#the red i mean blue thread of fate connects them now i don't make the rules

[pharawee]

"You! I recognize you. Don't hide. I remember your face now."

—KIDNAP THE SERIES · Episode 01

[the-wayside]

hello! I’ve read your KP fics and I utterly loved them and I am also watching the sign now. When ep 7 aired some (including the cast in the bts) were talking about how Art’s case was paralleled to phaya tharn. would you mind sharing your thoughts on that cause I didn’t particularly see that correlation more of a correlation between an obsessive love like chalathorn and tharn. also how are you feeling about the recent ep and how do you think things could wrap next week? I’m just hoping for a satisfying conclusion! *fingers crossed*

H! Thank you for reading my works and the ask! That's so lovely of you to let me know that you enjoyed them. As for the questions, well. Buckle up. It's a longish one.

For me, it's not a direct Phaya/Tharn/Chalothon = Art/Kao/Ning summation, it's the essence of things that match between the two and the concept of who Phaya and Tharn COULD be. Art and Kao are Phaya and Tharn but in a mirror darkly.

Let's break it down. From the moment the episodes starts, that beautiful first scene is Phaya and Tharn. We don't know the circumstances right away so it's the beautiful tragedy of an artist (Art/Phaya) losing their muse and love (Kao/Tharn). Because we know that Phaya is fated to lose Tharn because Tharn throughout his lives has always chosen to leave Phaya, regardless of his reasons. Kao's pleas echo what we hear in Tharn now: when everything changes (when I leave) don't change the way you look at me (please remember how much I love you). You're getting married from Art is, Phaya confronting the fact Tharn will be forced to choose Chalothon to save everyone. It's not the life Tharn wants but it's the one he must live.

Art in the shower to me feels like the guilt Phaya, and Sakuna, must feel towards Tharn and Wansarut because of how they get caught up in the war with Chalothon. Losing them pours out a tremendous amount of grief but again, guilt because had they never met and fell in love, they would still be alive.

Love has a way to find you and make lovers walk a different path. Art says it at the beginning of the performance and it has such a double-edged meaning. Did Sakuna and Wansarut not cause death and suffering with their love? Did they not have to do secretive and potentially hurtful things to stay together? Why is their love purer than Art and Kao's? But with undenying faith love brings us together. These are things that are beautiful but utterly terrifying. Love and hate are not enemies but bedfellows. His whole performance art piece is stunning and you think it's about him and Kao but it's directly speaking to Phaya and Tharn, Phaya particularly, which is why we getting him looking back at Tharn, feeling the connection of his role and his mirroring in Art but also Chalothon watching him look back at Tharn, seeing the thread of their love strengthen in front of his very eyes. There is no black in the performance until Chalothon enters the scene and if you look, one of the performers has a red paint mark on her leg where Sakuna has one of his leg I don't want to say shield but you know, the shin things he has. Red being Phaya/Sakuna's color and the blue being Tharn/Wansarut as water/rain fall and white the purity of their love. Art by the end only has black smudged paint on him, almost as if they are marking him for death (Phaya marked by Chalothon). What's also interesting is that the female performer appears to still be "alive" while the male performer is lying down and could be considered dead. But it isn't what you'd expect. In this version, the woman represents Art/Phaya and she lives but the man, Tharn/Kao still dies. I also love the heavy accent lighting on Art's back which is unblemished where as Phaya has his winged tattoo but it's to remind you of that fact. It's Art and Kao's story, but it's future we may yet see because of Tharn's choices.

When Ning arrives, obviously representing Chalothon, we see further into that future that hasn't happened yet. Tharn has yet to leave. Chalothon hasn't won yet. And we also get him smug at the back because he sees what we see. He sees Phaya in Art and I think that's what draws him to start fucking around. He creates a scenario like he does with Phaya early on where he starts pushing buttons and making Art (Phaya) seem delusional and crazy. It's also really obvious to me what harm Chalothon intends when he puts his hand over Art's heart. He wishes he could burn and gouge Phaya's out of his chest but he can't so he will take the metaphorical Phaya and get his jollies that way.

