Chapter Text
Attn: Hasetsu Household
On the twenty-fifth of December, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince Victor Nikiforov will come of age to inherit the throne. While the prince has been properly prepared for his upcoming coronation, he has yet to select a spouse to accompany him to the throne. Following in the tradition of the first prince, His Royal Highness Alexei Baranovskaya, the crown prince has elected to find his true love within his own kingdom.
The kingdom of Terra Incognita is pleased to announce that a Grand Prix will be taking place from first of October, continuing until the thirtieth of November. During this time a selected candidate from each of the ten provinces will be brought to the capitol to meet His Royal Highness and will spend the following two months presenting themselves as a potential consort to the future king.
Your household is receiving this letter as the annual census indicated that you have a son between the ages of eighteen and twenty-nine. You are encouraged to submit the attached application for the honor of participating in the Grand Prix. Please note that applications are due by the fifteenth of September and the candidates will be selected by the Welcome Masquerade set to take place on the last day of the month.
Your participation in the Grand Prix is not required, but participation is considered a great service to the kingdom of Terra Incognita and the families of the candidates will be generously compensated.
May the land find us in times of both strength and weakness, long live King Dmitriviech.
Yakov Feltsman
Speaker of the King
Yuuri read the letter once, twice, then three times over before he was able to fully process its contents. The Crown Prince Victor Nikiforov had been set to take the throne on his twenty-eighth birthday ever since the New Year’s banquet when King Dmitriviech announced his intentions to step down from the throne. Victor was born rather late into the king’s tenure, and though it was traditional to wait until an heir’s thirtieth birthday, both the king and queen had expressed that their son was ready to lead the kingdom.
The Grand Prix was a tradition based on the strength of the kingdom, though most crown royals elected to marry for kingdom relations or found a suitable spouse within the capitol itself, the competition gave hope that anyone from the kingdom might have a chance to lead it. There had not been a Grand Prix for nearly a century and not many were expecting one for their current crown prince.
Yuuri’s hands trembled as he lifted the first page of the letter to peak at the application below. It asked all the standard questions: name, age, and birthdate; but went on to glean an entire life story of the applicant.
Please list all spoken and written languages, along with level of fluency.
Please indicate any special interests or skills
Do you consent to a full physical examination to ensure proper health and intactment?
Intactment , Yuuri read that part twice. There was no doubt that this application was not to be taken lightly and the royal council would no doubt hand pick only the most appropriate applicants to actually bring to the Capitol. Yuuri’s family ran a reasonably successful onsen in the Hasetsu province, which was mostly known for being a relatively quiet province—not recognized to be too rich or too poor compared to the others. They had no royal connections and though Yuuri’s upbringing had been just as good as anyone from the region’s, he did not find much about himself that might set him apart.
Still, Yuuri had long been a fan of the crown prince and had even seen him when he was just twelve years old. As part of Victor’s debut into society at sixteen, he had traveled through the provinces performing skating routines, the phenomenal figure skater he was, and making powerful speeches about his intent to be a great leader one day.
It hadn’t taken much for Yuuri to become completely smitten with the crown prince, though nearly everyone in attendance to the shows found themselves in a similar situation. The prince was handsome, charismatic, and at the time had long silver hair that gave him an indubitable air of innocence. Ever since, Yuuri had closely followed the endeavors of the crown and kept posters of the prince hung so densely in his room that one could scarcely see the wall beneath all of them.
To be chosen for the Grand Prix would be a dream come true for Katsuki Yuuri. Though he considered his own chances of actually becoming a candidate as slim to none, he brought the application with him to the supper table that evening, sliding it to his mother as she settled down on the floor.
“What’s this Yuuri?” Hiroko asked. She peered at her son with a quizzical brow before removing the letter from its envelope.
“Pleased to announce that a…” his mother trailed off as she quietly read the contents of the letter. Her eyes couldn’t seem to find a resting place between the letter and her son before she shoved the paper into her husband’s hands.
“What does it say?” Mari asked, leaning over her father’s shoulder to understand her mother’s reaction.
“It seems there is to be a Grand Prix,” Toshiya explained softly as he thumbed through the letter to the application, “And our Yuuri will be eligible.”
“A Grand Prix? For Victor’s hand?”
Yuuri nodded in response to his sister’s questions. He had yet to take a bite of his food, instead staring down at his lap while his face turned a bright crimson color. His family continued to pass the letter and the included application back and forth, still working to comprehend the situation.
