CHAPTER SIX HUNDRED ELEVEN
The energy-switch from finishing out the Ladies Short Program to the Opening Ceremonies made the air hum. Clothes were changed to costumes - and those who had them wore their Olympic track-suits overtop - and hair was styled. The ISU and host-country speeches and introductions to the judges and main brass had already been given; the audience was ready to see the show.
"I don't think I've been this stoked for an event in a while," Yuri commented, following his partner up the stairs to the competitor's viewing section.
"Even though you're sick?"
"Maybe because I'm sick," He answered with a wry smile. Viktor let him into their row first, then took the seat beside him at the end, "It's like I can just skate for fun and not worry about my score, since I know I can't push myself that hard anyway."
"I find it odd that you're this at peace with your situation," The silver commented, and slid his arm over his beloved's shoulders as he got comfortable, "Way back when I first got to Hasetsu, one of the first things I learned about you from your friends was how much you hate to lose."
"Oh I do hate to lose," Yuri agreed, hand set onto its favored thigh-perch, "But that's only if I'm in control of all of my abilities. Not much I can do about my stamina being garbage and that I run out of breath in two minutes."
"It still sucks."
Yuri tilted his head back on the shoulder behind him, and leaned in to kiss his husband's jaw, "That just means I have to leave it to you to dazzle everyone this weekend. Make it look good for Japan despite me."
"You know it's my pleasure anyway," Viktor purred, "I'm happy to do my part."
Yurio slid into the row above them soon after, tailed by Otabek and - to the SkateHusbands' surprise - Nikki. There was some amusing seat-shuffling as Yurio did everything he could to make sure he was in the middle somehow, but the trio eventually settled down. The Selfie Brigade was up soon after that; Yuri couldn't help but smile nervously as he watched Minami get dragged right into the middle of the craziness, with Phichit as his social-media mentor, and both Leo and GuangHong offering encouragement.
"And so the three becomes four," Yuri commented, amused. He barely had a moment before he spotted one phone on the end of a selfie-stick come out from the row behind them like a strange fishing line. It flashed before he could react, and it got pulled back quickly with the group giggling like a bunch of school kids, "What in the world-"
"Sorry, Yuri," Phichit laughed, and pulled the phone into his hands to check his handiwork, "This is the only way I ever really get pictures of you, so I have to take advantage."
Minami and Leo leaned over Phichit's shoulder to get a look, and both started snickering, "He looks so confused."
"I was confused!"
"Viktor looks like he knew it was coming." Leo mused, "But I guess he would."
"Always be aware of your surroundings and always smile." The silver answered expertly, "You never know who's taking pictures at any given moment, or from what angle."
"Sagely advice," Yuri puffed, "I can only imagine the photos of me that are out there... Mid-sneeze, picking my nose, generally looking incredibly odd."
"You're handsome no matter what you're doing." Viktor reassured, but then turned his eyes back to the ice, "Ah, finally, they're about to start."
['Forever Searching' - Temple One (Adam Nickey Remix)]
The thump of the bass was felt before the music could be heard, but the audience clapped excitedly as they spotted the flag dancers step up to the rink-wall. Without another word, they all started to slip out onto the ice, carrying their wound-up flags.
"Ladies and Gentlemen... It's time for the presentation of the flags!"
Cheering grew louder again, and the flag dancers started to glide into formation; they took point in one long line, skating around the inside edge of the rink-wall, until all fourteen of them were in position. In alphabetical order, the announcer called out the names of every country - Australia, Canada, China, Chinese Taipei and on - and with every announcement, every other skater in the line unfurled their respective flag. To the surprise of the audience though, that seemed to be it.
Viktor's brow wrinkled slightly, "Not that I'm complaining, but...they usually do a little more than this?"
The flag bearers continued their large circle for a few seconds more, but then scattered like a flock of spooked birds, and each flitted around the rink until they finally came to rest all across it, standing in place with their flags tucked behind their backs. They all lowered their heads and waited...and the music faded out with the lights.
"Oh."
"Spoke too soon," Yuri teased.
['Believer - Choir Version' - Imagine Dragons (Epic Orchestral Music)]
With the arena plunged to near-black darkness, silver and white lights started to manifest across the ice. They swirled and warped their shapes as they moved, changing into different snowflake patterns, halos, and stars. Music filled the arena with what sounded like a hyper-loud drip of water, set to a repeating beat and cradled in the sound of a long electric guitar note. The first lyrics - Make me a, make me a... - faded in from the background, only to fade out again. All sound quieted, and the arena seemed to be stalled in time. It held for a few seconds, but then all the flag dancers moved at once, and sound returned to guide them. The loud droplets became a harmony, joined by the sound of a single saxophone.
First thing's first, imma say all the words inside my head...
I'm fired up and tired of the way that things have been oh, ooooh...
The way that things have been oh, ooooh...
They slowly moved away from their starting positions, flag-poles coming to life with their own glow with a brighter gleam at the top. They slid through and around one another expertly, keeping in time with the music as they swayed and swung their pieces.
