#muse: max mayfield

[coreofgold]

@hiddenpxpercuts for Max Mayfield

"Like I told. . .who dropped me here, I'm fine. I normally have chest pain." Which. . .Lu Ten realizes sounds suspicious but curses having his chest crushed when he died. . .chronic pain

[libraryofgage]

Harlequin Prince (2)

Part of: Steve Deserves Good Parents, Actually

Debbie and Fester Addams One | Two | Three | Four Rick and Evelyn O'Connell One | Two | Three Harley Quinn One | Two (you're here!) 10th Doctor and Rose One | Two (on the way!) Scooby Gang (there are plans for this one lmao, so plz be patient with me orz) Jedidiah and Octavius (from Night at the Museum) One Queen ClarisseRenaldi One | Two

This part was line-jumped on Ko-Fi, which means y'all got it sooner than I originally planned!

If you want to line jump your favorite series, you can learn more here

Ironically, even tho the post says about a week of turn around, I get so excited that somebody wants to line jump that I just write it immediately lmao

Steve finally gets a good fight in this one, but it ends way too soon the poor boy. Either way, he also gets to meet some of the party!

As always, if you see any typos, no you didn't ;)

-------

Steve knew his dad wasn't in the picture, but he never knew why. He never asked, but he started to get this horrible feeling after a while. Harley Quinn's past was well known to Steve, her previous...associate and her relationship with him isn't exactly a secret, no matter how much his mother tried to keep them from him. She couldn't protect him at school, and she couldn't protect him from hearing people talking on the streets.

So, yeah, from the age of nine, Steve walked around with this horrendous knowledge in his gut, a knowledge that he wanted to think was just him being paranoid. But it wasn't. He knew it wasn't. He just couldn't admit that to himself, and he couldn't ask his mother because he didn't want to send her down that particular lane of memories. So it festered, and Steve pretended it didn't exist at all.

Until, that is, his 13th birthday. It was held at Uncle Bruce's mansion because his mother wanted to go all out. It was as much a celebration for her (a full three years without getting sent to Arkham!) as it was for him (managing to stay alive for 13 years in Gotham with Harley Quinn for a mother). Steve hadn't minded, either, especially when he saw the absolute joy she had when picking out the hugest bounce-house she could find with Uncle Bruce's sleek black credit card.

The party was catered by Steve's favorite Indian restaurant, the guests were limited to immediate friends and family, the bounce-house was extra bouncy, and a table was practically buckling under the weight of the gifts piled on top of it. It was, by far, Steve's best birthday, surpassing even the one he spent in Arkham after letting Poison Ivy out of her cell.

"Hey, Dumplin'!" his mother shouted, waving at him from the top of the bounce house she'd managed to climb. When Steve looked at her, she grinned even brighter and jumped, launching off turrets and rolling down sloped walls before landing on her feet on the ground. "Let's get to them presents!"

Steve laughed, looked at the table eagerly, and nodded. Her grin somehow getting wider, Harley turned, cupped her hands around her mouth, and shouted, "GET YOUR ASSES IN GEAR, EVERYONE! STEVIE'S OPENIN' PRESENTS!"

Soon enough, Steve was standing in front of the table, surrounded by everyone, and not at all sure where to start with the mountain of presents. "You should open mine first," Jason said, grinning as he gestured to a bike-shaped package.

It was, in fact, a bike. A motorcycle, specifically, with a red and black helmet and the promise of lessons from Jason whenever he wanted. Steve loved it immediately and ignored Uncle Bruce muttering about driving laws and how Steve couldn't operate any motorized vehicle until he was fifteen. "Well," he said, "as long as I don't get caught by Batman, who's gonna know?"

That had earned him a laugh and his mother's hand ruffling his hair. "Go on, Dumplin', choose another."

Dick got him a literal outfit's worth of Wonder Woman merch, accessories included, that made Bruce look ready to pop a blood vessel. Tim gave him small tracking pins and a hacked handheld game console to watch the trackers with the promise of free upgrades anytime he wanted. Damien gave him daggers since he "wasn't good enough for real swords, but everyone should have a blade" on them, just in case. Cass, Steph, and Barbara pooled their skills together (and Alfred, they borrowed Alfred a lot) to make him an Unofficial Robin costume, complete with shorts only slightly less scandalous than Dick's original costume.

