In the following days the kids continued to play rugby, and not only that: after each training session they began to spend more and more time together. Whether it was going to someone's house to study, to visit some other place, or even just taking a walk together, not a day went by when they didn't part ways before sunset. The friendship they had formed solidified more and more, even if every now and then unpleasant episodes still occurred such as Boscha and Luz pulling their hair in the middle of the field or the two Blight twins who obviously instead of behaving well tried to find out where Hunter was hiding his staff (and there was no way he would keep telling them how dangerous it was, they kept trying). Amity hoped Edric and Emira would never find it; as much as she tried to maintain a good opinion of her siblings, she knew with absolute certainty that entrusting them with such a powerful object would be no different than giving a warship to a newborn: in the best case scenario they wouldn't even understand how to use it, in the worse... better to avoid thinking about it.
Luckily Hunter knew very well that he couldn't trust the twins, and somehow always managed to keep the staff safe. Luz had noticed that he in particular seemed to have improved lately: not that he was in bad shape before, but now he seemed... well, healthier. He no longer had his usual bags under his eyes and his complexion had become less pale, and he was smiling significantly more than usual. He seemed to have become... well, a normal boy, no longer a wandering monster hunter. In the early days, Luz remembered that Hunter had sometimes given her strange sensations: every now and then he would ask a question or look at her in a way that for some reason made her skin crawl, as if she felt being studied by a wolf hiding in a bush. But since they started spending the afternoons together he no longer did so; he seemed to have totally forgotten about… well, anything he was trying to do before. Rather now his attention was almost always focused on Willow, who spent a lot of time with him, both to play and to train in the art of fighting and self-control, and even after the spell wore off and she went back to being a cricket anyway he made her sit on his shoulder and they talked together for hours.
However, despite being clearly interested in her, he still hadn't made a single move. Luz was seriously starting to think that Boscha was right and that Willow should step forward, because if she had waited for him she would probably have spent her life waiting. "Boys are all slow on the uptake. It doesn't matter how many signals you give them, if you don't tell them straight and clearly they will never understand" Boscha had repeated to her once, obviously avoiding specifying out loud which boy Willow was interested to. "I remember when Skara found her first boyfriend a few years ago: she sent him signals for two months, but he didn't understand even just one. In the end she got impatient and told him to his face, and finally he came forward and admitted he felt the same"
"Hey, it's not our fault we can't understand you!" Edric had barked, as he had been listening to the conversation. "You're the ones who are too complicated! Why don't you say what you think instead of waiting for us to figure it out?"
"Girls don't think like that"
"Well, you should! Everything would be easier!"
Needless to say, that conversation had quickly escalated into an argument that had quickly involved the rest of the group, and given that most of the people there were girls and that Gus, Matt and Hunter had been careful not to intervene on Edric's behalf, the poor boy was soon forced to succumb and surrender under veiled but rather heavy threats from his twin sister.
Luz was in any case happy that Hunter and Willow had become closer, especially since she saw Willow much happier lately. Since the cricket had obtained the ability to become human, even for a limited period of time, she was costantly smiling for basically anything that she could do. Gus on the other hand lately seemed like a squirrel constantly overdosing on caffeine, as there were so many things to do and experience now that he could fully interact with humans that he didn't know where to start; fortunately his friends from the Human Appreciation Society (by now Luz had gotten used to calling them that) were helping him a lot. Matt continued to seem uninterested in all this, but he had stopped grumbling at Gus's every idea from a long time and in fact, now he seemed much more enthusiastic about following him on any of his adventures despite him often calling them madness or nonsense. Luz was happy to see her friends settling in so well and having so much fun; not that she was any different, since not a day went by without her feeling like she was creating an ever stronger bond with her new friends. In particular, she was becoming very close to Amity, who seemed to appreciate her presence even more than the others, and indeed was almost always the first to greet her and offer her any help or to show her something new. Luz really liked this new version of Amity: it was definitely better than the perfect girl she had tried to be until a few weeks before.