Second thing's second, don't you tell me what you think that I can be...
I'm the one at the sail; I'm the master of my sea oh, ooooh...
The master of my sea oh, ooooh...
All flag-skaters stopped where they were as the style of the song shifted. They rose up onto their toe-picks and started a short forward shuffle, and took a hard 90-degree turn as they got too close to the rink-wall. They raised and swung their flags high and low, each movement slightly staggered from the one behind it.
I was broken from a young age, taking my sulking to the masses
Write down my poems for the few, that looked at me, took to me, shook to me, feeling me
Singing from heartache from the pain, taking my message from the veins
Speaking my lesson from the brain, seeing the beauty through the...
Everyone stopped, flags suddenly shooting high as they were all tossed and spun. The flags came down and the beat dropped with them; fifteen new skaters jumped onto the ice. The arena suddenly burst to life with color; fire orange, icy blue, and purple. Even the glowing flag-poles changed color, accenting the spotlights with red, green, and magenta.
Pain...!
You made me a (made me a) believer...believer! (Oh pain...)
Pain...!
You break me down (you build me up) believer...believer! (Oh pain...)
"OhmygodYurilookthey'reinT-rexcostumes!" Viktor screeched excitedly, and pointed at the new additions to the ice; true to what he'd said, the flag-dancers were joined by a small legion of inflatable T-Rex-costume-wearing skaters, who quickly took point throughout the group, "Thisisamazing!"
The entire audience howled with laughter and excitement, and the Rexs did their very best to thrill them with their own colored and glowing batons, one in each stubby little arm.
Oh let the bullets fly, oh let them rain...
My life, my love, my drive, it came from...
Pain...!
You made me a (you made me a) believer...believer!
Last things last, by the grace of the fire and the flames...
You're the face of the future, the blood in my veins oh, ooooh...
The blood in my veins oh, ooooh...!
The dino group had all come together in an outside-facing ring, holding hands between them as they swayed together. The flag dancers had split into two smaller groups, one skating within the ring, the other outside it.
I was broken from a young age, taking my sulking to the masses
Write down my poems for the few, that looked at me, took to me, shook to me, feeling me
But they never did, ever lived... (Ebbing and flowing...)
Inhibited, limited... ('Til it broke up and...)
It rained down, it rained down, like...
The glowing flag staffs were all tossed into the air, and each different color of Rex batons were lifted and lowered in place. By the end of the stanza, the whole group had raised their masts high, and brought them down all together in a crush.
Pain...!
You made me a (made me a) believer...believer! (Pain...)
Pain...!
You break me down (you build me up) believer...believer!
I let the bullets fly, oh let them rain...
My life, my love, my drive, it came from...
Pain...!
You made me a (you made me a) believer...believer!
"Yuri we have to get those costumes." Victor commented, "We have to."
"WhatareweevengonnadowithT-rexcostumes?" Yuri blanched, his face squished by his partner's excited hands.
First thing's first, imma say all the words inside my head...
I'm fired up and tired of the way that things have been oh, ooooh...
The way that things have been oh, ooooh...
"I don't know! That isn't important!" Viktor continued, eyes back on the ice as the odd group; they'd lined up in two big rows and had started bowing in alternating waves.
But they never did, ever lived... (Ebbing and flowing...)
Inhibited, limited... ('Til it broke up and...)
It rained down, it rained down, like...
Each group dove back into a large circle, shuffling into and out of it with each quick beat.
Pain...!
You made me a (made me a) believer...believer! (First thing's first, imma say all the words inside my head...)
Pain...!
You break me down (you build me up) believer...believer! (You're the face of the future, the blood in my veins...)
They all jumped on their toepicks and 'stepped' out of the circle on the beat, and rushed around to form a long line around the rink-wall. The Rexs broke off and slid into a circular formation, then into a figure-8; they crouched and hopped and flailed their little arms to the music.
I let the bullets fly, oh let them rain...
My life, my love, my drive, it came from...
Pain...!
You made me a (you made me a) believer...believer!
With the last few dance moves, the song came to its end, and the whole group of Rexs collapsed onto their backs. The flag dancers posed in place, flags folded against their hips and their free hands raised into the air. The audience went wild with laughter and cheers, and the poor hapless dinosaurs were helped back up to their feet by their co-stars; the lights slowly came back on again as they all rose up.
Viktor practically had to wipe the tears from his eyes from being so excitable over the whole thing, yet also because it seemed that Yuri had dashed his dreams of owning one of those same inflatable suits for home. He still clapped though, stopping only when he felt a pair of slender arms come over his shoulders, and a chin parked on his head; eyes went up to look as well as they could.
"I'll ask Papa to get you a T-Rex suit if Yuri won't let you have one," Nikki teased.
"There, you see?" The silver Russian mused, and turned his eyes to his husband, "Someone understands."
"Someone isn't going to have to go home with you afterwards." He pointed out, "And I'm not sleeping with a dinosaur."
