Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

It didn’t take long for Stephen and Vision to make it back to the town, the determination of their loved ones being in danger and the personal talk out of the way, they flew as fast as they were able. They flew over town square, not really looking at anything happening since it didn’t matter; all that mattered was finding their children and making sure their spouses were safe.

If Stephen was ever going to apologize for being a dick, Tony had to be alive and safe.

Unlike Stephen who couldn’t have cared less about the personal lives of people in the town square, Vision took the time to scan the ground to make sure nothing was going on. Most people were going about their daily lives, and there wasn’t much evidence that anything was wrong. Mothers were taking their children to get ice cream, or walking out of the movies. Friends and neighbors were talking and chatting, not noticing the android and wizard flying above them.

Stephen knew that Vision didn’t really care about the people, he was just trying to distract himself from assuming the worst.

The sorcerer allowed himself to assume the worst. He always had in his life, because whenever he’d believed in the silver lining - like with his hands, all the extensive surgeries - nothing good had come of it. While the worst had barely come to him in his prime, after his surgeries he’d learned to not expect anything but pain.

The worst was simple: by the time Stephen got back to the house, the children would be dead and so would Tony or worse, he wouldn’t forgive Stephen. Nothing could be worse than that.

Stephen knew that Vision knew that Wanda was more than capable of handling herself, her magic was powerful and she’d proved herself time and time again. But neither of them could help the fear bubbling in their gut, worried about their children and spouse.

Stephen’s attempt to comfort himself backfired when he realized that if Tony got himself into a fight, he didn’t have his suit to protect him. Without the armor, he was just a regular man; regular men couldn’t fight against an all powerful magic.

Not for the first time, Stephen wished he had told Tony everything sooner, so the man would be safer and out of danger. He cursed himself for being so selfish once again.

For the second time in the day, Stephen realized Wong was right: the dark magic was incredibly strong. He couldn’t feel it all, but what he could sense reminded him disantly of Dormammu’s magic, and that sent a shiver up his back. He knew deep down Dormammu was never coming back, but the thought that the entity would return taunted his deepest fears.

Stephen also didn’t know how far this dark magic was filling to go to get what it wanted, but he was willing to bet it was great lengths. If it had stuck by Wanda for as long as it had, playing pretend in her dream world, it clearly had the patience to get the job right.

The closer they got to their neighborhood, the stronger the dark feeling in Stephen’s chest got. Stephen couldn’t tell much from the feeling, but he could tell the magic was old and powerful, harnessed by an experienced and desperate hand.

The magic was exactly the opposite of Wanda, who was young and while she was powerful, her magic had a different aura to the darker one. Wanda’s magic hummed to a similar tune of the Time Stone, since her powers came from the Mind Stone. This dark magic sang no song, it only screamed.

While Wanda’s magic was tainted by death, it was nowhere near the extent of the darker magic.

In all honesty, Stephen wasn’t sure what to expect.

“We’re almost there,” Vision said aloud, more likely to himself than Stephen, but the wizard heard him anyway. “We have to save the children and help Wanda.”

“I know,” Stephen replied, casting a spell which put dark red bands around his arm, so he could be ready to attack if need be. He was desperate to see Tony again, preferably in one piece and without a scratch on him.

They flew over one last house before the street leading into their homes came into view. At first, everything seemed normal except for the lack of people out in the yards, but Stephen quickly realized everything wasn’t normal.

There were traces of the dark magic everywhere, but the source seemed to have vanished. Where it had gone Stephen didn’t know, but it wasn’t his priority anymore.

Wanda was being held up in the air by an android who looked remarkably like Vision, except his skin was all white and his eyes - which Stephen could see from here - were a dark, angry blue. Wanda was crying out and trying to rip Vision’s hands off her face, but it only caused White Vision to squeeze harder.

He’s going to crush her skull.

Hayward sent this thing! Stephen realized Hayward's ulterior motives, the pieces connecting in his mind. He wanted to frame Wanda for being a villian when she was actually just a victim, and likely get a fat promotion out of it.

Before Stephen had time to raise a spell to help, Vision had flown ahead to save his wife. He didn’t hesitate, flying into White Vision and pressing him against the ground so hard he sunk into the concrete, cutting through the road like paper.

Vision lifted him up and threw him into the air, sending him flying backwards into a trailer a few houses down. The trailer burst in a mushroom cloud of smoke and flames and when White Vision didn’t immediately arise from the explosion, Vision turned back around.

“Alright then,” Stephen rolled his eyes and flew down, landing gently next to Wanda. “I see how needed I am here.”

“I’m very happy you’re here. I can use all the help I can get.” She spared him a grateful glance before her eyes were solely on Vision.

“Where are the boys?” Vision asked calmly as if he hadn’t just sent a carbon copy of himself into a trailer at a million miles an hour. He stayed hovering in the air, but Stephen noticed his voice wasn’t choked up with anger at Wanda.

“And my children?” Stephen asked next, and Wanda sucked in a shaky breath. Stephen didn’t like the sound of that and realized his husband wasn’t here. “Tony? Where is Tony?”

“Tony’s fine. I asked Tommy to take your kids home, where he is. And our boys are home, safe.” Wanda panted a little, struggling to catch her breath, the words sticking to her throat. “Vision, I should have told you everything. The moment I realized what I had done.”

“It’s alright, Wanda.” Vision comforted, his voice sincere. He only had eyes for Wanda, and if it were any other moment Stephen would have insisted he could handle it and let them make up, but he knew that wasn’t the case here; they were in danger.

Stephen’s hands clenched and unclenched as he looked around him, the feeling of dark magic growing stronger. Wanda clearly wasn’t in tune enough with her magic to sense the magic of others, but Stephen was, and it was worrying.

Vision went on to add, “I know why you made this world, but this -”

“I can fix it.” Wanda interjected, desperate for some show of affection or approval from her husband. When was the last time that happened?

“Can you?” Vision asked, not exactly a challenge but he meant it.

“Will you be able to say goodbye?” Stephen elaborated, and Wanda looked back to him, startled by the blunt question.

“Will you?” She asked.It wasn’t quite a challenge, more of a way to put Stephen in his place. She looked back to Vision. “Do you want me to let you go?”

Vision didn’t answer, and Wanda turned her gaze on the still burning trailer heap, where White Vision had emerged from. His expression was frozen in anger as he stalked out, undamaged by the flames or the blow.

Vision turned around as a humming noise filled the air, and Stephen turned to look above the house that now had a car through the side. When did that happen?

“Oh, this is awkward,” Stephen recognized the voice, but he didn’t have to worry about putting a name to the face on his own because Agnes suddenly appeared above the house, her hair down and dressed in an old witch’s coven outfit that Stephen recognized but couldn’t remember the name of. Black and purple magic swirled around her fingertips, long strings of magic extending to her ankles.

The way she was floating, with her robes out under her arms made her look like some sort of dark angel, and Stephen knew he wasn’t far off in that comparison.

“Agnes?” Stephen asked, looking out of the corner of his eye at Wanda, who was scowling up at her. “Agnes is an evil witch?”

“The name’s Agatha Harkness, and it’s a long story.” Wanda curtly replied, not taking her eye off the floating witch. Stephen recognized the name now, Agatha Harkness was the only survivor of her Coven because she had killed all the rest. “She played me like a fool, knowing the exact thing to tell me to get me to expose all my secrets. She wants my powers.”

“Well, we can’t let that happen,” Stephen deadpanned, looking back up at Agatha.

“Your ex and your boyfriend at the same party,” Agatha went on, tucking her elbow across her body and pulling the other up by her face, and now Stephen could see her blackened fingertips. It was another sign that she was experienced in her years; he was willing to bet she was several hundred years old, practicing magic to keep her young.

The dark magic coming off her was immense, and Stephen allowed his golden shields to rise up on his forearms. Wanda looked at him, then followed suit by allowing red mist to come around her own hands.

“Stephen Strange,” Agatha turned her attention to him, her eyes piercing into his soul. Stephen wanted to curl up under her gaze but he refused, raising his arms and letting the shields grow. “Oh that’s cute, a little protection spell? Did you learn that at Kamar-Taj, the school for baby sorcerers? I met the Ancient One once, and I gotta say I was pretty disappointed.”

Stephen knew she was trying to get a rise out of him, so he didn’t take to the bait. “That’s funny, because she never mentioned you, you must not have been important enough for her to discuss.” He tilted his head. “I don’t remember reading about you in any of the texts, so your magic really must be basic. What are you gonna do, throw an eye of newt in a cauldron and sing a song?”

“Usually it’s a human’s eye, but nobody corrects the fairy tales.” Agatha replied, making herself sound bored. “I heard through the grapevine that there was a new Sorcerer Supreme in town, didn’t think he would be so easily sedated at the idea of getting a lost love back. A love that wasn’t even his.” Agatha continued, and Stephen stiffened minutely.

He scoffed, watching Agatha’s hand motions carefully, waiting to see if she would start an incantation of some kind. “You’re one to talk, coming in here and living through the decades when you could have been out there with the rest of us, saving the world. But instead you decided to use your powers to kidnap children and play dress up.”

“It wasn’t my business to save the world, and you didn’t need my help to fail miserably the first time, or the thirtieth time, or the fourteenth million time,” Agatha commented. “Speaking of, how did it feel to see your love die so many times, that Time Stone really does a number on ya doesn’t it?”

Agatha smirked when Stephen’s right eye twitched. “Ah, I’ve hit the mark.” She sneered. “But let me ask, in any of those futures, did he actually love you back?”

Stephen roared, raising both his arms and sending the red bands flying towards Agatha at an alarming speed. Agatha sighed and waved her hand, and the red bands turned black and went flying towards Stephen again.

Stephen couldn't even blink before dark ropes wrapped around him, holding his arms down and making his legs buckle. His arms twisted and he felt his shoulder crack when his arms were pulled at an awkward angle, but he fought back a scream, refusing to let Agatha see weakness.

Wanda screamed and tried to help him, but she was wrapped up in a dark purple mist and held in place as well.

“Vision! This is our home!” Wanda cried over her shoulder, and Vision looked between his wife, Stephen and White Vision.

Vision gave her a small nod. “Then let’s fight for it.” He said firmly, turning and flying into White Vision again. The two took to the sky, soon fading into a little specs in Stephen’s view.

Vision could handle himself - his clone? - now it was up to Stephen and Wanda to take care of Agatha.

Agatha sighed. “Shame you brought the Time Stone here, Sorcerer. I’ve been wanting to get my hands on it for a long time. But then the Ancient One got a hold of it and kept it hidden from me for years.” Agatha gestured to the Eye on Stephen’s chest, left untouched by the dark bands growing tighter and tighter around his limbs. She reached out to grab it, but clearly thought better of it and pulled her hand back to rest on her chest.

“I’m going to assume that there’s a pretty strong protection spell around that, am I right?” Agatha didn’t wait for an answer before she gave a witchy cackle. “So you were taught some spells, huh? You should take a lesson from him, Wanda, if you want to be a better witch.”

“I’m not a witch,” Wanda fired back, trying to break free of Agatha’s magic to help Stephen. “No one taught me magic!”

“But I can. Lesson number one,” Agatha brought her hand back, and a black dagger forged itself out of her magic. “Protection spells can always be bypassed when the person who cast them is dead.”

Agatha raised her hand back to deliver the killing blow just as Stephen’s airway was cut off, but she paused when the familiar tune of ‘Back in Black’ by ACDC could be heard all around them. Wanda looked around in confusion, and Stephen felt utter relief pass through his body.

He never thought he would be grateful to hear ACDC in his life.

“Miss me, dear?” Stephen smirked at the look of fear on Agatha’s face when she recognized the music and who it represented.

The question was immediately followed by the charging of a repulsor, and Agatha looked up in surprise before she was catapulted back by a blue blast of light.