We also see an increase in Phaya's "hysteria" at this time as Chalothon says to Akk (god I want to slap him) so we see a bleed that begins to suggest an inversion, a dark poison into Phaya and Tharn's love like Art and Kao as they work on this case. And that's what the episode is about. It's about Phaya and Tharn feeling that poison but extracting it out by being honest with each other, leaving no room for misunderstanding and darkening of their love, which they solidify by making love. They could just as easily BE Art and Kao, but they're not because they're them and their faith and fate are placed into each other and they do not let others affect them, letting the pool water they sit/the shower they share together to cleanse them of the sickening slough of others' issues.

But back to the episode timeline. Tharn is attracted to and goes over to the painting that holds Art and Kao's goodbye, now painted over with white to almost hide the pain and negativity of their love. Trying to cover what was fundamentally broken. Tharn is himself, walking through the vision, the first piece clearly one about breaking out of one's shell or revealing an identity from within one's self (outside he is Tharn, inside he is Wansarut) and then the painting. What is most important to Tharn's very being beside his soul? His love for Phaya. He can see what the love should be but he knows that's not what it is. He can see without knowing the crippling and degradation of love. This isn't his love. So they find the blood spatters. They take this to Art and we have this beautiful scene of forgiveness which means different things to them. All Art (Phaya) wants is for Kao (Tharn) to be there and for them to stay together. Art loves as purely as Phaya does. But as we know the poison is in the well, Art hears Kao say such awful things but what he also says is "is that what you want to hear?" The unwillingness to hear any more pain leads to tragedy. Kao will never get a chance to explain himself. But it shows how easily everything can get turned on its head. Art has lost his way. Tharn can see that Art loves Kao and wouldn't have hurt him but what we finally see is the divorce of Phaya and Tharn from this What If version of them because Phaya isn't Art. He won't stand by as Tharn leaves. He will chase him to the end of the world of the gods.

Art and Kao seem obsessive because of Art's mental state towards the end and it is largely contextualized by outside forces and I really do wonder if Kao truly loved Art and if they were able to deescalate would they be together now. So yeah, I think they both walked a similar path but what was different and was always different is how Phaya and Tharn are always honest with each other and they always come back to home in each other. It's upon that basis that they deal with things as they come. They aren't taken by the words of others (normally) and even if they are, they always reset together. The reason what is happening now is happening is because Tharn hasn't reset. He hasn't brought this to Phaya. They are at cross purposes (stay versus leave) and that discord will be what causes them pain, not necessarily Chalothon despite his best efforts.

***

I mean, for this week, that's whole other post but like you I'm hoping for a satisfying conclusion. When I watch a show it ultimately comes down to: did I enjoy this? Some things help me to enjoy a show more or less but my rating system is more along the lines of did I feel like I wasted my time watching this, would I rewatch it and do I feel the feels? And so far the answer is no, yes and yes.

[willel]

Will Shaped the Upside Down

spurred on by @endiness's awesome gifset https://endiness.tumblr.com/post/689459538551816192/

Season 4 honed in a lot on the idea that El "shaped" Vecna and made him become what he is today. She shooed him off to an ultimate dimension where he grew in strength, opened a gateway and allowed him back into their world, and now look where we are.

Of course, Henry has no one to blame but himself. It's not El's fault he's a murderous weirdo. But I digress. This brings me to an interesting topic of discussion. The "shape" of the Upside Down.

As we saw, the Upside Down was a yellowish plain completely alien to our world. Floating structures, evil clouds of doom, hungry flowers shaped like men, quite a sight to see. But for some reason in the present, the Upside Down is now shaped like Hawkins and it is blue.

I'm pointing out colors here because I think it's important. In this thread, you will see that they have actually updated the graphics for the Upside Down. In part 1, it was red. In part 2, it's been updated to yellow.

Something, or someone between 1979 and 1983 reshaped the Upside Down into what we know and don't love today. For reasons I will explain, I believe Will accidentally made the Upside Down reflect Hawkins the night he was taken.

If we look back at Vecna's speech to younger El, he talked a lot about how "Together, we can reshape the world to how we see fit." This appears to still be his goal. When he's speaking to older El, he still says something like "I will be there to pick up the pieces when Hawkins falls. I will remake it into something beautiful."

He's very focused on "reshaping" the world to what he believes is beautiful. He is an artist after all. So where does Will come in?

On the one hand, I feel as though Will was taken by Vecna on purpose. That Will had some kind of latent abilities Vecna could sniff out and he moved his chess pieces around (the Demogorgon) to cross paths with him and inevitably kidnap him into the Upside Down.