Bruce, when he finally stopped glaring at the three of them, gave Steve a fingerprint panic button shaped like a bat and easily attached to a key ring. "For emergencies, Steve," he said, "Just hold your thumb to it for three seconds."

"This is perfect for the next time we run out of ice cream," Steve said, grinning as he attached it to his key chain.

"Emergencies."

"Oh. So if we run out of mint chip, specifically. Got it."

Bruce merely sighed and let him return to opening gifts.

Alfred gave him a tin of homemade cookies that Steve immediately had to protect from the others. Poison Ivy gave him a Venus flytrap and the promise to help him grow it properly. Selina couldn't be there, but Bruce passed along her gift: a pair of goggles Bruce had handed over with a sigh and quiet request for him to use them responsibly.

Steve opened Duke's present last, eyes widening at the red leather jacket. "Wait, seriously?" he asked, holding it up as he looked at Duke.

"You're gonna be a troublemaker, Steve," Duke said. "Might as well make sure you're bulletproof for it."

Steve grinned wider and pulled on the jacket, swimming in the leather but eager to grow into it all the same.

There was nothing from his mother in the pile, but Steve figured the party itself was his present since she'd done all the planning. When she pulled him away to a secluded room in the manor after they'd all had cake, Steve realized it was just because she didn't want to share this moment with anyone.

She smiled at him, reaching up and gently tucking a few strands of hair behind Steve's ears. "You grew up so fast, Dumplin'," she said, sighing softly.

"Ivy says I'm like a weed."

"Ives is right," Harley said, nodding once before looking away. "Okay, ready for your present?"

"Wasn't the party my present?"

"No, no, Dumplin'. The party was for fun," she said, grinning as she reached behind her and pulled a comically-large mallet from seemingly nowhere. "This is your present."

Steve blinked, leaning over to look around Harley. "Where'd that even come from?" he asked.

"Jester Logic, Dumplin'. Don't worry about it. I'll teach you the trick later," she promised, holding the mallet out to Steve with an expectant expression.

When Steve took it, the weight threw him off. He frowned, shifted his grip, and suddenly had no problem holding it up. He took a closer look, noting the scratches and marks on the mallet and the faded paint. "This was yours," he said.

"Yeah, it was."

"I've never seen it before."

Harley sighed, tugging on one of her pigtails with a slight frown. "Yeah, well, I wasn't exactly a great person when I used it, Dumplin'. Tried to forget about that Harley and all," she explained.

"Then why give it to me?"

Harley looked back at Steve and smiled, reaching out to cup his cheek. "Cuz you're so much better than me," she said. "I think you'll do some great things, Dumplin', and maybe all the good you do will erase most of the bad this mallet's got."

Her words were so serious, her smile was so bittersweet, and she looked ready to cry and deny it. This was the closest he'd ever gotten to learning about her past straight from the source, a past he knew about it, a past that involved a certain person that haunts Steve's mind with terrifying potential. Suddenly, he had to know.

Steve didn't really think before blurting out, "Is the Joker my father?"

Harley froze, her shoulders tensing and her eyes widening as she stared at Steve. "You don't got a father, Dumplin'," she finally said, her voice quiet and her expression conflicted.

"Fine. Was he the sperm donor?"

With a sigh, Harley stepped closer and placed her hands on Steve's shoulders. "I won't lie," she said. "He is, but that don't mean a thing. His crazy ain't hereditary, Dumplin', and he's never gettin' anywhere near you."

"Does...does he know?" Steve whispered, "About me, I mean."

"It don't matter," Harley said, her voice firm and her eyes more serious than Steve had ever seen them. "I'll kill him before he gets near ya. Ives will kill him. Hell, Brucie wil---no, wait, he's got those pesky morals. Fine, Jason will kill him before he gets near ya. Actually, Jason'd kill him anyway, but the excuse will be good if Brucie scolds him for it."

Steve couldn't help laughing at that, feeling a little lighter when his mother smiled back at him. When his laughter trickled to nothing more than a smile, he asked, "Then, was I the reason you left?"

