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Izuku
It was dark, cold, and musty. The air was wet and heavy, building up to strong rain or snow, but not ready to start yet. Izuku wished he had gotten thermal put into his hero costume, but it was too late for any wishes. He just had to hope the cave would be empty, his frozen fingers would surely break with just one punch. If he was cold, he could only imagine how cold Kacchan was.
As if Izuku’s thoughts summoned him, the communication device in his ear emitted a low beep before Katsuki’s deep, gruff voice filled his ears.
“Anything?” Izuku could practically hear his teeth chattering.
Izuku continued walking further inside, his dim flashlight bouncing off of the walls. The mission to the remote village in the mountains was supposed to be quick and easy. Find the smugglers and the merchandise they’re smuggling and make it back home in time for the New Year. It sucked to be missing Christmas but it was the price to pay to be a hero. Proheroes were never going to be the most reliable when it came to social events.
Izuku knew he was going to miss Christmas with his friends. He accepted that when he accepted the mission. He was fine with it! Really! Though he had already bought everyone’s gifts and put them in a giant red Santa-like bag that he’d planned on carrying into the gathering, it was fine. The giant bag sat full in the middle of his living room. He intended to give them out when they all met up for the New Year Class 1-A reunion, the title was a work in progress.
The comm beeped again, “Shit. Deku, it's cold as all hell. Did you find anything?”
“Nothing yet, Kacchan, I mean Dynamight,” Izuku reached a dead end and sighed. Either their intel was wrong and the base wasn’t in the mountain caves or the smugglers were exceptionally good at covering their tracks. “I just reached a dead end. Meet back at the entrance?”
“Tch, whatever,” Katsuki scoffed. “Kacchan is fine, Dumbass. No one else can hear us on this channel. Hurry up.”
Izuku smiled as he made his way back through the winding maze of tunnels. Tomorrow they’d split up at the mouth of the cave again and try different routes once more, but for now? He was looking forward to sharing a warm meal with Kacchan and going to bed.
While Izuku was sad to miss out on all the festivities back home, he was grateful to be able to spend all this time with Kacchan. Their relationship had improved significantly at Yuuei, but there was always room for improvement. Hey, maybe he’ll even get the courage to confess after they wrap up the mission and tie off all the ends with a bow, sending it to the Hero Commission like their very own Christmas gift.
Izuku shook his head, knowing full well he would not be confessing. Not now, and not ever. There wasn’t a chance that Katsuki felt the same about him and that was fine! He would be content to bask in whatever Katsuki would give him.
Katsuki
Katsuki was not content. Not in the slightest. He was wet, cold, and tired. It was beginning to feel like the hero commission had shipped him and Deku off on a wild goose chase. He knew that both of them had the worst track record for taking vacation days, but if the commission made up a bogus mission just to get them out of the agency, he’d kill them.
Katsuki could be at home, warm, wrapped up in a blanket right now. Probably watching some stupid hero documentary that he’d already seen, just because Izuku wanted to watch it again. He could’ve made his move on the stupid little nerd. Made him hot chocolate, opened up the blanket to share, covertly put his arm around Izuku’s shoulders because “he looked cold”, and then leaned in and kissed him.
But no. Instead he was out in the middle of nowhere, freezing even with the extra thermal layers he’d had support add to his costume. He was just grateful for his gauntlets because if it came down to a fight he wasn’t one hundred percent positive his explosions could perform and that just pissed him off. He was pacing back and forth to try and generate warmth when a blob of green finally came into view.
“Wow, Kacchan!” Izuku said, eyes sparkling. He loved that starry-eyed look the nerd got in his eyes when he was in awe of something. It made him simultaneously want to hug him until he popped, and kiss him until they were both breathless. “Why didn’t you say it was snowing!?”
“What?!” Katsuki’s head whipped around to look outside. His shoulders slumped, even as the rest of his body tensed up. “Didn’t notice. Let’s go, Nerd.”
Katsuki was genuinely surprised when they arrived that the commission had made temporary living arrangements for them, though now in retrospect that did lean into the forced vacation idea he’d had earlier. The houses, if they could be called that, were relatively close to one another. Considering how cheap the commission could be, it was almost a miracle that he and Izuku had their own spaces. The one time he would want to share a space on a mission and they can’t even give them adjoining rooms.
