Chapter 16: Chapter 16: Kick Her in the Teeth!
Eda and Luz could be seen flying on Eda's staff, landing before Hexside. Flint on the other hand was flying behind them using his fire wing technique before landing beside them. Had to get practice in after all.
Luz jumped off the staff with an excited smile. "Our first grudgby season! I'm so excited, I have more school spirit than the school spirits!"
Near them was one of said spirits in the form of a stereotypical ghost holding a set of pom-poms.
"Why do I even bother?" The ghost groaned, throwing his pom-poms to the ground before floating away.
Honestly, Flint was starting to become numb to the weirdness of this world…and that numbness was starting to concern him.
Eda sighed fondly. "Ah, grudgby season is the best. You know, I used to play, back in my gory days."
Luz and Flint shared a glance. "You mean 'glory days'…right?" They said in unison.
"Well, that too. I was unstoppable on the field. I had the best moves and the best cheats." Eda said with pride.
"Wow. Eda Clawthorne cheating. Who would have ever expected that?" Flint asked sarcastically with a dramatic eye roll.
"Hey, whatever gets the job done," Eda said with a shrug, unbothered by the boy's sarcasm.
Luz frowned. "Cheating isn't anything to brag about. How do you know you were any good if all you did was cheat your way to victory?"
Eda rolled her eyes and groaned. "Ugh. What do humans know, with your goody-goody attitude? If 'cheaters never prosper', why was I the star player?"
"Because something tells me you broke your opponents' kneecaps," Flint said bluntly.
"Hey!" Eda shouted indignantly. "...it was their ankles." Eda corrected.
Luz shrugged. "Well, can't reason with crazy." Luz accepted before pulling a sleeping King out of her hood. "Bye King, you little snoozers," Luz said, kissing his head before putting him on the staff as he drearily woke up.
Trixx jumped out from Eda's hair, landing on all fours as she stretched. "See you in Beast Keeping!" Trixx said to Luz and Flint, before trotting along the outside of the building as the two went inside.
The quartet of Luz, Flint, Gus, and Willow sat in a history class. Gus and Luz sat in seats on one side while Willow and Flint sat on the other, the girls being on the inside. Flint was actively taking notes as everyone else in class was bored out of their minds.
"Over 50 years ago, Emperor Belos appointed a head witch to each coven."
While Flint took notes, Luz was talking with Gus and Willow. "I can't wait for grudgby season to start! I've studied up on all sorts of magical sports. Like this." Luz said, holding up a DVD case. "Good Witch Azura 2: The Field of Deadly Fates. A classic underdog tale." Luz said, showing it to Willow.
Willow was about to reach for it when Flint poked her arm. Curious, she turned to him as he pushed a different notebook 'Where does he even keep those?' over to her and she read the page. "Azura challenges Hecate in the smibbitch championship. But will she risk it all by taking a chance on the deadly Thorn Vault?" Willow read, a flash of recognition in her eyes as she read the last part.
Luz opened the DVD case as Gus grabbed the DVD and inspected it.
"This little thing holds information? Earth is so cool." Gus said in awe. Gus was glad Flint showed him some of their tech, else he might have thought the disc was some kind of cookie or something.
The teacher then asked a question. "The council headquarters was built and paid for by...? Anyone? Willow?" The teacher called on.
Willow was a bit surprised as she stood up. "Uh, the Pixie Dust Taxes?"
"Whoo, yeah! Go, Willow!" A random student from the hall cheered before the teacher magicked the door closed
The teacher smiled. "Impressive, Miss Park."
Many of the other students murmur in admiration. It was quite an interesting thing to Flint. Ever since Willow proved herself capable in plant magic and switched tracks, he'd seen her getting steadily more popular as the days went on. Heck, Willow had even told them how people were asking for fruits that were made in the shape of their heads. It was nice seeing the once-shy witch growing out of her seed's shell.
"What's going on? It's like all of Hexside's caught Willow fever!" Luz said in surprise.
"Ever since I patched things up with Amity, I've been feeling more confident. I guess it shows." Willow said modestly, gesturing to the flower-shaped hair clip she was wearing.
Suddenly the hair clip levitates off of Willow's head and into- ugh. Boscha's hand in the back, as she smiled like a smug cu-
I mean…certainly unlikable ne'er-do-welling teen. Yeah…that's definitely what I was going say…
"Aw, Willow thinks she's popular now. How cute." Boscha said condescendingly.
That's it! Imma kill her!
[No! You can't interfere with the story!]
But she's a bitch!
[We both know she deserves it, but no interfering! Go back to narrating!]
Fine.
Willow looks down sadly as Luz becomes visibly upset. Luz glances over at Flint, who appeared to still be taking notes, but she saw him subtly outstretching his pinky while writing an 'O', making a small spell circle at the end as he made another with his left hand's index as it held the notebook in place.
Suddenly, Boscha is surprised when one of the back legs of her chair mysteriously breaks, causing her to throw the pin into the air as she flailed for balance. The pin glowed as it hovered back over and placed itself back in Willow's hair where it had once been.
