( open ) no gloves

[competing]

CHARACTERS: anyone? everyone!
DATE: jan. 8
WARNINGS: rough housing, dirty cheats, occasional profanity, copious amounts of snow puns i'm sure
SUMMARY: lance organized a snowball tag event and now everyone can hate him for it

[ the time has come. the day you have all been waiting for. today... we dine in snow hell heck.

or so you've been promised, anyway. whether you believe it or not, whether you decide to make the most of it or not, today is team audentes' annual (that's right, it's tradition now) game of SNOWBALL TAG! teams have been assigned, messaged, and given their team ribbons*. all were told to meet at their designated spots to go over battle plans, practice the team motto/battle cry, or just generally try and get a good idea of who you probably shouldn't be aiming for. the battle begins at high noon (shout out to mccree i love you bruh) and ends when there is only one team left standing...

the rules are as follows!! ]

1. no biting, eye-gouging, fish-hooking
2. no aiming below the belt
3. only hits to count are those that land in the torso region, front or back
4. three hits and you're out
5. seriously you're out WE'RE GOING BY AN HONOR SYSTEM OKAY
6. no cheating!
7. but feel free to make use of the terrain
8. battle grounds stretch from the lake to the forest and all around the exterior of the castle area
9. "friendly fire" totally counts so make sure you know who you're aiming for
10. have fun!! :)
[ *some team names and mottos had to be altered due to inappropriateness or just too dang long man i just asked for a soundbite yeesh. ]

TEAM TEAM VOLTRON	TEAM NO	TEAM CREW PROFANITIES
"I JUST SAW BALLS!"	"I'M SORRY, THAT WAS AWFUL!"	"FRICK THEM UP!"
RIBBON COLOR: ORANGE	RIBBON COLOR: PURPLE	RIBBON COLOR: PINK
Ramir	Zenyatta	Fiona
Chihiro	Sigma	Graham
Nami	Keats	Giovanni
Feferi	Peter	Peridot
McCree	Alice	Motochika
Stiles	Hanzo	Rhys
Keith	Sonia	Elizabeth
Kagari	Vaughn	Lance

( ooc; this log is open to EVERYBODY, whether you are actually part of the game or not. feel free to have your character be an innocent by-stander, an unaffiliated mercenary, a rogue warrior for justice, etc! characters are also not bound to the team assignments, though do expect lance to very loudly BOO! at your character if he ever finds out hmph >:'c )

Comments

TEAM MINGLING

[competing]

[ feel free to use this subthread for any pre-/post-battle team mingling! just put your team name on the header or smth i guess ]

Mettaton | Undertale

[ex_mettacrusher33]

I: Risky maneuver, Cotton, let's see if it pays off for 'em.

[It's time.

Set up along the sidelines of what will be the fight sits a box-shaped robot at a curved desk made of snow. He rests his arms along top of it, tapping cue cards against its cold surface as gray projections scroll below him like a newsfeed.

...it's exactly a newsfeed. Local, handsome robot hosts 1st annual tournament. You're welcome, says one.

Regardless, he's there at his desk and speaking into an invisible camera (and into his necklace, of course, for those at home!).]

Hello again, Audentes and fellow members of ALASTAIR, and welcome to our first annual Snowball Tag! [Canned applause!] I'll be your host for the evening, Mettaton, and boy does this look like it's going to be an exciting match! Our friend Lance really put his all into gathering us here tonight, folks. 3 separate teams, 8 players each; it's anyone's game.

Now Lance already explained the rules, so we're not going to go over them a second time. I'm much more interested in seeing what goes on here and, as I'm assuming our wonderful guest commentator is-

Oh, where are my manners? Why don't you introduce yourself, darling?

[Don't be afraid. As per sports commentary standards, a death field of lasers surround your desk, preventing stay snowballs from striking you! (or letting you leave)]

II: And now, the weather

[Oh, look at that!! It's a commercial break!

Mettaton taps the side of his head as if he's tapping into a headset, then points in your direction.

