Story: "Up the Water Spout" Part 9
Sep. 17th, 2014 04:19 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
ysabetwordsmithThis story belongs to the series Love Is For Children which includes "Love Is for Children," "Hairpins," "Blended," "Am I Not," "Eggshells," "Dolls and Guys,""Saudades," "Querencia," "Turnabout Is Fair Play," "Touching Moments," "Splash," "Coming Around," "Birthday Girl," "No Winter Lasts Forever," "Hide and Seek," "Kernel Error," "Happy Hour," "Green Eggs and Hulk,""kintsukuroi," and "Little and Broken, but Still Good."
Fandom: The Avengers
Characters: Natasha Romanova, Phil Coulson, Clint Barton, Betty Ross, Bucky Barnes.
Medium: Fiction
Warnings: Mention of human trafficking and nonconsensual drug use. Slightly offstage sexual violence. Dubcon/Noncon.
Summary: Sometimes the Black Widow needs to hunt, and sometimes she needs help settling her personality afterwards. Uncle Phil arranges an extra ageplay session.
Notes: Hurt/comfort. Family. Fluff and angst. BAMF!Black Widow. Black Widow is creepy. Spiders. Coping skills. Asking for help and getting it. Hope. Nonsexual ageplay. Caregiving. Competence. Girl stuff. Toys and games. Gentleness. Trust. #coulsonlives
Begin with Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8. Skip to Part 11, Part 12, Part 13, Part 14.
"Up the Water Spout" Part 9
Phil put away the hula hoops. Next he brought out a carton of sidewalk chalk in several colors, along with some of the rocks that Clint tended to gather from places they visited. Phil herded the girls to a section of the gym with a smooth concrete floor. There he set out the materials.
"We're going to play hopscotch now," Phil said. "First we need to draw a hopscotch board. We'll start with a basic pattern, but there are plenty of others to choose from later."
Betty grabbed the green chalk and started outlining the grid. "I'll do the lines because I already know how they go," she said to Natka. "You can write in the numbers. Start with 1 in this square and put one number in each square. Make the lines thick because we'll be stepping on them. Use any colors you like." With swift strokes Betty drew the boxes.
Natka picked up the yellow chalk and colored in a fat numeral 1. Then she switched to blue for the 2. She worked her way up the layout to the top. Betty had drawn the 10 area as a half-circle and was busily adding sun rays to the outside of it in yellow and orange.
When they finished making the hopscotch board, Phil offered them the rocks. "Choose a potsy," he said. "We'll be tossing these in the boxes, so remember what yours looks like."
Betty promptly grabbed the best one, a piece of flat black basalt that was squarish and smooth. "You want one that's easy to hold, that will stay where you throw it and not roll or bounce away," she explained.
Natka looked over the rocks and chose a chunk of rough rust-colored jasper. Phil chose a lump of granite flecked in black and white.
"Start by tossing your potsy into Square 1," Phil said. "Stand on one foot. Hop over the square with the potsy in it, then through the other squares. Where the squares are side-by-side, you put one foot in each square. When you get to the end, turn around and hop back. Pick up your potsy and hop off the grid. You have to do all that without touching any of the border lines."
Betty demonstrated, hopping deftly through the squares and then scooping up her potsy at the end. "Your turn," she said to Natka.
Without hesitation, Natka threw down her potsy, hopped across the board, and landed back where she started. "This is silly and simplistic."
"Actually, Natka, the game of hopscotch began as a military exercise for Roman soldiers," said JARVIS. "The original board was over a hundred feet long. Soldiers wore full field equipment and ran through it at speed. It served a similar function as the modern exercise of running through rows of tires. Children drew their own smaller version of the hopscotch grid and added various rules for scoring, to turn it into a game."
"Hm," Natka said thoughtfully. She watched as Phil made his way through the hopscotch course. "Perhaps this could be made more challenging in some manner. I like the military history."
* * *
Notes:
Collecting rocks is a fun hobby with several variations. There are tips on how to collect, identify, and organize interesting stones. Clint doesn't care about any of the formal labeling. He just likes to pick up rocks that catch his eye.
Did you know that Hopscotch was originally created as a Roman era military training exercise?
