CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED SEVEN

The bulk of the Russian team was sitting on a train on their way to Bordeaux. Like Viktor, they had decided it would be sensible to go straight from Skate Canada, Yurio's first event, to Trophée de France, his last, and Mila and Georgi's first.

Mila was giggling quietly at something she saw on her phone, sitting in the reverse-facing seat across from Yakov by the window. Yurio was next to her, and Georgi was across from him. Lilia wasn't there with them, preferring to travel with a bit more style, with the plan to meet them at the event on the day of the Short Program.

Yurio was half asleep, nodding in and out as he listened to music on his phone. Bordeaux was only another 20 or so minutes away, and the teen's legs were sore as Hell from all the sitting over the last day. More than that, his very mind felt numb from the lack of stimulation.

That's when he felt the nudge from Mila, "Neh, Yuri, have you seen Viktor's latest video-post on Instagram?"

"Hah?" He answered blearily, rubbing the drool from the side of his mouth as he pulled his head up from the back of the chair.

"Look!" The red-head put her phone in front of him, showing off the aforementioned content, "He and the other Yuri went to practice at some public rink in Paris, and ended up putting on a show for all these people that recognized him."

"...So?"

"So?" Mila scoffed, "He mentioned you in his video!"

"He was probably talking about Katsudon."

"Pffbthbphthtbthpt." She practically spat all over him, "I think I know the difference between you and him. Just watch! The video is on the verge of going viral with all the skater fans out there, so it's worth looking!"

Yurio just rolled his eyes and pulled out his own phone to find the post himself, having to dig through half a dozen 'Grand Prix Grand Vacation Day01' photos before getting to the video, which had been posted earlier in the day. To Yurio, it was confusing how so many people seemed to keep showing up in the background of the photos; not just some obvious crowd of people who were there on their own business, but people who were invested in the skater's presence, trying to squeeze into the background as well as they could.

The video thumbnail wasn't all that interesting to look at; a crowd, with a stick-figure-like silhouette of Viktor somewhere out in the middle of it. Novice skaters seemed to make way for him, like schooling fish avoiding a shark in shallow water.

v-nikiforov
 [video]
64,078 Likes

v-nikiforov Looks like we were found out! Keep an eye on #y-nikiforov for a hint on where we'll be tomorrow!

#SkateHusbands #viktuuri #practice #SkatingInParis #TropheeDeFrance #ExhibitionChallenge #GPFinal #GPSeries #GPFEXGala #AriaStayCloseToMe

Yurio ignored the comments section and hit play on the video, watching as it looked like whoever was holding the camera was figuring out what to focus on as Viktor looked to be posing for the start of Aria for the crowd. He couldn't make out what was being said behind the phone by whoever was taking the video, but it sounded like Yuri. The blond fast-forwarded through the impromptu performance and then rewound again when it looked like Viktor had come up to rink-side.

"Oh, you're still recording?" He asked.

"You should say something else!"

Yurio could see where instinct took over for his former rink-mate, as Viktor suddenly started putting on a whole new show, "Hiii~!" Viktor said excitedly, catching his breath and waving at the screen at the outdoor park, "Salutations de Paris! It looks like a lot of people watch Yuri's account here in the city!" He held his hand out as though to put the crowd on display, and the camera panned around a little bit to show some 200 people, most of whom were standing against the metal railing that went around a high ledge around the rink, showing off the street beyond them, but eventually came back to the skater, "Yuri and I be practicing at different skating rinks all over town while we go sight-seeing until Trophée de France next weekend, so come join us!" He put his hands on his waist and winked.

"Blah blah blah..." Yurio grumbled, looking at Mila, "How long does it take for him to get to the point?"

"Just listen or you'll miss it!"

Viktor's voice was already in the ear-buds before Mila could even finish, "Today, we're at Patinoire Pailleron! Tomorrow, who knows! You'll have to watch Yuri's account to get a hint! But speaking of Yuri..."

