They looked on in disappointment as yet another Battlefront member walked away, already taken. "All of the other Battlefront members have been chosen sides already," Mike pointed out awkwardly. "And we still only have five people."

Harry grit his teeth. "I guess we have no choice. We're going to have to invite some of the normal students."

"NPC's? That should be interesting," Hannah observed sagely.

Julie frowned at the older girl. "You know, everything you say sounds incredibly silly while you're still balancing that broom." Suddenly, Julie kicked out at the teetering pole. "Hiii-yah!"

Hannah dodged easily, moving to the side with a simple step, and then avoiding Julie's next three attacks just as easily. "What are you even trying to do?" she asked, curious, then stepped out of the way to avoid Julie's next charge. They dodged back and forth, flitting around, Hannah starting to smile a little as Julie huffed in frustration.

"Aw, come on you two, quit it," Mike admonished. "Harry, could you get these elementary schoolers to… Harry?"

Harry had turned away, unresponsive. His face was in repose, staring up at the brilliant noon-day sun with a transfixed expression, as if there was something only his eyes could see. At Mike's renewed entreaties, he resurfaced.

"Wha… huh? Oh, yeah. We need more people."

"Oh, oh, I know!" Julie cried, struggling vainly to reach Hannah, who was holding her opponent off with one palm, while elegantly balancing the tool in the other. Mike rolled his eyes at her, Hannah grinned a little bit back. "I know where we can find someone," Julie continued. "Let's just ask my friends!"

"Like, you see, all of us are like, totally…"

"Kinda Julie's biggest fans!"

"…more like her personal bodyguards…"

Mike and Harry stared glassy eyed at the three freshman NPC's before them in resignation. It was bad enough that they weren't even normal humans, but, to be friends with Julie…

"I haven't let the possibility of being in GirlDeMo go to my head," Julie promised stoutly. "I've been continuing to hold performances to my friends, to maintain my indie roots."

"This isn't even worth getting violent about," Jake said sadly.

Mike turned to Harry. "Is this enough? We have eight people now."

Harry ran a hand through his hair. "It'll have to be, we're almost out of time. I've got it; we cut out the middle outfielder, and have the right and left fielder's cover that area. That should do it!"

"Dude, I don't even play baseball, and that seems dodgy to me."

"Thanks for the confidence booster, buddy."

"The tournament has begun without a hitch. Driven by excitement, and by no small amount of apprehension over whatever you might have planned for them if they lost, Elliot and Leonard's teams pulled ahead against their early opponents," Bridget described calmly.

Winnie nodded, watching the events of the games from the HQ window. She put down her binoculars, grinning happily. "Excellent. I wonder how poor little Angel will deal with this."

Mike examined the standings bulletin board curiously. All of the Battlefront teams were doing well.

"Right," Harry burbled, brimming with confidence. "All we have to do is follow suit. If we can get seven runs ahead, they'll end the game on a mercy rule. We got this guys!"

As they arrived at one of the baseball fields, the students in charge could do little to hide their disappointment, as they recognized the tell-tale alternate uniforms. "Not another team of you-people," the organizer groaned. "I thought hooligans just played hooky all the time."

"Hey, we're technically students here too!" Harry argued fiercely. "We have a right to play!"

"Whatever. You'll play against entry number twelve, 'Team hashtag you only live once'"

Team Harry went off to huddle. "All right gang, here's the scoop," Harry began. "Mike, you're up to bat first-"

"What? Why does that punk get to go first?" Jake snarled indignantly.

"Easy, my testosterone-fueled friend, easy. Mike will go, and then me, then Hannah. You can handle that Hannah?" she nodded tightly. "Excellent. And then Jake, you bring us home. You lose the manliness contest if you don't bring us all home, am I clear?'

Jake sniffed, crossing his arms. "Sounds easy enough."

