Come to Your Senses (Strange x Reader) - Chapter 3
Chapter 3 - Stay.
Song Inspiration
Request?: YES (for @jamiethenerdymonster)
Pairing: Stephen Strange x Fem!Reader
Word Count: 3.0k+
Warnings: MAJOR MULTIVERSE OF MADNESS SPOILERS!! Infrequent language, some suggestive content this chapter, Mordo being a little whiny baby (because why not)
Summary: To say Mordo was the last person Stephen was thrilled to see would be an understatement. As he and America consult with the emerald sorcerer for assistance on their adventure, Stephen gets a little more than he bargained for. (gif by Tenor - link in sources)
“You know him?” America asked as she stepped closer to Stephen’s side.
“Yeah.” Stephen nodded. “Mordo. He was actually the first guy who let me into Kamar-Taj a few years ago.”
“Oh!” America smiled. “That’s great!”
“Yeah, and then he snapped and dedicated his life trying to kill me.”
“Oh.” There was a period of silence as the young multiversal traveller turned her attention to the figure standing across from them. “Great.”
Like the statue next to him, this version of Mordo had some similarities to his counterpart in your universe. He was dressed entirely in a deep forest green and gold outfit, similar to that of the God of Mischief. He still wore the Vaulting Boots of Valtor, one of the first mystical relics Stephen had come into contact with during his few months at Kamar Taj. A green cloak now draped across his shoulders, too. However, the most dramatic difference this Mordo had to his multiversal counterpart was his hair. Unlike the traitor Stephen had needed to fight years ago, his hair grew out in thick braided strands that ended just above the small of his back.
As Mordo drew nearer to Stephen and America, the elder sorcerer subtly stepped in front of the girl. It was a simple act of protection, but her safety was his primary concern.
“I always suspected this day would come,” Mordo said as he approached.
“You did?” Stephen tilted his head, raising his hands ever so slightly in case of a surprise attack. Just because it was a new universe, it didn’t mean his enemy would end up not…being…his enemy again.
“Yes.” Mordo clasped his hands in front of him. “Because you always suspected this day would come.” A soft sigh escaped him followed by a sad smile. “My brother.”
Needless to say, if there was one thing Stephen Strange didn’t expect to be doing today, it was getting a hug from Mordo. “Alright,” Stephen drawled out, awkwardly placing his hands on the other sorcerer’s back.
“Come in,” Mordo said as he leaned away, “and tell me all about your universe.”
While he walked away, Stephen turned to shrug at America. She looked just as surprised as he felt on the inside. How much of this world was going to be turned upside down? “You go on red,” he remarked halfheartedly before following Mordo into the Sanctum.
In hindsight, Stephen knew it probably wasn’t the best to trust the man in green. Even in a new universe, there was always a hint of danger to Mordo. As they sat in the living room of this Sanctum, Stephen felt a chill run down his spine as he lifted a cup of tea to his lips. The liquid had a much more bitter flavour than he was accustomed to in the past. Though not unwelcome, it took him a period of time to adjust to the taste.
“We have a Darkhold in this universe, too,” Mordo explained after hearing their journey. “I guard it here in this Sanctum. We would never risk a weapon as dangerous as the Darkhold to fall into the wrong hands.”
“Damn right,” Stephen blew on his tea before taking another sip, silently willing himself to not make a face at the taste once again.
“But if your Darkhold is anything like ours,” Mordo continued. “I’m afraid she can do much worse than just summon monsters to come after you here.”
“What do you mean?” America asked with a frown.
As Mordo began to explain the importance of dreamwalking and its effects upon a person’s reality, Stephen felt his eyelids beginning to droop. Had he really gotten that little sleep last night after that nightmare which technically wasn’t a nightmare? He lifted a hand to his temple and rubbed a gentle circle against the skin he found there. When did he start getting headaches?
“W-what do you know about the Book of the Vishanti?” he asked Mordo, mentally cursing at his unintentional stutter.
“The Darkhold’s antithesis?” The sorcerer opposite him tilted his head with a slightly friendly smile. “It can give a sorcerer whatever power they need to vanquish their enemy.
Stephen nodded and attempted to get up. That proved to be a big mistake. The room around him began to spin and his head felt stuffy. It was almost worse than the one time you had convinced him to order a series of tequila shots the night before a big exam – something he vowed to never do again. “I need your help to get me to it,” he said with slurred speech.
