(Yay!!! Congrats, I hope it goes well! ^^)
Snatch grinned wickedly, slipping into the shallows with the grace of an otter. "You'll never catch me, hehehe. C'mon Rebka!"
Rebka hitched up her long skirt and waded in happily. "Wait for me!"
Mike watched them frolic around Bernon with a small smile. "Do you ever think about how much we've done to change this village?" he asked Tanrial quietly. "We brought Snatch here, and Ryker's kids, and we moved Fear out of the lake, and helped them get rid of some local dangers. If we hadn't come along, none of that might have happened. It's….weird to think that just three people can have so much impact."
(Thank you :))
Tanrial sighed softly, slipping her hands into her pockets and rocking back on her heels, silent for a moment, "Anyone can make an impact on anything, doesn't matter if it's one person, three or twenty. It's slightly strange to think about, yes, but… maybe people need to think about this stuff more. Maybe more people would strive for change."
"Yeah….seems like most people who realize it don't end up using that power for the right reasons….like Ryker, for example. It takes a lot of work to counteract the bad effect his type have. But that just means we have to try harder, not give up." Mike stopped and shook his head in amusement. "Listen to us. We sound just like Bernon right now, don't we?"
Tanrial snorted, rolling her eyes and elbowing Mike in the ribs gently, "And there is nothing wrong with sounding like Bernon. Sure, sometimes what he says is cliche and cheesy but honestly? He's right on a lot of that stuff."
"Yeah, I know," Mike replied good-naturedly. "It's just weird sometimes, to actually say it out lou–"
At that point he abruptly disappeared underwater with a yelp. A second later Bernon, Snatch, and Rebka popped their heads up with a triumphant cheer. "We got him!" Snatch crowed. "Didja see that, Tanrial?"
Mike rose to the surface again with a gasp, now completely soaked. "Were you in on this, Tanrial?" he wheezed, pretending to glare at the others as they continued to laugh.
Tanrial doubled over laughing, hands on her knees as she shook her head, "Nope! I swear I had nothin' to do with that," She looked to Snatch, "Nice work! You shoulda seen your face Mike, that was priceless."
(I have to go to work soon, but hi! ^^)
Bernon grinned, clapping Mike on the back. "Now that you're all drenched, you have no excuse not to horse around with us for a bit. You two want to join our game of Lake Monster for a bit instead of having deep philosophcal discussions?"
(Hey! Sorry I went to bed shortly after that lol I’ll probs be awake tonight tho)
“Excuse me but I’m not drenched yet and I’d rather keep it that way thank you very much,” Tanrial grinned, “These are the nicest pants I know! And they have pockets!”
(lol okay)
Snatch made an indignant noise. "My pants have pockets too, and I'm not worried about getting them all wet!" Then she had an idea. "You can turn into a lion or wolf or somethin', right? Why don'tcha just do that so your clothes stay dry?" She demonstrated by shifting into her cheetah form, leaving out her wings since the feathers weren't of the waterproof variety. "C'mon, you'll make the best Lake Monster!"
Tanrial rubbed at the back of her neck, "I dunno, it's been a minute since I last shifted and it'll take me aggges, to dry. But fine, I guess if you really want me too."
She shifted, the large form of (insert name here because I can't remember what I called the creature) taking up a somewhat big portion of the shallows now. Her fur almost seemed to have the slightest purplish tint to it in the light now.
Snatch and Rebka stared at her in awe, their eyes shining. "Wowww! You're huge, Tanrial!" They quickly turned and dashed away, out of grabbing range. "Okay, let's do this!"
Bernon grinned and filled Tanrial and Mike in on the rules. "So, I guess you're the Monster, Tanrial. You have to chase us through the water and tag as many of us as you can. The only places you can't go are on dry land and up on that dock over there, and those are our safe zones. Once you tage someone, they stand in the shallows and you have to guard them as well as tag more people. If one of us touches a captured person, they're free and can't be tagged again until they're in and out of a safe zone once. If you tag everyone, you win. But if we can rescue everyone and get to a safe zone together, the round's over and someone else gets to be Monster. Make sense?"
(My cousins and I used to play a 'dry land' version of this, it was really fun xD)
(Lol, it kinda sounds like stuck in the mud only with a few more rules and an added safe zone)
Tanrial nodded once, preparing herself for the when the game started, Got it. She mind linked Bernon. Just count down to three or something and let's get this game started. You're going down!
