fandomhigh | Summer Camp Wednesday [The Docks], Wednesday, May 16, 2018, mid-morning

Anakin stood on the edge of the docks, a dozen rowboats bobbing the water around him. The clouds above were looking threatening (and kind of...not gray, which was odd), but so far the day had been dry. There was a set of bleachers (with canopies above them) set up for any spectators to cheer from, and the ambitious vendors from Mooby's were selling burgers and fries.

"Welcome to our first day of summer camp activities," Anakin yelled through the megaphone he'd acquired from...somewhere. "Our first community building activity will be a teachers versus students rowing race from here to the Isle of Ikea. The winning team receives a Big Mouth Billy Bass because I don't want it in my house any more, and all the Swedish meatballs they can eat. The losers get sore arms and the pleasure of not owning a singing fish award. In the event of a rowboat flipping, our PE instructor Steve Rogers will be out on a jet ski for rescue missions."

He looked at all the contestants. "I'll know if you're capsizing on purpose. Also, he's not that good looking. Contestants, please put on your life preservers while I call out the teams. For the students: Sabine and Beaker, Astrid and Jason, Rufus and Aloy, Theron and Tip, Norman and Khadgar, Peebee and Bobby, and Jaylah and Peridot. For the teachers: Amaya and Tony, Kanan and Magnus, Reno and Jenkins, Cara and Deadpool, and Liam and Zoe. Racers, man--or woman, or other--your ships."

Once everyone was in place, Anakin raised his hand. "On your marks, get set...go!"

...And that was when it started pouring rainbow colored-rain.

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"Oh, hey, Tip," Astrid smiled a little faintly. She thought about lying, she thought about complaining, but she went straight down the middle of the road in her answer. "It's going okay, I guess. Are you doing the rowing thing, too?"

"Condescend much?" Aloy asked. Sort of mildly, for her habits. "But no. I haven't. We don't have water this deep where I'm from."

Tip nodded. "That's the plan. I've never actually done it before, so I'm not going to win or anything, but it sounded like fun." She looked up at the clouds. "Of course, I didn't expect to get rained on when I signed up."

"I haven't even started condescending you," Rufus said dryly. "When I do, you'll know."

Rufus was generally not subtle when he decided someone wasn't worth his time.

"Did you want to see what you're expected to be able to handle? Or would you prefer to just wing it?"

And Aloy had an incredibly low tolerance for any kind of condescension whatsoever. "I've seen it," she said, "But seeing something only tells you that much. We won't be winning this race this time, unless everyone else is as inexperienced as we are."

He shrugged his agreement.

"Losing is a state of mind," Rufus said, tucking his PHS away. "Besides, while I could think of someone who could use the fish, I don't really want it."

"And figuring out how to do this might be useful later," Aloy said, turning to look towards the boats.

"In that we can agree."

Rufus was all for picking up random skills that no one expected him to know.

He cast an eye up at the sky.

"Shall we see if we can get started before it rains?"

"Any idea what the Isle of IKEA is, anyway?" Sabine asked. Belatedly she thought this might get a weird answer.

"Right," Reno replied, grabbing one at a time. "Oar, oar. And row."

And without waiting for a cue, he did just that. Backwards.

"... Not like that, though."

Hey, he could suck at this. He was still enjoying it.

"... Probably," Kanan agreed, though he was kind of chuckling sheepishly all the same. No, he didn't have magic, but it wasn't like the Force was all that far off, either. "I'm sure we've got this handled anyway."

Well. They wouldn't come in dead last!

"AND YOU WOULD NOT WANT REFUSE TO BE EVERYWHERE," Peridot agreed, loudly.

And then banged the lid against the garbage can, just to make extra racket.

Oh, Sidon. So delightfully subtle, honest. Norman smiled faintly for a moment, and then kind of shook his head.

"Determination, I'll cop to," he replied. "Though I'm really just interested in meeting people, I think. But thanks, Sidon. I do appreciate the encouragement."

"Not hardly at all," Astrid admitted, with a wry snort. "I mean, I've been on boats and stuff, but I was never the one rowing. Sorry. I think you're taking the lead on this one."

"Not quite like that, no," Jenkins said. His poor suit was turning a most disconcerting shade of eggplant. He didn't want to know what his hair might be doing. He picked up the second set of oars and got them ready. "Follow my lead, perhaps?"

"Yeah," Reno agreed, his own suit turning a shade of blue that reminded him of his pre-Meteor days. Ah, doomsday blue. "Here, you row, an' I'll just do what you do, yo."

Seriously. He was so easy, here.

"Of course!" said Sidon brightly; if there was one thing he had in spades, it was encouragement. He just felt so glad that he had so many opportunities to show it...and to so many people! "I will most certainly be cheering you on from the sidelines with gusto!"

And Tip, too. And Peridot. And everyone, really, but he would try to be especially loud and encouraging for Norman. And Tip. And Peridot, too.

...and everyone.

Ahem.

Astrid's eyes followed Tip's. "I guess," she mused, "they probably didn't want to cancel after putting all the effort into setting it up. I might hold out."

It reminded her almost of the sky in Amsterdam, and how they'd only really had a handful of sunny days, and all these hopes of rain that only were met half the time.

"I've never done anything like this before, either," she added. "Maybe we'll be paired up, and we'll spend the whole race just fighting to get ourselves out of a circle."

"Maybe," Tip agreed. "That could be fun in its own way."

"Tally ho, then," Jenkins said, and began to row.

Slowly.

"Well, just do your best," Jason said with a shrug. It wasn't like he was all that invested in the actual prize, although bragging rights were always good.

"Personally, I think that's a better prize than a singing fish, anyway," Bobby said.

"I see. Sticking at the task at hand can help you win, even if you're competing against people who are stronger and taller and likely more equipped at being in boats." Really, what had he been thinking? "Well, you look steady, and I don't think either of us is big enough to make this thing capsize. I've got magic on my side, but I'm not sure if that would be cheating."

Aloy sank down in her seat on one end of the boat. "Right," she said, "So we need to move these in the same direction, I know that much."

"Might as well," Aloy said, and turned, braids flying, to walk to the boat.

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Summer Camp Wednesday [The Docks], Wednesday, May 16, 2018, mid-morning

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