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[Chris ? ]

So you're doing a seminar?

seen 07:12

[Yuuri ? ]

You can't call it that! The kids are under 12. I'm just showing them around my rink and we're doing some training exercises and stuff like that.

read 07:13

[Chris ? ]

So a skating seminar? ?

seen 07:13

[Chris ? ]

My coach would rather kill me then let me influence a room full of children ?

seen 07:13

[Yuuri ? ]

They're just coming because we've got new equipment in our rink. It's not like I'll be the main attraction.

read 07:14

[Chris ? ]

….

Trust me, they're not coming because of the new equipment.

seen 07:15

[Chris ? ]

Anyways, enough about that - tell me everything. About the whole Nikiforov thing-

seen 07:15

[Yuuri ? ]

Would you look at that, my coach is calling me. I'll talk to you later, Chris!

read 07:15

[Chris ? ]

IS THIS PAYBACK? I DIDN'T KNOW YOU HAD AN ACTUAL CRUSH ON HIM! I THOUGHT IT WAS LIKE A CUTE ROLE-MODEL THING LIKE ME. A CELEBRITY CRUSH IF YOU WILL.

seen 07:15

[Chris ? ]

YUURI! I SAID I WAS SORRY

seen 07:15

[Chris ? ]

I can give you his phone number! He has a new one!

seen 07:15

[Chris ? ]

Actually, am I allowed to do that?

seen 07:15

[Chris ? ]

You don't think he'd think I was a freak if I gave his number out do you? I mean, it's not like he doesn't know about you.

seen 07:15

[Chris ? ]

Like he was crying while watching you skate- he obviously knows about you

seen 07:15

[Chris ? ]

Yuuri?

seen 07:15

[Chris ? ]

YUUURIIIIII ! I'LL GIVE YOU HIS NUMBER. PLEASE TALK TO ME.

seen 07:15

July 17th,

Hasetsu, Japan

"Yuuri-kun! Haru-chan!"

Yuuko waves towards her friend frantically. Yuuri nods as an acknowledgement, dabbing at the perspiration that has begun to spring from his temples.

The heat in Hasetsu is blinding, the small walk between the carpack to the cool, air-conditioned station is enough to make Yuuri pant. Haruka, living up to her name, does not seem affected by the fever-inducing heatwave, skipping up the steps two at a time.

Yuuko stands alone, clad in light-weight clothes. Yuuri feels horribly overdressed in his white button-down, although Haruka's father had called him very handsome when he had released the child into his care. ( "Go, take her as far away from me as possible!") Maybe he cares a little too much about what a gaggle of six to ten year olds think of him, but in his defence, children can be brutal.

"Haru-chan, wait for me." He calls out, heaving his body up.

Yuuko raises an eyebrow, surprised. "I thought you were going to meet us at the inn."

"Kaasan kicked me out." Yuuri complained. "Apparently, I'm too jittery ."

"He was making Aunty anxious." Haruka pipes up. Yuuri swipes at her head as she squeals, hiding behind Yuuko's skirts to defend herself. "I was going to stay with Diya-chan at the rink, but then Yuuri-senpai said he was coming here and I got curious."

Yuuri snorts at the nickname. Considering the fact that both used English as a second language, the two had gotten along as swimmingly as a house fire did for a fireman.

'Diya-chan' was the bane of Haru's existence, and yet, the Junior world champion had decided that Haruka was the "cutest person ever", clinging to her like an overgrown puppy.

The two bonded over the other abhorrent skaters that would eat into their rink time, a common enemy you could say, that brought them together. Still, Haru's friendship with Nadiya had solidified the Junior World Champion's place at the rink, and soon, Nadiya was as much of an Hasetsu residence as anyone.

"How did you get here, then?" Yuuko asks. "Did Minako-sensei drop you off?"

Yuuri, as nonchalantly as he could, lifts up a collection of keys, swirling the ring around his index finger. It clicks against each other, a deafening sound in the middle of the quiet, Hasetsu station.

"You passed?!" Yuuko screams, throwing her arms around Yuuri's shoulders to hold her friend tightly. "But, you barely had any time for lessons!"

"Takeshi's a pretty good teacher." (He really fucking wasn't if the dents in his car was anything to go by.)

Yuuko looks unconvinced as Yuuri shrugs, biting back a wicked grin."Must've picked it up faster because I have a motorcycle licence."

"I'm surprised Haru-chan's parents let her in the car. Did you get gifted a new one, Mr Top 1%?" Yuuko laughs loudly at the bright red sheen on Yuuri's cheeks as he sputters.

"Can people stop talking about that?" He grumbles, embarrassed. "And no, there's no point since I'm moving in August. I just drove tousan's."

"Well, it's a good job." The four of them begin walking further inside the train station. A few of the workers are quick to ask Yuuri for an autograph, and, under the burning gaze of Yuuko, he signs them with a quick flick of his wrist.

"Don't be giving them out to everyone who asks, Yuuri!" Yuuko grabs his shoulders from behind, nudging him away from the workers. "They'll increase in value soon." Yuuri blanches at the thought.

The lack of people at the station wasn't new, but the nostalgia of looking around at the coffee-stained tiles would always make Yuuri pause. He swivels on his heel, about to ask when the students would arrive when he is hit with the most atrocious sight in history.

"What the fuc-"

Yuuko slams a hand across Yuuri's mouth. "Don't you dare swear in front of Haruka."

