GAME TIME.
"HELLO, EVERYONE! WELCOME TO THE ACME LOONIVERSITY GYM, FOR THE GAME BETWEEN OUR LOCAL TEAM, AND PERFECTO PREP! I'M LOUD KIDDINGTON..." The brown-haired boy, wearing a green shirt and black short pants, directed to the public in a very loud voice, from the table assigned to the game's commentators. He was cut by an afro-American girl, a couple of years younger than Mary, with curly hair arranged in two large buns, and wearing a yellow shirt and blue pants. She placed her hand on the boy's mouth, and directed to the public as well.
"And I'm Aka Pella... reminding my partner about watching his voice's volume, especially when I'm this close to him!" The girl said, slightly upset, while covering her left ear with her free hand. She then retired her hand from Loud's mouth. He have her an apologetic look.
"Sorry. I guess this is why you are always the one with the microphone." Loud said, in a very shy tone. Aka smiled at him, and gave the boy a little kiss on his cheek, making Loud to blush. The girl then directed her attention to the court.
"And now, Acme Team is entering!" Aka said, excited.
"I see them. I see them. I see them..." Loud started saying, in a dull voice, while getting a bored face. Aka rolled her eyes, but smiled.
"Okay, Loud, you can increase the volume a little... just remember, no screaming. Last time you broke all the Loo's windows with the sonic boom." Aka said in a joking tone. Loud chuckled, and introduced the girls.
"With the Number Five... The Terror of Pets... Elmyra Duff!" Loud introduced Elmyra, who giggled while the crowd cheered at her.
"Number Four... what a loon she is... Shirley The Loon!" Shirley waved hello to the crowd while receiving the cheer.
"Number Three... Le Gorgeous Skunkius... Fifi LaFume!" Fifi, who was using a little necklace, entered the court blowing kisses to the crowd. She stopped when spotted Calamity at the bleachers, and blew him a big one right after blinking an eye to the coyote. Cal turned as red as a tomato, and took out a large sign reading "FIFI NUMBER 1 FAN" on it..
"Number Two... The Cameo and The Court Queen... Mary Melody!" Mary entered the court, directing a fast look to her boyfriend, who was on the third line. The J.A.M stood up on his seat to clap and whistle at her.
"And, with the Number One... Half of the "No-Relation" Team... Babs Bunny!" Babs entered the court doing cartwheels while Buster mimicked the jaguar's action.
Loud then introduced the Perfecto's team. Once they were done, and Penelope sang the National Hymn, the game was ready to start. The teams grouped to discuss the strategy.
"Okay, how are we going to start? Kicking the fools, making them to trip, or what?" An otter girl on Perfecto's side asked Ruby, the captain. They were ready to perform all kind of cheats on the Acme Team.
"Well..." Rhubella said while rubbing her chin, and giving a fast look to the other team. She also noticed Wally on Perfecto's side, giving her a thumbs up when noticing the rat was looking at him. Ruby gulped.
I entered the gym ready to perform any nasty trick... but, just looking at Wally, it was enough to make me hesitate. Suddenly, I was feeling bad for even considering cheating in front of him. Fortunately, I had an idea that saved my reputation, and also would allow me to play without cheating.
"Actually, I was thinking about playing without cheating, just for once." Ruby told her teammates. They looked at her, surprised. Rhubella sighed, and explained herself.
"Hey, don't give me that look. Listen, these girls are from Acme, and they study to be cartoon stars, remember? And, in cartoons, whenever a team is losing because of the other team's dirty tricks, the "good guys" always find a way to fight back on the second half of the game. If we start performing our tricks on them, these girls will immediately use their own ones, and surely beat us with spin-changes, explosives, or something like that. But, if we keep the game legal..." Ruby was cut by Margot.
"They'll not use their toon tricks! You know, that plan might work. Let's do it!" Margot supported the rat's plan. The other girls nodded in agreement, even if they weren't so convinced.
And so, we started to play. This was the first game without cheating we ever had... and actually, I liked it. Plus, since Margot and I had been practicing with Wally a few times, besides that first one on my backyard, we were a little faster, and that allowed us to cover our teammates' mistakes, since they weren't expecting to play in a legal way, and had a hard time trying to do it.
"AND THE FIRST HALF FINISHES, AND IT WAS GREAT! Oops, sorry." Loud apologized again for his yelling. Aka sighed, and placed a hand on his shoulder.
