A/N: This is just a one shot based off that one scene from Mighty Ducks 2, and it's a bit of an AU, as some things got switched around intentionally. This came to mind as I was watching D2, particularly that moment when Gunnar and Sandersson went to gang up on Connie while she was already stuck in the corner; what if Coach Bombay held Dwayne back from going after the Icelandics looking to attack Connie? Not that the boys don't still stick up for her, but Bombay keeps them from trying to play dirtier than the Vikings. It'll all be in Connie's point of view.

Rated T for some minor cursing.

Chivalry Isn't Dead:

"Connie, be careful! They're gunning for you," Charlie warned, his voice filled with worry.

Connie Moraeu fought the urgency to roll her eyes. From the moment she was young, people thought of her as delicate. She grew up with an older sister, an older brother, and a little brother. If it weren't for her sister, she probably wouldn't have a sense of what it was like being a "girl." Her mom tried putting her in dance like Andrea, but the moment her feet were placed in those pointed-toe ballet shoes, she decided she'd much rather die than wear a tutu. She was okay with wearing makeup, wearing her hair long, and dressing nicely in skirts and blouses. But she preferred playing ice hockey with her big pest of a brother, Logan, in the back yard, and them roughing it up with their little pest Cody. Even their dad, before he passed away in the auto wreck, would get in on it. And she'd been worried she wouldn't be allowed to play with the boys in District 5 - it was more common to find boys playing ice hockey, the Hawks being all boys. So when the District 5 boys accepted her, she'd gladly taken it. She always got on better with the boys - there wasn't an ounce of petty drama of which girl had the better outfit, which girl was dating which boy. It was all relaxed, carefree, shooting the breeze, and the boys didn't think of her as weak - they respected her once they saw her play. Maybe that was why she fell for Guy as she did - he was a gentle soul, kind and caring and happy-go-lucky and always making her laugh, always being the first in the group to speak up for her if someone dared to make fun of her. And while she loved and appreciated Charlie for being worried, right now, she only cared about putting those Iceland bullies in line. She wanted to make them think twice before they doubted her or Julie.

"Don't worry about me. I'll be fine!" she said, trying her best to keep the whine out of her voice but knew she was unsuccessful. She skated onto the ice and put her helmet on for the swap. She took her position in the center, staring down Gunnar, who glowered at her viscously behind his helmet. She glowered back just as fiercely, clenching her jaw.

She got the puck first, but just as soon as she got it, Gunnar shoved her to the ground fiercely. She gritted her teeth. She'd taken being shoved around by her brother for years. She could almost hear Logan's mocking voice saying, Come on, little sister! Man up! Is that all you got? Or are you scared you'd break a nail?

Her older brother could be an asshole. But he taught her how to fight back. And right now, Gunnar reminded her of every bully who made her life miserable: The Hawks players, Sheila Nelson, Lori Lawson, Gina Jacobs, and Wendy Vance and their clique of elementary school mean girls who wore too much eye makeup and giggled and made fun of her for smelling like sweat all the time, Bryan Faulkner who one time threw rocks at her and Averman on the playground, Sam Wood who often tripped Charlie in the hallway and shoved his books off his desk, the list went on. She hated Gunnar; she hated him for no other reason than that he hated her: they were on opposing sides. And that goon of a coach of theirs who went after Bombay - the closest person she had to a dad in years since her dad died - was just as bad; the Dentist was a bully. And bullies like Gunnar needed to be taught a lesson.

Oh no, you don't! she thought fiercely, getting back up and shaking it off, thinking how proud her big brother would be if he were watching. If only Logan could see his baby sister now.

She got the puck away from Gunnar, but it slid into the wall, stuck. She raced toward it, trying to free it, but she turned to see Gunnar and Sanderson racing just as quickly toward her. She felt a chill going through her, her heart pounding in her chest, sweat building on the back of her neck as she felt she was going white. They weren't going to do what she thought they were! No way!

Sure, she could take playing rough. But there was a little bit of rough play and being a dick. She'd seen Tammy get shoved to the ground by those Hawks in their final game. But she had never experienced this kind of physical bullying from anyone other than her stupid brother, and even he wasn't too rough; he'd gotten an earful from their mom when he one time shoved her so hard her head hit the coffee table, and she needed to go to the hospital. Logan never did it again and still apologizes for it to this day. But Gunnar and Sanderson? These animals were bigger than the Hawks and her brother. She wouldn't be able to get out of this corner. No way.

She closed her eyes and felt the impact as her back slammed into the glass. And as if it weren't enough, Gunnar and Sanderson were slamming her several more times into the glass wall, pounding into her and punching her in the stomach, and even with all of her protective padding, it hurt. She fought to keep her tears at bay. She didn't want to cry. Crying was a weakness in their eyes. But she was scared, scared that they'd hurt her like they hurt Adam. She went wild when one of them reached his hand out and grabbed her wrist. She started screaming for Guy, Charlie, Coach, anyone to get it to stop when her head slammed into the glass again, and she heard the ref's whistle cut shrilly through the air.

