They weren't ordering each other round to gain their own sense of space. A lot of years had been put between them, a lot of still un-understood ground---but there was some sort of conflicting respect.
He fished out the balls from the pockets, filling up an arm with about three total before dropping them into place. There were a few more mortal boys in this game, but Briareos made sure they gave him space. He still couldn't do with people crowding into his breathing space.