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eviesaurusrex · 2 years

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"Face your fears, Doctor Strange." || S. Strange

[GIF is not mine!]

pairing: Stephen Strange x Stark!Reader

word count: 4.6k (ooooops?)

summary: After saving the universe and becoming the Infinity Witch, Tony's younger sister felt nothing like her former self. Stephen screwed up badly, but Earth-838 Christine helped him see that he could truly become happy only through facing his fears (I'm terrible at summaries, so please ignore this accident, thank youuu.)

warnings: MoM spoiler (not really, but i just put it in), sad boy Stephen, a bit of swearing, my grammar (yes, that's a warning because I wrote this in the middle of the night and I don't trust my own beta-reading skills lol), a bit of angst, fluff at the end, that should be all, if not tell me!

author's note: Well, Well, Well. Welcome to my first ever uploaded story. Please be kind to lil' old me because that's the first one, and my anxiety is at an all-time high. But my utter adoration for this man has to come out, so… enjoy, I guess?

Lovely comments and reblogs would be much appreciated! Loads of love for reading, people! <3

“Face your fears, Doctor Strange.”

The words of Christine Palmer echoed through his head as he stood on the verge of the conjured portal, his shoe tips already gracing the ground of the coniferous forest. Blue eyes overlooked the grant lake at which shore a lovely wooden cabin sat, the sun rising over the cloudless sky and the birds singing their songs, unbothered by the unusual sound of the golden sparking portal. He knew he had to do it, knew how bad he screwed the only good thing in his life up, and how bad he treated the woman he loved the most.

Stephen Strange rarely felt fear creeping up in his body, but now, on the edge of facing his biggest mistakes, he felt it – cold and icy within his veins, while the blue of his eyes searched the shore for the distinctive hair his lover called her own. Emptiness was the only thing that greeted the Sorcerer at that moment, and Stephen sighed deeply.

“Stop being a headless chicken, Strange,” he scolded himself in a hushed voice and stepped over the portal barrier and onto the soft ground of the woods surrounding him now. “Finally!” Wong’s voice reached him, and Stephen turned around to see the Sorcerer Supreme standing behind him in the grand foyer of the Sanctum, a bowl of cereals in hand. “Go get your girl back, Strange. It’s about time.” And with that, Wong raised a hand and closed the portal with the spoon still between his fingers.

The doctor sighed again, even deeper now that Wong knew of his whereabouts because he would never hear the end of it if he came home empty-handed. He had to get this right, had to undo the unspeakable things he had said to her on that fateful day, and he had to bring her back, bring her home. Even though he had fought aliens, monstrous creatures, and broken witches and saved the universe probably multiple times (with the occasional help of others), he never feared something more than this moment.

Facing your fears and mistakes was something entirely different.

Stephen Strange had to travel through the multiverse to understand this essential part of being human. He wondered how he had survived this long.

A closing car door brought the Sorcerer back into reality, and after turning his head in the direction of the sound, Stephen stared into a familiar pair of eyes. It always astounded him how similar the Stark siblings were but so different at the same time. The man was considered exceptionally intelligent, but this… he couldn’t wrap his mind around it.

“Strange.” Stephen suspected that his appearance wouldn’t be welcomed by the older Stark – and he was dead-on right. “What are you doing here of all places? Got something muddled up with your magical, glittering GPS? I hope so because if you landed here intentionally, I’m forced to remove you off this property.” Yep, still not a fan.

The man held both his hands up in defeat. “Listen, Stark. I only came here to talk to her. Nothing more, nothing less. She deserves an apology, an explanation, anything, really. I’m not here to stir a fight because I’m not here for you, but for her.” Stephen really tried to be polite because even though Iron Man retired right after their victorious fight over Thanos, the suits were still somewhere around. He never would destroy them if his sister was here, not with the screaming red target on her back, now that she probably was the mightiest creature in the entire multiverse.

Well, she would be faster in eliminating an enemy than any of his machines.

Tony Stark scoffed and scooped up the little copy of his as soon as she ran to her father. “Your very existence is stirring up a fight, Strange. She came to this place for a reason, and the reason is called Stephen A-hole Strange.” The man was interrupted by Morgan. “What is an A-Hole, Daddy?” Tony couldn’t hide the slight grin forming on his face before shaking his head and kissing her temple. “Later, munchkin. ‘Promise.” Then, it was Stephen’s turn all over again. “She doesn’t wanna see or hear from you. She doesn’t wanna even acknowledge your existence on this planet, in this universe, and she certainly isn’t interested in anything you could let that mouth of yours escape. You hear me?”

The Sorcerer had to look elsewhere, to not crumble under the older Stark’s glare. This was a terribly bad idea, and now Stephen had to endure it in order to maybe get the love of his life back. He should’ve prepared a damn speech in advance.

“Tony.” He never called him that. “Please.” He never begged for something. “I just need five minutes with her. If she’s still that furious like she left me, you will never have to see me again because she probably kills me with her own hands. If I hurt her all over again, you can strangle the life out of me. See? A win-win situation.”

Tony had already lost after the Sorcerer’s pleading, especially after one look at his darling wife, standing outside on the patio, arms crossed and a soft expression on her face. At that moment, Tony knew he had to give in to do the right thing – and to be a role model for the tiny person on his arm.

Stephen felt a change in the air before the Stark gave him one firm nod. “You’ll get five minutes. If she starts screaming, I’ll end you. If she starts crying, I’ll end you. If she demands that you’ll leave, I’ll probably end you anyway because she went through enough to take your bullshit on top of that, wizard. Have I made myself clear?” The doctor swallowed the retort lying on his tongue – damn, that was hard - and nodded. “Perfectly clear,” he agreed and walked closer to the house.

He offered Pepper Stark a small smile. “Thank you.” It was only a whisper, barely above his breath, but he knew he would’ve never made it through Tony without her help. The redhead smiled softly and gestured around the cabin. “She is in the back, her usual spot. Tell her how you feel, and everything will be alright, Stephen. She is just as lost without you as you are without her.” She always liked him more than Tony Stark probably would ever master in his life.

But sometimes, a single person on one’s side was enough.

With measured steps, Stephen rounded the cabin’s patio to make his way down to the landing stage where the younger Stark sibling loved to sit, offside the sometimes hectic environment inside the house or to escape the buzzing city. Even now, it seems that she preferred the quiet- and calmness of the lake over the town she escaped weeks ago.

His heart pounded in his chest, trying to escape the confinements of his ribcage to either vanish and hide or to run to the woman it loved the most, to finally feel whole again. Stephen wasn’t sure which option it would be while knowing the truth deep to his core. It was strange, that thing called Love, and it still scared the living hell out of him, but as Christine in one of the multiverses had said: He must face his fears to be finally and completely happy. And maybe even a man like him deserved happiness in his life.

And then the moment was there he dreaded such a long time because it could either mean the inevitable end of everything or lead to more heartache and longing – from his side, of course. Stephen wasn’t even sure how she felt about the entire ordeal, nor what she thought about him after he had said these awful things no lover should ever yell to one another. The memory alone caused the Sorcerer to flinch violently while taking the last corner and immediately stopping dead in his tracks.

