Chapter 2: Meet The Varsity Barbarians

The Ducks all sat in the school's gymnasium, waiting for Deans Donald and Melissa Kentinsworth to begin their welcoming speeches. As the Ducks sat in the bleachers that surrounded the school's basketball court, they couldn't help looking around them, especially as they sat in their school uniforms: pressed white shirts or different-colored polos, orange-and-black neckties, pressed, pleated skirts, and khaki pants. For Teddi, the uniform was a constant source of discomfort; the inability to wear pants to school was a restriction she found hard to bear. She didn't mind skirts, but the lack of choice made her feel a sense of control was being imposed on her. As she looked at Lauren, who sat there in a black polo, a pleated orange-and-black plaid skirt, and an orange cardigan, her warrior princess cape draped over her shoulders, she could tell that the role player was equally uncomfortable, judging from how she hunched her shoulders inward and crossed her arms over her chest.

Despite their discomfort, Teddi, Lauren, and the rest of the Ducks understood the school's uniform policy and the need to adhere to it. They acknowledged that until they earned their lettermen jackets and sports uniforms, the school uniform was a part of their daily lives. While they weren't thrilled about it, they maturely accepted it as a necessary part of their school experience. However, this acceptance didn't prevent a few of them from expressing dissatisfaction and discomfort.

"I wish we didn't have to wear this," Lauren grumbled, her dissatisfaction evident in her voice and posture as she stared down at herself. Her comment sparked a conversation among the Ducks, each sharing their own thoughts and feelings about the uniform policy. Trying to lighten the mood, Maya chimed in with a more positive perspective.

"Lauren, come on, it's not that bad," said Maya, smoothing her hands over her black, pleated skirt and white button-down shirt, which she'd decided to pair with her necktie and her hair was tied into two braids, which were finished off with orange hair bows.

Lauren rolled her eyes. "Sure, you'd say that, Maya. You wear this stuff every day! But not me! It's like being in a Halloween costume you can't get out of."

"It's sexist that we're not allowed to wear pants," Teddi expressed discontent.

"If this were Catholic school, it would be no different," Billy Banks tried to reassure.

"I'm sure most Catholic schools are more evolved than this," Lauren retorted, her frustration evident.

"Look, it's school policy," said Sofi. "You can change after school, and we can wear whatever we want at dinnertime. And on the weekends, we can dress however we like. Think of it like Hogwarts."

"Yeah, Hogwarts without the magic," Teddi said shrewdly.

"Look, it's gonna be okay," Evan said. "Soon enough, we'll be getting our team jerseys because, after orientation, we have tryouts. We're gonna kill it. And you girls know you're gonna dominate all the rest of them."

At that, Teddi smiled. She knew that she was one of the best players on the whole team and could easily skate circles around the boys. Hearing Evan's confidence in her suddenly made her feel a lot better. "Thanks, Ev."

They suddenly heard a series of snickers coming from behind them, and turned their heads to see Donna Jane Kentinsworth, the snobby head cheerleader and daughter of the deans of students, smirking at them. By her side was a boy who looked similar to her: blond, muscled, and cold, green eyes, and he wore what appeared to be a Varsity letterman's jacket in the school's colors.

"Good luck with that," the boy sneered.

"And you are?" Teddi asked, narrowing her eyes at him.

"Alec Kentinsworth, my twin brother," Donna said, speaking for him.

Alec smiled at his sister before addressing the Ducks. "I'm the captain of the Varsity hockey team," he explained. "My sister and I here heard you guys got in on some free ride."

Teddi felt her jaw drop, and looking at Logan, Nick, Sam, Lauren, and Koobler, she knew they were as angry and shocked as she felt. That's what this whole thing was really about. It was about money. Teddi thought for sure that prejudice against those who had less money had died out, or maybe she'd just been stupidly hopeful; she knew her dad had faced discrimination for being "lower-class" due to fatherlessness and being raised by a single mother who couldn't afford to go to college until finally, she saved up just enough and had gotten some financial assistance from the government to attend Minnesota State and finish getting her nursing license. And she'd even seen how goons like Dalton Riley, the son of former Ducks coach and her dad's old high school bully, looked down at her and her friends for having less money, but even so, he didn't bully them for not having money, he bullied them because he thought they were a bunch of losers who couldn't skate or score a goal. To hear someone think of them as "white trash" left an uneasy feeling in her stomach as she shrunk back slightly, especially as she noticed Donna's limited-edition designer sneakers and the overpowering scent of Alec's Polo cologne; she nearly choked on the smell. Sure, she may have occasionally gotten designer items as birthday and Christmas presents from Adam, Julie, Connie, and Guy, but those were what she considered luxuries, not something that she received all the time.

