The alarm was buzzing at 5AM on this Monday morning. A green hand came out of the bed sheets to turn it off. His hazel eyes opened up to see what time it was before getting up and out of bed. Tidal knew that to was school time once again. But he would be starting at a new school this semester. But as always, he went on with his morning ritual before going to school. He went to grab a change of clothes, made his way to the bathroom, got his shower, brush his teeth, got dressed, and made his way to the kitchen for breakfast. Every morning before school, he would do this.
But since he was in a different house, he saw Aunt Celestia, still in her yellow robe, on her cell phone. She was watching over the toaster oven that was cooking breakfast. He could smell it already, blueberry muffins, once if Tidal’s favorite morning foods. Tidal took a quick glance out the kitchen window and could see more snow on the ground than yesterday. He knew that the weatherman was right about another blast of snow coming overnight. And with the cold temps, he knew that the roads could have ice formed on them once again, unless they were treated before hand.
Celestia finally got off the phone and put it on the counter before grabbing a hot pad and pulling out the tray of blueberry muffins and having them placed on a place before laying it on the table along with some butter. Tidal went to get the orange juice and glass so that he would get his drink ready.
“That was the superintendent,” Celestia explained as she turned on the TV. “He’s issuing a one hour delay so that students can show up to school safely. Looks like some of the back roads got a bit of ice and needs time to melt from the sun.”
“Good call,” Tidal said. “Better safe than sorry.”
“Did any of this went on back home?”
“Their winter crew was always one step ahead during this season, making sure the roads are clear and the buses have chains around their wheels while on snow routes. About everyone would get up at five to make sure they get to school early, never knowing what would happen on the roads. It has become common up there.”
“Well, we shouldn’t have any problem getting there, since the road towards school will be safe to travel for us.”
They went and ate their breakfast while watching the TV. When Celestia was finished with her breakfast, she got up and went to her room to get herself ready for school. Tidal finished his breakfast and went back to his room to grab his 3DS system so that he could kill a bit of time before they would go to school. He decided to play one of the games he downloaded called “Crash ‘N’ the Boys Street Challenge” that he got interested a while back. He decided to play just the fighting stage with the star character, Crash. That was when Celestia came out, fully dressed, seeing what Tidal was playing.
“Does you father still have that game on the NES?” she asked.
“Yep. Nice to have the downloaded version of the game, as well as River City Ransom, which he still has.”
“I would figure he would sell that one online. Sure it would get a good chunk of money for the cart alone. But I guess it matters to hold on the rare, great ones to pass on down.”
As Tidal was playing his game, he had his opponent held down and was set up to execute one of his special moves. He chose “Fireball Spike”, Crash’s signature move and finished his opponent off.
“So you already caught on to your dad’s favorite move,” Celestia said. “Even your Aunt Luna couldn’t stand your dad using that move on her.”
“Did you play this game?”
“Hardly. All I did was just watch them play. I just liked to play the hammer throw golf on that game. At least I knew where every gold medal was.” Celestia went on to get her bag. “Come on. You can bring that with you as long as you leave it in your locker during classes.”
Tidal closed his 3DS and placed it in his backpack and got up. They both grabbed their coats and made their way out with bags in hand. As they got up to Celestia’s car, they saw two girls walking towards them.
“And right on cue,” Celestia said. “Mother had to borrow the caravan, right?
“Yea,” Bonbon replied.
“Think you can get us out of the cold again?” Lyra asked.
“Do I have a choice? Come on.”
The girls joined them as they all got into Celestia’s car. Once she started it up to get it warm, she pulled it out of the driveway and on the road towards the school.
“I’m guessing this becomes common when the weather is like this,” Tidal said.
“Well, Lyra doesn’t like to drive her car on possible black ice,” Bonbon said.
“And Bonbon’s mom always needs it to get to work safely,” Lyra added.
“So, you ready for your first day at your new school?” Bonbon asked.
Tidal let out a small sigh. “As long as it’s nothing like my old one.”
“Trust us. It will be a better experience,” Lyra said.
They were able to make it to school safely, like Celestia said, and pulled in to the parking lot. As they all got out of the car, they could see that one of the workers was trying to clear the snow off the entrance way while another was spreading ice melt on the ground.
“At least they got the parking lot cleared,” Celestia said as they walked over the pile of snow that was on the edge of each parking slot.
They walked over the snow covered grass when something came across Bonbon’s mind.
