Disclaimers: I don't own the Mighty Ducks. Duh! If you want to sue me, all you'll get is about ten dollars and some change. I'm broke. Sorry! However, I do own Elyjah and all character you don't reconize. There will be many. You are warned. Reviews are always welcome, as are critizisms. I need all the help I can get!

"Ducks, I'm happy to announce that we have a new player on the team." a man, Coach Orion, said. "The kid's from New Orleans and is as tough as nails, from what I've heard. Last name's Bombay. Why do you go out there and show 'em what the Ducks can do. Bombay! Get on the ice. Charlie, Dwayne, Russ, Averman and Goldberg, you're with Bombay. Adam, Connie, Luis, Fulton, Portman and Julie, you're on. Bombay and Adam, take the face-off."

So that's what was going on. A new player. No name, but Charlie had a feeling he knew who it was. The kid was already standing in the middle of the ice, stick ready. He chuckled to himself. Oh yea. He definitely knew who it was. Elyjah.

Adam got in position and the scrimmage began. It was all around painful. Bombay started it off by shoving Adam in the face and slapping the puck back to Dwayne. Then skating up, across the blue line to intercept it and duck around a check by Fulton, Bombay passed it back to Russ. Russ attempted a knucklepuck on Julie but she caught it. That was about two seconds before they learned how rough the kid like to play. The new kid packed a shoulder like a quarterback and had a shot that was a mix between Fulton's shot and Russ's knucklepuck. Julie tried to catch it, but...there was no way this puck could be stopped. Bombay was a mix of enforcer and scorer. It was an interesting combination. By the time practice was over, everyone was curious as to what Bombay really was.

"Alright, team, bring it in! That was a hell of a practice. Now if Bombay would do the honors of revealing who Bombay really is..." Orion trailed off with a half grin on his face.

"Fine." Bombay removed the helmet and the Ducks were shocked to see a long red and gold plait fall out. Bombay's face was cherubically shaped, with large green-blue-grey eyes framed with dark lashes and a tiny nose over pink lips. Bombay was a girl. "Hello. My name is Elyjah Bombay."

The Ducks were still in shock. Then, for some reason, Charlie started laughing. "Ely, good to see you again. How ya been?" he asked, moving to embrace the new girl. She looked at him in shock then laughed along with him.

She grinned. "Good as could be expected, I guess, 'Lie. How 'bout you?" she returned, hugging him fiercely. "Been years, huh?"

"Yea, three years since the Games. I'm good. How'd you do in them, by the way?"

"Silver singles and gold doubles in figure, and gold in soccer. So, who's everybody else?" she asked, turning out of the hug and facing the team.

"Hi! I'm Julie Gaffney." she put out her hand and Elyjah shook it. "Nice to meet you." That seemed to break the ice.

"Pleasure to meet you, ma'am. I'm Dwanye Robinson." Dwanye gave her a charming grin and squeezed her hand.

Elyjah laughed. "Ma'am? Dwanye, I'm probably younger than you. After all, I've just turned sixteen!" she laughed again. Dwanye joined in the laughter.

"Greetings. Welcome to Eden Hall. Lester Averman." Averman shook her hand.

"Welcome to the Ducks. I'm Adam Banks." Adam smiled at her.

"Russ Tyler, welcome!" Russ grabbed her hand. "You gotta teach me your shot!" Elyjah nodded with a grin.

"Only if you teach me yours." she replied.

"Connie Moreau, it's nice to meet you." she shook the new girl's hand and gestured to another boy.

"Yea, yea. I'm Guy Germaine. It's a pleasure to meet you." He grinned at her.

"Hello. I'm Luis Mendoza." He smiled winningly at her.

"Greg Goldberg, goalie. Nice to meet you." Goldberg offered her a small grin.

"Ken Wu. Fellow figure skater." He shook her hand.

"Fulton Reed. Bash Brother. Nice shoulder you got." He grinned at her.

"Portman. Fellow Bash Brother. And I agree with Fulton." He stared at her then offered a slight smile.

"And I'm Coach Ted Orion. I hope you live up to what your uncle said." He offered his hand and Elyjah shook it.

"I hope this is more than what Uncle Gordy said it would be. I'm really happy to be on the team." she said, unclasping his hand. "So, who'm I rooming with?"

"Ah...well. You'll be rooming with Fulton and Portman for the time being." Orion said, looking a bit uncomfortable. "They have the biggest room and they're the only ones that the Dean didn't mind you sharing a room with."

