This was not happening. He had to be dreaming. That's what Yuri was thinking as he watched Viktor Nikiforov, living legend, sleeping on the floor of his family's inn in one of robes they provided to guests. Of course he was sleeping with his beloved poodle Makkachin.
"Yuri, starting today I'm your coach! I'll make you win the Grand Prix Final"
"I can't believe this is happening " Yuri said carefully watching the rising and falling of Viktor's chest as he slept. Soon Minako had barged in wondering if Yuri knew about the rumors of Viktor coming to coach the Japanese boy only for him to point to where the man was sleeping.
"He came here because if you, Yuri. He was inspired by your performance! " Minako exclaimed, managing to tint Yuri's cheeks in the process. He held him hand against his heart feeling the increasing beat as he stared at the sleeping man before him
'He's beautiful' Yuri couldn't help but think, the man's beauty was almost godly( he was sure that his beauty could rival Aphrodite). The man in question sneezed as he rose up from the floor
"He's awake" Yuri announced as he and Minako could not help but stare as he turned to face Yuri, his robe slipping from his shoulder, as he sleepily rubbed his arm
" Hungry" the grown man mumbled in English as the dog besides him began to wake up as well. It took Yuri a few moments before he began to offer Viktor food
" Uh what would you like to eat Viktor?" he asked in English, doubting that the Russian even knew Japanese seeing as he's only spoken English.
" Hm as your coach, I'd like to know what's your favorite food, Yuri" Viktor asked as he moved to move his bangs away from his eye, although it didn't do much help.
" K-Katsudon. I mean pork cutlet bowls,my mom makes the best" he said with a blush as Viktor looked curious
"Then I'll try that" he said adding his million dollar smile although Yuri couldn't help but feel as though it was different from the smiles he'd given during interviews or when he was with his fans. He shook the idea from his head before asking his mother for an order of katsudon.
" Wow amazing!" Viktor exclaimed as the food came before him
" It's our specialty, pork cutlet bowl" Yuri's mother explained in a broken English as Viktor took his first bite
" Vkusno!" he exclaimed as he began to gobble down the food, Yuri and Minako watching with a smile although Minako's resembling more of a smirk
" Is this the food that gods eat?" he asked as he practically swallowed the food down
" I'm glad you like it" Yuri said with a small smile
"He's only allowed to eat after he wins a competition because he gains weight easily" Minako said fluently in English as she looked at Yuri's flushed face with smirk.
" Have you eaten any recently?" Viktor said with a smile although it seemed like something was hidden behind it. Yuri could only nod seeing as he had eaten some the day he came back home.
"Why you haven't won anything ?" Viktor said although his words only pierced through Yuri's self-esteem as he himself knew he hadn't really done anything to deserve the katsudon (unless getting into the GPF, medaling but never winning gold in the qualifying rounds and other competitions or graduating from college counted. Yuri could fight for that last one though because trying to juggle college life with his skating career was not easy;all those assignments, tests, finals, late nights studying, practices at the rink during his free time which would escalate to when the rink finally closed, airplane rides and competitions spent trying to finish assignments and sending it in on time. His will to live was only alive thanks to Phichit and cute animal videos on Youtube); but hearing your idol say so only felt worse.
"With that piggy body of yours lessons would be meaningless. So training won't commence until you get back to at least last year's GPF weight. Okay little piggy?" Viktor had said it all with a smile although his words seemed as cold as the ice he skated on
" Hey these boxes are blocking the entrance" Mari said as she entered the main dining room
" Boxes?" Yuri asked switching back before taking a look and sure enough the whole entrance was blocked with numerous boxes and he was sure that some were beyond the doorway
" Oh those are mine. Now what room will I be staying in?" Viktor said with a curious look
"S-Staying!" Yuri yelped
"Why of course! As your coach I need to be near where you live and what better place than here" Viktor exclaimed as though it were the most obvious answer " Will you be a dear and help move the boxes?"
" Oh god" were the only words he could come up with as he looked at the stack, Viktor and then his sister.
After hauling the boxes, with some help from his sister and almost none by their owner, Yuri finally carried in the last box with an exasperated sigh before collapsing on his knees.
" Sorry it's small but this banquet hall was the only available room we had left" Yuri said while a bit out of breath. Perhaps he should get back in shape, although he was sure he'd still be tired.
" That's alright. You can pay the coaching bill after you win the competition" he added a wink while Yuri could only mutter a meek thank you.