On the other hand, I also feel like Will really was just in the wrong place at the wrong time and was just like ever other Demogorgon victim… but something happened when he got taken there.

The once yellow landscape suddenly got overwritten with something else. Like a snapshot or a painting, the Upside Down "under" Hawkins BECAME Hawkins. A weird cold empty duplicate of Hawkins. I'm thinking in the heat of the moment, in the absolute panic of facing a creature like the Demogorgon and getting swept away into an alternate dimension (which is no doubt extremely traumatizing), Will accidentally painted the Upside Down in his image. We mustn't forget, Will is an artist too after all.

Of course, it's hard to not take notice of such a thing happening. Maybe originally Will was meant to just be another tasty snack, but when Vecna took notice of what was happening, Will was spared his fate (and subjected to much worse things). You see, a lot of people argue, "He was just meant to be a slug incubator", but I still don't think that's the entire story.

The Demogorgon still maimed and killed ALL it's victims. Barb, Bob, the Russians, the two hunters off screen, the deer. Every single one of them. Will did not have a scratch on him. He was malnourished and probably suffering from hypothermia, but he did not have any physical injuries. That alone makes him different from every other victim of the Upside Down.

This brings us to season 2. Note, Will has not yet been possessed at the beginning of season 2. He just has some kind of strange connection to the Upside Down and/or that still persists to this day. At the beginning of season 2 when Will is speaking to Owens, he says the "evil" wanted to kill. "Not me. Everyone else," he said.

This very much lines up with the idea that Vecna is aware of Will's ability to shape the Upside Down. No, he doesn't want to kill Will. But he wants to conscript him. To "reshape the world", which he knows Will can do. He originally wanted El at his side for this purpose, but now, he's already found a new target to fulfill his desires. Another kid very similar to him just like El was. An artist even.

Kinda fits, doesn't it?

[mrpenguinpants]

Spider’s Thread [Reverse AU]

Possessive Red Xiao x Reader

Word Count: 2.5k

Commissioned for: @profoundwitchsalad

Art Credit: @ruoyeahs

Warning: Unhealthy relationships.

Prompt:

“You’ve ruined my life because I have a warped idea of what love is and I can’t live without you. But now you’re trying to leave me and I won’t allow that. You left me alive. You have a duty to live for me and by me. I’m not letting you go.”

---

Xiao Semi Series

[ Friendship ] [ Falling in Love ] [ Cuddles ] [ Protective ] [ Affection ] [ Jealously ] [ Opposites Attract ] [ String Of Fate (Soulmate) ] [ Fainting ]

Link to original posts:  [Red! Xiao.] [Reverse AU]

[Masterlist]

Alatus was once told a story by his Master. A sinner who falls into hell is rewarded for his only good deed, choosing not to kill a spider. As his reward, a thread is lowered down for him to climb out of Hell. In the end, the sinner remains in Hell because he kicks aside others and the thread breaks. Alatus doesn't remember why his Master told him this story but he still empathizes with the sinner. He would have done the same or asked for this 'saviour' to extend their hand down instead. That way he could pull them down.

"Xiao? Are you okay?"

He slowly opens his jade eyes to see you hunch over, peering down above him, eyebrows furrowed together in concern as you reach down and softly tap his temple. He allows you to take a moment to do whatever you want with his face before he reaches up to grasp at your wrist gently, holding back on his want to rub circles into your skin. His reminiscing can wait for now.

"What is it?" he asks curtly, sitting up and resting his elbow on his raised knee. You pout at his curt tone but shrug it off as you take a seat next to him and lean your shoulder against his. You dig into your bag and pull out slips of commission papers and hand it over to him to read through what needed to be done today. A few Hilichurl camps needed to be taken care of, sabotaging a slime balloon, all tasks that seem mundane to someone who fought in a war. As he's preoccupied, you take a moment to look at Xiao's face. He's just the slightest bit unnerved whenever you do this because you always seem to know what's bothering someone.

"Were you dreaming of her again?" you ask quietly. The silence is a good enough answer but you nod understandingly. You never knew his Master personally but you did fight a long strenuous battle against her. From one look you could tell she was a manipulative and cruel woman. While it may not be very kind to say, you were glad that with her passing, Xiao would be free from her physically. But mentally...there were still some things to work out. But Xiao was a very reclusive person, especially with his emotions, so pushing him any further would only make him irritated and closed off.

