Think quick and rise high! Dominate the Japanese Nationals Short Program!

A quick train-ride from Hasetsu to Fukuoka, and the duo were waiting in the terminal of the airport. It was nearly 10pm by then, and Yuri was trying to get a little sleep, leaning against his fiancé as they sat near the connecting tunnel. The plane hadn't taxied in yet, so there was still a little while yet to wait, but it was soon enough to boarding time that most of the other passengers were already there, waiting alongside them.

Victor toyed around on his phone with one hand, reading all the comments on the various posts they'd made earlier in the night. With his other hand, he held to Yuri's, slowly stroking his thumb back and forth across his partner's skin. It was still a bit surreal to him, even though it had been two weeks already since Yuri had purchased the ring that started it all.

'We'll get married after Yuri wins Gold. Right, Yuri?'

Victor pressed his cheek against his partner's head, and gently rubbed it back and forth on that soft, dark hair.

So much has changed in just the last few weeks, He thought, eyes still on his phone screen even though he wasn't really looking at it anymore, We had all that time over the summer to figure each other out, but you always kept just enough distance that I couldn't find a way in. I wonder if it was just being at a competition again that changed things for you? He huffed a sad laugh and closed his eyes, How did it never occur to me that he'd forgotten the Sochi Banquet? His distance makes so much sense in that light...

He turned slightly to kiss the man's crown, but stayed there, breathing in the sweet smell of Yuri's hair.

Everything started happening so fast once he opened up... It's hard to believe we've already made it this far. I thought it would take him months to get comfortable enough with me to let me touch him. Yuri... Victor thought, and let out a long slow breath as he hummed a smile into black hair, You're so much stronger than you give yourself credit for.

Brown eyes opened slightly, and Yuri looked up sleepily, only to close his eyes again as he felt warm lips on his own. He held still for the moment, even as the feeling changed from a kiss to just having their faces close together, "Getting anxious yet?" Yuri wondered, lifting his head up slightly.

"A little." Victor answered quietly, and used the opportunity to sneak another kiss.

Yuri wiggled a bit in his seat to sit up a bit higher, and gave the hand he still held a light squeeze, "I remember how it felt at the end of my last Free Skate." He admitted, "Not wanting to go to the kiss and cry, because I thought it was going to be the last time..."

"Mh..." Victor hummed in agreement, "I thought it might be the last time, too. You hadn't yet decided that you'd want to keep going, whether with me or without. And the way you spooked me the night before the Short Program..." He shook his head lightly, "I swear, if you ever tell me we need to talk again, I'll have a heart attack..."

Yuri dwelled on those words, feeling them rattle around in his mind like a rock had been thrown into his skull. To Victor's surprise, after a moment, he moved his left leg to set it gently over his fiancé's right, and nestled in as close as he could with the arm-rest between them. He sighed a little, his mouth against the side of the Russian's jacket, feeling it get warm against his breaths. Hazel eyes turned up, seeing the man trying to look back at him, "...I thought it would've been selfish of me to suggest you keep on being my coach..."

"I faintly recall saying you were being selfish anyway, by not even giving me a chance to tell you what I wanted."

"Mh...my last act as the man who'd stolen you from the world." Yuri nodded slightly, "I was thinking that you were getting too normalized to the idea of being retired from competitive skating for good. I..." He paused, but then pulled up, looking down at where he'd set his knee over his partner's, "At Rostelecom, I was excited about the idea that I could get the whole world to hate me for being the one who pulled you off the ice. But when you said you would consider coming back, I thought...keeping you as my coach would just strangle you as a skater. I thought...the only thing I could do, was to retire from skating after the Final and just..." He slouched a little, "...Give you back."

"You can't get rid of me that easily, Yuri. Someone else did that to me once before and I learned from it." Victor said, and twisted in his seat so he could put his free hand over his partner's knee.

"...Someone else?"

"As soon as you gave me this ring, I knew I wouldn't be leaving you..." The silver went on, ignoring the comment, "It just hadn't occurred to me yet how I'd manage it. That's why I got so mad at you. You weren't giving me any time to think." He kneaded that knee gently, looking down at it as he did so, "I never considered that coming back to competition meant I had to stop being your coach. If there was a problem with bringing you to St. Petersburg, I guess I just thought I'd just stay in Hasetsu with you."

"Really?" Yuri wondered, a bit surprised, "You'd have trained for next season without Yakov?"

"How much do you think he really does these days to help my skating?" Victor teased.

"I guess not that much. You don't exactly need pep talks before you skate." Yuri answered, "Anytime I watched you skate before, you only ever spent ten seconds on the rink wall before you went out. I could only imagine what you and Yakov told each other in such a short amount of time, especially since you and I talk so much."

"He'd mostly just say things like 'good luck' or 'don't hurt yourself.'" Victor explained, "The last two years have mostly been him worrying I'd injure myself." He huffed a quiet laugh, "The way he talked, you'd think he was expecting me to fall apart on the ice at any moment, as though at age 26 I was already about to drop dead."

Yuri felt the hand on his knee creeping higher, and though his cheeks reddened a little, he didn't protest. Instead, he halfway let himself wish they weren't in such a public space. He shook his head though, the memory of Christmas Eve fading quickly with the thought of that gruff old coach, "Yakov seems like something of a father figure to you..." He said, looking down again as he realized those fingers were starting to sneak between his thighs, getting closer, "...This is weird topic to be on when you're doing that..."

