A/N: I do not own any characters in this story!
Warning! This fanfic series contains death and spoilers! If don't like death or don't want spoil the game and/or anime, GO SOMEWHERE ELSE!
My name is Naegi Makoto, and this is the story of hope and despair.
It's also the story of how I lost some of those whom I've just met, only to gain them back in the end.
It all started with a simple letter…
"Dear Mr. Makoto, congratulations!" I read out loud to my mother. "You have been chosen to enrol at Hope's Peak Academy! Me and fifteen other students eagerly await your arrival! We hope to see you there! Sincerely, Jin Kirigiri."
"Eeee!" My mom squealed in excitement as she hugged me tightly. "My little Naegi is growing up!"
"Th-That's great, mom!" I managed to squeak out. "But can you let go? I c-can't breathe!"
"Oh!" My mom gasped as she let go of me. "Sorry, Naegi! I'm just so excited!"
"Well, who could blame you?"
Just then, my dad walked into the room we were in. "Hey, sport!" He greeted. "The car's ready. Are you?"
"Yeah!" I said excitedly as I ran to the car.
Little did I know; this simple school trip would change my life forever…
There it was; Hope's Peak Academy. The most famous school in the city. Only those who were picked got to enrol here. I always dreamed of going here, even just for a visit! And now I get to go to high school here? This was the proudest moment of my life!
"Alright, Naegi. We're here!" My dad said. "You have an awesome first day!"
"I will!" I said as I got out of the car. My dad drove off. Presumably back home. I waved as he drove off, but as soon as he was out of my sight, my whole attitude changed. I started to feel lost, like I didn't belong there. I could feel myself losing my nerve.
"But still…" I said to myself. "I can't just stand here in front of this gate forever…"
Frozen in place, murmuring to myself, I opened the gate and began walking towards the entrance. As I walked, I thought about the thread I visited to prep myself for this very day. All I saw was talk about "ultimate" students, who were way beyond your average high schooler.
For example, one incoming student is the "Ultimate Pop Sensation". I guess she's a high school girl who's also the lead singer for a pop group famous all over the country.
There's also the "Ultimate Baseball Star". He was the cleanup hitter for the national high school champs. Pro teams already have their eyes on him.
Then there's the "Ultimate Fashionista". She's been on tons of fashion magazines. She's what every high school girl wants to be.
Oh, and they mentioned the "Ultimate Biker Gang Leader" too. The scary thing is, he's the de facto leader of every biker gang in Japan. Gangs everywhere love the guy…
On top of that, there's the Ultimate Martial Artist, the Ultimate Fanfic Creator, the Ultimate Gambler, the Ultimate Swimming Pro, the Ultimate Programmer, the Ultimate Clairvoyant, and then some. Reading that made me realize how totally powerless I was it was the country's finest, top to bottom. I felt like a little house cat who'd wandered into a pride of lions.
But still, there was something I couldn't stop thinking about.
You see, there were a few students who I couldn't find any info on, no matter how much I looked. With all those "ultimate" students, I'm the only one without any kind of worthwhile talent.
But then, what about those other new students who didn't seem to pop up anywhere? Could they just be average students like me, without any talent or anything?
The thought was kind of encouraging. I mean, I know I don't have much in the way of personality. But beyond that, there's an even bigger issue…
How did such an unbelievably average student like me get picked to come to this "ultimate" high school?
That question lingered in my mind like an eye floater in front of your eye after you blink them in front of a light. Nothing on the acceptance letter said anything about it, and I supposed that the only way to find out was to wait.
But after hearing how graduating was a "guarantee for success" later in life, I just couldn't say no.
When I got to the front door, I gathered up all my determination and tried to act like I'd done this a million times before. I took a deep breath in and out, I opened to front door.
Inside was very typical. Columns lettered the place to keep the ceiling up, to my left was a bulletin board with a list of events on it, and above it was a clock. There was no one else around, so I figured I was the first one here.
The clock above the board read 7:10 AM. The meeting doesn't start until 8 o'clock, so there's still a full 50 minutes left. It makes sense nobody would be here yet, I was so wound up, I got here way too early. I have plenty of time before the meeting, so just standing around waiting isn't exactly what I had planned. I decided to take a look around the school. Maybe that'll help me calm down a little.
"I AM a new student here now, so there shouldn't be any problem with me having a look around, right?" I asked myself. It'll help me kill some time, if nothing else.
Trying to play it cool, I took my first step not only into Hope's Peak Academy, but into a new life at a new school.
…At least, that's what I was hoping for.
But the instant I took that first step forward, me view became warped, twisted. It was like some kind of delusion, melting away and mixing together into something else. Spinning, mixing, melting away, then spinning again.
And the next moment, everything went black.
That was how it all began, and how life I knew it came to an end.
At that point, I should have realized that the reason I was brought to Hope's Peak Academy wasn't because of luck. It was so I, along with fourteen others, could experience ultimate despair…
"…Nng? Where am I?"
I woke up with my head resting on top of a hard wooden desk. My body feeling heavy.
It's pretty normal for me to zonk out in the middle of some boring class or whatever, but…
"What was I doing asleep here just now? This isn't a classroom I've ever been in before. What the heck is going on…?"
When I got up, I accidentally knocked something off it. When I looked to see what it was, it appeared to be an orientation guide of some sorts.
It read: "The next semester is about to start. Starting today, this school will be your entire world."
If this was someone's idea of a joke, it surely wasn't funny.
I slowly got up to look at my surroundings. There was a large chalkboard in the room, above it was an analog clock the read 8'clock. It was just after seven when I got here, so has it really been an hour since then?
Above my head was what looked to be some sort of surveillance camera. It's a dangerous world we live in, so I guess they have these to keep weirdoes from just wandering in.
Along the wall to my left were large sheets of metal with equally large bolts on it where the windows should be. To test my theory, a tapped it with my finger a couple of times. It made a loud clanging sound. Yup. Definitely metal. Think, and very solid, too.
"Okay, let's see." I said to myself. "So what might have happened is I got myself so wound up, I passed out in the main hall. And then someone carried me here…? If that's true, it must mean that this is a classroom inside Hope's Peak. But then if that's true…"
I then trailed off. That last thing raises more questions than answers. This is all really strange. The metal plates covering the windows, the security camera, it's like a prison or something. None of this makes any sense…
I decided to head back to the main hall. It was already past meeting time, and there might be other students there now.
When I got out into the hall, it was illuminated by a strange, purple light. This was getting stranger by the second. Honestly, I had no idea what was going on. Without a second thought, I started to make my way to the main hall.
I made my way out through the purple hallway, and into another. This time, the lights were green. Not dwelling on it too much, I focused on my current task: Getting back to the main hall. But by the time I got there, everyone else was already there.
"Whoa, hey!" Exclaimed a student with frizzy, brown hair. "Another new kid?"
"Huh?" I asked in confusion. "Then you guys are all…?"
"Yeah… We're all new here." Said a short student with blonde hair. "Today's supposed to be our first day of class."
"So counting him, that makes fifteen." Said a very overweight student. "Seems like a good cut-off point, but I wonder if this is everyone…"