Disclaimer: I don't own My Hero Academia and neither do you!

A/N: I was looking through my files and found a story I had started writing a few months ago. The idea is that Mina hates bullying but she likes teasing Izuku. She's not as crazy as Nagatoro or anything but I thought it would be cute for bully-hating Mina to enjoy lovingly tormenting her crush...

So I decided to go back and outline the rest of the idea (and change some bits).

I hope you like it!

3/14/25 - Minor tweaks/revisions to Chapters 1 & 2.

Mina Ashido wanted to be a hero ever since she was a little girl, and that desire only deepened when she encountered a bully for the first time.

She had been at the park, practicing some of her own made-up dance moves when all of a sudden she heard a loud, booming noise. It sounded like fireworks going off, followed by a squeaky voice screaming, "Kacchan, please stop!"

Mina turned her head and across the playground she spotted a scared little boy, with hair just as wild and curly as her own, getting picked on by three bigger, meaner boys that had him surrounded. When she saw that they were using their quirks to hurt him, her feet stopped dancing and started moving on their own, dashing over until she found herself standing between the scared little boy and the three meanies. She was scared, too, but no one could tell; she stared down the boys and stood up to their their menacing quirks until one of their parents came to break it up.

After that she had been left alone with the curly-haired boy. He was sniffling and crying and showed no signs that he would stop. Mina sat with him and watched helplessly as he cried; she hated to see him so hurt and heartbroken with his head hung low facing the ground.

She frowned as she watched tear after tear fall from his face and crashed to the dirt below. Then her eyes moved up until she was staring at his hair, a wild mass of vibrant green curls. With every sob his hair shook and bounced. Mina was sad that the boy was so upset, but she had never seen anyone else, besides her mommy and herself, who had such a messy mop of hair. She was fascinated and couldn't tear her eyes away from it.

'It's so green!'

Before she knew it her fingers were running through his verdant locks and she giggled at how they tickled her pink skin.

The boy froze and his body went rigid, then slowly he started raising his head to face her, eyes wide and face aflame.

But he wasn't crying anymore.

Mina smiled a bright, toothy grin that gleamed with the energy of her whole being behind it.

"Hiya! I'm Mina!"

The boy just kept staring, so Mina went on.

"Your hair is really pretty. And soft. And ticklish!" She giggled again as she tousled his hair one more time before she brought her hand back to hang at her side.

The boy squeaked and rushed to hide his face behind his hands, mumbling something she couldn't hear. He sure was silly but silly was better than sad so Mina just kept smiling at him.

"What's your name?" she asked.

He froze again, then slowly his fingers spread apart and she could see his eyes cautiously peering out through the cracks between them.

'His eyes are pretty, too!'They were a beautiful, bright green. They looked worried, or cautious, but there was such an earnest, honest and caring sparkle to them, too.

Patience was not one of Mina's virtues, but she gave the boy all the time he needed to respond. Something about him held her attention; something about him was so curious and captivating.

"I-Izuku," he finally answered.

"Izuku?"

The boy quickly nodded then his fingers snapped back together and his eyes were hidden away from her once more.

Mina smiled at learning the boy's name. Izuku! But after that she frowned because he was hiding from her again.

…

Izuku was so nervous. Meeting new people was always scary; everyone was so mean ever since he found out he was quirkless. He was always shy and nervous and, especially after another confrontation with Kacchan and his friends, Izuku was very cautious with new people.

But this girl had stepped in and stopped them. She had stepped in to protect HIM! She...she was like a hero. She was his hero!

She was so cool! So strong! So...pink.

'Really, really pretty pink..'.

Izuku couldn't stop blushing. He wasn't so scared with her, withMina, she said her name was. He wasn't scared but there was another feeling in his tummy that was confusing.

'Whatever it is, it keeps making my face all hot!'

She even asked for his name and he gave it to her. But she was so pretty that he was embarrassed to look at her and he quickly hid behind his hands.

'Wh-what's going on?'he wondered. Why did he feel so weird?

He was a bundle of nerves, even more so than usual, when he felt her soft hands gently wrap around his wrists to pull them away from his face.