Harley nodded and gently tugged Steve into her arms, holding him to her and cradling the back of his head. "Yeah, you were," she said, her voice soft and soothing. "I was excited to tell 'im when I learned about you, but then I heard him talking to some goons. He was laughin' about running a kid over, breakin' their legs, and I realized...you wouldn't be special to him. You'd've been like his goons, all expendable and not even worth a glance. I couldn't put you through that, and I couldn't put me through it, either. So, I got us out the only way I knew how."

"By finding Uncle Bruce," Steve said.

He felt her nod. "By finding Brucie," she agreed. "He tried to deny bein' the Bat and all, but your mama ain't dumb, Dumplin'. I'd done my homework, and the butts matched. Once I explained it all, once I told him about you, he agreed to help."

Steve nodded, listening to his mother's heart beating against his ear. He glances down at the mallet again, tightens his grip, and takes a deep breath. "Thank you," he said, "for the gift and for telling me. I'll do good with it, I promise."

"That's my boy," Harley said, pulling back and ruffling his hair. "Now, lemme explain that Jester Logic to ya."

----------

Hawkins remains boring even after meeting Eddie. After all, Eddie's in high school (his second attempt at senior year, apparently), and Steve...isn't. He should be, probably, but there's no way he's stepping one foot in that suburban nightmare of a building. He can feel the normalcy, the utter boredom, oozing from the place, and he'd rather not subject himself to that.

So, he spends his day wandering around Hawkins, getting a feel for the little town until he could navigate the place blindfolded. He can do the same in Gotham, but it's more impressive there with the winding streets and sprawling sidewalks. Here, it's nothing special.

The most interesting part of his day is when he's sitting on the roof of a video store, one leg dangling over the edge with the other pulled to his chest so he can rest his arm on his knee. He's about halfway through a cigarette when a cop car pulls into the lot and a middle-aged man steps out.

He looks up at Steve, frowning as he calls up, "You shouldn't be there, son."

"I ain't your son," he calls back, grinning as he takes another drag and blows smoke out as the guy rests his hands on his belt. It reminds him so much of Gotham PD rookies trying to posture that Steve can't help laughing. "Is that supposed to intimidate me?"

"I'm serious, kid," the cop says, apparently ignoring Steve's question. "It's dangerous up there. If you don't come down, I'm gonna have to call the Fire Department to bring the ladder."

Steve sighs and puts his cigarette out on the roof. He gets up, stretches his arms above his head, and stands on the ledge of the roof. He grins at the cop, casually stepping into empty air and hearing the guy shout as he falls. He lands in a crouch on the awning over the door, swings to hang from it, and lands on his feet on the sidewalk.

It wasn't even much of a fall, but the cop looks like he's about to have a heart attack. Steve glances at the badge on his chest. "We done now, Officer Hopper?" he asks.

"Don't do that again," Hopper says, pointing a finger at Steve, "Or I will drag your ass to the station and call your parents."

Steve snorts, doing his best to hold his smile back. "I'll keep that in mind, sir," he says, giving a mocking two-finger salute before turning on his heels and walking down the street.

After a few blocks, he veers off into the forest, figuring he'll wander around the trees for a while before going to the Hideout to bother Bev and stare at Eddie and quietly pray someone else is gonna look for a fight.

Did he mention Hawkins is boring? Because it's fucking boring.

Steve sighs, kicking a stick as he shoves his hands into his jacket. He idly notes the forest is healthy. Sure, a few pieces of litter are strewn around, but it's not as bad as the parks in Gotham can get. Poison Ivy would find this place barely passable, which is hard to manage, and he's tempted to call her when he gets home to tell her about it.

He hums softly as he walks, enjoying the sounds of the forest until they just...stop.

The entire forest falls silent, which is weird; forests are too full of life to go silent. Even the bugs seem to have frozen in place, too scared to risk making a sound by moving. Steve stops, looking around him with a frown and trying to figure out what's caused this.

He gets the answer a second later when he hears a scream. The voice sounds young and cracks slightly, so it definitely belongs to a child. Despite himself, Steve can't help grinning as he takes off in the direction of the scream.

