This document beta'd by kylekatarn77

Courage to Strengthen

There are basically two types of people. People who accomplish things, and people who claim to have accomplished things. The first group is less crowded.

-Mark Twain

The sun was barely up when Izuku got out of the train station, and he ran all the way to school, his breathing steady, only a little sweat running down his face. He'd missed the day before's exercise routine after all, having been so exhausted he'd simply passed out after dinner. But now he was up and ready for a new day, a new life where he was finally on the road to being a hero.

Except, that wasn't really true. He'd been on that path since he met Mei. The only difference now was that others believed in his dream too. But as long as he had Mei, it would be alright. They'd make it through.

He arrived at school well before 6:00am, and set about doing the rest of his exercises. He put on his PE clothes and did his push ups, sit ups, and squats, then started running around the track. He took it easy, going at a steady pace, but not pushing himself too hard. After a few minutes, Shinso showed up, wordlessly setting down his pack, taking off his school jacket, and falling into place beside Izuku.

"Good morning," Izuku said, unsure of how to treat Shinso. He didn't know the boy well, aside from yesterday they'd never spoken before.

"Good morning," Shinso grunted, sweat starting to trickle down his face. "You do this everyday?"

"Y-y-yeah. Um, I sort of, change what I do. The running and most of the exercises are the same. But today's Monday, which means 100 lunges and 100 side to side jumps."

Shinso nodded. "And the other days?"

"Um, Tuesday is 100 curls and 100 bench presses. I, um, I'm at about 25 kilos for the curls, and 45 for the bench press. And on Wednesday, 100 jumping jacks and 100 jump rope hops. Then on Thursday 100 pull ups and 100 leg lifts with weights. Friday is 100 sitting toe touches and 100 seconds standing on one leg. E-each one. Then Saturday is 100 punches and 100 snap kicks, on a bag. I um, I have one at home, in my room. Sunday you just do the core routine."

Shinso ran quietly for a second, then shook his head. "That sounds frankly insane. How do you have time for anything aside from exercising?"

"W-w-well, I, um, I don't get out a lot," Izuku admitted. "A-a-aside from Mei, I sort of, well, I don't have any friends. And it only takes about two hours! Most of that is the 10k run, but if you work hard you can get it down to less than an hour!"

"Two hours of exercise. Eight hours at school. Two hours of studying, at least that's what I have to do. That leave's 12 hours. What do you do, aside from eat or sleep?"

"Um, well, actually, I...I only sleep for about 6 or 7 hours. And, well, Mei and I eat together as we work. So, um, I have about 4 hours to work with Mei. Usually...Usually I run to school in the mornings. It, um, it saves time. And I sleep over at Mei's house, or she sleeps at mine sometimes. To, um, save time."

"No wonder you two weren't 'playing ball'," Shinso muttered. "You're both too damn exhausted to do it."

Izuku blushed, looking down. That had a grain of truth in it. He was pretty tired most of the time. On Sundays, he usually slept for a good 10 hours, then spent the rest of the time with Mei. She seemed to need less sleep than he did, though she also didn't spend any time exercising.

After a few laps, Mr. Kan came out to watch them, his arms folded across his chest. Izuku and Shinso finished their lap, then came up beside him.

"Not bad," Mr. Kan mused. "You two might make it after all, if you show this kind of dedication every day."

"I'll do whatever it takes," Shinso vowed, clenching his fist. "Even this insane exercise routine Izuku's on."

"I looked it up. Honestly, when I was a full time pro, that was an easy day for me. My quirk, Blood Control, needs a strong physical body to work. Aizawa's the same way. We still hit the gym for a few hours everyday," Kan stated.

Shinso nodded slowly. "And I suppose I'll need a strong body if I'm not just going to rely on my own quirk."

"That would be wise. And what I'm going to start teaching you today." Without warning, Kan's arm and leg shot out. His arm connected savagely with Izuku's chest, driving the breath from his lungs. He retched as he sank to his knees, barely aware of the fact that Shinso was suffering similar effects from Kan's leg.

Kan grunted, looking down at the boys. "So, you don't know how to take a punch. I suppose that's a good place to start."

"Wasn't...expecting...one," Izuku gasped, painfully getting up on his knees.

"You're going to have to learn to always be on guard. Granted, that was a low blow, but when you're in the field, you need to be ready for low blows at any moment. Someone can turn hostile at the drop of a hat. Be prepared. Now get up."

Izuku and Shinso staggered to their feet, and Kan nodded. "Right. Well, before you learn how to throw a punch, you've got to learn how to take one. Come on."

Kan led the boys to the gym, where he had them put on pads and helmets. "In a fight, there's a lot of things that matter. One of the more important ones is how to get back up after you've been hit."

"Isn't it smarter to just...not get hit in the first place?" Shinso asked.