Harry grinned a full, lively smile. "Great! All right guys, let's slay this. Goooo… TEAM!" He threw his fist up in the air. A few seconds after, Mike and the NPC girls echoes the motion out of politeness, with a pitiful "Wooo…"

Harry withered. "Ok…"

Mike stood at the plate, facing the pitcher, ready. An unusual thought was presenting itself. He couldn't ever remember hearing of the game called baseball before yesterday. But as he went along, he had found himself knowing things, such as the players, and the stance, without having to ask. In fact, they had come to mind automatically, without him needing to think about them. Now that he thought about it, whenever he tried to directly recall his life before, he was blocked. But the rest of time little bits of how normal life worked, like what an election was, random pieces of historical trivia, and the name of which pop star had recently broken up with Taylor Swift, would just come back automatically, without him even asking. He-

CRACK! The bat swung in front of his startled eyes as he stepped through with decent form, sending the pitch bouncing past second. Did I do that, he wondered, awed. Wait, Harry's yelling something; maybe he has an answer-

"GET YOUR STUPID BUTT MOVING!" Oh. Oh yeah!

Mike made it to first on time, and Harry and Hannah both managed to get on base.

Jake stepped up to the plate with slow, deliberate steps. Somewhere in the distance he knew, Fred was watching him. The time had come to showcase his natural abilities as a warrior. He-

"Hey! Are you ready?" the ump asked from behind him.

Jake blinked down at the NPC imperiously. "Ready? Ready for what?"

"Sigh… Just go on ahead…"

Smirking, the other team's pitcher flung a hot one right across the base. SMACK! With ridiculous ease, Jake swung the bat backhanded. They all watched the white piece of cloth fly out, farther, farther, and crash into a bush on the other side of the defense.

"Home run!"

"Sweet!" Harry exulted, grinning at the scoreboard. They had managed four runs in the first inning, and the batters they were now facing looked pretty dispirited.

"Why am I pitching," Mike complained from the mound. "I don't even know how to-"

"Aw, shut it Mike. Just put your arm into it!" Harry encouraged. Jake glared at his rival out of his catcher's mask. "Come on, hit me, punk!"

Mike's first pitch slapped right into Jakes mitt, leaving the batter stunned at the amateur's surprising speed. Hey, Mike thought, I'm actually pretty good at this-"

"Is that the best you can do, wimp!" Jake jeered, before pelting the ball back at his pitcher. Mike caught it, his mitt slamming against his chest with the impact.

"What the heck's your problem, jerk!" he yelled back, before returning the ball with equal velocity.

"Hah! At least I don't have silly putty for guts!" Jake parried, standing to chuck the ball with hazardous force.

"Idiot!"

"Cannon-fodder newbie!"

"Numbskull!"

"Angel bait!"

"Feeling-insensitive bully!"

Harry watched his fielding team bicker and throw baseballs at each other, shaking as he boiled over. "WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU TWO DOING? DON'T PLAY BASEBALL BY YOURSELVES!"

"They're morons," Julie explained.

" WAIT FOR THERE TO BE A BATTER BEFORE YOU THROW FASTBALLS!"

Julie nodded sagely. "It seems that even death can't cure stupid."

"Despite occasional mishaps, Team Harry has won their initial matchup as well. All three Battlefront teams are moving on to the final round."Bridget paused. "They seem to enjoying themselves."

Fred smirked. "Ha! Excellent! They're all so terrified of the punishment if they fail; they're managing to crush the opposition. Leave it to those numbskulls to find a way to have fun in any situation, but still!"

The radio crackled. "Fred, rumor has it your penalties are famous for leaving lasting emotional scars, and occasionally causing the victim to split into several different personalities, one of which is usually named Chad," Bridget noted.

"What kind of leader would do that? That's all they are, a rumor. I've never implemented such a penalty." Fred put down her binoculars. "Oh… How will poor little Angel be dealing with this? All of the delinquents are carrying the school's baseball contest! Do we ever make it easy for the poor dear?"

Fred danced in delight, then threw her head back with a growing chuckle. "Hehehe. HehehahahahHAHAHA, MUHAHAHAHA-"