"Venti and Zhongli are joining our party for a bit if that’s alright. They'll help out a lot with our commissions and travelling. I like Liyue a lot but climbing mountains stresses my shoulders out," you laugh as you change the subject to something less depressing. Standing up as you dust your clothes off before turning to Xiao and holding your hand out for him to take. He stares at it hard for a few moments before huffing and reaching over to clasp your hands together.

It has been so frustratingly peaceful since the war ended. He's not used to it and he can still feel the lick of cutting winds and the heavy pressure of rocks against his body when he sees the bard and funeral parlor consultant just on the horizon. If it were up to him, he wouldn't play nice with these two Archons but they're important to you so he bites his tongue until he tastes blood. He knows the Archons do the same. As soon as the two of them spot you both, Venti is already rushing and tackling you to the ground in his excitement.

"Traveler! I haven't seen you in ages. You need to come and visit Mondstadt more," Venti cried into your shoulder as you awkwardly patted him on his back. Always with the dramatics but you cared about Venti all the same. Xiao scoffed before flicking his jade eyes to meet gold as Zhongli stared down at him cautiously. Since the war ended, everyone seemed to have this warped idea that Alatus had some vendetta against the Gods and Celestia but he was fighting because he was told to.

"Xiao. It's good to see you again," Zhongli said to him. Xiao just nodded in acknowledgement. Even with this new mortal form, Morax never bothered to change his eyes. His gaze alone held the weight of the mountains he had thrown. If Xiao hadn’t been under one of them before, he might have crumbled under the pressure.

"Alright alright, Venti. I promise I'll drop by sometime this month but we still have commissions to do!" you laugh as you haul the bard onto his feet and swat his cape down from the speckles of dirt. He grins cheekily at you, linking pinkies with you to seal your promise, before suddenly lighting up as if he just remembered something.

"Actually! Before we start anything, I need to speak to Mr. Zhongli and Xiao. Super important archon things, you know?" Venti nodded to himself as the two mentioned people stared at him with varying levels of confusion. But Venti just waved their worries off and linked his arms with both men as he dragged them off to a more secluded corner with a surprising amount of strength, “We’ll be right back!”

"Do what you need to do but don't take too long," you called after the trio as you trailed off to the side, messing with your bag of commission papers and gear. Xiao hated that. He knows that these two Archons are your...friends.. but shouldn't you be a bit more cautious? Just because they have mortal forms doesn’t make them human, it doesn’t make him human either.

"Hey, there's no need to look so scary. There really is something important I wanted to talk to the two of you about," Venti speaks up as soon as you're out of earshot. It still gives Xiao whiplash whenever he drops the persona and switches back to Barbatos. "Since Morax is the only Archon I trust with this information and, while I don't trust you one bit, you're the one that's with her all the time you should also know. She's ascending to Celestia."

Barbatos gauges both of their reactions. Morax seems visibly surprised, his eyes slightly widened a fraction, while Xiao has no idea what that means. His Master didn’t exactly give him a history lesson on Celestia or Archons, just pointed to who was his enemy and dealt punishments when he failed.

"And what the hell does that mean?" Xiao asks as he crosses his arms. Venti appears for a second as the bard pouts before continuing.

"It's like I said. A mortal who performs great, heroic feats can ascend to Celestia and achieve godhood. Where they will watch over their people from above. I've only seen this once before so it took me a while to recognize the signs. But 1000 years ago, I helped a woman named Vennessa with her ascension and with the traveler's recent actions with winning the war. Well, you don't need me to explain the rest," Barbatos finishes. Zhongli simply hums as he cups his chin and absorbs what's just been heard. He doesn’t seem troubled by the news at all.

"Have you told her about this?" Zhongli questions as he looks towards the direction that you left. Venti shakes his head. “That would mean that she would vanish from this world."

“I know she loves this world. Whether she wishes to ascend or not isn’t my choice but I want her to continue her travels with that beloved smile on her face. But if she does choose to ascend, she will need our help," Venti stares at the two of them in a mix of pride, sadness, and determination. "Can I count on you two for your help?"

