"Again." Izuku grunted and swung his blade. The other boy sidestepped it easily. "Again. Try harder." The green-haired boy growled and swiped the wooden blade with all his might towards his opponent's legs. His opponent put one foot on the blade's tip, pinning it to the ground. He swung his stick and bopped Izuku on the head.

"You're putting too much throw into your attacks. Too much energy in one blow leaves you open to your opponent."

He tapped Izuku again. "Dead. You would've been fish food if this were a real fight." Izuku sighed and fell backwards to lie on the ground. "Jeez, I've been fighting for hours! When's lunch time, Todoroki?"

A thud was heard and Izuku looked down at his feet. A wrapped object, most likely a sandwich. His eyes sparkled with delight. Todoroki stabbed his blade fiercely into the ground and pulled a matching sandwich out of his belt pouch. "Eat. You have guard duty after this, anyway."

The sigh of happiness Izuku had after he bit into the sandwich became a muffled groan. Guard duty? He'd much rather swim with the tiger sharks down by the Great Sea. "Ugh… yeah. Thanks for the extra training lesson. I think I got a little better." The dual-haired boy looked down at his protégé. "You have a lot more to work on. Your speed, your strategy. It's like watching a pup."

Izuku frowned. "That's easy for you to say! You're the best swordsman in the whole garrison!" Todoroki sighed and blew his bangs away from his nose. "It took work to get to that position. You seem to be more occupied with wolves and your little friends." Izuku frowned again. "Geralt's a good hunting companion." Todoroki jumped at the sudden cry from behind the trees.

A humongous white wolf bounded out of the bushes, bright green mulberry leaves scattering over the grass. Izuku laughed and raised his arms, opening them wide. The wolf jumped into them, and they rolled in a big fluffy heap. Todoroki managed to snatch up Izuku's sandwich before the wolf stepped on it.

"Geralt! Hey, boy! How're you doing?" Izuku laughed as he rubbed Geralt between the ears. Todoroki sniffed as the wolf's shedding sent clouds of fur up into his nostrils. "Oh no. Allergies." Izuku grinned mischievously and lifted Geralt. He held him on his shoulders and yelled. "Better run! This wolf is about to getcha!" Todoroki began to run towards the village as fast as he could, until all that was left was a few clouds of dust that were kicked into the air.

Izuku laughed, catching the sandwich that was dropped from Todoroki's sudden burst. At least Todoroki would finally be off his case. He sighed in relief and continued to eat. Guard duty? That could wait. He had a whole life ahead of him. He was a mere sixteen years old!

He was but a horse-tender until Todoroki offered him a place in the Garrison. He'd been eager to join, but when he learned he'd have to give up being a kid…he hesitated. As he tossed salami to Geralt, he sighed in frustration. He'd have to ditch his old life, friends and fun…and become a cold-blooded warrior.

Izuku shook his head. No use thinking negatively. "C'mon, Geralt. We'll go for a swim in the lake." He jumped up off the grass, sandwich finished. He walked between the oak trees, dappled sunlight painting Geralt's fur as the wolf trotted ahead of him. Izuku shut his eyes as he walked. Perhaps he should just ask Todoroki about life as a guard. Was it rewarding? Or just plain routine, nothing new? He was snapped out of his thoughts when he slammed directly into his wolf.

"Ack-what the?!" He sputtered, patting Geralt on the head. "What is it, boy? Did I-?" Izuku stopped completely. He stared. No wonder his wolf stopped so abruptly. The pair had stopped just above the blackberry bushes, overlooking the Dragon's Lake. The lake shimmered just as he remembered it. But it wasn't the lake that stopped the pair.

A beautiful girl was lounging upon the lake's edge, dipping her legs into the water. A reddish cloak lay on the grass beside her, and a satchel beside that. Izuku had to tear his eyes away from the bare skin on her legs to slowly travel upwards. Slender limbs and torso, soft brown hair cut in a bob, and a softly rounded face. Her eyes were a chocolate brown, mixed with sunlight. Her cheeks were rosy and her smile was gentle as she stared at the fish swimming under the lake's surface. Izuku cursed the fact that she was at a side angle and that he couldn't see her entire face.

Izuku was transfixed. This girl was unearthly. She was an angel. He hadn't seen her around the village. Was she one of the mages that luved up at the Academy? He had no idea. All he knew was that the girl was standing up, revealing more of her long, bare legs – and within seconds he yelped. He tottered forwards and tripped over Geralt, who yipped in annoyance.

He rolled stupidly into the blackberry bushes towards the lake, sharp leaves scratching his tunic, and face planted perfectly right at the edge of the water. He groaned at the painful landing.

"Oh my gosh, are you OK, swordsman?!" A pretty voice yelped. He slowly turned upwards to see her. She grinned at his dumbfounded expression. She was so….close. He could finally identify all of her features.

Her face was beautiful. She had soft skin that shone with the reflection of the water. Her eyes were like dark chocolate, with honey mixed in. Her cheeks were softly brushed with a rosy color, and her teeth were seashells. He was immobilized until she giggled. The sound was captivating.

"Hello? Hello? Earth to you." She bent over and tapped his head. He immediately snapped out of it, probably due to her proximity, and swung upwards, clocking the girl in the forehead with his own.

"Ow!"

"Ouch!"

