The streets were thick with deep grey smoke, their fires stealing oxygen from the air and making it hard to breathe. A symphony of sirens blared around the city, mingling with the sounds of screams and crashing vehicles.
She stood atop a heap of rubble, her limbs burning, eyes glowing with a terrifying glare. Beneath her lay the bodies of people she knew. Sam, Rhodey, Wanda, Bruce. She looked further down the street. More bodies; Carol, Thor, T'Challa, Peter Parker. They were scorched and bloodied, covered in ash and rubble, their suits damaged and malfunctioning.
It's all yours, a voice whispered in her ear.
Her mouth curled into a slight smile.
This all belongs to you.
A shuffling stole her attention. She glanced ahead to see Stephen standing in the middle of the street amongst the ruins, his red cloak swaying behind him. He shook his head, tears in his eyes, as he looked around at the devastation. He was saying something but she couldn't hear him. She squinted to try and read his lips.
"What have you done?"
She didn't respond.
He took a step forward. "What have you done?"
She woke in a sweat. Her pillow drenched, her tank top sticking to her body. She sat up and covered her face with her hands, inhaling deeply through her nose and blowing out a shaking breath. She looked out the window at the night sky before brushing her hair out of her face and climbing out of bed.
The sanctum was eerily quiet as she walked through its hallways. She padded barefoot along the glossy wooden floors with no destination in mind; she would wander for as long as it took to forget her dream.
She came to a mirror hanging on a wall, walking up close and tugging at the skin under her eyes - the deep, purple bags that came with exhaustion. Her arms looked different. She cocked her head and examined them more closely, noticing how the skin sat more taught over her biceps, rippled slightly when she tensed. She stepped back and lifted her top, turning to the side and furrowing her brow at the sight of her stomach muscles - she hadn't been able to see them yesterday.
"What the..." she muttered to herself. But a sound interrupted her thoughts.
Her head snapped in the direction of the sound. It was a clattering noise, as if someone had knocked something off a pedestal or was trying to clumsily find their way in the dark. She ignited her hands and began to follow it, walking slowly, listening carefully.
She came to the archway of a room, peering around it and preparing to attack, when she saw him stumbling towards a chair.
"Stephen?" she whispered, letting her light fade as she made her way towards him.
He looked up at her. He was breathless, his eyebrow cut and bloodied.
"What happened?"
"There was a problem in Oslo."
"Oslo?"
"I'm a protector of Earth, not just New York." He sat back in the chair.
She sat down next to him. "Why didn't you take me with you? I could've helped."
"You're not a weapon. I refuse to use you as one."
She watched as he looked down at his hands. They were trembling violently.
He noticed her looking. "It happens sometimes when I exhaust myself," he said. "It'll calm down soon."
She hesitated for a moment before taking his hands in her's. He sat quietly, watching as her power wrapped around them. Her eyes began to glow and suddenly, he felt the tremor relaxing, settling until it was almost still. She let go of him and smiled softly, hoping he didn't mind her help.
"Thank you," he said quietly.
She nodded.
"Why are you up?" he asked.
"Nightmare. I think the stone is messing with my dreams."
"Banner said the longer it stays there, the more it's gonna affect you. You just have to be strong enough to fight it."
"Mm. It's kinda hard to try and hold onto who I am, when I don't know who I am."
"You're Juno."
She helped him up and they began to walk together, down the hall and up the staircase.
"I wonder why my parents called me Juno," she said.
He thought for a moment. "Well, if I remember correctly, I think she's the goddess of marriage."
She turned to him with an open mouth. "You're kidding?"
He looked down at her as they reached the top of the stairs, and after a moment, they both began to laugh.
*
The midday sun shone through the windows of the Avengers HQ. Wanda's boots echoed against the tiled floor as she made her way into the lab. She stopped when she saw Bruce hunched over a desk, his large hands wrapped with bandages as he tinkered with a small, intricate piece of equipment.
"Sam said you were in Wakanda," she said.
"I was, they flew me back so I could pick up some stuff."
