#mars. he’s fucking insane.
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WAIT OMG only seeing your tags on that thing now !!!!! TELL ME ABT CHAT NOIR IF YOU WANT i don't actually know anything abt him and i heart characters who act like me GDGFHFFJFJFJ ALSO HI
HIIII MARS OKAY SO. what you need to know abt chat noir is. he’s silly. at his base at his core at the fundamentals of who he is as a person. hes a silly guy. this is integral to him. he also has the most fucking issues you will ever know of in your life <333
he grew up as a sheltered rich kid, only really knowing his parents and the people that worked in their house. and then his mum died (well. ‘died’. dw abt it) and he was left w just his dad and his house,, kind of became a prison. his entire life he’s known nothing except his parents and then one of them is gone and the other is so distant he barely knows him at all. he’s also made to be a model for his dad’s company, which he… both doesn’t enjoy and does? it’s bittersweet. he likes feeling useful, feeling needed, but also his face is all over paris and there’s people telling them they love him when they don’t even know him and never will. he’s a kid and he’s the most famous person in france. he’s beloved by the world and he’s spoken to maybe ten people in his life. he doesn’t know who he is. and then eventually he convinces his dad to let him go to school, and he’s so excited because finally, this is a chance to be a person. he’s never been a person before. it’s a rocky start, he makes some friends and he makes some enemies. and he doesn’t really know how to deal with that. everyone likes him. he’s the perfect child. he’s the face of paris. how do you deal with someone not liking you when that’s all you’ve ever strived for in your entire life? how do you enjoy the first freedom you’ve ever had in your life when you’ve upset someone else in the process? is your being there really worth it if you’ve inconvenienced someone else? were you better off staying in your house? he struggles with it a little.
but then he gets his ring, gets the chance to be a hero, gets the chance to be chat noir, and suddenly his freedom is his own. he doesn’t need to keep up expectations. he doesn’t need to be adrien agreste, son of gabriel agreste. he doesn’t need to be adrien agreste, best friend of chloé bourgeois. he doesn’t need to be adrien agreste, the boy who doesn’t even know who he is. he gets to decide who he is. for the first time in his life, he’s given the chance to be who he wants to be, and he runs with it. he’s suave, he’s confident, he’s outspoken, he has the whole of the city laid out before him to explore. and he has a friend, a real friend, someone who he’s partners with. equals. it’s not a business transaction, or an exchange. sure, they’re partners in the work sense too, but this is different. ladybug is different. she’s a little shy at first, which is cute, but when he sees her? really sees her? she’s everything he wishes he could be. she’s smart, she’s brave, she stands up for herself and the citizens of paris and does what she knows is right regardless of what consequences it may cause for her personally. she’s the fire that adrien wants for himself, she’s his hero in every sense of the word. and things are good, for a while. they have their episode-of-the-week adventures. he flirts, she scolds him, sometimes things become a little tense, but it’s okay. they work so well together. and he makes progress as adrien too - fixes the mistakes he made, solidifies a friendship with marinette, gets the school life, the normal life, he’s dreamed of.
it doesn’t stay perfect for long, though. new heroes arrive. ladybug drifts away, slowly but surely. he understands - her miraculous is more powerful than his, in its own way. she’s the centre of the world. she’s the hero. it makes sense that she’d get to know things he doesn’t, get to have abilities he doesn’t. he understands, he really does. but that resentment still sits with him. his entire life, he’s been the obedient one. he’s listened to his parents, to his staff, to his best - only - friend. he’s given up everything. he’s given up himself - he discarded who he could be in favour of what he was told he needed to be. he left behind adrien agreste to the point of uninventing himself entirely. chat noir was supposed to be different. chat noir was supposed to be freedom. and yet here he is again, kept in the dark, told to be patient, to leave it alone, that it’s for his own good. everything is always for his own good. he never gets a life all of his own, but it’s for his own good. there are things you can’t know. he wants to leave this behind. so he does, for a while. he’s sick of the secrets and the lies. why have two lives where you don’t exist when you can just narrow it down to one? what’s the point of an alter ego if they’re just the same as the first version of you? what’s the point of being part of a duo when the other person doesn’t need you anymore? adrien agreste doesn’t like his life, not entirely. but now neither does chat noir. he always comes back, though. always. maybe he’s mad at ladybug, sure, but he loves her. she loves him. they make it work. it’s strained.
as adrien, he starts to stand up for himself a little more. he quits modelling. stands up to lila, someone who lies and deceives and tricks people in ways that adrien can’t stand. keeps a shaky friendship with kagami, the girl he loves and dates but isn’t quite in love with. it’s going okay, he supposes. he still wishes things with ladybug were different, were the same, but sure. whatever. he’s dealing with it.
the other heroes thing doesn’t work out. most of them are fine - good, even. rena rouge, carapace, ryuko, viperion. they bring new powers to the table, new thought processes, they help. he makes friends with them, he likes them. and then they’re gone. suddenly the miraculouses are gone. no more heroes. no more team. just him and ladybug, the way it used to be. the way he wanted it to be. but it’s bad. it’s wrong. it’s put paris in danger. but now, with nothing left, ladybug finally sees him. which is what chat noir wanted all along, really. not for the other heroes to leave. not to have ladybug all to himself. just for her to want him as more than the comedic relief. to appreciate him. to know him. she’s his world, she’s the one constant he has in both of his lives, she’s everything to him. and so seeing her drift away, seeing her start to not need him, realising that maybe she never needed him - it stung. but now with just the two of them left, she sees him for who he is. who he’s always been. her own hero.
anyway this got long and i haven’t even gone into detail abt some fucked up episodes. like chat blanc which focuses on his fucking desperation to be loved and to hold onto that love at any cost. or desperada where he watches ladybug die again and again and spends years trying to save her before having to accept that he’s never going to be able to do it. or kuro neko where he creates an entirely new identity for himself because ladybug doesn’t want him anymore but maybe he can change himself into someone she does want. moral of the story is chat noir is such a fucking character holy shit
just. chat noir is about having the power of destruction and using it to create yourself. he’s about not knowing who you are. he’s about that fundamental human craving to be loved - and don’t even get me started on that, because human isn’t even a word that really applies to him anymore. all he wants is to be loved. that’s all he’s ever wanted, after a lifetime of growing up alone. all he wants is to be someone worthy of love.
#mars. he’s fucking insane.#ml starts out as a kiddy show okay for the first few seasons you’re like this is literally a kids show#but god. fucking. when you get to lila. kagami. felix. emilie.#felix will also drive you insane i think but that’s a whole other thing w a lot of spoilers#and i was already skirting around spoilers writing this so.#just. fucking hell. he’s on my kinlist for a reason.#asks#marcy 💗#mj.thoughts
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im doing my daily watch of brokeback mountain and i just realized in the scene where jack and ennis are in the tent hiding from the hail, ennis catches some of the hail in his hat and picks it up to show jack :( THEY ARE SO CUTE SOMEBODY SEDATE ME
#he just wants to show his bf the hail#they are so fucking cute im going insane#brokeback mountain#jack twist#ennis del mar#jake gyllenhaal#heath ledger
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any time i remember time lord victorious arc i start shaking like a sick fucking dog
#having an extraordinarily hard time watching waters of mars rn literally episode of all fucking time#they dont make them like this anyMOOOOOOOOOORE OHHMY GODDDD#icould talk abt it for hours istg it's so. grips you shakes you shakes you shakes you shakes you sh#the WAYYDYDYDHDHDJDJDJDUJDJDHDJDUDJD THHHEEEE THE THE THE . HTHHEHEH#the way u can see glimpses of what's to come in all 4 seasons but especially in voyage of the#damned and then s4 onwards but u dont realise JUST how much he went insane until now#like there's echoes of this in votd but you might not even pick up on it if you dont Know#n here he's just fully gone it's sooo. IT'S SOOOOOOOOOOO. CHARACTER OF ALL TIME#man so profoundly tragic his entire story is abt speedrunning losing everything and#going insane and dying. and yet he still spends like 20 entire minutes crying and begging not to die. okay#i cant rank drs they're my best friends so idk who my fave dr is but 10's is easily my favourite story it's so. it's SOOO.#anyway sorry. stops shaking you and pats your arms down awkwardly. carry on#doctor who#dw lb#10th doctor#the waters of mars#time lord victorious#i was today years old when i learned there's apparently a whole audio series about it that#came out in the past few years. well i aint listenin to that. everything i need is on my screen already#also. the way most ppl havent even seen these specials coz they're impossible to find online..#even tho waters of mars is like. not just extremely important but also yknow. extremely good
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not just a scratch in hs verse pls ...
send me ‘ not just a scratch ‘ for your muse to catch mine trying to patch up a wound in secret…
Maybe he shouldn’t have stormed off—
What’s the point in being collaborative if he was just going to take everything to heart? This wasn’t like before. He wasn’t nineteen standing before his own flesh and blood, where he was presenting something and already bracing himself for it to be torn apart. It’s so far divorced from everything he’d gone through for years with his music and yet it still made the weight on his shoulders unbearable, the strain in his jaw almost crushing. And before he could let the wounds from the past tear open at the drop of a simple critique he’d excused himself from the studio, despite the odd look Yone had thrown him as he shoulders past K’sante roughly (much to his offense).
He doesn’t care what it looked like, up and leaving and shoving his seat backward with a growl as he did it. But the sting from just… he can’t even fucking remember what it was that Ezreal commented on that triggered that dread that manifested bone deep within him. But he knows it was enough to echo the words of his father once upon a time and it was enough to make him fly off the handle. This is how he ends up outside the studio; his back pressed firmly against one of the trees nearby as his ears pin flat against his hair despite hidden in the pockets of his beanie as an itch spreads across his arms while he tries to shake out the trepidation. Fruitlessly, really— he knows better than anyone how to shake it.
Is he overreacting? Maybe.
He can’t think about it now, not when the sting of wood splintering beneath his knuckles scratches that itch far better than talking this out ever could. At least that’s what it feels like. Another wind up, another punch, more wood cracking beneath the hit and digging into his skin. It doesn’t stop till his breathing evens out and it doesn’t feel like there were ants crawling all over him. Doesn’t stop till he realizes just how stupid he was to start in the first place. A flex of his hand blooms a new pain, knuckles bloodied with skin split. Fuck.
Sett up and leaves, angry but not really, set off by something he can’t quite put into words yet with the boys, doesn’t have the patience to talk about it anyways, but to then come back with his hand fucked up? How the fuck was he supposed to explain this? As soon as the adrenaline is gone the regret begins to flood in as he holds his hand carefully, fangs bared at no one but himself.
Sett thinks he’s been gone for what feels like forever, rushing back inside and moving as quickly as he could to a bathroom. He had to wash it away, hide the fact he wasn’t as in control as he thought he was. Suddenly he’s nineteen with watery eyes and a busted lip and a bloody nose, washing his face silently until the water ran clear and he could stand to look at himself again.
So, no— he doesn’t hear when the door to the bathroom creaks open. Doesn’t hear the footsteps that approach him cautiously, methodically, before stopping not too far behind him— watching. Sett’s only concern was cleaning his hand until he could stand to look at himself again. When the sting of the cold water blasting away the splinters and scabbing was enough to make him wince, that's when he catches the glimpse of white hair posted behind his reflection and he stills completely. Mouth falling open to try and speak only to find nothing to say, distress lingering in the crease of his brow while the water continues to run down his mangled handiwork.
