The Multiversal Road-Trip: Book Five

35

And by the time the sun had set, it was gone. Every trace of the book that caused so much trouble over so many years – heck, probably since before Loki's (adopted) parents were born. That was a lot of years. Gone, not only physically, but also mentally, if Wanda's and Loki's sighs of relief were anything to go by. Gone. That meant no more dark wizards. No more dark witches. No more dark magic. In any dimension.

And the best part? No one had to sacrifice themselves.

That was always a bonus.

They were still at Wanda's, in their new seating arrangements on the porch, even though it was dark, when Scott had the bright idea of returning to his house and continuing the Christmas celebrations. For obvious reasons, Wanda couldn't just leave with them, so Scott gave her his address and she promised to meet them there in no more than fifteen minutes. (Stephen had no clue how she was going to do that, but hey, whatever.)

So Stephen, Scott and Loki headed off towards the perimeter, back the way they came. Well, it was a lot later than the agent dudes expected, but they did what they were here to do, didn't they? Talked to Wanda. Found out what she wanted. In fact, they far exceeded their job. So if they dared to complain...

"You aren't feeling rebellious, are you, Strange?" Loki said, mock-gasping. "Surely you aren't planning to have words with the agent dudes?"

"I am," Stephen shrugged, simply. "I'm going to bargain." Dammit... they wouldn't get that reference.

"Ooh, I'm excited for this," Scott grinned. "Dr Stephen Do-You-Have-A-Middle-Name Strange, holding his own against the entirety of the secret agency."

"I am amazing at bargaining," Stephen said, proudly, choosing not to mention the part where he died multiple times. "And yeah, I have a middle name. But that's not the topic of conversation."

"Ooh, what is it, what is it?" Scott asked, acting like a little kid. "Tell me, tell me!"

"What if I don't want to tell you?" Stephen asked.

"Then I'll tell him," Loki said, and Stephen glared at him.

"Damn your telepathy," he said, then turned back to Scott. "It's Vincent."

"Ooh, has a nice ring to it," Scott smirked. "Meanwhile I am smug, in the two middle names department. Scott Edward Harris Lang at your service."

"Bit of a mouthful," Loki remarked, and Stephen laughed at Scott's scowl. "I don't understand why you Midgardians have middle names."

"I don't understand why you don't have a surname," Scott shrugged. They reached the edge (which they could tell thanks to a light shimmer) and a giant grin came over his face. "OK, Dr Stephen Vincent Strange, your moment has come. Impress us."

Stephen rolled his eyes, but his full name hadn't been used in so long he was actually amused. He stepped past the barrier into... the morning sun and blue sky (OK? Why not? Time was unbelievably messed up at the minute). The agent dudes, with all the cars still here, appeared to currently be on breakfast break. They were really still here?

At the sight of him suddenly arriving, closely followed by Scott and Loki, the agents all jumped in unison and tried to get back to more professional positions. They must have been here a while – some sleeping tents were even set up.

Oh yeah. What day was it now? He'd lost track.

"You're back," one agent lady, the one who gave them the trackers and communications devices when they arrived, said. She must have been one of the ones in charge? He wasn't sure.

"Really? I wasn't aware," Stephen deadpanned.

"Were you expecting us to not be?" Scott added.

She conveniently chose not to answer that. "Well? What does she want? What happened in there? Your trackers malfunctioned, and you didn't relay anything back to us at all for days."

"Oh, the walkie-talkies went for walkies," Loki said, smiling innocently. Because he was so innocent.

"And the trackers probably were short-circuited by the magic present," Stephen offered. "And anyway, as for what happened, we – as in us and Wanda Maximoff – came to a peaceful decision. Everything's great, no one is currently dying, which is a good thing. So we want 72 hours of guaranteed silence from whatever agency or organisation you guys are from, before we meet up and discuss everything." She opened her mouth to argue, but Stephen literally zipped her mouth up (with magic, and since he wasn't mean, undid it afterwards). "72. Hours. No negotiations. No nagging. No demanding answers. No knocking on our doors. Because then we'll extend the deadline." Then he continued onwards, somewhat sassily, walking straight down the endless country road they'd used to get there. "Now, if you don't mind, we have a Christmas to get back to."

"We have your approved transport here-"

"No, we're going by portal," Stephen said, leaving no room for negotiation. Though he did have to double back to use the tool they used to break the trackers, snapping his own off his wrist (that felt nice). Then he went to stalk off again, but had to stop. "And, er, what's the date?"

"December 31st, around 11pm in San Francisco," one guy said, because the lady didn't seem to be in a good mood with them anymore.

"Thank you," Stephen nodded. "Now. We better be off. 72 hours. Then we'll talk." Unable to resist it, he finished off with a dramatic wave of his hand, and said, sassy as hell, "Ciao, adios, I'm done."

"Well, you heard the man," Loki said, behind him, as Stephen opened up a portal to Scott's house (where it was much darker than here). He had the impression he was loving the attitude. "Ha det. Vi kommer til å savne dere, drittsekker."

He was assuming that meant something rude in Asgardian. Because it was Loki.

"What they said," Scott said, while Stephen and Loki went through the portal. "And, um, bye." Trust Scott to try to be polite. He really was awesome.

Scott emerged onto the other side with Stephen and Loki, and Stephen closed the portal while they were all staring at them. Loki gave a cheeky grin complete with wave at their stunned looks.

Well, they couldn't do anything for 72 hours.

"Fantastic bargaining," Scott said, as Loki started up a sarcastic round of applause. "Truly fantastic. Absolutely fantastique."

"Fantastisk," Loki added. "Fremragende. Utrolig. Forbausende."

"Alright, I'm hoping all those were compliments," Stephen sighed. "Now. What should we do?"

Scott looked at him as though he was an idiot. "What should we do? Didn't you hear the dude? It's New Year's Eve! Lucky you two get to experience not only a Lang family Christmas, but also a New Year! Do you know how fortunate you are?"

"Is it more standing on a cliff watching non-existent slash god-made fireworks?" Loki guessed.

"No, they're actually real ones this time," Scott enthused. "We'll wait for Wanda, and head up, yeah?"

Stephen and Loki shared a glance and both shrugged in unison. "Sounds like a plan."