Hopscotch is a historic game played in many versions around the world. The squares may be arranged in different patterns or numbers. In New York City the hopscotch stone is called a “potsy.” This game really did begin as a military exercise. Learn to play hopscotch or watch a video.
Hopscotch boards are most often drawn with sidewalk chalk. However, they can also be made with cardboard, canvas, foam mats, or other materials. Potsies may be plain rocks, painted rocks, crocheted beanbags, cloth beanbags, or anything else that will stay where you toss it. Gravel is good stuffing for outdoor beanbags.
Sidewalk chalk is thick and colorful, used to draw or to play games. You can even make your own.
[To be continued in Part 10 ...]
Fandom: The Avengers
Characters: Natasha Romanova, Phil Coulson, Clint Barton, Betty Ross, Bucky Barnes.
Medium: Fiction
Warnings: Mention of human trafficking and nonconsensual drug use. Slightly offstage sexual violence. Dubcon/Noncon.
Summary: Sometimes the Black Widow needs to hunt, and sometimes she needs help settling her personality afterwards. Uncle Phil arranges an extra ageplay session.
Notes: Hurt/comfort. Family. Fluff and angst. BAMF!Black Widow. Black Widow is creepy. Spiders. Coping skills. Asking for help and getting it. Hope. Nonsexual ageplay. Caregiving. Competence. Girl stuff. Toys and games. Gentleness. Trust. #coulsonlives
Begin with Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8. Skip to Part 11, Part 12, Part 13, Part 14.
"Up the Water Spout" Part 9
Phil put away the hula hoops. Next he brought out a carton of sidewalk chalk in several colors, along with some of the rocks that Clint tended to gather from places they visited. Phil herded the girls to a section of the gym with a smooth concrete floor. There he set out the materials.
"We're going to play hopscotch now," Phil said. "First we need to draw a hopscotch board. We'll start with a basic pattern, but there are plenty of others to choose from later."
Betty grabbed the green chalk and started outlining the grid. "I'll do the lines because I already know how they go," she said to Natka. "You can write in the numbers. Start with 1 in this square and put one number in each square. Make the lines thick because we'll be stepping on them. Use any colors you like." With swift strokes Betty drew the boxes.
Natka picked up the yellow chalk and colored in a fat numeral 1. Then she switched to blue for the 2. She worked her way up the layout to the top. Betty had drawn the 10 area as a half-circle and was busily adding sun rays to the outside of it in yellow and orange.
When they finished making the hopscotch board, Phil offered them the rocks. "Choose a potsy," he said. "We'll be tossing these in the boxes, so remember what yours looks like."
Betty promptly grabbed the best one, a piece of flat black basalt that was squarish and smooth. "You want one that's easy to hold, that will stay where you throw it and not roll or bounce away," she explained.
Natka looked over the rocks and chose a chunk of rough rust-colored jasper. Phil chose a lump of granite flecked in black and white.
"Start by tossing your potsy into Square 1," Phil said. "Stand on one foot. Hop over the square with the potsy in it, then through the other squares. Where the squares are side-by-side, you put one foot in each square. When you get to the end, turn around and hop back. Pick up your potsy and hop off the grid. You have to do all that without touching any of the border lines."
Betty demonstrated, hopping deftly through the squares and then scooping up her potsy at the end. "Your turn," she said to Natka.
Without hesitation, Natka threw down her potsy, hopped across the board, and landed back where she started. "This is silly and simplistic."
"Actually, Natka, the game of hopscotch began as a military exercise for Roman soldiers," said JARVIS. "The original board was over a hundred feet long. Soldiers wore full field equipment and ran through it at speed. It served a similar function as the modern exercise of running through rows of tires. Children drew their own smaller version of the hopscotch grid and added various rules for scoring, to turn it into a game."
"Hm," Natka said thoughtfully. She watched as Phil made his way through the hopscotch course. "Perhaps this could be made more challenging in some manner. I like the military history."
* * *
Notes:
Collecting rocks is a fun hobby with several variations. There are tips on how to collect, identify, and organize interesting stones. Clint doesn't care about any of the formal labeling. He just likes to pick up rocks that catch his eye.
Did you know that Hopscotch was originally created as a Roman era military training exercise?
Hopscotch is a historic game played in many versions around the world. The squares may be arranged in different patterns or numbers. In New York City the hopscotch stone is called a “potsy.” This game really did begin as a military exercise. Learn to play hopscotch or watch a video.
