These are Preseason Jitters
It was back in November of 2011 when the idea of a Primeval hockey AU bit. In the beginning of October that year I began "Something Wicked" (TBA), and although it missed my self-imposed month's end deadline, I was still very much immersed in that story, so the silly little hockey thing was pushed aside.
For almost two years this hockey-fic has existed only in the barest of forms, nestled in my Fandom folder as a title1 and preliminary roster.
Once I considered it seriously, the first problem was setting. Did they play in the NHL? A UK league? Or was it more beer league? How could I get the women on the team?2 This quandary effectively put an end to the fic. It felt too impossible to wrangle, especially while I struggled with the length of "Something Wicked". Eventually the whole thing was moved to the Abandoned WIPs folder with a regretful "well, that was a cool idea, too bad".
[Two years later montage~]
Hockey season is about to start. (October is close, right?) There's an uptick of hockey-related tweets on my feed. It's in my head again. I spotted the fic in the Abandoned folder and--in a flash, like they sometimes do--the first line popped into my head. "Connor shuffled his feet while the anthems wailed on".
"Hmm, that's nice," I thought. The fic still seemed too impossible, particularly since I'm still (still!) trying to get "Something Wicked" ready for this year's deadline. But what if I scrapped the monstrous, sprawling AU altogether--kept it short3, immersive, just a quick slice of what loving hockey is about for me.
And then it kept going. For me hockey is about the experience, the moment, loving the team and the guys because they're your team and your guys, fighting for the fans and the city. Because they're serious and goofy, dedicated and hard-working, they come from around the world and right here from home, because some of them you've followed since their rookie career and you cried as their number was raised to the rafters.
Ahem.
So I grabbed hold of that feeling and ran with it. I figured, fuck it, I'll make a co-ed team and slot everyone in, don't bother with the how and the where or the opponent, make it the ARC on the ice, working as a team. I wanted it stuffed to the rafters with jargon, everything I love about the game. Maybe the full-scale story will pan out one day, probably not, but no pressure4. The feeling I wanted to express in the first place has made it through, and now I have the chance to share it.
"Keep Your Stick on the Ice"
1"Keep your stick on the ice" is actually the classic closing line of every episode of The Red Green Show, something equally dear to my heart.
2Originally this sprawling epic was to include every named character. Christine Johnson was going to be the treacherous, in-it-for-the-money General Manager.
3Surprisingly, many of the early ideas from my notes still made it in. Abby as the goalie, because that picture in my head felt perfect. Nick's number retired, Stephen on defense, Lester the head coach and Jenny as the Assistant Coach. There were many little things I wasn't able to explore, however: playoff beards, practical jokes, the travel, roommates...
4This whole post is probably longer than the fic itself...