Frostbite

A Small Victory

"This is pointless," I hissed, throwing my arms down in defeat. Stephen sighed, probably for the thirtieth time just today. It had been a week already, and I hadn't done a damn thing. He and Wong made it look so easy. The only thing I had produced were pathetic sparks.

"You're not focusing. You have to let go of the control. You can't control this like you do your powers," he shook his head, surprisingly still patient after theses very long sessions.

"Do you know how long it took me to learn control? To make it to this point, Doctor?" I demanded incredulously.

"Unlearn it. And quit calling me that."

Oh, I wanted to throw my sling ring at his head. He smirked as if he knew exactly what I was thinking. I glanced down at the double connected ring around my fingers and huffed loudly. My hands rose into position again as I pictured where I was trying to open the portal to. My right index and middle finger moved in concise, smooth circles.

I forced myself to relax and let go of anything I was feeling. I opened myself up and reached out for the energy I needed. My mind cleared as I focused on the image, willing it to appear before me. There was a feeling like a door swinging open and the energy washed into me, and the portal grew instantly.

Instead of the normal orange fiery sparks that represented the eldritch magic, these were pale blue. This seemed to throw everyone around me off, but I didn't care. On the other side was my bedroom, empty and quiet, but certainly there. My arms fell to my side, and I stared in wonder at what I had done. The outline didn't fade or collapse as I stood there. It was amazing.

"See. I told you it wasn't that hard," he mouthed off behind me. I turned to snap back but held back as another figure appeared.

"Don't let Strange fool you. He had to be abandoned on Mount Everest to finally use the sling ring successfully," Wong chuckled as he approached us. I rose a brow, extremely interested in that small detail. Stephen gave him a look and rolled his eyes. Wong had introduced himself my second day here when I had wandered into the library. I instantly liked him, even more so when I watched him constantly tease Stephen.

"It's not like I could do that with Elsa here. She wouldn't have the same motivation to leave," Stephen remarked, humored by his own joke.

"I told you not to call me that!" I seethed, balling my fists at my sides. He had a knack for getting under almost everyone's skin. Wong tried not to appear amused, but it was written all over his face. "Whatever. What's next on your magical list of things to teach me?" I asked, redirecting the conversation.

"We're done for today. Keep practicing with the ring though," Stephen directed, turning to follow Wong who had returned inside. Not wanting to argue, I just nodded. He hesitated on the stairs, clearly wanting to add something else. "Now that you're able to pull in energy, the rest will come easier. You did good."

"Thanks." I muttered at his back. The corner of the levitation cloak waving at me before they disappeared. I still couldn't get over the fact that Stephen's cloak had a mind of its own. The first time it had moved in my presence I nearly went into cardiac arrest.

Not wanting to linger in the almost empty courtyard, I slowly made my way back to my room. I had enough reading material there already that I didn't need to stop by the library. There wasn't a lot to do here other than study and practice magic. I had used some of my money to go out and buy a laptop so that I could keep up with the real world and not become totally recluse here. I also constantly had headaches that made me irritable, so I tried avoiding people until they passed.

The door closed behind me and I plopped onto my bed, picking up the nearest book. Several minutes went by, but I couldn't focus on the page. My body was still wound up from my minor victory earlier and I didn't want to just sit here. An idea suddenly popped into my head. A glance at the time showed it was almost seven, not too late in the evening.

Without another thought, I quickly changed into normal clothing, tossing the plain robes aside in disdain. Stephen and I had argued for nearly thirty minutes over the ugly robes, but he insisted that those were all they had and street clothes wouldn't cut it. I had grumbled about it the rest of the day to his utter annoyance.

Once I was presentable enough, I slid my sling ring back on my fingers. He had told me to keep practicing, and it wasn't like he said I couldn't go out at all. Before I could change my own mind, I imagined where I wanted to go and performed the motions for the spell. A portal spawned easily, and I stepped through into a familiar, empty alley. A wave of my hand sent the portal away, and I grinned at myself.

There weren't many people inside the bar, which was fine by me. I made my way to the counter and took a seat. I knew I shouldn't mess up the progress I had made by cutting myself off, so I ordered a soda and something to snack on as well.

"Haven't seen you in a while. You been okay?" the bartender inquired, glancing at me curiously when that was all I requested.

"Yeah, just been busy. I'm trying to lay off the alcohol," I admitted with a shrug and a small smile.

"I think you came to the wrong place if that's the case sweetheart," she chuckled, setting the glass in front of me. Someone sat down beside me, and I knew who it was before he even spoke.

"Maybe it's a good way to practice self-control," Chase suggested, flashing a brilliant grin to the both of us. Before he could even ask, she had a drink in front of him and he nodded in appreciation to her.

"I'm assuming you're here to try and be my friend again," I mused, staring at him over my glass.

He snorted and said with amusement, "I really thought we left friends that night."

"You're right," I chuckled, realizing I strangely felt connected to him. I did enjoy his company. It was nice to have a piece of normalcy in all of this. That's all I had wanted, and now... Now I was learning magic from a sorcerer in another country.

Like the night we met, we talked and talked, learning about one another. We avoided talking about the Avengers, but eventually his curiosity got the best of him.

"Have you spoken to anyone since the fallout?"

I hesitated, unsure where this was going. Or if I really wanted to talk about my broken family.

"No, I haven't talked to anyone since everything happened. I doubt any of them would want to hear from me anyway since I abandoned them," I finally replied.

"I don't see it as you abandoning them. You shouldn't be so hard on yourself."

"Oh? I'm not sure how else to see it honestly."

"Well, you went through something traumatic in that prison, if my assumption is correct. And then on top of that, whatever happened between you and Steve. You deserve to have all the space you need. They can't fault you for that," he told me softly. I grimaced, not sure I agreed with his logic. "Unless you plan on trying to rejoin them?"

I glanced at him in surprise and shook my head before saying, "No. It would probably be impossible to track them down anyway. We're all in hiding. I don't think it would be worth it to risk it, even if I wanted to."

He nodded, considering what I had said. "If you change your mind and need any help, I'm sure there are some favors I could pull at the embassy. I'm sure you could find them easier than you think, you know them better than most people," he added, shrugging nonchalantly.

"I'll keep that in mind," I murmured, letting the subject drop. The aching in my chest grew intensely, making me grow quiet. I usually kept it doubled down and shoved aside, which is why I tried to not think of the others. I missed them too much. Like a switch, the feelings disappeared, and I thought nothing of it.

We eventually parted ways, promising to catch up in a few days. Part of me knew I shouldn't be forming attachments to anyone anymore, but I did what I did best and ignored it. I actually liked Chase. My world had grown too small to turn my nose up at a friend.