CLAIR ▹ stephen strange ❪english❫

part i: one

━━━━━━━━✩‧₊˚✧. ˚☀️

ACT ONE. NEPTUNE.
FEBRUARY 2016, EARTH.
CHAPTER 1: STATICS.

CLAIRE HAD THE SAME NIGHTMARE EVERY NIGHT FOR MONTHS, she woke up in the middle of the midnight feeling odd experiences, at first she had them as a third person, as if she were the co-pilot, she could observe everything in a blurry way around her. But this night was different, as it was the first time she witnessed everything as the main person, being her the one who experienced everything from the place of the person affected.

At first she had her gaze straight ahead seeing a landscape listening to a kind of announcer speak to her with slight static, she knew it was a foreign body because she was sitting in a perfectly upright, almost rigid position, in addition to the obvious masculine features of both hands maneuvering a circular object.

Then she was staring at an odd image, the scene drastically changed to thunderous turbulence, she felt the desperation of wanting to prevent it as well as the helplessness of not being able to do anything, she could feel her body involuntarily move to the point where everything stopped, but the pain was still latent, it filled her with anxiety not being able to block whatever was happening with her hands, the mere sensation of feeling them unusable made her want to cry with despair.

She was certain that all this was distant to her, however, the sensations burned inside her, each wound, however small it was, burned on her skin, each night that passed she lived it more clearly, more and more real. What strange connection was it? What future was she experiencing each night? and most importantly, from whom? Not knowing how to answer her questions, she kept her doubts to herself, trusting that time would give her the answers.

She ended waking up completely, she was drenched in sweat, the cold breeze that came through her window gave her a certain calm, almost to lull her but without success, she half sat on her bed and looked at the palms of her hands, with the tips of her right hand she slightly caressed the scar on her left palm. Realizing that she would not be able to sleep again, she got up from her bed to continue studying in secret, if she managed to master her gift of divination, perhaps she would find prompt answers and new questions to ask herself, the insomnia must have served her well.

With all of that in mind she sneaked down the hallways in the direction of the library. She repeatedly called with her mind to her friend Narendra to see if he was aware of her being awake, he always used to interrupt her in her nightly escapades, he worried about her because she did not sleep, tonight just as the other nights, she did not want to get caught.

Her senses were sensitized when she heard multiple steps boldly heading towards the temple, she knew perfectly well that these were no longer hours to study in the library so there was no way they would be students. She immediately took an alert position and followed those steps stealthily.