A/N: Okay, okay, okay! Now, first off, Julie gets the long-anticipated beating she deserves. And secondly, I'm leading off this chapter with a selection from a piece of my own poetry, and I'm a bit nervous about how it'll be recieved. It's not the whole poem, because the thing is too long. (Funny, it seems to fit more with SIDBIM and IWMYFB, donnit?)
****
"Might as Well, Part Sixteen"
["I'm a loser, if this life is a game/ Too well-acquainted with loss and pain./ If I could save you, I'd do it in a heartbeat/ But I'm fallin' and I won't land on my feet.
Someone...help me...
I'm lost and I can't see, help me/ I'm hurting and I can't stop, help me/ I'm living and I can't die, help me/I'm dying and I can't live."
--from "42103; Help Me" by D.L. SchizoAuthoress]
For the second time in the space of a few months, the Mighty Ducks--feeling not-so-mighty at the moment--were facing down the board of school directors. A few of the alumni looked as though Christmas had come early; the smiles on their faces were very smug and self-satisfied. It seemed as though they would be getting what they had wanted earlier: to expel this rag-tag bunch of rink-rats from their prestigious halls of private education.
Weeks of inquiry and investigation had revealed nothing, had done nothing but set the Ducks against them. Julie Gaffney talked, hatefully and without restraint, about how certain members of the junior varsity would corrupt the idyll of Eden Hall. And Julie was standing on the other side of the room, looking just as self-assured and pleased with herself as the alumni. Coach Orion stood with his Ducks, looking just as rebellious as the rest of them.
"Ted Orion," the chairman of the board said formally, "it has come to the attentions of the Eden Hall administration that you have removed Julie Gaffney from the junior varsity roster. You are aware that by your actions, you have violated the terms of our...contract with this young lady?"
"Sir, I gave the recommendation to the Varsity coach that Ms. Gaffney be considered for second-string Varsity goalie. If she was not taken onto the team, you should be questioning Coach Wilson. It was his decision." Coach Orion replied calmly.
"It would seem," spoke up a woman on the board, "based on the information gathered, that Ms. Gaffney has moral issues needed to be taken under consideration." The woman unfolded a pair of thin reading glasses and picked up the paper which lay before her. After consulting it, she said quietly, "We are told that two players on the junior varsity are...open homosexuals?"
Fulton answered, in a soft but clear voice, "Yes. That would be myself and Dean Portman."
The woman nodded. "Ms. Gaffney objects to being in contact with you. She states that your presence on the team is detrimental to the moral standards of the school."
"And I agree with her," another alumnus muttered.
"Please make your point quickly, Mrs. Sherbistoff," requested the chairman, sensing controversy. Mrs. Sherbistoff nodded curtly.
"Now, the course of action that my collegues would like to see taken is simple. Fulton Reed and Dean Portman would be expelled from Eden Hall--"
"What for?" Charlie demanded. The other Ducks echoed the question, and Ted Orion, looking outraged, snapped,
"You can't do that!"
Mrs. Sherbistoff held up a hand for silence. "Please. If I may finish uninterrupted?" She cleared her throat and continued, "...expelled from Eden Hall for violence against other students, for which they were previously punished with Saturday detention, a punishment that they flouted by leaving the campus entirely. Expulsion automatically voids scholarships. Julie Gaffney would be reinstated as first-string JV goalie, upholding the conditions of her scholarship; which are to play hockey for Eden Hall and maintain a passing GPA."
Adam spoke up suddenly. "You expel them, you expel all of us." Every eye in the room turned toward him. Adam looked very pale, but very determined. He said coldly, "We'll all find ways to get expelled if you go through with this. It's underhanded and wrong and manipulative. The only Duck you'll have is 'Ms. Gaffney'."
"Yeah," Guy said, "and then we'll tell everyone what you did."