The Russian stifled a laugh, giving his fiancé's thigh a squeeze where he could, "I want to get to Nagano so badly already..." He sighed dramatically, and fell back properly into his seat, taking that creeping hand with him, "...Four hours just to fly from here to Matsumoto...then we have to wait another few hours for the first train to leave there...then another hour and a half train ride from Matsumoto to Nagano... The wait is torture. By the time we get there, we'll both be too tired to do anything other than sleep. Then the Short Program starts right away..." Slate-blue eyes turned, looking at the visage that was watching him, "You have such a kissable face...I bet other parts of you are kissable, too..."

Yuri's cheek went bright red at that, but all he could do was stammer, "It was your idea to do this thing overnight..." He pointed out dryly, "We could've left Hasetsu earlier and spent the night in Nagano..."

Victor smiled triumphantly, and leaned his head back contentedly, knowing what he'd just put into the hapless skater's mind, "Making plans on short notice doesn't leave me the benefit of being flexible with time." He explained, "Arranging the pick-up with CedEx to get all of our things from Yu-Topia, making sure my place in St. Petersburg is ready... Suddenly deciding to go to Nationals after all kind of threw a wrench in all that, and having to wait for confirmation that the JSF would even agree to let you come on such short notice..."

"...Sorry." Yuri grimaced.

"What? No, don't be, I'm glad we're going. It just made things crazy for a bit." Victor reassured, "I'm excited to go to Japanese Nationals as your coach. I didn't think we'd still be doing this after the Final." He tilted his head to nose at his partner's ear affectionately, "You had me convinced right up to the end that you weren't going to keep skating...so the inconvenience of last-second changes is a happy consequence of the fact that you changed your mind."

"...Is the RSF mad at you?" Yuri wondered suddenly.

"I have no idea." Victor answered with a laugh, and slouched in his seat so he could set his head on his partner's shoulder, "I'm sure Yurio is mad enough for all of them though." He huffed, thinking that at least a little funny, "He claims he doesn't care if I'm competing or not, but I bet does."

Yuri nodded, then glanced towards the huge floor-to-ceiling windows to see the outline of their plane finally coming forward through the dark, "...There's our ride. They'll be calling us soon."

.

Just as the Russian had stated, the plane ride, the wait, then the train ride...nearly 14 total hours of traveling and waiting since leaving Hasetsu...but, they were finally at the event hotel in Nagano. It was early morning when they finally stumbled into their room and dropped their things in the front hall. The Men's Singles Short Program wouldn't start until closer to 4pm, but trying to sleep during the day would still be an exercise, and they'd be missing the Official Practice before noon, too.

Dark circles under Yuri's eyes made it impossible to go though. His coat and scarf hung off his shoulders idly, and he stood at the foot of the Queen-sized bed in front of him.

"...We've never had just one bed in the hotel room before..." He noted, almost absent-mindedly. He barely noticed as Victor moved in behind him to pull the coat away, unwrapped the scarf, and stowed them away in the hall closet with his own things. Yuri just reached up to pull his glasses off and rubbed his eyes on the back of his wrist, yawned, and hazily stepped over to the side of the bed to set his frames and phone down before collapsing on top of the covers.

Victor saw him drop, not even bothering to get under the blankets. He stepped out of his shoes and up onto the clean floors of the main room, walked the short distance to the other side of the huge bed, and crawled on top of the covers as well. As he usually did, he wedged his right arm under his partner's waist, draped the left over the other side, and pulled the man close to his chest. This time though, he slid his hand into his partner's clothes, and flattened his hand against the warmth of that lean chest.

It was around 2pm when Victor slowly started to wake up again. By then, Yuri had rolled over completely, arms wrapped around his silver-haired head, one leg draped over his side. He had his own leg wedge up as far as it could go between his partner's thighs, arms around Yuri's smaller frame, both having found their way into the man's sweater somehow. He could feel where Yuri's other leg crossed between his, just below the knee, and how his body twitched a little when he slowly started to wake up.

Yuri looked around the room a little to get his bearings, and reached up to rub his eyes before dropping his arm over Victor's head again to try and go back to sleep. Victor wasn't about to let that happen though. Yuri peeked his eyes open a little as he felt a bit of pressure between his legs, realizing Victor was pushing up a little with his own thigh still between them. The pressure faded, but only for a second before it came up again...over and over like that until the hands that had been against his back suddenly came around to his sides. Victor was already starting to kiss at his neck by then, and he drew in a quick breath.

Hearing it told the Russian everything he needed to know; his fiancé was awake, aware of what he was doing, and was, even if only vaguely, interested in what was going on. The leg that had been draped over his side raised up a little higher against him, and Victor could feel Yuri's frame twitch a little as his right hand went from waist to chest, brushing deftly over one pink nub as he was still nibbling at his neck.

"I can't wait any longer." The Russian whispered quietly, "I want you again. I need to feel you..."

Yuri's face was bright red already, "...But...we just...just yesterday..."