Viktor knelt in front of Yuri, who felt a gentle touch on his chin before he was forced to face Viktor who had a type of gaze that Yuri didn't understand.
" Being your coach means gaining your trust and getting to know you. So tell me about yourself. What are your hobbies? Where is your home rink? Why do you skate? Who was your past coach? Why did you end things with them? Do you have a lover or any past ones?" Viktor got so close Yuri swore he could see every tiny detail of his face and feel his warm breath hovering over his lips.
" I want to learn everything about you" he said sliding his other hand across Yuri's arm
' Too close!' Yuri thought as he backed out completely from the room leaving a confused Viktor
" What's wrong?"
" N-nothing. Just got a leg cramp…" he cringed at his horrible lie though it seemed that Viktor hadn't noticed. At least he hoped so.
Later that evening Viktor tried to have a sleepover with Yuri who claimed that it was to get to know the skater better. One glance at his room told Yuri to close the door shut before quickly trying to get all of his Viktor poster off from the walls.
' What is this unfamiliar feeling? My heart is racing and I'm not anxious or out of breath…' Yuri stared at the posters as though they held the key. Viktor was actually here with him and had come because of him
' I get it now! Its because I'm happy that he's here that I feel like this!' he thought feeling motivated once more and promising himself to do his best in order to start training as soon as possible
After running and asking the Nishigori family if they could make Ice Castle their home rink( as well as being told that he could not step on the ice until he lost weight), Yuri went straight to training. He was lucky that the unexpected snow had cleared way making it easier for him to train outside. He would run up and down the steps of the nearby temple and practice his ballet with Minako whenever he could. ( She had once wondered if Viktor was just coaching him because he was bored which Yuri had honestly considered) In one of these occasions he nearly fell off of the bench because of a question Viktor asked out of the blue;
" Do you see Minako as a lover?"
"N-No way! Besides she's as old as my mother" he murmured the last part as Minako would kill him for mentioning her age even if she looked way younger than she was.
" So do you have a lover?" he asked curiously
"No"
" Any past lovers?"
"N-no comment" Yuri did not want to think or talk about his disastrous dating life in front of Viktor
" Then let's talk about me! Let's see my first lover was…"
" Stop! " Yuri begged embarrassed (although it seemed that Viktor could not even remember his first lover). Just then Makkachin had barked up to Hasetsu Castle
" What's that?" Viktor asked curiously
" That's just Hasetsu Castle. Inside is a ninja house" he briefly explained not expecting Viktor's excited gaze
" Really, ninja?"
Yuri wondered how he ended up taking Viktor to Hasetsu Castle and taking a picture of him with Makkachin but well here he was.
" Hashtag Ninja!" Viktor exclaimed as he added a #ninja to his caption before uploading it on his instagram account. Who would have thought that his idol could get as excited as a child with something as simple as an old ninja house?
" What the hell. Does he want to be a ninja?" Yuri Plisetsky exclaimed as he flopped on his bed next to his cat , Strela.
" I've found you now Viktor and I'm gonna make you do your end of our deal" he said with a smirk before sitting back up and looking up cheap and available flights to Japan.
It seemed that Yuri hadn't been the only one to find out where Viktor was as social media began to explode when people put two and two together, confirming Viktor's claim of going to coach Yuri Katsuki. The day after the post was made Yu-Topia Katsuki and Ice Castle were bombarded with news reporters and fans who wished to see the 5-time GPF and World medalist as well as Olympic gold medalist. Whenever they spotted the silver haired man screams were made. All he did was give them a smile back and it looked as though they would faint( although this was just because he did not understand Japanese and was just doing it to be polite). However, Yuri had failed to notice all the commotion because he was spending the past few days running around the quiet town and in Minako's studio. It took a few more days for Yuri to finally get back to his GPF weight, which was a new record for him. Then again he had been extra motivated with Viktor being around.
" Viktor! Where are you Viktor! You better hope I find you soon or so help me!" Yuri screamed in Russian as he passed a market. He had finally made it to Hasetsu, Japan but didn't know where Viktor was. There were lots of creepy and cool statues around but he couldn't post them on his Instagram account or else Yakov would drag his ass back to Russia and he was not going to risk it after his long journey. All of this lead to his current predicament of just yelling in Russian and English in hopes of finding the moron ( see Viktor). He was about to shout again when something had caught his eye: a cool black long-sleeved tiger shirt
" That shirt is so cool. I got to have it"
" Yuri what are you doing in Japan?!" Yakov yelled as Yuri pulled his phone away from his ear. In hindsight he shouldn't have posted the picture of him wearing his newly bought shirt but it was worth it.
