don't go too fast but I go pretty far
Title don't go too fast but I go pretty far
Pairings Aleks Kolarov/Edin Dzeko, James Milner/David Silva, Leo Messi/David Villa, past David Villa/David Silva
Rating R
Word Count 5862
Disclaimer Not True
Summary Genderswap Roller Derby AU in which jammer Gia Aguero is the daughter in law of the derby legend jammer Hand of God, the Kolarov Kocktail is angry but finds love, and Silvia is a jammer out for a little revenge. But everyone has a vendetta, because it's roller derby!
You don't need to know how roller derby is played to read this, but this video is 2 minutes long and is an excellent starting point.
Beta- Thank you albion_lass and irradiant for the beta help and amazing advice <3
This is for lalalalynds who I promised a birthday fic for… Lynds, this is probably not even close to what you wanted, but it's still for you <3
No one says anything because there's not much anyone can say. The outlook is grim. Sixteen of them started the season, but as of yesterday they are down to eleven. One broken leg, one fight, 2 pulled muscles, and yesterday Bam Bam, Carla, decided she didn't want to play anymore and fucked off back home. Two jammers left out of the original four. Winning is rapidly approaching impossible.
The rink smells like sugary slushies, stale popcorn, and feet. Perhaps the odor comes in a spray as all skating rinks seem to smell the same. They all share the same warped linoleum tiles left over from the 1970s and the new neon colored carpets that always seem to be stained by something indeterminable. It's probably better that they don't know what caused the stains though.
"Look, we need to forget about Bam Bam and focus on tomorrow," Joe is pacing with a clipboard in front of them. "We haven't worked our asses off for the entire season to give up the day before the final. It's going to be hard, but we can do this." He stops pacing to stare at them. "I know you can do this."
The only sound is the hum of the air conditioning unit and the teenagers in the pro shop. One of the maintenance men drags a ladder onto the floor and climbs it with his tool kit to try and figure out what's wrong with the disco ball.
"We're not even a real fucking team," Aleks mutters under her breath. "This is what everyone in the league wants to see and it's what they're going to get."
"Come on, don't." Vivien stands up, glides over to stand by Joe. "We're where we are for a reason."
"Yeah, because that pervy dude who owns the gas stations in town paid for our team in exchange for that calendar," Aleks snaps, pulling off her skates.
"It wasn't that bad."
"You're not the one who had to pose suggestively with the Eiffel Tower," Samira mumbles, face turning red.
"I thought it was fun," Michaela grins and Nigella laughs and agrees.
"It doesn't matter who posed nearly nude for whatever photographs for a calendar that might have sponsored our team," Joe tells them, waving the clipboard in the air. "All that matters is we show up at Wembley tomorrow ready to skate."
"They're not unstoppable," Yaya runs a toothpick along the edges of her bearings, removing the accumulated dust and grim from the past few weeks. They all listen to Yaya, The Ivory Accoster, after all she used to skate with the Cut-alunyans, the team the others aspired to be. "They're good, but we're just as good." She looks over at their jammers. "I know you two can keep up with them."
"I think so too." Milly doesn't speak very often, so when she does they know she means it.
There's a loud crash that makes everyone jump and they turn to look at the rink. The disco ball is shattered to pieces on the ground and the maintenance man is still on the ladder, staring down at it. It's pretty much how their season has been going. Bright and sparkly at the top, but the inevitable was bound to happen. Hopefully it wouldn't happen tomorrow.
Milly stands, gathers her gear, and waits for Silvia to join her. Hand in hand, they wander out of the rink as everyone watches them. One by one, they finish removing their gear and leave the rink behind, assuming their normal personas and leave derby behind for the night.
Tomorrow is more than a game- it's a grudge match.
The first half
The noise inside of the rink is deafening as the two teams take the track. There is a record two thousand spectators filling Wembley today, but inside it sounds like twice that number. The emcee, Ray of Fight Hudson, is screaming metaphors and similes that no one really understands into the microphone. Kaptain Kompain and Tarzan and Pain shake hands as the head ref reminds them to keep their skaters in line. They all know that's not possible.
Gia skates up to the second line, the jammer line, and smiles briefly at Lea. Then she puts in her mouth guard and lines up for the whistle. For the next sixty minutes, they aren't Gia and Lea, they're Sailor Mercury Poisoning and Messi Murder, and only one of them is coming out of this in first place. Stealing a glance to the bleachers closest to where they are, Gia winks at the little boy in the front row- her son. He's wearing a sky blue jersey with her name on the back of it.
Benji is sitting next to his grandmother, Gia's mother in law, Mara. Mara is wearing a Cut-aluyan shirt. It shouldn't hurt after all this time, but it does. Mara, undoubtedly the best jammer of all time, the royalty of roller derby, the legend known as the Hand of God, was both Gia and Lea's coach when they were in high school. She was both of their coaches up until Gia married Mara's only son when she got pregnant their last year of college and stopped speed skating before the Olympic trials to start a family. Lea won Gold and Mara doesn't go a day without mentioning that to Gia. Gia doesn't regret Benji at all, he's the light of her life, but a four year old wouldn't and shouldn't have to understand that Grandma thinks Mommy ruined Daddy's life. Or that getting pregnant derailed a career years in the making. No, Gia doesn't want Benji to know about any of that.
"Good luck," Messi Murder smiles at her before putting her mouth guard on and crouching next to her.
It would all be easier if she could hate Lea, but she doesn't. They're still best friends and Lea is Benji's godmother. Lea's the one who convinced her to start roller derby, pulled strings to get her a spot on the Cut-aluyans. She said no- she already spends her life living in Lea's shadow. Zabaletcha Die convinced her to join a team that had nothing to lose but a lot to prove. The Blue Moonshiners were the joke of the league, but at least with them she could be her own person. At least there she is free from Mara and Lea's shadow.
All the other teams in the league have a common unifier whether it simply is they live in the same neighborhood, have been friends for a long time, or go to the same school. The Blue Moonshiners are the misfits comprised of skaters from defunct teams, the rejects, and those who just never fit in with the others. They've constantly sat at the bottom of league, new players going just as quick at they arrive. This year though, with the new sponsor and having enough good players pulled in from the wind, they have a chance.
When the first whistle blows, Sailor Mercury Poisoning watches like a hawk as Kaptain Kompain takes control of the pack and the other Blue Moonshiners skate into a position to help their jammer through the pack. The second whistle blows and the crowd goes wild as Sailor Mercury Poisoning and Messi Murder run on their toe stops off the line and sprint toward the pack. She keeps her elbows as her teammates fight to push her through the pack while preventing Messi Murder from doing the same.
"Sailor Mercury Poisoning, lead jammer!" Her jam ref yells out as she breaks free of the pack.
It doesn't matter though because not even a second later Messi Murder breaks out and is hot on her wheels as they sprint back around the track. She's unable to prevent her from reaching the pack at the same time as she does and Kaptain Kompain screams for her to stop the jam.