Sett doesn’t try to hide it, but it’s evident in how he sucks in a harsh breath and clenches his fists that being found was frustrating him beyond what he’d ever admit. Perhaps it’s good then, that his ears stay pinned closely to his head, his tail flicking roughly from side to side as he begins his ritual of cleaning his fist once more. In moments like these, Sett’s rather thankful he has them opposed to the myriad of times where they’ve done him dirty. Either way, Yone of all people finding him bloody knuckled and mere moments from panic had not been something Sett was looking forward to.
“I don’t need ya checkin’ on me. S’fine.”
The words cut clean and dry when he does eventually speak, his eyes locked on the other man through the mirror. He wasn’t planning on opening up about what he felt right now or about what dragged a knife across the tender scars within his chest in the studio any time soon. Silently, Sett just hopes that the image of him frantically scrubbing away blood stays hidden within Yone’s mind, and dies with him really.
But he knows better. He knows what this will lead to later when the two cross paths in the early mornings and Sett wants nothing to do with it.
#windchaser#Take It Up Front - ASKS;#Let’s Get Rowdy - IN CHARACTER;#You in the pit. It's not no exhibition - HEARTSTEEL;#HI MARS !!!! HURT UR FEELINGS BE UPON YE#i like to think this is like#RIGHHHHT when they start working together for heartsteel#so sett's up his ass abt trying to relearn how to be normal with his music and the creative process#and unfortunately he is not <3 hope this helps#this was originally going to be like. 3 paragraphs but my brain said no fuck no go insane
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one of the prev posts I was like oh cql? on the url and they WERE cql...but their top tag was...bad....but I don't even have the energy to refute their nonsensical arguments for it because like that's not what shipping really is about but also THEY REALLY THINK JC IS *THE ONE* TO MAKE WWX HAPPY AND LWJ IS BORING???? incest aside like jc makes wwx MISERABLE jfc canonically yeah lwj does make wwx happy and jc is left miserable and alone due to the consequenves of his actions including actively tormenting and mocking and humiliating and trying to kill wwx. go die mad about it 😭
#like 'wow their love for each other is so crazy and all-consuming its insane to thibk some boring lan cultivator could do that for him'#WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT!!!!! their relationship is so unhealthy and marred by debt and obligations in the FIRST PLACE#and even without that yeah there's love there but they also just don't see eye to eye on so many things and jc actively impedes#wwx in things he wants or believes in and also treats him like shit like this is fully a sector of the fanbase who are just making things u#in their own head to enjoy#which would be mildly annoying if not for the fact that it's 1. INCEST#and 2. between two characters with THAT kind of history. wwx needs someone he can like...trust..#okay I guess I donhave the energy. I'm less angry at them calling lwj boring. yeah he is kind of boring but that's fine#wwx canonically doesn't think so and canonically is very happy w him#these bitches think his arguably abusive extremely immature and volatile pseudo-brother who tortured and tried to kill him is BETTER FOR HI#?????? brother jc is not better for ANYONE. there's loving someone and there's wanting to be around them and shit. like there's so much#history there it's lucky if they can even be friends again#like 🤢🤢🤢 what the fuck are you on. the narrative was pretty clear. media comprehension -100000#I don't even think this person is unintelligent or anything they just have incredibly bad and nonsensical taste#or at least used to. idk how old those posts were I fully admit#wwx with anyone besides lwj is a hard sell but jc is beyond insane for multiple reasons#even if you 'don't see them as brothers' which is an interpretation I guess they still have a horrible relationship#and jc makes wwx feel terrible bc he has a bad personality and blames wwx for all the most painful things that happened to him and he lashe#out constantly. like he canonically makes wwx miserable and forces him to prioritize jcs own emotional and physical needs. by the end he's#a little better. but he's also not the moral beacon wwx gravitates towards. he's pragmatic and callous#wwx NEEDS someone he can trust someone who shares his principles someone who will take care of him and not demand him to crush inconvenient#parts of himself and play nice. to cater to someone else's feelings#like...structurally they're so well matched this post was insane I hate c/x shippers so much 😭#cor.txt
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oh of course izaya is an oscar wilde fan. he would definitely use this as his bio for his private discord/twitter account
pulls out the importance of being earnest and the picture of dorian gray. time to analyze these from the psychological/literary perspective of izaya lets go baby (he has his own category)
edit check tags and rbs for some actual analysis stuff lmAOo
#izaya orihara#as a lit student and psych student izaya is literally ticking all of my boxes rn#bruh imagine if i made a dorian gray!izaya au. fucking imagine#every time he does something particularly sus he comes home and his image gets older and uglier#it fits too because izaya is like. young adult man. seducer of women. there's absolutely a theme of eternal youth in there#he wants to be young forever so that he can continue flipping through the streets and keep his mind sharp and keep being an informant#he never wants to gain enough wisdom to think 'man this sounds like a bad idea' or 'i'd be better off staying out of this'#im not sure how i would end the au though pff knowing me id just make it shizaya and have either a happy ending or stupidly tragic ending#happy ending: izaya grows a few braincells and starts to find contentment in growth rather than the thrill of stasis#tragic ending (spoilers for dorian gray. whoops): izaya goes insane from seeing his portrait so marred and stabs it and dies#good ending could be ketsu compliant and the picture reverts back to normal after he undergoes the Royal Ass-kicking#hm. ill workshop this more#meanwhile the whole thing with Earnest and the multiple names and stuff sounds like something izaya would to fuck with people#which would just be funny#plus the gay jokes are peak izaya#durarara#starts reading all of oscar wilde's works so i can write more entertaining izaya fanfiction#thats just how it goes babyyyy
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ok ive meditated it and i think the Funniest thing that could possibly come out of the shu-torisis relationship would be. for shu to hear abt her possible arranged marriage to eichi so he gets involved in the pretty 5 stop the wedding antics. put naru, shu, mika and hiyori in the same room with "stopping eichi" as a common goal while aira and tori are Distressed about any possible attempted murder
OH MH GOD I FORGOT ABOUT THAT POINT DEAR LORD JEOFIRKXKEKFODK
And considering Tori's sister distaste for Eichi she would also greenlight literally any scheme (specially if it might end in Eichi getting hurt). Never let Mika, Shu and Hiyori in a room when the plan "is stop Eichi at all costs (you're allowed to hurt him ♡)"
#ash asks answers#mar 🌊#naru having to act as the biggest voice of reason because Aira is hiding in a corner because oh my god these people Insane#ans Tori is staring in horror as murder might be an option and if he suggests something#(and also he kinda feels bad about really wanting this thing to work because he's jealous of his sister's position)#but also oh god eichi might get hurt oh fuck#anyway I think the mess trio will silently agree to let Shu use the axe if worse comes to worse as a last resort#(they had to be convinced for it to be a last resort. the other three think they managed to convinced them out of the idea)
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being in your early 20s and starting to do adult stuff is like. most of it's a little bit of a drag but generally not that horrible. and then you have to start apartment hunting and you're like oh well i guess i might as well die
#my friends and i found a REALLY good place#and then we found some old reviews of the development company talking about racism#and we did some more research#and the guy who owns the company is an extremist with ties to the italian mob#like. praised hitler's leadership said the guy who led the mar a lago investigation should be executed stands behind vile racist remarks#look up carl paladino he owns a ton of property across new york state it's fucking insane#anyways that was my first experience with almost buying an apartment. good omen for sure
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you know me so well <3
Sorry, sorry, but manipulative hurt/comfort is fucking cocaine to me. The predatory aspect of it. The vulnerability—500% better if the hurt party knows they're being manipulated and is past the point of caring. The juxtaposition of sweet and sharp flavours. Barkbarkbark
#FUCK#literally that post abt dean getting sammy drunk so he can take care of him#im insane#inspo#mars.txt#shut up mars
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We big <3-ing my dad rn cause BRO
#he gave me some of his old comic books#said comic books that are still in the fucking PLASTICS#bro bro hasn’t opened them and decided to give them to me cause he watched me buy daredevil stuff#he mentioned the comics and I asked if we could open them (together) and he GAVE ME THEM#im gonna scream#it’s mostly punisher comics (we <33) and one daredevil comic#n the daredevil one is like. one of those book ones#someone shoot me or smth pls I’m going insane over this#I’ve been wanting some of these for YEARS#I DIDNT EVEN KNOW HE HAD THEM#I THOUGHT HE WAS GONNA HAVE LIEK. THE THING AND KISS COMICS NOT PUNISHER AND DD#screaming sobbing throwing up#mars shouts#comics#i’m so 🥰🥰🥰
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bro she could literally pull ANYONE she wants, but she decided to ask out the only guy to ever show interest in me
#im going insane#he literally told me “oh if she didnt ask me i was planning on asking you”#r u joking#actually going out a window#what the fuck#i have NEVER had a date to hoco/formal/anything#she ALWAYS does#SHE DOESNT EVEN LIKE HIM#SHE DOES THIS EVERYTIME#she told his sister if he asked her to hoco she wouldnt say no and ran w it#shes done this like 7 times#and then suddenly “oh no i had a crush on him this whole time!”#GIRL YOU DIDNT EVEN KNOW HIS NAME A MONTH AGO STFU#i love her to death#but its like#when is it my turn#litro everyone INCLUDING HER said “oh yea no hes into you”#today alone we got asked if we were going out NINE TIMES#and then end of the day shes like “heyyy”#i hate it here#i js stress ate literally 4000 kcals#IBWAS DOING SO GOOD#im locking myself in a room and never coming out#shut up mars!
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Today on the list of "good stuff that happened": I got to tell my brother about how Percy Jackson in the Son of Neptune is absolutely insane and spends basically the whole book just making the Romans go "?!"
Highlights include exploded water cannons during war games, showing up carrying a goddes and tearing apart furies with a whirlpool, mouthing off to Mars, third-wheeling/babysitting the precious young smoll inexperienced beans that are Frazel, willingly drinking Maybe Poison, and generally breaking a lot of things by Fighting Like a Greek. Continued to explain that the best part about the multiple perspectives in these books is this:
Percy: I'm a loser, lol! I have no idea what I'm doing, also everyone is cooler than me and I'd die for them! Also Annabeth is cute when she's threatening people with a knife.
Annabeth: *while planning 6 steps ahead* Percy is an idiot. Dear gods I love him so much. Such a wonderful idiot.
Literally everyone else: Percy is (one of) the most powerful demigod(s) I've ever heard of, and he gives no shits about any rules anymore. This man is scary and dangerous and I am so glad he's on my side. Annabeth is a terrifying force to behold and I can't keep up with her. I am unsure if them being so in love with each other makes it better or worse. If they ever turn evil, we are so fucked.
