Because Dandelions Are Pretty

"Parry riposte! Touch goes to Adolfson!" the announcer roared into the microphone as the crowd cheered on.

Aubrey was sitting on a bench on the sidelines in between Bill and Tom. She had convinced the floor security to let them sit with her; she knew them, after all. She clutched each of their hands in hers nervously, squeezing them on occasion when something happened that made her anxious.

"Come on Melanie!" Aubrey yelled to the American fencer. "Don't fall for her second intention!"

"I will never understand fencing," Tom mused, shaking his head from side to side as he watched Lydia Adolfson scream with victory at the point she earned. "Why is she getting so worked up?"

"Because," Aubrey explained, "it's a very passionate sport. Heat of the moment thing, you know? Just imagine trying to accomplish something and each time you fail, fail, fail...and then you succeed at the last second. Wouldn't you want to scream?"

Bill smirked and wrote on his board: Yes, come on Tomi. Loosen up and schrei.

Tom flicked Bill in the ear. "You are too corny for your own good."

Aubrey didn't respond; the match on the strip had resumed. Bill watched, fascinated, as the two fencers moved like leopards, legs bent, stalking back and forth at each other, waiting to see an opening for attack. Suddenly, Melanie's blade flicked forward-

"Disengage! One light! Touch for Thompson!"

Aubrey screamed happily. Bill smiled at her; he had never seen her so excited before.

"What's the score?" Tom asked loudly, trying to speak over the crazy audience.

"14 to 13. Melanie is winning now. The match goes to 15, so if Melanie gets the next point then she wins," Aubrey explained, all in one breath.

She squeezed the twins' hands again, still completely scared of the outcome. Bill couldn't help but wonder if Aubrey was hurting on the inside. After all, that was supposed to be her out there against Lydia. He began to think if Aubrey's excitement was really covering up her disappointment...

Bill bent over and kissed Aubrey's cheek. She looked at him with a smile.

"What was that for?" she asked teasingly.

Bill shrugged. Aubrey smiled and lightly punched his shoulder. "You're so strange."

"What does half of the stuff they're saying mean anyway?" Tom wondered aloud as he heard the director yell, "Fencers ready? Fence!"

"Well 'one light' means that only one person got hit, so only one light on the scoreboard went off. A 'double touch' is when both people hit at the same time, which then means the point is given to the person whose arm was extended first."

"Why?"

"It's called 'right of way.' Whoever had their arm moving to extend first gets the point. But that's only for foil and saber. During an epee match, both players get one point each on a double touch."

Tom groaned and held his head in his hands. "This sport is confusing! There's three blades, different rules for each blade...I think my head would explode if I ever attempted fencing."

"It's not confusing. It's fun," Aubrey defended, but then quieted herself to watch the two fencers on the strip.

Without warning, Lydia began to advance forward quickly, charging at Melanie. In her panic, Melanie lost sight of Lydia's blade and-

"Beat attack! Point for Adolfson! The score is now 14 to 14!" the announcer bellowed.

"What?! I didn't even see her blade move!" Tom yelled, as if calling Lydia out on a dirty trick.

"That's how good she is. Once you get really good, you can move your blade so fast that your opponent will never see you coming," Aubrey explained. "Small movements are best for that. If you're too big on how you move the blade, you lose speed and agility."

Bill looked over at Aubrey, her face glowing fiercely with the light of competition. Clearly she wanted to be the American fencer on the strip right now, but she seemed to be content with giving out commentary to Bill and Tom. In fact, it looked like she really enjoyed their company and constant questioning.

"Come on Melanie! Don't panic!" Aubrey yelled to her teammate.

Melanie suddenly made a time out signal to the director, who nodded. Melanie took off her mask and walked to the end of the strip, bending down to grab a water bottle that was sitting there. Aubrey immediately flew from her seat between the twins to give Melanie advice.

"She's really into the sport," Tom marveled. "I see why you can relate. She's as obsessed with fencing as you are with music."

Bill rolled his eyes but silently agreed. He watched as Aubrey talked quickly, her lips moving at a rapid speed while Melanie stood, nodding and wide-eyed.

"What do you think she's saying?" Tom asked out of curiosity.

Probably telling Melanie to slice the other girls' head off.

Tom laughed. "I wouldn't doubt that."

Melanie straightened up just then and walked back to her starting position. She saluted the director and Lydia one more time before throwing her mask on (Fencing Vocabulary: salute (n.) - a customary acknowledgment of one's opponent and referee at the start and end of the bout made with the weapon).

Aubrey skipped gracefully back to the bench. Bill was still in disbelief; if he didn't know any better, he would've assumed that Aubrey's real leg was fully intact.

The trio then sat back and watched intently for the next point – the winning point. Lydia and Melanie seemed to be at a standstill; one of them would move forward, the other would move back. Then the roles would reverse. It was like a tango, or a strange sort of waltz. They didn't move from either of their spots.

Without warning, Melanie flew forwards and Lydia froze up.

"Disengage! Melanie Thompson takes the win!"

The crowd roared and leapt to its feet. Melanie ripped her mask off her head and ran to Lydia, hand outstretched in the customary, traditional final handshake. Lydia, with tears in her eyes, shook it, until Melanie caved and grabbed the Swedish girl in a hug. Lydia seemed surprised, but returned the hug nonetheless, both girls sweating like they had just had a run through a sprinkler or two.

Aubrey, too, was on her feet, but she was rushing to her teammate as fast as she could. Melanie turned from Lydia, raised both arms in the air, and screamed as loud as she could. Aubrey tackled her into a hug, both girls jumping up and down like mad.

"This is insane!" Tom shouted in Bill's ear. "I never knew people were so into this!"

Bill only laughed silently as a response. He wished he could scream too; his adrenaline had been pumping throughout the whole match. Who knew that he'd feel so excited for a fencing match before?

"I say we go out later and celebrate. Grab dinner, maybe hit a club or two," Tom continued. "We can bring Aubrey obviously, and if she wants to invite a friend or two..."

Tom's words were lost by that point. Bill's face was going to crack from all the smiling he was doing. His eyes traveled down to Aubrey's right leg, where, hidden beneath her sweatpants, a prosthetic leg was working, keeping her fencing and, most importantly, keeping her alive.

Oh yes. Tonight there was definitely a cause for celebration.