Summary: A good old game of grudgby
"Alright girls." Skara instantly turned as Boscha approached the gang. "Grudgby season is kicking in, and you know what that means."
"Brutal training?" Cat questioned.
"Cute outfits?" Amelia guessed.
"Killing Glandus students?" Skara pitched in.
"Yes, yes, yes, with a heaping side of everyone in this school groveling at our feet with every step we take." Boscha confidently spoke with that air of social superiority she always carried about her.
"Don't they already do that?" Amelia questioned. "One look from you and anyone other than the suicidal human, the psychotic Lucci, or Amity just run away."
"Hey, only I can call that pile of trash psychotic, got it!" Boscha snapped, sending a glare that could snap the girl in half if it was any meaner. "And to answer your question, yes, but this is the time of the year where we prove that we earned our dominance, so we can enjoy the pandering just a little bit more than usual."
If there was one positive trait that Skara admired about Boscha, it was the fact she always felt you had to earn something instead of just getting it on a silver platter. She was the only rich girl to actually work for her own money to boot. "Oh, I wonder if it means I get to finally play music during gym class." Skara wondered. Battle music always enhanced a situation.
"After what you did with that maniac at Grom, I'm surprised anyone is letting you bear an instrument at all." Cat commented.
"Hey, I said only I can insult Lucci! The rest of you are off limits!" Boscha barked out.
"Aww it's cool, we insult each other all the time." Skara waved off. "He calls me 'too much sunshine' and I call him 'moody blues'. Lucci was a lot worse off before Luz managed to make him smile more."
That made Boscha roll her eyes. "Uggh, don't mention that human. Bad enough she made Amity go soft, but suddenly it's like everyone in the school can't stop talking about her."
"Oh that isn't true at all." Cat rolled her eyes as she opened the door.
"Hey everyone, check out what the Human and Willow did!" The urchin kid Cat went to the dance with shouted out. "Nobody at the school can stop talking about it!"
"…Maybe I have a future in Oracle magic." Cat muttered, looking at her hand.
"As what, the opposite guess?" Amelia questioned.
Crack
They all looked at the scroll in Boscha's hand, which was now in pieces and falling to the ground. "The human is one thing…but I refuse to be second most popular to the Half a witch of all people!" Yikes, the button was pushed.
"Hey, I'm sure this is temporary." Skara waved off. "It's our season after all." It wasn't like no one was going to cheer for them during their games.
"Right. The moment our presence is known, the sheep will flock right back into place." Boshcha nodded, though her teeth were grinding so much she could visibly see the pressure building. "Make way peons, your fearsome Grudgby team is here to win another flawless season!"
Her boyfriend turned to look at Boscha with confusion written all over his face. "Grudgby's some kind of sport, right?" … She loved that dazed out expression, but this was SO not the time, Belfry.
"That's it!" Boscha yelled, fire in her eyes as she shoved Belfry's head into a locker's mouth. "Where's that damned Half a witch!?"
"Over here!" One brave and or dumb student responded obviously to a crowd surrounding Willow and Luz, who were shaping and growing some strange looking plants. "They're making plants shaped like our heads. It's really cool and makes me feel less alone now."
"I always knew my art skills and magic skills would go hand in hand!" The human shouted, messing with some circles as she tapped it, producing a dark blue flower that bloomed into Bo's head.
"Wow, it's just like me, except colored like my track!" The girl shouted with joy.
"Pfft, pathetic." Boscha scoffed, creating a small magic circle and shooting off a fireball that burned the plant into ash. "Can't make any real friends, so now you have to grow them. Just as what I expected from the half a witch."
Willow glared, walking up to the three eyed girl instead of sulking like she used to do. "What the hell do you want, Boscha?"
"Just reminding these people who the real star of the week is." The girl smirked. "A powerful and worthy witch, not some half a witch that focuses on dolling up their weak magic, and a freakish human."
"Oh, so your just that insecure about your popularity because people actually like Willow instead of mindlessly following along with whatever crap you spit out?" Luz spoke up with that daring confidence that more than likely helped her survive Grom.
The entire hallway grew silent, as Boscha's third eye began to twitch. "Oh … you do not want to pick this fight."
"What's that? Sorry, I couldn't hear you over how off putting that pimple you call a third eye is." Luz continued to poke the fire bee hive if the gasping of the crowd was any indication.
"Luz, you might want to shut it!" Willow silently whispered behind the human.
"Willow, I have taken on detention, a greater basilisk, and Grom ." Luz said, before walking up to the captain and poking her in the chest. "One, insecure, overhyped battleax isn't gonna tell me how to live my life."
"What. Did. You. Just Call me?!" The hallway lit on fire.
"You heard me." Luz stepped forward. "An insecure, over hyped. Batt-"
A pink bubble suddenly surrounded the human. "Okay Luz, I think you should get to class now, we have that test in the healing track to get to." Lucci began rolling the girl away.
She shared a nervous glance with the other girls … and began playing crystal scribe saber for who would comfort Boscha. "Dang it, I've gotta stop picking saber." Amelia lamented as she slowly began to approach. "Boscha … you doing alri-"
Amelia couldn't talk … on the account of the hand wrapped around her throat. "Girls…I don't care by what means or how…but by the end of the day…the loser squad dies." Boscha growled out slowly. "Willow Park. Augustus Porter, and that stinking human. Trail them until you have them buried in the ground." She turned to Amelia, a darkness in her eyes. "Are we clear?"
The girl let out a cough. "Crystal!" She managed to shout out, before being tossed back to them.
"Wait, about Luc-" Skara stopped as death stared at her in the face.
"Leave. Clawthorne. To me. Got IT?!"
"Yep, totally, understood." Skara nodded quickly. "The human will go to the ground by the end of the day, we've gotcha." Boshcha wasn't one to exaggerate, but surely they weren't going to waste the whole day following them, right?
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"She followed us the entire day…" Gus sighed as Luz looked utterly horrified as they were covered in garbage. "She LITERALLY FOLLOWED US THE ENTIRE FREAKING DAY!"