The sun rays kissed her long locks, floating in the warm spring breeze, the dark but always softly and mischievously shimmering eyes closed, while a concentrated frown graced the soft features Stephen could admire for endless hours. There was no doubt that the Sorcerer would ever get tired of her face – of her altogether. And now, after the long absence of her presence in his life, Stephen couldn’t stop staring at her in utter awe; he felt like a lovestruck teenager. Too madly in love to do anything else but stare while the tongue in his mouth got twisted, and if he dared to speak, he would never get one syllable over his lips. It was a curse, really, and it always struck the doctor within her reach, now more than ever – because now, the hero knew what rested underneath the surface of this beautiful woman.

What have I done? What on earth had pushed me to say these words that ended everything and led us here? What happened to us?

Only the stars knew the answer to these essential questions, and Stephen felt salty tears prickling in the corner of his eyes. He watched as her right hand rose from the wood of the already slowly withering landing stage, and he witnessed with wide eyes how she used the powers the Infinity Stones had gifted her. Nothing more than a flick of her hand was necessary to let the dead flowers beside her grow again, to spread their beauty along the entire edge of the lake. Except for the spot he stood on. And if that wasn’t clue enough, her voice exposed his presence.

“What do you want, Stephen?”

It sounded emotion- even lifeless and that was the ultimate trigger for his persistence to take its first breath of life in a very long time. Stephen needed her as much as she does, and he would not return to the Sanctum before she listened to him – really listened.

“I forgot that sneaking up on you isn’t an option anymore,” he smiled softly before taking one step forward. Then another one. And after that, he became bold and took the third one, just to run into an invisible wall and rubbed his nose. “Ouch.”

She only sat there, motionless, staring straight onto the glistening lake. “I don’t need these abnormal powers to hear you, Stephen. You’re louder than a grizzly as soon as you leave the city behind.” The Stark fell silent before scoffing quietly. “You’re, by the way, very welcome. I wasn’t sure if I only should let you run into a wall or if I should just shock you right away so you’ll leave me the fuck alone.” Her arms entwined around her shins to pull both legs closer to her chest. “Just leave me alone, Stephen. You damaged enough, and I’m not interested in one of your outbursts. I already have enough on my plate. I don’t need you on top of everything else. Look for someone interested in your company and the bullshit that comes out your mouth because I am certainly not available.” Yep, another Stark who dislikes me, great.

Stephen swallowed thickly, but instead of retreating, he pressed both of his scarred hands onto the invisible barrier which kept him and her apart. This barrier stood for so much more than just a physical separation, and the Sorcerer’s heart ached at the thought alone. The tears came back, and with them, Christine’s words: “Face your fears, Doctor Strange.”

Blue eyes raised to gaze over the side profile of the younger Stark, and Stephen softly called her name. Of course, she didn’t react, so he used the one thing he desperately hoped still worked because if, there would still be hope. And hope was the only thing that kept the doctor going and breathing. “My love.” Pain flooded the delicate features, and the Strange exhaled the held breath. He whispered the words again, leaning his forehead against the atmospheric barrier, but kept his gaze fully on the woman in front of him. Her hands grabbed the fabric of her flannel with a deathly grip. Soon after, she buried her face between the knees to hide the welling tears in the ocean that were her eyes.

Hope was still there.

She knew he was there as soon as the first sparks of the portal emerged in the air. She felt it within her body in which these awful powers were locked and secured and connected the woman with the vastness that was this universe. It scared the living shit out of her and constantly reminded the Stark that now she was just another abomination within the fight between Good and Evil. Perhaps it only was a matter of time until the enemies tried to get their hands on her and the powers she never asked for. But now, she had to protect them at all costs because they belonged to her, and without them, she would never be whole again; she would never be herself again, even though the thought alone of being a powerful being made her sick to the core. She never wanted to play a part in the game that was the fight in the never-ending and dangerous multiverse.

With Stephen at her back to protect each other, life seemed to work out, even though she felt like a child who had just learned to use their magic properly. But then, one fateful day appeared on the path that was her life, and the happiness vanished like the dust after Thanos erased half of the universe.

Silence settled over the Sanctum, but her mind screamed at the top of its lungs. The pain never subsided; the connection to the entire universe sucked up all the energy she could master to gather over the day and left her behind as an empty shell. The ray of sunshine that once was the younger Stark sibling died between her snap while wearing the Infinity Gauntlet and her absorption of every single atom of every single Infinity Stone.

Slow steps moved her to raise her head and look over one shoulder to see Stephen Strange approaching. She had settled down in the library, waiting for him to come home after the mission, and had been there ever since she woke up after sunrise. A tired smile forced her lips apart, and without a second thought, she took the outstretched hand to get back on her feet. Even though the armchair was the comfiest of all the interiors within the library, she just couldn’t sit any longer. The woman steadied herself with both hands on his lower arms before wiping away the tears on her cheeks, but Stephen had already noticed them.

“Is everything alright, my love?” He asked gently, cradling her delicate face in his scarred hands and wiping the remnants of tears away. The Sorcerer bowed his head to softly kiss her forehead as soon as a sob recked through the more petite body of the woman he loved. It pained him to see her like that, so much was obvious, but the Stark suspected something boiled within the man she loved. Something seemed off ever since he came back from the mission before the last one, where he had found her sitting motionless on the grand staircase leading from the foyer up to the rooms. She just hadn’t had the strength to get up and move – to live, actually. Since that night, Stephen held something back, and that seemingly wanted to escape today.

She sniffled, and with harsh movements, she erased every sign of weakness off her cheeks. “I just can’t take it anymore, Stephen. I’m this shell of my former self, I don’t recognize myself in mirrors anymore, and I just can’t. I can’t hold myself together any longer.” He had to understand. A long time ago, Stephen Strange was desperate for an answer, of an escape route to get back to his former extraordinary self, so he must see her point now. The Stark woman hoped desperately because she lived for hope and the light at the horizon, but one glance up at his handsome face, and she knew that there wasn’t any hope.

He doesn’t understand. Why doesn’t he understand?!

His hands fell from her face, landed on her slender shoulders, and squeezed tightly. “Listen carefully now. You cannot throw everything out of the window just because this one time, it gets hard. You must stay strong and push through it, no matter the cost or afford it takes. You cannot just give up without even trying.” She flinched as if Stephen had struck her with full force.

He couldn’t have said that. Never. Not Stephen, who was always worried about her, who would do anything for her, and who helped her through every dark episode of her life – until now. Out of his grasp, the Stark stepped away and eyed him with boiling anger.

