AN: Please read this first.
I know this has limited appeal because of the hockey theme, but I hope you will try it anyway. It is not loaded with hockey lingo ;)
I don't claim to be an expert in hockey or medicine, but I have done my best to research.
This hockey world is created in my imagination. Some of the rules (body checking/fighting) are different than in the real world of women's hockey. Please keep that in mind.
The parts in italics that has a headline (like this very first one) are news articles.

If there is anything you don't understand, don't hesitate to write me. I'll do my best to help:)

Rated T with some language and mild violence, may change to M further down the road.
Any R&I characters belong to their respective owners and not me, I just borrow them for creative purposes. Other fictional characters in this story do however belong to me.

Cover made by a good friend of mine, kiddo.

Rizzoli Without a Team

After a lot of speculation, Jane Rizzoli (22) and the Denver Grizzlies confirmed today that they are parting ways. It was Rizzoli's decision to not renew her contract, and says she has no hard feelings against Denver.

Rizzoli was drafted 4th overall by Denver four years ago, and had a great start to her career in the Women's National Hockey League with 26 goals and 43 points in her rookie season two years later. She ranked second in goals among the rookies that year, and third on her team. With her superb speed, several of her goals were shorthanded or breakaways. This season started like she ended the first, with a 5-game point streak before she seemed to struggle. She ended up with a disappointing 24 points.

It shouldn't take too long before the Boston native signs a contract with a new team. She is currently the most attractive player on the free agent market and as soon as the first offer comes along, other teams have to be quick.

"Wait, hold up." Danielle Smith stopped by a newsstand and picked up a magazine. "Oh, just look at that picture! You look so scary!" She slapped the arm of her best friend and grinned. "Toughest girl in the country, all geared up and ready to knock the shit out of anyone who tries to get past her on the ice. I have to buy this." She started looking through her pockets for money.

Jane sighed and shook her head. It wasn't the first article about her in a magazine, not even her first cover, and it certainly wasn't the first one her friend had bought. "You're almost worse than my fans…"

Danielle laughed and put the magazine in her bag. "I AM your fan. And my best friend is a hot, new star in the hockey world, of course I'm gonna buy magazines, jerseys and shit." They started walking again, heading for the basketball court just a few blocks from Danielle's place.

"I feel bad for the rest of my fans who will never have a chance to buy one of my game used jerseys" Jane teased.

"They'll have their chances. I already have one of your Denver jerseys, I don't need another one. I will be first in line as soon as you sign with a new team though."

Jane laughed. "I already feel bad for anyone being in a line along with you. I'll have to personally apologize to everyone wherever I end up."

They stopped at a traffic light and Danielle turned to look at Jane. "Don't act like you don't like it" she smiled. No response, but she could tell from the smile on Jane's face that she was right. "So, you don't regret leaving Denver?"

"No way. Not at all. It's good to be back home in Boston for now. Despite the fact that my craziest fans are here." Jane smirked as the light changed and they crossed the street.

Danielle smiled as well, happy to be face to face with Jane again during their banter. Ever since Jane left for Denver four years ago, they hadn't had much time together.

They were inseparable as kids, despite their rivaling start at hockey camp when they were 13. Jane had been the quick sniper, always looking to score goals. She was competitive and selfish, and more than once did the coaches have to talk with her parents. She never cared much about it, she didn't care that the other kids didn't like her either, as long as she could play and score goals.

That all changed when Danielle joined the team. Being just as competitive she quickly got under Jane's skin, stealing the spotlight. Jane would put in extra hours practicing, just to discover that Danielle did the same. Then one sarcastic comment was answered with an even more sarcastic response, and they realized they had more in common than hockey.

"I still can't believe the Red Sox blew that game last night" Jane sighed and sat down on the bench by the court. She found her water bottle and placed it next to her.

"I know. That was horrible! I don't know why I bothered to watch the last part…"

Jane slowly turned to Danielle. "I hope that doesn't mean you walk away from any of my games?"

Danielle laughed and shook her head. "No way. But that's because you're usually on the team that scores the most goals."

"True" Jane nodded and her lips turned into a sly grin. "Such a coincidence…" She got up and picked up the ball and started bouncing it.

"Oh humble one… how I would love to see you score tonight when we go out…" Danielle sighed and got up as well.

"What?" Jane laughed and stopped.

"Well, not with me of course!"

"I know that, moron! But come on, you really think I would let you watch if I score tonight…?"

Danielle snapped the ball out of Jane's hands and grimaced. "Eww! No! It's just a saying, idiot!"

Jane was grinning. She loved their banter and teasing. No one could do sarcasm, teasing and humor with such a perfect twist like Danielle. "Of course I know that, I may be an idiot but I'm not a moron… and why do you wanna see me score tonight?"

