Houses of the Holy

Danny wrote out his line combinaions on the whiteboard, his steady hand belying the nervousness he felt in his belly. This is not an exhibition game in Montreal, this is the real deal against the Habs. This is a real trial by fire, he thought with a wry chuckle.

The little office in the bowels of the arena was little more than a broom closet with a battered metal desk and a squeaky swivel chair, the fading gray wallpaper peeling at the edges. The only real personality was the framed picture of his family he carried everywhere, smiling at the picture in its green glass frame. It had been taken the first Christmas after him and Laima got married, posing with the boys and all of them wearing Santa hats.

Danny's reverie was cut short when his phone vibrated, seeing the familiar number. "Bonjour et bonne chance, Danny", said Laima.

"Merci, mon fille lune. Are you going to watch the game?", he asked.

"Oui, lucky the boys don't have school tomorrow. I do feel bad for rooting against the Habs, I do miss Alessa and Marjorie", she said with a little sigh.

"What about your husband's team, ma femme?", he teased.

"Of course I am going to root pour les Nordiques, Danny", she retorted.

"Pardon, ma fille lune. Geneva is okay, but the boys are more excited to see Vienna", he said.

"Just make sure they don't have too much fun", she teased.

"Je sais, ma fille lune. Au revoir", he said.

"Je t'aime", she replied, hitting End.

Danny put away his phone and opened the door, wheeling out the whiteboard and taking it to the dressing room. The players were putting on their uniforms and they looked over at their coach and the whiteboard. "Guys, this is the first game of Les Nordiques du Quebec. We are facing an old rival and this is our chance to prove we're not just some expansion team, we can compete with the big boys", he said as they all cheered.

"We'll kick some ass for you, Dad", vowed Caelan.

"That we are, Caelan", agreed Jared as everyone nodded in agreement.

Danny outlined plays and showed them the specifics, the adrenalin coursing through him like it was his first game. "Dad, I'm as nervous as you", said Caelan.

"Oui, mon frere. It's good to have the butterflies, otherwise you don't care. I remember my debut", he said, clapping his son on the back.

The team followed the coaches down the hallway, the murmur of the crowd growing steadily louder. The Nordiques took to the ice lead by Max with the white C on his dark blue Nordiques jersey, the Canadiens in their white uniforms getting the bigger cheers. The teams skated on their end of the ice in the darkened arena, tiny rays of light from cell phones flashing throughout the stands.

The lights turned back on as a red carpet was rolled out and the mayor of Geneva was escorted to center ice. He got in between Max and Brian Gionta, dropping the puck as the two captains shook hands and smiled for the camera. Max skated back to the bench and watched as the carpet was rolled back and hte mayor escorted to his seat and butterflies dancing in his stomach. "Don't sweat it, mon capitan", said Derick reassuringly.

Max just laughed, his blue eyes merry. "Je sais, Brassy", he said.

After the Canadian and Swiss anthems were sun in French by a teenage girl in a blue prom gown, the Nordiques and Canadiens took to the ice as the crowd applauded warmly. Derick faced off against Tomas Plekanec as the referee dropped the puck Derickk winning the draw as some in the crowd booed. He passed it to Jared and they skated towards the Canadiens' goal, shadowed by PK Subban and Andrei Markov as Carey Price grasped his stick tightly and hunched forward, calm brown eyes peering out from behind his mask. Jared deked Price and only a lunging glove save prevented a goal, the tall redhead cursing under his breath.

The score was tied 1-1 with less than 2 minutes left in regulation, the Nordiques having pulled Ilya for the extra attacker. Derick centered Jared and Beau Bennett as the trio rushed down the ice, Subban and Markov backing up against Price. Jared saw John open and passed it to him, firing a slap shot that went just five-hole as the guys embraced him, Ilya going back to the net as Jared, John, and Derick skated back to the bench.

Danny remained outwardly calm but he felt the butterflies do their crazy dance and his heart pound, seeing the seconds tick down on the clock over center ice. He couldn't help the grin on hs face when the buzzer went off to signal the end of the game, embracing his players. "We beat 'em, Coach", said John proudly.

"Oui, Champ", agreed John.