Hopscotch boards are most often drawn with sidewalk chalk. However, they can also be made with cardboard, canvas, foam mats, or other materials. Potsies may be plain rocks, painted rocks, crocheted beanbags, cloth beanbags, or anything else that will stay where you toss it. Gravel is good stuffing for outdoor beanbags.
Sidewalk chalk is thick and colorful, used to draw or to play games. You can even make your own.
[To be continued in Part 10 ...]
(no subject)
Date: 2014-09-17 11:06 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2014-09-17 04:05 pm (UTC)I grew up in New York, and hopscotch layouts are all kinds of (positive-) nostalgic for me.
I wonder what Natka's about to come up with.
Thoughts
Date: 2014-09-19 06:57 am (UTC)That's encouraging.
>> I wonder what Natka's about to come up with. <<
She has a few different ideas that show up in the next chapter, as does Betty.
Yay!
Date: 2014-09-19 07:16 am (UTC)Little things I love--
Date: 2014-09-17 05:07 pm (UTC)I love that Betty grabbed the /best/ stone for her marker, leaving Natka enough information to decide which of the remaining ones would be best. It shows that she's treating Natka as a serious player, not just a little sibling who is being taught to play and thus gets all kinds of subtle and not so subtle advantages.
Meaning, Betty expects Natka to get very good at the game after only one or two test runs.
I love that.
Showing Clint's rock collection is a subtle way to show his support for the activity; Phil isn't likely to borrow Clint's property without asking.
AND now... I have to wait for the next part. SIGH.
Re: Little things I love--
Date: 2014-09-18 07:27 am (UTC)That's true. It also shows Betty being just a little selfish, which she needs to remember too.
>> Meaning, Betty expects Natka to get very good at the game after only one or two test runs. <<
Well, Natka does have an adult body and a knack for physical skills. It's just a matter of learning new things. So it's not hard to predict if you think about it.
>> I love that. <<
Yay!
>> Showing Clint's rock collection is a subtle way to show his support for the activity; Phil isn't likely to borrow Clint's property without asking. <<
Sooth. It's not a time when having little!Clint right there would be helpful, but he can still help. Plus which, it fleshes out the kind of rock collection Clint keeps: he just picks up interesting things from places he travels. He's not painting tiny numbers on them and putting them in a case. He's keeping them in a box or a bucket, and it's not rare for him to take them out to play with -- as markers in a game, or just making patterns for fun.
>> AND now... I have to wait for the next part. SIGH. <<
Par for the course.
(no subject)
Date: 2014-09-17 07:50 pm (UTC)I'm continuing to love this.
Thank you!
Date: 2014-09-19 05:57 am (UTC)That's cool. Hopscotch can be played with many materials, though ideally, something nonskid is preferred.
>> We called our stone a "marker". Not very creative of us. <<
I found one article that listed multiple names. I usually say "puck" or "marker."
>> I'm continuing to love this. <<
Yay!
(no subject)
Date: 2014-09-18 09:27 am (UTC)Thoughts
Date: 2014-09-18 10:14 pm (UTC)That's cool. I'm good at it too -- it relies on balance and agility more than strength or stamina.
>> I was delighted to see that many schools now have permanent setups. <<
From what I've heard, that used to be more common on playgrounds than it is now. :( Pavement lines are cheap to make, unlike installing equipment. Some have patterns of four squares, or circles, or other things. Generic designs can be used for many games.
I swear, you could paint random designs and kids would invent rules to play with them -- actually a great idea, since it would encourage creativity and every playground could have its own unique local game. Then as kids travel, they could use chalk to replicate the lines for the games they knew, and trade them around. Huh, people are probably doing that in Terramagne, they have the art budget for it.
(no subject)
Date: 2014-09-18 11:41 pm (UTC)You're welcome!
Date: 2014-09-19 05:29 am (UTC)I'm happy to hear that.
>> Now I want to make some and go play in a park or something. <<
Go for it! Sidewalk chalk is available cheap, or you can make your own. I think I remembered to include links for both options.
>> This also helped to cheer me up after some bad news today. So I really want to let you know that I appreciate your writing. I will be doing some comfort rereading. <<
I'm glad I could help.