This is the most exciting thing to happen in the four weeks he's been stuck in Hawkins. As he runs through trees and easily jumps over bushes to take the shortest path, he makes guesses on what he'll find. Maybe Hawkins has a villain that's only now showing up. Maybe the town has a secret alligator or something that's decided to have a midday snack. Hell, maybe someone just decided to be a dick today.

He realizes every guess is wrong when he slides into a clearing to see a few kids (two boys, one girl) surrounded by some weird dog-looking...things. They have heads but no faces, crouched low to the ground and growling at the kids they've cornered. There's around ten of them, which would normally make Steve hesitate, but he's so desperate at this point for a real fight that he doesn't care.

Instead, he reaches over his shoulder, thinks about how fucking hilarious it's gonna be to jump out of nowhere with a giant mallet, and grips the handle as he swings it over his shoulder. "Hey, monster mutts!" he shouts, grinning when all the monsters and the kids finally notice him. "Let's play."

Pure, unfiltered joy rushes through him when the first monster-dog jumps at him. Steve's eyes are bright and his grin is positively feral as he swings the mallet and sends it flying into a tree. He roundhouse kicks another dog, using the momentum to bring his foot down on the head of a third before smashing its body with the mallet.

"Are you insane?!" one of the kids shouts.

"Certifiably!" he shouts back, watching as another monster-dog jumps at him. He waits for the perfect moment to back flip, bringing his feet under the dog to send it flying. He brings the mallet up as he lands, clocking another monster under the jaw. It yelps, crashing into another dog.

"Where'd this guy even come from?" the girl asks, turning to look at the boys with her.

"I don't know, but I'm happy to let him deal with the demodogs."

Oh. That's what they're called. Steve hums softly at the name, grinning as he twirls the mallet and swings with all his strength at one of the demodog. He rests the mallet on his shoulder like a baseball bat, watching the demodog arch in the air with an appreciative whistle. "Solid air," he says, nodding once before looking at the remaining demodogs.

There's only three, the others scattered in the clearing. He can't tell if they're dead or not, but he could always smash them to mush when he's done. Steve grins at the remaining dogs. "C'mon, then," he says, only to be filled with disappointment when they creep back, turn heel, and run.

"Damn, that's no fun," Steve says, sighing as he rests the mallet on the ground and leans on the handle. He looks at the kids. "You guys okay?"

The girl has orange hair pulled back into a messy braid. She's staring at him like he's got two heads but is kind of impressed by it. One of the boys has curly hair being smothered by his hat, and the other is wearing a basketball jersey. They're also staring at Steve like he's crazy. "Dude," the curly-haired one says, "that was awesome!"

"Where'd you get that mallet from?" the girl asks.

"Jester Logic," Steve explains, shrugging as he picks the mallet up and walks over. "Wanna hold it?"

When the girl lights up, he passes the mallet to her, snorting when she immediately staggers under its weight. "How do you hold this so easily?"

"Jester Logic. Again. It's funnier when other people find it heavy."

"That makes no sense," basketball jersey says.

"Who are you?" curly hair asks.

"Steve. Moved here recently. What about y'all?"

"Dustin," curly hair says.

"Lucas," basketball jersey says.

"Max," the girl says, her voice strained until Steve takes the mallet back, twirling it like it weighs nothing.

"Great. Nice to meet y'all. Now, what the fuck were those?"

"How much time you got?" Dustin asks.

Steve grins, thinking he's finally found something that can keep him entertained when he's not hanging around Eddie. "Plenty."

---------

Tag list (let me know if you'd like to be added!)

