The following weeks the Chucks played many games through and won. Larry's strategies were top notch and the other teams couldn't match them in any way. It was finally the big day. They were going to face off against the Dark Chargin' Chucks. Like any other dark version of a species, they had dark colour schemes and were a lot stronger. The Chucks were feeling really nervous for this match.
While training before the match, they kept fumbling and messing up. Larry was not pleased.
"What's your beef, guys? Why do you keep mucking up?" He placed his hands on his hips. They all exchanged looks and muttered amongst themselves. Chance finally spoke up.
"We're real nervous, Larry..."
"Nervous for what?" Larry asked bluntly.
"Well we've never made it this far and lots of people are gonna be watching. Also I heard the Dark Chucks are really tough..."
"Didn't a guy get permanently put into a wheelchair after a match with them?" Chet asked. The others mumbled to each other nervously. Larry glared at Chet.
"Larry... Are you sure we can do this? Aren't you even scared a little?" Chance asked while twiddling his thumbs. Larry huffed proudly and crossed his arms.
"Of course we can do this! We've worked so hard and got this far! Why give up now?" He began. "I got a concussion, but that didn't stop me. We'll be fine. I'm sure of it! And I'm not scared at all. Bowser's ten times scarier than those guys." He continued. "Ludwig can be pretty scary too..." He mumbled. "But seriously, we can and will do this. Who's with me?" He threw his fist up in the air. They cheered and did the same. They were all pumped and their training went loads better after Larry's pep talk. It was only a matter of time till it was game time.
Hours had passed and it was finally game time. There was a large crowd and the noise level was high. There were paramedics present expecting the worse. One of the Chucks gulped upon seeing that. Larry was taking everything in and mentally repeating the game plan. It was almost time to go, so he and his team assembled their final huddle.
"This is the last game, alright? I know there's a lot of people here and loads of pressure too. Just remember, it's all you now. It's our chance to shine and take the trophy. We'll do fine, alright?" They all nod. "Remember our plan and let's get out there and do this!" They all cheered and went into their positions. The referee came between Larry and the Dark Chucks' team leader. He flipped the coin and Larry's team was doing the kick off. The two teams readied themselves and Larry kicked the ball. The final game had finally begun.
The ball was hurdling through the air up until Chuji caught it. He was running until he got tackled by a Dark Chuck. The crowd whined disappointedly. The ball was now in the hands of a Dark Chuck. He was running with his hand outstretched and knocking over all the Chucks. He landed the first touchdown. The game went on.
The ball was kicked off again and Larry's team had it. Chance was running with the ball until he chucked it over to Larry. He began running and his team covered him as Dark Chucks aggressively charged at him. He was almost at their opposing team's goal post. A Dark Chuck jumped at him. The Dark Chuck had jumped too early and his arms and head were approaching Larry's feet. Larry's only option was to go over so he jumped off their head as they skidded towards him. He landed safely at the goal. His team and the Koopalings cheered. It was halftime now, so the teams got a break.
The Chucks were talking over their game plan in a huddle as were the Dark Chucks. The Chucks had suffered minor injuries, but were still ok to play.
"Those guys play rough, eh?" Chance commented.
"Yeah, I would've thought one of us would be out of the count by now." Chet added. The team glared at him for his comment. There was a short moment of silence until Larry spoke up.
"We have a shot at winning this, so let's do our best!" Larry said while pumping a fist into the air. They cheered and returned to their positions.
The other team got out of their huddle and into their positions. They game continued. The ball was getting chucked from player to player in Larry's team until Larry had the ball. He was running and was almost home free until several Dark Chucks came at him. There were too many to run around or jump over, so he made like a turtle and jumped into his shell. There was a dog pile onto of him. His team and siblings watched in fear. When the pile cleared, his shell was seen and he popped out a-ok with the ball. They all let out a sigh of relief. This counted as a foul, so his team got a penalty kick. Larry kicked the ball and it was sent flying.
It was back and forth between the teams until Larry got hold of the ball again. He begins running with the ball to the goal once again. It seems to be going well, until another thing happens. One of the Dark Chucks picked him up from the ground and begins running with him to the other side. Since he was so small, it was near impossible for him to get out of his grasp. They pass him from player to player until one of them has Larry, pries the ball from his hands, drops him, and lands a touchdown. Chuji goes up to Larry and pulls him to his feet.
"Are you ok, Prince Larry?"
"I'm fine." He says while dusting himself off. He turns to the referee. "Well does it count or not?" The referee shrugs.
"I honestly don't know... We never had someone as small as you playing for something like that to happen before..." He replies. Larry growls.
"Whatever then! Let's just continue." The teams went into a huddle before continuing.
"If they're gonna play dirty, then we may as well too." Larry started. They all nodded and agreed. "You guys abuse your tackles and I'll abuse going into my shell to avoid them. It doesn't say in the books we can't do that so let's hop to it." They all return to their positions and the game continues. Time was running out and the Chucks were losing by a bit. They were stepping their game up. They tackled the Dark Chucks more and Larry went in his shell to evade them more; the strategy was working out. It was the final minute and both teams had equal points. The ball was going back and forth between teams until Larry caught it once again.
He began running to the other side. The Dark Chucks were charging at him, but his team had his back. He was almost at the goal until déjà-vu began happening. A Dark Chuck was coming at him quickly and he had no escape. Was this it? No. Larry began picking up speed and running towards the Dark Chuck. His mind went completely blank. He pushed his balance lower to the ground and forward. His helmet slipped more over his eyes, obstructing his view, but he kept going forward, picking up more speed. He ran headfirst into the Dark Chuck's lower half and knocked him down that way. He skidded onto the goal grass and landed the final touchdown as the horn bellowed.
His team was cheering loudly. His siblings were cheering loudly. The whole crowd was cheering loudly. He pushes his helmet up and looks over at the scoreboard, now realizing they had won the game. His team ran over to him and Chance hoisted him up onto one of his shoulders. The Koopalings came over from the stands too to cheer on their baby bro. There was a mini ceremony were they got a trophy, photos, and all the works. The team insisted on Larry keeping the trophy, but he declined. He'd probably end up selling the trophy. He and his team were chatting before it was time for him to go.
"So Larry... Since the season is over and all, would you be willing to play with us again? Y'know, next season?" Chance asked. Larry shrugged.
"Sure, whatever you guys want." They cheered and each gave him a hug, except for Chet. The two just nodded at each other and fist bumped.
"I guess this goodbye for now..." Chance said, smiling. It was kind of a sad smile. Larry rolled his eyes.
"You're treating this like it'll be forever. You guys are free to visit whenever. See you guys later." Larry said while waving and beginning to walk off with his siblings. They were all waving and yelling many variations of bye. The Chucks not only won a championship, but a friend.