No-One But You (The Zephyr Endeavor)

Chapter 6: Quiet Coyote (Part 6)

Steve Rogers had an enormous grin on his face when he opened the apartment door for Stephen Strange. Stephen gave him a sassy smile back, because those two had been secretly feuding and sizing each other up since the day they met.

Historically speaking, Steve felt he was always the one screwing up, which allowed the sorcerer to "swoop in" and capitalize on his mistakes. Who's screwing up now ayyyyy…. Steve was in a mood about it, and Tony behaved as if it wasn't happening.

He had his own sass to deal with, because Clea Strange was usually Mrs. Icy-Dicey-Wifey in his presence. Tony inwardly labeled her to be Stephen's Tinkerbell Princess, cuz that's pretty much what she was. The sorceress followed in after her husband, and she didn't greet Tony as she entered their space.

Clea just walked up to Sofia and she looked down toward her daughter. She gently asked for an explanation, but the little Star Child only looked in a different direction. Her stubborn little facial features were EXACTLYYYYYY like her father's. Tony was amazed by it, and he was low-key living for what he was witnessing.

Stephen crossed the room first, and his low voice filled the space.

"What's going on young lady…"

His daughter was absolutely NOT going to be living under Steve and Tony's roof. The notion of that was borderline hilarious. Stephen almost laughed about it at least thirty times before they arrived in Brooklyn. I mean, the newlywed/father wasn't understanding the behavior, but a theory about it was forming.

"I live here now. I already told you that back where your parents live."

OH? Really now miss thing? Stephen blinked a number of times as he listened to his daughter dish out yet another batch of sass. Her posture was sharp too when she spoke, and she refused to even look in his direction. Steve Rogers just about DIED in his apartment when he witnessed that little girl's attitude.

The apple did not fall far from the Strange tree, because her matter-of-fact behavior was on another level. Stephen glanced over at his wife, then he returned his focus back to his precious little girl. She did tell him that she "lived" with Steve and Tony when he spoke to her back in Nebraska.

Sofia shared that information with him, then she pulled a disappearing act and vanished from the state. Her entire presence was there with them in the apartment, so Stephen gave a soft sigh and he rubbed the left side of his face. The man had never encountered an unruly six-year-old before, so….

…

"You don't live here, young lady, and your only option is to tell me what your issue is."

…

"Do you intend to relocate me by force?"

….

"No."

…

Sofia held onto her composure, and she defiantly ignored what her father said. Her response to him made Stephen laugh a little. He had to laugh about it, because he took that moment to search his daughter's mind. Her "issue" had revealed itself shortly after he entered the room, and honestly the whole thing was…..

"You're upset with me over things you don't need to be focusing on."

"I don't agree."

"Well, that's too bad."

…

LOL. Tony had to smile after hearing that, and he turned his body a bit more in Steve's direction. HOO HOOOooo Stephen Strange had his hands full with his little Star Child, and the brunette was a bit too amused with what was taking place in the living room.

Well, he did feel bad for Stephen… because it seemed like his daughter wasn't going to budge from her rebellious stunt anytime soon. Tony imagined his own father whenever he gave him attitude, and he remembered what his father often did. Howard Stark would have YANKED his ass up and out of any room he was in if he behaved that way, but Stephen was very gentle.

Clea Strange seemed gentle too, but Tony also saw her as a quiet storm. Her arms were crossed in that moment, and she remained silent as Stephen and Sofia spoke back and forth. I guess, the Vishanti entity named Agamotto was part of the issue? Tony listened as Stephen explained that she couldn't see him all the time.

Stephen even told his daughter that he didn't want her listening to Agamotto either, because what the entity said wasn't always the truth. That's when shit kinda turned south, because Sofia was apparently attached to Agamotto? What she said after that was pretty shocking. Tony didn't know what to think of it, so he quickly glanced over at Steve.

"Agamotto told me that he is my father. NOT YOU, and all you do is keep him locked away."

"That's not true, and if he keeps it up… he'll never see you again."

The Vishanti beast and Stephen shared the same body, but the sorcerer was now in a position where he was able to keep Agamotto under his control. Stephen occasionally let Agamotto "roam" around and experience things with his body, or Sofia would see him when they occasionally entered the Realm of Light.

That's it. AND, interacting with Agamotto was something carefully arranged between Clea and Stephen. OH, and none of that was something a six-year-old needed to concern herself with. Stephen had NO intention of explaining himself any further to his daughter, so he took in a deep breath and prepared himself for whatever happened next.

"Is Agamotto lying mother?"

Sofia finally turned her head and she looked up at Clea Strange. The look on her face was fierce, and Clea hoped it would soften. She clearly bonded with the Vishanti entity, and the sorceress wasn't sure how to proceed. She looked at her husband first, then she gave her daughter a small smile.

She couldn't tell her the truth, because the truth to that was something Clea didn't want her daughter to understand. The whole subject was deeply personal, and Sofia was far too young to have any of it troubling her mind and heart. Truthfully speaking, Clea married them both. She married Agamotto first in the Dark Dimension, but it was technically by force, because he was using Stephen's body to make that happen.

She was in love with Stephen, and Agamotto took advantage of that. Now, the beast was making demands. He demanded and fought for Clea all the time… and he was even more forceful if he didn't get his way…

"Agamotto is lying to you Sofia, and there are things about him that I can only explain to you when you're older."

Clea wouldn't explain any of it in that moment, in that location, or even within that decade if she didn't have to. Tony Stark and Steve Rogers didn't need to know about their issues with Agamotto either, so Clea refused to even look in their direction. She didn't want to, and the only person who knew the truth was Stephen.

Sofia Strange looked toward the person on her left, then she looked at the person on her right. Both of her parents told her that Agamotto was lying to her, but something within her seemed to cut through to what she felt was the truth. What she felt was effortless, so the young girl decided to stick to her plan.

"Well, I don't believe you. So, I will be living here until you work things out with my father… or until you take me to him."

…

Ohhh wow. Stephen slowly closed his eyes, and he clenched his fists several times. He absolutely HATED the Vishanti entity that had the ability to pool around beneath his skin. The former Sorcerer Supreme took a moment to glance over at Steve and Tony, cuz they were technically invading their space and bringing about a domestic mess.

They seemed a bit more serious about what was happening in that moment, and Stephen saw that as a relief. Well, relief was an interesting word, cuz…

"Uhh, would you two mind looking after Sofia for a short while? Clea and I have to go to the realm of light…."

…

Stephen hated the position he was in, but clearing things up with Agamotto was a must. Steve's eyes enlarged, cuz wait what? The blonde didn't expect to have a six-year-old beneath his roof, and wait what? Hold up.

Tony answered that question before Steve Rogers could even blink. Tony told him yes, because his history with Sofia ran deep. Of course he'd look after Sofia Strange, because Tony was the person who "raised" her until she was five. She wasn't technically born from Clea, so that's why the look on her face started looking a bit icy dicy.

….

We're not going into those details tho, and Tony wasn't going to listen to any pushback about it from Steve.

Chapter: END

Thanks for reading.