Victor looked up, pulling away from the pale neck in front of his eyes. He looked down into nervous hazel irises and smiled, "We should do it every day." He said softly. Both hands moved down to the small of Yuri's back, pulling on him, and he pressed his leg against the man's center even harder, hoping to stir interest.

Though the kiss that followed was welcome. it hadn't really occurred to Yuri that they would do something like that so often. But, the more needy Victor's body became, the more his own seemed to want it, too. Having been intimate once before made it easier to fall into it a second time, and Yuri let go of his nervous surprise. The leg rubbing up and down between his thighs was starting to excite him, and the feeling of Victor's bare hands against his skin made his heart race. Nothing got his attention quite so quickly though as feeling the man twist away from him, pulling out of that kiss he was enjoying.

Victor rose up onto his knees, and pulled one of his partner's legs up against his chest and shoulder; he pinned the other down, sitting on it where it had been between his thighs before. Eyes gazed down on the disheveled figure before them, and the small bits of exposed skin where wandering hands had pushed clothing away.

Yuri gasped quietly as that subtle grind started; it was familiar enough to the night before, but with their legs scissored together as they were, it felt uniquely new, too. He could see his toes flexing within his sock, his leg sticking up straight into the air where Victor still pinned it to his chest, cheek pressed to his calf. Yuri watched his partner's face - relishing in the freedom to move as he did - but when slate eyes met his own, their position changed again, and Yuri swallowed a nervous breath.

The leg held against one shoulder came down against Victor's side, and the one he sat on was released, pulled up against the Russian's other side. Yuri could feel how excited his partner had become already, even through their clothes, and his heart jumped a few beats. Victor leaned down over him though, and that arousal became less obvious for a moment, only to feature prominently as the silver pushed against his hips, lowering down to nibble on his neck.

Hands slid up against the front of his figure, sliding under the rumbled edges of his already-messy clothes. The fabric pushed up, hooked on Victor's wrists, until it was piled up at the top of his chest, moved as much out of the way as it could be for the moment. Victor's hands slid down slightly, freed from the material, and thumbs quite-deliberately rubbed across those sensitive pink nubs on either side of him. Yuri hissed a breath as he felt them, and both arms and legs wrapped around the Russian's frame.

Victor hummed a laugh as he pulled back, the space at Yuri's neck being taken back with those arms raised up over his shoulders. He pressed his brow to his anxious partner's, and looked into those hazel eyes. All the while he kept rolling his hips, and his thumbs rubbed back and forth, palms holding to Yuri's ribs, "Mh...you're sensitive..."

"H-How do you k...keep finding those spots...?" Yuri asked breathlessly, and pressed his head back into the pillows, eyes clenched shut.

"Touch is different when it's done by someone else." The silver purred, "You can't tickle yourself, after all...you expect it..." He said, and sat upright, pulling his teasing thumbs away from those raised bumps on his partner's chest. He quickly crossed his arms over himself and lifted his shirt and undershirt off in one pull, casting it aside on the big bed. It wouldn't do to leave Yuri half-clothed still, and so Victor moved his hands up to the wrinkled pile still pinned under the younger man's arms. With a gentle tug, those clothes came away as well, joining the heap nearby. With all that newly-revealed skin, Victor couldn't help himself, and he went down to taste it.

Yuri gasped a loud breath when he felt the wet hot trail, and his back arched, pressing his chest to the one right above him. He felt hands go under his sides, holing him in that new place, and the pressure of a rolling grind began anew. Victor's moist attention lifted to his neck, and Yuri felt a light suck on his skin. The feeling traveled up under his ear, held for a moment, and then came higher. He looked on nervously, felt the tip of that warm tongue on his lips, and after the initial flutter in his chest, Yuri welcomed that heat in. He hummed a sigh into that new feeling, odd as it was at first, the sensation of a tongue in his mouth that wasn't his own, and slid his hands up and over his partner's back.

When Victor inevitably pulled back, he looked down into those brown eyes, seeing the flush on his partner's cheeks. The fingers that clasped to his back came back around his ribs, and slid over his chest as he lifted further up. The hands he'd planted in the sheets to lift himself, lifted around to return the gentle stroke across his partner's frame, but then came further to pull one of those hands away from his skin. Softly, he kissed those fingers, and the gold band one carried. He carefully moved those hands down to the pillows by Yuri's head, and slipped his thumbs through their palms before tracing fingertips down the man's arms, over his chest, and down the front of his stomach. He paused over his partner's waistband, one fingertip circling the brass button before releasing it.

Yuri listened - and felt - as the zipper as pulled down, and those soft, warm fingers slid along the rim of his jeans to the sides of his waist. With a gentle tug on each side, denim and elastic came away together, and Yuri watched the last bits of his clothes get pulled up and off of his legs. All that remained were his socks, but they were quickly forgotten as Victor pulled his legs back around his waist like before. Yuri swallowed an anxious lump in his throat, and he brought his hands up - almost defensively - over his chest.

"Something wrong?" Victor wondered quietly, eyes drinking in the look of that pale figure before his eyes, "You look worried all of a sudden."

"Er...uhm, it's just... The way we were last night..." Yuri stammered, pulling his legs back a bit as well, knees pinching together, though his ankles were still pressed to his partner's sides, "I mean, I know you...felt everything...but it's weird... To be seen like this..."

"I've seen you naked a thousand times."

