Fluttershy and the Art of Fighting

by currentlemon

Chapter 2

As the school day ended, the students of Canterlot High clamored together at the school entrance. Some were eager leave, while others stayed and socialized with their friends before heading home.

Fluttershy stood amidst the large crowd, alone. Ever since school ended, she’d been waiting for her friends at their usual spot. She had texted them earlier to meet up at the ruined school monument so she could show them what she found.

Fluttershy whimpered. She hated being alone, especially in a large crowd. Being surrounded with people she doesn’t know made her feel very nervous.

“Hey, Fluttershy!”

Fluttershy looked up and sighed in relief as she saw Rainbow Dash waving at her. Much to her delight, the rest of the girls were with her as well.

“Sorry to keep you waiting, Flutters,” Rainbow said, smiling. “We tangled up by a Mr. Cranky Doodle last period. He was mad at me for some stupid reason.”

“Dash, the reason Mr. Doodle was mad at ya was because you broke the classroom window during P.E!” Applejack replied while glaring at Rainbow.

“It was an accident!” Rainbow cried, throwing her arms in the air. “I didn’t mean to hit the ball so hard! You know how I get competitive sometimes. It just happened!”

“Well, go ahead and keep using that excuse, Rainbow,” said Sunset. “Either way, you’re going to have to pay the school no matter what.”

“Whatever,” Rainbow groaned, before turning to Fluttershy. “So, Flutters, you said in your text that you found something?”

Fluttershy nodded. “Yes, I did. I found a video online that I’d like to show you girls.” Taking her laptop from her bag, Fluttershy booted her computer and loaded the video she discovered earlier. She then placed it on top of the monument so everyone could see.

“Wow, I’m surprised you found something so soon” Twilight said as everyone walked closer to the laptop. “Alright, let’s see what you got.”

As the video played, most of them were impressed and found it entertaining. Applejack and Sunset found the visuals amazing while Rarity swooned over the two virtual fighters. The commentators even made Pinkie giggle over their “get off me” jokes.

Rainbow and Twilight, however, had different opinions. Rainbow wondered why the spectators in the background enjoyed watching two nerds play a video game. Twilight was bothered over the game physics, twitching every time a character was knocked in the air with a single punch or kick.

“H-how did he do that?!” Twilight said, twitching as she saw an air combo. “No human can launch someone in the air with just a punch or kick! That’s not how physics works! Even if you have the strength to do it, you can’t keep someone floating in the air like that!”

“Uh, Twilight? You know that this is a game, right?” Sunset replied. “No need to frustrate yourselves over video game mechanics.”

“But…. but physics!” Twilight threw her arms up in frustration, only to groan again after she saw another air combo. “No! That shouldn’t be possible!”

“Twilight, would you please calm down!” Rarity pleaded as she and Sunset tried to ease their troubled friend. “It’s only a game! No need to take it seriously.”

“Though I must admit, those character models are gorgeous. Just look at the abs on that one.” Rarity pointed to the muscular half-naked character on the video, swooning as the video showed the character’s win animation.

Applejack raised her eyebrow. “Uh, Rarity, didn’t ya just say it’s only a game and ya shouldn’t be taking it so seriously?”

Rarity’s eyes widened. “Oh, right, of course.” She turned away from her friends in embarrassment as her cheeks flushed red.

“Silly, Rarity!” Pinkie giggled, as she handed out snacks for everyone

When the video finished, much to Twilight’s delight, Fluttershy looked at her friends for their opinions.

“Well, girls, what did you think?” Fluttershy asked as she put away her laptop back.

“Well, it was interesting I’ll give you that,” Sunset replied. “I’m surprised that you found that video in such a short time. Didn’t think it would be tournament play too.”

“I thought the commentators were funny!” Pinkie smiled, as she finished her food.

“Ah agree, those commentators were something,” Applejack said. “If it weren’t for them, I might’ve not followed along. But I have ta ask, what kind of names are ‘JDCR’ n’ ‘Knee’?”

“I think they’re just pen names, Applejack,” replied Rarity. “I don’t think they would just use their real names like that. Especially if the video is online. What about you, Twilight?”

The girls found Twilight sitting alone, cuddling to herself. Her glasses were crooked and a few strings of hair had twitched upward.

“The physics, impossible,” cried a shaken Twilight.

“Ok, we lost her. Can someone take care of her please?” Rainbow asked. “But seriously, why the heck are those people getting hype over watching a stupid video game. I thought people only do that for sports!”

“Well, you’ll never know what people find in enjoyment.” Sunset responded while trying to calm Twilight down. “You have to admit, it was pretty cool that JDCR person came back from behind from two to nothing.

“Yeah, whatever.” Rainbow scoffed and looked back at Fluttershy. “So, that tournament thing. Is that what Zephyr’s trying to do?”

“Um, yes, I’m pretty sure this is what he meant,” Fluttershy replied meekly. “But, I don’t think Zephyr will be able to get to that level of play in just five days. It just not possible.”

“Ya think!” shouted Rainbow. “Zephyr’s probably one of the laziest person I know. There’s no way he can do any of that in just a few days!”

