Archive of Our Own

Chapter Text

“You are going to be late!”

Midoriya’s signature red shoes pounded against the concrete sidewalk, his scarf flapping wildly in the wind. Snow was beginning to flurry down, sticking to his shoulders like annoying pieces of lint. His black leather bag smacked against his back, unrestrained due to the lack of hands holding down the straps. It was a bit bothersome, but his hands were already busy holding onto the brightly wrapped box in his arms.

“I know,” he yelled back, the bustling crowd of people on the snowy streets drowning him out quite easily, “But you’re not exactly helping!”

He clutched his box tighter, his gloves losing his grip on the slick wrapping paper. Today was the last day before winter break, and his class had decided to celebrate by doing a secret santa gift exchange. Of course, this was all announced about a week ago, but the teen had to make sure his was perfect. But his lack of experience in gift giving in general and Gami’s lack of experience in… well… pretty much everything turned the innocent idea of holiday cheer into a few stressful nights of planning, scraping, and repeating.

But, with the gift box securely squeezed in his arms, he was feeling pretty alright. It had taken him some extra time this morning, making sure the red ribbon was tightly fashioned in a neat bow and the taped edges of the holiday wrapping paper were smoothed out. It had been an unaccounted addition to his schedule, and so Aizawa and Yamada had left without him per his request.

And now, he was racing to make it to school on time, because Iida would never let him hear the end of it if he was late. Neither would Aizawa, honestly, but he was more concerned about his strict companion going on and on about his tardiness, even if the holidays were approaching.

“Goodness, fine,” the ghost groaned back, but it was clear he wasn’t truly annoyed, “Take a right here.”

He didn’t spare a split second of hesitation, turning down a narrow alleyway he was unfamiliar with. Since he usually walked to U.A. with the two heroes he resided with, he almost always walked the same path to school, and never really walked the streets alone, unlike his old residence where he traversed the streets constantly. There, he knew his way around every alley, every fire escape, even over some of the fences that tried to keep out the exact people like him. But here, he hadn’t had the time to explore the nooks and crannies yet, so he was forced to just trust the spirit to guide him.

That could only end in one of two ways.

The alleyway was coated in a thin layer of snow and slush, and his sneakers weren’t exactly the most suitable footwear, so he skidded roughly at his sharp turn. To prevent his fall, he crouched and used one of his hands to stabilize his fall, switching the gift to his other. Without stopping his momentum, he pushed his body up off the ground and on his two feet again.

As far as he could see, the alley was pretty bare, with the few dumpsters it had covered in a film of snow. There was one fire escape strung up on the side, but it was too high up for him to really think about grabbing. The dumpsters were spread few and far between. And right at the end of the alley stood a lovely, unmoving, big wooden fence.

“Gami!” he chastised, but still didn’t stop running, “How am I supposed to get over that?! My hands are full!!”

“I did not think about it!” he cried back, “It was just the fastest way!”

“Oh, I’m gonna kill you after this!”

His eyes darted around, searching for some semblance of a plan. There was a dumpster close enough to the fence to jump off of, but the dumpster itself was too tall to jump onto. The fire escape was too high to reach, and there wasn’t anything else he could use as a springboard. Grumbling under his breath, he narrowed down his options to one singular trick he could pull, but he needed both hands.

So he charted course for that dumpster he picked out earlier, running carefully to not slip again like he had done as he entered the alley. The green metal bin was quickly approaching in his line of sight, but he had no room for any hesitation now. His shoe pounded against the snowy buffer, and his breath heaved out so heavily it nearly clouded his vision. His nose was tinted red and slightly sniffly, but that could all be fixed with a simple tissue later. Right now, he only had one focus.

Make this jump, or he would get to school late.

As he closed in on the dumpster, only a few feet away from it, he threw the gift box forward, up over his head and over the dumpster. Without a second beat, he summoned his scythe and clutched it in both hands, making a startlingly short jump forward, one way too small to land on the top of the dumpster. Then, he slammed the handle of his weapon down into the snow until it reached the concrete, using his frozen upper body strength to launch himself higher than what he could achieve alone. Using his blade as a pole vault was something that he experimented with, but as he hadn’t gotten it down completely yet, he left the trick for dire situations.

And now was definitely a dire situation.

He twisted his body back upwards, landing on top of the dumpster with a heavy thud, but still managed to keep his momentum. His scythe had crashed on the snowy ground below, but he quickly flexed his hand to get rid of it. He held his hands outward and looked up, the red wrapped present falling into his arms not a moment after. He approached the edge of the dumpster and without hesitation, he leaped off, soaring over the fence. The ribbons tussled in the wind, but he held them in place with one hand out of paranoia.

He landed in a rough squat on the other side, his shoes crunching obnoxiously in the snow. The impact sent a jolt of shock through his nerves, but he recovered quickly and raced out of the narrow alley. He took his eyes off the street and to his gift box really quick, and checked it out for damages. Miraculously, there were none, not even a scuff on the wrapping paper, making him sigh heavily in relief.

“See? That was absolutely brilliant!” Gami’s voice popped up in his cold ears, making him furrow his eyebrows. “I had no doubt in you whatsoe-”

“Keep going, and I swear your present will be nothing but coal,” he growled back, a hint of amusement lying underneath his snarky tone, “Now which way am I going?”

The ghost chuckled nervously.

“Make a left…”

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He had managed to make it to class just in time, but not fast enough to avoid Iida’s scolding, to which he apologized profusely. Aizawa sent him a look, but it was more of a joke than anything, marked with a slight smirk, and he thankfully decided not to hop on Iida’s bandwagon. So he managed to get away fairly unscathed, and put away his gift in his locker, before continuing on with the rest of his day, to which was filled with little work and mostly fun holiday activities.

In English, Present Mic was determined to fill the day with karaoke fun, to the dismay of most of the class. No one really wanted to spotlight themselves alone in front of their peers, to the teacher’s disappointment, at least, that was until Ashido persuaded Kaminari, Kirishima, and Sero to sing with her as a group. The four of them picked a random holiday song and bellowed out their hearts, stopping in between lyrics to laugh or wheeze. And their pure enjoyment was all that was needed to convince other kids to join in, with Uraraka and Asui singing a holiday song together, and even Aoyama singing one by himself, which was a bit cringy, but no one had the heart to tell him. Gami didn’t enjoy the loud, invasive noise too much, but his successor found it endearing. He watched the boy giggle and unconsciously smile, and couldn’t help but do the same at his reactions.

His next class of Modern Literature with Cementoss was a bit more bland when compared to English. The man had them reading and analyzing the well known holiday book, “A Christmas Carol”. Midoriya honestly didn’t mind the work, with analysis being one of his prevalent hobbies, but Ashido and her group from before weren’t so happy about the change of pace. Gami too seemed to enjoy the book, reading along with the teen as he flipped the pages. He seemed especially enthralled by the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come, his mysterious and simplistic description reminding the spirit of himself, making him also wonder if he was the Death of that time. The boy just waved him off with a small laugh though, saying that he was reading too far into it.

Midnight in Art History passed out colored paper and laid out a multitude of art supplies on the front table, including colored pencils, markers, and even finger paint, to Uraraka and Ashido’s joy. The heroine tasked the class with making Christmas cards for family or someone else special, and most of the class quickly got to work. Midoriya, however, sat there for a while, unsure of where to even start, until Gami suggested he make a card for each of the heroes he was residing with. And while that was a great place to start, that didn’t exactly help with what to write. After an even longer while of ultimately useless brainstorming, he just settled with crummy holiday puns and some sketchy drawings like those he put into his analysis notebooks. Unfortunately, that left him running out of class time to work on them, so he figured he’d finished them later.

And for his final class before lunch, Ectoplasm had them doing basic graphing with coordinates to draw out a holiday themed picture. The teacher had actually taken the time to design a set of points unique for each of them, so no one’s picture was the same. He ended up getting a set of holiday candles. And though there were over 100 points to plot, it ended up being very simplistic and easy, to which Midoriya did not complain, as it only left him with more time to work on his cards.

And with that, lunch finally rolled around and everyone got a break, though it was debatable if a break was really necessary amongst the holiday fun. But either way, the teen wasn’t going to take the opportunity for granted. Lunch Rush was serving a holiday special: ham with mashed potatoes, steamed carrots, peas, and finally topped with gravy or cranberry sauce. The heavenly smell sifted through the cafeteria air and socked him in the gut the moment he entered. There was no way he could pass up such a meal, so he stepped in line and was served a full plate.

The cafeteria was much more packed than usual, but thankfully, like its own Christmas miracle, his regular spot at his table was free from any intruders. Somehow he always managed to arrive first, even if he ended up buying lunch, but regardless he sat down anxiously waiting for his friends, the flow of more people than usual slightly stressing him out.

“What is that odd, red, gooey substance?” The ghost pointed blankly at the sauce drizzled on the side of his tray.

