The Scarlet Apprentice 2: The Multiverse Between Us

Cold nights

The cold wind hitting her teary face didn't seem to hurt y/n as much as it should've. The earths breeze would've frozen anyone else or forced them inside with its uncomfortable temperature, but y/n didn't even seem to notice it.

With a nearly empty bottle hanging loosely from her hand, y/n sat on the balcony, her legs dangling from the edge. It was a dark and empty sky, but she couldn't see the stars through New York's pollution. So all she could was stare at nearby civilians or buildings.

Whenever someone particularly interesting walked past the building, y/n tried to feel them. She wanted to feel what they felt, even if it could've been anything. She didn't care what she'd have to feel, she just didn't want to feel the pain she did.

Y/n was too distracted to notice Stephen entering the balcony with her. It took him one look at her lack of reaction and the bottle in her hand to know that she was not okay.

Although she didn't turn to him, she knew he was there. So, after taking the final sip from the bottle, she spoke. As she spoke, her eyes didn't leave the view of New York in the nighttime.

"You alone?" She asked him.

"Wanda's with Sam and Bucky in the library," he told her, "none of them are really... saying anything."

She scoffed, finally turning to look at him as she attempted to defend herself, "it's not like I can't go through with it. How can I not do this?"

"You don't need to explain yourself to me, y/n," he shook his head. When she looked at the object in his hands, he gave it to her, "I brought you a jacket. I don't want you getting a cold. Or hypothermia."

Taking it from his hands, she weakly smiled, "thank you." As she wrapped it around her aching body, she took a breath. "The colds been hitting me for a while, but I'm too distracted to notice it. So thank you, Stephen."

He smiled, "it's alright."

When silence returned, she sighed, "they act like I'm choosing to do this over something else. Like I haven't thought of every other fucking option I can do apart from this."

"They're hurting," he tried to explain to her so that she'd know their point of view. His point of view.

In the silence y/n induced, she bit the skin of her lips as she contemplated admitting what she wanted to say. Then, after the silence grew too much, she turned and looked him in the eyes, revealing to him her own tired and withering ones.

"I don't want to die, Strange," she told him, her voice sounding as if it was a beg, as if he could do anything about it, "I really don't want to die."

Clearing his throat, he looked down at the ground in the darkness. Despite his urge to let his feelings out, he needed one of them to stay strong at least.

"But if that's what I have to do to save the world and the girl that I love, then I'll do it in a heartbeat," she said, almost immediately after. His eyes darted back up to her to see her already looking away at the distance again. "I just don't know what I can say to make them feel better," y/n added soon after.

"Nothings gonna make them feel better. If this was the other way around, you'd be acting the same," he explained as he sat himself on the edge of the balcony, right beside y/n.

"I'm sorry for how I acted with you when I first met you," she spoke to him while staring blankly at the space in front of her, "like... right back in the beginning."

He shook his head and chuckled softly, "you don't need to apologise."

"No, I-... I definitely do," she assured him, "I was an asshole. Still am, but I mean... to you I was an asshole. It was unfair how I reacted, you were just trying to help. And look where it got us," she chuckled, "it worked, didn't it?"

"Not the way everyone was hoping for," he mumbled, looking down at his hands.

She nodded silently, "but it's the way we all knew would have to happen. Deep down, I mean... I'm sure it cross all of our minds at some point."

"That's not my point," he tried to explained.

"We all knew the risks, Stephen," she turned to look at him, "that's my point. We knew there'd be collateral damage."

When he saw how honest she was in those few words, he gave her a look back, "you're not collateral damage, y/n." After a while, he realised that she couldn't seem to bring herself to speak. So, he told her something that would make her feel better. "I got what you asked for."

"Oh, really?" She turned to him in interest.

"It's in the jacket pocket," he added before looking off at the distance.

When her hands gently traced over the object in the pocket, she felt a slight comfort within herself for a moment. "Thank you, Stephen." While he looked off into the distance, she stared at the side of his face, her smile dimming. "Do you think this is a bad idea?"

He looked at her face in the darkness for a brief moment, then smiled softly, "no. Not at all."

With a relieved sigh, she spoke again, "I need you to promise me something,"

"Anything," he assured her, and he meant it.

"Promise me you'll look after Wanda," she turned to look at him. She needed him to see how honest and desperate she was. "Promise me she won't be alone after this."

It didn't take him a more than a moment to provide his answer, "I promise."

With a genuine and soft smile, y/n slowly declined her aching head until it rested against Stephen's shoulder. She then felt him rest his head against hers as they both looked into the dark distance.

"When are you gonna talk to Wanda?" He asked without moving y/n or his head.

"In a little bit," she mumbled, "I just want to stay here for a moment. Looking at the distance."