Instantly, the black vines around Stephen and the mist around Wanda vanished and they fell to their knees, broken free from the dark magic. Stephen gasped for air, holding his throat as he struggled to control his breathing. He could distantly hear the sound of something - several somethings - hitting the ground and running over, but Stephen couldn’t bring himself to look up, still struggling to breath.

“Daddy!”

“You’re okay!”

“We were so worried!”

Stephen did look up when he felt three armor covered bodies hugging him close, nearly pushing him off his feet. “Hey, guys.” Stephen whispered, the full realization of how much he missed his children as he gave each of them a kiss on the top of their heads. “I missed you too, I’m glad you’re okay.”

Stephen’s breath hitched as he realized the kids were not in the house or safe like Wanda said they were, they were the exact opposite of safe.

“You allowed the children to come here?!” He demanded, absolutely flabbergasted. He looked up at Wanda, who was standing still a few feet away, her expression not totally focused on him. “To a fight with a witch?”

Tony’s voice was the one that responded. “Their dad is a wizard, so that makes them half wizard, so therefore they’ll be fine. Besides, I designed the best suits I’ve possibly ever made, but don’t worry I always save the best for myself.”

Stephen looked down at his three children, and he had to admit that Tony had done a good job with their suits in a short amount of time.

Nebula’s suit was different shades of blue, mirroring the color of her skin back in the real world. There were flecks of gold and purple, meant to show the parts of her replaced by Thanos, but she looked so powerful in her suit, the confidence making her glow. Her hair was tied back in a low ponytail, making it easier to fit in the helmet.

Harley’s suit looked exactly like Tony’s Mark Forty-Two suit, the one he had been primarily wearing when he’d met Harley, almost to the T. It was mostly gold with hints of red and when the helmet retracted, Harley’s golden curls popped out in a bundle on his head.

Peter’s suit was the only one that wasn’t an Iron Man suit, instead it looked very familiar to his Iron Spider armor, with darker reds and blues and the signature spider mask pulled down over his face. Spider legs were sticking out of his back and made small clicking noises as he moved, but the kid didn’t seem bothered as he held Stephen close and buried his head in his chest.

“Not your best work, but it’ll do.” Stephen taunted just as he looked up at Tony, his jaw dropping almost instantly.

Tony was wearing a suit that looked similar to his nanotech one, but most likely his best suit yet. Stephen remembered how powerful the nanotech suit had been with all its weapons and capabilities; the best that could be birthed from the combination of Tony’s money and mind. The suit used during the Battle of Earth had been even more powerful, built in desperation to fulfill its title and avenge. The suit was mostly red, but there were some gold and even black undertones and pieces of armor that made it completely unique.

He looked incredibly sexy in the suit, which was probably the point. Tony had never been one to shy away from a flashy or at times inappropriate appearance, and the suits were no exception. It was tightly fitted to his body and hugged in all the right places, but Stephen knew trying to break through that armor would take a mighty blast.

“Tony,” Stephen gasped out, mesmerized by his husband. He looked down and swallowed hard.

No, he shouldn’t say that. Tony hadn’t forgiven him yet, he had no claim to the man. If Tony decided not to forgive him, Stephen would have to accept that.

Iron Man landed on the ground with barely a sound and the jets of his back sucked themselves back into the armor. Tony’s helmet retracted off his face, revealing Tony’s angry expression.

“Tony,” Stephen gently pushed the children off him and stood up, but Tony surprised him when he started to walk closer. Stephen’s breath caught in his chest but he didn’t move, frozen in place by fear of what Tony was going to do.

Tony’s expression didn’t change for the better, in fact he seemed to get angrier the closer he got to Stephen.

“I want to apologize,” Stephen blurted. “In fact I’m going to, without you having to ask.”

Tony raised an eyebrow but didn’t say anything, letting Stephen go on. He didn’t stop his slow approach closer, and Stephen found himself backing away now.

“I am so, so sorry for not telling you everything, because you deserved to know. As your friend in the real world and your husband in this one,” This time both of Tony’s eyebrows went up. “Yes, even your fake one, I should have been honest with you and told you about Wanda and the Hex and who you are.”

Tony didn’t react, stepping closer and closer to Stephen until the sorcerer was backed against a street lamp, the cold metal pressing against the back of his head.

“And you’re right, I was wrong, like always. I didn’t tell you the truth because I didn’t want to lose you. I was afraid you wouldn’t choose me so I didn’t give you a choice at all,” Stephen found himself continuing, baring his soul for Tony to read. “I’m an idiot Tony, I know I am. I played the victim and I tried to tell you that you were in the wrong for just trying to figure everything out.”

Stephen watched as Tony stopped just before their chests touched; he was so close that Stephen could hear the whir of the nanoparticles in their housing on Tony’s chest. The Time Stone fluttered against his chest like it was reaching out for something, an extension of Stephen’s own will.

Like Stephen, the Time Stone had been there for every single future in which Tony had died, had suffered, had been ridiculed by the very people he’d fought to save. The Time Stone, like each Infinity Stone, wasn’t alive, but it was an entity, a being. It was connected to Stephen, and it wanted what he wanted.

It knew when Stephen wasn’t complete, and it wanted its user to be whole again.

“Would you please just say something? Shout, scream, divorce me!” Stephen pleaded, flinching away when Tony’s hand came up to touch his face. Tony paused, and Stephen allowed the palm of his hand to press against his face. “Tony?”

“You are such a piece of shit.” Tony could barely keep a straight face as he said the words. “I forgive you.”

“I don’t expect you to forgive me, I’ve been a complete and total ass -” Stephen blinked, dumbfounded. The words replayed in his mind and he tilted his head a little. “I’m sorry, you what?”

His protest was cut off by Tony bringing him down for a kiss, their lips touching in such a tender way Stephen immediately felt a tear slipping from his eye. Out of relief, or of happiness, or of sadness he didn’t know, but the tear rolled down his cheek and onto Tony’s hand.

He could distantly hear their children protesting and pretending to gag, but Stephen could bring himself to care.

Tony pulled away, looking up at Stephen through his lashes. Stephen licked his lips and grabbed Tony’s face with both hands.

“Come back here,” he whispered, clashing their mouths together again. Tony giggled into the kiss, not shying away. Stephen felt a hand squeeze his ass before Wanda’s magic suddenly pulled them apart.

“Okay you two, there’s work that needs to be done.” Wanda’s Mother Voice was pulling through, and she held fast even after Tony gave her pleading eyes. “Agatha just flew into the town square, and Hayward’s trying to enter the Hex, I can feel it. I can practically hear him brooding on the outside.”

“That sack of dicks thinks he can break in?” Stephen raised an eyebrow. “I’d love to see him try, then turn into a clown for all I care.”

“He knows he can’t. He’s waiting for something.” Wanda pondered out loud, but she moved on.

“We need a game plan.” Tony stated, and all three children jumped up and down, their helmets sliding into place. “Hold on kids, who said that included you?”

“But Papa! You said we could help save the day!” Harley whined, barely stopping himself from actually stopping his foot against the ground.

“I said you could help save Dad, not the day. Try and twist my words again and I’ll have Wanda send you away.” Tony clicked his tongue, but Stephen stepped forward.

“The kids might be helpful. You said the suits are the best, right?” Tony nodded. “Then they can help distract Agatha while Wanda and I take care of her. If Hayward finds a way in, nothing would be more humiliating than being beaten up by our kids.”

Tony raised an eyebrow. “What happened to not being a hypocrite anymore? You were just telling me how irresponsible it was that I brought the kids here ‘cause of the suits, and now you’re telling me it’s a good thing?” Tony shook his head and made an aimless gesture with his hands. “I made out with you as a sign of forgiveness and everything.”

“You can always forgive me again,” Stephen winked and Wanda groaned.

“God, I’m working with children.” She groaned, running a hand over her face.

“Hey, we’ve been over this. You’re already my mom. You did this to yourself.”

“I didn’t create you to act like a child.”

“Yeah, but you still created me, now you gotta deal with me.”

“Oh, I wanna take it back.”

“Okay, okay.” Stephen broke them apart and looked to Tony. “Worst case scenario, I teleport them away halfway through the fight. But they’re safest with us.”

Tony sighed, rolling his eyes. “Fine, fine. But if we’re down a kid by the end of this I’m kicking you out again. Or better yet, I stick you with Hayward.”

Stephen rolled his eyes and nodded. Wanda’s red mist twisted around her hands and she flew into the air, not waiting to see who was following.

“Kids, go catch up to Auntie Wanda.” Tony instructed, and the three children cried out with excitement and took to the skies to help save the day.

“Aren’t we going too?” Stephen questioned as Tony turned to face him again.

“No, we’re going to let the world get destroyed. Of course we’re going to help. Just one more thing.” Tony rose up on his tip toes and gave Stephen another soft kiss, both of them smiling into it.

Stephen missed him. There was definitely more that needed to be said, but for now they had to help save the world.

Tony pulled away and his battle mask immediately slid into place. “Now we’re good.” He charged up his jets and flew into the air, Stephen following close behind.

“Let’s go, Gandalf! Try and keep up!” Tony taunted, chasing down Wanda and their children.

“You’ll wish you hadn’t said that, douchebag!” Stephen called out, but the butterflies from their kiss quickly vanished as the weight of the battle they were about to partake in weighed on his shoulders.

------------------------

Tony and Stephen arrived in Town Square a few moments after Wanda did, but the woman was already three steps ahead of them, the children frantically running along beside her, trying to help in any way they could.

Immediately, Stephen knew it had been stupid of him to assume that everything was normal in the Town Square, because there was a very real numbness in the back of his mind that told him that nothing was normal.

He was going to completely ignore the notion that he was still in a world that was completely created by Wanda out of her unhealthy coping mechanisms and instead focus on the fact there was a new witch inside the Hex.

Tony landed and retracted his helmet, and while his repulsors weren’t charging up Stephen knew they would be ready in an instant if he saw Agatha. Some people recognized him and tried to say hello, or wrap their arms obnoxiously around them in a hug, but Tony held up a hand and gave an awkward excuse before walking on. He gave Stephen an eye roll and Stephen responded with the same wink he’d flashed at him in New York after he’d used his magic the first time.

Stephen copied his husband, not raising his magic or any sort of spell that would alarm the people, but he began to think of spells and incantations in the back of his mind in case he needed to use them. People didn’t say hi to him, they just glared at him as if he was some kind of outsider.

Stephen stopped at that realization, turning to really look at some of the people around him. Most of them had gone back to ignoring him, while others were still glaring at him as if waiting for him to say something, to set them off or give them an excuse to approach him.

‘They love Tony because he’s like them. I’m not.’ Stephen thought easily as a man whom Stephen didn’t recognize passed Wanda and made a joke about not attacking him. ‘Did Agatha make them aware? No, she wouldn’t be that stupid.’

Stephen’s heart dropped when a blast of dark purple magic suddenly hit Wanda in the back, sending her flying forward and onto the concrete. Stephen brought a spell to life, protection spells rising on the foreheads of each member of his family, and he brought his shields to full potential.

Tony’s battle mask slid into place and four large blasters in the shape of an X extended from his back, already charging up. The children took up - frankly adorable - battle stances and glared up at the witch, ready to reign hellfire on her.

“Wanda, you’ve never been up against another witch before,” Agatha informed her as if it was supposed to be some kind of achievement.

“Why don’t you just pack it up, Wicked Witch of the West?” Tony called out to her. “If you leave now we’ll be pretty lenient about the punishment. Maybe a thousand years in a pocket dimension my husband conjures up? That sound fair to you?”

Agatha gave a taunting cackle. “No pocket dimension is strong enough to hold me. Besides, I’ve been in a pocket dimension before, and I have to say it was pretty disappointing. Once you’ve been in one you’ve been in them all.”

“I’m sure we can send you to a nice corner of hell!” Harley added, trying to get in on the battle talk. Tony looked at the older son in surprise, and Harley gave him a thumbs up back.

Stephen rolled his eyes and looked back up at Agatha, her hair blowing in the wind. “You have no quarrel with the people here, Agatha. Let’s take this elsewhere.”

