Chapter 3: Learning to Run

Barry stepped out of his apartment complex practically beaming with positivity. It had been a few days since he was released from the hospital, and while he was still disheartened by the uncertain fate of his father, he had finally decided to take his life into his own hands. He wanted to be a hero and by god, he would become one, and now that he had a quirk it felt like it was a true possibility.

Dressed in gym shorts, an old flash t-shirt, and a worn pair of flash sneakers, Barry walked down the street toward the local multiplex training facility. On the way, he took out his notebook and flipped to a specific section

The Capabilities of My Quirk.

Possible abilities:

Super-Speed: Unconfirmed

Intangibility: Confirmed (Not Fully Explored: Should experiment with this idea further)

Regeneration: Confirmed (But how much can I regenerate, Won't test as of right now with fear of Injury)

Barry shut his notebook and continued his walk.

Okay, just one month before the entrance exam, I gotta learn as much as possible if I'm gonna succeed.

Barry practically pranced along as if he had won the lottery as he made his way to the Facility.

Making his way inside the building, Barry stood in awe at the sheer size of the building, which dwarfed the average large city mall. The Multiplex itself was divided into 4 distinct areas, each devoted to a specific sort of quirk.

In order to save time, Barry decided to cut through the strength section of the gym. It was an abnormally large room filled to the brim with various Weights and strength Machines. The walls of the room depicted murals of various pro heroes with strength-based quirks. Among those murals included pro heroes such as death arms and fourth kind. However, the largest mural was painted upon the ceiling, All-Might and his Signature catchphrase were immortalized high above the hustle and bustle of the gym.

Some of the weights looked like they could be lifted by a normal quirkless person while others looked abnormally large like they were meant for giants. He was nearing the exit when he noticed a crowd was forming around a particular machine. Curious, Barry joined the crowd and saw a sight he wouldn't forget.

It was the pro hero Fat Gum. He had seen the takoyaki ads, but they certainly didn't do him justice. Barry had always found Fat Gum's portrayal to be cartoonish but looking upon the real thing put those thoughts away, he really was as morbidly obese as the ads had shown.

Without context, it would seem like Fat Gum was an extremely unhealthy individual. However, those who know his quirk would know that his body shape is an intentional decision. Fat Gum's quirk allows him to absorb objects or force into his body fat, meaning he can tank bullets or even missiles and keep on trucking. He can even absorb people who choose to attack physically in order to restrain them.

While Barry was indeed in awe of the hero standing in front of him, he was further elated when he saw who was training under him.

Eijiro Kirishima was currently benching 5000 pounds with a supreme effort, and the crowd was cheering him on. Fat Gum's presence likely had something to do with that, but it didn't look like Kirishima cared. He was having fun even if he was red in the face and having trouble focusing on the weights. Barry considered saying hi but decided to not distract Kirishima and tore himself from the crowd.

Moving on, Barry reached his destination,

The Mobility Center

Barry feasted his eyes on 3 distinct sub-areas within the Gym. The first was a massive pool with a depth of roughly 50 meters. It was filled with both casual swimmers on the surface and more committed swimmers diving down into the depths. The second area harbored a large empty pit. This area was reserved for people with quirks built for flight and levitation. The third and final area was the biggest, and it was also Barry's destination.

The track and field area was a massive stretch of solid land that took up as much space as the other 2 areas combined. It featured a massive track that was surprisingly empty and a large field in the middle with dozens of occupants. These occupants were playing various sports such as volleyball and tennis. There was even a basketball game going on.

Walking onto the track, Barry readied himself. He placed both his hands down beside himself while stretching his right leg and bending the other. Looking forward, Barry prepared to fly ahead.

"Here, we, GO!" said Barry.

Barry practically leaped into action before promptly tripping and skidding face-first on the concrete.

Barry picked his head up from the floor and looked at his shoes in confusion. They had gotten untied during his walk to the track.

Figures.

Frustrated and a little dejected. Barry rolled onto his butt and began to tie his shoes back up. Just as he was finished, he felt a shadow loom over him.

"Need a hand," said a particularly warm voice.

Barry turned to see a young man in tight gym clothes. He had dark, slightly unkempt hair and a fairly handsome face, but his most prominent feature was the pair of exhaust pipes sticking out the back of his legs.

The man beamed as he held out a hand to help Barry up.

Accepting the help, Barry took the man's hand and was back up on his feet.

"That was a nasty fall there." said the man.

"Yeah, I didn't check my shoelaces," said Barry.

"Heh, rookie mistake." said the man.

Barry dusted himself off before returning his attention to the track.

"Mind if I join you?" asked the man.

"Hmm, oh sure," said Barry.

As they began to jog along, Barry had a sudden realization.

