Encounter

I'm back again everyone! I hope you liked my thing I'm doing with switching up some arcs. Anyways, here's another chapter. By the way, watch out for the next thing I post! It's going to be a Kimi No Na Wa AU for Izuocha. for now, I hope you enjoy!

Toshinori was not used to having free time. Between working as a hero for three hours a day to working as a teacher for the rest, he did not get much downtime. At worst he'd be up all night making plans for the next day's classes, and at best he'd go to bed as soon as he got home.

That's exactly why he was surprised when he got home at five o'clock in the afternoon with nothing left to fill the day up with. So, for the first time in probably over a year, Toshinori turned on the tea kettle and sat down in front of his TV to catch up on some shows.

It was relaxing getting time like this, but Toshinori knew it wouldn't last. Tomorrow would be right back into the normal, busy schedule.

Oh, Everyone would probably appreciate being out...All Might realized, unhooking three pokeballs from his belt. He popped them open and out came his team. His three best friends that he knew he could trust, no matter what.

Lucario, his first partner. Toshinori still remembered those days, all those years ago, that he spent raising him from an egg. His family had been extraordinarily poor, and did not have the money to support a pokemon as part of the family. Still, when Toshinori found the egg, abandoned in an alleyway, he couldn't just leave it. Lucario was his best friend.

Then there was Milotic. When Toshinori found her in that riverbed, injured severely, she had been but a feeble feebas. It didn't matter what kind of pokemon she was, only that she was a pokemon in need.

Finally, there was Braviary, the last one to join his team. Toshinori found Braviary as a captive in a hostage situation a few years back, after he was already a hero. It was an underground pokemon trafficking scheme that dealt in the trading of rare pokemon. Braviary was special, in that he had an extremely rare color scheme compared to other Braviary, and thus was dubbed as a 'shiny pokemon'. After the rescue, the pokemon found itself attached to Toshinori, and eventually he joined his team.

The four of them lounged around for a little while,enjoying the free time in Toshinori's cramped apartment. That is, they were enjoying it until the phone rang.

Toshinori reached into his pocket and retrieved the vibrating phone. On the screen it showed the contact information of 'Izuku Midoriya'. Toshinori frowned.

It was not unusual for his successor to contact Toshinori. The boy practically worshipped the ground he walked on, so texts complimenting him on his most recent villain capture were not out of the ordinary. Phone calls, on the other hand, were unheard of.

Toshinori accepted the call and put the receiver to his ear.

"Hello?" he greeted.

"All Might-" Midoriya stammered out. He wasn't stuttering and the tone of his voice was extremely serious. In the background, Toshinori swore he heard the boy panting.

"Is something wrong?" He prompted.

"All Might-" Midoriya repeated, "I think I just…" he trailed off.

Just…? Is he injured?

Midoriya continued, "Can you meet me at the school?"

"Midoriya, my boy, what's the matter?" Toshinori urged. He heard a deep breath from the other side.

"I think I just had an encounter with a very dangerous villain."

Toshinori didn't give time to mull it over. Within seconds Braviary and Milotic were back in their pokeballs and Toshinori was in his muscle form, running to meet his successor at the school, calling the police along the way.

The panic didn't set in until Izuku was on his way back to Yuuei.

Holy...that was a real villain… Izuku thought as he ran down the streets, Riolu by his side and the pink pokemon following him closely behind. He went up against a real, most likely dangerous villain without a second thought for his own safety. The moment he saw Eri in need, all sense of self-preservation went out the window.

Was that really the right thing to do? Izuku started doubting himself. He knew for a fact that Eri was in need and needed help. Yet, he couldn't help but think: If he got himself killed would it have really mattered? What could he do against a villain, considering his significant lack of training ? Still, he had decided to be hard headed and throw himself at the problem without thinking.

Looking back on it now, it would have been smart to just let Eri go and report it to the pro's to deal with, but hindsight is always twenty twenty.

Something still bugged Izuku about that assumption as he ran down the streets of Musutafu. It was something about the way Eri had clung onto him, as if she were desperate. No child should have to go through what she must have gone through, and it shook Izuku to his core.

If the way she clung onto him wasn't a telltale sign of something wrong, then the bandages that covered her arms and legs head to toe were. The meager pillowcase of a gown she was wearing, as well.

Izuku tried in vain to push the thoughts down under the surface as he made it to the school, panting from the run over. He could see All Might in his muscle form already standing just outside the gates.

