Chapter Text
It had been a while since Yuuri won his last gold medal at Japan Nationals and retired from figure skating for good, at least as a competitor, since he decided that his next step would be to be his husband's right-hand while they planned more carefully their future together.
Viktor, on his part, continued to be a Coach, now taking under his tutelage Yurio, Minami Kenjirou and other promising youngsters. And of course, having his lovely husband as his sexy assistant coach.
And although Yuuri wasn't entirely interested in being a coach, he had matured enough in recent years and felt capable of passing his knowledge on to new generations. So while the Japanese man taught his students how to express themselves better on the rink and some technical issues, Viktor could focus on creating the routines, improving them as the season progressed, and also handling the public relations with the sponsors, the logistics for the competitions and the discussions with the skating federations. They were a perfect duo.
However, despite their many achievements together and separately, and having a job that they both loved and made them felt happy and fulfilled… the couple believed that they still needed something more to make their life more perfect.
They had love, they had money, they had their adorable dog Yuuchan (Makkachin was already resting calmly in the heaven of the good boys), but there was still an unoccupied place that they couldn't find a way to fill it.
And Viktor was the one who found the answer one day on the Ice Castle's skating rink.
The silver-haired man had bent over the bench for a moment to finish tying his skates when he looked up to see that his husband had been replaced for a much younger version of him.
The good news is that they were in Hasetsu for vacations and their students wouldn't miss a day of training.
Viktor would have panicked if it weren't because he had fresh in his mind what happened months ago, so he simply took out his smartphone and started taking pictures of 'Yuuri-chan' (so as not to confuse him with his Yuuri and his dog Yuuchan).
Yuuri, sadly, hadn't taken pictures with his younger version, and the 17-year-old Viktor (Vitya for short) had no idea about social media and wasn't used to taking pictures of himself that often, while the grown-up Viktor loved having his social media full with photos of his husband's adorable face.
However, the Russian man quickly hid the phone when Yuuri-chan noticed his presence.
The Japanese boy, of course, jumped in shock when he saw a stranger behind the protective fence, though he stopped shaking when Viktor addressed him in decent Japanese.
"Hi, Yuuri-chan! Nice to meet you. My name is Viktor." He exclaimed with more enthusiasm than necessary. Because, unlike Vitya, there were almost no records of Yuuri-chan during his Junior years, since his professional career went unnoticed by the media for many years.
Viktor, of course, was always curious to see his husband's old routines and outfits, and more than once he had complained about the lack of videos and images. However, Yuuri used to roll his eyes at him and accuse him of being 'dramatic' as he comfortably watched all Viktor Nikiforov's routines on YouTube.
"Oh, uh. Hello..." Yuuri-chan looked around before answering, perhaps searching for a familiar face, then he realized that his eyes weren't blurry. "Uh? When I put my glasses on? I could swear I left them in my backpack..." He muttered. Yuuri used to skate without his glasses since he accidentally broke them at 10 years old.
"Yuuri-chan, how old are you?" Viktor asked and stepping onto the rink, slowly gliding towards him. The Japanese boy seemed to tense up again, something understandable, so the silver-haired man immediately looked for a photo in his Gallery of his last birthday where he was hugging his in-laws (Yuuri had taken the photo) "Don't worry, I'm, eh... friends with your parents."
The black-haired boy narrowed his eyes, totally mistrusting the adult, but curiosity got the better of him and he leaned closer to see the image. After a few seconds he nodded and murmured approvingly.
"I'm 14." He replied with a small smile, like the polite good boy that he was. "Umm… May I ask what is that?" He inquired, pointing shyly to the smartphone and the silver-haired man smiled.
Viktor was somewhat relieved that Yuuri-chan didn't recognize him and found the object more intriguing, because he really didn't know how to explain that he would end up marrying a man, his idol, and not Yuuko...
"It's my smartphone. Um... It's a cell phone with advanced technology and..." He began to say thoughtfully, placing a finger on his chin, trying to think of a subtle way to explain that he was in another time.
