((Author's Note: I've been planning to use this song for months, but I didn't look up the real lyrics until just now. I thought some parts said something entirely different from what I've learned was actually said. As such, because the meaning would change a lot if I used the real lyrics, I've decided to change them to be in concordance with what I heard phonetically. Sorry to those who know the song by the real lyrics. It's only a handful of lines though.
FFNET USERS: Please read this update on AO3 (just type 'Nights Into Dreams on AO3' into your browser and Ch1 will come up as the first result.) I've spent the last 2 weeks doing a ton of artwork just for this chapter and I've inserted them into the writing. If you don't care, well, carry on :| Sorry ittook so long to update, then.))
CHAPTER THREE HUNDRED FIFTEEN
Bowing out at the end of their performance, the ice Dancer Gold medalists started making their way towards the rink exit. Lights on the ice changed, and the tenor of the audience shifted in anticipation of the event's Closing Ceremonies.
Mari and Minako grinned and clapped quietly to themselves, giddy more for knowing about the surprise to come than anything else.
*Pic01
"It's going to be like in France." The ballerina mused, keeping her hands together at the end of one clap, and looking down at the rink past the tips of her fingers, "The audience didn't know about the extra show then either. Skating fans all over the internet were blowing up social media for days afterwards."
"They're already blowing up social media." Mari noted, "Ever since Viktor and my brother posted that challenge to Yurio, there's been a hum about tonight. They're all freaking out right now about whether the criteria were met, since Viktor gave up the Gold, and Yurio only made it onto the podium because of it."
"Ladies and Gentlemen..." The announcer called overhead, the lights on the ice morphing from standard spot-lights to snowflake shapes again. The colors changed from dull, cool blue, to include green, purple, and red.
The energy of the audience changed with it, and both Mari and Minako glomped one another and shrieked with excitement.
"You two are such weebs." Mikhail huffed to the side, finding it amusing either way.
"...The ISU would like to thank the fans and the athletes for putting on such an amazing show tonight. The Exhibition Gala Closing Ceremonies will begin shortly...but first..."
The aberration seemed to take parts of the audience by surprise, and many were already starting to suspect that there was more to come than anticipated.
The skating trio were already lined up along the rink-wall, waiting for the right moment to step out. Blade guards were removed and set aside, eyes glistening with the colored lights changing all around them. Nikki caught up with them soon after, fingers clinging to the upper lip of the wall as she wedged herself between the two Yuris.
*Pic02
"...We would like to welcome back to the ice, for a special presentation, three of the Men's Singles event participants..."
That set off a firestorm of excitement; cheers, screams, whistles, and howls rising from every corner of the rink. The clamor forced the announcer to hold back on the rest of his lines, giving the crowd a moment to settle down again.
Viktor stepped back a little to approach the open doorway, passing behind the two youngest members of their small group, Yuri following close behind. They took one another's hands and set a toe-pick each on the edge of the ice, butterflies in their guts. Yurio was about to turn to join them, but he felt hands take his arm, and he turned his head back around to look at the teen who'd held onto him.
"Don't be nervous." Nikki said, barely audible over the audience.
Yurio just deadpanned her though, "I'm not nervous."
"Quit trying to be tough and let me say nice things!" The younger teen deadpanned back at him, "It's my solemn duty as your little sister to be overly enthusiastic about everything you do."
One eye twitched at her, but Yurio nervously relented. He had the oddest feeling of déjà vu, like Nikki was standing in Yuuko's place just moments before 'Onsen on Ice' was to begin, with exception to the fact that Nikki wasn't leaking red fluid from her face. He shook his head and tried to look at the girl normally, "Alright...fine, I'm a bit nervous."
"You'll do great." The silver answered with a smile, "Hug!" She said, and like the last time she'd said that word, her arms went up in expectation.