"Not aroused you haven't." Yuri clarified through an embarrassed smile. He squeaked a sudden shudder as he felt his fiancé's hand slide between his guarded legs, and straight up the length of the arousal he'd hidden from sight. He pinched his legs together harder, clamping down on the wrist stuck between them, not that it did anything to stop that tantalizing feeling. Four fingers circled around him, lifting that length of flesh from where it had been set against his stomach, and the fifth pressed down against its opposite side. Yuri gasped a breath, legs practically pulsing together in response to each gentle squeeze. He knew his body was giving in to the need for that touch, as the friction of that thumb rubbing against his skin soon slid across it easily. Too absorbed in the electric jolts of pleasure from his fiancé's touch, he didn't notice the man's other hand working to free his own flesh. It was just a weird addition to the already-odd feeling of foreign fingers around his member, but Yuri dared to crack open one eye to look at exactly what it was...and in his sudden embarrassment, pulled both hands up onto his face to cover it.

Victor smiled in amusement, but didn't relent in his movements. Instead, he sat up a bit on his knees and lifted up a little higher against the back of his partner's hips. With those legs pinched together, it offered a tantalizing tightness, and he started rocking his own hips against it, pressing his length through the small gap, sliding against his partner's delicate arousal on the other side.

Each desperate gasp was a response to the feeling of that member sliding along his own length, and though it felt good, Yuri couldn't bring himself to look. He read his partner's movements merely by feeling his position, and imagined the rest. He felt the way Victor rose up against him, and when his hand slipped back between his legs, leaving just that aroused member in its place. That hand came back around from the other side though, fingers curling under him again as his thumb hooked around his own flesh, keeping the two aligned with one another for each precious thrust. The strength in Yuri's legs started to give way though, and his knees started to come apart, making it easier for Victor to wedge his way through.

And he did, spilling between Yuri's parted legs like water. With hands still pressed over the younger man's face, Victor kissed at the back of them until Yuri pulled them away, and welcomed him closer with a new kiss. Victor let his weight ease him down, until he could feel the front of their bodies come together, and he could withdraw his hand. Both went under his partner's smaller frame, and they hugged into one another with that kiss. Victor let simple friction carry them on from there, wanting nothing more than to hold his fiancé close.

With all the heat, the rubbing, and the repeated pressure against center by his partner's rolling thrusts, Yuri was put close to the edge quickly. He pulled out of the kiss to catch a needed breath, and pressed his face to his fiancé's shoulder, fingers pressed hard to the man's back. His breaths became more ragged, gasps more vocal, until finally, his whole body clenched and grasped, and he uttered out a reluctant cry against his partner's skin.

Victor slowed his pace as he felt the pulses of that release between them. He gave a few gentler, softer kisses between his partner's desperate drags for air, before pulling up again. He eased the younger man's legs out from around his sides, and hugged his knees together in front of his chest, ankles resting over his shoulders. Like before, he pushed himself through the small gap between his partner's thighs, and kissed on pale calf as he felt the release of his own climax.

Yuri let his legs slide down, limp, around his idol's waist, and Victor slumped down over his chest between them, breathing quick gasps against his skin. He hugged his arms around the man's head, and gently stroked back stray strands of silver hair, "You...you really didn't...hold back this time..." He said quietly, still trying to catch his own breath.

Victor shook his head a little, and lifted up under the wrap of those arms, kissing his beloved's chin when he found it, "Oh, I did..." He mused, huffing a few tired laughs, "But not as much..."

.

The Nagano Wakasato Tamokuteki Sports Arena, otherwise known as the "Big Hat" arena, was once an Olympic venue, and most frequently hosted hockey events. Every once in a great while though, it served as host to speed skating and, of course, figure skating. In previous years, it had hosted the NHK Trophy, and presently, it was playing venue to the Japanese National Figure Skating Championships.

Skaters from all over the country descended on the locale, all wearing the same team jackets that Yuri was wearing. Victor looked around excitedly, decked out in his black suit, holding to Yuri's pinky finger so as not to get distracted and wander away.

"Look at all these local skaters!" He commented, "I wonder why too many of them never go to the Grand Prix or anything?"

Yuri leaned in close, "Remember what I said about not wanting you to kiss the Gold if I win it?"

"Sure."

"There aren't that many other 'top skaters' in the JSF that score as high as I do anymore. Before you came along, my Personal Best in the Short Program was around 85. That was still pretty high for my team, but it's really a wonder that I ever made it to Sochi in the first pla-"

"YUUUUURI-KUUUUUUUN."

"Uh oh..."

A short and bubbly teenager came bounding out of the crowd, yellow and red hair as spiky as ever. He rushed right up to the pair before pausing, eyeballing the pair enthusiastically, "YOU MADE IT!"

"...Mh." Yuri answered stiffly; he could feel Victor laughing behind him.

"CONGRATS ON GETTING SILVER AT THE GP FINAL!" Minami went on, full-on going into fangirl mode, "That Russian Punk stole Gold right out of your hands though! I can't imagine how crushed you were!"

"Oh I was crushed..." Yuri said, side-eyeing his fiancé, "Under a great deal...of weight..."

