Chapter 8: Path to Recovery
A/N- I know, the last chapter took me forever. See how quick I got this one up though? See? See? ^_^
*****
The locker room gets dead-silent the second I walk in. I don't find it particularly encouraging, but I guess I can't blame them either. It's not like I spent a long time in the hospital—they released me in about a day, once they were satisfied I wasn't seriously ill—but the hospital's the hospital!
Russ smiles quite broadly when he sees me. I wasn't sure if I would make it to practice today, so I told him to go on ahead. Guess he wasn't expecting me to show up. But I have to start trying to recover sometime, right? Even if I feel like I could fall down and sleep for a week. That's okay. Getting out on the ice should wake me up. For my sake, it better.
The mood in the locker room is best described as Doom And Gloom. No surprise there. Hans' funeral is this afternoon. The whole team's going.
I'll probably relapse and faint or something. It would figure.
Despite being the last one into the locker room, I'm one of the first to hit the ice, with Russ right behind me. Coach calls me over.
"Ken, if you feel like you need to sit out, just go ahead."
That's about the last thing anyone ever would expect to hear from Coach Orion, the king of toughing it out. Well, he can give his benevolence to somebody else—I don't care how bad I'm doing, I'm not accepting any special treatment.
We'll see if that changes the first time I get checked. Welcome back to the wonderful world of Warrior hockey. Or maybe, welcome for the first time. Woohoo.
Damn, I hope Coach Bombay can talk some sense into Charlie. I think.
*****
Practice went well—as well as can be expected, anyway. I thought the team had no heart our first game. Then I changed that opinion—we had no heart after Charlie left. But if we had no heart then, I have no idea how to describe our playing now. Russ calls it trying to fly without flapping our wings. Sounds about right.
I know better than anyone that we can't just mope around like this. I share my worries with Russ, who agrees. "But what do we do about it?"
He thinks about that for a moment, then grins. "Well, it's not gonna be easy. But we have to go back to being Ducks."
Before I have a chance to ask what that's supposed to mean, he takes a deep breath, stands up, and announces over everyone else's quiet conversation, "Street puck game Saturday! Show up or I'll come drag you out. We're gonna play some real hockey for a change!"
Well, that's one way of doing it. "Forget it. You don't celebrate funerals with hockey games," Averman groans.
Russ flinches, but he recovers quickly. "Man, who's celebratin'? We're not gonna sit around sulking for the rest of our lives, are we? And you know Coach isn't going to miraculously find a way to pull us out of the game at Minnetonka on Sunday. And if he could, he wouldn't. So, we're gonna go play some schoolyard puck, and we're gonna like it!" He says it all with a smile on his face, more or less forced, but succeeding in not sounding nearly as obnoxious and overbearing as anyone else would.
I flash him a grin as he sits down and goes back to changing. The rest of the team is mumbling to each other, obviously considering the 'suggestion.' The general mood in the room seems to be an affirmative. And almost enthusiastic.
For the first time in a long while, I'm more or less happy, but then Russ drops the bombshell. Leaning close so the rest of the team can't hear, he whispers, "Invite Banks."
I don't get a chance to protest. He planted a quick kiss on my cheek, grabbed his bag, and was gone.
Russ, when this mess is over, I'm going to kill you.
*****
I wander into biology, glaring at Russ (who grins). I punch him lightly and casually drop into my seat. Banks isn't here yet. Maybe he won't show up, and I won't have to ask—no, thinking like that won't get me anywhere. I always get here before he does. He'll be here, I'll ask him, and from there I guess I'll just have to wing it.
Winging like a Duck.
...Like a Duck?
Where did that come from? I thought we were all over the gung-ho Duckism. I thought we were all good little Warriors now that Captain Duck is gone. I thought—
I obviously didn't think very carefully.
All of Coach Orion's attempts to make us good little Warriors, and what have they succeeded in doing? They've made us stronger Ducks.
I wonder if that could've been what he wanted?
"Ken."
Banks appeared out of nowhere while I was busy musing about my Duckiness, and I look up to see that he's smiling. That... is really not normal. But then I grin back. Adam's a Duck too.
Still.
Always.
"Hi Banks."
"How're you feeling?"
Okay, I wasn't expecting that. "Better."
"Good." He sits next to me and sighs. "Sorry I didn't show up Monday... I was counting on my roommate getting my part of the project here on time, but he's not exactly the most reliable person in the school..."
"No problem," I assure him, maybe a little too quickly. Well, here goes nothing. "Hey, we've got a game scheduled Saturday. Street puck, no workaholic coaches, only Ducks allowed. You're invited."
Frown. "Will Charlie be there?"
Yeah, right. Of course Captain Duck will be there, after all, Captain Duck stuck with us and was at practice this morning to find out about it—okay, this is getting out of hand. Or is it? "I don't think so."
He looks a bit nervous, and then he nods. "I'll be there."
Geez. Charlie really did a number on poor Banksie. Russ has been watching us from the front of the room, and gives me a questioning look. I nod.
Naturally, Mrs. Madigan chooses right now to walk in. "Mr. Tyler, would you kindly turn around and prepare yourself for class?"
"But the bell hasn't even rung yet."
"You are in the classroom, therefore you should be ready to learn!"
I force myself not to laugh, she wouldn't like that very much. Or in that case, maybe I should. Russ looks back and winks at me before answering, "Well can I leave the classroom then? Cuz I'm not gonna be able to learn with you teaching."
Just another wonderful day in biology.
Eden Hall isn't a place for Ducks. Never has been. But we can fix that. They brought us here, now they face the consequences. Because they can't change us.
Ducks fly forever.
