text with image;

[juniorchampion]

[ Yuri is very used to social media, but the network here isn't quite like the social media back at home. That doesn't stop him from trying to use it in the same way.

He posts a picture of himself in a simple all-black outfit in front of the skating rink. ]

First day back at skating.

#iceskating #yuriplisetsky #goingtokeepwinning

[ Nailed it. ]

Comments

voice;

[bisection]

[ Sorry, Yuri, he's yet to get the motor skills to type things. Not yet. ]

I am... unfamiliar with all sports, I think. We did not learn of them back then... when they were educating us.

voice;

[juniorchampion]

[ It's not bad. Just different. ]

They don't teach it in normal schools. You have to find coaches and special lessons.

I'm going to do a show to earn that chroma stuff. If you want to see something really interesting, you can pay and come.

voice;

[bisection]

We did not attend school... we were too ill. My brother and I were educated by the Order.

I am curious. I can try and see it, then. I have... maybe earned enough.

[ If not, it's time to bug the Archangel again. ]

[juniorchampion]

[ Yuri is a lot of negative things. He's angry, immature, inexperienced, and destructive. He takes his anger too far and sometimes gets violent, even if he's usually more prone to yelling than fighting.

But beneath it all, he's not a horrible person. He's used to being underestimated or teased and so, he's always prepared to react as if that's how he's being treated. There are no traces of that in this conversation. Instead, it's a story about a sick kid who doesn't currently have enough chroma to afford a show. ]

Are you any good at holding hands?

[bisection]

Ah? Yes... of course. I have no problem with that.

[ He's not used to touching strangers and is maybe hesitant about being too close to anyone who isn't his brother, but in this place he should comply a little more to maintain himself.

And, besides, for all his pain and anger towards a world that gave him no chance to live... he wants to see what it's like to live normally. If the Archangel will not let him die. If his brother will not let him die. He might as well do what he can while he exists here. ]

[juniorchampion]

[ Neither is Yuri. That's why he has to make deals like this. ]

Come on. I haven't practiced since coming here so I'm going to practice longer today. I might need it before I get very far. I haven't skated to know how fast chroma goes away.

[bisection]

Oh... okay... I will need to find that place, but I can come there.

[juniorchampion]

Don't take too long. I'm going to start my practice so I'll need you here by the time I need to recharge.

[ Yuri is just going to approach this like electricity. ]

[bisection]

I will hurry, then.

[ As much as he can hurry. He's not the fastest person out there. Maybe someday... ]

switch to action;

[juniorchampion]

[ When he finds the ice rink, Yuri is already inside.

He's as small and slender as the picture suggested, something that adds to his grace on the ice. It's a temporary thing; soon, he'll probably hit a growth spurt that ruins it all so he has to take advantage of this specific form of skating while he can.

He isn't pushing himself too hard yet. Instead, he's trying to judge how quickly he tires now that chroma is his energy. However, unable to help himself, Yuri ends up practicing a piece from one of his previous arrangements. Upon landing, he notices his company has finally arrived and skates over to him with ease. Stopping on the other side of the partition, he leans forward. ]

You're the Sinistra guy?

[bisection]

[ Sinistra quickly gets caught up watching Yuri when he enters the rink. It's colder than he expected, but he was used to a frigid room. Some of the floors in the Neuro Tower were completely frozen over. It's not so bad when the outside is so warm.

He walks to the rink's edge and leans on the partition, thin, bandaged fingers grasping the top as he leans forward a little to watch Yuri's feet. It's amazing... he didn't know people could move around like that. The remaining 'humans' in his world were often slow moving or tethered to one spot by their baroques. They were distorted and grotesque. The people here are so far from that, it's always shocking. When had he grown so used to it?

He has zoned out by the time Yuri comes over, startling a little when he's addressed before going serious again. ]

Ah... mm, that is me.

[ Or, that is the name the Archangel decided to give him. ]

[juniorchampion]

I'm Yuri.

[ Assuming Sinistra is his first name, Yuri gives his first in turn. Besides, it isn't like there's a Japanese Yuuri around so he doesn't need to narrow it down further. ]

Skating takes more chroma than I thought.

[ Or maybe he just started with less chroma than he normally starts with energy. ]

Let me see your hand.

[bisection]

[ It takes him a second to realize he's introducing himself. He's still getting used to conversations. When his name is not asked for, he doesn't give it, just nodding to acknowledge Yuri was heard.