#giraffe's ramblings#percy jackson#heroes of olympus#pjo#hoo#riordanverse#rick riordan#babbles with brothers#this has been talked about by other people before at length#but I love explaining it to my brother who's only exposure to this series are the very bad movies and “The Campfire Song” from the musical#he is so tickled by it every time
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thinking abt sett and cannibalism as a metaphor for love
#Get a load of this guy - OOC;#im in my thinking man pose....#i talk a lot abt how sett's idea of love is a little skewed in mainverse since he's so up his own ass#and if he finds that partner willing to put up with his ass and break apart his horrible outer shell#or worm their way hardcore into his side#he'll eventually break right#because like whatever he can lay with whoever he wants but he doesnt necessarily love someone because of that? they just fuck#oh but when he's IN LOVE.... its suffocating dude. crazed. obsessive because he's like why the fuck do YOU make me feel like this#whats different. i need to be a part of you. i need you to be a part of me.#and it aches in his chest and he loves so hard and he wants to be consumed by it when its the right person#absentmindedly been writing that into discord threads... that shackled up obsessiveness that he pushes down#but claws its way back out and then effectively makes him act a type of way:tm: with his partner#hes literally that quote thats like 'i still dont know how to love someone without swallowing them'#i love u cannibalism as a metaphor for love. yes im insane.#dont get me started on if he kisses someone too hard and his fangs catch their lip and they bleed because of it#he's normal i swear I SWEAR#taking a page out of mars' book again by writing my dissertation in the tags thank u good night
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episode seven: the massacre at hawkins lab
Steve coughs, swatting at the particles in the air. “Just inhaled a bunch of that crap.” “I’ve been trying not to think about how much of the Upside Down we’ve ingested since being here.” “It’s stuck in my throat, Y/N.” “Again, I’m trying not to think about that.
Summary: bats are really fucking annoying to fight, you always somehow end up critically injured, nancy carries the group on her back as always, eddie gives steve relationship advice (embarassing, tbh), interdimensional bike riding is lowkey fun, and you take a trip down memory lane.
Rating: general, some swearing, violence
Warnings: fem!reader, use of y/n, cursing, blood and gore, critical injuries, mentions of fainting, mentions of death and violence, description of corpses
Words: 11.9k
Before you swing in: ive never been more excited to write a chapter tbh. this episode touches on so many things ive been building up for seasons now !!!! insane !!! im so so so excited to see how yall react. this chapter has my favorite sequence of scenes yet ;) enjoy !
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His name rips from your mouth. “Steve!”
The bats sink their fangs into his stomach. His legs kick out, he gasps for breath, choking on his pain. Your legs threaten to give out as you stumble towards Steve. Quickly your fingers find the knives you always carry with you just as a bat lunges towards you.
Barely having time to dodge its quick attack, you swat at the creature, but your knives slide off its skin easily. Your heart drops; their flesh is too thick to cut through. The bat screeches at you, its teeth bared, and you throw your body weight against it onto the ground. Angling your knife, you pierce the inside of its mouth, killing it.
“Shit!” Another bat crawls towards you. Your elbow scrapes the ground as you roll out of its path, slicing into the creature’s maw.
Steve screams again, this time even louder as even more bats surround him. Frantic, you jump to your feet. Without thinking, you grab the tail of one of the bats, its face buried in Steve’s stomach. When you start to pull, Steve shakes his head violently and throws his arm out at you. “Go!”
You don’t bother answering; you’re not leaving him.
The bat’s tail cuts your palms as you pry it off of Steve’s flesh, but as soon as it’s removed, it latches onto your upper thigh. “Fuck!”
Razor sharp pain shoots through your entire body. The bat loosens its jaw to only tighten it more; you can feel its teeth hit your bone. Screaming, the white-hot pain blinds you. Your knees give out and you fall before you can catch yourself.
“Y/N!” Steve chokes out, desperate. He clenches his jaw, tries to get up. More bats screech overhead, circling you, and Steve knows you only have seconds before you’re dead. But the vines around his neck constrict even more. His airway closes, another bat takes the other one’s place on his stomach.
“Motherfucker!” You stab at the bat, but then a second one slams against your body and your shoulder explodes with pain. “Fuck-no,” you try to twist around, to use the last of your strength to remove it from your own skin, but it’s no use. The bats tear at your skin, ripping through muscle and ligaments.
Lightning flashes, its light red mars the endless dark blue sky. Above you, a bat screeches, signaling its descent, before it dives towards you at full speed. Your eyes close, you hope death will be quick.
“Get fucked!” Someone screams, a sickening thud following. Opening your eyes, you see the creature’s body get thrown into the air. Eddie stands above you, smiling wickedly, but as soon as he sees the two other bats gnawing on you, he brings his oar over his head and swings.
You look away, scared he’ll miss, and see Nancy and Robin a few feet away. Nancy holds the other oar, working with Robin to kill the swarm of bats that encase Steve’s body. Seeing them makes you want to cry in sweet relief.
The sound of the bats’ pained cries echo in your ears. It takes several attempts before Eddie manages to get them off of you. The bat’s teeth cut deeply with every attack, causing you to cry out in pain. It’s fucking agonizing. Warm blood follows a sickening tearing sensation in your leg.
When Eddie has killed both bats, he helps you stand up. “Jesus, you alright?”
“Talk later,” you grunt, already rushing to go help Nancy and Robin. “Fight now.”
Eddie doesn’t stop you. He swings his oar again and Robin begs you to help. She has a bat pinned down while Nancy pounds her oar into its face, but it won’t fucking die. Its tail has wrapped itself around Steve’s neck and he’s paler than you’ve ever seen him.
But before you can gut the piece of shit creature, another bat pounces on Nancy. Its claws tear her skin and she yelps. You scream her name and catch her before she falls. “I got you.”
Nancy’s hands clutch your body as you stab the bat. “Get it off me!”
“I’m trying!” The bat won’t let go, screeching with every pull. Biting down, you ignore the searing pain as your palms get cut up even more. Robin tries to help, but you scream at her. “No! Help Steve!”
She nods quickly and it’s a mess of fighting and screeches and blood. Steve bites down on the bat’s tail, its jaw opens as it squeals, giving him just enough time to escape. As he rolls to the side, Robin throws the bat’s body onto the ground.
Seeing Steve safe reinvigorates you, and with one final scream, you use everything within you to pull the bat off of Nancy’s back. It releases her skin with a squelching pop. You force your knife down its throat and pin the creature to the ground. It writhes beneath you. “Now, Nancy!”
She doesn’t hesitate. “Go to hell!” Her oar slams down, killing it.
Behind you Eddie kills the remaining few bats that circle overhead. Steve stands next to you, slamming the final bat into the ground. The body lands with a loud smack against the concrete and Steve rips the carcass in half.
Blood drips from his mouth and he messily spits it away. He’s panting, his stomach is on fire, he’s stuck in some alternate dimension with no way out, but all he can focus on is you.
Flesh hangs from your shoulder, leaving behind a gaping wound of exposed muscle. Your thigh is torn clean through. There’s blood everywhere. The white of your tanktop is now soaked in red. But you’re here, you’re alive. He hasn’t lost you. Not yet, at least.
“Y/N–” Steve practically falls against you, and you’re no better yourself. You’re crying, snot runs down your face as you grab desperately at him. His hands are all over you as he tries to stop the bleeding, but there’s so much blood.
“I-I’m here.” Your hands are all over Steve’s body, too. They cup his waist, there are so many bite marks on him, but at least his flesh is warm under your skin. He’s still here, he’s still yours, and now all you want to do is calm him down. Steve is panicking, holding you as if he’s afraid you’ll die in his arms any second, and the fear on his face makes your chest ache.
“Are you guys okay?” Nancy asks, tentatively touching your shoulder. A wince slips from her lips when she sees the flesh that is no longer there. “Jesus, Y/N.”
Steve wraps his hands around your thigh, it’s bleeding the most and you can barely put any weight on it. “I’m fine, but they took a fucking pound of flesh from her.”
“You’re no better,” you’ve placed your own hands over his stomach, his blood warm against your fingers. “I think you lost your appendix.”
Steve laughs, but almost immediately his laugh turns into a groan. “God, don’t make me laugh. It hurts.”
You apologize, kissing his shoulder. Light catches your attention and you see Robin crouched down next to one of the bat carcasses. She looks up at everyone. “Uh, do you guys think these bats have, like, rabies?”
“Robin, if we have rabies, please promise me you’ll shoot me.” You tell her, dead serious. Rabies has always terrified you. When you were younger, a rabid fox made its way onto your grandparents' farm. It had killed all the chickens, attacked the herding dog they had, and you remember how distraught your father had been when he had to kill both the fox and the hound.
“I’m sure you and Steve don’t have rabies.” Nancy says, sensing your growing fear. But before she can say anything else a small group of bats descend from the sky.
Steve pushes you behind him. They land near the gate you fell through, screeching at the five of you. They’re a small enough group, Steve voices what you’re all thinking: you can handle them. Flicking your knives out, you prepare for what’s about to come.
Until a swarm grows larger in the distance. There’s easily hundreds of them, they cast a shadow below where they fly. There’s too many to fight.
“You were saying?” Robin breathes out, eyes never leaving the sky.
Steve is speechless, he doesn’t know what to do. His hand tightens around you, protective, but thankfully Nancy has a plan. She tells everyone to run towards the woods and none of you hesitate to follow. Steve swings your legs over his arms, picking you up with ease despite the bite wounds that litter his skin. Like hell he’s letting you run right now; you’re too torn up, you can hardly even walk.
As Steve runs with you in his arms, he’s careful to avoid the vines that creep over the ground. It’s a dizzying rush. All you can do is hold tightly onto him, trusting that Nancy knows where she’s taking you.
Deep into the woods, Nancy calls over her shoulder, “Over here!”
Lifting your head from Steve’s chest, you realize, as you always do, that Nancy Wheeler is a goddamn genius. She’s taken you all to Skull Rock.
The giant boulders form a small alcove, just big enough to hide under as the bats fly overhead. She instructs everyone to crawl under and Steve sets you down gently, positioning you so that you’re sitting with your back against the rock. As soon as you’re secure, Steve’s hand goes back to your thigh.
The sound of the bats is almost deafening. No one dares to speak. They fly over at such a gruesome speed, their screeches echoing off the trees. You lose count of how many there are. All you can do is wait for the last of them to leave.
More lightning strikes above. It shakes the ground, the sound reverberates in your skull. You can’t believe you’re here. You’re in the Upside Down. The place you’ve only ever spoken about, the entity that haunted your nightmares and took the ones you loved from you.
It’s so much colder than you imagined it to be. Everything is darker, more twisted. The dimension is exactly as Will once described to you: this is Hawkins, it’s your home, but different. Colder, scarier. These woods are the woods you walked through, the woods where you fell in love, and yet the trees loom over you in a threatening way. Their branches form spikes, the dirt recoils against your feet.
Nothing here feels warm. The darkness is never ending.
This is where Will was, all by himself, for a week.
He had only been twelve.
When the nightmare swarm of bats is finally over, Robin carefully pokes her head out from the alcove. “Okay, that was close.”
Eddie agrees, kicking at a rock. Steve offers you his hand to stand, but the moment your skin touches his, you feel sick. All the adrenaline from earlier leaves you. All the blood you’ve lost catches up, leaving your body weak. Stumbling, your vision tunnels and your eyes roll back.
“Woah, hey.” Steve breaks your fall, snapping his fingers in your face to bring your attention back to him. He’s weak as well, he has to lean heavily against the rock to steady himself. “Y/N-shit!”
“Steve?” Nancy turns around, finding you and him moments away from collapsing. She curses, rushing over. When she sees all the blood that still pours from your thigh, she gags. “Oh, fuck.”
“Keep… keep talking. Please.” Your breathing is labored, you can hardly form any words. “Keep talking to me. If-if I faint… embarrassing.”
“I think she’s losing it.” Eddie whispers rather loudly to Robin.