You're on. It's your message.

Go.]

III: gently plays ave maria

c-ough-- CO-ugh...! This is... This is i-it, beautiful... I...

[He's on the ground, arms limp and strewn across the snow like forgotten noodles. Glitches puff out of his speaker every once in a while. Electricity surges across his frame.

A snowball has bypassed the laser field and struck him against the head. He's dying.

Clearly.]

I tried my best to entertain you... You've... y-you've been the best co-anchor I could ask for...

[Wildcard me, I don't even care.]

III

[moneyman]

[ he's leaning down to grab another handful of snow when he hears some kind of strange, robotic... coughing... wait, what? that doesn't make sense, why would a robot be—

...oh. there he is: the weird but strangely charming commentator dude, lying helplessly in the snow. coughing. for some reason. it doesn't matter—he immediately drops the snow in his hands and rushes over to kneel at Mettaton's side, clearly under the impression he's legitimately dying. or... you know, deactivating. because he's a goddamn robot. but it's still sad. who could have done this?? ]

Oh, shit. Oh, my god, what happened? Are you gonna—

[ panicked, he gives the robot a once-over. there seems to be nothing wrong, aside from the sparking and the weird noises. there is, however, a small amount of snow on his head.

ah. ]

...Uhh, hey, actually, I think you're gonna be okay, man. I'm sure it was an accident! I mean, why would anyone—

[ no, it does not occur to him that some people might find Mettaton's commentary annoying. there's no way anyone would do this on purpose. right? ]

I'm... sorry... (III)

[feytality]

[How did she land in this mess? One minute, she's watching the festivities with a snowball in hand, the first bit of action Maya's gotten to witness since being conscripted to the Time Team... or whatever this is supposed to be. The next, she's getting framed for the murder (clearly) of this.... giant calculator/sports commentator.]

[It happens too fast for Maya to act. A snowball whizzes past her, from someone off to her side -- she turns to look, but they're already gone.]

[Then it happens. The rectangle.... man (??) gets hit, and goes down hard.]

[And then there's Maya, at the wrong place, at the wrong time, with a snowball in her hand, looking every bit the evil robotkiller who would do such a thing to Mettaton! She gasps dramatically!!!]

I-It wasn't me!

[But she's the only suspect?!]

wilcard!

[competing]

[ not that lance didn't appreciate the extra publicity — far from it, in fact; the running commentary helped add a level of competitiveness to the already intense turn out for the day, and he could definitely feel everyone's spirits lifting as a result — but there were definitely a few things he found reason for discontent. ]

Hey!

[ he skids to a halt just a few paces in front of where mettaton has perched himself, hands full with snowballs and body tense in a ready position should he need to flee right away. ]

If you're gonna run commentary on the whole thing, at least try and get all the good stuff, huh? That was a great shot you missed just now!

1

[viscontree]

Alright then. My name's Julius Visconti. We've all come here together for a special occasion.

Make the most of it and have fun? I suppose. May the best team win.

[He's not even part of a team! Please...Julius shakes his head and moves away from the headset.]

So much for commentary. Was that sufficient?

keith | ota

[secondnature]

teamwork? what's teamwork

[Logically, the best way to win this would be to work as a unit. The unfortunate fact of the matter is that despite how much Keith actually does care about the value of teamwork, that doesn't mean he's so good at working with it in action. Therefore, Keith is going to go solo, and do it unnecessarily so, while believing that he can stealth and hit people.

He'll be climbing to higher points, sliding on ice, and doing everything he can. The problem?

He's alone.

Too bad he didn't think of working with his team.

Feel free to hit him when it's time, or be a teammate who yells at him for being That Guy.]

knocked out

[Old habits die hard, and Keith seems to be the personification of that, as well. What's chill? It's currently not something that as to do with the snow. Or him. But since he has no chill, or any ability to remember not to solo work, he's ... knocked out eventually, and likely before most of the rest of his team.

Once he's knocked out, he sits off to the side on the ground, arms crossed while he barks orders out to team orange.

