Merry Christmas, @crickets-lovely-place! Hope you're having a lovely holiday. Here's my Secret Santa gift for you!

Original art by Tizz/ゆと

The permission for reprinting this picture has been granted by the original artist. Please don’t reprint this anywhere else and go to the original source to bookmark and rate them 8)

We've gotta do trivia again

AHHH you’re right!!! That was so much fun!! Maybe I’ll set up another one of those events soon ;))

Hi um that princess diaries thing was perfect and I'm obligated to ask, would you please please pretty please with a cherry on top write more?? I'm just like in love rn???

finally getting around to this hahahaha. oh god. there’s so much. -whispers- so much. oh and also, reminder that yurio’s approaching 21 in this series because let’s be real. why would you let a 16 year old rule a country.

The Midsummer Ball has barely started, and Yuri Plisetsky, ward and heir to King Viktor Nikiforov of Petersburg, already wants to leave it. 

By Petersburg custom, as an unwedded heir, he is obliged to dance with every single eligible person on the guest list. The problem with that is, of course, that a significant number of guests are eligible. And many of them are… well. Viktor would probably disapprove, but Yuri would rather stick out his eyes and chop off his legs than have to dance with another one of these chucklefucks for another moment.

It had started out innocently enough, with one of his partners speaking absolutely no English or Russian. The lady had been an okay dancer, even if all she spoke was Greek to Yuri’s ears. 

(No, really. She spoke nothing but Greek.)

Then there had been the English nobleman who had been counting his steps the entire time they danced (and Yuri had to roll his eyes every time his miscounts threw them off the beat), and then the too-boisterous French business magnate who danced like he was trying to land a plane, and the American steel tycoon who believed that dancing fell under the purview of the Ministry of Silly Walks. After a while Yuri had moved away from the dance floor in order to regain his wits, and is now standing off to the side, surreptitiously cutting himself a slice of cake. In the shadows, he could see Agent Porker – Yuuri Katsuki, head of security and the King’s personal bodyguard – muttering something into his earpiece. 

“Sneaking food already?” he hears, and turns around to see a diminutive Chinese man, sharply dressed in a suit with a glass of punch in his hands.

“Guang-Hong!” It comes out a lot more enthusiastic than Yuri might have liked, but in truth, he’s too relieved to see his old classmate from Georgetown to care. “You made it! Is Leo here, too?”

“Yeah, he’s helping himself to the pear and brie crostini,” says Guang-Hong, gesturing over his shoulder. “Is the party treating you well?”

“If someone could shoot me in the head right now, that would be a small mercy,” mutters Yuri. Guang-Hong laughs at that, albeit a little hesitantly, and pats his forearm.

“Well, at least the food is good,” he reasons. Yuri nods, biting into his cake and leaning against the table as he does so, ignoring the strange looks directed at him by some of the older guests. 

“When I’m king, I’m never going to invite old people to my parties,” he mutters. “Too much judgement.”

“Sounds reasonable,” remarks Guang-Hong as he sips his punch from next to him. “I still can’t believe you’re going to be king by the end of the year. Why’s King Nikiforov stepping down? He’s still pretty young himself.”

“Don’t let his age fool you,” says Yuri with a snort. “He’s practically decrepit. Going bald and everything.” He pauses. “It’s probably because he and Agent Porker have some sort of understanding, and part of that understanding includes not getting married while Viktor’s still king.”

“Really?” asks Guang-Hong, wide-eyed. 

Yuri shrugs. “I don’t know. I’m just guessing, based off the way they can’t stop sending googly eyes at each other from across a fucking crowded ballroom.” That last part is slightly louder than appropriate, and directed right at Viktor, who’s currently greeting Prime Minister Feltsman with his usual public smile. 

Viktor catches wind of it, and raises an eyebrow at him, the spoilsport. 

Yuri sighs, and returns to clearing his cake. “That’s my theory, anyway,” he says, and Guang-Hong laughs.

“I wouldn’t be surprised,” he says. After Yuri finishes up the last bites of his cake, Guang-Hong begins to lead him over to where Leo is examining the other refreshments, and Yuri takes the opportunity to drop his plate and fork with a passing server.

