A few days have passed...
Dun dun dun...
The drums beat frantically, youth and passion boiling over on this very day!
Dun dun dun!
DUN!
The sports festival has officially begun!!
"Ouhhhh!!!"
"What the hell are you yelling for?"
"Sorry, force of habit."
Harry and I were up on the second floor of the school, watching the swarm of participants below.
Seven different schools were competing, so the crowd was mostly students.
"Insanely packed."
"Our school really went all out. Pretty wild for an American high school," Harry muttered absent-mindedly.
I glanced down again and spotted Gwen bouncing from stall to stall, buying snacks and souvenirs—except at our class booth.
Well... can't blame her. The people who ate Custavos fried chicken from our stall were now sprawled out on the grass like corpses.
"Hehe, it worked..."
"Worked what?"
"You'll see in a minute." Harry flashed a grin that looked exactly like Green Goblin's—only greedier and way more evil.
The noisy crowd suddenly fell silent.
"?" Both Harry and I looked down.
A long line of people marched in formation toward the school, trailing behind a bald guy in a wheelchair.
He drifted to a stop, kicking up a cloud of dust. Everyone behind him halted in perfect sync.
Every student looked unique: some wore sunglasses, one had a freakishly huge brain, another was built like a tank with steel skin.
One look and you knew exactly where they were from.
"Xavier's School," I muttered, scanning the group.
Then I spotted Jubilee.
She was dressed like a mad scientist on the outside, but underneath? Classic schoolgirl outfit.
"...Agnes?"
Kinda looked like that horse-girl...
She glanced around, then looked up and saw Harry and me staring.
Her face turned bright red. She waved.
Harry, clueless, waved back.
The Xavier students immediately glared daggers at Harry, sizing him up from head to toe like they were scanning for threats.
They started whispering.
"Uh-oh. Xavier's crew is tight. You mess with Lee and you're a dead man," I chuckled. Harry looked genuinely worried.
"Damn! I didn't expect them to be this ride-or-die! That's kinda overkill, right??"
Students from the other schools eyed them warily—some kept their distance, others outright sneered.
The mutants didn't care. They just kept walking as their principal rolled forward.
When he reached the school entrance, one person broke off to follow him. The rest stayed put.
"Phew... lucky no one's dumb enough to start something with them," I sighed.
Then I heard a very familiar voice.
Not because I'd heard it before—but because it came from the memories Nya gave me.
"HELLO EVERYONE! Are you reading this?? If so, please comment a ton or leave a review for this fanfic! Thank you!!"
A guy in a red-and-black suit, Hello Kitty panties over his tights, and a Barbie doll backpack was waving... at someone.
"Wade, you're embarrassing us," Colossus groaned, covering his face.
"Shut it, Steel Ball Man! You don't get to stop me from interacting with the readers! This fic's been dead silent on comments lately—boring as hell!"
"W-Who's he even talking to??" Harry stammered. I was speechless.
Who else but Deadpool? The guy was identical to every version across the multiverse.
"Oh hey, Gwen Stacy! Wait—I thought you were with Miles Morales now? Oh right, multiverse."
"Who are you?" Gwen asked, mid-cotton-candy.
"Me? Hehe... If you really wanna know, I'll tell ya! Your friendly neighborhood Wolverine! How's that, Spider-Girl? Impressed yet?"
"Lame," she deadpanned.
"Hey! Don't diss me just 'cause! Me and Spidey are besties! Sure, I blew his face off in one universe... but I promise my cameo this chapter is plot-critical!"
"Pal, get back here." A low, gravelly voice. A clawed hand grabbed Deadpool's head.
"Ow ow ow! Ease up, you sadist! Believe me, I'll call Hulk to smash you?!"
"Quit yappin', bud."
Wolverine.
"Hehe, check this out, readers—I may be a side character, but I'm no background! Cock shot!"
Deadpool punched Wolverine square in the groin—only for his fist to get impaled by adamantium claws.
"Oh, your poor wife... how does she even handle that spiky dick??"
"You done, bud?"
Wolverine stabbed a claw straight through Deadpool's brain. His eyes glazed over.
"Ahhh... Harley Quinn... Batman... I love being a sidekick... I'd make a great Wonder Boy~"
Harry and I watched in stunned silence as the terrifying short guy dragged Deadpool away like a sack of potatoes.
"I hope he's not a student," Harry whispered.
"I hope I never meet him," I said.
[I hope he doesn't recognize me,] Nya added.
There were plenty more mutants, the super-iconic ones I definitely recognized.
But no Gambit...
'Do all universes just treat Gambit like crap?' I thought.
Deadpool, Cyclops, Wolverine, Professor X, Colossus, Rogue, Beast, Iceman, Jubilee, Storm, Shadowcat, Quicksilver, and so on... and finally...
"Hell nah, it's Jean Grey."
One of the scariest-powerful mutants with Phoenix-level strength.
...And the girl in a love triangle between Cyclops and Wolverine in some universe.
I wondered who was better at playing the field: MJ or Jean Grey?
"They're really unique. No two look alike," Harry said.
"You don't hate them? Or discriminate?" I asked, watching his face closely.
"Nah? They're cool," Harry answered instantly, like it wasn't even a question.
"...Cool. Good to know." I smiled.
From all those memories, mutants were always discriminated against—not because they were different, but because their genes were different. Normal human genes somehow triggered instinctive hostility.
I wasn't totally sure... but something like that.
But Harry didn't show any disgust. Maybe he and Lee could actually work? Who knows?
Why was he so chill, though? Was his gene too dominant... or was he just too dumb to notice?
[He's too dumb to notice.]
Yeah... that one was easy.
"Let's go, Harry."
"Yeah."
Harry and I headed down. The sports field was packed.
This field was massive—easily held a thousand people.
Non-participants watched from the sidelines; competitors represented their schools.
Ten people per school, picked from different classes.
Eight schools total, including ours: 80 competitors.
Harry was one of them. I wasn't.
And that was a blessing.
"Phew." I flopped onto the grass nearby, watching Harry mingle with other classes.
"Peter! You're just sitting here?" Gwen walked up, sipping juice.
"You're not competing?" I raised an eyebrow.
"I'm a girl."
"I thought you were a gorilla?"
"That joke's not funny."
She sat beside me, scanning the other schools.
One school: everyone in red, chanting something like... 'Glory glory Man United'?
Another: all wearing glasses, Ahegao hoodies, smirking like perverts.
Another: waving rainbow flags, guys dressed like girls, girls like guys.
Another: just... American. Yeah, that says enough.
"Insane diversity..." I grimaced. It all felt like a bad joke.
"Peter, mind if I sit here?"
"Uh, sure—"
I froze. My eyes locked onto... Hello Kitty panties.
"...great."
"Onii-chan's so kind~"
None other than Deadpool.
He plopped down right next to me, wiggling his butt like he was settling in.
"..." Gwen and I stared.
"Don't look at me like that, I'm shy~" He cupped his cheeks, fake-blushing, then poked my shoulder repeatedly.
"..."
Help.