Chapter Text
Izuku takes a deep breath, exhaling into the cold air as he bounced his aching knees lightly and pushed off the top of the hill, keeping his knees bent. His board glided across the smooth snow, wind hitting the thin line of skin underneath his goggles as he kept his weight steady, slightly concentrated on his back foot.
He slowly looks around, taking in the snow capped cedar trees touched by golden, orange light from the sinking sun behind him before his view returns to the dip in the hill ahead of him. He smiles before bending his knees further and gaining speed before jumping, one hand reaching down to grip his board and bending his knees again as he sails through the air.
Izuku loves this. For a moment, he is completely weightless and all he can feel is his board, the wind and his own breathing, all thoughts emptying out of his cluttered mind as he flies.
He lets his hand go from his board before extending his legs slightly as his board hits the snow again and he stands up straighter, shifting his weight from one side to the other as he descends and slowly comes to a stop. He drops to undo his right foot’s buckle and pushes himself to glide towards the lodge in front of him, smoke billowing from a chimney as people mill about on the deck outside.
Fully unbuckling his board and placing it in a wooden slot against the side of the lodge, Izuku stretches his arms above his head, joints cracking as he sighs, his breath billowing out in front of him. He turns and makes his way inside the lodge, spotting Ochako, Todoroki, and Iida at a table against the window with four hot chocolates in front of them.
“Hey guys!” Izuku says, taking off his helmet, jacket and gloves before dropping into the chair next to Todoroki and slumping against the back.
“Hi! Are you just finishing up now?” Ochako asks, her brow furrowing as she notes his panting.
“Yeah! I just finished up on that run with that big drop at the end. I wanted to see how long I could stay in the air, I need to figure out how to balance how far I bend my knees and how much power I put behind my jump, I just can’t find a good balance yet.” Izuku rambles before picking up his hot chocolate and taking a long sip.
“You work too hard, Midoriya! You must take breaks or you will burn out too quickly.” Iida scolds and Ochako nods next to him.
“I admire your dedication.” Todoroki nods at him.
“Thanks, Todoroki. I know I’m out for too long but I can’t help it! I always find an issue with a move and my brain hyper fixates on it until I fix it and the next obstacle arises.” Izuku sighs, fingers fiddling with the lid of his hot chocolate.
“Were you working on anything for the Winter Classic?!” Ochako asks excitedly, almost knocking over her own cup. Ochako snowboarded with Izuku on the Yuuei team, but she also loved helping him prepare for his competitions outside the team.
“Uh, I tried,” Izuku rubs his neck sheepishly, avoiding eye contact with his three friends, “I was mainly just messing around today.”
“Midoriya! It’s almost two months away!” Ochako gasps, “I thought you solidified your moves for slopestyle and halfpipe already!”
“I have! Just…individually.” Izuku mumbles into his cup, taking another sip as he ignores the head shakes of disappointment around him.
“You need to combine your tricks or you won’t be able to gauge your timing and exertion levels.” Todoroki says, placing his hand on Izuku’s right shoulder.
“Guys, I know. God, you all sound like Aizawa,” Izuku grumbles, shuddering slightly at the memory of his coach’s disappointed stare, “I know I need to solidify the whole routine but I just can’t bring myself to do it. Every time I try, I just get in my head and I can’t focus like I usually do.”
“You’ll get it eventually, Midoriya! Just ask me or Todoroki when you need a second set of eyes.” Ochako replies brightly, waving at Todoroki and he simply nods in response.
“Thanks, guys.” Izuku smiles at them, feeling grateful for their support.
“I’m sorry I can’t offer as much help,” Iida gestures to his ski boots tucked beneath the table and brings his hand up to his forehead in a salute, “But I will also offer my assistance where I can!”
“Thanks, Iida.” Izuku laughs, but his smile falters as he glances over at the opening door behind Iida to see blonde hair and a scowl stalking through the door.