He then collides with someone, the quiet ‘oof’ and feeling of stepping on a foot jolting him back into the present. 

The person he’s trod on is tall. Not too tall – coming up only half a head or so taller than Yuri himself – but fairly broad, with a carefully chiselled face and dark hair in an undercut. Yuri balks a little at his stony expression, and takes a step back. “Sorry,” he says. “I didn’t see where I was going.”

The man looks at him. “I’m sorry I was in the way, Your Highness,” he replies, his voice smooth and deep, reminding Yuri strangely of standing in a waterfall. He quells the shiver down his spine, and nods.

“Are you all right?”

“I’m fine,” replies the man, managing the faintest of a smile. A little spot of pink has appeared in his cheeks. “As I said, the fault was entirely my own.”

Yuri raises an eyebrow. “Don’t want to exchange licenses or proof of insurance?” he jokes, and the man chuckles at that. 

“These shoes were a little big,” he says with a shrug, and Yuri tries to focus harder on the medals pinned to the man’s suit, instead of how nice his face is when he smiles. “Swelling should make them fit a little better.”

Yuri’s heart races a little faster. “How about a dance, then? To break in your new feet?” he suggests.

The man considers it, and then extends a hand. “The honour would be mine, Your Highness.”

“Yuri,” says Yuri immediately. “I prefer Yuri.”

“And I prefer Otabek,” replies the man. “Just Otabek.”

They step out onto the dance floor together, Otabek’s hand coming down to rest lightly on the small of Yuri’s back. Yuri puts his hand on Otabek’s shoulder in return, and steps with him in time to the waltz. It’s almost perfect. 

“I’m glad to see the swelling hasn’t affected your dancing, Otabek,” says Yuri after a couple turns. The words sound stupid even as they come out, but for some strange, miraculous reason Otabek seem to take them in stride.

“You could step on my foot any time you want, Your Highness,” he replies, and had it been anyone else at this moment Yuri would have gagged at that sentiment. As it is, he just smiles a little, and looks down at the medals on Otabek’s suit, and wonders why a man who looks so young seems to be so well-decorated.

But he doesn’t have long to wonder, because suddenly Otabek stops, and Yuri looks past him to find a little girl who couldn’t be more than twelve, waiting impatiently at Otabek’s shoulder.

“It is Princess Alex’s turn!” she declares, and Yuri sends a tight-lipped smile at Otabek, who shrugs and steps away to let Yuri dance with the newcomer. 

“Alex,” says Yuri, looking down at the girl as she tries to lead him in the waltz. “Don’t you have the Nishigori triplets to play with at this party? They’re usually here.”

“I’m almost thirteen,” she snaps in response. “They’re just eleven. They’re boring.”

“You’re twelve,” Yuri points out, trying not to wrinkle his nose at the smell of her perfume. “You’re not turning thirteen until the end of the year.”

Princess Alex completely ignores the comment. “If this were my party, we’d be kissing by now,” she declares.

“I’m twenty-one,” Yuri states, sending a baleful look over at where Guang-Hong and Leo are clearly laughing at his misfortune. What friends.

“Can I blow in your ear?”

Yuri raises an eyebrow. “Can you reach it?” 

Alex glares as she tries to step on her tiptoes to reach, and in turn, Yuri’s almost grateful for the end of the song. He glares over at Guang-Hong and Leo, before scanning the crowd for any sign of Just Otabek, but to his dismay, there is none.

With a sigh, Yuri resigns himself to dancing with everyone else, hoping that maybe, at least before the night is over, Otabek will come back for another dance.

2017 WRITING ROUND UP

I did my 2016 version same time last year so wooo

I’m tagging @ everybody who sees this post and wants to do this! <3

AO3 Stats!

(How to find your stats: go to your Dashboard, click on “Statistics,” then click on the year you’re answering for!)

