OPEN

[beautiful_monster]

WHO: Yurio and you!
WHERE: Around Heropa
WHEN: Throughout June
WHAT: Catch all! Open starters in main post, closed starters in comments
WARNINGS: Bad teens saying swears


A - Figure Skating
[This is definitely not any of the songs Viktor has been trying to suggest to Yuri for his free skate, and yet here he is practicing an exhibition set to it anyway. His movements on the ice are intense and, quite frankly, almost frantic—one moment he's launching himself across the ice and the next leaping into a series of impossible looking spins and jumps, all of it embellished with arm movements that echo the angry gesticulating of someone in a heated argument.

He pauses frequently, moving from the ice to a notebook he's left sitting on the barrier wall to jot something down or cross out a jump that he's decided he doesn't like. Anyone glancing at the page while he's on the ice will see a lot of shorthand notation for different step sequences and jumps along with clearer notes like "imagine idiot detective being an idiot" or "needs more FOCUS", but he's quick to close the book if he notices anyone actually reading it.]

Spying's rude, you know.

B - Dance Battle!!
[Yuri's spending a lot of time out on the streets of Heropa this month. He's gotten a camera at some point, and it's not unusual to spot him setting it up to film himself while he practices parkour moves around town. Today, however, it looks like he's been pulled into an impromptu dance battle with some of the local teens. The camera's been set up to catch all of it, and a few of the teens are not good at all (especially when compared to the gold medal holder they're challenging), but everyone's having a good time. Even Yurio flashes a smile here and there, occasionally giving one of the other kids advice on how to improve their moves or applauding someone who's actually impressed him.

There's plenty of room for passing imPorts to join in on the action or audience, or maybe someone wants to tell these noisy kids to get lost and quit making such a ruckus in the middle of the sidewalk.]

C - Oh shit a Tiger
[Holy shit it's right there, just lounging in front of Heropa 017 like it belongs there or something. Maybe someone should do something about that??]

D - Wildcard
[As always, if you would like something different or more specific feel free to leave your own starter for me here! You can hit me up at jiora with any questions or requests.]

Comments

For Skate Dads

[beautiful_monster]

[So, May was a pretty rough month for friends of the skaters. It's no wonder that June sees Yurio having trouble sleeping again—he's up well into the early hours of the morning one night when he finally decides to give up and head into the kitchen to make himself a late night snack. Unfortunately, on the way he trips over Makkachin who was coming to investigate what he was up to and topples with a startled curse and a dull thud. Hopefully no one else was awake to hear that. Right?]

[fourlevels]

[ NO SUCH LUCK SON. Viktor looks up from the couch he was occupying in the living room, only the table-side lamp providing the dim light while he scribbles in a notebook on his lap. But it's in the middle of the night, what is Viktor My-Bedtime-Is-9pm Nikiforov doing up so late? ]

Ah, there would have been a deduction for that landing. You alright?

[beautiful_monster]

[Yuri nearly jumps out of his skin, staring wide-eyed and bleary at the couch before his brain catches up to inform him that it's only Viktor.]

Ugh...yeah, I'm fine. What the hell are you doing up?

[fourlevels]

Taking down some ideas for a free skate.

[ He holds up the notebook in his lap a couple inches. There's a beat or two of silence as Viktor looks him over. ]

... Can't sleep?

A

[lempereur]

[ Adachi had told Yusuke he found the ice rink inspiring. At the time, it seemed like an interesting, out of the box idea, but now, he had a pretty good idea as to why.

...not that he could really blame him.

So the artist is here to scope out the location, make sure there's a suitable spot to set up an easel and spend the day here. There is, near the edge of the seating area, right before the barrier wall, and it's there that he is pulled from his fantasy world and distracted by Yuri. The way he flew across the ice with both grace and fury was captivating, he couldn't help but stare just a little too long, until something inside him told him that he really needed to find something else to look at.

Yuri's conspicuously open notebook?

So maybe he's nosy. We all have character flaws, okay? Unfortunately, Yusuke's result in laughing out loud at an obvious dig at the detective that brought him here and drawing attention to himself. ]

I am not spying! I am looking for cool places to paint, it's starting to get too hot to coop myself up in my house.

[beautiful_monster]

[Well...if it's only Yusuke, then that's not so bad. He doubted the other boy was going to actually do anything with the notes, if he even understood the important parts.]

Ugh, it really is. It's already as hot as it normally gets in Russia, and the summer's only just beginning. I'm lucky I got ice magic in time for it.

