Fandom Dynasties and Destinies

[silenttiger43]

"Let me take care of it" Victor insisted, "I can have the money here as soon as I get in contact with my people. In the mean time, please take this" he removed an elegantly crafted gold and silver wound band from his wrist and offered it to the healer. The item was clearly worth several hundred franks but Victor didn't seem to have any qualms about parting with it.

Turning to Yuuri he gave that wonderful heart-shaped smile of his that seemed to come so easily to the man's lips. "You just stay here and rest, I'll be right back okay?" and with that Victor headed out, not even giving Yuuri a chance to protest.

Victor left the healer's building and gave the air a sniff. Something smelled delicious and it drew him in instantly. All he had to do was follow his nose and bargain away a little more jewelry before he had himself set up in a local inn for the night with all the food he could stand to eat. Restraining himself from devouring everything in sight, Victor had a rather sizable meal packed up so that he could bring it back to the healer's house where he proudly plopped the warm meal onto Yuuri's lap.

Perhaps he wasn't completely hopeless, he could at least manage to find food and shelter when in a populated area.

 

[CJWrites]

The healer's eyes widened as he gingerly picked up the bracelet, wondering if it was real. It certainly looked it and the way the silver haired man has confidently handed it over. He didn't seem the type to lie like that, a bit too thick to fool anyone really, but the healer wondered if this was just all an elaborate scam.

Yuuri started to protest, trying to get to his feet before the healer pushed him back down ("Honestly, no wonder it's so mangled"). Before he could manage anything other than incoherent sputtering, Victor was already out the door.

Sighing, Yuuri finally drew out a string of coins, before realizing it was the wrong currency and putting it back, he pulled out a small pouch filled with Swiss Franks and handed a coin to the healer.

"Is this enough?" He asked.

The man's eyebrows rose. These coins were usually used in only the highest stake transactions. Few citizens would ever hold them in their hands.

"More than enough!" the healer shouted "Goodness... You won't need to stay for 10 days"

He seemed oddly insulted given the exorbitant prices had just charged Yuuri.

"Well... Take it all, just in case" Yuuri smiled.

Just then, Victor chose to come skipping back into the room.

"Well then... I'll leave you here, and you enjoy your lunch, dear. Fredrich," He handed Victor back his bracelet, refusing any further payment, and walked over to another patient. "How is your appetite, feel up to trying soup?"

Yuuri turned to Victor. "You know... you don't have to do that. Try to do everything for me... I can take care of myself."

 

[silenttiger43]

Victor blinked, that hadn't been what he was trying to do at all! He was just trying to show Yuzu how much he appreciated all his help but... Oh no, he was doing it again. He was as getting carried away and becoming overwhelming and any minute now Yuzu would say he never wanted to see Victor again and that would be the end of it. Back to being enemies. No future chances at cuddles, he'd lost his shot last night. The end.

Victor sat down slowly on a chair next to Yuzu, but not too close. He was careful now to give the man his space, "I don't like eating alone" Victor shrugged it off as though it we're nothing, his eyes now cold and uncaring towards Yuzu's situation, "I figured we could have a proper meal before things go back to normal." Before they went back to hating each other, good and proper. Like Ruthenians and Orientals were meant to for generations.

 

[CJWrites]

Yuuri winced as Victor retreated. Oh no. Oh... no. His eyes turned cold like they had for a moment in the woods.

"Vichan." He said desperately. "That's not what I meant. I... I just meant that I have plenty of money. You don't need to pay for my bills, trust me. You've already done so much for me, I can't stand to be anymore indebted."

The moment those last words tumbled out of his mouth he realized his mistake. To a Ruthenian, was the implication. That's not what he meant at all but Yuuri could see the other man taking it the wrong way. How could he fix this?

He scooted closer to Victor, reaching out for the other man's hand, grasping it with both of his own before Victor could pull back.