“Intactment, huh? This application sure is thorough.” Mari snorted. Her father nudged her and shook his head, “They have to be, any one of the candidates could be the next leader of Terra Incognita.”
“Is this..something you would like to do Yuuri?” His mother laid a hand on his shoulder, her brows knit together in concern as she addressed her son.
Yuuri managed a nod and cleared his throat before speaking. His family set down the letter and focused on him as he tried his best to sound clear and confident.
“I would like to put in my application to be a candidate in the Grand Prix.” His words came out firm, punctuated with an equally solid tap of his fist on the table. The Katsuki clan nodded in agreement and the rest of dinner was spent speculating on who might be selected for the competition and what the crown prince might be like in person.
Yuuri filled out his application that evening and began to wait.
"When Terra Incognita was but a small kingdom that barely stretched across the expanse of former Russia, the Crown Prince Alexei Baranovskaya was set to inherit the throne but had failed to find a match in any of the neighboring kingdoms. Alexei believed that in order to create a foundation for true strength, his spouse should come from their own kingdom.
The prince travelled across the kingdom, stopping in each village to meet every townsperson of an appropriate age. It was at the end of his journey that he met the figure skater Arthur Stuart and was completely captivated by him. Prince Alexei returned to the Capitol with Arthur where they were wed and ruled together to expand the kingdom. This set forth the tradition of the Grand Prix which is still practiced on occasion today, the last of which taking place with the wedding and coronation of Queen Viktoria, for whom the current crown prince was named."
-excerpt from Terra Incognita: Discovering the Unknown Land, Lalina Zagiteva
~♕~
The evening of the candidate selection, there was not a television, computer, or radio that wasn’t turned to the feed from the Capitol. The royal council had elected to make the Grand Prix an event for the entire kingdom by broadcasting segments over the course of the competition. There had already been several check ins with the council who explained what they would be looking for in a potential royal consort and an interview with the royal historian who referred back to the story of Kings Alexei and Arthur, whose marriage started the tradition of the Grand Prix. Surprisingly, the crown prince himself had not made any appearances on the royal news feeds or otherwise since the event had been announced.
There had been plenty of speculation in the local news as to who might be selected to represent the Hasetsu province in the Grand Prix. Kenjirou Minami’s name had been thrown around as he came from one of the few nobilities that resided in the province, but plenty dismissed him for having barely met the minimum age requirements. Given that the prince was nearing twenty-eight, they speculated that the candidates chosen would be closer to the middle of the age range.
A few other names had been brought into the conversation and Yuuri had been extremely surprised to hear his own name tossed around once toward the end of the waiting period. No doubt they had run out of applicants at that point. Still, as he settled on the floor in front of the couch, his family and friends gathered in the lobby of the onsen to watch the announcement, he couldn’t help but to allow himself a sliver of hope.
To hear his name among the candidates would surely be a mark of some fever dream, Yuuri was not handsome or particularly talented. On his application he had racked his brain to find things that might set himself apart from the other applicants. For special skills he made sure to include his skating, something he and Victor had in common despite the fact Yuuri’s nerves had kept him from pursuing it competitively. Unfortunately he wouldn’t be surprised if more accomplished skaters beat him out, since they would no doubt be a better match for the talented prince.
“They’re starting!” Yuuko called out, clapping her hands furiously. She had tucked herself into the corner of the couch alongside Mari and the triplets, all of whom had their eyes glued to the television set.
Celestino Cialdini, an esteemed TV and radio personality who often covered the royal news, had been selected as the correspondent for the Grand Prix. He had already hosted the various check ins from the moment the letters were sent out and now he stepped onto the screen in a crisp blue suit with his hair pulled back in his signature ponytail. He adjusted the lilly tucked in his jacket pocket, the national flower of Terra Incognita, and smiled brightly at the camera.
“Hello, and welcome kingdom of Terra Incognita! My name is Celestino Cialdini and I will be your host over the course of what will surely shape up to be the most impressive Grand Prix to date!”
He paused for a large applause from the live audience, which consisted mainly of the nobility residing in the Capitol, before continuing.
“I will be announcing the carefully selected ten candidates tonight for the first time ever, not even the candidates themselves have been informed of the selection. For those of you who hear your names announced this evening, please do not fret. Your royal advisor will arrive soon to prepare you for your debut at next week’s Welcome Masquerade!
Now, please welcome the man of the hour, His Royal Highness, Crown Prince Victor Nikiforov!”
