#brilliant media came along and brought me constant escapism.

[doodlebloo]

What's the quote that's like "And the worst part is even if I could go back I wouldn't belong there anymore" because that's how I feel about the dsmp

[n3rdlif343va]

Phichit Zine Ficlet #1

This little ficlet is serving as a promo and prologue for my @phichitzine fic which is a collaboration with the fabulously talented @heilariart!! (Seriously, the art is unbelievable and I really, really cannot wait for everyone to see the story we have created!)

It is also a story near and dear to my heart, since this concept was developed with the help of my magical, beautiful fluff partner @magical-mistral!! Throughout our time as friends and partners, Mistral has always encouraged me to continue to fight for the multifaceted portrayal of Phichit in this fandom. She has encouraged me to write so many fics based on our joint love of our favorite character. I know that without Mistral, my inspiration would have dried up a long time ago, so the first ficlet that I am posting today is not only a zine prequel but most importantly a tribute to my Phichit, the absolutely incredible @magical-mistral. Thank you, for everything!

A sharp clap from the barrier wall had all of the skaters in the Detroit ice rink coming to an abrupt halt in the midst of their cool downs. Standing with his hands braced on the wall was their coach, his facial expression serious as he commanded their immediate attention. Raising an eyebrow at Yuuri, Phichit skated to the side of his best friend and reached up to pull Yuuri’s earbud from his ear. Nodding his head in Celestino’s direction, Phichit laughed at Yuuri’s panicked face. “He wants all of us, not just you, come on.” Playfully hooking an arm with Yuuri’s elbow, Phichit dragged him toward the group that gathered dutifully around their coach.

“This Saturday is Christmas,” Celestino was flailing his hands as he talked, and Phichit winked at Yuuri as he moved his own arms in subtle mocking. They loved their coach, but they also loved to tease the man at any chance they got. The sound of a clearing throat had Phichit dropping his hands, cheeks flushing as he stared at his feet. “As I was saying,” the statement was aimed in Phichit’s direction and he kept his eyes on the ground, even as his smile continued to quirk at the ends of his lips. “Saturday is Christmas, but members of our junior team are performing in a benefit and I cannot fulfill my duties as Santa Claus at the Children’s Hospital.”

The snicker escaped from Phichit before he could stop it. Elbowing Yuuri, he missed Celestino’s gaze falling on him. “Oh Santa, but what a pointy nose you have,” Phichit whispered, causing Yuuri to snort and slap a hand over his mouth. His second joke was interrupted when his name was firmly called.

“Phichit Chulanont,” Celestino’s pronunciation was flawless as he leveled a devious smile in the direction of his skater. “I was going to ask for a volunteer to take my place, but I will take your comments as enthusiasm. And Yuuri, I think you’ll make a good elf. Thank you for taking time out on a busy Saturday, gentleman, I’ll make sure the volunteer coordinator gets lots of pictures.” Raising his own eyebrow, Celestino smirked at his skaters as he waved his hands to dismiss his team.

“How is it that every time you get in trouble I get dragged into it?” Yuuri hissed, shoving Phichit’s shoulder as they made their way to the locker room.

“It’s what best friends are for,” Phichit threw an arm over Yuuri’s shoulders, tugging him into a head lock. “Besides you look great in tights. You’ll be a perfect elf!” Releasing Yuuri to dodge the punch being thrown at his side, Phichit cackled as he plopped on the bench to remove his skates. Playing Santa wasn’t his ideal way to spend a Saturday but it was definitely better than any of Celestino’s previous ideas of punishments.

“Sleep with one eye open, Chulanont,” Yuuri teased, pushing open the door to the locker room and looking back over his shoulder with a sarcastic glare.

“I always do, Mr. Nikiforov!” Falling backwards off the bench when Yuuri threw a dirty towel at him, Phichit continued to laugh as he watched his blushing best friend disappear through the swinging doors.

When Phichit moved to Detroit to train, he was convinced that finding friends would be easy. He had lots of friends growing up and his social circle at home still kept in constant contact through the wonders of social media. It had been a rude awakening to discover himself among the youngest of the skaters training with Celestino and the only skater looking to make lifelong friendships with his rink mates.

For the first week that he had roomed with Yuuri, Phichit was convinced Celestino was pranking him. Yuuri was quiet and serious, and in so many ways the exact opposite of Phichit. At least that’s what Phichit had thought, until the morning that he had discovered Yuuri standing in the kitchen at dawn drinking coffee out of a cereal bowl. Delirious with sleep deprivation, Phichit had stumbled into the kitchen, grabbed a matching bowl and filled it to the brim with steaming coffee. Yuuri had clinked his bowl against Phichit’s and whispered “cheers to bad decisions” making Phichit snicker into his caffeinated salvation.

The walls had toppled from there. Yuuri was funny and sarcastic, his humor flowing perfectly against Phichit’s quick quips of situational humor. They had found a trusted rhythm with each other and Phichit had found the best friend he had desperately wanted in Detroit.

Faith in that friendship had Phichit grinning up from their small kitchen table as Yuuri unlocked and threw open the door to their shared living space. He watched as Yuuri toed off his shoes, counting down the seconds in his head before Yuuri lifted his eyes and got a glimpse of Phichit’s newest stroke of genius. Phichit was not disappointed as Yuuri finally looked up, eyes going wide at the sight on the table.