It wasn't long before Midoriya showed up. All Might had only been waiting out front of the school for a few minutes before his young successor came running from down one of the streets. Luckily it was already getting late, so All Might didn't have to worry about some paparazzi showing up to interrupt them.

As Izuku ran towards Toshinori, he swore he saw something gleaning in the dark. It was like a green glow radiated around Midoriya and Riolu. Then again, it could've been his old eyes playing tricks on him.

Izuku stopped a few feet away from Toshinori, leaning over and catching his breath. Riolu didn't seem too winded, but they pokemon was still breathing rather hard.

"What's the matter, Young Midoriya?" Toshinori asked, but realized his mistake a moment later. Midoriya had told him what was the matter over the phone a few minutes ago.

"I-I-I-" Midoriya stuttered, still breathing deeply to catch his breath, "I think we should talk about this inside." He finally spat out.

Is it that serious? Toshinori pondered. Initially he had thought that the boy was overreacting to something. He tended to unnecessarily fret over the smallest of things and blow them out of proportion. Maybe he had a run in with a purse thief or something. Now, however, he wasn't too sure.

"We can go inside if you'd like. I think there are a few other staff still at the school at this kind of hour." Toshinori said. Midoriya just nodded and made his way to the building.

"I think I ran into a child trafficker." Izuku said to the room. Sitting around the table were All Might, Aizawa (who Izuku had no idea why he was still at the school at such an hour), and the principal of the school, who was actually a pokemon. A talking, supposedly genetically engineered Raichu, to be more specific.

He looked different than other Raichu Izuku had seen as well. The yellow and orange fur was lighter in color and he stood atop his tail, using it like a surfboard. It was rather odd to see a weird raichu surfing on its tail in a business suit, but that didn't matter right now.

"Or maybe just a villain who was abusive towards his daughter or…" Izuku trailed his hands through his hair, trying to come up with an explanation.

"How about we start from the beginning?" Nezu said, "What happened?"

"It all started when I was out looking for pokemon for Aizawa's assignment." Izuku started with a deep breath, "I was out looking for pokemon and I…" He trailed off.

How do I explain how I found them without mentioning the pink pokemon? Izuku's eyes darted to the pokemon, who was bobbing up and down above All Might's head.

"I thought I saw a rattata go down an alleyway, so I went after it," Izuku came up with, hoping he didn't pause for too long, "And I chased it down a couple alleyways until I lost track of it. From there, I had no Idea where I was so I kinda started to make my way back to my house, but I think I took a few wrong turns along the way and I ended up in an area with a ton of warehouses. I wandered around for a little while until I heard something moving in the space between two warehouses and…"

Izuku collected himself before continuing. He was still shaking a little bit from the shock of the whole situation.

"And then there was this girl...maybe five or six. She ran out of the alleyway and the first thing she did was grab onto my leg and hold on. She held on so tight it was-" He cut himself off, clenching his fists. Luckily, the rest of the teachers stayed quiet, giving him time to collect his thoughts.

"And then the man came after. He looked like he was in his mid twenties, but he was dressed so oddly. He had a dress shirt and tie on, but also jeans and a sweatshirt. The most notable, though, was that he had this odd looking bird beak on. It was red leather with gold highlights, and it was strapped to his face. It made him look like a plague doctor without the goggles. Really, though I didn't get a good look at him. I was a little focused on other things…"

"Is there anything else you can tell us?" Aizawa asked, but Izuku didn't seem to be hearing him.

"And the girl, he called her Eri...she was so scared. I could feel her shaking and when she put her arms around me...oh god…she squeezed onto me and her nails dug into my skin. She was so scared...I've never seen someone so scared! And her arms and legs...They were covered in bandages. Top to bottom, every inch over her skin was wrapped in bandages." Izuku started rambling off, his breathing speeding up. He was starting to have a panic attack.

"And when she clung on she was so weak...so so weak…" He continued on, "And I tried to help. I wanted to get her out of there but…"

"Midoriya-" Aizawa tried to interrupt him, but to no avail.

"And she was so terrified...but she still went back. Why did she go back? He showed his pokeballs on his hip and she went back. She was so scared and she went. Back." Izuku was barely keeping it together now.

"She was so brave and-"

"Midoriya."

"Why couldn't I have just run away? Why did I leave her?"

"Mid-"

"Why? Why did I have to mess up? Who the hell knows what they could be doing to her?" Izuku was panting. Suddenly, he felt a presence on his shoulder, like an anchor bringing him back to the present. It was All Might's hand.

