Lights → Doctor Strange

{epilogue}

When Riley woke up, she realized she was alone. It didn't really shock or surprise her, because she knew she had slept later than Strange had ever slept in his entire life. But she still laid there. Strange's three words from last night were playing through her head.

She had heard him, but oh, she had been too tired to think about whether or not to respond to him. So she had slept on it, and now, in the morning, she would sort out her feelings. She buried her head deeper in the pillow. A frustrated groan escaped her.

Strange walked into the room and sat down on the bed next to her, "Riley?"

She sat up, smoothing her hair down, "What? I'm not doing anything."

Strange furrowed his eyebrows, "Okay. I was going to ask you to spar with me this morning. We haven't practiced since your coma."

Riley blew a strand of hair out of her face, "Alright, meet you in the training room in ten."

Strange nodded and left the room. Riley flopped back down onto the mattress and sighed. It wasn't really sorting out her feelings, it was just how to tell him. How was she going to say she had heard him but was too scared to respond right away? It wasn't a conversation she was looking forward to.

She stood and pulled on a different tunic before braiding her chin-length hair back. Her footsteps were soft as she made her way up to the training room on the third floor. She walked into the room where Strange was waiting for her. She gave him a tight smile before settling into her fighting stance.

Her magic felt stronger than it had ever felt. It was like even after all the trials she had been through, she had emerged stronger. Somehow, her magic was back and even better than ever. She summoned a ball of flame, but instead of the familiar blue or the tainted black, it was white like an opal. Different colors flickered through it, pinks and blues and greens. It was mesmerizing.

Strange grinned, "That's new."

Riley smiled back before launching the ball of flames at Strange. He didn't even flinch, summoning a shield and blocking her attack. He threw a dagger of gold towards her and she raised her own shield. It was white too, it seemed all her magic had changed. They fought back and forth, both just passing the time sparring.

Riley held up a hand and the fight stopped. She wiped her forehead and sighed. "Tired?" Strange asked worriedly. It had been a while since she had wielded Light magic. Wordlessly, she shot a ball of water straight at him. It doused him from head to foot. He dripped onto the bamboo flooring.

"That was a dirty trick!" he protested, wiping the water from his eyes.

Riley was bent at the waist, clutching a stitch in her side as she laughed. After a moment, Strange joined in the laughter. They both howled with laughter until it echoed through the empty sanctum.

Suddenly, a golden portal opened in the middle of the room. Their laughter died immediately. A older sorcerer stepped from the portal, "You're needed, Supreme... Supremes?"

Riley gave a tiny laugh at the butchered title. It seemed Strange and her shared the title of Supreme for now. "What for?" she asked.

The man's face was grave, "An attack on the London sanctum by Mephisto."

He turned and walked through the golden portal. It stayed open in the middle of the training room, waiting for them. Riley walked over and stood close to Strange, "Who's Mephisto?"

He shrugged, "I guess we'll find out."

Riley giggled a moment before her tone went serious. "I guess we don't get any days off, do we?"

Strange gave a wry smile, "Guess not. Let's get going."

Riley grabbed his hand before he could step through the portal. He glanced back at her curiously. She pulled him closer to herself and took his other hand, she looked down at his scarred palms. "Strange, I-" she cut off, her voice wavering. "I love you, too," she whispered softly.

Without another word she walked through the open portal and straight into another fight. After a long moment, Strange followed her with a grin.

A/N

Y'ALL

I finished it! It only took like three months, too! That's like.... A record for me! OMG!!!
Thank you so so so so so so so so so much for reading, voting, and commenting! Each one has made my job so much easier! Just knowing what you guys felt about my writing was honestly the highlight of my year.

THANK YOU GUYS SO MUCH! Without you guys, there wouldn't be any reason for me to write!

I love each and every one of you! The voters, the commenters, the silent readers! All of you are precious!

Last time, you know what to do. --Lady_Loki_00