“Are we eating at my place or yours, Kacchan?” Izuku asked as they reached the fork in the road leading to their cabins.
“Let’s do yours,” Katsuki paused to think, then nodded his head. “The stupid locals like you more, bet you have a ton of free crap to cook with.”
That statement was more than enough to send Izuku on a tangent that lasted until they were inside, showered, changed into warm clothes, and chopped the free vegetables Izuku had gotten that very morning.
Katsuki smirked as he tugged on the “T-Shirt” t-shirt he was wearing. “When will you let me take you shopping, Dumbass? This is atrocious.”
“Rude!” Izuku sputtered in disbelief.” At least I know how to wear other colors instead of just black!”
Katsuki turned to him, eyebrow raised, smirk still firmly in place. “Do you?” He squinted. Izuku was wearing a bright yellow t-shirt with All Might’s face in a thick black outline, with a pair of Katsuki’s own merch sweatpants, a dark forest green with orange and yellow explosion graphics on it. As much as Katsuki was thrilled Izuku wore his merch, he couldn’t let the opportunity to tease Izuku about something pass him by… “Nice pants, by the way.”
Izuku turned a bright, fire-engine red, “Your designers did a great job. They’re very warm.” Izuku anxiously fiddled with the drawstring.
“Dinner should be done in a few minutes,” Katsuki said, hoping to clear the awkwardness in the air. “Be useful and set the table, will you?”
Izuku glared at him, looking like an angry adorable bunny with his nose scrunched and his lips pouted. “Tell your own usefulness to get free food next time, huh?"
"Oi!" Katsuki yelled as Izuku laughed, scampering away to do as he was told. Katsuki quickly turned to the boiling pot to hide the smile that crept onto his face. The fact that Izuku was comfortable enough to tease him brought him secret joy.
Izuku
Izuku was warm, happy, and full. The stew he and Kacchan cooked was delightful, and he was finding it difficult to keep his eyes open.
“Alright,” Katsuki said, getting up from the couch. “I’m going to bed. You should too, Nerd. Another busy day of getting free stuff and searching for nothing in the morning.”
“Mmmm. You should stay,” Izuku murmured, his sleepy brain making him loose-lipped.
Katsuki chuckled lightly, a sound that made Izuku break out in goosebumps. It was such a nice sound. Izuku wanted to hear it again. “Kacchan, stay!”
“Yeah, yeah. You just want to steal my warmth, loser. Now, upsy daisy,” he said, lifting Izuku up and into his arms.
The cabin was small. One big room acted as the living room, kitchen, and dining area. The next room was a small bathroom with a white porcelain sink, toilet, and shower/tub combo. The last was a small bedroom with a full-sized bed and wooden dresser. The entire place was made of wood and not insulated properly. As soon as Izuku left the warmth of the couch he shivered, nestling into Katsuki’s chest.
“See, warmth thief,” Katsuki said, placing Izuku gently down into the bed and under the covers. He was placed onto the bed as if he were something precious, like a diamond placed onto a soft cushion. Izuku didn’t want to open his eyes out of fear that it was all a dream.
Katsuki brushed a hand across his forehead, moving the loose strands of hair there, and then he was gone with a quiet, “Good night, Izuku.”
************************************************
Izuku groggily woke up to the sound of banging on his door. He was loath to leave the cocoon of warmth he’d created, since the cabin retained none of the heat from the fire earlier. The knocking, however, was insistent and Izuku was a hero. What if someone was in need?
He should've known better than to expect the “simple” recon mission to actually be simple. After the lack of events the past few days, he just wasn’t sure what he had been expecting at that point. What he did expect was to at least have a warm place to sleep. As his socked foot touched the wooden floor he whimpered. Immediately a shudder wracked his body as the cold rooted itself into Izuku’s very being. Old aches and pains from previous breaks in his arms began to hurt as he quickly shuffled towards the door. He made sure to keep the thickest blanket from his cocoon wrapped
around his shoulders in an attempt to stave off the cold.
The street lights twinkled outside as Izuku opened the door to his temporary abode; a person in need aside, he just wanted the knocking to stop. Standing there in full winter regalia, with a scowl so deep-set on his face that Izuku swore this time it’d be permanent, was a sopping wet Katsuki.
