A Second Chance Book 1

Part 8

Dr. Strange had brought Loki back to the sanctum, laying him in his room to rest. He had checked his vitals to make sure he was okay before he left him alone to get to work on trying to find where The Scarlet Witch had gone. For hours he searched, finding not a single trace of where she could be. No traces of her magic anywhere, in other words no clues on where she was hiding whatsoever. This so-called "Scarlet Witch" was most definitely a very skilled sorceress. She knew exactly what she could do, what her powers are. Unlike the Wanda of this world, who was still figuring out what she could do. But the real question was did she know what she couldn't do? This worried Stephen. If she was powerful enough to create portals through realities then she very well could be the most dangerous foe that he or the Avengers have ever gone up against. On top of that, Dr. Strange had Loki to worry about, and he could be very hard to handle. Not only that, there is still a chance that he could become more unstable or even worse his mind could basically self destruct as a result of not being able to catch up to time. This was the biggest reason he was hesitant to bring Loki back in the first place. He didn't want to put Loki though that torture and risk. After reading about what it could do to a person it almost seemed cruel to bring someone back to life that way. It could take months from him to completely recover. That is why Steven insisted that Loki be put under his care, He knew for a fact that he was the only one capable of keeping him alive.

   As he worked to find the witch's hiding place the sorcerer couldn't, no matter how hard he tired, put his worries aside. If Loki died or lost his mind because of what happened Stephen would blame himself, and he didn't know if he could handle that guilt. Dr. Strange sighs, giving in and going to check on Loki. He knocked on the door twice and waited for a response. The door opened to reveal an exhausted Loki.
"what do you want?" he asks with his usual spiteful attitude. Dr. Strange's eyes widened upon seeing the others stare, this was worse than he thought. "I came to check on you, looks like my instinct was correct." Stephen says guiding Loki back to bed. "lay down." He instructs. "I'm fine.." He mutters as he sat down. "No you are not, And do not claim that you are. I'm going to help either way." Dr. Strange insists. "fine.." Loki gave in lying down. This surprised Steven, Loki never had given in so quickly. Was he starting to earn the other's trust? "I will go get some food for you alright? you stay here and rest will you." He says softly and caringly. Loki nodded "alright.." he muttered weakly. Dr. Strange nodded and left the room. His body was on autopilot as his mind wandered. What would it be like to have Loki trust him? They could be friends, or. . . Something more. No. Steven pushed that though right out of his head. Sure, he would be an idiot to ignore how attractive Loki was. His figure, his jawline, his eyes. Not to mention that smirk of his, And that smooth voice. Loki was very much desirable to say the least. But Dr. Strange was a sensible person, he knew these kinds of thoughts could be dangerous. Especially when the subject of these thoughts was someone as unpredictable as Loki. Besides, attraction and love were two completely different things. But still, getting distracted by either of the two feelings would not be a good idea right now.

   Loki was still in the void, trying to decide what to do. On one hand, he was offered not only a world to rule but also his mother. Losing is mother is the worst thing Loki had ever gone through, to have her back would change everything. On the other hand, he had noticed something. Dr. Strange or Stephen, what Loki now knew his name to be, seemed to actually care about him. Even if only just a little bit, he cared. Now the problem was that Loki couldn't see how one person caring about his well being would be enough to outweigh an entire empire and seeing his mother again, but part of him told him it was. A small part of him told him that staying with Stephen, that for once in his life choosing good for more than just his own survival, would be worth it in the end. Loki hoped that the witch wasn't trying to read his thoughts as he tried to decide what he would do. He had tried to hide them from her but he could only do so much in his now very weakened and tired state. Suddenly he had control again. At least mostly, his brain was still keeping him from running to tell Dr. Strange what was going on. But at least he could move and speak on his own again, which was better than nothing. The door opened, Dr. Strange walking in with a tray of food and tea from the looks of it. "I'm back, here" He says, setting the tray down on the side table. "How are you feeling?" Stephen asks. "Sore. But better I suppose." He mutters, still staying closed off. He almost desperately wanted to tell Dr. Strange what the Witch had done but he couldn't. She had done something that prevented him from speaking about it and it was driving him mad. "Well try some tea, it should warm you up." Stephen says before going to leave. "thank you.." Loki muttered. This caused a small smile to form on Stephen's lips. "You're welcome Loki." He says before closing the door behind him. Loki had noticed the smile and that small feeling that was telling him he should stay grew much, much larger

   Unfortunately for Loki, Scarlet Witch had heard everything he was thinking. An evil smirk was placed on her face as she listened and watched the interaction between the two listening to Loki's thoughts all the while.
 "So. It's the sorcerer supreme that makes you want to hold on to this world Loki?" She spoke to herself in her hiding place. She chuckles. "Well, we'll see how long that lasts" She turned to look at two still projections. "Looks like I will be playing the long game" she says looking at the two with a smile. One of a human man, her brother. The other an android, Vision. "I will see you two soon. And when I do, everything will be perfect."