“That’s rich coming from you.” She seethed the words, almost whispering them through gritted teeth. The Sorcerer cocked one eyebrow. “Excuse me?” The woman raised both hands and pushed forcefully against his chest as he dared to step closer again. “I said: That’s rich coming from someone like you.” Stephen scoffed and shook his head. “I don’t know what you mean. You talk nonsense. Really, I don’t understand anything coming from you anymore. Your words, your actions – nothing makes sense anymore. Where is the strong, sassy, intelligent, and hard-fighting woman I fell in love with all those years ago? Where did she vanish? Did she get dusted, and you were the only thing left behind? An empty shell of the woman I wanted to spend the rest of my life with?! You... This… this shell is just pathetic.”

She flinched again, and tears full of anger rose to the surface. But she fought them back bravely because, at this moment, she swore that this man would never see a single tear of hers ever again. “Now I am the pathetic one? Do I have to remind you of your past, Stephen Strange?! Did you lose your memory while being dusted for five entire years? Did you forget what happened all those years ago in this fucking car?! Do I have to remind you again that you thought your life was over for months on end because of your fucking hands?! Because you weren’t longer the brilliant neurosurgeon Stephen fucking Strange who would have got everything he ever wanted except for the girl?! Do I have to remind you of that?! If so, we can talk about who was pathetic and who was not because I tried. I tried so fucking hard without thinking that my life was over because of something I couldn’t control. I was ready to die that day in order to save everyone – to save you! But I didn’t die. Instead, I became this thing I can’t explain nor control, and I tried to be this… this being who can feel everything within this universe and who must endure it so it can survive and live with the people it loved, but gosh.” The Stark shook her head and didn’t even know what to say now. “You know what? Whatever. I don’t care a single second longer because clearly you don’t care either.”

She swallowed dryly, pushed past him, and snatched her hand out of Stephen’s attempted grasp. “Don’t you dare. Just… leave me the fuck alone, Strange. I don’t care anymore what you are trying to say or not. This,” she gestured between the both of them, “This destroyed everything. Whatever the hell is wrong with you, get it together before nobody wants to be in your company any longer and before you end entirely alone in this universe. It’s your biggest fear, after all, isn’t it?”

And with that, the Stark just… vanished in front of his eyes. She escaped to the comfort of the seemingly only people who loved her unconditionally.

The faintest memory of this day was enough to break the woman all over again. One moment longer, and she would’ve been this close to banning him from the planet. She certainly was capable of such a thing, wasn’t she? Her powers had to be of any use because if not, what was the point in trying?

“I know I failed you.”

Admitting that Stephen Strange was wrong was something entirely new – and unexpected. Never would’ve she thought that this man could be capable of such things as self-reflection. And that was why she perked up at that, barely visible, but she listened intently to what he had to say.

The sound of a heavy sigh drifted over to where she sat on the aged wood of the landing stage, and she closed the dark eyes she had in common with her brother (who most definitely stood behind one of the lake-facing windows to observe the scene unfold).

“I failed you in the worst way possible, and I… I am sorry. I’m… I… You…” He stammered tremendously before stopping himself from taking a shaky breath. “I’m not whole when you’re not there. I’m incomplete without you by my side, not capable of doing my duties or even breathing without feeling like I have to choke on the oxygen surrounding me and filling my lungs. I… I can’t bear a life without you in it, and I feel more guilty than I could ever put into words because I never was good with those. You always found the right things to say, the right things to do, and to save me from me – and my sometimes overbearing ego.” The woman closed her eyes at those confessions, pressing the tips of her fingers against her lips to suppress the sob that tried to escape her body.

A long time had passed since she felt so much at once. So many emotions that actually were hers and not the feelings she had to endure while being awake and connected to the universe. This was human. This was how it was supposed to be. How evolution intended the humans to be.

A feeling, breathing mess.

She felt the Sorcerer’s hands moving over her conjured barrier, and with a soft exhale, she allowed him to move closer – only one step, with the border still intact. But it appeared to her that Stephen noticed the slight movement closer to her, and the woman almost felt the feeling of hope growing inside him once more.

“I am sorry for every word I said that day, for every dagger I rammed inside your heart and probably turned it in their wounds. I am sorry I destroyed your hope, and that I did not think about the possibility that you had needed a hand reaching out to you. I am so sorry, my love. If I could, I would use the Time Stone to undo the day I lost my best friend, my hold in this world, the love of my life. Fuck.”

Now she felt the teardrops rolling over the barrier as if they fell onto her cheeks and graced her skin. But then, the Stark realized that her own salty tears escaped her eyes and rolled silently down her skin. Everything hurt so much more if one was facing the past instead of running away and trying to never look back. But she was stupid to believe for only a second that she could leave Stephen back in the past because, shit, she loved this man more than her own life. She loved him so much that she would have willingly sacrificed herself if it meant that he could live after losing five entire years.

The woman prepared herself to get up, turn around, and face the man she loved and lost on the path life had foreseen for her, but the sound of steps, produced by tiny feet skipping over the wood’s ground, let her pause before even tighten a muscle. Morgan appeared beside Stephen, and the tall man looked down on the tiny human in utter surprise. Instead of running against a wall like he did only moments ago, she jumped from one side of the landing stage to the other before stopping next to her aunt.

“Daddy said I have to rescue you,” her small voice announced proudly because she had accomplished the task successfully. The Stark woman smiled up to her niece and pushed a strand of hair out of the small face. How she adored the little girl in front of her… Morgan clinged herself onto the woman, and with her little monkey securely tucked at her side, she rose onto both feet. “You rescued me. Thanks, monkey,” the witch whispered lovingly while kissing her niece’s cheeks and turning around to face Stephen Strange in all his glory.

He looked exhausted like she did as if he barely slept like she did. A good night’s sleep was nothing more than a pleasant memory, and judging by the dark circles under his shining blue eyes, he must’ve lost the ability to sleep in every position and on every surface there was. Sympathy swept through her aching body, even though there still lived rage and anger inside her, but the Stark knew that she would forgive him.

She always did.

Without even the slightest flick of her hand, the thickened atmosphere surrounding her vanished as if it had never been there in the first place. Stephen almost lost his balance entirely before finding it again and taking a small, uncertain step in the direction of the woman of his dreams. Morgan watched the scene intently – just in case her dad wanted to know anything about it. The witch knew how much the girl in her arms loved to play spy. In rare moments like these, she reminded her of Natasha. But she didn’t mind the tiny intruder because her brother would have gotten the information either through his sister directly or through his wife.

“You will never speak to me in that manner again.”

The doctor nodded violently.

“You will never hurt me that way you did back then.”

Again, tears burned in both their eyes while looking at each other, not missing a single expression.

“Never,” Stephen promised, barely above a whisper.

She took a deep, shaky breath and nodded. “Okay.”

He furrowed his brows, unsure of what to do with it. “Okay?” Never had he felt this uncertain about something in his life, but the Stark nodded again and dissipated the worries written all over his face.