She fell back, rubbing her forehead. Izuku recovered from the initial shock and stood up, reaching his hands towards her worriedly. "A-are you OK? I'm so sorry!" He briefly noticed how close he was to touching her shoulders and retracted his hands. The girl stopped rubbing her forehead and grinned. "I'm fine. You're not, though." Izuku was confused until she pointed at his arm. A large gash had opened on his bicep, probably from his fall through the blackberry bushes.

He shrugged. "It's fine. I get hurt all the time." The girl frowned. "Let me look at it." Izuku's face became so red that he could have rivaled Kirishima's fire magic.

"Uh…OK." He sat down at the base of a elm tree, holding out his injured arm. The girl rummaged in her pouch, pulling out bottles of salve and bandages. She went to the lake's edge, dousing her hands with water and rubbing them with soap from her pocket.

She returned moments later, pulling the cork from the bottle on the ground, and poured a good amount of green salve onto her hand. She then carefully rubbed it into the wound. Izuku winced from the sting of the strong medicine, and the girl cringed.

"Sorry. I'm still learning how to apply it." Izuku shook his head and grinned. "You're doing fine. It's just the salve. Thanks." She looked at him gratefully. "My pleasure." She gently wrapped bandages about the gash, neatly biting off the end and tying it off.

Izuku looked at his wound, neatly wrapped and cleaned. "Wow. You're good at this." As he stared at the girl's handiwork, he noticed he looking at his companion. She looked awed. "Whoa. A white wolf? Those are rare." She gently extended a palm, and Izuku was momentarily worried that Geralt would be frightened and snap. But to his relief, Geralt barked and jumped onto the girl, licking her face and wagging his long fluffy tail.

The girl laughed and rolled with the wolf, wrestling with him. When she sat back up, she was dusted with dirt and grass and white fur, but she didn't seem to care. Instead, she giggled and hugged Geralt again, who happily pushed his nose into her shoulder.

"He really like you. He's often not good with strangers." Izuku stated. The girl grinned cheekily. "Maybe I'm just his type." Maybe you're just mine… Izuku thought. He then slapped his forehead. No time for silly thoughts.

The girl sat up, sighing in relief. "Does your arm feel better?" Izuku moved his arm experimentally. "Feels great. What'd you use for the medicine?" Izuku took a deep breath. The bandages smelled like herbs, ones that he couldn't identify. The girl grinned at him.

"Cherrywood and Dock. The mages pulp it and we apprentice sorcerers use it for magical purposes. Otherwise, it doubles as a perfect ointment." Izuku had just reached for his canteen and was in the middle of taking a swig. He then proceeded to spit water absolutely everywhere. The girl raised her cloak to avoid the spray.

"Wait; you're a sorceress?!" The girl grins. "Apprentice sorceress." She corrects him. "And I'm not that good. This is just the basics. I haven't mastered a full healing charm yet." Izuku jumped up, suddenly filled with vigor. Geralt looked up curiously from a overhanging ledge.

"Can you show me some?" Izuku said excitedly. The girl grimaced. "I dunno…it's not much." Izuku jumped to the ground in front of her, clapping gloved hands together. "Please? Please?" The girl smiled. "Sure, you great oaf. Sit down."

Izuku obeyed and situated himself at the foot of the elm tree again. The girl took a deep breath and walked quite a distance away. She then spread her arms in bird-like fashion, and called, "Summono!" Izuku heard wind whipping through the air. In mere seconds a large staff flew through the tree branches, gold shining like a diamond in the midday sun.

The girl grabbed the staff and held it aloft. "Aguaforma!" Izuku's eyes became saucers. The water in the lake was now floating. At least half of it. The water began to shape, becoming a long, lithe line, circling the girl in complicated patterns. Her smooth hands carefully molded the liquid, speaking of months of practice. She waved her hands violently for a moment, and the end of the water slug began to take form. Two eyes formed, two long fangs. A wide serpentine hood donned the head. The water had become a humongous serpent.

The serpent gave a gurgling hiss, and dove back into the lake with a resounding splash. The water was expelled with such force that Izuku was now looking at a small tsunami. He could only hold his tunic collar about his ears as the clearing flooded with lake water. As the water finally trailed back into the near-empty lake, Izuku was soaked. He didn't even look at his dripping tunic and sheath, and merely stared open-mouthed at the girl.

The brown haired girl looked so pitiful. She too was soaked to the bone, little vest and belt dripping. She shook wet hair about frantically. "I'm so, so sorry! I told you, I'm not good at this!" She turned away in a flash. "Forgive me, swordsman. I'm not the best magician, see." She was shocked to hear a whoop. "Whoo-hoo! That's the best magic I've seen!" She turned to see the boy clapping his hands wildly, the sound muffled by the soaked gloves. "I mean, the way the snake coiled and hissed…what a amazing skill! I wish I could do that with my sword." Her expression of shock become one of gratitude and happiness.

"Thanks. That means a whole lot, swordsman."

The boy gave her a wide smile. "Don't call me swordsman, please. Izuku Midoriya's the name! Nice to meet you, miss….?"

The girl took a deep breath and extended her fist. "My name is…Ochako. Ochako Uraraka."

Izuku grinned. This girl was something. "Nice to meet you…Ochako Uraraka."

Their fists met with a decisive bump. "C'mon, Ochako! Let's go do something fun." Ochako grabbed her satchel and cloak, Geralt hopping down from the rocks to sit dutifully beside their new friend. "Where?" Izuku struck a pose.

"Adventure."