They don't call every day.

Usually they communicate through texts, in fact.

Texting doesn't require the other person to be available when you send the message. It's like a little gift you leave for someone else, but the gift is a conversation. And that's why Cathleen Bate is always so happy when she wakes up in the morning and sees she has a message from Inko.

They talk about everything and anything. They'll talk about the weather, about how Izuku is doing, about the latest pieces of gossip. Cathleen will ask Inko for advice on clothing brands and styles. Inko will ask her about big Hero events or rankings. It makes Cathleen giddy with excitement to have someone she can share passions with. Her brothers are amazing, but they've all been in the Heroics industry for just as long as her.

Sometimes it's pictures.

They range from anything to the food they're eating to their friends to random scenery. Sometimes they'll send pictures of cute animals they run into around their neighborhoods or pictures of their newest clothes. It's a way for them to share their lives even if they can't always be in the same place.

Cathleen picks up a habit within the first week that she's back in the United States: taking pictures of other Pro Heroes for Izuku. Not to brag, but she's getting pretty good at framing the shots properly and judging the lighting. Inko tells her once that Izuku sometimes asks to get some of those pictures printed out for his room.

But their distance has a bigger impact on Cathleen than she thought it would. She catches herself looking for Inko in her house, somewhere Inko has never been. The ghosts of Inko's touch brush against her skin and makes her heart ache with longing. Izuku's infectious energy is missing from her day, from how he would light up any room he's in.

But that sorrow always melts away into a loving warmth when it's time for their weekly call. Every week, on a day that Cathleen doesn't have any patrols—a practice she's only started thanks to Inko—they connect virtually, their cameras a poor substitute for sharing a space, but Cathleen loves it anyway. How could she not love time she spends with Inko?

"Honestly, Cathleen," Inko huffs. "That interview was a disgrace to the profession! Izuku, if you act like Endeavor when you get your license, I'm—I'm grounding you for the rest of your life!"

Cathleen laughs over the sound of Izuku's indignant squawk from beyond the edge of the screen.

In the months since they've started dating, Inko has been getting steadily more and more invested in Heroics. When Cathleen had brought it up once, Inko said something about it being to support Izuku while looking away and blushing bright.

"Endeavor's always rubbed me the wrong way," Cathleen says. "It's probably not fair of me, since I only ever see him at your Hero Billboard Chart, but the way he looks at All Might makes my skin crawl."

"I can't believe him!" Inko continues. "Where does he get off saying that power is the most important part of being a Hero? What would he know? If it was all that, he should've hit Number One already with all those people he throws around!"

Cathleen is sure that if she asked, Inko would deny that she's furious on behalf of Izuku and how Endeavor had indirectly trampled over him. Not that she has any intention of brining it up, mainly because Cathleen isn't sure if Izuku's put together the implications of Endeavor's statements yet, and she doesn't want to draw attention to it if that's the case.

"Maybe I should schedule an interview of my own and talk about all the other parts that go into Heroism," Cathleen says, not entirely joking. "You know, how important it is to reassure civilians, or to think on the fly, prioritizing rescue, all the stuff that isn't obvious on the news."

"You should," Inko huffs. "If he can be Number Two, then apparently anyone can be a Hero nowadays."

"Didn't you tell me once that you wanted to be a Hero when you were a kid? You'd be way better than Endeavor," Cathleen snorts. Inko doesn't respond. After a moment, Cathleen tilts her head. "Inko?"

"Huh?" says Inko, looking up, "Oh." She shakes her head with a sigh. "Sorry, I was distracted. I didn't mean to rant at you like that. How has your week been?"

Cathleen grins. "Ryan just found out that he's an uncle."

Inko gasps. "How wonderful!"

"He's been walking around their base with a spring in his step ever since his sister called him on Wednesday."

Ryan May is one of Cathleen's brothers in arms. He's at the younger end of their group and still excitable in the face of all the Pro Heroes he gets to deal with. Cathleen actually appreciates his energy; having someone who reminds them all of their celebrity status helps remind them of how much their work impacts the public. Sometimes it doesn't feel she's doing enough, but people like Ryan always help pull her out of that slump.

Though, admittedly, Ryan can't do as good a job as Izuku when it comes to fanboying over Heroes.

"Patrol's been fairly normal," Cathleen continues. "The press has finally noticed that I'm slightly less active now, but they haven't made a big deal about it since I'm still out there at least five days a week."

"Is that going to be a problem?" says Inko, clutching at her collar.

"Not at all. I might have to make a statement about it if people get pissy, but I'm not expecting any backlash. Worst-case, I'll say something about doing more administrative work, using my platform and resources, that sort of thing."

It's technically true, too. Cathleen hates feeling like she isn't doing enough, so she has a habit of doing paperwork during her day off. Not when it's time for her call with Inko, of course, but it gets done.

"Did Izuku get the picture I got with Makeshift?"

"He loved it," Inko confirms with a smile. "You've gotten him obsessed with other technology-themed Heroes."

"Makeshift does good work; I'm not going to complain about him getting another fan."