“I still will be angry for quite some time because this was unacceptable and cruel and nothing I would ever wish upon another human. You have to deal with it. We have to fix this. But we will because so far, we always found a way to get through obstacles similar to this.” And with that, she adjusted Morgan on her arm and stepped in front of Stephen, holding one hand slowly out for him to reach and take it. He looked dumbfounded, his eyes switching between her eyes and the peace offering that was her hand, but instead of taking it, he stepped even closer. A hand cupped her neck, and his thumb caressed her jaw in slow, soft strokes while leaning down to press a gentle kiss on her temple.

Morgan giggled happily while the Stark closed her eyes and enjoyed his close proximity after such a long time. She took another deep breath to inhale his signature scent she missed more than she could ever express.

“I will make it right, I promise, sweetheart. I will make everything right. Well, I’ll try at least.” It was unusual to hear him correct himself in an instance, and she smiled softly at that. “You’re trying, and that’s all I want or need,” was all she whispered before taking his hand in hers and entangling their fingers together. “Bring me home, Stephen, okay?”

At that moment, Stephen was entirely sure that he had never heard something more beautiful in his life, except for every I love you out of her mouth, maybe. And so, the former Sorcerer Supreme brought his Infinity Witch back to the place they called their home.

Comments, reblogs and likes are much appreciated! Lots of love and thanks for reading! If you want to join the taglist, please reach out and let me know!

#stephen strange x reader #doctor strange x reader #stephen strange imagine #stephen strange fic #stephen strange x stark!reader #doctor strange x stark!reader #stephen strange #doctor strange #sad!stephen #multiverse of madness #please be gentle with me!#first timer #you know the drill #lots of love!

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delulu-with-wandanat · 8 months

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Two Worlds Apart

Another song that has been stuck in my head- (this is also sort of a continuation) anyway idk if this counts as angst but ay its sad shit ig

‘Corrupted’ Wanda x ‘Earth 77’ Natasha

Pairings: Natasha Romanoff x Wanda Maximoff

Summary: After losing Natasha, Wanda ventured across the multiverse to find her lover. She found Earth-77. She decided to kidnap Earth-77 Natasha and brought her back to her own Universe, but like they said. You fuck around with the Universe, it’ll find a way to bite you back in the ass.

"Wanda, I have to return to my own universe." The incursion of her presence cause too much havoc. The environment surrounding them were breaking in ways they could have never imagined.

"Natasha, I can't... don't make me do this."

"You have too, moya lyubov. Look around!" The sky looked liked it was tearing itself apart, buildings collapsing, people disintegrating out of existance. "I don't belong here, Wanda. You have to return me-"

"NO-" The Scarlet Witch side of Wanda seemed to have returned for a split second, Natasha had to be careful with her words.

For the last couple of weeks Natasha was able to reduce the corruption that the darkhold had against Wanda. Slowly, but surely, Wanda was returning to her old self. The sweet, kind, gentle and loving Wanda Maximoff that Natasha once knew. Sure this was a variant of her Wanda, but they share a lot of similarities.

"A portion of my breath flew away with you the night you died. These past few weeks with you… was the first time I could properly breathe again. Please, don’t take this away from me.”

Natasha understood her pain, she truly does. As in her Universe, she had lost her Wanda. “When you left me that night, I put the blame on myself.” Natasha clenched her jaw as tears starts to pool in her eyes. “Believe me when I say I want nothing more than to stay here with you and be in your arms again. To have the life we always talked about.”

“And we could have that, Natalia.” Wanda pushed once more.

“Wanda we can’t-“

“Why not?” She asked rather coldly. The Scarlet Witch seems to have wrapped around her once again.

“My love please, I know you would never go through this willingly-”

“Am I wrong, for not being the same person I was before?” Natasha went silent at the eerie contrast of Wanda’s variant, and the Wanda she once knew. The one who sacrificed herself for the soul stone in Vormir.

“For wanting what I rightfully deserve? Everyone gets a happy ending, Steve returned to his lover in the past. Clint was reunited with his family… And I returned to nobody.” Wanda swallowed the lump in her throat.

“Your body was rotting on Vormir. And no one even bothered to held a funeral for you just because they were preoccupied with Tony Stark who snapped his little fingers.”

In Natasha’s universe, Wanda hadn’t gone snapped. During those 5 years they had build a life together. The significant difference between their lost was Wanda had not only lost Natasha, but also the time with her.

“Wanda…”

“You’ll destroy me if you leave.” Wanda whispered. Her lips were quivering and her breath was uneven.

“You are my goddess, Wanda.”

“Then come back to me, bring back a fraction of the breath you take because I can’t live another day where you are not near.”

-The song-

I think this song talks about a lover that broke up and the other still wants them back. It's a little different to this fic but meh it works. (I may be trying to gtfo of this country, but goddamn do we make great sad ass songs😩🤌)

Separuh Nafas - Dewa 19

Original lyrics: Separuh nafasku Terbang bersama dirimu Saat kau tinggalkanku Salahkanku Salahkah aku Bila aku bukanlah Seperti aku yang dahulu Kau hancurkan diriku Bila kau tinggalkan aku Kau dewiku Kembalilah padaku Bawa separuh nafasku Kau dewiku

Translated lyrics: A portion of my breath Flew away with you When you left me Put the blame on me Am I wrong If I'm not the same person as I used to be You'll break me If you leave me You are my goddess Come back to me Bring back a fraction of my breath You are my goddess

#natasha romanoff #wandanat #wanda maximoff #natasha #wanda x natasha #wlw #wanda #wandanat angst #scarlet widow #scarletwidow #natasha x wanda #wandanat fic #wandanat fanfic #wandanat fanfiction #mcu sapphic #scarletwidow angst

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roxineedstosleep · 2 years

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Hello, can I please get a one shot or headcannons of yandere peter parker or yandere tony stark in love with a reader that finds out about their yandere behavior but isn’t scared just flattered and thinks it’s really cute (no rush and you don’t have to, just thought I would ask)

In Tony's case, because only the deities of paradise know how much I love this man, I feel the following would happen:

*Tony would first seek to impress you. He should be your first in everything, basically setting the bar SO high, that anyone else who wants to impress you, looks mediocre next to him. Fine or cheap restaurants? Buy you your menstrual pads and give you your pain pills? Help you take care of your neighbour's cat and fix your plumbing? Travel all over town or to a country with a strange name? Honey, he'll give you that and more.

*Then, when he's impressed you all over and knows he's got you in his hands, he'll start watching everything he can about you.

*He won't make claims or demands on you like others would. Tony hates being controlled, and he knows what confinement and over-control can do to people. He just wants to hear from you all the time.

*He loves to be included or be your first choice for everything. If you ever tell him "I saw that meme and thought of you", trust me, he's already over the moon.

*He checks, monitors, eliminates and manipulates everything around you so you can be happy and safe. He makes sure you are always happy, calm and loved.

*He eats up the idea of you noticing and running away.

*Did he threaten the police to put more patrols around your house? Yeah. Did he get your landlord to give you fair prices? Sure, after three broken bones. Did he shut down the company that hurt his employees, just because you cried about your friend's mistreatment? Oh dear, he bought the company and has cut the heads off (fired) the abusive managers.

