For ten minutes, the driveway was a blur of laughter and tactical retreats. They darted between lawn chairs and over flower beds, the ground turning into a patchwork of dark, wet concrete. The air smelled like cut grass and chlorine.

The climax came when Maisie tried to flank through the side gate. She crept along the fence, silent as a cat, only to find Julia waiting with the ultimate weapon: a bucket she’d secretly filled at the spigot. "Aha!" Julia yelled, swinging the bucket.

Julia lunged forward, sending a concentrated stream of water toward the boxes. Maisie rolled to the left, the water slicing through the air where she had been a second before. She popped up, firing both blasters in a rhythmic thwip-thwip-thwip that sent Julia scrambling behind the family minivan.