THE ACME BOWL.
"Good afternoon, ladies and gentletoons. Welcome everybody to the Acme Stadium, to join us on the annual clash of Acme Looniversity versus Perfecto Prep...THE ACME BOWL!" A mouse said at the microphone located in the press booth of the stadium. "My name is Bert Mouse, and here, with me, is my partner, Hubert."
"Yes, yes, sure." A second mouse started talking as well. "We have a nice weather today, and the bleachers are filled up with the fans of both teams. Bertie and I will narrate this game to you, second to second, minute to minute, hour to hour, day to day..." The mouse was cut by Bert, who grabbed him by his collar, and started slapping him.
"The game doesn't last for days, fool!" Bert stopped slapping his partner, and returned to his job. "Oh, and now I see that the Acme Team is walking out from the dressing rooms. Let's hear the crowd!" At the field, the Acme Team's players, dressed on their blue and white uniforms, were now entering, while their fans cheered for them.
A moment later, the Perfecto Team, on black and white, entered as well; most of their players were students just because of a sports scholarship, except for Roderick, Danforth, and a few others who wanted to show off their skills and had to direct their less intelligent teammates. Among the players, there were five little cloaked figures nobody could recognize; these players sat at the bench, without moving an inch from there while the other ones were warming up. At the bleachers, Lola, who was sitting next to Bugs and Honey, alongside the other teachers, gave them a long look; she had a very bad feeling about them.
"ACME, ACME, IS GOING TO WIN. WE HAVE HERE A GRADE-A TEAM!" Babs, Shirley and Fifi chanted while doing a series of summersaults as part of their cheerleading routine. Mary was behind them with her video camera, since she was in charge of taping the event for the Looniversity News, and K-Acme TV. The crowd got crazy (well, crazier than usual), and cheered wildly at the Acme Team.
"Perfecto. Rah." The Perfecto's cheerleaders said without any enthusiasm, as usual. Rhubella was sending messages with her cell phone, while Margot was reading a book; the remaining cheerleaders, a chipmunk and an otter, were chatting with each other.
"Now, everybody, stand up for the National Hymn." Hubert said, while he and Bertie stood up straight, and saluted. The Acme and the Perfecto's teams made a line in different sides of the field, and everyone at the stadium made the salute as well. Hillary and Ronald located themselves next to each other, and glanced for a moment, caught by Mary on camera; it had passed a month since they entered the Loo, and now they were great friends. Everybody knew that they had feelings for each other, and some of them were even betting about who would do the first movement.
Across the field, while everyone was hearing the hymn, the Perfectos glared at the other team. Roderick and Danforth had particularly angry looks reserved for Buster, the Acme's captain; Hillary, who made them lost a lot of money previously and also humiliated the duck terribly; and Wally, because they had met him when he studied at Perfecto, and abandoning them to enter the Loo was a major betrayal.
"... and the home of the braaaaave!" Rita Cat ended singing, with Runt at the organ, and received a wild cheer from the crowd. The Acme's players clapped at the feline's performance, especially Skippy (who was there as the water boy), and Ronald. This didn't surprise Hillary; since Ron was a close friend of Minerva, it was logical that he might be friendly towards many members of the Animaniacs' cast.
"And now, we'll introduce you the players!" Hubert said at the microphone.
"First, on Acme's side, with the number One on his shirt, the captain, Buster Bunny!" Buster waved his paw, thanking the crowd for their cheers.
"With the number Two, Hamton Pig!" Hamton thanked the cheers as well.
"Number Three, Vinnie Deer!"
Cheers.
"Number Four, Calamity Coyote!"
Cheers.
"Number Five, Plucky Duck!"
Silence.
cree...cree...cree..cree...cree...
"Well, at least I think the cricket is clapping." Plucky said, sighing. The mouse continued.
"Number Six, the only girl on the core team, Hillary Hyena!"
Cheers.
"Number Seven, Ronald...wait, there is a coffee's spot on the last name... and on the next one...okay, they are the only ones with those names here, so Number Seven is Ronald, and Number Eight is Marcus!"
