MCU Holiday Challenge

14,000,605.

Stephen Strange had his heart ripped out 14,000,605 times. Each future, no matter what action was taken, always ended the same way.

The love of his life died in front of him.

           **

The months following the funeral went by in a haze. The only thing that kept Stephen from following Tony was Peter. The boy had already lost one father, he wasn't about to take another one from him.

Still, it didn't stop him from feeling like a burden, especially when Peter had a breakdown and cried in the Sorcerer's arms for hours asking over and over if Tony's death was his fault. So when the boy's aunt asked him to spend the summer with her, Stephen encouraged it.

Now he was all alone, spending all his time at the lakehouse he and Tony built. He recalled the day his husband had first suggested living in a cabin in the woods....

" Look Stephie, you can sit by the lake and feed those murder ducks of yours!"

"They're called geese,Tony."

"I said what I said."

Despite his initial wariness, Tony ended up feeding the birds more often than Stephen did. He laughed everytime he caught the genius cooing at them when he thought Noone was looking.

He should still be doing that.

He should still be here.

"FUCK!"

He threw the bottle of whiskey he'd been gulping, expecting to hear the tell-tale twinkling of broken glass.

Except it never came.

"That is a most unbecoming look for the protector of the universe."

Stephen lifted his head and saw the Ancient One standing there, looking just as she did while she was alive, and holding the alcohol he'd tossed.

"Fuck the universe! The one thing I needed to protect is dead, so go be some other drunk's hallucination."

"Not a hallucination, I'm afraid. But you really should stop drinking and listen."

Stephen huffed and was about to throw something else, when the Ancient One reached over and grabbed his arm. The warmth of that grip was no illusion, and he looked up her with wide eyes.

"But...how...why?"

"The how isn't all that important. As to why, I'm here to help you."

"There is no helping me."

"There's always a way," she said as she sat down on the coffee table in front of him," and in your case it means reviving Anthony Stark."