It's a complete white noise in Xiao's ears as his surroundings fade out. He thinks he can see Zhongli nod to Venti wishes, the ever calm smile on his face to match the cheery grin on Venti’s. What, now you want to become a God? Leave this world behind? That’s not funny. You made him give up everything. While in your eyes, your blinded hero syndrome, you think you've liberated him from a soulless conquest but he still has nothing. You still took everything away from him and your only compensation was to have him by your side until he left himself. But now you want to leave without a warning? That’s not fair. You don’t get to take back what you owe. He won't allow you to leave him behind.

“Did something happen? Did Venti say something unnecessary again?” you ask out of the blue. Zhongli and Venti had returned to their respective regions once your commissions were all finished. Since the three of them disappeared to talk Archon business, Xiao had seemed even more tense and aloof than usual. As if he was out of it? You knew that everyone was still suspicious of Xiao and they were angsty to leave you alone with him, but you knew Xiao would never do anything to hurt you. When he doesn't answer, you slowly reach over and you subtly nudge his head up onto your lap and look at him curiously. Before reaching down and cupping his cheek. He leans into your touch before turning his face into your palm and leaving a soft kiss. It makes you giggle at the ticklish feeling as you look at him so softly. It annoys him.

"You were never connected to the war and yet you fought against us anyways. Even when I killed so many people, why did you choose to spare me?" he asked as you blinked at him before giving it some serious thought. He went on a rampage and almost destroyed the world. It was fun. He doesn't have any regrets at all because he hated humanity. His own Master was human after all. But then you appeared and stopped him. A random outsider that wanted to play the hero. He thought it was cute. Perhaps he had underestimated the lengths someone would go to to save the world they loved but when he fell defeated at your feet. He said that this wouldn't change a single thing. He would still scorn humanity and what they did to him. He was so sure he would die there but you chose to extend your hand down to him instead despite what your companions felt. Even when the war ended and he had nowhere else to go, you offered him to travel with you. Nothing changed about his mentality, every person that chose to talk to him was quickly scared away with piercing eyes. Every conversation started would end in silence. Every touch would be met by the tip of his spear. But you would link your hands together with his and smile brightly, and he would always end up forgetting his trauma for a moment. You’ve... become precious to him.

"I love this world and everyone in it. You are a part of that world even if you tried to destroy it. It...didn't seem fair to leave you behind when you've suffered just as much," you finish but it only seemed to spark a wave of deep anger inside of Xiao. He quickly lurched up, almost knocking your forehead with his, before grabbing the scruff of your shirt collar and yanking you forward.

"Cut it out with that "love of everything" crap. It's revolting. So you're saying the people I killed weren't worth avenging? Do you think I'm so weak that I need protection? It's one thing to try and please everyone but at least have some awareness would you?" he snarled as he pushed you to the ground. He knew he was being harsh on you and you had every right to walk out and abandon him but you didn't. Of course, you wouldn't. You needed him as much as he needed you. You just reached over and tenderly reached your hand and placed it next to his. Damn it, why is he always the one stuck worrying about you.

"Then you want to protect me, right? Then don't break your promise. You left me alive which means you have a duty to live for me," he takes your hand in his and squeezes hard. Digging his nails into your own until crescents appear and tiny specks of blood appear so you know he's serious. He doesn't care how you interpret his words, just so long as you never leave him.

"Don't die on me, Hero."

It's been a few hours since the conversation so it's pitch black outside but Xiao was never one to sleep. Even if he could, his mind is too loud to fall asleep too. He's startled when you melt against him fully asleep. Honey smooth as you curl up to his warmth and cling to him like moss to a rock. He can feel his cheeks start to flush as his heart begins to pound against his chest. He can't breathe as his world is filtered through each beat that drums against his ears. He's not sure if there's actually something wrong with him or if it's just been a while since someone got so close and his instincts haven't left.

He's just realized it. He's feeling pain. The feeling in his chest is black but he can't claw it away. It's strange in a way that he can't explain it, that he's never felt before, that he's never felt the need to experience. His life had been warped by battle and a constant push to submit to his Master. They are all things he knows but the gentle words that come from your mouth, the bright eyes that hold the world, the horrible ice-hot feeling inside of him is so foreign yet too easy. He doesn't like it.

