Doctor Strange - This One Summer

Arrival

Whispers

Not even a week after Stephen Strange arrived at Kamar-Taj, the whispers of another American student began circulating through the halls. Stephen didn't concern himself with what he overheard; he was here to learn, not socialize. However, a few of the things he overheard, admittedly, piqued his interest from time to time.

"Another American?" someone would murmur. "Did they come together?"

"No," came the reply. "Master Mordo told me they come from very... different schools of thought. This girl apparently already knew magic before coming here."

"You're kidding!"

Another group of novices that had the same spellcasting theory class as this girl had rather unpleasant opinions about the girl's attitude.

"No, she can't be related to him; she's modest, at least in a material sense. But when it comes to spellcasting, she's as arrogant as they come. They're two sides of the same coin, that Strange and Grace."

"You'd think the Ancient One wouldn't have let them in at all, after all that's happened recently."

"I hear she was a Pagan before coming here. One of those Wiccans."

"Wiccans?"

"Yes. I have no earthly idea how she managed to gain favor of the Ancient One by going on and on about three-fold laws and freedom of... sexual affairs."

"How obscene! At least she doesn't spew that nonsense in class. Imagine--something like her learning here amidst all of us. She'll be gone in a week, I guarantee it."

And why were these students so driven to gossip about this girl? Well, when Stephen caught his first glimpse of the girl, he understood why this new girl was so compelling. She was in his spellcasting class. He didn't realize it was her at first because she was neither incompetent enough nor prodigal enough to stand out in class. No, her compelling behaviors began out of class during her free time.

Stephen finally recognized the strange new student between classes. The girl perched on a bench beneath a tree that had blue flowers on the crown. She picked quietly at a shamisen in her hands, stopping every now and then to look up.

"I don't think it's that bad," she was talking. Talking to whom? No one was there. "They fear her because she's so powerful. She's so cool; I wish I could talk to her. But she's busy a lot, so I don't want to bother her. What am I supposed to say anyway? 'Hi, I'm young and questioning my sexuality. Wanna grab a Starbucks at two in the morning'? Be reasonable."

"Is she talking to a tree?" Stephen squinted at the girl. Mordo followed his gaze for a moment.

"Yes," the master replied. "At first, we considered scolding her for it; although she may be unaware, she's using magic to encourage the plants. It's outside the natural law and a trifle fancy, surely, but the Ancient One had only nice things to say about it, so we leave her be."

"So, I take it she's the Ancient One's favorite?" he asked, shifting his eyes off the girl. "She seems pretty magic-savvy, but she's cocky. Why is her magic working for her, whilst mine is still indefinite?"

"Everyone learns at a different pace," Mordo replied. "And the Ancient One favors no one; Hazel is simply a... special case."

"How special?"

"I'm sure you've heard your fellow students talk about Hazel's magical background?"

"Yeah, she was Pagan, wasn't she?"

"In a way," he shrugged as they continued walking. "She couldn't conjure anything, but she could manipulate the world around her in very subtle ways--keeping a cup of tea hot for several hours, for example. She came here to learn more about magic to temper her fundamental talent for it, but she only has a short time to learn here, so we're working around her schedule as needed."