The teen blinked brown eyes at him, and tilted his head, only to spot Victor behind the older skater snickering. Eyes went down after that and suddenly spotted where the two skaters were holding each other's hands, and those same eyes suddenly got rather wide.

"You're a lot heavier than you think, Victor." Yuri was saying, turning back and teasing him by pointing with the other hand...the one with the ring on it.

Minami's eyes couldn't get any bigger to see the gold there, and in his mind, math equations were floating by as he pieced together what was going on. He quickly reached out to grab the hand and brought it close, mashing it against his face to get a better look, "SO IT IS TRUE."

"Huh?" Yuri turned back at him, giving the teen a look as he tried unsuccessfully to get his hand back.

"When Newscaster Morooka announced that Victor was saying a prayer for good luck over your matching rings, I nearly died!" Minami was saying excitedly, almost hyperventilating from it all, "I thought, there's no way those two are engaged, but why would they have matching GOLD RINGS if they aren't!?" He had Yuri's fingers splayed, one hand grabbing the index and middle fingers, the other holding to the pinky, singling out the ring finger between them as he lowered it from his face, eyes wet with happy tears, "WHO POPPED THE QUESTION!?"

Others were starting to look over at the spectacle. They'd known Yuri was there already so none were too surprised to see him. Most were just too modest to say anything, and many others still were too busy fawning over Victor. Minami, however...

"YOU HAVE TO TELL ME!"

Yuri finally clawed his hand back, holding it protectively close as he massaged his sore fingers, "...Technically Victor."

"...Technically? What's that supposed to mean?"

Yuri got a bit anxious, making a weird face like he wasn't sure how to explain it.

"Yuri bought one ring." The Russian explained, "As a birthday present and thank you gift for me, but I saw what he was up to and bought the other one without him seeing. After we'd exchanged them, one of Yuri's friends thought the rings meant we were married already, so I just jumped on it and said they were engagement rings." He slouched over his fiancé's back affectionately, arms wrapped around him warmly.

Yuri's face was flushed by then, but he leaned back into the hug and gently put his hands over his partner's, turning his head to nose the man's cheek a little, "I guess I should've thought how it would look to others when I decided a golden ring was the best idea for a present..."

"Nonsense," Victor teased, "If you'd gotten anything else, we probably wouldn't have come this far!"

Minami's brain was breaking to see them so physical - especially since the last time he'd seen them that way, Victor had only gone so far as to rub a fancy, expensive balm onto Yuri's lips with his own finger - and he reached out and put his hands close to their heads, "...Now kiss!"

"Eh? Here?" Yuri asked, confused, looking around and seeing more eyes on them.

"Okay~" Victor mused, and pulled off his partner's back. He reached instead of the man's hands, and held them fondly as he stepped inward, "Yuri."

The younger man's face was flushed, but it did no good to resist. Every other skater, their coach, choreographer, even some members of the audience that were still there from the previous show were watching them, eager to see what would happen.

The Eros inside Yuri's soul was begging to be let loose, and he slowly allowed it. He slid his arms over the Russian's shoulders, wove a few fingers together at the limits of their reach behind the man's silver-haired head, "Victor."

Looking into one another's eyes, the gaggle of gawkers quickly disappeared, and it was just them again. They leaned in close to each other and kissed fondly, and for a while. When they finally came back out of it again, it was to the sound of clapping and cheering all around. Yuri's cheeks got a bit redder, but he held close to his partner, feeling where the Russian pressed their cheeks together as he hugged him. Despite the embarrassment, Yuri could feel himself starting to relax into the excitement of being known as Victor Nikiforov's love-interest...and he turned inward, one hand set on his fiancé's chest as he stepped up onto his toes to kiss the man's cheek, to the cheering of many.

Minami cried as he clapped, long streams dripping from his wide-eyed face, "That was so beautiful. I always knew you were meant for each other." He managed, snuffling back a drip from his nose.

"Always?" Yuri echoed skeptically, "What do you mean...?"

"The minute I saw Victor putting balm on your lips at Regionals, I knew!" The teen explained. He pulled one arm up, and buried his eyes against the crook of his elbow, "I knew all this time...!"

"I didn't think you were so emotionally invested in this, Minami-kun..." Yuri blanched.

"I'm your biggest fan, don't you remember!?" Minami blurted out, lifting up his messy face from his sleeve, "And you'll be able to watch my version of 'Lohengrin' this time! I've been practicing really hard, and I can do a quad Toe-loop now! ...Sometimes! I'm not as good as that monster, Yuri Plisetsky, but I'm trying!"

"He is a monster." Victor agreed, still perched over his partner's shoulder, "And we'll definitely stick around for your version of Yuri's 'Lohengrin.' Right? Yuri~"

Though anxious about it, Yuri nodded and smiled, "We'll watch it. Let's go figure out what order we're going in."

.

[First to take the ice, hailing from Hasetsu, Saga Prefecture...skating to 'On Love: Eros'...Katsuki Yuri-san.] The announcer called in Japanese.

"...Ahhh shinjirarenai..." (I can't believe this.) Yuri sighed, leaning against the rink wall as he pulled the rubber guards off his blades.

Minami was chortling with laughter in the waiting are, "GANBAAAA...YURI-KUUUUN!"

"Hai hai..." (Yeah yeah...) He answered, waving at the teen dubiously.