"I'm just worried he's going to start taking apart the TV," Inko says. Cathleen can't help it; she cracks up at the image of tiny Izuku with a screwdriver trying to pry apart various household devices to see how they work.

Their conversations are often like this, talking about everything and nothing at all. What they say matters, but to Cathleen it's far more important that they're both still a part of each other's lives in spite of the vast distance between them.

"New Years is coming up," Inko says, which is technically an exaggeration. It's still well over a month away. "And it got me thinking. Cathleen, I don't think you ever told me when your birthday is!"

Cathleen pauses, taking a moment to think about it. If it wasn't for the fact that her birthday is so very American and that her brothers drag her (sometimes literally) to go celebrate, she honestly wouldn't remember.

"I don't really think about it," says Cathleen. Inko levels her with a look dripping with such disappointment that Cathleen has to suppress the urge to fall on her knees and beg for forgiveness. "It's July 4th."

Inko stares at her through the screen, mouth slightly agape. Before Cathleen can ask her what's wrong, Inko starts laughing. It's a hearty, full-bodied laugh.

"What?"

"Cathleen," Inko says, wiping a finger under her eye. "Cathleen. We have the same birthday."

"No way," says Cathleen, mouth slowly spreading into a goofy grin.

"I was born on July 4th," Inko says.

"What about the year?" says Cathleen, suddenly way more invested in her birthday than she's been since she was a child.

It was the same year.

They were both born on the exact same day.

"It's almost like the universe is trying to tell us something," Cathleen says. It also means that she won't be able to ever get away with working on her birthday again. She knows better than to try her luck against the dynamic duo that is Inko's concern and Izuku's puppy-dog eyes. Those eyes have to be illegal.

Inko snorts. "You mean like destiny?"

"I don't think I'd mind the existential fear of having no free will if it meant that I was always going to meet you," Cathleen says.

"Cathleen," Inko moans, "You can't say things like that when you're too far away for me to kiss!"

"Then I guess you'll have to come over here and kiss me yourself," Cathleen purrs.

"Don't go giving me ideas," says Inko with a soft smile.

"Don't threaten me with a good time!" Cathleen fires back, matching Inko's smile.

Cathleen makes the mistake of not thinking about this conversation again until several weeks later, in later December.

The Christmas season is one of the most interesting times for any Hero, as Cathleen can attest. In Cathleen's years of service, she has only ever seen two kinds of Christmases. The first is a normal, quiet affair where everyone stay home and nothing goes wrong. The other is where every single Villain Cathleen's ever fought, seen, heard of, or imagined in a post-workout exhaustion fever dream all coming out of the woodworks at once because they've decided the Whos down in Whoville are singing too loud or whatever it is this year. What kind of year it is seems to be even odds with no way of predicting what it's going to be.

Sometimes Cathleen wonders if she'd have this problem somewhere where it gets below 60 degrees in the winter.

Fortunately, this is a quiet year. No madmen attacking the parades, no weirdos in green bodysuits robbing shops while speaking in rhymes, no mad engineers with an army of life-sized wind-up soldiers launching simultaneous attacks on every performance of The Nutcracker in an eight-mile radius.

That had been a memorable one.

No, this is another year where Christmas has come and gone without any fanfare from Villains. There are still criminals doing their thing, but that's going to be the case until Cathleen's various outreach programs finally end social inequality.

Cathleen pauses. I wonder if I could use New Order on myself so I could live long enough to see that happen. No, it's way to risky to throw around permanent orders like that. And I'm not totally sure I trust the Admiral's superiors with my best interests if they noticed I'd done that.

Voices echo from down the hall. Cathleen looks up, setting her dumbbell down and standing up. She wipes her hands off on her shorts.

It's her brothers, of course, who else could it be? But the real question is what they want. Cathleen checks her watch—the second one that she wears next to her gift from Aaron, set to local time—and frowns. It's the middle of the afternoon, so it's unlikely she's being take out for a fancy meal.

"—up ahead are the training areas," says Oliver, one of her brothers in arms. Cathleen blinks. Why does it sound like he's giving a tour?

Oliver continues, "We've got a few sparring rings set up, but the main facilities here are the gyms. Bodybuilding, weightlifting, cardio, you name it, we've got it. It's also where the illustrious Star and Stripe spends all of her time here that isn't spent on paperwork."

Cathleen makes the mistake of taking a step, so when she hears Inko laugh and say, "That sounds like her," in near-perfect English, she loses her footing in surprise and falls.

Of course, as a trained Pro Hero, she catches herself easily and without injury.

That does not mean that she in any way has her dignity when the door opens, and Oliver leads both Inko and Izuku in to see her.

"Uh," says Cathleen, who is apparently not all that great under this kind of pressure.

"Ms. Bate!" Izuku cries, rushing towards her, arms wide. Cathleen quickly pulls herself up and embraces the little tyke in the hug he clearly wants.

"Hey there, kiddo," Cathleen says. "What're you doing here?"

While Star and Stripe's agency is laid out like a military compound and funded by the American military budget as part of how Cathleen went through the military program, it's still a Hero Agency. Under World Heroes Association regulations, Hero Agencies are open to the public in the same way as police stations. The fact that there are civilians in the base is nothing new; there tends to be at least one every few days.