*He did several bad things for you, and he doesn't want you to run away when you notice him. But… Little detail. Tiny.

*You knew all about it.

*And he expected the worst: that you'd leave, that you'd leave him, that you'd yell at him, that you'd hate him… but that wasn't the case.

*All you did was cry. You were SO moved by his acts of love. Who does that kind of thing for their partner of a few months? no one.

"I've never met anyone who had such a capacity to care for and love their own like that. Tony, you're wonderful. What did I do to deserve you?"

*Now, Tony is in Valhalla. To know that you appreciate everything he does for you, and yet to think that you didn't deserve so much. Wasn't it clearer?

Dear, he'd change the universe and the multiverse just for you. Don't doubt it.

#yandere iron man #yandere tony stark x reader #yandere tony stark #yandere mcu #yandere marvel #tw yandere

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5-puthyyy · 2 years

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My Thoughts on Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (SPOILERS AHEAD)

No, seriously, there are heavy spoilers so don't read this if you haven't watched the movie yet.

TRIGGER WARNING: mentions of death and brutal violence, mentions of suicide, mentions of depression and trauma, mentions of PTSD.

Look, these are just my very fresh thoughts 4 hours after watching the movie in the cinema. I will explain the good and the bad and I will try justify my opinions (despite the fact that no one needs to justify their opinions on movies lol but we all know how crazy some fans can be when it comes to their fav directors/actors/characters). Please, I don't need comments telling me 'hey, it's just a fictional character, fictional movie, blah blah.' Everything is subjective and this is content being made for us, so we are allowed to have opinions!!

Elizabeth Olsen absolutely NAILED this performance. It is by far the best thing about this movie. I can not fault it at all; her parts were the most interesting and engaging (and while it was heavily because of her performance, the directing was a big part of that too). Every line, every expression (physical or facial), everything Elizabeth did was perfection. She had me gripping my seat every single time she was on the screen. I was gasping, crying, filled with excitement and every emotion possible at different times. I was practically hypnotised by her acting and felt like I was being pulled into the screen. It’s all in the eyes, man. It’s the EYES and the amount of emotion she’s able to convey in them. She can turn from panicked to calculated to cocky to broken in seconds and all we need to do is look at her eyes and we’ll know. You know how people say ‘Heath carries’ in The Dark Knight? I felt this way here (TDK fans don't attack me). Elizabeth carries CRAZY. Perfection and she deserves all the attention and praise for this performance.

This did not feel like a Doctor Strange movie. Or a Stephen Strange one. Or both. Probably both. God, we’ve seen this all before and I’m getting so tired and bored of it. I adore his character and I was so excited to see some progression, some complexity, some more depth to his character. But nope. It’s the same ‘I am an arrogant man and so what? But wait, I fucked up? Okay, my bad, I’ll fix it and my actions will have no direct consequences on me.’ And it’ll be the same thing in his next movie, as it was in his first one. It’s Tony Stark all over again. And I hate it. Please, PLEASE, Marvel, come up with something different! Men are not all egotistical people who have one weak spot which happens to be their girl, the girl they can’t have but is always ‘almost there but not quite’ with them. It’s ‘man have ego, man realises ego bad, man fixes problem’ and then we see the SAME THING in the next movie. Where’s the character progression? Please. Please. Stop butchering your characters, especially the men.

Speaking of his character, why the fuck are we barely seeing his powers used? His best fight was the first one saving America. Dude was cuffed the whole Illuminati/Mordo fight and they save the use of his powers until he fights Evil Strange. And WTF was that fight? Look, I’m all for artistic freedom and whatever, but that was not it. They have so much power, so many abilities, and y’all are fighting with music notes? PLEASE LMFAO. Nope, not it. I did not like that scene, especially with how hyped everyone was when the trailer came out. They had us thinking Strange vs Strange would be on another level of insanely cool power, like the 'What If' episode. But nope. Pretty disappointed in that.

While there were a lot of variants of him, they barely had enough time on screen for me to give a shit about them. I’m sorry but what is up with these 5 minute appearances just to be killed off? Is this Marvel’s way to show off ‘hey, we have a multiverse now!’ like the way they fucked up Pietro/X-Men Peter’s appearance in WandaVision just to make a Boner joke. Gross. Please. The world doesn’t have to revolve around ‘our’ Marvel universe (which is 616...lol I'm not even going to address how ridiculous that is). I want to see more. Now that you’ve opened up the multiverse, why does it feel like you’ve closed it all in one movie? Especially with the way the Illuminati all got killed within a few minutes. Why? Just to show off Wanda’s new fighting skills? Or as a desperate attempt to solidify this ridiculous villain narrative you’ve given her? (I’ll get into that later). I wanted to see more, I wanted to see these new multiverse characters in the future projects at the very least. But with the way these very important, big, and powerful characters were killed off AND the way America Chavez is now being trained in the mystic arts…well, it looks like they’re closing off this multiverse concept and I’m not happy with it. Maybe I’ll be proven wrong, but for now that’s what it looks like to me.

DUDE. YOU BUTCHERED WANDA’S ARC. I’m sorry but did you seriously make her not only kill people (and be okay with killing a CHILD), but make her BRUTALLY kill them in ways that can only be described as horrific to the point where she’s enjoying it and playing with her powers and think we would just...accept it? Bruh…did they just…forget how broken she was over Lagos? How she broke down crying after realising she’s been giving the people of Westview her pain and grief? Villains don’t feel guilt. She’s an anti-hero, sure, but not a full blown villain. I get that it can be justified because of the Darkhold, but if it was corrupting her to this extent, then her motives would be more than just wanting to be with her kids again. That’s something WANDA wants and it’s not a ‘villain’ motive to be buried in so much trauma and grief that you just want to get back the people you lost. It’s different to Zemo turning the Avengers against each other because that was revenge. Vengeance, if you will. This is Loki wanting the throne and power to prove his worth to his father. And Loki is very much an anti-hero. Loki killed people, but we don’t see this level of brutality, we don’t see him cutting people in half, bursting their fucking heads. It’s just…so out of character for Wanda to be doing things like this. Although they were great scenes, visually and horror-wise. I loved it, and I loved Elizabeth. But it was just so out of character and I feel it was done only to justify killing her in the end. Because even if she didn’t sacrifice herself, they wouldn’t let her live on when she’s been seen on screen brutally killing heroes. Y’all just can’t have powerful characters, can you? I feel like Marvel just don’t know what to do with them because they’re so hard to work with. Trying to find a villain to use that’s big enough to be a challenge for these powerful heroic characters is difficult, which is also a reason why they nerfed Hulk, and nerfed Thor in Endgame. They do much better with these street heroes than the Godly powerful ones. And it’s just really disappointing.

