The Great and Powerful Trixie Lulamoon was completely exasperated.
She was currently sitting in the library with three other boys during their study hall period. One of the boys, named Snips, was a young man with buck teeth, brown hair, opalish gray skin, blue pants, black eyes, and a black t-shirt with a scissor graphic design on the front. The other boy, Snails, had turquoise-colored hair, black eyes, light amber skin, a green sweatshirt with a snail over his heart and a red shirt underneath, and bright pants. And finally, a handsome young man with bright orange hair, flamingo-colored skin, green eyes sat among them. His jacket was red but had a brown collar with a half-eaten green apple on each side and a white t-shirt underneath. Lastly, he wore a blue trouser hem. Everyone knew him as Applejack’s older brother, Big Macintosh. They were all seemingly a little down in the dumps as they were brainstorming with one another.
“Trixie doesn’t understand why nobody has joined our club as of recently!” Trixie complained, only for Ms. Cheerilee to walk by and hush her. “Hehe, sorry.”
“We’ve tried handing out fliers, but everyone just ignored us! And hanging them up around the campus didn’t really do much either,” Snips explained as he slid back in the chair.
“Even the fliers with Trixie on it and it advertising eating peanut butter crackers with the Great and Powerful Trixie herself?”
“Yes.”
“Hmph! Seems like people don’t recognize a good deal, or club for that matter, when they see one.” Trixie crossed her arm and pouted.
“Um … what about asking your bandmates to come?” Snails asked. “Maybe we can convince them.”
“Trixie already tried, eight times. But Lavender and Fuchsia don’t care much for the club and just find all of it ridiculous!” Trixie explained. “Hmm … Big Mac, have you tried asking your sisters?”
“Eeyup,” Big Mac confirmed with a nod.
“Did they seem interested?”
Big Mac shook his head and sighed. “Eenope.”
They all sighed in unison. The club had been off to a fine start thanks to Trixie’s enthusiasm over it, and within the first week, they had recruited Big Mac. But now, nobody else seemed interested in joining, sadly. And the meetings were even worse if one of the members wasn’t present since things would be boring and uneventful. To say they were a little desperate for new members or a new way to stir things up was an understatement.
“Maybe you guys should try persuading people among the new students here in CHS.” Ms. Cheerilee chimed in as she was pushing a cart of books. “You should just try going up to one of them and ask them if they’ve joined a club or not.”
“A brilliant suggestion!” Trixie shot up happily. “And once they properly meet Trixie, they’ll see that any club Trixie’s a part of must be an excellent one! Right boys?”
“Of course!!” Snips and Snails agreed in unison, but quickly covered their mouths once they realized how loud they were. “Sorry….”
“All is forgiven.” Cheerilee nodded with a smile. “So, the question is, who do you have in mind?”
“Hmm … maybe Button Mash? He’s not in any clubs,” Snails pondered.
“I don’t think Lemon Hearts is in any clubs as of yet.” Big Mac tried to brainstorm more people. “And besides the volleyball club, I don’t think Minuette and Twinkleshine have anythin’ else on the agenda.”
Trixie thought quietly. Let’s see … who's someone who’s not in any clubs, has lots of free time, and can boost the overall status, enthusiasm, and tone of our club? With little regard of how silly is it to others? Think, Trixie, THINK!
“Sorry, but clubs aren’t really my style in all honesty,” Zero explained bluntly as he sat with the guys at the table.
Swift tilted his head. “You sure? I know you're still kinda new to the school, but there’s like a whole bunch of clubs scattered around. There’s bound to be something that catches your interest or gives you a new hobby.”
“You have a good point, I guess.” Zero ate some honey barbecue chips Clyde shared with him. “But I’ve still gotta focus on my tutoring sessions with little Ms. Egghead. And why should I just stick around school to do some activity when I have you guys? We can just go somewhere and have a ball and quit whenever we feel like it!”
“I don’t know about ‘Whenever we feel like it’ since some of us have curfews, I’d like to imagine,” Night commented. “And while I’m not surprised you haven’t noticed, everyone has after-school clubs and activities already.”
“Whaaaat?” Zero replied in disbelief. “Not everyone … right?”
“Well, you already know that I’m on the basketball team with Tyrone and the squad,” Clyde explained. “Swift was on it during sophomore and junior year even.”
Swift finished throwing his tray in the garbage and opened his carton of milk in his hand. “Heh, yeah. But I felt like I wasn’t too good, so I stuck with being in the Party Planning Committee with Pinkie and Soul.”
“Wow, Swift,” Zero started with a small grin. “To think you’d join a club to be with the girl of your dreams even longer than usual. I bet you walk her home and everything.”
“N-n-n-no!” Swift blushed a little as he shook his head. “I didn’t join because of that…. Well, not entirely, anyways. And I don’t always walk her home! Plus, they always need a hand with stuff like dances and events. She even went ahead and asked me personally and Thunderlane said it was a good idea.”
“Well, when you put it like that, how can you say no?” Zero nodded as he understood Swift’s point. “Saying no would’ve probably hurt Pinkie’s feelings and killed your own mood.”
Soul thought for a moment and he tried to get up, only for Zero to speak up. “And don’t you even think about making her ask me just to bait me into it!”
“Damn, read me like a book.” Soul sat back down.
Zero crossed his arms. “What about you, Skywalker Jr.? Why did you join?”
“I was pretty much in your situation and wasn’t in any clubs … then….” Soul visibly stuttered and he started to look pale. “Then I tried sports … and gained Athlemaphobia.”
Zero only tilted his head at the word before he recalled Twilight’s lesson on defining words and used the context clues Soul gave.
Rivet spoke up. “It’s a fe—”
“Fear of sports?” Zero figured out as he snapped his fingers with a smile.
Soul nodded. “It’s the bane of my existence. It’s almost like Rainbow Dash was out to kill me that time.”
Rainbow was currently spinning a basketball in her hand when she suddenly slipped on an apple and the ball spun off her hand and bounced towards Soul.