"... You are a time traveler, right?" He suddenly inquired and the adult was startled.
"Uh?" Viktor blinked, then looked up at the Ice Castle's walls, making sure the posters of himself and other skaters were still there, as Yuuri's medal shelf and the doggy calendar. Everything was still there.
Apparently Yuuri-chan followed his gaze because he heard him give a shriek of uncertainty as he noticed the differences in his environment.
"No... I was the one who traveled to the fu-future..." Yuuri-chan put his hands to his head and began to tremble. Viktor immediately got on his knees in front of him, not caring about the frozen floor, and took the dark-haired boy by the shoulders to try to reassure him.
"Yuuri, everything is fine. Look at me. You're in Hasetsu, at the Ice Castle. It's 2021. No one will hurt you, I promise. Take a deep breath and count to ten, okay?" After a few minutes that felt eternal for both of them, Yuuri-chan calmed down enough to stop shaking and Viktor could breathe. Despite their years of marriage, Viktor still felt a bit useless every time Yuuri had a panic attack. "Do you feel better?" Yuuri-chan nodded slowly. "Good. I'm glad. By the way, I must say I'm surprised that you realized so quickly about time travel. How did you do it?"
"The photo..." he explained, looking up as Viktor stood up. "My parents don't have gray hair… yet."
"Wow! Amazing!" He exclaimed impressed, clapping a bit. Yuuri-chan was smarter at 14 than Vitya at 17.
"And you…" The boy continued, staring at the adult before looking away, embarrassed. "You look like an adult version of Vi-Vikutoru Nikiforofu. He just cut his hair off and... and you look just like him. Also, you said your name is Vikutoru..."
Ah!
The Russian man felt a bit foolish in believing that Yuuri-chan wouldn't recognize him. His Yuuri was his biggest fan after all! Also, there really weren't that many celebrities with silver hair...
"Yes, I'm Viktor Nikiforov. But I'm currently married, so my last name has changed." He said proudly, showing off his wedding ring. "And as I said, I'm glad to meet you, Yuuri-chan." This time he held out a hand in greeting, not sure if he should mention that he was his husband, since Yuuri-chan was just a boy compared to Vitya...
"Are you married to me?!" The boy asked suddenly, his brown eyes gleaming, taking the offered hand enthusiastically. Viktor's chin dropped.
"But how did you know?!" He exclaimed without even thinking of denying it, feeling between horrified and proud.
"Oh! Uh. There's… a poster of you and me, uh, I mean, my grown-up version over there." He released his hand and pointed out shyly toward the wall behind the silver-haired man. "They both have gold rings..." He said and his cheeks went red. "Um, I mean, I think it's me; the one in the photo looks like my father when he was young..."
Okay… Yuuri-chan was definitely smarter than Vitya, because on the Saint Petersburg skating rink there was also a posters of them together but the teenager didn't even notice them. Not to mention that he managed to recognize himself.
"Yes, you're correct, you and I are going to get married... when you grow up, of course." He said and winked.
There was no point in denying it, as Yuuri-chan clearly seemed pleased at the idea. Also, Viktor had to remind himself that Yuuri confessed to Vitya that his crush towards him was born thanks to his haircut, which meant that the younger Yuuri already had a crush on him.
"But why?" Yuuri-chan looked down, frowning. "I… I'm not that good of a skater. I've only gotten silver and bronze, never gold. Be-besides, I usually get nervous before competitions and spoil everything, and…" Viktor stopped him from talking, placing a hand on his shoulder, leaning his body so their eyes met.
"Yuuri-chan. I don't care about that kind of things." He replied sincerely. As a coach, he obviously wanted his students to win gold, but as a husband and life partner, he didn't really care about the color of the medals his Yuuri won as long as he was happy. "You are a good skater now, and you will be even better because you always try hard and never give up. That's what I admire the most about you, Yuuri-chan." The Japanese boy looked at him with eyes and mouth wide open. "You know? In the future we will skate together on the same ice, both as partners and rivals. But your medals aren't the reason why I will marry you… though it will cost you a gold medal to get my hand in marriage." Yuuri-chan looked at him with even more surprise.