@nectandra, @y4r3luv, @just-a-tiny-void,

[musingmemories]

[zoomingupthathill]

UPDATED - IF YOU PREFER THE PREVIOUS VERSE ; WE CAN ALSO TALK ABOUT DOING SOMETHING DURING THAT TIMEFRAME INSTEAD -- THIS JUST SEEMED TO MAKE A LITTLE MORE SENSE. Dead By Daylight Verse (work in progress, and if you know the game and the mechanics better than I do, please give me some pointers.) If you write a Billy, and are not okay with the changes I made, we do not have to write them that way -- This verse is completely open, and can be adjusted as needed. Any interactions for this verse will take place within the new worlds, after the entity has dragged her to their own twisted idea of a game. Unless plotted otherwise. Head canons will be added, and the verse may end up growing, or dividing into separate mini verses --depending on who/how we're interacting.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It had been a couple years after Billy's death, or what they assumed was his death -- little did she know he was actually taken by the entity... After Vecna, and once she wakes up from her coma -- the redhead never learns. Max is investigating something at The Hawkins Lab.. Trying to get to the bottom of The Upside Down, trying to get Hawkins back to normal. Fix the thing she still blames herself for.... She shouldn't have gone alone, but she didn't want to bring her friends into yet another dangerous plan. This one was on her, she would fix it, or die trying. Unfortunately things didn't go as planned, she didn't even scratch the surface on the reason that she went there -- the entity closing in on her. Snatching her up and delivering her to another dimension, or world? She isn't entirely sure.

This verse is a mixture of The Upside Down existing, but DBD taking over -- pulling her into that world instead. Facing an completely different kind of monster, entirely different challenges, and obstacles. Perks, and abilities found along the way, bettering her chances, but the idea of death, and failing loom extremely close.

In this verse she is eighteen, because the entity does not take children. So in respect to DBD, and the fact that it has been years of her being in a coma -- she's eighteen.

[faeryworlds]

@brokenegoed | Max & Nancy | Liked for a small starter

Max was going through a lot at the moment and it was like she was pushing her friends away and all she did was listening to music and the same song almost over and over again. The redhead walked out of her house, since her mom isn't there which wasn't even new to begin with. Closing the as she turned around and suddenly saw Nancy standing there.

"What are you doing here?"

[sanguine-tenshi]

I'm still down my DabiBaku rabbit hole, still have like 3 or 4 prompts i wanna write for it, however recently I got a comment on my BillyMax fic that got me thinking about the ship again.

Recently played Coffin of Andy and LeyLey and it got me fucking hooked. I love their codependent and fucked from both sides in different ways relationship.

So the two of em got me thinking about writing a longer BillyMax ship.

I don't have anything concrete yet, just vibes for now pffft, but the building blocks are kinda there. We know Billy's dad, whatever his name is again, is abusive towards Billy. There is not much about Max's mom, except that she's a doormat, so there is there is room to play around with her.

Twist Max's mom so that she's kinda "stuck" with Max. Got pregnant and boyfriend bailed, she can't get into a steady relationship because of Max. Basically just make it so there's a lot of resentment from mom to Max which then turns to neglect and verbal abuse maybe.

Which would then allow me to get her overly attached to Billy, who isn't kind or gentle, but listens and pays attention to her.

Idk, like I said it's all just vibes rn, would probably need to bounce ideas off someone first to get the wrinkles ironed out. But ye the goal would be a very fucked up and codependent relationship between the two, maybe some patricide and maybe even matricide. Leaning towards that broken in the same way by the world and each other so only the two of them fit together kinda relationship.

[musingmemories]

@fablesuntold

Every Lumax Scene in Stranger Things: s4e5 - The Nina Project

“Will it still work, or will Kate Bush like, lose her magic power or something?" "Kate Bush? Never."

[hclyrevivals]

ღ * ➜ (  sadie sink , cisfemale , twenty-one, she/her ) it seems like maxine mayfield might be making a new home in mystic, connecticut. a canon character from stranger things , max was seen walking down main street. while they arrived three years ago , they believe they have been here their whole lives.

❀ ˚ ↬ full name : maxine mayfield

❀ ˚ ↬ relationships : billy hargrove, older step brother

❀ ˚ ↬ sexuality : bicurious

❀ ˚ ↬ shipping : closed, lucas sinclair

❀ ˚ ↬ occupation : student, undelcared

[fadingmadness]

[ sadie sink ] i just saw that MAXINE "MAX" MAYFIELD arrived in mystic, ct ! they're TWENTY-ONE and a CANON character from STRANGER THINGS. however, you might want to check first because while they've been here THREE YEARS they BELIEVE they have been here their whole lives. make sure to make them feel right at home.