“I’m sorry, Stephen,” Mordo said with a stare. “But I hope you, of all people, understand that it is not Wanda Maximoff who threatens our reality. It’s the two of you.”
The spinning grew worse and before long it was difficult for Stephen to even stand on two feet. He watched helplessly as America flopped unconscious against the armchair she was seated in. He staggered a bit, eyes glaring daggers at Mordo. “You son of a bitch,” he slurred. In his mind, he heard your voice begging him to fight it, reminding him of his true strength. He tried to, really he did. But the feeling soon overcame him and he landed backwards to see the Sands of Nisanti in an hourglass.
“She’s coming…” The words escaped Stephen’s lips as he allowed his eyes to close.
As crazy as it was, Stephen could have sworn he heard your voice angrier than he ever heard it before. “What the hell were you thinking?”
“It is what our Stephen would have wanted us to do.”
“This isn’t our Stephen. This is madness, why can’t we just…”
That was the last he heard as the darkness consumed him entirely.
= = = = = = = = = = = =
“Stephen…” he heard your voice call out to him in the darkness. “Oh, Stephen…”
A low groan sounded in his throat as Stephen turned on his side. He lifted a hand in the air and waved it lazily. Wherever he was, he was finally in a comfortable position and felt like he could lie there for hours. “Five more minutes.”
“You said that five minutes ago, silly.” There was a soft poking at his side. “Come on, we didn’t come all this way to stay in the hotel room.”
“I thought that was what a honeymoon was for.” Stephen smirked with his eyes still closed. “Staying in bed all day.”
There was a brief pause. “Okay, fine,” you relented. “But you’re using the bed for the wrong reasons.”
“Would you like me to change those reasons?”
Another pause. “Maybe?” your timid voice caused him to sit up and stretch, hands reaching for your own. There was a clinking of metal as your left hand intertwined with his own. It was a sound he could get used to hearing every morning.
“Is that hesitation I sense, Mrs. Strange?” Another smug smirk wormed its way onto his facial features. “You sure weren’t hesitating a few hours ago. In fact, you were rather sure about what you wanted.” A playful whack against his shoulders caused Stephen to laugh.
“Stephen,” you whined. “Can we please go explore? I mean, it’s not every day we can explore Greece.”
“Technically-”
“Without magic?” You tugged at his arm gently. “Come on, come on, let’s go.”
The light shone in through the window, bringing a bright glow to your face. It highlighted all of the best parts of you in Stephen’s opinion. Your smile was as dazzling as ever, hair cascading down your back, still curled from the extensions you had put in for the wedding. His gaze flickered to the floor where your wedding dress still hung, surprisingly undamaged from your previous night’s activities. For the first time in his life, Stephen truly felt happy. He could get used to seeing you beside him, feeling your skin against his own.
A smile illuminated your face even more as you leaned closer to capture his lips with your own. The sensation was like heaven. It was like the softest texture against his face and he couldn’t help but reach up to cradle your cheeks in his shaking hands. His eyelids slipped shut as he pulled you closer, eager for more direct contact. As the moment stretched on, Stephen heard a knock on the door.
“It’s probably room service,” you mumbled against his lips. “I ordered breakfast for us.”
Stephen grunted and pulled you closer in response. “They can come back later.” He was in far too much bliss to let you go now. Your kiss was like getting drunk on the finest wine he’s ever had in his life. He never wanted it to end.
Yet the knocking transformed into banging. From the other side of the door, Stephen heard the muffled sound of someone calling his name. They sounded familiar, but he couldn’t quite place it. “Stephen,” they called. “Stephen get up.”
A sigh escaped your lips as he began an attack on your neck with his lips. He was determined to get to know every inch of you and wasn’t about to let whoever was behind that door prevent him from doing so. What surprised him was you leaning away from his touch, eyes staring directly into his own. “You need to go play hero,” you said softly, “don’t you?”
“I could stay here,” came his dutiful response.
“As much as I love you and want you to stay, I know I have to share you with the rest of the world. So-”
“Say that again,” he requested, eyes wide.
“I have to share you with the rest of the world?” You raised an eyebrow in confusion.
