Meanwhile with Odile:
"UGH! THIS BLOWS!" screeched Odile, throwing a book at her pet, the terrifying Krampus, "Every time that my little sister does something, or makes a little mistake, Mum would always praise her! When I do something wrong, Mum would always scream in my ears! Saying the F-word constantly! Isn't that a mortal sin even for Serpents like us?"
The Krampus licked his paw. He then gave a growl.
Oddly enough, Odile's necklace had an activated voice.
Is there any place your heart wishes to escape?
"Yes," Odile replied, "There is...but it's quite hard for me to get there."
You could always keep a notebook to track down your feelings and other things.
"That could work...but...what if it doesn't for the next hundred years?"
Trust me...it will! But first...we must prepare for your plan
*~*~*~*~*~*
It was the night of the national Night-Ball tournament. Heli sat on the bench with the main ball on his forehead.
I really wanted Athena to join the game, he thought, She would really be a good fit to our team!
Heli frowned.
"We're up!" said Vincent, "Let's show those peasants what Serpents are made of!"
The whole team shouted their chant. And then they made their way to the field.
*~*~*~*~*~*
Heli went left, and then went right...he even passed the ball to Shion. They glided all over the field.
But suddenly, an Angel had snatched the ball from Shion's hands. Shion cursed under his breath, and ran after the Angel.
Meanwhile, Athena and Odette were watching the game.
"Who do you think is going to win?" asked Odette.
"I hope it's not the Angels," replied Athena, "'Cause I know they're not looking too good on the benches."
The Serpent team and the Angel team battled for the ball. One team fought for the one goal, and so did the other.
But every time, it was always a tie.
It was the peak of the game when the Angels scored 54 points, tying with the Serpents. The whole team was in anger.
"How are we going to beat the s**t out of them?!" asked Vincent, shouting that the team kept losing over the Angels.
That is when Athena stepped in. She then crossed her arms in the process.
"Mind if I help?" she asked.
Vincent faked a smile.
"That's okay," he said, feigning a friendly tone of voice, "But I think we are okay."
"Are you sure?"
*~*~*~*~*~*
Vincent sighed and eventually gave up.
"Please, come in," he said.
Athena walked straight to the white board and explained the statistics about what the team is missing.
"...So the reason you are scoring lower points is...you don't have enough players."
Heli was confused.
"W-wait, how can you know all of this stuff, when it's a man's sport?"
"My dad was a hardcore Night-ball player. Before I was born, he won the very first game of the sport. That was what led to our victory."
"So, your dad played against the Angels?"
Athena nodded.
The whole team huddled up.
"What do we do?" asked one member of the team.
"Should we let her join?" asked another member.
Vincent remembered the time he saw Athena's name being put on the sign-up poster. But he ripped it out and threw it away.
He never felt guilty like any other before. So he eventually gave in.
"You can join our team." he said, feeling oh-so fed up about his inner thoughts.
"Really?" Athena said with a straight face, "Why didn't you let me in sooner?"
"Because...I was afraid that people were going to either judge you, or give you more attention than me. I couldn't take the pain any longer."
"So...you'll finally let a girl on the team?"
*~*~*~*~*~*
"And Athena takes the lead! Looks like this is going to be a big picture finish! And–OH! Athena dons a bicycle kick for the whole team making the Serpents win 56 points and the entire game for everyone! Give it up for teammate Athena!"
As everyone praised Athena's skill, Heli went up to hug her; Athena pulled Heli in and kissed him straight on the lips.
I'm sorry, she thought, as she was speaking to Heli telepathically.
"It's okay," said Heli, "I knew you'd make your breaking point. I'm proud of you. You did it!"
"You mean, we did it!" said Athena, teasing the top of Heli's head.