"Such immense passion for her own goals." Lucci responded with a dopey smile. "Every day she just improves more and more."
"How was he the one who got off easily?" Gus had to ask, trying to wipe off the words 'illusion dork' off his forehead. "Boscha only threw spitballs at him and just wrote 'cute trash' on his arm. Why did we get stuck with the gum and haunted lockers?"
"Because he's sweet on her." Willow rolled her eyes as she looked down her shirt, pulling out a rotting meal and tossing it into a bush. "And the rest of us suffer in his place."
"To be fair, your only suffering because Luz refused to stop insulting her." Lucci pointed out with very solid reasoning. He wasn't even there when the fight happened and he was suffering for it.
The girl Gus once held in high standard actually looked offended. "And what, let her stomp over everyone and get her way all the time?"
"Luz, I hate bullying as much as the next gal, but you can't fight Boscha." Willow sighed. "She could probably get away with murder if she wanted."
"Boscha's getting away with murder?" Bump questioned as he passed them. "Can't say I approve, but I'm always up for students trying new things."
"Huh, I severely misjudged just how cool this place really is." Lucci grinned. "But seriously Luz, I thought we talked about your naivety getting you killed?"
"We have, but this isn't a matter of life or death for once. This is about showing up a self entitled rich girl and showing her she can't get away with everything!"
"Please don't escalate this Luz." Gus pleaded. "We don't know how long until she tries to kill us."
"We just need to think smarter on this. What we need is someone who knows Boscha and isn't a loyal lacky." Luz cupped her face, turning to the stairs. "Someone like-Amity! Perfect!" She ran up to said Blight girl. "Amity!"
"Luz?!" The girl shouted in surprise, her face red for some reason. "What Um, what's up?"
"Do you know the best way to stop Boscha?" Luz asked.
"… Luz, have you met the girl?" Amity asked with a hit of a baffled look. "She's unstoppable."
"Oh come on, is she really anything to be afraid of after Grom?" The human raised an eyebrow. "Ya gotta give us something, girl."
Amity shifted off to the side for a minute. "Sorry, but there's not much anyone can do especially with the sports season starting. She only speaks in Grudgby terms during this time of the year."
The human got a troubling look in her eye. "I understand you completely."
For some reason this set Lucci off. "Luz, don't do it, I swear to titan!"
"The human's going to be doing at lot of that after I'm done with her!" Boscha walked on the stairs, levitating a trash can and dumping it onto Willow. "Sorry, I volunteered to take out the trash, and I'm just gathering it all in one place."
"Boscha!" Luz called out angrily.
"Luz, I will tackle you!"
"I challenge you…"
"I'm absolutely serious!"
"To a grudgby match!" The moment those words left her mouth, Lucci jumped onto Luz, taking her to the ground.
"Why are you starting another impossible challenge?!" Honestly given the track record, this was a perfectly rational response to have.
Boscha widened her eyes, laughing. "You think I'm actually going to waste the time I could be training taking on a human who reads frilly Azura books?" She accused. "Oh thou faint of heart, i Azura the wise, can best this challenge and walk awayeth into the night."
Luz raised an eyebrow. "You remember that book line for line?"
"Amity left it over one night and I have perfect visual memory." The girl rolled her eyes as she pointed to the third one. "How do you think I got so good at potions?"
"I thought you were just that talented naturally." Lucci responded instantly.
Boscha seemed to pause for a second, before turning her attention back to Luz. "Whatever, name your terms or whatever. I could use the practice before the first game."
"Me, Willow, Gus … how many members can play a team?" She turned to Amity.
"It's a three-four players at a time."
"Thank you. And Lucci take you on!" The human went back to her rant. "If we win, you have to admit you're the worst!" Luz shouted. "And you'll stop picking on Willow and anybody else for the rest of your time at Hexide."
"Fine. And if I win, you're out."
There was a silence. "… out of what?" Gus decided to question.
"Everything." Boscha made her way over to Luz, eyes to eye. "No more Hexide, no more Boiling Isles, you crawl back to wherever humans came from. And if you back out of the deal?" She gave a simple smile. "Out of your life when I'm through with it. After all, our lives would be so much better if you hadn't been mucking them up."
Everyone looked at each other, clearly all thinking the opposite. "Luz, this is clearly too much.." Gus tried to interject.
"You got a deal!" Luz instantly responded.
"I WILL STRANGLE YOU!" Again, perfectly reasonable response.
"Your funeral, literally." Boscha smirked evilly. "Although I don't see why all of you have to suffer." She turned to Lucci with a mischievous grin. "You wouldn't mind helping me practice, would you, Lucci?"
"Damn it, here we go." Willow groaned, sinking her head into her hands. "We're about to lose our only decent shot at winning."
The boy grimaced. "While I would love to … my responsibility to teammates comes … first." It looks like it genuinely hurt to say that.
"... huh?" Both Amity and Willow had their jaws practically drop to the ground upon hearing that.
"What?" Boscha questioned with an intense glare.
"Just …. Loyalty, you know?" He said with a gulp.
Boscha looked at the boy even harder for a solid minute, before scoffing. "Fine, be that way. A player that can't stick with their own team isn't much of a player to begin with."
Lucci sighed with relief. "Oh thank you for under-"
"Which means I have free range to bury all of you before I murder the human." Boscha took the grudgby ball she had and kicked it into a tree… that snapped in half… and exploded.
"… I can't tell if that was flirting or I just lost the very little progress I gained since Grom." The witch boy sighed. "I can decide that while I strangle you for getting usinto this situation to begin with, LUZ NOCEDA!" He shouted, throttling the girl in question.
"I-I-I'm sorry! I-I just r-really l-love my friends!" The girl managed to respond.
"Lucci…you…you turned down Boscha.." Willow looked like she was barely breathing. "Your crush…since you were four…..you turned down…to stick with us?"
Lucci let go of the human and turned to her. "Of course I'm sticking with you guys, Willow." Lucci smiled. "You're my friends."