“No,” he pleaded gently. “The other thing. The first thing you just said.”
A look of realisation spread against your facial features. A soft ‘o’ formed against your lips as you leaned closer to his ears. “I love you,” you whispered, lips curling into a smile. “Now, go be a hero, Doctor Strange.”
= = = = = = = = = = = =
The bright lights were blinding as Stephen awoke with a startled gasp. Foolishly, he spun his head around to rapidly search for you. What he found was a clear glass cage in an otherwise monotone grey and blue environment. Some kind of lab, he mused to himself. His hands were restricted by a pair of silver and green cuffs, the familiar glittering reminding Stephen of the hourglass of sand he noticed shortly before passing out earlier.
Oddly enough, that wasn’t the part of the situation that was bothering him. It was the fact he was dreaming about you which was causing him the most confusion. Not only were you with him in his dream, you were in the same bed. You were his wife. If what he had learned during the last day had any truth to it, somewhere in the multiverse the two of you were married…
…and he didn’t hate the thought of it, not in the slightest.
“Hey!” America’s voice shouted as the thudding returned. It was her Stephen’s consciousness had heard in his dream. Her frustration was easily recognizable as her fist made continuous contact with the glass. When she noticed he was awake, she tossed her hands up to Stephen and shook her head. “This universe sucks!”
The elder sorcerer attempted to free himself from the cuffs, but it was to no avail. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed two lab coat outfitted individuals having a hushed conversation across from his containment unit. “Hey!” he shouted, taking a moment to ram against the glass himself. “Hey, lab coat! Where the hell are we?
Look, I don’t know who you are or what you think you’re trying to do here, but these situations don’t usually work well for nameless scientists. So just- ” Stephen trailed off when one of the scientists turned around to reveal a very redheaded version of Christine Palmer. He couldn’t help it. It wasn’t that he was allowing himself to be in love with her anymore, because in truth he wasn’t. The only reason he had dragged you along to that wedding was to let her go once and for all. He allowed himself to silently stare for a moment before breathing out a single word: “Christine?”
“Hello Stephen,” she replied, a tight smile on her lips.
“Ay dios,” America murmured from her cell. Stephen was pretty sure she murmured something else under her breath in Spanish, but he honestly couldn’t tell what. Not that it mattered anyway.
“Ms. Chavez,” Christine-But-Not-Christine replied with a slight nod. “To answer your question, you are in a highly secure research facility. The two of you, along with your sentient cloak, are here for surveillance and testing.”
“Uh, I’m, uh, I’m sorry,” Stephen winced at his stuttering. “Testing?”
“Well yes. You’re visitors from another universe. Your magnetic signatures could be radioactive. You could be carrying diseases we just don’t have treatments for. Hence these amazing polycarbonate fishbowls.”
“I assume I have you to thank for…these, then?” Stephen held out his restrained wrists and moved them in a circle.
“Ah, yes.” This Christine nodded and walked closer to the glass. “I developed those from the Nisanti, one of 838-Stephen’s magical relics.”
“838 Stephen…” He couldn’t help but to chuckle. “What is that, some kind of cyborg version of me?”
“No. 838 is this universe’s version of Stephen Strange. Your universe has been designated as 616.” Christine walked over to the monitors near his cell and brought up a series of images. “It’s fascinating. Your injuries are similar, but there are still a variety of differences between them.”
“What…were we in this universe?” Stephen hadn’t meant for the question to slip out. His curiosity got the best of him.
“I’m afraid I don’t understand what you’re asking.”
“Were we together…here? In this universe.”
When Christine didn’t answer, Stephen gave a sigh and rubbed his chin. “Listen, someone from my universe is coming. And she is going to rip this place apart atom by atom until she gets her hands on that girl,” Stephen said. “So I don’t care if you’re from the Avengers or SHIELD.”
“We’re neither,” Mordo’s voice echoed from the hallway, followed by the sound of mechanical movement. When Stephen turned to look at the other sorcerer, he noticed he was accompanied by a series of silver mechanical robots. “Stephen Strange, the Illuminati will see you now.”
“...the Illumiwhat-y?”