" Oh you found out" was all he bothered to say
" Do you know how important your senior debut training is? You better come back to Russia and stop whatever shenanigans you're up to or-!"
" And I told you I'm not leaving until Viktor does good with his deal!" he screamed back before hanging up not realizing that he had begun to aimlessly wander around the market and was now, for lack for better words, lost. Or even more than he was before.
' Shit what do I do now?' he thought as he stood beside his suitcase in hopes that someone knew English or Russian and could help him. He felt something pull his jacket but when he looked nothing was there.
" Weird" he murmured as he looked towards the direction of the pull. ' Maybe I should go that way. Beats just waiting here' he thought as he began to walk away from the market. Whatever the feeling was grew stronger as he continued to walk. Eventually he came across a bridge which he decided was appropriate to continue his shouts
" Viktor!"
" Oh are you a fan of Viktor's? If you're looking for him he's usually at Ice Castle practicing" a old fisherman said in fluent English which Yuri decided to ignore for now before muttering a quick thanks to the man and continued to venture forward.
' Viktor is definitely in there' he thought as a bunch of reporters and civilians were crowding the entrance and were being pushed back by what he assumed were five-year old triplets. He pushed his way into the crowd. The three girls were saying something to him when he took off his sunglasses and face mask making them and the reporters gasp.
" Yuri Plisetsky!" they gasped in sync before gesturing for him to go in when someone else had as well had managed to make it to the door. The man's raven locks seemed familiar and his overall annoyance had caused him to ignore whatever the man told the girls and the tug he felt near the man.
" Yuri" he heard them whisper to the man before finally seeing his face: Yuri Katsuki.
So he did the most appropriate action in this situation; he kicked Japanese Yuri into the entrance and then proceeded to step on his face demanding that he apologize for getting him in this situation.
" Um I'm sorry?" was all the Japanese man said as he was just confused as to what was happening.
What was "The Russian Punk", Yuri Plisetsky, doing in Japan and why was he stepping on Yuri Katsuki's face right now you may ask? Well he wanted to know too.
' Why is he here? And why is he so mad at me?!'
After Yuri P. had gotten his shoe off of his face Yuri stood up and rubbed his hand over his red forehead.
" Why are you here?" he asked the Russian boy who only glared at him
" I want to know why Viktor would waste his time in teaching a fat pig like you",Ouch that hurt his pride.
" I wonder if he would still coach knowing you're some big crybaby" the Russian taunted with a smirk
'He's totally underestimating me' Yuri thought before giving his own smile and walking towards the rink's entrance
" I didn't force Viktor to come here, he came on his own, so if you're so curious why don't you ask him?" he said noticing the punk's surprised expression before scowling once more as they entered the rink. Inside Viktor was skating what Yuri believed was part of a routine although he had never seen it before.
" That's the routine he was working on for the next season. He was stumped on what to do since surprising the audience was always his goal. Problem is no one is surprised anymore leaving him without inspiration" Russian Yuri ranted as he looked at Viktor with calculating eyes
" And going in without any inspiration or imagination is like suicide in this sport" Yuri finished off the idea. It was true that without a creative mind you were as good as dead.
" I need him to make routines if I'm going to win gold at my senior debut. I wonder if he'll let me use the routine seeing as he has no use for it"
" Wait win gold?"
" Hey Viktor! Having fun over there?!"
" Oh Yuri what a surprise. What are you doing here? Did Yakov give you a break?" Viktor asked as the teen only gave the most irritated look he could muster.
" Oh did I forget something important?" Viktor said with a genuine smile that made Yuri sure that he forgot.
After a brief summary of the deal they had made and an explanation as to why Yuri was here Viktor finally came up with his answer.
" Hahaha. Sorry sorry, I totally forgot. You know how forgetful I am" he responded once more with a smile
" I am painfully aware of that fact" the teenager said with a glare as Yuri just watched the former rinkmates.
" I demand that you make good with your deal and make me a gold medal routine. Now let's go back to Russia!" he said with a stomp.
" Hmm" Viktor thought. He held that look for a few seconds making Yuri wonder if he was really going back before looking back at them with a smile. " Alright I've got it! By tomorrow I'll start choreographing two short programs to the same music"
" What?!" they both exclaimed for different reasons
" With the same choreography?!"
" The same music as him?!"