Victor rested on his elbows on the rink wall rather casually, drinking in the excitement from the crowd, and looked over at all the signs that were cheering his fiancé on as well as congratulating their Silver Medal victory at the GPF. He turned slightly to find the blade-guards being held out to him, and he took them in one hand, "The home crowd is pretty excited to see you, Yuri. I don't really understand more than a word of what they're saying though."

"Yeah... After last year, I'm not surprised." He answered, looking around with bright but nervous eyes, "Hopes are high that I'll do better than 11th this time." He sighed, reaching for a tissue from the Makkachin-plush just next to Victor's elbow. He cleared his nose and crumpled the tissue in his hand, handing it off casually like normal, "But I think I can do better this time."

"I think so, too." The Russian nodded, going back to his casual slouch on both elbows, "Are you going to go for the Flip at the end again?"

"Mh." Yuri nodded, a fire in his eyes, "We've been practicing it a lot over the last few weeks, so I think I can land it cleanly. So...I'm off." He held up his right hand in a fist, feeling confident.

"Go do what you love." Victor answered; he cupped his hands around the loose fist, and pressed his lips to the ring in front him.

"I already did that earlier." Yuri retorted, turning his hand around to put a finger under his fiancé's chin.

Victor was not to be undone though, and he held fast over that upturned digit, only to pull back slightly and lower down unexpectedly.

Yuri's face went bright red instantly, feeling the man's tongue and lips sliding against his finger until it was out again, and Victor pressed it to his cheek, "I said do what you love, not who you love. Good try though." He reached to tap that red-hued nose, "I'll give you points for it."

"Add them to my Short Program. I want to score over 100 again." Yuri said back, finally taking off across the ice to present himself to the crowd...even though his finger felt especially cold, still wet from his fiancé's unorthodox attention.

That was so embarrassing...! I guess I haven't seen even half of Victor's true Eros yet either...

He held his arms out and felt the wash of adulation, moving in circles around the ice until he took his place in center. One gracious bow towards the judges ended his introduction, and he took his position, drew in a deep breath, and closed his eyes.

The guitar began, and Yuri brought up his arms to just above shoulder-level, descending them palms-down in front of himself. he brought them up again to rotate around himself, and dug his left toe-pick into the ice. He blew a kiss to his fiancé for good measure before he took off.

Though the stands weren't half as packed as they had been at the Grand Prix Final, Yuri still did his best to give a performance at least as well as he'd given in Barcelona. There was only one person whose approval he was seeking for anyway, and that person was watching him from the rink-wall.

This is the first time I've skated this program for competition since... He thought, though the words in his mind trailed. Moving on through his program, he caught a glimpse of Victor watching him, and he felt a flutter in his chest, seeing a flash of the man in a much different situation. His cheeks reddened again, ...Since Victor helped show me what real Eros is like... I'm not the same person I was before...I know what erotic love feels like now...

Their earlier romp was prominent in his mind's eye then, and Yuri could feel the warmth of that embrace towards the end.

...I know...what Agape feels like, too... I don't have to look for inspiration anymore, because I have these things now...

'The time for thinking about katsudon and girls is over now, Yuri.' Victor's voice echoed in his head, and he remembered that soft smile.

He's right... Because now, I can freely think of him...

Most of the Short Program felt like a happy blur after that. The first half was packed with all the artistic elements; spins, moves in the field, exquisite choreography. Yuri's mind was everywhere but on the ice though, completely immersed in the flashes of his real-life Eros.

I feel like I can skate this program so much differently now... I'm not just acting out something I've been told about anymore. I wonder if Victor can see the difference...? I wonder if anyone else can...

The Usual Suspects from Regionals were all lined up on the rink-wall near Victor, and just like back then, were enamored by Yuri's skill on the blades. Victor looked at them out the corner of his eye for a moment, but then looked back out to his fiancé, and slumped against his hand with a happy sigh.

It's like watching the change in his program for 'Onsen on Ice,' He thought fondly, How different it was, simply because Yuri change the point-of-view, and asked Minako to teach him how to move. This though... Ah, my lovely Yuri, you're really letting your Eros fly freely and unhindered. You're not the timid little thing you were when I found you last year. I'm really excited to see how much more you can grow.

The music had slipped into something of a lull, playing more softly. Yuri slid into the level-4 sit spin, charging forward into the basic rotation, and hopped mid-rotation for added difficulty. He reached to grab at where the right leg stretched out ahead of himself, and the world became a blurry streak all around him. Soon, he let go of the leg, spinning with his arms slightly out from center before moving off again into a third variant, holding his right skate by the blade where it came underneath his left thigh, then finally rose up again to skate away.

It's still so strange to think that we're like this now though... Yuri's mind went on, feeling himself slipping into autopilot, It only been a year since I turned my back on him in Sochi...too ashamed of myself to face him. Even when he came to Hasetsu, and I asked Kami-sama to give me just a little bit of Victor's time...

He sped towards the short end of the rink, and leaned back into an outside spread-eagle, feeling the cold, brisk air as it flowed all around him. At the end of the curve, he lifted his right leg, and thrust it forward for his favorite jump; the triple Axel. He landed it as he usually did, and slid off in reverse to head back down the rink, the sound of the thin audience's cheering following him. He flew down the rink, and kicked into a quad Salchow, triple Toe-loop combo.