“Oh that? I think it’s the cranberry sauce Lunch Rush was talking about…” he replied, prodding his fork at it. The hero insisted that he have some, despite the boy being a bit apprehensive at its texture. But nonetheless he managed to squeeze it onto his tray and was sent off on his merry way. He had never tried cranberry sauce before, but there was a first time for everything.

He scooped up a little on his fork, and in one quick scoop, he let the sauce touch his taste buds. Closing his mouth, the first few moments weren’t as bad as he was expecting, as he opened his eyes and swallowed, Gami watching intently at his expression. But as it went down his throat, the aftertaste hit him hard, like a punch to the diaphragm.

He squinted his eyes immediately, his lips curling into a pout. His hands lunged over to the bottled water that stood at the edge of his tray, and he uncapped it hastily to wash out the taste. All while his mentor laughed heartily, his wheezing invading Midoriya’s ears just as the sauce did to his mouth.

“It’s t-too sweet,” he coughed out, almost choking at how fast he was downing the water, “What is it even supposed to go with?”

“Perhaps it is simply an acquired taste?” Gami attempted to explain, but since he hadn’t tasted the sauce before, he was left merely to speculate.

But that wasn’t a good enough excuse for the teen, who subsequently pushed away all of the red sauce to the very edge of his tray, before wiping his fork clean. Sure, maybe he was going a bit overboard, but none of that registered in his one track mind, except the thought to get all of that away from the rest of his lunch as quickly as possible.

It was at that moment, that Iida and Uraraka sat themselves down at the table, on the opposite side from him. Needless to say, neither of them were expecting to see their friend furiously pushing away his cranberry sauce as if it were an infectious disease, but Uraraka couldn’t help the small giggle that escaped her lips.

“You don’t like the cranberry sauce, Midori?” she teased, well knowing the answer, “I think it’s really good!”

“And I think you shouldn’t have tried to eat your food while we were still standing,” Iida scolded, placing his tray down before sitting himself, “You could have easily made a mess.”

The brunette just laughed, ignoring his point entirely, favoring her lunch instead. Iida sighed, beginning to eat his lunch as well, fully giving up. At that the three of them devolved into idle conversation, chatting about topics such as winter plans, the school day so far, and most favorably, the secret santa exchange happening next period.

“So Midori, who did you get for the secret santa?” she questioned in a sing-song manner.

The inquiry sent a rush of panic through his veins, as he attempted to mask his outward expression. He couldn’t tell, not only was that the rules of the exchange, but also… it would ruin the surprise. But the way his friend stared intently at him, it was intimidating in a way only Uraraka could be.

Thankfully, Iida stepped in and saved him unintentionally. “Uraraka, you cannot ask that! The exchange is supposed to stay secret until the gifts are physically handed out!”

“But Iida,” she groaned, “the exchange is literally happening next period!!”

“No buts.” The strict student stayed firm. “I will not have the rules broken on my watch.”

Midoriya laughed, mentally thanking the boy in front of him for saving his behind. His expression shifted to a sheepish smirk once the girl turned to him instead, as he rubbed the back of his neck nervously. “Sorry Uraraka, but you’ll just have to wait and see.”

She huffed, her cheeks puffing out like a hamster, before dropping her shoulders and finishing up the rest of her food. Both boys wheezed out in response, a complete reverse from how the conversation began. There wasn’t much time left for lunch, so the students quickly shoved down the rest of their traditional Western meal as they usually had to, their conversations eating away at their lunch time more than their actual stomachs did.

But like it always did, the school bell rang, signaling the end of the period. Most of the students began piling out, with the group lagging behind to put back their now empty trays, excluding Midoriya’s, which still had its cranberry sauce on it. But they eventually caught up with the rest of the crowd, making their way back to the 1-A classroom. Both Midoriya and Iida made short detours at their locker to grab their secret santa gifts, while Uraraka insisted she had hers already in the classroom.

Iida’s gift box was much bigger than Midoriya’s, wrapped in a simplistic, yet classy sheet of red foil, tied neatly with a gold ribbon. The present itself looked sleek and stunning, like it was made out of a moviestar red carpet. It intimidated the teen a bit, making him wonder if his gift was a bit lacking, but Gami placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder and attempted to play with the red ribbon on his own. Of course, his hand went right through, but the intent was all that was necessary to bring a warm smile back on his face.

Together, the three walked back into the classroom, only to find it in complete chaos. His classmates were spewed across the room, chatting wildly with each other, gifts either in hand or spread around their desks. Most of the noise was simple conversation, but they all could make out Bakugo’s yelling in the background, along with a few pops of his typical explosions, to which they all sweatdropped. But regardless of the cacophony, they each made their way towards their desks and sat down patiently. Uraraka made idle conversation with Iida and Asui, but it was much quieter since the three were closer together.

Aizawa then burst through the large classroom door, startling everyone into silence and then their seats. The response was instinctive at this point, with no one wanting to make the seasoned hero upset. Most people had their secret santa gifts laid out on their desks, but there were a few empty spots, presumably hiding their presents elsewhere. The pro looked around briefly, before sighing and settling into his chair.

“Well,” he started, “I’m sure you’ve all had quite the day so far, and I certainly don’t want to keep you any longer…” He looked over to his side, eyeing his signature yellow sleeping bag, to which the class facepalmed.

He dropped his shoulders and leaned back into his chair, his raven black hair resting over his eyes and off to the side.

“I hope you all brought your presents,” Aizawa continued tirely, “because you have the rest of the class to exchange and entertain yourselves.”

And with that, the hero leaned off his chair and slithered into his sleeping bag, to which the rest of the class considered was their que to get up and move around. His classmates began to cheerily stand from their seats and take their gifts along with them, beelining to their recipients excitedly. Nervously, Midoriya stood up with his own finely wrapped gift, its light blue, snowy paper sliding against his own polyester gloves. He shuffled unsurely, wondering whether to deliver his present now or wait some time. His anxiety forced him to tap nervously against the box in his hand, thinking about sitting down instead, until Gami placed his own bony hand on top of his nervous one.

“Do not overthink this,” he reassured, stopping his skittish tapping with a gentle press of his hand, “You put a considerable amount of thought into your gift. And she will appreciate it nonetheless.”

He took a deep breath in an attempt to calm his nerves. “You’re right. I can’t stand here forever.”

Sheepishly, he scurried over to the other side of the room, where he saw Uraraka and Iida chatting gleefully. The both of them turned to him curiously, with Iida raising one of his hands up in a usual chopping motion.

“Midoriya,” he began strongly, waving his hand around just as forcefully, “Shouldn’t you be delivering your present?”

He laughed awkwardly in return, “About that…”

Then, he turned to Uraraka, holding out the nicely wrapped blue box to her, the red ribbon flashing against the overhead light. He smiled widely, putting on the most cheerful face he could muster through his nervousness.

“This is for you, Uraraka!”

Her face was aghast, completely taken off guard, before reaching out her own hands and taking the gift from him. She took a moment to collect herself, looking down at the snowy wrapping paper it was decorated with. Each of the creases were neatly pressed and folded, and the exposed edges were taped down moderately, enough that the paper wouldn’t be easily torn, but not excessively to the point where she would have difficulty opening it. Even the bow was tied in such a delicate balance: extravagant, yet not overbearing, with the ends of the ribbons draped symmetrically off the sides. She looked back up at him, noticing him shuffle around in his spot.

“You’re my secret santa?” she realized aloud, yet continued to ask rhetorically, “Is this why you didn’t want to say anything at lunch?”

“Yeah,” he answered hesitantly, “I didn’t want to spoil the surprise.”

She smiled back at him, beaming like the sun, before setting the present down on her desk to open it. She didn’t know how to go about it, not wanting to ruin the box’s beauty, but eventually had to force herself to pull apart the red ribbon at the top. It fell open like a blooming flower, unraveling and collapsing onto the desktop. There, hidden underneath the bow, was a small, not taped flap, one that could be used to easily unwrap the entire present. Her smile grew unconsciously wider at seeing how much thought her friend had put into the gift and she slid one of her padded fingers underneath the flap, pulling up and tearing open the paper.

Underneath the snowy blue wrapping foil, was a brown, cardboard box, which had also been neatly folded to ensure it didn’t collapse under the paper. The bottom was taped closed so it wouldn’t give out, but the top was just folded closed and could be opened without trouble. So, with a mix of nervous energy and excitement, she opened up the cardboard flaps and peered inside.

The first thing that met her eyes was a bright blast of pink, so she stuck her hand inside and pulled it out for a closer look. The object felt smooth in her hands, slick like the feel of the wrapping paper, with a bit of a rough outer edge. Uraraka took it out completely and her eyes lit up like fireworks.

“Strawberry mochi!!” she chirped, “How did you know that was my favorite?”

Turning around to the boy behind her, she saw his smile grow wider at her excitement as he fiddled with his fingers unconsciously.

“I just knew you liked sweets…” he admitted with a laugh, “It was just a lucky guess.”

