#please take eleven labs away from me

[imagines-by-cleo]

Orig post

[daturabouquet]

❤︎𝔻𝕠𝕥𝕥𝕠𝕣𝕖 𝕩 ℝ𝕖𝕒𝕕𝕖𝕣 𝔻𝕠𝕞𝕖𝕤𝕥𝕚𝕔 𝔸𝕌!❤︎🧪

Ever wonder what it'll be like in one of your daily lives with the Second of The Eleven? Il Dottore is a cruel, cruel man. But why isn't he cruel to you?

"Silly Doctor, I'm not afraid of ghosts!"

♡︎♡︎♡︎♡︎♡︎♡︎♡︎♡︎♡︎♡︎♡︎𝐈𝐥 𝐃𝐨𝐭𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐞♡︎♡︎♡︎♡︎♡︎♡︎♡︎♡︎♡︎♡︎♡︎♡︎♡︎

Rough busy day for your mad lover, and a slow day for you. Dottore always comes back to your now shared bedroom tired and somewhat pissed off. You can tell he's had a rough day with his terribly messy blue hair and annoyed glare. He throws himself on the plush soft bed while he rambles on and on about how Webttore keeps on picking unnecessary fights with the subordinates.

You smile and carefully let his head lay on your lap, brushing his hair out lovingly as he rambles incessantly. Dottore locks his gaze on you, who's smiling and giggling a little.

"What's so funny?" Dottore hisses, his emotions still all over the place. "Hehe, it's just that I love to listen to you talk... and I can listen to this for hours so please, my dear doctor, keep ranting." You reply, being completely honest. Dottore sighs and grumbles;"How interesting. You fall asleep every single time I try to educate you on my research." Soft fingers twirl his hair as you think of a response. "Well, this is the only time I can actually understand you, anyway. I don't get it when you talk about joint consciousness and cloning and whatever it was!" Dottore rolls his eyes and caresses your face. He's suddenly confused, how are you always so cheerful? And better yet, why does a cheerful lovely darling like you end up with someone like him? You were the complete opposite of him.

"Am I not a monster to you, darling?" The doctor asks, his gaze softens. "Monster? What made you think that way?" You asked back.

"Is it not obvious, dear? I reckon you're very aware of why." Dottore scoffs, yet he's still patient to hear your answer. "You're not a monster to me! You're freaky and dangerous but that won't stop me from loving you." You answer, softly tapping his mask. "I recall you hated my experiments." Dottore grumbled again, swatting your hand off his mask. "I do, but... if they ever shun you away again, you can always nestle in my arms." Your honeyed words softens him a little.

Slowly, you remove his mask, revealing his beautiful ruby red eyes. Dottore winces at the sudden brightness, yet he immediately locks his focus on your face. He wonders, how could someone like you fall for a monster like him? No, not just a monster, he's a disgrace, a villain, a murderer. How did it happen? Someone as cheerful, as loving, as caring as you shouldn't fall for a demon like him. If you were an angel, all he ever did was cut your wings off. Why? Why did you love him?

"Are you scared of me, darling?" Dottore asks, he seems to be digging for more information. "I... I'm not scared of you, ttore. I trust you! I know you'll never do harm to me... and even if you do perform some sort of experiment on me, I'm sure it's one of the bearable or beneficial ones.." You reply. This answer stunned him a little, how could someone like him be trusted? Being tolerated is one thing, but trusted?

"Ttore-?" You wave your palm above his eyes, you noticed he was in deep thought. "Hmm, you know what? you should go to bed. you need some rest... those caffeine shots can barely keep you moving at this rate." You shuffle away from him, letting his head fall off your lap to the soft bed. He finally snaps out of his thoughts and sits up, you carefully take his lab coat off and put his hair in a low ponytail. He softly yawns as you bring him some comfortable clothes.

"Hmm? I'm too tired to change. I can sleep like this just fine." Dottore protests. "You smell like blood! I'll get nightmares sleeping next to you!" You pout, "If you don't change, I won't sleep with you." Your simple request comes off as a silly threat to Dottore, but he quickly groans and stands up and changes right in front of you. His signature burn marks tattered all over his arms are now visible, and you can't help but blush a little. You also stand up and help him with his harness, in which he smiles in return.

After getting dressed for bed, Dottore collapses on the bed again and quickly gets comfortable. You can only stare at him for a while before sitting on the bed.

"I've changed my clothes. Why aren't you sleeping with me?" Dottore asks, trying to hide the fact that he really wants you next to him. You giggle a little before settling next to him, getting yourself and him under the thick wool blanket. You know better than to tease him, which will result in him refusing to sleep. You initiate a soft hug, which he quickly returns with a tight squeeze.

He leans his head onto your chest, listening to every single heartbeat. You can only smile while playing with his soft locks. You softly hum a popular lullaby from Sumeru, while occasionally kissing his forehead. Before you know it, he's out cold. He's deeply comfortable with you, and to know that you trust him, makes him feel less like a monster. Or maybe, it gives him faith that monsters can be loved too.

----

[yikesharringrove]

Twigs snapped under bare feet. Mud splashed against the dark trunks of thick trees. Branches caught pumping arms, leaving scrapes on pale skin.

He didn't care.

Could hardly feel the cuts on his feet as he ran. Sprinted as fast as he could.

He could still faintly hear the alarms in the distance, the lab sirens going off. The automated voice announcing a lockdown. A security breech.

There was blood underneath his fingernails.

Blood that wasn't his own.

He didn't know where he was going.

His only thought was to keep moving. Don't let them find me.

He ran, his lungs burning, his vision going bright.

The driver of the truck barely managed to stop before hitting the boy, the headlights washing over him.

Scared brown eyes, close shaved head. Dirty hospital gown.

Hopper could hardly breathe.

It was another one. Another fucked up experiment kid.

Escaped from the lab. Just like El.

He slowly got out of the truck.

The kid seemed to be frozen to the spot, a scrape on his cheek slowly oozing blood, his breaths ragged and heaving.

Hopper had his hands up, approaching as slowly as he could.

"It's okay. I'm not gonna hurt you."

The boy shivered, and it was as though the air folded around him, and he was gone.

Disappeared. Right on the spot.

Hopper held his breath. No footsteps.

"You're okay. I can help you. I know you came from the lab. I know you've escaped." He swallowed hard, eyes darting about, trying to see any sign of the boy. "I know about Papa. How he hurts you. I can keep you safe."

A twig splintered somewhere to his left.

The boy had started inching away.

"Sorry, probably shouldn't mention him. But, I know it all. I know about Eleven. You know her? She escaped about a year ago. Just like you. I'm keeping her safe. She has a home with me."

A shaky breath.

"Eleven?"

The boy's voice was tiny.

"Yes! Eleven. I could take you to her. You could speak with her."

It was silent, and Hopper tried to stay still. Tried to stay non-threatening.

The air seemed to tense, and relax around the small boy, finally visible again in the forest.

"Eleven."

-

Hopper didn't make the boy wear a seat belt in the truck. The idea of being strapped to something would most likely be a bad one.

His hands were shaking, and he twisted his fingers in the hem of his hospital gown.

Hopper had given him his coat, too-big on the boy's thin shoulders.

Too thin.

The boy's gotta be high school aged. Sixteen, maybe seventeen.

But he was small in the way that malnutrition brings. Hopper's seen it in a few domestic violence cases.

The boy followed anxiously behind Hopper as they walked to the cabin.

He probably should've radioed El in the car, let her know he has someone with him, but the sound of the engine had obviously been freaking the boy out a little too much already.

He knocked on the door, and the locks clicked one by one.

The boy gingerly followed Hopper into the cabin, looking around with huge eyes.

Hopper went straight to El's room, knocking softly.

She smiled at him from the bed, James and the Giant Peach resting on her lap.

"Hi, Jim."

"I need you to come out here. I, uh, I found something. Someone."

She looked at him questioningly, her brow furrowed.

"Who?"

"Another one. Another kid. Like you."

She was out of bed in a flash, pushing past him into the living room.

The boy was still standing near the door, eyes darting around the cabin.

Until he saw El.

his jaw trembled.

"Eleven," he all but whispered.

"Eight."

She nearly pounced on the boy, hugging him as tight as she could.

"You did it!" She pulled back to smile at him, and Hopper was pleased to see the boy return it with a tiny one of his own. "Brave."

"Scared," he said in that same tiny, whispery voice.

"Safe, now." She pointed to Hopper. "Jim. Safe."

The boy nodded.

"Safe."

[februaryfic]

Honey, You're Familiar: Chapter Three

(AO3) (Masterpost) (4625 Words)

A Steve Harrington x meta!Reader slowburn multichapter fic.

Summary: You befriend a psychic, give Steve a pep talk, and get the gang together.

---

You, Hopper and Joyce sit in the Byers’ living room. 

“You kicked Lonnie out again then?” You ask.

“I found the pamphlet, right where you said it would be.” Joyce says furiously. “God, I can’t believe that bastard!”

“I’m sorry-” you begin.

“No, no, this is on me for even believing him in the first place!” Joyce fumes. 

“Let’s focus on Will,” Hopper intervenes, trying to bring calm to the situation. “What do we do next?”

“You go to see Terry Ives,”

“Ives… why do I know that name?” Hopper mutters, before a look of horror dawns in his eyes. “The woman who said Dr Brenner took her kid, from the news report. So she was telling the truth all along?”

You nod solemnly. “Her child, Jane, is the girl who was seen at Benny’s diner, who has been hiding in Mike Wheeler’s basement the past week,”

“The one who’s been in the lab the whole time.”

“That’s right. I’m going to be meeting with her tonight, hopefully, which should set us up well for tomorrow.”

“And what’s happening tomorrow?” Joyce asks.

“Mike Wheeler’s going to jump off a cliff, Jonathan is going to punch a cop, and we might- might- just save your son,”

“Might?” Hopper questions. 

“Just because I know the future, doesn’t mean I control it,” you reply with a shake of your head. “I’ve done everything I can to set us up for success, now we just have to hope that everything goes according to plan. Speaking of—” 

You get up from the couch and head into Will’s room, reaching under the bed to find what you’re looking for. You pull out his walkie-talkie and head back to the adults. “—I need to take this.”

“But it's Will’s.” Joyce weakly protests.

“I know. And when we get him back tomorrow night, I will give it straight back, okay?” you pick your words carefully, and they have the intended effect of reassuring Joyce. She leans back into the sofa heavily.

“You can’t tell us anything else?” Hopper asks, still tense.

You pause. In the show, Hopper tells the lab where El is in exchange for letting him and Joyce go through the gate. You pray he will make a better choice in this reality. “We need to protect Eleven. We need to keep her away from those monsters at the lab, so keep her location a secret.”

You turn to Joyce and add: “And don’t be too hard on Jonathan when you get to the station. It's been a rough week for all of us,”

You go to leave but remember one last thing. “Do you have any children’s gloves?”

—

God it’s cold out. Now that the sun has completely set and the moon hangs in the sky, the November chill permeates the air, cooling you to the bone and making you shiver. The trees seem to shiver too as the wind bristles through them, filling the woods with a susurrus of leaves. The cold makes the scabbed gashes on your calf ache but you maintain your search. In the show, it’s implied that Eleven slept in the woods after the fight with Mike in the junkyard, but you just couldn’t let the poor girl suffer through that. 

Eventually, you spot a flash of baby pink fabric. 

“El! I’m not with the bad men or your papa, I’m a friend of Mike’s! Can we talk please?” You call out, hoping and praying that she dares to trust you.

You hear a rustle from behind a tree before the scruffy girl steps out. “Friend?” She asks, watching you with wide, owlish eyes. 

“Yes, I’m a friend. I know you just had a fight with Mike and I want to help. You can’t stay out here all night, you’ll freeze,”

“You know? Know how?” Her eyes narrow as she wraps her arms around herself.

“It’s a little bit of a long story, will you come back to my home to talk? It’s warm and we can have something nice to eat,”

El hugs herself tighter, clearly feeling the chill but not trusting you enough to follow.

“Eleven, I promise I will do everything I can to keep the bad men away from you. You’re safe with me. Friends don’t lie, right?” taking a risk, you reach your hand out to her. 

She walks towards you at an agonisingly slow pace, as if waiting for you to change your tune and attack. Her small hand slips into yours and you hiss under your breath as you feel her frozen fingers. Thank god for planning ahead. 

“Here,” you offer, pulling the pair of gloves out of your jacket. El watches as you carefully pull them onto her hands and secure them around her wrists.

“Better?” you ask.

“Better,” she echoes.

—

Her eyes follow you in an unnerving way as you potter around your apartment. El is curled up on your armchair with a blanket while you prepare dinner for both of you. 

“You know Mike?” she eventually asks, nervously, like she’s afraid of being told off for speaking. Your heart aches for her. 

“I do! I know Dustin and Will and Lucas too. I work at an arcade, which is a building where you can go to play lots of games,” you explain. 

“Lucas…” she whispers sadly. You head to her and crouch down before the armchair.

“El, you didn’t mean to hurt him. You’re not a monster. He and Mike were fighting, so you wanted them to stop, right?”

She nods her head cautiously, still confused by how you know all this.

“Exactly. And you used a bit too much power and threw Lucas a bit too far. Accidents happen, kiddo. You should still apologise when you next see him, just like he should apologise for saying those bad things about you, but it doesn’t make you a monster,”

“He’s right,” she says, tears now welling in her eyes as her breath catches in her chest. “The bad things. I lied. Lucas is right,” 

You gather her in your arms as her tears turn to full blown sobs. She tenses for a long moment, before returning the hug tightly.

“El… Lucas is upset because his friend is missing. All he saw was you messing with the compasses, but he didn’t understand your intentions.”

“In-ten…”

“Intentions. It means he doesn’t know why you did it.”

“Keep them safe.”

“I know, kiddo. But they don’t know about the gate, or the monster. They don’t know how dangerous it is, so they don’t know what you’re trying to keep them safe from.” 

“You know…?” El pulls back, looking at you cautiously again.

“About the gate and the monster? Yeah,” You say sadly. Your timer in the kitchen goes off, making El jump. “I’ll explain while we’re eating, okay? Food is important, I don’t want you getting hungry.”

El wolfs down your pasta bake like she hasn’t eaten in days. Which, to be fair, is almost the case. You doubt Mike was able to sneak her much.

You tell her about your home world, about the tv show, about the things you’ve changed. She listens attentively through it all.

“Here… why?” she eventually asks, pasta sauce around her mouth. You hand her a napkin, which she stares at in confusion, before you just reach over and wipe it off yourself.

“I don’t know why I’m here,” you admit. “It’s a little scary. I think it might have something to do with the Upside Down, but I came here before the gate was opened,”

“Help find out.” El says with determination, small face turning serious, and you can’t help but smile at her instinct to help.

“Thank you El, that’s really sweet of you. You’re a good kid.” You say, making her blush. 

You get her to help you wash the dishes, letting her play with the soap suds that surround the sink. After, you get out some old pyjamas and offer them to her, but she looks at them unhappily.

“No,” she says, crossing her arms. It takes you a moment to guess why.

“I’m not going to take the dress away from you, kiddo. We can clean it up and you can put it back on tomorrow. This is just so you’re comfy and warm while you sleep.” 

“Promise?”

“I promise, El. I won’t take the dress away from you.”

She takes the dress off and you prepare some warm water as she changes into the pyjamas. You get a cloth and wipe the dirt off the dress, tidying it up a little and leaving it on a hanger where El can see it. It isn’t as good as a full wash, but it’s still an improvement. 

She eventually joins you in the bathroom.

“Can I wash your face?” You ask, showing her the sink of water and the cloth in your hand.

She touches the water and the cloth carefully before nodding slowly at you. Gently, you wipe over her face, removing both the dirt and the old makeup Mike had applied to her face yesterday. She watches you as you move the cloth around her face, carefully scrubbing at a clump of dirt that has nestled its way into her eyebrow.

“Pretty,” she says, looking at you past the washcloth.

“You think I’m pretty? Thank you, El,” you smile. “I think you’re really pretty too,”

She ducks her head at this, pulling away from the cloth. “Lie,” she mutters, embarrassed.

“Hey!” you say, encouraging her head back up so you can look her in the eye. “Friends don’t lie, El. You are really pretty,”

The girl runs an insecure hand over her scalp, but doesn’t duck her head again.

“So what if you don’t have any hair right now? It just means everyone can see your pretty eyes better,” You say, repeating a line your mom once told you when you accidentally cut your bangs too short. “Besides, hair grows back, kiddo. In fact, I know in the future, you have lovely curly hair,”

“Really?” she asks, wide eyed. 

“Really,” you confirm. “Now stay still, I haven’t cleaned behind your ears,”

—

You wake up with visions of the demogorgon still haunting your mind, and a cramp in your mostly healed leg. You had given El your bed and slept curled up in your armchair. You limp over to the toaster and put in some eggos for you both.

“Hurt?” El asks, making you jump. She is peeking her head through the bedroom door which you had left open through the night.

“Uh, yeah. The demogorgon hurt me.”

“When?”

“Tuesday. The same day Mike spent the day with you and you saw the picture of Will.”

“Mike…”

“You’re gonna see him again today, kiddo. In fact, he’s gonna need your help. You remember the mouthbreathers from the middle school?”

She gets a mischievous smile as she thinks back to that day, giving you a nod. 

“Well, they’re going to try and hurt Mike and Dustin. You’ll need to use your powers to save them.”

“Use powers?” She says, her eyes suddenly filling with doubt and fear. The toaster pops and you lead her to the table, handing her the plate of waffles. 

“Your powers aren’t bad, El. You can use them to hurt people, yes, but you can also use them to help. And Mike will need your help today,”

—

You walk Eleven back to the woods, and show her where she can hide near the quarry until the time is right. 

“Okay, today will be a little intense, so I need you to listen, alright? After you’ve helped Mike and Dustin you can stop by Mike’s house to resupply but you need to leave as soon as you can, okay? Your papa is going to come looking for you.”

“Papa?” El gasps, shoulders tensing, and you can’t help but wrap her in your arms once more. 

“Yeah. But I promise we’re all going to do everything we can to keep him away from you, okay? Just make sure Mike and Dustin leave the house really quickly,”

“Okay,” she nods. 

You lean back so you can look into her eyes. “I’ll meet up with you later today, alright? I promise. But you need to help Mike and Dustin on your own first.”

“You go where?”

“I need to go help some other people now, and then we’re all going to meet up together, alright? I will see you later.”

“You promise,” she states.

“That’s right, I do,” You smile at her, giving her one last hug before leaving her in her hiding place. As much as it kills you to leave her, she needs to do this on her own. The situation with Lucas has knocked her confidence. She needs to know that her powers can do good.

—

Your trek over to the police station takes you through town. In the parking lot of the furniture store, you spot a familiar looking car, with a familiar looking boy sulking while sat on the hood. You look at the town clock—do you have time for this? Just because Steve was one of your favourite characters, doesn’t mean you can ignore your responsibilities every time you see him- you need to be at the police station pretty soon. You look over again at the dejected figure, who seems  to be making a tremendous effort to try and fade out of existence. 

God damn it. 

“Steve!” you call out, jogging over. “You look like hell,”

He stays quiet for long enough that it starts to worry you. He just holds his rapidly warming can of soda to his face and stares at the ground. Eventually, you hop up onto the hood of his car next to him, and sit in silence until he’s ready.

