Magic Mania: Book One

20

"My expert opinion? This requires a bit more than a First Aid kit," Scott admitted.

They'd made it to the hospital at this point, to find, like everywhere else, that it seemed to be deserted. This was getting slightly suspicious now, especially seeing as the lights were on and the doors unlocked, and not to mention the "Open 24 Hours" sign on the front door, but the main concern at the moment was to help Stephen. Loki had set him down on the floor and Wanda and Scott had raided the storage cupboard for bandages.

"This will have to do for now, Strange," Loki apologised.

"Thanks guys," Strange said again, staring up at the lights above him miserably. He held his hands up in front of his face, which were shaking like they had done before he used magic to use them constantly. He felt nothing, no magic at all coming to his fingers as he tried to cast a simple spell. Never had he felt so useless. "But I still feel absolutely-"

"I found the kettle everyone," Wanda interrupted, coming into the reception briefly, back from her tour of the hospital. "Anyone want tea or coffee?"

"I think Stephen will have something a lot stronger, Wanda," Scott said lightly, bringing a small smile to Strange's lips. "I'll have some tea please."

"Me too, thanks," Strange requested, still attempting to bring some magic to his hands to no avail. This is all a dream, he thought. I'll wake up and this will all have been a dream. He knew this was a ridiculous thought; the pain was all too real.

Even his cape was concerned about him, hovering around Loki and Scott as they bandaged him up. Neither of them had much experience with dealing with wounds, but at least they could bandage him up while he healed – after all, it wasn't a deep cut. It turned out Scott's greatness with First Aid kits extended to helping his daughter put a plaster on, so he wasn't particularly useful in this situation. Wanda had absolutely no idea at all, and Loki was more accustomed to Asgardian healing techniques, none of which that would be very useful on Earth. Of course the doctor would be the one that was injured.

Now the pain wasn't as sharp, his main thought was the numb shock that his magic had been stolen so quickly and now he was going to face life without it... unless there was a way to get it back. He felt like some essential part of him had been removed and he'd been told to simply live without it.

"There we go, Strange, good as new," Loki said, as he and Scott finished with their slightly awful bandaging.

Giving up with making magic, Stephen struggled up into a sitting position against the reception counter with a bit of help from Loki. "Thanks. And sorry. You, sir, are the strongest Asgardian ever."

Loki gave him a small, sad looking smile. "I never thought I'd say this, but I wasn't that impressive."

"You were though," Scott pointed out. "Since when did you have the strength to effortlessly carry a 10 stone Sorcerer Supreme with one arm and send someone flying across the room with a single punch with the other? All the while sprinting through a collapsing building in Las Vegas?"

"I'll be completely honest with you Scott," Loki started, hand on his heart, "that was the first time I've ever done that."

Wanda came back in with the tea round, three mugs floating in the air as she used her magic to make sure they didn't spill. She passed one to Scott, then Strange took his tea, attempting to keep his hands as steady as he could to prevent it spilling over the edges. Wanda joined them on the floor, holding her coffee in front of her face like she was inhaling the steam still coming off it.

It was only then did Strange notice they were all bleeding and felt a stab of guilt. They'd been so busy making sure he wasn't dying to spare a second thought for themselves.