She practically jumped for joy, and set the packaged item down on her desk to the side. She could tell out of the corner of her eye that there was something else still remaining in the box so she eagerly turned back to it. If it was anything like the sweet treat, she couldn’t wait to see what it was.

Reaching back inside, she wrapped her padded fingers around the second item, feeling the bottom of the box in the process. She grabbed it gently, feeling the soft, puffy texture in her hands. Was it a stuffed animal? But it was too flat and shapeless to be that, so unless it got squashed, that probably wasn’t it. Maybe a blanket? But the texture didn’t exactly remind her of a blanket, the fabric being too foily. Unable to hold her anticipation any longer, she quickly yanked it out, excited to see what had puzzled her so.

The fabric unfolded in front of her eyes as she held it up to see, and with every passing second, she grew more and more giddy, as if she would explode at any moment. She knew what this was, she knew exactly what this was. And the fact that she was holding one in her very hands made her literally jump for joy, unable to keep her feet and her spirit on the ground. She turned around violently, now facing both of the boys again. About to crush Midoriya’s shoulders with her hands, she remembered his hesitance with touch, and instead opted for leaning right into his face.

“This is the limited edition Thirteen hero hoodie!!” She squealed loudly, returning back to her original distance to open up the article of clothing completely. She pressed it against her uniform to see how it would fit on her, getting even more thrilled. Bouncing around like a beachball on the loose, she couldn’t help the pure waves of happiness rolling off her fangirling form.

“Where did you even find this?!” she cried out in disbelief, her mood shifting spontaneously like a passing hurricane, “It was sold out by the time I saw it had even been released!!”

“Well,” Midoriya confessed, scratching his cheek, “I did have a little help.”

Truth be told, Aizawa had caught him up late one night, sitting at his desk with papers everywhere and his head in his hands. The man had assumed he was struggling with some schoolwork and offered his assistance, but was met with a surprise when the teen explained all his stress was over the secret santa exchange. Still, the pro agreed to help out, and a few days later, magically hooked him up with a limited edition Thirteen hoodie. At first, he couldn’t accept the item, feeling guilty at not having earned it himself, but Aizawa didn’t take no for an answer, especially after all the trouble he had gone through to get it.

But Uraraka was just too ecstatic to even wait for an answer. “Thank you so much, Midori!!”

He moved to answer, his own smile equally as wide at seeing her so elated, but Gami nudged him before he could, making him turn in the ghost’s direction instead.

“See? You had nothing to worry about.”

The boy nodded slightly. He really had freaked out over nothing.

He shifted back to his friends, with Iida desperately trying to calm a still bouncing Uraraka. Resisting the urge to laugh aloud at them, he instead waved his hand out, catching both of their attention.

“Who did you guys get for the secret santa?” he asked, noticing neither of them still had a gift to give. Plus it gave the bubbly girl a chance to calm down and allow her lungs to breathe.

The brunette finally laid her new hoodie down, folding it back up again before placing it in the box. “I had Yaoyorozu. Honestly, I had no idea what to get her, but Iida told me how much she loves Golden Tips Imperial tea, so I got her the biggest bag I could find!!”

Midoriya smiled at the thoughtful gift. It seemed his classmate also had a bit of help, so he figured it wasn’t as unusual as he had feared. Though, now that he thought about it, it made some sense. After all, the giver would want their gift to be enjoyed, and if a little research and extra help was needed, then so be it.

“I had Kirishima,” Iida announced next, raising his hand up to the side of his face in one of his usual motions, “And for him I prepared the ultimate training regime, complete with lifting weights for exercise, and protein shakes and healthy meal recipes for nutrition!”

Well, that explained the large gift box from earlier. And once again, Midoriya couldn’t miss how thoughtful Iida’s gift was. To most others, a workout set like that may not have been their ideal present, but it was perfect for the ever-training Kirishima. Though, he also didn’t miss the fact that his rule-abiding friend hadn’t received a gift of his own yet.

“You guys put so much thought into your presents,” he complimented with a warm smile, “It’s really inspiri-”

“Sorry if I’m interrupting…” A deeper voice cut through the reserved teen’s line, effectively shutting him up. The group of three turned around, only to see their fellow classmate, Sato, standing before them with a decently large gift box in his hands. It was plain white, with no ribbon or other decoration, but it did have holiday drawings scribbled on its surface in marker.

“I was your secret santa, Iida,” he continued, thrusting the gift box forward, “I just came to give you your present.”

Iida took the box bashfully, setting it down on his desk to open. There was only one piece of tape holding the box closed, so the boy quickly ripped it with the jolt of his finger and lifted open the lid.

The smell hit everyone way before the actual sight did. The heavenly scent wafted through the immediate area, making the group present all snap their heads towards its contents. The air was sugary sweet, like the inside of a fresh bakery, with a bit of a cozy feel to it.

Inside was one of Sato’s sought after desserts, a large chocolate cake. The top was frosted with vanilla, likely to resemble snow, and decorated with gingerbread men and gumdrops. It was a holiday masterpiece, almost too beautiful to eat, but with the legacy that Sato’s desserts held, it would be even more of a waste not to. Everyone there stood in awe, simply marveling at the glamorous goodness in front of them, before Iida finally broke out of his stupor.

“Thank you!!” he graced, “I cannot wait to enjoy a slice when I get home!”

The brunet chuckled, “It’s no problem. I’m glad you like it.”

And with that, Sato left as quickly as he came, leaving the group of three to continue staring at Iida’s new cake. It was clear the smell was getting to them, as Iida quickly shut the lid of the box before they all devoured it in that very moment.

But, now Midoriya was the only one who hadn’t received his gift yet, and it made him a little anxious. Of course, he knew his manners and how to wait patiently, but he couldn’t help the anticipation pooling in his gut. It was obvious that Uraraka and Iida noticed it too, but both did their best to draw his attention away from the fact.

Then, out of the corner of his eye, he noticed someone approaching the group, practically feeling their presence. He turned around nervously, hoping to ease his conscience by seeing his secret santa. His friends turned around with him, also noticing the shift in the air.

To his surprise, Todoroki stood behind him, his expression as indifferent as usual. Though, his eyes seemed more soft than what was normal for the stoic teen, but that could be easily explained away with the holiday spirit, as the cheer had even gotten to Bakugo of all people. In his arms, he held a decently sized gift box, nearly the same size as the one Midoriya had given to Uraraka, wrapped in a light green paper and adorned a red and gold ribbon tied into a bow.

He then silently held out the present to the opposite teen, a wave of awkward silence washing over them. Midoriya stood there nervously, hesitant on taking the item, before his classmate finally decided to speak up.

“This is for you,” he confirmed after what had seemed like forever, “Just don’t open it here.”

And then he left suddenly, not even waiting for a response. The gift box had been shoved into its recipient’s hands, the smooth texture of the paper sliding against his polyester. No one had the time to utter a word before the entire exchange was over, a state of unresolved shock enveloping the three.

“I presume Todoroki was your secret santa then, Midoriya,” Iida broke the silence for all of them.

“Y-yeah, I guess…” he replied back, if only just to break his stupor, before setting the gift down on Iida’s desk.

But Uraraka shook her head adamantly. “No, that can’t be sinc-”

And again, for hopefully the last time, someone barged in on the group’s discussion, startling all of them from the unexpectancy. There to end their recent shock and start it anew, stood Asui, holding a blue gift box of her own.

“Sorry, I’m a little late,” she croaked out, gesturing the present forward, “but I was your secret santa, Midori.”

Still a little stunned, he reached forward slowly and took the present from her, placing it down on Iida’s desk as well. His conscience still felt separated from his body, floating around airily until a cold pressure on his shoulder grounded him back down to earth. He didn’t have to look back to know it was the ghost’s doing, him having done this often enough for it to feel routine.

So he snapped out of whatever funk he was stuck in and pulled open the ribbon, unraveling the paper and revealing the plain box inside. Not bothering to take a second to stop, he lifted open the flaps and peered in. Unable to get a good look, he decided to just reach in and pull out whatever was inside.

In his hand, was a stack of notebooks, ranging in color and line width. His eyes grew wide as he opened one up to flip through its pages, savoring the smell of new paper. He could already envision the numerous sets of notes he would scribble down on their pages. But as he fingered through one of the other notebooks, two slips of paper fell out and fluttered to the floor, making Midoriya squat down to pick them up.

“What’s this?” he flipped the papers over to examine their backside, unsure of what he was looking at. They were colorful, and had a mess of text on both sides, so he began to skim over it briefly.

“They’re meal coupons for the katsudon place right outside school,” Asui explained, “Each will get you a free order.”

But the teen only registered one word.

“Katsudon?!” he cried out, “Oh thank you, Tsu! These are the best!”

But she shook her head. “Thank Uraraka as well. She helped me out.”

He turned around, only to be met with a sheepish Uraraka waving her hands dismissively. “I just pointed her in the right direction. Trust me, this was all her.”