Celestino gestured towards the side of the stage and the cameras followed, panning over to where the prince walked onstage. Victor looked as handsome as physically possible, his silver hair and bright blue eyes popped under the bright studio lights. The prince was absolutely regal in his violet suit, pressed so perfectly that one could cut themselves on the defined creases.
“Stop drooling, little brother,” Mari scolded. Yuuri quickly closed his mouth, which had hung agape without his permission upon seeing the prince’s entrance.
The stage was set up just like an evening talk show, and after shaking Celestino’s hand, Victor settled into the solitary leather armchair across from the host’s desk. It took the audience several minutes to calm down. The applause for the crown prince continued to roar after he was seated, punctuated with whoops and cheers from a few rowdier audience members. The prince had a smile frozen on his face as he waved to the audience and the cameras and Yuuri briefly wondered if the smile was as genuine as the prince made it seem.
“Your Grace, in just a moment we will be learning the names of the ten candidates who will move in to the palace after the masquerade next week—and one of these ten men will be your future husband, how does that feel?” Celestino leaned over the desk, his own press smile emblazoned across his face as his brows knit together in earnest.
Victor barely took a moment before rattling off his practiced answer, “I am excited to meet each one of the candidates and have no doubt that the council has selected the best representatives for me to have the pleasure of knowing. I have always found the story of King Alexei and his beloved Arthur to be one of the greatest love stories that Terra Incognita ever told. I hope to be able to find my own love like that over the course of the Grand Prix.”
Celestino nodded and folded his hands on the desk. “True love is a wonderful thing, but as you are set to take the throne in a matter of months your marriage will also help to define the kingdom over the course of your reign. That puts a lot of responsibility on your choice. Have you thought about what you will be looking for as you get ready to meet these men?”
“Well, I would hope that the man I marry will be as devoted to Terra Incognita as I am. I hope that he truly loves this land and will be ready to help guide us forward over the coming years.”
“Right, right,” Celestino responded, though the host didn’t seem too preoccupied with the prince’s answer as he moved right along.
“Well folks, I believe that the time has come to announce the candidates for this year’s Grand Prix.” The host paused as the music began to swell and the audience fell silent, as did those gathered in the onsen’s lobby. The tension was palpable as the television cut to images of snow covered mountains and grand buildings constructed from glass. “Our first candidate, from the northern province of Ottawa...Jean-Jacques Leroy, Duke of Montreal and a prominent skating competitor!”
A professional portrait of the duke appeared on the television and Yuuri felt as if the man’s gaze burned right through to television to where he sat. JJ was a well-known name to just about anyone who followed crown politics even remotely. He was a safe choice and no doubt someone that the council highly favored given his duke status. The camera flicked to the crown prince and if he was surprised at the selection, his countenance masked it perfectly.
This was how the remainder of the program went, though occasionally Celestino interrupted the process to ask Victor’s thoughts on the latest candidate. The prince plastered on his best press smile and had plenty of polite, noncommittal comments to offer that would in no way give any candidate a seeming advantage over another.
“From the province of Bangkok...Phichit Chulanont, heir of the Cricetinae media empire.”
Victor nodded politely, his smile looking more fragile as each name was called out. The tension remained in the lobby of the onsen until the television showed images of Hasetsu.
“Look!” Axel called out, scrambling from the couch to place a hand on the television. Her sisters followed suit as Loop giggled excitedly, “There’s the Ice Castle!”
“Girls, sit down!” Yuuko called out as Celestino’s voice chimed in.
“From the quiet province of Hasetsu...Katsuki Yuuri, the humble darling of the heartlands!”
“Did he say—” Mari sputtered. Every eye in the room turned to look at Yuuri, who remained perfectly still with his knees hugged to his chest. His eyes were glazed over, still fixed on the screen as it panned across images of the next province.
Hiroko shared a worried glance with Yuuko before the latter peeled herself from the couch and made her way to the rug.
“Yuuri,” Yuuko approached Yuuri quietly and laid a hand on his shoulder as she searched his face for any sort of response. “You’re going to be in the Grand Prix...with Victor Nikiforov.”
“ Once the candidates have been selected for the Grand Prix they will be given at least one week with an advisor assigned by the royal council. During this time, it is the responsibility of the candidate and the advisor to adequately prepare. A full physical examination as well as a complete grooming session should occur before attendance to the Welcome Ball.