Elyjah looked perplexed. "Huh? I mean, any particular reason?" she waited for a reason.

"Yea," Portman started, looking furious, "It's because we're gay. And if you have a problem with it - " he was unable to finish before Elyjah grinned in happiness.

"You and Fulton are gay? Trust me, I have absolutely no problem what so ever. I had several gay and lesbian friends back in New Orleans. I am totally fine with it. Trust me. So, when do I move in?" she finished, the gleefulness shining in her sea colored eyes. The grin she wore was one of pure and true happiness. Orion looked a little bit relieved that there would be no problem with the three new roommates.

"Well, Elyjah, if you want you can move in right after we change. How 'bout it?" Fulton asked, cautiously glancing at Portman, who was still regarding her with his eyes.

Portman sighed and held out his hand. "Yea, we'll help you." he said as Elyjah grasped it. "You weren't lying about...?"

"Oh gods no! I don't care that y'all are gay. People's sexuality is their own to choose. I have no right to interfere. Besides," she added, shooting a grin at the two enforcers, "it's gay people that make the world an interesting place, I always say." Charlie grinned and clasped her shoulder, not noticing the swift flash of pain that shot through her eyes.

"You are one in a million, Ely, I swear." he said.

"Just one question." Fulton spoke up. "What kind of music do you like?"

She grinned. "Almost anything, so long as it's loud!" Everyone took it as a good omen when Fulton and Portman smiled back at her.

"Alright, team, locker room. Get changed and get out of here!" Orion burst. An array of comments flew by and the team trooped to the locker room.

The locker room. The place that Elyjah didn't want to go. She didn't want the team to feel sorry for her; her body still covered in bruises from the last fight that she and her step-father, Cris, had gotten into. 'Christ,' she thought, 'I don't need this.' She took a deep breath as she opened her locker and stripped out of her sweaty jersey, pads and undershirt. She didn't have to wait long for the reaction. She unconsciously rubbed at the long, white scar that ran diagonally from her right shoulder blade to the middle of her back.

"Elyjah? What the hell happened?" Figures. Charlie would be the first to notice the dark smudges and scars on her normally tan skin. And he looked ready to kill.

"Ah, it's nothing. Just got into it with an old ex-boyfriend and my step-father. No biggie." she said, carefully removing her leg pads - to reveal a large ACE bandage on her left knee. She kept her eyes on the ground. as she unwrapped it, revealing a large dark bruise on her swelled knee. "Don't worry about it, ok? I'm fine." she added, bending and unbending her knee.

"Step-father? What - when - don't tell me not to worry about it, Elyjah." Charlie said evenly, looking at the smaller girl. "Why'd he do this?"

Elyjah groaned and blew her bangs from her eyes. "Why d'ya think, Charlie? He didn't want me to go here, ok? This was his way of telling me. And before you even ask, yea. My parents are both dead. My daddy died four years ago and my mom died six months ago. Cris, the asshole from hell, has been beating me even since. I learned not to care after the first few. 'Sides, they'll heal and I won't have to worry about getting another round." She looked up and saw most of the Ducks looking at her with different degrees of shock and horror. "Yea, he beat me. So what? I don't care anymore." She said tiredly. "I'm gonna be staying with Uncle Gordy for the holidays from now on. Since he 'disowned' me. Like I care." She eased herself up and looked at Charlie.

"He beat you? But, why? I mean, how could he?" He asked, mind still reeling over the fact of her story.

"He beat me just because he could. It doesn't matter anymore. I'm here and he's in Louisiana. I don't have to worry about him anymore." she replied.

"Oh. I see. We need to talk, 'ly." Was Charlie's only answer. Elyjah nodded.

"Okay. Whatever you say, 'lie." She finished undressing and pulled on a pair of sweats and an oversized soccer tee-shirt. "I'm ready, guys. Let's go move!" The two Bash Brothers glanced at each other before quickly getting undressed and redressed into normal clothes.

"Where's all your stuff?" Portman asked, shouldering his hockey bag and following Elyjah out of the locker room. Fulton walked out after them with Charlie close on his heels.

"I think they put all of it in the players' hallway, first floor. But I warn you, it's a lot of stuff so be prepared." she said, leading the way to the dorm rooms. "I brought practically everything with me that I couldn't store at Uncle Gordy's place. You are forewarned, ok?" she joked, trying to get back to her normal style of happy-go-lucky. It wasn't working like she had hoped. They arrived at the dorms within a few minutes and began grabbing her luggage.