It's not like his name is really a name. Not in a true sense. It's just something the Archangel called him because his title disgusted him. That title, too, was just a temporary identifier used by the Order when they needed to speak of him.

He looks a little surprised when his hand is asked for, but holds it out to him. It's think with some bandaging up to the middle of his palm. That's right, Yuri had wanted help with this. It's fine, then. ]

[juniorchampion]

[ For now, through the misunderstanding, Yuri assumes his name really is Sinistra. It won't be the first mistake he makes.

When their hands connect, Yuri can feel the surge that's growing increasingly familiar. His own hand is cold as he's not wearing gloves today and ice really is, surprising no one, chilly. If Yuri can't look him in the eye... well, it's natural that this kind of thing feels weird. ]

How do we know when we're fully charged?

[bisection]

[ Sinistra grasps Yuri's hand and looks at the way their hands meet. His own hands are thin and bony, a little clammy and chill to the touch. He wraps his fingers around his palm, wondering if their palms together would make them both a little warmer. The feeling isn't as strong as it is when he's holding hands with his brother, but it isn't so bad to connect with someone else. Maybe. ]

I am not sure. My arrangement with that man is more involved than this... efficiency, I suppose... but this is easier... less planning. I suppose it would take more time, though.

[juniorchampion]

[ Yuri is small and slender and while his hands reflect that, there's a certain health to it. His size doesn't come from a lack of food or other resource but from youth and being an athlete. ]

Your hands are cold already.

[ That's unexpected. His own temperature makes sense as he's been on the ice,but Sinistra likely hasn't. ]

More efficient? What are you talking about?

[bisection]

They are usually chilly... I think.

[ Bad circulation. Even if he has a heart now, it's probably not a healthy one. Neither he nor his brother have ever had a healthy heart due to their circumstances from birth. ]

'Sleeping together' is the term I have heard used... it fulfills a need and we have to worry less about regular contact outside of that time.

[juniorchampion]

[ His face falls. ]

Don't just bring up who you're having sex with.

[ It wasn't an answer Yuri expected out of the blue. ]

If you're horny, that's your business.

[bisection]

Ah... is it inappra... inappropriate? I, ah, am sorry.

[ He shakes his head. ]

I have not spoken to people outside of the Order... not until I arrived in this place... what I should and should not say is confusing.

[juniorchampion]

You don't just go up to somebody you just met and tell them about your sex life. It's weird and sounds like bragging even though it's a dumb thing to brag about.

[ To people? Is that an exaggeration? Or does he mean 'many people'? Is this guy for real?

This world is way too weird. ]

Or if you talk about it being more sufficient, they're going to think you're coming on to them or something.

[ If Yuri is giving you advice outside of skating, you really do know you've been locked away. ]

[bisection]

[ Sinistra looks like he's paying very close attention. His dull eyes are wide, taking in Yuri's words seriously. He needs to learn these things, doesn't he? He's going to have to keep talking to people in some form. ]

Ah... I will remember for next time... I have no ill intentions.

[juniorchampion]

If I thought you did, I'd punch you in the face.

[ Small as he may be, passive he is not. It's advice he's offering for the future. After all, the hands currently connected are innocent, and Sinistra hasn't tried to move it further up Yuri's arm or anything. ]

But nobody likes a pervert so keep it in mind.

[bisection]

Ah... understandable.

[ He furrows his brow and frowns. More words he doesn't know. He's learning a lot of words in this world. ]

A pervert...? I know about perversion... it is like a distortion. Do I seem distorted?

[ That's a genuine worry for him. Distortions are caused by the soul twisting and the form becoming corrupt in manifestations of the person's anxieties or guilt. He has a feeling what Yuri means is different. ]

[juniorchampion]

Huh?

[ Yuri leans across the partition and studies the man. ]

You're really weird, you know that? Perverted? Like somebody who's obsessed with sex and is only nice to people because he hopes they'll have sex with them. If you talk about having sex with people you just meet, they'll think you're telling them you like sex and hope they'll have sex with you. That'd make you a pervert.

[bisection]

Ah... no... that would not be my intention.

[ That's quite a different thing. He had, probably, been called a perversion of nature when he and his brother were small, still conjoined together. Perhaps this perversion comes from 'perversion of the mind'? ]

I am sorry that my intentions appeared that way.

[ He tries to slip his hand away, feeling a bit ashamed. ]