'Wh-wh-what is she doing?'

She pried his chubby little hands away from his eyes and pulled them down to waist level between them, but she didn't let go. Izuku glanced down at her hands holding his and blushed until he heard a giggle that sent his gaze shooting back up to her face.

'I like that sound! Her laugh sounds so nice!'

Laughter that sounded nice had become a rare novelty for Izuku. Apart from All Might's booming guffaws on TV, laughter had become something for him to fear. It was the sound that mean kids made when they bullied him, laughing as they made fun of or hurt him.

But Mina was different! Even her laughter was heroic because it made him feel good. It made him feel safe.

"Your...your laugh is pretty."

Mina's giggles grew into an excited shriek. "Wow, thanks!"

Izuku felt her hands squeeze his and her eyes seemed to shine and her smile somehow grew even bigger.

He still didn't understand what was happening but seeing her smile, hearing her laugh...it made it feel like butterflies were dancing around in his tummy. It felt good! And so he tried to return her smile with one of his own, small and timid as it was.

"Yay! There's a smile! I'm glad you're not sad anymore!" Mina flapped their connected hands between them as she spoke, boundless, excited energy flowing with every word.

She was right; Izuku didn't feel sad! This was the first time he'd gotten away from an encounter with Kacchan where he hadn't gotten hurt. He never cheered up this fast! It usually took a bowl of Katsudon, his favorite All Might video and at least two dozen of Mom's special hugs to feel better, and even then only after he went to bed and woke up the next day.

'But Mina cheered me up right away! AND she stopped Kacchan in the first place!'

"Um...Mina-san?"

"Hmm?"

"Are you..." Izuku took a deep breath. "Are you a hero?"

Mina blinked then squealed as he surprised Izuku by pulling him into a hug.

"How'd you know I wanna be a hero when I grow up? I'm so happy you noticed!"

Izuku didn't move at all as Mina hugged him, not until she let him go and bounced on her heels while she smiled brightly at him.

Finally his brain started working again and he answered.

"You're not a hero already?" Izuku's eyes widened in surprise and awe. "I just thought...All Might always says it's not nice to pick on people, so I try to tell Kacchan to stop when he's being mean to other kids. But...it never ends well for me. This is the first time anyone has ever saved me from him, so I just thought maybe you were a hero like All Might..."

"Like All Might!" Mina shrieked happily. "Oh my gosh you're so sweet!" She hugged him again, giggling and jumping around, dragging him along for the ride.

She spun them around in circles, over and over. Her mommy always told her that would only make her dizzy but she was too happy to care.

'He thinks I'm a hero! He thinks I'm like ALL MIGHT!'

It was the biggest compliment anyone could give her. All Might was so cool! Not just because he beat the bad guys, but because he stood up to meanies and made sure everyone was safe and happy. To hear someone compare her, silly, hyperactive Mina, to someone as cool as the Symbol of Peace was the best!

"Urg...M-Mina-san, can we p-please stop spinning?"

Mina stopped and released Izuku from her hug and started fretting when she saw his face was turning almost as green as his curls. She decided that green was pretty on hair, but not so much on Izuku's cheeks because he looked like he was gonna puke!

"Ah, I'm sorry Izuku-kun! I got excited that you think I'm a hero like All Might!" It took a lot to not pull him into another spinning dance after saying that, but somehow she controlled herself.

"C'mon, let's go sit down under that big tree over there."

…

Mina and Izuku talked as the boy's color returned to normal. Well, it was more like Mina was talking and Izuku was shyly curled in on himself while attentively hanging on to her every word.

She told him about how much she loved dancing, babbled on about her hair, and cooed as she described the brand new baby puppies her neighbor's dog just had. Izuku seemed captivated by it all and hung on her every word, but he remained very quiet as she spoke.

That was until he interrupted her with a loud, sudden gasp when she mentioned the time she met Present Mic at a dance competition her parents brought her to watch.

"You really met Present Mic?!"

Mina blinked, surprised to hear his voice and to hear it so loudly. But she smiled, seeing him brighten up at the mention of heroes.

"Yeah! He was really cool!"