Agatha shook her head, looking up as Wanda rose to her feet. “I’m exactly where I want to be.”

“I insist. It’s time you leave, Agatha. Leave me and my family alone.” Wanda gritted out.

Agatha gave a mock pouty face. “Wanda, I’m hurt. And to think I almost had your complete and total trust. Oh well.” Agatha’s face spread into an evil and methodical grin. “Frankly, you and your family are getting on my nerves, Stephen. Don’t any of you know about girl time?”

Wanda bristled and red magic shot up her arms, her angry eyes never leaving the other witch.

Agatha didn’t seem to care that there were six very powerful weapons ready to destroy her at the drop of a dime; she seemed to relish it. She muttered several sentences and Stephen was tempted to blast her out of the air before she could finish, but he didn’t get the chance.

Agatha raised her hands, purple and black magic growing in larger and larger circles until it shot from her hands in various places into the sky.

A bright light caused everyone to look down, shielding their eyes. When the light cleared, Stephen looked back up to the skies and his jaw clenched in frustration.

Dozens of dead witches were floating in the air, their bodies in various stages of decay. Some literally didn’t have heads or hands, while others looked as they’d recently died. When they opened their mouths they let out despaired screams that reminded Stephen of his time with Dormamu in a strange way.

“Meet all the witches who thought they could stand against me.” Agatha bragged, throwing her hands out to her new army. Some of the witches let out deranged moans that sent a chill down Stephen’s back and he hated the fear that settled in his stomach.

Stephen looked down at the children, who were staring up at the witches in what Stephen could only assume was fear, much worse than his own. None of the children had faced any sort of battle, at least not in this life. While Nebula and Peter had been gifted fighters, they didn’t remember any of their skills.

Tony beat him to it, the shorter man crouching down beside them and grabbing onto Harley and Nebula’s shoulders, looking them in the eye.

“Hey, you guys know that game Witches vs. Hicks?” Tony knew it was a terrible analogy, but if it got through to the kids that was all that mattered. They all nodded and he grinned encouragingly. “This is exactly the same. All you guys have to do is blast as many evil witches as you can, and then we win, okay? Keep track of your total; winner gets to keep their suit.”

Giving a child a competition was the perfect way to get them in the zone. Peter looked back up at the sky in determination. “Karen, activate instant kill!” He commanded, and the red eyes of his spider suit glowed red.

Nebula and Harley followed, blasting off into the air, screaming at the top of their little lungs. Peter was moving forward and in the blink of an eye, crawling up the wall and jumping on an unsuspecting witch.

Tony levitated a few feet off the ground, looking down at Stephen. “We can’t let the kids have all the fun, can we?”

Stephen smirked, allowing the Cloak to pick him up. “Absolutely not.” He cast a quick glance to where Agatha had once stood, and saw she was missing now. He looked back to Tony and forced a grin. “What was that you said, winner gets to keep the suit?”

“You don’t have a suit, dear.” Tony deadpanned as he raised his hands and blasted two witches away who had been flying towards them. He took off to the skies, blasting his way through witches and helping his children if they needed it.

“Maybe I want one!” Stephen yelled back, harnessing his red chords and lassoing six witches at once. The wizards slowly deteriorated, fading into a ball of black ash in the sky. Stephen allowed himself to give a breath of victory, but he soon discovered it was short lived.

Stephen watched in a mixture of horror and amazement as the balls began reforming, slowing coming together like atoms forming a larger being. Come to think of it, exactly like atoms forming a larger being. Little by little, the black dots came together and hardened, and there were now six witches floating before him once again, their pale eyes focused solely on Stephen. Their decaying jaws cracked open with a roar, and began chasing Stephen as fast as they could.

“Agatha must have placed some kind of spell on them so they’re incapable of dying!” Stephen called out to his family, watching as Nebula tried to slash through two witches with her sword, only for the halves of the bodies to fuse back together a moment later.

“Damn it,” Stephen muttered angrily.

“We know!” Harley called back, the sound of his smaller repulsor going off before hitting true, blasting a witch right through the middle. The wound healed itself and the witch roared and began her attack again.

The witches flying behind Stephen must have remembered they had access to magic, because dark blasts suddenly went flying by his head, almost singeing the Cloak. Said Cloak twitched and hugged itself closer to Stephen’s body to avoid the next blast.

“Damn you, Agatha.” Stephen groaned, turning in mid air and raising his hands to perform spells to defend himself.

“They don’t stay dead!” Peter whined, using the witches in the air as stepping stones as he jumped between fights, the legs on his back still working faster than the little boy could follow. He didn’t need to follow them, because the AI Tony had put into the boy’s suit was doing all the work for him.

“They don’t have to die, we just have to keep them occupied long enough for Wanda to handle Agatha.” Tony called back. “Keep your tallies up kids! We got this!”

It had been a long time since Stephen had gone against an infinite simulation; perhaps it had been the last time he’d trained at Kamar-Taj, but he was never one to back away from a harmless challenge. Thus far, the witches had demonstrated a basic use of magic, but they usually weren’t fast enough to use any spells before they were half imploded.

The fighting was by no means a challenge, but it was one of Stephen’s favorite fights. Surrounded by his children, they weaved between batch after batch of witches, trying out different techniques and creative ways to kill their enemies. Harley’s new favorite was just putting his head down and running straight through them with a loud cry, while Nebula was playing fruit ninja with Peter, slashing the witches to bits before moving on.

Tony and Stephen moved around each other in fluid motions, their magic and repulsors working together in a graceful dance. When there was something coming behind Stephen, Tony would blast it away, always showing off in the process. When Tony was occupied by another witch and one was preparing to fire at him, Stephen would cover him, sending the witch through an infinite amount of portals so it couldn’t focus long enough to attack.

Sometimes, when they danced around each other, their eyes would lock and time would stand still. Stephen would look into Tony’s eyes through his mask and know that Tony loved him, and he hoped he expressed the same for his husband.

At one point, they were front to front, Tony’s arms raised and blasting two witches behind Stephen while Stephen was taking care of three witches behind Tony. Their eyes were locked and a smirk was on both of their faces as they gazed at the other, expressing all their unspoken words through their eyes.

Tony retracted his mask and pressed a quick peck to Stephen’s lips before he flew off to handle a group of witches trying to attack a few townspeople.

The fight had been going so well.

There was a loud booming noise and Stephen felt something break in his chest. There were several people yelling around him, but Stephen wasn’t really thinking about that. Without warning, without any control over it, Stephen felt something begin to rip apart inside of him. Fading to nothing, agony its constant companion.

Stephen didn’t have a moment to think before he fell to the ground, managing to lift himself up with magic moments before his knees hit the concrete. He turned just in time to see his husband and children falling fast, not looking like they were going to stop themselves.

Stephen raised his hands and immediately every member of his family was surrounded by a soft green glow, and they hovered for just a moment above the ground before Stephen gently placed them down.

It was then Stephen realized something was very wrong. Everything around him was flickering through the periods of time Wanda had forced the town to live through; the sixties, seventies, present day.

When he looked up at the sky again, behind the witches was now a background of a bright red wall in the sky. He watched as the walls began to tear itself apart, slowly peeling back and revealing the bright, eggshell blue sky behind it.

Somebody bumped into Stephen from behind in their attempt to run away, which caused him to turn around and see who was doing this to the Hex.

‘Wanda is tearing it apart.’ Stephen realized.

She was opening the doors, tearing down the magic world she had built up. Her hands were glowing with a red mist and her entire person was surrounded by a bright red beacon, leading down from the sky as the magic flowed back at her command.

“Wanda! What are you doing?!” Stephen hollered, trying to catch her attention. “What is wrong with you?!”

Either Wanda didn’t hear him or didn’t care, because she let out a loud cry as her red column of magic continued to reabsorb into her body. Stephen’s further attempts to call out to her were disrupted by a pained voice.

“Stephen!” Tony’s voice was shouted between a sharp cry of pain, and Stephen’s heart dropped in his chest and his attention immediately redirected to his husband.

He ran over to Tony’s side, holding his husband against his chest as the man cried out in agony. Said agony was coming from his skin being ripped off his body, flaking and fading away into the air. Where the skin had left, holes remained, showing that the Tony in his arms was no more than Wanda’s creation.

If the Hex goes, they go.

But Stephen couldn’t think about that right now. “Tony!” He cried, his heart pounding in his chest and every move he made felt like he was moving through quicksand, trying to perform spells to keep his husband intact.

“It burns!” Tony wailed, writhing in Stephen’s grasp, his eyes blown wide and his mouth opening and closing with every scream he let out. “Stephen, help me! Make her stop!”

Stephen sputtered, desperately wanting to help but unsure what to do.

“Daddy!”

“Help us!”

Stephen looked up and saw his children were also fading away into nothing, the pieces of their body flying away like paper in the wind. They were all reaching out to him, tears in their eyes as they cried through the pain. For a split second, their real forms flickered in Stephen’s eyes: Nebula’s blue skin, Peter’s grown up face, Harley’s shorter curls.

But even worse than that, Stephen saw all the witches gathering above them, getting ready to deliver killing blows to the already weak family.

“No!” Stephen cried out, unwilling to let this be the end. Using the most powerful protection spell he knew, he pulled his children close to him, and the moment they were all close to him, he raised his hands and created a large shield around them.

The shield was a large orb with many sides, glowing a dark orange color. It glowed a dark white where the witches struck against it with their blasts, but it held strong.

Stephen looked out through the spell and saw that Wanda was struggling with her decision. He could hear Agatha talking at her, but it was the least of his worries.

“Stephen…” Stephen looked down again at Tony’s fading face, and felt the remnants of Tony’s hand touching his face. “I love…”

Wanda let out a loud, painful cry, and all the magic that had been flowing back into her went outwards, and with a loud boom, the Hex closed itself once again.

Within a few moments, the pieces of Tony and the childrens’ bodies came back to them, and they quickly became whole again. Stephen felt a large smile growing on his face and he wasted no time in pressing a tender kiss to Tony’s lips, then to each forehead of their children.

Stephen grunted, turning the protective orb in on itself and encased every witch, keeping them trapped in his protection spell so they were no longer an issue. He heard their deranged cries as they struggled to get out, but the orb would hold them until he took it away.

“Oh god,” Stephen gasped, pulling himself into his feet, helping Tony up too. The children rose on their own, hugging Stephen and Tony’s waists and muttering incoherently how relieved they were.

“Are you okay?” Tony asked, feeling Stephen’s face with both hands. With complete, total hands.

“Am I okay? Ask yourself, darling.” Stephen replied, pressing their foreheads together. “I’m alright as long as you’re with me.”

Tony chuckled, kissing Stephen passionately for a moment. “You are so in love with me it’s making you look stupid.”

The pair didn’t have time to relish in their family’s safety, because Wanda, Vision and the boys came running over. Stephen noticed that both of Wanda’s hands now were a dark, dead color, showing that Agatha had taken more of her power.

“Tony! I’m so sorry, I didn’t realize taking down the Hex would mean getting rid of you too.” Wanda apologized, her voice pleading for forgiveness.

“Make sure it doesn’t happen again, Mother Dearest. I was winning our Witches vs. Hicks game.” Tony accepted her apology, and Wanda sighed in relief.

Stephen glared up at Agatha, who was still cackling from her new spot floating in the air. There was a loud roaring of engines, and out of seemingly nowhere, several SWORD armored vehicles came running around the corner, stopping a few meters in front of the two families.

Several dozen agents began jumping out of the cars, pointing their guns at the Maximoffs and Stranges. Without hesitating, everyone raised their arms to reveal their abilities, ready to use them if need be.

Stephen noticed Hayward was still sitting in the passenger seat of his car, looking down at them with an approving look on his face.

“Come out and fight, you coward!” Tony called out, allowing the repulsors on his hand to glow a little brighter as he aimed them at Hayward’s car. Nearly every agent turned their guns on Tony now, but the man didn’t seem remotely bothered. “Aw, that’s cute. You guys really think a gun can cut through this? I’d love to see you try.”

