Dunkin' not-quite-donuts (Open)

[bedivere]

Bedivere eyed the tank dubiously, wondering why he had thought it such a jolly good idea to get involved with the students and volunteer to man a booth for a while, especially since the student he was currently on shift with had - very quickly - volunteered to be the one taking the tickets and handing out the balls, leaving Bedivere to get dunked.

Still, a knight of Camelot showed courage and fortitude in the face of any challenge, even when that challenge was a tank of cold water and a student holding a tennis ball threateningly.
Removing his glasses and jacket, he tucked them carefully to the side where they wouldn't get wet, then removed his tie and shoes and socks as well. It might be odd to sit there in his trousers with bare feet, but he'd rather not squelch his way around the carnival after this was over.

Climbing up onto the seat he got himself comfortable - with another dubious glance at the water, glittering in the sunlight below him - and nodded to the student on shift with him.

"Alright. Let them at it."

[Deleted]

Tulio had considered volunteering for the carnival... for all of two seconds. He was hardly the volunteering type, he rarely did anything that wouldn’t benefit him, and he didn’t considering the positive feeling someone was supposed to get for doing a good deed as compensation enough.

The last time he had done something purely selfless it had cost him a lot of gold. Oh so much gold!

So while he didn’t plan to help out, the carnival could still be a bit of a benefit. Every attraction was pretty cheap, and would be the perfect place to throw his money around to keep up appearances (he was supposed to be a prince, after all), without actually wasting too much money. And what a better place to start this plan than by dunking one of his teachers? It would help his popularity as well, for sure.

Stepping up to the plate, so to speak, he paid his measly coin and took the first ball he was handed. Time for the show.

“What was it you said about my last essay, professor? Something about it lacking...” something. Tulio couldn’t even remember what it had said, so it turned out to be an unintentionally honest question. To distract from this, he tossed the ball up into the air and caught it again threateningly.

[bedivere]

"Depth." Bedivere volunteered, ever the teacher, "It was lacking in depth."
His eye was drawn to the ball spinning in the air.
Ah. He glanced down, depth indeed... Although, on closer inspection (and one couldn't help but inspect closely, from this angle) it didn't actually appear all that deep. A splash very quickly followed by a very soggy and potentially partially painful thump was the order of the day if Tulio hit the mark.

He wasn't quite sure whether giving the students this opportunity would allow them to blow off some much needed steam, or possibly reduce whatever respect they had for him. Eyeing Tulio warily, Bedivere decided that reminding the boy that he was still his teacher would only spur him on further - though quite how that would make it worse when he was going to get soaked anyway, he wasn't sure.
Either way, he wisely kept his mouth shut.

[Deleted]

“Right. Depth,” Tulio repeated, before turning to address the few students who had gathered. “I bet that tank is not lacking in depth!” he announce like the showman he was, managing to win a few laughs. Turning back to Sir Bedivere, he grinned triumphantly. “Though I am sorry to say that it is probably lacking something else that you seem to think my writing lacks as well. What was it? Oh yes. Warmth.”

To be honest, Tulio had no idea if the instructor had ever compared his writing to any sort of temperature, but it sounded good and people laughed so he went with it. His fellow peers would hardly care if he was making it all up, and they seemed to be enjoying his little show. This was especially welcome considering the beating his reputation had taken following his little show at the theatre a while back, and the report that infernal Slap had made on it. Nobody seemed to take him seriously anymore!

Well, maybe they would take this seriously! Winding up, Tulio threw his first ball with authority!

And very bad aim.

[bedivere]

For a moment, Bedivere forgot the situation to wonder if he had actually made such comments about Tulio's writing, and it actually took him a few moments to realise it was an attempt at a joke - a successful one, considering the laughter from the onlookers.
He was so distracted thinking about it that he almost missed it when Tulio threw the ball - which could have ended very badly had he been unceremoniously dumped into the water when he wasn't expecting it.

Luckily, the ball whistled harmlessly by the target and Bedivere remained dry.

"I do hope the rest of your throws, and everybody else's, follow that trend." He remarked cheerfully "Then maybe I'll survive this ordeal unscathed and shan't drip all the way home."

[Deleted]

Well, that shot had been a little off. Watching the ball fly by the target, not even that relatively close to it to be honest, Tulio’s eyes narrowed as the laughter that had been with him a moment ago now turned against him. Clearly these people would laugh at anything.

“That was just a warning shot,” Tulio replied, regaining his bravado and taking his second ball. A mischievous grin spread across his lips suddenly and he turned to the crowd again. “Anyone up for a little wager?”

If he was going to spend some money here, why not make a little honestly as well? A friendly little bet could hardly break too many rules.

[bedivere]

Bedivere might be noble, chivalrous and well-behaved. He might be the sort of knight who would be on the practice field or in the library rather than engaging in any sort of rowdy behaviour, but even the most well-behaved of knights was around a lot of men a lot of the time, and there were some behaviours that you just picked up.

"I'll take your wager." He called out with a grin. His motives were not entirely bad, he hoped that Tulio's aim was as bad as it had been with his first shot, in which case he'd be able to use the opportunity to help the young man learn something.
He would, of course, be careful to ensure that the terms of the bet were something it would be suitable for him to fulfill as a teacher.