"Why is my face there?!" Yuuri screeches, pointing towards the wall directly opposite the train barriers, and thus, the first thing incoming visitors would see . Stretching across the entire expanse of wall were pictures of Yuuri, horribly photoshopped against the backdrop of Hasetsu's landmarks or in the middle of his performance.

Yuuri was used to that, (he could still vividly remember the horror he felt when he had returned to Hasetsu after his five year stint in America to find the station covered in similar posters), but there was no hiding the huge blue banner spread across the entire aisle, imposing and staggering.

'OUR JUNIOR WORLD CHAMPION, THE ACE OF JAPAN AND HASETSU'S NATIVE, FIGURE SKATER, KATSUKI YUURI WELCOMES YOU TO HIS HOMETOWN!'

"Yuuri! Stop trying to tear it down, that's public property! You could get arrested!"

"They didn't ask for my permission. I could get them arrested!"

"Katsuki-senpai! You look so cool!" Haru cheers, whipping out a flip phone and snapping some pictures.

"Stop crying." Yuuko rolls her eyes. "Gosh, Minako wasn't lying when she said you were dramatic."

Yuuri drowns to the floor in a puddle of his tears. "Why is no-one on my side?"

"Because you're always against yourself." Yuuko complains, heaving Yuuri up to his feet. "It's a good thing you are here anyway. I'm assuming you have three more seats spare? If you do, can you take some of the kids with you to the inn? It will save us having to make two journeys."

"Wait, what?" Yuuri gapes. "I thought the van would be enough?"

"Since the JSF said they would help with the funding, we extended the amount of applicants. There's fifteen now instead of ten."

"The response was overwhelming, to the point Sophia and I felt horrible to only open it up to ten. We mentioned in the advertisement, like you suggested, that this seminar would only free because it's a test-run and next year, it will have additional costs, so there were more rinks determined to get in then we thought - especially ones that seemed to be closing down soon."

"In fact," Yuuko bites her lip. "There were a lot of rinks that were in a similar situation to us - not a lot of coaches were willing to go to a rink with low-demand, and so the amount of people skating has diminished. The skaters left suffered as a consequence."

Yuuri tucks his car keys into his pocket as the three of them move further in the shade. He frowns, but stays silent.

"It was last minute," Yuuko tries to convince him. "Your mother said she's opening up the unused areas for them in the inn, and well, it's not like there are people running to go to the inn even if it is summer vacation. The JSF said they'd cover the costs as well."

Is that why kaasan was so temperamental today? Yuuri shudders to himself remembering his mother's piercing concentration in de-feathering a monstrous amount of chickens earlier this morning.

Yuuri inhales sharply, including the three JSF officials, that would be eighteen people all together that he'd have to please. "That's a lot. When were you planning on telling me?"

"We didn't want to freak you out since you're such a worry-wart." Yuuko pats his back lightly. "The schedule doesn't change. Instead, we'll be splitting into three teams of five. It's better this way too, when one group is on the rink, the others will be at Minako's studio. We've already sorted out the logistics a few months ago, but we didn't want to interrupt your training."

"Does that mean there's gonna be more people out on the rink?" Haru pipes up, frowning. "Won't that affect Nadiya and me? I thought Yuuri-sensei was going to help me with my new program-"

"It won't eat into your time, I promise." Yuuko pats the top of Haruka's hair.

"Don't worry, Haru-chan." Yuuri taps the young girl's shoulder. "You'll always be our priority - besides, both you and Nadiya are taking part in the program as well, remember?"

Haru pouts, but looks pacified. Yuuri turns away from her, grabbing the register that Yuuko hands him. "Why did so many people subscribe? It's not like we're that big of a skating rink."

Haru pinches his leg. "It's because of you, silly!"

Yuuko groans at the sight of Yuuri's perplexed face. "You're the only Junior World Champion Japan has ever had. You broke Viktor Nikiforov's world records twice . Of course everyone wants to know what the hidden recipe is that made you a menace this season."

"In fact, we had calls from some very well-known skating clubs, ones who shall remain anonymous," She snickers at Yuuri's gaping expression, "asking if they could send some students over - obviously they were going to do some recon. I told them that since this is a trial run, we have chosen the kids referenced by the JSF, but starting next year they can go through the application process. They're from all over the place."

Yuuri's eyes scan the document. "Fukuoka, Nagasaki, Tokyo, even Hokkaido? !"

"Hayashi-kun is twelve years old and cites you as his greatest inspiration in his application form. Let's not disappoint him, hm?"

Yuuri feels his stomach lurch, the taste of nausea bouncing around his throat like it was warming up in preparation for projectile vomiting.

Snickering at his face, Yuuko holds a hand out for Haru to take. The younger girl skips towards her coach, ignoring the pale sheen Yuuri's face has taken. "Come quickly, the high school loaned us two of their vans so we can all make our way towards the inn together. The kids will be excited to see you."

Yuuri closes his eyes tightly. Yuuko forcibly pushes him forward.

"Yuuri-senpai!"

"Ooof!" Yuuri heaves out as arms wrap themselves around his waist tightly. Minami looks up towards him with such a blinding smile, he has no other choice but to return the hug, patting the younger boy's head awkwardly.

" Kenji-kun!" Someone shrieks behind him in horror.

"Yuuri-senpai! Come and meet Minato-kun." Yuuri allows himself to be dragged towards the source of horrified screeching.