Kan shrugged. "Yeah. We'll be working on that too. Dodging is important. But at some point, you're gonna get hit. It's vital you get back up as fast as you can, or don't go down in the first place. Villians will take any opportunity to end you. No matter how good you are. Aizawa is frankly one of the best technical hand to hand fighters I've ever met. But he didn't end up looking like a halloween prop because he always dodges. Now, here's how you take a punch."

Kan tossed a padded striking stick to Izuku. "You're going to hit me in a moment. Don't be shy, you might hurt me, but I'll get over it. Hit me in the stomach. I'm going to tighten my muscles, and breath out, so that I can create a hard surface to deflect the blow. Ready?"

Izuku nodded, then smacked Kan with the stick across the stomach. The instructor grunted. "Not hard enough. Give it to Shinso."

Shinso gave it a shot as well, and Kan sighed. "Guess we'll have to work on how to hit, too. You're afraid of hurting me. Most novices hold back at first. Well, I'm going to beat that out of you. Now, I'll hit you."

That morning, Izuku developed a large array of bruises across his torso, arms, and legs. Kan showed them how to roll with a blow, how to block a hit, and how to get back up when you were knocked down. It was an exhausting hour and a half, and when it was over Kan simply jerked his head towards the showers. "Get cleaned up. School starts in 20 minutes. Make sure you're not late to class. Don't go to Recovery Girl until lunch at the earliest. You've got to learn to work through pain as well."

Groaning, Izuku and Shinso stumbled into the showers, the hot water washing away only some of the pain they felt.

"Is it going to be like that...every day?" Shinso gasped.

Izuku shrugged. "I don't know. But...but if it is, I'll keep going. I'm not giving up."

"Yeah. I suppose I shouldn't either."

School that day turned out to be torture, and not just because Izuku ached from head to toe. Everyone kept looking at him, talking to him, congratulating him. But the only person who's praise he really cared about wasn't there. Mei was still at home, resting and recovering. At lunch Izuku tried to eat in the cafeteria, but ended up back in the workshop when he grew anxious without Mei there. He ran several diagnostics on the power suit, cataloguing the damage and looking at what systems had suffered the most. Overall the suit was still in fairly good condition, but the rough stress it had undergone had revealed several flaws.

Then it was back to class. Izuku made sure to take careful notes, promising each of the teachers he'd share everything with Mei. Most of them were also congratulatory, with Mr. Maijima practically preening whenever he saw Izuku. Apparently, Kan seemed to have paid his bet off, though Izuku got the impression it was more the principle of the thing.

At the end of the day, Izuku hurried out of school, heading straight for the train station. Usually he stayed late, but he didn't see any reason to waste more time in the workshop. He headed straight for Mei's house, running all the way from the station.

"Hey there, Midoriya," Hari called as he hurried into the shop. There was only one customer, an old woman who was snoozing in a waiting chair. Hari was minding the counter and doing paperwork, her face smudged with less grease than usual.

"Hey, Hatsume. Um, how's Mei doing? Is she OK?"

"She's driving everyone nuts is what she's doing," Hari laughed. "Go on up, she'll be glad to see you."

Izuku hesitated slightly, glancing nervously about for Mei's parents.

"Oh go on," Hari said, shooing Izuku to the back of the shop where the living quarters were. "We've taken your word on you behaving yourself so far. Not like any thing's changed."

"Um, thanks," Izuku said, bowing slightly, then hurrying to the back and up the stairs to Hari's room, where Mei was staying.

"Izukuk?" Mei called as he opened the door. "Is that you?"

"It is, how'd you know?" he asked, leaving the door open as he entered.

"You didn't take your shoes off," Mei said, grinning mischievously "Better do that before mom catches you."

Izuku let out a yelp and quickly removed his shoes, then sat down beside Mei's bed.

"How are our babies?" Mei demanded. "Did you check on them?"

"Yeah, let me read the diagnostics from the Power Suit," Izuku said. Mei listened, commenting on various things as he read off the status of the various systems.

When he was finished, she nodded. "Well number 47 seems to be holding up at least. I'm glad they had their daddy to take care of them! Now, if you can help me take off this bandaid-"

"Mei, I think you're supposed to leave it for another day at least," Izuku said gently, putting a hand on Mei's to lower it from the bandages.

"Yeah, yeah. It's just so boring," Mei grumbled. "I've done nothing but sit here all day. I never do that!"

"Yeah, I know," Izuku said, smiling faintly. Even when Mei was sick, she ended up working on something. Idleness wasn't a disease she was cursed with.

"Did you start with Mr. Aizawa yet?" Mei demanded, interrupting Izuku's reverie. "What did he teach you about being a hero?"

"He's still hurt too," Izuku explained. "It was Mr. Kan. Um, he taught me how to, er, get hit."

"Well that's not very hard. I thought you didn't want people to hit you," Mei said, sounding slightly irritated.

"Um, more like, how to get hit, but not let it stop you," Izuku added.

"Oh." Mei cocked her head to one side. "That might have helped against Bakugo, I guess."