Sailor Mercury Poisoning puts her hands on her hips.
The first jam ends 0-0
The first half is fast paced. The teams are evenly matched and jams rarely go for the full two minutes. The box always seems to be occupied with at least one skater being penalized, the other team taking full advantage of it.
At one point the Flying Dutchman slips and trips Bitchface in the middle of a jam, but the head ref doesn't see it. Half of the league thinks the head ref, a bald, middle aged man known as Spinning Webbs, would let the Flying Dutchman get away with murder on the track because he's got some sort of creepy crush on her. This sends Blinding Justice into a fit and she starts screaming the rules word for word at Spinning Webbs until he sends her to the penalty box for interrupting play. Gia is pretty sure Blinding Justice thinks she invented the game.
There's time for one more jam and she lines up against Bitchface. Bitchface is never easy to jam against because she's a mean son-of-a-bitch who is equal parts blocker and jammer. Instead of taking the risk of an added blocker in the pack, Sailor Mercury Poisoning pushes off into Bitchface, knocking her down. She'd punch her, but she'll leave that to Milly Murder to take care of. It allows her to get through the pack, back around, and score three before Bitchface catches back up with her and she calls off the jam.
The first half ends Cut-alunyans 42, Blue Moonshiners 36.
*
The Second Half
*
Aleksandra Kolarov, the Kolarov Kocktail, didn't know what roller derby was until a friend dragged her to a bout three years ago. A year out of her divorce and still angry about it, she bought gear, was picked up by the Blue Moonshiners, and sucked worse than any Fresh Meat to the game ever had before. It took her months to find her skate legs, but at that time most of the team was so bad that no one really cared. When she finally did figure it out, she became one of the meanest fucking blockers in the league. She even knocked someone out cold. Once. She laughs when she thinks about it. Bitch deserved it.
Some people call her a pessimist, but Aleks likes to think of herself as a realist. Life has given her more than a few downs and there have been many bumps along the way. If it was just herself, she'd be okay with the downs, but she'll be damned if she ever lets her daughter experience fear or unavoidable sadness. Una is Aleks' world. Every time she wants to punch someone on the track or start a fight, she reminds herself that Una is watching.
They're sitting in the locker room at half time as Joe reviews a few more plays with them, pointing out their weaknesses as well as weaknesses that the Cut-alunyans have showed. There's a knocking on the door and HarGrievous, normally a blocker but demoted to gear girl as she was always injured, sticks her head out into the hall to chase whoever it is away.
"A Mr. Kocktail to see you," HarGrievous tells Aleks and Aleks has the urge to pull those bouncy curls and see if HarGrievous is still smiling afterward; Aleks can be a real bitch sometimes.
If Una is Aleks' world, then Edin is the Universe that surrounds them and makes sure they're safe. He gives her one of his big, dopey smiles when she skates out into the hallway, and hands her the electrolyte drink she forgot at home.
"What would you do without me?" He giggles as he asks her- Aleks is pretty sure Edin should have been a girl and she should have been a boy and God just made a mistake. A big fucking mistake.
"I'd be miserable," Aleks tells him, standing on her toe stoppers to brush a kiss against his lips. "Mmmm you smell nice."
"You reek."
"That's the smell of success."
"No, I think it's enzymes that break things down into acids that give off-"
"I have to go," Aleks puts a finger in front of Edin's mouth. "But I love when you talk nerdy to me."
She gives him a quick kiss on the cheek, before returning to the locker room and downing half of the drink. Edin is the best thing that could have ever happened to her and Una. She's pretty sure he is a better parent than she could ever be. Una adores him, and the way they adore each other makes Aleks' heart swell. At least it would if she had a heart.
"You are so full of shit," Maria, WAM, mutters as she ignores Joe's ranting by turning up her iPod.
Aleks would say something, but Maria is the type of crazy you don't mess with. She's on parole right now for lighting fireworks off under her ex's car after using it for dart practice. Apparently she designs cat clothing in her spare time or something. All Aleks knows is that she's a crazy bitch with a mean body slam that she would never want to skate against.
"Ladies." Joe's voice gets really quiet and Aleks knows their coach is trying not to cry. She rolls her eyes; Joe is too emotional sometimes. "This is our moment. We're going to prove them all wrong. This means more to us than it does to them. We have more to prove. We can do this."
Aleks looks around the room at her teammates and knows that's true. Gia's never said anything, but they all know how hurt she is about never earning Mara's respect or pride. Milly and Silvia are sitting pressed side to side, and Aleks knows how much beating the Cut-alunyans means to Silvia after everything that's happened. Yaya wants to prove to everyone that she doesn't need to be a Cut-aluyan to win, Michaela's been with this team from the beginning and wants to show everyone they're not a joke anymore, and everyone else, well, each person is a different part of the heart of the team. There is no one person at its core, they are all the core and will do this together.
"This shit just got real," Michaela's mutters and everyone bursts out laughing.
"Let's do this." Vivien stands up and grabs her helmet.
Everyone follows suit, strapping their gear on and following their captain and coach back out to the rink amidst thunderous applause.
"First jam- Lightning, Kolarov Kocktail, Kaptain Kompain, Zabaletcha Die, and Le Petit Mort," Joe calls out from his clip board. "Sailor Mercury Poisoning, Ivory Accoster, WAM, Milly Murder, and Pearly Gates on deck."
Aleks joins the assembling pack on the first line. Her eyes search the crowd and she sees Una sitting with Edin by the second turn. Tapping her helmet, she blows a kiss to them before motioning to one of the players in red and blue. There's only one reason anyone sits in the second corner and Aleks is going to give it to them.
When the whistle blows the pack takes a faster than usual start. It's not surprising as the Cut-alunyans are known for out skating their competition. It's nothing Joe hasn't trained them for. Aleks waits until the jammers are through the pack the first time before she positions herself for the second corner. The pack takes it quickly and Aleks puts on a burst of speed and slams her hips into Biscuts and Gravely and sends the lanky skater flying off the track and into the audience. The crowd goes wild. Aleks makes a note to tell Una that violence isn't the answer. Then she decides to have Edin have that conversation with Una because it would seem a little hypocritical coming from Aleks.
She's on the bench for the next two jams and she takes the time to watch the other blockers, to see where they're weak and how to exploit it to get her jammers through the pack. Looking away after the first jam is called, she sees Edin starting at her while Una is looking the other way. She winks and runs her tongue over her top lip slowly; Edin blushes and looks down at his hands. Aleks laughs.
Aleks met Edin when he hit her car while Una was in the back seat. After making sure her daughter was unharmed, she climbed out of her car hellbent on ripping whoever was fucking stupid enough to hit her with Una in the car a brand new asshole. That plan lasted five seconds when she realized it was Una's kindergarten teacher and she couldn't bludgeon him to death in front of her daughter. For a brief moment she held out hope that Una, being in first grade at the time, had forgotten her teacher, but an enamored 'Mr. Dzeko!!!' rang out from the back seat. Well fuck.