"I.... I realize we will probably never see each other again." Yuuri started, trying to avoid the subject of their nationality. "I'm always travelling so I don't have a fixed address." That part wasn't true, but Yuuri wasn't about to give him the address to the Japanese Imperial Palace. Maybe Phichit was willing to hold onto them for Yuuri, but he was always at sea too. "But... do you have one, an address? We could write to each other."

 

[silenttiger43]

Victor paused, watching the man as he spoke. He hadn't fucked up then? What a relief! But what was this nonsense about Yuzu owing him? "Yuzu" Victor shook his head, "You owe me nothing" he stated firmly, "how about we just say that we are even? You saved me and I guess I helped you to" he smiled. Yes, that was perfect, then they could start over on equal footing because Victor had never wanted to be equals with someone so much until now. The way Yuzu looked at him, it set Victor's heart a blaze which for an ice mage felt both deadly and thrilling at once.

But then the wave of joy came crashing down. Yuzu was right, they probably wouldn't see each other again, ever. He didn't have to spell it out, Victor knew all too well that this little adventure of theirs had to come an end but the thought of never seeing this man again was somehow as heartbreaking as if he'd known Yuzu his whole life. They just clicked, so perfectly, Victor and his forest angel and he was really regretting not going in for that cuddle even more now.

"an address..." Victor tried to think quickly. He couldn't give his proper address, actually he didn't even now it. When did he ever have to send something to his own castle? He had people for that. Chewing his lips, Victor searched around for a moment until he found a piece of paper and something to write with. "I have several homes so I travel between them throughout the year" okay so he'd stolen that excuse from Yuzu but it worked right? "But I pass through Petrograd a lot" that made sense right? It was the capitol after all and fairly central in Ruthenial. "send it to my friend Christophe, he will get it to me." he offered the written address to Yuzu, it was spelled out in Ruthenian characters and that was half the point, Yuzu wouldn't likely be able to decipher them but the mail would arrive. "But how will I reply if you don't have somewhere for me to send back to?"

 

[CJWrites]

Yuuri's face split into a wide grin. He accepted the piece of paper and looked at it reveringly. Even huh? There was rarely such a thing as even in his world. Everyone owed everyone favours.

"I'll also probably have a friend safeguard them." He said. "But I'll need to ask him or her first" Now he was thinking of Yuuko. "I'll send it to you with the first letter."

He didn't finish the food on his plate. He didn't want this moment to end, even though he knew it had to.

Petrograd, the capital. Yuuri recognized those Cyrillic letters, but little else. His stomach twisted. Vichan was probably a nobleman.

Well. If all went well, the Orient and Ruthenia will bury the hatchet in a couple of weeks. And then he would be able to take more diplomatic trips to Petrograd and see Vichan.

 

[silenttiger43]

Victor was excited.
He had a penpal! And not just any penpal but Yuzu of the Orient. He looked forward to getting those letters every day, found himself distracted by them every time they came and always scrambled to get together something, anything that he could send in reply. Christophe was relentless about it. Anytime a new letter came in, Victor's best friend used it as a motivational tool to get the King to actually sit down and get shit done. Chris' reasoning was sound, the more Victor worked on solving their issues with the Hua the greater the chance he'd have in seeing Yuzu again.

As badly as Victor wanted this resolved for his own sake however, he couldn't sacrifise the well being of his people for it. They were barely managing to keep the plague at bay by cutting off routes and creating quarantine zones but every time supplies were moved in those areas, they held the risk of the disease spreading. The Czech Republic were threatening to close their borders completely to Ruthenia. Things were not going well.

But finally, finally Victor was able to call a cease fire and the chance to bring Hua in to talk peace had come. Several months had passed and Victor's last letter to Yuzu had been sent with hope towards a brighter future, although it also spoke of his worries. Praying that his King (which was himself of course) and the representative of Hua could find some way to set aside their differences. If things did not go well here, he was terrified that any hope for peace would die for good.

And so that brought Victor to the present, several months after first meeting Yuzu and anxious about meeting a whole different Oriental. Would this Yuuri be kind? Stubborn? What if Victor hated him? Could the King keep his temper in check? Well he had to, he had to for the sake of Yuzu and all those people suffering in the west of Ruthenia.