"Your reputation as a school board and as individuals will be ruined." Connie added. She looked at Julie and smiled proudly. They had once been friends, but that didn't matter at the moment. All that mattered was standing up for their individual beliefs. The line had been drawn, and now they stood on opposite sides.
One of the men on the board laughed suddenly. "Who would believe /you/?"
"I will."
The voice had come from the doorway. A strange woman stood there, leaning one arm against the doorframe and keeping back the enraged secretary who was softly and insistently telling her that she had to leave. Thick black hair tumbled helter-skelter around her sharp, angular face, and her hazel eyes were hard and cold as ice.
"Who are you?" The chairman demanded. The woman smiled and revealed an ID badge hanging around her neck. She stepped forward, the heels of her black pumps clicking authoritatively on the hardwood floor, holding out the plastic card for them to see.
"Phoebe de los Fuegos, reporter for the 'Minneapolis Star-Tribune'." She stopped short of the table and produced a steno pad and mechanical pencil. "I was alerted about these proceedings and smelled a story. Follow-up to the 'Minnesota Miracle' and the Goodwill Games, as it were. Instead," and here Phoebe paused to smile wider, flashing teeth reminiscent of fangs, "I find a chance to expose the crooked dealings of Eden Hall's Board of Directors."
****
"Oh. My. God." Averman breathed, heaving a sigh of relief as they left the office. "I would've dropped dead from the frickin' stress if all that macho posturing hadn't stopped." Ken shoved his shoulder playfully and laughed.
"What the hell are you talking about, Averman?"
Averman pushed Ken back and snapped, "Oh, and I suppose you suffer from temporary deafness? 'We're gonna expel the Bash Brothers because we can!' and 'We're gonna get ourselves expelled if you do, ha ha!' You're telling me that none of that shit /worried/ you?"
"Nah," Ken grinned, stuck his hands in his pockets, and stated airily, "Got a whole pile of academic scholarship offers for places in California, just sittin' in my room back home."
"Lucky you."
****
"Feebs, what the hell...?" was about the only coherent thing that got through the complicated pathway from Fulton's brain to his mouth. The twenty-year-old woman smirked insolently and he knew that she was refusing to answer him. Finally, he managed to ask, "What the hell are you doing here?"
"I'm an intern at the Star-Tribune." Phoebe responded shortly. She motioned for Fulton and Dean to follow her outside. Once they had stepped onto the thick green lawn, she explained further, "They really sent me over here for an article on some honor-roll student contributing a shitload of time down at one of the local homeless shelter...a human interests piece or something. The guy had to reschedule, and so I was sitting outside the Dean's office waiting to use the phone..."
"Let me guess, you heard Fulton's name mentioned and decided to come to his rescue," Dean said with a grin. Fulton punched him in the back. Hard.
Phoebe stifled a laugh at their actions. "Kid, if I didn't know you would kill me for saying it, I might call the two a' you cute. As it is, let's settle for 'ya look good together,' all right?"
"I love you, too, Feebs." Fulton deadpanned.
The three of them continued to the gates, where Phoebe's ride would be waiting for her. Phoebe was often choking back giggles over something Dean did or said, but mostly because of what Fulton did in response to those things. The fact that Dean was her little brother's boyfriend needed no explaining; she took it at face value. And at face value, Fulton was the happiest that she had ever seen him get. There were no complaints voiced by her.
This was not the case with the person who had been following them. Julie, bitter over her defeat at the hands of a bunch of 'queer lovers' and angry about her loss of face in front of the alumni, threw caution to the wind once she saw them nearing the gates and shouted, "Hey, you! Don't think that this is over yet! I'll get you unnatural freaks out of this school if it's the last thing I do!"
Fulton, Dean, and Phoebe froze. Dean clenched his teeth and firmly reminded himself that she was a girl, a much smaller and more delicate human being than he was, and he had the unfair advantages of height, muscle, and fight experience on his side. 'If I hit her, I'll just be expelled and she'll get what she wants.'