“I think I fucked up,” he eventually says.

“Want to talk about it?” you ask, gently. 

“No. I just want—” he breaks off, running a frustrated hand through his hair. “I just- do you ever wish you were someone else? Like, a completely different person? I don’t know. It’s stupid,”

“It’s not stupid, I get it. Like you could just wipe the slate clean and start over, right?”

“Exactly,” he turns to you, finally making eye contact. His face looks even worse up close. “I just think I’ve fucked this all up, y’know? And if I were a different person, I could do it all differently. Do it better,”

“Why can’t you things differently while still being you?” you ask, encouraging him to get to the root of what he’s saying.

“Because! I’m me and everyone knows me. Everyone knows who Steve Harrington is,” He says his own name with venom.

“And who is Steve Harrington?”

He goes quiet again before responding. “An asshole.”

God he makes your heart break sometimes. You shuffle closer to him on the hood so you can lean into his shoulder. He always seemed like a touchy person on the show, and you hope that it will help ground him. The way he sags into your side seems to prove you right. 

“I’ll admit,” You start, “You’ve done some pretty asshole-ish things. Was the graffiti on the marquee you?”

“Tommy,” He replies, “But I agreed. I had him stand on my shoulders so he could do it,”

“That sucks. I bet that really hurt Nancy.”

“Just because someone hurts me, I don’t have to hurt them back twice as bad, right?” he mutters darkly. 

“Right,” you respond, a little surprised that he remembered what you said. “So what are you doing to fix it?”

“What?”

“You say you’re an asshole, but you’re just a person. A person who is making asshole-ish actions maybe—” you nudge him with a smirk and are happy to see him crack a little smile back, “—but you can choose to be different whenever you like.”

“It's not that easy!”

“It really, really is.” You put every ounce of sincerity you can manage into your words, watching Steve consider them. He fusses with his hair anxiously, hesitation lingering around him.

“People will- they’ll say things.”

“People like… Tommy and Carol?”

He hesitates another moment, then nods. 

“Fuck Tommy and Carol!” you say, making him burst into a shocked laugh. “Who cares what those two miserable bitches think. Don’t let them drag you down with them.”

“They’re my only real friends…” Steve all but whispers, as if it's a shameful secret.

“They don’t seem like very ‘real’ friends to me,” you say firmly. “I’ve never had many friends either. I know it's scary to turn your back on them, but you’ll make more friends. Better friends,”

“You never had many friends?” Steve stares at you, aghast.

“Not the point I was trying to make, but yeah. I was alone for most of school.”

“But, why? You’re so nice,”

“I was bullied a lot. Most people didn’t want to be seen with me after that,”

“That’s stupid. They didn’t know what they were missing,” Steve says, with such seriousness that you almost believe it yourself. 

“You’re sweet. Now stop trying to change the subject,” You shove him gently, making him laugh again. “You want to be a different person? Then make different choices.”

“I don’t know how,” he replies honestly.

“You’re smart, you’ll figure it out. But I’ll give you a hint. Spray paint is real annoying to scrub off a marquee,” You slide off the car and give him a smile. “I need to go, but I’ll see you around, yeah?”

Steve looks into your eyes with a small smile playing on his lips. “Yeah, see you around Y/n.”

— 

Your conversation with Steve seems to have delayed you perfectly: from across the street you can see Hopper, Joyce, Barb, Nancy, and Jonathan bundled into the car, clearly arguing. Arguing about where the kids might be and how to find them. An argument you can put an end to.

You rap your knuckles on the window, making them all jump.

“Hey, let me in!” you call through the glass.

“Y/n?” Jonathan questions, not opening the door.

“Let her in kid, she knows everything,” Hopper says. Jonathan does and you squeeze into the already crowded backseat. “So, where are they?” he asks.

“Junkyard, but we’ll need to warn them we’re coming,” you say. Jonathan, Nancy and Barb look at you in astonishment. You’ll need to catch them up to speed. 

“How are we supposed to warn them?” Joyce asks.

You pull out the walkie-talkie you took from under Will’s bed two nights ago and smile.

—

Once you’re close enough to the junkyard to be in range, you start talking. It's only you and Hopper left in the car, the others being dropped off at the Byers’ house to leave space for the kids.

“Hey. This is Y/n, from the arcade,” You speak into the walkie. “El, do you remember what I told you before I sent you to the quarry? About how we’d meet up later? I’m here with Chief Hopper. I know where you guys are and we’re heading there now. I’m not going to say where in case they can listen in, but Eleven knows that I’m telling the truth. We need you to meet with us when we call, okay? Do you copy?”

Silence. For 4, 5 seconds, then—

“This is Mike. We copy,”

You sag in relief. “See you soon, stay hidden until you hear us call, okay? And Dustin, this is not a Lando Calrissian situation!”

—

Hopper insists on you staying in the car while he takes out the three lab agents prowling the junkyard. You almost protest, but stop yourself. Those guys have real guns! You don’t have plot armor! You keep your head ducked below the dashboard until Hopper gives you a wave to let you know it’s safe. 

You hop out the car and lead Hopper straight over to the abandoned school bus, knocking on the side of it. 

“This is Y/n and Hopper! You’re safe to come out!” you call. The kids come scrambling out of their hiding places, looking at you and Hopper with wide, suspicious eyes.

Except for El. She immediately runs up to you, before awkwardly stopping. She looks up at you, looks at your arms, and shifts in place. Oh. She wants a hug.

You crouch down and wrap her in your arms, hearing her exhale in relief.

“You promised,” she says.

“I did. Me and the Chief are here to take you guys somewhere safe,” you say. “Well… safer, at least.”

“How do you know El?” Mike squares up with you, eyes narrowed.

“And how did you know about Lando?” Dustin adds, as if that is of equal importance. 

You turn to Mike. “Where do you think she slept last night? I fetched her from the woods and we had a lovely girl’s night.”

Mike looks abashed, knowing he was the one who scared her off into the woods. 

You turn to Dustin. “That one is a little harder to explain. Come on, we’ll talk back at the house,”

—

“So you’re from the future?” Dustin shouts in excitement.

“More like a parallel universe? But kind of, yeah.” you reply.

“Do we have flying cars yet?”

“No.”

“A Mars colony?”

“No.”

“Holograms?” 

“No.”

“What about—”

“Enough!” Hopper yells, silencing the room. “Now that we’re all on the same page, what do we do next?” he asks, making everyone stare at you. 

“Well… in the show El tries to contact Will here, but doesn’t have enough power. So everyone goes to the middle school to make a sensory deprivation bath to help her,”

“Why the middle school?” Lucas asks.

“We need the de-icing salt to make the water buoyant enough. You filled the Byers’ old kiddie pool,” At your words, Joyce leaves the room to go fetch it.

“Why do we even need to do this? Can’t you just tell us where he is?” Jonathan asks, frustrated. He hasn’t made full eye contact with you since you admitted you knew Will was going to be taken, hands clenched by his side. 

“He was eventually found at the library in the version of the story I know. But do we know if that’s changed? If I tell you to go to the library and I’m wrong, you could get killed by the demogorgon before you ever reach him. We need to be sure.” you say firmly. 

Glancing at Barb, you continue: “Besides, I’ve made changes in this world. I don’t know if that will change where he’s found.”

“What kind of changes?” Nancy asks.

You had tidily avoided mentioning your interference with Barb’s death in your original recap, focusing on Will’s disappearance and how you knew about it, but you suppose you were going to have to answer this question eventually. 

“Barbara,” you say, looking at her cautiously. “You were going to be attacked by the demogorgon that night at Steve’s house, by the pool. I lured it away.”

“Attacked…” Barb repeats, sensing the hidden meaning in your words. You give her a guilty half-smile. 

“You fought that thing?” Dustin asks, wide eyed.

“Less ‘fought’ and more ‘biked away from it while crying’, but yeah,” you respond, ducking your head. 

“She told me about why Lonnie was really here, too,” Joyce adds, throwing down the old kiddie pool and rejoining the group. “Helped me find his damn lawyer pamphlet so I could kick him out after the wake.”

“Lawyer pamphlet?” Jonathan repeats. 

Joyce looks at him guiltily. “He wanted to sue the quarry. That’s why he came back,”

Jonathan ducks his head, hiding his anger, and you watch Nancy place a hand on his back in comfort.

“We need to move, we have the pool. Let's go,” Hopper says, making everyone stand up and herd into the various cars. 

You end up in a car with most of the kids and Hopper. El stays stuck to your side, and Mike stays stuck to hers. Dustin and Lucas have a brief argument over who else gets to ride with you before Hopper yells at them to hurry up and Dustin scurries off in defeat. 

“You guys ever wanted to break into your middle school?” You turn back in your seat to ask them, making the boys’ eyes light up. 

—

At the school, Barb pulls you away from the group. You’re on the hunt for duct tape to help black-out some goggles that Joyce had found in the science room. 

“So… I’m supposed to be dead,” she starts as she leads you towards a maintenance closet.

“That’s what happens in the show.” you say nervously, unsure of where she might be going with this. 

“How does it happen?” she asks.

“I’m not sure if I should-”

“Just tell me,” she says bluntly, cutting you off and staring you down. 

You sigh. “Nancy and Steve go upstairs to dry off after jumping in the pool. You say you’re not having fun, Nancy tells you to leave. You go out and sit by the pool and the blood from where you cut yourself attracts the demogorgon. It drags you to the Upside Down and you’re dead within minutes.” 

It’s not a fun story to tell.

“Just like that?” Barb asks.

“Just like that,” You confirm. “Nancy goes off the deep end trying to get answers. She investigates the woods, she talks to the police, she does everything she can to try and find you. In the show, El isn’t just in the bath to try and contact Will. She tries to contact you, too,”

“But I’m dead,” Barb concludes, clearly upset. “How come Will can be saved but I can’t?”

“I don’t know. The demogorgon kills most of the people it takes. Will just got lucky,”

“So it isn’t just me?” 

“What do you mean?”

“It isn’t just me that gets killed. I’m not the only one who couldn’t survive it,”

Ah. That’s what this is about. You stop walking and face her properly.

“Barb, this thing is a killing machine. The fact that Will has survived this long is the exception, not the rule. Two hunters, Dale and Henry, were killed by this thing a few days ago. Two grown men, probably both armed, and they couldn’t fight this thing. You’re not weak for dying to it.”

She sighs and leans against the corridor wall. 

“I saw it. That night when I was meant to die. I was getting into my car when I felt like something was watching me. It made my lights go out, chased me along the side of the road for almost a mile,” she stops and chokes a breath, trying to calm down. “I was so scared, I was crying but I didn’t want to pull over in case it caught up,”

She puts her head in her hands, taking deep breaths. You put a hand on her arm in comfort. 

“I don’t know how I’m supposed to do this,” she says. “Knowing that that thing is out there. I’m not even supposed to be here, how am I supposed to help?”

“If it helps, I’m not supposed to be here either,” you murmur, at a loss on what to say. 

She huffs out a bitter laugh. “Why didn’t you just run?” she asks. “You could have just kept your head down and not gotten involved, no one would blame you,”

“The same reason you’re not running, I suppose,” you reply quietly. 

The two of you stare at each other for several moments, before she gives you a nod and continues walking down the hall to the maintenance closet.

“Are you coming?” she calls over her shoulder to you. 

You jog to catch up, feeling like you’ve achieved a kinship with the girl. 

[edb954]

Taking Back What’s Mine…

Henry Creel/001 x reader

(Summary: Peter/Henry/001 has come to take back what's his...)

(Warning!: Possessiveness, Dark!Henry, Manipulation, Yandere Themes, Forced Relationship, implications of violence and murder.)

   When you first met Peter/Henry you thought he was sweet kind caring.

  When you both started to call it a 'relationship' he became very different.. he became very possessive, Manipulative, and dare you say Jealous no matter who you talked too. Whether if it was one of the other faculty members or one of the children.

  The one orderly you used to talk to all the time was Lucas, he was the first one you met in the lab, he showed you around as well as helped you when ever you needed it. One day, after he helped you with some files. You were called to Brenner office be told the god awful news that he had an accident in one of the experiment rooms and passed away.

  You knew that it was an 'accident' you knew that someone had done it and you had the very suspicion that it was your 'boyfriend' Henry. You started to become, nervous...scared even, you didn't know what to do, so you went to Brenner... or tried to. Before, you could get to his office somebody wrapped a hand around your mouth, with a cloth wrapped around it, and dragged you into a room.

  When you woke up, all you could hear was screams, gun shots, and the blaring of alarms. You opened your eyes to see a little girl with her knees to her chest not just any girl but, eleven. She looked even more terrified than you.

"011?" You asked to make sure it's her. She looked at you with teary eyes. You quickly got up and went over to her. "What happened? What's going on?"

"It's all my fault.. I trusted him.. b-but.." "Hey, eleven you need to calm down for me for a second and tell me what happened... please." I said, looking at her with pleading eyes.

"T-the blonde orderly... he said that him me and you would escape. I-I took the thing out of his neck so that we could a-and he has powers as well and k-kil-killed the men and brought me in here and showed me that he's 001. A-and now I-I think he's killing everyone else e-ev-even the other siblings." She explained with a shaky voice, and tears rolling down her eyes.

  My breath got lodged in my throat. I knew it was him... "Eleven, did he show you a way out?" I asked, she nodded going over to a pipe. "T-this is where he said I could escape.." she said.

"Okay, eleven I need you to go in there and meet me outside okay.." "N-no I don't want to leave you here." She said. You sighed.

"O-okay. I need you to wrap your arms around my neck and also hide your face into my neck okay. Please do this for me. I'm going to get us out of here.." She nodded as I lifted her up and did as you told.

  You took a deep breath and opened the door, as soon as you did you could have instantly gotten sick or fainted when you were faced with the smell of blood, seeing it everywhere along with bodies of staff members, guards, and the other children. You heard elevens breath hitch you put your arm on her hand whispering,"it's okay don't look.."

  You began walking towards the office to get your keys, seeing more and more bodies blood, you came across the testing room where 010 and Brenner that was next to where you needed to get your keys, seeing both of them gone. You tried to stay as calm as possible for eleven but she could tell you were just as terrified. You quickly and quietly opened the door, got your keys and closed it. When you came back out, you heard a horrible high pitched scream not that faraway from where you were. You hesitantly looked over to see the bodies ended near the rainbow room. Your breath hitched.

Without another thought, you took off speed walking to get to the stairs so Eleven and you can both get out safely. Trying your best to not make any noise while you had eleven in your arms. Not looking back for a second you made it to the door to the stairs. Used the key card pushed the door open and took off running not caring how loud the door slammed. You ran as fast as you could with Eleven in your arms until you got your car. Putting Eleven in the back seat and you in the front, driving as far as possible from the awful place.

(Two years later)

After, that night at the lab you took Eleven to your home. You both decided you wanted a fresh start so you did or at least tried until El came across a group of kids looking for their friend Will Byers. You both decided to help them as well as Joyce, Jonathan, Nancy, and Hopper. Unfortunately the lab had found both of you but thank the heavens the demogorgans got them.

After, that huge fiasco Hopper let you both stay at his cabin in the woods to protect El and you. You couldn’t be more grateful the three of you became close it felt like an actual family. It was peaceful for awhile. Until, their was more problems going on with Will and more demogorgans. El going missing or well to find her true parents, to reuniting with everyone, to closing the gate to the upside down, and to Now, Eleven was currently hanging out with the gang and her newest friend Max.

While, you were peacefully reading on the porch of the cabin. You got up to start some cleaning to help hopper out a bit when you suddenly heard a all to familiar voice behind you..

“Y/n..” You slowly turn around to see him.

“W-what h-how d-“

"Oh, Y/n I told you I'd come back for you.." He took a step closer, which made you back up into a wall. "Didn't I?"

You still couldn't believe he was right in front you after all this time, thinking you and Eleven had gotten away. Of course, you were wrong.

“I’ve missed you so much. I tried to find you ever since.” He said, caressing your cheek.

You slapped his hand away and tried to push him away but because of his damn mind powers he kept you in place.

“I went back to the room but you weren’t their… you left.. without me…” he wrapped a hand around your neck forcing you to look at him. “We’re you just going to leave me their? Hm? After all of our plans we had made?”

“T-those plans changed after, I found out who you really are and for what you have done!” I snapped.

“I did it for us baby. So that we could be free.” “What about the children? They didn’t have to die.. you didn’t need to kill them..” you said tears streaming down.

“Oh.. but I did.. the hurt you and Eleven. Why do you still cry for them Y/n after everything they to the both of you? You think you need them, but you don't. You don't. Oh, but I know you're just scared. I was scared once too. I know what it's like to be different. To be alone in this world.” He said, wiping away your tears.

“Come with me.. Come back to me…” He said.

“A-and if I don’t come with you..” you asked.

You saw his eyes go dark with a sinister look.

“Then, I will make sure everything for you hell. Either way you will be coming with me with or without your permission..” he showed you what would happen if you didn’t (which is pretty much everything that happens in seasons 3 and 4) he grabbed your jaw so that you are now fully looking at him. “Your Mine! You belong to me! And I’m not letting you go this time!”

“I-i will come with you.. but please leave them alone.. I will do anything, I won’t run, I won’t get help, I will give up everything… , just please just leave them out of it… please. No more..” you asked with tears. He looked at you for a moment debating then smirking.

“As you wish darling.”

And, with that you packed some of your things and left both Hopper and El letters. Before, taking Henry’s hand and leaving.

You’d be lying if you didn’t still have any feelings. Those just don’t just go away. You knew he’d find you and bring you back to him. Tho it hurts you for what he has done and leaves you feeling guilty and a bit disgusted. But, You had no other choice to save your friends family Hawkins. You had to do it. You had no choice.

You knew you could never escape him.. like Henry said you were his so he took back what’s his…

Word count: 1542

(A/n: Oop! I have chills anyone else?😂 I hope this story makes sense also, let me know if I should do a part 2 too this! I’d be up for it! Also let me know what y’all think! Talk to y’all soon bye!)

[jojikawa]

𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝘽𝙧𝙞𝙙𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝘿𝙞𝙤: 𝙃𝙞𝙨 𝙒𝙤𝙧𝙡𝙙 | 𝙋𝙖𝙧𝙩 𝙏𝙬𝙤

WICKED HEARTS

Pilot | MASTERLIST

Author’s note: This is a POC FRIENDLY blog. I am a black girl and I want to write more fics that don’t leave the reader racially ambiguous. This is self-indulgent and I’m just sharing it with you. Jojo is far from realistic. So, I don’t need to be either. Please don’t leave hate! Thanks! 

This is a DARK romance so there will be toxic relationship themes, NSFW themes, descriptions of violence, and gore. There will also be unintentional sexism and racism from the characters toward the reader. The reader is canonically black in this AU but it is written for people from all walks of life to enjoy.

TW? Dio forces his will onto the reader. (Could be triggering but not rape :) )

vampire dividers by mmadeinheavenn

"You are my JOY..." Art by KDash_01 on Twitter!

Authors Note (2/7/2023): this temporary note will be removed soon. I use eleven labs AI to make reading more accessible bc it's hard for me to just sit and read stuff but I ran out of monthly credits to use the program so the audiobook for this chapter will be added later. I am very sorry! - Maron.

