𝐈𝐍𝐅𝐈𝐍𝐈𝐓𝐄, doctor strange.

Hope

Steven burst through the door of Ana's captive room, and he looked around frantically, dust boring into the air as the surrounded wall broke off in chips. Mordo sat slumped on the ground a few feet away, groaning in pain as he clutched his side, but Steven brushed him off, instead looking around with scared eyes for Ana. He turned quickly when a groan came from a splintered and broken chair across from the far wall, and he slid to his knees as Ana's crumpled figure came into view, her body sprawled over the floor, the blood from her arm beginning to fall in a thin line now, but fast.

" Ana, you're going to be fine. Breathe, I'm going to get help," he said quietly, and he struggled to keep his voice from cracking. Ana looked at him, her brown eyes devoid of their usual brightness. Lifting her up bridal-style, Steven quickly opened a portal, before stepping into the hall of the New York Hospital. Nurses and doctors stopped their actions and turned to stare with incredulous faces, and Steven gave a nervous glance around before walking down the silent hallway, receiving stares that made him especially uncomfortable. Finally, he made his way to the nurse's lounge, where one woman sat with her phone in her hand.

She had reddish-brown hair that was pulled into a tight ponytail on top of her head, small wavy flyaways framing her face. Her almond shaped eyes were a silvery blue, reflecting the light that bounced off them. Her small and slightly upturned nose was covered in small dark freckles that seemed to pop from her pale skin, and her pink lips were curled into a small smile as she flipped her fingers across her keypad. She was moderately short and lean, but not much shorter than Ana, and she was wearing a pair of turquoise covered scrubs that were splotched with blood stains, and the memory of his previous career flashed before his eyes, making him grimace.

The woman looked up, and her smile immediately dropped when she noticed the girl and Steven's blood-soaked clothes. " My God, Steven, what happened?" she asked in a high-pitched exasperated tone, rushing over to him, sending a confused gaze his way. He gulped, motioning towards the cut that had stopped bleeding along Ana's arm. The woman's eyes widened at the cut, and she immediately squinted her eyes at the girl, deducing her closely. " Who is she?" she asked quietly, biting her lip. Steven gave her an incredulous look, before motioning to a Operating Room across the hall. " She needs more blood in her system, she's lost too much," he said darkly, gritting his teeth together. The woman swallowed before twisting on her heel and starting towards storage, where blood bags were held. Steven set Ana down carefully on the operating table, heart raging.

His hand brushed against her as he began to back away, and he immediately tensed at the cold and lifeless feeling her hand had taken on. Sliding his fingers in between hers tentatively, he gave a reassuring squeeze, even though he knew she couldn't feel or hear him. The operating room was awkwardly silent, and Steven looked down at his and Ana's intertwined hands, heart fluttering. He brushed it off, and sat on a chair close-by, rolling beside Ana, whose chest moved up and down slowly and irregularly. Steven sniffled, wrinkling his nose at the odd gesture before he had just done before propping his head on his palm, his other hand still intertwined with Ana's as his thoughts seemed to wonder.'

Through replacing her blood, putting her in a room, and waiting for her to awake, Steven never let go of Ana's hand.