Another younger boy, with square-rimmed glasses (that are so familiar) and hulking a duffle bag far too big for his tiny stature, gapes at the sight of Minami throwing himself at the Junior World Champion.

Yuuri accepts the incredibly low bow aimed towards him, the child's nose almost touching the floor. He's absolutely adorable, little chubby cheeks that seem to drown alongside all the luggage he brought with him.

"Nice to meet you, Minato-kun. I've heard about you from Kenjirou-kun."

Minato turns bright red, (Yuuri is sure he sees steam escaping his ears). He bows once again, and to stop what Yuuri can see the boy spending the whole time stuttering like a ball of nerves, he is quick to pat him on the head and break any ice between the two of them.

Taking the lead, he slips the duffle bag out from his hands, and grabs Minami's suitcase for good measure, letting the kids follow his step.

"Come with me. We still need to wait for the others." He hurdles the two kids past the train barriers, making sure to divert their attention from the fucking shrine, towards the others. Yuuko stood talking towards one of the JSF officials, Nishida-san, who had accompanied the children from Hokkaido and Miyagi.

One of the kids perks up at the sight of Yuuri. He stumbles to stand up quickly, and the other students begin to take notice of his presence. The murmured chattering ceases and Yuuri can feel sweat begin to build around the nape of his neck at the sudden influx of beady eyes staring at him.

"K-Katsuki-senpai!" The boy who noticed him says. "I- I didn't know you would be here ! I- My name is Tanaka Fuma! A pleasure to meet you!"

Yuuri waves in what he hopes is kind enough, but the kids just gape around him. "Erm, what did you mean you didn't know I would be here?"

"We were under the impression that you were overseas for training, since Celestino posted a picture of the two of you together," A voice calls out to him. Yuuri whips around and sees Miyamoto, travelling with another gaggle of around eleven students. They all gape at the sight of Yuuri, and he rubs the back of his neck nervously at the beady eyes that follow his every move.

"I'm not moving until the end of the month." He responds, pulling Miyamoto into a loose hug. "Celestino came over a few weeks ago, he's teaching me over Skype for now."

"Always working, aren't you?" Miyamoto laughs lightly. She claps her hands, urging the students she arrived with forward. "Who are we waiting for?"

Nishida moves forward, bowing to both Miyamoto and Yuuri. "Erm, Hashimoto-san just messaged that they're almost at the stati-"

"We're here!" Someone screams. "Sorry for keeping you up- AHHH! KATSUKI-SENSHU?!"

Hashimoto-san, Yuuri presumes, trips on his feet, being held up by Nishida's quick reflexes. He's tall, perhaps even six feet, a lanky man with noodles for legs apparently. Yuuri laughs to himself, sticking a hand out in greeting.

"Ah, my goodness! Katsuki-senshu, it's such an honour to meet you!" He shakes Yuuri's hand enthusiastically, almost tearing Yuuri's arm from its socket. "Will you be attending the classes as well?"

"Yuuri will actually be teaching some of them." Yuuko clasps her hand on Yuuri's shoulders. "He's probably the most experienced out of all of us."

Hashimoto gapes, whilst the gaggle of children all of a sudden are far more interested in their summer school than normal. Yuuri can hear the gasps of astonishment and the excitement level begins to rise.

Sighing, he tries not to think about how draining the next week was going to be.

Yu-Topia Katsuki

Hasetsu, Japan

"Oh my god, is this where we're staying?"

"It's so cool! Do you think it's haunted?!"

"Wah! This is starting to feel like a real trip now!"

"And we got to meet Katsuki-senshu!"

"I'm so jealous of those Fukuoka skaters! They got to ride in the Katsuki-senshu's car."

"It's so unfair, I want to be in Katsuki-senshu's car!"

"What was that short kid- the one with blond hair? He looked close to Katsuki-senshu."

"Minami? I don't remember, but yeah, he was clinging on to him the entire time and Katsuki-senshu just let him! How did they even meet?"

Hayashi burrows himself closer to the corner of his window seat, hiding behind his large rucksack. The skaters in front of him were all older, and as the youngest of the lot and a foot smaller, Hayashi could already feel himself drowning under the current of all these bigger skaters.

He wishes that his mother could have come with him, but if he cried, then she would have nagged him and said 'I told you it was too far away'. The van carried fifteen of them, including Nishida and Hashimoto-san at the front with Nishigori. Everyone had already paired off, leaving Hayashi in a single spot at the front. He listens in to Nishigori and Hashimoto's conversation, picking at his nails as the car drives over ricketing cobblestone roads.

Nishigori-san was a petite woman, perhaps Katsuki-senshu's age, and yet she drove the large van like it was second nature, turning sharply onto main roads and alleyways alike. Hashimoto keeps up an ever-present flow of conversation, and Hayashi would have fallen asleep if he wasn't so in awe of everything around him.

Despite Hokkaido being Japan's largest island, his small town of Kamifurano was anything but. A tiny part of the island with a population of under ten thousand, it was a shock in itself that there even was a skating rink.

If you could even call it that, Hayashi grumbles to himself. No, his rink was a tiny little circular room with some hand-rails around, more akin to a roller-blading club than an actual ice skating rink. If he actually wanted to practise on competition-sized ice, he would have to wait for winter to come and freeze over the rice fields near his house.

This was Hayashi's only chance - his only way of finding out just what made Katsuki-senshu special. Hasetsu was just like Kamifurano. So how did he become the Katsuki Yuuri?

