It had been going on since after the summer, since the very first day of the new school year.
Abed had been behaving absurdly, unbelievably, normal.
No one could explain it, though Britta had tried, claiming it to be a reaction to some incident with his father, but no one really knew why.
He hadn't made a single reference to anything, hadn't said anything meta, hadn't partaken in any antics with Troy, hadn't once said the word "cool".
In other words, he was behaving like the exact opposite of himself.
Rather than spending his time in fantasy he had been focused almost entirely on reality. Even the cadence of his voice had become less clinical and robotic.
It reminded Jeff of the time they had shared a meal in Abed's "Homage" to my dinner with Andre.
Whatever the reason though, the group knew they had to do something about it.
Without Abed's usual weirdness the study room felt hollow and eerie, lunches went by without incident, classes dragged on, and the second hand on the clock counted off boring second after boring second.
Action had to be taken to retrieve the real Abed from wherever he was.
A meeting was held in the storage room to decide what had to be done. It was eventually concluded that the only way to snap Abed out of this persona was to make him realize how out of place his behavior was.
But how?
Simple, the other members of the group would have to become their opposite selves so that Abed could see what he was doing. Like looking in a mirror, he would understand what was happening and stop behaving so normally.
Jeff would become Ffej-
Well, not literally, his name would still be Jeff, but he would become his opposite self so his name spelled backwards is like his opposite name.
You get it, moving on.
Jeff would become Ffej: The uncharismatic, reserved and self-conscious follower. The member of the group who is always concerned about other people and so often forgets to take care of himself. So often does he stick his nose into other people's business that it's actually kind of annoying. A studious, hardworking individual, modest both in personality and in his way of life.
He's also straight, unlike regular Jeff (according to Pierce).
Britta would become Attirb: A self-centered consumer, concerned only with herself and not the issues of others or the world. Obsessed with material looks and possessions she does not involve herself in things that don't have to do with her. The world revolves around her and she is only attracted to kind and reliable men who treat her like a princess.
Because she is a princess, duh.
Troy would become Yort: The very intelligent, incredibly serious member of the group. Terse and to the point, clear in everything he said and good at understanding concepts. Unemotional and detached with limited physical motion and interaction. Intensely focused, hardly anything able to distract him, and much more concerned with the components of reality than the temptations of fantasy. Well-spoken and to the point, a utilitarian realist with no patience for frivolous time wasting.
Shirley would become Yelrihs: The neutral, flavorless member of the group. Not gentle or sweet, but also not tough or rude. Generally without an opinion of her own, just going along with whatever others say without any conviction or energy. A bland sheep who follows others and has no heart to either agree or disagree. A simple woman who rarely speaks and when she does it is only to apologize for not being agreeable enough.
A dull and submissive part of the scenery.
Annie would become Einna: The apathetic member of the group, uncaring in every way. Classes? Whatever, who cares. Friends? Who gives a damn. Not one single thing is worthy of her effort, she skates by, barely doing the minimum to succeed. She doesn't make real connections and doesn't care one bit about what other people think about her. She doesn't try at anything, she doesn't care about anything, the only reason she's in the study group is because she likes having the table to kick her feet up on while she plays games on her phone.
Of course, she doesn't care about the games either, she just wants something to do.
A bored, apathetic girl with no motivation whatsoever.
Pierce would become Ecreip: Or at least he would have if the group had invited him. He had received a mysterious message from his Neo-Buddhist temple about a seminar for special members only. It involved dressing up and attending multiple events over the course of five days.
It was actually an anime con, but it was doubtful that Pierce would know the difference.
But if he had been invited, he would have been the considerate, open-minded, affectionate member of the group. Tactful and kind and giving, not to mention humble and loyal.
A true friend to all who needed one.
Pfff, as if Pierce could have pulled that off.
And Chang would-
Wait, when the hell did Chang come into this!?
Well, um, ok, I guess Chang was part of the plan too.
Chang would become Gnahc: A person who the group unanimously decided was never there at all. They all agreed that the opposite of the ever present Chang would be someone who was so absent it was almost as though they weren't there.
An invisible member of the group, a ghost, in fact it would probably be best if Chang just stayed home.
Yeah, that would be for the best.
They would become these people, for as long as it took to get Abed back.
And so, plan Deba commenced.