Carrying on with that ending that I will never speak of again after this, I really think the message Marvel have been sending is dangerous. Before people start trolling with ‘they’re just comic book movies, they’re not realistic, blah blah blah I lack critical thinking skill and social awareness’, what Marvel give to their audience has an impact. It always has and it always will, and representation is important. That includes mental health and people who struggle with theirs. When you have Bruce Banner telling the Avengers he’s tried to off himself just to have the entire team brush it off and never speak of it again, when you have Thor’s trauma being turned into a joke, when you have Tony Stark’s PTSD turned into a sacrifice that apparently is the only way he can ‘rest’, it becomes problematic. And what really tips the iceberg in this movie? The fact that we have a character who has lost everyone, her parents, brother, her country, every home she’s ever had (Sokovia, Avengers compound, Westview house), her love (I’ve lost count of the amount of times she’s lost Vision at this point), AND her kids…and what do you do with that? What message do you send? Die. That’s the message. She just…sacrifices herself? Despite the fact that was all know Wanda is very capable of surviving that collapse, you still had her practically kill herself because she can’t handle being alone. Are you fucking serious? Time and time again Marvel have refused to take mental health seriously for these characters and there are REAL PEOPLE watching these movies, real people relating to these characters that comfort them in a way, real people that see their own trauma on the screen and think ‘wow, I get this. I feel this. I’m heard’. And time and time again, they’re not taken seriously, don’t get given the help they need, or they die in some sacrificial way. Tony, hell even Natasha was haunted by her past, and now Wanda. Just because you made her realise her wrongs doesn’t make it okay, it doesn’t make it a ‘for the better good’ situation, not when she’s had no problem exploding a man’s head earlier on in the movie. Butchered her arc, butchered her characterisation, and sent the worst message possible to the thousands, hell, millions of Wanda fans that resonate so much with her character to the point where some of them feel watching her saved their lives. Shame on you, Marvel.

Shame on you, Marvel, for introducing an LGBT couple just to have them killed off/sucked into some multiverse portal within seconds. Bro…you really needed that token representation so you can get your pat on the back? Come on. Do better. Other than that, America Chavez was great. I loved her character, and yes, it’s very ‘MCU formula’ with the whole troubled kid with powers they can’t control/don’t understand yet. They get taken under the wing of the parental figure (daddy strange lol) and eventually figure out the power/control/confidence was within them this whole time. It’s stereotypical, but it’s needed. I don’t think it’s that bad because we’re being introduced to new characters, new heroes, and they will have similarities with the old ones. They have to have the one thing that makes a hero, well, heroic. It’s overdone but I don’t think that makes it bad. Not everything has to be new and different. It’s okay, guys. She’s a kid. She’s supposed to be like this. I like it.

The visual effects, cinematography, CGI was great. Some CGI was a little off (like the third eye lol let us not talk about that) but overall it was a very visually appealing movie. My absolute favourite scene was when Professor X went into Wanda’s head. God, the white, the broken debris around, the horror, the hole, the RED, it was just so beautifully done. I need it as my new laptop wallpaper or something. I absolutely loved it. I’d go watch the movie just for those visuals again.

Okay…the directing…I’m sorry but it felt like Feige and Raimi were just competing with each other the whole time. The Raimi parts felt too Raimi and the Feige parts felt too Feige. It was very…contrasting, and it did not mix/balance well for me. Raimi had too many of his classic zooming in shots, and Feige had too much of your typical MCU funny formula. Although I did very much prefer Raimi’s takes. The horror is just done so well and executed amazingly. Again, it may also be Elizabeth’s acting for that lol but the directing is great for those. I loved the eerie vibe, the witchy vibe, the dark vibe. Which is why I’m just so disappointed it didn’t balance well. It felt like too many directors in there, too many takes, too many vibes. Very inconsistent.

Also, my love for the witchy-ness is also why I’m so disappointed with Wanda’s ending. Does this mean we won’t be seeing this sort of type of directing anymore? This vibe, this horror, this character? It feels like were just getting started and it just had so much potential. I would have loved to see Wanda as a consistent anti-hero or even with a better villain arc in the future. I love this witch mystic mythical shit so much and unless she’s going to be in the Agatha Harkness show, I’m worried she really is dead/gone from the MCU now. I don’t think I’m ready for that.

And Strange’s ending was very strange…He drops down and the third opens…okay, cool. So I guess we’ll see how the Darkhold corrupted him in the next movie? Wrong. He seems completely fine with having the third eye in the first post-credit. So another thing they opened just to resolve right away…this movie just felt like they were trying to resolve and close everything off and I don’t really like that. I prefer things being kept open, endless possibilities, a problem that still needs solving etc. It keeps it interesting. Again, another reason to hate the Wanda ending lol, like why couldn’t she have just hidden herself, teleported away after destroying the Darkhold. Or I’m just desperately clutching at straws or whatever the saying is lol I just can’t believe she’s actually just…dead. I refuse. Sorry.

So. It wasn’t horrible, it also wasn’t amazing. But it could have been if the directing was so inconsistent, if the characterisation of Wanda wasn’t so off, if Doctor Strange has some real character progression that isn’t overused with every egotistical man in like every comic book movie. It was fun to watch, it was beautiful to watch, and it’s definitely one of my favourites just because of the horror and visual effects. But Elizabeth carries HARD and I will forever stand by that statement.

#doctor strange spoilers #doctor strange in the multiverse of madness spoilers #mom spoilers #multiverse of madness spoilers #doctor strange 2 spoilers #doctor strange #doctor strange in the multiverse of madness #mom #multiverse of madness #wanda maximoff #scarlet witch #america chavez #elizabeth olsen

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hellyeahheroes · 1 year

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Miles Morales: Spider-Man (2022) review 1-5

Okay, Cody Ziglar, now you have my attention.

Alright, Cody Ziglar, the first Black main writer of Miles Morales’ comic(not to disrespect Bryan Edward Hill but he only wrote one annual and it was bad), had a dubious honor of following Saladin Ahmed in writing Miles Morales. Just to sum it up, Ahmed’s strengths were that he greatly expanded on the supporting cast and rogues of Miles while giving Miles’ characterization that is more in line with Spider-verse. He modeled his writing after Romita’s run of Amazing Spider-Man that followed Ditko. His flaws were that he failed to actually commit to things in the end as he quickly dumped all of his work in expanding said supporting cast the moment his Creator’s Pet Starling comes around and it becomes all about Clones and Multiverse. After a strong start, Ahmed’s run came to a weak and disappointing end.

Now it’s Ziglar’s turn and I heard ramblings that he wanted Miles to be more around street level black heroes like Misty Knight because they operate differently than the white heroes and don’t have the same privileges. Compare Blue Marvel to Tony Stark and you see what he’s talking about. Anyways, Cody starts his run making parallels to Miles’ Irresponsible Destructive Savior tendencies and his lack of appreciation for his opportunity at Brooklyn Visions Academy.

Miles is being criticized, perhaps unfairly, on both aspects. On one hand, Agent Gao can point out all of the destruction Miles “caused” but if you reread the issue, you will find that most of the damage was caused by Scorpion prior to Miles arriving to the scene and saving that girl, which said girl ends up being wildly important later on. His teacher scolds Miles for being unappreciative of his opportunity that he feels Miles is squandering overlooking the fact that Miles won a lottery to a charter school that is taking funding from underfunded public schools.