Viktor's eyes watered even more in desperation, "Why do you have to kill my joy by being responsible?"
"Mostly because if you get it, you'll never take it off again."
"That's not true!"
"Tell that to the Krampus costume in Detroit."
"I took it off!"
"Only because it was owned by someone else."
"Soooooo that means if Papa Mimi buys the T-Rex suit, and I borrow it from him, then...I'll give it back?" Viktor surmised, and put on the puppy-eyed look, "Pleeaassseee!"
Yuri raised his hands up, "I can't stop Mikhail from buying things."
"Yes!" Viktor cheered, and got a high-five from his cousin before she peeled off his head again, "It's gonna be great!"
"As if Viktor needed another reason to be act like he's half his age," Yurio commented, and tapped the back of the man's chair with his boot, "When are you ever gonna grow up?"
"Whoa now, you're the one who just said I was too domestic already." He retorted, "Can't have it both ways."
"You can be domestic and immature."
"Why's he domestic?" Otabek dared to ask.
Yurio thumbed at the eldest of their group, "He cooks and cleans."
Otabek just gave a narrow-eyed deadpan, "...You don't?"
"Of course not. Why would I have to?"
Stiff brown eyes glanced across towards Nikki, but Otabek just shook his head and sat back again, "Discipline, orderliness, and cleanliness are top priority for any good soldier. Leaving it for other people is rude."
"Leaving it?" Yurio countered in a huff, "I've been living in a resort for the last long while! That's what we pay them for, isn't it!?"
"Skaters from the Men's Singles Group 1 may now enter the rink for a 15 minute warm-up."
"That's my cue." Otabek said instead of answering, "I'll see you guys later."
"Me too." GuangHong sighed, "I kind of hate going first, but at least it'll be out of the way."
"It makes the rest of the event more fun," Leo commented, and lifted his knees to make room for the petite athlete to squeeze by, "At least for me it does... Watching all the other skaters, wondering until the last second if they'll score higher than I did... It beats going up last and having to worry if you can beat the best score."
Phichit and Minami made room as well, then Yurio and Nikki after them, "Group 3 is where all the fun happens!" Phichit called after them, "I think people put in more effort when they're at the end! Makes it more interesting."
"Going last is the worst." Yuri chimed in, "Well...second worst. Going first is worst."
"Which is why you go first more often than not," Minami teased.
"I escaped this time."
"This time."
"I happen to like going first." Yurio puffed, and stuffed his hands into his track suit's pockets, "Then I can spend the rest of the event watching you scrubs sweat."
"I won't be sweating!" Viktor laughed and raised his free hand, "I'll be watching you sweat!"
"As if!"
"I'll just be here," Yuri added softly, "Making everyone wonder if I'm dying."
Victor sputtered another laugh, and pulled his spouse closer to kiss his cheek, "You'll do fine, my love. All in agreement, say aye."
"Aye!" Several voices answered.
"See? Everyone believes in you."
Yuri glanced to the row behind them to take a tally; Phichit, Minami, and Leo...Yurio was there but Yuri wasn't sure he heard the teen's voice, "...Where'd Nikki go?"
Yurio blanched and threw himself to his feet, "Goddamnit! She went after Otabek!"
"Don't worry so much about it," Viktor shrugged, "Just let her have her fun. She won't see him again until the Olympics."
"That's not the point!" The teen argued, and quickly rushed down the stairs to head for the underbelly prep-area. He was out of sight as fast as lightning, and left the remnants of their original group dumbfounded.
Yuri shook his head, "You think he's jealous...?"
Viktor rubbed his chin, "Hard to tell. He's always acted extremely differently with lady-folk."
Phichit had a hand over his mouth, "Scandalous! The Russian Tiger has a crush on Viktor Nikiforov's cousin!"
"Pfft, no way, he doesn't." Viktor scoffed, "They're being raised together like siblings. That would not only be weird but it would give my uncle a heart-attack on the spot."
Yuri quirked a brow and looked down to where he'd watched the teen vanish under the stadium, "I don't think hormones care what other peoples' intentions are. They only met a couple months ago, and have only really been living together for one of them. Nikki also made a point of taunting Yurio's fans by glomping on him at the Final, deliberately giving them the idea that they were together...never mind how she helped him at the end of his Exhibition that time, too."
Viktor just rubbed his chin a bit more, "You make a convincing argument. But..."
"How can you deny it?"
He just smiled, "Because he knows I'd never let him hear the end of it if it were true. The teasing would be legendary."
"So then you do think he has a thing for Nikki."
"Well..." Viktor shrugged, "I think he's jealous of the shift in attention. No doubt about that. So, maybe you're right...but I'm hedging my bets that it's something else."
"Care to put that to the test?"
"Ooohhh~! I love this sort of thing. What's on the line?"
Yuri thought for a moment, "...The T-Rex suit. If you're right, I'll give my blessing."
"Oh my god you're so on."