“Uh-oh. Soul, look out!”
“Huh?” Soul turned around and the ball bounced in his cheeks and knocked him down. “AAAH! See what I mean?”
Zero laughed at his misfortune and Clyde just rolled the ball back to Rainbow Dash. “All kidding aside, you’d better hope the next time you watch a sports game, it’s on TV.”
Soul climbed up from his chair and groaned. “All kidding aside, I hate you.”
“And you’re already aware that I’m on the track team,” Night added in. “And a quick FYI, there isn’t any anime club apparently. Doesn’t look like this school has many anime lovers like you, bro.”
“And just like that like that. My interest plummets.” Zero gave a disappointed sigh. Even if there was anime club, he doubted he would join it right off the bat. The last thing he needed was to walk into was a complete nerd-fest and make him feel uncomfortable. Not that he wanted to judge.
“Don’t be so closed-minded. Just because it doesn’t have what you're looking for doesn’t mean you should write off the idea of joining a club so easily,” Night stated. “Besides, think of it this way: maybe you can gain a new hobby or something from one of the clubs.”
“Yeah, like your sister,” Rivet spoke while finishing his food. “She and my sister joined the Canterlot Movie Club, or CMC for short, with the Crusaders. And according to my sister, she’s joined a sports club yesterday.”
Zero’s eyes widened a little. “Wait, seriously? She never told me that. All she would tell me is that she’s gonna go hang out with the girls.”
“Did you ever ask what she was doing?” Clyde said while throwing his chips away.
“....No, but she should still keep me posted!”
Clyde shook his head.
“Oh yeah!” Zero snapped his fingers. “Riv, what about you?”
“I actually joined the book club for a change.” Rivet scratched his head a little with a sheepish smile. “After reading some Daring Do books, I decided to give reading a shot and share my thoughts with the rest of the club members on this and that. Even reading other novels and the like in the process. Twilight’s in it as well.”
Zero smiled a little. “That’s good. Is Twilight in any other clubs? Do you know?”
“From what Rarity told me, she helped her into the science club, and now she’s vice president,” Clyde verified.
“And she’s in the robotics club as well, according to Flash,” Swift chimed in next with a smile. “Already is she starting to try new things now that she’s started sitting with the girls. It almost feels like she’s always been there.”
“Yeah … it really is a relief,” Zero said quietly as he gave a small but warm smile. Just the idea of Twilight hanging out with others and socializing more and more by the day made him overjoyed inside. Every time he saw her outside of classes and at lunch, she seemed satisfied with herself. During his tutoring sessions after school, he would always take a few minutes to ask if she was happy or had a decent day, to which she always give an honest answer. At this point, aside from the impending doom of his report card and the possibility of his mother kicking him into the sun, he felt everything was perfect. Though speaking of Twilight….
“Aw crap, I just realized. I can’t join clubs anyways.” Zero frowned as he facepalmed. “I still have tutoring sessions with Twilight.”
“Err…. Wait, but if Twilight’s in some clubs, how is it that you still have tutoring sessions?” Soul asked.
“She goes to clubs for an hour or so and meets me by my house that afternoon to get some lessons in,” Zero explained. “If I join a club that doesn’t meet her scheduling, it’ll make things all screwy. And trust me, she gets super panicky about her scheduling.”
Swift pondered for a sec. “You could try asking for a little time off for clubs, depending on which one you join. If you’re doing well, Celestia will allow you to. Or you could lengthen some sessions a smidge or do one on the weekends.”
“Learning … on a weekend?” Zero gave him a puzzled expression. “Does such a thing exist?”
“You did say at one point that Japan and other countries have classes on Saturdays but they’re only half days, right?” Rivet commented.
“Yeah, but I think they only have schools open on Saturdays for club activities and stuff.” Zero confirmed, making Soul tap his chin for a second.
“Actually, that sounds like a great idea. Maybe the school could try that. I think it could work. I’ll go pitch it to Sunset and see what she thinks,” Soul suggested.
“Good luck,” Clyde replied.
Just then, the lunch bell rang and everyone started heading off. Zero followed Night and Swift towards their literature class. “By the way, you two think you can help me look for a club after I talk to Principal Long Legs?”
Swift shrugged. “Sure thing, but I have to be in the Party Planning Committee at three-thirty, so I can’t stick around for long.”
“And I have to be at the track field by four,” Night stated. “But I’ll do what I can too and show you a club you might like.”
“Oh?” Zero raised an eyebrow at him. “You have my attention now at least.”
“And let’s see how long you sustain your patience cause I’ll be keeping it a secret.” Night said as he ended the conversation and headed into the classroom along with his friends. As they did, Snips and Snails were watching them from behind the locker and nodded at each other with a smirk as they slid back into the shadows with a chuckle.
Shortly after, school ended and just about everyone else headed home for the day. Zero had finished his discussion with Celestia and texted Twilight regarding his request. Both of them gave it some thought and allowed him to take the time to go join a club today as long as he agreed to keep them both posted on what he found interesting so they could work out his tutoring sessions later on. At the moment, Zero was wandering around the halls with Swift and Night examining some of the open classrooms and other school areas as they had clubs going on in just about all of them. Drama, art, chess, cheerleading, an escape room club, a zombie survival club, and so on. Even that one Derpy girl was holding a sign by the free hugging club. Zero gave an embarrassed blush as they made eye contact and didn’t have the heart to reject her. Just as they walked up to her, Derpy gave all of them tight hugs and they hugged her back. As they continued onward and waved goodbye, Zero was still blushing and couldn’t fight off his small grin.
“Well, I feel a lot happier today,” Zero admitted happly. “Anyways, you guys basically have a club for everything!”
Swift chuckled a little. “People have all sorts of ideas for clubs, so you never know what kind you’ll see when you peer into the next room.”
“Which reminds me,” Zero gave a goofy smile as he looked around, “what club is Fluttershy in?”
Night immediately caught on to his excitement and sighed, knowing his intentions. “She’s only in one, and you’re not gonna like it.”
