𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐅𝐈𝐕𝐄 — surrender, stephen

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 𝐒𝐓𝐔𝐃𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐒 𝐁𝐎𝐓𝐇 𝐍𝐄𝐖 to and experienced with the mystic arts lined the courtyard; vibrant rings of amber and gold illuminated their faces as their hands waved through the air and summoned transmutation circles; a test to see which students were ready for their sling ring.

 Despite Emilia having previously mastered such a task, she still stood beside Stephen as he tried and failed to produce any source of light from his scarred fingertips. She was somebody he now confided in after weeks upon weeks of being around one another. She had a temper and didn't hesitate to put Stephen in his place, but he found himself rather enjoying such a fact.

 Emilia stood with a solid stance, focus evident in the way her brows furrowed and her lips tugged towards the ground, as she produced her own circle of sparks. Stephen was bewildered from the moment a single spark had formed and glistened in the warm air before the woman beside him; he knew she had little control of her abilities, yet there she stood with the posture of a master able to summon at utter ease.

 It was frustrating, to say the least.

 Emilia, however, thought it best to stay with the man in the earlier stages of his training, she knew how it felt to be a beginner, she knew how it felt to abandon everything she knew and replace fact and science with magic and mystic arts.

 She could tell from the beads of sweat that dripped down Stephens red and blotchy cheeks that he was beginning to grow further frustrated. His movements that had once started as light and somewhat elegant, were now rigid and quick and without a single spark to show for his efforts.

 That exact lesson continued for weeks and yet nothing changed for Stephen. Emilia still stood by his side, producing sparks of gold and orange, whilst Stephen waved his shaking hands through the air without so much of a fizzling light.

 Emilia had taken to practising with Stephen one-on-one, hoping that a more secluded lesson might help with his endeavours, but it didn't; still, nothing sprouted from his hands.

 And so the duo found themselves stood before Mordo more times than they could count. His lessons occurred every other day, leaving a day between for students to rest, reflect, and practise alone.

 It seemed as though, despite Stephen being able to conjure little else than a sad little spark and a puff of smoke, Mordo was more than happy to take his lessons to the next step... Something that had to have been another kick in the teeth for the former surgeon.

 "Mastery of the Sling Ring is essential to the mystic arts." Mordo began, his footsteps echoing across the courtyard as he observed his students, pointing out flaws in stances and praising few with a nod, "It allows us to travel throughout the multiverse, all you need to do is focus. Visualize. See the destination in your mind. Look beyond the world in front of you. Imagine every detail. The clearer the picture, the quicker and easier the gateway will come."

 Each student had moved positions, enough space laid out before them to conjure a portal with the sling rings that rested upon their hands. It took little effort for many, including Emilia. Within mere seconds of picturing a place in her mind did the portal appear for her.

 Others managed with ease, some with difficulty, and some, including Stephen, hadn't managed to conjure a damn thing.

 "This is useless." The man groaned as he dropped his head, arms falling to his side. Even after weeks, he could barely summon sparks, let alone a whole portal to another place; it seemed impossible, and yet there some of the other students stood, with magnificent portals of amber and gold floating before them. He felt utterly defeated.

 Emilia sighed to herself, slowly allowing her hands to fall to her sides, the portal before her vanishing as she did, "You'll get there."

 "How? My hands —"

 "— This has nothing to do with your hands."

 "This has everything to do with them. I can't do what you do, what they do, my hands won't let me."

 "You're wrong."

 "Then explain it to me, Emilia." His words were almosts snarled at her, hissed like a viper, yet the anger he felt was entirely for himself and the twitching, useless fingers that shook by his side.

 "I already have, you just don't listen to words you don't agree with." Emilia held back her scoff, "Arrogance. Ego. You're trying to make the mystic arts surrender to you and the frustration you feel, when it's you who needs to surrender."

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 Two more weeks of nothing but the smallest of sparks passed.

 Two further weeks of Stephen trying and failing. Weeks of frustration and anger that the man often redirected towards Emilia. She understood it, she did it herself. Whenever she couldn't do something with her own abilities she'd grow flustered, her jaw would tense and she'd strike out at whoever was in front of her; usually the Ancient One.

 And so, once again the grounds were covered in wobbly portals of those who had yet to master their craft and sturdy portals with stunning views inside of them, conjured by the best of the best. But thin air still laid before Stephen like a veil of dissapointment, even despite the multitude of hours he and Emilia had practised; nothing seemed to work for him.

 Thus, Emilia had spoken to the Ancient One alone, an idea coming to mind after spending an afternoon with Master Hamir drinking tea and quietly discussing matters of training.

 Master Hamir was one of the best. His portals never faltered, he could conjure sparkling amber weapons with a simple flick of his wrist, and yet he was in a similar predicament to Stephen himself.

 The former surgeon whose stubbornness was just a mere hair away from driving Emilia to the edge believed that his hands were the root of all of his issues. He firmly believed that the way his hands shook and disobeyed him was the precise reason as to why nothing more than irritating sparks would form upon his fingertips.