Cheers.
"Number Nine, Wally Wolf...wait, I don't see him. Where's Wally?" Hubert asked while scanning the field. Bertie tapped his shoulder, and pointed to the bleachers.
"I see him! He's sitting on the fifth line, right behind the black dog." Bertie said. Everybody turned to see at that direction, and saw a thin human with glasses and a white and red stripes sweater, waving hello. Hubert slapped his forehead, and then Bertie's.
"Not that Wally! The wolf!" Hubert said. At that moment, Wally Wolf emerged from the dressing rooms. He excused himself saying he had to change his helmet because the first one was filled up with itching powder. The Perfectos rolled their eyes while whistling.
The mouse continued with the rest of the players, and then with the Perfecto's ones.
The teams got into the field, and prepared to play. Acme got the first turn, so Buster motioned the team to plan their first play. As usual, they would play without toon tricks unless they were on a desperate situation, even if they were allowed, because Buster always insisted on playing a fair game, and only used the toon tricks when the other team decided to start cheating or playing really toughly... since they were playing against the Perfectos, they wouldn't need to wait a lot anyway.
"Okay, toonsters, we have to start with a strong play. We'll do the "Grass Stain", to the right." Buster instructed his teammates. Plucky smiled; he was the key player of that play. One of the Perfectos, a hawk, gave them a long look, and then whispered something to Roderick. The rodent smirked.
The teams got into position. Marcus was the main attacker of Acme's team, while Dizzy, Hillary and Ronald were in charge of protecting the sides. Plucky moved to his position, right behind Furrball, and prepared to run at full speed to catch Buster's pass. Gogo, the referee, shot to the air to start the game.
Buster got the ball, and his teammates blocked the advance of the Perfectos. Then, the rabbit made a long pass to Plucky, protected by Furrball, and caught the ball. But, at that moment…
WHHHAAAAMMM!
A large dog from Perfecto's team jumped over the duck, squishing him against the ground. A second later, more Perfectos were jumping over them, to add more weight over Plucky. Gogo motioned them to move, and Acme's players could check on the duck.
"Plucky? Come on, it's me, Hamton! Are you okay?" The pig asked his friend.
"Luuuke…I am youuur fatheeeer…" Plucky replied, totally stunned. The duck shook his head, and his partners helped him to go back on his webbed feet.
Buster decided to make another play where the receptor would be more protected. He chose the "Devil Curtain", a play that involved Dizzy covering the toon with the ball; in this case, the rabbit chose Vinnie, since the deer was a fast runner. Again, the hawk from Perfecto Prep whispered something to Roderick once the Acme's players started getting into position.
Buster threw the ball to Vinnie, and, the moment the deer was about to get it, two tacklers from Perfecto jumped over him. Dizzy could stop one, and Vinnie avoided the other by rolling on the lawn, but this caused the deer to not get the pass, so the Loo couldn't advance an inch.
"Perfecto. Rah." The Perfecto's cheerleaders made their unenthusiastic chant. Margot was now done with the book, and was eating some peanuts; Rhubella was talking to her cell phone, and the other two girls were doing a pedicure to each other.
Buster realized that, somehow, the Perfectos knew who would be the key player on their plays, and prepare to strike him. He helped Vinnie stand up, and called his team to tell them about their next play. Buster already knew, from Skippy and Plucky's investigation, that there was a spy on the team, but he had no suspects, and, even if there was a spy, how was he passing the information?
For the next attempt, the "Acme Calamity", Buster made a long pass to Cal, whose caught it without any problem, and made another pass, this one to Hamton, located a few yards away from him. However, the ball was intercepted by Danforth; the duck could run with it for almost twelve yards into Acme's territory before Wally could stop him.
"Okay, guys, no risks this time. We'll do the "Battle Cat". Junior, Ronald, we count with you two." Buster told his partners, informing them about the next play. Junior and Ron nodded, and the team moved to their positions.