Nancy grazes Steve’s chest, silently asking him to move your body aside. She wants to get a closer look at his wounds as well, she can’t help you if he’s bleeding out himself, but he refuses. “No, no we need to help Y/N.”
“Steve, you’re also losing blood–”
“I don’t care.” Steve pulls you even closer to his chest, he needs to feel your rib cage rising and falling. He needs to feel you breathe. “Help her, Nancy.”
His outburst startles Nancy. She takes a step back, alarmed, but clenches her jaw. There’s no getting through to Steve; she knows she’s lost the fight. “At least sit her down.”
Steve collapses, sliding back against the rock with you tucked to his chest. With shaking hands, he forces you to sit next to him. You wince with every movement, it’s getting harder and harder to stay awake.
“Stay with me, angel.” Steve murmurs to you, motioning to Nancy to look down at your thigh. The wound is bleeding the most, the teeth sunk in the deepest.
“Don’t wanna faint,” your head sags to the side, exhausted. “So embarrassing.”
Nancy places her hands unsurely to your thigh. The blood squelches, soaking through your jeans. She exhales shakily. “You’re not-you’re not going to faint, okay? Just keep talking, Y/N.”
“Hate bats.” It’s the first thing that comes to mind, but it seems to settle Nancy’s unease and Steve’s worry. “Little fuckers hurt.”
Nancy tears the end of her shirt, her nimble fingers gently lift your injured leg. She ties the piece of fabric tight around your thigh, quelling the bleeding. Steve helps with the knot, though really he just needs something to do.
“If you want some good news, I’m pretty sure wooziness is not a symptom of rabies.” Robin crouches next to you, smiling despite how terrified she is. “So that’s something, right?”
You yelp when Nancy tightens the tourniquet. Biting your tongue, you force a smile to Robin. “Hooray.”
“There,” Nancy wipes her hands of your blood. The tourniquet isn’t much, but already the bleeding has subsided. “But I think you’re going to need stitches.”
“I’m tired of hospitals,” you whine, but you’re already feeling a bit better. You’re weak, sure, but at least your body isn’t slowly draining itself out. “Thanks, though.”
Nancy nods, smiling softly, before her eyes land on Steve’s stomach. “Can I finally patch you up?”
Steve doesn’t even look at her, instead cups your face. Even though you’re covered in blood and sweat and tears, even though your cheek is scabbed and your lip is split, he doesn’t think he’s ever found you more beautiful. “You alright?”
“Been better,” you admit, squeezing his arm. “But let’s worry about you now.” Turning to Nancy, you extend your arm. “Got any more torn pieces of clothing?”
She bites her lip. The only thing covering your body is your tank top. She’s seen the cuts all over your palms. She doesn’t think you’ll be able to wrap the cloth around Steve, if she’s being honest. But she also knows Steve and how fiercely he loves you. He won’t let anyone near him but you.
Finally, she sighs. Tearing off more of her shirt, she hands it to you. “Yeah, here.”
You thank Nancy again, and she gives you a curt nod before backing away, giving you and Steve some space. Once she’s gone, you tend to Steve’s injuries. When he moves his hand away and reveals raised, angry flesh, you inhale sharply. “Steve…”
“Just a flesh wound.” He jokes, but you can hear the pain in his voice.
Though you’re still dizzy and weak, you manage to lift Steve’s body enough to wrap the makeshift bandage around him. Luckily he isn’t bleeding as badly as you are, but the sight of him injured still leaves you nauseous.
Tying the fabric around his torso, you’re careful not to hurt him any more. The moment is familiar, reminiscent of the years before. Back in the junkyard when a Demodog nearly tore open your rib cage, Steve had been the one to take care of you. He had so carefully wrapped your cardigan around your chest, been so delicate with you, and now it’s your turn to do the same for him.
“We always end up here, don’t we?” You say softly, it still takes a lot of energy for you to speak. You finish tying a knot to secure the bandage and Steve looks at you oddly. He doesn’t understand, and you shrug. “You and me, patching each other’s wounds up.”
Steve’s eyes soften. It doesn’t matter where he could be, in what situation he could be stuck in, you always somehow remind him of how loved he is. “Kinda wish the bats had eaten my ribs instead. We could’ve had matching scars.”
You laugh, eyes shining with tears. Fresh pain explodes all over your body, but you laugh anyways. You don’t know why you’re laughing or why tears run down your face. The exhaustion and pain from today must finally be catching up to you. “How romantic.”
Steve laughs as well, the pain of it bearable when he hears your laughter mixing with his. “I love you, angel.”
“I love you, too, honey.” It’s so cold in the Upside Down, but the warmth of Steve’s love feels like sunshine kissing your skin.
Robin clears her throat. “Uh, not to ruin this cute moment, but I just wanted to say that if either of you start feeling aggressive, please let me know. Because, ya know. The threat of rabies still.”
“I kinda wanna punch you.” Steve looks at her pointedly, annoyed.
You poke his cheek and smile apologetically at Robin. “He didn’t mean that.”
“Sense of humor is still intact, that’s a good sign!” She cheers, then, as an afterthought, she takes off her flannel and hands it to you. “Also, figured you’d want this. Not that you aren’t totally hot right now in only a tiny tank top and blood all over you, it’s just freakishly cold down here and you technically have an exposed wound on your shoulder and who knows what sorts of awful flesh eating diseases there are here.”
You accept the flannel gratefully and thank her. Then, together, you and Steve stand up. The process is difficult, you only have one functional top and bottom, and you walk in a slow manner together as you lean against the other.
Up ahead, Eddie is standing on one of the boulders, staring out into the vast dimension. “So, uh. This place is like Hawkins, but with monsters and nasty shit?”
“Basically.” You respond, grunting as you support Steve’s upper body.
Eddie nods, defeated, and before he can step down, Nancy tells him to be careful of the vines. “It’s all a hive mind.”
When Eddie doesn’t understand, Steve tries to explain it to him. “All the creepy crawlies here, dude. They’re like, one or something.”
“They’re all interconnected. They can feel each other’s pain, feelings, whatever.” You say, remembering how Jonathan had described Will’s agonizing screams when the vines had been burned in the tunnels.
“Step on a vine, you’re stepping on a bat, you’re stepping on Vecna.” Steve finishes grimly.
Eddie smiles sarcastically, obviously displeased with this information, but he’s careful not to step on any vines on his way down.
“But everything from our world is still here, right? Except people?” Robin asks.
You nod. “According to Will, yeah.”
This pleases Robin, and she starts explaining her plan. If everything's the same in the Upside Down, then you should be able to use the guns stored away at Hawkins’ police station. With the ammunition stored there, it’d be more than enough to kill the bats that guard the gate back to Hawkins.
“I highly doubt the Hawkins PD has grenades, Robin.” Steve says skeptically. “But guns? Sure.”
You shake your head. While Robin’s idea is good, there’s still the issue of going all the way downtown from Skull Rock. The five of you barely made it half a mile without getting killed. There’s no way you’d survive three. “But the police station is downtown. That’s too far from here.”
Robin deflates, but Nancy furrows her brows. After thinking for a moment, her eyes light up. “We don’t have to go all the way downtown. I have guns. In my bedroom.”
God you love her.
Eddie scoffs in disbelief. “You, Nancy Wheeler, have guns… plural? In your bedroom?”
“Full of surprises, isn’t she?” Robin says with pride.
“And this is why we always listen to her.” You sing along, high fiving Robin.
Nancy doesn’t acknowledge you or Robin, but her cheeks flush with slight embarrassment. “A Russian Makarov and a revolver.”
“Yeah, you almost shot me with that one.” Steve reminds her, though his tone is gentle, almost teasing.
You laugh, remembering how terrified he had been when Nancy pointed the gun at him. You all had been so much younger, more naive. All he wanted to do was apologize to Jonathan for their fight earlier. Steve had just wanted to make things right, and that’s why you stepped in front of him that night. “Luckily for you, I was there to save your life.”
Steve looks down at you fondly. He pulls you close, his eyes are full of so much love. He remembers everything. The night that started it all. “And then I saved yours.”
To think that a sprained ankle and a bat full of nails would lead you to here: Steve’s warm chest against you, so full of love.
Lost in your warm memories, neither you nor Steve see Eddie throwing his vest at Steve’s face until it’s too late. The material smacks against him, cruelly bringing the two of you back to reality.
“What the fuck, Eddie?” You sneer at him, deeply annoyed.
He waves at you flirtatiously, a devilish glint in his eyes. “I’m protecting your boyfriend’s modesty for you.”
Before you can retaliate, the ground beneath you starts to shake. The force of it is so sudden, so strong, that it sends you and everyone else falling. Steve catches himself on a rock, holding you tightly to his chest, and you manage to catch Nancy before she falls as well. Eddie grabs onto Robin, stuck on the ground together.
The tremors are violent. There’s a cracking sound, branches fall behind you as the earthquake destroys whatever it can. Steve holds you through it, he whispers reassurances to try and calm you. When it’s over everything is quiet for a moment, before a loud, heart stopping shriek cuts into the night.
It doesn’t sound like any creature you’ve faced before. Far too loud to be a Demodog’s, far too large to be a bat’s. The thought of what it could be almost paralyzes you; it could’ve been the Mind Flayer.
“Guns seem like a pretty good idea to me.” Eddie finally says, panting.
Robin quickly agrees, and you swallow down the bile that rises in your throat. “Yeah, okay. I can be okay with guns.”
“So what are we waiting for?” Steve puts Eddie’s vest on, twirling a flashlight in his hand. He nods to himself, tries to convince himself that he’s as confident as he sounds. He extends his other arm towards you, helping you steady your balance. “Let’s go.”
And you follow.
–
It’s a long walk from Skull Rock to Nancy’s house; it’s an even longer walk when you’re in the Upside Down, hiding from demonic bats. With every branch that snaps beneath someone’s foot, you all jump. The croak of whatever creature nearby sets everyone on edge.
“Couldn’t we have tried a road or something just slightly less creepy?” Robin complains, jumping over a vine.
Leaning against Steve, you groan. “Anything would be less creepy than this.”
“I think we’re getting close,” Nancy tries to sound convincing, but even she’s uneasy. “We’re almost out of here. Don’t worry.”
Robin nods at the reassurance, but you can’t help but wonder what could possibly come next after you find Nancy’s guns. It’d be two guns, two critically injured members of the group, two oars, and one switchblade against an army of bats.
Not the best odds.
Nancy and Robin wander further ahead, leaving you behind with Steve and Eddie. None of you talk, more so because you’re putting all your energy into not falling on your face and Steve is busy helping you stay upright.
Walking is difficult and painful and you’re so frustrated by it all, especially after you trip over your fourth tree root. If it weren’t for Steve’s quick reflexes, you’d be long dead by now.
Eddie must recognize this, too.
“Here, let me just–” He comes next to you and throws your arm over his shoulders before either you or Steve can protest. Immediately the pressure on your injured leg lessens. You sigh in content, and Eddie smirks. “There ya go, princess.”
“Don’t call her that.” Steve snaps, but even he has to admit that Eddie’s help is needed. With him carrying half your weight, Steve is able to breathe a little easier. You’re better balanced this way. He’s no longer straining his injuries to support you.
Eddie winces. “I’m sorry, just… trying to lighten the mood, I guess.”