The girl stayed silent for a moment, before she started bawling, grabbing the boy so tightly you could hear something crack. "I'm so sorry I thought you'd ditch me all these years!" His friend cried out as the cracking sound continued. "Thank you for sticking by me!!"
"Glad…we're…friends again too…Willow." Lucci managed to gasp up. "Man your…really buff…ow.."
"Yeah, we've got this in the bag!" Luz shouted. "Between my optimism, Willow's raw power, Gus's flag waving skills, Lucci's pink stuff-"
"I'm still going to strangle you after this is all over, don't add to the fire by insulting my powers."
"We've got this in the bag!" She continued. "All we need is a mentor …" Luz looked contemplative, before turning to the Blight. "Hey Amity, you played Grudgby, wanna help train us?"
"You mean me training you…in tight uniforms…and sweating?" Why was all that stuff freaking her out? "No, I can't even-who's Amity!?" She screamed, running in the other way, tripping on a rock as she did.
"I guess the pressure got to her." Luz pondered.
"You are so dense." Lucci slapped his forehead.
"Have you met our friend group?" Willow asked. "I'm pretty sure dense people are just magnets for more dense people."
"What're you two on about?" Gus asked.
"Nothing." Lucci responded. "Alright, guess it's up to me to get Luz out of her own mess…again." He glared at the girl. "You're so lucky that I happen to know the most skilled grudgby player on the boiling isles or this team would be so dead."
"Really, you know… oh no, we're going to your mom for this, aren't we?" Willow sighed.
"Sadly, she is our best option at this point." Lucci relented. "To the Owl House!"
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Eda grinned. "So you wanna be like your mama back in her gory days, do ya sport?" One second the kids all rush in, the next they say they want to learn Grugby from her. The pride in her heart has never felt so wide.
"It's mostly so we can win a horrible bet that Luz got us into, but yes." Her hatchling nodded. "She dragged us all into a grudge match without even asking if we knew how to play." That sounded just about right.
"Okay, I jumped the gun, I get that now! Can we please not bring that up now?!"
"Well lucky for you, I have a three step plan to master the art of grudgby." She smiled. "Step one, learn the rules."
"Right, someone please do that, because I don't know a lick about it." Luz admitted.
"Take the ball, toss it into the opponent's net." Lucci explained.
"All the while avoiding a series of magical traps that are hidden beneath the field." Park added on.
"Is there any spot that's not lethal in the Boiling Isles?" There was a telling silence.
"What do you mean by non-lethal?" Goops raised an eyebrow. "The point of sports is to put your life on the line for glory. That's what makes watching them worthwhile."
"Which brings us to two, train your bodies to their limit." She nodded. "Get as strong as possible as fast as possible, cause time is short."
"Oooh, this I got covered!" Luz shouted out. "All we need is a training montage and we'll be good to go!"
"Training montage?" Gus asked. "What's that?"
"We have much to teach you, my friend." Eda really doubted that, which is why she saved the best for last.
"And step three, the most important one of all." Eda spoke with absolute seriousness. "Cheat as hard as you can."
"Hell ye-wait…" Lucci for some strange reason lost the enthusiasm mid chant. "I don't think we should at this game.."
"Screw that, we need to win by any means necessary!" Park yelled
"But we're in deep water enough as it is, we should poke the multibear more than we already have." He responded. "Boscha already hates us and is gonna go at it with everything she has. If she finds out we cheated we're going to have a worse relationship than Mom and Aunt Lily."
"Oh, that reminds me!" Hooty shouted. "I ate the woman after she tried to attack … this morning."
"Hooty!" Eda yelled, hitting the bird in the back of the head. "What do I always say about attacking family!?"
"Go for knockouts, not death blows." Lucci agreed, frowning at the guy.
"Sorry!" The bird didn't sound sorry in the slightest. "Don't worry, she's wrapped up in a pellet, I'll spit her out right now. Hack. Ghosh." The bird demon began hacking and coughing violently.
"Hooty, that's gross!" Luz shouted, speaking for everyone. "If your going to do that, do it out-"
Blergh.
A bunch of material formed into a ball popped out … wiggling as her sister tore out. "I don't know how … but I will kill you, you vile house." She growled out menacingly, her disheveled hair adding effect.
"Maybe when we're both old and gray you might be able to." Eda waved off. "I'd offer you some appleblood, but I know miss prissy and perfect Lilith doesn't drink on the job."
"Edalyn …" The woman scowled. "I take it you're trying to do something illegal today as well?"
"Nope. Just helping us play Grudgby." Lucci shrugged.
"... And you went to her for advice?"
"It was her or Amity, but she bailed on us." Park answered.
"And in case you didn't remember, I was the star player." Eda smirked as she held up her picture.
"Wow, who thought your memory failed too." Lilith snatched the photo, unfolding it and showing off the uptight woman with an even bigger trophy. "I was the team captain."
"Wow, I think that trophy is shinier than anything mom's ever stolen….no offense mom." Lucci gazed at the picture. "Huh, never knew you wore glasses."
"When they're constantly dropping while you chase your enemies, it's best to switch to contacts." Park looked thoughtful at that piece of information.
"Well maybe you could help too. We're kinda open to all options." Goops suggested, before turning to Luz. "Can you use the sword yet?"
"Almost. I should be able to get it by the end of this season … of our lives."
Lilith looked at the group with a bemused smile and let out a light chuckle. "It's been a minute since I've molded a young mind, but I suppose I can spare a few details."
"Oh brother, here we go." Eda distinctly remembered hating it when sis got into 'coach Lilly' mode.
"Strategy is one of the most paramount things in grudgby. Working with your teammates, knowing them inside and out, is going to help pull off plays that you could never do alone." Lillith stood on on the counter and looked the kids dead in the eye.
"Strategy, smategry, half of any plan goes out the window with all the magic traps." Eda rolled her eyes. "That's why you just have to build your pain tolerance and smash through anything and anyone that gets in the way."
"Oh that would be sound advice…if we're we're talking about kindergartners playing grudgby." Lilth countered.
"They're just going to be fighting for the rest of the day, aren't they?" Park asked.
"Yep …" Lucci nodded.