The moment Junior caught the ball, a large bear attacked him. Ronald moved to assist him, but was blocked by a gorilla…however, this situation ended soon, because Hillary tackled the ape, allowing Ronald to do the play. Ron stood on his four legs, and dashed next to Junior.
The black kitten jumped on Ronald's back just in time to avoid the bear. Ronald then used his head as a battering ram, hitting every Perfecto's player that tried to stop him, while he and Junior approached the goal line. Roderick grabbed Ron by the tail, but was yanked by the powerful toon, and couldn't stop them from scoring. Junior jumped down from Ronald's back, and they made a little victory dance, while the crowd got crazy.
"Thatphts my boy!" Sylvester exclaimed while standing on his seat, located next to Penelope and Sylvia, who were as happy as him; Sly divorced Sylvia a couple of years ago, but they were in good terms, even when he started dating Penelope, and eventually married her a few months ago. Minerva, Rita, and Runt, sitting behind the black cat, whistled and cheered loudly as well, alongside the rest of the teachers.
"RON AND JUNIOR, WHAT A PAIR! PERFECTO'S PAIN IS ACME'S GAIN!" The Amazing Three chanted, making the fans cheer even more. At the field, Ronald and Junior were receiving high-fours from all their teammates; Ronald took the chance to thank Hillary for covering him, giving her a little hug.
Buster kicked the ball for the extra point, making it good. The mice kept narrating the game, excited as well.
"This starts looking good for the Looniversity's team. While there's a pause in the game, we have some special announcements. Hubie?" Bert said at the microphone, and directed to his companion. Hubert took out a large sheet of paper, and read, while directing to the mike as well.
"First, to the owner of a chocolate brown colored car, with tomato red colored top, and interiors in grape and cream…we have the sad duty to inform you, that someone ate it." Hubert said.
At the bleachers, Taz smiled nervously, while trying to hide the remains of a chewed tire. His brothers, Molly and Jake, who were sitting next to him, rolled their eyes at him, smiling.
"Second, before the game started, one of the Acme's players asked us to pleasetell the males sitting on the two lines behind Minerva Mink, and the ones sitting at the other side of the stadium, to please stop drooling over her, and watch the game." Bertie talked next.
Many guys at the bleachers got nervous looks, and directed their eyes to the field. Newt, who was sitting at the other side of the stadium, placed down his binoculars, and chuckled nervously. Minerva spotted him, and rolled her eyes, but eventually smiled at the dog.
"You knew that would happen?" Wally asked Ronald, who just nodded.
"And last, the Acme National Bank had just called, and asked us to inform Mister Mauler that his last check bounced. If you are in the stadium, please, contact them as soon as possible." Hubert concluded.
"WHAAAT? You traitors! You said that the check was good!" Marcus snapped, and pointed to Roderick and Drake. The Perfectos gulped.
"So, your last name is Mauler, uh?" Buster glared at Marcus, with the rest of the team behind him, showing furious looks as well. Marcus gulped, realizing his mistake.
"No…I mean, yes, that's my last name…but…eh…Max, boss, can you help me?" Marcus nervously said, and directed to Monty, who was sitting on the bleachers. However, the millionaire brat seemed to be as angry as Buster.
"You, imbecile! I ordered you to not cause problems to the team, remember? I hate them, but Acme is my school, and I would never do anything that might help the Perfectos!" Max growled. He had a big bet on this game, so Marcus' betrayal affected him as well.
Arnold approached the traitor, and placed his massive paw over the guy's helmet.
"YOU ARE OUT OF THE TEAM!" Arnold yelled, and pressed the helmet against Marcus until the whole body of the boy was inside it. Skippy approached to the team, pushing a cannon, and Arnold tossed the boy into it. The cheerleaders moved next to the squirrel, and made a military salute.
"Fire in zhe hole!" Fifi screamed, while Skippy turned on the weapon's fuse, and, a moment later…
BOOOOM!
Marcus was flying out from the stadium, and over the city.
