Oh, Chuckie boy was going down.
Charley set her jaw to that line, playing it again and again in her thoughts until it etched itself in her very soul. There was no doubt, no room for failure in her mind. It was just fundamental, a simple Law of Nature. No insult could go unchallenged. It might be more like a Law of Man, if the urchin could stomach the reminder that Charles was more man than she could ever pretend or dress to be. That prim suit, the proper appearance of his sex, only grated on the part of her that enjoyed the shirt and trousers, the cap that hid her ragamuffin hair, preferring the costume to reality.
Luckily for the urchin, a costume could be traded out for another. Her dignity was not so easily repaired.
Unluckily for her, Charles had a closer line to her lucky stone than she did. That was more insulting than his words could ever be. Not that she was about to take that lying down, or crouching down for that matter. Once she beat the older boy, she was going to lord it over him from the highest rooftop. It would serve him right, after interrupting her game and making her out to be the fool for it.
"Take that," she crowed, settling back smugly on her haunches. The stone ricocheted, and Charley glared at it with all the magic she could muster. Enchantment or no, it couldn't do her so wrong. Not with all that was riding on this one shot. Luck or not, it had to put the urchin within a stone's throw of winning, or she would be better off walking away. And that would be worse than all the insults a lanky young man could offer her.
When Charley threw up her hand that time, it wasn't to cover herself against a spit of gobstone ink. Clasping her hand in a fist, she pumped it twice, the enchanted stone back on her side. Now the urchin could take a breath and rest easy for a moment, sitting pretty with victory within her grasp.
"En't sayin' a word un-humble-like," she promised, though she was bursting to do it anyway, "but you best make that next shot count. Bet yer shiny buttons I will."
Charley set her jaw to that line, playing it again and again in her thoughts until it etched itself in her very soul. There was no doubt, no room for failure in her mind. It was just fundamental, a simple Law of Nature. No insult could go unchallenged. It might be more like a Law of Man, if the urchin could stomach the reminder that Charles was more man than she could ever pretend or dress to be. That prim suit, the proper appearance of his sex, only grated on the part of her that enjoyed the shirt and trousers, the cap that hid her ragamuffin hair, preferring the costume to reality.
Luckily for the urchin, a costume could be traded out for another. Her dignity was not so easily repaired.
Unluckily for her, Charles had a closer line to her lucky stone than she did. That was more insulting than his words could ever be. Not that she was about to take that lying down, or crouching down for that matter. Once she beat the older boy, she was going to lord it over him from the highest rooftop. It would serve him right, after interrupting her game and making her out to be the fool for it.
"Take that," she crowed, settling back smugly on her haunches. The stone ricocheted, and Charley glared at it with all the magic she could muster. Enchantment or no, it couldn't do her so wrong. Not with all that was riding on this one shot. Luck or not, it had to put the urchin within a stone's throw of winning, or she would be better off walking away. And that would be worse than all the insults a lanky young man could offer her.
When Charley threw up her hand that time, it wasn't to cover herself against a spit of gobstone ink. Clasping her hand in a fist, she pumped it twice, the enchanted stone back on her side. Now the urchin could take a breath and rest easy for a moment, sitting pretty with victory within her grasp.
"En't sayin' a word un-humble-like," she promised, though she was bursting to do it anyway, "but you best make that next shot count. Bet yer shiny buttons I will."
![[Image: bZbZdaH.png]](https://i.imgur.com/bZbZdaH.png)