Troubled Antics (My Time At Sandrock)

Trouble Antics

"Stop crying."

Owen couldn 't blame Justice for crying, his blue eyes taking in the rather nasty gash marring the darker skin of one of his best friends.

"And you stop laughing," Owen sighed, glaring at his other friend, who had never lost his pale complexion despite his time in the desert sun. "It's not funny, Logan."

"Yes, it is."

"It is not!" Justice sniffled, using his uninjured arm to wipe tears away as his dreadlocks hung down around his ears. "It's not funny, and this is your fault!"

"Why is it my fault?" Logan asked.

"Because it was your idea, remember?"

"Well, you're supposed to be the responsible one, remember?" Logan retorted.

Owen glared. "I think that means I'm the one who gets us out of trouble, not that I prevent the trouble from happening."

"You still always get in more trouble than me because you're supposed to be the responsible one."

Owen frowned, shaking his head before deciding the best course of action was to wrap the injury up until they could tell an adult what they did, and they would have to tell an adult what they did. He shook his head, knowing that meant getting a lecture from Cooper of all people, as they had somehow gotten into their heads that they could prove they were adult enough to all of the adults by taming a wild yakmel which came about because they 'd heard the story of him taming a yakmel. However, some said it was the yakmel who tamed him. " Raised him , " Owen thought to himself. " Not tamed him. Mr. Cooper isn 't tame at all. No siree. " He started tearing up his clothing, even though the cloth wasn't the cleanest thing given they'd been out in the desert and getting quite sandy, as any normal kid in Sandrock was prone to do as there was nothing but sand. " That 's why ma left pa. Too much sand. "

"See. You know you're going to get in so much more trouble!" Logan laughed, pointing as Justice cried harder.

"Don't ruin ya shirt," Justice sniffled, snot coming from his nose. "That's the one you're ma gotcha."

"Yeah. But making sure my friend is okay is much more important," Owen thought to himself. "Besides, she left because she couldn't handle the desert despite growing up here. Had aspirations for bigger, better things, not that going elsewhere guarantees that."

"Where are we?"

Owen stopped, having planned on walking back to Sandrock and the closest place, which of course would have been Cooper 's ranch, where they would have gotten an ear about how his infant daughter knew better than three wet rockyenaroll pups than to go near a wild yakmel and try to tame it completely ignoring the stories floating around boasting of Cooper's greatness in his youth, some of which Owen suspected his own father made up just because he could while also knowing Cooper would never object. It was just one of those things. "I'm getting old."

"You shouldn't say that," Justice sniffed while Logan laughed.

"You just talked like an old man, old man!"

"Yeah, well, you have a way of aging me fast, but our little escapade has indeed gotten us lost." And he would typically have been in fisticuffs with Logan resulting in the two of them on the ground with Justice trying to pull them apart until one of them, usually, Logan, accidentally gave Justice a bloody nose. "And now we're really in trouble, yes, siree."

Logan stopped laughing at that moment, staring while still smiling; it sank in just what kind of trouble they 'd gotten themselves into this time. "What?"

"We're lost, yakmel dung," Owen said, not caring how Logan balled his hands into fists and looked like he would lose his temper.

"You! Take that back, Owen!"

"No! We're lost and have no way back."

"We're not lost! We're in the desert where we belong!"

"Just how much of an idiot are you, Logan!" Owen snapped.

"I know the way back."

It was then that both Owen and Logan realized Justice had stopped sniffling, and they both stared at him. "What?"

"I know the way back."

"Nah. You're too scared of your shadow."

"Shadows know lots of stuff," Justice replied. "Like where the aggressive creature nests are so you can avoid them and not get hurt. 'Cause I don't like getting hurt."

"Yeah. We heard you bawling up a storm as we ran from that yakmel," Logan sighed. "We know ya don't like getting hurt, Tissy."

"Logan," Owen shook his head. "I think we should focus on getting home."

"It's this way," Justice said, pointing in one particular direction.

"Well, I don't believe you," Logan said. "Tell me where one of the aggressive creature nests is!"

To which Owen quickly shoved Justice slightly, covering his mouth. "Don't! If you tell Logan where it is, he'll just go and poke it."

"I will not!"

Justice pushed Owen 's hand away, a frown on his face which made Owen flinch as while Justice might frown when he cried, he never just frowned like that. "Yeah. It's not in your nature to fight your nature, Logan."

"That's mean! I'm going that way!" Logan said, staring in the opposite direction that Justice had pointed.

"Oh no, you don't, ya darn varment!" Owen said, grabbing onto Logan's arm and dragging him in the direction Justice said.

"Well, don't say I didn't warn ya!" Logan said, rolling his eyes. They continued walking, and it didn't seem like they were getting anywhere but hotter until Logan blurted out. "See! I warned ya!"

And there was Cooper, on his horse, glaring down at them as Owen swallowed. "Now what dang it are ya boys doing all the way out here."

"Yakmel taming."

Owen groaned, wishing Logan would learn to keep his mouth shut. Cooper crossed his arm. "And how did that turn out, boys?"

"Badly!" Justice said, holding up his arm.

"To be fair, Justice told us not to do it and just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. And," Owen glanced away. "He's the reason we found our way back after we ran from the yakmel."

"Well, looks like I'll be needing to give ya folks a good old talking to about what ya boys have been up to, righty?"

"Yes, sir," Owen muttered.

"So you'll follow me on back to that saloon of your pa's, right Owen?" Cooper frowned. "And..."

"Not that they'd care."

Cooper glared. "Which explains a lot, me reckons. Now get on, get ya three."

"Yes, sir," Owen muttered, continuing to pull Logan along, knowing his father would at least give Logan a stern talking to, although, as Logan had said, he'd likely be getting the worst talking to and punishment for trying to tame wild yakmel along with the usual line of knowing better than to go along with Logan's ideas.