Chapter 3: The Five Stages of [Greif] Going off the Rails
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[ROUND 13]: Denial (is a river in Egypt)
Hitoshi snuggled into the center of the nest surrounding the electronics center. It was the unholy hour of 3:00 am, Hitoshi's favorite. The room was gloriously quiet and empty. Of all the consoles at his disposal, the ancient pre-quirk handheld-console hybrid was his favorite. He placed the device into its dock and booted up his favorite game. It was a simple game where you run a small island village.
"Ohh, is that Animal Crossing?"
Hitoshi groaned. Izuku's quirk ghosts didn't need to sleep, and while most of them knew to leave him alone, En, sixth, liked to follow Hitoshi around. The ghost claimed that they were kindred spirits. Something about Hitoshi being the only sane person he knows–which is bullshit. Hitoshi is also insane; He's just quieter about it.
"So, what are you going to do if we get out of this time loop thing?" En asked.
"It's when, not if," a voice interjected from the opposite corner of the common space. It was Izuku, who was probably up all night trying to keep his quirk ghosts in check. Speaking of quirk ghosts, three of them were hovering around him and arguing quietly about the validity of pineapple on pizza.
"Umm…" was Hitosi's eloquent answer. It was still a little jarring getting used to the random dead people that constantly bothered his green-haired classmate. After letting his mind reboot for a moment, he came up with an actual answer. "I would probably be a second-year hero student, then a third-year student, then finally an underground pro hero."
"Makes sense," En replied.
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"Another round, another first-semester midterm!" Tenya, the forever class prez, declared with his signature arm chops.
"We've done this twelve times already! Why can't we just skip it for once?" Mina whined.
"This could be the final loop! Any loop could be the last! That is why we must always treat each new round as our last!"
"But what if this isn't the last loop? If we keep doing the same thing over and over again, then nothing will change!"
"You must remain calm, Mina. I'm sure the loops will resolve themselves soon!"
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Class 1A went through loop after loop. Every new round was treated like it was their last, but unfortunately. That wasn't the case.
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[ROUND 22]: Anger (the USJ)
"I CAN'T TAKE IT ANYMORE!" Koda yelled. It wasn't the first time one of the students yelled their complaints about their situation. It wasn't even the most intense of the screamed frustrations. Maybe what made it so jarring was how the announcement came from the class's quietest and most docile member. Perhaps it was the rising tension slowly building over the past few rounds. Maybe it was both.
The villains of the USJ watched in abject horror as what was supposed to be a group of brand-new hero students started to riot. The students howled and yelled with unbridled rage. They could only be described as feral. They collectively snapped and decided to take it out on the nearest entities–also known as The of Villains.
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BREAKING NEWS - UA'S CLASS 1A GOES FERAL. 63 VILLANS CAPTURED, 54 INJURED: NO HERO OR STUDENT CASUALTIES.
OPINION - WHAT DOES CLASS 1A'S AGRESSIVE ATTIDUDE MEAN FOR THE FUTURE OF HEROICS?
HEROS DAILY - CLASS 1A TAKES EXTREME MEASURES AGAINST SMALL-TIME VILLAN ORGANIZATION!
TOKYO TIMES - HERO STUDENTS GO ON A TWENTY-EIGHT-HOUR VIGILANTE SPREE.
BREAKING NEWS - CLASS 1A TAKES DOWN YAKUZA GROUP IN AN EXTREME ACT OF VIGILANTISM.
THE HERO'S MIRROR - THE NEW GENERATION OF HEROS IS HERE, AND THEY DON'T WANT TO WAIT TILL GRADUATION.
Hitoshi turned off his phone and sighed. The class collectively acknowledged that they weren't getting out of the time loop any time soon, and their first response was to go nuts and take out every villain they've ever encountered in their loops all at once. Now, they were wanted for eighty-two counts of vigilantism each, and Shota was an accessory to all of their crimes. They would have to wait out the rest of the loop in their bunker. Nobody would find them in the vents.
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[ROUND 22]: Depression
Completely removing themselves from the outside world proved more difficult than any of them could imagine. It took a major toll on their mental health–not like it was doing well to begin with. The end was far from view, and spending over twenty years as a fifteen-year-old was far from helpful. It felt like all hope was lost. All there was was despair.
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[ROUND 23]: Depression (still)
The weekly circle talks stopped as most of the class retreated into their own self-pity. They still came together at the beginning of the round to create their base, but dread and hopelessness permeated through the time travelers. Only time could heal the pain of their unique type of isolation.
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[ROUND 31]: Bargaining
"If we ever get out of this, I'll never throw myself into danger without thinking again," Izuku declared.
"Wow, isn't that half your shtick though?" Hanta retorted. "Although, I'll add to that by getting up for my alarm in the mornings."
"I'll refrain from being, and I quote, 'too uptight'," Tenya added with a hand chop.
Hitoshi and Jiro sat quietly in the kitchen, eating a snack as the last of the class was moving on from their stupor and returning to their chaotic selves, bringing an end to the almost decade of silence.
"How much do you want to bet that not one of them will stick to their vows," Jiro muttered.
"I don't think they'll get the chance to make good on them. We're never getting out of this," Hitoshi replied. He received a simple nod as a response.
"50 bucks," En added out of nowhere. Hitoshi and Jiro gave him a side-eye. It was a rhetorical question…
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[ROUND 52]: Acceptance
After much drama and a few experiments courtesy of Yaomomo and Izuku, Class 1A had finally reached a conclusion on their situation.
Shoto rolled a corkboard in front of the TV as most of the class found their places in the nest of blankets in beanbags. "Okay," the dual-haired teen began. "With the help of Izuku and Momo, I have reached a thesis." The class waited with bated breath. After learning about social cues, the class found that Shoto had a good eye for finding unusual patterns, and his random conspiracies usually had a good amount of weight behind them. "There is no way to stop the time loops, and they aren't stopping any time soon!"
This only confirmed what all of them had been dreading. They would be stuck as first years. Permanently.
"So," Izuku called for everyone's attention. "Let's go over the facts!"
The loops reset every 147 days at 11:59 pm.
All injuries acquired during the loop are reversed, with the exception of scars.
Note: this may reverse fatal injuries, paralyzation, or even death (yet to be tested)
Anything on your person when the loop is reset is sent back with you
All students of UA Hero Class 1A and their homeroom teacher are grouped together for the loops
Note: this may extend to teaching assistants as well (yet to be tested)
Removal from class 1A without being returned by the round will result in the removal from the loop and subsequent loss of memories of the previous rounds
There is seemingly no cause for the loop, nor is there any way to stop it
The loops are most likely infinite
"The only thing that has the potential to stick is death," Tsu whispered.
"And even then, we have no idea if it will stick," Denki quietly added.
"No consequences…" Hanta murmured.
"Only death, and even that's tenuous…"
"Holy fuck."
"Holy fuck, indeed."