The journey from the train station to the inn takes almost no time, and soon, Nishigori is pulling the van up through the entrance of Yu-Topia Katsuki. Hayashi trembles at the sight of it all. It wasn't a large inn per say but the aura was incredible. Built like a shrine with a decadent, traditional gate surrounding it all, the inn opened up to a large parking lot at the front of the entrance.

The other vans have already arrived, with the other eleven students waiting outside with Nishida-san and Miyamoto-san. They all empty the van quickly, Nishigori gripping Hayashi's hand to help stabilise him as he jumps down onto the stoned pavement.

There's a moment of bated breath as another car rolls in behind them. A head of blond pokes out of the window, and then it's like the world opens up.

Katsuki-senshu strolls out, hands in his pocket as the Chosen Few - that one girl who actually trained with Katsuki-senshu and the two from Fukuoka, eased around him like it was natural. They walk towards Hayashi's group as Miyamoto-san pulls out a register to call out everyone's name.

Once it's been confirmed that everyone is present, Nishigori nudges Katsuki-senshu forward. Following the World Champion's lead, they all enter Yu-Topia Katsuki.

The door opens up to a large entry hall, and a man who looks like Katsuki-senshu pops his head out of the reception desk. Hayashi can barely even see him from where he is, but then Katsuki-senshu walks forward, dropping his keys in the man's awaiting hands.

" Tousan , have you sorted out all the rooms?"

"Of course. Hello, Miyamoto-san. It's been a while! Do you need me to sort anything out-"

"I've got it, thanks for the car."

"Okay, kids!" Nishigori claps her hands, breaking apart the loud chatter that had engulfed the quaint inn. "I'll let Yuuri-kun explain everything. Yuuri," She motioned for the man to come forward, and silence spread around the enthusiastic group of children.

Katsuki-senshu crosses his arms, an ease in the air around him. Maybe it was because he was on home turf, but he smiles reassuringly at them. Hayashi can feel the blood pounding in his ears.

"So, welcome to Yu-Topia Katsuki, yes - there is a relation to me, this is my home. We're leaving our bags here by the office, tousan, can you keep an eye on them?"

They all rush to pile their respective bags on the floor, with some people pulling off their jackets and hoodies as the heat of the day finally kicks in.

Katsuki-senshu moves forward, and motions with his hand."If you look to your right, we have a souvenir section. I'm sure all your parents would like to get some gifts - we can look at that later. Opposite that is a little massage chair, yes - you can use it. It's amazing after training, I'll tell you that."

"We have vending machines littered all around, they get refilled daily so you won't have to worry about going snack-less, although if my mother has anything to do with it, you'll all be too full to even move." He smiles at the giggles that erupt around him, and suddenly, it's like Hayashi can finally breathe.

"Now, let's walk a bit more down, straight ahead is the entrance to the Men's Bathroom. We have inside baths, showers and the outdoor onsen overlooking the garden. That's also where the sauna is located. To the right are the ladies, same as the mens except they have a jacuzzi if you feel so inclined after a long day on the ice."

"Where does that passageway go to?" Someone points to the door next to the Women's Bath and Yuuri rubs his head.

"That's for the main house, so it's off-limits. Sorry." A few kids pout here and there, but they're easily distracted once Katsuki moves back towards the entry hall. "Let's pick up your stuff whilst we're here before we get to the dining room. Come along this way. On your left, we have the drinks machine and a chill-out area. That over there is the kitchen, and now we get to the best bit, the eating area!"

Hayashi gapes at the size, wooden flooring creaking as the masses of kids filter in. The eating area was a large, rectangular room with seating areas that spanned across its entirety. Near the entrance, there was a bar-like counter that looked into the kitchen, and two women sat there, twin looks of severity on their faces.

The kids are quick to drop their bags on the table, but Hayashi notices the way that Katsuki-senshu and Nishigori make their way towards the two women, and how Nishida almost looks like he was about to faint at the sight of them. Miyamoto motions for everyone to sit down, and soon, silence fills the eating area.

"I will show you your rooms later," Katsuki-senshu stands at the front, near the bar area.

"For now, I'll give you a short introduction. You have all met Nishigori at the train station, so we'll start from here."

"Good evening, my name is Nishigori Yuuko." Nishida is holding out his camera, and the sound of the shutter resonates around the room. "Along with my husband, we own Ice Castle. This is my first time running a summer program, so please take care of me." She bows lightly, grinning as there is a small smattering of applause.

"Next, we have Suzuki-sensei. Everyone, please meet the Head Coach of Ice Castle. Suzuki-sensei is from America." Sophia smiles at everyone, bowing as people clap at her introduction. She says little, opting to lean back next to the other lady.

Katsuki-senshu pipes up with a grin, "She's also competed and won bronze at the Olympics. She's someone you can learn a lot from and will be heading the on-ice lessons we have."

"And lastly, we have my Junior coach and dance instructor, Okukawa-sensei."

Hayashi gulps, turning to face the famed coach. This was her - the woman who made Katsuki-senshu a champion.

A beautifully young instructor, Hayashi has no idea how such a petite frame could exude such a big presence. Okukawa-sensei tilts her head in acknowledgement, before the focus turns back to Katsuki-senshu.

"Guess that also leaves me. Erm, I'm Katsuki Yuuri. I will be holding a few lessons here and there, but mostly I'm just here to be of any help. Before we go settle in our rooms, I thought I'd tell you what the next few days entail."