Candidates will receive a temporary wardrobe during their stay at the Grand Palace, and will be expected to be dressed and groomed appropriately for all Grand Prix events—including any external event attended by invitation of the crown royal. Candidates are expected to bring their own wardrobe for standard day and sleep attire.”
— excerpt from The Grand Prix: Terra Incognita’s Royal Tradition , Nathen Chan
~♕~
The week that led to the Welcome Masquerade in a blur. Yuuri’s royal advisor for the Grand Prix was a middle-aged woman named Minako Okukawa. At a glance she looked almost delicate, she had been an accomplished ballerina and her lithe feminine form did not represent the fire of her tongue.
“I’ll be your go to for this entire competition. Someone looks at you wrong? I’ll take care of it. You need something? You tell me. I’ll take care of it.” While the woman has meant to be reassuring, Minako’s habit of shouting her words made her statements come off as more of a threat.
Yuuri didn’t dare cross her and followed the instructions he was given to a T. He received his physical examination, spent an entire day practicing his speech for his departure day from Hasetsu, and was subject to a complete overhaul of his current wardrobe.
“What is this?” Minako shouted pulling a hanger from Yuuri’s closet.
“A...tie?” Yuuri replied timidly as his advisor thrust the strip of cloth in front of his face.
“No, we will get you a better tie. The prince would burn this tie if he saw it.” Minako threw the tie on the increasingly large pile of clothes that Yuuri was not to wear during his time at the palace.
On the day of the masquerade ball, Minako arrived at nine o’clock on the dot with a handful of stylists from the Capitol. After a polite greeting to the Katsukis, she unleashed her team on Yuuri.
He was scrubbed from top to bottom before he was dressed in his formal attire. The masquerade clothes were to represent each candidate’s province and being from Hasetsu, the heartland province, Yuuri’s outfit for the ball was a relatively simple one.
The team of stylists dressed him in tight black slacks and a slim fitting blue blouse, his waist cinched with a swatch of golden fabric. Minako allowed him to wear the dress boots he owned after a thorough polishing, but insisted on a silken indigo cape that secured to one shoulder. It made Yuuri feel a bit like a child, back in the days when he would pretend to be a knight with a blanket fastened around his neck, but Minako insisted it made him look regal.
He managed to escape most of the makeup, opting for natural look of foundation and gloss. His hair was slicked back with a pomade which he was explicitly told not to touch, a direction that only drew his hands upward. Yuuri was in the middle of another nervous check to his hair when Mila smacked his hand.
“Enough of that,” she chided. The woman gave him another once over and the satisfaction of her smile reflected in her eyes. “You look ready. How do you feel?”
“Nervous.” Yuuri sighed. He tried to give her his most convincing smile and was surprised when Minako tossed her head back in laughter.
She gave him a firm clap on the shoulder and took his face in her hands. “Yuuri,” she began with a gentle purr, “Out of all the candidates I could have chosen for this competition, I put my faith in you. Do you know why that is?”
She didn’t wait for a response before continuing. “I grew up in Hasetsu. I know what it’s like to not expect much of yourself, but we are a proud province and I believe that you could be exactly what the crown prince needs.”
Minako patted his cheeks affectionately before reaching into a satchel on the floor. She removed a simple silver mask, a solid piece designed to cover the right side of Yuuri’s face. She pressed it securely to his face, the adhesive cool on his cheeks as she gave them a firm pat.
“Have a little faith in yourself, Yuuri. You earned it.”
Welcome to the Palace:
Grand Prix Candidates Arrive at the Capitol
Shomo Onu, The Weekly Crown
And we’re off! The ten announced candidates for the Grand Prix have arrived at the castle, and The Weekly Crown will be giving you the exclusives on all the latest gossip. We will get our first footage of the candidates as they arrive for tonight’s Welcome Masquerade, in the meantime let’s get to know our possible future king consorts:
Cao Bin — Beijing Province
Emil Nekola — Prague Province
Guang Hong Ji — Hong Kong Province
Jean-Jacques Leroy — Ottawa Province
Leo de la Iglesias — Washington Province
Michele Crispino — Rome Province
Otabek Altin — Astana Province
Phichit Chulanont — Bangkok Province
Seung-Gil Lee — Seoul Province
Katsuki Yuuri — Hasetsu Province
Click to Subscribe
~♕~
Have a little faith in yourself, Yuuri.