[Deleted]

Tulio had expected some of the students before him to jump at the chance to wager some money, but the voice that accepted came from behind him. Surprised, he turned back to his instructor.

“You?” he asked, unsure whether to be shocked, annoyed or impressed. It all really depended on the intent of the wager; probably best not to know. Instead he decided it was because Sir Bedivere wanted to look ‘cool’ in front of his students and left it at that.

“What should it be, then? Five gold pieces? Ten?” Tulio replied, lifting his head and taking on a princely air. “I hear that teachers make a measly salary, and would hate to put you out too much. It would only add insult to injury since you would be sopping wet as well as broke.”

[bedivere]

Bedivere considered it for a moment. He was hoping for a chance to bet for something more interesting, some way to get some work out of Tulio should his aim continue to fail, but on consideration perhaps it was safer to bet with money, who knew what Tulio would ask for... The problem, of course, was that gambling for money with a student was probably at least frowned upon, so perhaps he should try something a little different...

"I don't think it would be proper of me to take a student's money," He said after thinking about it "So I will give you ten gold pieces should you strike true with your next throw, however if you do not... I think a week of extra homework for my class is a fair wager."

[Deleted]

Even on his day off, even faced with the chance to win money, Bedivere gambled with homework instead. Obviously he did not share Tulio’s first love, nor his sense of fun, nor... well, anything, really. Still, it wasn’t as if Tulio could refuse the bet in front of all these people, and besides, if he won he would still get some gold and he had no chance of losing any in return.

“A week? That’s a steep bargain,” Tulio replied, rubbing one finger over his goatee. “Make it fifteen gold pieces and we have a deal.”

He probably could have asked for more, but he didn’t want to be greedy. Correction: he didn’t want to appear as greedy as he truly was.

[bedivere]

He'd wondered if Tulio would actually agree to that much - in the scheme of things it wasn't really a lot of extra homework, as he would be sure to give assignments that could actually easily be done in a night, but he was beginning to learn that students valued their free time probably more than gold, and even the smallest piece of homework was seen as a massive burden.

When instead of asking for less homework and instead choosing to go for more money, Bedivere wondered if it was greed or necessity motivating his actions... with some people it was hard to tell, and while he wanted to get to know his students he was still quite new. Still, he had little need for money other than buying food since he spent all his spare time in the library, and fifteen gold was definitely well within his capabilities to afford. Logistically speaking, having seen an example of Tulio's already failed aim, the odds were probably a little in favour of him keeping the money.

"Fifteen it is." Bedivere agreed after this deliberation. "Your best shot, if you please..." he motioned at the target with a smile.

[Deleted]

Seeing how long it took the teacher to contemplate the bargain, Tulio was glad he hadn’t asked for twenty. Could he be more stingy? He was probably contemplating how much extra work he could pile on, or dividing the amount of work by the number of gold pieces to get the correct ratio of... whatever. Math wasn’t Tulio’s subject (unless it came to counting gold), but it wasn’t Bedivere’s either.

Eventually he agreed.

“I would shake on it, but, well...” Tulio gestured to the tank. Facing the target again, he took much more careful aim this time (money was on the line, after all) and took his best shot.

It was much closer this time, but still missed the mark.

[bedivere]

"Of course. You can trust my honour, and I hope I can trust yours." Bedivere nodded slightly. He tended to find that if you told people you were trusting them, most of the time they didn't tend to break that trust, even if it was simply out of a sense of embarrassment.

Bedivere braced himself, even though he thought it was most likely that Tulio would miss once more, he didn't want to be proven wrong and dunked without warning - which would serve him right for his arrogance were he not to assume the possibility that Tulio would hit his mark.
He didn't, but at least Bedivere had been prepared for it if he had.

"One week of extra homework." he announced with a smile "Unless, of course, you wish to bet again..." He eyed up Tulio's final projectile.

[Deleted]

Tulio’s eyes narrowed at the offending target as his second ball hit the sign beside it and bounced harmlessly off. It was rigged, he decided. Much like his loaded dice, the balls had something in them that threw the balance off and made it impossible to hit the target, even with perfect aim. That had to be it.

Clenching his jaw, he pretended not to be bothered by the jeering of his peers behind him.

“It’s really getting interesting now,” he said, as if he had planned this whole thing to come down to his last shot, which he would strike true and make it look easy while doing it. Luckily for him, Bedivere unknowingly helped him along by offering a counter bet on the final shot. It looked better coming from the teacher than for Tulio to have to suggest it.

“A teacher promoting gambling? I am appalled!” he announced, because this was nothing if not a show, and people grew bored if there wasn’t some decent acting or jokes. “Or maybe just pleasantly surprised.” He grinned at Bedivere. “And just what do you have in mind?”

[bedivere]

"I will go to many lengths to try and encourage students to get more education, even if I have to wager money to win homework." Bedivere responded with an amused smile. He was actually quite enjoying Tulio's little performance - even if the boy's writing was flat, his personality certainly wasn't. Perhaps even without an interest in academics he would go far.

"Perhaps double or nothing?" he suggested, after considering just how much he could afford to lose if this really was an act. "Thirty gold if you win, two weeks homework if you lose..."

It would be a shame to back out now, what with a small crowd of spectators. Quite apart from hoping he could get more work out of Tulio, he also hoped the students would enjoy the carnival, and a little show like this made it all the more entertaining.