“Heh, whatever club she’s in, it’s worth everything,” Zero said confidently. “So take me there!”
Night looked and Swift and he shook his head. He pointed to a nearby classroom and Zero immediately dashed over to the room and barged in as he scanned the room for his beloved.
While he did see Fluttershy in the room almost instantly and was ready to greet her, he saw some of the others students in the classroom as well. He glanced around and his smile weakend a bit as he noticed some of the objects in the room. Yarn, wool, needles, recently made sweaters and gloves, books, and other various tools. He knew on the fly that they all had one thing in common. Zero’s enthusiasm vanished.
It was a knitting club.
“Oh, Zero!” Fluttershy walked up to him. “I never thought I’d see you here of all places. What happened to tutoring today?”
Swift walked in with Night. “He’s planning on joining a club in the school, and we’re showing him around. And he came charging in on this one because he was … curious, yeah.”
“I see.” Fluttershy understood with a nod. “I almost assumed you convinced him to join given how much you enjoyed the club last year, Swift.”
Zero and Night slowly looked at Swift as they were completely baffed. Swift’s face turned red as he was completely embarrassed and looked away from the others and mumbled his only response. “It’s fun to knit, okay?”
Zero chuckled a little. “I won’t judge. Least you can make your own sweater without wasting your money!”
“R-Right….”
“Anyways,” Fluttershy began as she turned back to Zero. “Have you knitted before?”
“Of course I have!”
“No he hasn’t,” Night corrected.
“Okay, I haven’t!” Zero responded, but kept his smile. “But it looks cool enough!”
“Since you’re so interested, I can show you how to knit.” Fluttershy grabbed some nearby yarn and needles for herself and Zero. “First, you have to make a loop with the end of the yarn. Then place the loop on top of the yarn to the side of the loop, like this.” She held it up to Zero and took her time demonstrating. Zero memorized the movements and copied her. Swift got himself a set of tools and decided to help out as well while Night just sat down and looked through his phone in the meantime.
“Next,” Swift continued the demonstration, “pick up the yarn through the loop, but make sure you do it gently and not so much. Afterwards, you want to pull the knot tightly and keep the loop at the top nice and open.”
“Alright, simple enough,” Zero replied with a slightly bored expression, but still doing his best to stay interested on the matter. After thirty minutes had gone by, he was completely drained of excitement as he was trying his hardest not to look disappointed in the club itself and his sorry of excuse for a sock. On the other hand, Fluttershy looked like she was having the time of her life, and even Swift was smiling. Normally, Zero would’ve just let them down easy and say he wasn’t interested anymore. But then, it’d devastate Fluttershy and the other club members even more so. He needed an excuse.
“How it’s coming along you two?” Fluttershy asked eagerly.
“I’m doing okay,” Swift replied while holding up his nearly-finished black and yellow scarf. “Heh, I’m starting to actually miss this. And you Fluttershy?”
“Well, I don’t think it’s that special, but….” Fluttershy giggled and held up a tiny baby blue and purple sweater. “I sure hope Angel likes it. It’ll do him wonders during the winter time.”
“At this rate, all the animals will be nice and cozy thanks to you,” Swift praised her and then glanced at Zero’s work. “Not too bad, Zero. It’s … a snake with multiple tails?”
“‘Bad’ being the keyword,” Zero added dully. “And I was trying to make a sock!”
Fluttershy giggled. “Well, it’s still a good attempt. Why don’t you just start over?”
Zero gulped a little. No way do I wanna be here any longer than I have to, even if Fluttershy keeps me company. This is worse than normal classes!
Night let out a small yawn and looked at the time. “Fluttershy, as much as we’d like to stick around, we are on a tight schedule. And Swift, the Party Planning Committee is about to start any minute, so you oughta get a move on too.”
“A-Already?” Swift exclaimed before looking at Fluttershy and Zero. “Sorry, but I have to get going. I got pulled back into my old habits it seems.”
“It’s okay Swift. You can keep the tools until tomorrow.” Fluttershy waved off.
“It’s fine! Night can guide me the rest of the way.” Zero nodded in joy. Bless you Night! BLESS YOUR SASSY BUT AMAZING SOUL!
“Good luck Zero,” Swift said as he grabbed his things and headed out.
Zero waved him off and glanced at Fluttershy. “We’d better get going too, Flutters. Clubs to see, things to check out. But I enjoyed spending time with you today!” He gave a bright smile.
“I’m glad you stopped by. It’d be nice if you wound up joining us in the end!” Fluttershy beamed almost as brightly as Pinkie normally would, making Zero blush as he scratched his head.
“Don’t worry, I’ll put some serious thought into it.” Zero gave a thumbs up before heading out of the room with Night. Once he turned the corner, he let out a long sigh. “I really, really hate to say it, but that suuuucked.”
“You’re welcome, by the way.” Night said in a deadpan tone. “Everyone but those two saw how bored you were the moment you put the yarn on the needle. But you held out longer than Rainbow did, so I’ll give you some credit.”
“Definitely won’t be joining that club. I’d rather do manual labor at AJ’s farm. Least there I can keep my body moving and still have a hot girl keep me company as I work.”
Night nodded. “I couldn’t agree more.”
“...On manual labor, or AJ being hot?”
“Yes.”
Zero just blinked and nodded in return.
“But speaking of keeping your body moving, I think I know the perfect club for you.” Night started leading him off. “You’re athletic, can’t keep still for long, and when it comes to planning in games, I honestly don’t know anyone who plans better than you … mainly because I don’t care too much for the sport or people like that.”
“Sometimes I feel like you’re both putting me on a pedestal and pulling the rug from under me when you talk about me,” Zero pouted.
“Just follow me.”
“CHANCE BALL!”
