APOC HOW INBOX.

[sorser]

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delivery, the night after their meeting at the beach.

[carmesi]

[once she is done cleaning up in the kitchens, wanda starts to pack up all the leftover food to put in the fridge. she leaves a note where it states that it's there for anyone who is feeling hungry (to just mind cleaning up afterwards!). granted, this should be the end of her day, where she would head up to her apartment, maybe take a shower, and try to sleep.

wanda has got one more thing in mind.

she sets down a tupperware with a helping of stew and another with a few stuffed cabbages at the foot of stephen's door. there's a note that reads the names of the foods, sokovian in spelling and pronunciation, and W.M. at the bottom.

when she is at the stairs, wanda sends a pulse of magic to float down the corridor as she continues downstairs to her apartment, the magic knocking on the doctor's door.]

[sorser]

[The magical knock does its job, and Stephen opens up moments later to find neatly-packed food sitting there, waiting in a tupperware container. It’s not exactly what he expected, and he’s nearly clueless as to who could have offered him food, of all things, until he picks it up to examine the note and the initials.

He huffs a little in surprise, lips quirking. A moment later, and he’s returned inside — looks like dinner isn’t a meal he’s skipping today.

Wanda receives a text the next day, in the evening:]

You didn’t have to leave me anything, but because you did: thank you, by the way.

[carmesi]

Next time I won't, then.

[it's as easy as that. but, truth be told, she wanted to have an excuse to show stephen that she really was thankful for his assistance the day before.]

It is a taste of home. Sokovia. Sharing was always very important when it came to meals.

[sorser]

Would hate for you to spoil me.

I’ve never had a proper, home-cooked Sokovian meal. It was good.

[The kind of good that makes a man realize how hungry he actually had been at the time.]

Sharing among the community, you mean?

text, Sept 8

[ployboy]

[Would you look at that: it's a file from a burner phone. The username Strange? Not hard to figure out who it belonged to. And while Tim hasn't chimed in to any forum discussions yet himself, he's lurked around.

The information itself isn't under ADI's lock and key but it did take some digging so... appreciate it. Or don't. Anyway. The file.

It's a record of disappearances, deaths, and known departures. This particular crop only covers the past five years. There are native and off-world individuals on the list, but, highlighted, is the fact that there are significantly more disappearances/deaths in the past year than in the previous years. There is a sharp spike around the time that off-worlders started appearing.]

Be discreet with it.

[Not like this is a test or anything.]

[sorser]

[Well, this is wholly unexpected. Who has a mind to drop this little mystery gift into his text messages?

Still, it’s almost comical how quickly he sets to memorizing the list, all the information, before firing back a reply.]

Where did this information come from? From under a mask of anonymity, am I just going to have to trust it’s credible?

[ployboy]

[Well that's what he's counting on, Doc. Predictability in patterns.]

You could find that same information yourself.

[That's the beauty of facts, they don't change depending on the audience they're shown to. Bonus: making it look like they do is exponentially more difficult the more eyes are on the same page.

Bonus to the bonus: Tim's done here, he thinks. The next message, call, will go unanswered. What's the value of a fact if there's no doubt?]

[sorser]

[He does send a text, knowing that a continued reply is slim. He’s not wrong.

For now, then, this is information tucked away to be referenced (or questioned) further down the line. Thanks, nameless stranger.]

text | un: tequila sunset

[horrifictie]

HELLO?
DOCTOR STRANGE?
THIS IS HARRY.
HI.

[sorser]

[“tequila sunset”?]

Hi, Harry. How’s it going?

[horrifictie]

FANTASTIC!
I WANTED TO SHARE THE GOOD NEWS.
I DID THE HEAD-SCAN THING YOU TOLD ME ABOUT AND I'M IN THE GREEN.
NO MAJOR HEALTH ISSUES OR THINGS WRONG WITH MY BRAIN.

[sorser]

Did you? Well, that’s great news.

So when did you go in and get that done?

action | after screen magic | ADI Headquarters

[sakaya]

[ It's troublesome to not freely move about as much as she wants. Assassin doesn't hide how miffed she is about the limited circumstances she finds herself in, but there's no Chaldea, no Ritsuka Fujimaru, and no fellow Servants to commiserate with. She is just one stranded piece among many others who will have to adjust just like everyone else.

Going outside was just a little interesting; the glamor or whatever kind of mystic art was used to conceal her true appearance worked well enough to make her look human so when she was outside of headquarters, Shuten-Douji was not seen as a dangerous oni, but rather as a small young woman who still didn't have trouble catching some people's eye.

Ah, but at the end of the day, she doesn't really want to change for anyone.

Inside the gym at the ADI building, Shuten after one round of drinking is playing around with the equipment to test out her strength. It's there but not at the level it usually is.

Perfectly balanced as always though; she's standing on top of one of the yoga balls, and looking into the mirrors to inspect her appearance. ]

Hm. As I thought... Just being this way is the best.