“I have to agree,” Sunset shrugged. “Sorry Fluttershy, but I don’t think your brother has it in him. Given his past, it’s very unlikely he has the patience for that.”

Fluttershy sighed. “I know. The thing is, Zephyr’s never competed in anything before. When I talked to him before, he was confident that he would win. But, if the players competing are as good as those two from the video, I don’t think he can.”

“He’ll probably give up after losing once,” Rainbow remarked.

“You may be right.” Fluttershy replied, rubbing her forehead. “Well I better get home. I need to do some extra work for Ms. Cheerilee this evening and I want to get some of it done early. I’ll you girls tomorrow.”

Rainbow scratched her head. “Yeah, I better head on home too. Need to tell my parents what happened today. I’ll see you girls later.” After giving each other a friendly hug, the girls said their goodbyes and went their separate ways.

Fluttershy soon found herself alone walking on the sidewalk. She didn’t mind though, as her home was only a short walking distance away from the school and there was less people. It didn’t take her long to see her two-story home standing out among the others.

When she reached the front yard, Fluttershy was immediately greeted by several animals.

“Oh, why hello everyone,” greeted Fluttershy as she kneeled and cuddled each animal. “Sorry I came home late, I’ve was just talking to my friends. Don’t worry, I’ll take care of all of you as soon as I can. Just let me head inside and I can give each of you something to eat.”

Before Fluttershy could move, one of the dogs started barking at her.

“Oh, what’s wrong little one?” The dog turned around and ran straight toward the house. Fluttershy followed, and soon found the dog barking at something. She looked up and saw a package sitting at the front porch of her home.

“Huh, what’s this?” Fluttershy examined the box, looking closely for any delivery labels. “Let’s see here. This package is for…. Zephyr?”

Fluttershy gulped. Oh no, what did he buy this time? Deciding not to wait, she removed the packaging tape with her house key. The lid opened and Fluttershy peeked inside. Another box?

She takes the other box, but almost drops it. Oh no. He bought another one!

In a rare spark of anger, Fluttershy takes the box and quickly opened the front door. She was about to march up to Zephyr’s room, but soon found him sleeping on the living room couch.

“Zephyr! Zephyr Breeze!” She walked toward him and tried to wake him up, but he didn’t budge. Despite her anger, Fluttershy couldn’t bring herself to raise her voice. “Zephyr, please get up!”

Zephyr yawned. “Later Mom, I just got back from school. Just wake me up when dinner’s ready.”

“Zephyr!” Fluttershy wailed, but her pleas were ineffective. However, the dog from before had followed her inside the house. Seeing it’s caretaker cry, the dog jumped on Zephyr’s stomach.

“Ow!” Zephyr flinched and flopped off the couch. “Sis, why the heck did that dog jump on like that? Heck, why is the dog inside the house? Didn’t mom tell you not to let any of the animals inside the house?”

“That’s not the point!” Fluttershy showed the package to her brother. “You bought another one of these arcade stick things!”

“Oh, wow it’s already here?” Zephyr replied, taking the box from Fluttershy. “Wow, so fast. I thought it wouldn’t be here until later this week.”

“Zephyr, pay attention to me! Fluttershy said. Why did you buy another one of these?! You already spent over a hundred fifty dollars on the last one. And that’s not including the game!”

“Sis, calm down,” Zephyr said, patting her sister on the head. “Remember, I can get all that money back when I win the tournament this weekend.”

“Again, that’s not the point!” Fluttershy cried. “How much did this cost anyway?”

“Hmm….” Zephyr tapped his chin, trying to remember the item’s price tag. “I think it was about fifty dollars.”

Fluttershy gasped. “F-fifty dollars! If this one was cheaper, then why did you spend so much money buying the more expensive one?”

“Because, the one I have looks cooler,” Zephyr replied, flashing a grin. “Besides, this one is for my friend. I’m going to give it to him this weekend when we both enter the tournament. And don’t worry, we used some of our own money this time.”

“Well that’s one good thing that came out of this,” muttered Fluttershy. “Wait a second, why are you taking a nap here on the couch? Don’t you need to practice for the tournament on Saturday?”

“Don’t worry about it,” Zephyr scoffed as he laid down on the couch again. “The tournament is still five days away. That’s plenty of time to practice. Besides, I did nothing but play for the entire weekend. Just let me rest, ok?”

“You’re being overconfident, Zephyr! The tournament isn’t going to be easy as you think!” cried Fluttershy. “I’ve seen videos of tournament play online. You’re going to lose of you don’t prepare properly!”

Fluttershy tried to get her brother to listen, but he brushed them off and went back to sleep. After a few failed attempts, she gave up and takes the box with her. After letting the dog out, she went straight to her room and slammed the door shut.

Fluttershy stood in her room, alone and tired. She drooped on the floor, using the door for leeway. Water welled up on her eyes as Fluttershy laid her head on the box.

“What am I going to do?” Fluttershy muttered. “Zephyr isn’t listening to me.”

A sudden squeak caused Fluttershy to look up. She found Angel Bunny standing next to her. Squeaking, he leapt onto the box and landed next to Fluttershy. He began to rub his soft fur on Fluttershy’s face, doing his best comfort his distressed owner.

