Several Months Earlier:

Max knocked cautiously on the large wooden doors, anxiously rocking on her feet a bit. Tony said that the meeting would be simple. The new hero in question was already expecting her, so it would come as no surprise. That still didn't make the massive stone mansion any less intimidating to her now that she saw it up close. It seemed to reflect all of the stories that she'd heard spreading about Doctor Strange. The primary belief was that he was a crazy wizard of some kind living in New York now, keeping the city safe from ghosts and ghouls. Of course, there was no evidence of any of his fights with other magical beings or even of who he was. Still, she wasn't sure what to expect. All she knew now was that she had not expected the man who answered the door. The man in front of her didn't look like a crazy wizard at all. He was tall, with thin, sharp features and striking blue eyes. His hair was well styled, with a touch of grey on each side, and he had stylized facial hair much like Tony did. His wardrobe was the only odd sight, being a blue tunic, pants, and laced boots, yet it looked perfectly natural on him for some reason.

"Hello," he greeted pleasantly, shaking her out of her silence, "You must be Miss Stark."

"Yes, hi," she replied, "I was told you were expecting me."

"I was indeed. Please, come in."

He opened the door further and moved out of her way to allow her entry into the massive house.

"You have a beautiful house, Doctor Strange," she complimented.

"Stephen, please," he corrected, "And thank you."

Nope. This was definitely not the guy the others had described to her.

"How old is it? If...that's an okay thing to ask about a house," she asked, stumbling slightly over her words, "I've never asked it before."

"It's fine, but I'm afraid I don't know. I'm told that it's older than the city itself."

"You don't know?"

"I inherited it from the last master of the house," he explained, "It's very important to the...others that I work with. In a way, I got a promotion and they gave me the house."

"Heck of a job perk."

Stephen politely led her to his study, where they could sit and talk. When they sat, he offered her tea, which she happily accepted.

"Thank you for agreeing to meet with me. I understand that it can be kind of hard to get an appointment with you, Doctor."

"Well, it's not every day that I get a call from the Avengers, wanting to talk to me," Stephen replied, "What can I do for you, Miss Stark?"

"As you know, we like to keep an eye on unique individuals with apparent superpowers and a theatrical flare. I guess I was sent over here to welcome you to the neighborhood and make sure you don't happen to have a conquering, homicidal streak like the last sorcerer that we met."

She was deeply relieved to see a small smile form on his face.

"I can assure you, I have no such tendencies. Since we're getting right to business here, I may as well give you a statement to pass on for me," he noted, "I'm not a flash hero type like Iron Man. I'm a doctor. My main priority is and always will be to save lives. My job is to protect the world from threats that are otherwise unknown to the Avengers in order to do just that. If the Avengers continue to let me operate, you can know that I will do my job and I'll do it well. If not, and only if not, then we will have problems."

"So, you're really a doctor?"

"Yes," he sighed, "Doctor Stephen Strange."

"Oh."

"Why does that surprise people?"

"It just...it sounds like a hero name or something. LIke IronMan or Captain America."

"Yes, my legal name is Strange."

"Stephen Strange, like the neurosurgeon who invented a groundbreaking laminectomy procedure, Doctor Stephen Strange?"

"Yes! Thank you!" he seemed to huff in relief.

"I'm sorry I didn't make that connection sooner," she apologized, a bit embarrassed, "It's just...a lot of people thought you died."

She was utterly relieved when he started chuckling in response. It was a really nice sound, she decided.

"No. Thankfully, I'm very much alive."

"So, if it's alright to ask...what is all this? The house? The job? What is it you do?"

"You want to know about the magic and if it's real."

"I guess a lot of people ask you about that."

"If it makes you more comfortable, let me explain it this way: through study, I have learned how to harness energy from alternate universes and use it to shape reality. This allows me what ability I have to use in defense of the world against unknown threats."

"So, it's energy science? Surely, it's not really magic, right?"

"It is. You don't want to believe me, but...for some reason you do."

"How can you know that?"

"Magic. This energy is what creates magic."

He waved a hand slightly as the tea cups from the desk raised up into the air.

"Tea?" he offered taking one of the two from the air.

Max took the tea cup skittishly, a bit nervous about it.

"It's perfectly fine."

"How...how did you learn to do all this?"

"Study. Practice. Lots of it. I worked and studied and learned. That's all," he casually answered, "Do you mind if I ask you a few questions now, Miss Stark?"

"Max," she corrected, "And I don't mind at all."

"Alright, Max," he smiled a bit wider using her name, "I know that you're a Stark, but...what brought you into working with all of these hero types? You seem very at ease with everything I'm telling you. This leads me to believe that you're very familiar with all of this insanity."