Either way, Midoriya was pleasantly surprised at his gift, his stomach rumbling even after being filled with Lunch Rush’s grand cooking. He began to pack everything away back into the box it was delivered in, and that’s when he remembered the other gift sitting on the back of Iida’s desk. The one dressed in cozy, light green wrapping paper.

It seemed he wasn’t the only one who remembered, as Iida looked over in that direction as well, following his glance. “Wait, then if Asui was your secret santa-”

“Please, call me Tsu,” said girl interrupted, making Iida lose his train of thought.

Luckly, Uraraka caught onto his thoughts. “That’s what I was trying to say earlier. There’s no way Todoroki could’ve been Midori’s secret santa because I already knew Tsu was!”

“Todoroki?” their froggy classmate questioned.

Midoriya gestured to the light green present sitting on Iida’s desk. “I thought he was my secret santa because of the gift he gave me…”

“So it must have been a personal gift,” Iida connected, “How sincere!”

“That’s really sweet!” the brunette smiled warmly, “Though, I wonder what’s inside…”

The boy turned back to look at the present given to him by his candy cane friend. He had taken the time out of his day to prepare something for him, even though he wasn’t obligated to do so. And he himself had gotten him nothing in return. Despite the holiday spirit, he could feel a small semblance of guilt crawl up his throat, burning like bile. But what was he to do? After all, once the school day ended, everyone was on break for the next week or so. There was no way he could deliver something to him on this short of a notice.

Gami, who had been silently witnessing the entire exchange so far, easily noticed his successor’s beginning panic. His friend was just too open hearted, despite how closed off he acted. Of course he would feel bad for not having gotten anything for Todoroki in return. So he placed a reassuring hand back on his shoulder, opting for the more subtle touch of confirmation rather than ruffling his messy hair.

“Do not worry about it too much,” the spirit comforted, “We shall figure it out, I promise.”

His mentor’s words soothed the beginnings of doubt in his heart. That’s right. He wouldn’t let something as trivial as the end of the school day stop him. He would get something for Todoroki in return, and it would be the most heartfelt project he had even set out to complete.

“Plus, I will admit, I am excited to see what is inside that charming package of yours.”

The boy managed to restrain his instinctive groan to only his fed up conscience.

The end of the day couldn’t come any faster.

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Yamada could sense something off with the young student as early as their walk home, with him more quiet than usual. Aizawa stayed behind to finish up some last minute paperwork so he wouldn’t have to worry about it over the break, and that left the blond hero alone with Midoriya. Of course, that was never a problem in the past, but he still felt unsure of himself and what to do concerning the boy’s condition.

He also didn’t miss the fact that Midoriya came home with two gift boxes, not just one. And while he was well aware that class 1-A was exchanging gifts secret santa style, he figured that the second gift was an outlier, and likely the cause of his reclusive mood.

But as they arrived at home, before the pro even had a chance to utter a word, the teen huddled himself up in his room, taking the gifts with him. Yamada sighed deeply and threw himself onto the couch, at a complete loss of what to do. His spiked hair clashed roughly when he leaned back against the sofa, and motivated him to change into something more casual than his hero wear.

So he left the living room, making haste for the room he and his partner shared. He threw open the door and beelined for the closet. Since he had just come from outside, his skin still felt icy, so he opted for a cozy red sweater and a pair of black jeans. He decided to shower before changing, as it would give him the opportunity to wash the gel out of his hair. After all, that was the entire reason he got up from the couch in the first place. And so he took the time to set the water warm, enough so that steam fogged the mirror and finally began to thaw his skin, before hopping in himself.

Yamada used to be one for long showers, something Aizawa practically beat out of him due to the lack of rationality. So he didn’t take long under the water, just using the opportunity to rinse the product out of his locks and return his hair to its normal texture. He sadly shut off the water, and willed himself to step out, instinctively shivering at the rush of room temperature air, which felt cold on his wet skin. That was enough to make him yank his towel off the counter and quickly cover himself in the hopes of temporary warmth. But alas he still had to change, and silently admitted defeat to the cold.

After slipping on the cozy clothing, he returned to the bathroom to drop off his towel and wring out his hair. He then wrapped it up in a messy bun, something he knew he shouldn’t do with his hair still wet, but did so anyway and finally left the bathroom for good. Deciding to grab a pair of thick socks, he clutched those in hand and left the bedroom as well.

Strolling down the hallway, he inadvertently passed by the closed guest room door, now Midoriya’s room. He paused, though he wasn’t sure why, and once the echoes of his footsteps stopped, he could hear muffled conversation coming from the other side. Of course, it was only Midoriya’s voice, already knowing of the boy’s ghostly companion and how they would talk. But even like this, it sounded like he was distressed, the conversation not seeming any better based on that. He brought his hand up to the wooden door, unsure of whether to knock and disturb him, but just decided to go through with it and rapped his knuckles against it.

The conversation just beyond immediately died after his knock, with nothing but eerie silence seeping through the grain. Figuring maybe he should say something along with it, he coughed lightly to clear his throat.

“Hey little listener,” he started quietly, trying to avoid sounding imposing, “I… just wanted to check in on you, let you know that I’m here if you need anything.”

He paused, waiting for a response that ultimately never came. Feeling anxious, he added on some more in an attempt to get the teen to open up.

“Is there anything you need? Anything I can do?”

A hushed whisper came from the other side, as well as some light shuffling, before a timid voice answered him back, almost muffled completely by the wooden door.

“C… can you come in?”

And that was all Yamada wanted to hear, slowly turning the doorknob so as to not be sudden. Bracing himself for practically anything, he pushed open the door gently and stepped inside.

There sat Midoriya, at his desk with papers all around him. It was the exact same way Aizawa had recalled finding him a few nights ago. Thankfully, the boy wasn’t crying or anything, but he certainly looked disheveled. His hair was a bit of a mess, more than it usually was, and his back was hunched over. The two gift boxes he was carrying earlier were laid out on the bed, with the light green one a little more forefront than the other.

“Todoroki wasn’t my secret santa…” he began, making the hero give him his attention immediately. He didn’t dare interrupt, not wanting the student to lose his confidence and stop talking. “But he… got me a present anyway. I need to get something for him… but I don’t know what to do.”

That explained the extra gift box on the way home, and Yamada couldn’t help but smile at the thought. It was heartwarming to know that someone cared enough about the boy to give him a personalized present, but it seemed to be causing him more anxiety than anything. He must have felt bad that he had nothing in return for Todoroki, and the guilt was stressing him out.

“Have you opened the one he gave you yet?” The pro couldn’t stop his curiosity.
Midoriya’s ghost friend must have said something, as the teen snapped his head to his left and muttered something under his breath, before turning towards the hero again.

“No…” he admitted, “I don’t want to until I have something for him.”

And there was his notable open heart, always putting others before himself, even if his outward actions didn’t show it all too clearly. Midoriya was all too kind for his own good, and while that was likely to backfire in his face one day, it was perfect for the current Christmas season.

“Ah, well I get that,” he sympathized, but switched to a new point, “Do you know what you want to get him?”

A curt head shake was all that Yamada needed to confirm his suspicions: the boy was hopelessly lost on what to do. He racked his brain for a good solution, taking a moment of silence to brainstorm what to do. Then, like a holiday miracle, an idea popped into his head, making him exclaim.

“How about we take a look at the Kiyashi Ward Shopping Mall?” the pro suggested, “I’m sure you could find a great gift for Todoroki there!”

Midoriya didn’t say anything at first, or even outwardly react, simply staring straight for a moment, before snapping his neck to the side. Yamada presumed Gami was talking again, beginning to feel a little nervous at not knowing the contents of the conversation. He wished he could hear the ghost at times like this, as knowing he was inadvertently being left out of the loop made him a bit paranoid, but what was he going to do?

The boy turned back to face him, before rubbing his arm sheepishly.

“Can… we do that?”

Yamada smiled.

“Of course, I’ll give you some time to get ready. It’s pretty cold out there.”

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It didn’t take Midoriya too long to prepare himself, changing out from his school uniform into a warm turtleneck and a pair of sweatpants. He had been borrowing a spare beanie from Yamada and a coat from Aizawa since much earlier this month, so he dressed himself in that and waited by the front door. The blond also adorned a beanie and thick coat, and together, the two prepared to traverse the cold hellscape outside.

Well, in actuality, it wasn’t that bad out, just a bit of a light flurry with a chill. There wasn’t even much wind. But it was still pretty cold, so the two hurried their walk to a brisker pace, not really wanting to stay out much longer. The shopping mall wasn’t too far of a walk away, so after maybe a 15 minute walk, they all arrived at the entrance.

Unfortunately, the mall had an open ceiling, so they weren’t able to escape the cold, but that hardly mattered when the only thing on the teen’s mind was finding the perfect present for Todoroki.

“I don’t think you’ve ever actually been here, have you?” the hero asked.

