Chapter Text
“So… let me get this straight. You’ve trekked half way across the continent in search of your friend and you don’t even know if you’re going the right way?”
“Um… yes?”
Phichit covered his face with his hand and let out an exasperated sigh.
“That’s… wow.”
They purchased a room at the inn and had no sooner set their things down when Phichit grabbed Yuuri’s wrist and literally dragged him back outside so they could explore. Not that where was much to see. The town of Langlim was larger than the one they had just left, but like every other town Yuuri had been to many of the shops were closed up and the residents stuck to their homes. Very few people were out and those that were regarded the travelers curiously. Yuuri was used to this so he didn’t even notice until Phichit leaned over and asked any everyone was staring at them, pointing out that these weren’t exactly the best conditions to be traveling in, so they probably looked a little odd.
Now they were back at the inn, seated at a table off to the side and out of the way. As Yuuri looked over his map Phichit had asked how he knew where the Lord of Winter supposedly was. Yuuri had flushed and after some coaxing had reluctantly admitted that he didn’t actually know if the Lord of Winter was in the northern mountains, which led to the discussion of how Yuuri decided to head there.
Apart from the stories told to naughty children there wasn’t much known about the Lord of Winter, certainly not enough to determine where he might be hiding so Yuuri hadn’t had much to go on when he decided to set out in search of the mythical menace. The Kreska Mountains were located at the northernmost part of the continent, their frozen peaks and vast size seemed the perfect sort of place for a being of ice and snow to be found so that was where Yuuri had set his sights. It wasn’t a foolproof plan, it wasn’t much of a plan at all if he was being honest, but it was the best he could come up with. He just had to hope and pray that he wasn’t completely wrong.
“Look I know it’s crazy, but-”
“Crazy doesn’t even begin to cover it,” Phichit cut in. “The Kreska Mountains are huge, how do you plan on searching them for something that may or may not even be there before freezing to death?”
Yuuri sighed, this was exactly why he hadn’t wanted to say anything.
“It’s not a great plan, I know that. But it’s not like there’s a book or a convenient map with detailed instructions on how to find the Lord of Winter so it’s the only plan I’ve got.”
“The Lord of Winder huh?” a new voice spoke. “You’ll want to be careful talking about him around here.”
Phichit eyed the plates excitedly, their conversation seemingly forgotten in favor of the hot meal that was set before him. Yuuri on the other hand didn’t even look at his, instead keeping his gaze on the man standing above them.
“Why should we be careful?”
“Let’s just say the Lord of Winter isn’t exactly a welcome topic of conversation.”
That piqued Yuuri’s interest. During his travels he had encountered several people unwilling to talk about the Lord of Winter for one reason or another—mostly superstition—but an entire town not wanting to talk about him? This could be the break he needed.
“Why’s that?”
Christophe shrugged. “Wish I could tell you, but I’ve only been living here for about five years and the most I’ve been able to learn is it has to do with something that happened a long time ago. Folks around here aren’t too forthcoming when asked about it, and some can get pretty snippy, so I learned pretty quick not to ask.”
Yuuri slumped into his chair, his hope instantly deflating. He had finally found a place where he might be able get some information but asking about it could get him run out of town, fate really seemed to be working against him. Phichit gave him a sympathetic look while Christophe eyed him curiously.
“Why are you so interested in some legend?” he asked, Yuuri sat up straighter.
“O-Oh I… Well… Um…”
“He’s writing a book,” Phichit piped up. Both men looked at him.
“What?” they said in unison, Phichit kicked Yuuri under the table.
“Yuuri’s always been fascinated with old legends so he decided to write a book about them. The origin, how they differ from place to place, beliefs and practices, all that stuff. But we’ve hit a bit of a roadblock on the legend of the Lord of Winter, there just isn’t that much information about him.”
Yuuri stared at Phichit completely dumbfounded for a moment before quickly shifting to a look that he hoped was neutral and not like he was hearing this for the first time as Christophe’s gaze shifted back to him.
“A book huh? That’s some endeavor, so I guess you’re going to ask around anyway huh?”
“Er… Well I mean, I don’t want to cause any problems… Is there really no one who would be willing to talk to us?”
“Hm…” Christophe hummed as he stroked his chin thoughtfully. “Well… I guess you could try old man Plisetsky, he knows all the old stories and legends, particularly ones involving the Lord of Winter. And he’s not entirely adverse to talking about it, but he’s not always willing either.”
Yuuri nodded. “That’s better than nothing, where does he live?”
“Not close I’m afraid. He lives in a cabin about a mile or so outside town with his grandson.”
There was a sudden, short burst of cold air as the front door opened and closed, Christophe looked up and smiled.
“Well speak of the devil. Hey Yuri! Come here for a minute, would you?”