A moment later, Fifi entered the field, wearing her football uniform, and gave Calamity a high four; since now the Looniversity was one player-less, Arnold decided to use the reserve, the cheerleaders, in turns, and the skunkette volunteered to be the first one.
Mary checked her camera, and discovered how Marcus was sending the information using the zoom and focusing on the takes she had with him on them. Every time Marcus walked to be on position, he directed a fast look to the Perfectos, and moved his lips spelling the name of the key player, and the name of the play. The hawk, using his superior sight, could see it clearly, and pass the information to Roderick.
The Perfectos prepared to do their first play. Roderick gave a signal to a ram positioned behind him, and, after Gogo sounded his whistle, the rat passed the ball to the ovine. Their play was very similar to the "Battle Cat", with the ram hitting the Acme's players on his way to the goal line. The ram advanced a lot into Acme's territory, but then Wally appeared next to him, snarling. The ram changed his direction to avoid the wolf, but was cut by Hillary, who was snarling as well, so he had to change his direction again.
"STOP, YOU FOOL! YOU ARE RUNNING THE WRONG WAY!" Roderick yelled at the ram. He was right; Wally and Hillary adapted a predatory technique into a play, making the player to move in the direction they wanted, so the ram now was running in the opposite direction. The Perfecto realized his mistake, and tried to go back to his original pattern, but Fifi sprayed him, knocking the ram out, ending Perfecto's first attempt.
The Perfectos tried a different approach, giving the ball to a very strong player next time. Roderick passed it to the same bear that tried to grab Junior previously, and the huge animal advanced without fear into Acme's territory. This time, Buster and Fowlmouth faked an attack, running against the bear, but, a second before making contact, they moved away, allowing Ronald (who was undetected since the bear was focusing on the smaller toons) to tackle him from one side.
On their third attempt, Roderick tried to make a long pass to the same dog that tackled Plucky at the beginning of the game. This time, Dizzy, on his tornado's form, moved in front of the dog, making him to move away from the ball's path to avoid the devil. Then, out from nowhere, Beeper intercepted the pass, and dashed at full speed into the Perfectos' goal line, before any of them could realize it.
"A SPEED DEMON, BEEPER IS. HE IS GREAT, WE ARE GOING TO WIN!" Babs and Shirley cheered, while the crowd clapped and whistled at the little bird. Calamity gave the roadrunner a high-four, while the rest of the team approached to congratulate him as well.
The Perfectos made their next attempt, attacking at full power. This time, they almost succeeded, but Buster and Plucky tackled Danforth, the one holding the ball, mere inches before they could score.
It was Acme's turn again. Fifi exited the field, allowing Babs to enter. Since now the Perfectos had no idea about who was the key player of the plays, the game was a fair one. After three attempts, Acme scored again, this time, thanks to a triple pass between Buster, Babs, and Plucky; the green duck was the one who scored, protected by Wally and Ronald.
"HE IS LUCKY. NOT YUCKY. WE GOT A SCORE BY PLUCKY!" Fifi and Shirley cheered. Plucky, as usual, made a major showing-off because of this, but cool down after a moment, allowing his team to congratulate him. He even thanked the predators and the rabbits for their cooperation on that play.
The game continued normally, with lots of cool plays from both sides. The Perfectos handled to score as well, thanks to some smart direction from Roderick and the superiority of strength from most of their players compared with the majority of Acme's. However, Buster and his team were technically superior, and had a good advantage in the speed's department, plus many of the Perfectos were afraid of facing Ronald and, especially, Hillary, thanks to her victory on the ring a few weeks ago. So, when Gogo shot to end the first half of the game, Acme was still winning by a six points' advantage.
"Hey, what a great first half! We have good chances to win this one, eh, Shirley?" Plucky told his girlfriend, whose entered to play after Babs. However, the loon had a concerned look, while watching at Perfecto's bench.
"Shirley? Loony, are you okay?" Plucky asked her, with a little concern on his voice. Shirley shook her head, and directed to the duck.