[Who knew what he might have had to do without them over the summer. Maybe he could've just moved into the ice rink itself.]

[lempereur]

You're lucky. I would have to summon my Persona to use mine, it would be a whole ordeal. I don't think my roommates would appreciate having him out and about.

[ Yusuke's elbows land on the dividing wall, his hands opening up to hold his head so he can lean over and chat with Yuri. ]

Your routine - is it for a competition? You were beautiful, if perhaps a little frightening.

B

[crimeboy]

[Usually, Akira would try to blend in with the crowd, but in this particular instance, standing out was kind of like blending in. Also let's be honest, what kind of a Persona protagonist doesn't like dancing a little?

Also there is some small part of Akira that did want to show the guy up a little. Hey, other teens were engaged in a Dance Battle, so why not him?]

Mind if I cut in?

[Setting his small bag aside, he joined in, just grinning like a fool as he just... did whatever came naturally, his Porter-enhanced dexterity maybe lending a hand.]

[beautiful_monster]

[It's good enough to leave Yuri looking impressed. Honestly, anyone who can show up off the street and pull off moves that include triple spins is worth paying some attention to. He straightens up off the wall he'd been leaning against to watch Akira intently until someone else demands a turn to try to steal the spotlight for themselves.]

You're actually not bad at this. Have you taken dance lessons before?

[crimeboy]

[He certainly wasn't going to attempt to keep the spotlight for himself. In all honesty, he's a little bit nervous when people are all looking at him. At least, while he doesn't have his mask on. He still wasn't really able to hide that he was a little pleased with himself to get praise from Mr. Big-shot with the cameras.

He secretly loved the attention. Not that secretly though, he was still a seventeen year old boy.]

Oh, ah... No, I don't do anything like that. It's just for fun.

C

[carbonfrozen]

[Han, living in Heropa 18 just next door, stops for a second and stares at the tiger for a moment. Once he's established that it's not, in fact, a Selonian, he steps a little bit closer, hands up as if he thinks it'll pounce on him and is hoping it won't if he shows it that he comes in peace.]

Hey. Hey. You're a little far from home, aren't you? [Wherever home is for this thing.]

[beautiful_monster]

[His ears perk up curiously, and he rolls onto his back to look at Han upside down while the man is approaching. It would look very cute if he'd decided to be a housecat today instead of a 600 pound tiger.]

[carbonfrozen]

[It's really too bad that Yuri is a 600-pound tiger, because Han actually stops in his tracks and stares at this tiger, unsure of how to proceed. If he had a lick of sense he'd probably run in the other direction, but as he does not, instead Han steps warily closer, then reaches out a hand to pat the tiger's belly. It's fairly obvious that he doesn't have much experience in handling animals, all of it's usually just been transporting the damn things from point A to B, and he's a little at a loss over how to pet something that could potentially eat him.]

All right, big guy—we should get you out of here before anybody else sees you. I doubt they're as nice as me.

C

[sleight_of_hand]

[ Geeze, he was even banned from his morning workouts. ]

[ Adachi wanted to scream about how mother henning Viktor was being, but he couldn't very well do that. Screaming at him never worked. He just smiled and nailed you with some brutally honest truth that felt more like a stab in the head. So he came up with the next best thing: try to talk Yuuri into talking sense into Viktor. That had to work, right? Yuuri of all people would understand how Viktor was! ]

[ There was just one hitch in his brilliant plan, and that was the rather large wild cat lounging in front of their door. Adachi let out a squeak, not sure what he was supposed to do here. ]

N-nice kitty...?

[beautiful_monster]

[Yuri grins, a look which is not at all pleasant to see on even a half-grown tiger like him. He lashes his tail and lets out a low, curious growl. Not really threatening him. Sort of.]

[sleight_of_hand]

[ ...oh god, it was looking at him like he was lunch. Adachi swallowed, taking a step back. ]

C-c'mon, I'm all skin and bones. I'm not going to taste good, 'ya know?

[ Why does he have to deal with this? ]

A

[bypasser]

[He'd been given his room assignments, a folder detailing his new abilities, and was shown how to travel quickly from city to city. Otabek hadn't been one to believe in a magic or science capable of taking people from one world and bringing them to another, giving them powers beyond imagination so easily. He needed to see it in front of him, touch it with his own hands. He believed in hard work and determination, that anything worth having wasn't easy to obtain.