Suddenly Izuku felt wide awake. “What happened, Kacchan!?” Izuku exclaimed. His confusion was almost enough to make him drop his makeshift cape. Almost. A strong breeze reminded him otherwise. Behind Katsuki, Izuku was able to make out the path he’d taken from his cabin to Izuku’s front door, considering it was the only part of the snowy landscape disturbed. Outside it looked like Izuku had been transported into a picturesque snow globe that had just been shaken up and set down to let the snow settle.
“You gonna let me in or what, stupid nerd,” Katsuki said, teeth clenched to prevent them from chattering. “Would’ve called or used the comms but it seems the storm knocked ‘em out.”
Izuku took a step back to do just that. Each of Katsuki’s steps squeaked and squished making Izuku grimace. That could not be comfortable.
“I’ll grab you a towel… or two,” Izuku said, rushing off in the direction of the bathroom to grab a couple of the flimsy towels that had been provided. He stopped short at the entrance to the living room when he spotted a now-shirtless Katsuki stoking a growing fire in the stone fireplace. “Ah– uhm… Here!” His voice cracked embarrassingly as he finally managed a complete word. He cleared his throat, handing the towel over, hoping Katsuki wouldn’t comment on the blush.
Luckily, Katsuki was too preoccupied with getting out of his wet clothing to actually care. He grunted his thanks and walked barefoot into the bathroom, leaving a wet puddle in his wake.
Izuku gave himself a moment to calm down. This was not the first time he’d seen Katsuki shirtless! They shared locker rooms and beach training sessions. But it was the shock, it had to have been. That’s what caught Izuku off guard. He fanned his face for a minute before grabbing the wet outer clothes and hanging them up a safe distance from the fireplace. He then placed the wet boots and socks close enough to the fire to hopefully dry by morning. He wasn’t even sure what time it was. The thought to check his phone had never occurred to him when he heard the banging at his door.
He shuffled back into his room to retrieve the device as the shower shut off. The bright 3 AM wasn’t the only thing about his phone that surprised him. He had no service. Though they were in a remote village, phone service had never been a problem for him. It was how he was receiving a ton of messages from his friends saying they missed him, with photos of their Christmas decorations, photos of his mom and All Might ice skating together, and even a photo of Eri smiling with Kota and a snowman. While the messages made him feel loved, he couldn’t help but feel guilty that instead of spending time with his family and friends, he was floundering on what felt like a failed mission. He tucked his phone away and grabbed a set of clothes to leave by the door for Katsuki.
The door opened a crack and his gaze met with one red eye. “Thanks, was just about to ask.”
“No worries, Kacchan!” Izuku chirped, handing the clothes through the tiny gap. He made his way to the stove to start boiling some water for tea. He had a feeling they were going to need it.
Katsuki
The air felt cold as Katsuki stepped out of the warm, steam-filled bathroom. He could talk crap all he wanted about how bad the cabins were and how small the village was, but damn was the plumbing and water pressure amazing.
As he padded into the living room wearing a mix of Izuku’s nerdy hero clothing, he paused to watch Izuku flit about the kitchen gathering everything needed for a cup of tea. He couldn’t help the soft smile that made its way onto his face. He hated it. Part of him wanted to go on being in denial of his feelings, but fighting in a war together sort of cemented the fact that “hate” was never the emotion he felt when Deku came to mind.
He loved him. Katsuki wasn’t sure he’d ever be able to voice his feelings aloud, but in quiet moments like these when it was just the two of them? There was no denying the warmth he felt in the pit of his stomach, the way the tension in his shoulders melted away, or even the constant pressure he felt building in his head when he was stressed just magically disappearing at the first whisper of the freckled man’s laughter. He was head over heels, gone with the wind, and completely irrevocably in love.
Katsuki almost rolled his eyes at his sappy thoughts. As long as what he thought stayed internal it was fine.
“Oh,” Izuku said, turning to face him. “I didn’t know you were standing there, sorry! Do you want chamomile or green tea? I’m not sure what happened or if you’re only staying ‘til your clothes dry or sleeping over. Oh! Maybe we could move the bed out here so that way it’s warmer. I was rather cold even under all of my blankets. But with an extra person in the bed, it might be warmer. Unless you weren’t staying! Ah– Sorry, Kacchan!”
