For some reason, the the website ate this chapter? Well, I re-added it, so the story should make sense once again!

November 17th, 2019

The council had been called into session. After the events of the Jadu Nirnaya, a question had been on the minds of every councilmember: is Stephen really the One? Deyman was the first to call the meeting, followed by Shane and Bao agreeing to it. This made the majority come together for a meeting, formally pulling the whole council together.

"Araav, you still can't be serious about this. Look at him! He's not the one." Deyman started. Araav was not happy about this, he knew that all of his decisions involving Stephen would now be called into question.

"To be fair, it doesn't seem like the Vishanti are looking out for him." Shane said. "The man did die again, somehow. The Vishanti wouldn't let their chosen one die, would they?"

"But they didn't let him die, June revived him using the power from the book of the Vishanti. That's pretty much the Vishanti directly reviving Strange." Haukea spoke up in Stephen's defense.

"That was Juniper's action, not the Vishanti's." Bao said. "We can't say that was divine intervention."

"Your only evidence for Strange not being the One is because he died?" Araav asked, a brow raised. "You're standing on a pillar of salt, my friends."

"Well, there's also the fact that we just have no confirmation that he is the One at all!" Shane cut in, resting his hands on the table. "You picked him solely on a feeling and the fact that he defeated Dormammu – which, don't get me wrong, is quite the feat, but that alone doesn't make him the One."

Araav pursed his lips and looked down.

"Shane has a point. I think we need to keep looking for other candidates." Bao said, adjusting his wheelchair to get a better view of Araav. "I'm not saying we should rule out Strange, not by any means, but I don't think we should full-on say that he's the One right now."

"Especially not after his act of defiance against you during the Jadu Nirnaya." Deyman spoke again, his voice rigid and deep. He crossed his thick arms. "I'm impressed that you actually managed to punish him this time, though. Normally you'd let him get away with murder."

Haukea raised a brow. "Deyman, you can't fool us. You just want those backsliding privileges to yourself."

"Are you calling me a backslider?" Deyman asked, resting a fist on the table. "You know that there's nothing farther than the truth."

"Focus." Araav's voice cut between the two. "It appears I've been outvoted again. The vote is 3-2 in favor of doubting Stephen's position as the one, meaning that we need to start looking for other candidates. Is this agreeable?" He asked. Everyone at the table nodded, with mutterings of "yes," and "yeah."

…

November 27th, 2019

"Come on, you can do better than that!" Stephen called as he pulled his spellshield close to his chest. He was sparring with Juniper in the ever-warm courtyard of the Sanctum, which was protected from the outside weather and climate controlled via magic. Stephen was shirtless, in an attempt to throw Juniper off guard and distract her.

"You're right - how's this?!" June called out as she brought her sword down against his shield in a fluff of slashing marks, each stroke having more power than the last. She was dressed for exercise, wearing a sports bra and a pair of exercise pants. Her exposed midriff was distracting Stephen much more than he'd like to admit.

June's attack made Stephen stagger back a bit, and June used the opportunity to tackle him to the ground with a war cry. He let out a gasp as his back collided with the ground, knocking some of the wind out of him. June straddled him, and grinned down at him triumphantly.

"Does this count as a knock-out?" She asked cheekily. Stephen let out a slightly strained chuckle as June's weight rested on his hips.

"Consider me defeated." He breathed as his hand crawled up June's smooth thigh and settled on her rear. She smirked down at him and bent forward, planting a soft kiss on his thin lips. Stephen closed his eyes and leaned up into the kiss, gently squeezing her ass as he did. When the kiss broke, he let out a groan. "Alright, time for a break." He said with a small smirk.

"With me, or do you need to cool down?" June asked playfully.

"I really need to cool down, unless you want these sweatpants to leave nothing to the imagination." He admitted with a slight blush and a sheepish look. June chuckled.

"It's up to you, handsome." She purred as she got up off of him. She stood up with a groan, and Stephen followed suit. They looked at each other for a moment, and exchanged soft smiles.

For a moment, June was caught up in how Stephen looked. The sunlight was caught in his hair, turning it a shade of deep brown as it reacted to the golden light. The white steaks on his sideburns seemed to glow with an almost alien intensity to them in the light – she couldn't help but wonder if the white tips of her hair did the same thing. His devilishly handsome face casted long shadows over his prominent nose and sharp cheekbones, and his blue eyes seemed to stare right through June's very being. She blushed and looked away, inciting a chuckle from Stephen.

"I love it when you do that." He said, a smirk on his lips.

"Do what?" June asked, crossing her arms.

"Look at me like it's the first time again." He began to approach her, his walk confident. "I remember that day, you know. When we first met."

"Oh?" June asked, a brow raised. "Tell me about it." She was eager to gain Stephen's perspective on the day that changed her life forever.

"I remember, even if you were panicked, how beautiful you were." He stepped even closer, and rested his hands on her hips. "I remember how bright those purple eyes were, and how you looked at me. It was like I was the most handsome man you'd ever laid eyes on."

