Much had happened in the last 5 weeks. Lark gladly went back to school the day after his hearing. Tuxedo Parade’s parents had little time to file any appeals to the school board’s decision regarding Lark’s pardon. They had a problem of their own: their son was accused of some pretty nasty stuff. Tux’s own hearing, regarding his alleged bullying activities over the last few years, was scheduled for the Friday of the second week of school, mere days after Lark was absolved.
But rather than face whatever that Friday may have held, the whole family split. They maintained panda-cakes was being treated in ways beyond unfair, and they would take their money and influence elsewhere. So, they moved to Baltimare, leaving their house staff to pack their shit, to join them anon.
The departure opened 2 spots on the school board, but beyond that, who gave a crap? Nopony would miss any of them. The last anypony outside of his family and party of interest ever saw of Tuxedo Parade, was the colt crying and gagging after Lark, probably by chance, gave him an easier time than any of the others. They’d all been expelled, too, so things really were turned upside down.
Tux would never face justice for what he did to Thunder, and all the other foals over the years, but he would never forget what Lark did to him. His pride was shattered and perhaps that was justice enough. If his pride was the only thing that suffered, he had gotten off easy. Perhaps he’d become a better colt for it.
Lark could have probably cemented his position as king of the elementary school, but he had no interest. Power abhors a vacuum, but things were so out of balance, they went on as if nothing ever happened, other than the lack of panda-pie and his cronies. For lack of a better word, things were peaceful. Nopony rose up, but many wanted to follow Lark.
Even the 6th graders were weary of him, afraid he might try to muscle the older kids out of the ball courts. After seeing what Lark could do without magic, wings, or anything apparently special, nopony stepped out of line. They feared him. Lark made no such move.
The middle school kids, some of whom had been terrified of Tux’s unicorn gang, were blown over thinking about some little Earth pony that wrecked them all… at least the ones he managed to catch. Did they want to try their hooves at some little elementary colt? Was it worth it? What they did know, was there was a hole in the order of things. But somehow, Lark was still sitting somewhere in the middle of that hole, keeping things… unpredictable.
Lark seemed like such a friendly colt, but the couple of times he snapped, it was a ride. Nopony, at least those who didn’t come to know Lark, had any idea what the colt might do if anypony crossed him. It may have been silly, treating him like he was a force of nature over 2 incidents, but things were that shaken up. Lark was a gargoyle. His mere presence precluded trouble. But…
Lark just wanted to make friends. Feeling simply great about getting to stay, he set right into it. He didn’t immediately make good friends with the entire class, a lot of them were unsure of anything about him, but a few more wanted to sit with him at lunch. His best friends remained Thunder, Medium, and Misty. Over the first week he was with them, the class at least warmed up to him, enjoying his overall pleasant manner. And that wasn’t bad.
Lark saw his sisters doing very well, making lots of friends. Their aunt and uncle’s house rapidly became a popular after-school hangout, with the pool and all. It took Aunt Fairy and Uncle Star some getting used to, a bunch of squealing foals running around the house, but they were good kids.
Valley and Copper attracted well-mannered ponies to themselves, and their aunt and uncle soon found joy in having so many foals around. They baked cookies endlessly, it seemed, and even got to know some of the other parents.
“Parents”… That’s really what they had become.
They were especially pleased Lark had made some friends. He kept a smaller circle, mainly the 3 fillies they came to know so well, but that was his way. They spent some time at the house, but mostly hung out in quieter locales. It was apparent he was especially good friends with Thunder.
School was going just fine for Lark. It was math, language, social studies, reading, science, and gym, day-in and day-out. He tried to think positively about social studies. Ms. Pearlshine knew he didn’t like it and came to learn of his thoughts on the matter. Letting him know he had to do the work, she still encouraged him to continue his little summaries with Mr. Chippy, and they did, often meeting for a brief time after school. Lark still had to walk his sisters home, but they always wanted to play in the schoolyard before going home, so he had time.
The other subjects were easy for Lark. Though… for as strong and fit as Lark was, he had never enjoyed gym class. Not lacking coordination, he just never liked sports. Thunder thought he was crazy. The first 3 weeks of school saw them playing hoofball. Lark had participated, not really enjoying it.
But 4 weeks into the schoolyear, they played buckball. This, Lark had some interest in playing. He’d never tried it, they’d never had it at the school in Fillydelphia, and he was excited to play it. Not particularly good at the start, he took enough interest to practice with his friends. They had all 3 types of ponies among them, so Thunder and Misty took turns.
Much of the school had warmed up to Lark, seeing the good things about him, and not just the “violent tendencies” that had scared them so much. Some students even played against them, and they held a few friendly buckball matches during recess. By the end of the week, Lark had a decent handle on the game.
As the 6th week of school began, Lark was at once ecstatic and disappointed. It was the last week of buckball in gym. He’d gotten pretty good at the Earth pony position. He wasn’t great, by any stretch of the imagination, but had a lot of fun with it. His enthusiasm for the game was infectious, and as hard as it might be to believe, even the foals who were terrible at gym enjoyed themselves.