Yeah, now he's paying attention to them.]

wildcard

[or wildcard an angle for the above prompts!]

knocked out

[competing]

[ so this probably isn't the most ideal way to speak to the guy again, despite his having never actually gone out of his way to avoid him after that night at the ball. he definitely still spoke to keith, especially in passing, but he never really stuck around long enough to bring That up, nor did he go out of his way to, you know. try.

but with the both of them knocked out while the game still goes on before them, there's kind of nothing else to do but hang out around each other, because of course it never occurs to either guy that they can just leave while their team continues fighting on in the field.

quietly, he takes a seat right beside keith, idly patting away some more snow from his shoulders. (seriously, it just seems to be everywhere.) ]

Dunno if I'd call that "encouraging," [ he mumbles. hi. ]

knocked out.

[racking]

Hey.

[ There's snow in Shiro's hair. While he hadn't signed up, he had unfortunately gotten caught in the crossfire. Or maybe people had just automatically assumed he was in cahoots with Lance and/or Keith. Shiro's not particularly irritated, but he figures maybe the safest place to be is well off the field of battle.

Or beside Keith, who might be out, but certainly hasn't let go of the game itself. ]

You shouldn't come at them like that.

[ Though he does tug off his scarf and offer it to Keith. Shiro's not cold. He can guess that Keith might be. ]

elizabeth ( open )

[brooches]

go team crew profanities
[ Snow was a lot colder than she remembered. Of course, only getting it on her balcony in Columbia, Elizabeth had limited exposure to it. She's freezing and it's not until she's in the neck of it that she scrambling to keep her teeth from chattering.

But, Elizabeth does in fact bode well as a team mate. She's active, scurrying around as much as possible to dodge snowballs and toss her own. Whether she hits someone or not remains to be seen but for her team? She forgoes any concern. ]

H-Hey! Look out!

[ The shot is easy: someone is aiming at her teammate with a snowball and as it slow motion sails through the air, Elizabeth lunges forward and tackles her teammate (fairly hard, actually). The snowball narrowly misses but you have a girl laying ontop of you, team Crew Profanities. ]

They didn't hit you, did they?!

[ As Liz just sacked you, sorry. ]



cheater mccheater pants
A. - team

[ So, Elizabeth is definitely going to take advantage of her powers here. As the snow on her teams side is kind of dwindling, they'll see a static gray glow nearby. The glow is timid, but when one gets close, they'll see a large stack of neatly placed snowballs. Elizabeth, of course, was nearby. ]

They're real, trust me. [ She offers in the heat of an epic game of snowball tag when the numbers were becoming more scarce. Her hand pushes through the gray rift, grabbing a snowball and "pulling" it into their world. ] Just make good use of them!

B. - opposing teams
[ Caught red-handed with her pile of snowballs, Elizabeth waves her hand defensively. She's defensively curling one snowball in her hand, looking back and forth between the accuser who says this ~reality bending power~ was cheating. It soooo isn't. ]

No, there's nothing - there's no rule against this! It's not cheating! Is it?


elimination
[ Elizabeth is tired, cold, and now eliminated. As she stumbles to the sidelines, she's taking a breath. Luckily for her, there was ample amount of hot chocolate and coffee for those to keep warm with. Elizabeth is a bit quiet, watching the last bit unfold. ]

So... having fun? I mean - I think I busted my elbow, but this is... nice. [ Nice! Not depressing! ] I'm enjoying it.

TACKLIN'

[slapfight]

[Peridot goes down like a sack of potatoes making a variety of agitated noises, flailing and slapping, having not quite grasped the fact that she's been rescued by a teammate. it's a reflex. sorry, liz.

after a moment, her hindbrain stops going on overdrive and her logic starts to work again, allowing her to access the situation and look up. ah. this is one of her teammates.]

Affirmative. The only thing that hit me was you. Hnngh. [the gratitude will come later.

maybe.]

crew profanities!