"Like, sorry, Plucky, but I'm receiving some really weirdo vibes from the guys at that bench. And Roderick is, like, furious, but I sense he's not nearly as mad as he should be right now. I think we might have problems on the second half, or some junk." Shirley explained. Plucky looked at the little guys on Perfecto's bench, and shrugged.
"Hey, don't worry, Shirley. Those guys are almostthe size of Sneezer. What can they do? Tackle our toes?" Plucky said. Shirley removed her helmet, and sighed.
"Isn't Buster the one who always say that you must never underestimate the little guy?" The girl walked out of the field. Plucky gave her a puzzled look, and sighed as well, hoping her powers were wrong for once.
Before entering the dressing rooms to rest, Ronald directed his sight to the bleachers, and smiled while waving his paw. Hillary was waiting for him inside.
"Hey, Big Paw, you are that happy because we are winning, or there is another reason?" The hyena asked.
"Well, Hillary, is just that my parents are among the crowd. They arrived townjust a couple of hours before the game started, so I hadn't been able to receive them properly yet." Ronald explained. The hyena placed her paw in her partner's shoulder.
"Hey, if that's true, then I think you are giving them a great welcome by playing the way you are doing it. And, if you agree, I would like to meet them after the game." Hillary told him. Ronald smiled at her, nodding. He already had visitedHill's home, along with a few other classmates, to meet her family; even if them were still a little hesitant about allowing Ron to remain as a close friend of Hillary, after a while they actually liked the guy.
"Hey, lovebirds, you can chat later. We need to rest for the second half!" Vinnie called them from the dressing rooms. Ron and Hillary smiled nervously, and finally entered as well.
Once the half-time's show ended, the players returned to the field. However, this time, Roderick was carrying a large gym's bag, and had a devious smile plastered on his face. Danforth was next to him, smiling as well, while Rhubella, Margot, and the rest of Perfecto's players and cheerleaders gave them a puzzled look. Obviously, their leaders were about to use the secret weapon they had mentioned to everyone at the Prep, but never explained what it was.
Roderick approached the bench, and the five little guys stood up. The rat opened the bag, and took out a football; it was like any regular ball, but this one had a slight yellow glowing on it. The little guys took a hand out from their cloaks; each one was from a different color...orange, blue, purple, red, and green.
At the bleachers, Lola gasped. Honey gave her a worried look.
"Lola, are you okay? You look as if you had seen a ghost!" Honey said to her cousin. Lola, extremely pale, finally managed to talk, while the sky filled up with black clouds.
"Honey...I...I know who are those guys! The kids are in a huge problem!" Lola exclaimed. The rest of the Looney Tunes looked carefully at the little players, and gulped as well.
"Ancient spirits of evil... transform this decadent players...into Perfectos! The ever-winning! Hah, hah, hah!" Roderick laughed evilly. Danforth gave him a weird look.
"Sorry, but I always wanted to say that." The rat said while shrugging.
Then, the football stopped glowing. A moment later, the cloaked guys started growing...and growing...and growing, until they ripped their disguises, and then kept growing. Once they ended their transformation, each one was big and muscled enough to make Arnold look like a toy poodle. The creatures' ears were short and pointy, and their faces were tough-looking. They were all dressed with the black and white uniform of Perfecto Prep.
RRRROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRR!
A large roar, that also served to the show their powerful fangs, was heard from the five giants, making the Acme's team to gulp in fear; even Hillary, who until then hadn't shown signs of fearing anything, paled as well. Even the other Perfectos were scared of their new teammates.
The whole stadium got silent, including the rodents at the press booth. Lola broke the silence.
"Pound." She said in fear.
"Nawt." Bugs continued, gulping.
"Bang." Daffy added, cowering.
"B-b-b-Blanko." Porky, sweating (who was weird, since pigs don't sweat), was next.
"Bupkus." Wile. lowering his ears, ended.
"PTHSUFFERIN' PTHSUCKUTTAGE! THE MONPTHSTARS!" Sylvester screamed, terrified. The whole stadium heard him.
Roderick and Danforth had their widest smiles ever.