Word came, they had arrived and with a deep breath Victor sat tall in his throne. The large room wasn't cold but it wasn't exactly warm either, just how Victor liked it. The coolness of the north was allowed to creep into the edges of this room, a reminder to all who entered that this was his domain. That here, the Ice King of the North ruled supreme. Victor schooled his face to be expressionless, his eyes like the ice he so loved. There could be no sign of weakness here and so he would be hard and strong in a way that would make any enemy second guess crossing him.

 

[CJWrites]

"Heika!" Minami shouted.

Yuuri laughed as his attendant bounded down the ship. The young man enveloped his king in a hug.

"It's nice to see you again" Yuuri ruffled Minami's hair and pulled back. "How is everyone?"

Minami's face scrunched up. "Minako-sensei is making me learn dancing. Why do we need to dance? I mean, we just have to study it to learn the culture right?"

Before Yuuri could launch into a lecture about how important it was for noblemen to experience culture for themselves, a large man had also disembarked

"Yo! Yuuko told me to give you this."

Nishigori! Why are you here?" Yuuri shook his friend's hand and took the letter. His face lit up as he realized it was from Vichan.

"The emperor wanted to make sure you had enough protection. And that we could get you out if it came to it" He patted the katana at his side. Yuuri could use his own sword well enough to defend himself against bandits but he was nowhere near the skill level that a samurai would possess.

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Nishigori shot Yuuri a worried glance.

Yuuri had been in Geneva for a while now, waiting for the Ruthenian delegation to arrive before news had arrived that the king was simply too busy. Yuuri was sure it was nothing more than a power play, but nevertheless he obliged. Secretly he wanted to see the silver haired man from the forest again. He couldn't wait to see the look on Vichan's face when he tracked him down.

"We need to give a show of good faith" Yuuri smiled. "Let's go, Monsieur Giacometti is waiting"

Christophe Giacometti was the man who would escort them and introduce them to the Ruthenian court. The party travelled down the river and arrived in Petrograd.

The city was stunning. While Geneva displayed rustic charm in its architecture, there was no word for Petrograd other than grand. It was night and the whole street was lit with magical street lamps, . Gentle snow drifted from the sky and sprinkled as the Oriental delegation was ferried to the castle in a horse drawn carriage.

Soon they were busted into the palace, and you couldn't even tell it was night in the corridors covered in gold and marble.

Minami pointed to the Crystal chandeliers hung from the celling, his mouth open and his eyes transfixed in wonder.

That was exactly how Yuuri felt. The occident always displayed their wealth differently from the orient but despite traveling all over the world, Yuuri had never been in a place this splendid.

They arrived at these great double doors and Yuuri knew behind it was the throne room. This was it.

"Presenting, Prince of Hua, Vassal of the Golden Dragon Emperor, His Highness, King Yuuri of Yamato."

Yuuri clutched his red and yellow robes a bit tighter. Was it just him or was it getting colder?

The doors opened and Yuuri took a deep breath, walking through, but stopped. There, on the throne, was Vichan. His eyes as cold as the first time Yuuri laid eyes on him.

Yuuri's eyes widened and he took a step back in surprise, nearly bumping into Minami behind him.

Oh shit.

 

[silenttiger43]

Victor was expecting some haughty delegate, probably high on his horse with thoughts of Hua superiority. Maybe he'd be a talented mage who looked down on the Ruthenian way of letting the magic choose the man. Perhaps he would be a Samurai warrior, tall and brawny and more willing to challenge Victor than to talk. He'd been fighting against such individuals for some time now and he wondered just where King Yuuri would fall between these two common stereotypes. All he had heard of the man was that he had talents in both physical and magical realms. So in Victor's mind he was a brawny mage with a book in his hand and a two-handed great sword strapped to his back. With glasses.

That was the image Victor was expecting to walk through those doors, that was the man he was determined to match in both stubbornness and ferocity, not...