Bakugou Katsuki. All-star slalom skier. Ranked in the top 10 in Japan, Katsuki was the picture of skiing royalty. Both his parents competed in the Olympics, with his mom winning two gold medals and his dad winning bronze, and it was clear to anyone with eyes that he was closely following behind. His explosive personality and tendency to physically shove off reporters had earned him a bit of a reputation, but the media ate it up, claiming that the stuffy skiing world needed to be shaken up.
He was also Izuku’s childhood best friend.
And now, current rival.
They met in ski school when they were three and became inseparable after Izuku was the only one in class besides Katsuki to make it down the bunny hill without falling. They spent their winters chasing each other through the trees, eating sugar glazed waffles, and daring each other to go on the big kid jumps. Although they went to different schools, their moms quickly bonded over the lodge’s mulled wine and the stress of their children bobbing and weaving through the hidden trails. Weekly dinners at the Bakugou’s were a staple of Izuku’s childhood, and a welcome break from the tense environment with his parents at home.
Then, right before Izuku’s seventh birthday, something changed. Izuku had never figured out what changed with Katsuki, why he now treated Izuku with such contempt. Katsuki’s mother, almost as stubborn as her son, tried to continue their playdates, which now always ended with Izuku in tears, claiming he was fine as Katsuki stood against the wall, far away from him, fuming, with his arms crossed over his tiny, puffed out chest.
Then, the playdates stopped.
When they were 14 and started skiing and snowboarding competitively, Katsuki and Izuku both started consistently winning first in their respective sports. As their rankings stayed consistent at #1 at their mountain, the animosity between them only grew, leading to more than one physical confrontation between the two that usually ended with Izuku’s head in a snowbank.
Izuku sighs and pulls his gaze away from Katsuki and his friends just to find his own friends in full conversation already.
“He’s such a dick, I can’t believe the amount of sponsorship opportunities he'll get even with that personality.” Ochako huffs, glaring over at the group walking towards their table near the back.
“Bakugou is unpleasant but he is unfortunately talented. He is always the worst to compete against.” Todoroki agrees, shaking his head.
“You could always avoid him by switching to snowboarding full time instead!” Izuku says hopefully and Ochako enthusiastically nods her head in agreement.
“No, it’s more entertaining to rank lower in both sports to infuriate my father.” Todoroki says simply, making Izuku snort beside him, “I also don’t want to leave Iida to deal with Bakugou by himself.”
“That is so kind, Todoroki. Chivarly is not dead.” Ochako pats her hand on top of Todoroki’s as he nods silently.
“Okay, well I have to get going,” Izuku stands, grabbing his stuff, “My moms expecting me for dinner and I am about three runs too late so I’ll see you guys tomorrow at the central lift?”
“Bye Midoriya!”
Izuku sends them a wave before turning down the staircase towards the locker rooms, bouncing slightly as he makes his way through the rows until he finds his locker, fiddling with the lock until it pops open. He turns around to sit on the bench, sighing and leaning down to loosen his boot laces.
“Your sorry ass is doing the Winter Classic?” Izuku stills, then takes a deep breath before turning to his right to face gleaming red eyes and a smug smirk looking down at him.
“Hi, Kacchan.” Izuku replies, sounding bored, “Yes, I am doing the winter classic, like I do every year.”
He knew Katsuki hated Izuku using his childhood nickname, but he really loved pissing Katsuki off.
“Whatever, not like I stick around to watch bum ass boarding events.” Katsuki scoffs, grabbing his backpack and a sweatshirt out of his own locker, “I heard there’s more competition this year so hopefully, losers like you will stop making podium.”
“Thanks, Kacchan.” Izuku rolls his eyes, tugging off one of his boots.
“You planning on doing that last jump?” Katsuki asks as he pulls on his sweatshirt, and Izuku looks at him, confused.
“What last jump?” He asks, sitting up straight.
“Your last jump? From your last run? That you just finished? Jesus, you guys really do hit your heads a lot.” Katsuki scoffs, sitting down on the bench and loosening his boot buckles.
