Topic: Child's Play

Johnny Smith

Date: 2008-02-26 23:54 EST
Sianna was well on her way to Yransea, if not there already, and the small house felt echoing and empty. It wasn?t that Johnny minded solitude ? when he was working, or on a few rare occasions. For the most part, however, he was a social type of person, and preferred to be around other people. It didn?t help that this was the first long separation in distance and time between Sianna and Johnny since they had met. He was pacing like a caged lion in the house. He needed a distraction, and one was already planned. Fortunately, the day had dawned cold, but clear and bright.

The Smith farm was a fair ride north of the city by wagon, but in this case, the wagon was necessary. After all, while it was certainly possible to walk the distance dragging a pair of sleds behind, that wasn?t exactly the sort of distraction Johnny had in mind. When he had found the hill not far distant from the farm, with the small iced-over pond near its base, he had been delighted. Sledding wasn?t something he?d often gotten a chance to do as a child ? there was enough work on the farm that play was stolen in snatches. He?d wanted to bring Sianna, but she had been busy preparing for the trip.

Juliane had quite frankly told him that if they went sledding together, she would end up killing her twin. Twin-bond echoed confusion, anger, resignation, and Johnny got the message. He was in spirits much too high for her to take comfort at the moment. They would talk, soon enough. In the meantime, he was out a sledding partner. It had seemed a stroke of genius to invite Katarina along; now he moved from pacing in the house to pacing on the front porch. The wagon he had hired was on the curb, already loaded with the sleds, a spare blanket or two, and a picnic basket. Now all he needed was his cousin!

Katarina Smith

Date: 2008-02-27 01:07 EST
Katarina loved colors against the white backdrop of snow. The way the light caught her eyes and the color stroked the bland background teased her creative mind. It was with no surprise then, that Katarina?s outfit was an array of bright colors. Between her jobs, Katie was either wearing black and whites, or whatever the opera needed. With her first day to herself in a long time, the dancer chose her clothing with extra care. A simple, purposely oversized turtleneck was decorated with a colorful throw and matching scarf. With much needed direction, Katie wore a simple pair of pants with bright red boots. Somehow, the colors complimented each other and gave her a cheerful disposition. With the activities in mind, she had brushed her hair countless times to hold a high shine, and pulled it away from her face. Makeup was left simple with a daring thin line of purple on her lashes to match the scarf.

?Johnny?s waitin? fer ya ta hurry up, Katie!?

She rolled her eyes, unsure which cousin had called out. With so little time to herself, she wanted to enjoy her time spent with Johnny. She did not add time and consideration to her appearance for him, but for herself. After the several attempts from Mac and Vera to go out and take a day to herself, she could not think of any more welcomed company than Johnny?s. Breezing out of her room, she peeked through a window to see him pacing across the porch, and she laughed quietly to herself. Her short time in RhyDin had already mended her relationship with her extended family, and it was a joy to watch it grow. Her time even with Sianna, and occasionally Hudson brought the best out in the ballerina.

?Quit yer pacin?, Johnay, I?m nah tha? late.? By Katarina?s standard timing, fifteen minutes was excellent progress. Smiling brightly for him, her eyes traveled to the wagon with unhidden curiosity, before looking back to him, ?Ya ready?? It was spoken in a teasing manner, as if it was she that had been waiting on him.

Johnny Smith

Date: 2008-03-05 16:23 EST
?See yer still likin? th? brigh? colors, Katie. Leas?wise ya learned ta coordinate enough ta keep m? eyes from bleedin?.? He was teasing even while he loosened the ties that held the horse and swung up to the bench that served as a driver?s seat. He took the reins with a wrap around one hand, then offered his other to help her swing up in turn. It was a feat she accomplished with far more grace than he had.

Teasing banter continued as they went from a well-maintained graveled road to a dirt path barely wider than the wagon. The horse plodded on patiently, and when they arrived at the sledding hill with the frozen-solid pond at the base, Johnny unhitched it from the wagon while Katarina hauled the sleds from the bed. Tying the horse to a tree, throwing over a coarse blanket to help keep it warm and fastening on a nose-bag with grain took only a few minutes. Johnny grinned up at the tall hill in front of them, then over at Katie as he took the rope to one of the sleds. ?Race ya ta th? top??

?Race ya ta th? top, snowflake?? Long and lanky and not grown into his hands and feet yet, Johnny?s grin already had the broad and friendly openness that would later become such a recognizable trait. He was barely fourteen, Katie just twelve. She moved with considerably more grace than he did ? consequence of all the bouncing and leaping around she did as she tried to mimic the moves in the holovids of ballerinas. But his legs were longer, and it was a pushing, shoving, laughing, breathless match as they raced up to the top of the hill, dragging their makeshift sleds behind.

Rare escape ? they had played hooky from lessons, and would probably suffer the consequences of that later. Juli had refused to take part in the madness, and kept Meggie in the classroom as well, despite Meggie?s pleading looks. Johnny and Katie had snitched two long, thin, and broad pieces of wood from the stores of supplies intended to be used as furniture, later. It didn?t snow often on Hope, so none of the Smith family owned actual sleds. Besides, there wasn?t time for this sort of play unless it was snatched from lessons or chores.

When Katie managed to plant an elbow into Johnny?s gut as they neared the top of the hill, he doubled over to catch his breath. She gave a whoop of victory as she threw herself onto her board and arrowed off down the hill. He shouted a protest and flopped down onto his own piece of wood to skid down after. His greater weight meant that they reached the base of the hill at the same time, and he dove from his board to tackle her, laughing.