In any case, a day soon came when, as Boscha had predicted, they were challenged by another school's team from a nearby town that apparently bore the name of Glandus. They couldn't wait to play, and also felt a bit of competitive spirit, so they prepared properly; on the day of the match Luz also went to King accompanied by Eda and made him a proposal. The young Titan looked somewhat surprised: "Me, come to admire a competition of humans?"
Luz nodded with a smile. During the last few weeks she had continued to visit King and had introduced him to all her friends, with whom the young Titan had always gotten along; even the grumpy Boscha couldn't resist his adorableness. Now King seemed much more confident and open to the possibility of meeting strangers, but despite this he had always refused any invitation to the Owl House. Luz had therefore decided to try another approach: "Exactly, Your Majesty. I know it is arrogant of me to ask you to abandon your throne and bother you to come, but I am sure you will enjoy the show. Rugby is a very fun sport"
King appeared to weigh the proposal carefully. "Mmm... I'm not sure. If I showed up with my royal presence, everyone would start admiring me and not the game. You are my best worshipper, Luz, and I would hate to ruin your game like this..."
"Oh, don't worry, we've already thought about it" Eda said showing what looked like a small bag, but which once opened revealed to be very large inside. "It's magical, you can sit comfortably, and the fabric is magical too so you can see and hear what's happening outside but no one will see or hear you inside"
King suddenly seemed much more convinced, but still he didn't give his assent. Then Eda unsheathed her final weapon: "And obviously, I took care to leave a large supply of sweets inside that you can enjoy during the match"
That statement made all doubts vanish from the young Titan's mind. "Well... I guess for this one time there will be no harm. Alright, I will delight you with my presence; Luz, make sure you have a good game, because you will be admired by a Titan!" he exclaimed, and although still a little hesitant he entered the bag.
Luz smiled. She was happy that she had finally convinced King to come out of his safe haven and come with them. Even though it was just a small step, it was still a step forward. She had to thank Eda for this: the fairy had been very loving and kind to the little Titan, leading him to trust her a lot, so it was normal that he now trusted her enough to agree to be carried by her in a bag so he could admire a rugby match. She hoped that after having had so much fun, King would be more inclined to stay with them instead of returning to his refuge.
After exchanging a knowing look with Eda, the two headed to the field where the match would be played; it was a small field located just outside the town, where there were some stone stairs on which any spectators could sit. When they arrived Amity was already there, and Luz ran towards her delighted to see her, but she stopped when she realized that she was talking to a woman with green hair, much greener than the mint ones she dyed hers with, more similar to the Blight twins' natural hair color. It wasn't difficult for Luz to put two and two together and realize that this must be Amity's mother. "Um… hello?" she asked a little hesitantly, not knowing how else to approach.
The woman looked at her with her magnetic eyes, and for a moment Luz felt crushed; it seemed to her that she was studying her. "Oh, you must be the puppet my sweet Mittens told me about. I'm Odalia Blight, very pleased" she introduced herself.
Even though she said 'my sweet Mittens' and did so while smiling lovingly, Luz thought there was something very strange about that woman. And she didn't miss the way she used the word 'my', which sent a shiver down her spine. But in any case she convinced herself that it was just her impression and she tried to introduce herself: "Ehm... I'm Luz Noceda, nice to meet you! I'm a classmate of your daughter... well, you already know this I assume... ehm... I'm sure you'll like the game...". She realized that she was mumbling sentences that made no logical sense; why did she feel like she was trying to make a good impression?
Odalia giggled, as if she were amused by the puppet's clumsiness, but to Luz it still seemed that that laugh contained a very light and almost imperceptible note of mockery, which however at the same time penetrated her brain making her feel extremely embarrassed and humiliated. "Oh, you're just as funny as Mittens describes you" the woman said, flicking her hair. "I understand why you are such good friends. I'm sure you'll have a great match together" and she seemed to particularly emphasize the tone of 'I'm sure'. At that point she turned to Eda: "You must be her guardian, right? Amity also told me about you. Thank you for raising that puppet that my daughter likes so much"
She held out her hand, but Eda didn't reciprocate. Instead, hef face darkened. "That puppet has a name" she said.
