Disclaimer: I do not own the Mighty Ducks. As cool as that would be, I sadly don't :(

He heard the roof access door slam shut behind him, but he didn't look up. Instead, he kept his eyes trained ahead at the town that had adopted him and the others. Some humans accepted the alien ducks, like Phil; others like Klegghorn, er, not so much. But that didn't make a difference now. Not when his best friend, his right-hand man, turned his back on him and became a traitor.

He always thought that he would never see his friend again. They were, after all, on two different worlds and in two difference dimensions. It was hard to imagine any of them getting home now because once they did, Duke knew that he would most likely never see any of his teammates again.

He felt the warmth of someone to his right, leaning on the railing like him. Lifting his eyes ever so slightly, he saw peach colored feathers and fiery red hair to match her personality. Lowering his gaze, he asked, "What are you doing up here? Shouldn't ya be throwin' a party or somethin'? Or at least sayin' 'I told ya so'?"

Mallory turned her head so she could look directly at Duke. "Now why would I do that?"

"Because you were right. Falcone's bad news. And I helped him take the gem."
"But he was caught; he's in jail now."

"So?" Duke said, hatred dripping from his words. "Either way, you were right. Ya can't trust me."

"That's the biggest lie I've ever heard," Mallory said looking back at the skyline. "I can trust you. People change, Duke. Trust me, I know first hand. If anything, I should be apologizing to you."

"Why's that, sweetheart?" Mallory smiled. At least he was calling her sweetheart.

"I guess I own you an explanation why I didn't really trust you."

"It's okay," Duke said, his eyes still staring at the ground below him. "I already know."
"You do?" Mallory asked. Surprise was written all over her face.

"Ya, simple stuff really. You're the military and I'm the thief. You bring in guys like me all the time. There's no need to explain."

"Honestly, that's just a cover-up for the real reason," she said with a slight chuckle. "But, let me just explain."

"Okay, just don't expect me to say anything."

Mallory sighed as she began her story. "It was a long time ago, back when I was just a little girl. My best friend's name was Jessica and she and I were inseparable. We went everywhere and did everything together. I guess the reason why we got along so well was because her dad was one of my dad's officers so she knew how I felt when Dad wasn't home. She liked the military but she wasn't bred like my brothers and I were. To us, it was life. To her, it was just some silly game she played to take her mind off of things and to make her father proud.

"When it was time for school, we went to a special academy that only high ranking officers' kids went to. There we learned the normal stuff: math, reading, writing, social studies, history, the usual. But we were given special lessons on military tactics, military history, obstacle courses, things recruits learned if they were at boot camp. Jess hated it, but to me it was heaven. Every so often we would have days off where we could go shopping or see a movie or go swimming in the pool they had that they only used for water training.

"One day, Jess and I went to mall with a bunch of other kids. We walked into some jewelry store where Jess saw these earrings she liked. I saw her put them into her pocket and she knew I knew what she had done. She made a motion that we would talk outside. Once we left, we headed back to the spot where we were meeting the other kids from the academy so we could get back. I asked her why she took the earrings. 'Because they weren't worth my allowance money! You know that daddy barely gives me anything,' she told me, which wasn't exactly true. Her dad gave her plenty of money."

"Sounds like a spoiled brat," Duke said, interrupting the story.

"I thought you weren't going to say anything." Mallory smirked.

"I wasn't planning on it, but I had to say something. Now, was she a spoiled brat?"
"In some ways, yes. Anyways, she asked me not to tell anyone that she stole the earrings. I said yes but only if she wouldn't do it again. She quickly agreed and I dropped the whole matter. Two months later, she did it again. Except this time, it was a necklace and from a different store. I was there with her and saw her do it. I waited until we left the store to nag her about breaking her promise to me. 'I'm sorry, Mallory,' she said, 'I really won't do it again, I swear.' Once again, I dropped the matter and hoped she would follow through with it. But she didn't. I stopped going to the mall with her because if she got caught, then I would be in trouble, too, and that was the last thing I wanted. If I got in trouble with the law, Dad would never forgive me and I would never forgive myself. Instead, I practiced, trained, and studied. Once I even went home to see my family again. Well, those who were home."
Mallory let the new information sink into Duke's brain before continuing. "A year passed since Jess first shoplifted and ever since, the stuff just kept piling up in our dorm. She snagged tons of stuff from makeup to jewelry; even a TV from a store she once broke into. I kept asking her to stop but she wouldn't. She told me if I was her real friend, I would just keep my mouth shut and act like everything was totally normal, except it wasn't. One night, I saw her dressing in all black and stuffing a couple of tools into her pockets. I asked her what she was doing and she said she was going to pull the heist of a lifetime."
"I'm sure it had nothing on what I've done," Duke bragged, flipping his hair and flashing a smile towards Mallory's way. She couldn't help but smile.