“Say, how high does the snow get where you live?”
“At least over a foot high. But it helps people walk to another place without worrying about slipping on ice. But that depends on location.”
“I’m guessing there are mountains near the border, right?” Lyra asked.
“Someone’s been learning,” Celestia said.
“There are, but nothing close to the northwest area of the border,” Tidal explained. “I believe my father went to report at a travel lodge that gets a lot of business in the winter… and summer.”
They stopped for a moment.
“Wait. They get business in the summer?” Lyra asked.
“Dad said that they have some ATV event on the dirt roads during that time,” Tidal explained. “I’ll see if he can send me a link to the lodge’s website when I get the chance.”
“Well, as long as they can find ways to stay open most of the year, that helps,” Bonbon said.
They continued on their way to the entrance when someone threw a snowball at Lyra. They looked back to see Pinkie Pie who threw it. Lyra decided to take this chance and made a snowball of her own and threw it at Pinkie, which she was able to duck.
“Miss me!”
Only to get hit by another one that came from Bonbon.
“Nice one!”
She shook off what bit of snow that was on her and started to skate her way towards them, stopping in front of Tidal.
“Hello, I’m Pinkie Pie. But you already knew that.”
Tidal was able to crack a small smile. “Nice to see you again.”
“So, did they-”
“Pinkie, can you hold off until we get inside,” Lyra said.
Pinkie nodded and skated to the steps and made a big leap to the top before walking inside.
“How is she able to do that?” Tidal asked.
“That’s just Pinkie being Pinkie,” said another girl that came up to them. She was the same one Tidal saw back from the shoppe with light orange skin and a long yellow ponytail. She was joined by two other students. One was a yellow girl with long red hair that had a red bow on it, and the other was a taller boy with pale skin and short orange hair.
“It nice to see that the three of you made it safely, Applejack,” Celestia said. “I’m guessing that your granny is coming later?”
“Eeyep,” Applejack replied. “One of the staff members will be picking her up later on today.”
“That’s good to hear,” Celestia said.
All of them went on inside to escape from the cold. Once inside, Pinkie decided to pick up where she left off by getting in front of Tidal.
“So, did they give you a tour of the school?”
Tidal looked at Lyra and Bonbon before answering. “They did.”
“Cool! I’m sure you’re going to have a super duper time here. Oh, this is one of my friends, Applejack.” She quickly scooted next to her.
“It’s finally nice to meet you,” Applejack said as she extended her hand to shake his. “Pinkie was just telling us about you back at the shoppe that she was just working at. Didn’t realized we were in the booth next to you at that time.” She started to point out the other two who were with her. “This is my little sis, Apple Bloom, and our big brother, Big Mac.”
“It’s nice to meet ya,” Apple Bloom said. “We live near a small apple farm not far from here.”
“Our family has run apple farms in various cities where they live,” Applejack explained. “So you could say we have a big family out there.”
“Apple Bloom, we’re here!”
They all looked to see some more students walking in. One was a white girl with pink and purple hair, and the other was an orange girl with short purple hair.
“Sweetie Belle! Scootaloo! You’re here!” Apple Bloom ran up to them and started their own conversation.
Three other students were also there. One was the beautiful white girl with long purple hair that Tidal saw back at the shoppe. The taller boy who was close to her was a gray boy with black hair and had a basketball with a note on his shirt. The other boy that was there was your average cyan boy with black hair and was wearing a blue hoddie.
Applejack quickly waved at them. “Hey there Rarity, Clyde, Swift.”
“And a good morning to you too, Applejack,” Rarity replied.
“I see that you made it safely,” Bonbon said.
“Well, my bae was able to pick me and Sweetie Belle up from my house,” Rarity replied.
Applejack had a confused look on her face. “Your what?”
“She means her boyfriend,” Pinkie explained with a cheerful tone.
Applejack looked at Pinkie. “And how do you know that?”
“Just a guess.” She displayed a grin from ear to ear.
“I think it’s some kind of slang term,” Tidal explained. “You know, boo, bae. I remember hearing the terms back at my old school from someone who I would like to forget.”
Rarity took a notice at Tidal. “Is this the new student that I was hearing about before?”
“Eeyep. That’s the one,” Applejack replied.
“Well, it’s nice to meet you. I’m Rarity. Rarity Belle.” She walked up to Tidal to shake his hand. “This is my bae, I mean, boyfriend, Clyde.”