"Oh." The boy said nothing more, seemingly processing the information, but Viktor could see the determination shining in his gaze for a moment before blushing again. "Uh…, Vikutoru… Can we… skate together now?" He inquired in a low voice, with the same shyness as when he and his Yuuri started getting to know each other.
"Of course, Yuuri-chan." Viktor's smile softened and he offered a hand again. The Japanese boy first touched his palm with trembling fingers, but he took his hand tightly as he felt more secure. The silver-haired man was the first to move a foot forward and the boy followed him to stand beside him.
Yuuri-chan skated slowly and awkwardly, remarkably nervous, and from time to time looking at the older man with stars in his brown eyes, as if his mind finally made him understand that he was next to his idol and crush.
Although Viktor had to admit that he was feeling a bit upset because Yuuri-chan wasn't acting that fanboy or asking him questions about his career.
But that made sense. Vitya was just another skater in his time, a skater without his own identity who did robotic routines imposed by some choreographer resentful with the life. He wasn't a living legend yet.
Surely Yuuri-chan admired him for being the youngest skater on the circuit, or because for his physical beauty. He didn't admire him for the same reasons as his adult counterpart. And if Vitya had just cut his hair in his time, that meant that the new season hadn't started yet and Yuuri-chan hadn't seen the first routines that he created by himself.
… And he didn't know Makkachin either, as Vitya introduced his poodle to society during an interview when it was already an adult dog, which meant that Vicchan didn't exist yet. Viktor was saved from explaining to little Yuuri-chan that both dogs were resting in peace.
"Um… Vikutoru." Yuuri-chan spoke with a trembling voice. "Can you show me… a routine? I-It's okay if you don't want to!" He exclaimed right away, embarrassed.
Viktor stopped, frowned, and looked thoughtfully at the ice.
"I would love to, really. But as you see, I'm not as young as I used to be and my knees hurt a little." He smiled, trying to disguise the fact that it bothered him so much that he couldn't skate. He recently get injured while training his students, so he shouldn't do jumps or anything too tiresome for a while. However, he didn't want to explain it to the boy so as not to scare him. His Yuuri was already scared enough for both of them.
"Oh, I see." Yuuri-chan nodded solemnly, although it was evident that he was disappointed as well.
"But we have technology!" He immediately exclaimed, showing his smartphone again, and pulled the Japanese boy off the rink to sit on one of the benches.
Yuuri-chan looked at him curiously as Viktor used a finger on the screen to scroll up and down the video playlist.
Eros…
No. No. Yuuri-chan wasn't the appropriate age to see himself skating like that.
Stammi Vicino… Perfect!
"Exhibition Grand Prix Final Barcelona - 2015." The boy read the title with confusion, but a surprised gasp escaped from his throat as he recognized himself standing in the middle of the track, wearing a blue suit.
Viktor watched with pleasure as disbelief in the boy face changed to admiration as the routine progressed. Yuuri was normally very critical of himself and tended to demean his own effort, but Yuuri-chan clearly appreciated it.
"I-It's you!" He screamed suddenly, without taking his eyes off the smartphone, and they both saw how a Viktor dressed identically to Yuuri, but in purple, joined the routine and they danced together on the ic. "That was… Wow. Just… wow." He said at the end of the video.
"I'm glad you enjoyed it." Viktor flashed his heart-shaped smile and patted his head. "We have other duet routines, but this is the first one that you and I choreographed together, so it means a lot to me that you could see it."
"Uh?" He looked up at the older man and blinked. "You and I… do we make choreographies together?"
"Of course! You are not only my husband in the future, but we're also coach and a student and since then I have been doing your choreography." He responded animatedly, although he winced as remember something. "Uh, actually, now you are my assistant coach, since you just retired, so I do the choreography for our students and you help me to correct them and add more elements."
"Oh. That explains it ..." He muttered.
"Explain what?" He asked curiously, putting his smartphone away again.