Steve doesn’t say anything, but the silence stretches on and you feel bad for Eddie. He really is trying. Despite the fact that he’s Hawkins’ most wanted, he still tries to make everyone else laugh. He has to know that he’s never getting out of this alive, and you admire the strength it must take to continue laughing anyways.
So you try to for him as well. “Thank you, by the way. You saved our lives back there.”
Eddie looks at you funny, he hadn’t expected you to acknowledge it. “Shit, Steve saved his own ass, man.”
“That’s true,” you laugh. By the time the fight finished, Steve had somehow managed to fight his way out by himself. “It was impressive.”
“No it wasn’t.”
Eddie scoffs at Steve’s dismissal. “Please, that was a real Ozzy move you pulled back there.”
“Ozzy?” Steve looks at you, silently asking for some type of explanation, but you shrug.
“All I know is that he’s in Black Sabbath.” Jonathan occasionally listened to the band whenever he was particularly angry, but not enough for you to understand Eddie’s obscure reference.
Eddie makes a surprised, but pleased, sound. “Honestly surprised you even know Black Sabbath, but c’mon. Ozzy Osbourne, he bit a bat’s head off onstage. You seriously haven’t heard about that?”
You and Steve stare at him blankly, and he sighs. “Well, it was very metal. That’s what I’m trying to say.”
Steve scoffs again, but deep down you know he’s preening. It’s not everyday someone commends his strength or recognizes how well he can hold his own. Steve has come a long way since his first fight with Jonathan back at the alley.
“I think I finally get why my brother likes you so much,” you tell Eddie, looking up at him curiously. “You know a lot of weird facts. He goes crazy for them.”
That, and you’re finding that Eddie isn’t so bad when he isn’t surrounded by his goonies. He’s actually… decent when he isn’t putting on a show for everyone. It’s almost reminiscent of how Steve had once been, back when he was the King.
But if you ever pointed out that similarity to the boys, you know they’d be deeply offended.
The corners of Eddie’s mouth tilt up. “Yeah, well. The kid adores you and practically worships Steve.”
“He does?” Steve almost sounds bashful at the idea of Dustin worshiping him. It makes your heart constrict. You both miss your brother terribly.
Eddie nods. “Oh yeah, it’s kinda annoying, to be honest. Especially when all he talks about is Y/N. If he isn’t talking about you, he’s talking about her.”
“I doubt that’s true,” you shake your head. “He doesn’t need me anymore, he’s practically counting down the days until I leave.”
“Nah, man. Dustin tells me all the time how much he’ll miss you when you leave.” Eddie tells you, voice firm. “Kid always talks about how much you look out for him, that he doesn’t know what he’ll do when you’re gone. In a way, it’s annoyingly endearing. He frets over you just as much as you fret over him. I can see the Henderson charm in him that made you Hawkins’ sweetheart.”
Everything that Eddie tells you leaves your throat sticky with tears. You didn’t know, you couldn’t know all Dustin said about you. For the longest time you thought he’d grown to hate you, to resent you the way kids often do with their family. You would’ve never blamed him; sometimes people just grow up, grow apart, but here Eddie is, telling you that your brother will miss you when you’re gone.
Unable to say anything in fear that you’ll cry, the only response you give Eddie is a curt, short nod.
Steve rubs your side tenderly, understanding all you’re unable to say. Eddie feels the touch against his own side and he clears his throat. He knows you want him to change the subject. “Admittedly, I got a little jealous. Hearing the little shrimp talk about you as if you hung the goddamn stars yourself.”
The irony of it all crashes upon you. While you had been jealous of Eddie, he had been jealous of you. The two of you spent months quarreling over Dustin, you’d been uncharacteristically mean to Eddie, and yet the entire time you envied the other.
Abandonment can make people cruel.
“I was jealous of you, too.” You finally reveal to Eddie, meeting his eyes for the first time tonight.
Eddie stares back at you, his expression softens with understanding. He seems to have pieced together what you have: your anger had never been cruel, only defensive. Protective of your brother the way only a sister would in fear of losing him.
“Guess that makes us both idiots, huh?” Eddie teases gently, accepting the offering of truce that you present to him.
You laugh, looking away. The moment of truce is nice, pleasant almost, until the beat of silence becomes too unbearable for you. You’ve revealed enough of yourself tonight. Awkwardly clearing your throat, you lift your arm from Eddie’s shoulder and pull away. “Robin is probably missing me right now. She hates the dark, these woods are her worst nightmare.”
Steve catches your arm before you leave. You’re still unsteady on your feet, but he understands what you’re trying to do. He’s come to learn that you shut away when you’re vulnerable. While you wear your heart on your sleeve, Steve knows that it can be exhausting for you.
“Need me to call her over?” He asks you quietly.
“No, I can manage.” You kiss Steve’s cheek, thanking him without having to say it. Eddie smiles at you as you leave, tight lipped, but kind nonetheless.
The two teens watch you slowly make your way over to Robin, who happily welcomes your presence. She wraps her arms around you and holds you tightly, giggling slightly, before holding you close and helping you walk.
“I’ll bring her back in one piece!” Robin calls to Steve, giggling under her breath. Steve waves his hand sarcastically, but doesn’t argue. Turning to you, Robin’s face shines in the blue moonlight. “You here to save me from this totally creepy, absolutely horrid woods?”
“Duh,” your laughter reflects hers. “I’m your knight in shining armor, babe.”
Robin squeezes your hand, resting her head against yours as you walk together. It’s been a long time since you’ve held each other like this. The realization makes you guilty. “How’ve you been holding up?”
Robin shrugs, the motion jostles your head, but you don’t mind. “We’re in the Upside Down, some guy named Vecna wants you and Max dead, and you refuse to admit that you’re scared.”
You bite your lip. Robin is just as worried for you as Steve is, she’s just hidden it better, and you wish that you could spare her the worry. She’s put up such a strong front for you. Between Steve, Dustin, Lucas, and Max, Robin knew you didn’t want yet another person coddling you.
So she stepped back, gave you the space you wanted, but you’re still her best friend. Robin won’t let you forget that.
“I’m sorry,” you whisper to her, holding onto her as tightly as she holds onto you.
Robin shrugs again. “Nothing to forgive, pretty girl.”
And it’s as simple as that.
Though Steve can’t hear your conversation, he watches you and Robin fondly. The two of you sway together, laughing occasionally. Eddie notices the way Steve looks at you and laughs to himself.
“You know, I was jealous of you, too.”
Steve raises his eyebrow. “What?”
“I was jealous of you and Henderson, the little one, I mean. Guess I couldn’t accept the fact that Steve Harrington was actually a good dude. I mean, rich parents, popular, chicks love him, not a douche? No way dude. That like, flies in the face of all laws in the universe and my own personal Munson doctrine.”
Then Eddie motions towards you. “And when you started dating Y/N? C’mon, man. Everyone knows Y/N Henderson is like, God’s gift to selflessness. I watched her tutor kids in the library like goddamn Gandhi, and suddenly she’s dating you? There isn’t any law in the universe to explain that. Fucking unfair.”
Though he knows he should be offended, Steve finds himself laughing. If he’s being honest, he’s relieved that someone else is questioning whether Steve deserves you. From the moment he met you, you’ve tried convincing him that he’s always deserved you. But Steve knows better, and he can’t believe it’s Eddie Munson who sees this, too.
“If it makes you feel any better, I also don’t know why Y/N chose me.” Steve confesses, catching Eddie’s attention. “Honestly, I don’t think I ever would’ve been someone she even liked had we not been dragged into the Upside Down together. I was a douchebag. She hated me for years, but I guess saving her life a few times earned me some brownie points.”
Eddie snorts. “Surprised you’re not claiming it was your ‘stunningly good looks’ that made Y/N fall for you. Oh how humble you’ve become.”
“Y/N changed me.” Steve’s eyes find your body again. They will always draw towards you no matter where you are.
The sincerity in Steve’s voice surprises Eddie. Licking his lips, he sighs. “Well whatever she did, I never would’ve jumped in that lake to save your ass, not under any normal circumstances.” A branch snaps, Steve and Eddie turn to its source, but there’s nothing there. Sighing again, Eddie continues to walk. “Outside of DnD, I’m no hero. I see danger and I just turn heel and run… at least, that’s what I’ve learned about myself this week.”
Steve doesn’t know where Eddie is going with this. “Hey, give yourself a break, man.”
Eddie points to you, Robin, and Nancy walking up ahead. “No, you see. The only reason I came in here was ‘cause those ladies came in straight after you. I was too ashamed to be the one who stayed behind. But Y/N? She dove in the second your head went under. Nearly tore Robin’s arm off trying to get to you.”
Something heavy settles in Steve’s chest. There’s a shift, there’s something that simmers deep into his rib cage.
Eddie forces Steve to look at him. “I don’t know how you did it, but she loves you. The way she was screaming your name, it was an unambiguous sign of true love that these cynical eyes have ever seen. And if someone like Y/N Henderson loves you… then I figured you must be worth saving.”
Steve’s breath stutters. He looks up at you again, the warmth that cascades his veins whenever he sees you overwhelms him. Steve loves you more than anything. To be told how deeply you love him by someone else is almost too much.
You and Steve have been fighting so much recently. He’s said awful things to you, you’ve hurt him in ways he hadn’t known he could hurt. All the unspoken words, all the uncertainty and fear, and yet you dove in to save Steve without hesitating.
And isn’t that all that love is? To love without expectations, without hesitancy. Love is the inability to separate your breath from the person’s lungs; you took all the air out of Steve’s chest the moment you smiled at him.
You’re the best goddamn thing that has ever happened to Steve. He’s always known this, he’s always known that what the two of you have is special. It’s something more than just young love.
So what if the future you envision doesn’t align with Steve’s? How could something so small, so miniscule as compared to forever with you, be what Steve allows to drive you away? You deserve more than just his insecurities. You’ve already decided that Steve deserves your love, what more can he want from you?
He already has you; Steve won’t let you walk away from him. Not this time, not when what you have is rare and real and raw.
Steve almost wants to laugh at how funny it is. He’d been so worried about losing you, that he almost lost you in the process. What’s even worse: it took a five minute conversation with fucking Eddie Munson to even realize it.
“Y/N, she’s–” Steve begins, but the ground starts to shake again and he’s falling. Eddie curses, sick of these earthquakes, and Steve braces himself as the rumbling continues.
Robin struggles to hold onto you as you cower together under the earth’s violent shaking. Instinctively your head turns toward Steve to make sure he’s okay. You find him on the ground next to Eddie. Sensing your eyes on him, Steve looks up and nods reassuringly at you. Relieved, you breathe against Robin.
“Second on my list of least favorite things,” she says, voice shaking. “Earthquakes. Seriously, I’m unsteady enough as it is.”
“At least you have two working legs.” You quip.
Robin shushes you, but her voice raises when she sees Nancy stand and take off. “Nancy!”
Squinting at the darkness, you see the girl’s figure disappearing into the treeline. She’s running alarmingly fast, way too fast for anyone to catch up in time, and your heart lurches. None of you should be splitting up right now. It isn’t safe. “Fuck! Someone stop her!”
Robin quickly throws you onto your feet and you call after Steve and Eddie to follow. If running was difficult with a bleeding out leg, it’s almost impossible with the ground shaking beneath you. But if Nancy’s in trouble, you need to get to her as soon as you can. Leg be damned.
Breaking through the treeline, you find her standing at the edge of a clearing. There are fallen trees everywhere. Red lightning illuminates the Wheeler house before you. By some miracle, you’ve made it.
