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There was no true passage of time in the small dome that Stephen called home. He had fucked that up with the rest of the universe. After helping the Guardians of the Multiverse, all he really had was the orb of bad decisions and his mind.
Stephen really questioned that second one most of the time. He didn’t really have anyone else’s opinion though, so he pretended he still had it.
It started when for some godforsaken reason, ‘All I Want for Christmas is You’ got stuck in his head. The universe ends and Mariah Carey lives on, go figure. It led to him getting pulled into a bit of nostalgia as he missed the holidays. Granted, everything they stood for was annihilated and he could only give himself presents.
That was besides the point.
It didn’t take long for him to conjure a winter scene in his little universe. Snow, some evergreens, and a log cabin would help him pretend for a little while, just like the bar at the end of the multiverse.
The cabin was as stereotypical as they came. All Stephen had to work with were memories of pictures in magazines and Christmas movies. He decked it out in as much wood furniture as possible, red and green plaid everywhere and his favorite part was a large Christmas tree in the corner, close to a burning fireplace. Since Uatu wasn’t around to scold him, he added a loop onto the ball of doom and infinity stones and strung the thing up like an ornament. Did it make him giggle every time he looked over at the brightly lit Christmas tree? Yes, yes it did. It didn’t stop him. He was still giggling as he made himself an ugly sweater with the symbol of Vishanti and a pair of Avengers pajama pants just to complete the look.
As he sat in his cabin, watching snow gently fall outside, Stephen could pretend that everything was as it should be. Technically, he thought darkly, Stephen had solved world peace and this was the most peaceful Christmas ever.
Yeah, that was a bit dark…
He was interrupted in his musing by a knock on the door.
Well, that wasn’t supposed to happen.
He meandered over and opened the door to find all of the Guardians of the Multiverse standing there, looking amused as well as Uatu.
“You’re not Santa.” He said, rather confused at their appearance.
“Uatu noticed you were getting a bit festive and decided to throw a Christmas party in your honor.” Peggy replied cheerfully and pushed past him. Thor merely clapped a hand on his shoulder as he followed the Captain inside. T’Challa was calm and collected as always, giving him a smile as he passed. Natasha smirked at him, giving him a once over.
“Nice pants.”
Stephen flushed a little bit and the spy laughed as she went inside, Gamora following behind. Uatu looked rather amused and Stephen couldn’t help but push his buttons.
“I thought there was going to be no more interfering?”
“What is there to interfere with here?”
“…touché.”
The two walked inside to find that the group had already invited themselves to the booze in the small kitchen. Stephen mused that this was at least a lot better than drinking alone. He grabbed his hot chocolate and settled back in his cozy chair by the fire and couldn’t help but smile softly as he watched his friends catch up with one another. Two of them had no idea what Christmas was, one very likely did not celebrate it even when he lived on earth, but they all seemed to roll with the vibe. He was unsurprised to find Peggy settling in the chair near him.
“So, you live in a snow globe outside the confines of a universe?” She asked teasingly and the sorcerer merely raised his glass in a toast before sipping the warm drink. Stephen didn’t often bother with conjuring food or drink for himself and found himself questioning that decision.
“Normally the place is empty but Mariah Carey got stuck in my head and one thing led to another-“
“Really?!” Peggy asked with a laugh. “You have that song here as well?”
“I feel like Mariah Carey is a multiversal constant. No one can escape that lead in.”
They continued to talk and joke around and Stephen found himself content. Maybe one day Uatu would find it in his heart to let him join another universe someday. He wasn’t quite ready yet, the worry still fresh in his mind about the destruction he could cause, but staying in here forever…
It was best not to think about, especially since he was fairly certain that his lifespan had been drastically increased due to his little stunt.
Either way, Stephen merely focused on the warm and fuzzy feelings he held now with his friends. And Uatu.
Speaking of-
“Is this the infinity stones orb turned into an ornament?!”
Yeah, he was going to have to wait longer to get out of here, wasn’t he?