"I do work with Mr. Stark. I have for a few years now. It's been...weird getting used to working with all of the Avengers and people like them. I guess, after a while, nothing seemed too weird to me anymore. I've ended up at a grocery store at four in the morning to pick up pop tarts and milk for the Asgardian god of thunder, so magic isn't that much of a stretch for me. The world's bigger than me and I'll never understand everything, so I may as well learn what I can and learn to live with what I can't."

"I only wish I'd have had the same open mind when I was brought into all of this," he admitted, "I was...reluctant."

"Yet, here you are. A magical guardian of this dimension. That's quite a leap."

"Not a painless one, I might add. I worked to be where I am and Stark should know that, if the Avengers should really need my help, then I will do my job and help them."

"I'm going to take that to assume that you're not much of a joiner," she joked.

"Join? Oh, no! If the offer ever arises, I will say no. I have my own job to do and life to live and it won't be dictated by a group of squabbling heroes or a panel of corrupt politicians. I hope that statement doesn't offend you."

"Between you and me, Doctor," she sighed, "I agree with your decision. Please, believe that both sides of the Avengers are trying to do the right thing for everyone. It just...got messy somewhere. The line's not so clear anymore. I don't agree with the panel or with the fighting amongst themselves about it, but I am doing everything I can to keep the main focus where it should be: helping people."

"That's...very well said," he stumbled over his words slightly, staring at her with almost a new light in his eyes.

"And...I haven't only come to ask if you'll help when we need it. I also came to encourage you to come to us, if you ever need a hand. It seems like you have this job pretty well handled, but we're all in this fight anyway. May as well help each other."

"That's very gracious of you Miss St-...Max," he thanked her, correcting himself on her name.

"Now, I don't have any more Avengers business, but...do you mind if i ask a few more questions, stirred by personal curiosity?"

"I'll entertain as many questions as you like."

The conversation went on for a long time, as Max asked questions about dimensions, the house, the artifacts, and more. She never went so far as to ask how he'd reached that point from his old life. It seemed too personal of a question. They did, however, talk for far longer than either expected. At the end of the meeting, Stephen walked her back to the door, face a bit fallen.

"Well, thank you again for making the time, Doctor."

"That's too formal," he shook his head, "Please, call me Stephen."

"Okay," she smiled, fidgeting a bit, "Then thank you, Stephen."

"This...might seem odd," he cut in before she could leave, "But...would you...like to get coffee sometime...?"

She paused for a moment, taking in his slightly flustered expression. He was a naturally tall and imposing figure already, but something about him now made him look as though he were trying to appear smaller and more average. Of course, this didn't work, but Max took it to mean that he didn't want to seem overbearing or intimidating. She liked the thought. She offered a sweet smile and met his eager blue eyes.

"Sure. I'd really like that."

Present Day:

The Black Leaf Cafe was Max's favorite spot. It wasn't because of the tea that the place that she loved so much. It wasn't because of the quiet corner table by the window that she always sat at to watch the street. It wasn't even for the wonderful chocolate chip muffin that she had for breakfast every time she was here. No, she loved this cafe, because every time she showed up there for breakfast, her table was ready, her muffin and tea were already sitting there in her spot, and Stephen was waiting for her with a subtle smile. That was always her favorite sight. Like always, she walked in to find him at their table.

"Good morning," she greeted sweetly.

Stephen stood from his seat to meet her, wrapping her in a hug and happily accepting the small kiss she gave him. She moved her chair around a bit, next to his, and sat down to enjoy breakfast. As soon as he sat back down, he wrapped an arm around her and listened as she began to talk about her day yesterday and so far this morning. Even if there wasn't anything remarkable going on, he thought it was adorable when she tried to tell a story and eat a muffin at the same time, always leaving awkward pauses in her speech in favor of another bite of chocolate.

"I've been searching the house," he noted after a brief silence between stories, "I'm sorry, but I can't find your phone anywhere."

"Huh. What did I do with that thing? I was sure that I brought it with me. It's been two days and I can't keep answering calls on my iPad."

"I'll keep looking," he assured her, "It has to turn up eventually."

"In that house, maybe not."

"Fair point," he accepted.

When she was finished with her muffin, Max leaned her head against Stephen's shoulder and sipped at her tea. Stephen's coffee was long gone, but she smirked as she watched the cup fill back up to the top. She would make a comment about cheating, but he did, after all, save the planet. That at least merits magical free refills.

"Maggie...I want to talk to you about something."

"Uh oh..." she mumbled a bit nervously.

"No, no. It's nothing bad."

"Then what about?"

"We've been together a while now," he reminded her, "It's gotten to the point where...I don't see my future without you in it. I don't want to, either."

"I never really thought about that," she admitted, "Whenever I think about what's going to happen, you're always just there. I...I don't even know when I started thinking like that. It's just right."

"With this past week, things changed a bit. I took that to be a step forward."

"Stephen, I love you, but you're awkward about relationship talk. Tell me what you're getting at. You're worrying me."