Total 2017 Word Count: 417696 Total 2017 Hits: 196588 Total Kudos: 13225 Total Bookmarks: 2040  Total Comment (threads): 1318 User Subscriptions: 327

Links and Titles to 2017 Works:

One For All  (T, Haruka/Makoto, Nagisa/Makoto, Rei/Makoto, 1002 words) Impulsive  (E, Otabek Altin/Yuri Plisetsky, 1126 words)

Worth It (M, Phichit Chulanont/Leo de la Iglesia/Ji Guang-Hong, Leo de la Iglesia/Ji Guang-Hong, 727 words) Habit (T, Fakir/Mytho, 1137 words) Reminiscent  (E, Phichit Chulanont/Katsuki Yuuri, 1513 words) Admiration (Not Rated, Michele Crispino/Georgi Popovich, 1117 words) Something More Intimate (E, Otabek Altin/Yuri Plisetsky, 1294 words) For a Good Time (M, Otabek Altin/Victor Nikiforov, Christophe Giacometti/Victor Nikiforov, Mila Babicheva/Victor Nikiforov, Victor Nikiforov/Georgi Popovich, Katsuki Mari/Victor Nikiforov, Okukawa Minako/Victor Nikiforov, Victor Nikiforov/Other(s), Victor Nikiforov/Celestino Cialdini, Ji Guang-Hong/Victor Nikiforov, Phichit Chulanont/Katsuki Yuuri/Victor Nikiforov, 1641 words) #nochill (G, Phichit Chulanont & Georgi Popovich, 867 words) Neutral Ground (Not Rated, Tim Drake/Damian Wayne, 1524 words) Hook Up (M, Mila Babicheva/Sara Crispino, 946 words) All To Myself (T, Linda Park/Iris West, 379 words) Chance (T, Katsuki Mari/Anya, 707 words) Poisoned Red (M, Edith Cushing/Lucille Sharpe, 875 words) The Taste of Dirt (T, Archie Andrews/Jughead Jones, Betty Cooper/Veronica Lodge, 1044 words) Generous For Nothing (T,  Archie Andrews/Jughead Jones, 1471 words) Perfect, Perfect You (T, Christophe Giacometti/Christophe Giacometti's Boyfriend, 703 words) Beyond Your Touch (T, Nanase Haruka/Tachibana Makoto, 2594 words) Scattered Pieces (T, Archie Andrews/Jughead Jones, 944 words) Bending, Not Breaking (E, Otabek Altin/Yuri Plisetsky, 630 words) Meet Me (Where I Am) (M, Sun Bak/Riley Blue, 498 words) Chasing After a Maybe (T, Otabek Altin/Yuri Plisetsky, 1758 words) Common Observation (T, Michele Crispino/Emil Nekola, 1305 words) Better Than Ever (G, Katsuki Yuuri/Victor Nikiforov, 1159 words) Brightly and Honestly (E, Katsuki Yuuri/Yuri Plisetsky Katsuki Yuuri/Victor Nikiforov/Yuri Plisetsky, 2072 words) Reborn (T, Otabek Altin/Yuri Plisetsky, 647 words) Everything You Want (M, Mila Babicheva/Sara Crispino, 1147 words) Never Alone (E, Nanase Haruka/Tachibana Makoto, 5702 words) Falling Faster, Softer (T, Archie Andrews/Jughead Jones, Betty Cooper/Veronica Lodge, 8249 words) Our Lives (Not Rated, Otabek Altin/Yuri Plisetsky, 1767 words) Sharp Spur to Vice (M, Negan's Baseball Bat Lucille/Negan, 378 words) Blackhole Dreams (T, Katsuki Yuuri/Victor Nikiforov, 1282 words) Regret or Rejoice (G, Rey & Luke Skywalker, 239 words) Burning Up (M, Jason Scott/Zack Taylor, 204 words) Filthy Hot (E, Victor Nikiforov/Other(s), Christophe Giacometti/Victor Nikiforov, Christophe Giacometti & Victor Nikiforov, 881 words) Soon Enough  (M, Cheryl Blossom/Jason Blossom, Archie Andrews/Cheryl Blossom/Jason Blossom, 661 words) Beautiful In Knowing (T, Mila Babicheva/Sara Crispino, Michele Crispino & Sara Crispino, 1039 words) Between a Bridge and an Ocean (G, Phichit Chulanont, 513 words) Kiss-Fiend (T, Katsuki Yuuri/Victor Nikiforov, Katsuki Yuuri/Lee Seung Gil, Lee Seung Gil/Victor Nikiforov, 536 words) Silhouette No More (E, Credence/Original Percival Graves, 700 words) Faded But Not Forgotten (M, Lilia Baranovskaya/Nikolai Plisetsky, Yakov Feltsman/Nikolai Plisetsky, Yakov Feltsman/Lilia Baranovskaya, Lilia Baranovskaya/Nikolai Plisetsky/Yakov