Fulton grabbed Phoebe's arm and tried to restrain her, but it was like trying to hold onto a wisp of tornado. She shook free from him and turned, slowly, deliberately, to face the teenage girl. There was innate menace in everything about her as she took a calculated single step forward.
"Get my brother and his boyfriend kicked out, and I'll be kicking you all the way back to Maine, you ugly little hussy. [1] I don't mind losing a boot or two up your self-righteous ass."
"You're all talk," Julie sneered, stomping toward the woman. She continued, "You'll slander me and talk trash, but you won't do a thing to me."
"If you think that I'd waste newsprint and risk my job printing /libel/ about your sorry self, you got another think comin', young lady." Phoebe suddenly grabbed Julie by the front of her shirt and snarled, "I can back up every damn thing I say."
She released the girl and shoved her back into one of the stone columns in the arch framing the main gateway. Julie shrieked in outrage at this rough treatment and flung herself at Phoebe. Neatly sidestepping the move, Phoebe hit Julie with a right cross in the side of the face.
"Fulton, shouldn't we..." Dean began.
Fulton cut him off. "Dude. Do you value your life and limbs?"
"Naturally."
"Then don't interfere when Feebs is kicking ass for your benefit."
Julie had a handful of Phoebe's hair and was attempting to claw at the woman's eyes with her free hand. Phoebe laughed in her face and hissed, a credible imitation of cat. Then she punched Julie in the stomach so hard that Dean winced just watching it happen. As Julie doubled over, eyes watering from the pain, choking for breath, Phoebe tripped her.
Turning to the boys, Phoebe softly said, "You're welcome." Fulton nodded. She looked down at Julie in disgust. "You're pitiful, you loud-mouthed bitch. I get word that you're still givin' people grief over what isn't any of your business, and you'll get more pain your way."
She reached out and shook Dean's hand, murmuring, "Take care of my kid brother," and they all went their seperate ways.
~~To be continued...~~
[1] Fulton wrote home during the Goodwill Games, okay? That's how she knows that Julie's from Maine.
A/N: One chapter left! Oh my goodness, it's almost over!
****
"Might as Well, Part Sixteen"
["I'm a loser, if this life is a game/ Too well-acquainted with loss and pain./ If I could save you, I'd do it in a heartbeat/ But I'm fallin' and I won't land on my feet.
Someone...help me...
I'm lost and I can't see, help me/ I'm hurting and I can't stop, help me/ I'm living and I can't die, help me/I'm dying and I can't live."
--from "42103; Help Me" by D.L. SchizoAuthoress]
For the second time in the space of a few months, the Mighty Ducks--feeling not-so-mighty at the moment--were facing down the board of school directors. A few of the alumni looked as though Christmas had come early; the smiles on their faces were very smug and self-satisfied. It seemed as though they would be getting what they had wanted earlier: to expel this rag-tag bunch of rink-rats from their prestigious halls of private education.
Weeks of inquiry and investigation had revealed nothing, had done nothing but set the Ducks against them. Julie Gaffney talked, hatefully and without restraint, about how certain members of the junior varsity would corrupt the idyll of Eden Hall. And Julie was standing on the other side of the room, looking just as self-assured and pleased with herself as the alumni. Coach Orion stood with his Ducks, looking just as rebellious as the rest of them.
"Ted Orion," the chairman of the board said formally, "it has come to the attentions of the Eden Hall administration that you have removed Julie Gaffney from the junior varsity roster. You are aware that by your actions, you have violated the terms of our...contract with this young lady?"
"Sir, I gave the recommendation to the Varsity coach that Ms. Gaffney be considered for second-string Varsity goalie. If she was not taken onto the team, you should be questioning Coach Wilson. It was his decision." Coach Orion replied calmly.
