Apocalypse was finally dead, though his eyes remained wide open in a rictus of agony. He seemed unable to accept Saiki Kusuo's assertion that Saiki was superior in every way.
With the crisis resolved, Erik barely had a moment to breathe before he was surrounded by his children. Wanda took the lead in demanding answers.
"Alright, it's time to find a place and settle our affairs," she stated firmly. "I heard my mother stayed with your wife. Let's go to your home."
Erik had absolutely zero desire to bring this volatile group back to his house. He dreaded the thought that one wrong word could lead to bloodshed on the spot. Even more terrifying was the prospect of a "mixed doubles" beatdown from his current wife and his one-night-stand-turned-baby-mama.
Not wanting to be outdone, Lorna chimed in, adopting an air of defiant pride. "My mother's gone, but I still have her ashes with me. We can just pretend the old lady is present."
Did that sound as weird out loud as it did in my head? Erik wondered faintly.
In the end, under the blatantly schadenfreude-filled gazes of Charles and the others, Erik was practically escorted away, a prisoner of his three children.
Meanwhile, after countless trials and tribulations, Saiki Kusuo finally held the coveted Time Stone in his hand.
The moment his fingers brushed against the gem, it dissolved into a brilliant white light, flowing into him and merging with his body. Saiki felt a surge of vitality fill the corresponding, previously dull Infinity Stone within him.
"Are you leaving?"
A voice pulled him from his thoughts. Kitty Pryde – the version from ten years prior – stood before him.
Before Saiki could answer, a sad, bittersweet smile touched her lips. "It seems you don't need me anymore," she continued softly. "That's probably for the best. I don't have to do this thankless job anymore."
A thirteen-year-old girl had helped him 3,655 times. Even though Saiki held no romantic feelings for her, he couldn't deny being moved by such pure, selfless devotion.
Young Kitty didn't yet understand the complex, aching emotion twisting inside her, but she knew with certainty that if she let Saiki walk away now, she would regret it forever. Lifting her head, she pleaded, "Can you wait just a few minutes? Please, I only need a few minutes."
It was a request Saiki couldn't refuse. He nodded.
Kitty's tear-streaked face broke into a relieved smile. Moments later, the thirteen-year-old Kitty was replaced by her twenty-three-year-old self.
The younger Kitty couldn't process these complicated feelings, so she had left it to her future self to confront this relationship that was destined to simply… fade away.
Yes, fade away. That was the truth of it.
She knew the kind of person Saiki Kusuo was, and she knew, deep down, that she didn't have the courage to follow someone like him into a completely unknown world.
So, the only thing she could do was ask.
"Can you hug me?"
The request caught Saiki off guard, leaving him momentarily frozen. Seeing his hesitation, a wave of sadness and disappointment washed over Kitty, but she didn't give up, repeating her plea.
"Please? I just want to hug you." Her voice was sorrowful, almost humble.
Saiki sighed softly. "You really don't need to demean yourself like this. I'm the one who doesn't deserve you."
If Charles had heard that, Saiki was certain he'd get an earful about how much that sounded like a classic scumbag line.
Kitty finally got her wish, wrapping her arms around him. She wasn't particularly tall for a Western woman, while Saiki, now eighteen, had finally escaped the 167cm range and was approaching 180cm. For a moment, held together, they almost looked like a well-matched pair.
Almost…
Kitty nuzzled contentedly against Saiki's chest for a moment, then pulled back slightly. "Okay," she murmured, a sense of satisfaction in her voice. "That's enough for me. I wish you a safe journey back. But... before you go..."
She paused. Before Saiki could figure out what was happening, the gentle, almost bird-like Kitty suddenly transformed. Her expression contorted into rage, like an avenging fury.
She flipped Saiki the middle finger and snarled, "Saiki, fuck you!"
Saiki: "..."
Kitty grabbed his arm, her voice rising to a shout. "Did you really think I'd willingly help you over three thousand times with nothing in return?! If you wouldn't even sleep with me, why the hell should I do all that work for free?! You're not getting away that easily!"
As her words finished, Saiki felt a familiar dizzying sensation. The world warped – the same visual distortion he'd experienced 3,655 times before. Only then did he realize two critical things: he hadn't been able to read Kitty's mind just now, and he hadn't even noticed his telepathy failing. As for the reason...
It had to be Charles and Erik. They must have plotted against him. Those two had better pray they never crossed his path again.
"While I agree Saiki deserved some kind of punishment, are you sure this was the best way?" Raven asked, watching Kitty, who still looked utterly heartbroken, wiping away tears even after Saiki had vanished.
Charles sighed, opting not to tell Raven that Kitty's furious outburst was merely her way of venting.
Thirteen-year-old Kitty had already been changed by Saiki's intervention. By the time she reached twenty-three, she had actually developed the ability to send Saiki across parallel universes. However, neither of them had realized it – or perhaps Kitty had realized but chose not to tell him. Her final words were just an explosion of frustration and resentment, but beneath the anger, she had used her power, sending him back to his original world.
Unfortunately, likely due to it being her first time wielding such an ability, her control over the temporal aspect wasn't quite precise.
When Saiki materialized, he found himself standing in the middle of a ruin. His first thought was: What godforsaken place did Kitty send me to this time? His second thought was relief: Thank goodness I have the Time Stone. I can still get back.
Just as he was about to retrieve the Stone, he heard footsteps approaching from behind. Then, a familiar voice called out.
"Saiki?"
Saiki turned. Before him stood a figure with the physique of the Hulk, yet wearing delicate gold-rimmed glasses and possessing an aura as gentle as Bruce Banner's. For a moment, Saiki couldn't tell if he was looking at Banner, the Hulk, or some merged version of the two.
The figure seemed utterly astonished by Saiki's appearance. "My God," he breathed, "you're not dead!" He started forward, arms opening for an embrace.
Saiki took one look at those arms – each one thicker than his entire body – and sidestepped coolly, refusing the hug.
Banner – Saiki decided to call him Banner for now – stumbled slightly from the missed hug, caught his balance, and then burst into hearty laughter.
"Haha! Kid, you haven't changed a bit in six years!" The laughter abruptly choked off, replaced by sobbing.
"Boo hoo hoo..."
Saiki: "???"
Why is he suddenly crying? It hasn't been that long. Why is he acting like such a sensitive little princess?
Banner took off his glasses, wiping tears from his eyes. "It's so good to see you, my friend. Truly. If this is a dream, I hope I never wake up. Maybe then... maybe I could see Peter again, and the others."
His words made Saiki frown. Something Banner had said felt wrong, out of place.
["Haha! Kid, you haven't changed a bit in six years!"]
A sudden realization dawned on Saiki.
Have I arrived six years in the future?
___________
+40 chapters on: patreon.com/Shinobi_Scrolls