They had exchanged information and Edin had made sure her trunk would stay closed on the drive home. Her derby gear was strewn all across the trunk and when he asked her about it, she had bit off a terse response about him not being able to steer on four wheels much less eight. That was the extent of their contact until two weeks later, when he called and asked her out to dinner. Aleks slammed the phone back into the receiver without replying. The cycle continued for another few weeks until Edin showed up on her doorstep dressed for a date holding with a crown made out of dandelions, Una's doing apparently, and a cast on his wrist. Aleks knew in an instant why Una had insisted on playing dress up that night.
"I guess I can't handle eight wheels either," he had said before Una handed her a purse with a giant, toothless smile and pushed her out the door.
Sometimes children know what their parents need more than their parents do.
*
There is time for one more jam and the score is 76-76. Aleks lines up next to Kaptain Kompain, WAM, and the Flying Dutchman; it's the Blue Moonshiners' strongest defense. Behind them, Sailor Mercury Poisoning lines up next to Messi Murder. The first whistle blows and Aleks keeps an eye on Blinding Justice and imPale with the knowledge that letting them get close to Messi Murder will spell loss for the Blue Moonshiners.
Sailor Mercury Poisoning is through the pack and two short whistles for lead jammer blow. Aleks can almost taste victory as she watches their jammer dart around the track. The tides change though and when you're at the top, the only place you have to go is down. Aleks doesn't know what happens, maybe their wheels hit, but one minute they're in the lead and the next Sailor Mercury Poisoning is down on the ground and Messi Murder darts ahead of her. She doesn't get back up, maybe she can't, but Aleks wants to scream in frustration when she hears the four whistles signifying she's called off the jam.
The second half ends 76-76
*
2.5- Overtime
2.5.1 - If the score is tied at the end of a bout, a final overtime jam will determine the winner. After one (1) minute to regroup, the teams will skate a full two (2) minute jam. This jam will have no Lead Jammer, and penalties will be called. Jammers will begin accruing points on their first pass through the pack. The team with the most points at the end of the overtime jam is the bout winner. If the score remains tied, additional overtime jams will be played until the tie is broken. There is one (1) minute between any additional overtime jams.
2.5.1.1 - If an overtime jam ends before two (2) minutes for any reason, the bout ends immediately and the score stands. Additional overtime jams can only be played if the score remains tied.
2.5.2 - Overtime is not a new period. Overtime is an extension of the final period.
WFTDA Rules Handbook
*
This time last year Silvia watched as the Cut-alunyans defeated the Red Devils to win the league. The year before that they beat Real MaDread. Silvia is going to make damned sure that they don't win it three times in a row. It's personal.
This time last year Silvia was on team that was in its death throes, its members bickering amongst themselves and finding new teams to play on. She was silly enough to think Davina would stick around or maybe that they would find a team together, but things didn't go according to plan. They rarely did.
Davina was everything Silvia wasn't- a jammer who could play offensively and defensively, someone who spoke her mind and didn't spare anyone's feelings, someone who was comfortable enough with herself and didn't have to hide it. Silvia still hides behind an assumed derby name and personality that is nothing like who she really is behind the fishnets and metallic short shorts. Davina spoke for both of them and by the time Silvia realized she should speak for herself, it was too late.
In one week the team was gone, Silvia's meager possessions were left on the front doorstep of Davina's house, and Davina was skating with the Cut-alunyans. A week later she was shacking up with Messi Murder. None of it really came as a surprise.
Somewhere deep down, Silvia knows that she was never Davina's end game, that Davina wanted someone better. No one is better than Messi Murder. It still hurts to think about, like the sting of a cigarette burn that won't fade no matter what you do to lessen the pain.
"Lightning jammer." Joe's voice pulls her out of her thoughts, out of stealing glances at where Messi Murder and Bitchface are bickering over who gets to take the last jam. "Last jam, no pressure, but uh… well you know." Joe smiles down at her; even with her skates on she is tiny and Joe towers over her. "Kaptain, Ivory, Kocktail, and Milly."
Everyone's eyebrows shoot up at the last name. It's not that Milly Murder isn't an excellent blocker, but she's not who anyone would pick in this last, and most important, jam. Silvia knows Milly better than she knows anyone; like Vivien, Milly is a rock that anchors the team. Reaching out, she squeezes Milly's fingers as best as she can with their wrist guards on.
Milly is an enigma to most people, and even though they're together, there are still some things about Milly that Silvia doesn't understand and doubts she ever will. She's quiet, honest, and a hard worker. Milly doesn't complain, doesn't drink, studies for her law degree harder than anyone has probably ever studied for anything, and still finds time to work and play roller derby. By all accounts Milly is practically an angel or a saint who shouldn't be rubbing shoulders with seventy-five percent of the roller girls out there, but does it anyway. Silvia's not even sure how, or why, Milly started skating. Most roller girls are washed up amateur speed or figure skaters, or just really angry and need an outlet. Milly is neither and that makes Silvia love her even more.
"Whatever happens today, you've already won," was the first thing she told Silvia that morning as she wound a bit of Silvia's hair through her fingers.
Silvia believes her. She didn't know it then, but she knows now she won the minute Davina left. She was hidden in Davina's shadow; she is nurtured by the light and grace Milly has given her. Milly has shown her how to stand on her own feet and be her own person. This morning Silvia wasn't Lightning and Milly wasn't Milly Murder. They were just two women wrapped around each other in bed. Milly distracts Silvia from a broken heart and has been piecing it back together. When it's whole again, Silvia knows her heart will belong entirely to Milly, and that Milly will care for it as if it were the most precious thing in the world.
"I believe in you," Milly tells her as they skate back onto the ring. "I believe in us all."
Silvia's throat is dry, so she just nods. Milly smiles and taps her on the helmet three times for good luck. Skating to the jammer line, she lines up next to Messi Murder, who sticks out a hand to shake before the final jam. Silvia stares at Messi Murder's hand for a minute, contemplating whether or not to shake it or just give her the cold shoulder. She shakes it, smiles tightly, and lines up. Someday Messi Murder is going to realize that Davina is nothing more than a bitch who is good in bed, but isn't really good for much else. That thought alone makes Silvia laugh.
The first whistle blows. The pack starts to rolls. The second whistle blows and Silvia sprints faster than she has ever sprinted in her life. When they hit the back of the pack, everything seems to slow down even though she knows it hasn't. They're moving quickly, and at the same time it feels like they aren't moving at all. Her limbs are heavy, tired, shaking, but she darts through every opening she finds and stays on Messi Murder's tail as they come out of the pack almost at the same time. Four points each.