*Pic03
Yurio looked vaguely uncomfortable, and stiffly stepped forward, letting arms go over him again like before. Without the rink-wall between them though, it was even more awkward, and he looked at his hands like he half-expected them to be ball-jointed doll's hands given how stiff and wooden they suddenly felt. But, he returned the hug dutifully, nodded to the girl, and then stepped up to join his older counterparts at the entryway.
Yuri looked at him curiously as he reached one hand up to touch the flat upper edge of the wall, "What's the matter? You don't look excited at all anymore."
"Overload of affection. My brain can't process it." Yurio answered rigidly.
Hazel eyes glanced past the teen's blonde-haired head, and saw Nikki waving at them all. He winked at her and then settled his free arm over Yurio's shoulder, "You're handling it better than I used to. Viktor could tell you about all the times I used to flat-out run away from him to avoid his attention."
"Hm...and now you can't get enough of it." The elder Russian mused, leaning in closer to tease the tip of his nose against his spouse's ear.
Yurio gave a wooden nod, but then felt a slight unease, glancing back at the silver teen before turning 180 and rushing away. All three figures turned in horror and confusion to watch him go.
"...Ladies and Gentlemen, please help us offer a warm re-welcome to Yuri Nikiforov, Yuri Plisetsky, and Viktor Nikiforov!" The announcer finally called.
Yuri and Viktor looked at Nikki in a panic, "Go get him back! We can't!"
"AHHHHH!"
Just as the older pair reluctantly stepped out, spotlights finding them even as they looked back anxiously, Yurio finally returned to rink-side, the curtain parting around him. Dragged by the back of his jacket, Otabek found himself deposited at rink-side, blinking in confusion.
"Stay here and watch her until I get back!" Yurio ordered, gesturing at Nikki as he rushed to the rink doorway, "You can continue cavorting with the enemy later!"
"...Enemy...?" The Kazakh echoed, looking back through the curtain to spot the group of people he'd been dragged away from so abruptly. Mila among them gave Yurio a dirty look, but he quickly shot back at her, gesturing two fingers at his own eyes and then turning his hand back to point those fingers at her, not-so-subtly saying he was watching her.
As the third member of the group finally went out to the ice though, a spotlight catching his rush forward, the audience burst into another wave of excitement. He quickly hustled to catch up to the other two, crossing his arms and shaking his head in mild irritation before coming to a stop.
"What was that all about?" Yuri asked, turning towards him.
"Stupid-me realized at the last second that Nikki would be alone at rink-side when we come out here. I dragged Otabek out of the Player's Club to make him watch her." The teen answered stiffly, watching the two older skaters circling around him.
"That's so kawaii~!" Viktor cooed, letting his husband's hand go long enough to reach forward and pinch Yurio's cheek with it, holding himself up with the other hand on his knee as he bent over, "You're so responsible~! What a good big brother!"
"Cutitout!" Yurio lamented, waving his arms around to get the man off of him, only to bring them in defensively again and give a dirty look.
Viktor just laughed and let him be, settling his hands on his hips instead, and turning his attention back to Yuri.
"It's all so weird." The younger skater started, looking out into the dark, past the spotlights, to the unseen audience hidden behind the rink wall, "Two years ago, I was convinced I'd never skate again. I'd left the sport in shame, and gone home like a dog with my tail between my legs." He half-turned back towards the other two, "We've all changed so much since back then. It kind of feels like these last two seasons have come down to just this one moment, with all three of us on the ice together."
*Pic04
The elder Russian nodded, and lifted his right hand off its perch, setting it ahead of himself and into the center of their small group, "It's been a rough road, but we made it. Let's make it something to remember."
Yuri pushed off a toe-pick to get closer and added his own hand over his partner's, "For centuries." He paused and crinkled his brow, "...Ah, no pun intended."
"Hah hah..." Yurio puffed, shaking a few strands of hair from his one-uncovered eye. But, like the others, he turned side-face and added his hand to the pile, "Forever."
"I think we can all agree to that." Viktor laughed, "Hajimaru!"
