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The moon was bright, nearing full, and Viktor hurried into the forest. There was a small clearing surrounding a huge tree – much larger than any other tree in the forest – that was infused with a silver light this time of month. Viktor had found his way here by accident six months before, and he’d come back every month to stay as long as the silver light did.
It wasn’t about the light, of course. It was about what the light brought with it – a beautiful man with a delightful voice. Christophe was amazing, and Viktor loved him dearly. The problem was that Christophe was mysterious, and aside from these three days, Viktor never saw him. He’d asked, but Christophe dodged any attempts to learn more about where he came from, where he went, and why Viktor only saw him here in this clearing.
He was there now. Viktor ran to him and leapt into his arms. “I missed you!”
Chris hugged back. “I missed you too, Viktor. I’m glad you could make it back to me this month.”
Viktor reached up and stroked Chris's face. “I’ll always make it to you.”
“I know you’ll always try, but there’s a new danger in these woods. Last month I didn’t know about it, but this month…" Chris's eyes clouded and he held Viktor a little tighter. "If you’re even a little late, you’re putting yourself in grave danger being out in the woods outside of this clearing. ”
“I’m in these woods all the time! I’ve never seen anything more dangerous than a bear or a wolf. I can handle those, I promise!”
“This threat is new, and it’s only during this time. While we’re here, you’re safe, but coming and going are dangerous.”
“What’s the threat, then?”
“A werewolf." Off Viktor's skeptical look, Chris added, "I know it sounds incredible, but it’s true.”
“You’re right, that does sound incredible." Viktor smiled at Chris. "That’s okay, though. I’ll be careful, even if I don’t believe in the werewolf, because I know it’s important to you. I love you.”
“Good. Come inside, won’t you?”
For the next few days, Viktor and Chris expressed their love for each other. The day Viktor would leave, Chris held him as they watched the sunrise. “Did you see Yuuri this month?”
“No.” Viktor pouted. “I’m almost beginning to think I dreamed him. But then, the first time I came out here, I was certain I’d dreamed that. I’m not giving up hope. Have you seen him?”
“I wouldn’t know him if I saw him, Viktor. If you ever do find him, you can bring him out here with you, if you’d like.”
Viktor turned to beam at Chris. “I can? Really?”
“If he’s half as amazing as you say, I am dying to meet him.”
When Viktor got back to town, he nearly died. There was a man selling flowers. That in itself was unusual enough for his town, but he knew the man. That was Yuuri!
Viktor walked up to him. “Hello, Yuuri! What brings you into town?”
“You know me?”
“Yes…” How could he not? Yuuri had come into town three months ago, that time selling seeds. Once he’d sold them all, he hit the tavern, where he started drinking. At first, he kept to himself, and nobody paid much attention to him. But then… he’d started dancing. There was no way Viktor could ignore that. Yuuri started challenging people to danceoffs, and after winning the first two, the crowd told him to challenge Viktor.
It started as a danceoff, but soon, Viktor and Yuuri were dancing just because they flowed together well and, for the first time in a long time, Viktor had found a partner who could keep up with him skill-wise. He was captivated, and when Yuuri kissed him, Viktor found himself looking forward to more. He was a bit concerned about what would happen with Chris, but Chris didn’t mind Viktor falling in love with someone else a bit. He wanted to meet Yuuri.
Today was the first time Viktor had seen him since. “Where have you been, Yuuri? I’ve been looking for you for three months!” If this were another situation where he could only meet Yuuri every once in a while, that was fine, Yuuri was worth it, but he wanted to know.
Yuuri blushed. “Why would you look for me? I’m no one special. I’ve only ever been here once before… and I made a fool of myself that night. It took this long to find the courage to come back to town.”
“You didn’t make a fool of yourself! Why would you think that?”
“Well, I was drinking… that’s what usually happens when I drink… and I don’t remember it very well but when I woke up and settled up at the inn the guy there called me a moron and said I should just go away.”
Well. That explained a lot, then. “Ah… blond, short, wearing all black, kind of angry?”
“Yes.”
“Yuri Plisetsky, and he’s always like that. It certainly didn’t help that you beat him in a danceoff! Ignore him, everyone else loved you.” Viktor winked and looked at the flowers. “Is there a type you’d recommend for telling someone that you’ve noticed them and would like to get to know them better?”
“I don’t know. I just sell flowers because they’re pretty. Um… usually pink is a good way of expressing romantic interest, and yellow is better for friendship. Specific choice of flower, though, I have no idea. If you know what they like…”
Viktor hummed. “Do you have a favorite?”
“Not really. I love them all. Carnations and roses are nearly always welcome, if you don’t know what they like.”
“All right then!” Viktor pulled out a pink carnation. Once he’d paid for it, he held it out to Yuuri.
Yuuri stared at him. “You already want a refund? You can switch it out, if you like…”
“No, I don’t want a refund! I bought this for you. You captivated me that night and I’ve been looking for you ever since.”
“O-oh!” Yuuri blushed hard and took the flower. “That’s… unexpected. And sweet. Thank you.” Yuuri pulled out a blue iris. “Here, take this.”