[sorser]

[After the debacle of their shared nightmare and the utter uselessness experienced when his magic was beyond his grasp, Stephen has spent his free time doing one of two things. 1) Spend an excess amount of time at medical, keeping his mind busy, and 2) spending an excess (but not quite as much) amount of time at ADI's exercise facilities, honing his physical form. Utilizing the same regimented exercises he had undergone at Kamar-Taj when he was little more than a novice far out of his depth.

Today, he's dressed in his sorcerer's garb, minus the cloak. Stephen enters, rolling a shoulder to loosen up, noting the only other soul in here today -- a form he recognizes from frame alone, even though she has her back turned to him, her facade reflected in the stretch of mirrors that line one wall.]

Showing off, are we?

[An impeccable sense of balance, one that he had seen when she made residence in a tree's branches, looking down at him like a feline lording over prey below.]

[sakaya]

[ Balancing on one foot before hopping off of the yoga ball, Shuten-Douji turns around to face the man who could only be the doctor that she had a pleasant stroll with. Stretching out one arm, she gives him a lazy wave before brushing aside her hair which puts her pointed ear on full display. ]

Mm. Well, it can't be showing off if no one's here to look.

[ Angling her head at him, the oni's horns gleam slightly under the dull gym lights. ]

And if you're the only one here so far, I can't put my heart into putting on a show.

[sorser]

[He looks skeptical, as seems to be the default around Assassin. Stephen only crosses over to a set of practice weapons--melee, mostly--and grabs one by its middle. It resembles a quarterstaff, snug against the half-gloves he's adorned today for this very reason.]

Believe it or not, I haven't come here to gawk.

[Though he did catch sight of her appearance in that second before he turned away, his mind nothing every tiny detail that's changed, and a few not-so-small ones. Namely, the pointed ears, and of course, the horns.]

But coming here does mean I get to see what you really look like without ADI's glamor. Fills in a few details on my side.

[carmesi]

[it takes her a moment of solitary consideration before refusing to give it too much thought; her pinky flexes, grows rigid with the incantation, and the doorknob turns of its own (magical) accord. with the tip of her foot, she pulls the door open, sidestepping to avoid the collapse of any of the contents in the tray she carries.

glass and porcelain rattle, the weight tipped to one side in lieu of the kettle with steaming hot water.]

Next time I won't bring it all upstairs.

[—not that anyone asked her to. earlier in the week she had run into stephen and came to a very superficial agreement of having a sit-down to discuss magic, training, or somesuch. she had seen him enter the building in the later afternoon, didn't see him leave, and so decided tonight was a good night as any. she sets the tray down on a nearby table, turns to look at stephen after closing the door to his apartment—a growing smile on her face.]

I found new tea flavors at the shop. [the pouches amidst all the stuff] Would you like a taste? All loose leaf.

[sorser]

[Stephen is fairly certain he heard her rattling from all the way down the corridor, and lifting his eyes from where he’s seated—at the couch amid what counts as a “living room” in such a small space—the reason is immediately obvious. She’s stopped in for a social visit, apparently, and he closes the book he had been reading, setting it down on a squat coffee table in front of him.]

Next time, I’m going to buy us both a pair of thermoses, so the whole flophouse won’t hear your trek all the way up here.

[He’s joking, or course, in that dry way he does. He motions at an adjacent seat — an armchair that matches none of the furniture. (But nothing matches.)]

Take a seat. What’s on the menu?

[The tea.]

[carmesi]

I went past Jerry on my way up. [she pauses to grab at the pouches on the tray, looking them over.] He was rolling down the stairs.

[the flophouse isn't quiet, you know.

wanda takes a seat on the armchair and, with a quiet air of excitement, reads from the pouches. they are simple envelope ones, with a sealed top, and colorful stickers at the front denoting the name of each tea and their ingredients.]

Jasmine green tea, which is the most normal one. This one is chai, with black tea and many spices. Pomegranate green tea— with rose petals. Passion peach. [she stops a moment, scrunching her nose.] It has orange and mango. Not sure about this one. And finally, mountain gray: black tea and bergamot... whatever that is.

[she shakes them all a little; chik-chik-chik goes the dried leaves within. leaning forward, she presents the pouches like they are a hand of cards.]

What do you think?

audio; un: Callisto

[myfavoritemurder]

Where do you live?

[sorser]

Over at the flophouse. Room 10.

[He can’t help the lilt of curiosity in his tone.]

…Did you need something?

[myfavoritemurder]

[She doesn't respond, and if he messages again to try to get her attention, she won't answer those, either. But in a few hours, she'll show up at his door and, rather than knocking, try the doorknob to see if it's unlocked.]

text, backdated

[carmesi]

.......has anyone told tony stark about
him?

[sorser]

No.

[Typing, deleting. Typing, deleting.

Finally:]

I don’t think it’s a good idea.

[carmesi]

i don't want to be the one to deal with all of that anyway.

[whatever neurotic reaction that will create on the man. sure, he did the ultimate sacrifice for all of them, but that's beyond wanda's experience.]

what about everything else that happened?