"Wow!" Izuku's eyes started to shine as dreamily imagined what it would be like to meet a real-life hero like that. "I've always wanted to meet him! Mom and I listen to his show all the time! I always want to call in and ask him about his quirk because I really like learning about quirks but his call-in segment is after my bedtime so I can only listen to it on the replay with Mom the next day."

Mina stared. The boy had said a lot of words in one breath and so fast! He wasn't shy at all just then; he must really like quirks to get that excited.

"Aww! That's no fun! I'm not Present Mic but I can tell you about my quirk if you want!"

It was clear that he did, if the way he leaned right in her face with a big, blinding smile on his face was any signal.

'Wow, he's got a pretty smile, too!'

"Do you really mean it?" Right as his words spilled out he cringed and seemed to curl back in on himself. In an instant all of his excitement fizzled out and his quiet side took over again. "You...you don't have to. I know it's creepy..."

Mina frowned. Creepy? Why would talking about her quirk be creepy?

She shook her head. "No way, it's not creepy at all! I like talking about my quirk!"

Izuku still looked cautious and unsure, but with her permission he was once again unable to hide his excitement at learning about her quirk.

"Well...what is your quirk, Mina-san?"

Mina smiled and grabbed one of his hands. He squeaked at the surprise touch from the pretty pink girl, but before he could start blushing again, Izuku felt something wet and tingly surround his hand as it was clasped between both of Mina's.

"Ahh! That-teehee!-that TICKLES!" Izuku was laughing and squirming at the weird feeling.

Mina chuckled and pulled her hands away. Something slimy was dripping from both of her palms just like it was dripping from Izuku's fingers.

"Wow, what's that?" Izuku asked as he stared at the droplets falling to the ground.

"It's called Acid! Like what the villains sometimes try to drop All Might into on the cartoons! But don't worry, I'm not strong enough to make anything that dangerous. And I've already learned how to control it to just be ticklish anyway."

Izuku was impressed. "Wow! You've already learned how to control your quirk? That's incredible! You must be really strong, just like Kacchan!"

Mina frowned. Kacchan? Wasn't that the boy who was bullying Izuku? The one who picked on other kids? The way he was talking about him made it sound like Izuku thought he was cool? It didn't make sense.

"I don't think I want to be compared to someone like 'Kacchan.'"

Izuku stared at her, flabbergasted, with his mouth agape. Her words didn't make any sense! He didn't understand; who wouldn't want to be like Kacchan?

"But Kacchan is so strong! He has a great quirk! He's going to be a great hero someday!"

Mina frowned. "He doesn't seem like a hero to me. He just seems like a meanie or a...a...a big BULLY!"

Izuku's eyes widened. He was shocked! He hadneverheard anyone talk bad about Kacchan.

'Well, except Auntie Mitsuki, maybe...'

"But...but...Kacchan's not that bad. He's so strong! Just sometimes he...he..."

"He bullies people. He bulliesyou."

Through everything Kacchan put him through, Izuku had never been able to accept that fact. But it was true! He started to sniffle after hearing the plain truth from his new friend's mouth.

Mina panicked a little at seeing her new friend crying. She didn't get it! She had seen that 'Kacchan' meanie hurting Izuku with her own eyes but the boy next to her kept denying it.

Mina was frustrated and she was confused. She wasn't the best at dealing with these kinds of feelings; she never knew how to handle them. But this time she knew exactly what to do.

Mina hugged Izuku. She was gentle but firm; this hug was very serious! She was worried.

"Izuku. Why was he picking on you earlier?"

Izuku froze in her arms.'Oh no...'

Mina felt him tense up; she could tell he was scared. Why was that question so scary?

"Please don't be scared, Izuku. I'm here."

Izuku heard her words, but as he processed what she said he also heard the echo of All Might saying the same thing in his head:I AM HERE!

Mina really was like All Might. She had jumped in to help him. She laughed to make him feel safe. She was here for him while he cried, making sure he was alright.

But everyone else turned on him when they found out he was quirkless. Would she call him "Deku," too, if she knew?

He took a moment to soak in how good it felt to be hugged by Mina. Her hugs felt a lot like Mom's special hugs, the ones that told him she cared, that everything would be okay.

