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medicinqui-blog · 7 years

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Badminton Special p2

The next day Yuuri was undoubtedly more nervous than anybody else. Victor had disappeared some time after 10am to find a bar and thus Yuuri had been left as the sole caretaker of Yuri until he set off for the warmup at about 12:30am. Already several people had gone, four of which had retired. 'Do you have your armband?' Yuuri checked before they left the lorry. 'Yes,' Yuri sighed. Yuuri had been fussing round him all morning like a mother hen and was probably going to end up chasing round after him on the course with a golf buggy. 'And your gas canister is all good?' 'Yes.' 'Is your girth tight enough?' 'I'll do it up when I'm on.' 'And you-' 'Relax! I've evented before, you know.' 'Yes, but this is bigger.' 'Yuuri, relax,' Victor finally appeared, visibly tiddlier than he had been when he'd left and, Yuuri noticed, laden with shopping bags. 'What did you buy?' He groaned, thinking of how full the lorry was going to be when they left the place. 'Oh, I got the most gorgeous new show jacket and some matchy matchy sets. I might've bought you a few things too, but I'll show you them later.' 'Have you spent our entire pension?' 'Possibly. But you know I love my matchy matchy.' Yuuri rolled his eyes and tucked his arm through Victor's in an attempt to calm his nerves. Victor squeezed him close and kissed his cheek. 'Please don't,' Yuri pleaded as he ran down his stirrups and gave his girth a last check before mounting from the ground with an energetic spring. 'Okay. I'm ready.' 'You sure?' Yuuri began to go search the lorry but Victor quickly intercepted him and dragged him back into his arms, hauling him away to follow Yuri down to the warmup ring. They stood in the middle of the ring, ignoring the stewards who gently suggested that they wait outside. Victor yelled at Yuri nonstop as he rode, pretending he knew what cross country entailed. 'Why is he going so fast?' He hissed to Yuuri, who patted him reassuringly on the shoulder. 'Because this is cross country. If he's not fast he'll not make it in the time, and he's both got the smallest horse and the most to prove so he's under pressure to do well.' 'Like a jump-off?' 'If that's what you have to tell yourself then sure.' They watched for a while longer as Yuri bombed around the warmup, still cutting everybody off and almost causing a few falls. Slowly the number of people in the warmup who had been there when they'd arrived began to dwindle and soon Yuri was being directed over to the arena. 'Should we go with him?' Yuuri suggested and Victor nodded his agreement. They hastily dashed down to the field behind Yuri to hold Fluffy on each side whilst they waited for him to be called into the start box. 'You'll be fine,' Yuuri assured him, patting him on the thigh for good luck. 'I know,' Yuri growled. 'You've trained over fences of this height before.' 'Yes, I know!' 'And you've got a good pony.' 'Yeah, that's great but I kind of need to go into-' 'Don't worry. Not like you're going to win with that dismal dressage,' Victor observed. 'Look, there's your boyfriend.' Yuri looked over his shoulder to see Otabek, who had just finished his round moments before and had obviously run full pelt to see him off judging by the magenta colour of his face. 'Yuri, davai!' He yelled, cupping his hands around his mouth so that the sound travelled. Yuri was suddenly being bustled into the starting box, but he found the time to give Otabek a thumbs up and flash a toothy grin before the countdown began. He replaced his hand on the reins and gripped them hard, bridging them in preparation for the gallop up ahead. The first fence was suddenly looking a whole lot bigger than it had in the company of his scathing coach and his fellow competitor when they'd been joking about it but confident enough. The crowd was agog yet again at the age of the rider and the size of both of them, no doubt underestimating them. Yuri knew that without a doubt he had to do justice to his horse. 'For mother Russia,' He muttered. 'Go!' The gruff shout came and Fluffy seemed to understand the command just as clearly as her rider. She launched forwards to the sound of the audience cheering, thundering down to the first with a determination in her that Yuri had never sensed before. He clung tightly to her mane and fought against the urge to just close his eyes and kick as the first fence flew towards them with increasing speed. Despite the nerves eating away at his insides it was quickly behind them and the audience's applause faded away as they began to gallop down the slope to the second. 'Give 'em hell, Yuri!' He heard Yuuri calling from the sidelines and this spurred him on faster. He was going to make the time, no question. He just had to keep the pace and not let Fluffy get either distracted or lose her momentum. She had brilliant stamina thanks to her constantly taking off but her concentration failed due to her career as a showjumper meaning she only had to do a few fences and then she was done. Without a fence to look for during a long gallop she was wont to searching for something else to stare at. He kept chatting to her with his leg and his reins, trying to keep her interest piqued in what she was doing. Before long they were rounding the corner to the first big ask- Savill's Staircase. He gulped hard and gave Fluffy a sharp kicking coming up to the string rails, meaning she launched herself over with renewed vigour and as a result was going too fast to worry about the steps. She skirmished a little going down the second due to the awkward striding but threw herself down it and up over the brush. The spectators clapped him on and he grinned, giving her a quick scratch on the withers and churning forwards. He gritted his teeth and took the angled approach to Countryside Birch, Fluffy leaving her back legs behind for an agonising moment but correcting herself neatly and continuing down over the next fence and then to The Lake. Yuri had never planned to go the long way due to the lack of leeway with time, and he wasn't about to change his mind now despite the 2 metre drop seeming even further than before. He took a deep breath and kicked on, growling loudly at his horse to ensure she knew there was no other choice. 