“Come on.” Nancy breaks the silence, chin held high. She isn’t giving up now, not when you’re all so close.
She starts to walk, never looking back, and you look at Steve. He grabs your hand. You take a deep breath. You fucking hope Nancy’s plan works.
This is your only chance of going home.
–
The Wheeler house is exactly how you remember it, only vines and debris maims its usually pristine appearance. Nancy walks through the door first while Steve shines a flashlight. Particles float everywhere. You try not to think about the fact that you’re inhaling them.
Your foot catches on a stray vine, its tendrils flail angrily at you. Stomping your foot away, you look wearily at Nancy. “Love the decor.”
She rolls her eyes while Robin echoes you. “Might be time to get a maid, Wheeler.”
Ignoring the two of you, Nancy ushers everyone upstairs. While her voice is level, the unease in her body is apparent. She doesn’t like seeing her home this way. Sympathetic, you start to follow Nancy, but for a split second you think you hear Dustin’s voice.
It’s faint, mostly incoherent, and you think you’ve finally gone crazy. That’s it. Vecna has won, you’ve lost the remaining sanity you had left.
But then Steve suddenly freezes next to you. His bewilderment tells you that he hears Dustin, too. That’s your brother. You’d know his nasally voice anywhere.
Sharing a look with Steve, you simultaneously begin running around the house, trying to follow the sound of Dustin’s voice. You remember Will telling you how he could hear Joyce’s cries for him while he’d been trapped in the Upside Down. It had been the only way Joyce could communicate with him. What if this is the same?
“Start screaming,” you command Steve, limping over to one of the walls.
“I’m sorry?”
“It’s what Will did, he-he screamed for his mom and Joyce was able to hear him.” You press our mouth close to the wall and shout, “Dustin!”
He has to hear you. You don’t know what you’ll do if he doesn’t.
Steve wastes no time following along, screaming Dustin’s name at the top of his lungs as well. You know the two of you must look like complete idiots, but you’re desperate.
“Dustin! Dustin Henderson you have five seconds to answer me!” You yell, throat burning.
“Hello? Answer us!” Steve stands in the center of the kitchen, crouched down as if getting ready to bolt.
This is how Nancy, Robin, and Eddie find you. The three of them stare at you and Steve in concern, though none of them want to get any closer. Robin ducks her head down, whispers, “Maybe they really do have rabies.”
“What are you guys doing?” Nancy demands, fed up.
“He’s here,” Steve whips his flashlight around, facing them. “Henderson. That little shit, he’s here. He’s like-he’s in the walls or something. Just listen.”
Dustin, predictably, is quiet the moment Steve tells everyone to listen.
You pound on the wall. “Oh, now you’re quiet?” Everyone looks at you skeptically and you rub your face tiredly. “Look, I know this all sounds crazy, but I can hear Dustin, alright? It’s him.”
“Dustin!” Steve continues to screech, not helping your whole “we aren’t crazy” argument.
Only Dustin’s voice returns, and thankfully Nancy and everyone else hears it. Together you all search the house, calling your brother’s name out. Yet now matter how loud you scream, he doesn’t respond.
“Alright, either this kid can’t hear us or he’s being a total douchebag.” Steve drops his flashlight.
You blow hair out of your face. “Normally he’s a douchebag, but not nearly to this extent.”
Nancy stands next to you. “But Will found a way to make Joyce listen.”
“When Joyce couldn’t hear him anymore, she used the Christmas lights.” You look at her. “Do you think…?”
She’s already running to the nearest lamp in the kitchen. Flicking the switch, nothing happens. You suggest trying a different light, though you know it won’t make a difference. When the lights remain unlit, you slam your palm against the table in frustration.
“Guys?” Steve gets your attention. He’s shining his flashlight at the chandelier that hangs over the Wheeler’s dining table. “You seeing this?”
Where Steve points his flashlight, a warm, evanescent glow emits from the chandelier. You gasp at its beauty, you’ve never seen anything like it. Nancy steps towards the light and slowly puts her hand into the loose waves that flow between the lights. It’s encased in small orbs that float gently into the air.
Nancy’s fingers dance in the light. A path of gold leaves a trail where her fingers have been. The particles in the light surround her hand, pulled in by her presence. Breathless, you reach out as well. The light kisses your hand, and the sensation is soft, almost ticklish.
“This is insane,” you murmur in awe, face illuminated. You never thought you’d encounter beauty in such a place as the Upside Down. But at least Will found the beauty, too. “This must be how Will did it.”
Robin, Steve, and Eddie copy you and Nancy, putting their hands into the light as well. The five of you twirl your fingers around, causing the light to flicker with every movement.
Steve’s pinky reaches for yours. “It… tickles?”
“It kinda feels good.” Mumbles Robin, making figure 8’s with her finger.
Nancy then lowers her hand and asks if anyone knows morse code. She mostly looks at you when you ask, and you bitterly tell her no. You’d think after everything you and the party have been through, you’d at least learn morse code by now.
“Wait, does SOS count?”
Eddie’s stupid question makes you hit his chest. “Of course it counts!”
“Ow!” He shoves you away from him, straightening his leather jacket. “A ‘yes” would’ve sufficed.”
Nancy shushes the two of you and instructs Eddie to start typing out the code. With a huff, he listens, and soon he begins the pattern for SOS. A soft buzz accompanies every flicker of the light. With each letter combination, you can practically feel Dustin getting closer and closer to you.
It’s almost an indescribable feeling. Somewhere, in another universe, Dustin is standing right where you are. You aren’t sure how you know, maybe you’ll never be able to find the right words, but your brother’s presence settles over your own.
This must be how Jonathan felt when Joyce was in the Upside Down. He whispered her name so softly when he followed her with the lights. Their love for one another tethered them; now it’s your love for Dustin that tethers him to you.
“Dustin,” his name comes out whispered, relieved. He’s okay, you can feel that he’s safe.
“Y/N?” Dustin’s muffled shouting fills everyone with relief. Steve and Eddie high five, Nancy lets out the breath she’d been holding, and Robin cheers while you hastily wipe your eyes. The SOS worked. “Is that-is that you?”
“Yes!” Steve screams into the chandelier, though you know your brother won’t be able to hear.
Anxious to get to Dustin as fast as you can, you shove your hands into the chandelier’s light and send a long, bright beam of light. More muffled screaming can be heard on the other side, only this time laughter accompanies it.
“Holy shit!” Dustin exclaims in awe. The amazement in his voice makes you miss him even more. There’s a murmur of other voices, you can only assume one of them is Lucas’, before Dustin shouts even louder, “We’re gonna find you a better light source. Don’t move.”
You roll your eyes. “Like we can go anywhere else.”
Dustin leaves again, but he’s back within minutes. Through loud screaming, he tells you to find Holly’s Lite Brite and go to Nancy’s room. Him and Lucas will meet the rest of you there.
The moment Dustin leaves again, Nancy shoves everyone upstairs. “I’ll find the light pad, the rest of you go. Now.”
And that’s how you find yourself restlessly staring at a child’s light up toy on Nancy Wheeler’s bed with Steve’s chest pressed against your back. He leans close to the toy, mumbling under his breath, “Come on, little Henderson.”
The Lite Brite suddenly comes to life. You throw your hands up triumphantly, giddy. “Yes!”
“You guys seeing this?” Dustin asks, to which Nancy responds by putting her hand into the light. Dustin squeals in excitement. This must be a scientific dream for him. “Okay, we’re not moving it, but we’re gonna unplug it. Stand by.”
The light fades away and Dustin prompts someone to spell something. Everyone turns to you. He’s your brother, you should be the one to make first contact.
Carefully, you use your pointer finger to spell out D.U.S.T.
Eddie cocks his head. “‘Dust’?”
“He’ll understand.”
When your mom first brought Dustin home from the hospital, he’d been so small. Immediately you fell in love with the small baby, but his size had confused you. You’d never seen anything so tiny before.
“He’s small,” you informed your father, making a face at the yawning baby before you. “Like dust.”
You were only three, but you can still remember the way your dad had laughed. For years afterwards you never referred to Dustin by his actual name. He was only ever “Dust” to you. Your father joined, the nickname stuck, though your mother came to prefer “Dusty.”
It was only after your father left that you stopped calling your brother Dust.
“Dust!” Dustin laughs excitedly. “I’m Dust! Yes!” He raises his voice louder, he can’t believe you remembered the old childhood nickname. “That worked, guys!”
Everyone cheers, Eddie even throws in his own enthusiastic “hi” to the Lite Brite. Your face aches from how hard you smile. Turning the toy over to Nancy, you nod at her. “All yours, Wheeler.”
Her eyebrows knit together as she thinks for a moment. There’s so much to tell Dustin and the others, but the Lite Brite is small and too many words to keep track of. “What should I write?”
“‘Help’ would be a pretty good place to start.” You suggest to her.
Instead, Nancy ends up spelling “stuck”. Which is pretty fitting, all things considered. Gets the message across well.
“You can’t get back through Watergate?”
Steve questions whatever the hell watergate is and Robin has to explain the wordplay. While she does so, pride swells deep within your chest. “Dustin’s a little genius that I love so much.”
“It was pretty clever.” Eddie admits.
Nancy tells Dustin that the gate you all came through is guarded. However, never missing a beat, Dustin tells you that he thinks they have a theory that can help. “We think Watergate isn’t the only gate, that there’s one at every murder site.”
You jerk your head up, eyes widening. It all makes sense now. “Wait, I think he’s–”
“Does anyone have any idea what he’s talking about?” Nancy asks tiredly. Everyone gives her equally tired no’s, but you nod viciously.
“Yes! We already know there’s multiple gates, we just didn’t know how, but Dustin might’ve figured it out. It’s all connected to the murders.”
Nancy looks skeptical. “I don’t know…” Before you can argue with her, she sends a “?” back to Dustin.
Who, predictably, doesn’t take it well. “Seriously? How many times do I have to be right on the money before you guys just trust me?”
Steve grimaces. “Jesus Christ. This kid’s gotta get his ego checked out.”
“It’s his tone, right?” Eddie butts in.
You shove them both. “Shut up. Both of you. Dustin can be annoying and frustrating, but he’s right. He’s always been right. Now if you guys would actually listen, he’ll get us out of here.”
Looking pointedly at everyone, you start to explain. “There was a gate in Lover’s Lake, which we obviously found,” your arms wave behind you. “The same lake where Patrick died. Now, where else has a dead body been found?”
“Eddie’s trailer,” Nancy straightens, understanding where you’re going with this. Looking at Eddie, she asks him how far it is.
“Seven miles.”
Your head drops. “Why couldn’t you have lived closer?”
“I’m sorry I’m… poor?” Eddie looks at you incredulously.
You flick a dismissive hand at him, but Robin cuts in between you two. “Nancy, I know your house here is, like, weirdly, creepily frozen in time and shit–”
“It’s what?” Obviously you missed some important details.
Robin holds her hand up. “I’ll explain later. Anyways, haven’t you always had bikes?”
You and Nancy share a look, both thinking the same thing: the bikes would be perfect. That, and they’re kinda your only option at the moment.
–
Since you’re in no condition to bike (your thigh has only just stopped bleeding) and there’s only four bikes anyways, Steve has you wrap your arms around his chest and stand on his pegs. He claims it’s so that you can avoid putting any weight on your leg, but you honestly think he just wants you to hold him. Pressing your body close to his, you look around at the houses you pass.