It's almost like it was Victor himself who heard my plea, and answered it before I even thought to ask. If it's true that he's been keen on me since that Banquet last year...

Yuri slid down the ice on one knee, then rose up, twisted around, extended his leg out behind him...and kicked his toe-pick down as hard as he could.

...Then it's no wonder he's so eager with me, now that he has me... And after all this, in St. Petersburg...

He spun four times and landed, but the sound of the audience's shock was all he processed. He was still sliding, but he suddenly realized he could feel the cold on his thigh and right hand.

Shit! I fell!

Victor slid his hand up, and covered his eyes for a moment as he shook his head. When he looked up again, Yuri had gotten back onto his feet and was trying to catch up to his place in the program, ...I wonder what got to him just now? He was doing so well before.

The skater had already moved into the final required element, starting with the camel spin, left arm hanging down at an angle towards his knee.

There's still so much more of Victor's Eros that I have to learn... He thought, kicking off to descend into a sit-spin twist variant, I've barely seen the tip of the iceberg in his vast ocean... He switched feet before he rose up again, picking up speed as the move finished with a swift cross-foot spin, I...can hardly believe he actually wants to share this part of his life with me... Of all the people in the world, me...

The spin ended, and Yuri broke away, thrusting his arms forward together. The music above was at its peak, the entire wicked orchestra singing its lustful tune. Yuri pushed through the last inside spread-eagle, and took his place in the center of the rink, arms up around himself as the song climaxed and cut out. His eyes focused on the rink wall, staring straight at the black-clad Russian.

Victor... Yuri heaved, catching his breath, I want you to show me everything...! I want to know your hopes and dreams, the things that scare you...your true Eros and Agape, and your Storge... I want to know it all!

The audience, sparse as it was, cheered wildly. Yuri recognized Minami's voice hollering louder than the rest, and he bowed towards the different ends of the rink. Plush sushi, nigiri, and poodles were thrown to the ice alongside flowers and whole bouquets, but as Yuri was moving through, heading towards the exit and the kiss and cry, he caught sight of a single, coral-colored rose. He clicked a toe-pick down to hold him still while he knelt down, and let his cold fingers clasp around the bare stem to pick it up. He held the petals up to his face and breathed in the sweet smell, and only then, finally, let himself get through the opening in the rink wall.

Happy, but slightly concerned, Victor slid his arms over his partner's shoulders, "I can tell that your recent new experiences have changed the way you move," He commented quietly, brushing his lips across that nearest cheek as he spoke, "But I can't help wondering if my earlier tease spooked you a bit. The quad Flip..."

Yuri shook his head, nuzzling his face to his coach's shoulder and neck before he pulled back, "No...I..." He started, unable to stop from smiling at the idea of it, "I wasn't spooked at all. I just got caught up in a thought and I stopped paying attention. Guess I can't auto-pilot the Flip as well as I hoped."

"Maybe next time."

[The score for Katsuki Yuri-san...106.45.]

"Not bad." The Russian mused, his tone somewhat sarcastic, "I guess the judges didn't appreciate your new...artistic expression."

"I'll skate it better at Four Continents." Yuri said, looking again to the coral-colored rose in his grasp, "And then, I'll skate it even better than that at Worlds."

"Oh~?"

"Mh." He nodded, "I'm sure you'll teach me all kinds of new moves by then. Right?"

Victor blinked, surprised at his partner's words, "...Y-Yes, absolutely. Lots of new moves. Very advanced stuff." He managed, watching the younger man rise up from the bench.

Yuri couldn't help but smile, and gave a gentle tug on the hand that held to his coach's, "Sorry, did something inappropriate go through your mind just now?"

"Oh absolutely." The silver laughed, and stood up finally, "I think I just fell in love with you again, too." He added, and bent his arm where Yuri took hold of his elbow.

"Again?" Yuri echoed, and took a few quick steps as he felt Victor start to walk, "You can do that?"

.

Inoue Hiroki - 66.34

Hashimoto Takeo - 74.15

Okamoto Masanori - 71.98

Takaki Kichiro - 69.73

[Next on the ice, from Hakata, Fukuoka Prefecture...skating to 'Lohengrin,' Kenjirou Minami-san.]

In the competitor's section of the stands, Victor leaned a little, and nudged his fiancé's shoulder, "Neh, Yuri...you said last year that this was a show from your dark past. Do you still think that now?"

"Mmnnnnnh..." The younger skater sighed, "...Sort of."

"Minami scolded you thoroughly for it." The Russian went on, his tone sounding more like a coach again than a lover's, "He said he'd never forgive you if you didn't try your best during the Free Program."

"I remember."

The excited young skater went out onto the icy stage, waving at Yuri especially as he went by.

Yuri waved back, "GANBAAAAAA, MINAMI-KUUUUN." He hollered, trying not to let the dread of the anticipation seep into his tone.

"He came in 3rd at last year's Nationals, right?" Victor went on, clapping dutifully, but staying seated where he was, "He scored in the 60s for the Short Program at Regionals though, and totaled out at only 214. You've scored more than that in your Free Skate alone at this point."

"Now you're just trying to give me a big head, Victor." Yuri scolded, "And how is it that you remember scores so well but nothing else?"