Odalia didn't move a single eyebrow. "Oh, yes. Sorry, I really forgot my manners at home today! I must be really tired lately... I was right to ditch work and take a day off to come and watch my Mittens play!"
Luz thought it was strange that the woman pointed out that she had skipped a day of work to come see Amity; shouldn't that have been a normal thing? But she found the mint-haired girl's reaction even stranger, who hastened to say: "Don't worry, mom, just think about relaxing! I assure you that I will play a great game and you will have fun!"
"Oh, I'm sure. You're a Blight after all. A Blight is always on top" Odalia said with a strange tone in her voice, and even though she was stroking Amity's cheek in the meantime, Luz still got the impression that such a touch resembled that of a bird of prey while germinating its prey rather than that of a loving mother. "Well, I'm going to go find a comfortable seat in the stands. Have fun, girls!" and having said this she went away.
Amity greeted her mother by waving her hand, then she turned to Luz: "Come on, let's go to change our clothes for the match! Are you ready?"
"Uh... yes, yes, I'm ready!" the puppet answered her, although she couldn't get rid of a bad feeling in her stomach; but she certainly couldn't tell Amity that her mother was giving her bad signals, so she just pretended that nothing had happened and followed her to the locker room.
Eda remained motionless with arched eyebrows, looking at the spot where Amity and her mother had been moments before. Then she heard a familiar voice behind her: "So you've met the matriarch of the Blight family, hm?"
Eda turned and saw Lilith. She knew she was coming to watch the game too, so she wasn't surprised. "I didn't expect her to be so slimy. You were right, she's really manipulative". She let out a sigh: "I suggest you to pay attention to your pupil, Lilith. I've had a bad feeling about this match ever since I saw that woman appear"
"Yeah" Lilith said, fully agreeing with her sister for once. The two fairies exchanged a look of understanding and headed towards the stairs to look for a seat.
In the locker room, the kids quickly changed in their uniforms, then they met just off the field. As soon as everyone was there Amity raised a fist and said proudly: "Guys, today we're going to show to the Glandus who are the best players! In case any of you are afraid, know that there's no reason to be! We've prepared for this! Let's go and win!"
"Yes!" the others responded in unison.
Amity smiled satisfied. "We'll use the scheme that Skara has designed; Boscha and Willow, remember, we're counting on you! You too Hun... er, Caleb, don't let anyone pass from midfield! You've got muscles, so use them!"
Those people that she had addressed nodded vigorously. They were ready to get busy. "Good! Remember, we are the winning team!" Amity continued. "We can't lose to the Glandus! Let's go out there and show them! Let's make them cry!"
"Yes! We must destroy them, we must massacre them!" Willow exclaimed hotly, then she stopped when she realized she had screamed. "Um... sorry. I let myself get carried away"
"It doesn't matter, this is the right spirit! Let's enter the field now!" Amity said, although she had to admit she didn't expect such heat and passion from her. The entire team took to the field, ready to play rugby.
I take this first January to inform you of a matter: I have already used practically all of Collodi's book, with the exception of the final part (that of the donkeys and the dogfish), therefore the subsequent parts of this story will be of my complete invention, as it had been the Vee arc and the Pirate arc. To be able to introduce all the characters well, I divided the next parts of the story into three arcs, which I called: "The secrets of the Blight family" arc, "The old lover" arc and "Amity's decision" arc. At the end of these three arcs, needless to say, we will have the long-awaited part with the donkeys and the final confrontation with Belos, but until then remember that I am writing everything in my own hand. From time to time I will insert some Easter eggs to the original story or other cinematic works, but otherwise everything will be of my own invention. I hope you enjoy these three arcs, and that they will be a good appetizer before the great final arc!