"As you all know, this is a week-long training program. We will be split into three groups of five. Within that time, there will be individualised training. Classes will alternate between on-ice training, off-ice and dance."

A hand pops up in front of Hayashi, and he burrows himself further into his seat as Katsuki-senshu's eyes flutter over him. His heart almost bursts.

"Yes, the one in the back?"

A boy who was probably one of the oldest, if not the tallest, stood up, eyes sparkling. "Will you be teaching any classes, Katsuki-senshu?"

Katsuki-senshu pauses for a moment, as if the question stumped him like a particularly hard maths question. Hayashi leans forward with bated breath, and he and the rest of the class watch as Katsuki-senshu tilts his head forward in a single nod.

Pandemonium ensues - the gaggle of children erupt into excited chatter, a volume that Hayashi is sure bursts his fragile eardrums.

Or at least, it would have, if the noise wasn't drowned out by the sound of his heartbeat accelerating.

Sports Champions Club,

St. Petersburg,

Russia

"Are you still pouting?"

Viktor glares at Mila. "Why are you here? "

"Ooof!" She mimes cat claws. "Someone's really in a mood - cheer up, it's not like you've never had your phone confiscated by Yakov before."

The reminder seems to make Viktor freeze. He huffs quietly, leaning down to tighten his laces. of

"Ignoring me?" Mila barks out a laugh, a teasing tilt to her voice. "Very mature."

" Mila ."

The single word is enough to make the young girl pale. Viktor stalks away to the rinkside, not before throwing out a harsh, "It's my private ice. Go fuck off somewhere else."

Yuri watches it all from the raised alcove.

Sports Champions Club is empty for the morning, for Viktor's private time - but Yuri, well, Yuri would always sneak in anyway. To be fair, he isn't wrong. This is Viktor's private ice time.

Just by the sheer volume of skaters Yakov coaches, it was without a doubt that many were each other's main competitors. Private ice times were granted to those that won titles - Viktor, as the two-time World champion, was granted more than others, and this was one of his times. They couldn't have anything leaking, and so, his practices were always heavily guarded.

Until, well, recently. He doesn't blame Mila for showing up to Viktor's practice. t's not like the thirteen year old was much competition to Viktor, and so, it doesn't hurt for her to be present - and , it's not like she hasn't done it before. She has. Multiple times. Enough that when she didn't show up, Viktor would always come up to her in the middle of the day and ask where she was - like her presence was expected .

Since the last skating season, even Yuri had noticed that the two-time World champion was more… open. He grimaces to think of himself as being somewhat close with Viktor, but well, it was true.

Viktor smiled more around the rink, engaging in conversation with the staff and other skaters. Hell, he even became sort-of-friends with Georgi , who grated on most people's nerves enough that they would turn for the hills rather than hear about his love escapades again. Viktor was being nice .

So the change in tone is like a whiplash.

All because of his stupid, fucking phone. Everyone has started to walk on egg-shells around Viktor again, so much that it made Yuri's skin crawl. It's stupid, because this should be the norm. Viktor isn't a friendly person - he's a champion. He should make people tense, not chat about their kid's birthdays or what television series they were bingeing. Everyone knew this Viktor, and yet, it made Yuuri want to slit Viktor's throat with his knife shoes, but that's too gruesome for six in the morning and the bloodstains would never come out of Yakov's state-of-the-art ice.

He blows out a breath. From the corner of his eyes, he can see Mila turn around dejected. He curls deeper into his hiding spot.

The skid of Viktor's skates echoes against the desolate rink. The sound of skates against fresh ice is one of Yuri's favourite sounds, and Viktor is a master at work on the ice, conducting notes of dance and poetry out of every stroke on the ice - so the cacophony of Viktor's anger grinds against Yuri's ears.

He peers out.

Angry is an understatement - Viktor looks livid .

Yuri kind of hates that he still sort of hero-worships Viktor. He's no Yuuri Katsuki, but well, he is Russia's Hero. Yuri would spend hours analysing the way Viktor practices, especially by himself. He would watch the twist of his body as he skated on the ice, burning with a passion that could ignite an unstoppable forest fire. Katsuki had that alluring potential that was addictive - the kind of compulsive energy, a disposition that made people want to watch him. He was a star in the making, and everyone loved watching a star form.

Viktor already was that.

Perhaps that's why he was so sensitive to other's views - Viktor had already accomplished everything he could - except Olympic gold.

It's basically already his.

Might as well hand him over the medal in advance.

Who else could have it?

Yuri can't help but see Viktor as a figure of Atlas, cracking under the burgeoning pressure of the world. Underneath all of the anger, Yuri realises, Nikiforov is fucking tired .

Something in him snaps.

"Oi, old man!" His screech echoes against the rink.

Viktor's head snaps up, and Yuri can feel the temperature drop to below zero. He's sure his teeth are chattering, but well, he wouldn't be Yuri if he wasn't burning up with anger anyway.

"What the fu-" Viktor cuts himself off, closing his eyes to calm down. "Please leave. It's my time on the rink."

Yuri rolls his eyes, "I'm taking that to mean you see me as competition - which you should - but I'm not here for that reason."

"What? - Oh god." Viktor's laugh is cruel, and he coos down at the young boy mockingly. "Does little Yura want to talk about his feelings ?"