"Oh please, I can still kick your keester any day of the week, Lily." The Owl Lady accused.
"Is the curse affecting you near senile state or are you actually trying to challenge me?"
"Senile-Your two years older than me!" Eda growled, stomping her foot. "Yeah, maybe I am! One on one! First to ten goals wins. When I do, you admit I'm the better player and scatter."
"And when I win, you'll finally join the Emperor's Coven." Lilith gave her that condescending smirk.
"You're on!"
"Okay, I'm starting to think this whole family just has a problem with making bets." Lucci pointed out. "With what happened at the Covention and the writing competition, not to mention what's happening right now, I think we just automatically chose the worst time to gamble."
"If that was true, one day these stupid bets will be your fault." Park pointed out.
"I guarantee you that when I do, it's going to be on a grand scale that transcends time and space." Lucci didn't disagree.
"So…I take it that you two will be busy with your grudge match." Luz stated plainly. "We still have our own game to plan, so…see yah."
The kids walked out of the door as Eda cracked her hips. "Alright, let me pack my lunchbox, and I'll be set to kick you into next week Lilly." The Owl Lady smirked.
"Fine fine, I'll go set everything up then." As soon as Lily walked out of the room, Eda made her way to the special box.
"Ah cheating, always the way to-" She opened it up, finding a note. " Eda, I cleaned out your Lunchbox, was super dusty. Have a lovely day." Eda read aloud. "Luz…your sweetness is endearing and it's doomed me once again." Hopefully she wasn't too rusty….She really needed to kick out the gambling habit.
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Luz looked at her team as they gathered on the field. "Alright, they may have experience, strength, and a combo set up to pulverize all enemies. But, we have something better. We're the underdogs!"
"Dog's live underground where you live?" Lucci scratched his head. "Are they like mole hybrids that dig tunnels all across the world?"
"No, it means that nobody expects us to win, so if we pull it together and give it everything we got, we'll win for sure!" She clarified with a grin.
"You're going to assume that she's underestimating us though." Willow pointed out. "And Boscha doesn't have a concept of 'taking it easy'."
"The only time she holds back is when she's training with the banshees, and even then, they never leave practice without at least one broken bone." Gus added on. "And that's not to mention that none of us here have ever played Grudgby before."
"And that's what the montage is for." Luz smirked, pressing play on her speaker.
"Suitty up, Booty up, billa-be-do-do-da." She quickly turned that off.
"Wrong track."
"So should I start writing our obituaries now or.." Gus began taking out a pen and paper.
"No way, we still have hope." Luz said seriously. "Just trust me." She played the right track this time.
"Try to be best 'cause you're only a man." There we go! A classic song to get the blood pumping! This was sure to bring nothing but success. " And a man's gotta learn to take it!"
"Try to believe though the going gets rough, That you gonna hang tough to make it!"
"And as you can clearly see, time bends as long as you have a dope soundtrack in the background of whatever you're doing." Luz had to take about fifteen minutes to explain the science behind a training montage.
"I think it's more of perception than time itself actually warping." Lucci explained. "I noticed sometimes when I get super emotional that the world seems to slow down around me."
"Well how else would that explain how I crammed in two hours worth of movie logic into the last fifteen minutes, huh?" Luz countered.
"I went to the bathroom four times, how does this function!?" Gus shouted.
"History repeats itself! Try and you'll succeed!"
After they stopped Gus from breaking himself, they then had to explain the more detailed rules of Grudgby to her. "Now the field might look safe right now, but watch what happens when we put this leaf in the middle." Willow shooed a tiny leaf, and the moment it landed, spikes grew out of the ground, before getting set on fire, and a boulder landed on top of it, smashing everything to pieces.
"So … how are we supposed to walk?" Luz asked.
"I got bubble skates after mixing them with tiny round shields, but it's hard to pull off on multiple people." Lucci said as he moved forward …. Before being launched into the bleachers. "Nevermind … didn't help at all!"
"Never doubt that you're the one! And you can have your dreams!"
"Toss me the ball guys, I can take it!" Luz shouted.
"Are you sure you want to handle it?" Willow asked. "If you don't respect it enough, the ball will open its stitched closed mouth and bite you."
"It's alive!?" Luz shouted, before running over, rubbing the ball. "Who is the most durable and adorable little thing on the Boiling Isles? Yes you are, yes you are."
"Caaww!" It shouted, going for her face. Why did she keep forgetting tiny things didn't like to be pandered to?
"You're the best around! Nothing's gonna ever keep you down!"
"Ah, nothing beats having a nice relaxing break with all my friends." Luz smiled as she pouted a cup of tea for Lucci for the fuzzy pj tea party picnic.
"This is nice, but how did we get in cat pajamas?" The boy questioned
"I brought the costumes and the rest of the mood did its thing." She explained.
"Mine's a little tight." Willow winced, messing with the hood.
"Why did you bring animal pjs to begin wi-" Gus tried to wrap his mind around the montage logic again.
"Oh look, the next transition is about to start!"
"You're the best around! Nothing's gonna ever keep you down! You're the best around! Nothing's gonna ever keep you down….!"
"You know, if we're really trying to win, we need to pull out all the stops." Willow approached Lucci. "We need to bring out Orchid."
"Two problems with that." He responded. "One, I have no clue how to fuse on command."
"Both times it was when your lives were in danger….given the situation, I don't think it'll be hard for you two to do it." Luz recalled. "The team could definitely benefit from having a deadly force of nature on our side."
"And two, Amity might watch … Do you really want her to know we both started the second Vegetable Incident?" He questioned.
".....Death by Boscha, or Amity saying I told you so….man that's a tough call to make." Willow pondered.
"Oh, what if you fuse with someone else?" Gus asked. "Like me, or Luz?"
"Look, no offense guys, I'd love to have more firepower, and I'm open to another test fest, but I'm not even sure if I can fuse with anyone else." Lucci pointed out. "For all I know, Orchid's the result of our plant magic bonding us together."
"Then I guess it's just the four of us." Luz nodded. "We'll just pull through ourselves!"