"Hey, I didn't quite catch your name," said Barry.

The man smiled before putting his hand out.

"Iida, Tensei Iida." said the man.

Barry took his hand and shook it, "Barry Allen."

As they continued to jog, Barry closed his eyes as his thoughts drifted to his quirk. He had crossed 30 blocks in seconds. How could he replicate that feeling?

Barry began to quicken his pace.

Think about how you got from the hospital to your apartment

"Uh, Barry, if you wanted to quicken the pace, you could have just asked." Said Tensei.

Think about how fast you had to go to get to the taxi

"Barry, you're going a little fast now, I might need to use my quirk," said Tensei.

No, just think about how fast you want to go.

"BARRY SLOW DOWN" shouted Tensei

Barry opened his eyes to find that his body was moving fast, really fast, so fast that he could feel himself circling the entire track every 10 seconds or so.

Looking to his right he found his running partner racing to stay beside him, looking down he saw that the exhaust pipes were spewing smoke.

"ohmygoshiidai'mgoingsofastthisisgreat." said Barry, his mouth moving as fast as he was.

Iida looked worried.

"Baaaarrrrrrryyyyy" said Tensei, his speech slow.

"whyareyoutalkinginslowmotion?" said Barry.

It was then that Barry realized something. He wasn't just running faster, He was THINKING faster.

"ssssssllllllllooooooowwwwwwww dddddddddooooooooowwwwwwwwnnnnnnnn" said Tensei.

The words were so slow that he had trouble putting them together, but when he got it he realized that he was going so fast that hitting someone might make a human pizza. Barry looked down before realizing something.

He didn't know how to slow down.

"Ican'tslowdownImightdie!" said Barry.

Iida's face slowly morphed from worry to a form of sureness before he sped away from Barry.

"WaitIidacomebackdon'tleavemealoneImighthitsomeone." said Barry.

Barry could only hope that he would stop at some point, preferably not leaving a red stain the length of a football field on the concrete.

Kirishima had finally finished benching his 100th rep before throwing the weights off his body and onto the floor, shooting his fists into the air, and screaming in victory with the rest of the crowd going wild.

The crowd immediately swamps FatGum, allowing Kirishima a moment of reprieve.

"You could have gone further."

Kirishima looked up to see a familiar pink, horned individual with a teasing smirk on her face. Mina Ashido had come to the gym train for the entrance exams much like Kirishima but had stopped by to tease an old friend.

"Hey, horn buddy number 1!" said Mina.

"Did we both ever actually agree to be horn buddies," asked Kirishima.

"You got no choice, I dubbed us horn buddies, so we're horn buddies," said Mina.

Kirishima cracked a smile.

"So, what's up, anything new," asked Mina.

"Yeah, the hair dye is really working," said Kirishima.

"That's not news! Give me the Juicy stuff," said Mina.

"Well, my best friend just came out of a coma," said Kirishima.

Mina froze, the memory of Barry being struck by lightning rushing back to her. She managed to push that particular memory out of her head for a while, but Kirishima's mention of him had brought it back.

"Sorry, I forgot you saw it happen, it must have been awful," said Kirishima.

"He looked awful, Like a charred piece of meat," said Mina.

"you don't have to make me visualize it," said Kirishima.

Mina started smiling again.

"Is he well?" asked Mina.

"Actually, he looks better than he was before he got stuck," said Kirishima.

"WHAT, No way," said Mina.

"Yes way, the guy even gained some muscle mass," said Kirishima.

Mina chuckled before retreating to her thoughts.

I walked in on a fairly emotional moment, should I apologize?

As Mina pondered her inner questions, A young man practically exploded into the gym and raced up to Fat Gum.

"Ingenium," said a thoroughly surprised Fat gum.

The man, completely out of breath, had to wheeze with his hands on his knees for a while before raising his head to speak.

"Toyomitsu, I need your help, It's urgent!" said Tensei.

"What's wrong?" asked Fat Gum.

"there's a kid going around the track fast, and he can't slow down," said Tensei.

"Why not activate the safety barriers," said Fat Gum.

"Toyo, the kids almost Mach 1 according to the stats. If I use the brakes now, he's gonna be part of the concrete," said Tensei.

Fat Gum chuckled, "So you need me to be a softer brake, I see how it is."

Both Pro heroes quickly left with the crowd following suit.

"Wanna see what's going on?" asked Mina.

"Yeah, this should be good," said Kirishima.

When Mina and Kirishima entered the Mobility Gym. They expected some guy tearing up the track.

Instead, they got a red blur leaving a trail of electricity zooming around the track with enough speed to pick up a draft. Fat Gum was slowly approaching the track while Tensei kept the crowd from getting too close.