"Hajimeru." Yuri corrected with a wry grin.
"HAJIMERU!"
*Pic05
They all lifted their hands high after that, and pushed back to find their places on the outer ring of the center ISU logo. The spotlights changed again and the colors vanished, leaving only the bright white lights over the trio of skaters. The line-light around the bottom of the rink wall faded down as well. The audience's clamor diminished as they anticipated the start of the music...and they waited.
['Centuries' - Fall Out Boy]
Do do dodo do dododo do do do do do dodo do...
Some legends are told, some turn to dust or to gold...
Standing still for the first part, heads bent forward and eyes closed, they each then raised their right arms into center, curled their hands into fists, threw them out to the side, and then raised both hands up to just above shoulder-height.
But you will remember me
Slowly rotating in place, they bent their arms in at the elbows, lowering them slightly as they overlapped their hands over their hearts.
Remember me, for centuries
They lifted their faces and opened their eyes, extending their right hands forward again, this time out towards the darkened arena, palms up.
And just one mistake, is all it will take
Pushing forward with a nudge from one toe-pick, they glided out from one another; Yuri and Viktor to the left side of the rink and Yurio toward the right, jerking the forward-reaching hand back towards themselves as they held one finger up. Blades leaned and each of them started arcing around their respective short-ends of the rink, and then back towards center.
We'll go down in history!
Facing forward, they flipped backward with a choctaw-turn, lining themselves up as they slid towards one another.
Remember me for centuries!
Right legs extended back, and left blades dipped onto their inside edges.
Heeeyo!
Toe-picks gouged down, and the three skaters vaulted into the air, spinning through one another for a Yuri-Viktor side-by-side quad Flip, and Yurio going the opposite direction between them with a triple.
*Pic06
Oh, hey! Heeeeyo!
Remember me for centuries!
They each landed and spiraled off, twisting and raising their arms as they wove and pivoted across the brightly-lit frost. They then gathered up at one short end of the rink and lined up with the whole of it before them; Yuri and Viktor together in the back as Yurio took center-stage, sliding out well in front of them as they all glided together down the long-side of the ice.
Mummified my teenage dreams
With the two older skaters effectively acting like background dancers, the blonde stepped up expressively, one arm raised as he twizzled.
No, there's nothing wrong with me
Left hand went to his hip as the right extended forward, shaking a finger as he gave a condescending lift of his face.
The kids are all wrong, the stories are long
Arms extended as he twisted around, boots and blades folding over one another in quick succession. He suddenly hopped and stopped though, legs crossed, rear toe-pick down in the ice. He looked to one side...
Heavy metal broke my...heart!
...He pat his chest twice on the beat of the music, and waited in place as Yuri and Viktor both flew past him, circling his arms up and around to 'bring' them to the fore. They arced in opposite directions as they arrived at the next wall, coming back together to make the trek back. Yurio quickly spun around to take his place as one of the background people with Viktor then, Yuri stepping out in front of them as they went back the way they came.
Come on, come on and let me in
Yuri waved to the audience as he stepped on his toe-picks out to center, hand and hops going to the two beats of the music.
The bruises on your thighs, like my fingerprints
Moving down from toe-picks to rockers, he glided forward, bending down slightly as he ran his hands down the top of his legs.
And this is for tonight, I thought that you would feel
He stood back fully upright, legs crossed as he slid onward, one hand coming up over the center of his chest. He suddenly twisted side-face though and dug his right blade down against the frost, kicking up a white hazy wave as he came to a stop.
I never meant for you to fix yourself
He pointed out with the hand that had been over his heart, moving quickly like a whip, then raised it up above himself as he quickly rotated in place. Yurio and Viktor moved by him swiftly on either side.
*Pic7
Do do dodo do dododo do do do do do dodo do...
The three of them circled around the rink, making wide spirals in the ice as they found their way to their next spots. On the final mark, they each vaulted into a flying sit spin.