Yuuri and Phichit exchanged looks before looking towards the door where a boy who looked to be around fourteen or fifteen was standing. He was bundled in a heavy coat and had a thick scarf wrapped around his head. The boy looked over, eyes narrowing in clear annoyance before making his way towards them. He pulled the scarf down from around his mouth then crossed his arms when he came to a stop beside the table.
“What do you want old man?”
Christophe let out what was obviously an over-dramatic sigh as he looked down at the boy.
“Honestly, where did you learn your manners? Certainly not from Kolya.”
The boy’s scowl deepened. “You know I didn’t come here for a friendly visit-“
“You do those?” Christophe cut in, clearly feigning surprise. The boy ignored him.
“It’s going to start getting dark soon. I just want to get something to eat and get out of here. So if you’ve got nothing to say then-”
“Okay, okay settle down. These fine gentlemen here are interested in meeting your grandfather.”
The boy looked over at Yuuri and Phichit for the first time, Yuuri wondered if the boy had even noticed them before now, and after looking between the two of them for a moment he narrowed his eyes suspiciously. Yuuri felt his nerves begin to rise.
“Why are you interested in my grandpa?”
“Er… Well…”
Yuuri glanced over at Phichit. His new traveling companion had given him a decent cover story, but Yuuri had never been particularly good at lying, and with the intense look this kid was giving them he was less inclined to want to do so. Victor had always been much better in these sorts of situations.
“I… I’m writing a book. About old legends and… Well Christophe was telling us that your grandfather is the one to ask about such things, so I-we were hoping to be able to talk to him.”
Phichit grinned and gave him a quick and discreet thumbs-up that Yuuri hoped meant he hadn’t sounded too awkward. The boy uncrossed his arms and put his hands on his hips as he leaned in closer—Yuuri just barely resisted the urge to lean away. Bright green eyes fixed on him, so fierce in their intensity that Yuuri felt as if they were looking right through him, how could a kid be so intimidating?
“A book about legends huh?” the boy eventually said. “Sounds boring.”
Yuuri laughed nervously. “I know it’s not for everyone but…”
“They’re particularly interested in the Lord of Winter,” Christophe said.
The boy’s head snapped towards him, eyes wide as he stared at him a moment before looking back to Yuuri, who felt a chill run down his spine at the look of pure venom the boy was giving him.
“So that’s what you’re after,” he snarled. “You’re here to harass my grandpa!”
Yuuri jumped at the sudden outburst, his own eyes going wide as he looked at the boy. A few heads turned to look in their direction, Yuuri glanced at them nervously before focusing back on the boy.
“Wha- No! No of course not!” he said as he waved his hands frantically. “Why would you think that?”
“Because that’s what everyone who asks about the Lord of Winter wants. Well you can take your book and shove it up your-”
“Yuri please, must you be so vulgar?” Christophe said, sounding slightly exasperated. “I don’t think these gentlemen have any ill intentions towards your grandfather so there’s no need for hostility.
Yuuri nodded. “I understand that the Lord of Winter is a touchy subject, but I just want to ask your grandfather a few questions, that’s all. If he doesn’t want to talk to me then I will respect that and leave him be.”
The boy, Yuri, continued to eye him with suspicion. Yuuri sat silently, nerves on end as he waited for the boy to make a decision, but the longer the silence stretched out the more he began to fear he would be turned away. This was the first real lead he had found since leaving home, but he knew he couldn’t force people to talk to him. If Yuri refused to let him talk to his grandfather then he wouldn’t push the issue, even if it meant he would be back to square one. If that happened then-
“How about we buy you dinner?” Phichit suddenly pipped up, both of them looked at him.
“Huh?” Yuri said.
“It’ll let you get to know us and help you decide if we’re trustworthy enough. And if you end up not liking us well then at least you get a free meal out of it.”
Now it was Yuuri’s turn to kick Phichit under the table, he didn’t have the money for that! He had already ordered the least expensive thing Christophe had to offer, and Phichit was thankfully paying for himself. And while Phichit’s idea of having Yuri sit down and talk with them before deciding whether or not to take them to his grandfather was admittedly a good one, he wasn’t about to expect his new companion to pay for the additional meal, not when the need to speak with Yuri’s grandfather was Yuuri’s problem. When Phichit gave him a quizzical look Yuuri excused the two of them before dragging the younger man away from the table.
“That hurt you know,” Phichit complained when Yuuri had stopped and turned towards him. “What was that for anyway?”
“You do realize we’ve still got a few weeks worth of travel, right?”
“Yeah? So?”
“So, we can’t afford unnecessary expenses. Like buying food for some moody kid.”
“A moody kid whose grandfather might know something you need to know. Look I know it’s not ideal, but it’s obvious this kid isn’t going to let us anywhere near his grandfather if he thinks we’re going to cause problems for him. It’ll just be this one time. And it’s either this or keep going completely blind.”
