Heroine ϟ Marvel [3]

10.3

CHAPTER THREE

The Way of the Weird

- - - - -

(minor wandavision & the falcon and the winter soldier spoilers ahead!)

THE BAR WITH NO DOORS
MANHATTAN
FOUR MONTHS AFTER THE SNAP

Staring at the maroon brick wall on the corner of a building was beginning to give Ana eyestrain. She blinked a few times before puffing the air from her cheeks into the chilly Manhattan wind. Taking a few steps towards the wall, Ana's hands balled up at her sides at the possibility of running into another dead end. Literally and figuratively. She had visited many unmarked corners in New York. Looking for a place known only to sorcerers and Masters of the Mystic Arts. The Bar With No Doors. Kaecilius had mentioned it during her time at Kamar-Taj. It was a bar hidden from human eyes. Tucked away in one of the busiest cities in the world. Those with the touch of magic were granted permission to enter. It acted as a refuge and a location to simply hang out in.

Ana didn't care for drinking. She couldn't feel the full effects of alcohol even if she tried to. Much to her disappointment. No, her plan was straightforward. Find sorcerers who could help her reverse the Snap. Surely there had to be a few of them out there who wanted to see everything go back to the way it was. With half of all life gone, the magic in the universe dampened quite a bit. Ana felt it as soon as she stepped back inside the New York Sanctum Sanctorum after leaving the Avengers Compound. It didn't have its usual spark of mystic energy. Practising Masters of the Mystic Arts couldn't draw on anything to power their spells and incantations. They had to dig deeper. Hook their nails into what was left.

Ana couldn't get past harrowing emotions to do a simple spell. It was like there was a rope tied at her ankles and every time she was reminded of the people she lost, the rope would yank her back. There was no getting rid of it. It took a lot of strength just to get out of bed this morning. She had woken up with Bucky's jacket laid out in the space next to her. She couldn't even bring herself to reach out and touch it. She roamed the halls, feeling like a ghost. The mansion was eerily quiet. She would usually hear Wong in the library or Stephen at the Rotunda of Gateways. The already large house felt a whole lot larger. But it was her responsibility to safeguard it. It wasn't until the Sanctum removed the front door from her view when the idea of looking for the Bar With No Doors came to mind. To ensure the mansion brought the door back, she aimed her plasma hands at the walls and waited. Soon enough, she was out on the street with the front doors slamming shut behind her.

"This has to be it." She whispered to herself. Ana extended one hand, and touched the brick wall with her fingertips. It felt softer than brick. So she pushed. Her hand disappeared through the wall and she walked inside the Bar With No Doors.

It wasn't what she thought it would be. Was there a bar? Yes. A bartender? Sure, except it was just a man's head free from his body, floating around and taking drink orders. Yellow lights ran along the high ceiling, giving the room a warm glow. There was instrumental music on low volume coming from a stereo placed at the bar table. The furniture looked like it belonged in the nineteenth century. Relics and art gathered from different cultures and ages were on display. Ana recognised the teacups along a shelf opposite her. The Ancient One had the same cups in her room at the Kamar-Taj. Hooded and hidden figures sat randomly, alone, at tables and on stools by the counter. Some spared her a glance. Unlike the patrons in the bar, Ana wasn't in her sorcerer getup. Her black sneakers were scuffed and her faded denim jeans had rips along the knees. Her brown hair was in untamed waves, strands of it poking out from the blue hood she wore under her black coat.