Author's Note
This is the re-imagining of story called
Lucia Makes a Bet
by visioneer. It was posted here in March, 2012, although I found it on another site when he re-posted it there in November, 2013.
Visioneer's story is very well-written; has an interesting premise; and has great characters, plot, and dialogue. So there was certainly no need to play with a story so well-composed. But the premise was, as it were, right up my alley, and I had some ideas to take the characters and story in a different direction. I contacted visioneer and he generously extended his permission for me to re-work the story. Visioneer's story was based on a character, Lucia, that was developed by another author here, Gimmie_Your_Load. A good deal of my re-imaging of the story involved significant changes to the main protagonist, Lucia. In fact, the Lucia character, for my purposes, needed to be so greatly changed that I re-named the character. But I contacted GYL anyway, and she also generously extended permission to work with a character at least very loosely based on hers.
I ended up posting the story at another site, although under my other pen name, B. E. Thalia, and I thought it should also be presented here.
I was attracted to Lucia Makes a Bet because I've written a series of similarly premised stories called
Taking Chances.
They are about people who for various reasons - sound or unsound, impulsive or considered - make a wager and how the result of that wager, win or lose, has consequences and impacts on their self-image, relationships, and other aspects of their real world lives. This re-imagining of
Lucia Makes a Bet
takes that story in the same direction as those of
Taking Chances.
If you enjoy this story then you will also very much enjoy
Lucia Makes a Bet,
visioneer's original version of this tale. And GYL has developed some excellent stories based on her Lucia character.
But, especially for authors, this might all be illustrative of how different authors can take essentially the same characters and plot and turn them into distinct stories with very different feels, character dynamics, and story lines.
The story is presented in six chapters.
Your comments and observations, both public and by message, are welcomed (which is the polite way of saying: Don't be a greedhead and merely suck in stories, but extend the small effort it takes to give back to the people who are providing you with free content).
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Chapter Two
I asked Sandrine if she'd school me in the finer points of hockey as the game progressed. I put it that way, but really I didn't even know the rougher points. So, between hurling partisan abuse and having it hurled at her, she obliged.
"Not too much to it," she'd started. "Two teams of six guys each. They get on the ice, skate, and try to beat the shit out of each other. If they happen to think of it they also try to put the puck in the other team's net."
We were definitely the outsiders here. Not only was Sandrine for the other team (and, I suppose, everyone thought I must be, too), but we were from south of the border.
Sandrine has a sharp wit, an impulsive mind (as evidenced by her dance with Keith), and a devilish knack for pushing peoples' buttons. I doubt anyone in the room had been called a 'canuck' so much in a long while.
As the game progressed the two teams played to a standoff. Even I could tell it was an amazing defensive game. Sandrine explained to me that players were taken off the ice when they committed infractions, leading to a 'power play.' The other team would have one more skater on the ice for the duration of the penalty. I remembered once seeing that movie Slapshot with Paul Newman, and when she mentioned penalties an image came to mind of the three Hanson brothers, enforcers with their black and taped horn-rimmed glasses, all in the penalty box together.
The Stars got the first such advantage, but failed to capitalize. Later in the first period the Flames got their chance but also came up empty.
During the second period Sandrine explained to me about how hockey is an 'off-side' game. Forward passes of the puck are permitted. Before the 1930s that hadn't been the case, and hockey had only allowed passes backward, like rugby.
As the teams skated up and down the ice during the last two periods, often coming close to scoring but never succeeding, she told me about being off-sides. How an attacking team had to advance the puck over the blue line before any of its players could enter the other team's zone.
As the scoreless third period wound down the Stars got another power play, and Sandrine pointed out to me how the Flames, a player short, would use every opportunity to shoot the puck down to the other end of the rink to take time off the penalty and period. She explained how if a team did that and the puck crossed both the center line and the other team's goal line untouched it was called 'icing the puck.' One of the skaters on the attacking team had to skate the length of the ice and touch the puck before the clock was stopped. An official would bring the puck back up the ice for a faceoff in the defending team's zone. But precious seconds would have leaked off the clock.
Soon the Flames were back up to full strength. As the last seconds wound down, a Flames skater got a breakaway and raced down the right side of the ice toward the Stars' goal, the puck at the head of his stick. Another Flames player was ten feet behind him on the left side of the rink. The first player bore in on the goalie, the tender coming out from the net to reduce the shooter's angle on the goal. The player shot and the puck was smothered in the goalie's pads.
Seconds later, the period, and regulation time, ended with the score 0 to 0.
I was surprised by the reaction of the guys. I thought they'd be inconsolably disappointed. Didn't a tie mean that there was no loser, and therefore no strip show? I expressed this to Sandrine.
"There aren't any more ties in the NHL, numb nuts," she explained. "They play a five minute extra period. Sudden death. If a team scores it's over. That Flames forward really saved my bacon."
"How so?"