Lark never thought he’d look forward to gym the most of all his subjects, but what could he say? He just hoped whatever they do next would be enough fun to keep his interest. He was enjoying this about as much as his short history reports with Mr. Chippy.
For the last week, they were divided into teams for a tournament starting Thursday. Lark found himself with a unicorn colt named Light Seeker, and a Pegasus filly named Daisy Hawk. Light was pretty good with his magic, Lark had learned, and enjoyed his company. He was okay at the unicorn position and got better every day. Daisy, he hadn’t come to know too well. She wasn’t friendly with some of the girls in class, notably Lark’s friends, thinking them rowdy. Not particularly talented, she did try hard in her position. He wanted to like her. He could tell she was less stern than she let on. With Light and Daisy, he thought he had a decent team.
He’d wanted to have Thunder on his team, but her talent with the game was so high, she was given a few washouts as teammates for a handicap. “Washouts” was how she viewed them anyway, at first. She liked them, she just didn’t ever want them on her team. Thunder liked to win. Team play didn’t bother her, if she had a good team.
Medium and Misty wound up on a team together, both still beginners with the sport, but had a good Earth pony at the front. Despite the imbalance, they became a pretty good team once they practiced a bit.
It might have been for the best Lark wasn’t teamed up with Thunder. She sometimes got a little too competitive. Also, he felt as if he was letting her down. It was no secret, even to most of the class, she liked him. He liked her, and thought of her as his best friend, but didn’t like her the same way. It was the first time a filly had liked him in such a way, and he was unsure how to deal with it.
Having become better acquainted with a few of the colts in class, they tried to give Lark advice about girls. Of course, they didn’t have much idea of what they were talking about, really, but acted like they knew a few things. It beggared their imaginations that Lark, the toughest colt in elementary school, would have such problems. Lark shook his head, smiling at this silliness. He didn’t like the idea of all the foals in class knowing just how tough he knew himself not to be. Thunder knew… but that was okay.
The week proceeded, and Lark found his team taking on Thunder’s.
“Well, well, well, Lark… We meet at last,” she said in an overly dramatic, theatrical voice. “You and your team will meet your doom at our hooves.”
Lark smirked. He was happy to see her in good spirits. Her team still wasn’t great, but with a little time and patience, the other two of them had gotten a pretty good handle on the game. They even began to have fun with it.
“Oh, I don’t know about that, Thunder. We didn’t make it this far to perish under you, or your minions!”
Daisy barked at them, trying to hide a little smile, “‘Make it this far’, nothing! The elimination doesn’t begin until tomorrow!”
Lark chuckled at Daisy. She was trying so hard not to laugh. They gathered with Light, to discuss their strategy.
Light looked over to Thunder’s team, now huddled up, “What do you think, Lark?”
“They have gotten better this week. Once Thunder stopped riding them so hard, they were like a new team. Daisy… watch out for Sherry’s kicks. If you’re not ready for the ball, she might ring your bell. There’s no way I could kick the ball that hard, and still make a basket.”
She nodded, “Sherry’s not that accurate, but she gets pretty close. If I stay off to the side, I shouldn’t have a problem sending it back to you.”
“That’s the idea. Light, you be careful of that kick, too. Yesterday, Medium tried to catch one of those, and the ball tore the bucket right out of her magical grip. She was lucky it only hit her flank. Don’t stand right behind it unless you want a broken nose.”
Light wasn’t excited about catching anything Sherry was kicking, she’d run track since they were little foals, and was the fastest in class; she could kick hard, “I hear you, Lark… What are you gonna do about Thunder?”
“Let me worry about Thunder. And Winner… I’ll try not to send him anything to catch. Everypony ready?”
Light smiled, putting a hoof in. Daisy grinned, looking happier than Lark had seen her, putting her hoof in.
Lark joined in, “Let’s see what we can do.”
They took up their positions. The class cheered. They’d been looking forward to this match-up all week. Lark saw Ms. Pearlshine standing with the gym teacher, talking and laughing. She’d made it out to see a few of their classes, and even showed them some impressive defense in demonstration. She still loved buckball, though she hadn’t really played it since she herself was a foal.
Thunder smiled at Lark, her eyes narrowing. Lark smiled back. The game began.
Sherry’s kicks were something else. A little less wild today, she was apparently aiming for more control, only letting up a little. She made 2 baskets in the first half of the game. Daisy managed to deflect most everything, other than a lucky basket and one that Thunder helped set up. Light had a field day catching the ball, so they had quite a few points.
Lark was having less luck than Sherry. He’d only given up a few points to Winner, so his team was ahead. But he hadn’t managed a single basket against Thunder. Daisy had given him a few good set-ups, but even she could recognize they had little chance against Thunder.
The whistle blew, and they would take a quick break. Thunder cheered, roughing up her teammates playfully. They were behind but doing okay. Unicorn baskets weren’t worth much, so if Sherry managed a few more accurate shots, they had a chance. She was sure she would be able to block most, if not all, of Lark’s bucks.