Minako’s words came back to Yuuri as he fiddled with his cape. His departure speech from Hasetsu had been met with plenty of applause and the cheers of the province left no doubt as to who they wanted as the prince’s groom. The governor of Hasetsu gave Yuuri a pendant shaped like a Chrysanthemum, the provincial flower, as a token of luck for the competition. He tucked it in the folds of his belt, securing it with a firm pat.
The red carpet to the masquerade went as well as could be expected, Yuuri repeated a few lines from his speech when prompted and was able to make it the entire way to the palace without tripping on his cape. Now safely tucked in the corner beside a fountain of champagne, Yuuri had resigned himself to watching the nobility interact with the other candidates—not that he knew who anyone was under their masks.
Yuuri nursed a glass of champagne, by his count it was his third glass. He was so preoccupied with his current occupation as a wallflower that he failed to notice the man approaching him until he felt his touch. The man tapped his hand gently, unfurling it from around the cape, “You shouldn’t do that to silk, I hear the wrinkles are horrible to get out.”
Startled, Yuuri nearly dropped his champagne as he let go of the fabric. His eyes darted to those of his newfound company and was met with sparkling blue eyes that twinkled with mirth beneath an intricate gold mask.
“You don’t look as though you’re enjoying the ball,” the stranger remarked, corners of his lips turning down.
“No—no! I mean yes! I mean—” Yuuri could feel his face turning colors as he struggled to maneuver his own tongue. “I’ve never been to such a grand event, my home is in Hasetsu and our parties are...less extravagant.”
“Ah,” the stranger nodded, asking no further questions. He bowed to Yuuri and extended a single gloves hand. “Perhaps a dance might make you feel more at home?”
The Yuuri who arrived at the beginning of the night would have declined the stranger’s invitation, more than content to stand by the wall and continue to watch the commotion. However his champagne consumption left a small buzz in the back of his head along with an ample serving of courage. He took the stranger’s hand and allowed himself to be brought onto the dance floor.
The current dance was a waltz, something Yuuri was unfamiliar with, but the stranger seemed more than capable as he placed a hand on Yuuri’s waist and began to lead them across the floor.
The pair swayed to the music, Yuuri easily finding his steps alongside his partner. As he grew comfortable with the motion of the dance, he allowed himself to drink in the stranger’s appearance, almost as if noticing him for the first time.
The stranger must have been nobility, Yuuri could guess this from his clothes alone. A fitted violet ensemble threaded through with crystal, gleaming caps on his shoulders with a chain attached to one side, no doubt made of solid gold given the brilliance in which they shone. It was his hair that puzzled the Hasetsu native, for the stranger wore it in a similar style as the prince: short save for the long bangs that brushed over one eye. His hair was even the same color as Victor’s, a silver that matched Yuuri’s half-mask.
Surely this isn’t Prince Victor , Yuuri wondered as he continued to allow the stranger to lead him into the next dance. His curiosity, with the aid of the champagne no doubt, finally won as he leaned forward to whisper in his partner’s ear.
“Your hair, it looks just like the crown prince’s.”
“You’re not wrong,” admitted the stranger, color blooming at the tip of his ears. “It’s a popular style here in the Capitol—everyone wants to look like His Royal Highness.”
“The color?”
“Natural. It does help complete the look, does it not?”
Yuuri nodded, receiving a warm smile from the stranger which he returned in kind. As the final notes of the song began to fade, Yuuri felt a tug on his hand as his partner led him from the floor.
The man retreated back to the champagne fountain where he plucked two glasses from the table beside it. “Would you care for some fresh air?” He inquired as he extended a glass to Yuuri, who accepted it with a nod.
The smile on the stranger’s face was near dangerous as he took Yuuri’s hand once more and led him from the ballroom. The pair made their way through several corridors before they found the balcony.
A soft evening breeze tickled Yuuri’s skin and played with the few strands of hair broken free from the pomade. He inhaled and found he could smell the soft fragrance of the lilies growing in the royal garden, as well as the heady musk of the stranger beside him.
“I like dancing, but there’s nothing more refreshing than the evening air,” the stranger mused. He had stationed himself on the edge of the balcony, leaned against the railing as his eyes cast out to the mountains in the distance.
“It makes me miss home,” Yuuri admitted, taking a few tentative steps to join the man on the rail.
“Tell me about your home.” The stranger begged. He took one of Yuuri’s hands in his own gloved grasp, blue eyes peeking from under the mask to meet Yuuri’s dark orbs.