A few people in the class even end up laughing at Boscha's misfortune, with Luz and Flint glancing at each other with smiles.
The teacher turned away from the board curiously. "Is that laughter? Hey, hey! Learning's not supposed to be fun! What's going on?"
Boscha clawed her way back into sight with a growl. "Sorry teach, lost balance while reaching for something," Boscha said through gritting teeth.
"Oh dear, I hope you are okay our dear grudgby captain. Now then where was I…ah, right!" The teacher said, turning around and continuing as he wrote on the board.
Boscha growled as she glared daggers at Willow. "It's weird that Amity hangs out with you now. Ever since Grom, she's gone soft. But make no mistake Half-a-Witch, I'm still here to show you who's boss." Boscha threatened.
Willow began to look down before Flint nudged her in the arm. "Don't let that bitch get to you. She's got nothin' on you." Flint encouraged her, getting a smile from her.
"Flint's right. You're way better than she'll ever be. People like her peak in high school." Luz said, throwing shade while looking the aforementioned girl dead in the eye.
Boscha glared. "So, the friends wanna get in on this too, huh?"
Boscha begins to levitate Willow's bag into the air, but her efforts are stopped when it suddenly glows scarlet and grounds itself. She glares at the source, seeing Flint send a shit-eating grin at her, causing her to fume in her seat.
'Oh, it is on now!' Boscha thought.
It was, in fact, not on now.
Boscha was, rather understandably, pissed that all her attempts to mess with the four had failed. Every. Single. One. They even mocked her by taking turns! Even the human girl and the illusion dweeb!
In Potions, she tried to pour a Stench Potion on the humans, but the girl ended up doing something with her glove that blinded her with a flash of light, causing her to spill the potion on herself instead. Thank goodness she had leftover so she could create a counter-potion, though the citrus smell was starting to annoy her.
During lunch, she tried to hit the quartet with a grudgby ball from a distance, but she ended up throwing it into an illusion of the group made by the reporter's kid, which caused the ball to hit the wall instead and bounce back, hitting her in the face.
At one point she charged at them in the hallway in order to dump a trash can on them. Instead, a large vine sprouted from the ground and caused her to faceplant on the ground, dropping the contents on herself instead.
And she was still trying to figure out which one did the illusion that mirrored her movements. That stupid high-pitched snicker infuriated her every time she thought of it!
All in all, it didn't matter what it was that Boscha did, but it all ended up blowing up in her face…there might still be some soot in her hair after her second attempt using a potion.
'Ugh! What in Titan's name does Blight see in these dorks?!' Boscha screamed internally.
The fire boy suddenly turned to her before making a stupid face and a rude hand gesture to taunt her.
Boscha would internally admit that she did think it was kind of hot how he dominated Amity back during the Covention. She found his cockiness and power a bit attractive, but all of that appeal died when remembering that not only was he friends with those losers, but he was also human. Yeah, absolutely not. That, and he seemed to make it his life goal to do everything in his power to piss her off and it was working!
Boscha groaned as she saw someone walk by, recognizing it as Principal Bump. Seeing him made Boscha grin as a new plan formed. There's no way this one would fail!
"Principal Bump!" Boscha called out, getting the man's attention.
"Ah, Boscha. I assume you've been doing well in preparation for grudgby season?" Principal Bump asked.
Boscha grinned. "Of course, I'm me after all. But I'd like to report a few people, particularly those humans for getting in my way. I know I'd do even better without them going to Hexside." Boscha said. She was cackling internally. She was the Queen of this school once grudgby season arrived. No one could defy her.
Principal Bump clicked his tongue. "A shame, but I'm afraid there isn't much I can do in that department." Principal Bump replied.
'…WHAT?!' Boscha screamed in her mind in shock.
"P-principal Bump, I'm not sure you understood me-" Boscha began, only for the man to cut her off with a gesture.
"Flint happens to be quite the prodigy and has been getting full marks in all his classes, even while partaking in all tracks simultaneously. He has helped greatly in the short time he has been here. Assisting his peers on multiple occasions, helping me in finally destroying that damned Choosy Hat, and being a part of the group to stop the greater basilisk just name off the top of my head. Having him be an alumnus of this school would be an honor, and one I wouldn't dare allow other schools to get." Principal Bump explained.
"B-but! What about the girl then?" Boscha asked quickly.
"Luz? Ha! I'd rather have faced Grom myself than try to expel her. You do know she lives with Eda the Owl Lady, right? I have too much Eda-induced PTSD to ever think about crossing her." Principal Bump said, the last part in a haunted tone. "If that's all you wished to say, then I bid you a good day." Principal Bump bid his farewell as he walked off.
Boscha blinked in disbelief. This was absurd! She can't even get the principal to get rid of those pebbles?! That's it! She was done screwing around! It's time she showed those peasants their place!
"Do you think we overdid it with Boscha?" Willow asked as the four sat on the steps to the main entrance.
Gus smiled giddily. "Are you kidding?! That was awesome!"