Some legends are told
Yuri and Yurio were on the edges, starting in a shoot-the-duck spin while Viktor, in center, was in canno-ball form.
Some turn to dust or to gold
The two younger skaters morphed themselves into a twist variant, each raising a hand up above themselves. The elder slowed down as he lifted his head, hands settling on the thigh of his outstretched leg.
But you will remember me
Viktor rose up into a scratch spin, one arm coming up his front until it was raised up above his head, the other two continuing their sit-spins 20ft to either side.
Remember me, for centuries
The Russian dug in a toe-pick to come to a sudden stop, lowering the up-turned arm behind himself as the left came up in front of himself, gesturing at the audience.
And just one mistake, is all it will take
A finger came up as he brought his hand back in, right blade tapping with the beat on the frost, as it went from toe-pick to rocker and back again. Yuri and Yurio rose up to standing, ending their spin with a slower inside-spread eagle before coming to a stop in the same position Viktor was in, each with a finger up.
We'll go down in history
Viktor threw both arms out to the side, and the two younger skaters swiftly arced in closer to him, each clapping a hand against his own as they went past.
Remember me for centuries
He rotated in place once, pausing a moment, and then thrust himself forward.
Heeeyo! Oh, hey! Heeeeyo!
Remember me for centuries!
The trio rushed around the rink, taking it a little bit easy with crossovers and a few twizzles, having a bit of fun with the music as the each added their own choice of moves to the mix. They all came back together again though, Viktor in center like before, and moved from one corner of rink to the next along the long diagonal.
I can't stop till the whole world knows my name
The Russian kicked out one leg as they began, twisting over himself and then gesturing wide with both hands.
'Cause I was only born inside my dreams
One hand came up to tap the side of his head, and he paused in the center of the rink over the big ISU logo, the two others gliding by him and slowly turning away from the corner to come back.
Until you die for me, as long as there's a light
The hand that tapped Viktor's head changed to a gun pointed at it instead, and the Russian fake-pulled the trigger, jerking his head away as that hand went up to point at the spotlights high above.
My shadow's over you 'cause I-I am the opposite of amnesia
Yuri and Yurio returned to the elder Russian's sides, arching and looping into their places as he started slowly moving forward again. They mimicked his movements as he twice-bounced his arms up to the beat, only to pause in place in one corner of the rink and turn through an inside-spread eagle, then simply turning in place, all three of them then facing the enormity of the open ice. On the final note of the lyric though, and unseen by the two skaters in front...Viktor ripped the front of his shirt open, smirking devilishly to himself as the roar got louder.
*Pic08
And you're a cherry blossom, you're about to bloom
Having no clue why the audience was suddenly so excitable, the two confused younger skaters continued on, moving out into the open rink again as planned. Just as the two twisted over themselves to skate backward along the rink wall, Yuri finally caught sight of his partner and all but tripped over his own feet to see that bare chest coming right for him. He couldn't help but pause in place, a stunned look on his face, and Viktor slid in closer, trailing a finger along the edge of his jaw.
You look so pretty, but you're gone so soon
Yurio just gave an annoyed-but-well-meant eyeroll as he made a circle around them.
*Pic09
Viktor continued the unexpected tease to his spouse, stealing a quick kiss before tapping the end of Yuri's nose with a finger and backing up, beckoning the man forward as the song almost continued without them.
Do do dodo do dododo do do do do do dodo do...
Yuri shook his head in disbelief, but regained himself to move on with the show, giving chase after the two Russian skaters and retaking his place in the choreography. He could feel the pink on his cheeks like it made his skin hot, and the audience just kept on cheering.
Some legends are told, some turn to dust or to gold
But you will remember me
Remember me, for centuries
The three flocked together again, slowly making their way across the ice, Viktor taking point slightly ahead of the other two. They arced and twisted like a well-oiled machine, moving through something of a step-sequence, traversing from one corner of the rink to another and then back again.