WORD COUNT: 3.7k

Several years have passed since your incident with Dio. You avoided seeing him and he didn't try seeking you out…at first.

You introduced yourself to Jonathan and the both of you became fast friends. Although it was platonic, Dio couldn’t stand the fact that someone that belonged to him was able to be in the presence of Jonathan. It wasn’t fair. He didn’t care that things were messed up because of him. Jonathan shouldn’t get to talk to you. This newfound jealousy sat at his core and festered. Dio had been putting on a front the entire time of being “Good guy Dio.” It was the only way he could ever gain back the trust of everyone else. Soon he would turn on them. 

Dio began poisoning his own adoptive father. The very person that showed kindness to him, giving him the benefit of the doubt when no one else would. He lost you but he only continued burning bridges with the ones he loved. Were the two of you new lovers now? He couldn’t stand the thought of it. He didn’t want to believe it because you were too smart for a fool like Jonathan. The idea still ate away at him. Jonathan was a fool but he was indeed much nicer than Dio. 

The rumors of you dating Jonathan were only present in Dio’s head. It was clear to any and everyone that the two of you were just friends. Jonathan often asked about Erina but it seemed like she wanted nothing to do with the Joestar boys. The only thing he could do was respect that. Jonathan would also apologize to you on behalf of Dio. It wasn’t needed or wanted but you accepted it regardless. You shared your way of making tea and baked goods over the years. You were a very prominent family friend. Something that Dio could no longer ignore.

You heard of George Joestar’s sickness and he personally requested that he have some of your famous dessert and tea. You were happy to prepare it for him but it was only once you were ready to have Jonathan deliver, you got the news that the man went out of town. You arrived at the Joestar manor and the door was answered by their butler. That meant that Dio was the only other person taking care of George. 

You met with their father. He looked pale and as if he hadn’t slept in days. It was like he could collapse at any moment. “Hello there, Mr. Joestar.” You greeted the old man with a sweet smile. “I brought your favorite.”You showed him a slice of cake. “Jonathan told me you shouldn’t be eating any sweets but I couldn’t help it.” You then took the tea kettle out of your bag. “I was also able to make it here while the tea was still warm.”

A small smile crept up on the man’s face. “Thank you so much, (y/n). You’ve been a true asset to my boys over the years, but most of all, to me.” You laughed, seating yourself in a nearby chair. “Oh, no worries Mr. Joestar. I believe that I’m just doing the bare minimum.”

Dio lingered outside the door of George’s room. He didn’t even want to admit something like this but he could say he was jealous of his father as well. He was jealous of anyone you gave your time to because of how exclusive your relationship was before.

The muffled voices ceased speaking. Dio began to leave. He didn’t want to see you right now but he was not fast enough. Just as he turned away, he heard the door open and close followed by faint footsteps. As flustered as he had gotten over you, he couldn’t help but face you. There was no way. In what world could he actually be able to ignore you when you were only a few feet away?

When you noticed Dio, it was clear he was eavesdropping. You wanted to believe your feelings for him had faded but a small bit of them was mostly there. You never paid any mind to him until now. He had grown just as big as Jonathan. Then you noticed his arm. It was in a sling as if he had broken it. 

“What happened to you?” You whispered, holding your hand up to your mouth in disbelief. The attire you had on wasn’t something Dio had seen before. It was fit for the cold weather but could be considered promiscuous. A Victorian-style corset dress that highlighted your bust with sleeves that hang off the shoulders. It hugged your curves and left nothing to his imagination. All topped with a beautiful fur cloak that concealed the rest of your body. It seemed as though you dressed a lot nicer than you had when you were only children. 

“It is nothing of your concern.”

You huffed. “I don’t believe it’s nothing.” You laughed out loud, but just a little. This made Dio grit his teeth. “And why do you care? It’s clear that you’ve married some rich bastard. Go bother him.” 

“Still as bitter as ever.” You muttered. “I’m not married, Dio. Jonathan hasn’t told you about me I assumed?” You made your way over to him, examining his arm without touching it just yet. “No. Jonathan hasn’t told me anything about you of the sort. It’s like you want nothing to do with me.” His voice was laced with venom. He held so much anger. All of it would just diminish if you just became his again. 

“The Pendletons had given me a small loan to begin my own tea company a few years ago. I’ve paid them back since then.” You smiled softly. Dio’s face softened at you. Did you finally find salvation from your financial problems…without him? “The tea company you’ve always talked about having…?” Dio remembered all the times that you’d mention being the owner of a tea company in private. It was just something he thought you’d talk about in passing. How could he not have known?!

The Pendletons!? How could they? Dio was supposed to be the one helping you achieve your dreams. Not them. This only made his hate grow more. He was beginning to face the harsh reality that your life never revolved around him. 

You nodded. “My life is my own now.” Grabbing him by his big shoulder, you ushered him to come with you. The oversized man followed. They must’ve tried really hard to hide an entire tea company from him. It didn’t sit right with him that he was completely flushed out of your life. Now there would be a dozen men constantly pining after you.

Dio told you the directions to his study and that’s where you would take care of him. A part of you really wanted to see if he was actually handicapped or if this was a ploy for sympathy. Other than Jonathan and Erina, you were the only person who knew the real Dio and the lengths he could go to. “How did you hurt your arm?” You asked politely. Your fingers grazed themselves over his sling. “A street fight.” He grumbled. You rolled your eyes. “You’re too lavish and frilly for street fights at your age. Am I really supposed to believe that?” You placed your high-end purse to the side and your jewelry made audible jingling sounds as you removed your fur coat. 

Frustrated, Dio ripped off the sling, throwing it to the ground. “Okay. I lied. What do you want me to say? Jonathan attacked me.” 

“Mmm.” You pursed your lips. “Jonathan doesn’t strike me as one to attack his own brother. And to think, the two of you were getting along so well.” You placed a hand on your cheek. You’ve changed so much and grown up quite beautifully. “Oh, so you think I’m lying?” Dio narrowed his eyes at you. “You lied about your arm just now.” You snapped. “I bet you’ve done something wrong and now you’re trying to act hurt for sympathy.” 

“You don’t know anything, woman.” He spat. “You barely even know the man in front of you.” 

You quickly grabbed your handbag. “Fine. Then I have no reason to stay here.” You shrugged to yourself as you put your coat back on. “Wait!” Dio raised his voice a few octaves. You felt his arm grab yours. “Yes?”

“Don’t…leave.” 

The grip he had on your arm tightened with every word. “I’m begging you. Please don’t leave.” Dio cried his crocodile tears. You wanted so badly to believe him but you knew better.

“Dio…” You flashed him a sad smile, raising your free hand to his cheek. You wiped his fake tears and he leaned to your touch. “I still have feelings for you. I’ve already accepted that I will never stop loving you and I’ve held our relationship close to my heart…”

Dio’s face lit up. You had to admit that he looked very adorable when he didn’t have such a scowl on his face. “My feelings have remained for you as well. I haven’t had any relations with any other woman in hopes that one day you-“

“I don’t believe we can be together.”

A force that was never known before today filled Dio. The pit in your stomach that causes one to throw up. The feeling that makes you want to throw yourself off of a nearby cliff. Rejection.

You expect Dio to insinuate violence again, but he didn’t. He let go of your arm. “What?” The words fell breathlessly from his mouth. “But I did everything right.” The man cried more, except his voice wasn’t soft. It was deep and raspy. You frowned. “Dio, if you see your behavior now, then you’re solidifying my suspicions of you not changing your outlook on life.” 

Once again, Dio let you go. It was probably the right thing to do. Dio was clearly no good and his presence would only hold you back.

This devil wouldn’t be able to accept the harsh reality. 

Dio did what any man of his stature would. He drank.

It was unlike him to drink but essentially losing you again was enough to drive him to crippling alcoholism. He roamed the streets, not caring about any danger that came his way. It was all over anyway. Jonathan knew he was poisoning George and could be back with evidence at any moment. Dio would rot in jail and he would never see you again. 

In a drunken state, Dio bumped into a duo of ruffians who were also drunk and didn’t take kindly to his misstep. The idea crossed his mind to use the mask on the men. It would surely kill them. It was how he was planning to kill Jonathan, after all. 

Instead, he learned a new secret. Something far more valuable than anything else he would have known about the mask. In the process of being attacked by his vampire victims, Dio hurt the very arm that he had been using as leverage in the past, needing the arm sling for real this time. It was embarrassing, but he didn’t care. Not one bit. There was a change in his plan that could turn everything in his favor.

A day later, you got the news that Dio died. The Joestar mansion caught fire. The news got to you the next morning. You’d be a liar if you said you didn’t cry for him. Dio was sad and miserable but you always hoped that he would come to his senses. Now, you could never be with him.

But life goes on.

You managed your tea company as normal but you found it hard to build connections with other men. No suitors gave you the same attention he did. They wanted you because you were pretty or for your money so their attempts to romance you were very disingenuous. You had gotten thoughts about visiting Jonathan but you believed you still needed time. Seeing him would only make you think about Dio.

You often beat yourself up for being so harsh with Dio. Perhaps, leaving him to figure things out on his own was too cruel of you. The next day, word got to you that Jonathan recovered but there was still no sign of Dio’s body. You assumed the worst and that his body was burned beyond recognition or still buried under the rubble. Either way, it contributed to your sadness and made your job hard. You decided that you would have an assistant take over while you allowed yourself to mourn the loss.

Jonathan and Erina spent their time together. They caught up and began to bond again. You went back to visit the Joestar mansion…or what was left of it. You left flowers for Dio the first day. You hoped that he was resting in a better place now. 

You checked into a nearby Inn. You planned to stay there for a few days and maybe visit Erina too. You were still trying to work things out. 

You were shown to your room. It was the most expensive suite. You had it all to yourself. You often treated yourself and being able to have good living conditions made the situation a bit more bearable. But when nightfall came about, your neighbors would realize that this inn was a house of horrors.

You settled down, bathed yourself, and got ready for the next day. Your night had been going like any other but this night, in particular, had you more on edge. You felt as if you were being watched. Sometimes you would even feel a presence behind you but when you looked…it was nothing?

Perhaps you were put off by the sudden bad news. You figured things took a toll on you and the best idea was to get some rest. Unfortunately, it seems that your sheets weren’t the cleanest. Anyone else would be furious at paying for such a nice suite to have dirty sheets, but from your humble beginnings, you understood that mistakes happen. You would simply request new sheets. You went to the front desk and talked to the staff. They sent a young man up there to change your sheets immediately. 

You thanked the staff and began to walk to your room. It had only been a few minutes since you left but there was already no sight of the boy. “Fast service, I guess.” 

When you got to your room, your door was wide open. The room was dark and it was freezing cold as if all the windows were open. “What in god’s name…?” You reluctantly entered your room. You used the light of the moon to navigate your way. You found your matches and began to relight the candles that were scattered about. You closed your window and tried to warm up once again. When you arrived at the bathroom, you heard…gurgling. 

You placed your hand on the door of the bathroom, trying to gain the courage to open it. You were already getting spooked by the random noises and figures you were seeing through the night. The last thing you wanted was a haunted inn room. 

You barely pushed the door before you heard a deep voice emit from behind you. It was sly and very familiar to you. Could you have been hallucinating!?

“I wouldn’t go in there if I were you.”

You quickly spun around. Greeted by a huge man you’ve never seen before, you opened your mouth to scream. His speed allowed him to cover your mouth in an instant with his face obscured by the uneven levels of darkness in the room. The other hand lightly caressed your arm now that he was behind you. 

Tears welled up and immediately began spilling out of your eyes. You grabbed the hand of your attacker, trying to pry it away from your mouth so that you could cry for help.

But it was like he had the strength of 1000 men!

“It’s honestly so touching that you’ve come all this way to show your appreciation for me. Even after ignoring me for 7 years.”

You squirmed, trying to get out of his grip. This has to be a hallucination or ghost of sorts. This suite was haunted. It had to be.

The attacker let you tire yourself out before bluntly dropping you to the ground. You huffed as you tried to crawl away. They watched your pathetic attempt to run away, slowly walking alongside you.

“Somebody help me!” You cried out as you reached the door, only for it to slowly shut in your face. The intruder picked you up before turning you around. Then you saw his face.

His face.

“Dio? You’re alive?” A wave of different emotions washed over you as you processed the face of the man in front of you.

It was Dio.

But Dio Brando died in a fire.

“My lovely (y/n).”

A clawed hand tenderly rubbed your face, staining it with blood. The metallic smell invaded your senses. Your fight or flight mode was going off, like, 30 times more than necessary. “You’re not real!” You squeezed your eyes shut. “Dio died. Stop pretending to be him.”

“Oh, but I am. Your eyes do not deceive you, my dear.” 

The person in front of you was clearly Dio, but he looked so different. His hair was messy and he was completely covered in blood. 

“Wh-what happened to you? How did you live?” You choked out. You didn’t know whether to be overjoyed or completely scared out of your mind. Why was he covered in blood?

Dio laughed. “Oh, Darling, I should have been more honest with you at our last meeting.” He smirked at your behavior. It felt so much better being in direct control this way. He originally didn’t like the idea of scaring you but he seemed to have changed his mind. 

Before he could continue, there was a knock on the door. 

“Ma’am? We heard screaming coming from your room! Is everything alright?” The night attendant spoke muffled speech through the door. “Oh, it seems we have a guest.” Dio placed you on your feet and walked to the door. He opened it to reveal an innocent bystander that he pulled inside. He didn’t allow them to scream or even make a sound before he drained them of all of their life essence, making them as skinny as a skeleton.

You wailed and cried at the sight of witnessing death so closely. With the leftover strength you had, you ran and locked yourself in the bathroom. ‘Dio is a monster!’ You internally panicked. Were you going to die too? Was this his angry spirit coming to punish you for the petty antics the two of you engaged in? Your life was finally beginning to go well. Why? Why would this happen?

“Darling? Don’t tell me you’ve gone in there anyway, despite my requests for you not to.”

It was Dio again. He was jiggling the knob and trying to get inside. 

You took deep breaths, looking around for an escape. There was a small window at the very top of the room you could crawl out of. It seemed like it would work but then you heard a groaning sound.

The gurgling from before got louder until you turned around to see the Inn worker from before. His skin was saggy, pale, and covered in blood while he walked with a limp over to you. It was a zombie. 

Not another moment passed. The door was forcefully removed from the hinges, breaking in half and falling to the ground like scraps of paper. Dio made quick work of the zombie, destroying its body and tossing the remains to the side. 

“I can tell you how I lived.” Dio grabbed you and removed you from the bathroom. “I think you should listen to me, for once.”

Appearing in his hands was a peculiar-looking mask.  “With the help of this, you can live as I do.” Like a painting, Dio paralleled the mask with his very own face. 

You shook your head. “N-No! I don’t want to be a monster.” You tried to pull away but he did not budge. “I don’t remember when I asked such a thing.” He pulled you closer. “Live as I do, (y/n). Reject your humanity. Live forever with me and we can rule the world.” As he spoke, you could see the teeth in his mouth. His canines were longer than the average humans, becoming more visible after noticing them for the first time. 

You wanted to believe so badly that this was just a dream. A nightmare. Anything that meant that it wasn’t real. This was too much. Dio was dead. Dio died in a damn house fire!!

“No!” You shouted, yanking your arm away from him. It was painful but you managed to slip through his grasp and fall to the floor. You stumbled to your feet, attempting to run to the door but Dio tripped you. You didn’t stop. You crawled until you could get on your feet again, but Dio pulled your leg back towards him. A haunting smile crept up on his face. “Dio, please!” You screamed, clawing and kicking at the man. You bruised him, drawing blood, but he didn’t care. You could fight until you got tired. “No! Stop!” The monstrous man tried to force the mask on your face. You didn’t want that. You didn’t want to be a creature like him. “Please, stop!” You continued to fight him, your muscles burning at the overexertion. 

“Resisting only makes it more painful.” He whispered into your ear, barely moving a muscle as you fought for your life. “No! This isn’t right. Please stop!” Your muffled cries fell on deaf ears as he smothered your face with the mask. He used the fresh blood coating his hand to activate it, causing the spikes to come out and penetrate your skull. The sound of your burning transformation filled the entire Inn. It was almost a miracle that you didn’t lose your voice from all the screaming.

“The pain is only temporary, my dear.”

[dadsbongos]

chapter 3 - hungry howie's big date

2.6K words

warnings - mmm? daddy issues, i think that's it

prev. chapter / masterlist / next chapter

It’s during third-period chemistry with his favorite lab partner, Chrissy Cunningham, that Eddie is interrupted from work he was actually looking forward to. By Michael Wheeler of all people.

“Journalism Pass!” Mike holds up the back of his sister’s badge to Mrs. Clink and she bats her hand dismissively.

Chrissy tightens the scratched plastic goggles around her head while Eddie leans his hip against their work table, arms crossed and foot tapping impatiently, “Yes, Wheeler?”

“There’s a showing of Rocky Horror that I wanna take Jane to this weekend.”

Eddie snorts, peeking over his shoulder at Chrissy, pressing the palm of her hand into her glossed lips to keep back her giggles, “That’s an R-rated movie, wonderboy.”

“Yeah,” Mike rolls his eyes, “and I still can’t date my girlfriend unless you’re dating her sister. So we both have good points.”

Brows shooting to her hairline, Chrissy “woah”s at the little guy’s audacity.

Eddie gestures flippantly to the lanky mess in front of him, “Right? Worse than Henderson, I tell you.”

She wide-eyed nods in agreement.

Returning to his cash cow, Eddie tilts his head - eyes narrowed, “So what? You wanna double-date at Rocky Horror?”

“No, obviously not,” looking through his peripherals, Mike notices Mrs. Clink staring at them a little too hard and turns so his and Eddie’s backs are facing the woman, “I just need you two to be out on a date so I can take out Jane. I also need you to get us into the movie and then leave. Or sit in a different row.”

So demanding, so unfavorable.

Eddie sticks out a hand, palm up, “Fifty. Now.”

Through a positively murderous stare, Mike asks, “What makes you think I have fifty bucks on me right now?”

A long huff passes through Eddie’s nose, “You’re a spoiled, conniving, upper-class nerd and you’re one of my best friends,” he curls his fingers into a fist twice before shoving his flat palm closer to Mike, “Now cough it.”

Similarly sighing, Mike bends down at the knee and yanks out a folded stack of crinkly ten-dollar bills from his sock.

Snatching up the money, Eddie pats Mike’s head as one would a dog, “Now if you wanna complete your Munson-ification process, stop carrying fat wads on your person,” he slaps the pad of tens against the bridge of Mike’s nose, “Everyone knows you’re rich, Wheeler - don’t flaunt it.”

Before Mike gets the chance to properly defend himself, Eddie tucks the money into the snug waistband of his boxers and shoos him away.

“I’ll figure out something for my beloved shrew, but right now Cunningham and I need to light scraps of metal on fire for an hour,” Eddie nudges Mike back by the shoulder and returns to the girl’s side.

She’s tugging on her rubber gloves while Eddie puts on his own pair of safety goggles.

“You know anything interesting going on this weekend?”

Blinking, Chrissy hums before the blankness brightens, “I think there’s an H&M sale in Indianapolis featuring some Laura Ashley stuff. She might like that.”

“Something easier on my fifty-buck budget, please?” he watches her light the Bunsen burner.