Luz leaned back with her hands behind her head. "Besides, with someone like her, she's just getting to know Karma on a first-name basis. Though she is very determined, I'll give her that."
Flint was sitting with his legs crossed next to Luz. "Sadly, that'll only get you so far by itself. It's pretty fun pissing her off though."
Luz snorted. "You just like putting jerks in their place."
Flint shrugged. "Guilty as charged. I'm curious what her next attempt to get at us will be. People like her don't understand the word 'no' unless they're the one saying it."
The doors behind them slammed open, as red-faced Boscha walked up to them with her clique behind her.
"You! Me! Fight! Now!" Boscha demanded.
Flint stared at the offending finger being shoved in his face and, with the most deadpan expression possible, gave his response.
"…no."
Boscha faltered for a moment before steeling herself with an arrogant grin. "Ha, I knew you'd run at the sight of a-"
"Oh, I'm not running. I'm not declining because I'm scared, far from it." Flint stated as he got to his feet, looming two inches taller than her as he got up in her face. "I'm just not interested in wasting my time and energy with someone as pathetic as you."
Boscha growled. "What did you just call me?! Don't you even realize who I am?!"
"Oh, I know all I need to. You're just a spoiled little brat who never got told no as a child, with parents that don't give you a lick of attention unless it benefits them, and will die without a single person in the world that everactually loves them." Flint lambasted her.
Flint jabbed his finger forward, swatting hers away in the process. "You will never amount to anythingworthwhile on your own merit."
Boscha scoffed. "I have grudgby."
Flint laughed hysterically. "Well good for you! You can stand proud at the top of something that doesn't require any real societal skills."
"Wow, laying on thick, aren't you Flint?"
Everyone turned to see Amity walking out from the school entrance as she stopped next to the two.
Flint's expression suddenly turned super happy. "Hey Amity! I'm just saying what no one else has the guts to say to her face, that's all." Flint said cheerily, his expression doing a complete 180.
"…Uh huh…" Amity responded skeptically as she stepped next to the others. "Is he wrong?"
Gus gave a so-so gesture. "I mean…not really." The boy admitted.
"He's said just about everything I could and more," Willow stated.
They turned to Luz, who shrugged. "Gonna be honest, this is maybe about 75% of what he could be saying."
Amity raised a brow at that. "This isn't even full force?"
Luz shook her head. "Nope. That would require him to tap into the power of the Gamer Dictionary. It's mostly just words he's not allowed to say."
"Just fight me already!" Boscha demanded.
Flint rolled his eyes as he turned back to the bitch. "Puh-lease. Hate to burst your bubble Sourpatch -oh wait, I don't- but I put someone in the hospital before I had magic." Flint's pupils glowed scarlet. "So if I were you, I'd run along. You are no threat to me."
Boscha was fuming! This bastard has the audacity to think fighting her is a waste of time?! She would never admit it, but that piercing glare of scarlet and lavender both excited her, and infuriated her. There had to be some way to convince him to fight her.
Boscha glanced to the side, noticing Willow and Gus, before realizing something…
Boscha smirked. "Oh yeah? Well, I guess I can just wait to teach these nerds a lesson after you and your stupid human friend are gone." Boscha threatened.
Flint radiated pure hatred. "Choose your next words…very…carefully," Flint said coldly.
'Gotcha!' "Well, you humans will have to go back to your own realm eventually. You can't exactly protect Half-a-Witch forever you know. All I have to do is wait until you two are gone, and then I'll make them pay for everything." Boscha said confidently.
"…You're playing a dangerous game, triclops," Flint warned.
"But since I'm such a great person-" Boscha was going to ignore the gagging sounds the girl was making. "-I'll cut you a deal. Beat me in a game of grudgby, and I'll leave your friends alone."
Luz got up and walked next to the group. "And what happens if you win?"
Boscha snorted. "When I win, you and your friends become our water gofers…and target practice." To emphasize her point, Boscha throws her ball and kicks it, sending it straight through a tree trunk, leaving a smoking hole behind.
"So, what do you say?" Boscha smirked.
Flint glared, staring directly into her eyes (well, two of them). After a few moments, he finally responded with a snarl. "Deal. But you won't be winning."
Boscha just grinned as she turned around confidently. "See you after school, losers," Boscha said, with her and the team walking away.
Suddenly the tree Boscha had thrown the ball through erupted in flames, and they realized they had amassed an audience of the other students around.
"Whoo-hoo! Flint versus Boscha!" A random student cheered.
Luz looked at Flint nervously. "Flint, I don't think this is such a good idea."
Amity nodded rapidly in agreement. "She's right. I mean, you've never even played grudgby before right? As much faith as I have in you, Boscha is no joke."
Flint rolled his eyes. "Oh please. If I hadn't been the one to challenge her, Luz would've likely forced Willow to."
Luz shrugged. "I mean, he's not wrong," Luz admitted.
Willow suddenly became terror-stricken. "I'm sorry, what?"
"Also, this is the only way to reason with someone as prideful as her." Flint justified.