Izuku decided to take the chance. If nothing else, Mina had been so nice to him and she deserved the truth.

"Well," he began, his voice wavering with nerves. Mina gently pulled back from the hug, just enough to look at his face.

"Kacchan was being mean to another boy because he had a 'dumb quirk.'" Izuku frowned and Mina followed suit. "But!" he continued indignantly. "No one has a dumb quirk! Quirks are so cool!" Izuku's shoulders fell and he looked even more sad. "I tried to stop him, but that always just makes Kacchan mad. But at least the other boy got away because..." Izuku paused, struggling to get it out.

"...because?" Mina asked.

"...Because I'm quirkless."

Mina sucked in a sharp breath of air. "What?"

Izuku couldn't look her in the eyes. "Kacchan didn't like that other boy's quirk, but at least he had a quirk. No one...no one likes quirkless Deku's like me. I'm not strong, like you or like All Might; I can't really help people or stop anyone from hurting people. But...Kacchan will always choose to pick on me over anyone else, so maybe, maybe I'm helping, right?" Mina's heart hurt when she heard the desperation in those words, the need her new friend had to help. "At least the other boy got away..."

Izuku was rambling. He didn't understand why he kept going; Mina heard him say he was quirkless and that meant she was going to leave or turn on him, too, right?

But she didn't leave. She was still there, holding his hands, sitting with him. She didn't say anything after he stopped talking but Izuku soon heard soft sniffles coming from the girl that quickly grew into louder sobs.

Izuku hated that; he hated people being sad. He looked up and saw Mina's face covered in tears, her dark eyes becoming ringed with red. There was even some snot dripping from her nose. She looked so upset!

'But...why?'

"M-Mina-san? What's wrong?" Izuku fretted over the crying girl. All of his own worries were forgotten; the only thing he could think about was her.

"What's wrong?!" Mina shouted. "Izuku you...you...arg! Everything is wrong! You're really nice and really cool and you're beingbullied!Bullied just because you don't have a quirk?" Mina started shaking; she was still upset but her sadness was turning into anger. "That's so STUPID! Who cares?!"

Izuku was stunned. Was he hearing this right? Mina didn't care he was quirkless? Mina thought he was nice? Mina thought he was COOL?

"Do you...do you really mean that?" He whispered in a breathless tone, daring to hope it was true. "Even though I'm quirkless?"

"Of course!"

Izuku couldn't believe it. Mom was the only one who didn't care that he was quirkless...until now! Mina was the best!

He lunged forward and wrapped Mina in a big hug. Mina was surprised this shy boy would do that, but she quickly decided he gave great hugs. He started crying, and Mina was worried at first, but as he buried his face in her shoulder she could somehow tell the tears soaking her collar were happy ones. She hugged him back and they sat there together, a pair of teary messes, as they held tightly to each other.

Mina started running her fingers through his hair again and rested her cheek on his head. She had only just met Izuku but she already knew he was special. He was kind and soft and sweet. He didn't deserve to be treated badly. Just because he was quirkless? That was wrong. That's what bullies did. Mina had heard that word many times before but until that day she had never really seen a bully in real life. Now that she had, she realized that shehatedbullies.

'I don't get it,' Mina thought. 'Who would want to bully someone like Izuku?'

…

Well. It turned out Mina would. But she wouldn't find that out until years later.

After that day in the park Mina didn't see Izuku again. She had only been visiting her Auntie in Musutafu that day but Mina didn't live very close to the park herself. Every time she visited after that, even as she grew older, Mina would go to that park hoping she would see Izuku again, but she never did.

Not until her first day at UA, that is…

A/N: Thank you for reading! Feel free to comment, if you'd like.

Next time we'll see what happens when Mina and Izuku reconnect in the present. And, y'know. Some of the actual teasing!

Also, if you like this first chapter in particular you might check out another of my stories,Do You Want to be Someone Who Scares People or Someone Who Helps?It's not IzuMina; it's an Izuku x Setsuna fic, but the whole fic is about them meeting as kids and being kind and sweet to each other.