She drifts behind her, not wanting to chance tripping or fouling Messi Murder in an attempted pass. They reach the back of the pack a second time, but this time neither of them seems to be able to find a way through. Silvia grits her teeth as she fights to stay on her feet amidst the Cut-alunyans slamming into her body and her own teammates grabbing at her and trying to push her through the pack, painting her body with new bruises and battle scars. Somewhere in the fray of screaming fans, the sound of bodies hitting, Ray of Fighting yelling something about mutant fly eyes, and wheels against the floor, she feels Milly's hands on her hips and space opens up in front of her as Milly pushes her as hard as she can, propelling her out of the pack.
Silvia shows everyone why they call her Lightning. She forgets what tired is and ignores the screams in her body. She listens for the sound of wheels darting up the track behind her, but she never hears it. As she rounds the corner and approached the pack again, she sees her blockers have Messi Murder caught between them. Kolorov Kocktail drops to the back of the pack and grabs her, blocking anyone's attempts to stop her. Pulling her to the outside, Kocktail waits until Vexxon Valdes moves to block her, before pushing Silvia forward in the opposite direction past where the rest of the Cut-alunyans are trying to get Messi Murder out of the Blue Moonshiner's grasp. Even with her mouth guard in, Silvia knows Milly is smiling as she smashes against Blinding Justice and sends her into the crowd. Silvia breaks through the front of the pack. A Super Slam. An extra point for lapping the opposing jammer.
The whistle blows before she makes it to the back of the pack for a fourth time through.
Cut-alunyans 80 - Blue Moonshiners 89
The crowd is going wild around them, but Silvia still hears Joe's untamed shriek above all of it. She looks to the bench where her teammates are quickly skating toward her, and she braces herself as they all surround her, a crash of thunder. Being stuck in the middle of a group of women wearing hard protective gear that reeks after months of use should be terrifying, but it's wonderful. An arm snakes around her middle and she feels Milly hold her close, brush a kiss against her cheek, their helmets clanging against each other.
Silvia can't think of a better moment in her life.
*
Most of the crowd is gone. The stragglers who remain are mostly family members and friends of roller girls who are helping clean up the rink. Silvia's out of her skates and protective gear, no longer Lightning the roller girl. Nope, without all of that on she's just Silvia the accountant, dull and boring. To everyone except the one person that matters that is.
After signing the last few autographs for the younger members of the crowd, she watches as Mara approaches her. Benji's already found Gia, who is sitting off to the side with Lea, their heads down as they quietly discuss something- the game most likely. Silvia thinks it kind of weird that they've been able to stay friends despite everything, that they're as close as they are. Silvia's always been wary of Mara and once she met Gia, that wariness turned to dislike.
"You were excellent out there."
"Thank you." Silvia's response is short but polite. Mara's on the same level as Maria insofar as type of crazy goes.
"They made a mistake," Mara motions to where the Cut-ulunyans are sitting on bleachers. "They should have offered you a spot last year instead of Davina. You would have done much better with them."
"I'm happy where I'm at."
"You're the best player on the team."
Silvia stops what she's doing and stares at Mara. It's not true, not by a long shot. There is no such thing as a best player on a roller derby team and Mara knows that. A roller derby team needs players who can work together, and that's what the Blue Moonshiners have. Silvia knows Mara sees that and wonders if the old jammer has something up her sleeve or is just going senile. Two can play at that game.
"Your daughter in law scored most of the points tonight," Silvia tells her firmly, going back to winding the string of lights up. "You should give credit where it's due."
Mara doesn't say anything. One of the doors slams open and Davina storms through, anger on her face as she joins the rest of her team on the bleachers. Davina never handled losing well. Silvia looks down as she smirks; it's the cherry on top of a perfect day.
"Gia knows she can do better," Mara says, her voice flat.
"Gia just out skated the best skater in the league."
"Perhaps."
Silvia shrugs and doesn't say anything else. She's not going to give Mara ammo to use against her. Roller girls are gossipy, both present and past skaters, and Mara is no exception. Mara stares at her for a moment longer until she huffs and wanders off. Silvia shakes her head. Some people…
Arms circle around her waist and she feels Milly pressed behind her. Even though they're the same height, Silvia always feels like Milly shields her. She hears loud footsteps behind them and turns around. Her jaw clenches automatically as she sees Davina standing there, arms crossed.
"I guess you got what you wanted."
Silvia ignores her, goes back to winding up lights. Davina takes a step forward, and Milly places herself between them, iron glint in her eye as if challenging Davina to do something. Nothing happens though, because Nigella skates up still in her gear and looks at Davina like she's road kill or something equally as disgusting.
"Bitch," Nigella's hand is on her hip and her finger is in the air as she gestures angrily at Davina, "unless you're apologizing, back the fuck up or I will put my skate through your chest."
Davina doesn't have a chance to respond, because Lea is there in a heartbeat, apologizing profusely and dragging a bitchy looking Davina away. Not that it's a change to how Davina normally looks. Nigella winks at Silvia and Milly before skating off to where Michaela and Samira are pulling tape up off the rink. Silvia puts her hands on Milly's shoulder- Milly is still staring at Davina, like she won't rest until the other woman is gone. Setting down the string of lights, Silvia throws her arms around Milly, snuggling up to her. Kissing her softly on her neck, right behind her ear, she finally pulls Milly from her death glare.
"My hero," Silvia purrs into her ear, licking the tip of it. Milly twitches.
"Not a very good one." Milly turns around so she can press their lips together.
Silvia hums happily against them before murmuring, "The best one."
That draws a smile from Milly, and they both giggle, foreheads resting against each other. Their moment is short lived as they hear something that sounds like a cross between a shriek and a sob, and turn to where Aleks has tackled Edin to the ground. Una is standing over them, jumping up and down, and clapping her hands. Aleks is straddling Edin on the rink, his glasses are laying next to him from where they were knocked off his face and his bowtie is crooked. She leans down kisses him and his laugh echoes in the large rink.
"I guess there's going to be a wedding," Milly says with a large smile.
"A derby wedding." Silvia clarified. "Better start saving for the keg now."
Aleks stands up and pulls Edin to his feet. He looks a little sore from being tackled, but his grin is blinding as he picks up Una and puts the cheering girl on his shoulders. As Aleks flashes her ring around, everyone yells and claps their approval. In the corner of the room, Joe bursts out into tears at the happy news- he's still dripping wet from when they dumped the water cooler on him. A loud explosion comes from outside, followed by the whistling of bottle rockets. Maria's not in the room and Vivien darts outside just incase she needs to do some damage control. Silvia and Milly shake their heads.
"We won." Milly says, like she still can't believe it. "It's like everyone gets their happy ending." She looks sideways to where Davina and Lea are arguing. "Well, almost everyone." They share a devious smile.
"And we won't have to do a nude calendar next year."
"Pity. I was looking forward to seeing you as a sexy Zeus throwing lightning bolts." Milly snickers.
There's not really anything Silvia can say to that, so she throws her head back and laughs instead. In Milly's arms, on this team, at the rink, and champions of the league- Silvia can't think of anywhere else she would rather be.