"I can't believe you swore at Mila."

"She knows the rules - the same rules that you should be following." Viktor's smile is all teeth, and the sight makes Yuri's stomach curl.

Well, Yuri Plisetsky always gave as good as he got. Sometimes, Viktor needed people to just tell him things straight. It pisses him off, especially when he's trying so hard to evade it. "Are you being like this because of some stupid boy?

Viktor grits his teeth. "It's got nothing to do with Katsuki."

"I never said it was Katsuki."

The silence is deafening.

Viktor snarls away, flushed and embarrassed, and Yuri blooms under the addictive power of being right. He leans forward with a fearlessness that only an eleven year old could have, eyes trained on the older skater like the predator he is - he isn't called a tiger for nothing.

One wrong move, and Viktor will be eaten alive. Too bad that the two are cut from the same cloth. Viktor is as much of a vulture as he is.

"Yakov's right. I have been distracted recently." His face disagrees, jaw clenched and tense. "I'm in my head again - like always. Nothing is more important than this season."

"I know." Yuri says, because of course he does. The pre- Olympic season. It determined everything. It is up to Viktor to gain the three Olympic spots for Russia, it is up to Viktor to carry his momentum into the penultimate season. Already, there are billboards with his face plastered across major highways. Circling 24-7 is his advertisement as the face of the Russian team. He was asked to fucking carry the torch - of course he needs to be focusing entirely on the Olympics.

The season is the dress-rehearsal for his life's dream. He should be only focusing on that.

Yuri was only seven when the last Olympics took place - he barely remembers anything other than the heat of the street, the build-up of celebrations. Flags were pasted outside windows, Maxim and Viktor's face was strewn across billboards. His class wrote letters to them during school, (he's sure Dedushka still has the one he wrote Viktor in a box somewhere, hidden because Yuri will 100% burn it if he ever finds it).

He never understood the magnitude of the competition - not until this year. The tension in the air is palpable. No longer were people mingling around in the commons room, Georgi and Viktor would separate their training schedules, Yakov was balding at an alarming rate - it was all a mess really. Honestly, adults, Yuri sneers. So emotional.

"Whilst it's true that you get infatuated easily, you never get attached." Viktor looks affonted, and it's telling how fucked up Viktor's been that Yuri is almost euphoric that he's showing some kind of emotion. Yuri, happy that Viktor is looking mildly uncomfortable - what has the world come to.

"Don't look at me like that, stupid. Isn't that why you never date? I can count on my hands the amount of times you actually had a boyfriend, guess what - it'll be zero. You always end your - what does Lilia call them, dalliances - before you get too invested. Why are you acting like a heartbroken fool?"

Viktor glare lacks the usual heat - in fact, he just looks sad . Yuri wants to throw up. Preferably on Viktor's six-hundred dollar, custom-made Edea skates.

"So, what - your big plan is to ignore Katsuki? I thought you guys were friends."

"I don't have friends. I have competitors. Me being so obsessed with him isn't going to do me any good - I need to focus on myself. Yakov's right-"

"Well, Yakov's also divorced and balding. Katsuki isn't a bad influence, he made you fucking likeable . Are you really going to ignore him?"

"I don't know how to even talk to him!" It's like the gates have opened, and everything begins to flood out. "I- I had every opportunity to speak with him and now I don't."

"Because what- Yakov took away your phone? You had every opportunity to speak with him before- Oh."

His voice cracks - he's afraid, and suddenly, Yuri understands. Viktor's scared - he's fucking scared. He's lost his opportunity to have an actual connection with someone, and he lost it because he didn't do something earlier enough. Yuuri did everything right - he stepped forward, he asked Viktor for coffee, heck, he even invited Yuri to join - Yuuri was always taking the first step.

Oh. Yuri, of all people, should not feel like this. He should be running for the fucking hills that nothing is going on between Katsuki and Viktor, but for fucks sake, he wants to grab Viktor by the shoulders and scream that there are more important things to life than skating. Apparently, he actually does care about the stupid idiot. In fact, Viktor might actually like Katsuki - enough that he would step back before anything even begins so that neither of them got hurt.

The big stupid idiot. "I am too young to be your fucking therapist."

"It's almost the Olympic season." Viktor repeats, and Yuri hates how monotonous he sounds. "I need to focus."

Yuri is almost astonished at the inexplicable anger that floods through him, but then again why should he be surprised? Something acidic tinges to the end of it, and he knows intrinsically what it is. He's disappointed.

"You know Nikiforov." Yuri has to tilt his head up to meet Viktor's gaze. "I thought you were a lot of things, but not once did I ever think you were a coward."

He barely even hears the door slam behind him as he storms off, leaving Viktor alone, exactly like he wants to be.

Ice Castle,

Hasetsu

"Again."

Haruka snorts under the cover of her hand. Nadiya frowns beside her, eyebrows furrowed. A young skater in front of them shakes under Sophia's stern gaze, but nonetheless listens to her instructions.

"She is being very harsh." Nadiya comments. From Haru's very limited understanding of English, she realises that Nadiya was talking about Sophia and shrugs her shoulders.

"She is hard on us ." Haru responds in stilted English, but the message gets across well enough that Nadiya nods her head.

"They're very different." They both flinch at the sound of another skater crashing to the floor.