The boy shook his head, too in awe of his surroundings to verbally respond. He swiveled around, trying to take it all in to no avail. There were tons of open stores to choose from, where would he even start?

Alongside the multitude of stores to start with, there were also just as many people attempting to squeeze in their last minute holiday shopping, just like he was. The crowds around them were massive, all bustling and moving like raging currents in a restless sea.

Midoriya was never fond of crowds, the close proximity making him anxious. And he certainly was beginning to feel that same nervousness now as his hands fidgeted from within his pockets. He began to subconsciously wonder if coming here was a bad idea.

“Just take this slow and steady.” Gami sensed his successor’s panic, as he had become good at that over a long period of experience. “Remember what you are here for.”

That’s right. He was here for a present for Todoroki. He couldn’t back down now, not when the opportunity was right in front of him.

“Anywhere you want to start in specific?” Yamada questioned, snapping him out of his head, “Or do you just wanna browse?”

Well, he didn’t know the mall at all, and just by the looks of it, there wasn’t really a place that caught his eye just yet. “Browsing is fine.”

“Ok then!” he smiled, “I can show you some of my favorite stores on the way!”

And so the two, plus one ghost, set off to find the perfect gift. It was a surprise that no one had recognized Present Mic through his disguise yet, but with all his winter gear covering him up, as well as his signature triangular glasses being switched out for his normal pair, he was hidden pretty well. They sneakily weaved in and out of stores, and though Midoriya hadn’t found whatever he was looking for yet, he still could admit he was having a better time than he was expecting with the voice hero.

“Ooo, I love this next store!” the blond cheerily informed, resisting the urge to yell out his signature “YEAH”, “They sell all kinds of stuff, and it's all handmade!”

Intrigued, the teen entered the store, wondering just what exactly he would see, also excited to escape the cold for a bit.The first thing he noticed was the low lighting of the place, not dark, but just enough to feel cozy in a sense. The store had a slight earthly scent to it, nothing overwhelming, but definitely there. Yamada walked in along with him, and audibly sighed at the feel. Gami too, seemed to be enthralled by the shop’s pleasant atmosphere.

There were all kinds of products that stacked the shelves, from hand shaped pottery, to threaded leather bags, to even painstakingly detailed paintings hanging from the walls. Midoriya could see why the teacher might like this store so much. Everything seemed so unique and one of a kind, with its own story behind it. He was having trouble resisting the urge to touch everything like a toddler.

The store was empty of people other than them, so the boy didn’t feel too anxious traversing the store by himself, considering both Yamada and Gami went off on their own. He slowly walked the aisles, taking in all the colors on both sides. Despite the beauty of it all, nothing really caught his eye, but he didn’t lose hope just yet. Something deep in his heart told him that this was the place, he just knew it.

He turned down another aisle, the shelving stacked with knitted items of all kinds: blankets, hats, sweaters. His eyes immediately lit up at the soft textures surrounding him, being drawn in almost instantly. Of course, he was wearing his usual polyester gloves, so he couldn’t feel any of the items if he decided to touch them, but that didn’t stop him from pausing to touch them anyway.

But as he continued down the aisle, the products shifting from blankets to winter gear, something caught his eye, a vibrant red color that he couldn’t miss among the cooler tones around it. He leaned in past the knitted beanies and shuffled them around, reaching in for what he saw. He pulled out a long piece of knitted textile dyed a beautiful red. Now that he could see the entire thing, it was easy to tell that he was holding a scarf. It was much longer than he expected, and it wasn’t entirely red, with the ends of it fading into orange and yellow.

He clutched the scarf in both gloved hands, reveling in how soft it looked. The mix of red, orange, and yellow reminded him of a cozy fireplace, the warm embers dancing around his skin. It reminded him of fire, more specifically how comforting and relaxing it could be. It reminded him of a torch in the darkness, a beacon of light and guidance forever burning. It reminded him of Todoroki.

It was perfect.

He flipped over the tag tied to the side, which read 750 yen. He reached into his pockets, digging for spare change. He felt a few decent sized coins, reassuring his anxiety that he could afford it. And now came the hard part.

Finding either of the two he entered with.

He wasn’t about to call either of them, because one was a ghost, and the other was a pro hero in hiding, so that left him with walking the aisles in search of them. Despite Yamada being the voice hero, he couldn’t actually hear the man surprisingly. So he peeked his head nervous out from the aisle he found the scarf in, looking side to side, and finding neither. The boy was starting to feel uncomfortable in his own skin, tapping his fingers against his palm. He turned down another aisle, and though the store itself wasn’t that large, he found himself afraid of getting lost.

Then, he heard footsteps behind him, and before they got too close, he swiveled around to surprise whoever was behind him. Fortunately, it wasn’t any stranger attempting to creep up on him, but rather Present Mic, who jumped at the sudden action, but restrained himself from yelling out. In his hands, he held a knitted sweater with the giant face of a cat on its front.

“I wasn’t trying to startle you, little listener,” he hushed under his breath, making sure he wasn’t heard by anyone else, “I tried to make my footsteps loud.”

“Sorry…” He felt a little guilty at hearing the hero’s true intentions, gripping the scarf a little bit tighter, which didn’t go unnoticed.

“Oh? Found something?” the blond wondered, trying to get a better look at what was in the teen’s hands.

Midoriya held out the scarf for him to see, specifically showing off the satisfying gradient at the ends. Yamada smiled brightly at the sight.

“It’s perfect, little listener,” he confirmed, “Now let's go pay for this. I found this really cute cat sweater for Sho and I want to slip it under the tree before he gets home.”

And with that, the two made their way to the front counter. The pro placed his item up to scan and waited for Midoriya to do the same, but after the pause lasted longer than he expected, he turned to look down at him. He was still clutching the scarf, almost waiting on him.

He noticed he was being stared at and faltered, “I-I’ve got the change to buy it myself…”

But the teacher wasn’t about to let that happen. “Nonsense. I’ll pay, don’t worry about it.”

The boy moved to stand his ground, but then it clicked that the shopkeeper had been waiting patiently already through the last few moments, and his anxiety didn’t want to make the man wait any longer. So he hesitantly put the scarf up on the counter as well, and watched the cashier ring up both items. The register chimed in at 3,350 yen, and he watched, admittedly uncomfortably, as Yamada brought out a credit card and paid for it all. The hero was handed the plastic bag and the two left on their merry way.

“So, anything else you want to look at?” Present Mic inquired, “Or are you ready to head home?”

Midoriya looked around nervously. “Um… I think I’m good, but I don’t know wher-”

Suddenly, the exact ghost he was looking for flew right in front of him, nearly scaring the crap out of him. The boy jumped out of skin, as well as a few inches back, as Gami apologized between wheezes. The pro looked utterly lost throughout the entire ordeal, but quickly picked up on the gist of what was happening.

Catching his breath, he turned to his mentor with a not too happy look on his face. “I swear… where did you even go?”

“I apologize, I decided to take a glance around while you were inside,” the spirit explained, though none of it seemed to be helping, “Your friend likes soba, correct?”

The teen furrowed his eyebrows confusedly. “Cold soba, but yeah. Why?”

“I saw some packaged soba noodles a few shops down. You should pick those up too!”

There was something he wasn’t telling him. “Why…?”

Gami slumped his shoulders and turned his head to the side, attempting to ignore him. But after a few moments of that being unsuccessful, he sighed and turned back to face him.

“I just want to be a part of the gift giving as well…”

Midoriya’s disappointed look turned to one of quiet amusement, as he huffed and finally focused back on his teacher, who had just been standing there awkwardly since the conversation began.

“Can we get some soba noodles too… if that’s ok?”

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One package of soba noodles and a walk home later, Midoriya found himself stripping off his snowy layers by the front door. The snow had started to fall heavy since they left, and Yamada cursed at the amount of slushy mess by the door that he would have to clean up. After hanging up his coat, the teen took their shopping bag to the dining room table, placing it down before realizing he still had his sneakers on. Looking back, he paled at the wet trail he had tracked from the door, and to his horror, the hero had noticed it too.

The blond sighed, but waved him off, “Don’t worry about it little listener, I had to mop anyway.”

But that did little to ease the boy’s nerves, as he hastily removed his sneakers and set them down by the front mat, unknowingly stepping in the slippery mess. The pro shot his hands out instantly, making careful effort not to touch him by accident. Still, the sudden movement caught him off guard, making him flinch back.

“Ah, why don’t you just stay there?” the hero chuckled nervously, unsure of how to remedy the situation, “I’ll go get the mop and a new pair of socks for you.”

He didn’t wait for a response, stepping over the wet puddles on the floor and making his way over to the closet. Midoriya stood there awkwardly as he watched the man set the mop to the side and walk to his bedroom. He moved out of sight after he entered, and then the boy was left alone with his thoughts.

Well… not entirely alone, that is.

“Do not beat yourself up over this. It was a simple mistake,” Gami reassured, floating over to the dining room table, “Have you thought about how you are going to wrap this?