[pcrfectstorms]

[ @alwaysrevvedup gets a semi-plotted starter from max! ]

navigating her new normal was more than a little frustrating, especially with the crappy government issued wheelchair she'd left the hospital with, the damn thing had a mind of its on at the best of times, but trying to navigate through the trailer park terrain was a nightmare, and she spots eddie staring which only pisses her off even more, "take a picture it'll last longer munson! or better help me, unless you get a kick outta watching girls get stuck on overgrown grass." she barks at him, eyes rolling, but honestly? part of her just wanted a little company, and she was too stubborn to just say that. her mom was at work, and she hadn't heard from the boys today, okay so maybe she'd told them to fuck off last night and that was why.

"where's steve today?" she grins goading him for a reaction, oh she noticed how the two of them had been hanging out more since they'd almost both died, how steve checked up on her almost daily, and how she'd watch him slip across to the munson trailer after. "how are you not like, dying of boredum dude? i've read like every book in my trailer, i miss the arcade. too far wheel myself there in this piece of shit." she huffs, "you have van right? --" eyes lighting up as her genius plan hits.

[musingmemories]

@fablesuntold

it's a lumax thing

[fehlicitaes]

max m. tag dump:

[ MAX MAYFIELD. / ANSWERED. ] [ MAX MAYFIELD. / ABOUT. ] [ MAX MAYFIELD. / HEADCANON. ] [ MAX MAYFIELD. / INTERACTION. ] [ MAX MAYFIELD. / STYLE. ] [ MAX MAYFIELD. / AESTHETIC. ] [ MAX MAYFIELD. / LIKES. ] [ MAX MAYFIELD. / FC. ] [ MAX MAYFIELD. / REPLY. ] [ MAX MAYFIELD. / MUSINGS. ] [ MAX MAYFIELD. / MUSIC. ] [ MAX MAYFIELD. / VISAGE. ]

[musingmemories]

HOW DO YOU NEED TO BE TOUCHED?

NANCY WHEELER

gently — you need to be held as though you're going to break. you need someone to trace your scars like cracks in a wall, crumbling. their touch is almost painful; you've been without it for too long, without someone to hold you. but, you cannot bring yourself to pull away.

CHRISSY CUNNINGHAM

fervently — you crave a hug that cracks your ribs... the feeling of your wandering soul being crushed back into the bones that can't seem to hold it. you need a hand gripping yours so tightly you almost fear it may leave a bruise, a reminder that you are here. and that you are not alone.

JOYCE BYERS

fervently — you crave a hug that cracks your ribs... the feeling of your wandering soul being crushed back into the bones that can't seem to hold it. you need a hand gripping yours so tightly you almost fear it may leave a bruise, a reminder that you are here. and that you are not alone.

ELEVEN

cautiously — your teeth are bared, as they have been, your jaw aching for so long as growls slip free. you always have to defend yourself. you lash out in fear. you need someone who does not shrink back... a hand falling slowly to your shoulder, however briefly, in a reminder that you do not have to lunge. there is no danger here, now.

MAX MAYFIELD

cautiously — your teeth are bared, as they have been, your jaw aching for so long as growls slip free. you always have to defend yourself. you lash out in fear. you need someone who does not shrink back... a hand falling slowly to your shoulder, however briefly, in a reminder that you do not have to lunge. there is no danger here, now.

TAGGED STOLEN FROM: @freakarus

TAGGING: Anyone that wants to do this!

[faeryworlds]

@vcnusians​ | Max & Jane 

Max was at home and ready to just go out with her skateboard to just take her mind of things. Walking around in the house to find her skateboard when she found it, grabbing her walkman and put the headphones on. When she opened the door and suddenly saw Jane standing there. The redhead frowned while looking at the girl. “Jane. Everything okay?” Max didn’t expected the girl to show up at her house like that, and her first instinct was that maybe there was something wrong. She was home alone anyway, as her mother wasn’t really at home or when she was she was drunk as fuck. 

“Come in.“ Max then said as she stepped aside so Jane could walk in and she closed the door as she then folded her arms over each other leaning against the wall. 