Yuuri ran a hand through his hair and sighed, he knew Phichit was right. He had left home without having a clue as to where he was going or what he was really doing, and with so little known about the Lord of Winter could he really pass up the opportunity to talk to someone who might be able to point him in the right direction? Especially if there was a chance said person would actually talk to him if Christophe’s word was anything to go by. Of course, it was just as likely that the man would throw them out the moment anything about the Lord of Winter was asked. Still, it was the first lead he had found since leaving home, he couldn’t just ignore it. He would just have to hope the kid didn’t eat much.
“Come on. We better get back over there before he leaves.”
Phichit nodded and the two of them made their way back to their table. Yuri had taken a seat there looking both bored and irritated, a bulging pack Yuuri hadn’t noticed before sat at his feet. He looked up as they returned to their seats.
“The old man went to get my food, are you paying for it or not?” he demanded.
Yuuri resisted the urge to sigh, this kid really had a bad attitude.
“If you take us to see your grandfather then yes.”
The boy tsked as he slumped back in his chair and crossed his arms but didn’t argue, Yuuri figured it was the best he was going to get. Christophe returned shortly after with the boy’s order—a hearty looking stew and some bread—and Yuuri eyed it warily. While not the most expensive thing he could have ordered, it was still likely to be on the edge of pricey since like many other things the price of meat had gone up as it became harder to come by. Reminding himself it was just this one time and that it would be worth it if the boy’s grandfather could give him some insight on the Lord of Winter he looked up at Christophe, ready to ask for the total of both meals before he could change his mind, but Phichit spoke up first.
“Add it to my bill.”
Yuuri sputtered and looked at him.
“Wha- Phichit no. You don’t-” Phichit cut him off with a dismissive wave of his hand.
“It’s fine Yuuri, I don’t mind.”
“Well I do mind. This is my problem, not yours.”
Phichit raised an eyebrow at him. “Well I mean, I did decide to come along with you, so I’d say it’s both our problem.”
“That’s-”
“You boys are talkin’ like you’re in some sort of trouble,” Christophe cut in, Yuuri’s head snapped towards him.
“N-No, nothing like that!” he said as he waved his hands frantically in front of him. “It’s- I-”
Both Christophe and the younger Yuri were giving him odd looks. Yuuri looked between them then over at Phichit, who looked thoroughly amused by the whole thing, before letting out a defeated sigh and sinking back in his chair.
“Fine…”
Phichit grinned triumphantly then looked at Christophe and gave him the go ahead with a nod, Christophe continued to eye the two of them for a moment then shrugged and walked away. After that things were uneventful. Yuuri and Phichit properly introduced themselves—Yuri didn’t seem to appreciate the irony of him and Yuuri sharing a name—and the three of them chatted idly as they finished their meals. Although Yuuri and Phichit did most of the talking, trying to reassure Yuri of their intentions and that they meant no ill will towards higs grandfather. Yuri still didn’t understand why anyone would be interested in some old legends, but he eventually said he believed them and that he would take them to meet his grandfather. Though he couldn’t guarantee the man would be willing to talk, which Yuuri assured him was fine. So they finished eating and took care of the bills—Yuuri tried a final time to keep Phichit from paying for the extra meal but Phichit just waved him off—then made their way out of the tavern. Once outside Yuri looked up at the sky and frowned.
“Damn…It’s later than I thought it was…” he muttered then looked to the other two. “Oi! You better be able to keep up, I’m not getting stuck out in the woods in the dark because you’re slow.”
Before either of them could respond the boy turned and marched towards the edge of town, hoisting his pack a bit higher on his back as he did so. Yuuri and Phichit exchanged glances before hurrying to catch up, this was going to be an interesting trip.
After the minor confrontation with his sister Yuuri became a regular part of Victor’s group. Any time they went out—which was near every day—they would stop by the inn and see if Yuuri wanted to come out with them. Most days he did, but there were some where he wasn’t feeling up to being out around people. Victor had very quickly learned to respect those days. The first time he and the others had come by the inn on a day Yuuri wasn’t feeling up to going out they had convinced him to change his mind, assuring him that it would be fine and that he would have fun once he was out. Not even an hour later, when Yuuri was completely inconsolable after bumping into and knocking over a display in one of the shops did Victor realize their error. The shopkeeper hadn’t been upset—nothing was broken and accidents happened—but that didn’t stop Yuuri from bursting into tears and curling up on the floor. Afraid that he was hurt the shopkeeper had knelt down to check on him, but he refused to let her touch him. Unsure of what else to do Victor had picked Yuuri up despite his protests and carried him out of the shop, assuring the shopkeeper that they were going to take him home.