Looking over to the ghost, he shook his head. “I… don’t have a box, and I’m really bad with wrapping stuff.”

That wasn’t just his self depreciation talking, he genuinely struggled with wrapping gift boxes. He didn’t exactly have that much experience with the idea of gift wrapping after all, having missed out on it for a good portion of his younger years. He had needed Aizawa’s help when preparing Uraraka’s gift, and while the man was an excellent teacher in terms of heroics, he didn’t explain gift wrapping all too well.

“Can you not just use the cardboard box from your secret santa gift?”

He thought about it. While it did seem a bit cheap, Todoroki hadn’t seen Asui’s gift to him, much less the box. Plus, it was unlikely that he would notice even if he did. “I guess that makes sense.”

The bedroom door squeaked open and Midoriya promptly shut up as Yamada came strolling out. In his hands were a fuzzy looking pair of socks with snowflakes stitched on them. The blond grabbed the mop as he walked back, and beckoned the teen to move to the living room.

“Here, if you take those socks off and leave them on the mat, I’ll pick them up once I’m done,” he explained, gesturing towards the socks in his hand, “Sho got me these a few Christmases back, and trust me, you like them.”

So he did exactly as the pro said, ditching his damp socks by the front door and maneuvering over to the living room in a few careful steps, determined not to get his bare feet wet as well. He sat down on the couch as Yamada tossed him the pair of socks, to which he subsequently caught instinctively. He couldn’t feel their texture through his barrier of polyester, but presumed by their look that they were soft, and boy were they. Slipping them on, he could immediately see why the voice hero hyped them up so much.

“Little listener,” Present Mic called from the kitchen, which was only a few feet away. Midoriya snapped his head over to see the man already mopping up the entrance area, making quick work of the mess. “Could you grab a spare cardboard box from the tree there and put Sho’s new sweater in it?”

Looking over to the beautiful pine tree in the corner of the living room, he could see a small stack of cardboard boxes by the side. He figured he could fold the sweater small enough, so using one of the bigger boxes on the bottom wasn’t necessary. He stood up from the comfort of the couch, revelling in the soft socks against his feet, and grabbed one of the smaller ones off the top of the makeshift tower. He worked his way back over to the dining room table, avoiding the water and his teacher, and set the box down. He opened both it and the plastic bag up, and transferred the sweater from one to the other. He was unsure of whether to close it, not knowing if the hero was planning on adding anything to the gift, but as he turned around to check, he was met with the sight of Yamada walking towards him, holding another small box and some wrapping paper.

“Ah, I was going to suggest wrapping out presents together,” he admitted, knowing he’d been caught in the act, “Interested?”

Dropping his shoulders, he turned to look at his mentor before facing the pro again. “I… actually don’t know how to wrap p-presents…”

The blond nodded his head, remembering how his partner helped the boy out with his secret santa gift. “No worries, we’re doing it together! A-ah, if you’re still up for it, that is…”

He paused for a moment before nodding his head, which was enough for Yamada to happily skip over and set down the mess of materials in his arms. He laid out the wrapping paper face down, and used the tape dispenser to hold down the curling edge. He handed the spare box to the boy beside him, and instructed him to place the scarf and packaged noodles inside. Midoriya then subsequently folded it closed and looked up, waiting for more directions.

“Here.” Present Mic handed him a large sheet of cut wrapping paper, and set another out for himself. “Put your box in the middle.”

So he did, placing his small box in the center of the wrapping paper. The teacher then pulled both sides of the paper over as Midoriya watched carefully, making sure to replicate his movements precisely. He watched the man reach for the scissors beside him and cut off the excess paper.

“I can cut yours as well, if that’s easier,” he offered.

The boy nodded silently again, and squirmed slightly out of the way, still holding his wrapping paper together. His breath hitched softly at the proximity of their distance, not quite making contact but close enough to make him nervous. But the pro was quick, slicing through the excess paper and moving away.

“Now just tape it down.”

Yamada grabbed the tape dispenser and taped the paper over his box. The wrapping wasn’t quite done yet, but it was starting to get there, which inspired the student beside him. He mimicked the tape placement as felt his heart swell with unnatural pride at making it this far.

“Ok, here’s the weird part,” he prepared, picking up his partially wrapped gift, “Watch carefully.”

He pointed to the paper extending off the top of the box, and like magic, he pushed the sides of the paper in to touch, folding them down completely. He then gestured to the two new triangle flaps he had created with the fold, and pushed those down too, holding them firmly in place with a piece of tape.

Midoriya couldn’t help the dumbfounded expression that slithered its way onto his face. “How do you do that?! I don’t get it…”

The hero chuckled, “Here, I’ll show you.”

He then slowly leaned closer, reaching his hands out as gently as possible, gesturing for the semi-wrapped gift. The teen held it out to him, thinking he was going to take it from him, but instead of doing that, he pressed his own fingers down on the paper. Folding it slow and steady, he gave him an up close and leisurely look at the step by step process.

The boy couldn’t help but feel a little anxious at the close in distance, but was more captivated by the folding in front of him. Yamada made it look so easy, but it still blew his mind.

“Think you got it now?” he asked cheerily.

The student huffed, “I think…”

And so Present Mic showed him again using the other side of his own present, making great effort to walk him through the process. And when it came down to Midoriya folding the last remaining side of his gift, he got it down pretty well. The two loosened up more as the gift wrapping process moved forward, laughing and chatting idly while adding ribbons to their presents. The pro left the dining room area for a moment, leaving the boy alone with his ghostly companion, only to return with two mugs of hot chocolate, topped with whipped cream and small marshmallows. In reality, it had only been about half an hour since they started, but it felt like the entire evening was breezing by, filled with laughter, sweet treats, and the crackling of a fireplace only found in the air itself.

Then, the front door opened, the cold, howling wind rushing through and decimating any fragments of the imaginary fireplace that may have once stood. The two instantly snapped their head over to the door, and were met with the sight of a chilly Aizawa, covered head to toe in white, holding two plastic bags in hand.

At seeing the man, Yamada panicked and yanked his wrapped gift over to the tree, practically throwing it underneath. He turned back to his partner, smiling guiltily before walking over to him to help.

Aizawa narrowed his eyes, “What was that?”

The blond laughed obviously, scratching the back of his neck, “Oh, nothing, nothing.”

He helped the ragged man take off his snowy coat, shaking it off on the mat before hanging it up with the others. He eyed the bags he was holding, looking up suspiciously.

“And what’s that you’ve got there?” he pressured, gesturing to the bags Eraserhead was holding.

The black haired man simply held them up at eye level in response. “I stopped at the katsudon place right outside the school.”

That made Midoriya’s head snap back from the dining room table. “Katsudon?”

Aizawa smirked, “Yes, Problem Child… I brought katsudon.”

Without a second thought, the teen picked up his present and raced it to his room, before returning to clear off the dining room table.

“I’ll set the table.” It came off as more of a command than an announcement, but either way, both heroes found it amusing.

“Here,” the homeroom teacher sighed, “Let us help too.”

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Dinner had gone rather smoothly, though that could also be attributed to the hero bringing home Midoriya’s favorite dish. The three actually managed to engage in pleasant chatter, with everyone opening up more than usual. All in all, it was a lovely time, with everyone’s hearts and stomachs full.

Afterwards, the teen retreated to his room and found himself sitting still on his bed, with Todoroki’s gift sitting in front of him. He couldn’t deny he was nervous about opening it, and that’s why he’d been stuck staring at it for the past half hour. He had his own gift to him beside him, but even the comfort of that really wasn’t enough.

Gami had been attempting to occupy himself in the room, not wanting to rush his successor into opening it, but his anticipation was running high and patience thin. At this rate, the boy wouldn’t open the present until the next year, for goodness sake. And while the ghost prided himself on his close relationship with the boy, it was time to take matters into his own hands.

“What is stopping you from opening it?” he pried, “It is not as if there will be something bad inside.”

Midoriya sighed, “I don’t know… I’m just… anxious, I guess?”

“Best to get it done sooner than later, then. Waiting will only make you more stressed.”

He sighed again. The ghost did have a point. It was silly of him to be feeling so nervous over something so kindhearted, but it wasn’t like he could explain it either. He reached for the light green present in front of him, and pulled it into his lap. The red and gold ribbon bounced with the movement, and he found himself not wanting to pull the bow apart. So instead, his hand moved for him, and in one quick swoop, he tugged the ribbon apart, letting it fall as a strand into his hand. All that was left was the pretty wrapping paper, but that had to go too. Still, he made sure to carefully tear the tape alone with the point of one of his pencils, unraveling the green paper intact.

Both he and the spirit waited in nervous anticipation as the cardboard box underneath was revealed. His gloved hands pried open the flaps, and he took a deep breath of preparation before just deciding to look inside.