"It would seem," spoke up a woman on the board, "based on the information gathered, that Ms. Gaffney has moral issues needed to be taken under consideration." The woman unfolded a pair of thin reading glasses and picked up the paper which lay before her. After consulting it, she said quietly, "We are told that two players on the junior varsity are...open homosexuals?"
Fulton answered, in a soft but clear voice, "Yes. That would be myself and Dean Portman."
The woman nodded. "Ms. Gaffney objects to being in contact with you. She states that your presence on the team is detrimental to the moral standards of the school."
"And I agree with her," another alumnus muttered.
"Please make your point quickly, Mrs. Sherbistoff," requested the chairman, sensing controversy. Mrs. Sherbistoff nodded curtly.
"Now, the course of action that my collegues would like to see taken is simple. Fulton Reed and Dean Portman would be expelled from Eden Hall--"
"What for?" Charlie demanded. The other Ducks echoed the question, and Ted Orion, looking outraged, snapped,
"You can't do that!"
Mrs. Sherbistoff held up a hand for silence. "Please. If I may finish uninterrupted?" She cleared her throat and continued, "...expelled from Eden Hall for violence against other students, for which they were previously punished with Saturday detention, a punishment that they flouted by leaving the campus entirely. Expulsion automatically voids scholarships. Julie Gaffney would be reinstated as first-string JV goalie, upholding the conditions of her scholarship; which are to play hockey for Eden Hall and maintain a passing GPA."
Adam spoke up suddenly. "You expel them, you expel all of us." Every eye in the room turned toward him. Adam looked very pale, but very determined. He said coldly, "We'll all find ways to get expelled if you go through with this. It's underhanded and wrong and manipulative. The only Duck you'll have is 'Ms. Gaffney'."
"Yeah," Guy said, "and then we'll tell everyone what you did."
"Your reputation as a school board and as individuals will be ruined." Connie added. She looked at Julie and smiled proudly. They had once been friends, but that didn't matter at the moment. All that mattered was standing up for their individual beliefs. The line had been drawn, and now they stood on opposite sides.
One of the men on the board laughed suddenly. "Who would believe /you/?"
"I will."
The voice had come from the doorway. A strange woman stood there, leaning one arm against the doorframe and keeping back the enraged secretary who was softly and insistently telling her that she had to leave. Thick black hair tumbled helter-skelter around her sharp, angular face, and her hazel eyes were hard and cold as ice.
"Who are you?" The chairman demanded. The woman smiled and revealed an ID badge hanging around her neck. She stepped forward, the heels of her black pumps clicking authoritatively on the hardwood floor, holding out the plastic card for them to see.
"Phoebe de los Fuegos, reporter for the 'Minneapolis Star-Tribune'." She stopped short of the table and produced a steno pad and mechanical pencil. "I was alerted about these proceedings and smelled a story. Follow-up to the 'Minnesota Miracle' and the Goodwill Games, as it were. Instead," and here Phoebe paused to smile wider, flashing teeth reminiscent of fangs, "I find a chance to expose the crooked dealings of Eden Hall's Board of Directors."
****
"Oh. My. God." Averman breathed, heaving a sigh of relief as they left the office. "I would've dropped dead from the frickin' stress if all that macho posturing hadn't stopped." Ken shoved his shoulder playfully and laughed.
"What the hell are you talking about, Averman?"
Averman pushed Ken back and snapped, "Oh, and I suppose you suffer from temporary deafness? 'We're gonna expel the Bash Brothers because we can!' and 'We're gonna get ourselves expelled if you do, ha ha!' You're telling me that none of that shit /worried/ you?"
"Nah," Ken grinned, stuck his hands in his pockets, and stated airily, "Got a whole pile of academic scholarship offers for places in California, just sittin' in my room back home."
"Lucky you."
****
"Feebs, what the hell...?" was about the only coherent thing that got through the complicated pathway from Fulton's brain to his mouth. The twenty-year-old woman smirked insolently and he knew that she was refusing to answer him. Finally, he managed to ask, "What the hell are you doing here?"