“Oh, um, no. I was just messing around, seeing what felt right up there.” Izuku turns around to grab his sneakers out of his locker to see Katsuki staring at him.
“Felt right?” Katsuki asks, curiously.
“Yeah, just what I felt had the momentum to do in the air.”
“You don’t know what trick you’re hitting before you’re in the air?” Katsuki asks, turning his body towards Izuku on the bench.
“Uh, not really, do you?” Izuku asks, his eyebrows furrowed in confusion.
“No shit I do, Deku! I don’t have a death wish, unlike some people.” Katsuki glares pointedly at Izuku but he just shrugs, tugging off his helmet before looking back up at Katsuki.
“Sometimes I plan it, but sometimes it just comes to me in the air, my body just moves without thinking, I guess. Besides competitions, obviously. It’s all just muscle memory and instinct.” Izuku replies and Katsuki just laughs mockingly at him.
“Jesus, Deku. How many bones have you broken?”
“…None of your business, Kacchan.”
“This is the issue with you snowboarders. No respect for anything on the mountain except your own shitty egos.” Katsuki shakes his head and scoffs at him, sparking annoyance in Izuku.
“And this is the issue with you skiers. Nauseating elitism.” Izuku rolls his eyes, standing up and grabbing his backpack and coat to leave.
“As if your useless ass could still do it.” Katsuki grumbles, fumbling with the buckles on his boots. Izuku stops, hand frozen on his coat hanging off his locker as he slowly turns his head back around to face Katsuki.
“What was that, Kacchan?” Izuku asks, tilting his head as his eyes darken and bore into Katsuki.
Katsuki finishes undoing his last buckle before standing up, looming over Izuku as he glares down.
“I said,” Katsuki growls, “as if your lazy ass could still do it.”
“Sure, and you wouldn’t even make it off the lift on a board.” Izuku snaps back, stepping further into Katsuki’s space until they are just inches away from each other.
“Is that a fucking challenge, nerd?”
“A challenge requires something hard, Kacchan.”
“Fuck you!” Katsuki shouts in his face.
“Then do it!” Izuku yells back before his face blanches as he registers his own words. Katsuki stifles a laugh as he crosses his arms over his chest as Izuku flusters and stammers below him.
“S-shut up, that’s not what I meant.” Izuku’s face finally regains color, flushing a brilliant red that made Katsuki further suppress his laugh.
“Then what did you mean, nerd?” Katsuki smirks, tilting his head.
“Let’s switch. I’ll ski, you board, and at the end of the month, we’ll see who was right.” Izuku offers, his eyes trained on his boots as he feels Katsuki’s curious gaze on him.
“I don’t need to see anything, Deku, I’ve kicked ass for 17 years, what else is new?”
“You kicked ass skiing. Snowboarding is a completely different animal, Kacchan.”
“How hard can it be if you do it?” Katsuki challenges as he watches Izuku turn to gather up his stuff again, shrugging on his dark green coat and tugging on a beanie over his sweaty curls.
“Then let’s do it. If it’s so easy for you. It’ll just be another chance for you to humiliate me, right?” Izuku says simply, as if he was talking about their last run down the mountain and not their weird, complicated, decade-long amalgamation of friendship and rivalry.
Katsuki’s teeth clenched as he looked at Izuku.
Izuku stood taller and more confidently than he used to, sticking his chin out rather than cowering behind mumbled apologies. His hair had grown darker, his old, bright green curls diluted by black roots, making his obnoxiously large, green eyes stand out against his flushed, freckled face. Katsuki wondered if he had always been like this underneath it all, just bogged down by insecurities caused by… certain people. He wondered if this version of Izuku would exist if they had never met, if he would have always been like this without Katsuki, but he doesn’t exactly know if that would be a good or bad thing. Because he doesn’t know Izuku. At least, not like he used to.
“Fine. You’re fucking on, nerd.”