Shaking her head, Chrissy pouts, “Sorry, Eddie.”

“No worries,” he stares up at the water-stained ceiling, “I’ll just have to get my own idea.”

And getting Eddie to have his own idea is like asking a teen movie to not rip off the movies before it.

Eddie’s van sputters up to the Hopper cabin precisely two minutes after he said it would. Black backdrop and twinkling stars watch you shoo Eleven off and they awkwardly pull their collars and glance away when your father sternly calls your name before you can follow.

“You’ve had a bad attitude lately,” his hands are on his hips and he’s barely gotten out of his uniform, “I know you’re growing up and need your space, but if you’re gonna go out with this guy then I need to know who the man is.”

And flashing, headache-inducing red lights blare in the back of your mind at the idea of him meeting Eddie. So you resort to manipulation, “He’s a friend of Mike’s - isn’t that enough?”

“No,” he removes the Sheriff’s hat he’s always claimed squeezes too tight and runs a hand through his hair, “I barely like Mike. You expect me to like a senior he’s friends with that I’ve never even met?”

Glancing back, you can barely make out the pinched brows and overly invested lean of Eddie Munson’s concern through his tinted windows.

“Eddie Munson,” you’re too tired to fight and your eldest daughter intuition tells you Jim’s pager is about to go off soon anyways, “that’s the friend.”

“No!” he puts both hands up, evidently distressed, and you find joy in the way his gray hairs must be growing in, “No way.”

“Yes way,” you shrug and waltz towards the van, waving off your father, “I like him so play nice!” and you aren’t totally sure if you’re really saying that to piss him off or if it’s true. Jim opens his mouth to retort, so you lug the passenger side door open and shout before he can, “Can’t hear you over the pager that’s about to go off in two seconds!”

And before you’ve even got the van door closed, his pager does - in fact - go off.

Eddie wants to ask, and you see that, so you just nudge him with your elbow and he pulls out of the dirt driveway quickly.

“Intense fight there,” Eddie hisses through his teeth, “Honestly, I was about to put earmuffs on the kids - it was scary.”

It’s his way of prodding. Avoiding rejection by pretending it could be a joke and then still getting hurt if you turn him down.

“He’s just been up my ass ‘cuz I’m not going to college.”

Eleven comes forward, face puffing up between yours and Eddie’s seats, “You’re not going to college?!”

You shove her back by the shoulder, sick to the stomach at the idea of explaining your life plan (or lack thereof) to your little sister, “What’s the plan for tonight, Munster?”

“For them,” he braces, arms stiff and eyes nervously flickering between you and the rearview mirror, “an R-rated movie. For us? Leaving before the movie to go somewhere totally romantic.”

Avoiding rejection by pretending it could be a joke - his true specialty.

“Sounds spectacular,” you muse, and his arms loosen from their ramrod-straight position.

Totally romantic ends up being at Lover’s Lake next to his van. A threadbare, plaid blanket with a mysterious black stain in the upper right corner is laid over surrounding grass and rocks with a Hungry Howie’s Taxi yellow pizza box in the middle. You suspect the pizza is room temperature by now, but Eddie is nervously picking at his shoelace as he waits for you to sit down, so you choose to not say anything.

As soon as you sit beside him, Eddie shoots up onto his feet, hands bracing you for patience, “I almost forgot!”

Eddie slams open the back doors and disappears inside, you hear a clunk and curse before he tramples back out, uneven-footed and stumbling. A boombox in both hands, he sets it down and presses play.

The borderline waxing poetic opening guitar to Cinderella’s ‘Nobody’s Fool’ crackles over the speakers and Eddie hurriedly turns it down to a gentler hum.

“As long as you don’t listen to the lyrics, it’s kind of romantic,” Eddie pops open the Hungry Howie’s box and grease stains dot the top, “You probably don’t know, but most metal ballads- “ he gestures to the boombox leaking out Tom Keifer with raised brows, “even hair metal ballads - are not super romantic.”

“I can pretend,” you lean over his outstretched leg and brush against his leather-clad side to grab one of Howie’s infamously thick slices, “This is already the most well-thought-out date I’ve been on.”

And you haven’t been on many dates. Eddie knows that, too, but he decides to keep his big trap shut.

The pizza is room temperature by now, but Eddie so nervously tucks an arm into the swirling pit of his stomach and you decide to keep your own trap shut. Eddie can’t say why he’s so nervous - it shouldn’t matter whether or not you actually like him. It really, really shouldn’t, but he can’t help but hope you do.

“Uhm, so,” his eyes look nice under the shiny little pinprick stars, and you chastise yourself for focusing on that when he’s trying to talk to you, “I’m more than happy to listen if you wanna bitch about your problems with the old man. Not that you would be, you know, bitching bitching, just complaining. Yeah, complain. ‘Cuz you’re not a bitch, you know that- “

“Thanks, Eddie,” you cut him off, a hand on his shoulder. You finish off the slice of pizza in your other hand and shrug, “I mean, bitching doesn’t sound too bad if you actually mean it.”

“‘Course I do,” he turns to face you completely, the gentle swoosh of the lake water under moonlight easily forgotten in favor of you, “Trust me, sweetheart, if anyone gets parental problems, it’s me.”

“Well,” you normally have trouble talking about things like this, but something about Eddie makes you feel open. Like a social worker’s dream, he is the softest couch and sweetest candy bowl, “He’s always busy with work - way too busy for me and Jane. And when he is home, it’s about me not going to college and Jane’s stupid high school romance and my attitude as if he’s not the dickhead that causes it all in the first place…” you sigh, a physical weight off your chest, “Only good thing to come of his bullshit lately is that I get to paint in my ex-mom’s storage unit downtown.”

“Ex-mom is an interesting term.”

“Diane wanted to adopt me as a last-ditch attempt to save the family after their birth daughter died,” the years of this exact thought process echoing around your head prevent you from shutting up, “And then she decided she wanted nothing to do with either of us and just,” you make a ‘scatter-off’ motion with your hands, “Left behind divorce papers and then Jim was a wild alcoholic and wilder smoker until Jane came along and then… suddenly he wants to be better.”

The clarity hits you like a stack of bricks, that you spilled your guts embarrassingly fast and that mortification makes you look over to Eddie, who stares back with wide eyes.

“Anyways…”

“No, just- “ he grins and you can’t help but grin back, “I’ve never had someone actually trust me to just let go like that,”

“I’m glad to be the first.”

If Eddie truly had no inhibitions, he would’ve said he wants you to be his last.

And he doesn’t know where that comes from.

“What do you paint about?” so he leans back on his elbow and breaks the thick air. Shatters it completely like it was nothing to begin with.

You cringe preemptively, “My feelings.”

“Oh, a poetic type,” he punches your shoulder softly, “It’s cool, I write songs about that. All the mucky shit.”

You turn onto your stomach, propping your head up on your elbows and ignoring the soft ache it initially stirs in your chest, “Will you ever show me one of your songs?”

“Only if you show me your art.”

“You’re moving a bit fast.”

“Nah, that’s only - like - first base.”

You two linger there. Soft eyes and pouty lips and pizza cooling under the night sky. He hums, entirely to himself, and you lean forward to nudge his arm.

“What’s going on in your pretty head, Munster?”

“Honestly,” he’s quiet. So much quieter than he normally is, and that’s as scary as realizing his rejection hurt your feelings, “I’m just thinking about how you’re not nearly as mean as everyone says.”

“Yeah,” you turn onto your back, eyes up at the stars instead of Eddie’s kind face, “people usually assume you’re a bitch when you’re not smiling at them 24/7.”

He doesn’t respond, and that would be terrifying if he wasn’t motioning for you to continue.

“I mean, I’m not surprised,” so continue, you do, “People usually just expect women to smile and nod to whatever they say as if there’s no thoughts or feelings to each person,” at his persistent silence, you inhale sharply, “First base was actually my feminist rant all along.”

You look back over to Eddie and he’s smiling so big and wide, all for you - at the fear of misspeaking, he intentionally makes himself BooBoo the Fool, “I love Debbie Harry.”

“Oh my God!” you swat his shoulder and he falls onto his own back.

“I’m kidding,” his head swivels to lock eyes with you, sweet bambi eyes nothing except sincere, “but feminism is metal. Equality for all, I fuck with that.”

“I’m glad,” a sudden memory makes you giggle, and at Eddie’s curious stare you expand, “I actually dumped Jason Carver in freshman year because he said women should obey their husbands.”

He gags histrionically, “I’d never say that.”

“I figure.”

You’ve heard from older women the dangers of getting wine drunk with no men to kiss - being that sauced with that intense a romantic urge could kill someone, you’ve heard. And it’s strange - how just being around Eddie can drive you as mad as the stories you’ve heard.

You turn again, onto your side now, “Are you drunk?”

He looks at you like you’re nuts and you’re almost embarrassed at the fact that Eddie can actually drive you so crazy, “No.”

“I’m not drunk either.”

It takes him a painfully visible minute until finally, the lightbulb above his wild hair dings alight and Eddie excitedly matches your position. He tenderly puts a hand on your cheek, calluses purely lovely on your skin as he asks, “Can I kiss you?”

The ache in your chest that you imagine is what the prolonged poison of having no man to kiss when wine drunk hits, you nod, bizarrely giggly, “It’d feel like a personal attack if you didn’t.”

Maybe you were scared for nothing. Eddie seems like a sweet guy with sweet intentions and sweet words. His kiss is sweet, too. It tastes like the tomato sauce of Hungry Howie’s pizza and the weed he smokes and no sinister third thing lingers.

Eddie, however, feels sick. He needs to talk to Mike and he knows Wayne would punch any other guy straight in the head for doing what he’s done to you. He likes you. He likes your bitterness and your anger and the way you roll your eyes at his antics and he wants to soften your edges and he wants to be your one moment of sunshine. He can’t do that if he’s taking money to date you, so he needs to talk to Mike.

But for now, he likes kissing you on his old blanket with the coffee stain he can never get out and cold Hungry Howie’s pizza an arm’s length away.

“I can’t keep doing this,” Eddie has never doubted himself to the point of getting a hideous stomach ache, not even when he had to perform with Corroded Coffin in middle school, “I think I’m falling in love with her, Wheeler.”

“That’s perfect!” Mike, on the other hand, is purely ecstatic, teeth on display as he smiles, “Just keep taking her out, but without me paying you - Jane and I can keep seeing each other and you two are happy. Done deal, Munson,” and this excitement gives him the courage to smack Eddie on the arm, “Just be cool about it.”

“So just don’t tell her?”

“Exactly.”

His stomach twists tighter at that idea, but he swallows it down and pretends to be a little bigger than he is.

“Fine,” finally, he sighs it out, “We don’t talk about it.”

“We don’t talk about it.”

~~ how we rockin? good? good?

going outta state for like 3 days and remembered i should probably update this while i have it

[evilwriter37]

Last night I made an Amazon wish list for the babies instead of doom scrolling and I thought I’d send you an ask since your followers probably know more about my pets than my own. So, if anyone has the ability and wants to get my babies anything, feel free.

If you’re a follower of Archer and somehow managed to dodge all of my asks with my babies, then here’s an introduction.

This is Mora. She is a five year old long haired calico with a tiny little bobtail. She was born with it according to vets. She was found in a ditch when she was just a couple weeks old with her siblings. I kept her while her siblings all found homes elsewhere.

She is a spunky, clumsy, cuddly little girl. When I say little, I mean little. She weighs five pounds. She likes to play with her claws and lay on my head when I’ve slept I’m too long. She drools when she’s happy and gives the most pitiful, pathetic meow when she’s upset, like when I try to get her to take her allergy medicine. . . She is winning on that regard. I’ll think I’ve gotten her to take it and then boom! Ten minutes later I find it in the middle of the room. I don’t know how she does it.

This is Nebula. She is a six year old short haired dilute calico. She found me the day that one of our old family pets passed away and has been with me ever since.

She is very calm, precise, and deadly. She enjoys going outside and taking care of the rat problem we have. She will wake me up in the middle of the night of she hears something skittering in the walls. Once she snuck a cicada inside. Don’t worry though, she’s well watched when she goes outside by both me and people who work nearby. They’ve tried to give her pets but alas, she only likes them from me. Truly an honor.

This is Tiadrin. She is a two year old lhasa apao and poodle mix. She came into my life soon after the passing of my best friend.

She is energetic (as all puppies seem to be), very friendly, and just all around so sweet. She loves playing fetch and sharing her opinions. If I do not give her a treat before bed. . . Oh, dear, is everyone going to know. She’s not just a spoiled little girl though. No, no, no. She is very smart and we are currently working on some training. I just need to figure out how to make her stay still for long enough to learn that no matter how much she wants to say hi to every person she meets, the leash is not going to go slack. . . She’s so small though that the harness I have for her is loose (but of course if I get a size smaller it’ll be too small) and she can slip out of it. I persist regardless!

This is Brother Bear. He is an eleven year old lab mix. I got him when he was just an itty bitty baby with his sister (who is no longer with us).

He is a very anxious baby. He and his sister were very, very close and since she passed he’s been so very lost. He found some comfort in my boy Scooby but now he’s no longer with us either. He and Nebula have been grieving together.

It’s not all sadness for this boy though. Despite his arthritis and several other health issues, he is still so energetic and so loving. He can out play me any day. He gives my hand kisses and lets me give him long hugs. We often times just lay with each other by our side. He is such a comforting, calming presence with far more patience than I will ever have.

So, here’s some more about the babies if you knew them already and here’s your introduction if you don’t. I’m starting up school in a couple months and most of my money will be going towards that when I can finally find a job, so if you want to spoil them while I can’t, please feel free to!

I love your pets so much, but you already knew that. I'm sure my followers love them too!

Spoil their pets if you can! They're cuties!

[nebulousfishgills]

💔🍷💄🐞🧣🎒 for Emily please?

Random OC ask game drop because it's 1:30 AM (when I started this one) and brain doesn't wanna sleep, so here we go.

💔 - Who has your character hurt most? Physically or emotionally? How did it feel? Do they regret it?

Ooh, that's actually a hard one because, as we know, Emily is Not A Good Person and has left many broken people in her wake, literally.

I suppose the obvious answer would be Eleven since she and Henry have been tormenting her for years at this point. She bore witness to their massacre and then the seven or so years after that involved sending out Demogorgons to find her (maybe), using the Mind Flayer to infect and hurt her friends while trying to locate and snatch her, arguably it's their fault she thought Hopper died, and then doing things like taking Max away and breaking Hawkins. It's a hefty list and most of the motivation is being bitter and petty over the fact that an abused eight year old child saw all her companions slaughtered and didn't immediately run to their arms.

But somehow, some way, I think at least some part of Emily feels bad about it. The canonicity of her being their daughter is still up in the air at this point, but that doesn't even necessarily have to factor into it. They may be rivals now, but for a while, Emily was the closest thing Eleven had to a mother figure in Hawkins Lab, arguably the only other one she's had aside from Joyce. Emily's perception of her mother is extremely poor, so in my mind, there's that small part of her that feels bad for hurting this daughter/daughter figure of hers when she knows she's still haunted by what her own mother did. And abandoning Emily because she couldn't take care of her is way further down on the severity scale.

So, I think Eleven might take that spot, with Eddie being a runner up since it's Emily's fault he had to go on the run and ultimately get killed, let alone lobbing the betrayal aspect onto it. And that's including me factoring in her Twilight era since that's actively her being a better person and not hurting people like that. I suppose you could throw Aro onto that list since in the span of like, a day, she seized control of his empire and killed him because she got cockblocked one too many times.

🍷- Does your OC drink? What kind of alcohol do they enjoy? What are their drinking habits? What kind of drunk are they?

Okay, so Emily canonically avoids substances that impair her. Drugs, alcohol, the like. It's less so because she hates the tipsy/high feeling and moreso because those things scramble her brain and disconnect her from her abilities. She's very reliant on them both as a tool for defense/attack/what have you, but just as a general crutch. It's well within reason to assume that without access to her powers, she feels weak or even helpless.

Not to say she's soley dependent upon them, of course, I think being friends with Eddie Munson alone means she can land a punch and some rougher treatment, but she sees losing access to her powers as like being disarmed. She can still hold her own, but it's way easier for her to just use her abilities.

And discounting the telekinesis and crushing people's bones aspect, her powers are how she can feel Henry's presence even from dimensions away and vice versa. It's like having a waypoint, a little emotional guide, and if her brain is scrambled, she can't access that either.

But I'll bite and pose a hypothetical. Honestly, I could see Emily being multiple kinds of drunk. Angry drunk comes to mind immediately, but I could just as easily see her blubbering and slurring all of her woes on the sofa while wasted. Maybe she can be flirtatious depending on her mood. Drunk Emily would start a fight, cry about being abandoned by her mother, and then try to climb Henry like a tree in the span of about ten minutes.

💄- What does your OC think of their face? Do they have a positive or negative opinion? Do they wear makeup? Do they have a skincare routine? What traits do they like most about their face?

In all honesty I think Emily has mixed feelings about her face, especially once she gets her scars. Because on one hand, they make her stand out and look freakish, but on the other I think she likes the intimidation it brings

I honestly don't think she thinks about it all that much unless she's in public. She knows the damage could have been ten times worse since she watched Henry decay in real time. I don't think she hates her scars themselves, and moreso hates the attention they bring since she prefers to Not Be Perceived by Hawkins since she's basically being covert to spy on The Party.

But at the end of the day, she really only cares about her opinion and Henry's, and he has not a single bad thing to say about her. And honestly, I think any skincare routine she'd do would amount to just water and whatever shampoo trickles down with it. Maybe a lotion if a dry patch is bothering her. She just would not understand the need to go so far for your skin since, to her, most beauty routines and standards are bullshit and unecessary.

Emily would probably accuse you of, like, speaking in tongues if you said anything about hyaluronic acid or whatever the fuck.

Now, we kind of push against that boundary when we hit makeup because if we take Vampire Emily into account, part of her arc is accepting the fact that she can enjoy feminine things without immediately tying it to pointless social constructs and rejecting it for that.

I'm not someone who wears makeup basically at all save for costumes or just wanting to wear mascara because I think it makes my eyes look more defined, in fact I think I look weirder with it on. A lack of vanity is something I impart on all my characters because that's just not something I care about.

But the crow inside me that likes shiny things loves going into beauty stores for the bright colors. I feel like Emily would be somewhat the same way. That's how Heidi helped Emily open up a bit, like "look at all the fuzzy brushes and bright colors of the eye shadow." Also, again, Heidi telling her that makeup isn't just a conformity or for hiding who you actually are because society says women have to look a certain, perfect way. Sometimes it's just fun to do it for the hell of it.

Also, to her credit, makeup would be hard with how her scars were. Once she turns, the scars fade away and it opens up a better canvas for her.

Ultimately I think Emily's relationship with her face is just "yeah it's there, I don't need to doll it up because it doesn't matter and also my boyfriend (whichever one) still thinks I look hot either way, so suck it."

🐞 - What does a perfect day look like for your OC? What do they do? Who do they see?

The fact that this question is represented by a ladybug is perfect since that's what Henry's nickname for her is. It ties into my answer to this question, because regardless of who she's partnered up with at the time, Emily's ideal day is just a day where it's just her and Henry/Caius. Nobody else.