It makes him feel...clean in a way. Enlightened perhaps? His Master is long gone and it's like you said. He's free now. Free to make his own decisions and live his life how he wants to. He carefully turns over so as to not startle you away as he really looks at you. You look so peaceful in his arms, eyelids shut without worry, face slack without nightmares, breathing so softly against him. If you weren't so close to him that he couldn't feel the rise of your chest, he wonders if he would think you were dead. He stares at the lock of hair swaying back and forth with each breath like a starved man. The strange feeling doesn't stop. He hates it. It's everything that goes against him and what he knows and everything he should want. He's supposed to be the villain in your story, he should kill you right now-

"Xiao..." he hears you mumble beside him as you lean further into his arm. Damn it. How low is he going to go?

“What are you thinking about now? You just need to think about me. Don’t think about anything else...but me” Xiao sighs before he wraps his arms around you and pulls you into him until you're snug against his chest. Close to him, where he can touch you, where you belong. Not with Morax or Barbatos. Not with humans but beside him. He closes his eyes and nuzzles his head into your hair and he stares off into the distance. The feeling never leaves him for the remainder of the night.

"Ah! There you are. I was running around crazy looking for you," he turns his hair to see your flushed form pulling yourself up onto the mountain cliff, "When I woke up I couldn’t find you anywhere! You gave me a scare there."

He hates you. He hates you.

Words of his previous master ring in his ears, almost as if her very soul is wrapping around him as she whispers in his ear how weak he is. Ones with power that refuse to take what they want because they rather live in the comfort of nothing. Be greedier, take what belongs to you.

"Xiao?" you say as his piercing eyes stare directly through you. His Master always told him that she loved him. Even if he hated her he still clung to that false love. Of being wanted. Isn't love for a single person vile? Would feeling such emotions for one person instead of "everyone" bring you down to reality? It's not fair that you've crawled your way into his heart while you walk along in bliss. Now that he thinks about it. It was so simple. He just needs to monopolize your thoughts and love. This time it won't be as friends.

"I love you."

He'll pull you down to where he is. You extended your hand down to hell so it's your fault. He'll drag you down kicking and screaming if he has to. You left him alive. You have to live for him and by him. He's not letting go.

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[kiaronna]

Super happy to see you're working on the soulmates AU.9! I love this collection and 'With The Tides'. So hmm, I don't know if anything like this has already been suggested, but here's a potential soulmates prompt : red string of fate AU inspired by Ghibli's witches and detailed backgrounds. During a trip (school trip, maybe?), Yuuko drags Yuuri inside a trinket shop owned by an old woman who swears every customer exits with the thing they most need in life right this moment. Yuuko picks (1/2)

something practical, like lunch if she’s hungry. Yuuri thinksthe hag is a little crazy, but is drawn to a small red sewing thread. He buysthe stuff on an impulse even though he doesn’t sew. It’d be up to you how andwhen one end of the magical thread reaches Victor, as well as how and whenYuuri finally manages to find him. (2/2) 

What, that’s so sweet of you to say, and sweet of you to find meon here to say so! I’ll put this on my soulmate AU list, but as you canprobably tell it takes me like a month to write one of them. ANYWAY so youdon’t have to wait 9 years for me to write this, here’s a drabble for it:

Katsuki Yuuri has never put much faith into “fate.” If he leftthings to fate, rather than hard work and sweaty, gasping nights at the rinkand ballet studio, he’d be an even worse skater than he is already.

Still, the idea is sweet. When they get home from the trinketshop where they bought the bright red string from a mysterious old woman, Yuuriplays with the thread spool in his pocket on the train ride home until Yuukoasks to see it, cuts off a tiny bit of it and ties it to his pinky.

“It’s just like the old legend!” She proclaims. Yuuko loves allthings beautiful, and this means Viktor Nikiforov, axels, and romantic Japaneselore. “Where the red string of fate will lead you to your soulmate, where it’ssupposed to lead you to somebody that you’ll make history with.”

They smile and laugh about it. Yuuri forgets to take the little stringoff before he tumbles into bed at the end of the long day.

When he wakes in the morning, the string isn’t short anymore. Atfirst, in the drowsy haze Yuuri always wakes up to, this makes sense: it grewovernight, like hair. After he washes his face and clothes himself properly,this just makes him panic. It’s long, red as rubies, and extending tautlythrough the wall of his room. He tries to slide the string off his pinky, andhis fingers wave through it like a crimson beam of light.

He tries to calmly go talk to his mother about it. Mariintercepts him in the hallway first. There’s a red string hanging limp andloose from her pinky, dripping across the floors of the onsen.