"Don't worry... I'm getting used. Anyway, you're right, this was a great first half. Both teams are doing a great job. Acme is winning 39 to 31, but our local girls must keep themselves alert, because the Perfectos are playing good as well." Aka commented.
"And now, we'll leave you with the half-time show... The Wakkyland Rubber Band!" Loud said, and, a second later, Gogo Dodo was leading the little living rubber bands inside the court, and started to play their songs.
"Hey, Loud, we have a little free time... want to use that mouth of yours for something besides yelling?" Aka said to Loud in a flirty tone. Loud smiled widely.
"You and I, behind the bleachers? Of course, gorgeous." Loud said, staring at the girl. Everyone at the gym chuckled. The two humans made a double take.
"Eh... I guess the mike is still on." Loud said to Aka, blushing. The girl slapped her forehead, and started laughing nervously.
Meanwhile, the Perfecto's girls were attended by their water-boys, massage's experts, and butlers. Wally, of course, was attending both Margot and Ruby.
"You two are doing it great! That last three-pointer was excellent, Miss Rat." Wally said to Rhubella while giving her a water's bottle.
"Is pure talent, Wolf, plain and simple. Talent and style." Rhubella said in a smug tone before taking a water's sip. "And, of course, having you as our personal basketball's trainer is a good plus." Ruby admitted while smiling at Wally. The wolf blushed a little.
"What's wrong with you, Rhubella?" A very pissed Roderick approached the rat girl at that moment. "I hadn't seen you cheating during the whole game... actually, none of your girls is cheating!" Roderick pointed. Rhubella sighed, and explained him the reason the same way she did it with the other girls. Roderick gave her a puzzled look.
"Well... it's an interesting theory, Ruby, but you shouldn't experiment it in this game! I have ten grand invested!" Roderick said, in an almost-begging tone. Ruby slapped her forehead.
"Roddy, the last time we made a major bet we lost the mini-golf, remember? Don't worry, okay? Sit, relax, enjoy the game, and I promise we'll do our best to win." Rhubella said to Roddy, and gave him a little kiss on his cheek. Roderick frowned.
"Fine... but I'll feel more comfortable if you do your worst." The male rat commented in a slightly upset tone, and walked back to his seat, giving a fast nod to another player, a chipmunk. Rhubella shook her head while rubbing her forehead.
I should had known Roderick would have a back-up plan. He told the other girls, previous to the game, that, in case we were losing, he would give them signals from the bleachers to order them to perform certain tricks.
The teams entered the court for the second half. Babs and Rhubella walked to the center, ready to jump and get the ball.
"Hey, Ruby, it's my imagination, or you're playing a little better? Maybe you're spending more time practicing, and less time thinking about your cheats." Babs commented to the rat, half-joking, half-serious.
"I don't need cheating to beat you, Bunny. Just wait and see." Ruby replied, smirking.
The referee threw the ball, and both girls jumped to grab it. Babs and Rhubella slapped the ball at the same time, and it fell in the middle of the court. Margot grabbed it, and then made a pass to the Perfecto's otter, but it was intercepted by Elmyra (who had developed a good speed from chasing fast little animals), and dashed to Perfecto's hoop.
Roderick gave his signal to the chipmunk, and, when Elmyra passed next to her, the rodent placed her foot in the human's way, making her to trip, and, because of the speed she was moving, Elmyra hit the pole with her head. The whole gym gasped, except Roderick and a few other Perfectos, who were chuckling. Monty, at the bleachers, got a concerned look; even if Elmyra was a pest, he actually was more than a little fond on her, and never had wanted to see the girl getting hurt.
Mary and Shirley helped Elmyra go back on her feet. Luckily, since Elmyra's head is as hard as a rock, and almost as smart, she wasn't badly hurt, and could go back to play. Babs gave Ruby a nasty look. Rhubella gulped.
"Eh... I had nothing to do with that, Babs, really." Ruby tried to defend herself. Babs growled.
"Save it for your biography, Rat! I'm not fond on Elmyra, but she is my teammate, and I'm not going to allow any of your girls to hurt her!" Babs said, and then walked next to her teammates.
"Okay, girls, it seems the Perfectos are back to their usual game plan. We can't risk them doing another stunt like this one, so, we'll use the contingency plan right now. Feef, you have the emergency kit Calamity made for us?" Babs asked the skunk. Fifi nodded.
"Oui. Right here, in mon necklace." Fifi said, and then gave a little pull to her necklace, revealing a green sphere, that was originally covered by her uniform during the whole game, hanging from it. Fifi removed the sphere, and threw it outside the court, on Acme's side. A second later, the sphere grew up, transforming itself into five large lockers.