"Fight till the end 'cause your life will depend, On the strength that you have inside you. Ah you gotta be proud, staring out in the cloud, When the odds in the game defy you!"
"Hey, if Lucci bubbles the ball, can he just float it to the goal, or would that be cheating?" Luz asked.
"Actually anything goes as long as you survive. Any spell is good, just as long as you don't have any magical items or power patches." Gus answered.
"Alright then, let's try a bubble ball." Lucci grinned as he covered it. "And go!" … They watched the ball gently float forward, so slow that even Luz could just stroll past it.
"I've seen these bubbles smash through concrete, why's it going so dang slow!?" Willow shouted.
"I kinda focus more on gaining new powers than training up the ones I already have." Lucci shrugged with a wince. "This is pretty much as fast as I can go with something inside of it…that and the smaller size probably makes it less dense."
"Try your best to win them all! And one day time will tell! When you're the one that's standing there! You'll reach the final bell!"
"Okay, new idea! Light Ball!" Luz got a light glyph and smacked in on the ball, making it glow. "Boscha's third eye is really sensitive. We just smack this on the ball when she gets close, and she'll back off!"
"You want to get her even angrier?" Gus asked.
"She's gotta hit the limit eventually, she's already super high on rage as it is." The human shrugged as she tossed the ball to Willow.
"Luz, as much as I want Boscha in agonizing pain, you're really escalating the situation here." Willow grunted. "I've been on the tail end of it for years. Boshca doesn't turn down the anger at all. If there's a limit, she's broken past it a long, LONG time ago."
"I once saw her get so angry, she poked an ice carver and made him melt instantly." Her roomie responded.
"... You mean ice sculpture, right?"
"That too." Lucci spoke with a dazed look as the ball hit him square in the nose.
"You're the best around! Nothing's gonna ever keep you down! You're the best around! Nothing's gonna ever keep you down!"
"I HATE THIS PLAYING FIELD!" Willow ran as a giant tentacle chased her around.
"YOU AND ME BOTH!" Lucci was being dragged underground by a giant decaying hand pulling him into a sinkhole. "This is why I don't play sports!"
"Come on guys, we can do it if we pull through!" Luz shouted as tried to freeze a swarm of firebees. "Teamwork, teamwork!"
"Stop talking, you're upsetting the ghosts even more!" Gus shouted as they tried to drag him into a gate. "No, my time hasn't come! I'm too young to die!"
"You're the best around! Nothing's gonna ever keep you down! You're the best around! Nothing's gonna ever keep you down!"
"The motivational words really don't help when…" Lucci threw up mid sentence. "...When i'm hurling from the pain….BLAAGGH!"
"Luz, even Lucci's supernatural … everything is failing." Willow gestured to the boy. "We've gotta call it."
"And just let Boscha beat up and kill whoever she wants without consequence!?"
"...Yeah, basically." Gus rubbed his arm. "I mean, if the school's okay with it…"
"You're the best around! Nothing's gonna ever keep you down! You're the best around! Nothing's gonna ever keep you down!"
"No, I'm not giving up on this ragtag team of misfits yet!" Luz stomped her foot down. "We're close to being a real functional sports team, I know it! We just have to master our ultimate move! The Thorn Vault!" She began taking out a plant glyph.
"Luz. I think that move might be a little out of our league." Willow began backing away.
"Nonsense, I believe in you guys!" Luz stamped the Glyph on the ground.
"Fight till you drop, Never stop, can't give up, Till you reach the top!"
"LUUUUUUZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ! " Her friends shouted out as they were sent flying across the field in three separate directions, as she hit the ball through the hoop, grinning.
"You're the best in town-"
"AGGH!" The montage stopped from the scream Gus made. "NOOO!" Everyone turned, as the boy cradled … his broken flags. "Get up guys, you can do it. We promised to cheer all season." One of them snapped off, hitting the floor. "Farewell my babies, you waved proudly to the end."
"Sorry Gus.." Luz winced. "But…on the bright side, everyone didn't get hurt, so we can keep training!"
"Yeah, no!" She turned, seeing Lucci … hanging on the flagpole by his pants leg. "Luz, you nearly got us killed! We're not going to keep training after that!"
"Lucci's right." Willow grumbled, having landed on a giant flower she managed to make before she landed. "We're not a sports team, and if we face Boscha how we are now, we're going to lose."
"But, but … we can't just give up." She tried to say.
"Watch us." Lucci said as he ripped off his legging, falling to the ground. "It's as mom says. Quitting, it's easier than trying."
"But, Boscha will just keep picking.."
"Then let her." Willow stopped her. "I'd rather face that than getting hurt just to humiliate myself even more." She picked up Gus from the spot he was quivering in. "Come on, I think I have some tape back at the green house to fix those."
The group began walking away … just like everyone else … great. Luz messed up again, what else is new? "Looks like the little Human's all out here alone."
She turned to Boscha, seeing the vindictive grin on her face. "Yeah yeah, I know. I'll go pack my bags." She'd rather just get this over with.
"Oh no, when I said you'd be out of here…I really meant out of here…in EVERY way imaginable." She lit the Grudgby ball on fire. "I don't mind if you run a little, helps me work with a moving target."
A part of Luz questioned if she should just take the ball head on … her survival instinct won out. "AHHHHHHHHH!" She ran as the balls kept coming.
"Keep them lined up girls, I want to finish this fast." Boshca said as she kicked balls at her head one after the other.
========================================================================
"And … done." Lucci finished hooking up the iv to the flag. "It's no healing spit, but it'll have to do." So this is what it was like to put what he learned from the Healing Track into action. Felt nice.
"From now on, my flags shall wave no more, except in surrender." Gus lamented as he moaned his prized possessions.
"Ughh, I got Luz trying to be helpful, but this was taking it way too far." Willow muttered as she wiped off the gunk and dirt of her face.
"I know, she already took on Grometheus, this is just pushing it." Lucci rolled his eyes. "This is why we have secret entrances, people."
"Yeah, for a second, it felt like one of your old ideas back when we were kids." Willow asked. "One of us would have trouble with something, you'd steal something to help us, and then we'd beat up a monster or guard. This was that, just without the stealing."