[musingmemories]

Sorry. Leave it to Lucas to throw Max completely off course by blurting out the phrase. It shut her up whenever it was uttered, guilt bleeding into the anger that sat in her chest and slowly replacing it. Uncommon, he knew, in her every day vocabulary. Sorry was thrown sarcastically to get Billy or Neil off her back— never sincere… unless extremely provoked. Said as an exchange, a desperate plea, typically bargained in order to protect someone else. But with Lucas? The apology was always sincere unless also thrown sarcastically out of annoyance or to make a party member shut up.

In this case, he hadn’t known if Max wanted to be touched, and who could blame him after her body had been broken to pieces at Vecna’s hands? She could’ve been flinching subconsciously, brain not even registering she’d been withdrawing from all touch. Craved but ran from it… much like many things in Max’s life. Including the guy right in front of her. It was difficult resisting the sudden urge to smile whenever Lucas started opening up because majority of the time they were at each other’s throats until the other won in their little, petty squabbles. … but after what happened… Max didn’t want to do that anymore, and from what it sounded like… Lucas didn’t want to either. Assuming he’d launch next into the reason why they hadn’t been talking— which she thought would be about Billy— he surprised her instead talking about… her?

Or rather her self-deprications.

“I wasn’t…” The start of a pathetic attempt to defend herself, listening to Lucas’ explanation quieted the need to insist she was fine and just joking when it came to shit talking her self-esteem and insecurities. He’d always been able to read her. Now that thought finally drew out the grin Max had been suppressing, gazing at Lucas like a schoolgirl with a crush, laughing next at the claim he’d beat up anyone that said negative things about her. “I got my ass handed to me by Vecna and now you’re threatening to beat me up?!” Laughter danced around the exclamation, the familiar sound starting to make her feel like… the old Max. Like she’d been out of orbit for a bit and Lucas was gradually pulling her back. Physically, with his hand finally taking hers, and Max felt like she could exhale again.

Somewhat.

Breath was still held catching Lucas’ stream of compliments, that she was still totally tubular— their dumb catchphrase. One Max hadn’t realized they might’ve never said again if things had gone differently. With a softened expression, Max gave Lucas’ hand a gentle squeeze, tugging him closer and without giving it a second thought, pressed a kiss to his lips. Lingered for the barest of seconds for them both to acknowledge it before “Me too.” was a whispered confirmation she felt the same— glad she was still here… and also wouldn’t know what to do without Lucas.

“Nice to hear the old Sinclair’s still in there.” Her smile audible in the words, Max pulled away slightly to flash him a glint of mischief with it. “Was afraid we’d lost you for a minute. That you’d gotten all jocky and too cool for your old friends.” Me. Added to the list that was Max Mayfield’s insecurities: Lucas leaving her behind. That he’d take a push too many and respect her wishes. But stubborn as always, Lucas stayed— returned, really, to her side to protect her like he always had. “Hey did you… uh…” Sky blue orbs flicked back down to their hands. Max wondered why her heart was picking up speed while asking a simple question. “The letter I wrote you. Did you ever read it…?” A letter for each of them. Her thank you’s she couldn’t say in person. Her personalized goodbyes. Trips down memory lane and admiration of each one of their characters.

Writing and music had always been Max’s way of expressing herself. Both were able to relay exactly how she felt without her having to actually vocalize her thoughts and feelings out loud. Words were poetic, strung together through concentration and thoughtfulness, searching for true meaning and with the goal of touching the heart. Max guessed she had Kate Bush to thank for unlocking more of that creative part of her. “If not… I guess you can now? Or is that weirdly jinxing me again?” Cracking another grin, Max couldn’t remember if she had or had not basically implied she’d loved him. She definitely had, but facing Lucas now after she’d brought it up? Weirdly a lot scarier than admitting it when she thought she was gonna die.

@musingmemories

Talking about things. An area in their relationship they’d struggled with greatly since day one of meeting each other— Max more so than him when it came to letting people in. It was where most of their past arguments had stemmed from, Max’s short fuse eventually blowing whenever Lucas refused to let something go and instead kept pushing her to open up when she clearly wasn’t ready to. Of course he hadn’t meant to be so tenacious with it, his constant ‘are you okays’ and ‘you don’t look fines ’ coming from a place of love and concern. But he’d overstepped a boundary, hadn’t he? That much he realised now. Apparently they both still had some growing to do, an acknowledgment made and agreed on under a sort of ‘pact’ that Max would agree to be more vocal with her feelings as long as he eased up whenever she got too uncomfortable— to which, honestly? Lucas was proud of her for. A massive step for the both of them in their friendship.