She nodded, looking around curiously. "Are they keeping an eye on her?"
"Who?"
"T'Challa and his people..."
"Oh." He shook his head. "She's not there. We couldn't get her to stay."
"So where is she?"
"New York with Strange."
She folded her arms. "What if she tries to run?"
"What would she be running from? She wants this to end just like us."
"Bruce, we've dealt with enough bad guys to know that they don't just give up their power willingly."
"She's not a bad guy."
She sighed. "Mm, well I hope you're right."
Bruce put down the screwdriver and held up a tiny metal bud, his large finger and thumb making it appear more like a grain of sand.
"What is it?" asked Wanda as she walked towards him.
"I've made these," he began, picking up another one. "To play a frequency into Juno's ears that should, if I made 'em right, block her ability to read and infiltrate minds."
She took one and held it in the palm of her hand. "What would you need this for?"
"Precaution. I may not think she's a bad guy, but it's better to be safe than sorry." He shrugged. "Can I try them out on you?"
"On me?"
"Well I mean, you're the only other person I know who can get into people's heads."
She sighed. "Alright."
She sat down and took a deep breath before pushing the buds into her ears. She looked up at Bruce and nodded, watching as he turned a dial slowly.
She clamped her eyes shut and clutched at her ears as a splitting pain began to spread; it was across her forehead, behind her eyes, in her teeth. She raised a hand, trying to focus on planting a vision in Bruce's mind. But it wasn't working. Her thoughts were scattered, like a radio struggling to find a signal.
He turned off the sound and she pulled the buds from her ears, pressing her fingers into her throbbing temples.
"Yeah, they work," she said breathlessly.
*
"So how bad's the damage in Oslo?" asked Juno as she sat on the floor in the library, her back resting against a bookshelf.
"No damage," Stephen replied as he wandered through the rows of books. "I pulled the creature into the mirror dimension. Anything that happens in there doesn't affect here."
"The mirror dimension... interesting." She sat quietly, playing with a button on her jacket. "So how many dimensions are there?"
"Too many."
"Do you have a favourite?"
He peered his head around a shelf, looking at her with a puzzled expression. "A favourite dimension?"
"Yeah. Y'know, is there one where the floor's made of trampolines, or where people bleed ice cream or something..."
He laughed to himself. "Not quite."
"Well you must've seen enough of them to know which one you like the best..."
He looked down at her before letting out a huff and rolling his eyes. "Alright, fine, get up."
She clambered to her feet excitedly.
He held out his hands, twisting and turning them in a fluid yet precise motion. Juno looked around as the air around them began to change - it was glittery, like sunlight shining on a dusty room. She exhaled slowly - her breath was shimmery too. She looked at him in confusion.
"Touch something," he said.
She reached out and ran her fingers across the spines of books that lined the shelf, smiling as a scattering of light escaped from wherever she touched.
"This is your favourite?" she asked, almost cynically.
"It's not as impressive in here," he replied.
She followed him up onto the roof of the sanctum, looking out over New York and up at the bright sky. It was packed full of bright, twinkling orbs, as if the stars were visible in the daylight. Every time they moved, they disturbed the air, creating clusters of glitter that swirled and floated up towards the sky.
"What is this?" asked Juno.
"The light dimension. Molecular structures are different here, which makes light tangible."
"It's beautiful." She looked around in awe. "I can't believe something like this exists and people just have... no idea." She swirled her fingers around, making the air ripple and sparkle. "I don't know if I'm ready to give all of this up yet."
"Give what up?"
"The otherness of it all. The privilege of being extraordinary."
"Shooting light out of your hands isn't what makes you extraordinary."
"If that were true then you wouldn't be so willing to look past what the Ancient One did. You'd be mourning what we could have had. But you're not. And I don't blame you," she gestured to the view. "Because you have this."
They sat together on the edge of the roof, their legs dangling over the edge.
"Stephen, what if I don't want to... remove the stone?"
"Why wouldn't you want to remove it?"
