted strength. It's really not fair, Kas, it really isn't," he bemoaned, getting to his feet and shaking himself off. His ego needed salving and he might end up sporting a few bruises, but by the Egg he had proven himself manly beyond a shadow of a doubt- hadn't he? Maybe he hadn't won, but he'd sure put up a fight.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Apr 13, 2009 8:48 pm
Having successfully proven his strength against the leaner Sovann, Okassis rolled away and sprung to his feet, grinning with his chest puffed out, ignoring determinedly a secret ache in his ankle. "Ha! You're tough enough, Sovann, but you're still Hold," he taunted, stretching out. "But don't worry, I won't sound too smug when you get that green." Chuckling, he retrieved his bag of bugs from where he'd set it aside and looked up to the sky. "We oughta get back to work, huh? Got a contest to win, after all!"
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Apr 13, 2009 8:54 pm
"At least if I Impress a green dragon, I'll still be a rider," Sovann taunted in return, tossing his head. "I may be from a Hold, but that doesn't mean anything. If we were having a swimming contest, I'd whip you. Just 'cause you're better at wrestling cause you Traders are rougher an' all doesn't mean you're better in all things." Not that Sovann cared so much. He just had to make it clear that while he'd lost this one thing, there were still other things he was better than his friend at. They were boys, after all, and there was no avoiding a little friendly rivalry. "Hnnn. You're right, we'd better get on with it... we've got loads of stuff to do."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Apr 13, 2009 9:07 pm
Keeping up the taunting banter the whole while, Okassis joined his friend and resumed the bug collection.
As could be expected, the chore took them more than a few candlemarks to complete. In fact, they might well be grateful for their coats of mud by the end of it; at least it kept the blazing sun off them as they worked into the afternoon. Gradually, though, the bags filled; and soon, Okassis decreed, they had enough. The herdbeasts paid silent witness to the boys' moment of victory as the last bug was dropped into the bag, and it was time to return to the Weyr at least - weary, covered with drying, flaking mud, and carrying small bags that seemed to writhe quietly.
"To the alcove!" Okassis boomed happily, seeming to still have enough energy for social theatrics. Once they pulled the curtain, they'd have enough privacy to continue their work without witness - and if collecting the bugs had been messy and tedious, the grisly process of de-legging them was guaranteed to be worse.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Reply