Of course, that's a local here for directions, or an interview, or to report suspicious activity. Even tours aren't uncommon, though those happen far less frequently.

It is not usually Cathleen's long-distance girlfriend and her son.

"I'm on winter break!" Izuku cheers in Japanese, leaning back in Cathleen's arms. Cathleen looks up at Inko inquisitively.

"You suggested we come visit you, remember?" Inko says with no small amount of amusement.

"I did?" God, Cathleen hopes she didn't; she doesn't have anywhere for them to stay, or an itinerary, or—

"Well," Inko says sheepishly, "More like you teased me for not being close enough to do this."

Izuku, the smoothest four-year-old to ever live, slips to the side so Inko can cup Cathleen's face. Cathleen doesn't give her the satisfaction, pulling her in for a kiss before Inko can.

Their lips part after a few seconds, and Cathleen can't help but beam. Not even Oliver's exaggerated cooing can bring her down. She does however refrain from flipping him off while Izuku can see.

She'll get to that later.

Smug little shit bringing Inko here without telling her—

"How long have you been here?" Cathleen says, as Inko helps her up to her feet.

"Oh, we landed maybe an hour ago and checked into our hotel on the way. Izuku's winter break isn't very long, so we're only going to be here for a few days. But…" She smiles at Cathleen. "I couldn't miss our first New Years together."

"Sometimes," Cathleen breathes into Inko's hair, "I can't believe you're real, because no human can be as perfect as you are."

Inko laughs her beautiful chiming laugh, and Cathleen feels her ears heat up and the sound. She really is blessed to have met Inko.

"How do you think I feel?" says Inko into Cathleen's chest. "Here you are, larger than life, and Izuku loves you. How could I have gotten so lucky?"

"I'll let that pun slide, but only because you're so cute."

Inko reaches up, putting her hand on Cathleen's back, between her shoulder blades. "I know."

Their embrace lasts another several seconds, soaking in each other's company, before Oliver clears his throat.

"Not to interrupt," he says. "But, uh, aren't you two forgetting something?" He jerks his head back towards the door.

Izuku squeals, but Inko simply glances at Oliver.

"I didn't forget," she says. "I just wanted to see her first."

"What's this?" says Cathleen. Inko's eye sparkle with mischief.

She untangles herself from Cathleen (after standing up on her toes and giving Cathleen a quick peck on the cheek) and makes her way back to the doorway. Inko shoots a smile over her shoulder at Cathleen, leans out the door, and picks up a small festive bag sitting just out of sight of the door.

"I know it's a few days late," Inko says, blushing slightly, "But we got you something for Christmas."

Cathleen opens and closes her mouth a few times before she finds her voice again. "My—my gifts are in the mail."

"I figured as much," Inko says. "Don't worry. Mitsuki's keeping an eye on the apartment, so they'll be waiting for us when we get back."

She holds the bag out for Cathleen to take. Cathleen inhales slowly, deeply, and gingerly takes it from Inko.

She moves the wads of tissue paper around until she uncovers the small box inside. It's cardboard, but a very nice cardboard. Cathleen lifts the box out of the bag. Her eyes widen. She recognizes the branding from her first day in Mustafu—the day she met Inko. The day Inko took her on a shopping trip.

"I looked it up and saw that this brand isn't carried in America," Inko says. "And you told me that, well, that I'd sold you on it."

"Is this a new scent?" says Cathleen.

"Mhmm," Inko nods. "So I knew you wouldn't have it yet."

According to the packaging, the perfume is apple spice scented, and Cathleen already has several ideas of what she can do with something like this. She puts it back in the bag for safe keeping before embracing Inko again.

"Thank you so much."

"Merry Christmas, Cathy."

A jolt rushes down Cathleen's spine.

"That's the first time you've called me that," she breathes into Inko's ear.

"Did you like it?"

"I loved it. Call me that more."

"As you wish, Cathy."

Cathleen purrs from her throat, and Inko giggles.

"When are they gonna get married?" Izuku whispers loudly to Oliver. Fortunately for Cathleen's pride, Oliver does not speak Japanese, and therefore has no way of responding. She doesn't know if she could take whatever response he gives, seeing as she's pretty sure her brothers are betting on the answer.

"I—I don't have any plans for while you're here," Cathleen says, finally pulling away from Inko so she can look at her.

"That's fine." Inko smiles and sends Cathleen's heart fluttering. "We aren't going to be here for long, and Izuku and I already came up with a plan."

"You did?"

"Yes," says Inko. "This was the plan. You are our plan." Her smile turns sheepish. "Well, that and also watching the countdown for New Years together. I'm really hoping you don't have any prior engagements."

"Inko, please," Cathleen huffs. "When do I ever make social plans?" Oliver coughs awkwardly, or at least Cathleen pretends to believe that he's coughing.

"We'll work on it," says Inko.

The fireworks that year weren't anything special, especially compared to the fireworks festival she'd attended in Japan. But even so, with Inko there, sharing the holiday with her, Cathleen doesn't think she's ever seen New Year's fireworks more beautiful.