A volleyball soared over the net and Twinkleshine dashed over. Minuette managed to get in position as she performed a jump set and passed the ball to the other end of the court where Twinkleshine was gunning for. She made a graceful leap and just as the ball came her way, two tall girls came up to her at the net on the opponent's side and tried to block her with their arms up in the air. Chuckling, Twinkleshine saw the opening and spiked the ball between the blockers and onto the ground. The referee pointed to Minuette and her side as they gained the point and they all cheered in unison. Of course, Twinkleshine’s cheer drowned out the others’ as she raised her fists into the air.
“OH YEAH!” Twinkleshine roared. “POW! RIGHT THE KISSER! Not talking so big anymore, huh? Oooooh, I wished you’d try something girl!”
“Twinkle, don’t get too hyped and take your jersey off again,” Minuette said, trying to tame her. “We don’t need any more boys fainting or the coach warning you again.”
“Sorry, you just can’t stop the hype train when it gets rolling. The brakes just stop working when we go full speed,” Twinkleshine chuckled.
“Remind me to never let you drive me anywhere,” Minuette replied with a small chuckle.
Zero watched everything from the gym entrance with Night and the both of them were staring at the game quietly as they observed the girls in their light- and dark-blue jerseys, with Minuette wearing the number eleven and Twinkleshine the number ten. Zero broke the silence with his first comment on the club thus far.
“Volleyball is the best sport and I will fight anyone on that.”
“All because of the girls’ bouncy physics, huh?” Night replied with a small smirk.
“Exactl—I mean no!” Zero quickly corrected and lightly punched Night’s shoulder. “You asshole.”
“Thank you, I’ll be here all week.” Night laughed and lead him in while waving at Minuette. “Excuse us. We’re just here to drop by and steal your drinks.”
Minuette looked over and smiled. “Night, came to get a sneak peek at our practice matches?”
“I bet he’d love to peek at something else,” Twinkleshine muttered with a giggle, only for Lemon Hearts to pinch her back. “Ouch! Not cool!”
“Shh, don’t make things awkward for Minny in front of Night,” said a girl named Lemon Hearts with sky blue hair tied in a ponytail and blindingly yellow skin, wearing a number twelve jersey.
“Actually, I can’t stay too long, sorry to say. I’m actually here because I think Zero should join the boy’s volleyball team.” Night patted Zero’s shoulder.
“Hm.” Lemon Hearts walked up to Zero and examined him briefly. It didn’t take long before she gave an approving nod. “He seems like the perfect guy to be a middle blocker or a right side hitter for the boys.”
“That’s what I think too,” Minuette added. She poked Zero’s arm. “He’s definitely got the muscle. Quick question, are you anything like your name?”
Zero scratched the back of his head. “Like … my name?” He gave a completely perplexed expression until he realized what she meant. “Ah! Zero Gravity! Yeah, I’m good at jumping high thanks to all the parkour I did back in Manehattan. But what the hecky heck does a middle blocker and a right side hitter do exactly?”
Lemon Hearts cleared her throat. “The middle blocker during offense is someone who does fast attacks close to the setter, like Minuette, and usually adjusts to the approach of the ball. On top of that, you need to keep an eye out for the opposing team and make sure they don’t block your attacks and cost your team the point. And on defense, you have to block their attackers, and sometimes even in conjunction with the other plays and make a strong wall!”
“In Zero’s terms, you spike the ball when you get the chance and block your opponents if they try to spike. Get it?” Twinkleshine summarized.
“Got it!” Zero nodded.
“Good.”
“And a right side hitter is someone with good offense and defense all-around who more or less does the same as a middle blocker,” Lemon Hearts explained. “You wanna give it a try?”
Zero tapped his chin and shrugged. “Let’s play.”
The girls nodded with a smile and Minuette stood next to Zero. “Okay, I’ll be on your team, aaaand … Night, you can be our libero.”
“I don’t know what that is, but it sounds special,” Night commented with a cocked eyebrow. “That being said, I don’t have faintest clue on how this game works. Plus, I can’t play a full game. I’ve gotta get to the track field soon.”
“Just one point, please Night?” Minuette begged. “Then you can go!”
Night thought for a sec. “Well….”
Twinkleshine just sighed and pushed the boys towards the court. “It’s not cool for a guy to turn down a girl’s offer. Now go! I’ll explain the rules and we can get to the part where I demolish you.”
After a short summary of the rules of the game and a few minutes to practice passing the ball with their forearms, Zero, Night and Minuette stood on one side of the court waiting for Minuette to serve the ball. On the opposite end of the court was Lemon Hearts, Twinkleshine, and a short girl with a hoodie covering her face, someone Zero didn’t see before. The hoodie was unzipped and showed the number seven jersey underneath. He also noticed it was an amethyst-colored jersey, completely different from the other blue ones. Before Zero could get the chance to ask questions, the referee blew the whistle. Minuette tossed the ball into the air and made a graceful leap as she hit the ball towards the other side. The hooded girl received it perfectly with her forearms and sent it towards Lemon Hearts.
“Perfect receive!” Lemon Heart did a set and tossed the ball near the net by Twinkleshine as she leaped and got ready for a spike.
“Zero, go!” Minuette ordered quickly.
Zero ran up to the net and jumped in front of Twinkleshine with a determined glare as he raised his arms up and pointed his hand downs, ready to block it. But it was Twinkleshine’s turn to smirk as she lightly tapped the ball over Zero’s arms and it started to fall, making Zero’s eyes widen in alarm. “What the?!”
Night, who was on standby at the time, saw this trickery and dived for the ball as he knocked it back towards Minuette. She gave a quick sigh of relief as she passed the ball back over the net.
“Shine! Lemon!” the hoodie girl said as she knocked the ball into the air. Zero was distracted by her voice and noticed it sounded familiar. But he soon saw Twinkleshine and Lemon Hearts making a run for the ball while it was in the air. Twinkleshine jumped to go in for the spike and Zero went in for a block once more, but he quickly saw that the ball wasn’t close enough to her hand and Twinkleshine missed the spike. Immediately as Zero landed back on his feet, Lemon Hearts came up next and spiked the ball. Unluckily for her, Minuette jumped in her way and successfully blocked the ball and it was about to crash down on Lemon Hearts’ side. But Twinkleshine panicked and received the ball, making it soar back over to Zero’s side.