He could see something soft looking, light brown in color. Unsure of what it was exactly, he reached in to pull it out, the item unraveling as he did. In his hands, he held a light brown knitted sweater, the collar noticeably different than most other sweaters he had seen. He reached his hand out to touch the collar, even through his gloves. It was a bit of a darker shade compared to the body, same with the cuffs of the sleeves, and was longer than typical, resembling a turtleneck of sorts.

His eyes lit up in awe, sparkling with pure joy as he flipped the sweater around to examine it. Though he couldn’t feel the texture just yet, his eyes practically fell in love with it. The sweater looked warm and cozy, just what you’d want to throw on while sitting by the fireplace, or drinking a cup of hot chocolate.

He excitedly slipped off his current long sleeve shirt and put on the new sweater instead, immediately melting in bliss. He hugged himself a little, feeling like a giddy toddler on Christmas Day all over again.

Gami laughed at his successor’s blatant joy. It wasn’t a mood he portrayed all too often, but the ghost thought it fit him well. “Someone is happy.”

Midoriya looked up at him. “It’s really soft.”

He chuckled again, “It looks good on you. The brown is a nice shade.”

Gami swirled around, looking at the boy from all angles like a proud parent, making sure to avoid the shirt he had thrown on the ground, despite not even being able to touch it. The teen waved around his arms while sitting on the bed still, playing along as he showed off his new article of clothing. But in their fun, he accidentally hit the cardboard box that the sweater had come in, making it fall off the bed.

“Shoot,” he cursed, “I got it.”

He leaned over off the side of the bed, reaching down to pick it up. He managed to grab the corner of it and lugged it back up, but as he did, he noticed a slip of paper flutter out daintily and land on the ground. Furrowing his eyebrows, he leaned over farther to grab it, thinking it was merely just a scrap of torn wrapping paper.

Gami cocked his head curiously as the boy picked himself back up with the paper in hand, the box thrown onto a spot behind him on the bed. The ghost leaned over his shoulder to see nothing but blankness on the slip. Keenly, he flipped it over to the other side, and there to greet him were a set of words.

The transparent man couldn’t see the fuzzy writing from his distance, and didn’t want to get any closer in fear he’d violate his personal space, something that his successor valued highly. “Can you read it aloud for me?”

Midoriya huffed sarcastically, “Sure, sure…”

The scrap of paper wasn’t really a scrap now that he saw it, more like a piece of cardstock. It was thick and its edges were smooth, and it retained its woody smell as well, making him realize how fresh it was. He couldn’t feel the texture through his gloves, but it reminded him of a blank canvas, with the pores of the surface slightly visible. The writing on it was small, but not squint worthy, with the handwriting itself being very neat and tidy. Deciding he had spent enough time staring blankly at the card in front of him, he figured he’d start, to the relief of the ghost behind him.

“Saw this sweater, it reminded me of something you’d wear,” he read out loud, twiddling with the end of his cuff in the process, “Hope you enjoy it, and Merry Christmas.”

And that was the end of the message, all that was left was Todoroki’s signature below. Almost in shock, he stared at the little note for a moment longer, then raised his head to blankly look up. His hand absently continued playing with the end of the sweater. Gami hadn’t broken the silence either, and the two of them just sank into the abyss that enveloped the entire room.

There was a slight rustling behind them, and though it was quiet, the silence in the room made it ring especially loud. The deathly duo turned their heads swiftly around. The present Midoriya had prepared for his friend was shuffling a bit, moving on its own. So he set down the cardstock note and crawled carefully towards the box. Not really knowing what to expect, he wrapped both hands around the sides of the gift and lifted it up.

There, curled up practically right underneath, was the tiny grey kitten that had taken up residency in the teen’s room. Links looked up at him and cried loudly, pawing at the gift box now raised in the air.

He huffed and turned away, not feeling as reclusive around the cat as he normally did, not that he even noticed his change in behavior anyway. Still with his gift to Todoroki in his hand, he settled back into his spot from before, now setting the box in his lap. He fixed his new sweater, and paused before letting go of it.

He had opened the gift pretty late, honesty forgetting about it in his efforts to prepare a present in return. The boy looked around for his phone. He should send him a message thanking him for the sweater, after all, he was really grateful.

Then, another loud meow came from that same spot behind him, just as Gami bursted out cackling. When he turned around to see the commotion, he found the kitten again, but this time curled up with his phone instead. Links was practically laying on top of it, curled up, with the ghost beside him heaved over.

Midoriya was thoroughly weirded out at the cat’s strange sense of telepathy, but as he reached for his phone, he realized he’d have to touch the kitten to move it and hesitated. Unsure of what to do, he patted the bed beside him like he’d seen Aizawa and Yamada do with the other cats.

“Um… can you move?” He must have looked crazy, speaking to a cat, much less asking it to move. “I kinda need my phone.”

But surprisingly, Links did, picking himself up and walking towards him. He plopped himself down and curled up right on the spot the teen had just patted. Starting to feel uncomfortable, he quickly grabbed his phone and pulled it back into his lap.

“You should have seen it,” Gami wheezed, “You would not believe how he managed to drag your phone onto the bed.”

“I don’t even want to know,” Midoriya sighed tiredly.

His mentor floated closer, his laughs finally dying down, to see what his successor was up to. He watched the boy open up his messages and click on his conversation with Todoroki. Getting excited, he settled down in a reclined position while still floating, getting an optimal view.

It took the teen a few moments of typing and deleting and typing, but he finally found himself satisfied with his message, and hit the send button.

Just opened your gift now! I love the sweater! Thank you!!

He was just about to set the phone down, when it buzzed in his hand, making him bring it back to his line of sight.

I’m glad you like it.

He smiled warmly at the response, even if it was a little punctuated. Feeling movement on the bed, he looked up from the screen to see Links on the move again, this time attempting to reach over his leg to paw at the gift in his lap.

He seized instinctively at the sight of being touched and moved his hands away, still holding the phone. He took a few deep breaths in and told himself that his fingers weren’t the part making contact, and after a few rounds of that, he slowly brought his hands back down.

“Are you alr-”

“I’m fine.”

He brought his gaze down with him, eyeing the movements of the kitten now practically in his lap, still reaching for the gift box. He turned his eyes to the newly wrapped present. He wasn’t sure how he would get it to Todoroki, but he should at least let the boy know of its existence, right?

So he focused back on the screen again, and began typing.

I actually have something for you too
Just not sure how to get it to you

Just like the other text, it didn’t take long for a response to ping in.

I don’t mind meeting up, I would just have to sneak out.
It wouldn’t be the first time.

Meeting up? He looked outside. The snow wasn’t too bad, but it was falling much harder than earlier. Plus, he had no idea where Todoroki even lived, much less if they were close enough to meet up somewhere.

“Just ask about Dagobah Beach.” Midoriya snapped his head over as the ghost suddenly began speaking. He sometimes forgot that he was constantly reading over his shoulder. “He is offering, is he not?”

That was true. It was Todoroki who suggested the meet up over another option, so he relayed Gami's message over text.

Are you anywhere close to Dagobah Beach?

The message came back near instantly.

Yes, it is a 15 minute walk from my father’s home.
Would you like to meet there?

He looked back to the spirit, who only gave him a curt nod in return. Mimicking him unconsciously, he focused back on his phone.

Sounds good
See you there!

He put down the device, finding himself needing to release a breath he had no idea he was holding. Then, it hit him like a speeding train. He was going to meet up with Todoroki to give him the gift it had taken him the entire afternoon to prepare, and the snow was only going to fall harder. He needed to get going, and he needed to get going now.

Jumping up from the bed, he grabbed the gift from his lap and stood up, accidentally pushing Links from his lap and back to the bed, destroying all the progress the kitten had made. Gami too, was surprised at his successor’s haste and rushed to catch up as he was already at his bedroom door.

“Sorry, Links!” he called out an apology to the cat, before yanking open the door and speeding out into the hallway.

He dashed down the hardwood hallway, which wasn’t the best idea in fuzzy socks but he made due. He slid right past the open living area and right to the front door, startling the two heroes who were in the space.

Aizawa stood up instantly, his hero instincts flaring. “What is it, Problem Child?”

Midoriya set down the present by the door to slip on his signature sneakers, his sweatpants thankfully covering the blue socks. “No time. Gotta meet with Todoroki at Dagobah.”

Now it was Yamada’s turn to stand. “Meet? What are you talking about, little listener?”
The teen yanked his coat from the rack and pulled that over his new brown sweater, zipping it up about three quarters of the way. He tore his beanie from the coat pocket and slapped that on his head. He picked up the gift box from the floor and gestured it at the heroes.

“Gift. I’ll be back soon!”

And without waiting for a response, he tore open the front door and sped off, closing the door behind, though not without letting in a little snow.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

About three steps out, Midoriya realized he had left his phone back on his bed with Links. He thought he was screwed, since going back to the house would likely mean the heroes keeping him there due to the heavy falling snow outside, but like its own Christmas miracle, Gami told him he knew the way from the Aizawa-Yamada household to Dagobah Beach. And so, like a guiding light, the ghost led the teen through the howling winds, towards what he could only hope was the planned meeting spot.