"Free ride?" Sam demanded. "We got in through hard work! How'd you get in here? Mommy and Daddy?"

Alec glowered at him, and his buddy who sat beside him – a huge, muscled, meat-head-looking type with curly dark hair and cold blue eyes, spoke up, "Watch your mouth, Koon."

Sam's face went hot; Teddi could see the reddish tint forming as he prepared to get up from his seat, but he was halted by Logan and Evan. This guy was clearly an enforcer type, built like Quinn Hughes, the star defenseman of the Vancouver Canucks. He wasn't one they wanted to mess around with.

"Easy, Sam," Evan said, gently patting their speedster on the shoulder. Turning to the enforcer, he said, "Hey, let's ease up on the racism, huh?"

"Excuse my friend Stone over here." Even so, Alec rolled his eyes lightly; clearly, he was amused by his enforcer's racist comment. "You Ducks don't belong here. And we're gonna prove to the whole school what a joke you really are when the underclassmen play the upperclassmen at the end of the month."

"What?" asked Nick.

"The annual J.V. versus Varsity exhibition scrimmage," Alec explained coldly. "It's held at both the beginning and the end of each ice hockey season. And when we play you Ducks in that first match, we'll send you losers packing."

"We'll see about that," Teddi said coolly.

"And I know who you are," sneered Alec, eying her up and down. "You're that Conway guy's daughter, right? Heard he settled for teaching instead of going pro. He wasted all that talent, or maybe he wasn't as talented as he thought he was."

Teddi glared at him, and her little brother joined in with her. "Nobody talks about my father!" she hissed as they heard the headmaster clearing his throat, causing them to turn their attention to the fair-haired man standing there in a fully tailored suit and tie; at his side was his wife, the headmistress, looking blonde and elegant in her pearls, blazer, and dress, her golden hair pulled back in a tight bun. They were surrounded by people whom Teddi supposed were on the school board, parents of the students who all wore chic, designer clothes and sat there with their backs ramrod straight and were probably members of the alumni group, people who had country club memberships.

Dean Donald Kentinsworth began his speech with, "Welcome, welcome to another year at Minnetonka Preparatory Academy. Since 1905, Minnetonka Preparatory Academy has been founded on tradition, a long-standing legacy of excellence. And part of that legacy is our ice hockey, roller hockey, soccer, football, basketball, wrestling, swimming, cheerleading, cross country, figure skating, tennis, baseball, softball, beach volleyball, and water polo teams, all under the proud name of the Barbarians. This gives me the greatest pleasure and pride to say that my son, Alec, the captain of our Varsity ice and roller hockey teams, has brought us three consecutive state championship titles, contributing to our overall winning streak of nine consecutive wins."

There came a round of applause at that. Nine consecutive wins? That was more than what Eden Hall had. The fact that these guys beat out Eden Hall showed how good they were, and Teddi suddenly felt a sinking sensation in the pit of her stomach; it made her wish she'd skipped breakfast that morning in the mess hall.

"And I cannot forget my daughter, Donna, who has led our cheerleading squad to victory three years in a row at the state finals," added Dean Kentinsworth, which led to more applause. "But of course, Minnetonka Prep also offers opportunities for the best and the brightest, not just for young athletes but also for those who are academically gifted. This is why Minnetonka Prep has offered full academic scholarships to the Mighty Ducks of District Five. Ducks, will you please rise?"

Teddi and Evan rose to their feet, and the others followed suit. They were greeted with very minimal applause; clearly, a lot of the students here were less than thrilled that they got in. In fact, they received a chorus of "boos" from the Varsity team as well as some of the other sports teams.