" Don't worry, this piece has different arrangements and I had a hard time deciding which to use. It'll be a different program for each of you, of course. By next week the routines will be finished and you'll compete to see who can surprise the audience more!"
" Whoa! Slow down. Don't you think this is too much-!"
"Viktor will do whatever the winner says! That's the prize of this competition!"
" Great! I love that kind of thing" Viktor said with sparkles in his eyes
" Wait a sec!" the three looked down at the Nishigori triplets, Axel, Lutz and Loop, who had a mischievous look on their faces, Yuko and Takeshi must have taught them some English, Yuri decides.
" Will you let us organize this event? A face off between Russian and Japanese Yuri! We'll make this into the best party ever!" they cheered as Viktor joined in as well. By the next hour the news was out and the quiet town was no longer quiet but bustling with news.
" What a small place. Where will I be staying?" the Russian teenager complained as they stood in Viktor's room
"You're staying here too?" Yuri asked surprised
"Duh it's unfair if you get to be with him all the time " he said using his teenage attitude to further express him point
" You should try the hot spring. It's amazing !" Viktor cheered while the younger boy scowled
" I am not taking a bath with strangers. Goodnight!" he slammed the door shut before Yuri and Viktor heard a growl and he opened it with equal force
" I want food and a bath !" the teenager demanded. After taking a soak at one of the smaller hot tubs they had, the three sat down at Viktor's room and enjoyed some of katsudon made by Mrs. Katsuki ( expect for Yuri because he had just gotten back to his original weight and Viktor was serious when it came to training diets apparently). The Russian punk ate the food like a wild tiger, though he may have just done it to further emphasize his Russian tiger look, very much enjoying the food and giving compliments to the giggling woman.
In that moment Mari had entered wondering who Yuri's new ( albeit forced upon) guest was. She had all but fainted at the moment she was graced with his face which had rice all over as he was still in the middle of swallowing some katsudon. She then squealed something about him looking like one of the boys in her favorite boy band.
" His name is also Yuri. Isn't that a coincidence?" the older Katsuki smiled
" Eh? That's confusing" Mari replied before pointing at the Russian boy
" From now on you're Yurio!" she said with a slight accent in her English. She and Yuri were the only ones who knew proper English due to picking it up from the tourists and learning in order to benefit the business. Yuri, of course,had also taken up the language because of his skating career seeing as international competitions tended to use English as a mutual language for competitors( studying in Detroit for five years had also helped him lose his accent when he spoke in English and improve his fluency).
" Huh?" the newly dubbed Yurio said in outrage as Viktor only laughed
" Where will he be staying?" she asked ignoring the fact that he was fuming up
" Upstairs -"
" Oh no! I have to clean up. Yuri help me clean up" she demanded in her big sister voice
" But Mari-nee" he said sighing before getting up and walking after Mari, glancing back as Viktor teased Yuri by calling him Yurio which only upset the teenager.
' That's right they're way closer than I could ever be with them' he thought sadly remembering Yurio's declaration of winning gold for his senior debut GPF. The boy was confident in his words and Yuri had seen some of his performances which showed nearly perfect discipline when it came to the technical part of his skate, after all he was the 3-time Junior World gold medalist and JGPF gold medalist. Yuri felt like something was missing in his performances but once the boy found it he would certainly be able to win gold at senior devision competitions, he was sure of it. He decided that he needed to relax and there was only one place in mind today, passing by where Yurio and Viktor were having an interesting conversation he was sure.
" Where's Yuri?" Viktor asked Mari as the came to pick up the trays
" He's not back yet? He went out a while ago, at times like he likes to go to Minako's place or Ice Castle. I'd check there if I was looking for him " she said having a fond look on her face before leaving the Russian man and the sleeping Russian boy.
" By my place she means my dance studio, for future reference" Minako said moving her hair aside as she leaned against the counter
" He used to spend most of his time in my studio ever since he was a child before I got him into ice skating. He tends to practice whenever he's stressed out" she said sighing remembering the first time he had come over to her place at late hours giving her a scare. " He was never a prodigy but he always had a natural talent and charisma when it came to both. He was able to make it this far because a place to practice was always available to him"
Viktor watched through the rinks window as Yuri practiced his figure, headphones on, and had a calm look on his face.
" He always comes here to practice his skating"
" It always made me think that he loved skating so much that he didn't really play with friends aside from us"
" Not that he had many to begin with. He was never good at putting himself out there and opening up to people" the Nishigoris explained as they looked at their childhood friend. Viktor only stared at the skater intensely although he really did hear what they were saying unlike when he talked to his old coach.