“Thank you, Angel,” Fluttershy said, giving him a gentle pet. “I really needed that.”

Feeling a bit better, Fluttershy stood up and placed the box down. She walked to her study table and took her magic necklace from the drawer. She put it on, and went back to Angel.

“Oh, Angel, I just don’t know what to do,” Fluttershy cried. “Zephyr’s causing more and more trouble.”

Angel gave a confused squeak, pointing to the box on the floor.

“Yes, that’s for him and it’s another one of those arcade sticks.” Fluttershy picked the box up and placed it on her bed. “The thing is, this one is much cheaper than the one he bought earlier. The only reason he bought the expensive one is because he thought it looked cooler.”

Angel folded his arms and grumbled.

“I know, Angel, it’s so frustrating.” Fluttershy sighed and looked at the neatly decorated box. “He keeps saying he’ll win the tournament this weekend to pay the money back, but I don’t think it’s possible. It’s very likely he’ll lose.”

Out of confusion, Angel tilted his head.

“Oh, Sunset told me to do some research on the game since I knew little about it,” Fluttershy explained. “I saw game footage for the first time, Angel, and what tournament play looked like.”

Fluttershy mumbled and began to twiddle with her fingers. “I doubt Zephyr can win, not after what I saw. He’s only had a few days of practice. The game looks fun, yes, but it looked really hard to play.”

Angel squeaked again, but in a more surprised tone.

“Huh…. Angel, what’s wrong?” He squeaked again and pointed at Fluttershy. “Um, yes I did say the game looked fun. I mean, if you like people beating each other up then yes I can see the appeal.”

Looking down, Angel began to rub his chin. He remained quiet, pacing back and forth on the bed. To Fluttershy, it looked like he was thinking about something.

“Angel, what is it?” Fluttershy asked.

Angel snapped his head back up and looked directly at Fluttershy. With a smirk, he pointed and squeaked at her, then at the arcade stick box.

“Wait, you want me to try the game out myself?!” asked a bewildered Fluttershy. Angel nodded. “But, I’ve never played a fighting game before! The only games I play are Pokémon and Kingdom Hearts!

Angel continued squeaking while pointing back and forth between Fluttershy and the box.

“You’re saying if I try it, I might like it?” Fluttershy said, tilting her head. Angel nodded again. “I don’t know. I mean, I know the game looks fun, but I still don’t see the appeal of two people beating each other up.”

Fluttershy looked at the arcade stick box. “Well—.” She scratched her cheek. “Maybe if I play the game I might understand why people like it. I might be able to understand Zephyr’s plan too.”

There was a moment of silence in the room. Fluttershy didn’t say a word to Angel, as she was in thinking about the game. “Oh, all right, I’ll do it! But only for a little bit, is that alright?”

Angel nodded. “Thank you, Angel. You’re a good friend.”

Feeling better, Fluttershy stood up and walked to her study table. “I’ll try it out after I finish my work, ok.” Taking her bag, she placed it on top and took out several books. Feeling comfortable, she began working.

Angel watched Fluttershy from the bed, smirking. There’s a reason why he wanted her to play Tekken. If she can find some enjoyment out of it, then perhaps she can fill in for her brother and compete in the tournament regularly.

It may be a longshot, but Fluttershy has a much better chance to do better than her brother. Despite her shy nature, she works harder than him and has accomplished more too.

Angel’s smirk grew even wider. If Fluttershy doesn’t like the game, then she and her family will eventually sell off Zephyr’s stuff once he failed. If she likes it, not only will she get into something new, but may end up growing as an individual. The planhad little risk!

He grinned at the mere thought it, but Angel knew Fluttershy had to try the game out first. Whether she will like it or not is still up the air. Settling down, he laid down on Fluttershy’s bed and took a nice nap.

Author's Note:

Well that took a while. For any of you wondering why this is taking me so long, this story will be published weekly. Being a new writer, I have my limits on how much I can write. That, and my I start my new job soon, so I need as much time as I can get. So forgive me for the long updates. Next chapter we will see Fluttershy playing Tekken for the first time. Look forward to it and thank you for reading.

Also if anyone is wondering where Indigo Zap is, she'll appear later, most likely around chapter 5.

Comments

[ArcanaMaverick7]

Okay. A plan for updates is good. I suggest that one of the first stages that Fluttershy plays is the Jungle Outpost because it's got great music.

Also, Flutters will be surprised at Super Smash Brothers and Pokken Tournament when she learns of them.

[Jlargent]

I can actually imagine Fluttershy either maining Alisa Bosconovitch, Ling Xiaoyu or Panda.

[MDCommissioner]

......such a devious little bunny. .___.

[currentlemon]

Some minor edits at the end. Can't believe I didn't catch them till now.

[currentlemon]

The new chapter will be delayed by a day or two. I'm having difficulties with the new chapter and I'm starting from scratch. Please be patient, the chapter will still release this week.

Edit: The new chapter will be released sometime on Friday or Saturday at the latest. Finally got past my writer's block.

Important Edit: I know I said that I'll have the new chapter posted today, but I need more time. It's almost finished, just please give more time.