“Nice to meet you,” Clyde said as they exchanged handshakes.
“And I’m Swift. Swift Justice.” He also exchanged handshakes. “I’m the brat’s older brother.”
“I heard that!” Scootaloo yelled back as her group started to run off.
Celestia let out a small giggle. “Looks like you’re going to get some friends this time, Tidal.”
“That should be a good thing, right?” Bonbon asked.
“Wait. You mean you never had any friends before?” Rarity said with a concerned look on her face.
Tidal was about to answer when Lyra decided to step in.
“It’s… a long story.”
“A really long story,” Bonbon added.
“Well, I’m sure we can hear about it sometime,” Applejack said. “But right now, we need to get into the cafeteria to get breakfast ready for the other students that get here. It’s not going to cook by itself.” She looked at Lyra and Bonbon. “You going to help out?”
“Give us a moment to put our things away and we’ll be there,” Bonbon said before her, Lyra, and Tidal went on to their lockers elsewhere.
“Applejack. Can I talk to you and Rarity for a moment?” Celestia requested.
“Sure thing.” Applejack handed the key to Big Mac. “Think you can get things started for us?”
“Eeyep.”
“We can do it,” Pinkie added.
“Pinkie. Remember, no sweets this time,” Celestia ordered.
“Okie Dokie Loki.”
Big Mac and Pinkie Pie went on to the cafeteria.
“Hey. I’ll help to,” Swift said as he started to catch up to them.
Rarity looked at Clyde and asked, “Can you do us a favor and help them out. I’ll be right there shortly.”
“Anything for you, boo,” Clyde replied, giving Rarity a kiss on her cheek before walking off to join the others.
With just Applejack and Rarity by themselves, Celestia decided to make sure that everything would be fine after what happened back during the Fall Formal.
“I’m guessing that Sunset hasn’t been causing any trouble since I was gone,” Celestia asked.
“More like the opposite,” Applejack replied.
“Most of the students still gave her a hard time after what she did during the Fall Formal,” Rarity explained. “The five of us have been helping her out in starting a new life, but it hasn’t been easy for her.”
“It’s like she went from being the bully to being bullied,” Applejack added.
Celestia started to have a worried look on her face. “Now I’m really concern as to how he would think about our school, since he’s now here.”
“What makes you say that?” Applejack asked, curious to Celestia’s reasoning.
“Well, remember when Twilight came here and got the school together to go against Sunset?” The girls nodded. “It’s… kinda like that. And not like that.”
Applejack and Rarity looked at each other, trying to understand what she meant by that.
“I guess I need to explain. Do you want to long version or short version?”
As Lyra, Bonbon, and Tidal started to put their things away, the girls were curious about what he wanted to forget.
“When you brought up about the boo/bae thing, were you referring to the two that caused all the trouble at your old school?” Bonbon asked, to which Tidal nodded.
“I guess that brought up some old memories, didn’t it,” Lyra said.
“Not really,” Tidal replied. “It looks like those two are a better couple to use those terms than those losers.”
“I’m just surprised that they’ve become an item,” Lyra said.
“Well it was during the balloon pop that started it all,” Bonbon explained.
“I thought he was to meet Pinkie when that happened,” Lyra asked.
“Somehow, his paper got mixed up with a friend of his,” Bonbon explained. “I guess the rest just played itself out.”
“They must be lucky to have each other,” Lyra said.
“I know,” Bonbon replied.
Both girls just sighed and started to daydream about the experience. Tidal, on the other hand, was still focused on his stuff in his locker. He quickly got out his 3DS, which he left on, and saw the green light on the corner.
“A Streetpass tag?”
This brought Lyra and Bonbon back to reality. They looked to see what Tidal was holding in his hand.
“You have one too?” Lyra asked Tidal
“Yea. You?”
“No. But I know that Pinkie does,” Lyra explained.
“She must have hers with her,” Bonbon explained.
“Say, do you have any games on there?” Lyra asked.
Tidal nodded and opened the system up. He started to quickly explained the games he had in each folder. Most of them were NES and Game Boy classics. Some were 3D versions of the classics. Others were indie titles or remakes of older games.
“You have a lot of games there,” Lyra said.
“Well, these are either part of the Virtual Console library of 3DS Download only titles,” Tidal explained as he closed it up and placed it in his locker before closing it. “I have more, but they’re back home.”