So Yuuri does not calmly talk to his mother about it. He tellsno one at all. He has anxiety, he knows, and this must be it: he’s mentallybroken. Usually it takes a skating competition to do that, not a school fieldtrip to a trinket shop, but Yuuri isn’t going to question it too deeply. Nobodyelse can see the threads like he can. So he skates, he dances, and he waits forthe red strings that loop around everyone’s hands to disappear from his sight.

They don’t.

Viktor Nikiforov hates being able to see them. He likes beingsurprised as much as he like surprises, and suddenly it’s not surprising at allwhen two of his Russian rinkmates confess to a secret relationship. When Yakovand Lillia start having marriage problems, Viktor already knows—he sees the redthread fraying, darkening, long before Lillia starts taking longer and longertrips out of Saint Petersburg.

No, nothing much is exciting anymore. Golden medals feel like agaudy noose, tight.

The red string, at the Sochi GPF, feels it’s about to cut offhis pinky. It hurts. And then, at the banquet, when he’s trying todistract Yakov so Mila can sneak a bit more champagne, he feels it yank.

Viktor looks. The red string has always gone off, infinite andincomprehensible, into the distance. Now it’s short, tangible, and being tuggedon by a very, very drunk Japanese man. Knuckles white, he pulls on it again andagain as he totters, fluidly drunk, into several spins, champagne bottle as redas the string in his other hand. It’s dragging Viktor’s heart out his pinky throughhis veins, splintering them as it passes through.

Viktor goes to him.

“I didn’t know I could do this,” Katsuki whispers, punctuatingit with a giggle, “the thread’s never let me touch it before.” Viktorblinks.

“You can see it,” he realizes.

“You haven’t told me that I must be drunk,” Yuuri murmurs, eyeswidening and sparkling. “For saying that. Everyone else thinks I’m rambling.Rambling drunk.”

“You are drunk.” He’s drunk. He’s beautiful. He’s Viktor’s.

Yuuri tugs again, and Viktor stumbles forward withoutmuch thought about it.

“Dance with me?” Yuuri questions.

It should be predictable, that he falls in love while they dance,string vibrating and shortening to almost nothing as they clasp hands. Viktorhas seen this happen, with others in his life, with others connectedinextricably by the string. Viktor is surprised anyway.

 ———–

There’s a handsome foreigner in the onsen.

Yuuri runs, and runs, and the last thing he expects, besidesViktor standing naked in the onsen, is that his string leads straight to theother man, blinding blood red through the pearly steam of the hot springs.

He could just be looking for a distraction, Minako says. Yuuriagrees. Yuuri thinks that Viktor may even agree, may think he’s here to temporarilycoach a man who lets his anxiety strangle his already average skatingabilities. But the string—the red string of fate, weaving between them—it promisessomething else. A simple promise: they’ll make history together.

He keeps this promise to himself. He knows it’s crazy.

———

Months later, when they’re lying side by side in bed, Viktor’sbreaths even and deep in slumber, a sleepless Yuuri manages to wind the stringaround his finger and pull experimentally.

Viktor moans. “Stop that,” he scolds gently, “Not everybodyrolls out of bed at 10am. Some of us will be out running by seven and you’remaking it very difficult to get my beauty sleep.”

“You don’t need beauty sleep,” Yuuri responds automatically, andthen, with a shivering realization, throws his leg over Viktor’s hip, straddleshim and takes the champion’s face between his hands. Half lidded blue eyesgreet him. “You can see the threads too. Viktor.”

Viktor puts their palms together, the ones with the stringsattached, kisses Yuuri’s pinky tenderly. “I thought you already knew that,” hehums. “Now. Sleep, my nocturnal student.”

Yuuri does not sleep. He rolls over on the mattress, lets Viktorsleepily move to spoon him, and smiles helplessly into the dark.

 ————–

The cashier at the ring shop does not understand.

“We’ll take those,” Yuuri says firmly, pointing.

“They’re very small,” the cashier replies, baffled, “small, forwedding rings. Are you sure you…”

Yuuri lifts the hand, points at one gloved finger. “Theygo on our pinkies.” The cashier starts to wrap the bands up, to tap at theregister, and Yuuri feels a hand on his back. He can’t bear to look and see theexpression on the other man’s face, not yet. “I’m sure,” he says, quietly. Hefeels a tug, light and experimental and loving, humming through his fingertipand his veins up into his heart. “I’m sure.”