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rsadelleI'm pretty sure the idea for all of these really came from a line from ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
marycontraire's Olympics wip. Any version of it would require too much knowledge of/thinking about the contract details for me to write a real story, but here are some variations on the theme.
Futurefic plot bunny of the day (which would be a pain with the contract/cap things you'd have to figure out): Danny retired in Philly. Danny and Claude have been together for a long time. They don't want the hassle of being public, but they've talked about it and they basically consider themselves married. Claude still has his condo, and he has some clothes there and whatever, but mostly he lives at the house (not Danny's house, but theirs, in everything but name) and sometimes Danny stays with him at the condo.
The playoffs are tough on Claude this year. Danny runs his hand through Claude's hair in bed. "Are you going to tell me what's got you so wrapped up in your head?" he asks because he's pretty sure it's not just the playoffs.
Claude sighs and turns to tuck his face into Danny's neck. "Later," he says. He brushes his lips against Danny's throat. "Gotta get through the playoffs."
They make it to the finals, but can't pull it off.
Claude goes to the condo after they lose. Danny knows Claude needs some time to decompress, and leaves him alone until the next night, when he decides it's been long enough and he brings over dinner and they eat without talking about it and go to bed early.
They go home in the morning, and it's only that night when they're in bed, lights out, that Claude says, "That might have been my last playoffs as a Flyer."
Danny hmms to let Claude know he's listening.
"Unrestricted free agency," Claude says. "I don't know what's going to happen."
Danny pats his back. "Anyone with the money is going to make you an offer."
They go up to Canada for a bit at the beginning of the off-season, spend time with the boys when their breaks start, hang out at home in Haddonfield for a while.
They're at the house on July first. Claude's on the phone most of the morning, and Danny stays out of his way until he starts thinking about lunch and finds Claude at the table, a sheet of paper with cities and numbers written on it in front of him.
"Offers?" Danny puts his hands on Claude's shoulders and rubs them while he looks at the list.
"Yeah. Pat says this is probably it."
It's more than enough, more than half the league offering for Claude.
"What are you thinking?"
Claude sighs. "Philly's been good to me, but I've lost a lot of Cups here. At least if I leave and we don't win, I'll be losing somewhere new." Danny watches Claude run his hand down the list, back up, stop.
"Ottawa?" Their offer is good. They're all good.
Claude leans back against him. "I could go home."
Danny kisses the top of his head. "You could."
"What happens if I go to Ottawa?"
"You center their first line and spend all your time and money getting tickets for family and friends."
"What happens to us if I go to Ottawa?"
Danny pulls out the chair next to Claude and sits down. "We argue about whether we should live in my place in Gatineau or your place in Ottawa." Danny takes Claude's hands. "Ottawa's easy. I grew up across the river, the boys are out of the house, my family's still there." Danny glances at the list. "If you want to go to Dallas, it's going to be harder to explain, but I'm still going with you."
"Danny," Claude says. "Danny, you can't just do that."
"Yes, I can." Danny squeezes Claude's hands. "That's what marriage means, even if we don't have the certificate. And I was a hockey player too, you know. I know what unrestricted free agent means. The boys know their breaks might be more complicated if we're not here next year."
Claude jerks his head up. "You talked to the boys about this?"
"Claude. Unrestricted free agent. I've been there." He leans forward and presses a soft kiss to Claude's lips. "We can go wherever you want to go."
Claude closes his eyes, and then he looks over at the list. "I want to go home."
"Okay," Danny says. He kisses Claude again. "It's only half an hour from the house in Gatineau to the rink."
Claude leans his forehead on Danny's. He sounds a little unsteady when he says, "It's only fifteen minutes from the condo in Ottawa."
Danny puts an arm around Claude. "We've got a couple of months to figure that one out."
