A/N: Alright so I'm aware that I mostly write HP stuff and all those stories are unfinished, but I just saw Infinity War and went on a little quest to watch all the Marvel movies I've missed, and thus began my obsession.
Also, this may seem like it might fit in the 'Doctor Strange' category now, but come Infinity War, Strange is going out the window in like the first two seconds.
Oh, and one last thing: the main character's name is pronounced 'Syph' or at least that's how I pronounce it. I believe it's the name of a star.
Enjoy!
Prologue
Saiph Pekuliar looked about her drafty, dull bedroom. The New York Children's Home wasn't big on heating, and it showed in the winter.
She couldn't exactly understand what was wrong with the man standing in front of her. Firstly, she swore that that cape kept moving on its own, and just the overall appearance of the man rubbed her the wrong way.
"You're Saiph Pekuliar?" the man asked.
Saiph nodded. She wasn't in the mood for another stupid attempt at getting her adopted. She frowned; this was not turning out to be a good day. And she thought it was going to be so good! All the boys were out for the day and she thought she might get the chance to get on the old Nintendo, but of course, that was ripped away from her.
"My name is Doctor Stephen Strange," the man said.
Saiph averted her eyes. Of course Miss Bellamy thought there might be some sort of connection between the Pekuliars and the Stranges.
"You know, I can tell where I'm not wanted," Saiph stated coldly. "This isn't the first time Miss Bellamy has tried to send me with some crazy person."
She didn't feel bad at all for insulting Strange. If she convinced him that she had absolutely not interested, he might leave her alone.
Strange frowned. His obvious discomfort with the conversation made Saiph feel quite satisfied.
As Saiph watched, Strange seemed to be weighing his options. She supposed that he needed to choose his words quite carefully if he wanted to convince her.
"Have you ever made something happen that you couldn't explain?"
Saiph wasted no time in providing a snarky comment in return. "Come to whisk me off to Hogwarts, have you?"
Strange frowned. Apparently, Saiph was making this quite difficult. She smiled internally. People simply hated it when she made things difficult: it usually made them leave her alone.
Unfortunately, Strange was persistent.
"Look, Saiph, I'm here to help you."
"Look, Strange," Saiph began, imitating Strange's tone. "I don't need help. I can find my own life, thank you very much. I don't need a family. I don't need friends. I work alone, and I always will. I. Don't. Need. Help."
"If you understood, you would know that you do need help."
"I don't need to understand!" Saiph yelled. "I DON'T NEED HELP!"
She expected (and hoped) that Strange would show some anger, but he remained calm and collected. She would have so much rathered that he looked furious with her than the look of cold disappointment that she now resided beneath.
"Why don't you explain, then?"
"Like I said, 'My name is Doctor Stephen Strange'. I am also known as Master Strange, but I prefer to go by Doctor Strange." He paused. "I don't mean to be blunt, but I am a sorcerer. Not a wizard, there is a difference. For one, I don't have a wand."
"God, if I become the dark lord because of this-"
Strange continued as if he hadn't heard her. "Normally, we don't approach people—especially children—to become sorcerers, but this is different. You see, I am the master of the New York Sanctum, and I have an alarm that alerts me to extensive magical signatures. I've been watching you for a while, unsure of what you were, but sure that you posed no immediate threat. I decided that it was high time I figure it out, however. And here I am."
"This is insane." Saiph didn't mind being blunt, unlike Strange. "Look, I don't care who you are, or where you came from, or why want me. Because I know that just about the last thing you want to do is adopt a child."
Strange sighed. "I won't deny that you're right. But unfortunately, it comes with the job."
Saiph turned away. "If you don't want me, why don't you just patch me up and send me on my merry way? You said you're a doctor, right? Why can't you just fix whatever is wrong with me and let me go?"
"It doesn't work that way. I have a job to do, and you can either come willingly or I can force you to."
Saiph weighed her options. Although she could usually take a couple of the boys in the Children's Home with or without the use of her 'specialties', she doubted she could fend off a sorcerer, which left her with one option: go willingly.
"Fine," she conceded. "It's not like I have a choice."
Perhaps she could have some fun with this. After all, she doubted that Strange would just give her back like the other families had. Oh, she was going to make his life hell. And she would enjoy every second of it.