" I don't want this to be the end for Yuri" Takeshi said leaning forward
" Me neither. He actually hates losing" Yuko added with a giggle. " I hope you can bring out a side of Yuri that no one has been able to see before"
They all stared at the sole person on the ice as he glided around in his own world, just him and the ice.
" So a spell to turn a piggy into a prince it will be" Viktor hummed as the other two just turned around confused
" Oh it's nothing. Thanks, I've learned a lot about Yuri tonight" he said as he gathered his things and called Makkachin to follow him," Well have a good night" and with a wave he left the room.
As per every morning the three jogged from Yu-Topia to Ice Castle, although Viktor rode a bike, passing by and greeting the people. Today was the day Viktor showed them the arrangement he chose for the choreography of their short programs. Yuri was nervous but he set it aside knowing that if he wimped out now he would never make it to the GPF.
The three stood on the ice as Viktor held the control to the player he set up near the rink.
" First I'll have you two listen to the two arrangements" he said and clicked a button as the rink was filled by the voice of a woman singing in what Yuri assumed was Latin. The voice was innocent and graceful as a gentle melody played, he wished he knew what she was saying.
" These arrangement are both under On Love. Tell me have either of you thought much about love?" Viktor asked with a hand on his hip as both replied with 'no'." So what do you feel when listening to this song?"
" I don't like it. It's not my style and is way too innocent" Yurio replied sticking his tongue out as if in disgust. Viktor then looked at Yuri who concentrated on the music.
" It's about someone innocent who doesn't truly understand what love is, or at least in the romantic sense, like a child. But this person does have an unconditional love... Agape" Yuri replied after a short wait " The unconditional love of God to man and vice-versa. The highest form of love" he further explained and was surprised to see the Russians stare at him surprised
" You're right Yuri! This is On Love: Agape. I thought you said you don't think about love much" Viktor said with a smirk
" I don't" he responded with a sheep smile
" Then how did you know about that Agape junk?" Yurio crossed his arms
" I took some mythology classes in college though they were mostly on Greek and Roman mythology. We went over the four types of love and had a project on it" he said remembering the pain in the ass it had been to complete
" Good. Let's see if you can guess this one Yuri" Viktor said smiling as Yuri nodded and pressed the control to the next song. Immediately the sound of spanish guitars and violins began to play, the sounds being much more passionate that Yuri could hardly tell that it was from the same arrangement as the first one. He had a good idea as to which one this piece was named.
" Viktor, I want to skate this one" Yurio stepped his foot down on the ice as to emphasize his point
" So Yuri, have you figured this one out?" Viktor asked with a teasing voice
"... Eros, definitely. Sexual and romantic love. An intimate relationship between lovers" he responded as a soft blush dusted his face
" Correct again Yuri! This arrangement is On Love: Eros. They're both quite different as you can tell and this is how I'll assign them" he said stopping for a dramatic pause before pointing at Yuri
" Yuri will skate Eros! And Yurio will skate Agape!"
" What?!"
" No way that's so not my style!"
" Surprising the audience is my motto and what better way than this" Viktor responded happily " The truth is that you two are much more mediocre than you think you are and need to be more aware of that" he said giving them one of the fakest smiles he could as the two skater flinched at his harsh words." I'm surprised that you think you can choose your image when you're both just a little piggy and little kitty. If you're both not up to my standard by next week I won't finish choreographing the skate but since you are my fans you can make due" he said finishing his smackdown as the two skaters only stared.
" Fine I'll do it. My senior debut depends on it but you better give me a gold winning routine!" Yurio said accepting his fate
" Oh if I did it I'd win gold. It all depends on you ultimately" Victor said staring at him with amused eyes. The boy angrily kicked the ice before huffing
" If I win then you are becoming my coach and going back to Russia with me!" the teenager declared
"Sure" Viktor agreed with an amused chuckle.
'No! He- He can't go home… I don't want him to leave me. I mean I want Viktor to be my coach!' he enjoyed being with Viktor and Makkachin and didn't want to lose them.
" What about you Yuri? What do you want if you win?" Viktor's voice snapped Yuri out as he gulped
" I want to eat katsudon with you. I want to keep winning more competitions and eat more katsudon with you. So I'll do Eros, and give it all the eros I've got!" the man declared with determined eyes as the Viktor couldn't hold his smile
" Great!"
" How ironic " a woman's voice giggled as she peeked in through the ice rink's office window. " It seems that things are getting more interesting for my dear boys"