Stories from stage: The Battle

As our months of training began to wind down and we became anxious (or nervous) to go to our official posts, some of my fellow stage-mates and I got together for a movie night at training center. Some of us decided to sleep over, so we didn't have to rush home and worry our host families with staying out too late. Danielle couldn't sleep, however, and then randomly suggested that we should build forts ...

We split up into teams: Girls vs. Boys. Danielle and I against Peter, David and Jamie. Each member of the boys squad received 5 lives. Because we were only two, each member of the girls team received 7 lives. A life was lost each time that you were hit with a pillow. The odds were slightly in the boys favor: 14 lives for the girls vs. 15 lives for the boys. But we had a secret weapon. The back door of our fort led out to the terrace. So when the lights went out, we snuck out to grab the big chalk-board that listed our training schedule to use as a shield.
As the boys fired their first on-slaught, we blocked every single shot. After hoarding every single pillow that they had wasted on our shields in our fort, we then led our own offensive. Peter was the first to go and decided to referee the rest of the game. The score was tied.
Danielle and I had to start taking more risks. I lost, but then David was left with only 1 life left. With a lucky shot, Danielle quickly forced him out of the game. That left only Danielle and Jamie standing. The battle raged on. And in the wee hours of the morning, it became a tied game once again: 1 life vs. 1 life.

Jamie brought down a rain of fire, pillow after pillow bouncing off of Danielle's shield. But then the shield back-fired. In the split-second that Danielle relaxed her muscles ever so slightly, Jamie fired a blow smacking the shield into Danielle's face and splitting her lip. Peter declared a draw and we broke out the first aid kit. Danielle told her host family that she ran into a door. (We miss you Jamie!)