[ofobedience]

[It's still a little strange to him, too. The word of the Above may have been steeped in perpetual winter, but down deep underground, in a place where no natural light or air is able to reach, snow had been as alien to him as many of the sights he's seen since his recruitment with ALASTAIR. He can handle the cold better than most though, even if he can still feel it, and as such he's been participating with both energy and tactical skill (even if he does happen to throw those snowballs just a little too hard).

What is surprising, however, is having someone slam into him out of nowhere and tackle him to the ground. For all his inhuman strength he still goes down easily enough, thuds into the snow with a muffled thump and looks up with some confusion at the woman now sprawled on top of him.]

...No. Only you, it would seem.

cheater mccheater pants - a

[competing]

[ lance can only stare at the strange gray cloud thing, watching as his teammate pulls out a very tangible, very real snowball. it doesn't yet occur to him to take the proffered item, mind still working its way around what is definitely magic happening right now.

i mean.

technically.

technically, it's not against the rules. ]

So that just... that just happens around you.

[ technically. ]

cheater b;

[weatherscience]

Of course it is!!

[ Nami waves her finger at the floating pile of snowballs... before grinning brightly at Elizabeth. wait, what? ]

I like it! It's not really a game until you use everything you have to win, right? [ the statement comes accompanied by a wink... it's not like she hasn't been cheating at every available opportunity, too. it's just the nature of the game! why play if you're not going to cheat, right? ]

elimination

[feytality]

[Well, Maya isn't even playing, but that doesn't stop her from gorging herself on hot chocolate]

Yeah, it was pretty fun! I've never seen a big snowball fight like this.

[And then she sips her hot chocolate too quickly and burns her tongue]

-Ow!

elimination

[digophelia]

[ For the rest of the evening, Alice will be wondering how she was dragged into a middle of a snowball fight. It was a poor choice on her part, walking out in the middle of it. How easily persuaded she was by her friends to be pulled into it. And, suffice to say, it was actually fun.

Fun was a foreign concept to Alice, who really never had any sort of playmates of fun of her own as a child. But like any social gatherings, once Alice is out and eliminated, she doesn't put up much of a fuss.

Other than trying to shake out any leftover snow in her long hair before it becomes too wet. Alice is only half-paying attention to the person she happenstance plopped next to. But from the voice, she's relieved that it's another woman. Though with any new person, Alice is weary of them and doesn't respond right away.

Eventually, Alice pauses, peering through her long, mussed hair. ]

How did you bust your elbow?

[ Being that most of Alice's life was wrought with tragedy, she was afraid to entertain the idea of "fun". ]

cheatin' - a

[cachemoney]

[This is a) alarming and b) really cool, all at the same time. Fiona is not quite sure how to feel, so she hovers somewhere in the middle, tentatively sticking her hand into the rift and just... waving it around in there. Like you do.]

This isn't going to cause some kind of temporal disaster, is it? Like... will I wake up tomorrow and everyone is lizard people, or.

Feferi | OTA

[fintastic]

[ A. Fight! ]

[ Feferi has come prepared. She's all bundled up, she has her team's ribbon tied around a horn and she's ready to snowball fight.

The art of making round snowballs is a little bit beyond her, so the ones she lobs are more like snow eggs than anything else. Her arm and her aim actually aren't too shabby-- she's spent long enough lobbing that trident of hers around that projectiles are old hat. What she doesn't have down, however, is the element surprise, as she gets the attention of her targets. ]

Hey! Over here! I have something for you...

[ B. Don't fight! ]

[ When Feferi isn't stalking down enemy team members, she can be found behind Orange team lines, presumably building up a stock pile of snowballs, though in the end it looks more like she's taken to making snowmen than anything else. She even gives them horns in a variety of shapes. From the looks of it, you might think she was eliminated, but... no, she's just distracted.

But if a teammate approaches her looking for some ammo, she'll whip them one up quick as you like with a big smile. ]

Here you go!

