Disclaimer: I do not own the Rat Patrol or profit from writing.
Troy inwardly groaned. Hitch and Moffitt were at it again. He didn't know why Hitch always had to bring up the Missouri River. Whenever Hitch was bored, he always went to discussing the Missouri River with Moffitt. He usually started with a line like this, "Why do you like England so much? It's so dreary and cold and wet."
To which Moffitt would begin expounding on the wonders and beauty of England. He inevitably always led to a discussion of the River Thames. This is where Hitch would really go at it.
"The Missouri River is the longest river in the States. You should really see it."
"In case you haven't noticed, Hitch, he's in the middle of a desert," Tully pointed out wryly.
"Well of course not right now. Maybe he could go after this is over. I took a boat down there with my dad. It's beautiful-"
Moffitt cut in, "Not as beautiful as the Thames. I took a boat down there, too. The sky was so blue and made the river sparkle like jewels."
"That's one clear day in out of how many days? 365? The rest of the time it's gloomy. If you go see the Missouri River, it's almost always sunny out. It's lined with trees and the air is so fresh. It would do your lungs good to breathe some fresh air. After always being around a city, I'm surprised you haven't ruined your lungs."
"My lungs are just fine, thank you. At night, the lights from the city light up the Thames. You can't do that in the middle of nowhere. You have to go during the day."
"The Missouri River is longer than the Thames. It is 1,124 miles longer."
"Yes, but the Thames makes up in beauty what it lacks in size."
Hitch and Moffitt went on in this vein for quite some time. Troy and Tully stood nearby watching this exchange in amusement.
Tully muttered to Troy, "I guess this wouldn't be a good time to bring up the Nile?"
"Don't you dare! Before you know it, they'll be arguing over a river neither of them represent."