"Now, let's settle down with that," Dean Kentinsworth said, though based on his smile. "As I was saying, Minnetonka Prep is honored that the District Five Mighty Ducks have decided to accept this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. I understand that several of your parents are graduates of our long-standing rival, Eden Hall Academy; I can assure you there's no bad blood. But I will tell you all this: the expectation for you all is to have a 'C' average or better; anything less than that is considered academic probation. You will be expected to put in hard work, and I promise, as long as you maintain academic excellence, your time at Minnetonka Prep will determine your outcome; if you have aspirations of getting into the best colleges, the Ivy League will have their eyes on you, especially in your junior and senior years. And without further ado, I hope you all enjoy your first semester here and that you have the most insightful learning experience. You all may head to your first-period class and begin meeting your teachers. Good luck."

Everyone in the room nodded, and the Ducks rose from their seats on the bleachers and began heading toward their first period of the day. Teddi, Lauren, Maya, Evan, Koobler, and Henry had biology for their first period. But looking over at Billy's schedule, she saw that he was mostly filled with AP and honors classes.

"You're not in any classes with any of us?" Teddi demanded.

Billy nodded sheepishly. "My letter said my grades were good enough for me to be in the advanced program."

"Me too," Sofi admitted, not that there was any surprise there. She was always the most overachieving of all of them academically and had the grades for something more advanced. But Teddi couldn't help feeling a little bit of bitterness; it reminded her distinctly of how Sofi and Billy went to different schools than they did for middle school. Because of their parents' money, Sofi and Billy were allowed to go to the local Catholic schools in their area, and those schools expected excellence just as much as this place did.

"You're kidding me!" Evan shook his head. "Well, we're gonna miss you, cake-eater."

Billy smiled. "We'll see you guys at lunch and dinner. And hockey practice. So, you have nothing to worry about."

Teddi grinned at him. "Yeah, you're right." Turning to her friends who were in biology with her, she said, "Come on, we don't wanna keep the teacher waiting." She linked arms with Maya, and together, they walked off to their first period/homeroom.

They found the classroom with relative ease, but the moment they stepped inside, they were greeted by their biology teacher, Dr. Rosenberg, who looked Lauren up and down behind his bespeckled classes.

"Um, I'm sorry, Miss . . .?"

"Gibby," Lauren said, "Lauren Gibby."

"Miss Gibby," the science teacher said, "but that cape you're wearing right now violates the school dress code."

"But I'm wearing the proper uniform," Lauren said, clutching her cape a little tighter around her shoulders. Teddi winced; she knew how overprotective Lauren was over that thing because, for years, it provided her with a sense of safety from school bullies who would tease her all the time. By keeping her back and shoulders covered, nobody had anything to make fun of her for.

"And the cape isn't part of the uniform. Put it away; you can have it back on at the end of the school day."

"But what about freedom of expression?" Lauren questioned. "Is that allowed here?"

"Lauren, give it to me. I'll take care of it," Maya said, extending her hand to take the warrior princess cape from her best friend; she was the only one Lauren ever trusted with it.

Lauren looked like a puppy that had gotten kicked, but she complied, removing her furry cape and handing it over to Maya, who gently folded it and tucked it into her backpack gingerly as if it were something fragile. But Lauren looked extremely uncomfortable, with her back and shoulders exposed, like she'd been stripped of her clothes and forced to walk around the school in her underwear. Teddi reached for the role player's hand and squeezed it gently before they took their seats at the laboratory tables, with Teddi claiming her spot next to Henry, hoping that this would mean that Henry would be her lab partner.

The bell rang, and Dr. Rosenberg began passing out their textbooks and laboratory notebooks, explaining what the expectations were for his class: they would alternate between lab work and regular lectures every other day, and once a month, they would have a laboratory test as well as a routine exam. They were expected to keep clean, detailed, organized laboratory notebooks that would serve as their guide for open notes tests on their lab work, and they were also expected to write several papers throughout the school year. Listening as Dr. Rosenberg made it very clear that no cell phones were allowed and that if they were caught with their phones, they'd receive detention, Teddi got the sense that this guy wasn't going to be easy on them, that he was going to be exceptionally strict if his nitpicking at Lauren for wearing her warrior princess cape around her shoulders was any indication.

