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Yuuri looks just as beautiful as ever, peach skin aglow under the midday sun and grey ears perked as Victor scratches behind them. Yuuri tilts and leans into every little touch, nuzzling Victor’s hand and sometimes even making a low purring sort of noise, strange and soothing. They’re both leaning over the fence that blocks off the exhibit, high enough for Victor to rest one arm on, and Yuuri listens as Victor tells him all about the Russian countryside. “I could teach you how to skate; I bet you’d be so graceful.”
“I’d try,” Yuuri hums, rubbing his cheek into Victor’s palm. “But I’d like to see you skate first...”
Victor wants to tell him all about that, because all the inspiration’s back, and Victor’s routines are marvelous again now that he has Yuuri in his life. There was a dry spell last season where he lost it all, but then his couch suggested the raw beauty of nature, and it worked. Yuuri’s a perfect muse. Yuuri smiles, having no idea how much he’s influenced Victor’s greatest passion. Victor opens his mouth to say it, but he’s cut off by one of the zoo’s handlers coming up beside him.
“Victor,” Phichit says, eyeing him for once instead of Yuuri. “Can I speak to you for a moment?” And then he murmurs something in Japanese to Yuuri, too quick for Victor to catch but probably just something like: alone, because Yuuri gives Victor a sad smile before slipping away. He’s bounding up the hill in a heartbeat, disappearing back between the trees. Victor watches the space where he vanished, hoping for one more glance at the cute flick of Yuuri’s tail.
Left alone, he asks, “What is it?” Phichit frowns, which makes Victor frown too. The serow exhibit seems like Phichit’s whole life, so whatever has him down can’t be good for Yuuri.
In a low voice, even though there aren’t any other patrons even close to the exhibit, Phichit asks, “Were you serious about wanting to buy Yuuri?”
Victor’s ears perk almost like one of the hybrids. He stares at Phichit, because he never once mentioned that, even though he visits the zoo all the time. Yuuri must’ve said something, though Victor didn’t even tell Yuuri that, just entertained private daydreams. Victor takes a second to gauge Phichit’s uncharacteristically grim expression, because the last thing he wants is to get banned from the zoo. But he doesn’t think Phichit would do that to him—Phichit let Yuuri keep the glasses Victor gifted him and even snuck Victor into the back during Yuuri’s isolated rut. So Victor quietly admits, “I’d like to, yes.”
“It’s not like having a normal pet, you know,” Phichit starts, as though Victor would ever think of treating Yuuri like one. “He requires lots of special care. He needs a large, safe area to run in, but somewhere to come in case of poachers, and he needs certain kinds of plants available all year round, and he especially needs to be taken care of during a rut—which, by the way, won’t be pleasant for you, because he’ll mark everything and he’ll try to mount anyone that gets close.”
The more Phichit talks, the quicker Victor’s heart beats—because he can do all that, he’s sure of it. And the more he realizes that, the more having Yuuri permanently in his life seems like a real possibility. He promises, “That’s fine. My family owns a cabin up in the mountains I could take Yuuri to. It’d be safe for him there, he’d have plenty of space, and he could come in during rut...”
Phichit’s frown only deepens. “He’d rub his scent glands on everything and make it stink.”
“I like the smell, so I wouldn’t mind.”
Phichit gives him a disbelieving look, but Victor stands firm. He doesn’t know how to explain to Phichit that he’s always been quirky, and he thinks he could make that craziness work, so he just lets Phichit study him in silence.
After too long, Phichit slowly admits, “Another serow asked to be admitted to our zoo.” Victor’s chest tightens, and he doesn’t even know exactly why—another friend for Yuuri, or more competition. Phichit continues, “It’d be a long way for him to fly here from Japan, but our serow exhibit has the best rating, and we have trained handlers that could go and help him here. He’s younger and even smaller than Yuuri, so naturally, our director doesn’t want to turn him away, with how dangerous it is for hybrids out there... but... we won’t have enough accommodations to deal with three males when the rut season starts...” He trails off, but Victor completely understands.
He says without hesitation, “If Yuuri will have me, then give this other serow Yuuri’s spot.”
To his surprise, Phichit nods. “I’ll talk to the director. You should know that it probably won’t be cheap—our cost of acquisition on foreign hybrids is quite high, and you’ll be put through background and property checks to make sure you can care for him...”
“Price isn’t an issue,” Victor decides, even if it costs every cent he’s ever made. “And I’ll take care of him, I promise.” Then he thinks to add, grinning, “Hey, I can even give him a phone, and you can check in with him...”
Phichit brightens, though he tells Victor, “Yuuri won’t want a phone—they don’t care much for human things. But I’ll call you, and if you don’t mind, I would like to visit him.”
“Of course; you’re welcome any time.” It isn’t until Phichit laughs that Victor realizes he’s talking about it like it’s already happened. In a way, he’s sure it will. He already thought that he and Yuuri were meant to be together; it was just a matter of how and when.
“I’ll go talk to the director now,” Phichit tells him. “You can see what Yuuri thinks—obviously, he’s not for sale if he doesn’t want to be.”
“Of course,” Victor agrees again. He’s almost certain Yuuri will want to come with him, and not just so he won’t have to spend ruts in isolation anymore.
As Phichit heads off, Victor whistles and waves Yuuri back down the slope—Yuuri appears almost instantly, leaping through the foliage with eager speed. He comes right back into Victor’s waiting arms, and Victor asks, “Yuuri, how would you like to see a real Russian forest?”