[ Or, perhaps, if there's no one else around (and she'll look around to make sure), she'll reach underneath where she's kneeling and offer up a different snowball, with a hushed whisper. ]

I put a rock in this one... but just a little one! Just do not throw it at anyone's head!

[ C. Elimination ]

[ Elimination doesn't mean that Feferi is suddenly idle-handed, no. Instead, she's up at the highest vantage point she can get, building herself a snow chair, as tall as she can get it. It's slow going, packing the snow into a rough, squared pillar shape, but at the end of it, she's sitting atop a three-foot snow pillar, looking pleased as punch and shouting encouragements to her remaining teammates. ]

[ D. Wildcard ]

a

[competing]

[ lance's arm falls limp at his side, her expression dropping soon after as he looks feferi over. stares pointedly at her very orange ribbon, then down at the very pink one he's got tied around his left bicep.

feferi, do you even play. ]

It wouldn't happen to be a snowball, would it.

b.

[racking]

Oh.

[ Shiro blinks down at her, momentarily caught off guard. He'd been trying to cross the field to get to a better vantage point for observation. It's ended in him having to dodge his way through active battle, so to speak. If Feferi hadn't been handing him the snowball, he might have tripped over her. ]

I'm not actually playing. But thank you.

[ But wait, also......... ]

But maybe don't put rocks in these.

[ God, someone's going to lose an eye. ]

Undyne | OTA

[aspearation]

[ A. This is the only prompt!!! ]

[ Undyne isn't on any team, except for Team Undyne. Which is to say that she somehow , miraculously, hasn't heard about the snowball fight until it was too late to sign up. But she shows up anyway, and takes it upon herself to join in the fun. She's not a fan of just how cold it is, but there's a fight, and a sanctioned fight at that, which means that she has to be there, and also that she has to win. (Even if winning isn't really an option...)

Her idea of fun: building the biggest snowball she can-- more like a snow boulder-- and hefting at anyone who dares to come near her. It sails through the air with all the speed you would expect of a giant mound of snow, which isn't very fast, when compared to how quickly a small, palm-sized snowball can be lobbed. When it lands, whether it comes into contact with a person, the ground, or something else, it breaks apart with a giant splat.

Good luck and godspeed. ]

[ B. (wildcard doesn't count as a prompt.) ]

a.

[ofobedience]

[He happens to stray just a little too close whilst participating in the somewhat more organised team-based snowball battle, and as such when she hurls her giant snow boulder it happens - on this occasion - to fly in his direction. Although perhaps fly is a little generous, with how unwieldy the huge clump of snow turns out to be, and although he'd had his back to her to begin with, he turns just in time for it--

--to land just short of his feet, splattering agaisnt the ground. A few stray splats of snow from the original mound manage to find their way onto his suit trousers, but still. It's a little underwhelming. He looks down at it blankly, then over to her.]

You should have used more force.

Maya Fey | OTA

[feytality]

snowgue one;

[so, you're part of the competition. Or not. You're minding your own business. The next thing you know --- bam, snowball to the shoulder. Or knee. (her aim's not that good).]

[Followed by a suspicious giggle, and an even more suspicious, severely underdressed teenage girl throwing herself into a snowbank. Clearly this will stop her from being spotted! What a brilliant cover!]

[But who is this strange girl in dire need of winter boots?? She's not part of any of the teams. In fact, she doesn't look familiar at all.]

[She must be.... rogue. A snowball assassin? Yeah, she's hiding in a snowbank and snickering stealthily. Clearly a force to be reckoned with.]

[Now's your time to avenge your... ankle, or hip, or whatever she managed to hit]

ice setup you've got there;

[So, you're one of the ones participating! And you're doing pretty well, you've found a good, secluded spot for yourself and lobbed a few good ones at the enemies. They can't tell where you are--]

[Until Maya. The thing is, Maya isn't really paying attention to who's on whose team. She's basically cheering on everyone]

Wow! Great job! You really nailed 'em! And that hiding space is awesome!