"Ah. I… I could see a story in this choreography. Your routines don't usually have a story…" He explained shyly, and seemed to hesitate to continue speaking so Viktor nodded to encourage him. "I… I saw a lonely Warrior who needs help but he doesn't want to or doesn't know how to ask for it…" He lowered his head, but continued. "Suddenly, one day a Prince notices him and decides to help him, even though he was neglecting his kingdom, and despite of that, they both seem happy, in love... It's romantic."
"Wow, amazing! You are very insightful, Yuuri-chan. That is just the story we wanted to tell." He playfully pinched one of his cheeks and the Japanese boy laughed, blushing.
Of course Yuuri-chan would use a warrior and a prince to represent them, just like in his medieval video games. And of course he would also think that he caught Viktor's attention for no apparent reason, when in fact he blatantly stole Viktor's attention at the Sochi banquet. But of course, he obviously couldn't say that to a 14 year old boy...
He now understood why Yuuri treated him with such care when he visited him as Vitya.
Viktor was about to change the subject and suggest him to getting back on rink when he heard a growl from next to him.
"Oh-oh. I think someone is hungry." He sing and poked Yuuri-chan's belly playfully with an index finger. The Japanese boy laughed and nodded, embarrassed. "Then let's go home, it's almost time for breakfast."
"Bre-breakfast? I thought it was night." He commented as he looked at the little light coming through the windows.
"Oh, we usually skate early so as not to disturb the customers." He replied simply.
Viktor then looked for his blade guards and put on his shoes, and luckily he was able to find smaller blade guards for Yuuri-chan's skates in the reception. But seeing that the boy would be left barefoot, the Russian man rushed to the lockers and was able to find several pairs of tennis shoes that the triplets used to forget to store in their lockers. They were almost 11 years old now, so they should have similar foots size. He took the blue pair. He was sure that the Nishigori family wouldn't mind if they borrowed the guards and tennis shoes.
"Uh, are these for girls?" Yuuri-chan inquired as he tried to put on the tennis shoes with some resistance. They were a little tight, however the way home wouldn't be that long. Also, they had arrived by bicycle, so they wouldn't have to walk that much.
"Sorry, that's all I could get." He apologized with a smile as he placed his Yuuri's jacket on the boy. It wasn't a cold day, but it was windy, and the sweat could make him shiver and hurt his muscles.
Before closing the Ice Castle (with the keys that Yuuko had entrusted to him) Viktor kept Yuuri's bike at the reception. Yuuri-chan was physically small, smaller than Yurio at that age, so he would hardly reach the pedals. Viktor wasn't sure if Japanese children were this small or Russian children were too tall...
Before getting on his bike, Viktor texted his sister-in-law to let her know about the new 'guest' and Mari promised they would be ready.
The trip to home was uneventful, with Yuuri-chan hugging his waist tightly and Viktor pedaling slowly, avoiding forcing his knees. Although sometimes the Japanese boy would raised his voice to pointing out the most notable differences between the Hasetsu of his time and the current one.
Upon arriving home and opening the sliding door, Yuuri-chan was greeted by the smiling faces of his parents, and was also greeted by a large black ball of fur, who happily jumped on him. Luckily, Viktor already knew of his poodle's enthusiasm, so he placed a hand on the boy's back before the impact so they didn't fall to the floor.
"We have a dog?!" Yuuri-chan exclaimed with a big smile, being licked in the face by said dog.
"Yes, he is ours." He smiled, relieved that he didn't ask about Makkachin. "And even if he look big, he is still a puppy, so treat him well, okay?" He suggested him kindly, although he knew that Yuuri-chan would be careful. "I called him Yuuri, by the way, but we call him Yuuchan."
"Uh?!" He widened his eyes, incredulous. "Did you name him after me?! Why?"
"Because Yuuchan is just as adorable as you." He replied as if it was something very obvious and Yuuchan barked to confirm it.
Yuuri-chan, far from embarrassed, laughed and petted the poodle.
