2026-04-26, 08:08 PM - Word count:
End of S22, Paris, France-
"What do you mean the number of games is getting cut?" Voices filled the Paris locker room as the organization heads tried to keep the peace. "Listen, listen! The SSL board has announced that both the Major and Minor leagues are moving to two divisions with a promotion-relegation system. As a by-product of the change, the number of games played will be going down. Instead of playing against 11 teams twice, you'll now play 5 teams at least twice. Season 24 is going to be an interim season of 10 games, and Season 25 will feature 15 games."
That was the explanation that Silver played over and over in his head as he walked home. The whole walk was just a replay of what transpired in that locker room earlier in the day. 'On the one wing, I totally get it. If you're gonna split the league into two divisions, it doesn't make sense to have division one play division two teams. Otherwise, why even bother with a league split?" the owl thought, kicking a loose rock that had been sitting there. In his mind, it was a pass to Eric Belmont, who would no doubt bury it in the back of the net. 'But on the other wing... going from 22 games down to 10 games is gonna suck... I just wanna play man...' his thoughts continued, finally reaching his doorstep. He unlocked the door without much fanfare, locking it behind him as he entered.
End of S23, Paris, France-
Silver's second full season in Paris had going swimmingly. Coming off a Rookie of the Season winning year and a Sub for Team of the Season year should've be tough for the owl, but he seemed to hit it in stride. For the most part, he had been able to push the looming changes out of his mind and continue to play the game he loved. He landed his first national corporate sponsorship, he won the Golden Eye award and made Team of the Season, and Paris even won the Minor League Championship for back to back seasons! So why had he been unable to shake this feeling of uneasiness as the offseason approached?
Silver sat on his couch as the first day of the offseason was upon them, and he was stuck in a rut. The shortened season would be here in a few months, and the thought of not playing the same amount of soccer he'd been exposed to the last two seasons was looming large. 'I guess I could spend the extra days relaxing... but what if they cause me to lose focus on the season? I can't let my teammates down by losing focus... but I can't exactly spend these extra off days training. I might get hurt not being used to the extra training... ARGH! What to do?' the winged winger thought, ideas running wild in his brain. 'Hmm... maybe some volunteer work would be good for me. Extra time means more time to give back, and I've got a lot to give back to this city and her people,' Silver decided, his imagination suddenly sparking with ideas. He quickly scrambled from the couch, running for his computer to give these ideas a place to live before they died in his head. He practically flew to his computer with how excited he was, wanting to get them written down before it was too late.
The snowy owl began to scour the internet for local soccer camps. Most of them would already be well into their run by now, but he could start planning for next season. After a few days of research, he found a number of camps that aligned with his personal philosophies and with the image he had been building for himself. He would send a few emails out to the organizations running the camps, letting them know he was interested in dropping by to help out if they wanted him. It would be another few weeks before he would start getting emails back from the camps that bothered to respond. As disappointed in the number of responses he got compared to the number of emails he had sent, Silver posited that many of the non-responses he had gotten were likely from camps who didn't think his emails were real. Instead of lamenting, Silver decided to chat with the ones that did respond, having good dialogues with the camp organizers, who thought having an SSL pro attend their camps was a good idea. The snowy laid some ground rules for his involvement, such as wanting to keep it as much of a secret from the campers as possible (so that they would genuinely be surprised), and that he would accept an amount equal to the lowest paid employee at the camp (if they insisted he be paid, as he'd rather do it for free because he wanted to spread his love of the game).
After several weeks of planning with different camps, getting expected dates for the next season's timeframe, he felt like he could finally say his pre-season, season, and offseason were all accounted for and plotted out. During the weeks they weren't in another country or on training or game days, he would make surprise appearances at several camps in Paris and the surrounding area. When the season concluded and his schedule opened up, he would make more appearances to spread the game. He knew it would be tough squeezing them all in, but he was confident he could get it done.
End of S24, Paris, France-
Silver had underestimated just how much free time he actually had to give. 'Well, I will say that I gave every kid I met the best possible experience I could've. I think I might make this part of my offseason routine,' the snowy thought, pleased with himself. Sure, he'd run himself a little more ragged than expected, and ok, maybe underperformed in the shortened season compared to the last, but he still put in a Team of the Season worthy effort. While Paris might not have won the Minor League Championships again, he was still happy with his performance. 'I should still be on track to pass the assist record. That is still my goal, but this new venture will be a worthy investment of my time!' he reaffirmed to himself. He still had plenty more camps to attend, and with Season 25 on the horizon, Silver was feeling much better about the road ahead.
'Next stop: the World Stage!'