"You were, and still are." June said with a smile before leaning in and kissing Stephen tenderly, letting her warm lips conform to his. They both closed their eyes and let the kiss last for a few moments, letting one another enjoy the sensation. When the kiss finally broke, Stephen chuckled.

"So much for calming down." He said.

"Hey, I'll throw down any time, stud." June replied. "No need to calm down here." Stephen let out a hearty laugh.

"As tempting as the offer is, I think a workplace fuck would be a little inappropriate. Besides, last time I checked, I was still winning. I intend to kick your ass for another ten rounds." He grinned deviously, and June rolled her eyes, resting a hand on her hip.

"Whatever, honey. Last time I checked, I think we were tied. Meaning that I'm going to start winning the second you let your guard down." June passed him a sultry smirk and a wink. "And it's certainly not hard to distract you."

Stephen blushed and passed her a glare. "That's unfair, and you know it." He said, trying to hold back a grin.

June opened her mouth to speak, but the second she did, her arm was yanked on so hard it felt like it was going to be ripped out of its socket. She let out a scream as she was dragged a few feet to the left, and she gripped her shoulder with a hiss.

"Are you alright?!" Stephen asked, hurrying over to her.

"God damn, what was that?" June snarled as she looked down at her arm, and noticed that the book of the Vishanti was flapping around, as if being pulled by some unknown force. It tugged hard again, sending June tumbling to the ground with a cry.

"June!" Stephen called as he bent down and helped her up quickly. She let out a groan.

"What is going on with the Book?" She asked between clenched teeth as the Book tugged on her arm once more, albeit lightly this time. It was pulling against the beads that connected it to her wrist, as if trying to escape her. "What the hell?" She asked as she watched it.

"What the hell, indeed…" Stephen said as he reached out towards the Book. He moved his fingers in a specific pattern, and the book was encased by a sphere of orange magic. "Here, this should stop it from ripping your arm off."

"Thanks." June said as she rubbed her shoulder again. It stung and burned on the inside, she'd have to put it on ice when she got the chance.

Stephen motioned towards the Sanctum. "I think we should head inside, so I can get a better look at the Book and see what's going on here." He said as he watched the Book struggled against its new confines. June nodded, and they both headed inside the Sanctum.

…

"Alright, one last test." Stephen said as he examined the book in his hands once more with a critical eye. They were in his study, with June sitting on Stephen's desk, as per usual, and Stephen handling the Book with extreme care.

He'd been examining the Book with magic to hopefully figure out why it suddenly wanted to run away, but he wasn't coming up with any answers. A divination spell didn't reveal anything, and a curse-breaker spell had no effect on the Book – but on the bright side, that meant that Book wasn't cursed. Stephen was left to physically examine the book as he thought of what to do next.

"Well, maybe a spirit-projection spell will let us know if the Book is haunted…" He said as he closely inspected the book for the hundredth time. June merely nodded at his words, still nursing her shoulder.

"Yeah, alright. Maybe that's it." She said. Stephen turned the Book over once, and then again. The glowing green runes on it pulsed with energy, and whenever Stephen focused on the Book mentally, the runes burned brighter.

Odd… he thought as he swiped his thumb over the rune on the small leather book, the same design that served as the symbol for the New York Sanctum and adorned the Eye of Agamotto. He felt as if something was pulling him towards the Book, something within the Book was calling to him… He closed his eyes and focused, thinking about what to do next, when he heard it.

Open it. Claim your destiny.

The voice made his eyes shoot open, and he looked at June, clearly startled.

"What?" She asked him.

"Did you say something?" He asked, a bit panicked.

"No, why?" June replied, raising a brow.

"I… heard a voice. It told me to open the Book." Stephen's brows furrowed, and he turned his attention to the small clasp that held the Book shut. The Book of the Vishanti had never been opened, ever. Why was something telling him to do the impossible?

"Do it." June said with a nod. "Maybe it's…. trying to tell us something." Stephen passed a quick look up at June, before putting his shaking fingers on the clasp of the Book. The leather was warm, hot even, and it seemed to pulse with a life of its own.

"Are you sure about this?" He asked.

"I am, yeah." She replied.

"Be ready for anything." He said as he looked back down at the Book. "I don't know what's going to happen if I open this…" June responded by clenching her other fist, making it spark with magic.

"Let's do this." She said confidently. Stephen wish that he had her sheer audacity – she wasn't even worried about what the consequences of opening the Book might entail. But the rewards outweighed the risks – who knew what could be inside the Book? The path to ultimate power? The secrets of the universe? If the Book was telling Stephen to open it, then it must have decided that it was time for humanity to behold whatever secrets it held.

"Here goes nothing…" He said before holding his breath in anticipation. Juniper did the same.

Stephen's finger was still on the clasp on the Book. He hooked the tender digit underneath it, and pulled upward. With a click, the clasp came undone, and the book of the Vishanti opened.