Pairings Aleks Kolarov/Edin Dzeko, James Milner/David Silva, Leo Messi/David Villa, past David Villa/David Silva
Rating R
Word Count 5862
Disclaimer Not True
Summary Genderswap Roller Derby AU in which jammer Gia Aguero is the daughter in law of the derby legend jammer Hand of God, the Kolarov Kocktail is angry but finds love, and Silvia is a jammer out for a little revenge. But everyone has a vendetta, because it's roller derby!
You don't need to know how roller derby is played to read this, but this video is 2 minutes long and is an excellent starting point.
Beta- Thank you albion_lass and irradiant for the beta help and amazing advice <3
This is for lalalalynds who I promised a birthday fic for… Lynds, this is probably not even close to what you wanted, but it's still for you <3
No one says anything because there's not much anyone can say. The outlook is grim. Sixteen of them started the season, but as of yesterday they are down to eleven. One broken leg, one fight, 2 pulled muscles, and yesterday Bam Bam, Carla, decided she didn't want to play anymore and fucked off back home. Two jammers left out of the original four. Winning is rapidly approaching impossible.
The rink smells like sugary slushies, stale popcorn, and feet. Perhaps the odor comes in a spray as all skating rinks seem to smell the same. They all share the same warped linoleum tiles left over from the 1970s and the new neon colored carpets that always seem to be stained by something indeterminable. It's probably better that they don't know what caused the stains though.
"Look, we need to forget about Bam Bam and focus on tomorrow," Joe is pacing with a clipboard in front of them. "We haven't worked our asses off for the entire season to give up the day before the final. It's going to be hard, but we can do this." He stops pacing to stare at them. "I know you can do this."
The only sound is the hum of the air conditioning unit and the teenagers in the pro shop. One of the maintenance men drags a ladder onto the floor and climbs it with his tool kit to try and figure out what's wrong with the disco ball.
"We're not even a real fucking team," Aleks mutters under her breath. "This is what everyone in the league wants to see and it's what they're going to get."
"Come on, don't." Vivien stands up, glides over to stand by Joe. "We're where we are for a reason."
"Yeah, because that pervy dude who owns the gas stations in town paid for our team in exchange for that calendar," Aleks snaps, pulling off her skates.
"It wasn't that bad."
"You're not the one who had to pose suggestively with the Eiffel Tower," Samira mumbles, face turning red.
"I thought it was fun," Michaela grins and Nigella laughs and agrees.
"It doesn't matter who posed nearly nude for whatever photographs for a calendar that might have sponsored our team," Joe tells them, waving the clipboard in the air. "All that matters is we show up at Wembley tomorrow ready to skate."
"They're not unstoppable," Yaya runs a toothpick along the edges of her bearings, removing the accumulated dust and grim from the past few weeks. They all listen to Yaya, The Ivory Accoster, after all she used to skate with the Cut-alunyans, the team the others aspired to be. "They're good, but we're just as good." She looks over at their jammers. "I know you two can keep up with them."
"I think so too." Milly doesn't speak very often, so when she does they know she means it.
There's a loud crash that makes everyone jump and they turn to look at the rink. The disco ball is shattered to pieces on the ground and the maintenance man is still on the ladder, staring down at it. It's pretty much how their season has been going. Bright and sparkly at the top, but the inevitable was bound to happen. Hopefully it wouldn't happen tomorrow.
Milly stands, gathers her gear, and waits for Silvia to join her. Hand in hand, they wander out of the rink as everyone watches them. One by one, they finish removing their gear and leave the rink behind, assuming their normal personas and leave derby behind for the night.
Tomorrow is more than a game- it's a grudge match.
The first half
The noise inside of the rink is deafening as the two teams take the track. There is a record two thousand spectators filling Wembley today, but inside it sounds like twice that number. The emcee, Ray of Fight Hudson, is screaming metaphors and similes that no one really understands into the microphone. Kaptain Kompain and Tarzan and Pain shake hands as the head ref reminds them to keep their skaters in line. They all know that's not possible.
Gia skates up to the second line, the jammer line, and smiles briefly at Lea. Then she puts in her mouth guard and lines up for the whistle. For the next sixty minutes, they aren't Gia and Lea, they're Sailor Mercury Poisoning and Messi Murder, and only one of them is coming out of this in first place. Stealing a glance to the bleachers closest to where they are, Gia winks at the little boy in the front row- her son. He's wearing a sky blue jersey with her name on the back of it.
Benji is sitting next to his grandmother, Gia's mother in law, Mara. Mara is wearing a Cut-aluyan shirt. It shouldn't hurt after all this time, but it does. Mara, undoubtedly the best jammer of all time, the royalty of roller derby, the legend known as the Hand of God, was both Gia and Lea's coach when they were in high school. She was both of their coaches up until Gia married Mara's only son when she got pregnant their last year of college and stopped speed skating before the Olympic trials to start a family. Lea won Gold and Mara doesn't go a day without mentioning that to Gia. Gia doesn't regret Benji at all, he's the light of her life, but a four year old wouldn't and shouldn't have to understand that Grandma thinks Mommy ruined Daddy's life. Or that getting pregnant derailed a career years in the making. No, Gia doesn't want Benji to know about any of that.
"Good luck," Messi Murder smiles at her before putting her mouth guard on and crouching next to her.
It would all be easier if she could hate Lea, but she doesn't. They're still best friends and Lea is Benji's godmother. Lea's the one who convinced her to start roller derby, pulled strings to get her a spot on the Cut-aluyans. She said no- she already spends her life living in Lea's shadow. Zabaletcha Die convinced her to join a team that had nothing to lose but a lot to prove. The Blue Moonshiners were the joke of the league, but at least with them she could be her own person. At least there she is free from Mara and Lea's shadow.
All the other teams in the league have a common unifier whether it simply is they live in the same neighborhood, have been friends for a long time, or go to the same school. The Blue Moonshiners are the misfits comprised of skaters from defunct teams, the rejects, and those who just never fit in with the others. They've constantly sat at the bottom of league, new players going just as quick at they arrive. This year though, with the new sponsor and having enough good players pulled in from the wind, they have a chance.
When the first whistle blows, Sailor Mercury Poisoning watches like a hawk as Kaptain Kompain takes control of the pack and the other Blue Moonshiners skate into a position to help their jammer through the pack. The second whistle blows and the crowd goes wild as Sailor Mercury Poisoning and Messi Murder run on their toe stops off the line and sprint toward the pack. She keeps her elbows as her teammates fight to push her through the pack while preventing Messi Murder from doing the same.
"Sailor Mercury Poisoning, lead jammer!" Her jam ref yells out as she breaks free of the pack.
It doesn't matter though because not even a second later Messi Murder breaks out and is hot on her wheels as they sprint back around the track. She's unable to prevent her from reaching the pack at the same time as she does and Kaptain Kompain screams for her to stop the jam.
