The smell of corn was heavy on the air as the later afternoon sun bore down on the field. Already the school was converging onto the school's football field, and those not competing were seating themselves on the sagging wooden bleachers that looked out over center field. Expectant chattering hovered over the event as boys and girls watched as their representative teams walked up to the obscene wooden rock-climbing wall erected in the middle of their field. And dressed in a tight form-fitting pink uniform Norlandia busied herself with just how messed up the principle had to be. Did she get off on this? Did the district superintendent not even care? And why did it even take this sort of mismanagement of school funds for her to notice? God knows no one else seemed to care.

“Fucking children of the corn.” she muttered to herself, trying her best to keep the thigh-short shorts pulled down over her legs. She was all for showing some leg, but there were limits. And it's not like she ran track anyways. She entertained herself with thoughts about how she'd nail someone to a stop sign if given the chance.

She heard frustrated grunts alongside her from Saoirse who was having the same problem. You and me both, sister.

Walking up to the base of the wood tower she took a position at one of the many dozen of harnesses hanging from the crown, where looming overhead was a small brass bell. Thick nylon zip chord followed the rocks down, all souring from one giant spool at the top.

What sickly uninformed and uneducated person design such a contraption. Norlandia's face contorted strained and distressed. She knew the school's lotto for this stuff often pitted kids in weird stuff, but each year they always out weird the others. How was one spool going to hold everyone up without getting tangled.

Unless she found an excuse fast, she was going to be a part of this circus. She looked to Saorise, separated from her by one of the many awkward boys. One of the types lacking any sort of self awareness. She looked for some confirmation, or silent agreement that this was silly. And if there was some way to get out of this. A lot to ask for from one look.