In a strange, twisted way, it’s exhilarating biking through an Upside Down Hawkins. Everything, and yet nothing, is the same. The houses you pass are frozen in time, empty, ghostly. Robin, Nancy, and Eddie bike alongside you and Steve. The scene is almost reminiscent of the night you biked Will home, wind in your hair and the night sky before you.
Everything has changed since then.
Somewhere along the route to Eddie’s, you bike past the Creel house. Your arms tighten instinctively around Steve. A chill runs through you, the house is just as haunting in the Upside Down as it is back in your universe. Your head throbs being so close to it, as if warning you, but Steve is turning into Eddie’s neighborhood before you can think much else of it.
“That’s gotta be a Guinness World Record.” Robin throws her bike down, breathless. “Most miles traveled interdimensionally.”
Steve coughs, swatting at the particles in the air. “Just inhaled a bunch of that crap.”
“I’ve been trying not to think about how much of the Upside Down we’ve ingested since being here.”
“It’s stuck in my throat, Y/N.”
“Again, I’m trying not to think about that.”
Eddie opens his trailer door and, just as Dustin predicted, there’s a gate. It’s just like the one in Lover’s lake had been: illuminating red light, vines all around its edges. An open wound.
“This is where Chrissy died.” Eddie stares up at the gate, which resides in the ceiling. He swallows heavily. “Like, right where she died.”
“I’m sorry.” Your hand finds Eddie’s arm. You don’t know much about what their relationship had been, but he seems to have cared about the girl a lot.
Eddie gives you a tight lipped smile, his eyes shining slightly. As he looks at you, Robin sees something moving in the gate. “I think there’s something in there.”
Something starts to protrude from it, causing the gate to swell rapidly. The vines almost seem to snarl at the intrusion. An ominous, unsteady croak emits from the gate. The sound sets your nerves on edge and Steve shoves you behind him protectively. Hand on your knives, you raise them, bracing.
The gate explodes, spewing liquid and vines everywhere. You all scream, jumping back, as something rips through the membrane-like material. Unable to tell what’s just happened, you squint up at the ceiling.
Nothing jumps out at you, no bats come to feast on your flesh. Finding Steve’s eye, you silently ask him if you should walk closer. Nodding, he grabs your hand, and together you creep towards the remains of the gate.
When you look up, you find Dustin’s smug, joyous face staring back at you. Only he’s upside down with Max, Lucas, and Erica, all just as in shock as you are.
You’ve never been more relieved to see them in your life. Dropping your hands to your knees, you bend over and finally breathe. “Oh, thank God.”
“No way…” Steve waves at them, and they wave right back. “Hi.”
“Dustin!” If your leg wasn’t hanging by a thread, you’d be jumping up and down right now. Instead, you opt for waving like a madman at your brother. The entire situation is so fucking bizarre, but you don’t even care anymore. “You did it!”
“I did it!” Dustin giggles. “Bada bada boom!”
After some heated discussions and a few arguments, Dustin and the others come up with a way to get the five of you out of the Upside Down. Using Eddie’s bed sheets as a makeshift rope had been the easy part. What caused nearly a fist fight between Max and Dustin had been figuring out a soft landing pad for you guys.
“I, uh. Have a mattress?” Eddie finally suggested when he noticed Max’s fist clenching.
She glared at him. “Why didn’t you say anything sooner?”
“Well, I mean. It’s-uh. Minor details?”
But none of them had time to question Eddie’s sudden shyness regarding his mattress. Dustin got straight to work tying the bed sheets together while Max and Lucas worked on dragging the mattress out of Eddie’s room.
However, the moment it landed on the ground, all eyes went to the giant stains on the bed. Cringing in disgust, you eye Eddie.
Seeing your disapproving look, he swallows. “Those stains are, uh…” He tries to come up with an excuse, but eventually he realizes it’s better to just accept defeat. “I don’t know what those stains are.”
“Would we want to know even if you knew?” You ask him, already knowing the answer.
“... Probably not.”
Dustin tosses the bed sheet rope up, or rather down, through the gate. “Not quite sure how these physics are gonna work, but here goes nothing.”
Miraculously, it lands perfectly in front of you. Dustin tugs at the rope before letting go of it completely. You gasp. The rope stands on its own, stiff but secure, and Dustin lets out a pleased laugh. “Abracadabra.”
“I’ve never understood physics.” You say, pulling at the rope. It doesn’t move. “But even I can admit that this is cool.”
Dustin high fives Erica and Robin steps up first. “Guess I’m the guinea pig.”
“Please be careful.” You tell her, already dreading your own ascent. Your shoulder still aches and you were never the best at climbing the rope for gym. You preferred soccer, track, anything that involved leg coordination. Not upper body.
Robin slowly climbs up, and when her body hits the disgusting mattress back in your dimension, you let out a breath of relief. “That was kinda fun,” Robin giggles slightly.
Then Eddie stares at you, Steve, and Nancy. He waits for someone to move, obviously not wanting to be next. But when no one does, he shakes his head. “Alright, I guess I’ll go.”
Steve holds the rope steady and Eddie falls onto his mattress safely. He sits up, exhilarated. “That was fun.” He echoes Robin.
Steve gestures for Nancy to go next. “I’ll help Y/N up after you’re done.”
She gives him an uncertain look, eyeing your injuries, and you try to smile at her reassuringly. “Go, I’ll be fine. Promise.”
Knowing it’s as good of an answer she’ll get from you, Nancy takes a deep breath. “See you on the other side.”
You grab her waist and help hoist her up alongside Steve. She’s swift, her strength impresses you. She’s almost reached the top before you hear the first chime.
It’s loud, deafening. The chime of a grandfather clock.
Another chime follows, then a third, a fourth. It wracks your skull with its force.
You turn, gasping, expecting to find the grandfather clock that Max had seen in her vision. Only you’re met with darkness. You can’t see anything, you can’t find a way out. You can’t feel Steve next to you, your hands try to find his in the dark, but all they’re met with is air.
“What–” Panic chokes you. None of this is right, you don’t know where you are, you don’t know what’s happening and you can’t feel Steve and–
The sensation of sunlight kissing your face stops you.
Your eyes open. You’re no longer in Eddie’s trailer.
You’re outside, there’s sunshine all around you. In front of you is a field of dandelions, their sweet yellow reflects the gold of the sun above. The grass beneath your feet is soft, lush and green. A bee flies past your head and someone calls your name.
You’ve been here before. In the distance resides a small house on a hill. The blue door and white frames of your childhood home welcomes you. You’re back in Virginia. Someone calls your name again.
The voice is familiar.
It’s your father, calling you home.
The realization knocks all the air out of your lungs. None of this is real. You know it isn’t real, but to hear your father’s voice, so sweet and saccharine again, it makes you weak. But it isn’t real. Your legs begin to move, you’re running before you can think of anything else.
This is a vision. The scent of oak trees and strawberries isn’t real. The wheat that skims your thighs as you run doesn’t exist. “This is a vision,” you try to talk to yourself, your fingers dig into your pockets for your walkman.
You know you’re supposed to always have it on you, that’s what Dustin told you, but there’s nothing there. Panic swells within your chest once more. “No, please–”
Distracted as you look for your walkman, you don’t see the body in front of you.
Colliding into your father, he steadies you. “Woah, there.”
His calloused hands are rough and familiar. He’s laughing, his voice is the same gruff voice that used to sing you to sleep. Your father looks down at you and your entire body freezes when your eyes meet his.
You haven’t seen him ever since you were twelve. He looks the same as the day he left. His smile is the same, the crooked teeth charming. Your father’s nose still points up ever so slightly. The only indication that he’s aged are the wrinkles that line his face, years of sunlight etching them.
But it’s his eyes that hurt you the most. They’re still kind.
“What are ya runnin’ from, ladybug?” Your father asks you, his southern drawl liquid honey to your ears.
Tears build within you hearing the childhood nickname. You were his ladybug for as long as you could remember. When he used to call, he’d whisper the name over the phone as an apology for everything he’d done to you.
Because you can’t help it, because you’ll never be able to do this again, you hug your father. He lets out a soft chuckle at the impact, his arms hold you as they’ve always done. Your face buries itself into his rough t-shirt.
You’re a little girl who needs her daddy right now.
“I.. I missed you, daddy.” Voice breaking, you begin to cry.
Your father’s palm rests against your hand. He hums, soothing the ache in your bones. “You know you can never outrun it.”
The words unsettle you, there’s something about them that causes you to pull away. “Outrun what–?” “The guilt, ladybug. It will always find you.” Your father’s smile twists into a sickening grimace. The muscles in his face conjoin, his eyes darken as his voice becomes gravel. Deeper. Until it isn’t your father’s voice anymore, but someone else's. “I will always find you.”
Too late do you realize that it’s Vecna who now has you. You start to scream, thrashing in your father’s arms to escape, but he only grips you harder. He’s laughing, but it’s no longer your father’s laughter.
Suddenly you’re thrown into the lake behind you. You fall, screaming, as you descend deep into a pitch black void. Your arms reach out, you try to find anything to grab onto, but there’s nothing. It’s just endless emptiness.
You land harshly on your back, all the air gone. You gasp, choke on whatever air remains in your body. The impact leaves you coughing, clawing at the ground beneath you to breathe. Soil scrapes under your nails, your palm gets cut on a root.
You’re in the woods.
Scrambling to sit up, you realize you’re in the same part of the woods that Will went missing in. Fear cuts through your veins. Why would Vecna take you here?
“Will?” You’re on your feet now, cupping your hands over your mouth as you shout his name. Does Vecna have him? Have you lost him again? “Will!”
“He needed you that night.” Vecna’s voice taunts you, the sound like rocks grinding together. “Where were you?”
You’re running now. Branches cut your face as you break through them. You have to find Will. You can’t lose him again. You can’t do that to Jonathan, to Joyce and El and Dustin and Mike and everyone else. You’re the one who lost Will that night.
He had needed you. Isn’t that what Vecna said?
“Nancy!” Sobbing, you call for someone, anyone. But no one answers. Your vision blurs with tears, there’s someone running behind you. Chasing you. Terrified, you scream for the person you need the most. “Steve!”
Saying his name must trigger something, because suddenly the scene changes. You’re no longer in the woods. You’re on the ledge of someone’s roof, overlooking a window sill. A large, bay window that you’ve spent countless slow mornings residing on.
Steve’s house.
He’s standing in front of his bed, facing the window, facing you, but he doesn’t look at you. Not how he always does; his gaze lacks warmth.
“Steve!” You pound on the glass, you try desperately to get him to acknowledge you, but he doesn’t. His eyes are on Nancy, who sits on the bed before him. He leans down, brushes her hair out of her face, before bridging the distance between them.
You watch as Steve kisses Nancy. He cups her chin the way he cups yours. Bile rises in your throat; you can’t turn away. Their kisses become heated, Steve is tugging at Nancy’s hair and her clothes. She tugs at him as well, he helps her remove his shirt.
Nancy’s lips trace the expanse of Steve’s neck and his eyes, once closed in bliss, now open. He looks right at you.
“Did you really think I’d forget her, Y/N?” His voice digs into your ears. Nancy nips at his neck and he moans. He throws his head back, looks at you again. “I can’t. At least, not as easily as your dad forgot you.”