So Miles is being attacked by an overly funded police force that loves persecuting vigilantes, especially people of color, and a school system that takes kids from their communities and places them in boarding schools. Both take funding from public schools that, if properly funded at the same level as Brooklyn Visions, could have avoided the future problem that happens in this arc.

Miles’ won that lottery because his lucky number 42 was called. But what happened to the others balls? What happened to 41?

This is Raneem Rashad. Number 41. And she really needed that spot at Brooklyn Visions Academy. And the girl Miles saved in the beginning of the first issue.

Raneem lost her parents who were immigrants from Jordan. She was poor yet gifted and had to enter a school system that didn’t challenge nor uphold her. Her mother died because of inadequate healthcare that failed to catch an ailment on time. And her father’s last lament was for his daughter, his greatest gift, would be saved from the struggle of poverty.

Whoops!

Now Raneem blames Miles taking what she feels was her opportunity. Now you can say that her angry is misdirected, but the narrative is very much aware of that. Both Starling and Miles point out the flaw in her justification. Why be mad at Miles when she could be mad at the fucked up system? That’s not the point of Raneem Rashad aka Rabble. When Bendis watched Waiting For Superman, he was inspired to make that part of Miles’ origin. Miles origin is not propaganda for Charter Schools, Private Schools, or Advance Placement Schools *cough* Spider-Man MCU *cough*. It’s a deconstruction of and a social commentary on it. Spider-Man: Into the Spider-verse isn’t saying Charter schools are awesome. It’s pointing out the alienation Miles feels attending such institutions. And Raneem is now asking the audience the important question that do these kids who did not win deserve to be left off? They are gifted too. Just as if not more so than Miles. And should Miles be forced to carry the burden of the American Education System inadequacy just because he won a lottery?

While Saladin explored how a school system targets students of color like Miles with characters like Assistant Principal Dutcher and Sean, Cody is looking at the systemic impact of schools like Brooklyn Visions through Raneem. And it’s fantastic. It’s all fantastic.

As for the character herself, Raneem Rashad is Miles Morales’ narrative foil. That is his forever enemy. A true Spider-Man Classic villain throwback. While Bruce Wayne’s rogues spiraled into mental health caricatures, Spider-Man’s rogues has always been about unchecked corruption from the top filtering to the masses. There are levels to Spider-Man villains. You have guys like Sandman and Rhino who are down on their luck or you have folks that have been spurned or sleighted by higher institutions like Doc Ock and Vulture. Then you have Norman Osborn or Wilson Fisk. Raneem is a little column A and Column B. What makes her special that she is specifically a Miles Morales Spider-Man villain. Slott can’t just pluck her out and have a character that he’s writing embarrass her like he did the Assessor.

Rabble is a Miles Morales classic that is so specific to Miles that it would be highway robbery to pair her with someone else(not that it would stop Tom Holland’s Spider-Man from trying).

You can’t replicate this animosity.

And yeah. I mess with it.

Cody, just like Ahmed was, is the right choice to helm this comic because Cody is,not meant as a pejorative, woke. The art is fantastic which is expected from Federico Vincentini and colors Bryan Valenza. This isn’t Federico’s first time drawing in a Miles Morales comic as he was also behind the Absolute Carnage: Miles Morales mini so it’s nice that his chaotic and frantic style was given some room to explode on the page.

My only critique is that this arc should have at least highlighted Miles other supporting cast that goes beyond Ganke Lee and Miles’ immediate family. Barbara Rodriguez, Judge, Sean, and etc. but otherwise, BRAVO, Cody Ziglar. I look forward to your future additions to this run.

@ubernegro

#miles morales #spider-man #raneem rashad #rabble #cody ziglar #spider man: across the spider verse

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reignof-fyre · 2 years

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J-just saw a youtube comment comparing wendy martin and tony stark by saying their character arcs are the same like ???

tony stark's arc begins with him being an arrogant bajillionare genius that sleeps around and runs the company his father started from the ground up. his eyes are forcibly opened to the horrors of said company's products and is held captive and tortured by terrorists and after freeing himself of captivity through his own genius and ingenuity he ends weapons productions and promptly begins trying to right the wrongs he himself is not culpable of and finds out that a man he trusted was responsible for the illegal selling of his weapons to terrorists and puts his life on the line to stop stane (orders pepper to overcharge the reactor to kill stane even when he was in its line of fire). tony's arc is about self-growth and change and responsibility and accountability. In IM2 tony's a bit more reckless than usual because oh, yeah, he's actively dying :))))) do you know what heavy metal poisoning does to a person?

to name a few symptoms/effects. No wonder the guy was all over the place.

Wendy, however, begins her arc in the mcu as a WILLING HYDRA volunteer/agent that plots to kill tony stark for something he isn't guilty of. She mind rapes the avengers, triggers tony's ptsd, is at least 50% responsible for ultron's creation, sets the hulk on Johannesburg, plots to kill all the avengers and help ultron do so, and only backs out and changes sides when she goes into ultron’s mind (mind rape :)) and sees that his plan is GLOBAL ANNIHILATION and that includes her and her twin brother. she didn't change sides for altruistic reasons. It was self-preservation at its finest. She was a willing and eager nazi terrorist.

In CACW she accidently tosses a bomb into a building full of people and they die and/or are injured. At this time the avengers, of which she is a member, act as an unfettered, unsupervised (I'm team responsibility and accountability and oh, so is Tony) police force and so it's absolutely likely that, in real world situations, house arrest is the LEAST of wendy's problems. But she throws a tantrum and shoves vision through dozens of floors because "I can't control their fear, only my own" says the girl with the ability to mind rape people and bring up their worst fears :(((( poor bbby. At the Leipzig airport in Germany she tosses several cars at Tony, a baseline human under the suit, because "uwu u lockeded me in my woom u big meanie! :(" she then goes on, after endgame, to trap an entire town under her powers against their will (MIND RAPIST) because vision died and acts as though she's the victim and deserves sympathy??? No??? And let's not get started on her arc in Multiverse of Madness because BITCH IS CRAZY AND UNHINGED AND I hate her bye

My point is this:

tony stark is constantly trying to better himself in each movie he's in. Is he perfect? No, but at least he actively tries and does better himself.

Wanda is the same mind raping nazi HYDRA scum bitch she's always been in the mcu and she hasn't tried to better herself other than call herself a hero and offer empty apologies :)

#pro tony stark #team iron man #anti wanda maximoff #anti mcu wanda #anti maximoff twins #i love tony stark #tony stark defence squad

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space-mermaid-writing · 2 years

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AHHH THANK YOU FOR THE SUPERIOR IRONSTRANGE FIC!!! He really does seem like fun to write, I love the evil characters that just do whatever tf they want with no specific agendas. If you ever wanted to write a follow-up where SIM tracks Stephen down I wouldn't be opposed 😜 I already ask so much of you tho so no sweat, thanks for making my morning ! ❤️

Summary: Superior Iron Man visits 616 Stephen Strange

Ko-fi | Masterlist | Word count: 1.4k | Part 1 | Part 3

Chapter’s Notes: I‘m happy you like the first part, anon. It was actually thinking of writing another, so your request played right into it. And jokes on you, I have also a third part planned, in which Superior Iron Man visits Sinister Strange. This is getting out of hand, SIM is so fun to write, send help.

