The Bad Ending
When Hazel was taken, the sanctuary withered. The windows were always dark, as if they'd covered themselves up. From the outside, a window would look like a gaze turned inward. Candles and incense would no longer burn, and the rooms and corridors were constantly cold. And then the plant life wilted to gnarled vines and thorns and overtook the sanctuary.
It would've looked better torn down.
The Ancient One was still holding Hazel when she woke with a start. They were both still on Hazel's cot, and Hazel herself had turned in and fallen asleep hours ago. She seemed to be resting peacefully, at least. However, the Ancient One couldn't be put at ease after that dream. It was a vision. Surely, not a literal one; the masters wouldn't allow Kamar-Taj to fall into such disrepair, but the sanctuary was as unhappy with the current circumstances as anyone, and reasonably so. It loved Hazel Grace.
The cat was the other to awaken that night to the sound of a match striking. Kenzo blearily lifted his head to see the Ancient One kneeling by the dark window in front of a spread of light pink candles and tea.
"We'll survive this, dear," the Ancient One whispered. She gently pressed her hand against the wood paneling on the walls. "We've seen worse."
Kenzo's whiskers twitched, and for a brief moment, he thought a breach had woken her. However, regardless of how powerful it was, the Main Guest was not here tonight, as he might not be for several nights, but he was still resolute in his demand for a sacrifice. Kenzo sat up when he heard music from within the sanctuary-a melancholy tune accompanied by a voice that sounded eerily like Hazel herself.
The cat looked down at the sleeping girl beside him. She'd be safe by herself tonight.
Mystic Letter
The next morning at breakfast, Hazel was quieter than usual, but an air of tension that the others had anticipated was absent. Actually, things felt a lot lighter this morning compared to the mornings of the last couple weeks. Perhaps it was from relief of an approaching end, or maybe Hazel being at peace with her fate was enough to put spirits at ease.
"How are you feeling this morning, Hazel?" Wong was brave enough to ask.
"I slept really well, actually," Hazel replied, then gave a genuine smile. "Suspicious, don't you think? I dreamed I was flying."
Then she glanced at the Ancient One in a familiar way, but the Sorcerer Supreme only smiled and nodded to humor her. Maybe it was just a dream after all.
The rest of the day was a melancholy kind of busy. Hazel attended her classes as if nothing was amiss. Her peers chattered about the thing that broke into Kamar-Taj, but luckily, no one had linked it back to Hazel. Regardless, whenever anyone did want her opinion on it, Hazel simply lied and said she hadn't gotten a good look at it. She felt sick to her stomach.
She felt bad lying about it, but she didn't have faith in her peers to treat her the same if she told them what she'd done. She also procrastinated calling home to tell anyone what was going on. How would she explain it? "I'm just going to stay here; I have a great job in Kathmandu now. Don't talk to me again." And if any of her peers at Kamar-Taj noticed her absence, the masters would tell them she'd gone back home.
She didn't worry about it too much, but Hazel was still stuck between believing she was going to die and pretending that she wasn't. It was a surprisingly peaceful limbo. Regardless, she needed to make arrangements, so she acted like it was just another job she had to do.
"Is there anything else you need?" she asked the Ancient One as she served her a cup of tea.
"No, thank you," the Ancient One replied quietly. "What will you be doing with the rest of your afternoon?"
"Nothing much. What about you?"
The Ancient One briefly debated telling her. "... I'll be speaking with Kai about a few things regarding the ritual. I think with his medical knowledge, we'd be able to make things... easier."
"Oh, I appreciate that, thank you," Hazel nodded and got to her feet. "I'll go talk to him. Don't worry about it."
The woman grimaced. "You don't have to. Let me speak with him, please."
"Don't be silly," Hazel smiled. "I'm doing this for you. You know that, right?"
The Ancient One averted her gaze.
"It'll be okay," Hazel said before leaving quietly.
On her way to the healer's ward, Stephen found her. He was relieved to see her. He'd only caught glimpses of her since the breach, but he hadn't gotten a chance to speak with her yet.
"Thank god you're alright," he started as he headed towards her. Hazel gave him a wane smile, more out of guilt than anything else. He surprised her by bringing her into a brief hug, only for a moment. After he pulled back, he stared at her sternly. "What happened during the breach? The Ancient One said you got hurt."
Hazel took a breath to calm him and herself.
"We need to talk," she said quietly. "The Main Guest got me. I'm going with him on the first."
"You're-" he gave her an incredulous look. "What does that mean? You're just going to astral project away and never come back? There's no way the Ancient One would-"
"Keep your voice down," Hazel hissed as Stephen turned away from her with his hands raised in frustration. He couldn't have said it if he wanted. When he turned back to her, his voice was low.