In Hawkins especially, she deeply dislikes people so a day where she just doesn't see them is already wonderful. If we add onto that, I think she'd also prefer a day where she doesn't feel burdened or stressed out about anything. She lays in bed with Henry and all she has to worry about is just enjoying his company. Maybe they talk, maybe he reads to her, maybe they sit by a riverbank and let their feet rest in the water. Just a genuinely unburdened day with Henry, imagining what their human free utopia would be like.

The thing you have to remember is that Emily's a bad person whose actions are rooted in wanting to be free of her pain and just live a peaceful, happy life, something she's been robbed of for nearly forty years. At this point in time, that looks like living alone and in silence with Henry and their abnormalities. She thinks the human system is stopping her from getting that, so it's gotta go.

And, honestly, I'd wager to say her perfect day with Caius looks very very similar. She's still Emily with the same nihilistic worldview, she's just more stable with a wider support system. The thriving after a life of surviving. She's an introvert who can't handle being around people all the time since it's unpredictable and overwhelming. That's a central plank in her snapping in Necrosis and overhauling the whole system. She just couldn't get a moment of peace with Caius because of other people.

So, her ideal day is just having one day of some fucking peace and quiet, but in luxury this time. Maybe a bath, sitting in the gardens, being read to by Caius (being read to is a constant, both because I love it, and also it's that childhood trauma piece, being robbed of bedtime stories, mundane may it be), maybe hunting in the woods if the mood was right... and, you know, banging.

I will omit the references from HotD we got this week.

🧣- What comforts your OC? Is it an item? An action? A person? Whatever it is, how and why does it comfort them?

Emily's unfortunately somebody who has lacked many comforts in her life. Whoever her spouse is at the time is like the one constant comfort in the form of a person. Regardless of where she is in life or who she surrounds herself with, the only true comfort and peace she knows is with her partner. Yeah, she has a certain dependency, but that's just part of her character.

Actions, I've already mentioned being read to, but I'd also say drawing is another one since in Hawkins Lab, that was like, the one thing she was allowed to do that wasn't hyper focused on her abilities, the one way she was able to express herself. I always headcanoned that she carried a sketchbook around with her sometimes that Eddie snooped through a few times. Landscapes (i.e. imagining a beautiful, human free world), the occasional manic Mind Flayer doodle, halfway decent drawings of Henry's face (to remember what it looked like pre-Vecna), and the drawing she did of the Creel House as a child when she first showed up in the lab is taped on the inside cover.

Eddie never questions her about this, of course, he shouldn't have been snooping in the first place. Even if he's unaware of her powers, he's sure she would beat his ass for looking in her stuff.

Another comfort action is playing with her hair/scratching her scalp. This is one of those me-traits that I passed on because that shit is the best feeling in the world to me. It always puts me at ease, and I wanted to give that to Emily.

As far as comfort objects, I couldn't give any that are at the same capacity of the other comforts I listed. The sketchbook, maybe her D&D dice, some clothing item of Henry's/Caius' (in fact it might be one of Caius' scarves), it could be anything. She's not really a materialistic person since she's used to having nothing. Objects don't comfort her in the same way those other things do.

🎒- What items does your OC usually carry? Do they have a bag or just keep everything in their pockets? Do they carry a lot or a little?

Again, Emily has almost nothing to her name. Day to day, she doesn't carry much since most times she's in the Upside-Down and doesn't necessarily have the *need* to carry much. But she does have a bag for her Overworld visits, I usually picture it as a dirty old black backpack with a broken zipper and a hole in one of the small front pockets.

Usually when she goes to the Overworld, she only has a few essential things:

-Sketchbook/pencils/pens

-Anything required for D&D, so like her dice, handbook, character sheet, etc.

-Possibly some kind of pocket knife both as a tool and also for self defense in case it's really not a good idea to use her powers

-Any cash/change she's gotten her hands on.

Other than that, it's just the clothes on her back, I'd say. In Volterra she has even less use for things to always have on her. Although she does feel like someone who'd have occasional stickey note notes in her pockets that she forgets about until months later.

I don't know, it's 3 am now so I'm just gonna call it there.

[cult-of-the-placeholder]

Uhhhh so. I can't draw, so please don't throw rocks at me 😅 is anyone gonna see this? DUNNO. But I'm throwing it into the void anyway

Behold: 4 cute babies for me to traumatize with my War on the Lamb AU

This AU wouldn't exist without @heketsbroodau and their amazing fics. Go read them! Literally right now! All of them! Every single one!!!!!!!

The general idea this WotL AU works with goes as follows:

- The demigod children of the bishops (cousins), quailing and listless in the wake of their parents' slaughter, decide to counter attack and wage war on the lamb for ruining their lives and killing the family they loved so dearly

- In each brood, one was voted amongst the siblings to take up the Crowns to use their power to lead the vengeance quest (because the crowns are at least partially sentient, I imagine that they vanished when their bearers died to keep themselves from being ceased)

- The children have mostly been raising themselves since the lamb destroyed... literally everything

- They're planning to essentially use one of themselves as a sacrifice: taking up the Red Crown and agreeing to be locked away in eternal banishment to prevent it from ever causing trouble and strife again

Though their ages when each Bishop died varies, they are in order: Adami, Ylindri, Phereo, and finally No Name. When Shamura dies, their ages go as follows: 19 (Adami), 14 (Ylindri), 12 (Phereo), No Name (9). When the story kicks off they'll all likely be in their 20s but I haven't decided fully yet.

Adami:

As the oldest amongst the cousins, she feels it is the duty of her and her siblings to look after the younger ones. She loves them all very much, every, single, one. She and her dad were really close, and though she didn't have his aptitude for magic she was a born scientist at heart. She was always tucked away in the temple labs, fussing with bacteria cultures and scribbling in her notebooks. Thoroughly enjoyed Kallamar's genetics hobby, and still has the the very first genome they ever wrote together memorized

When he died, she and her siblings all felt it. They heard the commotion and tried so, so hard to get to him, but Kallamar had cast a magic ward on the temple's inner sanctum, preventing his children from entering or even coming near, not trusting that Narinder's appetite for destruction wouldn't extend to his little ones. He was right, and only after he'd been dead for several hours did the barrier fade

Adami wrote her own speech for his funeral but was crying too hard to deliver it, so it fell to her older sibling to speak on her behalf. She was very much a daddy's girl, and prays at his shrine almost every day, wishing for a peaceful afterlife for him, begging her uncle to be kind (though she knows he won't be)

She splits the Blue Crown with one of her siblings: she's the best scientific mind they've got and is therefore excellent for inflicting biowarfare, but she's got -3 magical ability and so whenever there's need for mass healing or protective magic, it goes to her sibling

Would've probably become a very sweet, bubbly person if not for losing Kallamar. She's a lot more reserved these days, but is still generally pretty peppy when excited about something

Ylindri:

As mentioned above she's the most unbalanced of Shamura's children: meaning, while their domain is wisdom and war, she skewed heavily toward the first one. The majority of the spiderlings (eleven of them in total) are right in the middle, wielding their brains and brawn as one. There's only one other severe skew like Ylindri: her older sister, who's very skewed toward war

A scholar first and foremost, she spent countless days studying medicine and old divine texts trying to find a way to help her Lifegiver's brain damage. She regularly helped change their bandages

Worried they might forget them all, Ylindri wove her Lifegiver a special band of spider silk, which each of their names and a prayer for health delicately woven in. Her hope was that their love would stay with Shamura easier, and might help them feel better. Shamura wears it on their 4th wrist

In public Ylindri calls Shamura her Lifegiver, in private they are Ama

Very softspoken, and thoroughly heartbroken by Shamura's death. Tried to stop them from going to meet the lamb in the sanctum, but their mind had slipped again and Shamura didn't truly recognize her in that moment

Phereo:

Leshy's thirdborn child and second daughter. Is the only girl to have wings but has sworn off flying after Leshy's death

They were really close, and Leshy actually died while the children were in their first chrysallis (they're demigodlings. They undergo multiple metamorphoses in their lives), so when she emerged she and her siblings were greeted by the sorrowful Witness and the earth-shattering news that they had been orphaned

They preserved Leshy's remains so that his childreb could attend the funeral, but Phereo didn't go. She couldn't bear the thought. She was so terrified to make her chrysallis because everyone knows that girls don't have wings, and the only thing that got her to start spinning was her father's promise to be ready to recieve her when she'd emerged, and the whispered secret of, "You're just as I was. You'll be fine." After that, she doesn't want to appear in public, doesn't want anyone to see her, and spends all her time locked in her room mourning the loss of Leshy

She's got hardcore depression in wake of her dad's death. Everything is unstable and scary and she feels so lost and out of sorts. Years pass and her mental health stabilizes but doesn't improve: when the cousins start planning their war and how to defeat the Red Crown for good, she offers her body to the cause. She'll hsve to be banished and locked away, for all eternity. If it will avenge Leshy's death and let her go to a place where she can forget that she exists, then she's happy to do it

Someone get this worm therapy smh

No Name:

Someone seriously help me name him I've gone through like 5 names and none feel right 😭

The smallest, height wise and age wise. He hates it

This froggy is a MAMA'S BOY. He was very, very close with Heket, and loved her more than life itself. She was his mother, after all--there was no one in the world he loved more. The whole gaggle of froglets found Heket's still cooling corpse in the Temple sanctum, and just. Basically did Simba and mufasa. Just kinda snuggled against her and begged her to get up, to heal, to be ok

I don't have a whooole lot of development for him but he's generally pretty quiet and brooding. Very angy. Late teenage angst when thebwar starts but also his mom was murdered by the guy they're waging war on so  ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Regardless. He's not having a good time. Eats his feelings a lot and is quietly hoping the war kills him

Was voted among his siblings to bear the Yellow Crown and he despises it. It feels so wrong, like the desecration of his mother's memory, to have him stand in her place and wear that which rightfully belongs to her and no one else. Prays to the crown every morning before he puts it on, asking his mother's forgiveness and hoping to serve her memory well

[middleearthpixie]

Better Days ~ Chapter Eleven

Summary: Frerin Durin had the perfect life, until he found out his wife was cheating on him. Now, he’s navigating uncharted territory as an about-to-be divorced single dad. Dating is a mess, he’s dealing with the fallout where his kids are concerned, and really, he would just love a vacation away from all of it. 

Elena Madison is new to Sidleburg, and also navigating life as a newly single parent. The last thing she needed was for her daughter to come down sick, when she hasn’t even had time to unpack the moving boxes, never mind find a pediatrician. And the last thing she ever expected was to meet a man like Dr. Frerin Durin…

Neither Elena nor Frerin were looking for anything, but fate has a way of messing up even the best laid plans. However, both have been hurt and both aren't at all sure they trust themselves, never mind trusting someone else...

Pairings:  Modern!Frerin  x ofc Elena Madison

Characters: Frerin, Elena, Carol, Ashley, Vanessa, various other hospital staff and patients

Warnings: None

Rating: T

Word Count: 2.7k 

Tag List: @mrsdurin @i-did-not-mean-to @lathalea @linasofia @fizzyxcustard @legolasbadass @kibleedibleedoo @xxbyimm @arrthurpendragon @exhausted-humxn-being @rachel1959 @laurfilijames @sketch-and-write-lover @sherala007 @enchantzz @knittastically @notlostgnome @myselfandfantasy @medusas-hairband @guardianofrivendell @jotink78 @sorisooyaa @ruthoakenshield @frosticenow@quiall321 @dianakc @buckybarnes-thorin @glassgulls @evenstaredits @heilith @asgardianhobbit98 @albionscastle @absentmindeduniverse @way-too-addicted-to-fandoms @sazzlep @court-jobi @masterofhounds

If you’d like to be added (or removed) to the tag list, please just let me know!

Previous chapters can be found here. 

“Dr. Durin?”

Please let this be a dream. I just closed my fucking eyes.

“Dr. Durin?”

“Mmmm?”

“Dr. Durin!” Leigh’s voice rang with sharp impatience. 

Nope, not a dream. He fumbled his way up from a semi-thick muck of sleep to mutter, “Yeah?”

“You’re needed in the ER.”

“Why this time?”

“Eight year old in respiratory distress coming in.”

“Can’t Gillis take it?”

“She’s not on until eight.”

Frerin lifted his arm to squint at his watch. His eyes didn't want to focus at first, so he brought his wrist a little closer to make it easier on them. Ten to four in the morning. “Where is McElroy?”

“Out with the flu.”

“Shit. Okay,” he sat up, rubbing his eyes with one hand as he reached for his lab coat, draped over the foot of the sofa in his office with the other. “How much time do I have?”

“They’ll be here in five.”

He got to his feet with a groan, trying to ignore the dull ache in his lower back. “I should just switch specialties,” he muttered as he dragged on the coat. “I spend more time down there than I do up here anyway.”

“So talk to Reese.”

He glared at Leigh as he tugged his hot pink stethoscope from beneath the pillow to drape about his neck. “You’re not helping.”

“Was I supposed to be helping?”

“Yeah, actually.”

“Sorry, Dr. D.”

“Yeah, yeah…” He and Leigh parted ways at the desk and at the elevator bank, he pushed the down button. When the doors slid open, he stepped in, hit the button for the ER, then sank back against the wall with a yawn. 

The doors slid open into chaos, otherwise known as a normal Saturday night. Sidleburg was in the more western part of the state, but like everywhere else, it was growing more and more developed every week. It wouldn’t be long before Sidleburg Memorial would be every bit as busy as the hospitals in Newark, New Brunswick, and Trenton were. And with the same traumas the more urban areas saw as well. Gunshot injuries had increased by about thirty percent in the last six months alone, according to data reports. Little by little, even the rural areas had urban problems.

He came around front desk. “You paged me?” 

The young woman working there was unfamiliar to him and she offered up a shy smile. “Dr. Durin?”

“That’s me. Jamie, right?”

She nodded, tucking a wayward lock of dark brown hair behind her ear. She was the most recent hire and she looked almost embarrassed to have paged him. “I’m so sorry to bother you, Dr. Durin. But it’s a little kid.”

“It’s okay. That’s why I’m here.” He squinted at the board while reaching for the right forms to clip to a board. “Who else is on tonight?”

“Dr. McDonald, Dr. Walker, and Dr…. Cooper?”

“Coerper, but close enough.” He smiled. She looked nervous enough as it was and the ER was was always a baptism by fire for new clerks. “This your first night?”

She nodded. “Yeah… It’s been… interesting. It’s really busy down here tonight.”

“Yeah, I’ve noticed.” Red lights reflected off the walls as an ambulance pulled up and EMTs jumped out. “Carol, give me a hand?”

“As if you had to ask.” 

He smiled as she took the clipboard from him, then followed him to meet the EMTs. “What do you have?” he asked.

“Lilah Hernandez, eight years old in respiratory distress. Mom said she was diagnosed with asthma two months ago, but it’s been under control until tonight.”

“Okay. Let’s get a weight check first.” He smiled down at the little girl with wide dark eyes who looked utterly terrified as she struggled to breathe despite the oxygen mask over her nose and mouth. “I’m Dr. Durin, honey, and don’t worry, Mom’s right behind but until she gets here, I’m going to take good care of you, okay?”

Her dark eyes were wide and almost glassy with fear even as she nodded and managed a roughly whispered, “Okay.”

“Good.” He slipped the earpieces of his stethoscope in and slid the diaphragm beneath the fuzzy pink pajama top with unicorns on it. As she tried to grab his wrist, he said, “No, no, honey. Let me listen, okay? I have to hear your lungs.”

“No, don’t…”

“Shhh… It’s all right,” he told her, then glanced up at Carol. “She’s eight, so that would be roughly forty to seventy pounds and she’s tiny, so I’m guessing maybe fifty, fifty-five pounds, so that would be what? Twenty… five kilograms? Get me two-point-five of albuterol continuous nebs.”

“You got it.”

The doors banged open and a disheveled looking woman, also in her pajamas burst into the room. “Lilah? Oh, my God…Honey…”

Frerin looked up at Jamie, who stood with the woman. “This the mom?”

Jamie nodded. “That’s what she said, but she—”

“This is my daughter,” the woman interrupted. “Please… just help her!”

“We are.” He looked back at Jamie, who’d gone pale. “We’ve got it from here, Jamie.”

“Oh, thank god…” she breathed as she hurried out of the room.

The small fingers on his wrist tightened and he glanced down to see Lilah’s eyes had grown wider still and she breathed more heavily now, fogging the mask as she shook her head. Frerin looked over at Carol. “Take Mrs. Hernandez to the waiting area, Carol?”

Carol nodded and passed the clipboard to Vanessa. “Of course. Mrs. Hernandez, if you’d just come with me. We should let the doctor work.”

“No,” Mrs. Hernandez said, jerking back as Carol reached for her. “I want to stay with my baby!”

“Mrs. Hernandez, it’s better to wait outside.” Carol caught her by the elbow

“No!” The woman swung about and shoved Carol, who slammed back into the tray of equipment, knocking everything to the floor. 

“Call Security!” Frerin told Vanessa as the woman tried to grab Lilah off the gurney. He swung about to put himself between her and the little girl, gritting back a curse as the woman’s fingernails bit into the side of his neck and raked along his skin. 

“You give me back my daughter, now!”

The doors swung open and hospital security caught the woman to drag her off Frerin, and as they pulled her from the room, he called, “I need that albuterol.”

“Got it.” Vanessa wheeled the nebulizer over. “What was that all about?”

“I don’t know.” Frerin ignored the sting in his neck as he focused on Lilah, who had a bluish tint to her lips now. “You’re going to be okay, sweetheart, I promise.” 

He glanced up at Carol. “You okay?”

“I’m fine.” She picked up her clipboard and made the notations on the chart. “You?”

“I’ll live.” He slipped the mask up over Lilah’s nose and off her head, then held out the nebulizer. “I need you to put this in your mouth, okay? And then just try to breathe normally. Can you do that?”

“I—I think so…”

“Good.” He let her take it and as she put the mouthpiece in, he added, “That’s it. Just breathe like you normally do.”

She inhaled and promptly began coughing, so he took the mouthpiece back. “It’s okay, Lilah. Clear your lungs and we’ll try again.”

She nodded, then slid the mouthpiece back into her mouth. This time, her breathing remained relatively smooth and calm and her color began to return to normal. Frerin smiled, smoothing her hair away from her face. “Why don’t we see if your mother has calmed and little and we—”

“She’s not… not my mother…”

“What?”

Lilah shook her head, her eyes shimmering with tears. “She’s not… my… mother…”

“Okay. It’s okay, honey, you just concentrate on breathing.” He looked over at Carol. “Get SPD over here now.”

“I will. You should have that looked at,” she gestured to her neck, “it’s bleeding like crazy.”

“I’m fine. Get the police, okay?” He turned back to Lilah. “It’s okay, honey. You’re safe here now.”

Lilah nodded, leaning her head back, and closed her eyes. Frerin met Vanessa’s gaze. “Keep an eye on her, okay? I’ll be right back. Get me if anything changes.”

“I will.”

He straightened up, patted Lilah through the blanket, and then left the exam room to join Carol at the phone just outside the door. She glanced over, then reached to snag a gauze pad off the cart on the far side of the hallway and handed it to him. “I’m on with SPD and that is a mess. She did a number on you.”