"I think that's enough for now. You can try again if you're feeling better later. For now, take go home and get some rest." All Might instructed. Izuku nodded, standing up. Though, he wasn't sure how much rest he was going to be able to get,

"If you need to take the day off tomorrow, I don't care. Do it if you need." Aizawa said as Izuku made for the door. He was still shivering slightly from his sudden panic attack, but he was able to force a smile. That was the closest thing to a blessing he would ever get from the underground hero.

Izuku didn't sleep overnight, but he still wanted to go to school. He knew he needed to go to school. He met with Uraraka as normal in the morning and tried to play everything off like it was normal. Yet, on the inside, he was still reeling from the previous day's encounter.

"Have you figured out what you're doing for the assignment yet?" Uraraka asked as they walked from the train station to the school.

"Oh umm…" Izuku pulled himself from his thoughts. Whenever he had a spare moment of thought, his mind drifted to how Eri clung onto him for dear life. "I haven't yet."

"Well, It's due tomorrow...I hope you figure something out!" Uraraka said cheerfully. Always so cheerful, it was admirable. Izuku wished he could be that happy. So he put up a facade.

"I think I'll get it done. I hope so, at least!" Izuku put on a fake smile. Uraraka gave him a big smile in response, and it almost made Izuku feel better. Almost.

They got to school and sat down in their seats and waited for class to start. There was some chatter around the classroom from who had what pokemon for the assignment, but Izuku decided to tune them out.

Soon enough, Aiawa walked into the classroom. His eyes glazed over the classroom and Izuku swore they stopped for an extra moment an Izuku before moving on. He walked up to the podium and his eyes glazed over the class while they all went to their seats and stopped talking.

"Your assignment is due tomorrow at the start of class. Don't disappoint me." Aizawa muttered. The class started to talk again, but he held up his hand to signal that he wasn't finished.

"Additionally, we will be going on a field trip at the beginning of next week. It is just off campus, so be prepared for that. That is all." AIzawa said, sinking behind the podium. The class burst into conversation about the news.

"A field trip?"
"I wonder where we're going!"

"This is going to be so much fun!"

Izuku, on the other hand, fell into his hands, barely able to stay awake. He could feel the bags under his eyes as if they were weights attached to the skin under his eyes. He barely noticed Iida and Uraraka take up position right next to his desk.

"So what pokemon have you captured for this exercise, Uraraka?" Iida said a little to loud, causing Izuku to reach up to his ear at the sudden noise.

"I talked to Aizawa about it earlier this week. Since Todoroki and I both have two pokemon, he exempted us from the assignment. I'm going to keep the ultra balls, though. They might fetch a good price if I'm ever in a money pinch…" Uraraka responded. Izuku choked back a laugh.

"That got something out of him" Uraraka cheered. Izuku forced his head up to meet his friends' eyes. They were both looking at him with smiles on their faces.

Friends...I've been selfish, Izuku realized. He smiled. It wasn't completely genuine, but there he didn't have to fake it this time.

"Thank you guys. I've been dealing with something lately and It's been hard." Izuku admitted, "I didn't really get any sleep last night."

"Midoriya! An appropriate amount of sleep is essential to keeping the body happy and healthy!" Iida called out, waving his arms frantically. Uraraka snorted out a laugh.

"I think he meant that he couldn't fall asleep, Iida." Uraraka shook her head, patting Izuku's shoulder.

"Nevertheless! We must ensure that our friends are taking proper care of themselves so that the can become amazing heroes one day!"

Izuku laughed out loud just as the bell rang for everyone to go to the rest of their classes. Izuku picked up his bag and made to leave, walking in tandem with Uraraka and Iida. Just as he was about to pass the door, though, there was a rusling from the front of the classroom.

"Midoriya." Aizawa's voice came, stopping the boy in his tracks. Iida and Uraraka looked back.

"Go on, I'll catch up." He said. They went on ahead and Izuku turned to his teacher.

"I thought you should know that both the police and numerous hero agencies are currently investigating the individual you described. Should anything happen, you will be the first one to know. I can tell it's bothering you." Aizawa said.

He's...being nice? That's a first… Izuku thought, Maybe Aizawa cares more than he lets off.

"Okay, umm, thanks." Izuku made to leave, but Aizawa caught his wrist.

"One more thing." Aizawa put a piece of paper in Izuku's hand, "I'm dismissing you for the rest of the day. Go home and get some sleep."

Izuku looked down at the hall pass before shoving it into his pocket, "I think I'm-"

"There isn't an option. I'll walk you out of the front gates myself if I have to. Go. Home." Aizawa said, harsh tone back in his voice.