Sailor Mercury Poisoning puts her hands on her hips.
The first jam ends 0-0
The first half is fast paced. The teams are evenly matched and jams rarely go for the full two minutes. The box always seems to be occupied with at least one skater being penalized, the other team taking full advantage of it.
At one point the Flying Dutchman slips and trips Bitchface in the middle of a jam, but the head ref doesn't see it. Half of the league thinks the head ref, a bald, middle aged man known as Spinning Webbs, would let the Flying Dutchman get away with murder on the track because he's got some sort of creepy crush on her. This sends Blinding Justice into a fit and she starts screaming the rules word for word at Spinning Webbs until he sends her to the penalty box for interrupting play. Gia is pretty sure Blinding Justice thinks she invented the game.
There's time for one more jam and she lines up against Bitchface. Bitchface is never easy to jam against because she's a mean son-of-a-bitch who is equal parts blocker and jammer. Instead of taking the risk of an added blocker in the pack, Sailor Mercury Poisoning pushes off into Bitchface, knocking her down. She'd punch her, but she'll leave that to Milly Murder to take care of. It allows her to get through the pack, back around, and score three before Bitchface catches back up with her and she calls off the jam.
The first half ends Cut-alunyans 42, Blue Moonshiners 36.
*
The Second Half
*
Aleksandra Kolarov, the Kolarov Kocktail, didn't know what roller derby was until a friend dragged her to a bout three years ago. A year out of her divorce and still angry about it, she bought gear, was picked up by the Blue Moonshiners, and sucked worse than any Fresh Meat to the game ever had before. It took her months to find her skate legs, but at that time most of the team was so bad that no one really cared. When she finally did figure it out, she became one of the meanest fucking blockers in the league. She even knocked someone out cold. Once. She laughs when she thinks about it. Bitch deserved it.
Some people call her a pessimist, but Aleks likes to think of herself as a realist. Life has given her more than a few downs and there have been many bumps along the way. If it was just herself, she'd be okay with the downs, but she'll be damned if she ever lets her daughter experience fear or unavoidable sadness. Una is Aleks' world. Every time she wants to punch someone on the track or start a fight, she reminds herself that Una is watching.
They're sitting in the locker room at half time as Joe reviews a few more plays with them, pointing out their weaknesses as well as weaknesses that the Cut-alunyans have showed. There's a knocking on the door and HarGrievous, normally a blocker but demoted to gear girl as she was always injured, sticks her head out into the hall to chase whoever it is away.
"A Mr. Kocktail to see you," HarGrievous tells Aleks and Aleks has the urge to pull those bouncy curls and see if HarGrievous is still smiling afterward; Aleks can be a real bitch sometimes.
If Una is Aleks' world, then Edin is the Universe that surrounds them and makes sure they're safe. He gives her one of his big, dopey smiles when she skates out into the hallway, and hands her the electrolyte drink she forgot at home.
"What would you do without me?" He giggles as he asks her- Aleks is pretty sure Edin should have been a girl and she should have been a boy and God just made a mistake. A big fucking mistake.
"I'd be miserable," Aleks tells him, standing on her toe stoppers to brush a kiss against his lips. "Mmmm you smell nice."
"You reek."
"That's the smell of success."
"No, I think it's enzymes that break things down into acids that give off-"
"I have to go," Aleks puts a finger in front of Edin's mouth. "But I love when you talk nerdy to me."
She gives him a quick kiss on the cheek, before returning to the locker room and downing half of the drink. Edin is the best thing that could have ever happened to her and Una. She's pretty sure he is a better parent than she could ever be. Una adores him, and the way they adore each other makes Aleks' heart swell. At least it would if she had a heart.
"You are so full of shit," Maria, WAM, mutters as she ignores Joe's ranting by turning up her iPod.
Aleks would say something, but Maria is the type of crazy you don't mess with. She's on parole right now for lighting fireworks off under her ex's car after using it for dart practice. Apparently she designs cat clothing in her spare time or something. All Aleks knows is that she's a crazy bitch with a mean body slam that she would never want to skate against.
"Ladies." Joe's voice gets really quiet and Aleks knows their coach is trying not to cry. She rolls her eyes; Joe is too emotional sometimes. "This is our moment. We're going to prove them all wrong. This means more to us than it does to them. We have more to prove. We can do this."
Aleks looks around the room at her teammates and knows that's true. Gia's never said anything, but they all know how hurt she is about never earning Mara's respect or pride. Milly and Silvia are sitting pressed side to side, and Aleks knows how much beating the Cut-alunyans means to Silvia after everything that's happened. Yaya wants to prove to everyone that she doesn't need to be a Cut-aluyan to win, Michaela's been with this team from the beginning and wants to show everyone they're not a joke anymore, and everyone else, well, each person is a different part of the heart of the team. There is no one person at its core, they are all the core and will do this together.
"This shit just got real," Michaela's mutters and everyone bursts out laughing.
"Let's do this." Vivien stands up and grabs her helmet.
Everyone follows suit, strapping their gear on and following their captain and coach back out to the rink amidst thunderous applause.
"First jam- Lightning, Kolarov Kocktail, Kaptain Kompain, Zabaletcha Die, and Le Petit Mort," Joe calls out from his clip board. "Sailor Mercury Poisoning, Ivory Accoster, WAM, Milly Murder, and Pearly Gates on deck."
Aleks joins the assembling pack on the first line. Her eyes search the crowd and she sees Una sitting with Edin by the second turn. Tapping her helmet, she blows a kiss to them before motioning to one of the players in red and blue. There's only one reason anyone sits in the second corner and Aleks is going to give it to them.
When the whistle blows the pack takes a faster than usual start. It's not surprising as the Cut-alunyans are known for out skating their competition. It's nothing Joe hasn't trained them for. Aleks waits until the jammers are through the pack the first time before she positions herself for the second corner. The pack takes it quickly and Aleks puts on a burst of speed and slams her hips into Biscuts and Gravely and sends the lanky skater flying off the track and into the audience. The crowd goes wild. Aleks makes a note to tell Una that violence isn't the answer. Then she decides to have Edin have that conversation with Una because it would seem a little hypocritical coming from Aleks.
She's on the bench for the next two jams and she takes the time to watch the other blockers, to see where they're weak and how to exploit it to get her jammers through the pack. Looking away after the first jam is called, she sees Edin starting at her while Una is looking the other way. She winks and runs her tongue over her top lip slowly; Edin blushes and looks down at his hands. Aleks laughs.
Aleks met Edin when he hit her car while Una was in the back seat. After making sure her daughter was unharmed, she climbed out of her car hellbent on ripping whoever was fucking stupid enough to hit her with Una in the car a brand new asshole. That plan lasted five seconds when she realized it was Una's kindergarten teacher and she couldn't bludgeon him to death in front of her daughter. For a brief moment she held out hope that Una, being in first grade at the time, had forgotten her teacher, but an enamored 'Mr. Dzeko!!!' rang out from the back seat. Well fuck.