"Okay, team, let's go!" Babs instructed, and then the five Acme's girls dashed inside the lockers. A second later, they reappeared, making the audience to gasp.
Babs was wearing a red outfit with blue pants and gloves, complete with a hood and a dark blue shield, and two large yellow M's, one on her forehead and another in her chest, plus a white one on her shield. Mary was wearing a blond wig, and her usual pony-tail looked like a bunch of rope, rolled over, plus she had similar rope-like bracelets and leg-warmers. Shirley was using a scuba-diving blue outfit, including goggles with two large antennae-like things, and a white life-savior. Fifi was wearing a blue outfit with red gloves and boots, and her hair and tail were curly and fluffy, like an afro-style. Finally, Elmyra was using a red outfit, with white gloves and blue boots, and wearing a plastic cover on her head that mimicked a basketball.
"Super Globe-Toonsters, ready for action!" Mary exclaimed, while she and the other girls made the classical joint of hands/paws/wings while making a circle. Rhubella and the other Perfectos gulped.
"Houston... we have a problem." Margot said, with a worried look.
The game re-started. Since Elmyra was the one who sent the ball out from the court, it was Perfecto's turn to try an advance. Margot placed at the corner of the court, and passed the ball to Ruby... but two long arms intercepted the pass. The Perfectos turned back, and saw who was the owner of said limbs. Mary was at the other side of the court, but she could stretch her arms in a dashing action, and grab the ball; the so-called ropes were actually her limbs, rolled over, and, when she extended them, they were as long as the whole court, or even more. The human-maid then raised her arms, and, without any effort, scored two points.
The Perfectos got possession of the ball again. Shirley grabbed it from Margot, and ran towards the rival hoop. The chipmunk and the otter from Perfecto tried to tackle her, but the loon turned herself into a little poodle, making them to slip, and, a second later, returned to normal, and made a clean shot, scoring again.
The Perfectos made another attempt. Ruby avoided both Elmyra and Shirley, but Mary stretched her arms in front of the rat, stopping her advance, so she tried to make another pass. Unfortunately for her, Fifi appeared out from nowhere, and caught the ball with her tail; oddly enough, the ball disappeared inside her afro-style tail. A moment later, she placed both paws inside her hairdo, and pulled out a cannon. The skunk aimed at the rival hoop.
"Now... as vou can imagine... FIRE IN ZHE HOLE!" Fifi exclaimed, and the cannon shot the ball inside the hoop, for a three-pointer.
Acme got quick possession of the ball on the next turn. Babs (who was the one carrying the ball) and Fifi moved next to Elmyra.
"Now, Elmyra, the trick we taught you!" Babs told the girl. Elmyra giggled.
"Oh, goody! I'll be a nicey cutey bally head!" Elmyra said, and then she transformed into a basketball that looked exactly as the real one. Babs and Fifi made some fast passes to each other using both balls, and then they dashed towards the hoop.
The Perfectos had to divide their forces, since they now had to cover two balls. Rhubella handled to take the ball away from Babs, but, when she was about to try a three-pointer...
"Hee, hee, hee! I'm not the ball, mousey girly." Elmyra changed back to normal, right in Ruby's paws. When the rat girl dropped Elmyra to help her teammates, Fifi, aided by Shirley and Mary, had scored again.
The Perfectos got the ball again. Margot tried to advance into Acme's territory, but Babs grabbed the ball from her. Ruby ordered all her teammates to move in front of the hoop to block the rabbit. Babs laughed.
"Sorry, girls, but, as a rabbit, I'm an expert in multiplication." Babs smirked, and, a second later, she created over twenty clones of herself, each one carrying a ball. The Perfectos did their best, but only succeeded in stopping two of the bunnies, while the others scored 38 points.
Babs called back all her clones, and returned to be just one. She called her teammates for a fast meeting.
"Okay, girls, we have a good advantage now, but I guess we are all getting tired for keeping this change for so long. We'll do the Hawaiian Movement, and then concentrate on defending for the rest of the game, okay?" Babs told her team. They all nodded in agreement.
The game re-started. Mary stretched her limbs to grab the ball, and gave it to Babs. The rabbit multiplied herself and the balls again, but this time she only made 3 copies. The cloned bunnies passed the three balls to Mary, Elmyra, and Fifi, and Babs returned to be just one. The Perfectos moved quickly in front of them, to block the girls the moment they made their play. Fifi then took four surfing boards out from her hairdo, and she and the other girls with a ball jumped on them.
