It was a beautiful day in Meridell, for the most part. It was summer, so the weather was warm, but it was early enough in summer so the heat didn't get unbearable. This was all very much appreciated at The Perch (which, as opposed to what turists thought, wasn't a Juppie Juice bar, but in fact a slightly lopsided house belonging to one VulpisArcanis where Crokabeks gathered and used as, yes, a perch).
"It's starting! It's starting!" a hysterical electric Eyrie was yelling while barging through the door and scurrying happily to the livingroom (with a few bruises to tell of her enthusiasm).
Comfortably gathered there, Adie's family were quite vexed to have their relaxing afternoon disturbed by a screeching, overenthusiastic Neopet that could hardly fit through the door when walking calmly, much less at moments like these.
Adie hit her beak against the doorframe twice before finally managing to enter the livingroom.
"It's HERE!" the Eyrie continued to vocalise.
"What is?" Vulpis, her owner, asked.
"Her brain probably just came in," Sander, Vulpis' fire Eyrie replied, used to antagonise his sister.
"No! The Altador Cup! The Yooyuball Altador Cup!" Adie continued, ignoring the jab at her intelligence.
At that moment, Sander jumped to his feet, just as excited as she was.
"When is it? When is it!"
"Sign-ups start on the second of Relaxing!"
While the two Eyries hopped around happily, Vulpis, along with Trix, her Camouflage Kougra, stared uncomprehensively.
"You understand any of this jibberish?" Vulpis whispered towards Trix. The Kougra shrugged helplessly.
"Oh, come on, you two," Adie rolled her eyes, "You mean you've never heard of Yooyuball?"
"Nope. Heard of Gormball--"
"Pfft!" Adie made a face.
"--and of Frumball--"
"Hah!" Sander spat.
"--even Zurroball--"
Both Eyries made a sound of despise.
"--but I've never heard of Yooyuball," Vulpis finished.
"Nor I," Trix interjected.
"Oh, come on! It's the greatest game in existence! You can't NOT HAVE heard of it!" Sander said, his voice full of disbelief.
Vulpis and Trix shared a look, then shrugged.
"Oh, come with us!" Adie sighed. "Brightvale and Meridell are having a friendly match today. You two are going to learn to appreciate the game!"
"Or else!" Sander added.
"Wait, now, how do you know there's gonna be a match today?" Vulpis asked apprehensively.
"The Neopian Times has a Sports section," Adie shrugged. "They show Yooyuball results and future matches."
Vulpis grabbed the nearest Neopian Times issue and started leafing through it. She dutifully scanned over each page until her face lit up in amazement.
"Whoa-- hey, you're right!"
Trix jumped next to Vulpis on the couch and peered at the same page. Indeed, it was right there, as Adie said it was.
"Huh... How come I never noticed that? It's right there, next to the Editorial!"
"Oh, please," Sander rolled his eyes. "You haven't read a full issue of the NT since Mr. Shankley was editor!"
"And that explains how I've never heard of this sport that is allegedly so popular?" the girl huffed.
Adie sighed, exasperated. "No, but it explains your flagrant ignorance of everything that's happening in Neopia. Just shut up and come with us. Both of you!"
"I didn't say anything!" Trix defended herself.
"Uh-huh. Tell me that wasn't a snide, yet witty remark you were mentally preparing?"
The Kougra grinned guiltily.
"What do you think of this game?" Vulpis lazily asked Trix while they were walking behind Sander and Adie. "I mean, besides the ridiculous name that makes it sound like something played by Baby Neopets."
"I think every game that can bring those two to act like siblings must be either an instrument of Fyora, or of Sloth!" Trix replied.
Vulpis glanced ahead, where the two Eyries were chattering happily about players and odds then shuddered and nodded. It was unnatural to see those two getting along and having a civil conversation.
"Actually, I'm not surprised YOU haven't heard of it," Trix muttered. "Your idea of sport is a nice stroll in the park while sipping Neocola."
"Well, I like sports just fine, as long as somebody else is doing it. Didn't I take you to that Gormball Championship once?"
"Yes. And you left halfway through, saying that if Gormball is a sport, then you're Sloth's most trusted minion," Trix muttered.
"Yeah, and Grundos started acting real weird around me after that!" Vulpis said, furrowing her brow.
All conversations ceased after that, mainly because they soon arrived at the stadium where the match was said to take place.
"I can't believe we found seats!" Vulpis commented. "I thought you said this game was popular!"
"Yes, well, I know some people who know some people," Sander said, looking around with shifty eyes.
"Hey! I could swear Montecito just winked at us!" Adie said.
"You're imagining it," Sander muttered quickly, but made a gesture with his claw that seemed to be directed at the Skunk Kacheek on the playing field (though Sander, if asked, would swear it wasn't true. He did not know that Kacheek and he wasn't anywhere near Brightvale that night three weeks ago).
"Who's Montecito?" Trix asked.
"The Baby Faced Mauler," Adie remarked unpleasantly. "The worst cheater that ever muddied the waters of Yooyuball."
"Hmph! That's an inflamatory accusation!" Sander replied.
"Yeah? Well, everybody in the Brightvale team cheats!" the electric Eyrie said, folding her paws to her chest.
"Except "Squeaky" Tressif! Err, I mean, that's a lie told by their rival team's fans!" Sander said, returning to his strange shifty-eyes routine. "They're an excellent team. It's not their fault their opponents are so intimidated by their skilll that they start making mistakes."
"Oh--" Adie would have said an ear-full if the game hadn't been about to start.
The game ended in a tie which neither team could break. Scandals were kept to a minimum and fans dispersed quietly, though Meridell supporters seemed convinced that something about that last shot was decidedly suspicious.
Vulpis and her three pets decided to take a detour home and buy some ice cream. As they were sitting on a farmer's Petpet grazing fields and watching the Baabaas prance, they found themselves discussing the game.
"Meridell's team was so fast!" Trix said dreamily.
"Oh, and who would have thought Adie was a gushing fangirl!" Vulpis continued cheerily. "For a minute there, I though she'd run down and ask Fiorina to be her NeoFriend!"
"Hey!" Adie yelled. "I am NOT a gushing fangirl! I just really happen to like and respect Fiorina's talent!"
"Sander, on the other hand..."
All gazes turned to the fire Eyrie, who was struggling to shove his whole ice cream cone in his mouth, since it was rapidly melting (which was either because of the direct sunlight or on sheer virtue of being eaten by a fire-pained pet.)
"I thought you would have liked to get Montecito's autograph," Vulpis said.
"I already have it."
"Wait," Adie interjected. "Up until three weeks ago you were complaining about how hard it is to get anything signed by a Yooyuball star. When did you get it?"
Sander snorted.
"Supply me with an alibi and I'll gladly tell you," he muttered, keeping to himself what was, in essence, another story for another time.
The End