“Damn it!” Twinkleshine cursed.
Minuette’s face lit up and looked at Night. “Chance ball! This is it!”
Night nodded and passed the ball by the net. Minuette raced over to her position and did another set. Zero got a running start as he watched the ball and leaped as high as he could. Twinkleshine and Lemon Hearts blocked his way, but Zero narrowed his eyes.
“I don’t feel like losing today!” Zero swatted the ball down as hard as he could and it went through Twinkleshine’s arms and made her fall. But just as he thought he scored, the hooded girl received the ball once more and it went back over the net by Zero. He tried to reach for it as he fell but tipped it with his finger and made it go out of bounds before Night or Minuette could get it. The coach blew the whistle and pointed to Lemon Hearts’ side as they earned the point.
“Boom, bam, baby!” Twinkleshine cheered and gave Lemon Hearts a high five and picked up the hooded girl and spun her around. “That’s our Libero! Gilda from Griffonstone High won’t stand a chance at this rate!”
The girl chuckled, and as she swung around, she looked over at Zero and took her hood off, revealing that she was his little sister. “Any spikes you dish out, I’ll catch it, buster.”
“Wind?” Zero exclaimed. Even though he recalled Rivet saying she was in a sports club, he wasn’t expecting volleyball to be one of them. “You’re on the team?”
“Yeppers!” Wind broke out of the hug and gave a confident grin. “I’m the Libero of Canterlot High’s girls volleyball team!”
Zero just looked at Minuette and the others with a blank expression and slowly turned to Wind. “I have questions and I want all of them answered, quick draw style.”
“Shoot.”
“When did you join and why?” Zero started off as he crossed his arms.
“Scootaloo dragged me to a match to watch Rainbow Dash and it look like fun, so I joined two weeks ago.”
“Why didn’t you tell me, and do Mom and Dad know?”
“I was gonna surprise you like I did just now and invite you to our first game next month, and yes, Mom and Dad know.”
“Aren’t you a little short to play?”
“Libero players don’t need to be tall as they excel as defensive players and receive attacks and serves. They have the quickest reaction time and best pass serves, but we can never spike, block or play at the net. And before you ask, Liberos have to wear a different-colored jersey. ‘Libero’ means ‘free’ in Latin, and we play by a different set of rules and can sub in without any timeouts.”
Zero stood silently for a moment before asking his final question. “When did my little sister become so cool!”
Wind giggled. “Maybe you should’ve been keeping a better eye on your little sister than eyeing girls out of your league.”
“Ooooooh! This little girl is savage! I love her!” Twinkleshine rooted with a fist pump as the others chuckled a little while Zero grabbed Wind and gave her a noogie.
“Ow! Ow! Ow!” Wind cried out as she tried to struggle free.
“That’s what you get for dissing your sibling!” Zero exclaimed in a playful manner. Despite the verbal smackdown Wind delivered, he was honestly proud of his little sister. Ever since they’d moved away from that god-awful school in Manehatten, she’d matured from an introvert who was easily target by bullies to an outgoing sports girl with plenty of friends watching her back. He let her go and gave a happy smile. “I’ll be sure to watch all your games, okay? Keep me posted.”
Wind smiled back. “You better! Sorry about that sick burn.”
Zero waved off. “Eh, what doesn’t kill me will get their comeuppance later.”
Night gave a genuine smile and looked at the clock. “And with that roast and touching moment, I make my exit. See you after school Min?”
“As usual,” Minuette confirmed.
Night smiled and headed off as he gave Zero a peace sign. “Good luck, Casanova.”
Zero stuck his tongue out at him and waved him off, then turned back to the girls and smiled. “Okay, so about joining the team,” he bounced the ball on the ground, “I think it’s pretty interesting, all things considered. I dunno about practicing every day and stuff, but maybe I’ll like it if you girls keep me company or something.”
“Except, you can’t join the team!” a voice called out from behind him.
Wind groaned. “Ugh, oh god … it’s them.”
Zero turned around and looked at Snips and Snails as he scratched his head. “Trixie’s little friends? What’s up?”
Snips and Snails walked over to him as Snips took a deep breath. “You may think joining the volleyball team is a great idea. But! You fail to realize that your grades makes you ineligible to play!”
“Yeah!” Snails chimed in. “It’s a no-go like Tri—” Before he could finish, Snails cut him off and covered his mouth.
“That’s a bunch of bull!” Zero called out as he pointed at them. “I can still play … right girls?”
All of the girls gave sad expressions and shifted uncomfortably until Lemon Hearts spoke up. “That’s how it always works with sports. You need to make sure your grades are ‘C’ or higher.”
“And you’d have to be on the boys volleyball team. Not with us, sadly,” Twinkleshine added. “And that much should be obvious since you almost broke my hand with that spike at the end.”
“Sorry Zero…. You can still practice and come see us, but otherwise,” Minuette sighed, “you getting in isn’t happening.”
Zero frowned and gave Wind back the ball. “And just when I found something interesting … damn it.”
“Hey, it’s okay.” Wind hugged her brother, trying to cheer him up. “There’s other clubs you can join without any issues.”
“Exactly!” Snails moved Snips’ hand away in excitement. “We know the perfect club for you. Follow us to the library … if you dare,” he said in a spooky voice before the two boys started walking backwards. They both tripped over some of the water bottles nearby before quickly getting back up and continuing walking backwards, motioning for Zero to follow.
“...He had me at ‘dare,’” Zero replied before following the boys.
After following Snips and Snails to the library, they opened the doors for him and bowed as they motioned for him to go inside, as if rolling out the red carpet for him. Zero would have normally been pleased and walked in proudly, but he had the nagging feeling that he was walking into something troublesome. He immediately saw Trixie sitting down by a computer patiently waiting for him. The moment she saw him, she gave a confident yet very gleeful smile as she stood up and walked over to him. “Zero Gravity, we’ve been expecting you today. At last, it’s so good of you to come.”
