How Many Legs Again? (Tori)

[Amber Krasenski]

As soon as the dates for the community fair had been announced Amber had asked Tori to go with him. The combination of games and deliciously unhealthy foods simply couldn't be beat, especially when the weather was nice.

And it had been nice. Perfect, even. The ideal weather for expending energy in lighthearted competition out of doors.

To that end he had dragged his younger friend to the three legged race, eager to sign up and see just how well they could do tied together.

"We can go get snocones after!" He exclaimed in excitement as the volunteer relegating their race knotted a rope about their legs. "And the petting zoo! And pony rides! We should definitely do the pony ---"

His enthusiasm was interrupted by the volunteer stepping back and lifting the whistle tied about her neck. "Okay, participants! When I say go then run. On your mark..."

The groups lined up at the starting line leaned forward, not all in exact alignment with their partners.

"Get set..."

Lips were licked and palms dusted in determination.

"Go!"

Amber lunged forward, not necessarily giving thought to the pace of his partner.

[Tori Peterson]

Tori had accepted the invitation of her older friend, eager to explore the town she now lived in and get more acquainted with the local events and such. Amber was one of the nicest people she had ever met, though she hadn't quite expected - and wasn't really prepared for - the boundless energy that her older friend exhibited once the two of them got to the fair.

"We can get snocones after!" he exclaimed, tugging her by the hand to the three-legged race. "And the petting zoo! And pony rides! We should definitely do the pony-" Tori's head was spinning as she tried to keep up, and she was somewhat surprised to look down and see their legs already tied together.

"Okay participants! When I say go then run. On your mark..." Tori quickly looked around and adjusted as she saw everyone else doing. Right. Three-legged race. She started feeling the friendly yet competitive air, and grinned while glancing at Amber. "You ready?" she asked almost devilishly.

"Get set..." She noted the difference in leg size and made a mental note to take long steps.

"Go!"

Tori was nearly lifted off her feet by Amber's eager step, stumbling after him for a few strides before falling in step and running in tandem. The two of them were ahead of most, but there were a few pairs ahead of them. "C'mon, let's win this thing!" she said excitedly to her race partner, eager to overtake the other pairs.

Damn, it had been a while since she had really let loose, hadn't it? It felt wonderful, and Tori sped up her strides, encouraging Amber to run even faster.

[Amber Krasenski]

As a member of the Hammel soccer team Amber was capable of running swiftly. However, soccer involved running solo; a three legged race was a different beast altogether, and one he had less (read: none) experience with.

"Onward to the finish line!" He exclaimed in response to Tori's exhortations, his own pace increasing to match his partner's. There was only one pair ahead of them at the moment, a mother-daughter team who were running with more ease than most of the other teams, but the sound of tramping behind them suggested that at least one other pair was catching up.

"Ah, hurry! We can't let them win!"

Second place would, of course, be more than acceptable, but half the fun of competitive games was the braggadocio that accompanied them.

[Tori Peterson]

"Ah, hurry! We can't let them win!" Tori smiled at Amber's enthusiasm and picked up her pace, though she was near her maximum speed for clumbsy three-legged races as it was. She didn't have nearly the height that her race partner did, and so her strides were shorter than his, which made it a bit difficult to maintain his speed. Nevertheless, she tried. If only I could fly to the finish line...

They were gaining on the mother-daughter team ahead of them, and as the two pairs grew near the finish line, it looked as though they might make it to first place. Just a few more strides...

[Amber Krasenski]

Confidence grew as they gained on the team up ahead. That the speed he was encouraging was difficult on his shorter teammate hadn't yet occurred to Amber, who was too eager to win to focus on much else.

Until a winged insect flew in front of them. His first instinct when faced with possible wasps was perhaps not the safest, but his control wasn't yet good enough to prevent him from shifting and so suddenly the ropes binding his and Tori's legs together were half empty as human became tiny spider.

The grass was so big]/i], even flattened as it was by racing sneakers, and he struggled over a giant blade in time to see the enormous legs of the mother-daughter team crossing the finish line.