Chapter Text
“You sure you’re gonna be okay?” Stephen asked Peter.
With the battle long over, the two were sitting in the Sanctum.
“As long as no multiversal villains try to kill me, I think I’ll manage,” the kid smiled, “What about you? I mean, we made a pretty good team back there and if what you say is true…”
“That means I can be up against something very dangerous,” Strange finished for him, “I’m sorry, Peter, but I can’t let you get into this”.
“Got it”, Parker nodded, a note of disappointment on his face “I’ll see you around then”.
“Goodbye”.
With that, Peter stood up from his chair and made a few steps towards the door before turning back to face Strange.
“Just a quick question,” he started, making Stephen raise his eyebrows in a gesture for Parker to continue “Could you teach me to make one of those portals, because the subway is hell”.
Strange couldn’t help but chuckle.
“I may give you a few lessons,'' the doctor smiled.
“Cool, cool, cool, cool,” Peter said with a grin and exited the Sanctum.
With Peter gone, Strange could finally proceed with his work of finding the reason behind, well, everything that has happened in the past week. Whoever was behind this clearly didn’t want to be found, yet they chose a very unreliable spell to cover their tracks and soon enough Stephen was able to locate an abnormal source of energy in the mountains of Sokovia.
“Isn’t Wanda Maximoff from there?” Wong asked.
“You think that’s her?” Stephen replied.
“It is possible”.
Strange only hummed in response. He hadn’t had a chance to spend much time with Wanda. He had seen her at the battlefield and they had met at Tony Stark's funeral, yet they never really interacted. From what he’s seen, she’s a very powerful magic user and in theory she could have the ability to create a pathway through realities.
“Just try not to die,” Wong finally said.
“It won’t exactly be the first time,” Strange said before stepping through the portal.
…
Wanda chose this place because nothing ever happened here. There were barely any people, the biggest threat was the rain and the nearest grocery store was a thirty minute drive. With all that considered, imagine Wanda’s surprise, when she felt another person in her house. She entered the cabin, ready to fight the uninvited guest.
“You should really keep your doors locked,” a voice from behind her says, a familiar one, although Wanda can’t quite recall where she had heard it before.
She turns to come face to face with a man, what was his name? It was a weird one
“I remember you,” she says simply “You were at Tony’s funeral,” a name Stephen comes to her head “Who sent you? S.W.O.R.D? S.H.I.E.LD?”
“No one,” he answers “I just want to talk. And if you’re trying to get into my head, it won’t work”.
He had felt her telepathy; this trick had really only failed her in recent times.
“You have a lot of secrets for someone who just wants to talk,” Wanda didn’t trust him, she couldn’t trust anyone, for all she knows he’s one of Agatha’s proteges.
The man only gave her a friendly smile, “Why don’t we start from the beginning? My name is doctor Stephen Strange, I am the sorcerer supreme of the earth and I would like to have a word with you”.
“Well,” Wanda smiled in response, “No need to brag”.
Strange ignored the comment and continued, “A multiversal anomaly has appeared recently in New York,” he paused, trying to read Wanda’s expression “I followed the energetic trail and it brought me here, so I have my reasons to suspect that you might be the reason behind this”.
There were a few moments of silence before Strange could continue “I don’t think you truly understand the implications your actions could have”.
She understands the implications well enough. She will have her family back.
“You should leave,” is the only thing she can think of saying. Stephen is here to stop her. To stop her from finally being happy and that is the one thing she cannot allow.
“Wanda…” Strange starts.
A clot of red energy appears at her fingertips, “Please”, anger fills her voice “Leave”.
Stephen turns his eyes at the woman’s hand. “You don’t have to do this…” is all he could say before she attacked.
…
Strange tumbled into the Sanctorum before Wong helped him back on his feet.
“What happened?” he asked.
“I underestimated her,” Stephen answered with a shrug.
Wong sighed “So it was the Maximoff girl?”
Strange nodded, “She leaves a trail she doesn’t know how to hide,” he continued “We can find her”.
A knock at the door made them both turn around.
“You waiting for someone?” Wong commented.
Strange moved towards the door, opened it cautiously and froze. He honestly expected to see anyone. Peter coming for advice on what to do if you got shot in the shoulder (that actually happened once, it got messy), Wanda, to finish him off, Mordo, to take away his magic too (he has to get on that), but definitely not…
“Loki…?” His voice shook.
Thor’s brother was standing on his doorstep and looked very alive for someone who had died five years ago. Of course, he was the god of mischief and these were pretty crazy five years but it still doesn’t explain anything.
Finally, Loki said “I’m sorry, have we met?” Had he forgotten the time Stephen sent him flying through an endless void? “Doesn’t matter,” he continued “I’m looking for the sorcerer supreme”.
…
The best place Wanda had found to practice her magic was an abandoned warehouse somewhere on the edge of town. Her intention was to open the doorway again and keep it that way for as long as it takes. She focused on the goal and raised her hands making them glow with red. Wanda heard voices in her head, thousands of them, overlapping. She shut her eyes, she couldn't hear her own thoughts, when suddenly “Mom?”. Wanda looked up. On the opposite wall a shapeless opening with red edges and there…
“Tommy”.
Her vision blurred and she rushed towards her son but before she could even pass her hand through, the opening disappeared.
Tears streamed down her face as her palm reached a solid wall.
…
Stephen had offered Loki a seat and a cup of tea. The trickster may be a ruthless sociopath but right now all Strange saw in his eyes was despair and hopelessness and he didn’t have the heart to not offer him at least some comfort.
“So, you’re gonna have to explain something to me,” the sorcerer said, giving Loki his cup “Aren’t you supposed to be dead?”
“Oh, that,” the god exhaled “Well, the Loki that died by the hand of Thanos he’s…” he paused, looking for the right way to phrase it “he’s not me,” Strange raised his eyebrows “Well, I mean,” Loki continued “He is me, but not,” he gestured at himself “Me”.
Stephen was silent for a moment.
“Yeah,” he breathed “You’re gonna have to elaborate”.
“Okay”, Loki put his cup down “You know how the Avengers went back in time to collect the infinity stones?”
“Naturally, continue”.
“When they went for the tesseract, something went wrong. That something being me”.
Strange kept his eyes on Loki as he continued with his story.