In the alternate version, they talk about it a lot earlier, and Danny says, "I'm going wherever you go," before the playoffs are even over, so they're already thinking about explanations and what they should do, and they decide they might as well put the real reason out there. So on locker cleanout day when the media asks Claude about what he's doing next year, he says, "I don't know what kind of offers I'm going to get. Whatever it is, I'm going to talk it over with my partner, and figure out where I want to play and he won't hate living." And then they all ask about his partner, and he says, "You all know him. Danny Briere." And he smiles and says, "And, yes, he knows I'm telling you this." And then they don't have to make up any explanations.
*
And then there's a variation on the theme where they're not together but want to play together:
The Flyers keep talking to Pat about extending Claude's contract, and every time they do, he says to Pat, "Only if they extend Danny's too."
Danny calls him one day and says, "You'd better come over. Pat's here."
Pat's flown in to see them, and he's sitting at Danny's dining room table with a cold cup of coffee in front of him.
Claude sits next to Danny across from Pat, and Pat tells him he's making things really difficult.
Claude shrugs, because he doesn't care if it's difficult. "Extensions for both of us," he says. "Full no movement clauses. Otherwise I'm not signing." Someone's going to want both of them enough to put that on an offer sheet, and if the Flyers want to keep him, they'll have to match it.
Pat looks at both of them, Claude determined and Danny calm. "I really don't want to ask this. I don't even want to know. Are you fucking?"
Claude says, "What? No!"
"No," Danny says. "But we like playing together. I only have a few more years, and we want to spend them playing together."
Pat sighs and shakes his head at Danny. "I thought this was just him. I was hoping you would be sensible about it."
"Contracts for both of us," Danny says, "full no movement clauses. That's the only thing we're signing."
marycontraire's Olympics wip. Any version of it would require too much knowledge of/thinking about the contract details for me to write a real story, but here are some variations on the theme.Futurefic plot bunny of the day (which would be a pain with the contract/cap things you'd have to figure out): Danny retired in Philly. Danny and Claude have been together for a long time. They don't want the hassle of being public, but they've talked about it and they basically consider themselves married. Claude still has his condo, and he has some clothes there and whatever, but mostly he lives at the house (not Danny's house, but theirs, in everything but name) and sometimes Danny stays with him at the condo.
The playoffs are tough on Claude this year. Danny runs his hand through Claude's hair in bed. "Are you going to tell me what's got you so wrapped up in your head?" he asks because he's pretty sure it's not just the playoffs.
Claude sighs and turns to tuck his face into Danny's neck. "Later," he says. He brushes his lips against Danny's throat. "Gotta get through the playoffs."
They make it to the finals, but can't pull it off.
Claude goes to the condo after they lose. Danny knows Claude needs some time to decompress, and leaves him alone until the next night, when he decides it's been long enough and he brings over dinner and they eat without talking about it and go to bed early.
They go home in the morning, and it's only that night when they're in bed, lights out, that Claude says, "That might have been my last playoffs as a Flyer."
Danny hmms to let Claude know he's listening.
"Unrestricted free agency," Claude says. "I don't know what's going to happen."
Danny pats his back. "Anyone with the money is going to make you an offer."
They go up to Canada for a bit at the beginning of the off-season, spend time with the boys when their breaks start, hang out at home in Haddonfield for a while.
They're at the house on July first. Claude's on the phone most of the morning, and Danny stays out of his way until he starts thinking about lunch and finds Claude at the table, a sheet of paper with cities and numbers written on it in front of him.
"Offers?" Danny puts his hands on Claude's shoulders and rubs them while he looks at the list.
"Yeah. Pat says this is probably it."
It's more than enough, more than half the league offering for Claude.
"What are you thinking?"
Claude sighs. "Philly's been good to me, but I've lost a lot of Cups here. At least if I leave and we don't win, I'll be losing somewhere new." Danny watches Claude run his hand down the list, back up, stop.
"Ottawa?" Their offer is good. They're all good.
Claude leans back against him. "I could go home."
Danny kisses the top of his head. "You could."
