THE APPRENTICE (DOCTOR STRANGE STORY)

46

"Why are you here?,"

"I-I've missed you," she explained to her "ever since the snap, I started to think about you a lot, and I-,"

"Did you survive?," she asked, and the woman nodded. Hazel's face fell and clenched her jaw "I did too. You never looked for me. You're not here because you miss me- who even gave you my address?,"

"This kid named Peter Parker," she explained "Hazel, how could you say that?,"

"Hm, let me think- oh! Maybe because of the fact that you left me and tried to scrape every single penny from me!," she yelled "need I say more?,"

"I wanna change-,"

"No you don't," she shook her head "What is it that you really want?,"

"For you to come home," she answered "I'm gonna take you back with me,"

"Okay, hold on, wait a minute." Stephen lifted up his finger and scoffed "what makes you think you can take her home?,"

"What makes you think you can keep her here? You're old enough to be her dad!,"

"That's kind of the point," he muttered "and unlike you, I didn't leave her. I don't just leave people and barge in large as life,"

"What you're doing is illegal, by the way," she reminded

"We're not doing anything illegal, dumbass." she spat and stepped to her sister "Stephen's family, unlike you,"

"Him? He's family?," she scoffed "how in the hell could he ever be more valuable than me?,"

"I can give you a list at the top of my head,"

"Look at you." Stephen stepped forward and gave her a stare down. "Walking around here thinking you can just show up and be on your merry way," 

"I don't thi-,"

"It's money, isn't it?," Stephen asked, reading right through her. "what you need,"

The woman went silent and looked at her feet, making the man grimace. There was something about Stephen's presence that made her feel like he could see through her. Moreover, there was something different about Hazel, and it wasn't just the tunics.

"I figured since you aren't dead yet and you haven't been looking for me, maybe you're doing well enough to lend me some-,"

"Of course." Hazel's voice was filled with venom "It's been five years and you're still the same old greedy and materialistic-,"

"-You weren't the best sister either, Hazel!," she returned "you're always so cold! You think I don't remember you ignoring me and criticizing me?,"

"No, don't do that. Don't turn this on me," she warned "You don't even know how to think for yourself!" She threw her hands in the air with an unamused laugh.

"You know, you're lucky I haven't called the police on you yet," the woman threatened "he could go to jail-,"

"Here." Hazel threw a bundle of money at her roughly. "Take the money. Never come back. Never bother us again,"