 Yet Master Hamir could do everything that Mordo could do, even despite having a missing hand. He had been patient, he had accepted his predicament and thrived nonetheless, all because he allowed the mystic arts to flow through him, rather than demand to control such magic like a master over a puppet.

 So the session of training that both Emilia and Stephen were presently enraptured in was promptly cut short as the Ancient One made her way over, dark robes billowing in her wake, whilst Master Hamir followed swiftly behind, "I would like a moment alone with Mr Strange." She spoke, eyes drifting towards Emilia, "Emilia, you'll be joining us."

 Emilia offered a short, respectful bow towards Mordo, before picking up her feet and pinching the sleeve of Stephens maroon robe between her thumb and pointer in an attempt to get the sulking man to move.

 Thankfully, it worked. The man huffed as he cast a final look towards his rattling hands and pulled himself towards the small group that was awaiting him.

 Emilia had already engrossed herself in a conversation with Master Hamir; to Stephen, it seemed that every grumpy old man that lived within the Kamar-Taj adored Emilia's presence... Everybody seemed to enjoy her company.

 He supposed it wasn't a surprise. She was kind, encouraging, determined and full of laughter that seemed to bring smiles to everyone's faces... Perhaps they'd run if they had a book thrown at their 'enormous forehead', he thought as he watched the woman huff at whatever Hamir had said.

 The students were all hastily dismissed by Mordo, each and every student filing out in silence at the mere gesture the master had given them until just the Sorcerer Supreme, Emilia, Master Hamir and Stephen remained.

 "You still believe this is about your hands?" The Ancient One spoke up, face remaining placid as the man scoffed.

 "Yeah, yeah, I've already been through this with Emilia. How is this not about my hands?"

 Emilia promptly rolled her eyes before taking over for the Ancient One. Her head tilted to the side, a rather victorious smile pulling her lips upwards as she nodded towards the Master beside her, "Master Hamir?"

 The Master stepped forth, nonchalance painting his features as he tugged his left sleeve up, revealing his amputated limb to Stephen who stood looking rather dumbfounded. Stephens shoulders further slumped upon watching the Master before him conjure a pattern of gold and amber in front of their very eyes. He didn't falter, he didn't complain, and the transmutation never flickered or faded.

 "Thank you, Hamir." The Ancient One spoke, and without a word, the Master trailed off, leaving Emilia, Stephen and the Ancient one alone.

 Stephen's eyes slowly slid away from Master Hamir as he grew further away and instead settled upon Emilia who cocked a brow, "You still think this is about your hands?"

 "You cannot beat a river into submission." The Sorcerer Supreme continued, "You have to surrender to its current, and use its power as your own."

 Stephen sighed, his eyes closing for a mere moment as Emilia's previous words echoed inside his head, 'you're trying to make the mystic arts surrender to you and the frustration you feel, when it's you who needs to surrender' of course she'd have been right, but that didn't mean Stephen would simply settle for something that was so... Illogical, "I control it by surrendering? That doesn't make any sense."

 Emilia couldn't help but wish she had another, rather large book to lob at his forehead once again. How many times had she told him to 'forget everything you know', how many times had Mordo and the Ancient One herself told him the very same thing?

 And yet, even after weeks upon weeks of training beneath them all, he still refused to open his mind.

 "Not everything does. Not everything has to. Your intellect has taken you far in life, but it will take you no further. Surrender, Stephen...." The Ancient One paused, a fleeting look cast towards Emilia, "I believe Emilia has told you to silence your ego on more than one occasion. She's right. You'll find she isn't often wrong."

 A light hum fell from Emilia's lips as they curved into a sly smile. Emilia knew of what was to transpire next; she herself has tried her best to teach Stephen with as much patience as she could possibly muster. She had slaved over textbooks and leather-bound pages, she had given up her own time to stand beside him and walk him through stances. She had even forced him to meditate, no matter how much he disapproved.

 Yet nothing worked. It was time for some tough love.

 Emilia rose her hands, sling-ring still nestled securely on two of her fingers, and with a simple circular movement, a portal appeared. The cold gust of wind that blew through it ruffled her hair and sent a shiver down her spine, yet the view was magnificent.

 She was the first to enter, followed by the Ancient One, and finally Stephen, whose hands darted to shield his form from the biting winds and pelts of snow that flew towards him.

 Their robes flew about wildly, as flakes of freezing snow began to settle upon their bodies. Emilia watched as Stephen turned in a slow circle, eager eyes drinking in his surroundings with his mouth agape.

 "Wait, is this —" He began.

 "Mount Everest." Emilia nodded as she wrapped her arms tighter around her middle as another shiver tickled her skin, "It's wonderful, isn't it?"

 "It's beautiful. Freezing, but beautiful."

 The Ancient One nodded mutely as she too took a final glance around the magnificent, snow-coated view, "At this temperature, a person can last thirty minutes before suffering from permanent loss of function. They'll likely go into shock."

 "Great."

 Emilia, ever the person to put a damper on Stephen's mood, patted his shoulder and waited until his gaze was upon her to smile and announce, "But you'll likely go into shock after the first two."

 With that, the former physicist chuckled to herself and hopped back through the portal, relishing in the warmth she was gifted with. She could finally drop her arms to her side without the worry of her skin turning blue.