I’m feeling very uncomfortable right now and that doesn’t happen often, Zero thought before letting her continue.
“Trixie caught wind of your struggles,” Trixie stated as she placed her hand on her forehand dramatically. “The pain of being a clubless student while everyone else is occupied with after-school activities, leaving you all alone with a tiresome tutor! The nerve of them!”
Is this what I sound like when I’m being dramatic? … Nah. Zero continued to listen as Trixie put her arm around him.
“But this is where your friend, The Great and Powerful Trixie, leads you to the greatest club in the school! Where all of your fantasies can come true as you escape this reality into another. Where you can fight the mightiest of monsters, wield the ultimate power and go on adventures nobody has ever seen before!”
“Are we talking about going through that portal outside of school into the pony world?” Zero asked out of curiosity. “Because if yes, I’m so in!”
Trixie just patted his head. “Another day. What Trixie is thinking about is something more incredible. Trixie commands you to cover your eyes.”
Zero closed his eyes and Trixie lead him towards the back of the library. Once they were back there, she stopped and took a deep breath and hoped for the best. “Here we are, Zero Gravity. Welcome….”
Zero opened his eyes and Trixie, Snips, and Snails posed by a table while Big Mac held up a twenty-sided die. All of them had a warm smile. On the table was the most famous and classic board game, Dungeons and Dragons. Zero cringed a little.
“...to the Roleplaying Club!” they all said in unison, leaving Zero completely silent until Snails spoke up. “Where we go on adventures into new continents!”
“Or seek a king's ransom in gold!” Snips chimed in joyfully. “You can be whoever you wanna be or whatever you wanna be!”
“Eeyup!” Big Mac agreed.
“And our adventures are usually decided by yours truly, the Clever and Creative Dungeon Master, Trixie!” Trixie exclaimed, but was shushed by Ms. Cheerilee again. “Sorry.” She then took out a character sheet. “Usually before you can get into a game and join the club, you have to fill out a character sheet that explains everything about your own character. Our session last for two hours and sometimes three, and we occasionally take breaks so we can eat snacks halfway through. Today we’re having honey BBQ chicken with steamed dumplings, thanks to Snails’ mother.”
“She’s a fantastic cook!” Snips added.
“Indeed she is.” Trixie turned to Zero. “So, what do you say? Ready for one of the Great and Powerful Trixie’s magnificent and incredible adventures?”
“........”
Five seconds later.
“LET ME GO!”
“NOT UNTIL YOU SUBMIT TO TRIXIE’S CLUB!”
“WHY IS HE SO STRONG?”
Zero was struggling to walk down to the school exit in the hallway as Trixie was tugging on his shirt and Snips and Snails were holding his legs back. He gritted his teeth and looked around to find anyone who could help him. But shortly afterwards, Big Mac cut him off at the corner to block his path.
“Big Mac, come on!” Zero groaned as he was quickly getting tired of this. “Why are you guys acting so desperate?!”
“If you’d hear Trixie out and stop running, we’ll tell you!” Trixie demanded. Shortly afterwards, Zero stopped struggling and they all let go of him. Each of them panted for a moment before he sighed.
“Look, I just think … it’s … well….” Zero started off as he had a hard time coming up with the right words to say. In truth, he felt completely uncomfortable with the idea of joining such a club. It was nerdy and a bit childish to play pretend like this and make a club out of it. Not that he was against doing a bit of make-believe and using one's imagination like this, and he didn’t honestly care about his reputation if joining it would make him uncool. It just seemed cringy, silly, and sad, especially with so few members. They were hardly keeping the club stable at this point. But though it was reasons like this that made him avoid clubs to begin with, rejecting them after they’d welcomed him with open arms would make him feel worse than seeing Fluttershy tear up over something. Seeing all the club members with sadness and disappointment on their faces was soul-crushing, making it difficult to say no at all. “I think it’s just … a bit much for me, in all honesty.”
“Elaborate.” Trixie raised an eyebrow. “Trixie is guessing you think it’s silly too, like we’re children playing a little game of pretend! And here she thought you didn’t judge others.”
“N-N-No, it’s not like that in the slightest,” Zero denied as put up his hands. “It’s just not my kind of thing. I prefer reading or playing video games. In fact, I hear my controller calling m—” He stopped as he saw Snips and Snails staring at the ground with a quiet sigh under their breaths. Big Mac, although not easy to read, had a hint of disappointment in his eyes as well. Zero stopped and figured trying to argue back wouldn’t make things easier at all. “Don’t you guys have enough members already? I understand you want more people to be interested and come along, but why me?”
Trixie crossed her arms and spoke in a dejected tone. “We’ve tried just about everything. Flyers, word of mouth, handouts, nothing. And it’s getting tiresome doing these sessions with so few people, we might as well do it at Trixie’s house.”
“Can we?” Snails asked, only for Trixie to shoot him a glare.
“Anyways.” Trixie turned back to Zero. “You’re the best candidate for a new member since you look at your fantasy novels and video games with such interest, not to mention you’re not embarrassed to talk about it like Big Mac. So Trixie would like it if her friend would please join us, or at the very least, try it out.”
“I….” Zero trailed off as he pondered the idea. It wouldn’t kill him to at least give it a go, and at the very least, it would satisfy them. “....Screw it, let’s go on a magical quest!”
“Woohoo!” Snips and Snails cheered in unison as they high fived each other. “Now all we have to do is get into costume and thy adventure can commence,” Snips said as he started speaking like he was from the Renaissance era.
“....Costumes?” Zero questioned.
Snips and Snails nodded as they opened up their lockers and pulled out their costumes. Snails put on a viking uniform while Snips put on an elf costume with fake elf ears and his hair combed to better resemble an elf. Zero looked at the two of them and forced a smile.