There's the Aizawa we know, Izuku thought.

"I'll, uhh, leave then." Izuku nodded and left the classroom, headed for the gates instead of his next class. If there was one thing he had learned from his time at Yuuei, it was that he should be careful to follow teacher orders.

Then again, if Aizawa was telling him to go home, he probably needed sleep really badly.

As soon as he got home, he crashed on his bed. Surprisingly, he was able to fall asleep relatively quickly before his mind could keep him awake.

Izuku awoke from his nap at about five in the afternoon, feeling refreshed. He hopped out of his bed to find Riolu still fast asleep on the floor right next to him. With a nudge of his foot, Izuku got the pokemon up, though he was quite reluctant about it.

"C'mon. We're gonna go try one more time before before the end of the assignment period." Izuku said. Riolu groaned, but he got up nevertheless. At least he wasn't lazy ALL the time.

They went on their normal patrolling route, but Izuku wasn't surprised when they didn't find anything. It was just like any other of their days trying. Izuku planted himself on that same bench in the park that he had met Mirio at just the previous day.

"Man so much has happened since then, it doesn't feel like that was yesterday." Izuku breathed out. Riolu nodded in agreement. Izuku tilted his head back, looking up at the sky.

"Guess we'll have to take the hit on this assignment, huh buddy?" Izuku nudged Riolu with his elbow. Riolu just stared down at the ground, defeated.

"At least this way you won't have to share the spotlight with anyone!" Izuku said, trying to cheer up his partner. It must have worked at least a little, since he elicited a chuckle from the pokemon.

They just sat there, on that bench for a few more moments, trying to not get lost in their thoughts. Who knows what Riolu was thinking about, but Izuku's mind was on everything from the previous day.

He was trying to not drown in his own guilt and emotions. Keyword on trying, since he wasn't very good at it. He knew it was irrational, that he had done the right thing, but every time he thought about what Eri might be going through, he ended up blaming himself. If he had been a little stronger of will, or if he had been a little faster to react, she wouldn't have to be going through what she was.

Izuku shook his head, trying to force his mind on something else. So, he decided to go with that Mirio he had met yesterday as well. He had been extraordinarily friendly, but he also had a sort of air to him. The air of someone who was intense but also easygoing. He kind of reminded Izuku of himself.

Izuku was nearly drowning in his thoughts. And when one is drowning, usually someone is there to help pull you out of the deep water.

Luckily, that was the case.

"Mew?"

Izuku's neck shot back to its original position so fast he may have given himself whiplash. Floating on the air right in front of him was the pink pokemon from earlier.

"Mew mew!" It said cheerfully, spinning around like it tended to do.

What does it want this time? Izuku thought. As if it could read his mind, the pokemon gestured to Izuku and started to float off in one direction. It also happened to be the direction Izuku had to go to get home.

Shrugging, Izuku and Riolu decided to follow.

Instead of staying out in front of Izuku and Riolu, this time the pokemon went directly in line with Izuku, as If it were walking with them, but floating instead.

Izuku couldn't stand the silence, so he did what made the most sense. Or least sense.

"What is your name?" He made small talk. With a pokemon. That couldn't talk.

People on the street probably can't see it either, so I'm just going to look like an idiot.

"Mew mew!" It responded cheerfully, closing its eyes and smiling.

"If you don't say anything different, then I'm just going to call you 'Mew'."

"Mew!"

"Mew it is then." Izuku said. At least he finally had something to refer to it by other than 'the pink pokemon'. "Say, Mew, why do you keep following me around?"
The pokemon didn't respond. It just looked Izuku in the eyes and smiled again.

Of course it wouldn't respond. It was a pokemon, after all, and they couldn't talk.

"Is it because you like me?" Izuku ventured to guess. Why else would it stick around?

"Mew mew!" It spun around again, showing its happiness.

Guess that's a yes then…

Izuku made small talk the entire way back to his house. Of course, all he was met with was a few 'Mew's or silence, but it was nice. He finally felt like he was getting to get an idea of what the pokemon was.

It was a pokemon. That may sound like a cop out answer, but it's really what it was. It was always playful, messing with him, and acting like, well, a pokemon. There was only one thing left on Izuku's mind, but he couldn't bring himself to ask it.

Why did you lead me to Eri? The question echoed in his mind, left unspoken.

Eventually they made it back to Izuku's house, and it was nearing the time when Izuku would have to be in bed. He stopped outside his door, expecting for Mew to leave.

