The next day after school the moment everyone had been waiting for finally arrived, especially Luz who couldn't wait to try a new game. They all met at the back of the school, where there was a large area whose lawn was very well kept, suitable for playing with a ball, and also a changing room where they could put on the uniforms suitable for playing rugby... and judging by what they were covered and cushioned, it must have been a sport in which you fell or pushed yourself quite often. "Wow! They're not bad at all" Luz said as she admired herself; her uniform consisted of a white bodice with dark blue shoulder pads with a purple gem-shaped decoration in the center, a gray shirt, and blue pants with a white stripe down the sides.

"Well, we care about aesthetics. The eye also wants its part after all" Skara said while stretching. She wore the same uniform as Luz, except her shirt and chest decoration were brown. "And don't get used to it anyway: when we start playing it won't even be two minutes before it becomes so covered in earth that it becomes the same color as the wood you're made of!"

"How did you find them in our size?" Willow asked in surprise, as she didn't expect to find one that fit her perfectly as those girls' physiques were very different from hers. The uniform she was wearing had a green shirt and decoration, a color that suited her very much.

"Oh, we have uniforms for all sizes. This is a sport where only physical strength counts, not shape. A few years ago we had a girl on the team who was so round that she could have rolled, yet she was a phenomenon against her opponents" Amelia, who was also part of the team, said. Unlike Luz, Skara, and Willow, her uniform had a black colored bodice with spurs emerging from the shoulder pads. That detail hadn't gone unnoticed. "Um... why do you have different clothes?" Luz asked looking at her and Cat, who also had the same uniform as Amelia, only with a purple t-shirt and decoration.

"Oh, it's because Amelia and I are the side forwards on the team" Cat explained. "Boscha will explain it to you better on the pitch, but to make a long story short, Amelia and I will find ourselves on the sides of the pitch and we will have to advance towards the opponent's goal; Boscha will do it too, with the difference that she will be in the center since she is the attacker central. This is why the uniforms are different, they serve to mark our role. Furthermore, it is easier to advance among the opponents when you cannot be tackled from the side because you have spurs on your shoulders"

"Uh... I see" Luz murmured. So apparently it was part of the game. She was about to ask for some more information when Boscha walked in, already completely in uniform and even with (and Luz found it rather cool) some pink paint stains under her eyes that made her look much more threatening, and exclaimed: "Come on, girls, all of you on the pitch! Let's not waste time, I want to get hold of that ball as soon as possible!" and having said that I practically throw them out of the locker room.

"Wow... she must really like this sport" Willow commented.

"Boscha is like that" Skara said with a smile. "She has loved playing this sport since she was little. Be prepared because she gets very competitive during matches"

"I don't know why, but it just seems like her to me. Where's Amity, by the way?" Luz asked noticing the absence of her familiar mint colored hair.

The answer came to her after a few seconds: as soon as they entered the field they found her already in the center of it while stretching. Of course, as usual, she had been the first to arrive and was wasting no time getting ready. She wore a uniform completely different from the others, consisting of black trousers with a white stripe on the sides and a brown jacket with ocher sleeves with the letter 'A' embroidered on the chest. Clearly that was the team captain's uniform. She also had paint under her eyes, this time green, even better painted than Boscha, which really gave her a tough look. "Well, you've arrived!" she greeted them. "Where are the boys?"

"Oh, they're coming. When I went to check they were just finishing getting ready... or rather, getting ready whoever you know" Boscha replied.

Willow raised an eyebrow. "You didn't go into the boys' locker room, did you?"

"Of course not, who did you take me for? I just went to the door, kicked them and asked them what stage they were at" Boscha explained, making the ex-cricket let out a half sigh of relief. Then she pointed to some paint cans placed at the sides of the field: "While we wait, don't waste time and paint your face. These marks on our faces are part of the game after all!"

No one minded at all coloring the bases of their eyes with paint, so everyone did it. Luz used purple paint, while Willow opted for dark green paint, and both drew more oval spots than Boscha and Amity's. As they did so, Gus, Matt, and a third individual joined them. Their uniforms were a little different as they would play different roles on the team: Gus's consisted of blue shorts and shin guards plus a green shirt with light blue sleeves and collar, while Matt had long black pants with green stripes and a green jersey sleeveless.