“Please tell me you are not trying to build a plushie hamster army…” Yuuri blandly regarded the lines of stuffed hamsters standing at attention in front of Phichit. Leaning on the counter, Yuuri took a slow sip from his water bottle while waiting for an explanation.

“That’s sort of… exactly what I’m doing,” Phichit laughed, lifting a triangle shape of red fabric. “Celestino said that he gives the kids coloring books every year and that’s fine, but hamsters are so much better! Especially if they are superheroes!” Proud of his own handiwork, Phichit turned the closest hamster to face Yuuri. There was a blue mask velcroed over the hamster’s beady plastic eyes and a matching blue cape tied around his neck. “See, each kid will get a hamster to help them fight their cancer.” Fiddling with the cape in his hand, Phichit hesitantly glanced at Yuuri for an opinion. His idea had seemed brilliant right up until he said it out loud.

Pushing from the counter, Yuuri took two steps to yank his chair from the table. Settling next to Phichit, Yuuri shook his head. “You are the best kind of crazy.” His voice was hushed as Yuuri reached between fluffy hamsters to lift the stack of fabric in front of Phichit. “How can I help?”

The grin broke over Phichit’s face as he slid a second pattern over to Yuuri. Both of them knew how to sew, a product of starting in their figure skating careers with hand-me-down costumes and small budgets. Repositioning his sewing kit between them, Phichit began to excitedly explain his plan, grateful that Yuuri was always ready to jump into whatever craziness Phichit had up his sleeve.

“I hate the smell of hospitals,” Yuuri commented, leaning back against the elevator with his legs crossed at the ankles. His outfit was a bright green, trimmed in red with points on his hat, shoes and ears. The stockings were stripes of red and green exposed under the remarkably short shorts that made up the bottom of ensemble.

“Same,” Phichit commented, his mind filtering through the months of visiting his grandfather the year before he left for Detroit. He had hated Christmas that year, and the pit in his stomach had instantly returned when they had stepped through automatic doors. Shifting the heavy red bag on his shoulder, Phichit cracked his neck trying to suppress the sickness creeping up his throat. If Christmas in the hospital had been horrible for Phichit’s ninety-two-year-old grandfather, he couldn’t imagine how awful it would be for the children living on the oncology unit. Swallowing his nerves, he prepared to force his smile as the elevator doors slowly slid open.

It was the noise that hit them first. Christmas carols were filling the hallways as nurses in Santa hats sang along with the tunes, pushing and guiding patients toward the family room. Phichit knew there would be nine children in the shared room, with six other children remaining in their rooms for medical reasons. He had badgered Celestino with questions about each child, and then took the time to contact the hospital about the ones Celestino didn’t know. Even though Celestino told him that the hospital worked hard to make the holidays joyful, Phichit hadn’t believed him. He had been ready for the worst, and was pleasantly surprised to be wrong.

“Santa!!!”

A small body collided with Phichit’s waist, tiny arms squeezing around the large mass of Phichit’s pillowed stomach. The suit was made of a soft red fabric, and the tiny child buried his face into the front of Phichit’s fake belly. “I told everyone that you would come, but they didn’t believe me. Then you sent the mountain of presents and now you are here!” Peering up, the child continued to smile as Phichit processed the bald head and hollowed cheeks.

“Of course Santa came!” Yuuri knelt down, smiling at the little boy who continued to cling to Phichit. “And he dragged me along because we brought some extra special presents and he can’t handle life without me.” Smirking, Yuuri winked at Phichit who pretended to be offended by his words. “I’m Elf Yuuri, what’s your name?”

“Jeffrey,” Phichit and the small boy said at the same time. A thrilled gasp escaped the child as his wide eyes turned back to Phichit’s bearded face. “You know who I am?”

There was a sweet quiver to the question which caused the first threat of tears to sting Phichit’s eyes. “Of course I know who you are! You are a very brave little boy who definitely deserves a brand new Nintendo DS.” Phichit used a lower voice, attempting to imitate the Santa that was popular in American culture. He nudged Yuuri with a foot when Yuuri attempted to stifle a laugh. “And Elf Yuuri is right! We had presents delivered early, but I also have some extra special surprises in my sack!” He resisted the urge to kick Yuuri harder when Yuuri’s laughter became louder. Pushing Yuuri’s shoulder, Phichit laughed with Jeffrey as Yuuri sprawled onto the floor. “How about we head for the party, Mr. Jeffrey? We’ll let giggles here catch up when he can control himself.” Bending, Phichit hoisted Jeffrey onto his hip trying to ignore how light the boy was and the feeling of the boy’s delicate ribs under his fingertips.

Jeffrey pecked a kiss to Phichit’s cheek and yelled, “on to the fun!” Laughter peeling out of him as Phichit began to gallop in the direction of party. Looking back over his shoulder, Phichit grinned as Yuuri retrieved their bag of surprises with a bright smile of his own.

They had spent exactly ten minutes on the oncology floor of the Children’s Hospital of Michigan and Phichit already knew that his heart was stolen. His smile was no longer forced as he made his way into the party room, vowing to give these children the best Christmas party they had ever had.