Lark was panting, and so was Daisy. This had been a rough game. Neither could blame the other. Thunder was good, and her team was getting better, even as they played. Light managed to catch everything Daisy hadn’t had to deflect and was barely mussed. Still, he was glad to have a few minutes to rest his eyes.
Lark wheezed, “I don’t know if we can stay ahead much longer. Any ideas?”
Light shrugged.
Daisy laughed, “I think they might have us, Lark. If you can’t make any baskets, I don’t think we can stay ahead. I can’t blame you, though… Thunder’s best in class at that. And I’m getting tired. My hooves are numb from Sherry’s kicks…”
Looking over to Thunder’s team, they were still laughing, “Well, don’t worry. Just keep setting up the ball like you have been, and I’ll keep trying to make a basket. You’ll have more to send me… Sherry’s starting to get the hang of it.”
“Don’t I know it,” she bemoaned, hooves now throbbing as blood returned.
Light guffawed, “Makes things easier for me.”
Daisy cuffed him, and they all laughed. Taking a few minutes, they got a quick drink.
Lark came back to the field. Looking over to class A, one of the other 5th grade classes, he noticed a Pegasus filly he hadn’t seen before. She had a chestnut mane, and a rich, dark peach coat. She was sitting out their buckball game.
Lark went up to Pineapple Licorice, another Earth pony colt in his class. He was probably the best athlete in class, and easily the best buckballer in the grade. They weren’t really friends, but they didn’t dislike each other either.
“Hey, Pine… Who’s that filly in class A… the Pegasus sitting on the sideline? Haven’t seen her before.”
Pine looked, but already knew, “That’s Windy Meadow… I don’t really know her, but she just got back from Canterlot this week.”
“What was she doing there?”
Pine looked uncomfortable, “I don’t know much about it. She’d… been having problems flying last year. Her parents and her were gone most of the summer, trying to figure out what was wrong with her. She just fell out of the sky one day. If it wasn’t for one of her unicorn classmates saving her, the fall might have killed her.”
That was some story, “Yeah? Man…”
Lark looked her way again. She was… something. Even as far away as she was, Lark’s glasses helped him see. Her large, doe-eyes were blue-green, and her mane was wavy. She looked sad. He stared.
“…Lark. Lark. Lark!”
Pine was bopping the side of Lark’s head, an amused grin on his face, “Teacher’s calling you, man! Time for the rest of your game!”
Lark jumped, and took off, Pine and a few laughing good-naturedly at him. Nopony noticed him staring towards the other field.
He looked back again at the Pegasus filly, Windy Meadow…
The 6 players took up position. Lark managed to win the buck-off and sent the ball at the basket, to be barely deflected by Thunder. The ball flew over to Lark’s side, where Light caught it. The class cheered. After winning another buck-off, Lark managed to send the ball towards Thunder, only to have it deflected. Sherry managed to intercept and sent a scorcher towards Daisy.
Daisy gritted and deflected the ball towards Lark. Lark wound up and bucked the ball right into the opposing basket. The class roared. Daisy came down, actually hugging Lark, forgetting her front a moment. She shied away, with a blush, as Light joined them, hoofing both of their shoulders. It wasn’t exactly a lucky shot and they couldn’t believe they had gotten one.
Thunder couldn’t believe it. Nopony, not even Pine had scored on her in the near 3 weeks they’d been playing. Looking to her teammates, she saw their jaws drop. Surprised, but not frustrated, she went to them.
“I can’t believe he did that. Lucky or not, he had a good set-up… Sherry… I want to try something. Do you think you could buck the ball after it bounces? It might give you an angle.”
Winner nodded, “They sure wouldn’t see it coming… Sherry… with the extra couple of seconds, you could really wind up!”
Sherry looked nervous.
Thunder clapped a hoof on her shoulder, “I know we haven’t practiced this, but I think it might work. Give it a try. Even if it doesn’t work, if we keep playing like we have, I think we can tire them out.”
Sherry smiled, “Okay, Thunder. I’ll give it a try.”
Lark and Sherry squared off again. The whistle blew, and they went for it. Neither was able to get control, and the ball bounced up to Daisy, who sent it back to Lark. Lark made another basket. Thunder was unshaken. She motioned to Sherry to not worry and try again.
Facing off, Lark won the ball, and sent it across. Thunder managed to send it back, and Lark sent it to Daisy. Daisy was ready and gave him a nice set-up. Lark, ready to kick the ball, noticed Windy Meadow slowly trotting down the sideline across the field. He gave a weak kick, distracted.
Thunder, realizing he had missed a good shot, took her time with the set-up. Sending it to Sherry, Sherry grinned and wound up. The ball bounced, and she accidentally kicked it too low, with all her power behind it.
At once, Thunder and Daisy both cried, “Lark! Look out!”
Lark was still gawping at Windy Meadow and didn’t even see the ball coming towards his face.
Smack-a-dabba-doo! And down he went.