Being superior was... honestly, kinda boring.

Tony flew over the city, his silvery white suit a symbol of regime and fear. The Illuminati had fallen, the Scarlet Witch from the other universe had shredded them like a cat shreds wrapping paper. The incident had shaken things up a bit, made them more interesting. It had been just the thing to wake Tony up. Admittedly, he'd retreated to his workspace, into his world of 1s and 0s, since the fight against Thanos. Since Stephen's execution.

It wasn't sadness, not even anger, that made him do that - he was above those emotions. He didn't know when the last time was since he had felt anything at all.

There was only excitement or boredom. Or indifference.

Stephen had been excited. He and Tony were something else. Two brilliant minds. Superior and supreme. The world almost didn't deserve them. Almost.

Tony had always been aware that Stephen had held him back. He had kept Tony at bay. They had been both ambitious, but the sorcerer had somewhat of a moral compass left. That's why he installed the Illuminati. And Tony had led him.

But now, with the Sorcerer Supreme gone, no one was stopping him. No one was able to.

After the Illuminati had fallen, he had taken over the world. It was ridiculously easy. Boring.

Tony had made some improvements, shaped it to his liking. He was a god. Not one like Thor or Loki, who were basically just glorified rulers. Spoiled princes. Tony was an actual god; he controlled the entire planet, was networked with every single device in this world. He saw everything, heard everything. He judged everything.

But it did not satisfy him. He loved his new order, the technology he had created. But something was missing.

He wanted to share his achievements. He wanted someone who understood.

His mind wandered to the Stephen Strange who had stumbled into his universe almost exactly a year ago. By accident. It was pathetic how weak that Stephen had been. His moral compass was very strong, he had a conscience. Tony snorted in amusement.

Still, apparently he had survived the Scarlet Witch. That was nothing to sneeze at.

Tony had monitored his journey and knew that Stephen returned to his own universe. A universe with no Tony Stark.

Tony grinned. It was basically a logical consequence, the result of a simple equation.

He had been busy for the last year, but now he had time. And he was bored. A bored Tony Stark was alway dangerous, in every universe.

He decided it was time to grace the universe of the living Stephen Strange with his presence.

Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed a splash of color that didn't belong there. Something red in the otherwise chrome-colored city. Someone had dared to put a red parasol on his balcony.

A quick order to his A.I. was all it took to carry out his law. An Ultronbot would remove the parasol - and the person who had put it up.

There were a lot of records about 616 and so it was not difficult to locate that universe. The actual journey turned out to be a bit more difficult. The multiverse didn't like it when someone left their own prescribed world. But Tony loved to cross boundaries. He was the one who set them. There was no higher power than him that could dictate him.

His technology was superior, and he entered this other New York. It was untidy, chaotic, alive. Tony watched it with a raised eyebrow as he flew over the city.

There was a lot of work to do. He could hardly wait to get started.

Although it would not have been difficult for him to locate Stephen - Tony knew where the Sanctum Sanctorum was - it was the sorcerer who found him first. Well, Tony hadn't been subtle on his sightseeing flight. People had recognized him, pointed up to him, taken pictures of him. He was probably trending on Twitter right now.

Good to see that people in every world looked up to him. Even long after his death.

He was somewhere near Central Park when Stephen flew into his path. He was wearing his cloak of levitation, which was red in this universe. Tony wasn't sure he liked the color on him. Blue had always suited him better.

"How did you get here?" Stephen asked. He didn't seem happy to see him.

Tony flashed a smile that was cold and arrogant.

"What, like it's hard to jump universes?" He made a sweeping motion to the surroundings. "I have to admit your world is far more behind on tech than I imagined. I'd say it's time for an upgrade."

"We're good. So, thanks for stopping by, but it’s time for you to leave."

Tony floated closer to Stephen, right in his personal space. Unlike last time, Stephen didn't back away. Back then he had been cuffed, now he had the cloak and magic at his side. This was his territory, he won't back down.

Tony liked it. He saw a glimpse of his own Stephen in this one and cupped his face.

"Why do you want me to leave, doc? We can stay together and I'll show you the true meaning of power."

Stephen closed his eyes, just for a moment, and for a split second he wished it could be true. That he could have Tony back by his side.

"But you're not him, are you?" he repeated Tony's words from the last time they met. He looked at him, into those ice blue eyes, almost like cold steel.

"I'm better."

Stephen tilted his head, away from the touch and put some distance between them.

"You're not even close to him. This is your last warning: go back to your own universe!"

Tony's gaze darkened, the repulsors lit up on his hands. It was a bummer. They could have had so much fun together.

And they fought. Stephen was powerful, he had been the Sorcerer Supreme for a reason. And that was even before Thanos. He had learned so much since then.

But this Tony... he was unhinged, in a calculatingly murderous kind of way.

Stephen needed the help of the New Avengers, of other super teams, and it was still a close call. There was a short period when technology turned against them. It was almost like Ultron all over again - not that Stephen had been involved in that specific event back then - but still.

Everyone helping was shocked to see the face of Tony Stark. It was like that ghost of future christmas showing them the worst of possible what if's… They have never been more glad that their Tony Stark had been nothing like this maniac. He had been human.

Tony laughed. Fighting Stephen was fun. He reminded him of his own Stephen, when the sorcerer unleashed the demons of Thar'galloth on him. Brilliant move.

But this Stephen held back, he was too collected. He didn’t do what had to be done. He was sentimental and hesitated to kill Tony. Pathetic.

Tony was annoyed when he had to fight a whole group of heroes. They were in his way - this was not about them. It was about Tony and Stephen.

Finally they managed to contain him. It was a very close call, they almost didn’t make it.

Stephen stepped up to the magical field they had locked this Tony into, while the others watched his back. He was bleeding in several places on his face and his left shoulder was dislocated.

Tony looked less battered, his hair was disheveled and he was missing several pieces of his armor that were not supposed to be removable in the first place.

"It's over," Stephen panted. "You lost."

"Then end it. Like you ended him."

It was a bluff, Tony couldn't die. He was part of his technology. There were millions of pieces of him in his universe. But Stephen didn't know that.

"I won't watch another Tony die," the sorcerer whispered. Then he put on a neutral expression. "You helped me in your universe. Count us even."

"You're cute to think that."

Tony probably had much more to say, but Stephen, with America's help, sent him back to his own world and closed the portal. He realized that he desperately needed to erect wards around his universe, to prevent Tony from coming back.

Tony, meanwhile, was offended and angry. However, there was something good about the trip: he realized that there were so many more Stephens he could visit and play with.

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