"After all that's been done for you, you're just giving up?!"
"It's not like that exactly," Hazel tried to calm him. "I wasn't the only one who got hurt yesterday. The Ancient One was almost killed by that thing that broke in."
"She was?" he blinked.
"Yes," Hazel's voice was desperate. "You didn't see what it did to her. If I hadn't intervened, it would've broken every bone in her body. And if I don't go with Oriishii, that's exactly what will happen. I can't be the downfall of the Masters of the Mystic Arts, Stephen. The world needs a Sorcerer Supreme; I'm just an eyesore."
"You're more than that," Stephen tried to argue, but his voice was quiet and sounded a bit far away. His tone was soft. "So what if you don't conform to all the rules here? That's why the Ancient One likes teaching you so much. She wouldn't have wanted it this way, Hazel."
Hazel's voice mimicked his. Fatigue. Defeat. "I know."
He folded his arms. He saw her point, and he knew why she was so willing to do this, but she was still his friend.
"So what are you going to do?" he asked.
"Well... I'm thinking about prior sedation. That way I won't..."
She didn't finish. She shouldn't be telling him any of this.
"Kai and I are looking into it," she finished. "You're a doctor. I'm sure you'd have good input on modern medicine. Kai's practice isn't entirely magical, but you could..."
"You're asking me to assist your suicide." Doctor Stephen Strange turned his back on her. "I won't use any of my medical knowledge to harm anyone, Hazel-that's not why I became a doctor."
Hazel looked down sharply in shame. She shouldn't have told him any of this.
"I'm..." Stephen sighed. He had to distance himself. "I'm sorry, Hazel, but I can't. I have somewhere to be. Take care of yourself, okay?"
Hazel didn't know if she said anything in response before the two friends parted ways.
Hazel's insistence to speak with Kai was pointless in the long run because the Ancient One ended up touching base with him anyway. Hours after Hazel had left her, the Ancient One headed to the healer's ward herself to see if they'd come to a decision yet. When she got there, Kai said he hadn't heard from Hazel at all that day. Perhaps she'd lost her nerve. Regardless, the Ancient One didn't delay making preparations for the ritual.
Kai leaned against the wall of the healer's ward while the Ancient One sat at the desk.
"We can sedate her," Kai confirmed. "Then you can do whatever is required."
"Right," the Ancient One nodded, pale fingers brushing over the pages of a medical textbook. She hated thinking about it. She'd killed students of hers before-former students, at least-but never in a blood ritual. Not that she could remember, at least.
Kai looked at her sympathetically. "What are the cooks preparing for her tonight?"
The Ancient One managed a weak smile and sat up. "I haven't asked her yet. I was thinking about taking her out; I'm sure she has a favorite restaurant she'd want to go to back in the States."
"That's good," Kai nodded. The two of them looked up when they heard aforementioned girl stepping by and calling for something in a sweet voice.
"Ancient One? Here, kitty, kitty, kitty..."
Hazel shook a bowl of dry cat food, trying to locate her familiar and ignoring the odd stares she got as she wove through the corridors and rooms.
"Has she gone into shock?" she heard Kai whisper, but she didn't concern herself with it.
Hazel searched the sanctuary for a long time, all through the halls and courtyards, but the cat was nowhere to be seen. She found herself timidly peering into the laundry room. She knew he liked to hide out here, but with the room being poorly lit with several nooks and crannies, it was a potential roost for Breaches and Guests. The room was cold when she stepped in, and she felt as if all the breath had been sucked out of her.
The bowl crashed on the stone floor, scattering cat food across the tile.
The Ancient One was speaking to a company of masters when she felt Hazel drawing closer to them. The Sorcerer Supreme dismissed them quickly, but she didn't seem genuinely bothered to them. And she honestly, oddly, wasn't afraid for a fleeting moment. She too was affected by the sudden, inexplicable calm that had settled over the sanctuary. It was as if the looming shadow of the Main Guest no longer approached them. She decided to savor their last days of peace before Lammas.
However, once the masters left and Hazel joined her, the Ancient One could tell that something was very wrong. Hazel didn't have to say anything-it was written all over her face. Perhaps she'd finally snapped.
"What is it?" the Ancient One asked quietly.
Hazel didn't speak. She brought the Ancient One to the laundry room, where they found Kenzo's small, feline body lying in the center of a blue seal drawn on the floor in chalk. Dead leaves and twigs adorned the space, like an offering. Rodent bones, burned and crushed, were scattered in the border of the seal like a salt circle. The cat was dead, blood pooling around its muzzle, and the seal meant nothing now.