(interesting! I'll have to look that game up sometime, I'm not surprised we weren't the only ones to think of it xD)
I don't think so, Bernon teased, waiting until he and Mike were in the safe zone with the two girls. They briefly discussed a strategy, then turned to face Tanrial again and got ready to run. "Three, two, one, go!" Instantly all four of them jumped off the dock and scattered, trying to make it as difficult as possible for Tanrial to catch them.
(Lol, true, I've been playing stuck in the mud for years. Also side note, probably won't be on like at all the next week apart from tomorrow and maybe Sunday night)
Tanrial leapt after them, though it was slightly more difficult then she thought as she waded through the water. Her fur weighed her down, putting the others at an advantage. She headed towards the girls, knowing that she might be able to corner and tag at least one of them.
(Okay, good to know! I'm gonna have a busy few days too, as it happens ^^; )
They shrieked excitedly and splashed away as fast as they could. Both were strong swimmers, but Rebka's skirt was weighing her down much like Tanrial's fur. Soon she was losing ground, unable to reach the shallows quick enough.
(Lucky then. I'm on work experience all week so I won't have my phone or anything)
Tanrial caught up fairly quick, nudging Rebka with the end of her nose and effectively tagging her. She almost chirped happily before she was off towards Snatch.
(oof, well good luck with it!)
Rebka quickly ran back to the place Tanrial had started from, hopping up and down as she waited for a rescue attempt. Snatch, for her part, made a dive for dry land and just made it in time. "Ha, I made it! Hurry up, you guys!"
Mike and Bernon, meanwhile, had chosen to play fair and go out into slightly deeper water, since escaping in the shallows would have been much easier for them. They stayed spread out warily, watching Tanrial to see where she would go.
Tanrial huffed, turning around and eyeing the two males warily. She knew she couldn't get both of them, well she could try but she doubted it. She prowled towards the two of them, almost looking like she was going to head towards Mike before changing her mind and heading straight towards Bernon at top speed. Or, as fast as she could go in water.
Bernon yelped and scrambled away, but was unable to push through the water fast enough, despite the girls cheering him on. "Gahhh nooo don't tackle me too hard!!"
(Fam… lovin' the new profile pic. Isa whole mood and I'm here for it)
She let out a sound similar to a laugh and nudged him with her nose albeit a litter harder then she had with Rebka. She turned around almost instantly, bounding towards Mike.
(ahaha thanks! Yes, making it was very therapeutic XDD)
By now, Mike was very close to the safe zone, and when Tanrial went for him he put on an extra burst of speed, trying to reach the shallows before she could catch up.
(Lol, it looks great! I wanna change mine but idk but to aha)
Fortunately for Mike, Tanrial caught her foot on a sharp rock and was sent sprawling into the water, sending small waves towards them all. By the time she had regained herself, there was no point in even trying to catch Mike.
(lol well good luck figuring something out!)
Snatch punched the air triumphantly as Mike reached dry land. "Yes! Now we gotta rescue the other two!"
Mike nodded, scrubbing lake water out of his eyes and glancing back at Tanrial. "You okay?" He called, half-laughing.
Tanrial huffed, or grumbled, or both it was hard to tell as she nodded, shaking herself off slightly. She was ready to go again, waiting for Snatch and Mike to make the first move.
They conferred again briefly to discuss changes in their battle plan, then nodded to each other and broke apart. Mike started methodically making his way into the lake, cutting a wide arc around Tanrial as he headed for the prisoners. Meanwhile Snatch dashed through the shallows, taking a much more direct course towards Rebka and Bernon.
Tanrial didn't know who to go for. She knew that she probably wasn't going to win as Snatch was too fast and Mike probably would be able to dodge her easily. But, she headed towards Snatch, bounding through the water.
Snatch screeched and tried to dodge around Tanrial, but ended up tripping on the exact same rock to upend Tanrial a moment ago. She went down with a splutter, right between Tanrial's paws. Mike, meanwhile, used the distraction to his advantage and quickly ran to the prisoners, tagging Rebka and making a break for the safe zone with her in tow.
Tanrial picked Snatch up, placing her on her feet and effectively tagging her at the same time. She turned around, going straight for Mike and Rebka. She was only a few seconds behind but they still had the advantage.
"Go go go," Mike told Rebka, making sure she was well on her way to dry land before suddenly peeling of and making a break for the docks instead. He had a small head start and a slim chance of making it in time, but in the deeper water he' be slowed down and he clearly wasn't a natural swimmer.
Tanrial sped up. Even though the weight of her fur was holding her back a little, luckily she made up for it in size. She reached Mike, skidding through the water, and pushing him in the back with her paw.