= = = = = = = = = = = =
Meeting the Illuminati was one thing for Stephen. It was certainly unexpected, but he had hoped for more. The knock-off version of the Avengers certainly knew how to make things interesting with a series of dramatic reveals. That was something Stephen couldn’t argue. Although, he still couldn’t shake the thought they were all a little too sure of themselves. When he had first met the Avengers almost six years ago, Stephen could tell they were still working through their own challenges. This team before him almost seemed confident of their successes and were more than ready to send him to his death.
“Stephen,” the figure of Reed Richards stated from his seat. “Your arrival here confuses and destabilises this reality. The larger the footprint you leave behind, the greater the risk of an Incursion.”
“Incursion?” Stephen questioned.
“An Incursion occurs when the boundary between two universes erodes and they collide, destroying one or both universes entirely.”
“Your Alternate self created the Illuminati,” Captain Carter supplied in her English accent. “To make the difficult decisions that no one else could. Today we’re here to determine what to do with you…and the child.”
“So before we vote.” Captain Marvel lifted an eyebrow in challenge. “If you got anything serious to say, now’s the time.”
“Yeah, I do,” Stephen shifted his weight from foot to foot. The pain in his hands grew stronger the more time he was prevented from using magic. It had been a while since he had felt like this, but for America’s sake, he needed to power through it. “If it’s Incursions you’re worried about, do you seriously think I’m a bigger threat than the Scarlet Witch?”
“Oh, we can handle your little witch if she decides to dreamwalk,” the cosmic hero said with a confident air.
“No, no you cannot.” Stephen stated. “Not unless you give me the Book of Vishanti.”
“We appreciate your concern, Stephen, but it’s not the Scarlet Witch we fear,” Reed tried to explain. “In our experience, the greatest danger to the multiverse, it turns out, is Doctor Strange.”
That caused the sorcerer to freeze in confusion. “Wait, your Doctor Strange? Earth’s Mightiest Hero who died defeating Thanos?”
Before anything else can be said, there was a slamming sound of a door being pushed open followed by aggressive footsteps. A figure stomped through the shadows, fabric billowing out from behind them in their haste. The moment they stepped into the light, Stephen almost forgot how to breathe.
Suddenly you were there. You stood in front of him in a radiant blue and silver attire, this universe’s Cloak of Levitation hovering around your shoulder. At your sides, your brown leather wrapped hands clenched into fists as you paid him no mind. Your gaze was focused intently on Reed and his English companion.
“How dare you call a meeting in order without me?!” you exclaimed, obviously enraged.
“Mordo warned us of your reaction to the use of the Sands-” Captain Carter attempted to diffuse the situation, but was cut off by you holding up a hand.
“So you use this as an excuse to exclude me from the proceedings?! You’re lucky that I’ve even provided you access to this location.” Without another word you walked over to an empty seat and sat down with crossed arms. “He doesn’t even know what happened.”
“The young sorcerer is correct,” a voice echoed throughout the chamber. A moment later, a large yellow motorised wheelchair made its way behind the other members’ chairs before coming to a stop in the open space. Seated inside was an elderly man with sharp eyes that appeared to pierce right through Stephen’s soul. “We should tell him the truth.”
“May I present our final two members,” Mordo said after clearing his throat. “Professor Charles Xavier and Master Strange, Sorcerer Supreme.”
A chill ran down Stephen’s spine as your eyes locked onto his. “That’s not how our Stephen died.”
=================
Author's note: Alright, you little maniacs. I thought I had some more time to get my posts scheduled out here, but what did you do? You doubled the number of interactions for the challenge in three days. *tsks* I think I need to make things a bit harder this time. If we can get 200 interactions by Wednesday, you'll get the next chapter released earlier than Friday (yes, you got an extra chapter this week. When you get it, though, is entirely up to you ;)). I want to see a healthy number of reblogs this week, please!! It's rewarding to me as an author!
As for this chapter, I freaking loved writing that dream sequence. I knew the second I rewatched MoM, this scene needed to be written. It just had to. I am super excited for you to meet this variant version of the reader in 838. She was super fun to write for and her interactions with other characters are just...they're great. Not to mention, she's a Strange? *smirk*
If you enjoyed this chapter, make sure to leave a comment and a reblog down below! If you have a friend you think would enjoy this story, tag them in the comments, too! What do you think is going to happen next?
Until next time, my lovely little maniacs sparks!