The Ancient One stared at the macabre scene in horror and disbelief.
"Who did this to him?" she asked.
Hazel looked up, horrified. "I didn't-!"
"I wasn't asking if you did," the Ancient One silenced her. She looked at the chalk seal again. It must've been an agent of Oriishii, whether it be a malicious one or one like Planchette or the dito that took Reiko's form... As if it even mattered at this point.
Rite
"Why don't we... bring him outside?" the Ancient One offered carefully. She wasn't sure if that would calm Hazel or make her feel worse. After a moment, Hazel nodded timidly. "Do you want to carry him, or shall I?"
Hazel knelt by the seal and cradled the cat in her arms. As soon as she picked him up, the seal disappeared and the dried leaves rushed into the corner so quickly that they rattled. Then they disappeared. A hoarse, deep moan shook the room for a mere moment, then all was quiet and the sanctuary truly was a sanctuary again.
"Come on," the Ancient One urged, turning to go back upstairs.
It was dark outside now, and past curfew, so the Ancient One and Hazel had a chance to set up the cat's shrine in peace. On the highest balcony, they set up a shrine on the ledge overlooking the city. They laid out an old cloth and set the cat down in the middle of it. Then they surrounded the area with candles, leaves, feathers... blue flowers inexplicably floated up from one of the lower courtyards and settled on the shrine and over the cat's body. The Ancient One set out a bowl of salt with sticks of incense standing in it.
To complete the setup, each sorceress lit a candle of their own. Once that was done, Hazel and the Ancient One muttered one phrase.
"Mu gahvon hi do kun." We surrender you to the light.
His body disintegrated, taking the form of weightless, glowing embers that took flight and drifted out over the city to the mountains beyond. Hazel watched them until they were out of sight. She couldn't stop crying. After a moment, the Ancient One put a gentle hand on her shoulder.
"He did it for you," she reminded her. "He lived a full live-a satisfactory life. He always wanted to contribute to something more, and he did so saving you."
"I know," Hazel whimpered. "I wish he'd taken me."
The Ancient One embraced Hazel and let the girl cry as much as she wanted. This was a common reaction in those who'd escaped a fate they were bound to. Some of her best students came to her broken with only a few months left to live. When they healed, they were conflicted. They'd made peace with their dying, and now they had years left until that happened. They felt they were cheating or breaking some rule, but the rules of living were much simpler than that.
The Ancient One glanced down as the candle beside her began flickering before snuffing out completely. Of course. In the midst of everything, she'd almost forgot her own approaching fate. And now that Hazel will outlive her, she almost didn't want to think about it.
The Ancient One glanced up at the sound of an approaching person. Stephen Strange stepped out onto the balcony, two steaming, half-filled cups in his hands.
"Hazel, I was hoping we could... what's wrong?"
Hazel refused to look at him, as if she was ashamed by her display. The Ancient One, on the other hand, regarded him calmly.
"We're having a sad day," she replied, indicating the shrine behind her. "I'll explain everything later. For now, tell Kai we won't be needing those sedatives." She glanced down at the girl in her arms and brushed through Hazel's hair. "Hazel's debt has been paid in full."
Stephen's shoulders sagged as he stumbled closer to them. He stood on Hazel's other side and wrapped a reassuring arm around her shoulders.
Days of Mourning
Kenzo died on a Wednesday, and, like a child, Hazel was distraught for days. However, when night fell, she willingly went to her own room to sleep for the first time in days. She needed some alone time, as did the Ancient One. But the first night, after hours lying on her bed doing nothing, Hazel finally decided to astral project and see what she could find around the sanctuary.
Stephen Strange was still awake in his astral form, as always, reading through a tome on herbalism. It wasn't of immediate interest to him, but it was a nice break in between the more mystically intense reads. He startled slightly, nearly dropping the book, when he saw Hazel's astral form by the door. She looked a bit sheepish.
"Can I stay with you?" she asked. "The cat usually stayed with me, so..."
"Yeah, of course..." Stephen raised a hand to dismiss her and turned back to his book. He watched her out of the corner of his eye as she floated about the room. They'd already exchanged earnest apologies and gushy statements of relief. "So... are you okay?"
"Yeah," Hazel nodded and leaned on the desk. "I'm just adjusting. I've been so preoccupied with the Main Guest that I feel like I forgot I'd have to return to the normal world soon."
"Yeah," Stephen nodded and set the book aside. "You know, you could stay at Kamar-Taj a little longer."
"I don't think so," Hazel shook her head. "The plan from the very beginning was to stay for the summer, then go back home so I can finish school and stuff."