"Yuzu?" Victor blinked at the familiar face. There was no denying it, he knew that face well, dreamed of it often, tried and failed on many occasions to have it drawn out for him but the king found his words inadequate for any artist to properly portray the memory of Yuzu's smile.

Victor's eyes wandered over the deligation from Hua. This made no sense. Where was the King of Yomato? Why was Yuzu standing in front of the line instead of Yuuri? And he was wearing yellow, he shouldn't be wearing yellow unless he was... He was...
Why was he backing away?



Christophe watched Victor's reaction with curiosity, cocking his head to the side as the king spoke the name that Chris had vowed to take to his grave. Yuzu. Why was Victor talking about his pen pal now? That hardly seemed appropriate.

Christohpe's eyes strayed towards Yuuri and the look of utter shock on the man's face. Suddenly it all became so clear and Chris pressed his lips together as he fought back a laugh. This was the man King Victor had been pinning over for months on end?! All the secrecy, all the hidden letters and all the love sick whining that Chris had to deal with was suddenly worth it when he realized just how much teasing power he was going to be able to lord over his friend from now on.

 

[CJWrites]

Nishigori couldn't help from snorting "Yuzu?" He asked, sniggering.

"It's his favourite summer tea," Minami whispered, staring blankly at the scene in front of him.

"Nishigori!" Yuuri half squeaked, half hissed, the usual composure he had when meeting foreign delegations gone. "We're in the-"

But the samurai roared with laughter. "I'm sorry. It's just... Yuzu." He said, wiping tears from his eyes. "I've been listening to Yuuko dramatically read your letters about your wonderful Vichan, and the sonnets you wrote for him. I quote: My heart yearns for your cold embrace, chilly as the-"

He dissolved again into pearls of laughter, unable to get the last words out.

Yuuri paled and for a moment, he thought everything was lost, that the mission was a failure and that he, his attendant and his bodyguard would be executed at dawn.

Then, Giacometti joined in, laughing jovially. The tension in the air crumpled and Yuuri blushed. It wasn't his fault he was so bad at poetry and he never sent them anyways.

 

[silenttiger43]

Victor rose from his throne, a serious look still in his eyes and the motion brought the room back to a sudden silence, especially as he stepped down from the platform. The king rarely brought himself down to the same level as visitors. The raised throne was always a symbol of power, a physical representation of the fact that he was above those who came to visit him.

But now he was on even footing with the Orientals and striding directly towards Yuuri, silver cloak billowing behind him and an unreadable look in his ice blue eyes. Placing both hands on Yuuri's shoulders he looked the man in the eye, and broke out into a smile.

"And now I know your favorite tea." The king declared happily, "Christophe, order a case of Yuzu."

"At once your highness" Chris snickered and winked at the pair.

"It would seem that we are both more than we let on" Victor smiled widely at Yuuri. This, this was so much better than the best case scenario Victor had had in his mind. Yuzu-no, Yuuri, Yuuri would listen to him, hear him fairly and he better yet, he could trust Yuuri to be fair.

Victor was so damned thrilled he wrapped his arms around Yuuri in a tight embrace. "It is so good to see you"

 

[CJWrites]

As Victor rose, the seriousness of his transgression dawned on Yuuri. He tried to back away even more as the Ice King of Ruthenia approached. He'd lied to him, played around with him. What if Victor thought it had been an elaborate scheme to spy on him?

Victor's hands landed on his shoulders and Yuuri felt a chill up his spine.

Nishgori placed his hand on the handle of his sword. Just in case.

Then Victor's demeanour changed, he enveloped Yuuri in a hug and Yuuri could see him as the same man he'd met in the woods.

Yuuri seemed shocked for a moment, still processing what was going on, before hugging Victor back.

"It's good to see you too." He muttered.

 

[silenttiger43]

Victor held onto him for a moment. That warmth, the one that both filled his heart with joy and threatened to melt him down to nothing, Yuuri was that warmth and it felt so good to hold him again and let the feeling spread through his chest.