"Yeah." For a time, they just sat there together, Mei leaning back, apparently content to relax now. The only sound was her tuneless humming as she fiddled with the edge of her sheets.

For once, it was Izuku who broke the silence. "Mei, um, about...about what you said yesterday."

"I said lots of things yesterday. You're going to have to be more specific," Mei said, sitting up slightly.

"I mean about...about us dating," Izuku said, looking down.

"Oh! I have another condom, if you want to try baseball. I know we said we wouldn't but I-"

"N-n-not that!" Izuku said, going beat red. He suddenly smiled. "Not that...not that I don't sort of want to. But, um, I think I sort of promised your dad to behave myself. And Hari. So, not that. No, I mean, do you really...do you really want to be my girlfriend?"

That made Mei frown slightly. "Well, I wouldn't be if I didn't want to."

"You really mean it?" Izuku asked, feeling tears come to his eyes.

"Yes, I said so, didn't I?"

"I know, it's just...well, I mean, I really do like you, Mei. Not in a...um, friend sort of way, but-"

"You don't want to be friends?" Mei whispered, her hands going suddenly still.

"No! I mean, yes, I mean...it's...it's different, being boyfriend and girlfriend. I just...I wanted to make sure you... know, you understood that."

"What? It just means you really like that person and want to spend all your time with them and maybe play baseball," Mei said confidently. Then she paused. "I am not sure about the baseball, or what it has to do with dating, but I think if I did it with you it would be at least a little fun. But could we make a special bat? I've been thinking, and I bet if we added some rocket motors to the bat, or maybe put a magnet in the ball with a gyroscope and then modified the bat with a powerful electromagnet it would be much more interesting."

"Mei that's just...that's just a metaphor for physical intimacy," Izuku said, now struggling not to laugh.

"Like hugs and stuff? We already do that. What does that have to do with baseball?" Mei demanded.

"It's just...you know, I don't really know," Izuku admitted. "That's sort of how metaphors work. They're just weird things people say that mean something else."

"Well, I still think the rocket bat would be fun," Mei said with a shrug. "But what about this boyfriend and girlfriend being different than friends? Aren't we still friends?"

"Yeah, but, well, you can only be dating one person at a time. And...and it means you, you know. Love the other person."

"Ah." Mei considered that. "Well, you're my only friend. Ever. And I don't think I would ever find someone I like better than you. I think I do love you. But no one has ever really explained love to me. I think it's like how I feel about my babies, but I'm not sure."

"You're my best friend too, Mei," Izuku said quietly, taking her hand in his. "And I think it is sort of how you feel about your babies. It means you believe in that person, no matter what, and accept them, even when it's hard, and help them. And...and you've sort of been doing that for me, since I met you. I don't know what I did to deserve it."

"Well, you did it for me," Mei said as it was the most obvious thing in the world. "So I should just do it back. No one else ever did."

Izuku felt something tighten around his throat. "Yeah. I...I know what that feels like."

"It's really strange," Mei said, pulling Izuku closer to her. "You're not even ASD. But you are quirkless, so I guess that's kind of the same thing. Both of our brains are different. Sometimes, I wished I were like our babies, so that I could fix myself to be like other people. I used to wish that a lot. I tried to make things that would make it so other people liked me. But then I met you, and I realized I didn't need to do that."

"Yeah. It's...it's nice to have someone who cares about me. Not...not someone who just pities me."

"I hate that," Mei said, sudden venom in her voice. "Everyone always acted like I was less than them. I wanted to fix myself to add something, not take things away! And you're the best person I've ever met, so maybe more people shouldn't have quirks, so they could be more like you! Actually, maybe I won't have my quirk when my eyes get better. So then we'll be the same!"

"No," Izuku said quietly. "I want you to be the way you are, Mei."

"That's good," Mei said. "Because I think I'm pretty great too."

They spent the rest of the evening going over what had happened in class, even in English. Mei wasn't too thrilled to go over a lot of it, but she seemed happy enough that Izuku was there. Mrs. Hatsume brought them dinner, warm miso soup with a bit of chicken in it. When Izuku looked up, he realized with a start that it was getting late. He and Mei had gotten absorbed in working on their Physics homework, and well, just talking about how they could apply it to the various things they wanted to build.

"It's getting late, kids," Mr. Hatsume said, poking his head in. "Izuku, why don't you bunk with the boys tonight? You seem like you were beat to hell today."

"Yeah," Izuku agreed with a yawn. "OK."

He headed over to Mei's brother's room, but they were both asleep already, snoring softly. Izuku lay down on the pallet that the family had set aside from him, staring up at the ceiling. He wondered briefly if this was what the rest of his life would be like. He smiled. If it was, he could have gotten a much worse life.

Authors Note:

I'd like to thank everyone for the huge positive reception this story has gotten so far, especially after I posted the last chapter. I've tried hard to write a good story and it means a lot to me that so many people are enjoying it. Please stay safe out there, everyone. It's a crazy time to be alive and I hope my story makes your day just a little better.