And just one mistake, is all it will take
We'll go down in history
Spreading out into a line, they moved in tandem along the length of the ice, weaving through one another as the rink-wall turned and forced them inward.
Remember me for centuries
Like before, on the last beat, they threw themselves into another jump, this time the triple Axel.
Heeeyo! Oh, hey! Heeeeyo!
Yurio went immediately into a camel-spin in his third of the rink. Yuri paused in the center with an illusion spin as they both waited for Viktor to arrive in the final third.
Remember me for centuries!
They paused together, toe-picks digging down as they bowed their heads.
We've been here forever, and here's the frozen proof
As they raised their eyes again, one hand extended palm-up to the audience. They rotated on their dug-in toe-picks, dragging the other in a circle around themselves.
*Pic10
I could scream forever, we are the poisoned youth
Pushing off to glide slowly backward, reaching the opposite hand out as they moved away, they then hopped through a half-jump to change directions and bolted off just before hitting the rink-wall behind themselves.
Do do dodo do dododo do do do do do dodo do...
As Yurio went to one side, Yuri and Viktor went to the other, curving the short-end of the rink with a Kerrigan Spiral; a long Ina Bauer, but in a curve rather than a straight line. They twizzled out of it and skated forward then, clapping their hands, and gesturing at the audience again to get them to join.
Do do dodo do dododo do do do do
The dark was alive with clapping and cheering, and the trio of skaters started converging around center again. When they found their places, Yurio this time in center, they paused with their blades apart...
Do dodo do...
...and hopped in place to turn around, stomping their blades down on the landing and swaying their arms up with the momentum before suddenly breaking up again.
Some legends are told, some turn to dust or to gold
Yurio hopped forward for a twizzle as Yuri and Viktor turned away, bringing their arms up and then down against the front of their bodies as they arced towards their own respective ends of the rink.
But you will remember me, remember me for centuries
The audience was still clapping along with the beat, and the three skaters twisted back around, weaving through each other in a serpentine path, twizzling and kicking a skate out with each turn.
And just one mistake, is all it will take
Yuri reached his hands out behind himself and felt for his partner's fingers, twisting around to face forward again only once he did. Viktor grasped tightly as Yuri came in close, then started rotating in place they skated out to the limits of their reach, with Yuri letting his feet go out ahead of himself. He started lowering down into the Death Spiral, seeing a flash of blonde as Yurio skated around them in a bug circle, moving the opposite direction to his own rotation.
We'll go down in history, remember me for centuries
The dark-haired skater could feel the top of his head grazing the ice as he was turned around, and closed his eyes for a moment, the cool breeze rushing against his skin for the few seconds before he was pulled vertically again.
Heeeyo! Oh, hey!
Yurio was ahead of them, but when Yuri was back upright, he felt his partner close behind, ushering him forward. They moved as a unit as Viktor moved his hands down around his waist, and Yuri flipped around to face him for the half-second before he felt himself lifted up.
We'll go down in history! (Heeeeyo!) Heeeyo!
Yuri was perched in the air above his husband's shoulders for the Axel lift, hands holding to hands as legs went out for balance; Viktor glided along swiftly, rotating them both as he went. Soon after, Yuri was held up with a hand on the side of his waist, his own left hand down against Viktor's shoulder for support, the right reaching up and behind to grab his blade...still more rotating. By the time Yuri felt himself being spun back down to the ice again, there were only a few seconds left of the show. Blades hit the frost as Yuri landed facing his partner, and in fluid movement, lowered down to slide straight between the Russian's legs, grabbing a hand that was ready for him behind Viktor's right thigh, and pulled him back up to standing again. Yuri flipped around to glide backwards, free leg up behind himself, watching his husband twist around to face him.
Remember me for centuries!
They all came back together in center then, frost flying from their blades as they twisted around, back to back in a tight circle in the center of the rink. The song was over; they heaved for breath, and let the rush of the audience's excitement wash over then like waves.
*Pic11