The Scarlet Apprentice 2: The Multiverse Between Us

Life and death

A long awaited silence in a peaceful sanctuary. A long deserved break at the end of the line. There was not a single disturbance within the safety. No more fight, no more pain. The trees swayed within the gentle breeze, the cattle moved freely without worry of harm. Everything was protected and civilised. Everyone could now rest, recover, and replenish themselves. At least for now.

Sitting on the logs by the open fire, was the team. The orange cackled in the air each time someone tossed a stick onto it, roaring so fiercely yet so gently all at once. Sam and Bucky sat as close as they possibly could to each other, needing to feel each other's comfort now more than ever. Strange and Wong sat opposite each other, not looking at anything other than the full glass in their own hands. Then there was Wanda. Sitting on the largest log with her glass on the ground beside her was Wanda. On her own. No y/n.

She glanced over her shoulder whenever she heard movement, hoping to hear any news of how her love was or how she was going to be. The team got used to the disappointment plastered on her face whenever she turned back around after hearing nothing.

"She's going to be okay," Bucky assured her, watching her face change, "she's a fighter."

Hearing the hope coming from Bucky, Sam chimed in, "you know nothing can kill y/n. Absolutely nothing."

"I know, I just," Wanda slid her hands in her thighs to fight off the coldness biting at her skin. If y/n was there, Wanda's hands would be buried in hers, so she'd never have to feel the cold at all. "I wish they'd let me see her. What if she's alone, you know? What if she's.. scared."

When the team saw Wanda's tears shining in the firelight, they consoled her. Sam leant forward, "she knows we're here with her. She can probably feel us now."

"I know she's here with us," Strange nodded, "something keeps flicking me in the back of the neck she's probably using her magic to throw rocks at me."

Wanda unexpectedly laughed. The sound of her laughter was shocking but so beautiful to everyone's ears. The rest of the team began to smile and loosen up when they saw the shift in Wanda's mood, when they heard the hope in her laugh.

The blissful sound of her laughter made its way through the clear Wakandan air until it reached where it needed to be. Lying on the surprisingly comfortable bed with her eyes closed, y/n's eyes shot open when she heard the quiet sound.

She sat up, excitedly. She knew the sound wasn't coming from inside the room - it couldn't possibly be, but she'd tuned her ears to listen out for anything Wanda said or did, so she was excited to have finally caught something.

When y/n woke up on her first night there to be met with wires attached to her and needles being stuck in her, she forced herself up and ripped them off of her. The pain that followed her panic went ignored as she tried desperately to figure out where she was and what had happened. But, she couldn't stay awake long enough to figure it out. Without the wires and medical support, she soon fell under again.

The second time she woke up was a lot calmer. She was greeted by one person rather than an entire medical team, which made her feel less threatened. As she slowly woke up, she tried rubbing her eyes while the girl beside her spoke her through what had happened. Just before the girl could explain y/n's injuries, y/n realised that only one of her hands were rubbing her eyes. Her panic seized her once again when she saw that one of her arms wasn't there anymore, and was instead replaced by bandages wrapping around her shoulder. It took a lot of time and a lot of tears for her to realise that her survival came with a price.

After a many sleepless nights and more medical procedures over the course of a week, y/n had began to get used to her loss. She hadn't left the room or seen any of her teammates all week, which would've worried her if she wasn't constantly informed that they were all safe and nearby.