“Nerd, breathe,” Katsuki said, grabbing a cushion from the couch and placing it on the floor in front of the fireplace. “Chamomile is fine, and I’m staying. I mean, if that’s cool or whatever. There’s a hole in my ceiling so there's not really another option. Moving the bed sounds good, s’long as you don’t mind sharing.”
“Oh no! Are you okay? You weren’t hurt by broken wood were you?”
Katsuki almost laughed. Izuku flipped like a switch from anxious to concerned in 0 seconds flat. “Nah, just got snowed in. I don’t know if any of my stuff will be dry or usable. But that’s a tomorrow issue. That tea done yet?”
Izuku made a noise of affirmation and brought it over to the fireplace. Then he left the room. A few seconds later he came back holding the bed at an awkward angle to fit it through the doorway to the living room.
Katsuki rolled his eyes and got up to move the couch, so the mattress could lay a close but safe distance from the fire. They both climbed on, trying not to touch the other. However, as two grown men, let alone pro heroes, it would be impossible to share the full-sized bed without touching. Katsuki bit the bullet and hoped Izuku would think the pink in his cheeks was a combination of the fire and the tea.
After they finished drinking the tea, Katsuki got up to quickly wash the dishes. The warmth from the fire didn’t heat Izuku’s place as much as it had his. When Katsuki returned to the bed, he found Izuku huddled over his phone, a sad look on his face.
“You good?” he asked, climbing under the covers. Izuku was like a furnace giving off just as much heat as the fire before them.
“Yeah, just sad I missed Christmas and probably gonna miss New Year’s Eve too. It's stupid I guess. I know we’re heroes and we’ll get called away all the time but it just sucks a little, you know? Never mind, that probably just sounds dumb,” Izuku said, shaking his head and putting his phone off to the side.
Katsuki rolled over so they were facing each other and tried not to panic at Izuku’s widened eyes and flushed face looking back at him. “It’s not stupid, I mean yeah we’re heroes but we’re people too. ‘Course you wanna spend the holidays doing crap with the people you love and not freezing your ass off.” The “with me” was left out. No reason to make the nerd feel worse, Katsuki thought to himself.
“Yeah, I guess…” Izuku paused. “But that doesn’t mean I’m not glad to be here with you!”
“Hah?”
“You’re my closest person, Kacchan. Of course, if I can’t be with my mom and our friends I’d be happy just being alone with you! And even if we were home, it’s not like I wouldn’t have invited you to do all the holiday things with us!”
“Like what?” Katsuki asked, a plan already forming in his head. They couldn’t continue in the mountains without comms or working cell phones, so they might as well make the most of their time there. And if it happened to be together, well, so be it. Katsuki would show Izuku such a wonderful time he wouldn’t even have time to miss those losers back home.
Izuku
Izuku wasn’t sure he had heard Katsuki properly. If he was being honest, he was having a hard time hearing anything over the sound of his own heartbeat in his ears. He hasn’t lain so close to Kacchan since they were kids. Yet, there they were, talking and planning (?) things under the covers.
“I said, ‘Let's do it,” Katsuki repeated. “Let’s do all the crap you want to do. We can have a holiday montage, just me and you.”
“Really?” Izuku said, trying to keep the excitement out of his voice.
“Yeah, why not. There’s ice everywhere so skating should be easy, s’long as you’re fine sliding around in your boots. I’m sure there's a cafe that serves your abomination of mint hot chocolate. We can make our own stupid decorations for around the cabin. I saw some brats around that I’m sure would love to build snowmen or whatever… I know how much Christmas means to you and it sucks that you’re missing out on the reunion. I don’t care but I know you always love catching up with those losers…” Katsuki trailed off, almost as if he were embarrassed to have been talking that whole time.
Izuku’s eyes were glistening. He couldn’t help it. “Kacchan is amazing,” he said as he launched himself across the tiny gap between them and into Katsuki’s arms. The fact that Katsuki was willing to do all of that with him meant more than any words he could find. His heart was so full, it didn’t even register that he fell asleep in Katsuki’s arms.
The next morning they woke up without any awkwardness. Mostly because Katsuki was a man on a mission. After checking their phones and comms again, they made quick work of trekking to Katsuki’s cabin to gather anything salvageable and drop it off back at Izuku’s. It went unspoken that for the duration of their stay in the village, they’d be sharing Izuku’s cabin.