"That's fair. I want you to consider..." his voice faded out as he struggled for the right words, before he finally took a deep breath and went with the blunt approach, "I want you to move in with me."

"Oh! Wow...that's not what I was expecting," she responded, surprised by the idea, "I mean, it hasn't even been a year and-"

"And you won't..." he sighed, sinking into himself a bit when Max sat up and leaned back away slightly.

"Stephen, I love you," she assured him, "But I can't. I like my apartment and...how would I even begin to explain that to my family? I still want to tell them, but it'll take time before we throw them into a situation like that."

"You're sure it's not just the house?"

"I'm sure. I love the house and...I'm not against the idea. I just don't see it working out."

Her heart broke as he sank further in on himself and grew solemn and quiet.

She turned his face to look back at her directly, giving him the sweetest look she could and punctuating the look with a kiss.

"You know I love you, right?"

He nodded weakly, not giving the matter his full attention.

"Stephen, I'm sorry. Please, don't be upset with me. I do want to. It's just not a good time. We still have work and your work is all kinds of crazy. Do we want to worry about even more than what we have right now?"

His expression turned to hurt as she spoke.

"What do we have to worry about that is so important to you?" he scoffed a bit more harshly than intended, "I have one of the most demanding jobs pretty much ever, and even I'm not as busy as you keep yourself. Maybe you're not getting something here. You are the most important thing to me. I am trying here, alright. Why is wanting this to go somewhere such a terrible thing? We can't just stay in this loop forever."

"What loop?"

"The one where we get coffee, have fun together, lie to everyone you care about, argue about the lying, and reset to the beginning of the cycle again. This isn't changing and...when I try to change it you stop me. You use any excuse you can think of and it's suddenly my fault."

"I never said that!" Max defended, "Nothing is anyone's fault. I'm just not ready to-"

"To what?" he cut her off, "To tell your own family that you found a way to be happy? Are you even happy?"

"Would you just calm down? I'm not ready to live with someone right now. I like my life and my apartment and my job! I don't want that to all change yet."

"And where do I fit in any of that?" he scoffed, "Oh, that's right. I don't. Not until you have "time" to figure out how to stop lying to your father, because his approval is more important than your happiness."

"I know what I'm doing, Stephen!"

"You're acting like a child!" he snapped firmly, but not loudly enough to grab the attention of the entire cafe, "You can't know what you're doing. You don't even know what you want!"

As soon as the words left his mouth and he saw the look on her face, he regretted speaking at all. Max wouldn't even look directly at him as she blinked tears from her eyes.

"Sweetheart," he sighed, pulling her close against him in a warm hug, "I'm so sorry. I...I didn't mean that."

"You're being such an ass right now," she muttered out, voice breaking as she spoke.

She made no move to return the affection or even look at him, but she also didn't reject the attention.

"I know," he sighed.

"Every time things change, they get worse..." she croaked out, "My family split in half. People keep getting hurt. I lost Pepper, who was the closest thing to a mom I had, all because she can't look at me and not see Tony. I guess, she just stopped looking altogether, unless she needs something at work. Everything's changing and it's all going to hell. The only good thing I have right now is you and I can't let that change. I'm not ready to lose you too..."

"Come here," he invited, breathing a silent sigh of relief when she wrapped her arms around him in return and buried her face into his shoulder, "You won't lose me. I just want you to be happy and taken care of. I suppose that I just want to be the person that gives that to you."

"You're really sweet," she sniffled, "And I am happy. I just want the carefree happy months back, before we had to think about all of this."

"Well...do you remember when we first met here?" he asked, redirecting her to a better thought.

"Yeah."

"It's funny now," he chuckled silently, "They had to kick us out, because we were still here talking three hours after closing. You wanted to talk about anything and everything you could think of."

"I didn't want to stop, because if I stopped, it would have been over. I didn't want to ever go home."

"Then you agreed to see me again," he smiled, stroking her face gently with a shaking hand, "It was amazing I hadn't done anything to scare you away."

"Are you upset with me?" she asked.

"No. Not at all," he reassured her, "I just...I want to hold onto this so desperately. It didn't occur to me that being ready for anything more didn't mean that you were too. I can wait as long as you need. Trust me, it's worth it to me."

"You mean it?"

"I'll wait forever if I have to. But..for now, how can I make breakfast a bit less terrible?"

"There's a peanut butter cookie in the display by the register. That's a good place to start," she answered without hesitation.

"Of course."

He immediately stood and walked over to the counter. She smiled a bit to herself turning her attention to her tea. As strong as he always came on, she knew that Stephen really did want what would make her happy and keep her with him. He always meant well for her, even if he was bad at showing it some days. They had rough moments, but they were going to be just fine. She was sure of it. The chair across from the table was suddenly occupied. She looked up, shocked to find that it wasn't Stephen.

"Hey, Junior. We need to talk."

"Tony...?"