"Like, Cowabunga, or some junk!" Shirley exclaimed, and then turned herself into a giant wave, carrying the boards with her teammates on them. The Perfectos gasped.
"Good thing we have many towels!" Ruby said, covering herself with her arms. The other girls screamed in fear.
SSSSPPPPLLLLLAAAAASSSSSHHHH!
"I DON'T SEE THEM! I DON'T SEE THEM!" Loud Kiddington started screaming. Aka silenced him pointing at the top of the wave.
"Look! They're surfing!" Aka said, and was right. On top of Shirley's liquid form, the other girls from Acme were surfing, and the moment they passed near the Perfecto's hoop, they scored two points each.
Shirley changed back to her solid form, and then she and the other girls spin-changed back to normal. Meanwhile, the girls from Perfecto were visible again, totally soaked, dispersed through the court.
Once the Perfectos were dry again, the game re-started, but, despite some good plays from Ruby and Margot, and the fact the Acme's team was a little tired, they still lost. The final score was Acme 114, Perfecto 47.
"What happened with you, fools?" Roderick dashed into the court to insult the Perfecto's girls. "You should had cheated from the beginning!"
"Shut up, Roderick! We were doing a good game until you gave your minion the signal to start cheating, remember? Those Loosers weren't using toon tricks until the Duff girl got hurt, and you saw what happened! Never, ever, mess with my decisions as Captain again, got it?" Rhubella snapped at Roderick. The male rat gulped, and moved two steps back. At that moment, he felt a human hand over his shoulder.
"Sorry, Roderick, but I guess you owe me ten grand." Montana Max, smirking, told the rat. Roderick groaned, and gave him a check. Loud Kiddington and Aka Pella looked at the scene from behind them.
"Can you believe how much these guys get involved in their bets?" Aka Pella asked Loud. The boy gulped.
"Actually... I also made a bet with all my savings." Loud admitted. Aka frowned at him.
"Oh, great! How much you lost?" Aka asked, crossing her arms. Loud smiled.
"Who lost? I supported Acme, and the bets were twenty to one... and I had almost 500 dollars!" Loud told the girl. Aka smiled.
"Cool! What are you doing with that money?" Aka asked. Loud blushed a little.
"Most of it is for my savings account... so, you know, if this relationship works... maybe, when we graduate..." Loud said with a shy smile. Aka gave him a big kiss, and then they hugged right next to the court.
Meanwhile, Rubella and the rest of her team walked to the dressing rooms, all with sad looks. Ruby and Margot were the last to enter, but, at that moment, Wally appeared next to them.
"Are you two okay?" Wally asked. Margot gave him a nasty look.
"We were just washed away by a tsunami, Wolf. What do you think?" Margot said. Wally sighed, and then passed them a couple of gift boxes he had taken out from his body's pocket.
"Sorry... but I think you two played a great game. And, you deserve a little prize." Wally said, blushing a little. Ruby and Margot, puzzled, grabbed the boxes.
"Wow... thanks, Wolf." Ruby said, slightly blushing as well.
"Yes... most pets only bring garbage and road-kill to their masters." Margot said, smiling a little. Then, both girls opened the boxes, and smiled widely. Margot got some new fancy laces for her pony-tail, and Rhubella a silver-colored bracelet.
"I know these gifts aren't exactly high quality's ones... but I thought you might like them." Wally said, giving the girls a fond look, especially to Ruby.
"Hey, don't sweat! I like these laces! I'll try one after I change my clothing." Margot told Wally, and then dashed to the dressing room, thanking him before going inside.
"I like my bracelet, Wolf... but, how did you get the money?" Ruby asked him. Wally shrugged.
"Your tips. That money is mine to do whatever I want with it, including buying you and Miss Mallard a gift if I decide. Glad you liked it." Wally told her. Ruby couldn't contain herself, and gave him a fast kiss on his cheek before entering the dressing room. Wally got a dumb look, and placed his paw on the spot she kissed.
Despite the fact we lost, I really like remembering that game. Sure, the bracelet isn't a very expensive piece of jewelry, but I like it more than if it was a diamond-made one. I still use it whenever Wally and I have a private date, you know, just the two of us with nobody else around. Another nice detail of that game was the look of Silverbill totally out, drooling on his car... because that's where Wally dropped the sleeping-gas bomb.