 The Ancient One took little time to follow, her own form stepping through the portal after offering her two final words to the stubborn man who refused to open his mind, "Surrender, Stephen."

 The portal fizzled shut in a burst of sparks, leaving Emilia and the Ancient One stood side by side as Stephen remained on the snowy mountain tops, his only hope to return to warmth rested within himself. He had one hurdle to overcome; his very own ego. If he could, Emilia had no doubt in her mind that the damn within his body would clear and the mystic arts would flow easily.

 His mind was sharp, his attention to detail was almost overwhelming, and his need to master any topic before him would soon see him through his practices. If he could do this, he would thrive. There was no doubt about it.

 "How is our new recruit so far?" Mordo spoke as he approached the two, unclasping his hands from behind his back.

 "We shall see," The Ancient One responded whilst Emilia kept her eyes on the very spot the portal had once been hovering above, "Any second now..."

 "Oh no, not again." Mordo sighed, dragging his hand down his face as he took in the look that passed between the women before him. This wasn't a new 'trial', in fact, it had been used far too many times before. Granted, it always worked, but Mordo simply couldn't stand the sight of frozen students with blue lips stumbling through portals. "Maybe I should —"

 "He'll be fine." Emilia reassured as she twiddled with a loose end of her navy-coloured robe, "And if not... It'll at least be peaceful around here again."

 "You don't mean that."

 "No... I don't. Who else could I throw books at out of frustration?"

 "Emilia —"

 "It was only once." She waved off, her head tilting as she narrowed her eyes for a moment, "Alright, it was three times. But it's Stephen."

 "You're terrible."

 "I'm wonderful."

 Despite the small flow of banter between Emilia and Mordo, Emilia was worried. Stephen had barely managed to conjure sparks throughout the weeks of training they shared together, now, two minutes had already passed and there was no portal in sight. She knew that none of them would allow him to stay long enough to seriously harm him... But even so, her fingers tapped away at her thigh in an attempt to pull her attention away from the fact that he had yet to make his appearance. She was worried.

 A mere few seconds ticked by before their faces were illuminated by the familiar amber glow of the portal. It wasn't quite circular, and the sparks jolted here and there whilst the shape wobbled and weaved, but it was a working portal that Stephen had made.

 The man tumbled through, falling to the ground in a heap of shaking bones; snow coated his hair and his lips were a deep blue as unsteady breaths parted his trembling lips. He looked up at the three of them, a hand appearing before his eyes, Emilia.

 As ever, despite her tough love, she held out a hand and was ready and willing to help him. His almost frozen fingers slid into her grasp and he let out a harsh breath as her hand immediately warmed his own.

 She tossed a look behind her, taking in the smile upon Mordo's lips as well as the look of praise that the Ancient One sent Stephen's way.

 "Emilia, I trust you to assist Mr Strange back to his quarters." The Ancient one spoke, and upon seeing the nod from said woman, she turned on her heel, only pausing to say; "Well done, Stephen."

 "For a moment there, you actually had me worried." Emilia muttered towards the man as she pulled him to his feet, arms darting out once again to steady his trembling form.

 If his lips didn't feel as numb as they did, and if he thought he'd be able to utter a word without gasping, Stephen would have responded with something witty, or so he'd liked to think. Instead, he settled for a lopsided smile as his hands continued to rub over his arms to generate a sliver of warmth.

 "I'm going to take your rare silence as an opportunity to reiterate the fact that you should listen to me more. I don't say the things I say to piss you off or to berate you —" Her words faded for a moment as she turned on her heel to face the man who staggered behind her, "— I've been where you've been. I'm still there with my own abilities, I want to help you, but it's hard when you don't listen to anyone but yourself."

 "I'm —" Stephen muttered before sighing heavily. She was right, he annoyingly found once again. All Emilia had done was strive to help him; she gave up her own time to train with him, even when it seemed futile. She stayed up late to answer his questions, even when her eyes were begging her for even a minute of sleep. Yes, the books she had thrown had hurt, and yes the rather witty insults she had spurted had been relatively rude, but she had done it all out of frustration because he didn't listen. "— I'm sorry."

 She blinked. And then she blinked again. "You're sorry?"

 He looked as though, despite the chill still caressing his bones, that he would spontaneously combust if he had to utter those words again, and yet he did so anyway, "I'm sorry. You've given up weeks of your time to help me, and all I did was..."

 "Sulk? Be incredibly irritating? Make me want to freeze on top of Everest myself?" Emilia listed off with a small smile that grew with each word; just watching Stephen shift uncomfortably on his feet as he uttered an apology was more than enough to make her day.

 He chuckled, another shiver gliding up his back, "Yes, to all of those things... Though I'd recommend against freezing on Everest."

 "Hm... Well, thank you for apologising, but I can't promise you that another book won't mysteriously find your forehead if you irritate me again."

 "I wouldn't blame you."

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16-08-2021

hey besties, sorry for the large gap between updates, but i'll have another one for you tomorrow! please please please don't forget to comment on these chapters; whilst votes are great, comments allow me to see what YOU think of specific parts, anyway, i hope you all enjoyed!