“Hey, how about you help us out in the cafeteria,” Lyra requested
“Yea. Maybe you and Pinkie can compare games with each other,” Bonbon added.
Tidal shrugged his shoulders. “I guess it wouldn’t hurt. But I never helped out anywhere at my old school.”
“We had a feeling about that,” Bonbon said.
“But we think we can find something that you can be helpful in doing,” Lyra added.
Tidal agreed, and all three of them made their way to the cafeteria.
Tidal, Lyra, and Bonbon were coming out of their homeroom Geometry class and making it to their lockers to grab their books for their next class.
“Man. I’m surprised that you know what we have learned in class,” Lyra said.
“I’m just surprised that the teacher started on the next chapter where I last left off at my old school,” Tidal explained. “No sense missing out on any sections that you girls have already learned.”
“So what was your next class again?” Bonbon asked.
Tidal pulled out his class schedule from his pocket. “Social Studies with… Mrs. Harshwhinny.”
“Oh boy,” Lyra replied. “She can be a strict teacher to learn from.”
“Just make sure to stay focus in class and don’t cause any trouble,” Bonbon requested.
“Which we know you won’t be able to do,” Lyra added. “And make sure you’re not late.”
“Got it.”
Tidal switched out books and closed his locker. He parting ways with Lyra and Bonbon and made his way to his next class. When he arrived, he started to look for an open seat when Mrs. Harshwhinny saw him.
“Mr. Blue. It’s nice to see that you made it on time today.” She looked over the classroom and noticed an open seat. “You can sit behind Miss Shimmer over there.” She pointed to an empty desk next to the wall behind the fiery haired girl with the leather jacket.
Tidal went to his seat and laid his supplies out on his desk. The bell rang, signaling the start to class. Tidal opened the book to the assigned chapter where the class left off and started taking notes, doing his best to keep up. But there were times when he looked up that he saw the girl in front of him getting hit by spit-wards, which she wiped off and glared at the direction that she was looking at for a moment. Tidal took a glance and was able to catch the student who was shooting them.
Tidal still had a problem with bullies and needed it to stop, but he needed to be clever in doing so. So he took a piece of paper and wrote a note and folded it up. He waited for the right moment to pass the note to her. When he did, he tapped it on the girl’s arm, to which the teacher noticed.
“Mr. Blue! Are we passing notes in class?” She walked on over and took the note from Tidal and opened it. When she read it, she walked back up and threw it in the trash. Then looked at the class as said, “Mr. Lance! Please refrain from shooting spit-wards in class, unless you want to end up in detention with Vice Principal Luna.”
There were some laughs in the class before the teacher got their attention, focusing back to their books. The lesson went on until the bell rang, signaling the end of class.
“Mr. Blue. May I see you for a moment?”
As the class went outside, Tidal went up to see the teacher, hoping that he didn’t do anything wrong.
“While passing notes in class is not allowed, I was very impressed in how you wanted to handle the issue at hand,” Mrs. Harshwhinny explained.
“Um, thanks?”
She relaxed her tone in front of him. “Principal Celestia has told me about what happened at your last school. And such treatment like that is uncalled for in my class, or this school in fact. So, if anyone is causing you any problems here, do not hesitant to let me know and I will look into it.”
“Thank you.”
“Now go on. No sense being late to your next class,” she said, waving her hands towards him.
Tidal left the classroom and was met by the girl that sat in front of her.
“Hey there.”
“Hey. That guy wasn’t giving you any trouble, was he?” Tidal asked.
“Oh no, no. I’m… used to it,” she replied, rubbing the back of her head. “My name’s Sunset. Sunset Shimmer.”
“Tidal. Tidal Blue.”
They quickly shook hands with each other as they were walking in the same direction.
“You’re the principal’s nephew, right?” Sunset asked.
“Yea. But don’t let that define me for who I am,” Tidal replied. “I just hate bullies, that’s all.”
“I… see.”
“Has this been happening to you for a while?”
Sunset rubbed the back of her head again. “Let’s just say that I’ve done some things that I regret doing back then. It’s… kinda a long story.”
“What kind of things?”
“I rather not say right now. Maybe another time… when I feel like it.” She noticed the stairs nearby. “Taking the stairs?”
“Not at this time.”
“Then… I guess we part ways, right?”
“I… guess so.”
“Maybe… we can meet again during lunch? I’m sure you would want to meet a few friends of mine that have been… helping me with my problems.”