"What happens if I go to Ottawa?"
"You center their first line and spend all your time and money getting tickets for family and friends."
"What happens to us if I go to Ottawa?"
Danny pulls out the chair next to Claude and sits down. "We argue about whether we should live in my place in Gatineau or your place in Ottawa." Danny takes Claude's hands. "Ottawa's easy. I grew up across the river, the boys are out of the house, my family's still there." Danny glances at the list. "If you want to go to Dallas, it's going to be harder to explain, but I'm still going with you."
"Danny," Claude says. "Danny, you can't just do that."
"Yes, I can." Danny squeezes Claude's hands. "That's what marriage means, even if we don't have the certificate. And I was a hockey player too, you know. I know what unrestricted free agent means. The boys know their breaks might be more complicated if we're not here next year."
Claude jerks his head up. "You talked to the boys about this?"
"Claude. Unrestricted free agent. I've been there." He leans forward and presses a soft kiss to Claude's lips. "We can go wherever you want to go."
Claude closes his eyes, and then he looks over at the list. "I want to go home."
"Okay," Danny says. He kisses Claude again. "It's only half an hour from the house in Gatineau to the rink."
Claude leans his forehead on Danny's. He sounds a little unsteady when he says, "It's only fifteen minutes from the condo in Ottawa."
Danny puts an arm around Claude. "We've got a couple of months to figure that one out."
In the alternate version, they talk about it a lot earlier, and Danny says, "I'm going wherever you go," before the playoffs are even over, so they're already thinking about explanations and what they should do, and they decide they might as well put the real reason out there. So on locker cleanout day when the media asks Claude about what he's doing next year, he says, "I don't know what kind of offers I'm going to get. Whatever it is, I'm going to talk it over with my partner, and figure out where I want to play and he won't hate living." And then they all ask about his partner, and he says, "You all know him. Danny Briere." And he smiles and says, "And, yes, he knows I'm telling you this." And then they don't have to make up any explanations.
*
And then there's a variation on the theme where they're not together but want to play together:
The Flyers keep talking to Pat about extending Claude's contract, and every time they do, he says to Pat, "Only if they extend Danny's too."
Danny calls him one day and says, "You'd better come over. Pat's here."
Pat's flown in to see them, and he's sitting at Danny's dining room table with a cold cup of coffee in front of him.
Claude sits next to Danny across from Pat, and Pat tells him he's making things really difficult.
Claude shrugs, because he doesn't care if it's difficult. "Extensions for both of us," he says. "Full no movement clauses. Otherwise I'm not signing." Someone's going to want both of them enough to put that on an offer sheet, and if the Flyers want to keep him, they'll have to match it.
Pat looks at both of them, Claude determined and Danny calm. "I really don't want to ask this. I don't even want to know. Are you fucking?"
Claude says, "What? No!"
"No," Danny says. "But we like playing together. I only have a few more years, and we want to spend them playing together."
Pat sighs and shakes his head at Danny. "I thought this was just him. I was hoping you would be sensible about it."
"Contracts for both of us," Danny says, "full no movement clauses. That's the only thing we're signing."
(no subject)
Date: 2013-02-27 02:29 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2013-02-27 03:12 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2013-02-27 02:43 am (UTC)if this is truly an abandoned bunny, I'm crossing fingers someone will take it in and adopt it
(no subject)
Date: 2013-02-27 03:13 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2013-02-27 08:57 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2013-02-28 05:21 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2013-02-28 07:40 pm (UTC)I also love the idea of a no-we-just-really-want-to-play-together version, particularly if it came with the gut check of the serious prospect of one of them leaving and/or the thought: wait, why am I so set on playing with this guy? :DD
(no subject)
Date: 2013-02-28 10:56 pm (UTC)Yes! That not yet together version totally came out of a conversation about a variation where they're not willing to be separated, and then eventually figuring out that what they feel about each other is more than just friendship.