'Get on!' He shouted and gave her a smack on the shoulder as she came into the last stride. He buried her a little bit she duly catapaulted herself over the rail and down into the water. He grimly held on and rode strongly towards the bank with his reins flapping and his heart in his throat. For a few seconds it looked like she was going to duck out to the left, but in the second stride she locked on and he breathed a minute sigh of relief as she lifted her feet up over it. The Offset Oxer next, something of a breather mid-course that provided a confidence build for any messy water mixups. Shogun Hollow, too, paled in comparison to some of the questions being asked of the riders and horses. He took the quick route through the KBIS Bridge and before he knew it he'd made it to the Grand Slam Trakehner. The one fence that scared him most. He'd had countless stops and falls at these fences, a more serious one resulting in a quick trip to A&E and a two week red card. This was undoubtedly the biggest and deepest and scariest he'd ever faced and he wasn't exactly looking forwards to whatever happened. This mindset wasn't helping matters, but thankfully the horse was not listening to her rider and she was going too fast to have a refusal. It would either be a runout, a hard slam on the brakes many strides before or a messy jump. He knew which one he wanted. 'Please just jump it,' He murmured to her, scratching her withers and beginning to sit back in preparation. He rammed his heels down and his legs forward to keep his seat as secure as possible should anything untoward happen. 'I swear, if you jump this fence you can have four feeds tonight.' Her ears pricked as if she knew what he was saying and, although she floundered a little in the face of such a magnificent ditch, squirmed over it and just managed to make it over with her rider still intact. 'Oh, good girl!' He cried with elation and rubbed her neck as she opened out her strides again. 'You brilliant, brilliant horse!' She popped easily through Hildon Water Pond and he felt much more confident coming up to the Sheep Feeder. Mirage Pond was gone by in a flash and even the Devoucoux Oxer- the biggest fence on course- didn't seem as terrifying as before. He barely even needed to encourage her coming into it and this was to be a brief downfall. Her feet fumbled without rider communication and her front legs caught on the first rail. Yuri's brain turned to static and he cried out as she began to tumble downwards, her weight transferring forwards. He knew if she continued in her trajectory it was going to be a rotational, and a bad one at that. Her back legs scrambled desperately midair against the bars and the spectators all gasped unanimously, waiting for the impact. Somehow, and Yuri would never know by what miracle they were saved, she managed to find her feet upon landing after stumbling around for a few strides with her head almost on the ground and her legs flailing madly. He could feel that she'd lost a good bit of her confidence from this and that he needed to bring it right back for the Corral or he was for it. 'Good girl,' He soothed, reaching forwards to pat her as they galloped down to the tricky complex. 'You've got this.' She lengthened her stride a little more in solidarity with his reassaurances and heaved herself up the hill, grunting as she forced herself over the rails at the top. He collected her up and slowed her right down for the next part of the combination, making sure she kept her balance and could see the line clearly out of the complex. She hadn't quite got to grips with the whole 'locking onto a fence' thing but she was getting better with each outing, and today she was firing up all engines and was instantly transfixed by the Event Mobility Dining Table. She gave him a beautiful feel over it and went charging along on landing down to what was definitely one of the more demanding series of fences in the course. She was tiring fast and Yuri could sense that she wasn't quite as responsive as she ought to be coming over the first of the Joules Corners, but a strong, sweet kick and check with the reins got her head back where it ought to be- namely, in the game. She flew the last two with surprising ease and seemed to be having a second wind, her little legs chuntering away beneath her and eating up the ground. Yuri checked his watch and saw that they were slightly behind schedule. Once they were past the tricky Irish Horse Gateway Hunstmans Close he picked up the speed a notch, not having wanted her to tire out too much before that particular combination. The World Horse Welfare Gates were a breath of fresh air after some of the stickier moments they'd had and then they finally reached The Quarry. They soared over the first fence and then going down the hill felt like the world had dropped out from under their feet. He swallowed hard and forced himself to kick on up the hill. Fluffy's strides slowed down massively and it felt so painfully steady that it was nigh unthinkable that they'd ever make it. By some miracle, however, they were past it after a few troublesome seconds and a commendable effort by Agape. Within moments they were galloping along the homestretch towards the penultimate fence and by this point Yuri was panting so hard for breath he wasn't sure his heart was going to stay intact. He couldn't even think about how exhausted his poor horse had to be. Despite his difficulty in even seeing anything other than blurred shapes he rode on and ignored the trees that were only in place to bemuse and distract the rider on the approach to the penultimate fence. He just had to get past this and then he was in the stadium... Just this fence and he was almost home and dry. He could feel Fluffy really beginning to tire and a quick check of his watch told him that she didn't have room to slow down for even a second. 