"Oh don't you eve-"

Viktor took the phone right out of his husband's hands and spun it around to show where he'd been perched on the rink wall; white on the ice-side, red on top, and too red behind him where all the benches were set up in a row, with the skate rental counter behind that, "Say hi, Yuri!"

"...Hiii~" He waved weakly and pushed off the wall, landing with a clatter of blades on ice, "...What...else should I say...?"

"Tell everyone about what we talked about last night at the hotel!"

Fans were starting to crowd behind the younger skater, trying to get into the shot behind the rink wall, waving and holding up their fingers in a V-shape as they cheered.

"Oh...well..." Yuri started, "This is a challenge for the other Yuri!"

"...Hah?" Yurio blinked at the screen.

"Ever since Phichit-kun mentioned it back in Hasetsu, a lot of people are saying the Grand Prix is just a show-down between Viktor and myself this year. But...I think it could be any one of the three of us who wins Gold in the end...!" Yuri declared boldly, "So last night, I thought...since Viktor and I were allowed to put together Duetto for Four Continents, why not do a group Exhibition if all three of us get on the podium at the Final?"

Viktor turned the camera back around to face himself, "It'll be really hard to pull that off...there are a lot of talented skaters in the competition, many of whom are GP Final medalists in their own right. But...there you have it! Yuri Plisetsky...join us on the podium at the Final and do a Team Skate with us at the Exhibition! It'll be a special treat for all our fans and supporters!"

He went around and pulled Yuri back into the shot after that, squishing their cheeks together as he held the phone up ahead of them.

"Let us know! We'll come to Bordeaux early to figure out the details if you're up to it! À la prochaine!" Viktor pulled his arm back from where he'd held his husband's shoulder behind his back, and gestured with his hand in a half-heart shape, which Yuri finished with his own hand next to it.

"Allons-y, Yuri!" The younger skater added just before the video ended.

"What's with the look?" Yakov asked, glancing up as he adjusted where his brimmed hat sat on his oddly-shaped head.

"Katsudon and Viktor want to put together a Team Skate Exhibition if all three of us medal at the GP Final." He answered apprehensively.

"You should do it!" Mila encouraged, hugging him like she often did when she was trying to make him uncomfortable for her own amusement.

Yurio didn't seem to react though, which was typical in its own way, "I guess."

"What's wrong?" The woman wondered, moving a slender hand over to brush some strands of pale blond hair from the teen's eyes.

"It's nothing."

.

.

.

The train stopped at the palace-like Gare de Bordeaux-Saint-Jean, and Yurio followed the Russian team as they gathered their suitcases and made their way into the terminal. As expected, there were advertisements for Trophée de France plastered on the walls and hanging like tapestries from the ceiling, prominently featuring the French skater for the most part, but with a few that showed other skaters. Yurio was hardly shocked to see a big one featuring Viktor. He looked all around the granite-walled atrium; the double-level waiting area with snack kiosks and a ticket center, and the huge windows on the second floor with the doors to outside.

What surprised him was seeing Mikhail looking down at him from the upper level. The sight of him there, so casually, reminded him instantly of the moment Viktor had done the same thing, looking down on him from a higher level, right before promising to choreograph his Senior debut if he managed to win Gold at his final Junior World Championships without quads.

The flash of that year's Sochi Grand Prix Final flashed through his mind right after; yelling at Yuri in the bathroom and demanding he retire, cursing him for stealing Viktor, later swiping Gold out of Yuri's hands at the last second with some 'cheap tricks' that he hadn't used beforehand, and then his own comeuppance at Euros and Worlds after that. He shook his head and pulled his cat-print travel case towards the far staircase, ignoring Yakov as he protested dispersing from the group.

"It's okay, Coach Yakov, I've got him." Mikhail hollered down, "We'll keep him out of trouble until he makes us crazy, and then we'll send him back."

"We?"