Feltsman, 1133 words) At Least There's Us (E, Bellamy Blake/Octavia Blake, 932 words) Piqued (M, Credence/Original Percival Graves, 617 words) Unusual (M, Katsuki Yuuri/Victor Nikiforov, 206 words) Fantasy (E, Ji Guang-Hong/Victor Nikiforov, 426 words) Reason (Not Rated, Duo Maxwell/Heero Yuy, 408 words) To Bleed For (E, Katsuki Yuuri/Yuri Plisetsky, 457 words) Elysium (T, Wendy Darling/Peter Pan, 34106 words) Bare Emotions (T, Phichit Chulanont/Lee Seung Gil, 904 words) Helping Hand (M, Phichit Chulanont/Katsuki Yuuri, 1080 words) Precious (M, Otabek Altin/Yuri Plisetsky, 1045 words) If I Can't Kiss Him (G, Katsuki Yuuri/Nishigori Takeshi/Nishigori Yuuko, Nishigori Takeshi/Nishigori Yuuko, 593 words) Forget The Ordinary (E, Katsuki Yuuri/Victor Nikiforov, 730 words) I, You, We (T, Mila Babicheva/Sara Crispino/Isabella Yang/Anya, Mila Babicheva/Sara Crispino, Anya/Isabella Yang, 619 words) Careless  (M, Otabek Altin/Yuri Plisetsky, 953 words) Favor For a Favor (E, Katsuki Yuuri/Detroit Hockey Team, 1694 words) Memorable (T, Michele Crispino/Emil Nekola, 986 words) The Joys of Situational Irony (E, Dick Grayson/Damian Wayne, 1193 words) Ache (T, Katsuki Mari/Okukawa Minako, 198 words) Cold Shoulder, Hot Temper (Not Rated, Jean-Jacques Leroy/Yuri Plisetsky, 680 words) The World Above (G, Mila Babicheva/Sara Crispino, 1288 words) Visual (M, Ichijou Takuma/Shiki Senri, 760 words) Idée fixe (E, Katsuki Yuuri/Victor Nikiforov, 821 words) Nowhere But Here (Not Rated, Will Graham/Hannibal Lecter, 406 words) Closer, Slower (E, Leo de la Iglesia/Ji Guang-Hong, 913 words) Phantasm (M, Barry Allen/Bruce Wayne, 215 words) Anchorage (E, Yuri Plisetsky/Nishigori Yuuko, Yuri Plisetsky/Nishigori Yuuko/Nishigori Takeshi, 296 words) Wish Fulfillment (E, Katsuki Yuuri/Victor Nikiforov, Phichit Chulanont/Katsuki Yuuri, 1789 words) So Goodbye Until Tomorrow (T, Arya Stark/Gendry Waters, Jon Snow & Arya Stark, Jon Snow & Gendry Waters, Jon Snow & Sansa Stark, Bran Stark & Jon Snow, Sansa Stark & Gendry Waters, Bran Stark & Gendry Waters, Nymeria & Arya Stark, 7066 words) Strange Bedfellows (M, Jon Snow/Gendry Waters, Arya Stark/Gendry Waters, 2909 words) Flirting With Loneliness (T, Kenjirou Minami/Cao Bin, 255 words) Vast, Cold and Bleak (T, Arya Stark/Gendry Waters, Arya Stark & Sansa Stark, Arya Stark & Bran Stark, Davos Seaworth & Gendry Waters, 1086 words) Worth Waiting For (M, Jon Snow/Daenerys Targaryen, 655 words) A Little Less Conversation (Not Rated, Mila Babicheva/Sara Crispino, 1471 words) Salvation (T, Jaime Lannister/Brienne of Tarth, 243 words) Isolation (T, Dick Grayson/Wally West, 2926 words) Ruined Expectations (E, Otabek Altin/Yuri Plisetsky, 3890 words) Flame-Heat Dreams (M, Arya Stark/Gendry Waters, Melisandre of Asshai & Gendry Waters, 750 words) Always Found (T, Katsuki Yuuri/Victor Nikiforov, 1152 words) Wrapped In Solace (G, Jojen Reed/Bran Stark, 637 words) Inevitability (Not Rated, Will Graham/Hannibal Lecter, 1069 words) Pretend (E, Michele Crispino/Sara Crispino, 540 words) Far Beyond (T, Ashara Dayne/Elia Martell, 239 words) A Random Plot (Not Rated, Draco Malfoy/Harry Potter, 1074 words) Downfall (M, Victor Nikiforov/Yuri Plisetsky, 457 words) Not That Big (E, Otabek Altin/Jean-Jacques Leroy, 569 words) Afraid, Empty (Not Rated, Night King/Bran Stark, 401 words) You Had Me All Along (T, Arya Stark/Gendry Waters, 315 words) Borrowed, Not Stolen (M, Leo de la Iglesia/Isabella Yang, 487 words) Switching It Up (T, Sara Crispino/Lee Seung Gil, Michele