"Whaaat? I remember plenty of other things!"

"What was my Short Program called last season?" Yuri posited, giving a challenging look.

The music above started, making the raven-haired skater twitch a little.

['Lohengrin: Morgenröte' - version found on YouTube channel TerminalEpistaxis - end at 2:23]

Victor blinked at him, "Uhm..."

Minami was off like a shot, the music carrying him off as though taking part in the battle-charge of some massive cavalry.

"Your programs last season were 'Scheherazade' and 'Aria.' You had a different Exhibition for every event."

Straight-line into a triple Axel; the bane of Minami's existence, but he pulled through.

The Russian paused, but then smiled and booped his fiancé's nose, "Your SP last season was 'Dark Eyes' by Yevhen Hrebinka, but I only remember getting to see a single Exhibition."

This time, it was Yuri blinking, eyes crossed where he looked down the tip of his nose.

Victor just laughed a little and pat his partner's hand where it was resting between them, and laced their fingers together fondly, "I really ought to scold Celestino for holding you back. He picked all your performances, right?"

"...Yeah."

"Why did he never give you more than one Exhibition? I feel like that's been a pattern throughout your career. One Exhibition per season, and that's it."

"Why bother with more?" Yuri wondered, leaning in a bit closer as flashbacks to his earlier skating days dazzled before his eyes, seeing his old self wearing the same outfit that Minami was wearing on the ice before him.

Back then...the triple Axel was already my favorite jump, but that was in part because it was the hardest jump I was capable of at the time. Unlike Yurio, I didn't come bursting into my Senior Premiere with a bang...it was more like a sad whimper.

"Why bother?" Victor repeated in confusion, "Why not bother? The Exhibition is the most fun part of the whole thing... No rules to hold you back, no structure you have to follow... The ice if your canvas, and you can do whatever you want."

"I only skated in one Exhibition last year." Yuri pointed out, a dour tone to his voice then, "Just like this year, I only scraped my way into the Final by a technicality...and I only got on the podium one time." He sighed and shook his head, "Having to pay a fee to skate the Exhibition in place of having earned a spot... There was never any point in learning more than one show when I'd only skate in one show."

Minami vaulted into the quad Toe-loop, landing with a hand on the ice, but then jumped immediately into a camel spin.

The silver Russian watched his partner carefully, feeling where the man's fingers were getting a bit tight where he held them. He gently rubbed his thumb over it to try and help it relax, "Sorry, I must've hit a nerve."

Yuri just glanced at him out the corner of his eye, feeling the caress, and took it for what it was. He leaned his head to the side and set it on the edge of his idol's shoulder, reaching over with his free hand to hold to the man's forearm as well, "...At Regionals, when Minami-kun said he was doing this for his Short Program, part of me was relieved I missed it, because it would've gotten me down to be reminded of it back then, too." He admitted quietly, barely audible over the music, "I want to be able to look at it and think, 'wow, look how far I've come.' But that wasn't really my spring-board. 'Lohengrin' for me was just the sad skip of a small flat rock across a boring pond. There was nothing particularly amazing about me or my skating back then."

Triple Salchow, double Loop. Slight over-rotation on the Loop, but the teen didn't fall.

"Seeing Minami-kun dressed up in my old outfit..." Yuri went on, eyes fixed on the young skater, "He seems to get the same kick out of it that I do dressing up in your old costume," He explained, looking down to the leggings of his Eros costume, "...And I'm happy for him in that way. But..." He sank a bit lower against the man's shoulder, "I feel like he's celebrating mediocrity. When you last wore this outfit, you were winning the Junior World Championship. When I last wore that one?" He pointed a finger over the Russian's forearm, discretely aiming it towards the performer on the ice, "I was barely a blip on the local radar. I was considered a top skater in the JSF only because most other skaters were even worse. Going to competitions against Russia or Canada...really made it clear that I wasn't the top of anything."

"No one becomes a Champion overnight, Yuri." Victor finally said, "It takes a lot of hard work and determination. You need to want something bad enough that you'll do whatever it takes to get there. You make sacrifices, and push yourself harder than anyone else ever could. Sometimes it feels like you're going it alone, and sometimes you can get help from people around you...but in the end, you're the sole architect of your own destiny." He leaned over to kiss the top of his partner's performance-styled head, "You have to look at every show as a stepping stone to something better, not a skipping stone. How else can you learn from your past if you're never willing to look back on it and see where you made mistakes, so you can fix them later?"

"What kind of mistakes have you made?" Yuri wondered cautiously, "You always seemed like you knew exactly what you were doing, and that you meant every step."

"Everyone fights a different battle. Mine was never on the ice." The Russian answered quietly, keeping his eyes fixed forward, "Skating was my refuge; my confidant, my best friend. Nothing bad ever happened out there. I felt more comfortable dancing on the blades than I did walking in shoes."

"Really?" The younger skater asked curiously, "...What were your battles then?"

"Nothing you should ever have to worry about; they were fought long ago." Victor said, his tone one of finality, "Oh, look...Minami finished. I wonder how his score will compare to your last 'Lohengrin'?"

Yuri side-eyed the man next to him, quietly adding it to a slowly growing list of things his fiancé didn't want to talk about.