Considering the camp was filled with other figure skaters like them, (ones that were at least semi-serious about the sport), they really resembled fishes out of water. Perhaps the club's environment was more of a factor than Haru realised - maybe if Yuuri-sensei wasn't at her rink, she too would be in the same boat, floundering around and struggling to breathe.

Luckily, she does have Yuuri-sensei, which means she's leagues ahead of the little clown fishes that have graced their rink. Honestly, Haruka understands why they're here. She can hear the flash photography around them - Reporter-san seemed to be friendly with Yuuri-sensei, but the huge gaggle of media around them was enough to scare most of the kids away. A perfect advertisement built in already.

The cameras inadvertently turn towards Nadiya and Haru, shocked that both Junior World Champions were at the camp. Truly, an unprecedented sight, and yet both Nadiya and Sophia had refused to answer why her presence was accounted for.

"Diya-chan." Haru turns around, deciding to address the elephant in the room straight on. "Are you officially staying here?"

"I think so?" Nadiya skates forward. "Mama was talking to the embassy earlier, so I think I'm getting a visa."

Nadiya was better to talk to than the other students, Haru supposed. The ones from the training camp were at least better - at least none of them were star-crazed, hungry enough for a glimpse of Yuuri-sensei that they joined Ice Castle purely because of that.

Haru could count on both her's and Nadiya's hands how many people had joined Ice Castle just to be near Yuuri-sensei. They didn't even skate! Nadiya was far better company than those kind of skaters, even with their limited language capacity.

"I will teach you Japanese more then."

Nadiya's eyes sparkle. "Really?! Haru-chan, thank you! Thank you!"

Haruka grimaces as Nadiya throws her long arms around Haru's shoulders, tight and secure.

"Wow, isn't this a cute surprise?"

"Yuuri-sensei, did you survive the attention?" Haru grins widely.

"You're getting too comfortable around me, aren't you?" He ignores her shout of ' There are cameras !' in favour of ruffling her hair. "What are you talking about?"

"Haru is going to teach me Japanese!"

"Nice - maybe you can teach her some Ukrainian?"

"Ah! That sounds fun!" Nadiya claps her hands excitedly. "Haru, fun in Ukrainian is veseloshchi ! Try it with me."

The glare Haru sends Yuuri could put him six-feet under, but she quietly repeats the word, stifled against the hard pronunciation. Nadiya coos at her, pinching her cheeks. "What's the word for fun in Japanese?"

" Shinu -"

"Haru!" Yuuri scolds. "It's tanoshī , Nadiya."

"Tanoshī!" She repeats the word, heavily accented, but far better than Haru's attempt at Ukrainian. "It's so fun with you Haru-chan! Can we learn some more Japanese?"

"Later- let's try learning some skating this time?"

Yuuri's entire body freezes when his jacket pocket buzzes. He whips his phone out. Maybe this was why Yuuri-sensei was so artistically-inclined, Haruka notes - his face showed every single emotion he feels. Shock to hope to excitement to disappointment, and finally, reluctance.

Haru would question it more, but well, it was rink policy that phones were kept in lockers at all times. She glares at her teacher harshly.

"I'm not even skating today!" Yuuri counters.

"Doesn't matter. It's skating policy. Nadiya doesn't do it."

"Yeah!" Nadiya backs up her new friend. "It's policy."

"Sheesh- are you sure you're not the teacher?" Haruka sticks his tongue out as Nadiya cackles.

"And- well. I guess I'm just waiting for someone." Yuuri bites his lip, before shoving the phone back into his jacket pocket. "Let's forget about that, have you joined the class yet?"

Haru groans. "I'd rather die. Sophia-sensei is getting angry."

Loud screaming cuts through the rink. A fiery aura explodes around Sophia. The three of them shiver in tandem. Yuuri groans, "Well, I guess that's my cue."

He slips his skate guards off, and goes to save the children from Sophia's wrath.

Saint Petersburg,

Russia

Viktor's eyes droop as the brightness of the television burns his eyelids. There is a tightness in his face, a scrunching pain that spreads from the tip of his nose to the corner of his eyes. And yet, he could not bring himself to fall into the warm embrace of sleep.

For the first time since he was a teenager, Viktor had stayed up past midnight. His body was trained like a clock, always ready to knock out at nine sharp. Nothing could keep him awake, he would be dead to the world until the sun broke at five am, full of energy after his seven hour sleep cycle was fulfilled.

He can already feel the bags forming underneath his eyeballs - but sleep did not come so easily. Makka is curled up underneath his feet, her snores a constant warmth against the muted sounds of the television running.

All Viktor can do is stare blankly, a loop of Yuri's words ricochetting against his empty head. He's about to turn off the channel when a sharp rap against his window startles him, enough that Makka jumps up in fear. The noise continues, and Viktor tries to stop the thunderous beating of his chest.

His apartment is five stories high. The fire exit's staircase is on the side of the hallway, meaning there's no way someone has climbed up his balcony window. It must be some birds or something-

"OI- OLD MAN!"

" Yuri?!" Viktor snaps his window open, eyes bulging out of his sockets as he narrowly misses another pelted rock at his face. Yuri Plisetsky, clad in two-layers of jackets and his stupid, lepord print shoes, glares up at him.

"What the fuck are you doing here?" He screams. "Wait, don't answer that- for fucks sake!" Viktor scrambles to grab his nightgown, shoving his feet into his slippers and running out of his apartment. Makka barks beside him, tumbling with him as he takes the stairs two-steps at a time.