It didn't. The second Izuku opened the door, it floated right on inside, inviting itself in.

"Hey! You can't-!" Izuku called out.

"Welcome back, Izuku!" His mom called out. Izuku could already smell the dinner she was cooking from down the stairs.

Katsudon, my favorite… He ran up the stairs. Sure enough, his nose hadn't lied to him. There it was, in three seperate bowls on the table.

"I made one for Riolu, as well." Riolu seemed excited by that as well, since he excitedly jumped into his seat and began slurping down the meal. Izuku followed suit, sitting down. He glanced over to see Mew going around the room, looking at various objects.

"What are you looking at, Izuku?" His mom asked.

"Oh-nothing…" Izuku turned his attention back to his meal. They ate in relative silence, as they always did. Izuku was washing off his and Riolu's dishes in the sink when Mew found its way to Izuku's room.

"DId you find a pokemon for tomorrow, Izuku?" His mom asked. Izuku looked back and forth between his mom and his room.

"No."

Mew apparently decided to crash in Izuku's room for the night. It also turns out that it doesn't float all the time, because it passed out on one of Izuku's pillows on the floor. Izuku had to be careful stepping over it as to not wake it up, not to mention that he did not want to have a panic attack right now.

He felt more at ease around Mew than he did other pokemon, but it was still a pokemon. If it got within his 'safe bubble', then he freaked out. And if it touched him...well, he didn't need to explain what happened.

Izuku woke up the next morning and went through his normal routine. Mew was still asleep on the pillow when he woke up, but by the time Izuku was out of the shower, it was back to exploring the apartment.

When Izuku left the house to go to school, he wasn't surprised that it followed.

Izuku had to avoid looking at Mew on the train, as he knew that Uraraka was with him and would think something weird about him staring off into space. They got to school as normal, and Mew still hadn't left.

"Let your pokemon for the assignment out of their ball and bring them to the front of the room. Make a line." Aizawa said. Izuku took a deep breath and stayed seated, ready to take his first failing grade at Yuuei. Looking down the line, Izuku was able to see what other people had caught.

Kirishima had a rockruff, Kaminari had an elekid, Yaoyorozu had a porygon2, and so on and so forth. Izuku, however, was surprised to see Uraraka join the line.

"Uraraka, I thought you were exempt since you already have two pokemon!" Izuku called out. Uraraka turned to him and smiled. In her arms was a small Eevee.

"She was just too cute!" Uraraka protested. Izuku stifled a laugh. Such a Uraraka thing to do. Catch a pokemon just because it was cute.

"Woah! Midoriya, you caught something!?" Kirishima called out, jumping from the line over a line of desks and crouching in front of Izuku.

"No I-" Izuku started.

"Aren't you a cutie? You better evolve into a Flareon! Those are the manliest!" Kirishima reached down and rubbed something.

Izuku leaned over the desk just to see What he was talking about. He was met with the face of an Eevee.

"Woah!" Izuku jumped back, surprised.

"Are you alright, man?" Kirishima asked, reaching out his hand and patting Izuku's shoulder.

"Yeah I'm-" The Eevee jumped up onto the desk and cooed at Izuku. Only then did Izuku realize what was happening.

Normal Eevee have brown eyes. You could prove that by just looking at Ochako's Eevee across the room. This Eevee had blue eyes. Now, that might not be anything notable in humans, since they have all sorts of eye color. However, that did matter when it came to pokemon. All pokemon have a specific eye color and that doesn't change unless it's an extremely rare shiny form.

Or unless it was transformed.

Mew… Izuku realized. Mew had come in, transformed into a different pokemon, and was pretending to be the pokemon Izuku caught just to help him out. He owed it a huge thank you. Now, all he needed to do was fornicate a good lie.

"He's actually one of my mom's old partners." was the first thing Izuku came up with. Luckily, Kirishima and the rest of everyone seemed to go along with it just fine.

Izuku sat through a giant line of congrats that he didn't deserve until he made it to Aizawa.

"So you came through." Aizawa drawled.

"Yeah, I guess." Izuku lied through his teeth. He felt like dirt for it, but it was better than a failing grade.

"You're releasing it after this, aren't you?" Izuku nodded solemnly. Technically it wasn't lying. He'd be letting Mew go to do its own thing again. He just never owned it in the first place.

"Makes no difference to me." AIzawa said, "I told you the assignment, and you met the parameters. Now shoo." Aizawa said. Izuku sighed and went back to his seat. At some point along the way, Mew went back to its original form.

By the end of the homeroom period, it was gone.