"While I do agree with you about that, who are you even going to have on your team?" Amity asked in concern.
Flint looked at the others.
Gus held his hands up. "Don't look at me! I'm a performer, not an athlete."
Willow shook her head. "I've never even played grudgby before! How expect me to be any help against a pro?"
Flint then finally turned to Luz, who smiled. "Well, I'll always be on your side, so that makes two." Luz then turned to Willow. "Don't sell yourself short Willow. She may be better at grudgby, but you're the better witch. And even if I didn't know Flint was confident in you, I know you'll do great." Luz talked her spectacled friend up. "Besides, what better way to stick it to Boscha than to beat her in her own specialty?"
Willow sighed with a small smile. "Well, if you think this'll work, then I'm in."
Luz smiled. "That's the spirit!" Luz turned to Amity and Gus. "You guys will cheer us on, right?"
Gus gave a contemplative look as he pulled out a pair of flags. "In seasons past, these flags have waved in support of grudgby greats. Now they will wave for the greatest: you guys!" Gus cheered, waving them excitedly at the three.
"Me? Cheer you on? As you run around in cute uniforms? Sweating?" Amity said nervously, her eyes widening with every part before a nuclear blush erupted on her face. "I gotta go!" Amity panickily excused herself, running off.
Flint blinked as he watched her run off. 'The horny is strong with that one.' Flint mused internally. That girl is lucky that Luz was the densest thing Flint had ever encountered.
Luz blinked in confusion. "Huh? Well, in any case, let's get training!"
The four could now be seen on the side of the Hexside grudgby field.
Luz brought her hands together. "So, how exactly do we play grudgby?"
Gus pulled up a miniature illusion of the field to demonstrate. "Well, there's a ball, and you score by getting the ball through the other team's goal," Gus explained. The illusionary copy of himself scored before the illusion dissipated.
"That sounds easy," Luz said.
"I'm sensing a 'but' incoming," Flint stated.
"That's because it is," Willow responded to Flint as she summoned a leaf in her hand. She blew on it, causing it to delicately land on the field. Immediately, an assortment of fire, vine, ice, and rock traps emerge and tear apart the leaf.
Luz and Flint blinked at the sight.
"…I don't know why I didn't expect something like that to happen," Luz said as she attempted to force down the fear of death that the field now evoked in her heart.
Luz then sets her phone to play motivational sports music before putting a sweatband on.
"Alright! Every great sports story includes a training montage." Luz declared.
Gus raised his hand. "What's a 'mon-tage'?"
Flint reached down and turned the music off, much to Luz's chagrin. "Something that only happens in fiction, and we are not going to do."
"Come on Flint!" Luz whined.
"Luz, we need to take this seriously. This isn't Rocky. Now come on, let's hit the field." Flint chastises her.
Gus stands on the outside of the field and throws a grudgby ball at Flint and Willow, with Luz in the back behind them. It hits the ground and Willow prepares to kick it, but a giant tentacle bursts from the ground, throwing the ball with Willow catching it.
Willow screams in fright while Flint glares at the offending obstacle. Just as he goes to cast a circle spell, Willow grabs him to try and run away to Luz. A giant hand bursts from the ground behind the human girl, startling her as it grabs her by the ankle and hangs her upside down, while Willow runs back the way they came with Flint in tow still.
Luz manages to free herself and does the same trick Flint did back at the convention, shooting two torrents of flames from her palms to steady herself as she falls to the ground, back on her feet.
"Why does it feel like 'death is highly likely' is the motto of this world?" Luz questioned as a compartment in front of her shot out flaming grudgby balls toward Willow and Flint.
Flint freed himself from Willow's rather firm grip as he swatted away one of the fiery projectiles that flew at his face, unfazed by the heat. The rest trailed after Willow as she continued to run with the original ball in hand.
"Woo! Go Willow!" The same random student from before cheered from the stands. What the hell was he even doing here?!
Willow finally dodges them before turning around and running back toward them, only to run into a sideways trampoline as it emerges from the ground and launches her backward.
"You'll get 'em next time!" The possibly-stalker cheered.
Willow proceeded to be flung onto another trampoline that sent her back again. Flint cast a spell that morphed the ground into a slide to redirect the plant prodigy as she landed on an oversized pillow construct beside him, which he'd also made.
Willow sighed as she got back to her feet. "I need a cup of water."
"Come on! Let's go for the big finale! Let's try...the Thorn Vault." Luz said, slapping her gloved hands on the ground.
"Luz, wait-" Willow attempted to speak before she was cut off.
Willow and Flint were suddenly launched into the air by a column of thorns. Willow summons a large plant to break her fall, tumbling along the leaves as she descends.
A moment later Flint landed beside her in a perfect split…and a strained expression on his face as his body popped and cracked.
"…my body is not meant for this position." Flint managed to say in a heavily strained voice…before falling forward onto his face.
Willow looked down to her side and saw her hair clip had snapped in half, causing her to frown.
Gus ran up to them. "Are you guys okay?"
Flint brought his head up and rested his chin on the ground, looking at Gus in annoyance. "Peachy."