“Yeaaaaaah, now you're pushing it a little bit on the roleplaying par—AAH!” Zero was cut off when Big Mac picked him up by his shoulders and brought him back to the library.
“We don’t have all day, nor do we have the time to worry about costumes,” Trixie explained as she started leading everyone back. “We have an hour and a half to impress our new guest. Let’s making it amazing!”
“Eeyup!” Big Mac nodded.
Why am I so nice? Zero thought as he wondered if he did the right thing.
Once they all returned to the library, Zero sat down with everyone and was about to start the game. Big Mac was wearing some football shoulder pads and a helmet. The helmet had horns taped on the sides and the top of it. Trixie on the other hand just had on a purple wizard hat and robe with a star pattern all over it along with a white beard to match her hair. Zero just looked at himself and felt naked due to him being the odd man out as he waited for his chance to participate, taking the time to plan out his character until then. Trixie informed him he could be anything he wanted as long as it wasn’t too over the top or overpowered. Glancing down at the pieces he saw the wizard, the knight, the elf, and the viking approaching a jail cell where he could only guess was where he would make his big entrance. Trixie cleared her throat as the session continued.
“Trixie and her mighty warriors slowly approach the jail cells in the haunting fortress to free the prisoners and lead them away from the dastardly Tirek’s dungeon. However, Syver comes across a certain individual in the back of his cell as he doesn’t seem like an average civilian,” Trixie narrated clearly as she winked at Zero, letting him know his turn was coming. “Time to introduce your character.”
“Who goes there?” Snails asked assertively. “Come out into the light.”
Zero scratched the back of his head and shrugged. “Here it goes….” He took a moment to get into character and gave a confident smirk. “I am … umm … a beast tamer named Zexious Silverheart! I step into the light as I am shirtless with a wolf-like tattoo over my chest, wearing curved dragon teeth necklaces and orange armbands. I glare at you with intimidation and my fangs bearing, wondering who you are!”
Everyone just stared at each other then at Zero as they smiled, knowing he was immediately getting into it. Snails cleared his throat. “I back away in fear and gulp. ‘I am Syver! And these are my companions, Sniperous, Sir McBiggun, and the Grand Wizard Trixie! We are here to defeat the terrifying Tirek before he conquers the land!’”
Zero paused for a moment, then chuckled a little and gave a small grin at a Trixie. “Really? You couldn’t be creative and decided to call yourself Trixie still?”
Trixie blushed in embarrassment. “Hush you! You were doing fine! And get more into the role! It’s better that way.”
Shrugging, Zero looked back at the game and a thought crossed his mind. Well, this is a game where I’m supposed to use my imagination. And now’s a better time than any to just let my imagination run wild. He took a deep breath and imagined himself in the game as Zexious and everyone else in their respective roles. He glared at the group from his cell with the torch being the only source of light for him. He looked at all of them and cocked his head to the side with some attitude behind it. “As if you band of fools can beat Tirek. You’ll need an army to at least make him bat an eye!”
“Trixie will have you know she—I mean, we, have enough power to make him grovel on his knees and make him beg for mercy. With my powers of transmutation and conjuration, McBiggun’s greatsword and brute strength, Sniperous’s ability to conjure different types of arrows, and Syver’s powerful ice magic, I have confidence we’ll end his reign of terror.” Trixie smirked.
“Hmph, well, you do seem like a more put together team. However,” Zexious crossed his arms, “I still have my doubts. Thankfully, I might just be able to lend you a hand, as I too can handle myself in a battle.”
“And what, pray tell, can you do?” Sniperous cocked an eyebrow in disbelief.
Zexious stretched out his hand and used the shadows to create a scimitar. He slashed right through the bars with ease and walked out. “Shadow solidification.”
Sylver and Sniperous looked at him in awe while Mcbiggun tapped his chin, ready to question the obvious. “If ya can break out so easily, why didn’t ya bust out before?”
“If I did that, Tirek might have found out quickly and put me somewhere else. Then I couldn’t keep an eye on the civilians. So I’ve been biding my time, waiting for the perfect distraction to break out and free them. But it appears I have you all to thank. So I’ll help you destroy him as thanks. As for whether or not I remain with you guys is undecided.”
Trixie smiles and nods. “Very well then. We don’t have much time. So, to the throne room!” she said with vitality as she lead them off and directed the prisoners where to escape. Just as they started making their way up to the throne room, however, they saw it was heavily guarded by a swarm of armored orcs by the large gate with purple torches. Trixie and her team stopped as they tried to figure out a way into this epic boss battle with much trouble.
Sylver tried using his ice magic to freeze the orcs in their place. It worked on about half of them, but the others caught wind of what was going on and managed to break free. The orcs searched around for the source of this trickery and spotted the group. McBigguns rushed in and slashed down a handful of them with ease until one of them stabbed him in his belly, making him scream in agony. Trixie went on ahead and conjured up chains to bind them down. She smirked confidently as she turned to Sniperous and Zexious. “Bring them down!”
Sniperous fired three lightning arrows at full speed towards the the orcs. But two of them missed and the orcs broke free. One of them threw an axe at Sniperous and it knocked him back to the wall as he groaned in pain.
“Bastards.” Zexious created a shadow axe and got in a stance. “Okay, what's a cool and original name for an attack? … Aw, to hell with it. Hollow Oblivion!” With a mighty slash, Zexious sliced the final orc in half as the shadows oozed off of the axe and surrounded the orc in a dark sphere and shrank away into nothing.
“Wow….” Sniperous gawked. “That … was kinda overkill. But so sweet!”
Zexious pounded his chest triumphantly. “No big deal. Now, for the big bad boss,” he said as he stormed towards the large doors.
Trixie smiled at Zexious’s enthusiasm and she blasted open the door. Inside was an open room with purple torches dotting the perimeter. In the far back was a man sitting on a throne covered in black, white and gray knight armor. His long horns pointed upwards as he glared at them all with his piercing yellow eyes. He spoke in a cold but well-mannered voice. “Despite the warnings, your fears, and the loss of all hope, you have the nerve to challenge me? I must admit, you're quite the interesting guests.”