Lucci stared at her for a moment, before groaning. "Why did you put it like that, now I feel guilty!" He even made her promise to not be as pessimistic as him.
"Was it really like this all the time back then for you guys?" Gus asked.
"Yeah, though it was a little fun every now and again." Willow nodded. "Probably the only reason why I grew so much using Plant magic before I stopped." Willow looked at Lucci and sighed. "Were we too harsh on Luz? I mean, she really was only trying to help."
"She was…but she got us in this mess by trying to stick it to Boscha." Making him lose whatever good will he had with her.
"Well she is the only one who'd try." Gus admitted. "Willow is her prime target, Lucci has a crush on her, and everyone else is afraid."
"Yeah, no one else has really stood up for me that much before." Willow mulled it over. "I don't know what to do here."
"You guys need to go and help Luz!" They turned their heads and saw Amity barging into the room.
"We know, there's a whole brawl going on." Lucci rolled his eyes.
"Yeah, and Boscha already broke Luz's arm! "
".... She what?!" Both him and Willow felt the same overprotective urge rush over them.
"Look, I know you guys are upset, Luz likes to get involved and in over her head, which I like-I mean hate!" Amity retracted. "She does so many strange and unusual things for her friends, which is sweet-I mean I hate it!" …Real Subtle, Blight.
"You lost us." Gus pointed out.
"Point is, we used to do so many crazy things with each other, and some of it….alot of it was really dangerous, but we didn't hate each other for it." Amity turned to him and Willow. "We'd go above and over the moon for each other even when it was stupid, why can't we do the same for Luz right now?"
"Yeah yeah, passionate speech, lovely words, can we go back to broken arm!? "Lucci shouted as he ran out, looking at the scene on the field.
Luz was doing her best to run around while covered in cuts and tears, holding her arm as she avoided a spear of ice flying where her head was a second ago. The entire field was a mess, the main source being Boscha, who was tossing out anything from potions to attacks, to grudby balls.
Lucci loved the passion, but he'd be a hypocrite to excuse Boscha taking things too far and not giving Luz the benefit of the doubt. It didn't matter who it was… no one would hurt his friends… ever . "Okay Blight, we're in." Willow grinned savagely, all of them rushing out of the room.
They watched as Boscha threw a few more potions out, throwing them. They changed into giant stone structures as Luz became boxed in. "This is it human." The girl growled, messing with the grudgby ball as a metal pole formed, turning it into a makeshift hammer. "No more making weaklings forget their place like half a witch." They cast a spell, setting the hammer ablaze. "No more making decent witches soft like Blight." They raised it up. "The world will be so much better when you STOP LIVING IN IT!"
BONG
"I don't know, I can name one or two things she's made a lot better." Lucci created a shield to block the attack, sending a massive ring all across the field. "For once, I feel a lot less moody with her around."
Boscha looked like she was about to retort, only for a vine to grow out of the ground, and grab her right arm. "And I feel a lot more confident in standing up to jerks like you."
The girl growled, ripping her way out of the plant. "I guess we're playing then." She spoke lowly. "And when I win against you three, then I'm going to stuff that human skull on my trophy wall."... Was it wrong to think her anger was still attractive?
"And when we win…" Amity swopped into the field, landing on an abomination she created for a landing. "You stop picking on all my friends, permanently , Boscha."
Boscha merely let out a huff, stomping away as the ground burned with every step. "I see what you want about melting a man …" Luz chuckled, before coughing.
"Don't worry, roomie, I got you covered." He licked his palm and lightly slapped it against her back, the cuts and broken arm instantly disappearing.
"Wow…wow that stuff feels good!" Luz immediately jumped to her feet. "Like, better than good! I'm feeling twice as healthy as before!"
"Please don't get addicted to my spit…wow that sounds wrong when I say it outloud.." He deadpanned.
"Don't worry, I won't." The human looked at the group. "So…all three of you are together again…..does that mean…?" Luz looked at them with sparkly and hopeful eyes.
"LAW is back in action!" Willow grinned. "Ready to kick some but just like the old days."
"Ready? You're saying we ever stopped kicking butt?" Lucci laughed.
"Yeah, there's no way we can lose." Amity grinned. "With my abominations, Willow's plants, and Lucci's …" They snorted. "'Pink stuff'."
"Seriously, stop calling it that. I've worked hard for it."
"Then give it a new name." The human patted him. "And you guys aren't the only ones with a trinity." Luz grinned. "Light, Ice … Plant …" They trailed off, looking at Boscha's footsteps, leaning in closely. "... And …" She began scribbling on a piece of paper, tapping it before a small burst of flames came out. "... Fire." Luz laughed. "HAHAHAHA! I learned a new Glyph, and it's thanks to Boscha! Oh, that's just too ironic!"
"Are we starting this or what?!"
========================================================================
Willow had to admit, Luz had a point. With the new glyph and all their skills, they managed to reach eighteen, eighteen, tied game. The plant which was feeling really pretty confident about herself right now.
The game started off pretty strongly. With Amity and her working their magic's together, they were able to create a surface below them that helped them burrow through the traps without setting them off. Lucci was able to to help Luz avoid most of them by carrying her through the most dangerous ones, the girl was light as a twig after all.
Not to say it wasn't easy. Anytime they injured the other team, Cat healed them. Anytime it looked like they had a solid plan, Skara pulled out some chess based ten steps ahead maneuver. Amelia was so forgettable that they sometimes forgot they were going against four players instead of three. And this was all ignoring Boscha's … skill. That was the only way to describe how dangerous of a beast she was on the field.
Although there was a point around halfway through that the competition became a little more friendly between the teams…barring Boscha of course, being the high strung bitch. Lucci and Skara obviously still got along with each other. Ameila almost seemed to cry when Luz gave her a thumbs up, almost like the girl's never heard of positive reinforcement before in her life. Cat seemed really chill, mostly just smirking whenever she managed to make a goal.
