The Never-Ending Why: Chapter 34: In The Dark (Part 4)

Welp, Stephen Strange was officially back. Baby Steve was pretty over it, and he was about to form a portal.

He was in an odd mood, and he hadn't had enough time to really think. Steve wanted to leave. He was looking over at his older self, but he disappeared after the situation was resolved.

Now, a bulk of the group was focused on Stephen... and that was that. Steve looked over at Tony, and he noticed that the area around them was changing. The Dark Dimension was fading away, and all six people were standing outside Stephen's apartment.

They were in Manhattan, and it felt like they reverted back to the same evening when Stephen took off. He kept hugging his sister, and Victor put the Eye of Agamotto around Stephen's neck.

The almost-sorcerer-supreme received another piece of his Halloween costume. He stepped back from Donna, and looked down at the amulet.

He only wanted it to bring his sister back, and now he knew a lot more about what he could do with it. No one was saying anything, and Stephen was unsure who to talk to first.

He looked in Tony's direction. Those two made eye contact first, because he assumed that Tony didn't plan on sticking around.

"Ay, you mentioned something about sandwiches? Somewhere, by your place?"

Stephen didn't want one giant discussion, or a million questions. He focused on Tony and Steve first. Tony's right eyebrow arched upward, and he slouched to one side.

The brunette looked over at Steve. He was not about to answer that question, without reading Steve's body language first. The blonde had his arms crossed. He didn't look very open for a conversation.

Steve decided to answer. He looked directly at Stephen, and spoke.

"There is a small deli near the apartment. They serve sandwiches, yes."

Tony kept his mouth shut. He almost slapped both of his hands over his mouth, but he didn't. He tried to keep calm. Stephen gave them both a few nods, then he looked at his siblings and Clea.

That conversation was going to require a lot of energy. Stephen was dreading it a little bit, then he focused back on Steve.

"Can we meet there soon? In a few days? I've gott.."

"That's fine. Sure."

Steve was short with his response, and he immediately turned to his right. They were on the sidewalk by the apartment, so he started heading toward Brooklyn.

Bye.

Tony friggen gulped from the shock. He was internally freaking out as they spoke. It felt like Tony had a million baby fire alarms going off inside his body.

Stephen just watched Steve take off, then he changed his focus to Tony.

Tony gave him the shortest wave ever, and then he sped off after Steve. He caught up to him, and he quietly walked beside him. Steve just kept walking. He intended to walk all the way back to Brooklyn, because he needed to think.

Tony wasn't sure what was happening. Steve was very to himself when it came to Stephen. He had to walk pretty fast, because Steve took longer steps than he did.

"Have I upset you? I don't, ack.."

Tony almost walked into some random tree that was put in the middle of the sidewalk. He dodged it just in time, as Steve glanced in his direction. The blonde gave a sigh, because he knew that his behavior was confusing Tony.

Back by the apartment, Stephen finally looked at his siblings. They looked alive, and healthy. Stephen was glad for that, and he thought about another presence that he felt when he checked in on them.

Stephen looked around the area, and he noticed that one person was missing.

"So, she's your wife?"

Donna just jumped right into it. Stephen snapped his focus back to his sister, and he sucked in a deep breath. Wait what? He wondered how Donna knew...

Stephen looked at Clea. She referred to herself as Stephen's wife, and she wasn't lying. The almost-sorcerer decided to come clean.

He looked at his younger brother, and confessed.

"We were married in the Dark Dimension. She technically married Agamotto while I was somewhat dormant, but we were married, yes."

Now, Clea was the one that crossed her arms. That confirmation from Stephen formed a proud smile on her face. She was glad that Donna Strange had ears to hear what he said.

Donna was not amused with her grin. She glared at her brother, and tensed up a little bit.

"Stephen, who the hell is she? Thank you for helping us earlier, but this is insane."

She thought about their parents. Donna knew that they were going to be upset. Stephen tried to control his temper. Donna had a way of starting arguments, and he looked up at the Manhattan Sky.

"Her name is Clea. We are not married in this dimension. So, relax."

Stephen looked over at Clea. They discussed their marriage a few times. Having it legitimate in both dimensions was important to them both. Stephen wasn't ready to drop that bomb on his siblings, and he could tell that Clea wanted to say something to Donna.

They both refrained. She looked at Stephen instead, and told him that she needed to leave.

It was time for them to separate, and time for him to learn more on his own. Stephen knew that, but he was hesitant. He had gotten very used to being around his dream girl. Stephen could only give her a small smile in that moment.

Victor thought that they all were super weird. He walked around the three of them, and he said that he was going back to bed.

It was really early in the morning, and the conversation was way too heavy. Victor was happy to have his brother back. He had no complaints or questions whatsoever.

Chapter: END

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