Katsuki was right. Relatively quickly, they found a cafe that sold not only mint hot chocolate but also spiced buns. After breakfast, Katsuki grabbed Izuku’s hand with a gruff, “You’re too slow.” And began pulling him around the small town square. They found lights, garlands, and little snowflakes they could use to decorate the cabin. Izuku felt like his cheeks were going to break from how permanent his smile felt. For lunch, Katsuki made them some miso soup and rice as Izuku decorated the cabin.
Izuku didn’t even question it when after lunch, Katsuki took him by the hand again.
“Kacchan, look!” Izuku said, pointing to two young children struggling to build a snowblob near one of the main road’s stores. Katsuki shook his head, but Izuku saw the small smile playing on his lips.
“Hi,” the little girl said, before they could even get close.
They murmured their hellos while the boy continued to struggle with the head of the snowman. “Can we help?” Izuku asked.
The kids shared a look before shrugging, and Izuku bent down and gathered snow to form the top of the snowblob, forming it more into a snowman. He removed his scarf and placed it around the neck as the children giggled and went searching for sticks for arms and rocks for eyes under Katsuki’s instruction.
As Izuku was laughing with the siblings, whose names he learned were Miru Netsu and Miru Oeta, he saw Katsuki lift his phone in his peripheral. He thought nothing of it, having checked for service a few moments ago as well. Besides, he was having too much fun talking about the heat detection and x-ray quirks the children had.
After finding the parents and getting joyous confirmation, Izuku, Katsuki, and the family of four went to a nearby pond just north of the town square to go ice skating. Izuku was sure he was dreaming, as Katsuki laughed while skating backward holding Netsu’s hands as she giggled and tried to keep up. Izuku quickly pulled his phone out and snapped a photo, just to ensure he wasn’t asleep. The more time Katsuki spent with him on this practically failed mission, the more Izuku fell in love. How could he not?
A piercing scream broke through his thoughts and his head whipped back and forth looking for the source. Netsu looked worried as she skated towards a big rock at the edge of the frozen pond. Izuku had a feeling she was using her quirk as he scanned the perimeter and came up one person short. He made eye contact with Katsuki, a plan
already forming between them without even having to use words. As they rushed to the other side of the rock, they saw where the snow had collapsed into itself and Oeta must’ve fallen right down. “Netsu, can you see your brother using your quirk, sweetie? Kacchan is going to go in and get him, but he won’t be able to see
too clearly.”
Tears were already forming in Netsu’s eyes as she nodded her head. She gave quick, precise directions that Izuku repeated down to Katsuki.
“There!” Netsu yelled.
“I got him!”
Izuku sagged in relief. Katsuki’s voice was echoing, something that didn’t make sense unless the ground beneath the snow was hollow. “Netsu, go back to your parents, okay? Have them get the doctor. Oeta will probably be very cold when Kacchan gets him out.”
She nodded her head and ran to her parents,just as Katsuki popped his head out of the hole. A frightened Oeta was in his arms, shivering but only slightly damp. “I just wanted to see what the machines under the ground were for.” Katsuki met Izuku’s eyes over his head just as the parents came running over and thanked them. The heroes brushed it off as the family left to take the boy to a doctor.
“Well…” Izuku started.
“Let’s go. Comms be damned.”
Using his quirk, Izuku focused wind pressure on the area of the hole. Once the snow cleared, it revealed a metal door frozen open. The two made their way down the ladder and found themselves in a high-tech underground base.
“I guess we found where the smugglers were operating from.”
Katsuki brushed a gloved hand over what looked like a keyboard and suddenly the base came to life. The lights turned on and the computer beeped as it loaded a screen that had been cleared of all data.
“Seems like the smugglers left when the weather got cold. Probably assumed metal and snow wasn’t the best bet.” Katsuki said.
They both climbed out of the hole, defeated. While they’d managed to locate the base, it was all just a dead end.
Katsuki
Angered and saddened by the lack of success for the mission, they returned to Izuku’s cabin and began making dinner together. Once seated at the table, slowly chewing in silence, Katsuki couldn’t help but groan. The day had been going so well. Stupid dumbass smugglers, being stupid and running away like little cowards just because the temperature dropped.