Once outside they headed straight for the inn, but once Yuuri realized where they were going he begged Victor to stop in between sobs. Victor and his friends had exchanged uncertain looks, none of them sure what to do. It was clear Yuuri needed to go home, but they didn’t want to upset him any more than he already was. They ended up ducking between a couple buildings where Victor set Yuuri down and they waited for him to calm down. After about ten minutes his sobs turned into quiet sniffles and with his eyes fixed on the ground he mumbled an apology for causing so much trouble. Victor had stepped cautiously towards him to make sure he was okay, and assured him that it hadn’t been any trouble, but Yuuri still refused to look at him and shied away when Victor reached a hand out to him. Eventually Victor decided it was best not to push it and led the way back to the inn.
None of Yuuri’s family were in sight when they entered the establishment, Victor had to admit he was a little relieved by that and apparently so was Yuuri. Victor saw him glance around quickly before making a beeline towards the door that led upstairs. He didn’t say a word to them before departing, but Victor thought he saw the beginnings of fresh tears in the younger boy’s eyes so he let him go. Later that night he went back the inn, he wanted to check on Yuuri but ended up talking to his mother instead. He explained to her what had happened and expressed just how badly he and the other boys felt about the whole thing. It really was their fault after all, they had talked Yuuri into going out when he wasn’t up for it. Yuuri’s mother had smiled kindly, assured him that Yuuri would be fine, and then explained that Yuuri was a little different from other children. Yuuri was shy by nature—Victor knew this already—and sometimes it was harder for Yuuri to be around people, especially large groups. On those days even just the thought of being around people was enough to make him anxious, so he preferred to stay inside and give his nerves a chance to settle. When Victor asked why Yuuri got so overwhelmed his mother had responded that that was just how Yuuri was. Victor had nodded, even though he didn’t understand and asked if it would be all right for him to come back tomorrow. Yuuri’s mother had said that sounded like a fine idea.
So the next day Victor had returned, opting to come by himself rather that with his friends. It took a couple minutes before Yuuri let him into his room, and even longer before the younger boy would look at him. Victor apologized for having talked him into going out when he didn’t want to, and once again said how bad he felt for what had happened. Yuuri had tried to say that it was all right but Victor had insisted that it wasn’t, that what he had done was no way to treat a friend and promised that he would never do it again. Yuuri had stared wide-eyed at his earnestness before smiling and thanking him. They spent the rest of the day in Yuuri’s room.
After that things were better. Victor explained things ahead of time to the others so the next time Yuuri went out with them nothing was said about it and they went right to whatever plans they had. Yuuri had been grateful for that.
Of course, there were days Yuuri couldn’t go out with them because his help was needed at the inn. On those days Victor always volunteered to stay and help out. The first time this happened Yuuri had stared at Victor in disbelief, only snapping out of it when Victor took advantage of his shock and swiped the tray of empty plates out of his hands. His startled shout had brought his mother hurrying into the dining area, no doubt afraid her son had dropped something again, and she was beyond thrilled that Victor wanted to help. Years later Yuuri would realize it was because she knew Victor wanted to be around him, but at the time he had been flustered, insisting that Victor didn’t have to. His mother had gently shushed him as she and Victor insisted it was fine before disappearing back into the kitchen. So Victor had stayed, and after that he became a regular sight around the inn.
Victor continued to “sneak” into Yuuri’s room through his window. Yuuri’s parents knew that he did it, though it had been quite the surprise for his mother when she went to check on him after hearing something to discover Victor there. To their surprise his parents didn’t discourage the evening visits, in fact his father looped some rope onto the higher branches to make it safer for Victor. The only condition was that they didn’t stay up too late, “Growing boys need their sleep” his mother had said.
“So tell me more about your home town, what did you say it was called? Hat… Hat-susu?”
Yuuri tried and failed to hide a giggle behind his hand, which prompted Victor to throw one of his mother’s home-made candies at him and stick out his tongue. Yuuri laughed more.
“Oh come on, I wasn’t that off was I?”
“No, you were close,” Yuuri confirmed as his giggles subsided. “Hasetsu, and there’s not much to tell really. It’s smaller than Trevin, and there isn’t a lot to do there. I stayed home and helped my parents mostly.”
“Helped them with what?”
Yuuri shrugged. “Whatever they needed help with. Cooking, cleaning, we made and sold food there too.”
“Didn’t you have any friends to hang out with?”
“I had Yuuko and Takeshi, we would play at the beach sometimes.”
Victor perked up. “The beach? I’ve always wanted to see the ocean. You’re so lucky.”