"Welcome to Ruthenia, welcome to Petrograd and welcome to my home." Victor declared, holding Yuuri at arms length again to get a good look at him. "You must be hungry from your journey, I know traveling works up my appetite" he winked at Yuuri, "we should eat and then you all can rest." They were probably exhausted as well although now Victor had a million questions that he wanted to ask Yuuri. He wanted to know everything and to tell him everything without having to hold back any longer.

 

[CJWrites]

"We are" Yuuri reassured Victor, and grinned right back. "Lead the way, your Majesty."

His smile faded a bit when he remembered why he was here. Maybe his cousin was mistaken. He couldn't see Victor, his Vichan, declare war on anyone. He couldn't bear to deny Victor the gems he needed to cure his kingdom. He pushed his worries to the back of his mind. They could cross that bridge when they got there.

"Petrograd is a splendid city and the Winter Palace is simply stunning!" He said in an awestruck tone. "It's completely different from the castle in Geneva."

Victor would know, there was no way he hadn't been to Geneva before. The Geneva castle, or at least the one they used, was much older and made of stone.

 

[silenttiger43]

"you should see the view" Victor grinned, he couldn't wait to show Yuuri everything. Every passage and tower, the ice sculpture garden that was carved every winter and the way the whole world looked new from the western tower after a fresh snow fall at dawn.

He wanted Yuuri to see the places he had grown up loving and where he used to sneak off to meet Chris. And the dragons, maybe they could go on a trip further north and Victor could show him dragon cove. There was just so much to do and see. "I don't know where to begin" the king declared excitedly. "Yuz-Yuuri-prince Yuuri?" The formality of it sounded strange, "have you ever had pirozhki before?"

 

[CJWrites]

Yuuri laughed. "Just call me Yuuri," he said. He held out his arm for Victor to take.

"And no, I've never had Pirozhki," Yuuri said. He was imagining what it would be. When he visited King Michele, he'd eaten the most delectable Tiramisu and Gelato, an Italian specialty apparently. The wine, cheese, and fish had all been delectable. In Canada, JJ treated to the best lobster and salmon, along with some more rustic comfort food, like poutine and tourtiere. He imagined this fancy dish, maybe roasted pork. He'd never had Ruthenian food before and wondered what it was like.

 

[silenttiger43]

"good, then you can just call me Victor and we can put aside all the formalities for now." The king declared happily. He didn't really seem to have another setting, even when they'd been in the forest, everything Victor said was like a decree, royal and affirmed in his voice with such confidence that it made you want to believe him, even if it wasn't true.

Along the way Victor stopped a servant with a smile, "could you please tell chef Claude to add pirozhki to the meal? Thank you" and then they kept walking. Victor completely ignored the confused look of the girl who ran off to do as told.

Victor took the Hua deligation along hallway that overlooked the frozen garden and he paused there to show them through the second story window. The sculpters we're finishing up their work for the day, it had just been getting cold enough to start on the ice sculptures for the garden and it coming along quite nicely.

After the little detour, Victor showed them to the large dining hall where he insisted that Yuuri sit close to him so that they could talk.

 

[CJWrites]

Yuuri was seated next to Victor at the center of the head table.

Nishigori was seated next to Yuuri and he kept shooting his king sultry looks and wagging his eyebrows. Yuuri shot him an annoyed glance as if to say it's not what it looks like. Nishigori stared back in disbelief.

Yuuri craned his neck to look past Victor, wondering who was sitting there.

"Did you help to make the ice sculptures?" Yuuri asked Victor. "You know... you never gave me a proper demonstration of your magic"

 

[silenttiger43]

"the sculptures have a competition each year and I pick the winners to keep over the winter in the garden" Victor explained, "I like to keep them solid well into the spring until the ice is surrounded by greenery."

At the mention towards him showing off his magic to Yuuri, Victor grinned, "I can show you tonight if you like?"

The blond to Victor's left growled angrilly and slammed his fork into the table, "hey! You already promised me that you'd help with my project!" He accused Victor.

The king turned and blinked at the other boy, "did I?"