'Just two more,' He promised her, chucking his reins forwards and revving her up for one last push. He would be naive to think that he could maintain her health at this level after this event was over. This was their last hurrah at the top tracks and then he'd step it down, maybe let some little kid back at Hasetsu ride her in smaller shows and learn on her. She'd done so much for him, more than could ever have been expected of her, and the fact that this was his last chance to do her justice kept the pressure on to the last. He tore into the stadium at breakneck speed and blinked hard to dispel the haze creeping across his vision. It was unreal that they'd been clear so far- beyond what he'd hoped for. In all honesty, he'd always known it was too much to ask of a 14.3hh to go round this track. It was the impossible, but he was doing it. He was, astonishingly, clear so far. He couldn't lose focus now though- not with so much at stake. This last fence was the final cross country fence at this height for them in competition and he was determined to make it count. He could hear the crowd's raucous calling already and he caught a glimpse of his loyal supporters- and Victor- on the other side, waiting to lead away his horse and hose her off. He was physically trembling with fatigue and it was a wonder he could stand in his stirrups at all as they rounded in on the last few strides. Then it all went very, very quiet. The crowd dissipated and all that was in his line of sight was the final jump. All he could hear was the sound of his own stertorous breathing matching Fluffy's heavy hoof-fall. She was floundering a little and he could feel her legs begin to straighten in preparation for a stop. 'Don't you dare,' He snapped, smacking her hard on the shoulder and kicking on defiantly. The clock was ticking down and he couldn't afford to have anything go wrong. He kept his heels digging firmly into her sides right up until the moment she took off. She landed with a heavy grunt and almost fell to her knees with the tremendous strain she was under. Yuri, unable to think for even a moment about anything other than getting past that damn finish line within the time, yelled at her to move and she obeyed. It was like she knew exactly what he was thinking, and that this was their last gravity-defying feat of brilliance. She kept on galloping right through the flags and Yuri punched the air ecstatically, falling onto her neck and almost sobbing for joy and relief. He could barely breathe when Victor and Yuuri fluttered to his side and gasped their congratulations, let alone reply. He allowed himself to be led from the arena down to the cooloff area, where he promptly dismounted and drank half a gallon of water as his horse was drenched with cold water and then covered up with an exquisitely embroidered mesh rug. He was just walking down to the trailer park when Clare Balding dashed up with her microphone. 'Yuri Plisetsky!' She beamed at him and he forced a strained smile. He was mentally finished and he couldn't help but think he'd rather skip the interview. A quick look at Victor's intent expression warded him off of running away. 'That was history made right there. How did you feel your round went?' 'I'm so proud,' He gushed, patting Fluffy on the neck and grinning into the cameras directed at his face. 'She gave me such a good ride and got me out of some really tricky moments, I couldn't have asked any more of her.' 'You're breaking two esteemed records here today- you're both the youngest rider and riding the small horse. Do you think that Badminton is about to be taken over by a younger generation?' 'Nobody's as good as me,' He declared breezily and Clare laughed. 'Thank you very much, and a massive well done. Brilliant round.' 'Thank you,' He nodded and then they were finally able to return to the stables, where Fluffy was quickly put away and given a bucket of water after she'd stopped panting. 'That was bloody impressive,' Victor clapped Yuri on the shoulder, making him wince. 'I have to say, I didn't even think you'd make it past the first fence.' 'I proved you wrong,' Yuri raised an eyebrow, pulling off his hat and air jacket to put them away. 'I think you owe me an apology.' 'For what? Calling Fluffy a glorified bog pony?' 'No, for saying that like it's a bad thing.' 'Oh. Sorry, I suppose.' Yuri harrumphed, upset that he didn't get a proper apology, but he knew it was the best he would get and he ought to settle for it before the words were rescinded. 'I'm so proud of you,' Yuuri counteracted his fiancé's shortcomings by throwing an arm round Yuri's shoulder and hugging him tightly. 'You did incredibly. I'm so glad you could finally do what you wanted, and that you did it so well!' 'Thanks,' Yuri mumbled, going a little pink. They stood around for a while until Otabek showed up, sweeping Yuri off of his feet and planting a celebratory kiss right on his lips for all the crowds to see. A bit of cheering commenced and Yuri went even redder, covering his face with his still-gloved hands and retreating behind Victor, who was more than happy to soak up the attention. Eventually the crowd subsided and they could talk freely. 'How did you do?' Yuri turned to Otabek, who imparted the knowledge that he'd had two stupid stops at Outlander Bank which had ensured he was dropped from contention. In spite of this, he was overjoyed to be amongst the 13 who had successfully completed the course so far. Yuri was one of just 4 clears, and so far only the 2nd to finish it within the time. 'Showjumping tomorrow,' He remarked, much to Victor's joy. This was the part he most looked forward to- he understood it, although he was shocked by the laziness of some of the horses when it came to the less solid fences. The next day would bring its own challenges and difficulties, but for now Yuri was happy in the knowledge that he'd done his best and that his best had been bloody brilliant.

#yuri on ice #yuri katsuki #yuri plisetsky #yuuri katsuki #yuri on ice fanfic #otabek altin #otabek x yurio #otayuri #victor nikiforov #viktor nikiforov #victuuri #viktuuri

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