Viktor took it with a soft smile. “So if pink is romance and yellow is friendship, what does blue mean?”
“In this case, it means I think it goes well with your silver hair and matches your eyes.”
Viktor decided to take that as returning his interest, which was supported by Yuuri suddenly spending almost every evening in town. After nearly a month, Yuuri took Viktor’s hand as they watched the stars. “I won’t be in town for the next few days. There’s something I need to take care of at home.”
“Oh, how disappointing! I was hoping to take you with me when I go to visit a friend tomorrow. I told him about you after that first night we met, and he wants to meet you.”
Yuuri looked genuinely regretful. “Maybe next time? I’m sorry. This isn’t something I can delay.”
“All right. Next time, then.”
They fell back into silence. Yuuri broke it after a shooting star. “Viktor?”
“Yes?”
“What are we?”
“I don’t know. What do you want us to be?" Viktor rolled to look properly at Yuuri. "You know I’m interested in you, but there’s something you need to know before we make anything official.”
“What’s that?”
“This friend, the one I’m going to see? He’s more than just a friend. He knows how interested I was in you before and has been encouraging me to find and pursue you, so you won’t be a problem for him, but if he’s a problem for you I’ll need to talk to him before I make any kind of decision.”
Yuuri nodded, not meeting Viktor’s eyes. “Okay. He’s not a problem for me. In fact, it’s probably just as well, seeing as there will be times like the next few days where I can’t be with you. So if it's all right... can we be boyfriends?”
"Yes, of course!" Viktor reached out and pulled Yuuri into a kiss.
Chris was ecstatic to hear that Yuuri had been found and successfully pursued. “What did you tell him about me?”
“The truth! You’re more than a friend, but you’ve been encouraging me to pursue him.”
“And he’s okay with that?”
“He said he was. I’m hoping I can bring him next time so you can meet him. He’s such a sweetheart. You’ll love him!”
“I can’t wait. In the meantime, the werewolf is still out there. Be careful coming and going, Viktor. If you aren’t sure you can make it, I’d rather you not come than risk getting torn apart or worse.”
“It’s my risk to take, isn’t it?” Viktor kissed Chris. “But yes, I promise, I will be careful.”
For three months, it continued – Yuuri disappearing right before the time when Viktor was going to head out to Chris, and reappearing the night after he got back. Viktor noticed the pattern, but he didn’t think much of it until Chris suddenly started expressing doubts about Yuuri. “I think he’s avoiding me, Viktor. He keeps saying he’ll come next time, but every time, something comes up. Can you talk to him? Make sure that he’s really okay with this arrangement?”
“I’ll try, but he avoids talking about whatever it is that takes him away. I’m sure he’s not doing it to be a jerk! Every time I mention you, he says how happy he is that I have you and he’s being sincere about it.”
“If he’s sincere about it, push him to come next time. Otherwise…" Chris hesitated, but decided to continue. "Otherwise I may have to investigate on my own, and I’m fairly certain I won’t like what I find.”
“Then why investigate? He’s only ever been good to me.”
“Because if my fears are correct, there may be grave danger, Viktor.”
Viktor got to his feet, eyes going cold. “Yuuri would never hurt me.”
Chris got up as well. “And I very much hope you’re right about that, but I’d rather not test it.”
“I am. And if you’re going to try to turn me against him after so many months of encouraging me to pursue him, I’m going to leave.”
Chris reached out and grabbed his wrist. “You can’t!" Viktor glared, and Chris hurried to clarify, "It’s not safe, I mean. The werewolf…”
“If there’s a werewolf out there, it’s a poor example of one. No humans missing, no cattle mutilation, no unexplained animal bones. I’ve never believed in it, and you know that. What’s going on, Chris?”
“I just want to know why Yuuri won’t come to meet me, and I’m hoping hard enough that my fears are wrong that I don’t want to share them until I’ve got better evidence.”
“You know, you have a lot of secrets you keep from me, and now here you are asking me to push Yuuri on the one thing he won’t talk to me about? And trying to control me with tales of a werewolf there’s no evidence of. I’m beginning to wonder how trustworthy you are.”
Chris held tighter to Viktor’s wrist as tears filled his eyes. “If you don’t trust me, then I won’t blame you if you don’t come back after this trip. I’ll miss you, but if you don’t trust me… but please. Don’t go out there now. Can’t you stay a little longer?”
Viktor jerked his arm, but Chris kept hold of it. “Let go of me.”
“Promise me you won’t leave.”
“Let. Go. Of. Me.”
Chris did, and the genuine fear and heartbreak on his face was nearly enough to stop Viktor. Nearly. He turned and walked out of the clearing, out of the silver light and into the darkness.
With no light but the moon, filtered and dimmed by the canopy of the trees, Viktor struggled to find his way. Several times, he tripped over a root he hadn’t seen. After one of those, he stayed down for a bit. He thought he heard breathing off to his left. He couldn’t see anything, it was darkness all over, but he could definitely hear something. As he got to his feet, the breathing became something of a growl, and footsteps approached. No, not footsteps.