He sighed softly, taking the gauze pad to tear into the wrapper, and pressed it to the damp spot on the side of his neck, wincing at the hot sting that burned through him with the pressure. 

“Yes, hi, this is Carol Kingsley in the ER at Sidleburg Memorial. We have an eight year old girl who might have been kidnaped. Security has the woman posing as her mother and we’ve got the child in our care right now.”

Frerin peered in through the doors to see Vanessa talking to Lilah. Carol broke through his reverie with a soft, “They’re sending someone over. A girl matching her description was reported missing just outside Hamilton a little over a week ago.” 

“Wonderful.” He looked back at Carol. “How bad is it, really?”

He drew away the gauze, which was more scarlet than white and Carol winced. “It’s pretty bad, Frerin. Come on, let me clean it for you. When was your last tetanus shot?”

“Six months ago. I got bitten by a four year old who thought he was a vampire.” He followed Carol into an unoccupied exam room. 

“Lucky you.”

“Yeah. But I’d rather deal with that than a full grown woman losing her grip on me.”

She moved to the counter, taking out fresh gauze and reached up to take a bottle of hydrogen peroxide from the cabinet. “So, what was the deal with the mystery woman you brought in today.”

“Elena?” He smiled, tugging his collar away as he leaned his head to the side. “She’s… it’s tough to explain. I’d say she was a woman I’m seeing but—ow!” He sucked in a sharp breath through his teeth at the sudden burn of peroxide on his neck.

“Sorry about that. It might sting a little.”

“Thanks.”

“Anyway, go on,” Carol pressed the gauze to his neck.

“I haven’t actually taken her out anywhere except for coffee this morning.”

“She looked familiar.”

“She and her daughter were in here last week. That’s how I met her.”

“Nice. Hitting on a patient’s mom?”

“I didn't hit on her. Not here, anyway. I bumped into her in the gym and asked for her number there.” He sucked in another breath as Carol swiped gently along his neck. “Tell me it’s stopped bleeding, at least.”

“I think so. Let me just bandage it for you.”

“Thanks.”

“So, are you seeing her again?” Carol moved to the counter once more, rummaging about in a drawer for a large bandage.

“Yeah. We’re going out to dinner tonight. I’m just hoping I don't fall asleep halfway through. I’m not twenty-five any more.”

“You’re hardly old, you know.”

“I know.” He smiled as she smoothed the bandage into place and then turned to meet her gaze. “But it’s taking its toll, the overnights.”

“Nah. You don't look tired.”

“I hide it well.”

“Dr. Durin?” Jamie poked her head around the door. “SPD is here to talk to you about the Hernandez girl.”

“Okay. I’ll be right there.”

Carol stepped back. “Go. I’ll go check on Lilah.”

He moved to the door and grabbed the handle. “I have to admit, this was not on my ER bingo card.”

“Hey,” Carol called as he stepped through the doorway, “ are the rumors true?”

He paused. “What rumors?”

“That you’re possibly opening a pediatric ER down here?”

He smiled. “They might be. I’ve been down here enough lately.”

“For what it’s worth, I think it’s a great idea.”

“Thanks, Carol. You realize, I’m going to pull into to work it with me if Reese gives it the go ahead.”

“It would be a nice change. Go, your detective is waiting for you.”

“So, what time is dinner?”

Elena smiled across the table at Alyssa. “Seven. Can I trust you to not burn the building down?”

“I think I can manage.” Alyssa got up to go to the fridge. “What are you wearing?”

“I don’t know. Jeans. A sweater.”

“For a date with Dr. Hottie?”

“Lyssa.”

“Mom.”

“Lyssa.”

“Mom.”  Alyssa grinned. “I can do this all day, you know.”

“Alyssa.”

“Okay. You win. For your date?” Alyssa tugged open the fridge door and reached in for the bottle of orange juice. “I mean, I know he’s been here for dinner and you met him in a crappy ER, of all places, but don’t you want to look hot for him?”

Elena rose from her chair to go to the Keurig. “I haven’t really thought about it. It’s been a long time since I was on a date. And I’m not so sure I can pull off hot.”

“You went out with that accountant last summer.”

“That was not a date. That was a mistake.”

“He was a nerd.”

“Alyssa.”

“What? He was!” Alyssa brought the OJ back to the table and sank in to her chair again. Pouring a glass of juice, she added, “And Dr. Durin—see, no Dr. Hottie this time—is not a nerd. Let’s finish breakfast and I’ll find you something to wear. And trust me, Mom, you can definitely pull off hot.”

Elena smiled. “Thank you, but I think you might be a little biased.”

“Well, yeah. You’re my mom. But really, you still have it, Mom. I wouldn’t lie to you about that.”

Elena wasn’t quite as certain, but it was nice her daughter thought so. Still.. “Lyssa, I can dress myself.”

“Yeah, but I’ll make you look good.”

Elena chuckled. “Fair enough.”

Her cell rang then and she picked it up, smiling as Frerin’s number came up. “Good morning, Dr. Durin.”

“Yeah, I wish,” he said, and she winced at the sheer exhaustion woven through his voice. “I hate to do this, Elena, but I’m going to have to cancel tonight. I’ve got to pull a double.”

“Oh, I’m sorry.” Disappoint swelled within her, but she fought to tamp it down. “What happened?”

“We’ve got two docs out with the flu and one on vacation. So, I’m between the ER and Pedes today, and strictly in the ER tonight until tomorrow morning. And I’ll be a zombie by then. And I hate to do it, like I said, but I’m in a bind and trying to get something off the ground here, so I have to earn myself a few brownie points somehow and this is it.”

“Well, that’s what happens when you’re in charge. And it’s okay. Dinner will wait.”

“Yeah, but I didn't want to. I was looking forward to seeing you tonight.”

“Me, too. But another time.”

“Definitely.” Voices chimed in behind him, and then he said, “Shit, I’ve got to go, Elena. I’ll give you a call when things slow down, okay?”

“I think you should probably take a nap instead. You’re in for a long shift.”

“Don’t remind me. I’ll talk to you.”

“Bye, Frerin.”

“Bye.”

She clicked off and sighed as she set down the phone. “He’s got to work tonight to cover for someone.”

“Oh, I’m sorry, Mom.”

“Yeah, me, too.” She stood up and picked up her coffee cup as well. “I’m going to go jump in the shower.”

“I’ll be here.”

Elena smiled as she turned and padded down the hallway to the bathroom, where her smile faded. She’d been looking forward to going out with Frerin, looked forward to what might happen once they were alone once more. To say she was disappointed didn't even begin to describe  how she felt.

But there was nothing she could do about it. And it was just as well, really. She still had plenty of quizzes that needed to be graded before school tomorrow. So instead of eating Thai food with an incredibly sexy pediatrician, she would do that instead. It really was for the best.

At least, that’s what she tried to tell herself.

But she was full of it and she knew it. 

[portaltothevoid]

For Whom the Bell Tolls - Chapter 28 - Never Tear Us Apart

Pairing: Eddie Munson x OFC (Kat Ramsay), sequel to Foolin’

Summary: The Hawkins Team goes to Warzone and then prepares their weapons.

Warnings: fluff, cute moments between everyone, the calm before the storm

Word count: 3.8k

Chapter song: Never Tear Us Apart by INXS

Tag list: @munchabunch​ @madaboutmunson​ @earl-greater​

“Do you really think that plan could work?” Nancy asked.

“How would you plan on doing this, exactly?” Dustin chimed in.

“I’m not totally sure, but I mean, it’s my mind. Not his, right? So I just need to control where I am. I just need to… push him away? Find a happy memory and go there,” said Max.

“Okay, but you think Vecna would even let that happen?” Robin wondered.

“Look, this isn’t foolproof. I mean, that’s where things are gonna get tricky. It’s Max’s mind, sure, but I know he’ll do whatever he can to try and control everything. So it’s not gonna be easy at all. But as long as you don’t stop running until you find that memory and me in there, we have a chance. We have a chance at distracting him until Steve, Nancy, and Robin take their shots,” Kat explained. 

With that, Steve pulled into the War Zone and parked the Winnebago behind the building. “Alright we’re here,” he announced.

“It’ll be best if you two,” Nancy stated looking at Kat and Eddie, “stay here while we go in. Dustin and Lucas, too.”

“Ah, ah, ah. Don’t even bother wasting your breath. They are looking for everyone and anyone from Hellfire. If they find either of you, it’ll be bad.”

“Erica’s right. We don’t have time,” Nancy agreed.

“While you guys go on a shopping spree, I’m gonna try and let Eleven know our plan while you guys are in there,” Kat said.

“I’ll keep an eye out while Kat travels,” Dustin said.

“I don’t know, just make sure I look like a total badass. Lady Applegate, I trust you won’t let me down?” Eddie asked.

“Okay, that’s perfect. What are you guys gonna need?” Steve asked.

“I’m on it,” Erica agreed.

“I need propane. Combat boots would be cute. Size 8, please. Oh and someone please get a pair for Steve? I don’t even know how you’ve lasted this long barefoot, my god. Actually, a whole new outfit would be nice. For me. Robin, I entrust you with that task. And a bottle of ammonia,” Kat rattled off. At the mention of her name, Robin responded with a two fingered salute.

“Propane?” Dustin asked.

“Yeah, it’s for… Don’t worry about it, okay? Just get me like…”

“Three gallons,” Eddie finished for her.

“That’s how big it is? Okay, yeah. Three gallons.”

“Why ammonia?” asked Lucas.

“In case shit goes really south and you need to pull me back. That’s what they would use at the lab if we… if we couldn’t find our way back…” Kat trailed off. 

“Alright, you got it,” Nancy said as she handed out little pieces of paper to everyone. “We have to get our shit and get out. And Kat, Eddie, you guys need to stay right there, out of sight from the windows. Speed is key here, understood?” Nancy said, leading the group.

Everyone nodded. “Alright then, let’s do this,” Steve said as he unlocked the door and got out first. One by one they all left.

“Dustin, Lucas, either of you got a walkie on you?” Kat asked. Dustin fished around in a backpack, knowing exactly what Kat was asking. He pulled out a walkie and set it on a station where the only thing coming through was static.

“Bandana, Eddie?” Kat asked, holding out her hand. Eddie leaned up, yanked it from his pocket, and ignored her outstretched hand. He propped himself up on his knee and gently tied it around her eyes. “Thanks,” she said with a crooked smile before her features turned stoic.

Within seconds, her beat up shoes walked through the watery void. She focused on Eleven, in her white bodysuit. She honed in on the energy she had felt back in Max’s house. Off in the near distance, Eleven faded into view. She was pacing around a room that looked like a bunker.

“I see her,” Kat told Dustin and Eddie. “Eleven? Can you hear me?” she called out to her former labmate. But there was no response. One did say that she had more power than Eleven. Perhaps that was why she was able to see her right away and she couldn’t see Kat. Eventually, Kat reached out and gently brushed her arm as Eleven strode past her. She stopped dead in her tracks.

“Don’t worry, it’s just me,” Kat assured her.

“Ten! What are you doing here? Is something wrong? Is Max okay?” Eleven asked.

“Please, please call me Kat. Max is fine, everything’s fine. I just wanted to tell you that we have a plan,” she said as she then touched Eleven’s temple. She sent her the memory of talking to Max about her idea to run into a happy memory and the rest of the group’s feedback. “Do you think that could work?”

“Yes. I– I think so,” she nodded. “And you can call me, El.”

“Okay. I don’t want to stay too long. But when we finalize the details, I’ll reach out again, okay, El?” Kat said.

“Right, it is not safe,” El agreed. “I am trying to get to Hawkins as soon as I can.” The door opened and Brenner walked in. Just the sight of that man made her blood boil. El waved Kat away with her hand and with that, faded out of sight. Kat ripped off her bandana.

“What? What happened?” Lucas asked eagerly.

“Fucking Brenner happened. I got the message to her though. I told her I’d be in touch later and then that asshole walked through the door and she shut me out. She did tell me she’s trying to get back here though. Knowing that Brenner is still involved… I don’t know. He’ll probably find a way to fuck it up like he always does,” Kat said as she angrily crossed her arms and started tapping her foot.

“Okay, but she got the message, so that’s good… right?” Eddie asked.

“Yeah. She’s on board.”

In the meantime, when the rest of the group entered the store, it of course had to be during one its busiest times. “So much for avoiding angry hicks,” Robin commented.

“Let’s be… fast,” Nancy said.

“Agreed,” Erica said as they all split up. She went to grab a cart and started throwing anything Eddie might think was cool in it. A belt made of bullets caught her eye and she tossed it in without a second thought. 

Max saw knives and started to grab a few of those while Steve made a beeline to the clothing section. He grabbed a camo T shirt and a pair of army pants. He changed into them, tucking his old clothing under his arm on the way out of the dressing room. He threw it in Erica’s cart as he passed her. When he finally found Robin, he grabbed a leather army jacket and put that on too.

“How many of these do you think we need?” Robin asked as she put a couple containers of lighter fluid into her cart.

“Five or six,” Steve said as he helped her put more in the cart.

That was when her eyes landed on Vickie across the store and Robin placed her heart in her hands.

“What are you gonna do Robin? Just stand there and gawk at her?” Steve said as his eyes followed to where her gaze had landed.

“Shut up,” she responded quickly. When she made a step forward, some blonde jock ran up behind Vickie and scared her. She watched them as they flirted. And then as they kissed, she felt heart shatter into a million pieces. As the boy pecked kisses down the girl’s neck, she looked over with a smile that faded once she met eyes with Robin. She could only stand there, her mouth parted slightly in shock. Steve tried to think as quickly as he could, to console Robin in some way, but all he could do was watch as his best friend’s heart fell to the floor piece by piece. Robin blinked back tears, pulling in a shuddering breath. She turned and bumped into Steve as she ran away.

“Robin. Robin!” Steve called after her as she made a swift exit. He grabbed the cart and ran after her.

“No, Steve, no. Don’t– I can’t–” she started when he caught up with her. Steve opened his mouth to say something that gave her a semblance of comfort, but her watery eyes cut him off. “Please, Steve. Not right now,” she whispered.

He  nodded. “Right. Okay. Let’s just… How about we go pay for this stuff and get out of here? Grab whatever you see that would be good to kill that guy on the way, yeah?” He offered with a hopeful smile. She just shot him a piercing side-eyed look that shut him up immediately. He put up his hands in surrender. “Sorry, sorry, shutting up now. Oh shit. We gotta get the hell out of here,” he murmured as he gently turned Robin to face where he was looking. Everywhere he looked, he saw nothing but Hawkins High letterman jackets.

“Shit, shit, shit! Let’s go. Yup. Definitely time to go,” Robin said hurrying as she saw Nancy talking to none other than Jason Carver himself.

Nancy cocked a barreled shotgun. “How much is this?” she asked.

“$120.99, but I’ll throw in twenty rounds of buckshots for ya,” the salesman said.

Nancy smiled and nodded, but the voice next to her made her freeze. “Hey, can I see this real pretty .357, please?”

“Sure thing,” responded the other clerk. Slowly, Nancy turned her head to find Jason next to her. She could imagine what he was purchasing that gun for. She gulped and wished she could disappear like Kat. She tried to look like she was still checking out the gun in her hands when suddenly, she heard her name. She closed her eyes and took a quick deep breath, preparing herself to act as normal as possible.

“Wouldn’t expect to find you here,” he drawled as he shook his gun in her direction.

“Yeah, well, it’s just… scary times,” she admitted. “I’m… sorry about Chrissy.”

Jason nodded and she watched as his features changed to that of a person hellbent on total revenge. “Want my advice?” he asked her. “Shotguns are not good for much of anything past killing small birds. I mean, they got power, sure, but not much range,” he said as he walked down the counter until he stood less than an arm's length away in front of her. “And that’s just gonna force you into close-range combat, then someone can just grab the barrel like this…” Suddenly he took the end of the gun into his hand with as tight of a grip as he could. “...and redirect it. Well, you look nervous,” he commented, tapping his thumb on the barrel.

“Like I said, scary times,” Nancy answered.

“Now, your brother, he, uh… is he here with you, by chance?”

“Mike?”

“Mike,” Jason nodded.

“No,” she said firmly.

“I only ask because he’s… he’s in Hellfire, isn’t he?” he asked, shaking her gun slightly as he spoke.

“I don’t know what you're talking about,” she answered innocently.

“What about his friends?” he asked, taking one step closer. “They here with you?”

“Would you let go?” Nancy asked. For a moment, they only stared at each other. When Jason didn’t answer, “Let. Go.” she demanded forcefully.

He did as she said. “You be careful out there, Wheeler,” he advised as he took a step back.

“Yeah, you too,” she said as she turned around to face the clerk and fish out a credit card, which she slammed on the counter. Once the gun was paid for, she found Max first.

“You got everything?” she whispered to Max without looking at her, in case Jason was still watching her. 

“Uh, yeah?” Max answered, confused as to why Nancy was acting so weird.

“Good. Take my card, find the others. We need to get out of here. Now,” she said sternly.

Back on the mini RV, “What the hell is taking them so long?” Dustin asked, staring at his watch while Eddie tapped his rings together. Kat and Lucas just looked at each other nervously.

As if on cue, the door flung open, causing everyone to jump. “What happened?” Lucas asked immediately. 

“We gotta go,” Steve said, throwing Eddie his vest.

“Your old friends are here,” Erica shared as they rushed to their seats.

“What? Are you kidding me? Fucking Jason?!” Kat said angrily as she jumped in Eddie’s lap as he was shrinking down out of sight from the windows. 

“Let’s go! Let’s go! Let’s go!” Dustin yelled.

“I’m going! I’m going! Sit down!” Steve yelled back as the engine revved and threw the RV into drive.

Kat quickly pecked Eddie and rolled off him. She army-crawled to the back, hiding herself in case she was spotted as she peeked out of the rear window. She did so just in time to see that awful black jeep and Jason as he stepped out from behind it to watch them speed away. 

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The hopeful saviors of Hawkins had decided to drive to a field, one which went on for as far as the eye could see. It was off the main road, down another side road, somewhere they weren’t likely to be seen. Somewhere a random passerby wouldn’t become suspicious of a group of teenagers fashioning weapons for who knows what. No one would have guessed they were sharpening their swords for a war between worlds.

Everyone paired off, each group donned with specific tasks. Max had stayed with Nancy. She held down her shotgun as Nancy used a handsaw to rid it of its barrel.

“Is this legal?” Max wondered.

“Actually, I think it’s a felony.”

“Right,” Max said with a smug raise of her eyebrows.

“But it guarantees one thing,” Nancy said as she sawed away.

“What’s that?”

“I won’t miss,” she stated as she used the handle of the saw to hammer off the barrel. Max had a twinkle of awe in her eye. If she made it through all of this, which she doubted, but if she did… She hoped she would become even half as much of a badass as Nancy Wheeler was.

A ways down the hill, Kat, Eddie, and Dustin were working on prepping shields made out of old aluminum garbage can lids, which they grabbed… or, well, stole on the way. Using milk crates as workbenches, they hammered nails into them. 

“How’s she feeling?” Dustin asked when Eddie had finished his and began practicing his defense.