The Nordiques were in a happy mood as they made their way back to their dressing room, ready to face the media. John quickly showered and changed into a sharp gray suit as he talked to the reporters, Derick at at his side translating into French. He saw Ausra out of the corner of his eye and couldn't help but grin, feeling like a knight jousting for his lady's honor. Even though she wore tailored black slacks and a dark blue blouse, her height, red hair, and striking Slavic beauty made her look more like a queen than a regular woman.

"Great game, guys. It's only a short flight to Vienna", she said.

"Good, I want to get some sleep", said John as they boarded the bus to the airport.

"Don't you want to celebrate, Champ?", teased Max.

"I'm a Yank and not a crazy Frenchy like you, cap", he retorted cheerfully.

The flight to Vienna was uneventful as the plane landed at Wien Schuerbrat airport, going straight to the bus while their equipment went to the arena. The city ws dark at this time of night, unlike an American city, as there were few skyscrapers. The city downtown was eerily quiet near their hotel, the bus parking outside. John checked his phone for texts and decided to reply later, the exhaustion from the game finally catching up to him. I'm getting old, he thought ruefully.

Ausra bid good night to Natalia and Jacquetta as she went to her room, turning on the lights and then the TV. She unpacked a few toiletries and a green silk robe, deciding to call Alexey in the morning as he would be sleeping right now. I have to buy him a present, she mused.

Ausra ordered a small bottle of Limonaya from room service and flipped through the channels until she came across a repeat from the first season of Game of Thrones. She heard her phone vibrate and raised an eyebrow when she saw the text from John, sending a reply. A few minutes later, there was a knock on the door and she let him in. "I thought you'd be tired after playing tonight", she teased.

"I thought so too, but I'm not. I thought I'd crash here for a bit, Brassy and Carbomb are out of it", he said, glancing at the TV.

"Dany is my girl, I love the badass warrior women, the queens. I love how she went from being a scared little girl to the leader of the Dothraki, and I'm glad Viserys is dead", she said in satisfaction.

"He was an evil son of a bitch, I don't know who is worse, him or Joffrey or his bitch mother", he said.

Ausra nodded in agreement, her green eyes understanding. "The Targaryan's are the rightful kings, they are born of dragons. The Starks are good people, but I hate the Lannisters, bunch of evil schemers and Cersei is a filthy slut", she said angrily.

"No wonder Joffrey is so fucked up, his mom fucked her brother", he said with disgust.

"I read all the novels when they came out", she mused aloud.

The waiter came by with a tray holding the vodka and two small shot glasses, setting it on a table as she gave him a tip. "I'm half-Russian, best vodka in the world", she said.

John watched as she poured them two shots. "Na zdrowi", she toasted.

"Slainte", he replied as they clinked glasses and drank.

"Is there anything you don't know how to do, Lady Dragon Queen?", he teased.

Ausra just laughed. "That's what my father calls me, he said I'm not a princess, I am a queen. I wasn't raised to be a stupid girl, and with the way I look I couldn't be that way", she said wryly.

John nodded in agreement aas he sipped his drink and turned his attention to the screen. "Fuck the Lannisters", she muttered, watching as Cersei and Jaime had sex.

"That is fucking disgusting", he agreed.

They watched the show in a comfortable silence, sipping their vodka. Ausra was conscious of him so close to her, being larger than herself which was a rare feeling. John wore blue plaid pajamas, his dark hair and bright blue eyes showing his Irish heritage and different from her own red hair. Don't think that way, she reminded herself.

"Why are afraid?", he asked.

Ausra was startled momentarily at the question but regained her composure, her green eyes cool. "I fear no one, Mr. Moore", she retorted.

John laughed, his blue eyes merry. "You may have red hair, but you are a cool customer, Lady Dragon Queen", he drawled.

"I can't have a real relationship, I don't anyone to hurt my son and Fedorov money stays in Fedorov hands", she said coolly.

John finished his drink and glared. "I'm not going to hurt your son and I don't want your goddamn money. I don't know how you got that idea", he growled.

"There are a lot of people who want Father's money, John. If you were born into our family, you'd understand", she said.

"I'm not Russian, I'm American and this isn't a soap opera, Ausra. You have to learn to trust", he said.

"I trust Danny and Laima, my parents and my son. I do not trust easily, Laima's ex wanted to be with her because of our father's money", she replied.

"That sucks, but I have plenty of my own, thank you. You can either be single and keeping people away, or you can start behaving like part of the human race. Your choice, Lady Dragon Queen", he murmured.