In which Victor the sass master returns

…o…

Victor's brain made questionable decisions at times.

For example, the one time he brought Maccachin to the rink without clipping a leash onto him first (that was another reason why the pooch wasn't allowed in the rink anymore). Needless to say, the result of that experience involved a lot of people yelling at Victor. At least afterwards, he had had the common sense to always keep a leash on Maccachin.

But now…now, he wasn't quite sure what to do.

Here he was, eyes locked with none other than his soulmates. Soft brown eyes that reminded him of cold winter nights spent cuddling by the fire, drinking a mug of hot cocoa, wrapped up in warm blankets. He could see himself looking into those eyes every day from now on, waking up next to them ever morning, seeing them whenever he looked to his side.

"V-victor?" Yuuri asked breathlessly, still panting. He lifted his hand up, brushing away the hair hanging over his eyes absentmindedly.

One part of Victor told him to introduce himself naked, that Yuuri most definitely remembered the events from the banquet five months ago. The rational part of him told him to stay in the hot springs, smile, and talk like a normal person. Yuuri had been drunk out of his mind, so he might not have remembered the events.

Victor Nikiforov was not known for doing things normally.

"Hello, Yuu-ri!" Victor sang, standing up with a flourish. He stretched his arm out with a wide grin. "I've come to Hasetsu to become your coach!"

Immediately, Yuuri's face filled with a bold red, and he lifted his hands to cover his eyes. Victor did his best to pretend that he wasn't blushing as hard. At least the statue covered his…well, that was besides the point.

Victor was all too aware of the other patrons staring at him from the inside of the inn through the glass windows and wall. After he threw a solid glare their way, though, they looked away. He glanced back to Yuuri, only to find the young man still covering his face, hunched over.

"Yuuri, are you alright?" he called out. Then he paused. Did Yuuri even know English? Most international skaters did, but there was a chance he didn't know what Victor was saying. He hadn't even considered that they would have a language barrier.

"I'm…I'm fine."

Oh. Never mind.

"It's just that…sometimes, people get kind of flustered when someone introduces themselves completely naked," Yuuri murmured, so quietly that Victor almost didn't hear. He blinked in surprise. Maybe Yuuri had a sarcastic side.

"I'll…I'll be going inside now," he said. Hands still covering his face, he turned around and nearly walked into the glass wall. Maccachin barked next to him, before leading the way to the door. Victor watched their odd procession, but turned away just in time to miss the look that Yuuri gave him before entering the inn again.

…o…

Yuuri sighed, adjusting his glasses on his face. He hadn't been expecting this at all. Granted, he hadn't even known that the triplets had uploaded the video until just this morning, but he hadn't expected it to go this viral in the skating world.

He opened the door to his room with his foot, his hands preoccupied carrying a large box. He planned to take down all the posters of Victor he had. He didn't need the man to think he was some sort of crazy stalker.

He set the box down on his neatly made bed, before closing the door. Just as he was turning to take down his first poster, though, he heard a whimper at the door and something scratching at it. Yuuri stared at it for a moment, before remembering that Maccachin had been following him. He smiled to himself, before opening the door to let the poodle in.

The pooch padded in, turning his head from side to side as if looking at his surroundings. He seemed to deem the bed the most comfortable place to lay, so he wiggled on to it and settled himself on top of one of Yuuri's pillows.

Yuuri, meanwhile, set to work taking down all the posters. It would take a while – the bland grey walls were covered from top to bottom. Every birthday since discovering Victor, he had gotten at least three new posters from his parents and Yuko. Apparently, since he had been gone, Hiroko had continued adding to his collection. His heart warmed a bit as he saw a few graphics and pictures lining his door.

After thirty minutes, he had managed to roll most of them and store them in the box. He didn't have room for the few more, so he pushed the box underneath his bed. He opened the door and left, waiting for Maccachin to follow him of course, intending to get another box. However, he nearly ran into Mari instead.