“Maybe. I’ll see what Lyra and Bonbon are doing.”
“OK.” They both parted ways. As Sunset took the stairs, she thought, “That was close. I’m guessing he doesn’t know about my past. But how would he react when he does find out? I might have to talk to the girls about this.”
It was lunch time, and the cafeteria was busy as usual. Tidal was able to join up with Lyra and Bonbon before making their way to the cafeteria. As they were getting n line to get some food, Sunset already got her food and joined up with the girls.
“Hiya Sunset.”
“Hey Pinkie.”
“Everything fine so far?” Applejack asked.
“Same as always,” Sunset replied feeling deflated.
“So, I heard there’s a new kid here,” Rainbow Dash said.
“That would be Tidal, the principal’s nephew,” Applejack replied. “Came from New Hampshire from what we’ve been told.”
“And it sounds like he’s had a hard time where he was living,” Rarity added.
“I already have a class with him,” Sunset explained. “Somehow, he has an issue with bullies before.”
“Um, he’s not giving you any problems like the others,” Fluttershy quietly said.
“No, no,” Sunset replied waving her hands. “He actually came to my aid in class, in an odd way of course.”
“Sounds like he decided to handle on student who was giving you a hard time,” Applejack said. “Let’s just hope it doesn’t lead to more problems for us to deal with.”
“Hey, we can take on any problems that come our way,” Rainbow Dash proudly replied.
“I’m not sure about this one,” Applejack said. “Somehow, two students from his old school got the rest of the school against him. Something to do with the fact that he has a learning disability, I think.”
This peaked Sunset’s attention. “Learning disability? I guess that could explain why he was trying his best to keep up with his notes in class. But I can understand why he would get the school to go against him.”
“Maybe,” Applejack replied. “But what he did and what you did are two different things. No offense, but you tried to destroy friendships back then. Tidal, on the other hand, became the victim of the school. How it all played out is something that Principal Celestia is unsure of.”
“I’m guessing he doesn’t know about my past,” Sunset said.
“Nope,” Applejack replied. “Looks like Vice Principal Luna wants to make sure he doesn’t know about it. Thinks it might make him judge the school a different way. Even Lyra and Bonbon haven’t told him, and she wants to keep it that way.”
“If you have a class with him, then there might have to be a time when you’ll have to tell him about what happened back at the Fall Formal.”
“That is if he’s willing to believe all the magic that went on at that time, which I doubt he will,” Applejack added.
“So, what’s he like?” Rainbow Dash asked. “Does he have any hobbies or interests?”
“He likes video games,” Pinkie Pie responded. “I already got a Streepass tag from him.”
Rainbow Dash went up to Pinkie’s face. “Really? What was the last game he played?”
Pinkie took a moment to think about it. “Um, Crash and the Boys Street Challenge. I don’t know the game, but I think it’s on of those retro games from the looks of it. Maybe it’s a fighting game.”
“Could be,” Rainbow Dash replied, backing off. “I know I never heard of it.”
“I hope he’s willing to join us,” Sunset said. “Would be nice to know him more.”
“Already got that covered,” Rarity proudly replied. “My boyfriend, Clyde, is working on it as we speak.”
Over at the lunch line, Lyra, Bonbon, and Tidal were getting their lunch to eat when three boys joined him.
“Hey there, Tidal.”
He looked over to see the same guy who was with Rarity earlier today.
“Hello again. Clyde was it?”
“That’s right. You also remember Swift, right?”
“How can we not,” Lyra replied. “He kept trying to help Pinkie every chance he could get.”
“I thought she needed help,” Swift replied.
“Rrriiight,” Bonbon sarcastically replied.
Tidal noticed the tan boy with brown hair, wearing a shirt with a cog and wings on it.
“This is Rivet,” Clyde introduced. “He’s in our homeroom English class.”
“Which the vice principal is still subbing,” Swift added.
“Well, I do recall Aunt Luna starting her teaching career in that field before she became the vice principal,” Tidal explained.
“So the two of you are related?” Rivet asked.
“Loosely,” Tidal replied. “My aunts’ parents adopted my father when they were younger.”
“I guess that could explained why Vice Principal Luna decided to adopt Cynder and Eclipse,” Bonbon explained.
All of them were able to get their own lunch and paid for them before leaving the lunch line when Clyde stopped them for a moment.
“Do the three of you want to join us? At least you have a few more guys to hang out with.”