"TIME OUT!" she heard Bombay yell as the refs hauled Gunnar and Sanderson away from her, and she slumped against the wall, falling, gasping for air against the tightness in her chest as her eyes burned. She saw the outline of Bombay coming over, saw Charlie, Julie, Ken, and Portman struggling to hold Fulton, Guy, and Dwayne back, who looked about ready to murder Gunnar and Sanderson.

Coach came into focus, blue eyes wide with worry, as he knelt in front of her and took her helmet off. "Connie? Honey, can you hear me?"

Connie nodded. "Yeah."

"Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," she whimpered. "Just a little scared, that's all." Hot tears filled her eyes, and she quickly looked away. She had no right to cry. Compared to Adam, she wasn't hurt at all. But she felt like sobbing. She knew she was as white as she felt, and her back and head were starting to ache; despite all the padding protecting her, she could feel her back already bruising. Despite how minor the aches and pains were, she was still terrified, more terrified than she'd ever been in her life.

Coach must've heard her sniffling or seen the tears falling, because he tucked a stray hair behind her ear before brushing his fingers over her cheek, wiping her eyes. "Easy, sweetheart," he whispered, his voice soft, caring, sympathetic, "it's okay now. You're safe. They're not gonna hurt you anymore."

"I'm okay," she sobbed, trying to wipe away her tears. But more just kept coming. She hoped maybe if she said it, she could convince herself more than Coach, but Coach wasn't buying it. He looked at her the same way he'd look whenever he did a cross-examination in court, that same intensity blazing in his blue eyes, which made them kind and gentle one moment and fierce with anger in the next. She couldn't ever fool him. Nobody could.

Bombay sighed. "Come on, let's get you off the ice." He rose to his feet and held out his hand, and she took it, allowing him to pull her up and wrap an arm around her. He held her close the whole time as if shielding her, and when they got back behind the wall, she dove into Guy's arms as he held her tightly.

"It's okay, baby," he whispered, kissing her temple.

"Connie, are you okay?" Averman asked, for once not making a joke.

"Cons?" Julie whispered, reaching over to rub a hand through her hair.

"I . . . I thought they were gonna kill me!" Connie sobbed, more tears stinging on her cheeks as Guy sat her down, never once leaving her side as Bombay sat beside her.

"Are you sore at all?" Adam asked, thrusting her some red Gatorade.

She opened the bottle and took a sip. The fruit punch-flavored beverage calmed her down, and she felt some color coming back into her cheeks. But still, her heart pounded in her chest as she watched Gunnar and Sanderson bitterly, the Vikings all laughing. It caused more tears to fall from her eyes as she wiped them impatiently. She felt Charlie leaning a hand on her shoulder.

"Connie, you don't have to be tough for all of us. We saw what it looked like," Charlie told her soothingly as the other boys glared fiercely at the Vikings.

"Look at 'em all smiling," snarled Dwayne angrily.

"Yeah, real charming!" spat Jesse.

"Tell me about it," commented Goldberg disgustedly. Even quiet Ken was shaking his head, Russ too. And Julie looked angrier than Connie had ever seen her. Luis was cussing them out in Spanish under his breath, using a few dirty words that would get him kicked right out of school.

Fulton and Portman looked madder than ever, cussing the Vikings out and calling them every dirty word they could come up with. Despite their reputations as the Bash Brothers, Connie knew Fulton and Dean were all heart once you got to know them; Fulton fiercely stood up for them whenever the Hawks gave them grief and saved their necks more times than Connie could count, and she knew Fulton was mad that this happened, but he was even madder that Coach had held him and the other boys back from doing anything. Guy stood up and walked over to the wall.

"HEY!" he yelled. "Meatheads! I wanna talk to you!"

Gunnar and Sanderson skated over but kept their distance, still smirking.

"Yeah, real nice way to treat someone!" Guy snapped. "But that's my girlfriend you were ganging up on there. You better learn some respect, because she can skate circles around you on your best day!"

"He's right; that's no way to treat a lady," Dwayne said angrily.

"If you guys had a shred of decency, you would've stopped. You're on our home turf. Learn some manners," Jesse said coldly. "Just 'cause you're away from your home country and your coach thinks he's a big shot doesn't mean you get to be a pain in the ass. So knock it off!"

Connie felt herself blushing deeply. She had no problem sticking up for herself; she'd been doing it her whole life dealing with her brothers and bullies. But it felt nice to hear the boys taking up for her and telling the Icelandics to back off and butt out.

"I thought this was a free country," Gunnar said smugly.

"Eat shit!" snarled Fulton as the two goons skated off, still smirking.

"This isn't a hockey game, it's a circus!" Bombay said angrily. "I'm calling a team meeting. Everyone to the change room now."

The Ducks all nodded, agreeing. However, Connie blushed deeper as Guy wrapped an arm around her again. She felt Bombay stepping in beside her.

"Don't mind them, Connie," Coach whispered. "Don't think on it for one minute. You're good enough."

Connie nodded, smiling through her tears. "I know that. I have you for a coach."

Bombay smiled and ruffled her hair before kissing her on the top of the head like he sometimes did with Charlie and Adam, and Connie felt her face go redder. She guessed maybe, there was room in this world for decency and chivalry after all.

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