“Hasetsu is small, quiet, and nothing like the Capitol.” Yuuri began, pausing for a breath before he continued. “My family runs an onsen there, not too far from the beach. It’s the most brilliant thing to watch the ocean waves roll under the stars and no matter where you go in town, the air smells of the sea.”
“Do you enjoy the stars?”
Once again their eyes met and Yuuri thought he could see the stars in the depths of blue that drew him in. “I’ve always loved the stars,” Yuuri didn’t notice how soft his voice became, or how much fear he held in his heart. The fear of being so far from home, of disappointing the hundreds of people who sent him off with cheers of faith, of meeting the prince—his idol—and the possibility of being rejected. Looking into the stranger’s eyes was the first time that day that he felt brave, though perhaps that was the effects of the champagne.
A gloved hand snaked over his as they clung to the railing of the balcony and soon Yuuri was pulled into a snug embrace. One hand found his waist, “Will you dance with me under the stars this evening?”
“There’s no music,” Yuuri whispered, as if his voice might shatter the dream—for a handsome masked man inviting him to dance on a palace balcony was certainly a dream.
Pulling Yuuri in tighter, the stranger began to hum a soft tune as he guided his partner in small steps. The light from the stars shone down on the pair as they gently swayed, neither’s eyes leaving the countenance of the other before they became so entranced with one another that their movements stilled. Softly, in a fleeting moment that couldn’t have been real, Yuuri touched the edge of the stranger’s mask with a single finger.
“It’s not fair that you should be able to see half my face when I can’t see an inch of yours.”
His partner balked at the statement, fear visible in his eyes as Yuuri’s fingers continued to trace the mask. He allowed a fingertip dip under the mask where it fit to the man’s cheekbone, leaving only the expanse of his chin and lips exposed to Yuuri’s sight. Before he could remove it, the stranger dipped down and caught Yuuri’s lips to create a distraction.
Distracting it was, a current of electricity traveling from the top of his skull down to his curling toes as Yuuri’s tentative lips began to match the insistence of his partner. Two gloved hands gripped his waist, pulling him in closer as their lips mimicked the dance from before. Yuuri’s lips screamed for more, his body screamed in wanting, and in the back of his mind something screamed louder than all his sensations combined.
Prince Victor. Yuuri remembered the reason he had been invited to the ball in the first place. A wave of remorse washed over him. He pulled away at once, pushing the stranger’s chest away from him. Thick and palpable, a tension was evident as both men stared at each other, drawing breaths they had missed in their moment of passion.
“I—I shouldn’t be here,” admitted Yuuri. Their eyes met once more, the stranger’s brows raised in surprise at Yuuri’s swift change in tune. “I’m a candidate for the Grand Prix. I appreciate your company, but I must return to the ball. If Minako found me out here, why she would—”
The stranger removed his glove and pressed a single finger to the other man’s lips, silencing his explanations, a melancholy smile reaching sorrowful eyes.
“To part is such sweet sorrow,” the man whispered, his voice carried on the wind to meet Yuuri’s ear. “I understand all too well the responsibility of the palace. You should return to the ball before your advisor notices you’re missing. Please—accept my apologies for stealing you away.”
Yuuri’s heart strained at the stranger’s words and there was a dangerous part of him that still felt reluctant to leave. Still, he feared the consequences of staying another minute and bowed to take his leave.
The stranger gave a small bow in return as Yuuri turned on his heels and ran from the balcony. He could barely catch his breath after he sprinted through the corridors, cape trailing behind him. He spotted Minako chatting amiably near the champagne fountain where he first met his company for the evening and she did not appear to know that her ward was already sneaking off with other men.
Guilt pooled in Yuuri’s stomach as he retreated to the edge of the dance floor, back to where he belonged. Minako caught his eye and offered an encouraging wave, which he met with a feigned smile. He was disappointed in himself, his entire province was counting on him to win the heart of the prince and instead he was running off with masked strangers.
Masked strangers who had lovely blue eyes and a heart shaped smile. Masked strangers who smelled like lilly gardens and danced with Yuuri as if there was no one else to take his place.
Yuuri shook the thoughts out of his head, this was no time to be thinking like that. To motivate himself he recalled his departure from Hasetsu, the crowds cheering for him, his parents and Mari watching him proudly, and the pendant from the governor who had more faith in Yuuri than he did.
He patted his hip, feeling for the cool metal of the pendant. Yuuri’s hands continued searching but his heart had already dropped to his stomach—
His pendant was missing.