Tidal looked at Lyra and Bonbon and all of them agreed on the decision. “Sure.”
They all made their way to one of the tables where six girls were sitting together. They were the same six that Tidal saw back at the shoppe, some of which he met again this morning.
“Hey there, Tidal. Nice to see that you and the girls get to join us,” Applejack said.
As they took their seats, Tidal decided to sit next to Sunset, with Lyra and Bonbon sitting across them.
“I’m sure you met Sunset from another class,” Rarity said, to which Tidal nodded. “These ore our other friends. Rainbow Dash,” which she pointed to the cyan girl with the rainbow hair, “and Fluttershy,” which she pointed to the yellow girl with the pink hair.
Tidal waved at both of them.
“So, I heard that you’re new here,” Rainbow Dash said. “How are you liking it so far?”
“I’m getting by,” Tidal replied.
“No one giving you any problems?” Applejack asked.
“We haven’t heard anything so far,” Bonbon replied. “And that should be good for all of us.”
“Say, Pinkie told me that she got a Streetpass tag from you,” Rainbow Dash explained. “What kind of games do you play?”
“Mostly the classics,” Tidal replied. “Sometimes puzzle or racing. Maybe a basic RPG if I find one.”
“You’re not into those shooter games?
“Nope. I was never good at those.”
“You and me both. Cynder and her brother just takes us down in those,” Rainbow Dash explained as she was pointing to Pinkie Pie.
“I don’t mind playing those for the story. But everyone plays them just for bragging rights against each other,” Tidal explained. “I just can’t compete with them.”
“The only bragging rights that Dash here goes for is in those kart racing games she plays,” Applejack explained.
“What’s wrong, AJ. Still trying to recover after I beat you over the winter break?” Rainbow Dash taunted. Applejack just stared back at her.
“If kart racing games are all that you play, then you’re not a skilled racer,” Tidal said to Rainbow Dash.
“And what makes you say that?” she replied, raising an eyebrow.
“Kart games are good with their wacky gear, but it’s the extreme high speed racing games that really test your reflexes. Otherwise, you might just crash and burn in the process.”
Rainbow Dash started at Tidal and said, “Is that a challenge?”
“Maybe.”
Applejack decided to defuse the situation. “Now, now. Let’s not get carried away here. Tidal is still new here, and I think it would be best to get to know him better first.”
“She’s right, you know,” Lyra added. “Tidal’s had a hard time at his old school, so let’s make him welcomed here for once.”
“I’m game,” Clyde said. “Tell me, are you good in any sports?”
“Not really,” Tidal replied. “I always get picked last and usually get stuck on the bench most of time. I’m guessing you’re more of a sports person.”
“You bet,” Clyde replied. “I’m on the boy’s basketball team with Swift and Rainbow Dash.”
Tidal raised an eyebrow. “A girl on a boy’s team? I don’t believe it.”
“You should,” Swift said. “We even got Coach Iron Will to coach the boy’s team, and we have been doing good so far. Even better than our football team.”
Lyra and Bonbon started to feel concerned when he brought up the football topic.
“Well, as long as you don’t brag about it, I’m fine with that,” Tidal replied.
This brought a sigh of relief to the two girls.
Sunset decided to bring up something from their class. “Tidal, are you having a hard time keeping up with taking notes in class?”
“You noticed, right?” Tidal asked, to which Sunset nodded. “I’m not a fast writer when I’m taking notes that go on in class.”
“We never saw that happen with you in our Geometry class,” Lyra replied.
Tidal decided to explain. “Math notes are easier to write, since it’s numbers and symbols. But writing key notes that the teacher brings up in my other classes is more of a problem for me.”
“Is that why you have a hard time in your other classes?” Bonbon asked, to which Tidal nodded.
“Have you tried note cards before a test in your class, dear?” Rarity asked.
“I tried, but I still have a hard time remembering everything for the test,” Tidal replied.
“We already decided to offer our help with his other classes if he ever needs it,” Lyra said.
“Since we’re good in some of those classes, we figure that we could help him out in those areas,” Bonbon added.
“Nice to see that you’re already helping out anyway,” Applejack said.
The group talked about other things while finishing their lunch before the bell rang, telling them that it was time to go to their next class. As the day was winding down, there was one more class to go for Tidal. Gym class. Tidal made his way to the boy’s locker room to get changed when he saw Swift, Clyde, and Rivet again. He learned that the girls that he was with at lunch was also in gym class with them. When they got changed and went to the gym floor with the others, they were met by a big, blue guy in a blue and gold track suit with a bag of rubber balls.