Luz then ran up to them. "Guys, let's try the Thorn Vault one-"
"No!" Willow yelled, startling everyone. Willow got to her feet and walked up angrily to Luz. "Luz! Not everything can be solved with a good attitude! You two always meddle in things you just shouldn't! Don't think I forgot about earlier when you admitted you would've forced me to challenge Boscha if Flint didn't already!" Willow yelled, her eyes flickering green for a moment before turning to Flint. "And you! Don't think I'm fully over what happened with my memories! I know you only wanted to help me, but that doesn't change what you did, or rather, didn't do! If you really tried to fight back against something, then how come you didn't win it? You're supposed to be so strong, but that time was the one time you couldn't?!" Willow screamed at him.
Plants began to wrap around her legs as her eyes glowed. After a moment, she closed them and took a few deep breaths. After calming herself down, and the plants by proxy, she looked at the two with a neutral face. "Forget it. Deal with Boscha yourselves. Just leave me out of it." Willow said angrily as she stomped off the field, grabbing her broken clip on the way.
Gus looked between the two and Willow a few times before nervously laughing. "I'm gonna…see if I can talk to her…" Gus excused himself, following after his first friend.
The two watched as their they walked off, neither knowing what to say or do.
A bit later, Luz could be seen sitting on the bleachers with a downcast look. She glanced over at Flint, who was still in the middle of the field and had only moved to sit in a crossed position. It caused her to sigh. She hated it when he got like this.
"Tough practice?"
Luz just stared at the ground. "Hey, Amity," Luz replied, her voice dull.
Amity sat near Luz and waited for her to talk.
FOOOOOOOOM!
Startling Amity was a pillar of scarlet flames that engulfed Flint as she heard him scream in rage alongside the fire. She could feel the heat even from there. Then, just as quickly as the flames appeared, they died.
Amity looked on to see Flint putting his head in his hands, his body smoking 'No! Bad thoughts!' as he sat unfazed in the center of the scorch mark that surrounded him.
"Um…so what happened?" Amity asked hesitantly.
Luz sighed. "I got carried away and we ended up pushing Willow too hard. It's just, we both hate seeing Willow get picked on. She's one of the best friends I've ever had."
"And what was that about with Flint?" Amity asked.
Luz looked at the aforementioned boy sadly. "Willow brought up what happened with her memories and accused him for not doing much to stop you or the fire. It's just…that day really got to him."
"What do you mean?" Amity asked.
"He tries to hide it, but everything that happened that day really got to him. He's been beating himself up about how he acted. Then Grom happened and, well…you saw what happened." Luz leaned back, dragging her hands across her face. "I know now that I don't have to worry about him abandoning me…but I know it hurt for him to find out I did," Luz explained solemnly.
For as long as Luz had known Flint, she knew that he tended to hide what was really bugging him. Whenever he did that, it never ended up well when he slipped up and let all that frustration out. That time he'd hospitalized one of their bullies had been because of one of those times. He'd just been dealing with a rough patch hating his sickly condition back then, and that bully was unlucky enough to be the thing that caused him to snap.
Amity looked sadly toward Flint. "This…really meant a lot to him, didn't it? He was trying to make up for that day with her…wasn't he?"
Luz nodded her head. "I was completely on board with it too. None of that would've happened if I'd just left the picture alone. And winning this game…was the only way I could think to help."
Amity pursed her lips a bit in thought. "Did you know, before Boscha, I was the grudgby team captain?" Amity suddenly said.
This caught Luz off-guard, as she looked at Amity in surprise.
"Wait, what?" Luz asked.
Amity smiled a bit at her reaction. "Yep. Once I left the team, I decided that was a part of my life I wanted to forget. We'd been playing Glandus High for the Island Championship. We had a move planned, and it was a good one. But, at the last minute, I decided I wanted to do something a bit flashier. I changed our game plan to...the Thorn Vault."
Luz's eyes widened. "Good Witch Azura 2: Field of Deadly Fates! You watched it too? Wait, how did you watch it?"
Amity waved her off. "Some old human junk my dad managed to repair. A 'laptop' or something like that."
"Anyway, it went disastrously wrong. My teammates got hurt. All because I had an idea of how things should be. I pushed them too far and…I haven't played again after that." Amity said solemnly with her fingers intertwined.
She turned to Luz…only to fall back with a yelp as she realized how close their faces were. She could feel the blood rushing to her face.
"Whoops! Sorry." Luz apologized as she helped Amity to her feet again. "I just really love backstories."
The two look over to see the Banshees, Boscha's team, walking onto the field.
"I know what I have to do. Flint and I will have to take her on just the two of us, it's not like it's anything new for us after all. Thanks." Luz said, thanking Amity as she walked down.
Amity looks on at the two and purses her lips. She then quickly runs off.
Boscha smirked confidently in her gear as she noticed Flint sitting cross-legged in the center of the field.
"Well well well, you decided not to run away after all. It doesn't matter either way, because you're going down." Boscha said.