"I didn't know you liked dogs... I like them too. Ah. You should know that by now, we have one."
"Of course." He ruffled his black hair before petting the poodle, and took off his shoes at the same time as the boy took off the tennis and place them in hall before putting on their sandals. "And I also know what your favorite food is."
Before breakfast, Yuuri-chan took a shower, and his mother gave him a blue jinbei of his size (which was probably his), and Viktor showered afterwards, putting on his usual green jinbei after drying off.
The next hours ran fast. Hiroko and Toshiya, and even Mari, were delighted to have a young Yuuri back with them, showing him his medals and trophies from his years in Junior, also photos and more skating videos. And obviously there was katsudon for lunch.
"You really are good with children, Vicchan." Hiroko said and giggled when the Russian man offered to help her wash the dishes. Mari and Yuuri-chan had suddenly disappeared and Viktor suspected that his sister-in-law must have taken him to see his personal collection of 'Viktor Nikiforov' merchandise.
"Ah, not really." Viktor replied with a nervous chuckle. "I can tolerate other people's children, but I prefer not to have them around. Yuuko's daughters are a special case." He cleared up right away.
Viktor wasn't ashamed to admit that children made him anxious and they quickly made him run out of patience, which is why he preferred to work with adults or emotionally mature teenage skaters (... Yurio was also a special case).
"Really? Well, it doesn't seem like it." His mother-in-law looked at him with a half-smile, as if she believed just the opposite. "You have been very good and patient with Yuuri-chan." She raised an eyebrow.
"Of course, because is Yuuri." He said without understanding her point.
"I bet you would have the same patience with your children." She said and continued cleaning a pot. "And I'm also sure that you would be the kind of parent who would do anything to pamper them."
"My…? Oh." Viktor blushed but said nothing more.
It was true that he and Yuuri had already talked about having children, adopted or through a surrogate mother, but that conversation had been months ago, before Yuuri retired, and they had not touched the subject again. Although the Japanese man had made it clear that he preferred biological children while Viktor was fine with either option (although meeting Yuuri-chan made him wonder what their children would look like with Yuuri's DNA…).
Still, there was a reason Viktor hadn't spoken of it again... and it was because he was afraid.
He not only didn't like children, but he feared being an abuser like his father or a manipulator like his mother. He would never forgive himself if he put an innocent child through the same things he suffered with his supposed family. It wouldn't be fair.
However, Hiroko was right about one thing ... If it were his children with Yuuri, Viktor would do everything he could to ensure their happiness and support them in everything he could. He wouldn't abandon them or make them feel bad about their decisions or preferences. Viktor would try to be like his grandfather, who was always by his side and listened to him despite being 'a disgrace to the family' until he died when he was 15.
"Vikutoru!" The Russian man's thoughts were interrupted by a lively Yuuri-chan, who ran into the kitchen with the black poodle behind him. "Mari-neesan showed me a new console and told me that you can play, is that true?"
"Oh." Confused by his enthusiasm, Viktor nodded anyway. "Yes. I like puzzle games, and sometimes I play Tetris with you. You have never beaten me." He winked, ignoring the fact that Yuuri beat him in any other video game. Still, the younger Yuuri seemed happy with his response.
"That's so cool! Can we play now?"
"Oh. I'd like that. But I must help Mama Hiroko first. Can you wait a bit, solnyshko?" It wasn't necessary to point out that his hands were covered with soap.
"Go play with him, Vicchan." Hiroko said with a gigle. "I can take care of the rest."
"Are you sure...?"
His mother-in-law only waved her hand. Viktor smiled gratefully, and wiped his hands on a kitchen towel before following Yuuri-chan into the living room to play with his Switch connected to the TV.
"What is sorushiniko?" He inquired before sitting on the floor, tilting his head like a confused puppy. Yuuchan did the same.
"It is an affectionate nickname. In Russia, we address the people we love with nicknames." Viktor sat next to him, being careful with his knee, and took one of the gamepads. Yuuri-chan just smiled, then he started a game of Tetris 99.