---
1,092 words (1,077 if you don't count the time and place markers)
"What do you mean the number of games is getting cut?" Voices filled the Paris locker room as the organization heads tried to keep the peace. "Listen, listen! The SSL board has announced that both the Major and Minor leagues are moving to two divisions with a promotion-relegation system. As a by-product of the change, the number of games played will be going down. Instead of playing against 11 teams twice, you'll now play 5 teams at least twice. Season 24 is going to be an interim season of 10 games, and Season 25 will feature 15 games."
That was the explanation that Silver played over and over in his head as he walked home. The whole walk was just a replay of what transpired in that locker room earlier in the day. 'On the one wing, I totally get it. If you're gonna split the league into two divisions, it doesn't make sense to have division one play division two teams. Otherwise, why even bother with a league split?" the owl thought, kicking a loose rock that had been sitting there. In his mind, it was a pass to Eric Belmont, who would no doubt bury it in the back of the net. 'But on the other wing... going from 22 games down to 10 games is gonna suck... I just wanna play man...' his thoughts continued, finally reaching his doorstep. He unlocked the door without much fanfare, locking it behind him as he entered.
End of S23, Paris, France-
Silver's second full season in Paris had going swimmingly. Coming off a Rookie of the Season winning year and a Sub for Team of the Season year should've be tough for the owl, but he seemed to hit it in stride. For the most part, he had been able to push the looming changes out of his mind and continue to play the game he loved. He landed his first national corporate sponsorship, he won the Golden Eye award and made Team of the Season, and Paris even won the Minor League Championship for back to back seasons! So why had he been unable to shake this feeling of uneasiness as the offseason approached?
Silver sat on his couch as the first day of the offseason was upon them, and he was stuck in a rut. The shortened season would be here in a few months, and the thought of not playing the same amount of soccer he'd been exposed to the last two seasons was looming large. 'I guess I could spend the extra days relaxing... but what if they cause me to lose focus on the season? I can't let my teammates down by losing focus... but I can't exactly spend these extra off days training. I might get hurt not being used to the extra training... ARGH! What to do?' the winged winger thought, ideas running wild in his brain. 'Hmm... maybe some volunteer work would be good for me. Extra time means more time to give back, and I've got a lot to give back to this city and her people,' Silver decided, his imagination suddenly sparking with ideas. He quickly scrambled from the couch, running for his computer to give these ideas a place to live before they died in his head. He practically flew to his computer with how excited he was, wanting to get them written down before it was too late.
The snowy owl began to scour the internet for local soccer camps. Most of them would already be well into their run by now, but he could start planning for next season. After a few days of research, he found a number of camps that aligned with his personal philosophies and with the image he had been building for himself. He would send a few emails out to the organizations running the camps, letting them know he was interested in dropping by to help out if they wanted him. It would be another few weeks before he would start getting emails back from the camps that bothered to respond. As disappointed in the number of responses he got compared to the number of emails he had sent, Silver posited that many of the non-responses he had gotten were likely from camps who didn't think his emails were real. Instead of lamenting, Silver decided to chat with the ones that did respond, having good dialogues with the camp organizers, who thought having an SSL pro attend their camps was a good idea. The snowy laid some ground rules for his involvement, such as wanting to keep it as much of a secret from the campers as possible (so that they would genuinely be surprised), and that he would accept an amount equal to the lowest paid employee at the camp (if they insisted he be paid, as he'd rather do it for free because he wanted to spread his love of the game).
After several weeks of planning with different camps, getting expected dates for the next season's timeframe, he felt like he could finally say his pre-season, season, and offseason were all accounted for and plotted out. During the weeks they weren't in another country or on training or game days, he would make surprise appearances at several camps in Paris and the surrounding area. When the season concluded and his schedule opened up, he would make more appearances to spread the game. He knew it would be tough squeezing them all in, but he was confident he could get it done.
End of S24, Paris, France-
Silver had underestimated just how much free time he actually had to give. 'Well, I will say that I gave every kid I met the best possible experience I could've. I think I might make this part of my offseason routine,' the snowy thought, pleased with himself. Sure, he'd run himself a little more ragged than expected, and ok, maybe underperformed in the shortened season compared to the last, but he still put in a Team of the Season worthy effort. While Paris might not have won the Minor League Championships again, he was still happy with his performance. 'I should still be on track to pass the assist record. That is still my goal, but this new venture will be a worthy investment of my time!' he reaffirmed to himself. He still had plenty more camps to attend, and with Season 25 on the horizon, Silver was feeling much better about the road ahead.
'Next stop: the World Stage!'
---
1,092 words (1,077 if you don't count the time and place markers)
