The smiling version stepped into the moonlight.
Same face.Same frame.
But her aura—It burned.
Calm, but vast.Like a sea hiding beneath still water.
The girl felt it.
So did Eri.
She gripped the real girl's hand.Whispered: "That's really you?"
The smiling one answered.
"No. Not anymore."
They sat on the rooftop.
Three girls.
One with power.One with trauma.One with answers.
The older version leaned back.
"I was the first you to reach the end."
She looked at Eri.
"I carried her. Protected her. Fought for her."
A pause.
"Lost her."
Eri's breath hitched.
The real girl didn't flinch.
"…What happened?"
The smile faded.
And the truth began.
The world was ash.
Not because of a villain.Because of a choice.
Eri had pushed her Quirk too far—For her.To save her.
It rewound the villain—
But caught herself in the blast.
Her cells scattered across decades.
Gone.
"I tried to rewind her back," the older girl said."But I was too late."
"I kept going. Fighting. Saving."
"I became something like a legend."
She looked at her younger self.
"But without Eri, I forgot why."
The real girl's hand clenched.
"…So you're here to stop me from becoming you?"
The older her shook her head.
"No."
"I'm here to help you win better."
She stood.
Reached into her coat.
Pulled out a device.
It looked like a broken compass—Spinning endlessly.
"This reads stability. Anchor-points."
She tossed it forward.
It stopped spinning.
Locked on her.
"You're the center now," she said softly."The Architect failed to erase you."
"But he hasn't stopped sending versions."
She looked up at the sky.
"They'll keep coming."
Eri blinked.
"All of them?"
The woman nodded.
"Friends. Enemies. Even you, Eri."
"I've seen timelines where your Quirk takes over you."
"Where you don't want to be saved."
Her eyes softened.
"But not here."
"Not this time."
The girl stood.
Faced her older self fully.
"…Then train me."
The woman smiled again.
Real this time.
"Already started."
Down below, the ground cracked—Light spilled out like veins.
A door rose from nothing.Carved with names.
Not just hers.
Hundreds.
Each line—A version.
Each symbol—A memory.
"This is the Hall of Echoes," the older her said.
"The Architect's prison. And your proving ground."
"You survive this—"
She looked down at her younger self with pride.
"…You'll be more than a fixed point."
"You'll be the rewind constant that even time fears."
The girl stepped forward.
Eri followed.
But the woman held up a hand.
"Not yet."
"She has her role."
The little girl looked up, scared.
"I want to stay…"
The woman knelt.
"You will. Just not inside."
"Your horn—your power—it's calling to the timelines."
"If we anchor it outside the Echoes, you'll be safe."
The girl touched Eri's cheek.
"Trust me."
"I'll come back."
Eri nodded once.
Eyes full of stormy light.
They stepped inside.
And the door shut behind them.
Darkness swallowed everything.
Then—
A room full of mirrors.
Each one—
A different world.
A different her.
And the first opponent stepped forward—
Bakugo Katsuki.
But wrong.
Older.Heavier.Scarred.
And carrying a file labeled:
"Subject: Temporal Threat – Target: Girl Zero"
She blinked.
"…Bakugo?"
He didn't speak.
Didn't smile.
Just dropped into a stance.
And said:
"Target acquired."
Behind her, the older version whispered:
"Every friend becomes a test here."
"Every test is a question."
"Let's see if your answer… is different from mine."
To be continued.