They had exchanged information and Edin had made sure her trunk would stay closed on the drive home. Her derby gear was strewn all across the trunk and when he asked her about it, she had bit off a terse response about him not being able to steer on four wheels much less eight. That was the extent of their contact until two weeks later, when he called and asked her out to dinner. Aleks slammed the phone back into the receiver without replying. The cycle continued for another few weeks until Edin showed up on her doorstep dressed for a date holding with a crown made out of dandelions, Una's doing apparently, and a cast on his wrist. Aleks knew in an instant why Una had insisted on playing dress up that night.
"I guess I can't handle eight wheels either," he had said before Una handed her a purse with a giant, toothless smile and pushed her out the door.
Sometimes children know what their parents need more than their parents do.
*
There is time for one more jam and the score is 76-76. Aleks lines up next to Kaptain Kompain, WAM, and the Flying Dutchman; it's the Blue Moonshiners' strongest defense. Behind them, Sailor Mercury Poisoning lines up next to Messi Murder. The first whistle blows and Aleks keeps an eye on Blinding Justice and imPale with the knowledge that letting them get close to Messi Murder will spell loss for the Blue Moonshiners.
Sailor Mercury Poisoning is through the pack and two short whistles for lead jammer blow. Aleks can almost taste victory as she watches their jammer dart around the track. The tides change though and when you're at the top, the only place you have to go is down. Aleks doesn't know what happens, maybe their wheels hit, but one minute they're in the lead and the next Sailor Mercury Poisoning is down on the ground and Messi Murder darts ahead of her. She doesn't get back up, maybe she can't, but Aleks wants to scream in frustration when she hears the four whistles signifying she's called off the jam.
The second half ends 76-76
*
2.5- Overtime
2.5.1 - If the score is tied at the end of a bout, a final overtime jam will determine the winner. After one (1) minute to regroup, the teams will skate a full two (2) minute jam. This jam will have no Lead Jammer, and penalties will be called. Jammers will begin accruing points on their first pass through the pack. The team with the most points at the end of the overtime jam is the bout winner. If the score remains tied, additional overtime jams will be played until the tie is broken. There is one (1) minute between any additional overtime jams.
2.5.1.1 - If an overtime jam ends before two (2) minutes for any reason, the bout ends immediately and the score stands. Additional overtime jams can only be played if the score remains tied.
2.5.2 - Overtime is not a new period. Overtime is an extension of the final period.
WFTDA Rules Handbook
*
This time last year Silvia watched as the Cut-alunyans defeated the Red Devils to win the league. The year before that they beat Real MaDread. Silvia is going to make damned sure that they don't win it three times in a row. It's personal.
This time last year Silvia was on team that was in its death throes, its members bickering amongst themselves and finding new teams to play on. She was silly enough to think Davina would stick around or maybe that they would find a team together, but things didn't go according to plan. They rarely did.
Davina was everything Silvia wasn't- a jammer who could play offensively and defensively, someone who spoke her mind and didn't spare anyone's feelings, someone who was comfortable enough with herself and didn't have to hide it. Silvia still hides behind an assumed derby name and personality that is nothing like who she really is behind the fishnets and metallic short shorts. Davina spoke for both of them and by the time Silvia realized she should speak for herself, it was too late.
In one week the team was gone, Silvia's meager possessions were left on the front doorstep of Davina's house, and Davina was skating with the Cut-alunyans. A week later she was shacking up with Messi Murder. None of it really came as a surprise.
Somewhere deep down, Silvia knows that she was never Davina's end game, that Davina wanted someone better. No one is better than Messi Murder. It still hurts to think about, like the sting of a cigarette burn that won't fade no matter what you do to lessen the pain.
"Lightning jammer." Joe's voice pulls her out of her thoughts, out of stealing glances at where Messi Murder and Bitchface are bickering over who gets to take the last jam. "Last jam, no pressure, but uh… well you know." Joe smiles down at her; even with her skates on she is tiny and Joe towers over her. "Kaptain, Ivory, Kocktail, and Milly."
Everyone's eyebrows shoot up at the last name. It's not that Milly Murder isn't an excellent blocker, but she's not who anyone would pick in this last, and most important, jam. Silvia knows Milly better than she knows anyone; like Vivien, Milly is a rock that anchors the team. Reaching out, she squeezes Milly's fingers as best as she can with their wrist guards on.
Milly is an enigma to most people, and even though they're together, there are still some things about Milly that Silvia doesn't understand and doubts she ever will. She's quiet, honest, and a hard worker. Milly doesn't complain, doesn't drink, studies for her law degree harder than anyone has probably ever studied for anything, and still finds time to work and play roller derby. By all accounts Milly is practically an angel or a saint who shouldn't be rubbing shoulders with seventy-five percent of the roller girls out there, but does it anyway. Silvia's not even sure how, or why, Milly started skating. Most roller girls are washed up amateur speed or figure skaters, or just really angry and need an outlet. Milly is neither and that makes Silvia love her even more.
"Whatever happens today, you've already won," was the first thing she told Silvia that morning as she wound a bit of Silvia's hair through her fingers.
Silvia believes her. She didn't know it then, but she knows now she won the minute Davina left. She was hidden in Davina's shadow; she is nurtured by the light and grace Milly has given her. Milly has shown her how to stand on her own feet and be her own person. This morning Silvia wasn't Lightning and Milly wasn't Milly Murder. They were just two women wrapped around each other in bed. Milly distracts Silvia from a broken heart and has been piecing it back together. When it's whole again, Silvia knows her heart will belong entirely to Milly, and that Milly will care for it as if it were the most precious thing in the world.
"I believe in you," Milly tells her as they skate back onto the ring. "I believe in us all."
Silvia's throat is dry, so she just nods. Milly smiles and taps her on the helmet three times for good luck. Skating to the jammer line, she lines up next to Messi Murder, who sticks out a hand to shake before the final jam. Silvia stares at Messi Murder's hand for a minute, contemplating whether or not to shake it or just give her the cold shoulder. She shakes it, smiles tightly, and lines up. Someday Messi Murder is going to realize that Davina is nothing more than a bitch who is good in bed, but isn't really good for much else. That thought alone makes Silvia laugh.
The first whistle blows. The pack starts to rolls. The second whistle blows and Silvia sprints faster than she has ever sprinted in her life. When they hit the back of the pack, everything seems to slow down even though she knows it hasn't. They're moving quickly, and at the same time it feels like they aren't moving at all. Her limbs are heavy, tired, shaking, but she darts through every opening she finds and stays on Messi Murder's tail as they come out of the pack almost at the same time. Four points each.