"Oh? What are you going to do?" he asked.
"I don't really know," Hazel shrugged, bored. "Something with supers? A counselor for supers? I suspect there's a high demand for that kind of thing, and since I've lived with them my whole life, I'm a good candidate."
"I bet," Stephen smirked. He'd have to inquire about her past sometime. "So, that kid you showed me, is he like the newest Avenger or something?"
"Haha, no," Hazel laughed. She felt an almost painful rush of excitement at the thought of seeing her friends again. "I can't wait to see him again, though. I'm sure he and the others will have a field day with me once I get back."
He smirked, imagining how Christine would react if he ever told her all he'd gotten up to in the last few months. And from what little he saw of Peter Parker during his brief visit to Kamar-Taj, Stephen knew Peter would greet her new abilities with full enthusiasm.
"Yeah," he agreed. "What are you planning on telling them?"
"As little as possible," Hazel sighed and looked up at the ceiling. "I really don't want Tony and the others getting the wrong idea. They might ask me to join them."
Stephen understood her trepidation. Whilst the world would be worse off without the Avengers defending it, she'd be under scrutiny, and she wasn't a conventional team player. But still.
"Working with the Avengers part-time doesn't sound like a bad fix, kid. You could intern with them a while, get some job experience."
"They'd use me. After signing the Accords, they can't do dick without some militant peon giving them the okay. I want to use my power to help people any way I see fit. Plus, more likely, I want to use my power... selfishly."
Stephen chuckled. "Yeah, it's probably a good thing you're leaving. The Ancient One may like you, but that attitude won't fly with the other masters for much longer."
"I know," Hazel leaned back again. "It can't be helped. Giin understands."
He so desperately wanted to question her about the meaning of the word, but if she wasn't going to tell him when she thought she was dying the other day, she'd take it to her grave. He noticed her staring out the window.
"It's almost a full moon tonight," he said. "Do you... have anything planned?"
She only stared at the sky, "I might."
Worship
Hazel was patrolling the sanctuary at dawn out of habit when the Ancient One found her. Then the Ancient One made a passing comment about it— "You don't need to do that anymore," something like that. And that one small realization is what finally, finally made Hazel snap.
"Just lie down if you have to. I'm right here."
Hazel did so. She was shaking so badly that she couldn't stand. Her breathing came in high-pitched, uneven gasps. She couldn't tell if she was crying or not. The Ancient One sat one the edge of the veranda and held Hazel's head in her lap calmly until the girl calmed down some. After a few moments, the spell wore off and Hazel was left quiet and still.
"Are you feeling better?" the Ancient One murmured.
"I feel so strange," Hazel whispered, staring blankly at the periwinkle sky. "I feel as if I'd been dead for so long only to wake up again. This isn't fair. Something about this isn't fair..."
"Perhaps it's much simpler than you think," the Ancient One smoothed Hazel's hair back gently. "Are you sad?"
"Yes," Hazel nodded. "I want to regret everything. Believe me, I truly do. But I just can't."
"That's fine," the Ancient One murmured. "Your life still has meaning, Hazel. You're allowed to enjoy it."
"You know, you scared the shit out of me," Hazel's muttered, changing the subject completely.
"Are you bringing that up again?" the Ancient One withheld an irritated sigh. "I'm fine, truly. People get hurt, Hazel, but I healed. You don't have to worry for me so much."
"Yeah?" Hazel wriggled onto her side and stared reverently up at the elder sorceress. "You know, you're the oldest person I know?"
"Am I?" she smiled.
"I mean, I've worked with some entities that are older than you," Hazel admitted. "But you're the only human being. And the difference between you and those entities is in your finity. Where I come from, old things are made to be worshiped. It didn't really occur to me that you're just a person, not ever. I'm sorry about that."
The Ancient One searched her for a minute, one hand still playing with her hair. She raised her gaze to the rising sun.
"It's alright," she dismissed. "It was nice to be worshiped for a while."
Hazel turned her head again, a coy smile on her lips. "I love everything about you."
"Weren't you just apologizing for worshiping me?" the other prompted.
"Of course. But that just means I can love you for who you are now. You're attainable, now."
The Sorcerer Supreme looked away dismissively. "You don't know anything about me, Hazel."
"Then let me know you!" Hazel sat up. "How many times do we have to go over this?"
The Ancient One refused to look at her, instead staring at the wall. Her jaw was clenched. "I can't, Hazel."
Hazel took her hand gently and pressed it against her face.
"What are you afraid of?" she smirked. "It's only me."
The Ancient One pulled her hand away and stood. "Just leave it for today."