By the time he makes it outside, the apartment security guard is already out and arguing with Yuri about the noise.

"He's my stupid brother, Pavel." Viktor smoothes over, smiling pleasantly. "He must've run away from home. Yuri- get inside now." His voice instantly turns cold, and he glares at the boy.

"OI! Not until he pays his fare-oh my god. Viktor! You are Viktor Nikiforov!" The taxi driver claps his hand in excitement. "Your face is there, look on my cab!"

Sure enough, Viktor's face is on the side of the cabbie's car, along with the Russian flag and his world title. Viktor smiles indulgently, before sifting out enough to pay for Yuri's fare. "Sorry about that, my brother, he is a little…" Viktor makes a face, which the cabbie understands.

"Anything for our nation's hero- no no, do not pay. I am blessed just to have seen you! Good luck, Viktor." The cabbie doesn't even acknowledge Yuri, and Viktor clamps down on his shoulder before he can say some smart-ass thing, waving the taxi driver and security guard away.

Makka yips near Yuri's pale fingers, and the boy reaches down to rub her head. Viktor tugs him along inside, not before slamming the door closed and glaring at him.

"What time do you fucking call this? Why are you outside at-"

"What- it's not like you were sleeping." Yuri flicks his shoes off, before settling on Viktor's very comfortable couch. Makka follows him, hopping on so that she could snuggle underneath Yuri's arm.

"Yes, well I am home - unlike you. God, does Lila know you're here? Or Yakov?"

Yuri ignores him, grabbing the remote so that he can flick through the channel. Viktor stands in front of him.

"Yuri. Answer me."

The child glares, "No, but you can just say I stayed over at yours anyway. Lila's away at a conference so it's not like she ever saw me home. Yakov's at his apartment, so it's not like I need their consent, since I'm with an adult."

He continues to flick through the channel, pelting a cushion at Viktor for standing in the way. Viktor breathes deeply, before turning away, gazing back at the television.

"I thought you were angry at me."

"I am." Yuri confirms. "But you also have a HD television with subscriptions to every single international sports channel, so here I am. How much does that even cost you? Like what, £100 a year?"

"A month." Viktor settles beside Makkachin, ignoring the way Yuri's mouth drops open.

"You have way too much money-" Not always , Viktor thinks to himself, but lets the thought linger in his mind rather than speak them into existence. He tries not to think about the past too much, why would he? He's living his best life now.

"What are you looking for?"

"NHK- ah there it is!" Yuri screams in joy, kicking back. "We just made it."

Viktor isn't sure what he just made, but the tickle of Japanese coming out of his screen is enough to get the fatigue out of his system. There are no subtitles, but Viktor doesn't care that he doesn't understand. There's only one reason Yuri would make his way halfway across town in a cab at three in the morning and sit by someone he was arguing with.

"Katsuki Yuuri-senshu!"

"What are we watching?" He murmurs out. Yuri glares at him, but with Makkachin between them, he can't lean over and hit Viktor, so he counts it as a win.

"Katsuki is doing a showcase."

"What?!" Viktor snaps his head back towards the screen. Yuuri is talking in rapid Japanese with the interviewer - he can't understand what's being said, but they are intercut with clips of a few children during a practice session. The camera pans back to Yuuri, whose face turns towards the camera.

Viktor's breath catches. Yuuri Katsuki is ethereal, mouth-watering, all kinds of adjectives to describe beauty. Clad in a tight black shirt and matching pants, Viktor is sort of mad how the television screen doesn't do Katsuki justice.

"He's doing it to promote figure skating in his country." Yuri leans back into his seat. "I don't know if he'll showcase his new program, but I thought you would like to watch it anyway, since he's your competition ."

Yuuri Katsuki is his competition, but he and Yuri both know that he is so much more. It's a fearsome thing, the monster inside Viktor's chest. It sends heat burning through his body, tapping against his end-nerves and making his brain frazzled. He needs clarity, needs his lungs to work well. It's horrible that the only time he felt like he could breathe was with the phantom touch of Katsuki's hand against his cheek, wiping away guarded tears from trailing down his face.

Something heavy lands on Viktor's lap. Yuri doesn't look away from the television, but he can see the way the boy sends him side-glaces.

Viktor looks down at the unlocked phone.

[Yurio]

What time is your showcase?

[Yuuri]

It starts at ten! I'll try and send you some recordings later.

[Yuri]

No need. I'll watch it.

[Yuuri]

Don't be an idiot - it'll be three in the morning there! Go to sleep, Yurio.

[Yurio]

Stop calling me that.

[Yuuri]

What, it's cute - we can't both be called Yuri.

[Yurio]

I'm the better one. Anyways, I'll watch it. Text me after, okay?

"Tell him what's going on." He says, glaring. "Or else."

A pulse of shame blindsides Viktor. He wants to speak with him, so badly , but he doesn't think he should. He has a tendency to break anything that he touches.

He'd be damned if Katsuki is left in ruins because of him.

I never took you as a coward.

To be frank, neither did Viktor.

[Yurio]

Hi Yuuri, it's Viktor. My phone got confiscated by Yakov so I couldn't text you before. Your dog is very, very cute. I'm watching the showcase with Yurio now - please be safe and don't get injured. Good luck!

" Yurio ?" A smile somehow finds itself etching onto Viktor's face. It's small, but there. "Really?"

Yuri, horrifyingly, blushes. He snags his phone back with a sneer, "Shut up."