She drifts behind her, not wanting to chance tripping or fouling Messi Murder in an attempted pass. They reach the back of the pack a second time, but this time neither of them seems to be able to find a way through. Silvia grits her teeth as she fights to stay on her feet amidst the Cut-alunyans slamming into her body and her own teammates grabbing at her and trying to push her through the pack, painting her body with new bruises and battle scars. Somewhere in the fray of screaming fans, the sound of bodies hitting, Ray of Fighting yelling something about mutant fly eyes, and wheels against the floor, she feels Milly's hands on her hips and space opens up in front of her as Milly pushes her as hard as she can, propelling her out of the pack.
Silvia shows everyone why they call her Lightning. She forgets what tired is and ignores the screams in her body. She listens for the sound of wheels darting up the track behind her, but she never hears it. As she rounds the corner and approached the pack again, she sees her blockers have Messi Murder caught between them. Kolorov Kocktail drops to the back of the pack and grabs her, blocking anyone's attempts to stop her. Pulling her to the outside, Kocktail waits until Vexxon Valdes moves to block her, before pushing Silvia forward in the opposite direction past where the rest of the Cut-alunyans are trying to get Messi Murder out of the Blue Moonshiner's grasp. Even with her mouth guard in, Silvia knows Milly is smiling as she smashes against Blinding Justice and sends her into the crowd. Silvia breaks through the front of the pack. A Super Slam. An extra point for lapping the opposing jammer.
The whistle blows before she makes it to the back of the pack for a fourth time through.
Cut-alunyans 80 - Blue Moonshiners 89
The crowd is going wild around them, but Silvia still hears Joe's untamed shriek above all of it. She looks to the bench where her teammates are quickly skating toward her, and she braces herself as they all surround her, a crash of thunder. Being stuck in the middle of a group of women wearing hard protective gear that reeks after months of use should be terrifying, but it's wonderful. An arm snakes around her middle and she feels Milly hold her close, brush a kiss against her cheek, their helmets clanging against each other.
Silvia can't think of a better moment in her life.
*
Most of the crowd is gone. The stragglers who remain are mostly family members and friends of roller girls who are helping clean up the rink. Silvia's out of her skates and protective gear, no longer Lightning the roller girl. Nope, without all of that on she's just Silvia the accountant, dull and boring. To everyone except the one person that matters that is.
After signing the last few autographs for the younger members of the crowd, she watches as Mara approaches her. Benji's already found Gia, who is sitting off to the side with Lea, their heads down as they quietly discuss something- the game most likely. Silvia thinks it kind of weird that they've been able to stay friends despite everything, that they're as close as they are. Silvia's always been wary of Mara and once she met Gia, that wariness turned to dislike.
"You were excellent out there."
"Thank you." Silvia's response is short but polite. Mara's on the same level as Maria insofar as type of crazy goes.
"They made a mistake," Mara motions to where the Cut-ulunyans are sitting on bleachers. "They should have offered you a spot last year instead of Davina. You would have done much better with them."
"I'm happy where I'm at."
"You're the best player on the team."
Silvia stops what she's doing and stares at Mara. It's not true, not by a long shot. There is no such thing as a best player on a roller derby team and Mara knows that. A roller derby team needs players who can work together, and that's what the Blue Moonshiners have. Silvia knows Mara sees that and wonders if the old jammer has something up her sleeve or is just going senile. Two can play at that game.
"Your daughter in law scored most of the points tonight," Silvia tells her firmly, going back to winding the string of lights up. "You should give credit where it's due."
Mara doesn't say anything. One of the doors slams open and Davina storms through, anger on her face as she joins the rest of her team on the bleachers. Davina never handled losing well. Silvia looks down as she smirks; it's the cherry on top of a perfect day.
"Gia knows she can do better," Mara says, her voice flat.
"Gia just out skated the best skater in the league."
"Perhaps."
Silvia shrugs and doesn't say anything else. She's not going to give Mara ammo to use against her. Roller girls are gossipy, both present and past skaters, and Mara is no exception. Mara stares at her for a moment longer until she huffs and wanders off. Silvia shakes her head. Some people…
Arms circle around her waist and she feels Milly pressed behind her. Even though they're the same height, Silvia always feels like Milly shields her. She hears loud footsteps behind them and turns around. Her jaw clenches automatically as she sees Davina standing there, arms crossed.
"I guess you got what you wanted."
Silvia ignores her, goes back to winding up lights. Davina takes a step forward, and Milly places herself between them, iron glint in her eye as if challenging Davina to do something. Nothing happens though, because Nigella skates up still in her gear and looks at Davina like she's road kill or something equally as disgusting.
"Bitch," Nigella's hand is on her hip and her finger is in the air as she gestures angrily at Davina, "unless you're apologizing, back the fuck up or I will put my skate through your chest."
Davina doesn't have a chance to respond, because Lea is there in a heartbeat, apologizing profusely and dragging a bitchy looking Davina away. Not that it's a change to how Davina normally looks. Nigella winks at Silvia and Milly before skating off to where Michaela and Samira are pulling tape up off the rink. Silvia puts her hands on Milly's shoulder- Milly is still staring at Davina, like she won't rest until the other woman is gone. Setting down the string of lights, Silvia throws her arms around Milly, snuggling up to her. Kissing her softly on her neck, right behind her ear, she finally pulls Milly from her death glare.
"My hero," Silvia purrs into her ear, licking the tip of it. Milly twitches.
"Not a very good one." Milly turns around so she can press their lips together.
Silvia hums happily against them before murmuring, "The best one."
That draws a smile from Milly, and they both giggle, foreheads resting against each other. Their moment is short lived as they hear something that sounds like a cross between a shriek and a sob, and turn to where Aleks has tackled Edin to the ground. Una is standing over them, jumping up and down, and clapping her hands. Aleks is straddling Edin on the rink, his glasses are laying next to him from where they were knocked off his face and his bowtie is crooked. She leans down kisses him and his laugh echoes in the large rink.
"I guess there's going to be a wedding," Milly says with a large smile.
"A derby wedding." Silvia clarified. "Better start saving for the keg now."
Aleks stands up and pulls Edin to his feet. He looks a little sore from being tackled, but his grin is blinding as he picks up Una and puts the cheering girl on his shoulders. As Aleks flashes her ring around, everyone yells and claps their approval. In the corner of the room, Joe bursts out into tears at the happy news- he's still dripping wet from when they dumped the water cooler on him. A loud explosion comes from outside, followed by the whistling of bottle rockets. Maria's not in the room and Vivien darts outside just incase she needs to do some damage control. Silvia and Milly shake their heads.
"We won." Milly says, like she still can't believe it. "It's like everyone gets their happy ending." She looks sideways to where Davina and Lea are arguing. "Well, almost everyone." They share a devious smile.
"And we won't have to do a nude calendar next year."
"Pity. I was looking forward to seeing you as a sexy Zeus throwing lightning bolts." Milly snickers.
There's not really anything Silvia can say to that, so she throws her head back and laughs instead. In Milly's arms, on this team, at the rink, and champions of the league- Silvia can't think of anywhere else she would rather be.