Hazel looked astray at a stone in the courtyard. Perhaps she pretended there was a cat there.
Witch on a Rampage
The next day, Hazel was seen in class again, but no one approached her. After classes, she was unseen again, but she was certainly heard. Swearing, shouting, chanting ancient words of her choosing as she tore the sanctuary down and built it back up again. She went on a total cleaning frenzy, polishing the wooden fixtures, clearing the cobwebs out of the corners of door frames, catching dangerous spiders and beetles and putting them outside in the streets, sweeping, dusting, mopping, you name it. And heaven help any who was brave enough to visit her in her room.
"Have you see Hazel today?" the Ancient One asked Mordo as she surveyed the immaculate courtyard.
"She's up in her room now, I think," he replied. "She's on a rampage. Perhaps it would be... safer if we wait an hour or two if you wanted to see her for something."
The Ancient One raised her eyebrows, but smirked. He'd never boss her around, but he was concerned for her safety today. "Alright. Shall we go have some tea?"
He let out a breath he didn't know he'd been holding. "Sounds good."
As he followed her inside, she continued surveying Hazel's work. She noticed that a few corners that had allowed themselves to fall into ruin were now growing lighter and brighter by the minute.
"Self care is important," the Ancient One murmured to one of the walls as they past.
"Hmm?" Mordo glanced at her.
"What?" she turned her head. "It's nothing. Hazel must be preparing for the harvest celebration tonight. I'm sure her Guests will bring a feast for her from outside the sanctuary, since she started preparing herself on such short notice. I wonder if I can wear my gold robes again, or if that would be too pretentious..."
"Another Pagan celebration?"
"Yes. Would you like to join us? I'm sure it'll be entertaining for you."
Mordo averted his gaze. "No, thank you. The other masters and I... prefer to leave these... alternative dealings to you and Hazel."
"As you wish," she shrugged, and didn't seem offended at all.
Trap
The Ancient One brought a tray of tea up to Hazel's room at six in the evening to make sure everything was in order before the celebration began at sundown.
"Come on in," Hazel called when she heard the knock at her door. The Ancient One stepped in and looked about the modest, polished room. Hazel was lying across her bed as if she was posing for an elegant painting. "Well, hello."
"So your room does have a floor after all," the Ancient One raised her eyebrows. Hazel chuckled and muttered something in dragontongue before taking the tray and setting it on the desk. The Ancient One continued surveying Hazel's work. her robes were hanging in neat rows by the window, and her other clothes were put away nicely. She'd given the place a deep-clean treatment, polishing the wood, pulling out the rug and shaking it out, cleaning the bath...
"You did well," the woman allowed. "I didn't think you'd feel up to it so soon."
"I'm over it," Hazel replied, handing the Ancient One a cup of tea.
"Are you truly?" the Sorcerer Supreme asked.
Hazel spoke more quietly this time. "... Kenzo died so that I could live. What good would it do to spend the rest of the summer upset about it?"
The Ancient One allowed her that and went on looking about the room. Then everything went wrong very quickly.
She stepped a bit closer to the window, getting a better look at a few things Hazel had hung up on the walls, but the minute her feet touched the rug, she suddenly felt too weak to move. Hazel was speaking to her, but she couldn't truly hear what was being said. The tea cup slipped between her fingers, the clatter muffled by carpet. She felt a sinking dread as she looked back up to face Hazel.
Hazel was staring at the Ancient One in a curious sense of disbelief and concern. She looked down at the carpet, then back up at the woman. Then, just as the Ancient One moved to take the dagger from her belt, Hazel threw her hand straight out, taking the knife up with a levitation spell and throwing it against the far wall, far out of the other's reach. The Ancient One froze. She was vulnerable.
Hazel slammed her cup down on the desk and stalked over to the Sorcerer Supreme.
"I always wondered why a master sorcerer had to carry a knife around," she growled. She stood two feet away from the edge of the rug. She stared at the Ancient One in disbelief. "What is this? You're real—you're you, yet here you stand, stuck, trapped... in a seal that targets only dark entities."
The Ancient One couldn't meet her gaze. Was she ashamed?
Hazel looked ready to question the woman, but a rattling of bells out in the courtyard drew her attention away. She looked back at the Ancient One a final time, just to make sure there was nothing within reach that the Ancient One could weaponize, then slowly stepped out of the room.
"We'll talk about this when I get back," Hazel's tone was strange. She wasn't stern or commanding, but she had to be in a situation like this. She hesitated by the doorway and put her hand on the door frame. "... Don't call for help."
An invisible but very real dampening ward lined the walls, floor, and ceiling. The Ancient One briefly lamented that she'd taught Hazel too much.