Flint didn't respond to her, his head still in his hands and his breathing steady.
Boscha's face scrunched in anger. "Hey! Look at me when I talk to you, you piece of shit!"
Flint turned to her briefly, revealing a dulled look in his eyes. "Just go away, I'm not in the mood for this," Flint said depressingly before turning away again to stare off at the ground in front of him.
"Flint!" Luz suddenly cried out, running over to him and shaking him. "Come on! Let's do this, just the two of us." Luz encouraged.
Flint didn't respond to her, continuing to stare off as Willow's words from earlier echoed in his mind.
Luz groaned before slapping him in the face to try and snap him out of it, only for it not to work. "Huh. That usually works." Luz thought out loud.
"So…does this mean he surrenders, or…?" Skara trailed off, confused by what the group was watching.
Luz grunted before turning to Boscha. "Fine then. I'll take you on by myself if I have to."
Boscha laughed. "Wow! You must be absolutely stupid! I'm not even gonna waste my time with a game if it's just you, so why don't you make yourself useful…" Boscha trailed off, holding the grudgby ball she held under her arm up before setting it aflame with a wicked smile on her face. "Think fast!" Boscha said with sadistic glee as she threw the ball at the girl.
Luz's eyes widen as she puts her hands up with ice glyphs ready to catch the ball, only for nothing to happen. Curiously, she looks past her hands to see the issue in the form of a scarlet flame-covered Flint who caught the ball with one hand.
And he did not look happy.
Luz circled around to look at his face, seeing that his pupils had narrowed and glowed an ominously dark shade of red. She could also hear him growling, sounding more like an animal. His own flames overpowered the flames from the ball as they coated it.
Flint wordlessly flung the ball back at Boscha, who barely had time to pull her arms up to attempt to catch it, only managing to cushion the blow to her midsection that knocked the wind out of her.
And with that, Flint's flames dispersed as he returned to normal. At least, Luz thought he did. It had admittedly somewhat scared her how he was acting…but she also thought it was kind of hot.
Amity ran to the school's greenhouse, assuming Willow would most likely go there to cool down. She walked in on her using some floral tape to repair her clip.
"There, that ought to do it," Willow said.
Gus looked at her worriedly. "Don't you think you might've been a bit hard on Flint? He's just trying to help."
Willow scoffed. "Funny way of showing it."
Amity frowned. "Was I any better?" Amity asked, announcing her presence.
The two turned to her, Gus in surprise and Willow with a bored look. "This isn't the same."
"Is it really though?" Amity asked. "Look, I know Flint can be a bit…" Amity paused trying to find the right word.
"Insensitive?" Willow offered coldly.
"Determined." Amity corrected. "But he really does just want to help. If it weren't for him or Luz, you and I would probably still not be on speaking terms. From everything I've seen him do, he never does anything without reason. He helped me get over my fear of fire…even though he was the reason I got it in the first place." Amity mulled the last part over, cringing a bit as she realized it might not be the best example.
Amity shook her head. "He didn't have to help, but he did. It's not because he doesn't care, it's because he cares a lot. Same as Luz."
Willow scowled. "He just did that because he felt like he owed you."
"Um, then what about the Moonlight Conjuring? Or helping you get into the Plant Track?" Gus chimed in hesitantly.
Willow pursed her lips as Amity continued.
"They're so determined to help, which I love- I mean, I admire about them! Even while dealing with their own problems, they still take the time to try and help us, which is sweet- I mean, dumb!" Amity said, trying not to gush over the two.
Gus blinked in confusion. "Um…you lost me."
Willow meanwhile was fixing a deadpan stare at Amity. 'Wow. Could you be more obvious?' Willow thought.
The answer is yes, very much. But our resident tomboy Luz is just as dense as most boys. Spoiler alert: we are very dense when love is involved.
"Look, they're trying, okay? All they ever seem to do is try to help, so shouldn't we return the favor?" Amity asked.
Willow looked down at her hair clip thoughtfully.
Boscha recovered her breathing before glaring furiously at Flint. With her magic, she summoned a bunch of grudgby balls in the air and lit them, before throwing the barrage at the two.
Flint prepared to deflect them, only for each one of them to suddenly be skewered by a tendril of thorns. It pierced each one in midair.
"Mind if I join in?"
Everyone turned to the source to see Willow being carried by a mass of plant life, standing firmly atop the mass as the tendril retracted to it, her glasses glimmered with a green sheen. The mass gently let her down next to Flint as he watched her glowing pupils dim.
"Willow!" Flint and Luz exclaimed in surprise.
Willow turned to the two apologetically. "I'm sorry about earlier. I know you meant well and were just trying to defend me." Willow turned to Boscha with a newfound determination. "But it's time I start standing up for myself," Willow said firmly.
Boscha scoffed. "Big whoop. Let's just get this over with so you're indebted to me."
"Then let's make it a game of fours," Amity said, revealing her presence as she walked up from behind the group and stood beside them.
Boscha glared at her. "You just destroyed your social life."
