Brom Bones is introduced as the strong, cocky local favorite, famous for rough humor and reckless horsemanship, and he does not like Ichabod sniffing around Katrina. Ichabod avoids direct confrontation because he knows he would be folded like laundry in a fight, so Brom shifts to relentless pranks and public humiliation. The rivalry turns into a steady campaign of intimidation, with Ichabod growing more anxious but still stubbornly pursuing Katrina.