But obviously everyone's attention was drawn to the person behind them: it was a boy of about sixteen with brown shorts, a green shirt and yellow sleeves, and his face was so painted that you could almost not see his skin: a drawing in the shape of a green lightning bolt it filled half of his face, while on the other there was a star drawn around the eye. His hair was dark brown and combed neatly and smoothly, and around his chin was what looked like the hint of a beard, but if you looked closely you could see it was just more gray paint used to hide a scar on his cheek. "Wow, Hunter, you look so different!" Luz exclaimed.

The boy nodded. "Your friend here really can do miracles with make-up" he admitted, pointing to Gus.

The ex-spider scratched his head in embarrassment. "Well, it wasn't much... I just used a lot of paint and combed and painted my hair. For an illusionist like me this is nothing, do you remember when I pretended to be a gold coin?"

"How could I forget it!" Luz replied jovially, and then she approached Hunter: "You'll see, no one will recognize you. You can have fun with us as much as you want!"

Hunter smiled slightly; he didn't mind the prospect of playing rugby. It was the first time in his life that he had the chance to participate in a team game... well, actually he could have done it when he was at his uncle's amusement park and he had no missions for him, but he had never dared to mix to the kids who were there since he knew what would happen to them and it was therefore imperative to become as less attached as possible to them. He looked at Willow, and for a moment he was fascinated by her; he had to admit that she looked really cute in that uniform.

"Well, we're all here... no, wait, where are Edric and Emira!? They were here a moment ago!" Amity blurted out realizing the twins' absence.

Hunter sighed. "I'll take care of it" he said, then he raised his voice: "Hey, you two! There's no use looking for my staff, I told Flapjack to take it away from here and hide it. Come back to the field instead of keeping your sister waiting"

There was what sounded like an annoyed snort, and then the twins appeared almost out of nowhere and joined them with sad faces. They wore a uniform consisting of green trousers and a sleeveless shirt with dark green and light green stripes. "Mph! So you were looking for that staff for one of your stupid pranks? Seriously, you two are the worst" Amity grumbled, then she regained her composure: "Anyway, now that we're all here, it's time to explain the rules"

"I'll handle that!" Boscha exclaimed as she got up. "So, there are twelve players per team; the aim of each team is to carry the ball to the other side of the pitch and throw it between the goals. The ball must only be touched with the hands and you cannot stop as long as you has in his hand; if you stop me, you have to throw it to someone else. To steal the ball from your opponents, you are allowed to tackle them, as long as you don't hit either your head or your legs, only the central part of your body"

"Mh. Sounds easy" Luz murmured as she listened. She was lucky that there weren't too many rules to memorize, because it meant she had less chance of making mistakes during the game. "These are the positions" Boscha continued, taking a piece of paper out of her pocket with a small diagram drawn on it. "Me, Cat and Amelia are on the front line; I'm in the centre, they're on the sides. Our job is that as soon as the referee gives us the starting whistle we have to run towards the opponent's goal, advancing as much as possible, waiting for someone of you pass the ball to us. Little crab and little spider" she said, looking at Matt and Gus, "will instead play the role of defenders, since one has hand strength equal to that of a crab's claws and the other has agility and mobility unparalleled among us, so you are perfect for the role. Your job will be to protect the goal and throw the ball to Luz or Willow; their job instead will be to reach at least half the pitch and then throw the ball to one of the three attackers. The puppet has fast legs and the cricket can jump very high and throw the ball with extreme force, so you are also perfect for the role. Edric and Emira will provide support and protection. Skara will stand directly in front of the goal and will be the last line of defense. Amity, as captain, will be here in the center so we can coordinate well, and therefore will be a sort of wild card as she will play any role if necessary. Finally you... what should I call you on the pitch?" she asked looking at Hunter.