"What's happening?" asked a member of the crowd.

"I don't know. A speed quirk out of control?" said another member of the crowd.

The Murmurs of the crowd grew louder

"People, There's nothing to be afraid of. Fat Gum has the situation under control." said Tensei.

"JEEZ LOUIS THIS GUY IS FLYING" shouted Fat Gum.

Fat Gum was so close to the boy he had to fight the wind the boy was kicking up.

Looking in he decided to test if the boy could hear him.

"HEY KID, YOU IN THERE" shouted Fat Gum.

"HELP" Cryed Barry as he raced by.

"WHAT?" shouted Fat Gum.

"CAN'T" "SLOW" "DOWN"

The words came separately, but loud and clear.

"ALRIGHT KID, BRACE YOURSELF.," said Fat Gum.

"FOR" "WHAT"

Now or never.

Fat Gum dove onto the boy's path.

Barry saw Fat Gum seconds before he was airborne, the impact completely robbing Fat Gum of his Large Body shape and sending Barry spiraling into the air.

Barry closed his eyes and hoped he wouldn't pancake onto the pavement.

SPLASH

Barry opened his eyes to find himself submerged in cold water.

Barry felt an awful pain shooting through his body and started to lose the feeling in his limbs

All he could do is scream as he sunk deeper and deeper into the pool.

"You think he's ok Mina?" asked Kirishima.

"I think he's fine, He could make it out," said Mina.

As if on cue, a large collection of air bubbles float to the surface and breach the water.

"Hey Mina, I think he might be in trouble," said Kirishima.

Kirishima turned to face Mina, But she wasn't there

"Mina?" said Kirishima.

I'm not too late right?

Mina continued to dive through the water, her eyes darting around for any sign of the boy,

I've gotta work fast, once he gets too deep, he'll be almost impossible to spot.

Scanning the water, Mina spotted a hint of crimson to her left.

Swimming closer she could make out a limp body in the water.

Wrapping her arms around the boy. She began to swim upwards. Observing the boy, she noticed his swath of blonde hair.

He seems familiar

Breaching the surface, she swims the side of the pool and hands the body to Kirishima.

"BARRY?" said Kirishima.

Mina, shocked, looked up to see that the unconscious boy was indeed Barry Allen. After laying him down on the poolside, Tensei rushed over to the Barry, tore of his shirt, and began performing CPR.

"Cmon kid, don't give up," said Tensei.

Giving mouth to mouth between pushes, Tensei continued for a solid minute.

Barry was making out with an angel. He didn't really know the context of the situation, but it felt really good. As his lips parted with the angel he whispered "Wait, just a little more."

"Sure," said Barry.

Meeting her lips once again, Barry savored every moment. Barry separated from the angel again.

"One more time," said Barry.

"Your Handsome friend is awake."

"Huh," said Barry.

Barry rubbed his eyes before realizing he was face to face with Tensei Iida.

"You're not a bad kisser Barry," said Tensei.

Barry's face grew red as a tomato before he stumbled away from the crowd and to his feet.

"WHAT THE HELL, WHAT HAPPENED.," said Barry.

"He saved your life, Barry," said Mina.

Barry turned around to see a beyond excited Kirishima and a Chuckling Mina.

"YO YOU DIDN'T TELL ME YOU HAD A QUIRK, WHY'D YOU HIDE IT ALL THIS TIME." shouted Kirishima.

Kirishima put Barry in a headlock and ground his knuckles atop Barry's head.

"I'm, Ow, A late, OW, Bloomer," said Barry.

Releasing Barry from his prison, Kirishima stepped back with a smile as wide as his face.

"You're gonna spill the beans over lunch this weekend," said Kirishima.

"Man, I have other stuff to do," said Barry.

Kirishima looked skeptical.

"Really?" asked Kirishima.

"Yeah," said Barry.

"REALLY!?" asked Kirishima, more skeptical.

Barry sighed and sagged his shoulders in defeat.

"Okay, Fine, I'll go," said Barry.

"Alright man, sounds good! See you later," asked Kirishima.

Barry began to walk toward the lockers to collect his bag and a pair of spare clothes when he felt a hand on his shoulder.

He turned to find Mina staring at him with what seems like genuine concern.

"Hey, Can I help you," said Barry.

"Um, I just wanted to say that I'm sorry about what happened to you," said Mina.

Barry just smiled.

"What's there to apologize for? Unless you were the one who threw the lightning," said Barry.

Mina looked down before cracking a smile.

"I'm gonna tell you 3 things before I go, Barry," said Mina.

"Okay?" said Barry.

"One: I thought kisses weren't allowed on the first date," said Mina.

Barry turned bright red.

"Haha, very funny," said Barry.