Trixie pointed her staff at him. “It's over Tirek. Your reign of terror will not last any longer!”
“No more people will have to suffer! No more hideous creatures will be born! Enough is enough!” Mcbiggun exclaimed with his sword pointed at him, surprising Zexious.
“Damn, never expected all that from him.”
“He likes climactic moments,” Sniperous chuckled. “Really gets him in the mood.”
Tirek slowly sat up and drew his long claymore as it was brewing with purple flames. “Do please go ahead. As my guests you're allowed to make the first move, as it will most likely be you last.”
Sylver was shaking in his boots as he made an ice sword and stepped back. “I'm gonna say … right now … we might be doomed.”
Zexious formed his scimitar and smiled. “Stop the bitching, start the killing. Everyone form up. Weapons out and ready. And let's fight!”
Trixie and Mcbiggun had their sword and staff out and ready as Sniperous notched a lightning and water arrow. Slyver created an ice lance and gave a nervous grin.
“To battle!” Trixie cried out as she and other others let out a battle cry and everyone rushed at Tirek, ready for the for the climactic battle to start and decide the fate of the world.
“Saaaay it,” Trixie said in a teasing tone.
“Okay, okay. It was more fun than I imagined. Happy?” Zero admitted in a bashful tone with a small blush. He was currently walking back home with Trixie as the session for the day had ended the boss was defeated. He was honestly surprised at himself as he hadn’t expected everything to run so smoothly. He felt surprisingly comfortable from start to finish as none of his doubts or concerns ever came into fruition. In fact, he laughed, smiled, and had a complete blast, almost as if he was hanging out with Swift and others. Snips and Snails might not be the types of boys he imagined himself hanging out with, or Big Mac for that matter, but that might change after this eventful afternoon.
“See? And you thought it was silly. A club lead by the Great and Powerful Trixie is not to be dismissed so simply!” Trixie bragged. “As the old say goes: ‘Never judge a book by its cover!’“
Zero smirked a little and spoke in a chivalrous tone “And thus, the Great and Powerful Trixie blesses me with her wisdom!” He did a bow. “I am not worthy of her grace.”
“You may rise Zexious.” Trixie gestured for him to stand up as she giggled. “She’s just satisfied you came today.”
“Well, you’re gonna see me every other time cause I’m in.” Zero stood up with a smile.
“....You mean that?” Trixie said as she was both shocked and overjoyed. “You’re not pulling Trixie’s leg?”
“Dead serious. I actually had a ball today, ate some snacks, talked to the guys a little. And for once, being around you for more than an hour was really nice. And if you’re looking for more members, I think I can get Soul and possibly Pinkie to come in. Soul likes fantasies as much as I do and Pinkie is … well, Pinkie. It might get a little crazy if more and more people pile in, but I’ll see to it that it stays lively!”
Trixie stopped walking and stared at him. “You just joined and you want to help make the club bigger for us? Just like that?”
Zero nodded immediately. “Why not? It’ll benefit everyone!”
“....Trixie has decided to make you Vice President of the club.”
Zero tilted his head. “Just like that? Isn’t it supposed to be a group vote between you and your friends?”
“They’re not Trixie’s friends,” Trixie admitted blunty as she continued walking. “Snips and Snails are just followers if anything, and Big Mac is just a club member.”
Zero started following her as he felt a small shift in the tone of the conversation. “But what about your bandmates?”
“Just bandmates,” Trixie explained sharply.
Zero was a bit afraid to ask the next question, but his curiosity was piqued. “Did you make me Vice President just because or….”
Trixie didn’t say anything at first until she frowned a little and looked at Zero. “Trixie will admit she doesn’t trust or like many people for various reasons. But … Trixie … I grew to like you as I found you and I are kinda alike. Confident in ourselves, unfazed by people’s opinions of us, prideful, proclaiming our greatness to others, and we can both admit we’re overdramatic.”
Zero hesitated before nodding his head in agreement. “Yeaaaah.”
“Plus, you’re the only one other than Wind who cared to talk to me on the way to school where you could’ve easily just kept going and ignored me.” Trixie gave a sad smile. “Ever since middle school I’ve always wanted to start a roleplaying club of my own, but nobody was interested in becoming my club advisor or club members. And it’s a bit dejecting since I’ve loved the game ever since I was little and it has always been my favorite game ever since. Now you’re here willing to make my club better just because…. In truth, I feel like you’re the only person I can trust at school … and I thank you for that and everything you’ve done. But I wanted to know … do you see me as your friend?”
Zero recalled what happened the other day with Trixie giving him a peanut butter cracker as a snack. Before that, he always saw them as playful acquaintances who took a few jabs at each other, but he didn’t think they were anything personal, at least on his end. He gave her a toothy grin and a thumbs up. “I feel like we’ve been friends for a while now, but yeah. I’ll make it official and call you my friend. Of course, I’ll still mess with you.”
“And I’ll still call you a delinquent.” Trixie smiled, a genuine one. “But … thank you Zero.”
“Huh … feels weird hearing you call me by my name for once,” Zero teased with a smirk.
“Oh hush you.” Trixie waved off. “Since you’re in the club now, I’ll come over and help you with the character sheet so you can have a better understanding of what’s what. And also do your costume for you.”
“Sure, as long as your dad doesn’t get the wrong idea and does a german suplex on me,” Zero laughed.
“I doubt he’d mind….” Trixie said before mumbling to herself quietly.
“What was that?” Zero tilted his head.
“Nothing important,” Trixie dismissed quickly before changing the subject. “What about your parents? Are they going to assume I’m your girlfriend and flip?”
“Well, you’re definitely beautiful, soooo maybe.” Zero smirked. “But my dad knows better. But my mom … she might ask questions and eyeball you.”
“Then I’ll see to it that I leave a good impression,” Trixie said with a faint blush as the two shared a chuckle and continued down the pathway back to their neighborhood, together as newly established friends at last.