It was the largest wolf Viktor had ever seen, and all of a sudden, he believed in werewolves. This thing was too big to be a normal wolf. It snarled and leapt…
And stopped suddenly, its fangs only inches from Viktor’s neck. It backed off slowly, never breaking eye contact with Viktor, and the longer Viktor stared into those eyes the more confused he became. The russet brown color… those were Yuuri’s eyes. How did this wolf have Yuuri’s eyes? The wolf turned and fled.
Viktor struggled to his feet to run after him, but then he was blinded by a bright silver light. Then… hoofbeats? A large white horse approached him and tossed his head at Viktor as if inviting him to get on. Viktor didn’t. He was too distracted by the long silver horn protruding from the horse’s head. The unicorn tossed his head again, and this time, Viktor clumsily got on its back. The unicorn turned and bolted for the clearing.
Viktor stared. The silver light was gone. The unicorn stopped and gestured for Viktor to get down. Then, in a flash of light, the unicorn disappeared.
To be replaced by Chris. “Are you all right? Did it hurt you?”
“I’m fine. By the way… I believe in werewolves now.”
“I should hope so!” Chris leaned back against the giant tree. “Go on. Ask your questions.”
“You’re a unicorn.”
“Yes.”
“I thought unicorns were supposed to prefer the company of young girls.”
Chris made a face. “That’s what I’m told, but I can’t find a way to make that anything but creepy and weird! We’re protectors of the innocent, in whatever form that takes. The young girls thing is propaganda to encourage girls not to explore their sexuality, which, by the way, is not the type of innocence we care about. Personally, I prefer the company of men of good faith. They’re hard to find. You qualify.”
“That wolf…”
“Is also under my protection. It found its way here a few months ago, and I could feel it reacting to my protective magic. There are so many dangerous things besides werewolves that come out during the full moon, you know. My job is to protect these woods. I keep humans out – except for you – and the werewolf and other bad things in.”
“Do you know who the werewolf is?”
“I don’t know, but given the timing of your boyfriend’s disappearances…”
Exactly what Viktor had been thinking. “He has Yuuri’s eyes.”
“I was wrong about one thing.”
“You were?”
“You’re not in danger. I didn’t do anything to pull Yuuri back. He did that all on his own. I would still advise not wandering the woods during the full moon, but that’s because I want you to come out and be with me during the full moon. I’ll come into town to meet Yuuri and introduce myself. It’s difficult, taking human form any time but the full moon is very draining, but it’s the only way to meet him.”
Viktor nodded, thinking it over. “Would it be easier if I brought him out here?”
“If you can get him to come, yes, but I wouldn’t blame him for not wanting to.”
Viktor waited for Yuuri at the tavern. He had almost given up hope when he spotted Yuuri lurking outside and went out to him. “Yuuri!”
“O-oh. Hi, Viktor.” Yuuri accepted the hug. “We, um, need to talk, I guess.”
“Come out to the woods with me?”
Yuuri’s eyes went wide and he pulled away. “Please, just give me a chance to explain! It’s… it’s not… I know what you’re probably thinking, but…”
“Yuuri.” Viktor stepped forward and put his hands on Yuuri’s shoulders. “Come to the woods with me so that I can introduce you to Chris. It’s difficult, but after the other night, he wants to make the effort since it seems you’ll never meet any other way.”
Yuuri swallowed hard, but he nodded and followed Viktor. Once they were out of town, and unlikely to be overheard, he spoke. “I’m sorry. That… I’m a werewolf, that was me the other night. I almost killed you.”
Viktor stopped and took Yuuri's hands. “But you didn’t! Chris said he had nothing to do with that, that you stopped yourself. Now that I know you’re out there, I’ll listen to Chris and stay in his safe zone during the full moon. If something does happen, you stopped yourself once, I’m willing to bet you’ll do it again.”
“Just like that? It’s that easy for you?”
“It’s that easy for me.”
Yuuri’s unease didn't go away, despite Viktor's reassurance, and it increased as they approached the clearing. When they got to the edge of where the silver light reached, he stopped. “I can’t go in there.”
“You can,” Chris said. “As long as it’s not a full moon and you continue to trust my magic to keep you from hurting anything but the bad things of the night, you can enter. It won’t burn you.”
Yuuri stared in disbelief and fear. “Chris is a unicorn? Your lover, the one you go to during the full moon, is the unicorn who protects these woods?”
“I am. He’s been coming to me longer than you’ve been here or I’d never have let him find me that first time, but you love him too. You must understand why even for his own safety I couldn’t cut him out.”
“I do.” Yuuri took a tentative step inside the clearing. When that one didn’t do anything to him, he took another few steps.
Chris came over to him and took his hand. “It’s good to meet you, Yuuri. These woods are under my protection, and while you’re here, you are as well. During the full moon, you won’t be able to come in safely, but if you run into trouble with hunters, get as close as you can and howl.”
“Why would you risk yourself for me?”
“Because you stopped yourself from hurting Viktor. You proved that your innocence is truly who you are, not just circumstance. I wish things were different, and that we could be together as well, Yuuri.”
“Me too.” Yuuri kissed Chris’s cheek. “Thank you for looking after Viktor after the attack and keeping him safe.”