“Listen boys,” Vision whispered to his children. “Your mother and I never really prepared you for this.”

Wanda tightened her jaw and didn’t take her eyes off the small army before her. “But you were born for it.”

There was a whooshing noise, and suddenly both Vision and White Vision were flying through the air together, before they crashed into the library to continue their fight. Stephen could hear crashing and the soft whirring sound of the Mind Stone, before there was silence.

“Look to the skies!” An agent wrongfully called out, and nearly every soldier turned their guns to Agatha, who was still impatiently waiting for something to happen.

Agatha didn’t hesitate, snapping black and purple magic between her fingers and causing every soldier to be lifted into the air, several feet from the ground. Not a tall enough height to kill them if dropped, but definitely break several bones and cause paralysis.

“Same story, different century,” Agatha mused, her voice casual. “They’ll always be torches and pitchforks for girls like us, Wanda.”

“Papa, I don’t like her.” Peter whispered, narrowing his eyes at the dark witch.

“Me neither, kiddo. Wanda’ll take care of her, alright?” Tony promised, and Wanda gave him a confused look. Upon noticing her face, Tony was quick to step in and comfort her.

“You’re the only one who can and the only one who should.” Tony elaborated, his voice gentle and sincere. “You’re the most powerful of us and let’s be honest, this is your fight.”

Stephen’s heart tightened at the words, but he knew Tony was right. “This isn’t my place to fight.” Stephen answered the unasked question when the young woman turned her scared face to him. “You can do this, Wanda.”

“Boys,” Wanda’s eyes hardened and there was a new confidence in her voice. Tony and Stephen’s brief encouragement must have worked. “Handle the military. Mommy will be right back.”

Since the witches were still held in their little prison, the Stark-Stranges didn’t have to do much for a few minutes. They watched and cheered as the twins showed off their new abilities by easily taking down the guards, and Stephen couldn’t resist sliding Hayward a few quippy one liners when Darcy Lewis ran her funnel cake truck into his, locking him in the car until the proper authorities arrived.

The Director crawled out of the truck and Stephen wasted no time conjuring up a pair of handcuffs for the man, then forced him to his knees.

Hayward scowled up at him, his lips in a snarl. “Fuck you for siding with her,” he spat at the ground by Stephen’s feet, but the Sorcerer only rolled his eyes. “How could you betray all these people like this? Betray your duty as an Avenger?”

“Okay, one, I’m barely an Avenger. And two, I did it for my family. The people I love. Something I’m not sure you have.” Stephen fired back, the smirk on his face oh-so satisfying.

But the brief moment of peace was ruined as Wanda and Agatha took their battle to the skies, and Wanda refused to allow her husband to come up and help her fight the battle.

“What is she doing?” Monica exclaimed, watching as Agatha and wanda circled each other, Agatha’s terrible taunting filling the air.

“She’s sticking it to her,” Tony replied, holding his breath as he watched Wanda fire a blast at Agatha which was quickly absorbed with a triumphant cackle. “I hope.”

Stephen held Tony close as Wanda willingly gave away all her power, sending it to Agatha in strong blasts that were quickly and happily absorbed. The witch took it all and then some, until Wanda was little more than a corpse flying through the air.

But Agatha had failed to calculate that Wanda was a quick learner, and she didn’t easily forget what she was told.

The Runes on the Hex’s wall sent a shiver down Stephen’s back, because this meant Wanda was accepting her identity as a witch. More importantly, the Scarlet Witch. The most powerful and strongest magic user in all of history.

The being that was supposed to be more powerful than him; the best of the Sorcerers of Kamar-Taj.

Stephen and his family watched as Wanda took all her power - and Agatha’s own - back, forging herself a new outfit, complete with a witch’s crown that also symbolized her power.

“Come on Wanda, finish her.” Tony goaded, watching with glee and pride as Wanda floated before Agatha now, the power flowing off her in waves.

But Wanda didn’t. With a wave of her hands, she set the two of them down on the ground again, letting a defeated Agatha fall to her knees and then her side, unable to stand without her power.

While everyone watched the next events unfold - Agatha warning Wanda that she’d need her, Wanda changing Agatha back to Agnes: the Nosy Neighbor - with pride and relief that they had won the battle, Stephen couldn’t help but be worried.

With all the loss Wanda had and all this newfound power at her fingertips, what was she going to do with it?

But when Wanda turned around, Stephen forced his face to turn up in a small smile, but thankfully he didn’t have to pretend for long when all four other members of his family brought him in for a group hug, squeezing and holding each other tight.

“We’re saved! Auntie Wanda saved us!”

“We can go home now!”

“Can we have ice cream for dinner tonight? We helped save the world, we deserve it!”

Stephen and Tony laughed, and Stephen blushed when his husband planted a tender kiss on his lips, the other people around them be damned.

But Vision’s soft voice broke through their happy bubble.

“I know you’ll set everything right. Just not for us.”

There was a small pause before Wanda replied with a shaky voice. “No. Not for us.”

Tony looked up at Stephen, his eyes pleading yet also accepting. “So, this is it, huh?”

“Yes, my dear. This is the end.” Stephen looked up and made eye contact with Wanda, who managed to meet his eyes and give a small nod. Stephen nodded back.

“And there’s nothing you can do about it?” Tony asked quietly. “That was an impressive light show and all, but you can take her, right? Or create your own world?”

The Sorcerer Supreme met his husband’s eyes, and he so desperately wanted to lie. He wanted to tell Tony exactly what he wanted to hear, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t force himself to. He promised to be honest.

“No. There is no other way.” Stephen managed to say without his voice cracking once. He forced a happy expression on his face and scooped Peter into his arms while Nebula crawled onto his back. Tony lifted Harley up and the five of them began to sing loud songs as they walked back towards their house.

------------------------

Judging by the speed the Hex was moving at, the Stark-Stranges had about an hour before the Hex closed in on them. They had about an hour before four out of five members disappeared.

Tony insisted on ice cream, so they stopped at a store and bought each kid a little quart for them to eat on the way home. Stephen and Tony walked hand in hand while the kids jogged ahead, laughing and shoveling their ice cream into their faces.

If the kids noticed that the Hex was closing, they didn’t say anything about it. Stephen didn’t know which was more heartbreaking: them not knowing or them knowing and not saying anything. He and Tony almost said something, but in the end it was Tony who said it was best they let them live in oblivion, or not confirm their suspicions for them.

So the kids ate the ice cream Tony bought for them on the way home and talked about what they wanted to do tomorrow. Three times each they would glance over their shoulders, or look up at the red sky getting closer and closer, but they would carry on with a smile and a skip in their step as if nothing were wrong.

“I want to go to the beach!” Peter exclaimed as they stepped through the threshold of their house, his spider suit disappearing with a wave of Stephen’s hand. Nebula and Harley’s suit vanished as well, and Tony’s suit vanished with two soft taps to his chest.

“We already went to the beach.” Harley groaned. “What about the science museum? I’ve always wanted to go there!”

“That’s boring, Harley. You always want to do boring things.” Nebula stuck her tongue out at her brother, who blew a raspberry back.

“It’s not boring! You’re just not smart enough to understand it!” Tony couldn’t stop himself from choking on air.

“Hey now, that’s too far.” Stephen stopped that fight before it could get off the ground, and thankfully the two of them dropped it. He couldn’t help but smile at his family as they bickered back and forth about what to do, and Peter gave a tired yawn.

It seemed like any other night. There was nothing different about this night.

Stephen wasn’t about to lose everything.

“You never said what you wanted to do, Nebula.” Tony pointed out as the five of them walked up the stairs and towards the bedrooms. “I know you don’t want to do whatever your brothers want to do, but you gotta come up with something.”

Nebula paused. “I think we should build a fort in my room and the boys can sleep with me. And tomorrow, we can skip school and spend the whole day together.”

Stephen’s heart broke in his chest. Into a million tiny pieces, he could hear it shattering. When he looked at Tony, he knew he felt the same.

But the billionaire brushed the tears from his eyes and plastered a big grin on his face. Stephen recognized it as the grin he’d worn when he’d come home from Afghanistan, or when asked about the Battle of New York. It was his press smile, but there was something a little more genuine about this one.

If Tony could focus on the here and now instead of the fast approaching future, then so could Stephen.

“That sounds like a beautiful idea, mon ami.” Tony agreed, lifting Nebula into his arms and escorting them all to the little girl’s room. “Now come on, make the best pillow fort you guys possibly can.”

Tony and Stephen watched, hand in hand, as their kids constructed the best pillow fortress ever seen. They pulled in blankets from every room and stacked everything twice as high as they ever had before, adding in things like a secret doorway because they could.

Once the fort was finished, Stephen allowed himself a glance out of the window. The Hex was moving closer, the darker sky a contrast to the glowing red magic. They had about twenty minutes now, by his calculations.

“Okay kids, one at a time come over and say goodnight to your good ol’ dads.” Tony called out before their three children could get situated. Stephen and Tony knelt down on the ground so they would be looking up at their children.

Harley was first.

But the young man who stepped out of the tent did not match the image of their son Wanda had created for them.

The Harley who crawled out of the fort was grown up, maybe in his late teens. His hair was still blond but shorter, the curls less tight and more loose on his head. His eyes were still a deep blue and his expression was one of grit and hardship, one that Stephen knew was being reflected back at him.

Damn you, Wanda. In the Hex’s dying breaths, she had given them a chance to say goodbye to their children properly, as their true selves. God, he owed her so many favors.

Harley shoved his hands into his pants and sheepishly looked down at his parents, his eyes tracking them as they rose to their feet to meet their now grown up son. A smirk rising to his lips. “Hey, Mr. Stark, Doctor Strange.” The young man’s smirk warped into a grin without his permission. “Been a long time, I was worried you were really gonna be like my dad and never come back for me.”

Tony’s sigh held such relief that when he exhaled, his shoulders relaxed and stayed there. His eyes closed for a moment and when he opened them, there was a faraway look in them as more pieces of his life slid into place.

“Haven’t seen you since the funeral, kid. I told you to reach out if you needed anything.” Stephen realized now why Harley was placed in the Hex. After Tony’s funeral, Stephen had seen the young man grieving on the side as though he didn’t feel like he belonged, and Stephen had gone up to him and shared a cup of coffee with him.

Wanda must have seen and given him a chance to know the boy best.

Harley shrugged. “I do better on my own.” He tried to insist, but the aversion of his eyes showed he didn’t mean it.

Smiling, Stephen put an arm around him and held him close, and held out his other arm for Harley to walk into. The young man didn’t hesitate a moment before he ran at his parents at full speed, burying himself in their warmth and letting himself rest there, his eyes closing and not thinking of anything but this moment. Tony grabbed on tight and Stephen did the same, the three of them holding each other in a way that made them feel whole again, but none of them could really explain it.

Tony broke the hug, then reached up to wipe the tear off of Harley’s face. “You’re gonna be okay, Tiger. You’re super strong, you know that?”

“I am not.” Harley protested. “I just have a brain and a quarter of an understanding of what I’m supposed to do. That’s not enough.”

“That’s more than enough.” Stephen insisted. “And you are so much smarter than you think, even though you don’t want to admit it.”

“And are you saying that a brain and a quarter of an understanding isn’t enough? ‘Cause this is news to me, I had way less than that and look what I did.” Tony commented, clapping Harley on the back, which only caused more tears to fall.

“You…” Harley choked out. “You did leave me, Tony. You left me like my dad.”

Tony tilted his head and glanced up at Stephen before he looked back down at the boy. “I did. You know why I had to, right?”

“Obviously, I don’t live under a rock, I know what the Avengers...what you did.” Harley choked out, looking down. “But I’m scared, and I don’t have anybody to help me.”

“You’re our brave young man.” Stephen smiled, refusing to cry. He couldn’t, he wouldn’t. “And I will find you in the real world, okay? We are so proud of you, Harley.”