"My ballerina friend." He answered, pointing over at where Minako was oogling some of the competition ads.

"...She's a ballerina? Did you know that before?" Mila wondered. She then elbowed the older man with a smirk, "If Lilia finds out Yuri's hanging out with some other dancer...!"

Yakov shrugged, "Lilia is a former Prima. What would she be jealous over?"

Mikhail heard him and formed a smile that could kill, "Minako Okukawa is a winner of the Prix Benois de la Danse, ballet's most prestigious award. She's a Prima in her own right. She also runs a ballet school out of Hasetsu."

The woman sneezed suddenly, and looked up, "...Someone's talking about me." She looked around, and saw that her companion was looking down into the foyer, so she came back over to where he was slouching over the metal and glass railing. She touched one hand to the trunk of a massive light fixture on the corner as she looked over to see what he was smirking at, "Oh! Yuratchka's here!" The brunette quickly ran off to go greet him as he came up the stairs.

Yakov seemed to bristle, "...She hasn't been teaching him, has she?"

The younger Russian tilted his head slightly as his eyes closed into that same smile, "Would it rustle Lilia's feathers if I said yes?"

"...Mikhail..."

He just laughed and shook his head, "No, she hasn't. She keeps all her magic tricks for her Yuri."

"...Mh..." Yakov grumbled, turning back to Mila, "Better keep this between us. We don't need Lilia to think her efforts are being sabotaged."

"Da."

The older gentleman looked back up at the Rozovsky, "Have him back by 10, or you're keeping him overnight. He knows the hotel we're staying at."

"Yessir." Mikhail saluted him casually, then pulled off the railing to go trail after the woman.

Minako had already caught up with Yurio, but he was about as bristly towards her as he usually was, almost walking by her as he rounded the last step to the upper level. Her words caught his attention though, "Did you see what Viktor and Yuri said!?"

"...Yeah."

"And!?"

"I'll think about it."

"It'd go a long way to show you work well with others." Mikhail suggested as he got within ear-shot, "Your own choreographer might be impressed by it."

"Maybe."

The older Russian pursed his lips to the side a little as he looked down on the teen, "...Rough trip or something?"

"Forget it. Where are we going? My ass hurts from how long I've been sitting."

The adults exchanged glances, but then shrugged and started heading for the glass doorways. Yurio followed close behind, and Mikhail took the larger travel bag, leaving only the backpack for Yurio to carry himself.

"Skate France is usually held in Paris, so I doubt you've been here before, right?" The older Russian wondered, looking down at the teen as he held the door open for him.

"Right."

"Well, the good news is that the Meriadeck Ice Rink isn't that far from here. Too far to walk, but too close to make it worthwhile to rent a car while we're here. So, yay, you don't have to sit right away again."

"...Which means what?" Yurio was gawking up at him, though he quickly pulled his hoodie closer over his head where the sun was shining right into his eyes. He pulled his sunglasses out soon after that and slipped them on, "...We'll be walking half-way there and then stopping?"

"Sort of."

"Aren't you hungry at all?" Minako asked, walking idly beside the teen with her hands clasped lightly behind herself.

The Russian Kitten suddenly felt his stomach growl with the power of a thousand suns, and he stopped and lowered his head, "...Yeah."

"There's a bistro right across the street that Minako and I were scoping out while we waited for your train. We'll get lunch and then take your stuff to the event hotel. We can figure out what to do after that to pass the time. There's sure to be some sight-seeing things around this place before the competition. It'll be almost two weeks before it starts anyway."

Yurio paused, forcing the other two to stop as well. He looked at the ground for a moment before kicking his toe at it to stir up road dust, "...Can I stay with you guys tonight?"

Mikhail blinked at him, "...You want to what?"

"...Stay with you guys. Just tonight, or whatever."

Minako had her arms crossed in front of her, but she looked from the blond teen to the silver-grey man across from her, "I don't mind. There's two big beds."