Amity looked between the three beside her and smiled. She raised her hand in Boscha's direction and…
Luz gasped, Willow blinked in surprise, and Flint began cackling hysterically as she shot a particular gesture to the triclops.
Boscha fumed. "Ugh! Game on!"
The eight could now all be seen in grudgby gear as they stood on opposite sides of the court. Flint's undershirt and gem were colored gold.
"There's something on your shoe," Willow warned Boscha.
Boscha scoffs. "Like I'd fall for that."
A horn goes off and the ball is launched into the air. Boscha lunges for it but falls to the ground instead with a yelp. She looks down and realizes vines had wrapped around her shoe and held her foot down.
Willow catches the ball as the Banshees come over to help, only for Willow to summon a plant beneath her feet that rapidly transports her through the ground and to the Banshees' goal, scoring.
The game continues as Amity is seen summoning a giant Abomination arm to hold back an axe for Luz, who runs past to score.
In one instance, one of the Banshees, Amelia, runs through a bunch of traps and successfully scores a goal for the Banshees. As she stops to catch her breath, Luz walks up to her.
"Nice work." Luz complimented holding her hand up for a high-five.
"Oh, thanks," Amelia said as she returned the high-five.
Boscha clears her throat as she looks on annoyed, causing Amelia to force herself to match her expression.
A little while later, Flint can be seen flying with flame wings toward the goal with the ball in hand. The ball is suddenly ripped out of his grip as the sound of a harp plays. Flint stops and turns around to see the ball glowing as it flies to Skara, who stops strumming her small harp to grab the ball to run for the Squad's goal.
Flint smirks as he quickly summons an electric guitar, playing part of the X-Men '97 theme. The ball is ripped from Skara's hand and back into his as he stops to hover right in front of the goal and casually tosses it through.
Skara ends up walking over as he lands. "By the way, that song you played at Grom was awesome."
Flint smiled. "Thanks. It's from an anime."
Skara scrunched her face in thought. "What's an 'anime'?"
"We have much to discuss," Flint stated.
Eventually, the scores are tied 9-9 as the teams are each huddled up.
"There's time for one more play," Amity said.
"And this play could determine whether we win or lose," Willow said.
"Alright then, so which should we go for?" Luz asked as she and Flint held their hands forward, Luz's alight with a light and plant glyph while Flint donned fire and ice.
"I think…this one," Willow said, pointing to the plant glyph.
Luz gasps. "Are you wanting to do the Thorn Vault? Are you sure?"
Willow nodded. "I'm ready this time."
"I'll help cover you guys." Flint chimed in.
The game resumes as the two teams face off at centerfield once again. The ball is launched into the air, and Luz catches it.
"Watch out!" Amity exclaimed, shoving her out of the way just before she could be tackled by Boscha, taking the tackle instead.
"Amity!" Luz exclaimed in worry.
"Go!" Amity yelled.
Luz shook her head as the other Banshees headed her way. Flint waved his hand across his body, throwing his scarlet flames out that created a wall between them and the Banshees, causing them to halt their attempts to stop them.
"Now or never!" Flint called out as Luz nodded, turning to Willow as she ran toward them.
Luz slaps the ground with a plant glyph glowing from her glove, inscribing it onto the ground. Luz tossed the ball to Willow as she jumped onto the glyph, activating the Thorn Vault. Willow ran along the top, reaching the goal and throwing the ball through just before the time ran out, scoring and winning the match.
Willow hung from the post for a bit before dropping, casting a spell that created a bed of leaves beneath her to cushion the fall as Luz ran up excitedly to her.
"Whoo!" Luz cheered before hugging Willow as Flint walked up beside them. "You did it, Willow! We did it! We won!" Luz exclaimed as they looked to the scoreboard reading 9-10…
Before their score suddenly jumped up to read 9-999.
The two looked on in confusion.
"Um…is that supposed to happen?" Luz asked.
"You've gotta be f***ing kidding me!"
They looked to the source to see a fuming Boscha.
"How did one of them find the Rusty Smidge!?" Boscha yelled in disbelief.
"The Rusty what now?" Flint asked in confusion as a golden insect crawled in his hand.
"That! How in the Titan's name did you find it?!" Boscha exclaimed.
Flint just blinked in confusion as he held up the bug in his hand. "This little guy? He was crawling around earlier. I didn't want him to get hurt so I let him sit safely in my pocket. Is this thing important?"
Amity spoke up from the ground as she clutched her leg, looking at him with a hint of disbelief. "That's the Rusty Smidge. Whoever catches it during the game wins automatically."
Luz blinked in disbelief. "Wait, seriously?"
Boscha groaned. "Yeah. All magic sports are like this."
…
…
"That has to be one of the most bullshit things I've ever heard of," Flint said bluntly. Who puts an instant-win mechanic like that in a sport?
"If catching that thing is so important, why do anything else? Why bother making an entire sport if you can just win by catching a single bug?" Luz asked.
"Honestly, it is pretty dumb." The last of Boscha's teammates, Cat, agreed as she and the rest of the Banshees (barring the triclops bitch) walked up beside the three.