So now they were all huddling up together, hands on shoulders. "What's the game here?" Luz asked. "It's tied up right now, so we need something to push it through."
"Boscha's firepower isn't a high advantage for them anymore with Luz's fire glyph, but they know to expect that right about now." Amity mulled it over. "There's one idea that I do have, but it's risky and could end with one of us getting a broken leg."
"I heal things instantly, I don't think injuries are going to be a problem here." Lucci reaffirmed.
"Well there is the thorn vault. It's a technique where you launch yourself through the air using plant magic, but if done incorrectly catapults and harms your teammates." Amity said. "Only a complete fool with no regard for the safety of others would dare use it without training." A silence was casted over the group. "....That's why you guys were mad at Luz before this, wasn't it?"
"..Heheh, in my defense, sport montage hindsight is 20/20." Luz laughed hesitantly. "I won't do it unless everyone else is completely cool with it, I've learned my lesson from last time."
"Alright, Luz, you and Willow make sure you get a clear distance, try powering up the spell. I'll keep them distracted." Amity explained. "Lucci, you make sure to keep any long distance attacks away with your shield."
"Will do, nothing's gonna harm them." Lucci nodded.
Willow felt herself touched, as the group huddle disbanded. They waited for the ball to launch into the air, where Willow sent out a vine to snatch it. "Aha, losing your touch, Boscha? This is the fifth ball I've intercepted from you today!" Willow couldn't help but get a little cocky. It was a combination of the adrenaline and just general anger and frustration slowly unbottling.
"Oh you think you're funny!!" The girl shouted, creating another spell circle. "Let's see how you like it when I detonate you!" She fired off multiple blasts of condensed fire.
"Not on my wat..Hey!" Luz was grabbed by another vine, one not created by her as she was flung to the sideline. "Damn it, I keep forgetting about Amolia! Why do I keep doing that!?"
"It's Amelia!" The other plant user shouted, keeping Luz restrained and tied up.
"And I'll take on a couple sky attacks!" Skara shouted, shooting a few blasts of sound that Lucci used his shield to block. "Nothing personal, buddy! I still hope we meet up after this is all over!"
"No problem, but these attacks may be a bit overkill!" The boy shouted back.
"Pfft, nothing's overkill in Grudgby!" The fireballs kept getting bigger and bigger as Boscha got closer, digging out an orange vial in her uniform. "There's only those who survive…and those who die!" She let the bottle on fire, and tossed it right at Willow.
"NO!" She turned to see Amity and Lucci jump together in front of her, trying to block the attacks. There was a bright glow …
Boom! Splat!
Before nothing but Pink goo remained of her friends, splattered all over the field, and a bit onto her clothing. ".... AHHHHHHHHHH!" She screamed, trying to wipe off what she could only assume was the combined blood of her friends.
"YOU KILLED THEM!" Luz shouted with rage, breaking out of her viney prison as she tried to run at Boscha. "YOU BITCH! YOU ACTUALLY KILLED THEM!"
"I didn't…I didn't…I didn't…" Boscha, in a totally surprise move Willow didn't expect, didn't revel or gloat in death of people she just… she just… killed… Amity and Lucci… both died… protecting her.
"I'm sorry …" Willow sniffled. "I should have been stronger …"
"You're already strong Willow." She felt … something, caress her cheek. " Everyday you bloom brighter and brighter." The girl opened her eyes, looking at the goo … forming into a hand and holding onto her.
"....What..?" Willow couldn't properly absorb the situation happening as the goo began hopping off her body, and began forming until something resembling witch shaped itself. Most of the bottom half of the body was still drippy and mushy with now legs, but the top half was paler, almost skin colored as a oval like face with bright golden eyes looked at her, her hair being more magenta like with hints of green in it as it looked like it was flowing, with Lucci's gemstone right where the belly was.
"What's wrong?" The thing asked. "Do I have something on my … our … " The pile of liquid looked itself over, pausing as it looked at the familiar stone in their stomach. "Why do I have Lucci's … gem?" Oh titan…it happened again.
"Whoa…." Luz stopped charging at Boscha as everyone else just stared at the sight of the new body on the field. "Amity…Lucci…don't freak out….but I think the two of you merged together."
The gooshy new being looked at Luz, then at themselves for a second. "AAAGGG!"The mush screamed. " What just happened, is this Sex!? No, calm down, it isn't what you think, at least I'm pretty sure it isn't. "
"What the fuck am I looking at?" Cat questioned.
"Well, it turns out one of Lucci's many, many powers is to fuse with other people." Luz explained. "He's done it once or twice before."
"Lucci … and Amity …" Boscha looked like bain was trying to reboot. "I can't even…what the hell is even going on here.."
"Believe us, it's just as freaky for us as it is for you." For once, Willow could find herself agreeing with Boscha of all people.
"Wowowowowwow, this is…so freaking weird." The big pile of pink mush moved around as it's slimy body mushed around. "Gross, it's like I'm made out of pudding. Pudding? That doesn't sound too bad actually. You want to be called Pudding? Is there another name that could be more appropriate? Pudding it is then." Looks like they got a better handle on this than Orchid's first forming.
"Pudding?" Luz asked. "Okay, that sounds really cute, but can't we brainstorm names just a little? Like Lucity? No wait! … Lumity!"
"We're not going to sound like one of your ship names!" Pudding seemed to boil at that.
"One of them is gonna be a blend of names, trust me!" She shouted.
Amelia shoved Willow onto the ground, snatching the ball. "Snooze you lose folks, ball's mine!"
Pudding seemed to rise up like the waves of the Boiling Isles, enveloping the field in shadows. "Don't you dare …" Multiple fists and spikes formed within the wave. "DARE TOUCH A HAIR ON MY FRIEND'S FACE!" They shouted, instantly bombaring everything except her and Luz.
"RUN FOR COVER!" Cat shouted as she was hit in the back, instantly begging the drown in the goo that was now covering her. "I'm hit! I'm done for! I knew grudgby would kill me eventually!...I just always assumed it would be because of Boscha!"