Yuuri gave a noncommittal hum and looked away, a sense of loneliness settled over him as it always did when he thought of Hasetsu and the friends he had left behind. He had always been intimidated by the other children back home, and because of that he avoided playing with them. Then he met Yuuko, a kind, bubbly girl who much like Victor had been excited that there was a “new kid” to play with, not realizing at the time that he had always been there. With Yuuko had come Takeshi, who was brash and known to be a bit of a bully, the complete opposite of Yuuko. Yuuri hadn’t liked him very much at first. The older boy had been fond of picking on him for being small and a little on the chubby side, but after multiple scolding’s from Yuuko—which eventually led to her saying she would stop being his friend if he didn’t knock it off—Takeshi finally stopped. It took a little while before they would look at each other as friends, but at least Yuuri hadn’t feel the need to hide any time he saw the older boy around. He had only known them for two years before his family decided to move, but they had been two great years. Yuuri wondered if he would ever see them again.
“Yuuri?”
Victor’s voice broke through his thoughts, drawing his attention back to the older boy. There was concern in his eyes and it was only then that Yuuri realized he had started crying. He looked away again and hastily wiped at his eyes.
“S-Sorry…” he murmured, Victor shook his head.
“You have nothing to apologize for, I can’t even begin to imagine how you feel. It must be hard being so far from your friends and the home you knew.”
Yuuri nodded. “It is hard. Sometimes… Sometimes I hate it and just want to go back. I’ve even thought of asking my parents if I could a few times, Yuuko’s family would probably take me in.”
Victor didn’t have anything to say to that, what could he say? He had lived in Trevin his whole life, if he would ever have to leave…
“It’s gotten better though. Especially… recently.”
He glanced over at Victor as he said that, a shy smile playing at his lips. Victor tilted his head to the side and was about to ask what had changed when he realized just what Yuuri was saying. His eyes widened, and he grinned like he had just been told the best news ever.
“I’m glad to hear that! Hopefully one day you’ll come to love Trevin as much as you love Hat-susu.”
He finished his comment with a wink and Yuuri couldn’t help it, he laughed, louder and harder than he had in a long time. Victor soon joined in.
It was hard, being in a new place, Trevin was nothing like Hasetsu. The people, the culture, even just the way it looked was so different from what he was used to. Some days were harder than others, but since meeting Victor Yuuri was starting to feel that maybe moving hadn’t been so bad after all. He still didn’t understand why the older boy was so determined to be friends with him, but he decided it didn’t matter. It was nice having a friend again—friends he needed to remind himself, it wasn’t just Victor after all—and he wanted to hold on to that for as long as he could.
“So tell me more about Yuuko and Takeshi,” Victor said once their laugher had subsided, Yuuri smiled and nodded.
“Well, this one time we-“
“Persistent brat…” the Lord of Winter muttered as he gazed into his ice globe, eyebrows drawn together in annoyance as he watched the three figures in it.
After Victor’s little excursion to see Yuuri the Lord of Winter had kept a close eye on the young man, certain that the events that had transpired would finally be enough to make him turn back. But even falling through a frozen river and nearly freezing to death wasn’t enough to deter him it seemed, and now he had someone else with him! Not that either of them posed any real threat, but just the knowledge that now there were two people searching for him and his castle was enough to be irritating.
The young boy Yuuri and his new traveling companion has met after reaching Langlim however, now he posed a problem. In hindsight, he should have realized that sooner or later Yuuri was going to reach Langlim, but he had been so sure that the pest would have turned back by now that he hadn’t given it much thought. That oversight was coming back to haunt him now.
“Kolya…”
Oversight indeed. Yuuri has been lucky so far: picking the right general direction to head, reaching Langlim, finding someone who could lead him to the one person that could point Yuuri right at him, but that luck was about to change. Circling his hands around the globe he called on his magic, a cruel smile on his lips as he concentrated on what he wanted. He was going to make sure they never reached the boy’s grandfather and put a stop to this nonsense once and for all.
“Why do you live so far away from town?” Phichit asked.
They had been walking for a while, the town long gone behind them and nothing to see now but trees and snow. Yuuri didn’t mind the long walk, honestly this was nothing compared to the amount of walking he had done since leaving home, but Phichit clearly wasn’t used to this sort of exertion and seemed to be tiring. He managed to keep pace with them, adhering to Yuri’s rule of not slowing him down, but there was a noticeable sag in his shoulders, Yuuri couldn’t help feeling a bit sorry for him. The hadn’t really rested after reaching Langlim, Phichit having been too excited and wanting to have a look around, so their only break had been when they sat down to eat before meeting Yuri. Yuuri was going to have to keep an eye on him to make sure he didn’t exhaust himself.
“You’d have to ask grandpa,” Yuri said with a shrug. “He’s lived out here since before I was born.”
“Isn’t it inconvenient though?” Phichit pressed. “I mean there’s no one around, what if one of you gets hurt or sick?”
