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On the bright side, America got to take a tour of a new universe.
On the down side, her and Stephen were stranded there.
This universe was fairly similar to Stephen's, except for the fact that gravity was upside down, making her hair stick straight up (or down?). The blood rushed to her head, making it hard to think or breathe.
They wouldn't be able to stay much longer… if the wonky gravity didn't kill them, thirst and starvation definitely would.
Stephen sighed and placed his hands on his hips. “America, I told you not to GO ALONE!”
America cowered. She knew she made a mistake going into the relic room alone, but she didn't think it would scare her enough to create a portal.
Now, she couldn't calm down enough to concentrate on getting home. She was a perfectionist, making every mistake nearly detrimental for her sanity. It didn't help that her self-proclaimed adopted father was yelling at her.
“Look, I’m sorry… I-I it's just that I don't want you hurt,” Stephen explained softly. “I'm not mad at you, just the situation. Do you think you could create a portal?”
“What do you think?” America retorted. If she was able to make a portal, she would have already.
“What would help you to calm down?”
“Calm down? I need to calm down?”
Stephen started striding towards her. “Yes you do, before-”
America had a flashback of Defender Strange's betrayal: the mad look in his eyes as she was suspended into the air, the shake of his hands as he drained the life out of her. Her father figure, her savior, her protector- sacrificing her for his own pride. So much trust was thrown away in the blink of an eye.
She couldn't have that happen to this Stephen; however, upon seeing the look in his eyes, she wasn't so sure that history wouldn't repeat itself.
She screamed, the atmosphere smelt of ozone, and they were thrown backwards.
When they landed, they were on the top of a volcano. Said volcano was rumbling, ready to explode at any second to send lava spewing into the ashy sky.
“America, I need you to breathe. I know you're upset and afraid, but I need you to concentrate.”
Easy for him to say. Her mind was racing, her heart pounding, and her body felt numb. All she was able to do was shake her head.
“Kid, you've done it many times before. Just concentrate.” Stephen's voice was getting more and more frantic. America could tell he was keeping it soft for her sake, but there was a certain fear to it that worried her.
The volcano began to warm up, making her feet burn. In her periferal, she saw a spark fly in Stephen's direction.
“America! Now!”
Stephen wasn't an intimidating person, but America knew what he was capable of. Sure, he was different from any other Stephen she had met, but he had a certain air of power about him that made his yelling frightening. It didn't help that it was aimed at her incompetence.
The fear was enough to make her portal back to Kamar-Taj.
As she landed on the hard ground, she couldn't hold back her tears.
“America, I didn't mean to yell at you,” he soothed, rubbing her back tentatively.
“I know I just-” am a failure, a horrible person… “I'm just upset that I still can't control my powers. I've been working on it for 4 months!”
“It takes time. Even I didn't become a sorcerer overnight.”
“I know, but I put you in danger! You got burned!”
Stephen looked at his arm, America quickly following his gaze. There was a hole burnt into his sleeve, revealing blackened skin beneath. The edges were still searing with fire.
Stephen just shrugged. “Eh, I've been through worse,” he smiled enigmatically. So much was hidden in that smile. America knew he had suffered a lot- most Stephens had- but she didn't know just how much. She had a feeling she would never know, though she wasn't sure she wanted to know.
“I'm just glad you're okay,” Stephen continued. “I know it's scary not to be able to calm down.”
“Have you ever been scared?”
“Yes, many times,” Stephen said cautiously.
He wasn't going to expand. America sighed- would he ever share his background? She knew about Christine, but surely that was just the straw that broke the camel’s back.
One day she was going to get him to share.
The bell echoed throughout Kamar-Taj. Training time.
America groaned.
“Hey, what if we get ice cream instead?” Stephen suggested.
“Yes!!”
America pumped her fist in the air. She loved Stephen.