"Well… you last scored in April, it's now August. That's one hell of a dry spell." Danielle let the rest of the sentence hang unspoken in the air and threw the ball back at Jane.

"Haha! You're so funny" Jane replied sarcastically.

Danielle silently accepted the compliment, knowing she had the upper hand when Jane resorted to those comebacks. They continued their teasing while they started playing. "But seriously, you should totally make the most of that magazine cover tonight. Impress the ladies… or pretend like you hate the attention. Both will probably work."

"Why are you so focused on me getting laid?!"

Danielle tried to make a few moves to get past Jane, but when she failed she stopped and tried to do her best puppy eyes. "I just want what's best for you, my friend."

Jane burst out laughing. "Bullshit!" She took advantage of Danielle's lack of focus and stole the ball from her hands.

Danielle started laughing too while she ran after Jane who headed for the net. "Yeah… it's bullshit. I don't give a shit about what's best for you."

Jane jumped and easily got the ball through the net. "Score!"

Danielle stopped and smiled while she shook her head. At the same time, she saw Jane falling against the post with her feet firmly planted on the ground. Jane had stepped on her shoelace, something her mother had warned her about since she was a kid, and was unable to move her feet. Danielle snorted amidst it all until Jane went head first into the post and then fell down to the ground.

"Shit…" Danielle mumbled and knew right away that Jane was hurt. Otherwise she would quickly get up on her feet and joke it off. "Jane, are you okay?" Danielle kneeled next to Jane and looked down at her. No answer, and no movement.

Jane slowly opened her eyes and looked straight at two faces. It took a while to figure out she was on her back, looking up towards the sky. She recognized Danielle, but she couldn't figure out who the blonde was. She didn't really hear what they were saying either, but it seemed to be about her. Jane took a deep breath. "Why am I down here…?" She started to sit up, but the stranger's hand pushed her firmly down again. Words were again spoken, and Jane turned to Danielle with a puzzled look. "Help me up, you moron…"

"No, just stay still. You hit your head pretty bad."

Jane looked from Danielle to the blonde stranger and then she sighed. "I'm fine! Get away." She made another effort to get up and this time she managed to sit up before four hands grabbed her shoulders.

"No, you are not fine" the stranger protested.

The words were blurry as Jane got dizzy from the sudden movement. Things started to spin and she closed her eyes to make it all stop. It didn't really help and she got the feeling she was falling. Next time she opened her eyes she was back on the ground again, staring at the sky. Danielle was still talking to the stranger, and Jane watched. She noticed a hint of a dimple on the left cheek and studied it cautiously until the blonde pursed her lips together.

"Cute dimple" Jane mumbled and tried to smile. "It looks good on you. Fits you perfectly."

The blonde looked down at her, somewhat confused at first. But then she smiled and quickly looked away.

"Ah, there it is again!" And Jane closed her eyes to stop the spinning.

Danielle brought Jane home from the ER later that afternoon. After a checkup and some strict rules, Jane had been released because Danielle had promised to keep an eye on her friend.

"No tv, no movies, no music, no reading… well, that one doesn't hurt…" Jane sank down on Danielle's couch and sighed. "No Red Sox, no jumping and bouncing around, no loud noises and…" She performed a drumroll with her fingers on the table. "No hockey or skating whatsoever. Top reasons why I hate concussions!"

"Don't forget no alcohol" Danielle added as she walked past the couch towards the kitchen.

"Do you hate me? Seriously, do you hate me? Cause I know that my friend would not remind me of that!"

Danielle chuckled and grabbed a bottle of water. "Yeah, I hate you, that's why I offered to keep an eye on you for the next 24 hours so you wouldn't be stuck with your mom."

Jane smiled at the thought. "Okay, that was actually really nice of you. It's bad enough I have to live at home until I find a new team."

"You knew I would do it. No way I'm leaving you with your mom and have to deal with your craziness afterwards." Danielle sat down in the opposite corner and turned to Jane. "So… when are we gonna talk about you hitting on that stranger while you were almost unconscious?"

Jane slowly turned her head. "What? I didn't…hit on anyone."

"Oh yes you did. You don't remember!?"

They stared at each other while Jane tried to go back a few hours. But the moments were all just a blur in her head. "Well, I have a concussion! Memory loss included…" she argued.

"Touché" Danielle smiled. "But okay, let me refresh your memory then. Do the words 'cute dimple' ring any bell?"

"There's a lot of bells ringing in my head right now, but not that one…"

"Too bad. Cause it was so funny to watch." Danielle ignored the scowl coming from Jane. "But fine, just seconds after you fell this woman crosses the street. Says she's a doctor and if she could help. And yeah, I admit she was pretty hot…"

"Says the straight girl…." Jane mumbled and was rewarded with a scowl herself.