“We take care of ourselves.”
Phichit looked over at Yuuri and raised a disbelieving eyebrow, Yuuri just shrugged. He agreed that it was strange anyone would want to live so far away from civilization, but it wasn’t unheard of, maybe Yuri’s grandfather just liked his privacy. Although that didn’t bode well for a couple of strangers coming by to ask questions about a touchy subject if that were the case, Yuuri felt nerves settle into his stomach. What if Yuri’s grandfather was unwilling to talk to them? Then what? Yuuri supposed he would just have to continue on as he had been, but what if he reached the Kreska Mountains and found nothing? He would be right back to square one. No, less than that. The Kreska Mountain’s at least gave him a goal, if there was nothing there then that’s exactly what he had, nothing. This could be his only chance to gain some insight, but if Yuri’s grandfather wouldn’t talk to him…
He was pulled from his thoughts by a sudden tingling sensation in his left arm, more specifically his wrist. Looking down, he brought his other hand up to rest over it, right where the Lord of Winter had left his mark on him that day. Strange, it had never done that before. It didn’t hurt, but it was certainly impossible to ignore.
“Yuuri?” Yuuri started and looked up, Phichit was looking at him in concern. “Are you all right?”
“Huh? Oh, uh,” he glanced back down to his wrist before dropping his hands to his side and looking at Phichit again. “Yeah I’m fine. Just… an old injury acting up. Probably because of the cold.”
Phichit gave him a skeptical look but seemed to decide not to press the topic as he looked forward again. Letting out a silent sigh Yuuri looked forward as well to see Yuri looking at him over his shoulder. Their eyes met briefly before the youth turned away. Yuuri glanced down at his left hand, clenching and unclenching his fist, the tingling was becoming more prominent. What was going on?
“What the hell?”
Yuuri blinked and looked up, Yuri had stopped walking and was staring at something straight ahead. Following his gaze Yuuri’s eyes widened to see the snow about thirty feet ahead of them… moving? Yes, it was definitely moving, rising up and twisting as if trying to take shape.
“Uh… I’m not crazy, right?” Phichit said, a slight shake in his voice. “You guys are seeing this too?”
Neither of them said anything as they continued to stare, the tingling in Yuuri’s wrist had become so intense it was bordering on painful now. With a sudden feeling of dread, he realized what was going on: the tingling, the snow seeming to come to life, there was only one explanation, and it wasn’t a good one. He took a step back.
“Run.”
Yuri and Phichit looked at him, their looks of confusion slowly shifting to fear to match the one no doubt on his face. Behind them the snow finished taking shape and four large, wolf looking creatures made of snow and ice leered at them, Yuuri’s eyes went wide.
“Run!”
The creatures charged as Yuuri turned and ran, he heard startled cries from Yuri and Phichit and soon the two of them were on his heels.
“What are those things?!” Phichit cried.
“Who cares just keep running!” Yuri shouted.
Yuuri took a chance to look over his shoulder, the creatures were gaining fast. They were never going to be able to outrun them and there didn’t seem to be any place for them to hide. There was only one option Yuuri could think of.
“Yuri, how far is your house?”
“Not too much further but we’re going the wrong way!”
“Then we need to circle back. Split up, and for the love of God don’t slow down.”
The other two peeled off, each dashing in a different direction while Yuuri kept going the direction he had been. Glancing back, he saw two of the creatures break off, each going after one of his companions while the other two continued after him. Of course they would focus on him. He needed to get turned around but was afraid of losing any momentum by changing directions. Suddenly the snow in front of him erupted as another of the creatures burst out. Yuuri scrambled to a stop and quickly looked back to see that only one of the creatures was behind him now, the other must have burrowed through the snow to get in front of him. Perfect. The one in front of him growled, drawing his attention back. He took a few steps backwards as it crept forward, hunched low to the ground and ready to pounce. It was too close for him to try running, but the one behind him was getting closer and would be on him in no time if he remained where he was. An idea came to him, but it was going to take a heck of a lot of luck and perfect timing. Keeping his eyes on the one in front of him and ears on the one behind he waited, taking another couple steps back. The one in front of him crouched lower.
”Come on…” he thought.
Suddenly the one in front of him pounced, Yuuri waited until the last possible moment before diving and rolling out of the way. The two creatures collided, bursting apart in a cloud of snow and ice that rained down on him. Yuuri lay there a moment, slightly dazed and a little in shock of what had just happened, he wasn’t sure what he had been expecting but it hadn’t been that. He didn’t have time to gather his thoughts however as a cry suddenly caught his attention. Looking up he saw one of the creatures had stopped moving and had Phichit pinned under one of its massive paws.
“Phichit!”