"Two, I'm gonna invade your lunch with Kirishima," said Mina.

"Why?" said Barry.

"Cause it looks like you could use a second friend," said Mina.

Barry stared back in genuine shock. It was a backhanded gesture of the highest order.

"Ouch," said Barry.

Mina just smiled.

"Well," said Mina.

"Eh Fine, I could use a second friend I guess," said Barry.

"Nice, and third, Do you have a spare pair of shoes?" said Mina.

"Why?" said Barry.

"Take a look," said Mina.

Barry looked down at his own sneakers to see that his wild sprint had completely burned the rubber off the soles of his shoes. It looked more like the burnt reddish remnant of a shoe than a complete piece of footwear.

"Oh Damnit, My dad got these for my 13th birthday," said Barry.

Mina suddenly had a guilty look. She had overheard Barry's conversation with his father before the lightning strike and wasn't really happy holding that info.

"Hey, Barry," said Mina.

"Yeah?" said Barry.

"I think I overheard something I shouldn't before you got struck by lightning."

Barry froze, a dark look on his face.

"What did you hear?" said Barry.

"I overheard you talking about your mom," said Mina.

Barry's face contorted into a frown.

"So that's what this is about," said Barry.

"Huh?" said Mina.

"You felt bad about me, so you're trying to be my friend out of pity," said Barry.

"Hey don't say that," said Mina.

"I gotta go find a new pair of sneakers," said Barry.

And with that, Barry quickly disengaged from the conversation and sped into the locker room.

"Barry, wait!" said Mina.

Mina's words fell upon deaf ears.

Dejected, Mina left to find a train home.

Barry slammed his locker shut in frustration.

I was so mean to her. Why did I do that?

Barry looked at the burnt soggy remnants of his footwear before dropping them in the trash.

"Farewell, lightning bolts," said Barry.

As Barry prepared to walk home barefoot he was stopped by a taller figure after exiting the Gym.

It was Tensei.

"Hey Barry, I wanted to talk to you," said Tensei.

"Hey man Sorry I don't swing that way." said Barry, "Plus the age gap and all that."

"What? Oh no no no! I wanted to talk about your quirk." said Tensei.

Barry's head perked up towards the pro hero.

"Its really dangerous, but its also incredibly powerful, What kind of school course do you plan to take?"

"The Hero course, sir," said Barry.

"Where?" said Tensei.

"At U.A.," said Barry.

Tensei smiled.

"Well then, Do you want some help controlling your quirk?" said Tensei.

Barry stared at Him with his jaw to the floor.

"You, You would help me after everything I just did?" said Barry.

"Why shouldn't I, You have insane potential, and you're gonna need all the help you can get if you wanna get into U.A.," said Tensei.

Barry couldn't help but smile at the praise the pro hero gave him.

"When do we start?" said Barry.

"Right now," said Tensei.

Tensei promptly tossed Barry a pair of yellow boots with fire graphics drawn on.

"These are from an earlier build of my super suit, They can take the friction caused by super speed," said Tensei.

Beaming, Barry quickly shoved them onto his feet.

"So what's lesson one?" said Barry.

"Learning how to stop," said Tensei.

There was a moment of silence before both racers cracked up in laughter.

"Oh, that's a good one," said Barry.

"No seriously, that's lesson one," said Tensei.

"Oh, Ok, So how do you stop," said Barry.

"You slide into it," said Tensei.

"Slide into it?" said Barry.

"Slide into it," said Tensei.

Barry checked himself mentally before he got the message in his head.

"OK, I'm Ready," said Barry.

Both Racers took their marks at the front of the gate.

"Hey, shouldn't we do this inside," said Barry.

"It's better to get outside experience."

"Isn't that Illegal?" said Barry.

Tensei looked back and smiled, "I can bend the rules a little."

"Oh OK," said Barry.

"We Go Just around the block, then slide into it," said Tensei.

"Slide into it," said Barry.

"Slide into it," said Tensei.

Barry Looked ahead as Tensei started the countdown.

"On your Mark"

"Get Set"

"GO"

Third Chapter Down and Baby learned to use Italics to show thoughts. HOORAY

I got some reviews too so now I can put these down here.

Guest DCDGojira:

A: Thanks for your support. Hearing somebody think I'm a decent writer is actually pretty fulfilling, so thanks again for your kind words.

B: If people want this story to have Pairing, It will Probably be Barry x Mina. Though I'm not sure if I will actually do it since I have no experience writing romance.

Dracus6: Izuku is coming next chapter, These 3 initial chapters serve as a kind of pre-Main story setting Where I establish Barry and give him his origin. After this, I'm gonna follow the main story with a few Flash style twists!

That's it for now. Hope you guys Have a Fantastic Day.