The boy reflected and agreed that even if his appearance had completely changed this was not enough to hide his identity; using a fake name was a good idea. Flapjack chirped something, and Hunter found himself agreeing. "Yeah, that's a nice name. Call me Caleb" he said, then he thought that maybe he should add something in case anyone wanted to know about him. "From today I am Caleb... Jasper... Bloodwilliams. Yes, Caleb Jasper Bloodwilliams, a student at Hexside who was unable to attend classes due to illness"

"Okay" Boscha said with little interest; she clearly didn't really care about how Hunter would hide his identity, she just wanted to be able to get on with the explanation. "So, 'Caleb', you are clearly the strongest among us and the one with the most experience in fighting techniques, so your task will be to prevent as many opponents as possible from crossing the halfway line. You can wear protection if you want... but knowing you, I doubt you'll need it. Remember, you're only allowed to tackle from the waist up, so come up with a strategy that takes this detail into account. And please... don't break anyone's bones"

Boscha's warning was more than legitimate given that she herself had seen Hunter pulverize a five meter tall fisherman effortlessly. She was sure that he knew how to measure his strength well, but she preferred to play it safe. "Well, that's all. Are there any questions?"

Nobody had them. Luz, Willow, Gus, Matt and Hunter had never played rugby, but it seemed like a very simple sport; each had a specific and useful role for the team, and everyone seemed to have the opportunity to contribute. Listening to it, it really seemed like a good sport. Seeing that everyone seemed to understand, Boscha rubbed her hands together: "Well, then there's nothing else to add. Amity?"

Amity immediately understood that Boscha wanted her as captain to announce the start of the games. "Okay, guys. Come on, let's go play a practice match!" she declared, and these words were greeted by a choral cheer.

And so they started playing. Initially they had quite a few difficulties, given that having never played Luz, Willow, Gus, Matt and Hunter often made mistakes, but thanks to a lot of patience on Amity's part (and a little less on Boscha's part) they eventually managed to coordinate well. By the end of the day they had learned to play along with the rest of the team and were having a lot of fun. They were forced to stop when the spell that gave Willow, Gus and Matt human form wore off and turned them back into arthropods, and luckily when that happened none of them had the ball in their hands or were being tackled because it could have ended very badly for them. "We should get a watch next time" Gus said after all three were retrieved by Luz.

"Are you all ok?" Hunter asked them, and as he did so he looked slightly harder at Willow.

"Yes, everything is fine" they confirmed, then Willow did a somersault: "It was fantastic! Let's play again as soon as possible!"

"Heh heh! I told you you'd like it" Boscha giggled smugly. That training had driven her to exasperation several times, as she was a perfectionist when it came to rugby and couldn't stand seeing new recruits make mistakes, but she couldn't deny that she had fun and that they all did very well and had a great potential.

Amity looked at Luz: "Did you like it?"

Luz nodded vigorously: "I'm full of aches and pains and I think I ate a bit of dirt considering all the times I fell on my face, but I loved every part of this sport! Although I think Boscha should calm down" she added with a wink. at the girl in question, who glared back. "We'll play again, right?"

"Of course, whenever you want!" Amity replied. "Actually... why don't you officially join the team? This way we can play together against opposing teams from other schools in the region!"

"I like the idea! I'm all for it!" Luz replied without thinking twice. "Guys?"

"We agree" Willow replied, and Matt and Gus nodded as well. "Just, let's make sure we time it right. I don't want to transform back in the middle of the match. What about you, Hunter?"

"Hunter? Who is this Hunter? I'm Caleb now, model student and love interest of every woman in Hexside" the boy joked amusedly, and everyone started laughing out loud. While laughing, Hunter reflected on the proposal: if he had joined the team it would have actually improved his relationship with the objective of his mission even more... he had already managed to enter her house, but he hadn't achieved much; he could have done better. He absolutely wasn't thinking about it because he had fun like crazy and he wanted to repeat the experience a thousand more times; he was a dutiful soldier! "Anyway, yes, I'm in"

"Great! Then let's come here to train every day!" Luz exclaimed cheering and raising a fist to the sky. Seeing her act like this while she was in that cute, sweaty uniform, Amity felt a strange heat blaze on her cheeks and her stomach seemed to twist in on itself. She shook her head and looked away, and touched her forehead several times to be sure she hadn't caught a fever. Strangely, her forehead was as cold as usual... it was the rest of her face that felt like an oven.


The name Flapjack suggests to Hunter for his false identity is the same one Hunter uses when he infiltrates Hexside to find recruits for the Emperor Coven. The uniforms they use are also those from episode 17 of the first season and those from episode 13 of the second season.

I take this opportunity to wish you all a New Year's greeting. Happy New Year!