Yuuri scrambled to his feet and ran towards them. Phichit was struggling with everything he had to get away, trying and failing to push the beasts paw off his chest. Yuuri looked around as he ran, searching for anything he could use as a weapon. He spied a grouping of trees not far off with some low hanging branches, an idea immediately popped into his head. Looking forward again he stopped, he should be close enough.
“Hey!”
The creature had its mouth open wide and was leaning down with the intention of biting Phichit in half when Yuuri’s shout caught its attention. It paused and looked over at him.
“Leave him alone! I’m the one you want right?”
The creature looked at him, then at Phichit, then back at him. It seemed to consider a moment then turned its full attention to Yuuri, removing its paw from Phichit as it took a step towards him. Phichit scrambled back out of the way, his eyes wide and full of fear. Yuuri didn’t dare say anything to him and risk drawing the creature’s attention back to him. Instead he kept his eyes on the beast as it took a few more steps towards him. He waited until he was sure its attention was on him and Phichit was forgotten before turning and running, the beast immediately gave chase.
“Yuuri!”
Yuuri heard the shout but didn’t dare look back, he needed to focus. The grouping of trees he had seen drew closer, but he could hear the beast quickly gaining on him. Fear began to settle in his stomach while thought of ‘I’m not going to make it, I’m going to die, I’m not going to make it’ started to run through his head as unbidden tears began to run down his cheeks. He brushed then away in irritation. No, he had come too far, this wasn’t how it was going to end. Putting on a dash of speed he sprinted the last few feet to the trees, ducking under the branches and turning. The beast was close, he would only have one chance at this. Grabbing one of the branches he walked backwards, pulling it back as far as he could. His feet slipped a few times, the heavy branch nearly pulling him off them, but he dug his heels in and held firm. The creature didn’t slow, it ran straight towards where it had seen Yuuri go. As it reached the first tree Yuuri released the branch, letting it spring back to its original position and slice right thought the creature. Like the other two it burst apart into a cloud of snow and ice, Yuuri let out a whoop of victory, it had worked!
“Yuuri!”
Yuuri looked to see Phichit hurrying towards him, he ran out to meet him.
“Oh my god. That was- How did you- That was amazing!”
“Are you okay?”
“I… I think so?” Phichit patted himself down. “Yeah. What about you?”
“I’m fine. Where’s Yuri?”
They both looked around, but Yuri and his snow beast were nowhere to be seen.
“Did you see which way he went?” Yuuri asked.
“I was a little preoccupied.”
Yuuri hurried back towards where the beasts had appeared, Phichit followed close behind. The snow was torn up in an obvious path, showing exactly where the beasts had gone. It started out wide, going along until the point they had split up and two small paths broke off from the main one. One of the paths went in a wide arc up to the point where one of the beasts had had Phichit pinned. The other went out for a short distance then abruptly changed and went back the direction they had originally been heading, disappearing between some trees.
“Guess he made a run for home.” Phichit commented.
“Let’s just hope he made it there. Come on.”
They followed the path deeper into the woods and for once Yuuri was glad for the thick layer of snow on the ground, without it they wouldn’t have had a clue which way to go. Yuuri kept his eyes on the path while straining his ears to hear anything that would tell them if they were getting close, but all he could hear was the hurried crunch of their boots in the snow. It hadn’t been that long since they had separated so Yuri couldn’t have gotten too far, surely they should have come across him by now. Unless of course the beast had already caught him in which case-
Yuuri quickly shook that thought from his mind, he refused to even consider that option. Yuri knew these woods, at least Yuuri assumed he did if he lived out here, surely he knew some places where he could either hide or at least make it difficult for the beast to follow. But if he had run straight for his house without even attempting to lose it…
“Yuuri look!” Phichit suddenly exclaimed.
Jerking out of his thoughts he glanced at Phichit before focusing his attention ahead of them, his heart jumped into his throat. The beast was there, clawing viciously at a tree, a tree that was at the end of the path they had been following through the snow. Fear gripped at his chest, squeezing until it became hard to breath, were they too late? Yuuri scanned the area frantically, searching for any sign of their younger companion. His gaze drifted back to the beast, and the way it was tearing at the tree before it, what was it doing? Yuuri squinted and when the beast shifted its position he saw it, the edge of a hole at the base of the tree, his hope quickly rose. With any luck Yuri had crawled into the hole to try and hide from the beast, but with the way it was tearing at the tree it wouldn’t be long before it reached its target. Yuuri looked around, searching for something, anything he could use as a weapon. There were a few tree branches lying about, grabbing the biggest one he made to move for the beast but Phichit grabbed his arm.
“Are you out of your mind? What do you think you’re going to do with that?”
“We have to do something Phichit! If we don’t Yuri will be killed!”