Yurio felt a chill go down his back, and he stomped forward one step to point a finger at Mikhail's face suddenly, "Are you kidding me!? All this shit you guys do and you're still sleeping in separate beds!? Christ, I'll just meet up with Yakov then after all."

"Why are you so testy today? And what difference does it make? I'll just have the hotel people bring up a rolling bed and whoever draws the short straw gets it."

Yurio just deadpanned him, as though the situation should be so obvious. He pinched the bridge of his nose under the sunglasses, "You two are more aggravating than Katsudon and Viktor. At least they know what they want, and they don't make me feel like a broken third wheel."

"Ah, so that's it."

"Don't simplify everything! There's more to it than that!"

"Well, then explain."

"Why? It won't change anything."

"Maybe you just don't know what you need to know to be comfortable around us."

Yurio started stomping off again, "Like I said, it doesn't matter. Knowing why you're being super irritating won't change the fact that you'll still be super irritating."

"We should stop tormenting him." Minako suggested lightly, "We've put him through enough, right?"

Yurio turned on his heel and made a grand gesture at the woman, like he was putting her on display at some show, "See? She knows what I'm talking about. You should be like her...it'll make you less annoying."

Mikhail shrugged his shoulders up, looking something like a puffed-up and perturbed bird, "What? Why am I the annoying one?"

"...Gah, idiot." The teen rubbed his forehead with one hand, "The reason Katsudon and Viktor aren't annoying by comparison is because they don't hide themselves. They don't go out of their way to change their behavior around me. At worst, they get extra-special affectionate at one another just to piss me off, but they do it because they think it's funny, not because they feel sorry for me. I can feel it when I'm around you guys. It puts my teeth on edge. It's like you think I can't handle it or something. So what is it? If you're dating, fucking act like it and quit wasting my time. If you're not, then quit acting like you wish you were. Literally everyone saw you kiss her in Calgary. If she's still here, it means she didn't kick your ass for it later."

Mikhail looked up at the sky and groaned loudly, but then lowered his head again...and reached to take Minako's hand. He pointed the other straight at Yurio's face, "I was avoiding it because I didn't want you to think we were trying to be surrogate parents or something. So if this pisses you off later, you brought it onto yourself."

"Why would you think that would bother me? It's not like my actual parents did such a great job." The blond went back to face the other way and started to cross the street.

"You've gotten all blustery about them before, like you don't want to talk about them."

"I don't. They're nothing to me."

"See?"

"You don't even know the first thing about them, so how can you judge?"

"I judge your opinion of them, and it seems to be pretty low."

"My mom is a former Russian idol. She was going to come to Hot-Springs on Ice but then bailed at the last second like she always does. She's so focused on her post-show-business-lime-light social-life that she ignores my skating entirely...and when she does seem interested, it just gets my hopes up and then disappoints me later. My grandpa was the only one that gave half a shit."

The pair listened closely, not wanting to interrupt now that he was spilling the beans.

"Trophée de France is my last qualifying event for the Grand Prix Final. I'm worried I'll fuck it up at the last second, and miss my chance to be one if the Final Six. It's my first event back since all the shit hit the fan last year. My grandpa's heart attack, and then the whole thing with Viktor at Worlds...getting kicked off the team and having to crawl my way back onto it..." He growled, turning his head slightly to look at them, "I already have enough shit to worry about. I know you only follow me around because it gives you an excuse to be around Viktor. Don't waste my time with worthless platitudes about how you think you're just trying to protect me. You're my sponsor, not my dad."

Mikhail was taken aback by the last few statements, and it made him crinkle his nose a little, "You really think I only tag along to be around Viktor? Give me a little more credit than that. I'd be at your events even if Viktor wasn't there."

"Fine, then you're just making good on your investment. I don't care what the reason is. Just don't fucking play with me."

"Oh Yuri..." The older Russian reached over and put his free hand over the teen's shoulders, "You have such a low opinion of me still."