When the bell rang, dismissing them, Teddi went to her English class and felt excited. English had always been one of her favorite subjects next to history, and she excelled in reading comprehension. She had that class with Evan, Maya, and Sam with Mrs. Willow, a beady-eyed lady who seemed to have a liking for kittens, as her desk was filled with photographs of various cats she'd ever owned, and she wore quirky, kitschy-looking clothes that could only come from the QVC brand Quacker Factory; nonetheless, she seemed sweet as she explained what her expectations were and that their reading list would consist of Great Expectations (which Teddi and her friends had already read back at District Five Middle School), To Kill a Mockingbird, Fahrenheit 451, and Romeo and Juliet, titles that Teddi was all too familiar with due to her dad being an English teacher; it brought her relief that at least the titles were easy for her to read, and that they wouldn't be forced into reading material like Wuthering Heights, a book that her father often expressed great contempt for due to it being a hate story.

After English was her Algebra class, a class where she, unfortunately, had absolutely no Ducks. And she got the sense that she wouldn't at all like her Algebra teacher, Mr. Peterson, who greeted them all stiffly and made it clear he had little sympathy for any of them. Her last class before lunch was her art class, which she fortunately had with Koobler and Maya, and she felt she'd love her art teacher, Mrs. Woods. After the bell rang, dismissing them from class, Teddi gathered up her backpack, now filled with her new textbooks, and went across the school toward her locker, by her biology class.

"What a day; I feel like it's barely begun," she groaned as she put away her textbooks, her backpack suddenly feeling lighter on her shoulders.

"Tell me about it," commented Logan, who had English for his first period. Teddi was relieved that Logan had history, physical education, and Spanish with her because she was convinced she'd never survive without at least one class with her boyfriend, who was her rock. As they walked along the hallway so they could go to the mess hall, which was a whole separate building on campus like the library, gymnasium, and ice rink, she noticed Lauren getting checked into a locker by Alec Kentinsworth's enforcer, Stone, who just laughed as he watched her fall down; he was joined in by a couple of the cheerleaders, including Donna Jane Kentinsworth. The only one among the cheerleaders not joining in on the laughter was the quiet, redheaded one whom Teddi had seen in the common room on move-in day. Although Teddi didn't know the girl's name, she was grateful that the girl didn't seem amused by Lauren getting shoved.

"Donna, grow up!" the redhead said.

Donna turned and glowered at her. "Need I remind you of your place, Vargas?"

Wait, Vargas, as in the daughter of Hal "The Hammer" Vargas, the new coach? Teddi was surprised, even though she knew Vargas had children; it was part of why he retired and decided to coach at Minnetonka Prep in the first place: He needed to prioritize his family.

"I'm nobody's lapdog!" the cheerleader with the last name Vargas snapped.

Donna sneered at her. "Your daddy may be the J.V. hockey coach, and your brother may be a hot shit center on the ice, but my parents are headmaster and headmistress of this school, honey. Keep in mind that you are still beneath me."

"I'm beneath no one, honey," Vargas sneered back, precisely imitating Donna's nasally voice.

"Oh, I beg to differ! Remember that game you blew? It's a shame you had to settle for cheerleading after that."

Vargas snapped, "Never bring that up!" And she turned on her heel and walked over to Lauren, extending her hand outward. "Are you okay?"

Lauren nodded, accepting the girl's hand. "Thanks."

"Thanks for that," said Teddi, approaching the cheerleader. "Teddi Conway, co-captain of the District Five Mighty Ducks."

"Katie Vargas," Vargas introduced herself.

"So, your dad is Hal 'The Hammer?'" Teddi grinned.

Katie blushed significantly and ducked her head down. "Don't remind me."

"Hey, I get it," Teddi said. "My dad's one of the Minnesota Miracle Kids. Trust me."

"So, you guys are the scholarship kids, right?" Katie said, quirking an eyebrow.

"You could say that," sighed Logan.

"I'm just looking forward to hockey tryouts so I can wipe that smirk off Donna's face," Teddi said bitterly, though upon her saying this, she noticed Katie looked uncomfortable. "What?"

"Good luck trying to get a spot on the hockey team."

"Yeah, we heard what Donna said, but we're pretty confident we'll make it. The Ducks are three-time state champs," said Lauren proudly.

Katie's face went as red as her hair. "You may think that's the case, but don't go in with high expectations."

"I'm sure we're up for the challenge," Teddi said. "Besides, how tough can your dad be?"

"Like I said, don't have high expectations." And with that, Katie ducked her head down and hurried off to the mess hall.