Phichit opened his mouth to argue but Yuuri didn’t give him the chance, yanking his arm free he ran towards the beast, swinging his makeshift weapon as hard as he could. It connected with the beasts back leg with a muted thump, bits of snow flew up from the impact. The beast paused in its assault of the tree, its head whipped around to look at him and let out a low growl. Yuuri gripped the branch tightly in an attempt to steady his shaking hands, every fiber of his being was telling him to turn and run but he held his ground, lifting his branch up in an intimidating manner. At least he hoped it was intimidating, at the very least he wanted the beast to know he meant to be a threat. The beast cast a final glance back towards the tree before turning fully towards Yuuri, following him as Yuuri took a few steps back. Yuuri’s heart was hammering in his chest, he had no idea how he was going to deal with this final beast, though at the moment his only concern was getting it far enough away from the tree for Yuri to get away.
The beast didn’t even flinch as he swung the branch again, the end swishing a good foot away from its face. He wasn’t trying to hit it, he just wanted to keep its attention on him and away from the tree, and it seemed to be working. The beast advanced on him slowly, forcing Yuuri to take a few more steps back. He kept a careful eye on the tree, the moment Yuri emerged he was going to make a run for it but so far the boy had yet to appear. Yuuri didn’t dare call out, afraid that if he did the beast would turn its attention back to the tree, until he knew Yuri was safely out of the way there was nothing he could do. He continued to walk backwards, but instead of following the beast lowered itself, readying to pounce. Before it could do so, and before Yuuri could react a large rock came soaring out of no-where and struck the beast in the side of the head. It let out a yelp of pain before whipping its head around towards where it had come from. Yuuri looked as well and his eyes went wide when they fell on an elderly man standing a short distance, seemingly unperturbed by the creature before him. The beast growled then turned and charged towards the old man, Yuuri clearly forgotten.
“No!” Yuuri shouted. “Get out of there!”
The old man didn’t move, casting the briefest of glances Yuuri’s way before focusing on the beast rushing towards him. Yuuri stood rooted to the spot, he told himself he needed to move, needed to do something to stop the beast, but his body refused to obey. What could he could do? Even if he could catch up to the beast he had no way of fighting it. This man was going to be killed, and it was going to be Yuuri’s fault.
With only a few feet remaining it kicked off and leapt through the air, mouth open wide and ready to tear the old man apart. But right as it would have reached him it abruptly burst into a cloud of ice and snow. Yuuri stared in stunned shock as the man casually brushed some of the snow from his coat, he knew he should go over and makes sure the man was all right but at the moment he was afraid any movement would cause his legs to give out on him.
Yuri slowly emerged from his hiding place, eyes wide as he looked around for the snow beast. When he noticed the old man he scrambled to his feet and hurried towards him.
“Grandpa!”
The old man walked forward a few steps to meet his grandson who immediately began to fuss, gesturing wildly as he spoke. Yuuri wasn’t sure what to do, should he go over? Yuri and his grandfather seemed to be all right, if Yuri’s energy and the dismissive wave his grandfather gave him was anything to go by. Why had this happened now? For months Yuuri had traveled without the Lord of Winter bothering him, he hadn’t even been sure the Lord of Winter was aware of what he was doing, had he been watching him this whole time? And if so why try to stop him now? What would cause the Lord of Winter to feel threatened enough to suddenly take action? And was there anything Yuuri could do to make sure it didn’t happen again?
“Yuuri?”
Yuuri jumped and looked over to see Phichit standing beside him, he looked about as shaken as Yuuri felt and was eyeing him with worry, had Phichit been trying to get his attention?
“Sorry, what?”
“I asked if you were okay.”
“Oh, yeah I’m fine.”
“You’re not hurt?”
Yuuri shook his head. “No. It never even got near me.”
Phichit slumped in relief. “That’s good,” he said, then after a pause. “I think I believe you now…”
Yuuri had nothing to say to that. He wanted to be happy, finally someone believed him about what was going on, but it had come at the risk of other people’s lives. Being thought of as crazy didn’t seem so bad compared to that. One thing was for sure, allowing Phichit to come along with him had been a bad idea, one that he was going to rectify before anything else could happen. But first…
“I’m sorry…” he said, Phichit tilted his head to the side.
“Why are you apologizing?”
“Because I wasn’t expecting this, and I should have. I should have known that the Lord of Winter would eventually try and stop me from reaching him. You or Yuri could have been hurt, or worse. All because of my thoughtlessness.”
“Yuuri… Sure what happened was… intense, but you shouldn’t blame yourself. It’s because of you no one was hurt.”
“Even so, I still think it would be best if you-“
“Well that was certainly exciting,” a voice called. The two of them looked over to see Yuri and his grandfather approaching. He stopped a few feet from them, planting his cane into the snow and looking them over with a curious eye.
“So tell me, which of you has made the Lord of Winter angry?”