Hours later, after several sets of games and Viktor spoiling many of his favorite anime, the Japanese boy got up from the floor and looked around the room, nervously.
"Is something wrong, Yuuri-chan?" He stood up as well, being able to recognize signs of anxiety in his demeanor.
"I… I think it's time to go." He lowered his gaze, and before the silver-haired man reacted, he lunged at him to hug him, his head just level with his abdomen. Viktor, despite the surprise, didn't hesitate to hug him back. "B-but I don't want to leave yet! You're cooler than I thought."
"Cool?" He repeated, confused.
"Yes!" He exclaimed and hugged him tighter, his eyes closed. "Not only are you a great skater, you also like dogs and video games and… and… you like katsudon! You aren't a jerk. Nishigori told me that you would be a cocky jerk, that all celebrities are, but you aren't like that." Ah. Somehow, Viktor wasn't surprised to learn that a young Takeshi would insult him (probably because of jealousy) to annoy Yuuko and Yuuri-chan. Although he was a kind of a cocky jerk at 17... "I... I wish I could stay longer."
"Yuuri-chan…" The Russian man stroked his hair, feeling his heart break as he heard his cry muffled against his shirt. Then he cupped Yuuri-chan's cheeks and raised his head to look at each other. "You must go back to your time, you need to train, remember?" The boy nodded but kept sobbing, so Viktor kissed his forehead. "It was really nice meeting you, and I know the Viktor of your time will want to meet you too."
"Will we meet soon?" He inquired while gasping for air, trying to breathe despite the tears.
"Not too soon." He replied with a sad smile. "But I'll be waiting for you."
When Yuuri-chan smiled, the boy vanished into thin air. However, the adult version of him reappeared in his place.
"Yuuri!" Viktor couldn't contain his happiness and jumped on his husband to kiss him after 14 hours apart. Yuuri returned the kisses with the same enthusiasm. "I missed you, solnyshko."
"... What? Uh. I thought were we at the rink." Yuuri at first seemed confused, looking at everything around him, then he noticed a small blue jinbei at his side and everything made sense. "Oh!"
"I met your 14 year old version." Said the silver-haired man with his big heart-shaped smile. "You were so adorable. I wonder if our children will be like you..." He put a hand to his mouth as he realized that he had said it out loud instead of thinking it.
Yuuri's eyes widened, but a second later they softened.
"It doesn't matter what our children will be like, I know we will love them just the same." He patted Yuuchan's ears and then looked at his husband. "I know you will be a good father, Vitya."
"You think so?" He inquired, feeling a bit unsure. He didn't doubt Yuuri, but he knew that taking care of a child would be the most difficult challenge of his life (although possibly the most rewarding).
"I just know." He asserted with his brown eyes shining with determination. "But... I worry that our children will love you more. I know you will pamper them too much while I will have to be the strict dad." He complained with a frown. Viktor looked at him puzzled for a second before laughing.
"Of course not, Yuuri!" He hugged him and brought their cheeks together. "You will teach them your otaku things and your games while I will make them get up early on the weekends. You will be the favorite daddy, believe me."
"And why are you making them get up early on the weekends instead of letting them sleep?" He asked, shocked, wondering how his husband could be so cruel.
"Because you and me would to teach them to skate, of course." He said while batting his long eyelashes, feigning innocence, while Yuuri made a disapproving face.
"You mean you'll make me get up early on Saturday too?" He grunted, not pleased at the news.
"I saved you katsudon." He crooned, offering the food as some kind of an apologize and the Japanese man laughed.
"That's why I love you." He said and gave him a little kiss on the lips, accepting the 'offering'.
"I thought you loved me because I was cool and I like dogs."
"Oh yeah, that helped a lot." Viktor pouted and Yuuri laughed again. "Vitya, we will talk more about this when I finish eating my katsudon, okay?"
The silver-haired man, feeling strangely animated and eager to have that conversation, smiled and nodded.
Whatever the outcome of the discussion, he knew that the Katsuki-Nikiforov family would have new members.