"Why did you never tell me you could do something so cool, Lucci!?" Skara shouted, before a fist sent her flying into the bleachers. "I get it, high tensions here, everyone's feeling emotional!"
"My life is flashing right before my eyes!" Amelia was grabbed before she could manage her shot, and twirled around like a carnival ride. "And-it's-really-boring….oh titan I am average!"
They twirled the girl around more as they shot the ball right back at them. "Here you go, Willow, stay safe." Pudding gave her a big goopy hug before returning to her victims. "NOW WHO NEEDS TO DIE NEXT!?"
Willow rolled her eyes, turning to Luz. "They're treating me like glass, can you believe it?" She wasn't some porcelain doll that would break on touch.
"I say given how blood thirsty Orchid is, this balances everything out." Luz responded. "... Then again, this is still pretty bloodthirsty."
They watched as Boscha tried to block blow after blow, slowly being pushed deeper and deeper into a crater that was forming under her. "If I want to break some half a witch, I will do what I please, and you, don't get to tell me what to do!"
"Then how about you have some fun without oxygen! Wait, is that me, or you talking? I think there's a third thing that's both of us in here, it's really complex the first time." Pudding began shifting and molding out of place as they got closer and closer to Boscha. "We need to keep her buried! No, we're not going to kill anyone, especially not her! And i'd rather not explain to my parents why I killed someone I'm 'supposed' to be friends with! Screw your parents, they just make you suffer!!"
"I think we need to end this game before Pudding over their breaks Lucci and Amity mentally." Luz looked at Willow.
"No need." Willow looked at the faint pink glow building up. "As someone who's fused before, I know they're going to split up right about … now." They watched as the two witches hit the ground, staring at the sky blankly.
"Well … that was the most rebellious I've ever felt in my life." Lucci mumbled as they approached.
"I know, it felt amazing! Super weird, but great." Amity cracked her neck. "So exactly how much time do we have-"
"AAAAAHHHHHH! "
The bell screamed as the time finally ran down. The score on the board showed….they were tied.
========================================================================
Boscha could only stare at the clock. "... Tied …" She felt herself twitch. "I fucking … tied …" She growled out slowly, looking at the ground. She saw the rusty smidge… utterly turned to broken parts. Probably destroyed in the clash. A clash that she was…actually afraid of for a second, but not for what most people would think.
In that split second where they didn't know what happened…Boscha actually thought she killed someone….she actually thought she killed Lucci….and the feeling she felt believing that to be a fact was….not pleasant, not pleasant at all.
"So what happens now?" The human asked.
"Well, the old rules dictate a fight to the death, but nobody listens to those anymore." Skara explained. "... Hexas Holdem?"
"Nope, too many bad experiences with that game." Lucci, the boy she thankfully DIDN'T kill and wasn't a ghost out for vengeance spoke up….although a ghost Lucci did sound pretty exciting…why was she having this thought right now? "No one won and no one lost…how about we agree that both sides are capable and go back to how things were before we tried to kill each other?"
"Where we bullied you and you guys quietly took it?" Amelia asked.
"Eh, more along the lines of both sides sticking it to the other out of spite whenever we can." Willow added on. "And trust me, I got a lot of spite building up." Barf, she still had to deal with Half a witch thinking she was equal to them.
"So, can we talk about that whole thing?" Cat asked. "Where you two basically went farther than any couple at hexide has?"
"Do not put it like that! I just want to enjoy the feeling of rebellion without analyzing the further implication of what just happened." Amity snapped.
"Aww, but Pudding looked so cute! Even when they were trying to kill people." The human commented. "Plus it was a lot nicer than what happened last time." This happened before!?
"Wait, who did Lucci do it with before?" Amity blinked.
"Long time ago, I barely remember it." Lucci waved off quickly. "Lets just remember them for later, when we feel like being a rebel again." Why did he get to fuse with everyone else, he shouldn't be focusing on them. He shouldn't even be on their team!
"Almost dying aside, you guys were actually pretty great out there." Cat had the audacity to compliment the loser squad. "That's the hardest we've had to play in a while. You guys could probably be your own Grudgby team."
"With the wush and the kapow, you've got raw power guys!" Skara shouted. "I'd totally join Pudding's team." Damn it, damn it, those freaking traitors!
"Thanks, but we'll probably take a break from Grudgby for a while." The half a witch chuckled as the whole group laughed. Uggggh! Today was a waste of time! Nothing was proved and nothing was gained! All she had was this weird stupid feeling whenever Lucci was on her mind. Why did she feel so freaking weird since Grom!?
"Hey, you were amazing out there." Lucci walked up to her as the rest of her so-called friends chatted up with the losers. "You probably would've won if it wasn't for that thing with Pudding." That dopey smile he always gave her…that cute little..
"You got lucky! Your dumb luck doesn't make up for how much you suck!" She dug into her pockets and pulled out a piece of paper, shoving it into his chest. "Here's my number! Call me when you want to not suck at something for once!"
"Oh, sure." The boy continued to stare at her with sparkly eyes. "I look forward to training with you and everyone." What the, it was just supposed to be them! … Not that it was meant to be special in any sense, she just didn't need to work with loosers.
For some reason the loser squad stared at him. "Wow." The Human smirked. "I can't imagine anyone being that oblivious to someone else's feelings."
Amity looked at the human weirdly. "I… let's just all go home before someone else says something stupid that gets them in trouble… again."
"Yeah, I could sleep off today." Half a witch said with a hint of exhaustion.
"Whatever. I'm leaving before the loser smell rubs off any more." Boscha grumbled as she left, Skara tailing right behind her. "What?"
"You gave Lucci your number…you never give that to anybody." Skara looked at her dumbly with a stupid smile.
"What are you talking about, you have my number." She pointed out.
"No, I got it from your parents. Same with Amity. Cat and Amelia have it because I gave it to them." The grin got bigger and more stupid. "You actually like him, don't you?"
"Do you want your head shoved inside of your lute?" Boscha questioned. "No? Then drop it."
"Oh no, not after all the trauma you gave us all today." Skara snickered. Boscha really, really hated her friends sometimes….which was most of the time.