Too Little Too Late

Stephen Strange / Wanda Maximoff

Stephen had once been a very bitter man, angry at the world at large. His hands were broken. The tentative repairs were doing him no good. Surgeons were telling him not to do more surgery, not to do more damage. What was an artist without his hands? He had been a great surgeon, the best one! Each time he was operating, it had been like painting a masterpiece only even more delicate than the most intricate wonder. The doctor had been saving people who were condemned by every other practician on the planet. He felt like a god because what he was doing was nothing short of miracles. Was he arrogant? Yes. But he had so many reasons to be. Stephen wanted his hands back. At any cost. So much so that he ended up in the middle of nowhere, Nepal.

The ancient one had taught him so much. Things that his old self would have never thought possible. He didn't believe her at first actually. Jonathan Pangborn, who gave him the way to Kamar-Taj, used this knowledge to walk again after being diagnosed paraplegic. With his newfound magic, he could have had his hands back. Stephen could simply have done the same as Pangborn and restart his life where he left it before that car accident. Sometimes he couldn't help but wonder what it would have been like. Some truths of the universe would have never been revealed to him, he would never have died times and times again fighting Dormammu. Despite all that, if he could do it again, he would take exactly the same path. He had no regret now, especially not that car accident.

Stephen had been taught very well. It was his turn to teach someone. No arrogance now. Wanda would be difficult to manage. As a sorcerer of Kamar-Taj, it was his duty to train her. She had been helpful during the war. Stephen couldn't help but think about the recordings that had been released. Her training under Hydra. He couldn't forget how gleeful she was while torturing the mind of people that the shadow agency had scooped off the streets. Psychiatry wasn't his field of expertise. The little he knew about was sending chills down his spine. Time would tell.

Wanda was lost. Vision didn't want to be with her anymore. They would still be friends he had promised. He was spending his time away on the campus for his studies and even more so now living with Bucky. Steve wasn't too pleased about that either. More than pulling away for them, it was more like they weren't needed anymore. She had thought that choosing her hatred toward Stark would be enough for her to carry on. A reason to live for. She had made that decision in good conscience. Why was she missing the android so much?

Everything was his fault! Tony Stark! He should be dead already. When he was away, she had been happy with Vision. They fought sometimes but every couple did. They had a good relationship going. She didn't understand how and why it ended that way. After the battle, Vision had vanished to where Stark had been hiding. He wasn't the same when he came back. Stark had, at best, talked to him against her. Wanda suspected that the android had simply been reprogrammed. Stark was the kind of guy who would do such a thing. No respect for anyone or anything. Stark had always been against her. He didn't want her to be an Avenger, to be happy. Her dark thoughts were making her magic seep between her fingers. Too bad that Stark was out of her range.

Her anger grew even more when she thought how Stark had revived her. She owed him her life. Vision's existence too. Steve should have won. Would have if Stark had not taken his opportunity away, even though all the hard work had been done by Captain America. Typical Stark. The man had never done a day of work in his life. He wouldn't start even during such a crucial event. Some people really had everything, stealing every opportunity to get higher than everyone else. She couldn't let that happen anymore. Especially not to Steve, who had always been so nice to her.

The U.N. was obviously keeping the Avengers. They had seen how useful they were first-hand. They wanted the accords to be implemented even more than ever. They wanted training scheduled, psych evaluation, reports after mission and what not. As if they still had to prove their values. The only one with mental problems was Stark. Steve made him step down from the team because of that. He had built a homicidal bot. Who does that? She wanted for him to destroy himself. Of course, he had to take the rest of the world down with him. Talking about an ego. Stark had been responsible for so many deaths, including all of her family.