“Light. But durable. Deadly. But reliable,” he concluded. Dustin chuckled at his theatrics, which were only just beginning. He propped one foot up on the vacant milk crate. “Hear me now,” he said with a deeper, gravely voice, “there will be no more retreating!” he cried before switching back to his regular voice. “From Eddie the Banished. And... Kat the Magnificent,” he added with a wink at his girlfriend. She just playfully rolled her eyes.

“Hey, you’re really ready for bat-tle!” Dustin chortled. “You get it? ‘Bat-tle,’” he repeated when Eddie just stared at him blankly. “B-A-T. No?” he defeatedly groaned. “I thought I had a good one…”

Eddie put down his DIY shield and with a “Rargh!” charged at Dustin and began to wrestle him.

“What are you doing!” Dustin snapped as he wriggled himself away. “You son of a bitch!” he called out as he then charged Eddie who wrapped his arms around Dustin and tried to reach for his underwear. “No wedgies! No wedgies!” Dustin cried when he realized what was happening. 

Eddie laughed as he escaped Dustin’s hold. He threw his hand around the back of Dustin’s neck to hold the closest person he had to a younger sibling in his place. “Never change, Dustin Henderson. Promise me?” The look Eddie had in his eye… it was like he was trying to really make the most out of every single moment he had with his friends.

“I wasn’t planning on it,” Dustin said, slightly taken off guard by the sudden brotherly affection.

“Good,” Eddie nodded. When Dustin didn’t say anything, he repeated, “Good,” with an expectant expression.

“Good,” Dustin laughed.

Kat was perched on her milk crate, enjoying the whole scene. But she too, noticed that look in her boyfriend’s eye. Flashes from Vecna’s visions of the future blinded her. Dustin, sobbing. Eddie, looking up at the sky… his eyes devoid of any emotion. Her breath hitched. She never told her friends what she saw about each and every one of them. “Eddie, don’t–”

“Don’t what? Don’t do…” Eddie interrupted as he made a run for her. She quickly got up, a laugh escaping from her, as she tried to run away. Eddie’s long strides were no match for her as he quickly got in front of her, stopping her momentum. “Don’t do this?” he shouted as he gripped her waist and lifted her into the air, spinning her around. 

“Put me down!” she giggled. He did as he was told, but he didn’t let go of her.

“And you, Katrina Ramsey,” he murmured softly to her, “are the best goddamn thing to have ever happened to me.” He slid his hands up to cup her face and she found purchase on his forearms, sliding her hands up them to put hers over his. “Don’t you ever change, either. Don’t ever stop being the caring, resilient, and most badass person to have ever graced this earth. Got it?” he said. She could only make a face of pure adoration. When he was met only with her searching his silken chocolate eyes for some sign that Vecna’s vision was a farce, he leaned his forehead on hers. “Got it?” he repeated even quieter. She nodded, “I don’t ever plan on it. So long as you’re by my side. Anything happens to you, then all bets are off,” she said. He breathed out a laugh and then pulled her face to his. When she moved her hands to hold the side of his neck in one hand, and a fistful of his hair in another, she deepened the kiss.

“Ew, gross! Get a room!” Dustin called out to them with his hands cupped around his mouth to really project his voice.

Eddie chuckled and smiled against Kat, who yipped as he suddenly dipped her and kissed her again. “I love you,” he said, staring into her soul.

“I love you, too,” she said, still staring up at him in the dip.

“First and last and always?” he asked, quoting the album title of one of Kat’s favorite records. The one in which she was blasting as she drove away from the Hideout the first time she ever went to a Corroded Coffin show.

“Til the end of time,” she said with an affectionate smile.

With that, Eddie gave her one last peck and set her upright. “Hey, Sinclairs,” he called out to the siblings that sat in lawn chairs a little ways up the hill from them. “How are those, uh… those spears coming along?” 

Lucas shot them a thumbs up with a beaming smile. Erica scoffed at him. “Flip that damn thumb around,” she said.

“What?” Lucas asked, confused.

She took his makeshift spear, made out of the pole of a shovel and a hunting knife, and began to fix it. “It’s too loose, Lucas,” she said. “This isn’t a basketball game where they blow the whistle when your shoes fall off.”

“Okay, okay, for the record my shoes have never fallen off,” he defended.

“Okay, for the record, it’s kinda hard for your shoes to fall off when you’re riding the bench,” she countered. 

“Yet for some reason, you show up to every game,” he said.

“Mmm, except the one that mattered,” she confessed. “Plus, Mom and Dad forced me.”

“Bull. Mom and Dad can’t force you to do shit.”

“Well, even though you’re a bench riding-loser, you’re still my brother. Just the facts,” she said as she glanced up at him quickly while still looping the twine around the spear. It was at that moment, Lucas knew, that despite all their incessant bickering and Erica’s major attitude, she had and will always care about her bigger brother. No matter what kind of defenses she put up. As Lucas pondered this he looked out back to where the Winnebago was parked and Robin and Steve were concocting the molotov cocktails.

“It just doesn't make sense,” Steve said suddenly.

“What doesn’t make sense?” Robin asked as she poured lighter fluid into a funnel.

“That was Dan Shelter, he graduated, like, two years ago.”

“So?”

“So, he’s in college. Which means he was visiting on spring break. Fast Times was returned, I don’t know, like, a week ago? Right? Unless she’s got some horndog brother we don’t know about,” Steve said, trying to make sense of Vickie being with a guy. “Which is possible. Or she’s just really into Judge Reinhold?”

“Steve!” Robin said, stopping Steve's stream of theories.

“What?”

“I don’t care! And I don’t understand why you do either with everything that’s going on. Honestly, this feels like the perfect time for that little pull of the rug, because… in the face of the world ending, the stakes of my love life feel spectacularly low.”

“Yeah,” Steve frowned. “I mean, I get you there, but… I still have hope,” he said as he handed her a finished Molotov.

As she took it and put it with the other finished one she said, “Not everything had a happy ending.”

“Yeah, yeah. Believe me. I know,” he said as he looked out to the field to see Nancy holding her shotgun and Max watching her. 

“I’m not talking about failed romance,” she said as she poured the flammable liquid into another bottle. “I just… I have this terrible, gnawing feeling that… it might not work out for us this time,” she confessed.

“You think we shouldn’t be doing this? Even with Kat on our side?”

“I think we’re mad fools, the lot of us, but…” she sighed as she scanned the field, looking at her friends in front of her. Nancy was still looking down the much shorter barrel of her gun, Max probably listening to Nancy teaching her her methods. Dustin and Eddie were practicing with their shields as Dustin ducked and Eddie leapfrogged over him as Kat narrated the whole event. Lucas and Erica were testing out their spears, twirling them around to make sure they were steady. “But if we don’t stop him, who will? We have to try, right?”

“Yeah,” Steve nodded as he titled the unfinished deadly cocktail toward Robin. “To killing Vecna,” he toasted.

Robin turned and grabbed a ready-to-go Molotov, “Slash Henry.”

“Slash One,” he halfheartedly smiled as their bottles clinked. 

previous chapter | next chapter

[queen-of-the-avengers]

Iron Man: Part Seven

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x Female!Reader (implicitly)

Word Count: ~1.7k

Warnings: canon violence and angst

Author’s Note: any and all comments are appreciated <3

x

It takes another ten days for Tony to build the rest of the suit. He's been spending all his time in his lab working nonstop with you helping him. Granted, he's doing most of the work but you're here as moral support as well. Tony had to build the suit in stages instead of as one big project so he can assemble it and dismember it as he pleases.

For someone who has never done this before, he's doing white well for himself. Tony connected the two arms, both palm repulsors, and both boots together to work simultaneously without problems, and he's ready for another test.

"Day Eleven, test thirty-seven, configuration 2.0. For lack of a better option, Dum-E is still on fire safety. If you douse me again and I'm not on fire, I'm donating you to a city college." You chuckle in amusement. "Alright, I'm gonna start off with a one percent thrust capacity. Three, two one."

Tony fires up the suit and hovers a foot over the ground, making sure to keep steady in one place.

"It seems to be working," you say.

Tony sways from left to right as he tries to get used to moving about, and Dum-E follows him with the fire extinguisher hose just in case he erupts into flames mid-flight. Tony gently sets himself back on the ground with a smile on his face.

"Okay, don't follow me around with it because I feel like I'm gonna catch on fire spontaneously. Just stand down! If something happens, then come in. Again, Jarvis. Bring it up to two and a half percent." Jarvis ups the thruster capabilities. "Three, two, one."

Instead of one foot above the ground, he goes at least ten feet. He has a harder time trying to stay in one place, so he's moving all across the room trying to gain control. He flies over to his precious cars, and he laughs nervously.

"Okay, this is where I don't want to be! Not the car, not the car!"

"Turn right!"

"If I could turn right, don't you think I would have turned right?" he snaps out of frustration. He moves away from the cars and over to his workstation, and the power coming from his boots is enough to make papers go flying everywhere. "It could be worse! We're fine!" Tony flies over to the spot where he first started and finally gains control over where he wants to be. He lowers himself to the ground and loses balance but quickly regains it. Dum-E raises the fire extinguisher hose at Tony, but Tony is way ahead of him. "No! No!"

"You did amazing!" you gasp and bounce over to him.

"Yeah, I can fly."

"You're just like me now," you laugh.

"It's time for the real thing."

"Are you sure?"

"Never been more sure in my entire life. Help me, please."

"Jarvis, you heard the man. Get the rest of the suit ready."

"Yes, ma'am," the computer system says.

Many machines begin putting the suit together over Tony's body so there is nothing left of him that isn't sealed inside. The last thing to go is the mask, and you grab it and hand it to him. You grab one of the Bluetooth headphones and slide it into your ear so you can hear and speak to Jarvis without having to be in the suit with Tony. You won't be able to see what he sees, but all you need is to be able to hear.

"Engage Heads Up Display," Tony says.

"Check."

"Import all preferences from the home interface."

"Will do, sir. I have indeed been uploaded. We're online and ready."

"Can you start the virtual walk-around?"

"Importing preferences and calibrating a virtual environment."

"Do a check on control surfaces."

"As you wish."

Tony's suit starts to flex and move so Jarvis can make sure everything is in working order.

"Test complete. Preparing to power down and begin diagnostics."

"Tell you what. Do a weather and ATC check. Start listening in on ground control."

"Sir, there are still terabytes of calculations needed before an actual flight is—"

"Jarvis! Sometimes you got to run before you can walk," Tony grins.

"You're taking her out on a test run?" you ask.

"You want to come with me?"

"Jarvis, I'll make sure he's fine," you nod with a smile.

"Ready? In three, two, one."

Tony flies into the air and shoots toward the long tunnel that leads out of the garage. You quickly fly after him and keep up with his speed to make sure nothing goes wrong. Tony cheers from within the suit at the feeling this rush is giving him. There is a festival going on in town that has lots of kid rides and a Ferris Wheel, and you two fly by it to observe them at the height you're at.

"Are you doing okay?" you ask and fly beside him.

"This handles like a dream! Let's see what this thing can do. What's SR-71's record?" Tony asked Jarvis.

"The altitude record for fixed-wing flight is eight-five thousand feet, sir."

"Records are made to be broken! Come on!"

Tony changes directions and shoots straight into the sky. He wants to see how high he can go without shutting down. If anything were to go wrong, you'd be able to catch him and keep him safe, but you still worry about him. You'll be able to catch him if he shuts down, but you can't exactly heal his injuries if he gets hurt.

"Tony, please be careful," you warn.

The higher Tony flies, the more ice builds up on the surface of the suit.

"Sir, there is a potentially fatal buildup of ice occurring," Jarvis stutters.

"Keep going! Higher!" Tony urges.

"Tony! There is a lot of ice!" you warn.

The higher he goes, the more the controls flicker on and off. It gets to the point where Tony's entire suit shortens out so he can no longer talk to you and Jarvis. Tony hovers in the air for half a second before free-falling back down to Earth's surface.

"Tony!" you gasp. The ice isn't going to come off on its own, so you use your hydrokinesis to melt the ice so it's no longer an issue for him. You fly in front of Tony and grab his arms to keep him steady. His eyes are the only things you see, and he looks worried. "Don't worry, Tony, I got you."

The closer he gets to the ground without coming back online, the more worried you get. You're about to use your aerokinesis to fly him to safety when his entire suit comes back online. His laughter fills the air as he's able to take control back. Right before he hits the ground, he zooms past the cars who swerve to avoid hitting him.

"You're insane!" you shout.

"Tell me something I don't know." You two make your way back to his house, and he hovers a foot above the rooftop. "Kill power."

Jarvis immediately cuts all power to the suit, and Tony expects to land gracefully onto his roof. Instead, he crashed through the ground into the room where his piano is and down to the basement where his cars and lab are.

"Tony!" you gasp and fly down using the same hole he created. He's landed on one of his precious cars, and Dum-E thinks he needs to jump in. He starts spraying Tony with the fire extinguisher. "Are you okay?"

"Ouch," he groans.

"There are two things you need to work on. Ice build-up and landing more gracefully."

"Help me up."

It takes Tony twice as long to get the suit off him than it did to put it on him. He's got some work cut out for him to make this a lot easier in the future. Tony has an ice pack on his head from when he crashed into his car that will easily heal if he takes some time to rest. You walk past one of his tables and notice the brown package that Pepper brought in more than a week ago. Tony hasn't had time to look at it mainly because he's been so busy working.

"This is for you," you say when you see a note 'From Pepper' on the top. "What do you think it is?"

Instead of answering you, he opens the package. Inside is a glass container with the old arc reactor that you replaced. It sits on a pedestal surrounded by the words "PROOF THAT TONY STARK HAS A HEART" all around it. You can't help but notice the small smile on his face. She has a crush on him and based on this reaction, he feels the same. They're good for each other. Who else would do this for him if they didn't have feelings for him?

"Man, she must really like you," you comment.

"Yeah," he whispers.

He sets the container down and goes about his business. You bite your lower lip to stop yourself from smiling too much and join his side at his computer. There are a total of six computers surrounding Tony with two in the front and flour behind him. You take the remote and turn the TV on to see what's happening in the news right now.

"Notes. The main transducer feels sluggish at plus forty altitudes. Hull pressurization is problematic. I'm thinking icing is the probable factor," Tony says to Jarvis.

"A very astute observation, sir. Perhaps, if you intend to visit other planets, we should improve the exosystem."

"Connect to the system and have it reconfigure the shell metals. Use the gold titanium alloy from the Seraphim tactical satellite. That should ensure fuselage integrity while maintaining the power-to-weight ratio. Got it?"

"Yes. Shall I render using the proposed specifications?"

"Thrill me," he mutters.

There is a benefit for the Firefighter Family's Fund at Disney's Concert Hall, and that's the station you stopped at.

"Tonight's red-hot red carpet is right here at the Disney Concert Hall where Tony Stark's third annual benefit for the Firefighter's Family Fund has become the place to be for L.A.'s high society," the female announcer says.

"Jarvis, did we get an invite for that?" you wonder.

"I have no record of an invitation, ma'am."

"He and Y/N haven't been seen in public since their bizarre and highly controversial press conference. Some claim Tony and Y/N are suffering from posttraumatic stress and have been bedridden for weeks. Whatever the case may be, no one expects an appearance from them tonight."

"The render is complete," Jarvis announces and shows the finished product.

"A little ostentatious, don't you think?"

"What was I thinking? You're usually so discreet," Jarvis says sarcastically.

"You know what would look good? A little red in there. I bet Pepper likes the color red."

"You heard the lady, Jarvis," Tony chuckles.

"Yes, that should help you keep a low profile." Jarvis paints the suit on the computer. "The render is complete."

"Hey, I like it. Fabricate it. Paint it."

"Commencing automated assembly. Estimated completion time is five hours."

"Would you like to go to a party?" Tony asks you.

"I thought you'd never ask."

"Don't wait up for me, honey," Tony says to Jarvis.

x

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[kaittalkstoomuch]

CHAPTER ELEVEN IS HERE! Don’t panic!

TW: mentions of abandonment, we kind of dive deep into it. Mentions of death.

Chapter Eleven: Sweet Child O’ Mine

“Dad…. Daddy please, you can’t leave.” I’d cry out for my father, who was leaving in the dead of the night. Tears form as I plead for him. It was as if he couldn’t hear me. “Daddy please.” I cry out more. I feel the world shake and crumble as he leaves and hear a faint “Roxie, sweetheart.” Suddenly, the images of my dim past fade into a sun lit present as Eddie snaps me out of it. “Rox.” I feel Eddie’s hand rub my arm softly. I blink a couple times before coming to and turning to my lover.

“You okay, sweetheart?” His brown orbs look into mine intensely. He immediately understands what had happened. “It was your pops again, wasn’t it.” I rest my head onto his chest as we lay on the bed. “Yeah… they never go away. Ever. It’s always the same thing. I’m ten years old and it’s the middle of the night. You know, a time where children should be asleep. It’s always right when he lives. It’s something a child should never have to witness. He never hears me. Acknowledges my cries. I just… I don’t know. Recently I’ve been having more and more flashbacks. I don’t know why.”

Eddie holds me tightly. “I’m so sorry baby. I’m right here.” I hold him tightly and take a deep breath against his chest. “I love you so much, Eds. I don’t know what I’d do if I lost you. I can’t lose you.” Eddie holds my hand between our chests as we continue to lay down. “You will never ever lose me, sweetheart.” “What if somehow the cops find you.” Eddie combs his ring clad fingers through my auburn tussles. Tears nearly spill out of my eyes. “Baby, they won’t find me. They don’t even know where we are right now.” “But Eddie, what if somehow they do.” I start feeling panic. Eddie holds my face. “I’m not going anywhere sweetheart. I’m staying right here. With you.”

I start taking deep breaths. “You promise?” I ask quietly like a little kid. “Yes, I promise my love. I’m not going anywhere.” I snuggle up to him, hiding my face in the nook of his neck. “I promise my love.” “I love you, Eddie.” “I love you too, sweetheart.” He kisses my head and I start calming down more. “Roxanne.” A hush whisper fills my ears and I look around puzzled. “You okay?” Eddie asks. “Yeah, I am. Did you hear that?” I ask. “No, are you sure you’re okay?” “Yeah, I think so.”

Eddie takes note of my uncertainty. “Hey, tell me about Dart. What was that like?” I glow at the question. “Well, it was Halloween a couple of years back, or, somewhere around there. I was taking a shower and Dustin and I were the only ones home. I heard some rattling coming from the trash can and being the curious cat I am, I stopped my shower briefly and looked out of the curtain. Then, I saw this scaly, moist, lizard looking creature digging through the trash. It was so outworldly. I thought maybe Dustin would know something, being into things like that.”

I laugh at the memory. “So, I quickly finished my shower, dried off, put on my robe, then got an extra towel. I grabbed the creature and stormed into Dustin’s room. I’m not kidding, I had this thing wrapped like a baby. Dustin was so scared to tell me. But, he also knows I can keep a secret. So, that’s when I heard of the Upside Down, who Eleven is, her powers, how fucking horrible Hawkins Lab actually is… and finally, Barb’s death.” “I had no idea you and her were friends.”

I smile thinking of the little group. “Yeah, before Robin and I became best friends, Nancy and Barb were my best friends. From pre-k to sophomore year, when Harrington got into the picture.” Eddie chuckles. “You hated Harrington?” “Oh yeah. In Ms. Clickity Clack’s class, Robin and I would have to endure his stupidity. Oh god, Eds. It was awful. I would also fight with Nancy because I always thought she could find someone better.” “What do you think now?” He asks as I smile.