"No, it had nothing on you," she whispered. "Now, back to the story. Jess said she was going to sneak into the Puckworld History Museum and steal the crown of Flightwing. She knew some guys who were going to pay her big if she got what they wanted. I asked her why she was doing it and she just shrugged her shoulders while trying to think of an explanation that I would understand. 'You know the feeling you get when you are in a simulation, that adrenaline rush? Well, that's what I get when I swipe things. Simulations aren't enough for me. Fighting isn't my style, not my thing. Stealing is.' She said she would be back by morning and to cover for her if she wasn't. I agreed and watched her slip out of our window. That night, I called my dad from a pay phone and disguised my voice so he wouldn't know who it was. I told him that there was going to be a break-in at the history museum and someone was going to try and steal Flightwing's crown. I said he had to believe me and to get there as fast as he could with some backup. I could tell he was skeptical but he did it none the less. I hung up and ran back my to dorm to try and get some sleep. Later, he called me to tell me what happen." She stopped for awhile and stared at the ground.

"Well?"
Mallory drily laughed. "You really do like a good thief story, huh?"

Duke shrugged. "Can you blame me? Been a thief most of my life."

"Right. Anyways, he said that someone had called in and gave him a tip that someone was going to break into the museum. Dad grabbed a couple of people and they rushed to try and catch the "robber". Sure enough, there was a robber and they got there just in time to stop him. My dad told him that if he stepped away from the crown, they would go easy on him. If he didn't, they would be forced to shoot. The robber didn't listen and snatched the crown from the display case and tried to run. Dad ordered open fire and I think you can guess what happened next."

Duke watched Mallory's face and saw tears running down her cheeks. "Ya don't have ta finish, sweetheart. I think I get it."

Mallory shook her head and continued. "When the robber fell, he called cease fire and the group ran over to get the crown and to see who they shot down. When my dad lifted the mask, he quickly turned away. It was Jessica. He ordered the men to take care of the scene and to not let the media get wind of the incident. He left to go call her dad and to let him know what had happened. He didn't come home for days. Dad called the academy headmaster to tell him what had happened and that he would like me to come home for a few days. The headmaster accepted both of my dad's requests and told the teachers Jessica wouldn't be attending the academy anymore and to get me my homework together for the following week.

"I went home to a silent house. Everyone was in shock and upset. But I don't think anyone was more upset than my father and I. He felt guilty because he had told the men to open fire. I felt guilty because I had told my father about what Jess was going to do. I practically sentenced my best friend to death. It was my fault. It still is my fault. And I've never had the guts to tell anyone." The tears started flowing more freely as she finished her story. Duke took her into his arms and began rocking back and forth while rubbing her back in a comforting manner. He did know how it felt to lose a close friend because of a job. It had happened to him too many times. Mallory took a few shaky breaths before she started up again.

"After that, I made a vow that I would never become close with someone else ever again. I built up walls so I wouldn't get close to anyone. But now that I'm here with you guys, I don't know how much longer I can keep that vow. It's getting harder and harder everyday and I just can't take it anymore. Whenever we launch into battle, whether it's against Dragaunus or Dr. Droid, I don't fear for my life, but for everyone else's. I don't know how I would handle it if one you fell and never got back up. I would just fall to pieces." Mallory's voice cracked and she broke down crying. Her face was buried against Duke's chest as she sobbed. Duke rested his head on her's and stood there, comforting the crying girl.

"You know, I always imagined us like this," he said, making her pause.

"What do you mean?"