"I'm an intern at the Star-Tribune." Phoebe responded shortly. She motioned for Fulton and Dean to follow her outside. Once they had stepped onto the thick green lawn, she explained further, "They really sent me over here for an article on some honor-roll student contributing a shitload of time down at one of the local homeless shelter...a human interests piece or something. The guy had to reschedule, and so I was sitting outside the Dean's office waiting to use the phone..."
"Let me guess, you heard Fulton's name mentioned and decided to come to his rescue," Dean said with a grin. Fulton punched him in the back. Hard.
Phoebe stifled a laugh at their actions. "Kid, if I didn't know you would kill me for saying it, I might call the two a' you cute. As it is, let's settle for 'ya look good together,' all right?"
"I love you, too, Feebs." Fulton deadpanned.
The three of them continued to the gates, where Phoebe's ride would be waiting for her. Phoebe was often choking back giggles over something Dean did or said, but mostly because of what Fulton did in response to those things. The fact that Dean was her little brother's boyfriend needed no explaining; she took it at face value. And at face value, Fulton was the happiest that she had ever seen him get. There were no complaints voiced by her.
This was not the case with the person who had been following them. Julie, bitter over her defeat at the hands of a bunch of 'queer lovers' and angry about her loss of face in front of the alumni, threw caution to the wind once she saw them nearing the gates and shouted, "Hey, you! Don't think that this is over yet! I'll get you unnatural freaks out of this school if it's the last thing I do!"
Fulton, Dean, and Phoebe froze. Dean clenched his teeth and firmly reminded himself that she was a girl, a much smaller and more delicate human being than he was, and he had the unfair advantages of height, muscle, and fight experience on his side. 'If I hit her, I'll just be expelled and she'll get what she wants.'
Fulton grabbed Phoebe's arm and tried to restrain her, but it was like trying to hold onto a wisp of tornado. She shook free from him and turned, slowly, deliberately, to face the teenage girl. There was innate menace in everything about her as she took a calculated single step forward.
"Get my brother and his boyfriend kicked out, and I'll be kicking you all the way back to Maine, you ugly little hussy. [1] I don't mind losing a boot or two up your self-righteous ass."
"You're all talk," Julie sneered, stomping toward the woman. She continued, "You'll slander me and talk trash, but you won't do a thing to me."
"If you think that I'd waste newsprint and risk my job printing /libel/ about your sorry self, you got another think comin', young lady." Phoebe suddenly grabbed Julie by the front of her shirt and snarled, "I can back up every damn thing I say."
She released the girl and shoved her back into one of the stone columns in the arch framing the main gateway. Julie shrieked in outrage at this rough treatment and flung herself at Phoebe. Neatly sidestepping the move, Phoebe hit Julie with a right cross in the side of the face.
"Fulton, shouldn't we..." Dean began.
Fulton cut him off. "Dude. Do you value your life and limbs?"
"Naturally."
"Then don't interfere when Feebs is kicking ass for your benefit."
Julie had a handful of Phoebe's hair and was attempting to claw at the woman's eyes with her free hand. Phoebe laughed in her face and hissed, a credible imitation of cat. Then she punched Julie in the stomach so hard that Dean winced just watching it happen. As Julie doubled over, eyes watering from the pain, choking for breath, Phoebe tripped her.
Turning to the boys, Phoebe softly said, "You're welcome." Fulton nodded. She looked down at Julie in disgust. "You're pitiful, you loud-mouthed bitch. I get word that you're still givin' people grief over what isn't any of your business, and you'll get more pain your way."
She reached out and shook Dean's hand, murmuring, "Take care of my kid brother," and they all went their seperate ways.
~~To be continued...~~
[1] Fulton wrote home during the Goodwill Games, okay? That's how she knows that Julie's from Maine.
A/N: One chapter left! Oh my goodness, it's almost over!