"Victor's out of the springs," she said as Yuuri stepped backwards. Then, without warning, she grabbed Yuuri's right wrist and brought it up to her eyes. He yelped in surprise, attempting to tug it back, but Mari had an iron grip.

"Yep, it's spelled the same and everything," she said. It took Yuuri a moment to realize that she was looking at the name inscribed on his wrist, and he relaxed for a moment. She let his hand drop, and headed back towards the stairs. "Come on, let's check his wrist."

"What do you mean?" Yuuri asked, following after her.

"He's asleep in the main room right now. All I have to do is turn over his wrist, and then you guys can go live happily ever after or fuck in your bedroom. I don't care which one. Just use protect—"

"Oh my god, I hate you."

Mari smiled.

As they entered the main room, Yuuri's eyes were immediately drawn to the sleeping figure sprawled in the middle of the room. Maccachin immediately trotted over to his owner, and snuggled up against his chest. Victor, out of habit, reached over and wrapped his arms around the poodle like a teddy bear.

"He fell asleep as soon as he came out of the springs," Hiroko said, laughing. She was seated at the low table, a steaming pork cutlet bowl in front of her. Yuuri's mouth watered, but he knew it was probably for Victor.

Mari tip-toed over the Victor, and reached for his hand. Maccachin, however, wasn't about to have any of that. He barked, and Mari stumbled backwards. Unfortunately, the sound was also loud enough to wake Victor up.

The man opened his eyes sleepily, before sitting up, still holding Maccachin like a stuffed animal. His outfit slipped halfway off his shoulder, but he didn't seem to realize, or he didn't care. He looked, clearly tired, before mumbling something.

"What was that, Vi-chan?" Hiroko asked, leaning closer.

"Hun…gry."

"Oh, well, I made something for you!" Hiroko said, a bit too enthusiastically. "It's Yuuri's favorite!"

Clearly, Mari had been talking to someone other than Yuuri about her speculations. He managed to shoot a glare at his older sister before she dragged him down to sit next to their mother.

"Oo!" Victor said, immediately pulling the bowl closer to his body. He immediately began pigging out, and Yuuri couldn't help but spare the smile. "Delicious!"

"I make it for Yuuri whenever he wins a competition," Hiroko said with a smile, looking at her son fondly.

"But Mari said he's been in Detroit for a while?" Victor said, looking up for the katsudon, voicing the question that Yuuri had been thinking.

"Well, I make it, but he doesn't often get to eat it," Hiroko laughed.

Yuuri's heart warmed even more, which he didn't think was possible.

"Oh, because he doesn't win competitions often?"

Yuuri fell over backwards.

Mari covered her mouth partially with the back of her hand, but that didn't do anything to hide her snicker. "No, because he hasn't visited for five years. Mom makes it every competition."

"Just qualifying for the Grand Prix and Nationals was a great accomplishment!" Hiroko said excitedly, clapping her hands. "I'm so proud of him!"

Yuuri winced, wondering if Hiroko knew she was talking to a five-time consecutive winner of the Grand Prix Final. However, to his surprise, Victor simply smiled.

"It is, isn't it? I remember, I was beyond ecstatic when I first qualified for the Grand Prix."

"Weren't you expecting it, though?" someone said from behind Yuuri.

Yuuri jumped, turning around to find Minako leaning against the doorway. She had a bottle of alcohol in her hand, but it was already half empty. She swayed from side to side as she walked, but managed not to trip over anything as she sat next to Victor.

"What do you mean?" Victor asked, looking at the older woman. A small smile quirked his lips, and he seemed rather amused. Yuuri wasn't sure why, though. He, himself, was absolutely mortified.

"Didn't you win the Junior Grand Prix?"

"Yes, but the senior division is still something hard to debut in. It took me…what, four years to qualify for the Grand Prix the first time?"