"Like this. Me holding you as you cried. Although I imagined it would be about something else."

"Like what?" Mallory asked, looking him in the eyes.

"Promise not to hit, scratch, punch, and/or throw me off of a building if I tell you?" he asked, locking his gaze with hers.

"Promise," she whispered.

"You saying yes to me, telling me you were pregnant. Something along those lines." Mallory stared at him, wide-eyed, mouth wide open. Duke couldn't help but chuckle.

"How is that funny?" she asked. Well, at least I'm still alive and it doesn't look like she's going to kill me, he thought.

"It's not. Just your face."

"Why you little..." Duke took off running, not fast enough to the point where she couldn't catch him, but fast enough she would have to work a little bit to. They took turns chasing each other when suddenly Duke grabbed her by the waist, pulled her close to his body, and put his mouth over hers. Mallory felt her eyes grow wide before they closed. She melted at his embrace and accepted his request to explore her mouth. She placed her arms around his neck while his wrapped around her waist. Neither knew how long they stayed like that, but after awhile, they broke apart. They heavily breathed, trying to regain their breath while looking into the each other's eyes.

Mallory turned away from Duke's stare and Duke immediately looked rejected. Here he thought that she enjoyed the kiss but turns out he was wrong. "The others are probably wondering what happened to us," she said. "We should probably get back inside. Nosedive's probably dying from starvation."

"Yeah, we should head in," Duke agreed reluctantly. He let the door slam shut behind Mallory before walking back over to the railing. He cursed himself before heading back inside.

Everyone was still asleep besides Duke. He hadn't slept at all last night so he decided to just get up early. He nursed his cup of coffee while thinking about what had happened between him and Mallory. He definitely had felt a spark and he knew she had felt it too. Not to mention the fact that she had practically melted in his arms. So what was the deal?

"Any hot water left?"

Duke's head shot up and saw a certain red head standing in front of him. He nodded his head. "There should be some left."

Mallory nodded and walked over to the pot of hot water where she made her daily cup of hot chocolate. She couldn't see how Duke could drink coffee everyday. She had tried a sip of his once and had spitted it out on the table. Once her drink was made, she took a seat across from Duke and the two sat in tense silence.

"Listen, Duke,"

"Mallory, I,"

The two laughed realizing they both had spoken at the same time. It really wasn't that funny but it was enough to ease the tension between the two. "You go first," Duke offered.

"Okay, um, Duke, about last night," she started before she was interrupted by a certain duck.

"Mallory, I get it," he said.

"Hey, I thought I was going first!" she cried playfully.

Duke blushed. "Right, sorry."
"Anyways, I just wanted to say that last night, I should have told you something." Duke mentally braced himself for the rejection that he knew was bound to hit. "I should have told you how I really felt..."she trailed off and let Duke ask,

"Which is..." She motioned for him to lean in closer which he did; they met halfway.
"This." She pressed her mouth against his for a few moments before pulling away.

Duke stepped away from his chair and walked around to Mallory's side of the table. He placed his hands on her shoulders. Leaning in, he whispered, "I can top that."

Mallory smirked. "Oh really?"

Duke nodded and smiled. "Come with me, sweetheart, and I'll show ya." He led her to his room where the door opened with a whoosh. He dragged her inside just as the door closed shut.

Grin walked into the kitchen an hour after Mallory and Duke had left. He saw two cold cups, one hot chocolate, the other coffee. He smiled to himself as he put the cups into the sink.

Hey guys! This is my first Mighty Ducks fanfic. Let me know what you think!

I've noticed that there aren't a lot of Duke and Mallory fanfics out there so I decided to write my own. This story has been bugging me for a couple of days so I finally wrote it down so it would just leave me alone. I really want you guys to leave a review so please please please leave me one! I've been a fan of MD:TAS for a really long time (since it first came out) and I really miss the show. To me, FanFic is like the show is still on, but with new episodes written by different writers. I really enjoy reading BlueMoonDuchess, Daniella L'orange, and sWeEtNeVeRmOrE120 stuff so if any of you read this story, it would be amazing if you left a review :)

Thanks everyone who read and don't forget to click a couple of buttons that are below.

Until next chapter,
Writingaddict169