You stumble back, crying so hard you can barely breathe. Steve laughs seeing your heartbroken reaction. It’s cruel and awful. He’s cold. You’ve never known his voice to hold so much malice. Not towards you. Not towards anyone.
He’s wrong. Steve doesn’t love Nancy, not anymore. Vecna is the one saying this, you know it isn’t Steve. He would never say any of this to you, he could never be so cruel to you. He loves you. You know he does.
“N-no! This isn’t-this isn’t real–”
But the hatred in Steve’s eyes causes your foot to catch on the edge of the roof. You don’t have time to catch yourself; your body is weightless again, only this time it’s a much shorter fall. You land on concrete. Ripping your eyes open, there are domed walls around you.
Nancy stands above you.
Hyperventilating, you crawl away from her. You’re in Steve’s pool, only it’s empty, infested with vines, and your fingers stain the ground with blood. Everything in your body is screaming at you to run.
“Y/N–” Nancy tries to stop you, but you scream at her, kicking. She only barely avoids your fury. Holding her hands up, she lowers her voice, softens it. She’s crying, her terror the same as yours. “Y/N, it’s me, okay?”
Your body trembles with exhaustion. You close your eyes, tired of fighting. “Please be real.”
“I’m real.” Nancy swears to you, carefully reaching for you. When you allow her touch, she helps you stand up.
The memory of her having sex with Steve is burned into your mind. You can’t look Nancy in the eye. She breathes heavily next to, looking around for a way out, when she sees something. A strangled cry leaves Nancy’s lips.
Barbara Holland’s corpse sits on the other side of the pool.
You cover your mouth with a gasp, choking slightly at the sight. Nancy cries out in pain, in grief, seeing her best friend’s body dismembered by vines. You stumble towards Nancy and hold her as she sobs.
“Do you remember what you did, Nancy? Or have you already forgotten?” Vecna’s voice shakes the pool. “Don’t worry, I showed Y/N. When I kill someone… I never forget.”
A sob collapses in your chest. Barb’s death hadn’t been Nancy’s fault. Yet to place her in the same pool Barb was killed in, to show Nancy her corpse, is unrelenting cruelty.
All around you, blood pours from the vents of the pool. It comes out quick, thick, at a dizzying speed. Nancy tugs at your hand and practically throws you up the ladder to escape. But when you reach the top, you’re met with a red hell.
It’s exactly how Max drew it.
Fragments of stairs, jagged pieces of wood, a grandfather clock, they all drift through the air painted with blood-red. Somewhere there’s screaming, the sound only drowned out by lightning. A clock ticks over and over again. Its metronome is maddening.
Nancy holds your hand and neither one of you lets go. Having nowhere else to go, you’re forced to walk down the stairs you arrived at. The clock chimes again and your heart stops.
“I see you’ve been looking for me, Nancy. And Y/N…” Vecna pauses, preying on you. “I’ve been watching you for quite some time.”
Everything stops.
“All the guilt, all the pain.”
It comes to you in flashes.
How Will used to smile at you, before his childhood was taken from him. Max’s blue eyes, shining with youth and happiness, before grief killed her. Billy, how he would be kind to your mother at the pool. Hopper, the way you’d bicker with him just to get him to smile.
It’s all gone because of you; you can’t remember how to breathe.
Vecna feeds on your fear. “How fragile you’ve become… like a dandelion.”
The wording, it’s too specific to not mean anything. Dandelions were once one of your favorite flowers. Before a nightmare from last summer changed everything. The dandelions had filled your mouth with razors and choked you. Someone called your name in the distance, they’d been too late to save you.
The dream had felt so real. You’d woken up with tears in your eyes.
And now you know it had been Vecna all along. Even back then. He’s been watching you for far longer than you realized. The realization chokes you, the fear overwhelms you. He’s been here all along.
Nancy yanks at your arm, you can barely hear her over the roaring in your head. “Y/N, listen to my voice.”
She’s shaking you, trying to bring you back to her, but you’re lost. Hyperventilating, you struggle to catch your breath. You feel too vulnerable. Raw. Exposed. There are corpses strung up by vines in front of you. Fred’s broken jaw. Chrissy’s snapped neck. Patrick’s empty eye sockets.
The same will happen to you.
You’ve spent so long trying to be strong, trying to keep everyone safe. You’ve devoted your entire life to protecting others, helping them. But Vecna has been watching you for almost an entire year, maybe even longer, and you hadn’t noticed.
It’s why he’s targeted Max. He watched you take care of everyone you loved. Vecna watched you raise the girl. He knew it’d hurt you the most to lose her. It hadn’t been a coincidence. It’s all your fault. It’s always your fault. Will went missing because of you. Billy died because you hadn’t said anything. Max will die because you hadn’t seen the signs sooner.
Nancy’s screams fall deaf on your ears. She shakes you, begs you to come back, but why should you?
This is all your fault.
It’s always your fault.
It’s always your fault. It’s always your fault. It’s always your fault. It’s always–
You feel your body lift.
Everything fades to black.
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⌑ series masterlist
⌑ i am no longer doing a taglist, my apologies ! however, please feel free to like, reblog, and comment instead :)
#steve harrington x henderson!reader#steve harrington x reader#steve harrington x you#stranger things#steve harrington fanfic#stranger things rewrite#slowburn#angst#bdyr#m's writing#no one ask how i wrote this so fast#i am ill#we know this#anyways#let the screams begin !
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Sharing not only for helping but also because I got one and this is worth as hell. Look at my gorgeous son drawn by Cab!!
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ASTRO SEXOLOGY NOTES🔞 - NATAL CHART2
VENUS/EROS IN PISCES/AT 12, 24° = Pisces degree points 2 someone being sexually attracted 2 "lost souls", they want someone who's willing 2 let them be their saviour✨. They could also hold deep thoughts about being saved by a lover themselves, and the idea of "escaping" 2 their "happily ever after". Sex them up with how artistic/poetic u can be. That shit always works. They need someone who's willing 2 show them a kind heart, while also fulfilling their deepest desires/sexual urges.
VENUS/EROS IN SCORPIO/AT 8, 20° = Scorpio degree points 2 someone wanting a lover that's more sexually charged in private, and someone who's willing 2 give up their "thought patterns", as they can be a little "obsessive" with wanting to know everything, or them investigating when they feel the other persons sexual attraction "dying down a little bit"🧯🔥. These people can easily find your weak spots, so they won't disappoint. They need someone who's willing2 give them their soul, as they do the same💀😍.
VENUS/EROS IN LEO/AT 5, 17, 29° = Leo degree points 2 wanting 2 be praised all the time, and a need 2 praise, if the other person does good🐕. They want someone who worships them, puts them on a pedestal👑. They need someone who knows that they're not 2nd place, but always 1st place. They put passion, & sexual attraction/admiration at the top of the list, of things they NEED, 2want to get sexual with somebody. They need platonic, romantic, &sexual flirting from people all around, 2 get that "confidence in", people telling them how fine they look/how sexy they are🌟🌟.
Moira asteroid (638) conjunct 5th house can show fated romances/affairs throughout life, or with one special person💜.
A MAN’S Venus in Leo/1st house is mostly all about themselves in bed, they want 2 get off first and then maybe, if you're lucky, they'll finish u off2. No hate, I just don't fuck with it 😮💨😮💨😮💨.
Black Moon Lilith conjunct Vertex in a MAN’S chart shows that he's meant 2 have fated experiences, that puts him out of the "conventional". Like him dating/seeing younger women&getting shit4it, or him being "thrown" into situations where he has 2 "defend himself", because of the women he's in a sexual relationship/romantic relationship with🙄. These fated connections/experiences is what turns him into who he's supposed 2 be - someone who doesn't give a fuck about anyone else's opinion - BML energy🖕🖕💜.
Medusa asteroid (149) conjunct ASC in a WOMAN’S chart will make herself look "tempting", or "available" in front of a man, but as soon as he looks or tries 2 hit on her, she'll degrade him. "U disgusting man, or "u pig"!! "I didn't look at u, or made any attempt 2 flirt with u, whatsoever"😂.
A MAN WITH Venus, Mars and Saturn in Capricorn = Ultimate dom. They'll make you scream their name over, and over again, & won't stop until he made you cum multiple times. He's REALLY sexually experienced, when he reach his older years, like from 30&up.
Lust asteroid : 4386 conjunct Jupiter = crazy sexual needs. Even if they've had crazy sex all night = they can go again the next day, all day😵💫😲🤣🤣 Mars in Virgo/8th house in Virgo in a MAN'S chart typically finds "younger people" 2 be way more sexual attractive, than people at their own age. They're attracted 2 the feeling of "feeling young", while being with a young woman/man❤️. They want someone they can have an insane sexual attraction2, while also being able 2 "teach" the other person a lot in the sexual department. Them wanting young/inexperienced women.
Neptune conjunct Black moon Lilith can make you so damn ethereal. Especially if you got Mars or Venus aspecting it 2. people want 2 rip your clothes off but r afraid 2 even say hi 2 u😭😭😭. Afraid you'll reject/embarrass them.
💜💜💜💜 Look at aspects from Venus (the planet of love&attraction), & Mars (the planet of sex), 2c what u like, & what u need sexually💋.
👅👅👅 Mars in Gemini changes their mind a lot when it comes 2 sex. One day they like 2 dominate, & the next they like 2 be submissive. It really comes down to how they feel on that particular day. &it makes sense. Mars (planet of sex&) in Gemini - Duality. A MAN’S Venus/Mars in Leo wants praises from u. They want 2 hear how good they are, and amazing they are in bed. If u don't, they can get bored of u, and seek somebody else - get their "needs" taken care of by another person👀 👀.
If your 8th house ruler is in your 8th house = sex can be so transformative for u but you'll probably only hookup with a few people throughout your life tho. Only having sex with people you feel a deep soul connection with.
🍆🍆 A MAN'S Mars/Venus/in 11th house in Aquarius is FREAKYYYYY, they'll try anything with their partner. MOSTLY ON VIDEO/cam🙃🙃🙃 PERIOD.
A WOMAN'S Venus in Pisces/8th/12th house is the "I'll do anything I can 2 satisfy your needs, before my own". I love these placements, they want their partner 2 feel all the pleasure and doesn't even think about their own.
Taurus Mercury/Mars LOVES 2 be neck kissed, damn. Just go wild there and they'll go crazy 4 u, I promise 👄👅. MEN with Mars in Taurus/Taurus in 8th house = attracted 2 women that always looks "beautiful", "sexy, but classy", "ocd around looks", "model looking". They want a gorgeous woman, that can "cater" 2 their most sensual needs 🫦💦. Find some whipped cream/ice cream + your tongue&his body = go loca. If he doesn't go crazy, (u probably have the wrong chart😂🤡). Webb asteroid (3041) conjunct/trine/sextile/quintile BML can indicate doing "Web porn", "only fans", "showing yourself off, in a "sexual, provocative way online"🧯💨🔥.
Mars/Venus in Gemini/3rd house loves using toys! But they especially love2 use their hands&fingers!! They can also love oral👅.
REPOST OF SOME OF MY POSTS FROM MY OLD BLOG/SOME NEW COMMENTS
THANKS4READING💘 Appreciate u, always!
#astro community#astro notes#astrology#black moon lilith#astro observations#astrology notes#asteroids#venus#birth chart#mars astrology
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