Something clicked in Harley’s eyes because he looked up slowly and met Tony’s gaze. “I saved your life. Admit it Dad, we’re connected.”

“Cheeky. That’s what you are, and you don’t get that from me.”

Stephen made a face. “He doesn’t get it from me, either.”

Tony scoffed and brought Harley in for another hug, and Stephen didn’t hesitate to join in, wrapping his arms around Tony and Harley and closed his eyes, trapping the memory in his mind.

“We love you so much.” Stephen said, gripping onto Harley’s shoulders when the boy pulled away.

“I love you guys too.”

Tony chuckled and managed to wrap Harley under his armpit and give him a good rub on the head. “You just love what we can do for you, no need to be a pussy and lie. Now get some sleep and dream of the science museum okay?”

Harley grinned and nodded, pressing a quick kiss to both parents’ cheeks before he turned and walked away, disappearing into the fort.

Nebula was next.

And just like Harley, they weren’t greeted by the small little girl that they had raised the past few days. The Nebula that stood before them was the very same that had fought beside them during the fight with Thanos, the young woman who had risked everything to seek vengeance from her abusive father with a god complex.

Most of Nebula’s features were the same, her blue and purple skin, with the silver and gold robotic parts that Thanos had ripped from her and replaced whenever she didn’t meet his ridiculous standards. She was wearing the same outfit she’d worn during the Battle of Earth.

But the one thing that was different about her was that her eyes weren’t sad. The dark depths of her eyes had usually held so much pain that had been only barely masked, and it had never been difficult to determine what the pain was from. But right now, her eyes showed that she was at peace, and more importantly, happy.

Stephen smiled at her, bringing her in close for a tight, loving hug. God knew she didn’t get enough in the real world. Maybe this was a sign to reach out to her and love her more. Though she did have the Guardians and Thor to run around with, he wasn’t sure if that was the most positive crowd to run around with.

“We’re not actually going to the science museum, are we?” Nebula asked, her voice quiet and raspy just like it was in the real world.

“Absolutely not.” Tony agreed, making a funny face. “We’re going to do exactly as you said, because you’re the person in charge here. You are the strongest one here, and definitely the best fighter. No one in the entire galaxy could call themselves better than you.”

“You think so?” Nebula absolutely beamed, her eyes gaining a glint to them. “Or are you just saying that to make me forget about what’s happening?”

Stephen and Tony shared a glance, and when they looked back at Nebula she sighed.

“All three of us know what’s going on,” Nebula admitted, almost sadly. It sounded like it pained her to say like she didn’t want it to be true, and chances are it was because she didn’t. “We know Wanda is taking down her Hex and when we wake up tomorrow morning, this will all have been a dream.”

“A dream?” Stephen echoed. “So you’ve known the whole time?”

Nebula shook her head. “I didn’t know a sliver of the truth until today. When Wanda became the Scarlet Witch, it caused our memories to come back. But the two of you didn’t say anything so we didn’t either. You wanted to protect us and we wanted to protect you just as much.”

“We don’t need any protection.” Tony insisted.

“And neither do we. You said it yourself, we’re strong and capable.” Nebula paused. “It doesn’t mean we want to be. It was nice, to have a small experience of the childhood I always wanted. A childhood where I didn’t have to fight for my survival and compete with a sister who I only wanted to love. I got to love my brothers without consequence.”

Nebula sucked in a deep breath and opened her mouth, but nothing came out. She tried again, looking in between her fathers and the floor and the piece of skin she was tearing off her flesh finger, but nothing was coming out. Nothing except stuttering and gasps and tears from her eyes.

“I...am...thankful…I don’t know how I got here or why, but I am...thankful. To you both.” Nebula managed to say before Tony reached forward and brought her into another hug, holding her close and not letting go.

Stephen watched as her eyes slowly shifted from confusing to acceptance to happiness, and soon her eyes closed and she gently motioned for Stephen to join.

“We know.” Stephen promised. Whatever it is Nebula wanted to say, Stephen and Tony already knew. “We are so grateful to you too.”

Nebula allowed the hug to last for a few more seconds before she pulled away and dashed back into the tent, but Stephen knew she understood.

And lastly, Peter appeared.

All grown up, his hair curly and a little longer than Stephen remembered. His eyes were wide and frantic and he didn’t think twice before running and jumping into an embrace with Tony, full out weeping into the man’s shoulder. Tony held back like he was holding onto his life line, he held on like letting go would mean certain death.

“Mr. Stark! I missed you, oh God I missed you, I’m so sorry, I’m so sorry I wasn’t enough, that I didn’t help you, that I didn’t think of everything, that I died in the first place I’m so sorry, I’m so sorry.” Peter was speaking so fast Stephen could barely understand the words. “And Mr. Wizard I’m sorry for annoying you in the Soul Stone, I was so nervous back then but I promise I’m better now, or I will be when I get over myself. I’m so sorry Mr. Stark, oh Tony, I’m so sorry…”

“Kid, kid.” Tony interjected, holding Peter close and allowing them all to sink to the floor, Stephen holding them all together. “You’re alright. Okay? You know why? Because you’re fine. Right? You don’t even need me anymore. You’re all grown up.”

“No, Mr. Stark, I’ll always need you. I have no idea what to do and I’m so scared…” Peter mumbled between his tears. “Nothing’s been okay since you...since you left and I never know what to do.”

Stephen took a small step back and smiled gently when Tony gave him a confused look. Stephen offered a small dip of his head for affirmation and told Tony what he was thinking: this was more a goodbye for him than for Stephen. Tony smiled gratefully back and turned back to Peter.

“Hey, you’re not alone. You’ve got Happy, don’t you?”

“Yeah, but he’s always mean to me.” Peter tried to protest.

“And I wasn’t? Come on kid, you know Happy’s nothing compared to me. And you’ve got Pepper and MJ, are you guys dating yet or still in the gaze at each other longingly phase?” Tony teased, giving Peter a gentle shove. A smile managed to come to Peter’s face as he was clearly thinking about MJ.

“No, we’re dating now,” Peter smiled sheepishly, scratching the back of his head while kicking his toe into the ground, the picture perfect image of a shy, excited teenager. “She’s amazing, and I’m really excited for this. I wish you could have met her.”

“Oh I know everything about her, I had Happy look into her for me back when I first saw the two of you together.” At Tony’s words, Peter’s jaw fell open in shock and Tony couldn’t keep his laughter in. Stephen raised an eyebrow, but when he saw Peter’s confused face directed at him, the Sorcerer just shrugged.

Looking at Peter’s face, Stephen could see in the background of his vision that the Hex was getting ever closer, no sign of stopping or slowing down. They were running out of time, no matter how much Stephen prayed time would slow down.

“I don’t doubt it, but that’s a little overboard, sweetie.” Stephen stepped back into the conversation, wrapping one arm around Tony. “But I would love to meet MJ, if you’d be willing to bring her around sometime Peter.”

Peter’s eyes lit up at that. “Really?! Could you show her a bunch of cool magic tricks! She’ll think I’m so cool now that I’m friends with a wizard!”

“Peter, you’re literally Spider-Man.”

“Yeah, but Doctor Strange-” Peter cut himself off with a smile. “Dad is a wizard! And that’s super cool! Can I bring Ned too? He’s a huge fan.”

Stephen looked at Tony for help, but the shorter man giggled and didn’t throw him a bone. “You got yourself into that one, dear.” He leaned up on his tip toes and gave Stephen a kiss on the cheek before he immediately turned to give Peter a peck on the cheek as well.

Peter ran in for the hug, holding Stephen and Tony close with his impressive super strength. Stephen coughed once, struggling for a moment to breathe in despite the awkward angle Peter’s arm was digging into his back, but he didn’t say anything and forced himself to relax, holding his youngest son close.

“Okay,” Both adults waited for Peter to break the hug, waiting for him to be ready. The young man pulled back and smiled up at his parents, giving them a big of a smile as he could muster around his once again teary face. “Thank you. For everything.”

Tony smiled sincerely back, his own eyes cloudy with more unshed tears. “I’m so proud of you, Peter.” He said, the words nearly catching on his throat but he managed to say them.

“As am I.” Stephen added, smiling much more confidently than Tony could manage at the moment. Peter smiled gratefully, before he slowly turned around and crawled back into the tent.

Tony turned around first, stepping out of the room where the sound of his sniffling was almost unheard. Stephen didn’t comment on it, and walked over to the light switch.

“Dad?” Stephen heard the tiny voice of his daughter. He turned around and saw all three small children poking their heads out of the pillow fort, their tears dry on their childish faces.

“Thanks for choosing us to be your kids,” Harley said.

“I didn’t-” Stephen started to say, but stopped himself short, a smile interrupting his words. “No, thank you for choosing me to be your Dad.”

All three children smiled back at him, and Stephen looked at them until he couldn’t anymore. He turned and shut off the lights, stepping out of the room and pulling the door shut behind him.

Tony wasn’t in the hallway, but the doorway to their bedroom was still closed and Stephen could hear the sound of his panicked footsteps pacing in the living room.

DUM-E was laying half asleep by the top of the stairs, but he still jolted awake when Stephen got closer. The Sorcerer knelt down and gave the dog some heartfelt scratches, chuckling when the dog’s tail flipped up and down in his excitement.

“My best boy,” Stephen murmured, planting a kiss on DUM-E’s forehead. “Such a good boy.”

Stephen forced himself to blink back the tears as he rose to his feet, but he pointed to the kids’ room. “Why don’t you go sleep with them, alright?” Stephen suggested, and it broke his heart a little more when DUM-E obeyed, climbing to his feet and made his way to the room. He bumped it open with his nose and Stephen heard all the children crying out in excitement when they noticed the new addition.

Stephen turned and walked down the stairs, slowing down a little when he saw Tony standing still, looking out the large window, his eyes fixed on the red wall inching its way closer.

Stephen was suddenly standing beside his husband before he could process it, following his gaze and looking out at the thing that was about to destroy his world.

Tony surprised him by reaching out and taking his hand in his, interlacing their fingers and giving it a comforting squeeze. Stephen squeezed back and smiled softly.

“I’ve already died once, so I’m not really scared,” Tony broke the silence, forcing his voice to keep flat. “But somehow this time is more...terrifying.”

“You didn’t know you were going to die until I told you moments before your death.” Stephen pointed out, not looking down at Tony even when his husband turned to face him. “But this time, you do know, but you still know there’s nothing you can do about it.”

“Maybe it’s ‘cause I’ve died before, or maybe it’s because I just figured out what the hell was going on in this stupid, confusing world. But something about this time…” Tony took Stephen’s other hand in his and forced the man to turn and look at him. He hesitated on his choice of words for a moment before he decided on nothing. He looked up into Stephen’s eyes, his dark eyes pleading and desperate.

“Stay with me?” Tony whispered, an echo of the confident man he’d been on the battlefield. Stephen’s chest tightened at the softness of his words, the implication behind them.

Stay with me until there’s nothing left.

“I don’t want to be alone.” Tony added, and Stephen could tell he was forcing himself not to look outside. At the Red Wall, at the end of his life getting closer and closer with every passing second.

“Always, my dear.”

I will never leave you again.

Stephen closed the short distance between them and held Tony against his chest, wrapping his arms around the shorter man, allowing Tony to nuzzle his face into Stephen’s chest, while the taller man rested his chin on Tony’s head.

Stephen raised a hand and the speaker in the corner of the room began playing a familiar tune.

That Arizona sky, burning in your eyes.

Tony let out a noise that was part sob, part chuckle and part sigh. He pulled his head out of Stephen’s chest and looked up at him adoringly, his eyes betrayed how much he loved this moment.

“You know this never really happened, right?” Tony tried to convince Stephen, but the taller man wasn’t having any of it. “Our wedding is nothing more than a memory.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Stephen played coy, grabbing Tony’s hand and swirling him around. Tony giggled and gladly reinserted himself on Stephen’s chest, keeping his one hand clasped and the other resting on Stephen’s shoulder now.