"Yes!" He demanded, "last week you promised and you aren't backing out this time!"

"Hm..." Victor frowned as he tried to recall and then shrugged, "alright then. Ah, Yuuri, this is my brother, Yuri" he introduced the blonde with a smile.

Yuri eyed the outsider with a displeased look, "there isn't enough space for two Yuris. That's stupid." He shot Victor a glare, "and it's half brother you twat." He sat back in his chair and stabbed at his food.

Victor didn't seem to be phased by the rudeness at all.b

 

[CJWrites]

"You did." Mila followed behind Yuri, "And you promised to help me with mine too." She wavered on her heels, a dramatic pout on her lips and a disappointed look on her face.

Yuuri stared at the rude boy. "Ah... Nice to meet you Prince Yuri" He said, trying to avoid a confrontation.

"You know" Nishigori piped up in the background. "Yuuri is already a King. We can just call him King Yuuri and you can be Prince Yuri.

 

[silenttiger43]

Yuri rolled his eyes, "yeah but with your weird system he's also a stupid prince"

"Then we'll call you Yurio" Victor stated, looking at his brother, proud of himself for finding such a wonderful solution. It wasn't clear if he was ignoring Mila or if he just hadn't heard her.

"What?!" Yuri turned to Victor sharply, "why would you change my name?! I live here!!"

Victor just laughed and draped an arm around his brother good naturedly, "you'll have to excuse Yurio, he doesn't know how to control his temper but he means well" he explained to the deligation. This was why his brother hadn't been there to greet them as would have been proper custom.

"That's not my name!" Yuri protested, wriggling out of Victor's grasp and rising to his feet, "call him Yurio or something!" He pointed his fork at Yuuri accusingly, a primal rage in the Prince's eyes as he glared at Yamoto king.

 

[CJWrites]

The Oriental delegation looked stunned, not sure what to say.

"I don't know, Yurio suits you well," Nishigori said, grinning from ear to ear. Yuuri looked horrified. Why had his cousin sent him? Why not Minako-sensei or Yao or... or anyone else more tactful.

"I agree!" Mila chirped, clapping her hands together and a large smile spreading across her face. "That's it, you're Yurio from now on."

 

[silenttiger43]

"What?! You to?!" Yuri growled and glanced over to Nishigori before glaring at Mila in betrayal, now brandishing the fork in her direction. "That's not my name" his anger took on a mild whining tone to it. "Gah! Screw you guys, I'm out of here" Yuri tossed his fork back onto the table and grabbed one of the Pirozhkis on his way out, biting into it angrily. "And you'd better meet me outside after dinner you old geezer!" he snapped back towards Victor who just smiled and waved.

"Yes yes, I'll be there" Victor turned his attention back to Yuuri as the remainder of the simple dish was served, "I know it's nothing fancy but it's one of my favourites"

 

[CJWrites]

"See you later Yurio!" Mila trilled, waving him goodbye. She turned to Victor "I'll go meet Georgi"

Maybe it was just Yuuri's imagination but her eyes narrowed while Victor wasn't looking and she glared at him. Yuuri blinked, and it was gone.

"See you later!" She skipped down the table, to talk to another man with a ridiculous black hairdo.

Yuuri turned his attention towards the pirozhki. "No... i haven't"

He picked one up and took a bite. "Its really good!"

 

[silenttiger43]

Victor beamed, so glad to have Yuuri enjoy the meal as much as he did. "What's your favourite food?" he asked curiously before biting into his own Pirozhki. It was fluffy and perfect, almost perfect actually. There was one chef-well more of a road side vendor that Victor knew near the edges of the city. He could make Pirozhki like no one else and if the dish had been planned for them to have from the start then he would have called the man to the castle to make it for them. They would just have to go out and get some at a later date.

Now that Victor knew it was Yuuri he would be dealing with for these negotiations, he almost wanted to draw them out, to spend as much time with the man as possible. So the King began to think over ways to adjust their schedules and make up excuses that would stall them for as long as possible.