The Flames of Amarra - DR STRANGE x OC - COMPLETE

NEW BEGINNINGS

Nora finished wrapping the gift, which should have been done weeks ago, and added a big bow on top of it, thinking that Emi wouldn’t even care what her gifts looked like. But Kelly insisted on everything looking absolutely perfect for her daughter’s first birthday, and Nora didn’t want to be the one to go against the mother’s wishes. 

She quickly hopped in the shower and got ready to leave for the party. She checked that she looked good enough to be in the pictures, a little scared that Kelly wouldn’t let her if she wasn’t wearing makeup or something. 

Nora put on her shoes and opened the door, smiling at the sound of the heels on the floor. She loved that sound. She marked a stop when she saw Stephen sitting on her couch and quickly cleared her throat. 

“Ever heard of knocking ?” she asked, going to the kitchen.

“You’re alive,” he replied, following her. “How’s paying your rent going ?” She glanced at him and turned back to the coffee machine. “Come on, Nora. It’s been three months.”

“Hm. I didn’t realize.” Of course she knew how long it’d been. She’d been counting the days. Trying to keep the little pride she had left, she turned around and crossed her arms. “What are you doing here ? You’re done ignoring me ?”

“Wong asked you to come back a month ago,” he said, walking to the kitchen counter. “You didn’t.”

“I know. I wanted to be alone.” Truth was, she didn’t want to go back until she knew for sure Stephen was okay with it. But she’d die before she told him that. And she really liked having time for herself. She looked at the Eye of Agamotto around his neck and nodded at him. “Congratulations.”

He ignored her last comment and took the cup of coffee she was handing him. “I still have one question.”

Nora sighed. “I’d rather not talk about it anymore. I can finally sleep on my own, and-”

“What happened with Mordo ? We haven’t had any more deaths since you saw him.”

“We talked. Told him to stop.”

“How long did it take you to burn through ?” he asked, turning the cup on the table. 

She smiled. “Long enough for him to leave.”

“So he knows you won’t find him again. And yet, he’s stopped. What did you do ?”

“Told him to stop.” She took a sip from her coffee. “Why do you want to know ?”

“Because you’re the least threatening person I know,” he scoffed. “And you managed to scare one of the most powerful sorcerers out there.”

“Maybe Wong scared him.”

“Except Wong says you’re the one to thank for the lack of dead bodies.”

“Hm.”

For a while, she kept drinking her coffee in silence. She didn’t really have anything to say. She apologized countless times, but now that she was doing better, she was willing to talk about anything but that. 

“Can’t you just come back ?” Stephen finally asked. “The librarian is lost. I thought he was your friend, and you’re letting him on his own.” He drank from his coffee and followed her back to the living room. “Everyone already approved of you taking his place.”

“I already have a job. You know, to pay for rent.”

“You wouldn’t have a rent to pay if you were living somewhere else. Have you ever been to Nepal ?”