When the sun goes down, and the band won’t play, I’ll always remember us this way.

And Stephen would. He would remember his husband exactly like this moment. The wistful and loving look in his eyes, the smile on his lips. He would remember the wrinkles around his eyes and the gray strands in his hair that he fought against with different dyes. He would remember Tony’s soft scent, which mostly smelled like oil and grease and the strange air freshener he kept in the suits.

Stephen would remember the perfect way Tony’s body fit in his hands, the way they moved together like they were always meant to move together, like the universe had written it so. He would remember Tony’s gentle curves and rough hands from years in the labs.

He would remember the sarcastic yet caring Tony kept with him and the children, and he would also remember how wonderfully he’d raised their children.

Most importantly, Stephen would remember how much he loved Tony, and how much Tony loved him.

Because Tony loved him, right? Even though he had been nothing short of a manipulative, abusive, gaslighting asshole, Tony had forgiven him, that’s why he came to save him earlier today, why he kissed him so lovingly, why he was dancing with him now?

Tony must have sensed there was something wrong (Stephen had suddenly tensed up immensely, every fiber in his body rigid, so it didn’t exactly take a genius to figure out something was bothering him) because he pulled away and looked up at Stephen, tilting his head and giving him a knowing look.

Stephen raised an eyebrow. “What is it, dear?”

Tony forced a smile, but it was filled with regret. “I wish I could promise the same; that I wouldn’t leave you ever again, but that would make me a dirty, dirty liar and there’s only room for one of those in our relationship.”

Stephen inhaled sharply and was quick to apologize once again. “I know, and I am so, so sorry that I lied to you. Like I said before, I was just so excited to have you in the situation I never let you have a voice. Wanda created you to be your own person, or have the ability to become your own person, and I only thought of that when it was convenient for me. And I am so sorry for lying, about gaslighting you, about being an asshole, everything. I am sorry.” Stephen sucked in a breath. “And I wish we had the time so I could prove to you how sorry I am, because I would spend the rest of my life trying to truly let you know how much I love you and how sorry I am.”

Now it was Tony who raised an eyebrow. “I’ve never heard the one and only Stephen Strange say the words ‘I’m sorry’ so much before. I must really be special.”

“You are.” Stephen was quick once again to affirm that. “You are the most important thing in the world to me.”

Tony leaned up and pressed a soft kiss to Stephen’s cheek. “And you to me. Anyway, back to my original point, because I did have one, I forgave you earlier because I mean it. I forgive you. Free of charge, except maybe a couple backrubs and lots of kisses.”

Stephen almost melted in pure joy. “Thank you,” he said sincerely, kissing Tony’s forehead.

“And I almost said it when Wanda nearly kamkazied us all-”

“That’s not what a kamikaze is.”

“Yeah, whatever. Anyway, I almost said it before, but,” Tony met his eyes and blinked, a tear rolling out of the side of his eye. It was terribly poetic, but Stephen couldn’t force himself to let go of Tony for even a moment to wipe the tear from his eye. He was too worried if he let him go, Tony would vanish between his fingertips.

“I love you, Stephen Strange. I’m not done.” Tony put a finger on Stephen’s lips before he could be interrupted. “And I gotta say, my brain is still in a blender serving up half finished smoothies of memories, so I can’t say for sure how...the real Tony Stark felt about you, but I know how I feel about you.”

Stephen waited with his stomach turning into knots with every second Tony didn’t say anything. “And? How do you feel about me?”

Tony closed his eyes and smiled ever so softly. “I love you. More than anything. I know it’s what I was created to do, but I think-no, I know I would love you either way.”

So when I’m all choked up and I can’t find the words. Every time we say goodbye baby it hurts.

Stephen let his hands desperately travel up Tony’s body and onto his face, grasping onto both of his cheeks. “I love you.”

“Kiss me, idiot.” Tony requested, and Stephen obeyed. He gently pulled their faces together and pressed his lips to Tony’s soft ones, passing all of his emotions through the kiss.

The kiss was the most passionate they’d ever had. It felt like the only kiss they’d ever had that ever mattered, the first kiss they’d had they truly understood each other and the situation around them.

Of course, because the universe loved to taunt Stephen, it was going to be one of their last kisses.

Unless…

Stephen pulled away as he remembered something that Vision had said when they’d met in the sky. “Do you trust me?” He asked sincerely, still holding Tony’s face in his hands.

“Absolutely.” Tony raised an eyebrow in questioning. “What are you thinking?”

Stephen looked out of the window and realized they had mere moments before the Hex closed around them, taking Tony with. He looked back to Tony’s confused eyes and took a deep breath. “Wanda created you with the piece of the Mind Stone that lives within her, but this means you’re pure energy. I can keep some of this energy with me, and use it to find you wherever you go after the Hex goes down.”

Tony looked confused, but he nodded slowly. “So you’d have a piece of my Soul?” Stephen nodded and Tony blinked. “How do you know it will work?”

“I don’t,” Stephen admitted sadly. “But it’s all I got right now, and I need something.”

Tony nodded, more confident now. “Promise you’ll find me? Find us?” He was referring to the children, of course.

Stephen nodded eagerly, ignoring the roaring of the Hex outside the window. “I promise. My love, I promise.”

Tony smiled, tears falling freely from his eyes. “Then by all means, go for it.”

Stephen ignored how their house began flickering around them, fading through the decades and time periods Wanda had chosen from her favorite sitcoms. He ignored how Tony’s body was fading and falling away as golden strings, pulling him apart like a ball of yarn.

Stephen kept his eyes on Tony’s as he began to focus, desperately pushing power through his fingers. He noticed that the scars were beginning to reappear on his hands, itching up the back of his palms and towards his fingertips. His hands began to shake, the tremor returning with a vengeance. He’d almost forgotten what it had felt like.

Tony felt Stephen’s hands growing shakier, and he lifted his own and pressed them over the back of Stephen’s hands, keeping them pressed against his cheeks. Tony’s hands were beginning to fade, but the pressure was comforting and enough to keep Stephen focused on the task.

“Stephen,” Tony pleaded, the tears on his face flying off his face and disappearing. “I don’t want to leave you. Please, don’t let me go.”

“I won’t,” Stephen promised, finally feeling some of Tony’s soul condensing from the air, meaning the spell was working. Tony would stay with him. “I’ve got you, my dear. I’ve got you.”

"Promise me forever," Tony pleaded, desperate.

Stephen couldn't do anything but agree. "I promise."

“Stephen.” Tony pleaded again, and Stephen hadn’t even realized that Tony was mostly just golden strings between his fingers until his shoulders vanished slowly. “Come find us, okay?”

“Okay,” Stephen ignored the way his voice cracked, but he was so close to keeping a piece of Tony with him he couldn’t focus on anything else. “I love you so much, Tony.”

“I love you.” Tony replied, his face the only solid part of him now. “I love you.”

And suddenly, Tony’s face twinkled away, but Stephen was quick. He cupped his hands together, sucking powering into a little circle in the center of his palms. He closed his hands around the strings, feeling the power condensing.

When he opened his palms there was a glowing orb that looked similar to an Infinity Stone. It pulsed like a heartbeat between Stephen’s hands, and he couldn’t stop staring at it in amazement.

Tony’s soul. I’ve got him.

The soul blinked at him, like it was trying to say something.

“I love you too, darling.” Stephen replied breathlessly, blinking. Tears fell on his palms, but the Sorcerer couldn’t bring himself to care.

He felt a breeze on the back of his neck and he looked up, and wasn’t surprised with the scene around him. Instead of being dark out, it was daytime, the exact time Wanda must have come to Westview and created her world.

The area that had once been the Stark-Strange residence was now an empty plot of land; Wanda’s magic had created their house and now that it was gone, their house had been taken with it.

Stephen looked around, taking in the unfamiliar world around him. He’d become so accustomed to the Hex he had almost forgotten what the real world was like. Bitter, tiring were words that Stephen would use.

Stephen’s eyes fell on Wanda, who was standing in the empty plot that had been her house. There were tears in her eyes that Stephen could see even from this distance, and he could only guess how emotional this goodbye was for her, too.

Wanda looked up and met his eyes, and Stephen tightly clenched Tony’s soul in his palm. Wanda didn’t need to know about this, not now at least.

Stephen dipped his head to her, and she dipped her head back.

A mutual understanding, a truce. A thank you, a farewell.

Stephen waved his hand and his robes returned, the dark blues and the Cloak on his back a familiar presence on his body.

He turned and opened a portal behind him, and stepped through.

------------------------

Stephen loved the Sanctum because it was quiet and his home, where he had learned about magic and saved his life as well as the entire universe. But his favorite part of the mysterious place was simple: the Sanctum was full of hiding places.

It had been constructed by some of the most elusive and powerful wizards throughout all of time, so naturally they were very secretive people. The Sanctum was full of things that should never see the light of day, lest absolute destruction was desired.

As a result of the numerous secrets and paranoid wizards and witches, the Sanctum had no shortage of hidden passageways, or rooms that could only be seen if looked at from a certain angle or trap doors that led to an entirely new section of the Sanctum.

It had been quite the experience trying to find each and every hidden passageway the Sanctum had to offer, and at the end of the day Stephen came up with eight hundred and thirty seven different trap doors or secret rooms or portals to other worlds. He kept mental notes where everyone was and where they led to for further reference.

The few times the Sanctum had opened up its doors for harmless tourists (it had taken ages to convince Wong and he agreed only after they made tickets cost a pretty penny, but that solved more than a few problems as Stephen pointed out to Wong a while ago nobody accepted metaphysical money) several mothers had reported to Stephen or other magic users that their children were nowhere to be found. Stephen would conjure up a bit of magic and the children would appear again, crying about how the plant on the second floor wasn’t a plant at all, but if it swallowed you, it sent you to a completely new environment.

Needless to say they didn’t open their doors very often after those rumors started getting out. They received several angry messages from Karens on Facebook for ‘endangering their children’

Eventually, the excitement of finding the hidden rooms had faded and Stephen had realized that the solution to being alone was even easier than finding the hidden spaces and was simply conjuring up one with his own powers. He’d become a master at creating an illusion of an empty room so that he could read his spells or sleep in peace, without Wong coming in every five minutes to complain about one thing or another.

But today, Stephen didn’t bother putting up an illusion spell around himself. He sat in plain sight, sitting in front of the large window with the Sanctum symbol on it, looking out at the city. People watching had once been his favorite thing, and though he wasn’t interested in bringing that habit back, he found he hadn’t lost the skill.

An older woman passed, her ring around her neck: a dead husband. There were other rings around the chain, likely gifts from her grandchildren, of which she had twelve. A young man wearing an expensive looking suit and carrying a briefcase: broke. The suit was rented and the watch was a fake.

A hot cup of tea sat on the table beside him, but it was several hours old now, the only thing keeping it warm was Stephen’s magic.

Maybe Stephen didn’t put up a spell because he was lazy (a word Wong loved to use when describing him to anyone who asked). Casting and holding an illusion spell was a lot of work - especially the ultra-realistic ones Stephen put up, he had a talent - and he didn’t really care for wasting that energy when he didn’t have anything productive or secretive to do. Or maybe it was because he was sick of living where he couldn’t be seen; the Hex came to mind.

Or maybe he hoped Wong would come barging into the room sooner or later and talk to him. Even if it was for a lecture or absolute silence, Wong’s presence was sorely missed.

The only thing Stephen knew for sure was that he didn’t want to be alone. Beyond that, nothing was making much sense. His emotions were simultaneously through the roof and so far submerged into the darkest pits of his mind he couldn’t hope to decipher what he was feeling.

Stephen was dressed in his normal robes with the Cloak floating beside him, also looking out the window. It would glance back at Stephen every few moments just to check on him, but Stephen pretended not to notice since he wasn’t going to give the Cloak the satisfaction anyway.

