MasterAbed's Clan

Gather close that you might hearken the story of Fat-Neil.
Born stout of heart, but large of bone, his adolescent years were shadowed by scorn and mockery.
Outlets of fantasy afforded him some escape from the darkness throughout high school.
And as a man, he travelled far to a new school and a new beginning Or so he thought.
The name became a joke.
The joke became his life.
And Neil fell again into darkness, only this time, his thoughts turned to an escape of which we dare not speak.
But pain need not be spoken to be known, not to all.
It was, strangely, Jeff the Liar, son of William the Barely Known, who first became concerned.
It was Jeff who pretended to be interested in Dungeons & Dragons in an effort to lift Neil's spirits.
And when Jeff's fake interest resulted in Neil giving Jeff all his books, explaining he wouldn't need them anymore It was Annie the Dayplanner, herself a recovering head case, that recognized the signs of coming doom.
A council was called.
Troy the Obtuse, Shirley the Cloying, Abed the Undiagnosable and Britta the Needlessly Defiant.
For reasons that should be obvious, Pierce the Insensitive, known also as Pierce the Dickish and Grandpa the Flatulent, was not invited.
The group agreed that what Fat-Neil needed most was to feel like a winner for a change.
They would invite Neil that Saturday to a game of Dungeons & Dragons, designed by Abed to help Neil reclaim his confidence.
For Neil.
At the end of the meeting, they realized that Chang had been there and felt too awkward to mention it.
What they couldn't have known was that they had just scheduled the most important game of Dungeons & Dragons ever, a game which not only might save a life, but which would forever change the balance between good and Pierce.