His sneakers were definitely not the best choice of footwear, and there were times where the chill somehow snuck under his coat and danced along his skin, but other than that, there was no real reason to turn back. The two raced down sidewalk after sidewalk, making extra effort to check for cars when crossing the street, though there were too many out to begin with. His green hair peeked out slightly from underneath his hat, and the tips of it started to collect snow. He hugged the present closer to his chest, trying to shield it from the harsh elements around him

“Right here!” Gami yelled over the wind, pointing towards the familiar beach sign. It was a bit of a weird sight to see the snow falling right through the specter, but he was more focused on making sure he didn’t slip on ice. He trotted carefully down the stairs of the beach park, running upon the snowy sand.

There was a part of the sand that was clear of any precipitation, which was a bit odd to see, but still he ran for that area, deeming it more distinctive and therefore easier for Todoroki to spot. The ocean still crashed upon the shore, though not as violently as it did in the summer. Any snow that fell into the waters immediately dissolved upon contact, only adding to the body of water’s size, if minimally.

He looked around, barely able to see anything with the heavy rain of white surrounding him. He couldn’t see his classmate yet. For him, it had taken just over 15 minutes to run to the designated meet up beach, his footprints evident of that. For Todoroki, he had told him it would take nearly that same amount of time, and yet wherever he looked, there was no sign of the red and white haired boy.

“Give him time,” the ghost assured, “He will arrive soon.”

“S-sorry,” he shivered back, “I’m j-just anxious.”

Gami then ruffled his beanie playfully, causing the boy to screech and move to try and fix it with the gift box still in his hands. He pulled his hat back over evenly, attempting to fix his hair. He looked up to brush a stray lock from his eyes and nearly jumped back in surprise.

“I hope I didn’t make you wait,” Todoroki apologized, his hands stuffed into the pockets of a light coat. He wore a navy blue sweater underneath and a simple pair of slacks.

“No, no. Not at all,” he replied sheepishly, fixing his beanie for good, “I just got here, actually.”

The boy in front of him nodded. “You’re wearing the sweater…”

Looking down, he realized his coat wasn’t zipped all the way up, and a portion of his new, light brown sweater was visible. Embarrassed, he frantically pulled up the zipper to his neck, nearly dropping the gift box in the process.

“I- uh…” he stuttered over his words and thoughts, his mentor’s obnoxious laughing in the background not doing much to help, “Here, this is for you!”

He thrusted the present forward, much like how Todoroki had given him the present back at the school, but with his nervous energy practically at its max and still going, he didn’t pay it too much mind. He grabbed the box from his hands, staring down at the wrapping paper for a moment.

Midoriya began to get nervous, thinking he was judging his poor wrapping job, but before his doubt could fester any longer, the teen in front of him spoke.

“Do you mind if I open this here?” he asked, “I’d rather not have my father ask about it.”

“Yeah, that’s fine. No problem at all,” the still nervous student replied, his speech remaining at a mile a minute. Thankfully, Gami’s cackling finally died down, allowing his thoughts a clear passage, at least for the time being.

He nodded again as a sign of confirmation, before pulling open the bow and letting the ribbon unravel. He pried away at the taped flap underneath and peeled it apart with careful precision, managing to simply slide the box out of the paper without ripping it.

Midoriya cringed at his mediocre, loose wrapping, but Todoroki didn’t seem to mind. He opened up the cardboard box with ease and pulled out the first thing resting on top.

“Soba noodles?” The stoic student didn’t mean for it to come out so uncertain, but it did, as Midoriya shifted anxiously in his spot.

“Ah, w-well someone… close to me thought they would be a nice addition,” he explained, his voice inadvertently rising a few tones. Gami stood proudly behind him, hands on his hips, despite being practically invisible.

Todoroki smirked amusedly and put the package back inside the box towards the side. He reached in again, this time pulling out the gradient scarf. His eyes widened by only a fraction, unnoticeable to both individuals around him, as he opened it up, mesmerized by the pattern.

“It reminded me of you, w-when I saw it, I mean,” Midoriya rambled, feeling the need to explain himself, “It reminded me of your quirk.”

The boy in front of the deathly duo seemed to pay no mind, wrapping the scarf around his neck with one hand easily. He tugged on it, making sure it was fixated in place, before sweeping one of the ends off his shoulder.

He looked back up at the anxious teen to respond. “You do know I can regulate my body temperature with my quirk, though?”

Admittedly, that wasn’t the best thing to say to the boy obviously nervous in front of him, and he regretted it the minute it left his mouth. But unfortunately, it seemed to send him right into overdrive before he could correct himself.

“A-ah I didn’t even think about that…!” he spiraled, clutching his beanie in one hand, “That should have been obvious, I am really sor-”

“I didn’t mean it like that,” Todoroki interrupted before he could doubt himself any further, “I really like it.”

That stopped Midoriya’s rambling in its tracks. “Y-you do…?

He nodded for a third time, a soft smile tugging on the corner of his mouth.

“I really do. Thank you, Izuku.”

Midoriya took a heavy breath of cold, crisp air into his lungs, feeling his heart thumping forcefully, like it was about to rip out of his skin.

“I’m… I’m so glad you like it, Shouto…”

Todoroki closed the box with the soba noodles inside, tucking it under his arm. He fixed his new scarf with his free hand, pulling it up over his chin. The two stood and smiled in the chilly, yet serene silence, letting the snow fall around them. Nothing was even happening, and yet Midoriya couldn’t find it in his heart to initiate the leave.

So it was only fate that a few moments later, it was the dual haired boy who did.

“I should get going,” he admitted, “It wouldn’t be good if my father caught me out this late.”

“Ah, right,” the other remembered, “It was nice meeting up!”

Todoroki’s reply was a hum of agreement, “Thank you again for the gift, Izuku. You really didn’t have to.”

Gami, who had been basically sidelined the entire time, watched as his successor lit up. It was heartwarming to witness, especially for the old ghost who craved for his friend’s happiness. “It was really no problem, l-like I said, I’m just glad you like it.”

And with that, began the painful step of walking away, which was started with slow, inching footsteps in opposite directions. Gami joined the boy at his side, observing his content expression before sighing in content himself. He walked farther along the snowy sand, his sneakers sinking into the odd combination. He found himself tugging down at his coat zipper, moving it back to its three quarters spot, his cozy new sweater peeking out.

His walk stopped abruptly, as he swiveled back around to see Todoroki’s slowly retreating form.

“Merry Christmas, Shouto!!” He cried out while waving happily, the isolation of the beach leaving the call to only the two of them.

He watched the teen turn around, before returning the wave more gently. “Merry Christmas!”

And then, the two finally separated, going on their seperate ways to return home. Midoriya aimed his pace for a set of stairs that led off the beach a few feet away, but Gami touched his shoulder gently, making him look up instead.

“I haven’t given you my gift yet…” he spoke quietly, unusual for the nonchalant ghost.

He cocked his head, but Gami only beckoned him to follow past the set of stairs. Unsure and unable to traverse home without the ghost, he rushed to catch up, his sneakers crunching in the sandy snow. The snow had lightened up a bit, but was still relentless, which worried him. But he trusted his mentor with his life, so he continued without hesitation.

Gami led him to a pier, complete with a roofed gazebo at the end. Seeing it as a shield from the current chilly downpour, he ran faster, skidding to turn down the pier. The wooden planks were icy beneath his feet, but he managed not to slip and ducked under the gazebo. He heaved to catch his breath, the air escaping his lungs in a puffy, visible cloud. As he looked up from his knees, he noticed the ghost standing by the edge of the gazebo, almost leaning on the railing.

Midoriya carried his legs to the edge beside him, and leaned his whole self against the railing. And that’s when he noticed the view. He could see the vastness of the ocean clearly from here, snow no longer blocking his vision. And even in the winter weather, it was still just as serene as the first time he’d seen it, forgetting about catching his breath entirely.

“W-wow.” Unfortunately, his lungs hadn’t forgotten as he heaved out his words. “Where did you find this? It’s beautiful…”

“I do not sleep at night like you do,” he reminded, still not turning away from the sea, “Instead, I explore.”

Taking the answer as all he was going to get, he settled for silence and continued staring out at the ocean. The waves rammed lightly against the legs of the gazebo, the quiet crashing becoming part of the background noise. The sky was dark, and even through the snow, he still managed to see the stars, which twinkled back at him in return. Falling snow glistened off the sea water, mixing and melting with the light layer of foam on the water’s surface. Even the salty smell of the ocean wasn’t as overwhelming as it usually was, though through his stuffy nose, no scent was all too overwhelming.

All in all, it was truly magnificent.

Gami turned to him suddenly, the shiny stone around his neck sparkling in the moonlight. “Merry Christmas, Izu.”

The boy smiled back warmly, warm enough to melt away all the snow on the beach.

“Merry Christmas, Gami…”