After a protein filled breakfast and a quick shower, Anastasia threw her stuff in a duffel bag and stopped in front of her closet. It didn't matter all that much what she ended up putting on, but she wanted to look the part of the job she was starting. She hemmed and hawed for a minutes before she ended up deciding looking cute was not in the cards today. She pulled on black leggings and a dark green sweater. Once she got downstairs to the front door, she added her boots and coat.

"See you later, Josie!" she called back into the house as she left.

Anastasia put in her headphones and started her short walk to work. When she arrived she stood outside looking at the massive building and sucking in a breath trying to soothe her nerves. The huge sign that read "Skating Rink" seemed to be mocking her. Pushing those thoughts out of her head, she climbed the small series of steps to the front door. She was greeted by an older woman at the front desk who she had known since she was about six years old.

"Anya!" she cried happily. "It's been so long since I've seen you here. I thought you had quit or something." Anastasia forced a smile onto her face.

When the accident happened, she had done a lot of work keeping her name out of the news so no one knew what had happened to her. Besides her parents and those involved in the accident, Yakov and Lilia were the only two who had been informed of the condition the accident. And the only reason Anastasia allowed the news to reach them was that they were her coaches and needed to be aware of the situation seeing as how she would no longer be able to train with them. She didn't want anyone to know because she was ashamed she allowed this to happen to her. Yakov had been so concerned, he showed up at the hospital and waiting for hours upon hours for all of her surgeries to be done. He was actually the first person she saw when she woke up and the only person to see her cry when she found out what had happened. Since then, he made an effort of sending her texts every few weeks to check up on her. Anastasia hadn't heard from him in a few months, but she figured that was due to it being competition season.

"What brings you here today?" Anastasia was pulled from her thoughts by the question.

"Work," she answered simply, smiling again. "I'm private coaching some people."

"Oh, how exciting! Good luck, dear!"

Anastasia thanked her and made her way to the back of the building where the private rinks were. She had arrived half an hour before he first student was set to be here so she took that time to stretch out her muscles very carefully. She replaced her boots with fuzzy socks and her skates with the guards still on. Anastasia hadn't worn skates in a very long time and was getting a little nervous about how she would perform on the ice. She didn't even have to go out there if she didn't want to. Yakov always coached from the sidelines. But she didn't want to miss an opportunity to be reunited with her first love. She figured she would alternate the days she was out on the ice with her students so she didn't hurt herself. Slipping her coat off and a thin pair of gloves on, Anastasia looked up at the clock on the wall. Her first victim would be here any moment. She was just finishing pulling her hair into a ponytail when the door opened.

"Miss. Petrov?" Anastasia smiled at such formalities.

"Come in, come in. But please never call me Miss. Petrov ever again," she scolded with a smile on her face.

The door shut and in scampered a tiny girl. By the looks of it, she had to be about eight years old. She had a slim frame, but looked strong.

"I'm Anastasia."

"Nina," the tiny girl squeaked.

"Pleasure to meet you. You warmed up?" The girl nodded. "Alright, put on your skates and let's get on the ice so I can assess you." Anastasia took the guards off and stood in front of the ice, watching it as if it might move. She took a deep breath and stepped out onto it. For her, it was like riding a bicycle: everything felt so natural. She smiled at the familiar feeling under her feet and did a lap around the rink, relishing the cool breeze she created. She stopped, even though she wanted to keep on all day, to wait for Nina to join her.

Nina turned out to be a stronger skater than Anastasia could have imagined. She was tiny, but powerful, which pleased her teacher. However, she lacked control. That is what they would have to spend the majority of their time working on. After two hours of work, Nina was sent off so Anastasia could have her next student. Erik was twelve years old and quite confident that he was the most accomplished skater Russian had ever had. Anastasia was not going to have any of his attitude and set him straight right off the bat by pointing out all of his weaknesses. This humbled the boy, and after that, he took Anastasia's instructions much better.

Her final student of the day came in right as Erik left. This one was different, because he came with supervision. Anastasia had to do a double take by who came in the room with the kid.

"Lydia?"

"Surprise!" The woman in the wheelchair was accompanied by a woman who had to be six or seven years older. The woman left the wheelchair at the top of the stairs and carefully carried Lydia down so she could sit right by the rink and watch.

"I didn't think that you had a child," Anastasia said, skating over to the women and the boy.

"I don't. Mikey here is my nephew. This is my sister Rose," Lydia introduced the two.

"I was not aware you had decided to stay in Russia." Anastasia stepped off the ice and put on her guards. Lydia was an American who came to Russian originally on a gap year after college.

"Well Rose's husband, Leo, is from Russia originally. He was the one who suggested I come here. His job is why the family is here now. Rose asked me to stay with them once Leo was transferred and since I love it here, I accepted."

"I love it here, too. But I think I'm not the best person to ask considering it is my home," Anastasia said with a smile.

"That is true. Anyway, Mikey recently got into skating and Rose heard about the private lessons here and asked if I'd ever heard of you. Obviously, I had and told her you were the best person to coach him. I have to admit though...I was surprised. In a good way, though. It's incredible to see you on the ice again," Lydia said with a genuine smile.

"I figured never skating again, even if it was just for fun, was too horrible to bear. Besides, I need something to do with all my free time." She had a smile on her face, but anyone who knew her well would hear the bitterness in her tone. It went right over Lydia's head.

"Well I'll let you get to it!" Rose sat next to Lydia as Mikey finished lacing up his skates. He bolted for the ice as soon as he was done and Anastasia fumbled with her guards to catch up. He ended up being ridiculously fast with a weakness for form. Anastasia honestly thought maybe his best bet was getting into speed skating, but would see what she could do.

Since Mikey was her last student of the day, she packed up quickly and headed out with his family. They chatted happily as they made their way from the back of the building. About halfway there, Anastasia realized she had left her headphones. She told the other to go on without her and she would see Mikey later that week. Anastasia made her way back and scooped up the headphones from the bench she left them on before shoving them in her bag. She zipped it up and took her hair out of its ponytail. She began to pull off her gloves and place them back in her coat's pockets as she slowly walked back to the entrance. She was looking down at her hand when she heard her name.

"Tasia?" Whoever said her name was very surprised. She was too because she hadn't heard that nickname in years and couldn't place who on earth would still use it.

Anastasia halted in her tracks when she looked up and her pale complexion went even paler. Her bright blue eyes widened and she almost dropped the glove she was still holding. Standing before her was none other than Victor Nikiforov. It made sense now; he was the only person who had ever called her that even after she told him that she hated it. Just as she thought it couldn't possibly ever get any worse, the universe proved her wrong. Around the corner came Yakov Feltsman, Yuri Plisetsky, and an Asian man she didn't know. She swore quietly and desperately prayed the earth would swallow her up.

"Anastasia?" Yakov now noticed who had made Victor stop. Before he could say anything else, Victor launched himself at the girl.

"Tasia! My little ice princess! It has been so long since I have seen you or heard about your skating. Why is that? Oh, but look at how tall you are. And what on earth have you done to your hair?" Victor reached out for the ends of her red hair that fell just below her shoulders. It used to be a natural platinum blonde color and reached midway down her back. After the accident, she had cut it and dyed it. Her reasoning was that it was a part of a fresh start, but really it was so no one would be able to recognize her. That long, blonde hair was part of why she was so recognizable and without it, people wouldn't stop her on the street.

"It's nothing," Anastasia muttered, pulling the strands away from Victor's slender fingers and tucking it behind her ear.

"It is something," Victor argued. "Your hair was so pretty and you were so lucky to have to have it that color by nature."

"Anastasia." They were interrupted by Yakov who had stepped closer. He had a rare smile on his face and it made her want to break down into tears. "It has been too long," he told her. She nodded and swallowed the urge to cry. He called back to Yuri at the same time Victor yelled "Yurio!"

"What?" the young man shot back. He had his hands shoved deeply into his pockets and his typical scowl gracing his delicate features.

"You remember Anastasia, do you not?" Yakov asked gesturing for him to approach them. He complied only after a long sigh. "She trained with us a while back."

Blue eyes met green ones. The green ones were still as beautiful and vibrant with that intense fire behind them. The green eyed man noticed though, the blue eyes lacked that same passion he knew they used to have. Of course, he couldn't be bothered to care about why so he merely shrugged.

"And this is Yuri Katsuki. You've heard of him, yes?" Victor gestured for the Asian man to join their circle. He did with a nervous but gentle smile on his face. Anastasia looked blankly to Yakov for explanation. It was Victor who answered her silent plea for clarification. "He was a skater once too. Very successful and very beautiful. We are engaged," he added proudly at the end.

"I have not followed skating as much as I used to," Anastasia mumbled softly, while glancing quickly at the man Victor introduced.

"You used to know more about it than anyone, Tasia!" Victor admonished.

"Things change," Anastasia said stiffly. "I have to go feed my cat." She brushed past them and walked as quickly as she could away from them.

"We're back in St. Petersburg to train, Tasia!" Victor called after her.

"Don't be a stranger," Yakov added. They watched her continue her retreat.

"What happened to little Anastasia?" Victor asked Yakov with concern in his eyes. Yakov was silent for a moment as he thought of how to delicately answer the question.

"The answer would be better coming from her than me," came his cryptic response. He started walking away from the three younger men towards the rink they always used to practice.

"What is that supposed to mean?" Yuri asked Victor.

"I do not know. It is strange. She was so talented and promising, but one night just disappeared. I have often wondered where she had gone."

"Can we stop wondering and start skating?" Yurio asked impatiently. "I don't have time to stand around and talk with the Olympics coming up." He followed Yakov leaving Victor and Yuri alone.

"I hope she comes around again. I would love to see how she was doing and find out what happened to her," Victor told Yuri before they too headed back to the rinks.

The next morning Anastasia woke up sore. Thankfully, it was sore in a good way because she had used muscles she hadn't been actively using in a while. She dragged herself out of bed to get ready for the day. Her coaching was earlier that day so she could go to physical therapy at three. She threw on clothes and ate a hasty breakfast before leaving. She had three new students today who weren't as promising as her students from yesterday, but fun to work with. The last lesson ended around 1:45 and she figured she could enjoy the ice for a few minutes before she had to leave. Her left leg was weaker, but still able to support her as she lifted her right leg behind her. She was careful not to go too high. She placed her foot back on the ice and began to skate a backwards lap around the ice. Anastasia almost fell when she heard the doors slam shut. She came to a sloppy stop and looked up, but didn't see anyone there. She was confused, but brushed it off. After changing out of her skates and gathering up her belongings, she headed out. As she passed another private rink, a familiar face popped out from the door.

"Tasia!"

"Why do you still call me that?" she whined.

"You're here again!" Victor ignored her question and rushed over to hug her. She tried to push him off, but he was a lot taller than she was. "Would you like to come watch practice? We're working on a new jump combination with Yuri this afternoon."

"I can't."

"Why not?"

"Because...I have...plans," she said lamely.

"What plans?" Victor was not going to let this go.

"An appointment," Anastasia answered vaguely.

"What kind of appointment?"

"One I cannot miss." She started to walk away from Victor.

"Well promise you will come by another time and watch."

"Maybe."

"Oh, please. It's not that hard to watch. And you two could skate together like you did when you were children. I remember how cute you both were. Him and his temper and you with that silent eye roll."

"I will see what I can do," she noncommittally promised. "But I have to go now." She left the silver-haired man standing there alone. He walked back into the rink once she turned the corner and walked back down the stairs to stand by Yakov.

"Who was that?" Yakov didn't take his eyes off Yurio as he asked the question. He had obviously heard Victor talking, but couldn't make out to whom.

"Anastasia. She was here again, but she left very fast just like yesterday. Said she had an appointment."

"Oh?" Yakov turned away from the blonde to make eye contact with Victor.

"Yes. She did not say what it was. Only that she could not miss it. I would say it was an excuse to leave, but she seemed to be serious about it." The look in Yakov's eyes told Victor he knew where she was going, but he did not push the subject. "I asked her to come and watch a practice soon and she said she would try." Yakov nodded.

"Hey!" Yurio had stopped skating and stopped in front of his coaches. "Why aren't you watching?" he demanded.

"Calm down and keep going," Yakov shot back. Victor sat down next to Yuri who was taking notes on the new jump combination.

"Did you see Anastasia again?"

"Yes. She's so," Victor paused to search for the right word, "different. I mean just look at her hair. She was always so proud of that long, blonde hair that she was naturally blessed with. Now it's red."

"Yeah," Yuri nodded. "I remember watching her skate on T.V. and even in person once. I always remembered her by her hair. That and she was incredible on the ice."

"Incredible is an understatement. She was absolute magic. Anastasia had a certain grace and charm about her that I have never seen in another skater. It makes no sense that she left."

"Maybe she was injured," Yuri suggested. "It happens a lot to skaters."

"True," Victor agreed. "But wouldn't we have heard about it?" Yuri shrugged and went back to taking notes.

After physical therapy, Anastasia threw her bag on her bedroom floor and flopped face-first onto her bed. She let out a long groan. She had been so unfocused in physical therapy today after her conversation with Victor. She knew she could only blow him off for a short while before he dragged her to a practice. She only hoped if she sat through one, he would leave her alone.

"But I'd never be that lucky," she muttered to herself as she sat up. The more she was around Victor, the better chance he had of finding out about why she left the skating world. And if he found out, well she didn't want to think about how fast news would travel because Victor had a hard time keeping his mouth shut.

'He could find out if I go to practice because he'll want me to skate as well and telling him no can be quite difficult,' she ran through a possible series of events in her head. Any way she played it, there was never a positive outcome. But none of that mattered at this point. All that mattered was sleep. Anastasia slipped under her blankets without bothering to change into pajamas and curled up into a ball. She let out a yawn and felt Josie hop up on the bed to join her for a nap. She would worry about Victor tomorrow.