Crispino/Lee Seung Gil, 1288 words) Risking Delight (E, Oberyn Martell/Bronn, 1457 words) Not All Moonlight and Roses (T, Selina Kyle/Bruce Wayne, 1340 words) If You Dare! (M, Christophe Giacometti/Christophe Giacometti's Boyfriend, Katsuki Yuuri/Victor Nikiforov, 1994 words) That Lollipop Gumdrop Feeling (G, Otabek Altin/Lee Seung Gil, 221 words) Still Breathing (T, Selina Kyle/Bruce Wayne, 1437 words) No More Fighting It (M, Nick Clark/Troy Otto, 454 words) Chills & Thrills (T, Mila Babicheva & Yuri Plisetsky, 1348 words) Like The Winds (Not Rated, Jake Chambers & Roland Deschain, 1030 words) Strong Enough (T, Kara Danvers/Lena Luthor, Alex Danvers & Kara Danvers, 3831 words) With The Right Person (E, Shae/Sansa Stark, 824 words) Feel Anything At All (T, Narcissa Black Malfoy/Lily Evans Potter, 182 words) Jeepers Creepers (Not Rated, Leo de la Iglesia/Ji Guang-Hong, Phichit Chulanont/Katsuki Yuuri, 1728 words) No More Secrets (T, Kara Danvers/Lena Luthor, 905 words) The Closest Thing (M, Kawakami Tomie/Hashimoto Tomie, Kawakami Tomie/Ann, 960 words) Whatever Happens Next (T, Jonathan Byers/Steve Harrington/Nancy Wheeler, 861 words) Spellbound (E, Thomasin/Witches, 381 words) Young Hearts (T, Eddie Kaspbrak/Richie Tozier, 1376 words) Monsters On Parade (T, Katsuki Yuuri/Victor Nikiforov, 1109 words) Not Once, But Twice (G, Eleven/Mike Wheeler, Will Byers/Mike Wheeler, 1201 words) All That Remains (E, Victor Nikiforov/Victor Nikiforov, Victor Nikiforov/Other(s), Katsuki Yuuri/Victor Nikiforov, 1412 words) Tantalization (E, Otabek Altin/Yuri Plisetsky, Yuri Plisetsky/Other(s), 891 words) Someone To Turn To (T, Eleven/Mike Wheeler, Eleven & Max, 4676 words) Something To Hold Onto (T, Eleven & Jim "Chief" Hopper, Eleven/Mike Wheeler, 2758 words) Wake Up (E, Anya/Georgi Popovich, 756 words) Awaken (M, Korra/Asami Sato, 100 words) Someplace To Find Rest (T, Eleven/Mike Wheeler, Eleven & Jim "Chief" Hopper, 4155 words) Proper and Right (T, Arya Stark/Gendry Waters, Podrick Payne/Sansa Stark, 743 words) Enraptured (T, Katsuki Yuuri/Victor Nikiforov, 277 words) The Price of Devotion (M, Melisandre of Asshai/Selyse Baratheon, 435 words) Imperfect Perfection (G, Will Byers/Mike Wheeler, 1562 words) So Easy To Love (T, Arya Stark/Gendry Waters, Beric Dondarrion/Thoros of Myr, 1714 words) Simple Pleasures (M, Jean-Jacques Leroy/Isabella Yang, Jean-Jacques Leroy/Isabella Yang/OMC/OFC, 740 words) More Than Enough (G, Eleven/Mike Wheeler, 1085 words) Every Deed of Mercy (E, Katsuki Yuuri/Victor Nikiforov, 3047 words) Winter Wonderland (T, Will Graham/Hannibal Lecter, 965 words) Distractions (E, Celestino Cialdini/Katsuki Yuuri, 757 words) Only This (G, Eleven/Mike Wheeler Eleven & Jim "Chief" Hopper, 1027 words) Truly Alive In Death (T, Eddie Kaspbrak/Richie Tozier, 3215 words) Never Too Late (M, James "Bucky" Barnes/Steve Rogers, 3215 words) Love and Beauty (E, Mila Babicheva/Sara Crispino, 139 words) A Kiss From A Rose (T, Sansa Stark/Margaery Tyrell, 658 words) Once Gone (E, Otabek Altin/Yuri Plisetsky, 632 words) Suck and Blow (T, Eddie Kaspbrak/Richie Tozier Ben Hanscom/Beverly Marsh Mike Hanlon/Stanley Uris, 1279 words) Sugary Sweet As Syrup (G, Eleven/Mike Wheeler, 1475 words) Where the Lovelight Gleams (M, Kara Danvers/Lena Luthor, 1069 words) Yearning For Acceptance (Not Rated, Katsuki Yuuri/Victor Nikiforov, 1566 words) The Best For Last (T, Cheryl Blossom/Toni Topaz, Cheryl Blossom/Others, 490 words) Joy To Fill Your Heart (G, Eleven/Maxine "Max" Mayfield, 1071 words)