The latter kept him in his room the first day (this was all too much), the former brought him out into the city (he couldn't decide if it were real if he never left his room). He'd struggled to accept his new reality, mourned the loss of what he'd worked so hard for back home, but seeing Yuri's name on the directory spurred him on, gave him the push he needed to explore.

The rink isn't empty, but Yuri commanded the ice and the attention of most watching. It should be all eyes on the blond, but Otabek would forgive them that. He didn't know if some were his personal fans, lovers of ice skating, or if it was the superhero aspect that brought them out to watch. He stands nearby as Yuri chastises someone for looking at his notes, but they leave when they notice Otabek.]

You shouldn't be so harsh with your fans, Yuri.

[His tone is light. Otabek considers, for the briefest moment, that this might not be his Yuri. How could he be fortunate enough to have his only friend here in this strange place?]

[beautiful_monster]

[Yuri's a little distracted making sure his notebook is still in order, flipping back and forth between a few pages to make sure nothing's been altered or removed. He rolls his eyes at the light scolding but doesn't look up at first. Otabek is right, of course, but Yuri's never had that much patience for his fans. He certainly wasn't going to have a change of heart to let one dig through his choreography notes. Who knew what kind of "keepsake" they might decide to take for themselves!

A few short moments pass before he freezes suddenly, the sound of that voice tugging at the back of his mind. He knew that voice, didn't he? Was he really that lucky?

A quick, wide-eyed glance up confirms his suspicion. Holy shit, was this real? This had to be real. The rest of the day had been much too boring for it to be a dream. He knew he should greet his friend, but instead all he manages to sputter out in a tone fraught with a strange mix of relief and excitement is:]

You're late!

[bypasser]

[Otabek raises and waves his hand, stepping closer to Yuri. The blond was exactly as he remembered him, no distinct changes that would tell him that this isn't the person he knew. It comforts him, makes all of this a little easier.]

I can't be late for something I knew nothing about.

[That relief and excitement speaks volumes. Yuri was glad to see him, expressing it in his own way. Otabek was just as pleased.]

When I saw your name, I had to look for you. To find out if you were actually here. [He stretches a hand out, gently touches Yuri's arm. Otabek relaxes, his shoulders dropping minutely. Yuri was solid. Flesh and muscle. Not some strange vision his mind conjured to cope with this new world of superheroes and magic.] You're real.

Why are we here, Yuri?

[He needed to hear it from someone else. Not the practiced speech they gave him when he arrived. From someone he trusted.]

A

[itistolaugh]

[ Harley has made it a point to stop by without telling Tohru, because Tohru has funny ideas that she might embarrass him in front of his cool new skate friends. He also has funny ideas like he could stop her from doing it anyway. The kid on the ice isn't her friend's "secret" crush, but it's an interesting show and if she sticks around long enough the target of her stalking might stop by. ]

I'm rude, so.

[ She shrugs and smiles. ]

Rad song. Looked like you were trying to kick someone to death out there.

[beautiful_monster]

[Adults. He huffs irritably and tucks the notebook back into his backpack.]

Good. That's what it should look like.

[itistolaugh]

'Course, if you were really going at someone like that, you'd lose for sure.

[She idly plays with the ends of her hair, like giving teens murder tips is just a super normal thing to do. Everyone knows safe topics of conversation include the weather, and efficient brutality.]

So which one are you? God I hope you aren't the one Tohru has a thing for.

Viktor

[beautiful_monster]

[So that happened.

Yuri was quiet the entire trip home. He was quiet when he went into his room to curl up with his cat, too worn out from the events of that night to do anything more than mumble a sullen "'night" to Viktor as he went. And in the morning he's...mostly quiet while he works on putting together a breakfast. The only sounds coming from the kitchen when Viktor wakes up are the banging of kitchenware and low, irritated cursing, so it kind of counts. A little.]

[fourlevels]

[ "When Viktor wakes up" haha oh that's a good one.

Viktor wanders down the stairs by the third or fourth cursing, wanting to know what Yuri's doing. He's wearing the same clothes he was in the night before at the coffee place, only his shoes were kicked off. He walks into the kitchen barefoot, hair a mess and face looking pale. ]

Yur—

[ He still can't say Yuri's proper name though, so he settles to shuffling into the kitchen silently. ]

[beautiful_monster]

[Yuri doesn't look much better. He turns an exhausted scowl on Viktor, squinting at him with eyes puffy from not enough sleep and still red from crying, hair hopelessly mussed from a night spent tossing and turning.

For a moment it seems like he might not say anything, and then—] I'm making syrniki. I can't find the mixing bowl.