"Anyway… she takes complete charge, asks me all sorts of questions while calling an ambulance. When you finally wake up, you try to convince us that you're fine, like usual. Second time you wake up, you mumble that this woman has a 'cute dimple' and you totally hit on her. She actually blushed!"

Jane wasn't sure if she should feel proud or embarrassed. Hitting on a woman while practically passed out was indeed a first, but so was the fact that she didn't remember it. "So she obviously blushes easily…" she said casually.

Danielle looked at her and laughed. "Don't act so humble, it's freaking me out! It's not you, at all!"

"Sorry" Jane laughed as well. "Must be the concussion. So, did she say anything?"

"No, just that I had to make sure you weren't alone the next couple of days. And to get you checked out at the ER. She said it was most likely a mild concussion, and she turned out to be right."

"Wow, a doctor who knew what she was talking about. I'm glad you decided to listen to her" Jane mocked.

Danielle glared at her and sighed. "I would have given you a concussion right now if you didn't already suffer from one."

Jane laughed. "Well, look at that, a good thing about my concussion after all!"

Jane had barely turned five when her parents split up. Her father moved away from Boston, and she and her two younger brothers were left with their devastated mother. Nearly three years later Vince Korsak, a well-known homicide detective, entered their life, and even though she found it strange to have a stepdad, she quickly bonded with him. She was serious about hockey, but was missing that male role model and support. After he moved in with them, he became the most important person in her life regarding the game. She was determined to play, and no one could stop her. Korsak supported her through everything, and even as an adult and a professional hockey player, Jane always turned to him for advice.

Jane walked through the doors at The Dirty Robber, a well-known cop bar that Korsak bought after he took out an early retirement. With the help of Jane's mother, he was now running it and doing a pretty good job at it. She sat down at the bar and rested her arms on the counter.

"Hi Jane. How's the head?" Korsak asked and looked up from his papers.

"It's fine…"

Korsak sensed there was something going on and put down his pen. "What's up?" He took off his reading glasses before he reached for a cup and poured her a coffee.

"My agent called me this morning. Atlanta wants me."

Korsak could tell from the way she stared at the cup in her hands that she wasn't very enthusiastic about it. Reading Jane Rizzoli was easy. Sometimes. "So what are you thinking?"

"I don't know…" she sighed and looked up. "My first reaction was disappointment. Cause they are… mediocre, they're not a great team. I know I'm demanding, but I want to play for a great team. Or a team where I might have a shot at the cup one day. Atlanta will never win the cup, at least not in the next decade, they're just stuck there in the middle."

"And nobody blames you for that. So was the salary decent? Since you seem to be doubting."

"Oh… yeah, salary was more than decent. But I still don't know. There's nothing in me that says I should do this."

"Then maybe you shouldn't do it. If you're not interested, then you shouldn't force yourself either. There will be plenty of other offers."

"You think?"

Korsak laughed. "Of course! Jane, you scored 26 goals in your first season. In 52 games! As a rookie! I can promise you that there are teams out there doing algebra to make room for you!"

Jane smiled for the first time that day. She trusted Korsak, but she also knew that she had just scored 5 goals in the next 24 games. Not at all what was expected from her, what she was expecting from herself.

"And now that the first offer is out there, the other teams know they have to be quick. Trust me, Jane. Wait for an offer that excites you."

A New Devil in Town

Boston native Jane Rizzoli (22), said to be one of the most promising hockey players in the Women's National Hockey League, has just signed a two year-contract with the Boston Daredevils. Rizzoli didn't renew her contract with Denver Grizzlies after last season, and several teams have been interested in getting the right wing's signature during the summer break. She spent her two first seasons in Denver after being drafted as number 4 four years ago. In her first professional season, Rizzoli recorded 26 goals and 17 assists for 43 points. Last season she struggled and ended up with a disappointing 24 points.

The Daredevils have been rebuilding the last two years, ending up in the lower half of the standings, and general manager Chris Stewart says Rizzoli is the type of player they have been looking for.

"We are very happy to add Rizzoli to our team. She's a great player and will bring that strength and tenacity that we've been looking for on the ice along with her speed which makes her a constant threat. She's a typical goal scorer who works hard in every battle."

The main person herself is looking forward to joining her new team.

"I'm very excited. Boston is my home and it's good to be back where I started. There is real hockey passion in this city and it's a great arena for young players to develop. The Devils have some very exciting players and prospects so they have something good going on right now. I have no doubt they will become a Cup contender in a few years, and I'd love to be on that ride. I can't wait to get out on the ice and try to do my part."

Rizzoli has yet to pass the medical tests before she can join the team, but according to Stewart, this is just a formality now and she should be ready for the season opener in less than two weeks.