"Everyone says you're really talented, though," Mari said, clearly surprised.

Victor shrugged. "Sure, but that was probably my downfall. I was much too egotistic. That's not to say I'm not prideful anymore, I am, but I've learned to control my emotions better. I know my faults. I know where I have to improve."

He looked back at Yuuri, and for a moment, Yuuri forgot how to breathe. His eyes were like the ocean, shifting between a sky blue and mesmerizing emerald green.

"However, that doesn't matter anymore," Victor said. "What matters is whether or not you know where to improve, my dear Yuuri."

…o…

"That's all of them!"

Victor sighed, pretending to wipe away sweat that wasn't there from his forehead. Behind him, Yuuri set his last box down on the floor and immediately collapsed on top of it.

"So…many…boxes…"

"Oh, did I pack too much?" Victor asked, tapping his lip with his index finger. He glanced behind him at Yuuri, just in time to see Maccachin leap on top of him. "Maccachin, no! Get off—"

"Aw, are you tired?" Yuuri asked the pooch, absentmindedly scratching him behind his ears. Victor watched in awe as Maccachin barked and licked Yuuri's face before settling his head on Yuuri's chest. The man just laughed, moving his hand to pet the poodle.

"You know how to handle Maccachin well," Victor noted. Usually, no one he knew could calm Maccachin though. The dog was amiable, but almost to a fault (another reason he wasn't allowed on the rink anymore).

"I had a poodle just like him," Yuuri said. He spoke slowly, and Victor realized that it was probably getting late. He wasn't very tired, after his power nap, but he imagined that Yuuri must be.

"Really?"

"Yeah…Yuko told me you got a poodle when I was little and I wanted to get one, too."

Victor kneeled down next to Yuuri, reaching out to pet Maccachin as well. His hand brushed Yuuri's. "Why are you speaking in past tense?"

"Vicchan passed away after the Grand Prix."

"Oh, right. I'm sorry. I forgot."

"It's okay."

"If you don't mind me asking…did you name Vicchan after me? Your mother called me Vi-chan when we were eating, but I didn't really understand."

"Yes. His name was actually Victor, but we called him Vicchan."

Victor nodded. Yuuri began to sit up, and Maccachin jumped off of him and padded out of the room. The younger man adjusted his glasses and looked around, as if just remembering where he was. He glanced at Victor and frowned. "I don't know why I just told you that. I told myself I wouldn't."

"Why's that?" Victor asked.

"It's embarrassing."

"I think it's kind of cute."

Was he blushing? Before Victor could look closer, Yuuri turned his head to the side. Out of reflex, Victor's brain told him to do something stupid again.

He reached out, lightly lifting Yuuri's chin and turning his head back towards him. The younger man stared at him, clearly confused, before his eyes started widening as Victor leaned closer.

…o…

Hihihi! Back after the little break! This chapter is like 2000 words how did this even happen?

I just want to clarify something: in this AU, the first airport scene did NOT occur. With how this timeline goes, Victor would have most definitely recognized Yuuri. I didn't want that to happen, so let's just assume that their flight times are different.

Also like can we have some Hiroko appreciation because I really like her character even though she was barely shown? She's like a bundle of happiness and I-love-my-children-and-I'm-so=proud-of-them-even-though-i-don't-even-know-figure-skating.

Thank you for 250+ favorites, almost 400 follows, and 130+ reviews!

I hope you have an amazing week!

QOTD: What's your favorite colour?

AOTD: I like mint, but not the super green kind, y'know? The kind that's kind of blue, kind of green. And not the darker ones. The light ones. This is oddly specific. Why am I typing this.

Oh, and Happy Valentine's Day! I'm writing this after finishing the entire Author's Note and everything as I wasn't planning to publish this. I can't send the chapter to far2addicted as for whatever reason, my Google Drive and computer hate me. If you're reading this, Addi, I'm sorry! XD I'll try to fix it.

…o…