“Welcome back, boys and girls. Iron Will is glad to see you survive the winter break without any accidents. Since our classes were shorten due to the hour delay, we will be playing dodge ball once again. Now, since we have a new student in our class, Tidal Blue will be one of our captains. Rainbow Dash will be our second captain.”
Both Tidal and Rainbow Dash got up and stood on separate sides. Tidal was selected to go first, so he needed someone who can at least guide him in his selections.
“Bonbon!”
Once she got up and stood next to him, Rainbow Dash made her choice.
“Lyra!”
Tidal had to make his next choice add decided to look to Bonbon for advice.
“You might want to pick either Applejack or Pinkie next,” she whispered.
“Applejack!”
“Pinkie!”
Tidal had an idea who to pick next. “Swift!”
“Clyde!”
Seeing what Rainbow Dash was doing, he decided to work with what he learned back at the shoppe. “Rarity!”
“Fluttershy!”
Now he needed to up his game. “Rivet!”
Rainbow Dash showed a hint of concern in his pick before she picked again. “Thunderlane!”
They kept making their picks until there were two students left. One was Sunset Shimmer. The other was a blue girl with white hair.
“Trixie knows that Trixie will be picked next. Good luck being last again.
Bonbon leaned in to whisper to Tidal. “You might want to pick Trixie instead of Sunset.”
“Why?”
“Just because.”
Tidal yelled, “Sunset Shimmer.”
Almost all the students jaws dropped with Tidal’s pick, including Trixie.
“Who’s last now,” Sunset said with a smug grin on her face. When she walked up to Tidal, she whispered, “Thanks. Hate being last again.”
“I know the feeling.”
With both teams in place, they went to their respected sides as the coach started to lay out the rubber balls. With everyone ready, the coach blew the whistle, beginning the match. Everyone ran to grab a ball and tossed it to the other side, trying to get the other player out. During the match, Clyde threw the ball at Applejack, but she got out of the way, causing the ball to hit Rarity instead.
“Sorry, boo!”
But he soon got hit by a ball that was thrown from Applejack.
“Eyes open, lover boy.”
Then she got hit by a ball, which came from Fluttershy.
“Epp. I’m sorry.”
That was when she got hit by a ball that came from Rivet, only to get hit by one from Thunderlane, who then got hit by Swift, before Pinkie was able to hit him. It went on until there were three players on each team. Rainbow Dash was on one side with Pinkie Pie and Lyra, who each had a ball. Tidal was on the other side with Sunset and Bonbon, who each had a ball. Lyra and Bonbon looked at each other and started to run towards the center and threw their balls at each other, making contact…
…
…at close range.
The others just stood there, stunned at what they just saw.
Rainbow Dash said, “Well, I didn’t see that coming.”
“And you didn’t see this coming as well!”
Sunset threw her ball at Rainbow Dash, but she was able to dodge it at the last minute. Pinkie took this moment to threw her all at Sunset, which Rainbow Dash was able to pick up the other ball and do the same. Sunset was about to brace for impact. But Tidal was able to get in front of her and catch Pinkie’s ball and use it to block Dash’s ball in the process.
“Pinkie! You’re out!” Iron Will yelled.
“Hey! Isn’t Tidal out as well?” Rainbow Dash yelled back.
“You hit the ball, not the player. So it doesn’t count. Tidal! Choose!”
“Rivet!”
He got back up to join the other two. Rainbow Dash was nervous again, now that Rivet was back in the game. But they knew she was quick and needed to up their game. And Tidal had one trick that he was hoping to show off at his old school, just to teach them a lesson.
“Hey Sunset. Think you can give me a boost?”
“Sure. But why?”
“Let’s just say I have one surprise in store here. Rivet, see if you can throw Rainbow off her game for a moment.”
Rivet nodded and grabbed a ball. They waited until the coach blew the whistle. Once he did, Rainbow Dash was ready for anything. Rivet went to threw his ball at her, but she ducked and picked up the ball and threw it back at Rivet, hitting him and bouncing back towards her.
“Got ya!”
Tidal, still with ball in hand, made a dash towards Sunset, who was looking at him. Rainbow Dash went and threw the ball towards Sunset. But Tidal was able to toss the ball in the air and get on Sunset’s hands, lifting him into the air as she got hit by the ball.