"Good game, Willow!" Skara praised.
"I had a lot of fun playing you guys," Amelia added.
"Oh, really?" Willow asked shyly.
"Willow, you're really good. Would you want to be on our team?" Cat offered.
Willow took a glance toward Boscha and saw the look on her face. She looked horrified, her face going pale and reminding Willow of Luz's when Grom had turned into Flint.
'You're just a spoiled little brat who never got told no as a child, with parents that don't give you a lick of attention unless it benefits them, and will die without a single person in the world that ever actually loves them. You will never amount to anything worthwhile on your own merit.' Flint's words toward Boscha from earlier rang out in her mind.
Willow pursed her lips a bit before shaking her head. "Thanks for the offer, but I think I'm done with grudgby for a while," Willow said, taking pity on the girl. Willow didn't want to do that to anyone, not even someone like Boscha.
Then you are a saint, Queen of Green of the Boiling Isles.
[Amen to that.]
Woo! Go Willow!
[HOW THE F*** DID YOU GET IN HERE?!]
They heard a groan as Amity tried to get to her feet, holding her leg and wincing.
"Amity!" The Squad exclaimed, running up to her.
"I think-I think I hurt my leg. But, I'll be okay." Amity said, trying to play it off.
"Are you sure? I could help carry you if it really hurts." Luz offered.
Amity blushed furiously. 'Quick! Play dumb.' A part of Amity thought.
"…who's Amity?"
'NOT THAT DUMB!'
"Aaaaand, scoop!" Luz said, picking her up in a bridal carry and holding her with ease.
"Oh, wow. Sports." Amity said in a barely controlled bi-panic.
Flint snickered as he snapped a quick picture.
Amity's blush went nuclear. "E-Erase that!" Amity said quickly.
"Let's get you to the house so we can patch you up," Luz said, carrying her away.
"Wait! No!" Amity exclaimed as she was carried away by her caramel-skinned goddess.
Flint and Willow just stood there for a bit, watching as the two went on ahead as Gus followed them, from the stands.
"…We both know she's down bad, right?" Willow asked.
"Absolutely." Flint agreed, casting a spell and summoning the Amity's note from Grom. "But I know it's not just for Luz."
Willow blinked in surprise as she saw the note. "Huh. You shouldn't go through people's things like that though." Willow said with a small frown.
"I honestly didn't mean to read it. Just picked it up so I could throw it away, but I saw my name and couldn't help it." Flint defended.
Willow shrugged. "Fair."
Flint looked at Willow apologetically. "Again, I am so sorry about what happened with your memories." Flint apologized.
Willow waved him off. "It's okay, I forgive you. I'm sorry for earlier."
Flint smiled, putting his hand out. "Then let's put it past us, does that sound good?"
Willow smiled, accepting the handshake. "Yeah, it does." Willow never did like holding grudges.
"Ugh!"
Boscha stomped over to them. "Can you just-can you at least tell me which of you did the mirror illusion thing?" Boscha asked.
The two blinked confusedly at her. "What?" Both asked.
"Don't mess with me! The illusion that mirrored me, the one with that stupid snicker, just tell me which of you did it at least!" Boscha exclaimed.
Willow and Flint looked at each other in recognition before erupting into their own fit of snickering as they walked off.
"Wha- Hey! Just tell me, okay?! PLEASE!" Boscha yelled desperately.
Omake: Mirror Mirror…stop laughing at me!
Boscha grunted as her hair was currently coated in soot. She should've known that making a combustible potion to use on them, when one is an adept fire user, was a bad idea.
Boscha went into the bathroom and started washing out her hair. After getting what she in the mirror out and drying her hair, she turned to exit the room…
Only to see a copy of herself in front of her.
The copy was noticeably different though. It was missing her upper eye and was wearing something she could've sworn she'd seen the human girl wearing. How she managed to somehow get those longer strips of hair in front of her ears still confused her though.
Boscha growled. "Hey! Stop that!" Boscha yelled, pointing her right hand at her shitty copy with it mirroring the movement.
"I know this isn't a mirror! You missing an eye idiot!" Boscha put her hands on her hips, the copy mirroring her still.
"I know this isn't a mirror!" Boscha growled, stepping to the right with her left leg and moving the same arm in tandem…only for the copy to now be doing the inverse.
"What the- You're doing it wrong, even!" Boscha exclaimed in disbelief, raising her right arm up and lowering her left, then swapping them. The copy still did the inverse in line with her, only serving to frustrate her more.
Boscha had finally had enough and went to grab her doppelganger, only for it to step back, letting out an annoyingly high-pitched snicker as it ran out of the bathroom.
"Hey! I'm not done with-" Boscha arrived outside the room, only to see her doppelganger had disappeared.
Boscha just growled angrily as she went to kick the trashcan next to her before stopping herself. 'No. I'm not gonna let them get to me.' Boscha calmed herself, lowering her foot back to the ground and walking off.
Had she turned back around, she might have seen that trashcan slowly crawl away, sporting a bushy gray tail.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone