A/N: Sorry it's taking me so long! Gah! But this has some interesting development I hope you guys enjoy! I have some midterms next week then spring break so I should be updating more often!

Thank you all so much for your support, and reviews, it means a lot. If you have any questions please ask, I'll try to answer as best I can, unless it spoils something, then please be patient.

Disclaimer: I do not own hetalia


Alfred sighed when he looked at his schedule for the week. It was Wednesday; Thursday was his first English test, and Saturday was his first figure skating competition. Ivan's voice rang clear in his mind, and Alfred knew he had to win. To prove the other wrong, he had to win.

He sighed as he got out of the car with his brother, and went to the door of their friend, Kiku Honda.

"Hey Kiku, ready for the study session?" Alfred asked with a weak grin as he and his brother entered through the door of Kiku's home. They went straight to the living room table, and set their books down.

"Of course, I think we will get a lot done." Kiku said with a quick nod. He went into the kitchen, and brought out some snacks.

"Thanks for having us." Matthew said with a soft smile, then they all sat down around their homework and books to crack down on their studies.

They spent around an hour studying, before they felt it was a good time to take a break and clear their minds.

"So, Al, do you feel comfortable for your English test?" Matthew asked.

"I...uhh...yeah? I think I'll get like...a C, haha!" He laughed at himself, then sighed.

"Alfred, you need to do well, or mom is going to get you a tutor again." Matthew sighed. His brother was really something else.

"I know, I know...it's just that one thing y'know?"

"Everyone has their weak points and strong points." Kiku added with a nod.

"Haha! True!" Alfred smirked, knowing he had the perfect excuse; at least he was good at science and math, or then he'd have no excuse to fall back on.

"You still need to keep your grades up. Umm...by the way, how's figure skating?" Matthew asked.

"Well, tiring, but I'm getting the hang of it. It's actually pretty fun when I get a move right. I'm even starting to work on my routine for a competition. It's supposed to be just a small one...so I should probably take first place!" Alfred laughed, then shook his head.

"I wish you luck, when is it?" Kiku asked.

"Ah, it's Saturday..." Alfred hummed nervously. He looked a bit conflicted though.

"So soon? Will you be alright?" Kiku asked. It was bit a shocking, especially since Kiku himself takes things so slowly. Was the training Alfred had really enough?

"I think so...To be honest I'm kind of nervous, but I gotta win. Ivan was talking all kinds of smack when coach Winter first told me." Alfred stated furrowing his brows in contemplation, then sighed, remembering the other's demeaning expression.

"Al, you're good at picking up on things when it's hands on. Want mom and me to come cheer?" Matthew asked with a gentle smile.

"Ah, I don't know. I mean...sure! Yeah come watch! The more the merrier." Alfred said with a large grin. It was apparent he was a little nervous about having them watch him; it seemed his self confidence was not fairing too well now.

"Ah...well, I believe we need to focus on the task at hand, yes?" Kiku interjected quickly.

"Oh! Yeah!" Alfred chirped up. He's never been so relieved to go back to studying in all his life. Anything to get the topic off his upcoming competition was more than welcomed.

They all agreed quickly to study more, but they soon lost their interest. Well, Alfred did, and wanted to play video games with Kiku. They ended up playing as Matthew watched until their mom came to pick them both up. Alfred felt a little more confident in his writing skills, but it wasn't something you could just sit down and figure out. Writing essays, making analysis', and comparisons takes a certain amount of practice and thought.

Dinner was ready on the table and they ate together, just their small, little happy family; it was nice, in a way. Alfred glanced around the table; first at his mom, he noticed she looked tired, and then to his brother. Since he was eating, the table was relatively quiet; it unsettled him a bit.

"Honey, what's wrong?" His mother, asked when she noticed that Alfred was spacing out.

"Oh! Nothin', just thinkin' about my awesome routine I'll be doing at the thing this Saturday." He said with a grin.

"That's good honey...I'll try to make it." She said with a smile, and then went back to her meal.

"Cool." Alfred hummed as he mashed his potato with butter.

Xoxoxoxo

xoxoxoxoxo

The next day, Alfred walked into his English class with his head held high. He walked down his row a bit and stumbled over someone's backpack. He didn't fall over, but his ego definitely hit the floor.

"You still lack so much grace." Ivan hummed, amused.

"Shut up, it was someone's backpack..." He glared to the other.

"Of course... Are you ready for today's test?" Ivan asked, with a small bemused smile.

Alfred sighed. " As ready as I'll ever be."

The test started, and for the most part Alfred could only grumble out as he tried to answer the questions; he was always stuck between two of the possible four answers and it was getting on his nerves. He was beyond frustrated, and when it was time for the essay portion, he already felt mentally exhausted. What was even better was the fact that the essay topic was beyond boring, and he had to argue for a side that he didn't care for.

By the end, he didn't feel too confident, he felt tired and just wanted to take a nap. He glanced over to Ivan, who was writing with a slightly furrowed brow. He didn't look too stressed, but he usually never did; he either looked happy, or aloof.

That was always the good thing about Ivan, he never succumbed under pressure.

When the test was over, and Alfred got time to space out in his other classes, he remembered his upcoming competition. He was nervous, but very excited about the whole ordeal. He wanted to do well; he's been busting his butt on the ice, he could do it. He had all the moves down basically, he knew how to skate to the classical music that Winter said he had to skate too, and he felt bubbly. He wanted to win with his skill, and hard work. He wanted a trophy or medal to remind him of his hard work too.

When his last class before lunch let out, Alfred decided to go visit Ivan again. Not that he wanted to , but he wanted to know something. He walked over to where Ivan sat, which was the same place as usual. He was alone, and that made Alfred frown for some reason.

"What is it, Fredka?" He asked, looking up with a small smile.

"Just wanna know somethin'." Alfred stated, and crouched down.

"And that is?" He asked with a slight tilt of his head.

"Umm...it's stupid, but how do you always stay so...calm? I mean it's kind of freaky." Alfred asked, scratching the back of his head.

Ivan chuckled. " Because I have gone through even more stressful things than tests, Fredka."

"Not just that! Like, with figure skating too!" Alfred exclaimed annoyed, not even thinking about what Ivan meant by 'more stressful things'.

"I like it...that's why. Simple, da?" He stated.

"Don't you get nervous?" Alfred ask tilting his head.

"Nyet."

"Not even a little?"

"Nyet, not even a little."

"Not even a tiny little bit before you step onto the ice?" Alfred pushed.

"...Nyet, not even that."

Alfred stood up with a grin. "You're so weird."

"It's you who is strange Fredka. Why would you ask me?" Alfred hated taking advice from him anyway so it didn't make sense to Ivan why he would suddenly be so interested in what he had to say.

"I just noticed...that you're really calm and stuff. All the time." Alfred said simply.

"You've been watching me?" Ivan asked with a giggle.

Alfred narrowed his eyes, and a faint tint of pink dusted itself on his cheeks. "No way!"

"I was kidding Fredka~" Ivan chirped happily.

"I-I...whatever! I'm gonna go!" Alfred quickly turned and left. He could feel those violet orbs follow him till he turned the corner, and even then it still felt like he was being watched.

Xoxoxoxoxo

xoxoxoxoxo

On Friday they got their tests back, and Alfred shook as he got his back. He got a 69%. It was just his luck, he was 1% from a C. He sighed and realized he'd need to get another tutor for this year, an English tutor. He brought the paper to cover his face, and remembered his tutor last year, Arthur Kirkland.

Ivan saw how disappointed Alfred looked, and how he seemed to be hiding away. It was childish, but in a cute way; so very much like Alfred. He leaned over and whispered.

"You failed, da?" He giggled and pulled back.

Alfred didn't move, maybe he didn't hear him? Ivan leaned over once again; he was determined to tease the other. Before he got too close, Alfred brought the paper away from his face, and looked over to Ivan. Ivan leaned back in his chair with a slightly surprised expression. Alfred was blushing bright red, which made it obvious he was spacing out about something earlier.

"H-Huh? You say something?" Alfred asked, before trying to put on a more serious look.

Ivan was confused; if Alfred didn't hear him, then he was blushing about something else. He did not like that...for some reason.

"Nyet, it is nothing." Ivan stated, and decided to just lean back in his chair.

Alfred shrugged his shoulders, and looked at his D+ paper with a soft grin.

At practice, Alfred got to put on the outfit he was going to wear for the competition, and do a few more run throughs of his routine. He also received his official ice skates, two beautiful black ice skates. He felt like a little kid at Christmas time, and glided out on the ice with vigor. His outfit was simple, much too simple, but Coach Winter said it would be for the best. He wore black tights, a light blue shirt, and a white sash around his waist.

Well Alfred didn't mind too much; the judges were looking at his moves, not exactly his clothes.

Right now, Alfred had most of the single jumps done. He wasn't too sure about doing a double or triple yet, though he knew he could get there with enough practice. He actually enjoyed the spins, his favorite being the shoot the duck spin. It was basically crouching down on one knee with the other leg extended while spinning around.

Coach Winter, of course, said it was his worst move because he did it so sloppily, whatever that meant. He thought he did it just fine. He didn't fall, so what was the big deal?

While doing the single Salchow and practicing his toe loop jump, Ivan skated over and gently took his hand. Alfred wasn't sure what to do, but he wasn't about to pull away and freak out, probably resulting in him falling flat on his ass.

"Uhh...Hi?" Alfred asked, more or less asking why they were holding hands.

Ivan played his cute smile. " We should get used to touching more, лапа." Ivan stated as if it were the most obvious fact in the world.

"What? Dude, let go. Your hand is freezing!" Alfred said quickly, and tried to pull away, but the other's grasp was too firm.

"Da, it is, and yours is warm." Ivan said with a chuckle.

"Gee, thanks, but could you let go?" Tries to pull away again.

It didn't work. "Not yet, лапа. We need to go watch something." Ivan clarified.

"What? Why? Where?" Alfred asked as he was pulled off the ice, and into the locker room. Ivan finally let go of his hand.

"A video, because you need to see your competition, and...my house. It is closer." Ivan stated, and began to take off his shirt.

Alfred's eyes widened, and he quickly ran to another row of lockers. He could hear just fine from there.

"A video of my competition? Dude, I don't need to see that!" Alfred then decided it was okay for him to get dressed in his normal clothes too.

"Da, you do, лапа. Someone very interesting joined last second, and it's wise you see what you're up against." Ivan retorted as he continued getting dressed.

"...okay, but I don't want to go to your house." Alfred bluntly let out.

"Shall I go to yours? It seems so out of the way." Ivan said and walked around to eye the other with a smirk. Thankfully all Alfred was doing was slipping his shirt back on.

"No, uhh...fine, your house it is." Alfred sighed, but he knew the latter was too dangerous. Ivan got his cellphone number somehow, and he did not need him to know where he lived.

"Good, lets hurry then." Ivan stated and offered his hand, he was smirking widely.

Alfred stared at him unamused. " Stop that."

"Ahuhuhu~" Ivan brought his hand back to his side, and turned to leave the locker room. Alfred followed suit, and the two made their way out. Alfred was regretting saying yes, but he was curious about who Ivan was talking about. Was the person really that good, and should Alfred be seeing this if he was? All Alfred could do was try his best, seeing or not seeing the video wouldn't change anything. He should have realized that sooner, because by the time he did, he was already at Ivan's front door.

They walked in and Alfred look around, before going to the small couch; it was a love seat. Ivan started to look through a few dvd's, and took out one before putting it in the dvd player and sitting down next to Alfred. It was awkward as the dvd player started up and load the video.

Alfred tried to scoot away without making it look like he was trying to make more space between them, but that was near impossible. He took a deep breathe, and noticed the air around him was cold and stagnant, like it was a new house for sale. He wondered if Ivan's parents were just working all the time. Did he have to cook for himself too?

Ivan spoke, and brought Alfred's attention to the screen.

"This is Feliciano Vargas." He stated and watched the screen closely.

"Who?" Alfred asked then looked and the tv screen. It was a small Italian boy with a strange hair curl sticking out of the side. He looked a little dorky, but very happy to be out on the ice. Alfred wasn't expecting much, but soon the music got faster and the Feliciano sped up performing spin after spin. He zig-zagged on the ice like it was nothing. He ran on it like he didn't have skates on either, and every move looked spirited and fun.

Alfred's jaw dropped and he leaned closer.

"This is your competition..." Ivan stopped and noticed Alfred smiling brightly, as he looked ready to fall off the couch.

"I want to be like that!" Alfred shouted after a few moments of silence.

"It is good you have the enthusiasm, but you-"

"No! Dude like...I want to be able to make people feel excited." Alfred tried to explain.

"Da, you should want to entertain your audience, but-"

"No, no...I mean when I watch him I get happy and excited, I want to be able to do that too." Alfred exclaimed with a giant smile. The thought of making figure skating more entertaining for the audience instead of competition and judges made the whole thing so much more appealing.

Ivan chuckled. "I'm sure you will."

"I will, I'll do even better then he does. You got that?" Alfred stood, and smiled down at the other.

"Da." Ivan stood up as well. "You should head home now."

Alfred blinked, then gave a nod. "Yeah, see ya!"

"I will come watch you compete tomorrow, see you then." Ivan said, and smiled when Alfred seemed to pale in response.

"Awesome, so I'll see you there." Alfred headed for the door, and looked back at Ivan and the house. It looked so...empty. Was Ivan even living in the house? It seemed like no one cooked, or made a mess to make it feel more homey.

"Fredka?" Ivan took a step forward.

"Dude, you better make me a snack or something! I'm going to be hungry after a win." Alfred smirked, then slowly closed the door and jogged out to the sidewalk before slowing down to walk.


( лапа)- roughly is a nickname like pet. It has a sweet tone, but Ivan is also using it to display their relationship on the ice. So like master, and pet. As things progress the nicknames will change into more canon ones.

A/N: Also note that things that don't exactly make sense now will later, like how Ivan acts and has no friends. I have a reason for it, also he's kind of a bully to people who get close to him, so...I'm just not going to shove everything at you, but you'll see why their character is the way they are.

Spinning Shoot the duck

http : / / www .youtube .com / watch?v=BvB6Go1vmnk

Spins and crossover- Finally found a video that shows the foot work nicely.

http : / / www .youtube .com / watch?v=tgAz-AfS3PM

Toe Jump

http :/ / www .youtube .com / watch?v=SaecLU_69Ak&feature=relmfu

Salchow

http :/ / www .youtube .com / watch?v=H_KZeYwD2dU