He got up from the table and went to the bag he had stashed away earlier when Izuku was decorating. Izuku eyed him curiously but didn’t bother to get up from his chair. Katsuki pulled out the unwrapped gift and plopped it onto Izuku’s head, smirking as he sat back down. Izuku pursed his lips and tried not to laugh as he pulled off the hat to see what it was. Red and green alternating stripes adorned his head as he put the elf hat back on. Finally, he laughed, the disappointment finally leaving his face as Katsuki was blessed with a smile.
Izuku rose from his chair and went rummaging in a bag by the couch. Just as Katsuki got up to see what he was doing, Izuku jumped up and smushed a hat onto his head. Izuku’s laughter was bright and joyous, cheeks turning a lovely shade of pink. Katsuki let the ball of the Santa hat smack Izuku in the face as he let out his own bark of laughter.
Together they started getting ready for bed. Izuku did the dishes while Katsuki showered, and made sure to put his hat back on. Katsuki started the fire again while Izuku showered, making sure the room would be nice and toasty.
They sat on the bed together by the fire, just talking softly, cuddling together for warmth until the sky changed from light to dark. The fireplace was down to embers, the faint red and orange glow providing little to no light. The moment was nice, warm, and cozy. All words Katsuki felt uncomfortable using to describe how he felt. He watched the colors dance on Izuku’s skin while the man mumbled, fighting a losing battle with sleep. When Izuku’s soft snores met Katsuki’s ears he laid them both down and cuddled even closer.
Izuku
Izuku woke up to an incessant beeping sound that was grating to his ears. The repetitive high pitch sound seemed designed to not let him sleep. He jolted awake. That was the comms!
Katsuki was awake next to him, squinting in the dark as Izuku got up and rushed to the bedroom. He quickly answered the incoming transmission, “Heroes Deku and Dynamight reporting in. A snowstorm knocked our connection out.”
“Deku, Dynamight, it’s Creati. We managed to capture the smugglers an hour or so ago, they appeared to be trying to return to the mountains.”
Izuku was glad to hear they were caught and to hear Yaomomo’s voice, but he couldn’t help but feel a stab of disappointment in his gut. He and Katsuki had been sent there to track the smugglers down, and they couldn’t even manage that.
“It appears their computers were activated, sending a signal out to any of their members within Japan to return to base. We’re not quite sure how the computers were activated, but that was all Mindjack was able to get out of them,” Creati continued.
Izuku and Katsuki shared a look. “That was us,” Katsuki said, voice still rough from sleep. “We located their base while our connection was down, and the computers were turned on during our investigation. They were wiped clean, but their big fancy tech is still preserved in the snow.”
“Excellent! Great job you two! We should be able to send an extraction team for you both by tomorrow afternoon.”
Izuku was simultaneously happy and disappointed, he wanted to return home and see his mom and friends but he also wanted to remain in this domestic bubble with Katsuki. He was scared that the moment they left the village, things would go back to the way they had been. Now that Izuku knew what it felt like to be wrapped up in Katsuki’s arms at night, he never wanted to let it go.
“Oh, and Happy New Year! It’s a little early but I assume you both want to begin packing immediately,” Yaomomo said, interrupting his rambling thoughts. “I’ll let you both go, I look forward to seeing you soon.”
The comms cut off with a prolonged beep. Izuku was worrying his lip as he checked the time, 11:59. Katsuki took a step towards him, slowly, carefully as if trying not to spook him.
“We did it, Kacchan!” Izuku said, trying to shake himself out of the unneeded disappointment. He reached up to hug Katsuki, arms thrown around his neck, just as the blonde turned his head, connecting their lips instead. Izuku pulled back quickly. “Ah– Kacchan! I’m– uh. Crap. I’m sorry! I know you don’t feel the same way I feel about you, and that’s fine! Really! I’m just happy I get to call you one of my best friends. I really loved being able to spend this time with you, even if at first we thought the mission was a bit of a bust. Not that any time with you is a waste! I loved every second, I mean enjoyed. I mean… I'm sorry, Kacchan.”
After a moment of silence only broken by Izuku’s continued murmured apologies, Katsuki finally spoke. “I’m not…” and then he leaned in again, with purpose.
That night when the clock struck midnight, even with the knowledge that they’d be returning home the next day, they shared a kiss in celebration, acceptance, and love. The fireworks that exploded around them to signal the new year could very well have not existed; in that moment, all that mattered was Izuku and Katsuki.