His focus was drawn solely on the Time Stone in his lap, the green Infinity Stone humming and glowing softly. The Eye was open, but Stephen wasn’t using it for anything, which was a first. The Time Stone went about singing its song, and Stephen listened.

It yearned for its other half, the tiny glowing soul that sat beside it now. The glowing ember sang its own song, and together they performed a beautiful melody that Mozart and Beethoven could only dream of personifying.

The highs and lows of the tune, the swelling and epitome of it all made Stephen feel as though he was flying through the clouds, not a care in the world as he held hands with someone just out of sight. If he closed his eyes and let his mind drift, he could almost see a head of messy brown hair with the signature beard to match, peeking out from a protective armor of red and gold.

“Stephen,” Wong’s soft voice interrupted his thoughts. The sorcerer’s voice was loud but not rude, because while he was no longer walking on eggshells around Stephen he had been polite enough to tone down his sarcasm a little.

Stephen adjusted himself and tried to make it seem like he was startled rather than content. Finally; it had taken him long enough.

“Wong.” Stephen replied curtly, trying to pretend he hadn’t been waiting for Wong to walk over and disturb him.

Of course, Wong could tell the difference between Stephen actually being annoyed with his presence and being grateful for it. And from the way Stephen adjusted himself in his seat but didn’t close the Eye or face Wong, the sorcerer could tell his presence was appreciated. If Stephen had closed the Eye, it would have meant he was doing something he absolutely didn’t want Wong to see. Better yet, he would have hidden himself and Wong would have never found him.

Wong took in Stephen’s worn down expression, the dark bags under his eyes. His hair was unkempt and falling in his eyes, and he hadn’t shaved in a while. The Sorcerer Supreme had definitely seen better days.

“Stephen, it’s been two weeks. You’ve barely eaten, barely slept. Barely moved from this seat in three days.” Wong stated slowly, and Stephen scoffed. “Don’t you think it’s time you stop sulking and move on?”

Stephen hung his head for a moment and bit his bottom lip Wong was right but part of his story was missing: he had barely moved from this chair for the past week; he’d only made himself visible for the past three days. He barely ate or drank. He conjured up small amounts of food when he felt like eating and if he did leave the chair it was for very short periods of time.

Wong had come around a lot in the beginning, right when Stephen had gotten back from the Hex after the final fight against Agatha and Wanda had shut off her magic, releasing the town. After Stephen had said goodbye to his children and husband.

For how depressed Stephen was now, it had been much worse the first three days. He had not moved an inch in bed, no matter how much convincing or prodding Wong had given. No matter the amount of convincing that it was for the best or Stephen could possibly see Tony again would soothe him. When Stephen had risen, it was just to get a small bite to eat, disappear for an hour, then sit down in the chair he was currently in.

Wong had left him alone for the most part, but now he was done with that. They both knew Stephen was grateful.

“I’m serious.” Wong narrowed his eyes, clearly annoyed that Stephen was still pretending he wasn’t glad Wong was there. “You are neglecting your duties as Sorcerer Supreme and it is costing us valuable time and effort. We’ve gotten an increase in reports of magical issues, and if we don’t step in soon, I fear the results. This goes beyond your own grief now.”

“Take my duties then.” Stephen replied lamely, waving his hand. When the Cloak flashed him a confused look, Stephen scoffed again. “Oh don’t look at me like that; you’re sick of standing here with me, you can be free for a while.”

“Stephen, I cannot take your duties because I am not the Sorcerer Supreme. That’s you, even though you’ve obviously forgotten.” Wong fired back, crossing his arms. He took in Stephen’s hunched shoulders and furrowed brow and sighed.

“I’m sorry.” Wong added softly. Stephen opened his mouth to protest that notion, that he didn’t want Wong’s pity and misunderstanding of the situation, but Wong was faster. “I am. You know I am.”

Stephen hesitated, then slumped again, eyes on the piece of Tony’s soul still in the Stone. It hummed and seemed to be reaching for Stephen, and the wizard wanted more than anything to reach back.

I can almost find him. I’m getting close.

Stephen shook his head and looked up at Wong for the first time. Wong took a moment to look at his face, taking in the cheekbones that made Stephen’s face look even more tired combined with the bags under his eyes.

“If it were up to me I’d’ve allowed you to stay.” Wong said, pulling up a chair and sitting down beside Stephen. “It’s the least you deserve.”

Stephen sighed, looking down at the Eye. Its tune changed and Stephen tried to ignore the flutter of hope that passed through him. It was crushed anyway when the tune halted and returned to normal.

“But it’s not up to you. Or me.” Stephen leaned back in his seat and looked out the window, spotting a middle aged man carrying a child in his arms and pulling the other along with him by the hand. “His wife died in a car accident a year ago. Left behind two kids and a mortgage he had to sell the car to pay.”

Wong ignored Stephen’s feeble attempt to change the subject and his eyes fell to the Eye. “What are you planning to do with that?”

Stephen still didn’t close the Eye or turn it over in his hands. “I’m not doing anything with it.” Stephen said simply, his voice honest.

Wong glanced between his fellow sorcerer and the Time Stone. With a sigh, he said, “Tony Stark’s death may not be a pivotal point in your life - don’t look at me like that, you know what I mean - but his death is still an Absolute Point in Time. Without his death the Avengers would not have won and Thanos would have taken over. You know this.”

Stephen turned away, his eyes downcast. “Better than anyone.” He muttered, not quite loud enough for Wong to catch. But the other man was in no mood for Stephen’s brooding anymore.

“What was that?” He challenged.

“I said, I know that Tony’s death was Absolute better than anyone. I saw every single future, Wong.” Stephen enunciated every word by pressing his finger into the armrest of the chair, his narrowed eyes fixated on Wong as he flashed a sneer. “Forgive me if I take some time to mourn.”

“I never said it was wrong to mourn.”

“You basically did.”

“No I didn’t. Don’t put words in my mouth when I’m only trying to help.”

That shut Stephen up. He sighed and looked away, finally reaching for his cup of tea that sat almost forgotten on the table, but still warm. “I know. You always do.”

“Aren’t you going to say thank you?” Wong decided to push it a little bit, making sure to keep his voice light. Stephen managed his first chuckle in days, his eyes creasing at the corners.

“Don’t push it.” Wong hummed, knowing that was the closest he’d get.

“So,” Wong clasped his hands together after a moment of silence. “You never answered my question. What are you planning to do with that?”

Stephen rolled his eyes and sighed. “I’m not going to reverse time. I know it’s both a waste of my effort and will only cause me more heartbreak to try and find a way to have Tony alive in this world.” Stephen looked up as rain drops began to hit against the window before it was down pouring.

“I’ve heard the warnings about what can happen if someone tried to reverse an Absolute Point: universes would be destroyed and the world would crumble. Not exactly something I want to happen.” Stephen joked, but Wong gave him a quizzical look.

“Who told you about the consequences of reversing an Absolute Point.” Wong demanded, narrowing his eyes.

Stephen adjusted in his seat and gave Wong his full attention. His expression betrayed nothing, in fact to Wong he looked genuinely confused. “You did, I’m sure.”

“I never told you that. I wasn’t aware you knew what an Absolute Point in time was until after you’d discovered Tony’s death, and we didn’t speak until after the Battle of Earth.”

Stephen gave him a look. “Are you getting enough sleep, Wong? Maybe I talked to your astral form.”

“I would remember.” Wong crossed his arms. “I remember everything.”

“Uh huh.” Stephen seemed just as confused as Wong, but he seemed ready to drop the subject. “The Ancient One must have talked to me about it then.”

The words had been clearly said off handedly, but they only served to unsettle Wong more.

The Ancient One had mentioned once she needed to travel to a different universe to try and convince another Stephen Strange not to destroy the world in an attempt to get Christine Palmer back. In that universe, her death had been absolute and had been the driving force behind Stephen’s choice to travel to Kamar-Taj and learn the mystic arts.

It was exactly as the Ancient One had predicted: that Doctor Strange destroyed his world.

And now, Stephen seemed to know too much about Absolute Points in time and the consequences that came from trying to overturn death.

Wong didn’t get a chance to press it further because suddenly Stephen was rising to his feet and walking away as if they weren’t having a conversation.

“Hey!” Wong called after him, and Stephen only raised a hand to gesture for the Cloak to follow. The sentient red fabric twitched its lapels before soaring after Stephen, not flying onto his shoulders but flying beside him. “Where are you doing?”

“Get a smoothie or take a week-long nap. I’ll decide on the way up the stairs.” Stephen called back, and Wong rolled his eyes. “Nothing stupid, don’t worry.”

Wong reached across the seat and grabbed the unfinished cup of tea and drank it. It was foolish to let perfectly good tea go to waste, even if Stephen had made it incorrectly.

Stephen, meanwhile, marched up the stairs towards his room. The closer he got to his familiar door with its beautiful, intricate design of a forest, the louder the hum of the Time Stone and Tony’s soul became. Their song changed once again and Stephen couldn’t stop the flutter of hope. He grabbed onto the door handle and walked in.

His jaw dropped the second he stepped through the threshold, and he ignored the Cloak as it flew past him into the room. He stood in shock when he saw the state of his room, the exact opposite as he’d left it.

Everything was perfectly in order, every book in its place on the shelf and the clothes that had been scattered on the floor were nowhere to be seen, but he assumed they were in his nicely closed drawers. Normally the current state of the room is how Stephen liked his living spaces: completely clean and almost as though nobody lived there, but in his grief and mourning he had liked the room better unclean and imperfect. It reminded him he was allowed to feel things even though he didn’t normally allow himself that luxury.

His depression nest was cleared out and Stephen wasn’t quite sure how to feel.

“Oh get over it,” A voice that was remarkably familiar spoke up, and Stephen looked around in surprise. “I couldn’t focus with the smell of dirty socks and several day-old turkey sandwiches all around me.”

Stephen settled himself and gave a wave of his hands, and the room changed once again. Everything remained as it was, but the guest was revealed.

Floating in above the bed with his legs cross legged, sat a man who looked remarkably like Stephen Strange himself. But this Stephen’s eyes were darker - both physically, with a darker brown color and emotionally, like he’d lost all hope - as well as his garments, the Cloak around his neck a dark black with purple and his robes to match. His skin was pale like he hadn’t seen the sunlight for quite some time.

Floating in front of him were several glowing books, and Strange was moving between each one, the several hands coming out of his back flipping through the pages. An extra set of eyes poked suddenly out of the sides of his head to properly read everything. Two hands underneath his regular set were enchanting a spell around a glowing golden object, and the glow got brighter and smaller with every word Strange uttered.

Tony’s soul hummed a little louder beside the Eye, sensing its other half. It had been necessary to split it so Strange could work and Stephen could keep Tony close to him.

This is all for Tony.

Strange’s shadow on the wall from the glowing object and the books showed the real beast within the man. There were horns on Strange’s head and wings coming out of his back that resembled the dragon wings kids would draw in class. Tentacles and claws and talons and teeth came out from all angles and sides; a piece of every monster Strange had consumed. Their mouths would open in silent screams, but nothing could ever be heard.

Strange did not allow them to be heard.

Stephen was unbothered, especially now that he could see his universal twin. “Have you made any progress?”

Strange dodged the question. “You’re a terrible liar. I mean really, ‘the Ancient One told me’? You couldn’t come up with anything better?”

Stephen narrowed his eyes and sat down at his desk chair. “It’s not technically a lie. She did say that.”

“Yeah, to me.” Strange pointed a spare finger at himself, and Stephen didn’t miss the way it shifted to a talon before Strange caught him looking at it and changed it back. “You’re not supposed to know I exist or the things I’ve done. What if Wong comes in here and sees me, Sorcerer Supreme?”

“He won’t.” Stephen promised, taking an apple out of the fruit basket on his desk. He offered one to Strange, who refused. “Wong respects privacy and I’d like to think you could come up with a nice protection spell should be come in here.”

“I’ve been a little preoccupied, searching for your precious soul and all.” Strange fired back, his forked tongue escaping his mouth. “But that’s right, allow me to protect myself too. I only act like I can do everything at once, Stephen.”