“Got you too!”
“And I got you!” Tidal was able to reach the ball in mid-air, punching it with full force. “FIREBALL SPIKE!!!”
“Fire wha-” SMACK!!!
The ball slammed into her face, causing her to hit the ground. Rainbow Dash was a bit dizzy when she tried to sit up, saying, “I’m alright,” before laying back down again. Tidal was able to land back on the ground a bit hard, leaving a bit of pain in his legs.
“Tidal’s team wins!”
Sunset went up to him and said, “Tidal, you OK?”
“Yea. Just… need to walk it off, that’s all.” He started to shake his legs, making sure the pain would go away.
“Where did you learn that?” Rivet asked.
“Oh, that was Crash’s signature move. From Crash and the Boys Street Challenge. I’ve been meaning to show off that move in front of someone who deserves it badly. But better off not letting all that practice go to waste. Might want to make sure she’s OK.”
The coach blew his whistle. “Alright! Hit the showers! School’s almost over!”
Everyone started to make their way to their own locker rooms to get changed. But the girls went on to check on their friend, Rainbow Dash.
Applejack asked, “You OK, partner?”
Rainbow Dash started to recover as she stood back up. “What… was… that?”
“It was a fireball spike,” Pinkie replied.
“I know that Pinkie! But where did that come from?”
Pinkie thought for a moment. “Um, I don’t know.”
“I think it came from that game that Tidal last played,” Sunset explained.
Rainbow Dash took a moment to process the information.
“WHAT!?”
Tidal, Lyra, and Bonbon were making their way to their lockers to grab their books before leaving school. The two girls were still surprised at what just happened back in gym class.
“First, you pick Sunset,” Bonbon said.
“Then you pulled off a stunt that we didn’t saw coming,” Lyra added.
“And you said that you weren’t good at sports,” Bonbon also added.
“Where did this come from?” Lyra asked.
Tidal explained. “First, when we had dodge ball in class, I always get picked last, so I knew how Sunset feels. Second, I’ve been working on that move for quite some time so I can get some payback against that loser of a jock. But it wasn’t easy doing it by myself. So I needed someone to help me get a boost.”
“You weren’t planning to slam the ball in his face, right?” Lyra asked.
Tidal shrugged his shoulders. “I don’t know. What happens, happens.”
“Is that how bad you wanted to get back at him?” Bonbon asked.
“He, and his girlfriend, made my life a living hell! After what I just did there, I wouldn’t mind taking him on again… and his loser of a girlfriend.” Tidal grabbed his things and slammed the locker door.
“Look. We know what they did was wrong. But isn’t that overdoing it there?” Bonbon explained.
Before he could answer, someone came down the hallway yelling.
“Hey! What’s the big idea of showing off like that?”
They noticed Rainbow Dash down the hallway with fury in her eyes. The other girls were with her, trying to hold her back from doing any damage.
“Maybe if you weren’t so cocky, you would have been ready for that,” Tidal yelled back.
“No one likes a show-off!” Rainbow Dash yelled.
“Look who’s talking,” Applejack said, trying to hold her back.
“Hey, you’re not helping!”
Bonbon decided to step in between the two. “Will you just give it a rest! He’s still trying to move on from his old school.”
“Yea! This is Ocean’s Wave’s son we’re talking about!”
Lyra quickly covered her mouth after letting that info slip from her lips. But everyone just stood in silence for a moment before Rainbow Dash spoke.
“Wait a minute! Your mother is Ocean Wave? The legendary Olympic swimmer?”
Tidal, seeing where this was about to go, decided to leave the scene, yelling, “That’s it! I’m out of here!”
Once he was out of view, Bonbon looked over and said, “Way to go, Lyra.”
“I’m sorry. It just… slipped.”
“Just slipped? Just slipped! We promised him that we wouldn’t bring her up in front of everyone.”
The other girls walked up to them, wondering what was going on.
“Hold on there, girls. What the hay are you talking about?” Applejack asked.
“Yea. Ocean Wave’s been a hero to this school,” Rainbow Dash added. “What’s his problem with that?”
Bonbon sighed for a moment before she spoke. “It’s… kind of a long story. Is it possible that you can meet us later at the Sweet Shoppe.”
“We can explain everything there, since some of you have other activities to attend to,” Lyra added.
The girls nodded and all of them went on to leave the school for now, knowing that they would be meeting later on that same day.