Was friends the correct label for what they were..?

Complicated was the more appropriate term. After all, what umbrella did ‘awkward exes with possible lingering feelings for each other but are too afraid to admit them’ fit under?

Thoughts derailing like a runaway train the second Max’s hand reached for his own, Lucas couldn’t help but to wince at that insinuation that he was afraid to touch her. That was partly true, but not in the way she thought. “I know.. I know. I just didn’t know if you wanted me to or not. Sorry.” There he went again making things more complicated than they needed to be. Could he just stop overthinking for once and steady his racing heart? Above all else, Lucas knew that Max loathed when people treated her like she was made from porcelain, especially more than ever now after Vecna’s attack on her. The same attack that made her feel like a burden apparently, the protective side of him piping up to shut that mindset down immediately.

“Max, c’mon. You’ve never been a burden to me. You never will be. And I.. I hate that we didn’t talk sooner too. That’s not me blaming you or anything either, it was nobody’s fault. It’s just..” inhaling a much needed breath to cut himself off from his rambling, another thing Lucas had realised was that he always felt the need to overcompensate where he didn’t have to. Another thing to work on. Baby steps, right? At least they were learning together.

There was one thing he needed to get off his chest though. Something that had bothered him since him and Max had crossed paths.

“I don’t like it when you talk so lowly about yourself, you know? Like you don’t even matter.” She mattered to him, and if Lucas had one wish? He’d wish that Max could have the ability to see herself the way he saw her.. not as the burden she believed herself to be. “If anyone else said those things about you, I’d have to like.. beat them up or something.” Or exchange serious words with them because who was he kidding? Lucas Sinclair wasn’t a fighter.. well, only when he needed to be. “That includes yourself, by the way.” Eyebrow raised challengingly at her, Lucas couldn’t stop the small grin that fought its way onto his face— a feeling that almost felt foreign, given it had been absent for so long.

Permission now granted to touch her, Lucas gingerly allowed his fingers to wove in between the gaps in hers. “Seriously though.. you’re cool, funny, really pretty.. and dare I say it, totally tubular~!” Spoken in what could possibly be dubbed the worst accent in the world, Lucas stifled the chuckles that almost escaped him, lips thinning in the process and teeth seeking out his lower one. Although he may have sounded like he was joking; Lucas meant every single word. Max was.. something else. “..I guess what I’m really trying to say is that I’m glad you’re still here, MadMax. I don’t know what I’d do without you.” Too far? It didn’t matter. As Max had put it, it was time to finally talk about things. Time to finally be open.

[williamprattz]

@stcreators event 08: women

Stranger Things Women as Women From Greco-Roman Literature

NANCY WHEELER— Dido, Queen of Carthage

legendary founder and first queen of the Phoenician city-state of Carthage.

ROBIN BUCKLEY— Kallisto

A hunting companion of the goddess Artemis. Zeus seduced Kallisto in the disguise of the goddess Artemis.

JOYCE BYERS— Andromache

Andromache was famous for her fidelity and virtue; her character represents the suffering of Trojan women during war.

KALI PRASAD— Circe

Circe was a sorcerer (pharmakeia) who was skilled in the magic of transmutation, illusion, and necromancy.

EL HOPPER— Pandora, The First Women

Zeus gave Pandora a storage jar (pithos) as a wedding gift which she opened, releasing the swarm of evil spirits trapped within. These would forever after plague mankind. Only

MAX MAYFIELD— Penthesilea

An Amazon queen who led her troops to Troy in support of King Priamos during the Trojan War.

ERICA SINCLAIR— Erato, Muse of Poetry

Erato was one of the nine Mousai, the goddesses of music, song and dance.

CHRISSY CUNNINGHAM— Helen of Troy

The Paris Trojan War began when Helen, the wife of Menelaos, the Spartan king, was abducted by the Trojan prince Paris.