Katarina Smith

Date: 2008-03-06 03:27 EST
?I hav?ta wear brigh? colors so ya dun lose me when I slide passed ya.? The bantering was easy to slip into, and she was comfortable with that relationship. She eyed the horse for a moment, a bitter memory flickering through her mind before she was hoisted up. The grace was easy to find with her love of dance and her years spent on a horse. She was definitely glad that she abandoned the skirts and dresses for their outing.

It was almost as if all the years of absence ebbed away on their journey to the sledding hill. Since Katarina did not know if this location, she leaned against Johnny companionably and watched the pretty scenery pass by. She found the snowy winters to be her favorite season, since they were so scare in Hope. Once they arrived, her eyes were already scoping out the best trail, and the untouched snow that practically begged for her to conquer. Sliding off the horse with Johnny?s assistance, she went to the wagon and reached for the sleds, grabbing the one she decided was better closer to her so that Johnny would take the other. Her competitive streak was small, but always present when it came to sledding with this particular cousin.

?Race ya ta th? top??

She blinked as the words were ones he said whenever they sled, and she had to laugh with memories. ?Dun ya eva learn ya lesson, Johnnay?? In her more mature age, she did not even wait to begin the pushing and shoving. She knew that Johnny would never harm her, but he would not be easy on her just because she was a woman. ?An? dun break mah sled this time!? She breathed as they continued to race to the top. She was more agile in the snow, but he had longer legs.

?Duncha dare Jo-? Katie did not have a chance to finish her warning before he was already tackling her. Her laughter was bright and merry, the snow cold against the side of her face, ?Johnnay Smith, someone?s gonna hear us, an? then we?re in even more trouble than we already are!? This was spoken in between breaths of laughter despite herself. Katarina did not mind missing the classes, and simply smirked to Juli?s disapproval. At this time, the cousins did not get along well. Simply because Katie did not mind breaking rules for fun, and Juli did.

The one advantage that Katie had over Johnny was brothers. All of his siblings were sisters, but Katie had one sister and two brothers; wrestling was not a foreign concept. ?Ha!? She proclaimed as she pinned his wrists down. His was bigger though, and they rolled right onto her makeshift sled. It was not meant for both of them, and it fell apart under their joined weight.

?Oof.? She said as her back fell on top of the broken wooden pieces. ?Now look wha? ya did.? Tsking, Katie blindly reached out for a handful of snow, and smacked it onto Johnny?s face. He laughed and recoiled, while Katie jumped at the opportunity to steal his sled. ?Dun lose me!?

Johnny Smith

Date: 2008-03-11 12:56 EST
?I ain? learned a lesson I din? hav?ta in years, Katie-Kat ? see ya at th? bottom!? They?d reached the top almost simultaneously, and Johnny flung himself onto the sled with the same abandon he?d displayed half a lifetime ago. The hill was taller, but the competition was the same ? and laughter rang out as Katie used a running leap to gain greater momentum when she launched down the hill. ?Yer bouncin? aroun?s finally payin? off!?

Scraping snow from his face, Johnny pelted after Katie as she raced up the hill ? the makeshift sled slowed her, and he was able to lunge and catch her ankle. ?Sled thief! Go? ya!? The board went skidding one way, and Johnny and Katie went the other in an uncontrolled tumble down the slope. Uncontrolled on Johnny?s part, anyway, since Katie had much better control of her limbs and a lot more innate grace.

She used that control and grace to land squarely on top of Johnny when they finally came to a halt, and he whoofed out a gasp of air and lay sprawling, spread-eagled, on the ground. There was snow melting down the back of his coat, soaking through pants and shirt alike; he groped for a handful of the snow and grinned up at his cousin. ?Think yer clever an? tha?, don? ya, landin? on me?? The handful of snow flew into her face at close range, and Johnny used her recoil to lunge up and free himself.

In the middle of a growth spurt, he wasn?t quite used to the additional length of his arms and legs. Lanky, he had the muscle that farm chores could build, but he wasn?t nearly to his full height or the development of muscle that stone and metal-work would later give. All of that meant it was hardly a surprise when he tripped over himself in the middle of that lunge and went sprawling back into the snow, face-first this time. Katie's laughter echoed his own.

Katarina Smith

Date: 2008-03-15 01:53 EST
A trail of laughter followed her and she jumped onto her sled, keeping her body straight and narrow for maximum speed. She let out a whoop at the feel of the chilled air as it caressed her face. For a moment, the race was forgotten. Years of absence melted away as they relived activities from what seemed a lifetime ago. So many things were different now, and yet racing down a hill could still release any worries she might have.

Katie watched as Johnny turned and flopped onto his back, her laughter still bright. Her breathing was ragged, and they laid in the snow for a few minutes, trying to catch their breaths. Her face was cold from the fistful of snow from Johnny, and she was sure that her clothes were soaked to the skin. ?We?re gunna hav?ta thin? o? wha? we?re gonna do nex? year if they?re ain?t no snow.?

?Slid? down th? pine needles, snowflake??

She laughed more, and sat up, not minding the snow that clung to her form, ?We do tha? all the time. Oh biscuit it?s gittin? cold.? They could not risk getting dry clothing and be caught for ditching lessons. She stood, and now started to brush the snow away, ?Hey, didn?cha say tha? Caleb was gonna come, also?? She walked over to her laying cousin, and offered a slender hand to help him up.

?Yeah, said tha? he was gonna met us a? th? bottom o? th? hill. So, tha? means,? He took her offered hand and yanked her back down, ?We gotta wai?.?

They were almost neck and neck now. She leaned on her sled to slide close to him, ?This is fer all th? times ya ?n yer friends picked on me!? With laughter in her eyes, she made a move to push him off