“You’d find a way.” Stephen shrugged, because that was probably the truth. Stephen considered this other version of himself ‘cocky’, but in a way that was also desperate to hear praise.

Probably had something to do with the fact that the last time Strange had used all his power in a cocky way and refused to listen to anyone, his world had come crumbling down as a direct result of his actions.

Strange huffed and continued to look down at his books, muttering and chanting words so ancient Stephen didn’t know them.

There were words in the back of his mind, faint echoes in a high tone that weren’t loud enough to make out. Stephen didn’t think much of it.

“You know,” Strange said after a few minutes of working, his third eye opening for a blink before closing again. “You’re not the first to come to me about breaking an Absolute Point in Time.”

Stephen’s left eyebrow went up in a quizzical way. Strange hadn’t told much of his story after the obvious, and Stephen hadn’t asked. Once he heard the words ‘I can help you’, that was all he needed to hear.

“There have been others as determined as me to seek help from the likes of you?” Stephen questioned, trying to keep his curiosity neutral. The words in the back of his mind grew louder as Strange’s hand flipped over a book and the golden orb glowed a little brighter.

“More like desperate. They want something so badly they betrayed every single teaching they’ve ever gotten and come to me. Just like you’re doing.” Strange corrected, sounding bored. There was a taunting gleam in his eye when he looked up at Stephen. “But yes, you haven’t been the only one. Some seek the use of their hands back but want to remain an all powerful wizard. Some wish to bring back Christine, like I did, while others try to gain my power.”

“I’m assuming they never succeed?” Stephen taunted and Strange flashed him a look.

“No,” Strange replied, turning his attention deliberately to one of the arms on his back. Stephen watches as it morphed into an arm similar to his own, the scars on the hands telling exactly who that arm belonged to. Strange allowed it to turn back into a dragon’s foot. “They did not.”

Stephen tried not to think too much about it, but made a mental note to not get on his twin’s bad side. “Go on.” Stephen encouraged. “What else happens besides you turn cannibal?”

Strange scoffed at the word but didn’t comment on it. “Most of the time, their own desperation is their undoing. They refuse to listen to my warnings and they insist they’re right.” Strange went quiet for a moment a look filled his eyes, a faraway type of glance that made Stephen want to press the topic.

Strange shook himself and gave Stephen a firm look that held no trace of what he’d just been thinking. “It’s a nasty trait we all share, don’t you think?” A taunting grin rose on his face as his third eye opened and stayed open, looking around at the books with its own curiosity.

Stephen narrowed his eyes. “What are you saying?” The voices in the back of his mind were growing louder and more defined; Stephen could almost make out words now.

Steph...help...are-

“Many seek the return of a lost loved one, but you,” Strange raises his hand and a dark golden circle forms above his head, spinning faster with a whirl of Strange’s hands. “Are the second to seek out Tony Stark.”

Stephen halted at that, barely noticing as the golden circle begins to spin so fast it becomes a straight line, and the books glow brighter, a string of golden magic leaking from the pages and feeding into the spinning circle.

Stephen...children...Where are...

Tony’s soul glows brighter and brighter, and the shadows on the wall try to scream louder, trying to claw their way out of Strange’s flesh.

Stephen...the children...help! Where are...promised!

“Who was the first?” Stephen demands, slipping on his feet as the room begins to spin in time with the circle. Strange cackles and utters more and more obscure words, his focus not on Stephen at all.

Stephen raises his hands and the Cloak comes to rest on his shoulders, lifting him into the air and off the spinning floor. It helps - only a little - to give him a cleaner picture of the man before him, but it doesn’t help when his twin is becoming distorted all on his own.

His head snaps back and forth unnaturally fast, and his eyes twist and flip between different glowing pairs of eyes. His mouth opens too wide and his teeth elongate into fangs. The wings from the shadows become real, piercing through the Cloak and becoming a dark, dark red.

All the while the circle glows brighter and so does Tony’s soul. Stephen can feel a ring burning in his chest where the Eye and soul sit, and Stephen knows what’s happening.

Stephen! The children are gone, I can’t find them! I need help! I need you! Where are you? You promised to save us!

Stephen! The children are gone, I can’t find them! I need help! I need you! Where are you? You promised to save us! You promised to save me!

The words are clear as day now, and Stephen can’t hear anything but them now. It has consumed every inch of him, every fiber of his being rejoicing now that he can hear Tony Stark’s voice once again.

Strange lets out a roar and the golden circle bursts, exploding into a million pieces. Stephen watches as the golden flecks begin falling in an orderly fashion around him, and his eyes widen in awe as he sees he’s looking at a map.

The map is over a terrain Stephen didn’t recognize and figured he wasn’t supposed to, so he didn’t comment on it. The terrain seemed apocalyptic, with volcanoes and dark skies and dead trees.

In the center of the map sat a soft, glowing golden orb, pulsing like a heart beat.

Stephen wanted to reach out and touch it, to hold Tony in his hands once again. Strange was right: he was desperate to find Tony again and hold him close to him again, and the longer he was away from him the more it hurt him. The more he ached.

“You asked who was the first.” Strange’s dark voice shook Stephen from his thoughts. The sorcerer looked up in surprise and took a step back, surprised by his twin’s appearance.

Strange hadn’t pulled the beasts back into his personna, so instead of looking like a man he looked like all of Sid’s toys from Toy Story, with a different body and different head and wings where he hadn’t before.

Strange’s eyes were a glowing red, and his pale skin was replaced by bushy black fur. There were goat horns coming out of his head, with smaller horns poking out of the side. His arms - of which there were many sets now - were three times the size, all muscles and bulk. His feet were talons, poking out from under his robes and becoming more clear as he rose to full height. Several pairs of wings were coming from his back, flapping as Strange levitated in the air, glaring down at Stephen menacingly.

“It was me.” Strange finally answered the question, turning his red eyes to the map to Tony’s soul.

“What?” Stephen sputtered, barely noticing as his golden shields came up around his hands. “I thought you loved Christine!”

“I did.” Strange fired back, literal fire coming from his breath and nostrils. “I loved her more than anything. But after I destroyed my world I became aware of the Watcher, a being who could travel between the universes. He could never interfere, but he was doomed to watch every reality take place.”

“Sounds creepy.” Stephen commented, unsure where this was going.

“After I helped him save the Multiverse, I realized I had missed out on the one person whom I was destined to love.” Strange continued. “Christine’s death was an Absolute Point not only because it would drive me to Kamar-Taj, but because it would compel me to find love elsewhere.”

Strange almost smiled at Tony’s soul as it continued to beat softly.

“I’ve found Tony Stark in so many realities. Anthony Stark and Stephen Strange are always destined to love each other, and I try to live out that destiny. We get to live our short life together before he is ripped away from me in one way or another…” Strange’s brief smile faded into a scowl of anger. “But while part of Tony’s destiny is to be with me, his destiny is always to die. In every world, in every timeline. Anthony always dies.”

Stephen felt his heart clench as the memory of watching Tony Stark die filled his mind. “I’m almost sorry for you. But you can’t have him.”

Strange looked up, his red eyes blazing. “What did you say?”

Stephen lifted his chin and puffed out his chest, determined not back down. “I said you can’t have him.”

“Can’t I?” Strange challenged, raising his hands and allowing them to glow with his power. “I found him, did I not? This Tony is different. This Tony is a creation, and therefore he doesn’t exist in the timeline. I can love him...just us, forever.”

The thought of his husband loving someone else cut deep. Stephen didn’t even want to hear about that. “He’ll never love you.” Stephen bit out, anger pulsing through his veins. “Tony could never love someone as damaged as you.”

“What, because he loves you?” Strange laughed at that, the dark cackle sending a shiver down Stephen’s back. “Wanda found a way to rewire Tony to love you unconditionally, you think I can’t do the same?”

Stephen tilted his head as he felt a pulse of pure power come from his twin. He hesitated, knowing that the Dark Sorcerer before him only had one idea in mind: to kill him and take Tony one way or another.

If it came down to it, Stephen knew he wouldn’t be able to beat Strange in a fight, especially with no help. Even if he called out for Wong or whatever dark spells he could conjure up, it wouldn’t be enough. The being before him was made of pure energy, dark energy.

Doctor Strange Supreme was the strongest being in the universe, and Stephen knew he didn’t stand a chance.

His eyes drifted to the map to Tony’s soul and he realized neither of them had given it much thought, focused on each other. A dark feeling filled Stephen’s gut, and he knew what he had to do.

First and foremost, I have to keep Tony and the children safe. Strange can never find them.

Stephen sucked in a breath and flashed his twin a dangerous smirk. “I think you have to ask, is it Tony’s destiny to die or escape you?”

Strange damn near growled at that, his eyes narrowing in fury. “How dare you-”

Stephen sucked in a breath and clenched his fist but didn’t fully close it. He kept his eyes on Strange as a silver sword began to form out of thin air, piecing itself together bit by bit until it was a fully constructed sword.

Strange stared at it in surprise before he gave a forced laugh. “What, planning to kill me?”

Stephen shook his head as he watched fire rise up in Strange’s throat. “This is gonna hurt me more than it hurts you.”

Stephen had less than a second to dive out of the way before Strange opened his mouth with a fire blast so hot it could have melted metal instantly. The Cloak lifted him into the air, placing him right above the glowing map.

Tony’s soul skipped a beat, like he knew what was about to happen.

Stephen bristled, managing to get one last good look at the map before he raised his hands. “Good luck finding him now, asshole.”

Strange stared at him, his red eyes widening in fear and shock. “No!” He cried, reaching out his tentacles, hoping to grab Stephen’s hands before they could drop down on the map.

"Forgive me, Tony."

Stephen managed to strike down with all his might, a silver sword he’d conjured up slicing through the map with ease.

There was a bright light, the two magics from the map and sword counteracted each other, before both substances vanished into nothing and the light faded.

Stephen and Strange both sank to their knees, one proud and the other devastated. Strange’s eyes were wide with shock, trying to piece together fallen pieces of the map as they landed in his deformed palms. Stephen felt a tear well up in his eye but he blinked it away, refusing to show weakness now.

He felt the part of Tony’s soul on his chest beating, but just barely. It had already been small to begin with, and now without its second half, it was even weaker. It was a possibility that Stephen could nurse it to health and give it some strength before he tried his own locator spell, but he had no idea if it was possible.

Strange’s body shook with a cough, then another. Stephen gave him a confused look, wondering if the man’s body was giving out or something.

But he couldn’t have been more wrong. Strange was laughing, the damn fucker.

“You fool.” Strange rose to his feet, his voice broken. “You’ll never find him now.”

The magical being opened his hand and Stephen stared in horror as a smaller version of the map appeared in his hands, showing exactly where Tony was.

“No!” Stephen jumped up, ready to attack the monster before him, but he was thrown off his feet with a wave of Strange’s hand. He flew across the room and hit his head against the wall. Disoriented and still struggling to comprehend what was happening, Stephen struggled to keep his eyes open.

“Yes.” Strange taunted, opening a dark purple portal that Stephen knew was intermultiversal. “I’ll be sure to tell Tony you say hi, and that you failed him, once again.”

“No, please…” Stephen struggled to stand, but his attempts were pitiful.

“So long, Stephen.” Strange bid him farewell and stepped through the portal, which immediately closed behind him in case Stephen had any intention of following.

Stephen blinked, his ears ringing from the pain in his head.

Despite not being able to see straight, Stephen was thinking as clear as day. He knew what he had to do.

There was only one person who could help him now, and he wasn’t afraid to concede a bit of his pride to get what he wanted.

Shakily, Stephen reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone. There was a crack across the screen now, but that didn’t matter, nothing else mattered right now.

Stephen typed in the number and put the phone to his ear.

The person on the other end picked up after the fourth ring.

“Hello?” A familiar voice questioned.

“Yes, Wanda.” Stephen grumbled. “I need your help.”