Timeloop Trouble

Chapter 7 - A Life Worth Living

Izuku walked hand in hand with Kacchan as they entered the school grounds. It was weird, wearing this uniform again, after all that had happened. Neither of them had taken the entrance exam, getting in on recommendation even if they weren't from any prestigious or wealthy families. Izuku had briefly wondered what happened with Ochako now that he hadn't participated, but Nezu assured him she was alright. The zero pointer had stopped and she already had enough points to make it in. He was happy for her and couldn't wait to see her again, although he didn't know when that would be.

His request to be placed in 1-B was granted without discussion. They just had to place two class B students in class A, and it's not like the classes weren't equally divided anyway. Unlike what most people thought, class 1-B wasn't inferior to class 1-A. Students weren't ranked on their entrance exam scores or their quirks like people speculated, otherwise there wouldn't be any recommendation students in class 1-B. It did fuel the fire for the little feud between their classes, though, and Izuku could already hear Monoma's voice just thinking about it.

"What are you thinking about?" Katsuki asked, squeezing his hand as Izuku fell silent when they walked through the school gates. Kacchan's arms had been severely damaged after that whole ordeal a few weeks ago. Luckily Recovery Girl had been able to heal him over the course of a few sessions, restoring them with the minimal amount of internal scar tissue.

"...Our friends," Izuku confessed. "I want to see Ochako, make sure she's doing alright, you know?"

"We can meet up during lunch," Katsuki said.

"I guess," Izuku sighed. "It won't be the same, though."

No, it wouldn't be the same. By lunch, they would have been informed about the past timelines. They would remember, as would class 1-B. That was the decision the faculty made, and neither of them had any say in it. Izuku had helped them gather the necessary information in order to trigger people's core memories. He'd offered to do more, but Nezu had assured him it wasn't necessary. They could replicate the research they had done before themselves. Besides, none of them wanted to put extra pressure on them.

"Nothing will be the same," Katsuki agreed. "But we'll just have to make the best of it."

Izuku forced a smile and nodded, walking a little closer to Kacchan as they entered their new homeroom class. It was different from walking into class 1-A, a different feeling in a similar classroom. Their desks weren't in the same spot, although they were still sitting close to each other. Something the teachers did on purpose, Izuku suspected. Or maybe it was due to the fact they switched both Komori and Shiozaki from this class to class 1-A and their student numbers lined up, too.

"Oh, newcomers!" Pony exclaimed. "My name is Pony Tsunotori, but please call me Pony."

"Izuku Midoriya, nice to meet you," Izuku greeted, wrapping his arm around Kacchan's so the ash blonde wouldn't run away from this conversation. "And this is Katsuki Bakugou. Kacchan, say hi."

"Hey," he said, but only because Izuku had asked him to do so. He didn't want to be a total asshole to these people, but he wasn't about to act all buddy buddy with them.

"So you're the two other recommendation students huh?" Honenuki asked, walking up to them. Izuku remembered him being accepted on recommendation, too. His quirk, softening, was really strong when used correctly, so Izuku wasn't all that surprised. Although the hero name Mudman was a little bit... Ah well, each their own, he supposed.

"That a problem, big mouth?" Katsuki asked, earning an elbow in the side from Izuku.

"Kacchan," Izuku scolded.

"Oh, do the two of you know each other?" Pony asked, as if the fact they were basically cuddling in front of her didn't give that away.

"We go way back, actually," Katsuki said, grinning as he wrapped his arm around Izuku's waist before using his free hand to hold his face in place as he pressed a kiss on his cheek. "So back off."