The Tug of War Contest - Day 3 - DONE!

The crowd mumbled and talked amongst each other as they watched the participants -- half of them extremely muddy, the other half extremely pretty -- return back to the rope. When Typhus was the last to join up, the crowd let out a roar, once again pumping the levels of joy and festivity deep into the air!

Ganymede laughed as well and clapped her hands, turning away from the rope to present herself to the crowd. "So, we go again!"
She whipped back to look at them, her revealing gown sliding and caressing around her naked flesh, the color of wine on her body while huge flowers blossomed at the top of her head.

"Contestants, brace yourselves," she said to them, giving a wink to the feminine side.

She waited until The Sparrow, @totallynotadragon, Alliandre Saleia, Typhus, Raoul Ferdinand, and Kaine Aislinn took their spots, and then dropped her arms with a shout of "GO!"

She perched her hands on her hips, weight shifting to one side in a look of total attitude, but there was a gamine grin on her face. She laughed as Kaine Aislinn shout out that he'd buy drinks for all the women if he lost again, and she pointed at him. "You're on!"

She'd technically already been to the Ale Garden with @totallynotadragon, and had pounded down four ales from the flagons a few days ago, and she was ready and able to drink more. Curiously, she hadn't even gotten drunk that time. No doubt, the clever Sparrow had tricks up her sleeve.

"That's alright," the Sparrow said to Alliandre Saleia as she went up to grasp the rope in her hands. "We've got a secret weapon," she said and tipped her head in Draga's direction.

When Ganymede gave the sign, she pulled!

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Seren pushed through the crowds that were gathered in order to get to the front, still in her purple dress. She had wound up not returning it, after thinking all night on how Typhus treated her and protected her. She had come to the conclusion that it might be insulting if she were to do that, as she realized now that everything her white-haired protector did for her was something of a gift.

Instead, she chose to try to be more aware, as much as she could be. Typhus had entered into the Tug o' war contest and she was there at the edge to support him. He had lost once, she now saw, the young man covered in mud, but hopefully this time they would win. "Come on, Typhus!" she called, bouncing on her heels, her hand clasped together at her chest.

Raoul shook his head and gripped the rope tightly. He still wasn’t sure what the custom about this game was, but he was determined to at least make a good show of it. “Right, lads. Win or lose, I’ll stand you two a round afterwards.” He laughed softly and leaned back, trying to decide how hard to pull even when Ganymede Galaii gave the signal.


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Ganymede bust out laughing as the men seemed to pull for their honor. The women hardly even stood a chance -- although Ganymede's sly eyes had noticed @totallynotadragon -- and they were yanked into the mud, splattering all over their fine clothes. The entire crowd was roaring with laughter, tears of mirth in their eyes, hands on their bellies as if they were afraid it might fall out. Some even had to rush away to pee.

They looked ridiculous, but it was all in good fun. Clapping a little, she walked forward as the women tried to slip up out of the mud. "Well done!" She called to the men who had won -- Raoul Ferdinand, the King of Prospernalia, Kaine Aislinn, the Archery Sharpshooter, and @typhus, the boy with the chip on his shoulder.

"Ladies," Ganymede laughed. "At least you won the biggest prize." She gestured for servants to come forward. Given how much more casual this contest was than the others, she made no proud announcement to the crowd. 

A vial of the magic Fountain-of-Youth-esque waters of Sakandi were given to The Sparrow, @totallynotadragon and Alliandre Saleia, along with small chests that contained 25 gold coins each.

The men -- Raoul, Kaine, and Typhus -- each received small leather pouches that contained 10 gold pieces inside. Ganymede game them a saucy wink and then moved away. She had no intentions of embracing any of them and getting as dirty as they all were now.

In the moment, Raoul had decided to pull, and pull hard. Fun was fun, but the game could really only be so rigged before it became a farce. Besides, The Sparrow was on the other team, and wanted to see that one in the mud almost more than he wanted his flask of good brandy back at this point.

It seemed he wasn’t the only one that had the same, or similar ideas, as the whole team had dug in, put their backs into it, and hauled the ladies into the mud. He laughed and clapped Kaine Aislinn and Typhus on the shoulders. “Well done, lads. If you want to collect the drinks I promised, come find me at the Ale Garden. I’ll be the one trying to trade all his money for delayed hangovers.”

Draga shot Farrah a rude look as she hugged her before flicking her hands once more to remove muck from both of them.

Seren, however, waited for no one. When she saw that Typhus had won, she burst from the crowd with a wide and glittering smile, as pure and bright as the moon. Her glittering hair flowed around her as she ran across the distance and threw herself into Typhus' arms.

"You did it!" She said, so damn happy -- genuinely happy, not this fake nymph stuff -- as she hugged Typhus tightly and didn't care about the mud that was slicked all over him.

“You already got the only drink from me you’re getting!” Raoul pointed to The Sparrow , laughing as if it was a joke, but there was enough to an edge to it that some of the listeners might catch that the man genuinely disliked The Sparrow , and the comment wasn’t entirely lighthearted.

“Besides, you won more money than we did. Drinks should be on you anyway, right?” The follow-up, mainly aimed to Alliandre Saleia , seemed to be entirely lighthearted and in the spirit of fun and play, rather than actual animosity.