Some people asked how the mods looked like, so here’s pictures of like half of us. Maybe there’s a part two later.

By Order :D

@ask--otayuri

@ask-sara-crispyno

@ask-lilia-baranovskaya

@ask--jj

@ask-mari-katsuki

@ask-takeshi-nishigori

@ask-minako

@ask--emilnekola

Here’s a description of a couple of the mods who couldn’t post pics!

@ask--grandpa-plisetsky 

I have moderately long wavy dark brown hair (but I'm getting it cut soon and I can't wait), bangs, and darkish green glasses.  My eyes are also dark brown, and my skin is really pale but I tan really easily.  I'm 5'4.

@ask-georgi-popovich

Alex: Short brunette hair that cuts at the ear hazel eyes and pale skin (I know it's more tan in my picture but that was in the summer 

Liz: Same as above but I'm taller and my hair is down to my waist

@askyuukonishigori

I have brown-black hair and brown eyes. I am hellla chubby, and basically everything about me is brown (I wear hijab so the hair isn't all that important)

alex nishigori

will i ever escape my past

in case you couldn’t make it to trivia last night: I misspelled axel nishigori as alex nishigori in a question and here is the fallout

I agree with the anon that said we need trivia night again. I want to see the return of Alex Nishigori (you're not living that down, you know) and ky-fan 1990 winning everything again!

Yuri!!! on Trivia round 2 may or may not be coming soon ;)))

ALEX NISHIGORI ASKDJflLKJSDAFASJKDFJKFASLD you’re right I’ll never live that down probly. And shoutout to ky-fan1990 hahahaha.

If anybody has good ideas for prizes for the next trivia night (to be announced soon) be sure to hit me up with those!!! Something better than bragging rights would be good ;p

Original art by 白桃ノチ

The permission for reprinting this picture has been granted by the original artist. Please don’t reprint this anywhere else and go to the original source to bookmark and rate them 8)