She shrugged before turning to look at him. "What if I don't want to remove the stone?" she repeated.
"Well, I mean, we don't know what would happen. It could kill you."
"But see, I've stood at the crossroads between life and death before. Except last time, it wasn't my choice which road to take. In the reality where we meet, we live out the rest of our lives together as regular people. But instead, you became a sorcerer... and then I showed up, the host of an infinity stone." She paused. "It doesn't seem like I'm in danger. It seems like I've been given another chance."
"A chance of what?" He raised an eyebrow.
"Of life, Stephen. But thanks for the extremely loud thoughts of the two of us doing it..." she said sarcastically.
He shook his head with embarrassment. "Will you stop reading my mind?"
"I didn't have to. Your brain practically shouted it."
Stephen looked up at the sky. "Juno, look." He pointed.
"What is that?" she asked as her eyes followed his direction.
"Another reason why this dimension is my favourite."
They watched the sky begin to move, rippling like waves full of stars. It was as if the sky was made of opal, flashing with flecks of iridescent colours. It was unlike anything she had ever seen as she sat, wide-eyed, in wonderment at the sight. She smiled and turned towards Stephen, realising he wasn't looking at the sky. He was looking at her.
The distance between their faces grew smaller and smaller. He leant forward and placed a hand on her face, lights rippling and scattering where his fingers touched her skin. She held onto his arm, causing more lights to sparkle and escape from beneath her palm. And as their lips finally met, it was like an explosion of stars, surrounding them in their own, intimate galaxy.
...
They hurried through the halls of the sanctum, falling into Juno's room as they kissed eagerly. Stephen raised his hands, returning the pair of them into their own dimension as Juno used her power to close the door and draw the drapes. Her mind was full of echoing, racing thoughts - both of their thoughts. Mixing into one loud, indistinguishable cluster.
They fell to the bed, ignoring everything they had learned about themselves, pushing the danger aside and coming together like the universe had always seemed to intend.
*
Juno felt the bed shift beside her. She sat up to see Stephen sitting on the edge with his back to her. She used her power to open the drapes gently, almost gasping as the sunlight shone on his bare back. Handprints. Red, swollen handprints on his shoulders, on his arms, the back of his neck.
"Stephen," she said, her voice as soft as a breath. "Your back... I'm so sorry, I didn't even realise I did that."
He reached over his shoulder and touched one of the marks. "Ow," he said quietly. "I didn't realise you did that either."
"Clearly I still need to learn how to control my powers."
He stood up and began to get dressed. She sensed the disappointment he felt in himself when he looked down to see the Eye of Agamotto on the floor - tossed aside as if it were just another trinket.
"Stephen..."
He cleared his throat and turned to her, scratching the back of his head awkwardly. "Can I... ask you something?"
She nodded. "Sure."
"What we just did... You didn't, um, did you... influence me?"
"What?"
"I just- that kinda came out of nowhere. I don't usually... do things like this."
"You think I did some kind of mind control on you to make you sleep with me?" She couldn't hide her offence.
He stood around the other side of the bed, watching as she climbed out and got dressed. "I just meant that I don't act on impulse; I take my role as sorcerer supreme very seriously and what I just did, that wasn't-"
"Hey," she interrupted, almost laughing in disbelief. "You don't get to use my powers as a scapegoat for your own lust." She buttoned up her pants and placed her hands on her hips. "And I don't appreciate the accusation that I'd use mind control as some kind of mystical rohypnol. It's kind of insulting."
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to offend you. I just-"
"That was all you. If you wanna regret it, then go ahead. But this idea that I'm head over heels in love with you, that's not coming from me. You've drawn that conclusion all by yourself."
He rubbed his beard and closed his eyes, sighing to himself. "You're right. I'm sorry, okay. I shouldn't have suggested you did something to me."
"I think you're attractive and I got caught up in the moment. And I'm fine with that. Let yourself be fine with it too."
She walked past him, giving him a friendly pat on the shoulder as she went. He grimaced, feeling the sting of her handprint on his skin.