[And, thanks to Maya, it's no longer a hiding space or an advantage. Looks like her enthusiastically support has enthusiastically given you away. You're welcome.]

okay enough punny thawlk;

[If anyone, at any point, wants to react to this trainwreck, in any capacity, have at thee. Mistakes were made]

wildcard;

[Came up with your own scenario? Want a special one of your own? Hit me!]

snowgue one;

[dokyuu]

[Motochika's first thought when the snowball thwacks into his knee is that someone, somewhere, has even worse aim than him.

Then he hears the giggling, and gods, that just isn't a good sign. He's been pestered enough by teenage girls--okay, one teenage girl in particular--to know that much.

So he scoops up a handful of snow, and stalks over to that suspiciously mirthful snowbank.]

Oi! Just 'cause I only got one eye doesn't mean I can't see you there.

[Well, okay, he hadn't seen her there, or he wouldn't have gotten hit, but it was the principle of the thing. And she wasn't exactly hiding well.]

Sonia | ota

[assent]

( GET READY TO FIGHT! ROUND 1. 3... 2... 1... GO! )

[ Sonia hasn't exactly dressed the best for this, she has ankle boots on and over knee socks, but she is wearing a skirt like a lunatic when it's this cold. She at least took the initiative to yank on her uniform jacket before heading out, and the purple ribbon is pinned to her arm sleeve. Her hair is up in a ponytail, but a braid wrapped around over the top.





And in her right hand is her AK-74M. Thankfully, not loaded. Unless you count the carefully smushed balls of snow into the grenade launcher part. I knew there was a reason why I asked for this gun. ]

Time to, as they say, "kick it up a notch". [ As soon as the signal is given to start though, she'll rudely aim the grenade launcher at anyone not on her team ... though the snow might end up coming out as pellets that hit kind of hard with how far this thing can shoot...




Sorry. ]

( When the going gets tough, the tough gets going )

( for people she already knows: )

[ By this point she's been hit at least once. She doesn't have crazy skills like some people here, but she does have fierce determination. In one (frozen) hand, she has a decent sized ball of snow, and the other is clenched tight as she scans the area for someone she knows. She's getting better at running around without being detected and anyone who does see her and tries to throw something at her either misses or narrowly misses thanks to how much training on running she's done in Oska--all so she can take a friend by surprise.

There's very little notice before she jumps at your characters back, slamming her hand over their shoulder to try and smush it against their front. Hopefully it doesn't hit them in the face. Oops. ]

( for people she doesn't know: )

[ In this case, she's taking an even more impressive sneak attack approach of trying to hide behind one of the walls, snowball in hand until someone stumbles upon her. Instantly, she's hurling the snowball at them, aiming for the chest, but honestly it may yet again hit them in the face...

It's harder to aim without a gun in hand ok ok ]

( K.O. )

[ By the end of the fight her hair is probably dripping from snow melting in it. Her hands are numb and shivering and her thighs and legs feel like they may never understand warmth again. She's stood at the side, holding her arms to herself with her teeth chattering though she's trying to keep a good watch on the fight. Her gun is strapped to her back after that crazy go with the grenade launcher part before.

Quietly, she sighs out: ] I think many people are cheating. [ Says the girl who brought a weapon into play???????? ]

ready to fight!

[ofobedience]

[He's not especially appropriately dressed himself, still insisting on suiting up (cufflinks, tie, the works) despite the freezing weather and the fact that, by the time they're done here today, he's bound to be sodden and snowcovered and cold down to the very core of him. Lucky for Giovanni, at least, that his unique physiolgy allows him to take it without any ill-effects.

He's not expecting the snowgun. She fires and he moves with inhuman speed to evade each and every one of those fiercely directed snow-pellets (it's not magic, it's not cheating!), and as her failed projectiles kick up a showering of white powder each time they thud into the ground he barks out a clattering laugh.

Honestly, he's a little jealous that he didn't think up a similar approach.

When she's out of ammo he'll hurl a couple of his own handmade projectiles her way, just compacted balls of snow, of course, but thrown with an overabundance of strength and with ruthless precision all the same.]

That's cheating. But points for creativity, I suppose.

[She may not know him by sight, but the voice with it's soft German accent might be familiar to her.]

peter parker - team purple

[webdesigned]

I.

( sometimes, spider senses are a real pain. like, when a perfectly innocent opponent throws a snowball at you, and you catch it out of midair with unbelievable ease, and then they're stuck staring at you because who the hell does that?

Peter pauses, uneasily staring at his own catch as his mind flies for a proper excuse. he's ... not finding one. ) What are the chances? ( he asks, with a rather hollow laugh to punctuate the ridiculousness of it all, when another zips by him and crap he caught that one too. he drops both, as if that completely nulls the fact he caught them in the first place, and maybe if he just doesn't say anything else nobody else will, either?

he should not have signed up for this. )

II.

( in the end, it takes absolute and willful concentration. he can sense snow flying, he can hear them whistling toward him, and even when he doesn't catch them out of midair, he still is uncannily gifted at avoiding them. that said, when it comes down to it he has to take a hit, he has to. nobody can go un-tagged in a snowball fight.

willing himself still to get boffed in the chest looks about as awkward as it is. ) Aw, man. You ... you got me. ( his acting skills really need to come up a notch if he wants to sell that to anyone. )

I

[feytality]

[Well, the first one was an attack by Snowgue One, the dreaded one-Maya army.... honestly, it's more surprising that she managed to correctly aim than his uncanny plucking it out of thin air. Then he catches another one and she's left tilting her head at him as her eyes widen in awe]

[If he expected discretion from her, he's sadly mistaken. Maya's the absolute wrong person to not say anything]

WOAH!! How'd you do that?!

jesse mccree | orange, ostensibly

[flashbanging]

i.

[ Well, now. This whole thing sounded like good, clean fun--and a way for McCree to observe his fellow teammates in action. He crouches low behind some bushes, snowballs packed in his metal hand, ready to lob. He treats the whole thing like he's back in covert ops: concealed position, silent as the snow itself, listening carefully for an approach. His hearing isn't supernatural, but years of training have taught him how to be attentive, and how to identify and qualify what he's hearing--whether it's a person or just a stir of the wind through the trees.

When someone wanders near him, he leaps up, quick as a rattlesnake, and fires off the two well-packed snowballs in his hand. ]

You best duck and roll, partner!

[ Are you on his team? Are you a legitimate opponent? Are you a random passer by just trying to take a goddamn walk?

None of that matters. ]

ii.

[ Or maybe someone's in pursuit of him, and he's in trouble. Though McCree knows how to hide and how to sneak, his present fashion sense does not lend itself to stealth. He's a big man and he wears big boots; besides which, he takes long, heavy strides, liable to alert even the most inattentive player. So maybe he's in the way of some snowballs right now.

He could just take the hits. Exit gracefully.

Or, he could draw Peackeeper from its holster and shoot the incoming snowballs apart.

Which he does.

(But with very fine precision, so that the bullets don't continue their merry way into someone's head.

Might be a bit of a close call, though.) ]

Wup! Sorry 'bout that.

[ No. He is not sorry at all. ]

iii.

[ Ah, well. Fair's fair, and he does eventually get got. McCree takes his rest by the frozen lake, sitting peaceably on the snowy bank. His breastplate's covered in the remains of successful attacks; chunks of snow slide down against the glowing machinery as he leans back, pressing both his organic and prosthetic hands into the crunchy, icy grass. ]

Fine way to spend an afternoon, if I do say so myself. Felt sorta like a kid again, 'cept I didn't get to see a lotta snow where I grew up.

[ And he definitely wasn't doing anything so carefree as having snowball fights. He smiles, a little wistful. ]

ii

[scarredhorns]

[Thankfully, Nyuu was just a spectator, which put her a safe distance yet close enough to see and hear most of the action.

The loud gunfire makes her flinch and cover her ears, but once it stops, she takes her hands off her ears to clap.]

That was amazing!