“I think…. His dating life is extremely pathetic and he quite possibly lost the love of his life. But, what do I know? We’re still in high school… though I do have mine.” Eddie seems shocked by my observation. “I’m the love of your life?” He teases me as I laugh. “YES! Are you kidding me?” We both laugh. “Seriously though, with Harrington… really? After everything? What changed?” “Honestly, I got to know the real Harrington. And it all started with Dustin. They have a great relationship. You do too, yes, but the kid IDOLIZES the fuck out of the guy.” I say with a chuckle. “Roxanne…” I hear the voice again. Eddie seemingly understands.

“Hey.” I rub his side as his hand rests on mine. “What’s going on in that pretty little mind of yours?” I look into those chocolate orbs. They look less somber than they have been within the last 24 hours, but still filled with worry. I rub his cheek with my thumb. “C’mon, Eds. Talk to me.” I hold his hands in my lap as I position myself sitting across from him. “It’s just that goddamn dream… something about it… it felt so real.” He speaks ever so softly. “What about it made it feel real?”

“You… were stuck. Much like Chrissy. We were here, in our sanctuary. The place that’s supposed to make us feel safe. You were absolutely beaming over the future. I mean, so was I, but you glowed. When you were in that trance, I didn't know what to do. I was doing everything in my power to save you. I couldn’t lose you, darling. When you started levitating, that’s when you woke me up, and thank god. I don’t know how I could live without you.” Tears form in his eyes and I wipe them with my thumb. I hold his hands tighter. “Whatever this is, we’re going to get it. We’re going to kill that son of a bitch.”

I get up from the bed and tell him the ideas flowing in my head. “I could act as a red herring. A decoy, a distraction while you guys find clues.” Eddie hates the idea, evidently from violently shaking his head. “Rox, absolutely not.” “No, no Eds, hear me out. If push comes to shove, I can literally drive all over Hawkins in your van. Distract people. I can even hang out with the guys. Obviously, they’re going to be on your side. I’ll even attend Chrissy’s funeral. Y’know, pay my respects.” Eddie now gets up and meets me. “Rox, you can’t. As much as I love you, and how protective you are, don’t risk your life for me.”

I groan at his response. “Eddie, babe. I know you’re worried about Jason and his dipshit goons coming after me. I can handle them, especially that pissant Jason.” “Okay, but what about Andy? He’s so misogynistic, he could hurt you and not think twice.” “Oh, that’ll just fuel me to brutally kick his ass. Like seriously, he won’t even know what’s coming.” Eddie’s still reluctant. “I’m also worried Jason would try and get answers out of you.”

I hold Eddie by his waist and rest my head on his chest. “I dealt with assholes like him practically my whole life. I think I can take Carver.” He seems to get it, then sighs. “I know sweetheart. I’m just worried, that’s all. I don’t want you to get hurt.” “I know baby, I just want to protect you.” “And I want to protect you, sweetheart.” We share a kiss. Just then, someone knocks on the door. “What the hell?”

“Come in!” I say looking at the door quickly then back at Eds. “It’s probably the gang, they probably have some type of answers.” I reassure him as he nods. Steve and Robin walk in first, nervously looking at me specifically. Then Dustin and Max, with the same look. Eddie mutters “what the fuck” while the familiar unsettling voice rings in my ears. “Roxanne.” Then, I make eye contact with a crucial part of my past. Nancy fucking Wheeler.

[askthechronoverse]

Chapter Eleven: A Loose End or a Strand

Last Chapter •||• Next Chapter

"NO. STOP."

The fox and royal cat turned to the sound of the desperate voice. Coming down the stairs at a suspicious speed was Richard, followed by a half tired Rex.

"Rick! Where have you two been? I've been looking for you both!" Unikitty stepped forward, but Richard rushed past her and snatched the memory out of Doctor Fox's hand. He stood still for a moment, expressionless, then threw the memory back in the jar. The whole time this occurred, Doctor Fox tried to grab the memory back. Richard held it too tightly in his psychic grip for her to take it.

"Did you see the memory, princess?" The normally monotone voice of her advisor sounded dead and broken. The facade of a calm brick was fully dissolved now, giving way to someone who could barely keep himself together. "Answer me."

"Yes." Unikitty tried to put a paw on one of the studs on top of his head, but he floated back towards Rex.

"Well, RJ‽ What now‽" The brick's breath was heavy with fear. "It's too late!"

"Rick… please tell me what's going on." The cat was also fearful, scared even further by the frantic actions of her advisor. He had already moved to the Memory Machine and started to type something into the touchscreen.

Passcode accepted…

Launching Project Lotus…

Options:

Launch Full Redaction Protocol

Start Lotus Routine

Launch Debrief Sequence

The brick was still, suspended in the air for what felt like a lifetime. A few stray teardrops fell to the floor. An invisible hand pressed “Launch Full Redaction Protocol”. A confirmation screen came up.

"I have to be the only one." He spoke with uncertainty, voice creaking like the floorboards of a long abandoned home. "This is my burden to carry." Before he could confirm the launch of the protocol, a voice stopped him.

"No. You don't. You were gonna let me in, remember?" Rex walked over to the brick and put a hand on the left hand stud. "Let her in, too." The brick sighed, his breath heavy and pained.

"I have seen both of your graves. I have seen every person I have gotten close to fall into holes in the ground. The sky grows dark… It's Armommageddeon all over again." Unikitty’s voice was cracking under the stress. "I've never seen anything like that before that terrible time and I never want to see that again!"

"From what I know of the wedding incident, I regret to inform you that your statement is incorrect." Richard closed his eyes, which showed an age that seemed far older than he let on within the lines of his face.

"How?" Unikitty's voice quivered. Deep down in the part of her brain where she hid negative thoughts, something was stirring, a sleeping dragon that had been awakened.

"Princess… I want to think back. Go before Armommageddeon. Before your friend here staggered onto the scene with some mystery piece glued to his back, begging for praise for being ‘special’. What do you remember?" He furrowed his eyebrows. Why was he doing this?

"The first thing I remember is… waking up in a large white room. There were nurses surrounding me, excited I woke up. They asked if I remembered who I was and told me I was their princess. The princess of Cloud Cuckoo Land." Unikitty frowned sharply. She strained to think back any further, a lightbulb cracking above her horn. Richard shook, but there was relief in his eyes. "I… can't remember anything further back."

"Maybe this is for the best then. Put all this out of your mi-"

"Actually, I… I remember one other thing. I remember… just three words. 'Be the light.' It's why… Why I am the way I am today." Her pupils shrank, the last thing she saw in the lab being the tired face of her advisor holding an expression of shocked flattery.

"No! You need to leave me! The kingdom can only exist if you are still around! Get to the castle! The kingdom can't lose you, Unikitty! I can't lose you!" The ground fell away completely and Richard seemed to lose his ability to float over the hole. A look fell on the brick's face: one of an uneasy acceptance. "Please… be the light in the darkness you have always been, my princess. Don't let the loss of the Unikingdom darken your spirit. That's my last piece of advice for you." He began to fall, tears streaming from his large eyes that slowly closed as his form was overtaken by shadows. Unikitty rushed to grab him, but he fell too fast to be grabbed.

"Richard! I can't reach you! Please reach out to me!" By the time she shouted this, he had been swallowed by the darkness. She backed up toward the castle and started to cry. They were gone: all her friends, her kingdom, her brother… and the brick who had been like a father to her for years. The fear was turning her a ghostly white. She looked around her and saw that the darkness had claimed the rest of the kingdom. She was alone.

The cat was no longer in the lab, but in her bedroom. She was in her bed with an ice pack on her head. Richard floated by her side and Rex sat at the foot of the bed.

"Be the light. Those were your last words to me, weren't they." She asked softly.

"It was all a dre-" Richard paused as he noticed Rex glaring at him. "Yes. I thought I was never going to see you again, princess."

"So the Unikingdom I keep seeing?"

"It's… it's been gone for a long time. Cloud Cuckoo Land was not your first time running a kingdom. You were young when you took the throne of the… oh, let's call it the Old Unikingdom. I was somehow able to prove myself worthy of being your advisor to your parents around the time you were still an infant. I wasn't actually worthy of it then. I am even less worthy of it now, if I'm being honest with myself. I worked with you, taught you what you needed to do to become a good ruler. Then, after you had brought peace to the kingdom… the Old Unikingdom fell. I thought you were dead, princess. I barely held on to hope." He could barely float at this point, choosing to land between Unikitty and Rex.

"You seemed close to losing hope in that vision… memory." Unikitty put her paw on one of his studs. He let her do this this time around.

"Eventually, Doctor Fox's voice fell silent as well. I think our talk made her lose her resolve and panic. Between Hawkodile's rage at the situation and Puppycorn's cries for you and desperate attempts to make everyone happy… I suppose it doesn't matter at this point." The brick sighed heavily. "I can't understand why I'm still here. Why did I survive and get to tell you all of this…"

"Why didn't you want Doctor Fox to see the memory?"

"That's part of my duties for Project Lotus. When the queen told us you didn't remember the Fall, we made a pact to never let you remember. I suppose I failed on that front, since I'm not hiding anything now. However, she rebuilt several devices to help keep the truth from you. The Memory Machine is the main piece to the puzzle. The others sacrificed their memories to keep you happy."

"What about you?" Unikitty's heart broke as her loyal friend began to cry.

"I… wasn't as lucky. I… I knew too much. It would have killed me to take all that away, so I became the only soul in the Unikingdom who knew that we were all starting over. The citizens didn't remember anything to begin with." He sounded exhausted, almost shrinking as he spoke. "Doctor Fox couldn't understand why back then. I just consider it to be good fortune that the citizens that were left from the old days couldn't remember the Fall."

"Why don't I remember anything?"

"That isn't something I can tell you, my princess. You always had an avoidant personality when it came to unpleasantness. You once tried to separate your anger from yourself using some invention of Doctor Fox's design. I assume you made yourself forget somehow. I believe the only reason you remember what you do now is because of a certain man who had attempt to destroy the world in the exact same way the Old Unikingdom fell." He shot a sideways glance over to Rex, who pointed to himself before avoiding Richard's eye contact. Richard floated up slowly, turning away from Unikitty. "Rest for a while. I know you have more questions, but we have a lifetime for me to answer them. I'd rather not see you be stressed any further." He gave Rex a sideways glance and looked to the door. Before the human could get up, Unikitty grabbed his denim vest.

“RJ, stay a sec? I’ve been alone for this whole thing. I just want someone here with me.” The man nodded and sat back down. By this point, Richard had left the room completely. “I was going to ask you about how to handle my visions, but if they aren’t visions… How do you handle the bad memories? The memories of the… really bad time?”

“One day at a time. Ya aren’t gonna make the memories go away. Well, you kinda did, but now that they’re there… ya can’t put the genie back in the bottle. You have one soul who remembers everything you can talk to. I know nothing, but I didn’t make a pact to forget everything either. I can afford to hear ya vent. You have a support system, which is more than I thought I had.” Rex played with a piece of fluff that he found on the bedspread. “Just know the world ain’t ending, alright?”

“I was scared I was going to lose all of you… even you.” Unikitty’s ears went back.

“Really? Guess I made that much of an impact on ya, huh?” Rex laughed softly.

“You became a real friend, RJ. I never thought I’d say that about the guy who caused Armommageddeon, but I’m saying that. You are my friend and I don’t want to lose you.” The cat’s big blue eyes were on the verge of tears.

“Hey now. Let’s not get sappy, okay?” He took the watery eyes as an invitation for a hug and pulled his oldest friend in a soft embrace. “I’m okay. The world isn’t ending and you’re not alone. I’ll be here to remind you of that every single day I still have breath, if you need me to.”

“Please do that. That’s one thing I never want to forget.”

[allthingsfangirl101]

TOS Chapter 24: Now or Never

Masterlist

Steve pulled up to the middle school, his eyes on Alice as soon as he put the car in park. He reached over and grabbed her hand, intertwining their fingers.

"You sure about this?"

"Don't," she cut him off. "Please, Steve. You know I have to do this."

"I wish you didn't," he whispered. "I wish we could run away."

"We can't," Alice said, her heart breaking in sync with her voice. "We can't leave Hawkins in the hands of my brother."

Alice let go of his hand and got out of the car. She walked over to where the kids were waiting for her and Steve.

"What's the plan?" Dustin asked as Steve finally joined them.

"Simple," Alice spoke up before anyone could. "I fight my brother. You guys stay safe."

"What?" Steve gasped. The kids started arguing but Alice didn't budge.

"That's enough," she cut them off. "My brother will kill anyone in his way."

"So you're putting yourself in the way," Robin said, glancing at Steve. "Alice, we understand why, but are you sure? Maybe we could help."

"She's right," Dustin jumped in. "We could distract him. Confuse him. Like he's being hit from too many directions."

"No," Alice said firmly. "I'm not risking any of your lives. This fight is between me and my brother."

"To be fair," Johnathan sighed, "this fight involves us too, Alice."

"You're wrong," she said instantly. "Hawkins is collateral damage."

"Collateral damage?" Nancy snapped. "Your brother has killed our friends. He's threatened some of us individually, so don't tell me we're just collateral damage."

"That's not what I meant," Alice soothed. "What I was trying to say is that it doesn't matter where my dad had moved us. Hawkins, Gary, Hammond, New Albany, or any other town in Indiana or somewhere else. He would do the same thing to the people there. He doesn't care who he's punishing. He is simply taking his anger out on whoever is around. None of this is personal. For you guys."

"Why is he still here?" Max asked. "He didn't know you were alive."

"That's not true."

"Wait, what?" Steve asked.

"What do you mean?" El pushed.

"Yeah," Will said. "I thought your brother didn't know you were alive."

"He didn't know it was me," Alice started slowly. "When I was at Brenner's second lab, he kept talking up another subject."

"Subject?"

"A child he was experimenting on and training," she explained. "He held that over my head. Brenner kept pushing me to be better than this subject. Turns out, he was saying the same thing to Henry when he first started training him. I knew the other subject was Henry. Henry didn't know the other subject was me until he found out I was alive. So he's always been competing against me without realizing he was competing against his baby sister."

Before anyone could respond to this new piece of information, the earth started to shake. Steve instantly protected the kids with his eyes on Alice the entire time. She was protecting Eleven and Max.

"You guys need to get out of here," Alice said looking directly into Steve's eyes.

"We're not leaving you," he said instantly.

Alice turned around and ran toward the source of the sudden earthquake.

"Alice!" Steve yelled.

The group stood, unable to move as they watched Alice and Vecna fight. Alice didn't care what happened to her. She needed to protect the kids. She needed to protect Steve.

Alice unrooted a tree and sent it flying toward her brother. He instantly deflected it, hitting the powerline nearby. Alice used this to her advantage as she used the free current from the powerline and sent it to Henry.

Vecna fell to his knees as the volts of electricity went through his body. It took him a little longer to get out of it. When he got himself disconnected, he sent the volts right back. It hit Alice but she got out of it faster than he did.

"You really thought this would work?" Henry laughed. "Aw, baby sis. You can't beat me. Do I have to kill your little friends to prove I'm stronger?"

"You're not," Alice said calmly. "You have gone out of your way to keep people out of your life. That's weak. What's strong is opening yourself to people and letting them in."

"You always were obsessed with fairytales," Henry scoffed.

She didn't bother to respond. Instead, she used all of her strength to push him back. He tried to push against her but surprise was on her side again. The longer she held him, the harder it became for her to hold him back.

Eventually, he used her weakening powers against her. He pushed back, making her fly back. She hit the ground hard and rolled.

"Alice!" She heard Steve yell but she was too busy trying to stand up so she could keep Henry away from the others.

The exhaustion she was fighting as she struggled to sit up caused Alice to collapse. Steve ran to her side. He gently pulled her to her feet, kept his arms wrapped around her, and led her into the school.

"You need to get out of here," Alice whispered, too weak to speak louder. "Get the kids out of here. Go."

"No."

"Steve. . ."

"I'm not leaving you," Steve cut her off. She looked up at him, her heart jumping into her throat when she saw the look in his eyes. Her hand was shaking as she reached up and gently cupped his face in her hand. She stood on her toes and delicately pressed her lips to his. When Alice broke the kiss, she kept her forehead pressed to his.

"I'll never forget you, Steve," Alice whispered.

Catching him off guard, Alice pushed Steve into the cafeteria where the other kids were hiding. Before Steve or the others could understand what was happening, Alice used her powers to bolt the doors closed from the outside.

"Alice?"

She looked up to see Steve staring at her. "What are you doing?" He whispered.

"I'm sorry," she said under her breath, "but I have to keep you safe. In order to do that, I have to make sure you're somewhere safe until it's clear."

"No!" Steve yelled as he tried to break down the door. He looked up at her, pleading her with his eyes. "Don't do this, Alice. I'm begging you."

Alice gently placed her hand on the window between her and Steve. She looked into his eyes, wanting to hold onto this feeling for a little longer. She gathered her courage to finally admit it.

"I love you, Steve Harrington."

She left before Steve could say anything back.

                                * * * * *

Alice ran back out of the school, looking for her brother. When she found him back in his Vecna state, his focus was on the sky. She knew what he was about to do and she knew that in order to save Hawkins, she couldn't let him do it. Her mind was on one of the last private conversations with Steve.

"The last few times you've fought your brother, you've done it out of anger and fear."

"How else am I supposed to fight him?"

"Out of love and protection. Focus on protecting the others."

She reached her hand toward him, closing the gate he was trying to open.

"You can't beat me, little sister," Henry scoffed, not bothering to turn toward me. "You're not strong enough."

"I'm not trying to beat you, big brother," Alice said through her teeth as she struggled to close the gate. "I'm trying to protect my friends."

With one last strain, Alice yelled as she closed the gate. Not only did she close it, she disconnected the crack between the planes he was using to open the new gate.

"Well done," he smirked, finally turning toward her. "You've gotten stronger ever since we started fighting, baby sister."

"You are not why I'm stronger," Alice said instantly.

"Okay," he scoffed. "If I'm not the reason, then how do you explain that?" He pointed up to the scar in the sky he caused and the one she closed. "Opening and closing a gate isn't easy, Ali. I should know."

"It is if you're doing it for the right reason."

He rolled his eyes but she wasn't going to let him stop her. She's been holding things back for far too long and she was ready to let it out.

"Haven't you ever felt love, Henry?" She asked. "Don't you remember what that feels like?"

"No one ever loved me!"

"I did!" Alice yelled, her voice betraying her. "I have always loved you." She paused before adding, "I still love you, Henry."

"I guess I should be touched," he taunted. "My baby sister still loves me."

"We're family," Alice said, her voice breaking. "That means that through thick and thin, we stand by each other."

"What are you trying to say?" Henry snapped. Alice watched as the vines slithered around her brother. She couldn't help but think about how much she used to look up to him. How much she wanted to be just like him.

Now, all she wanted to do was stop him.

Alice didn't need to close her eyes or put out her hand. She watched as her brother slowly changed from Vecna to Henry. When he realized he was turning back, he scowled.

"What?" She asked. "You haven't missed being the old you? I have."

"You've missed me?" He scoffed. "Come on, Alice. . ."

"You didn't realize it?" I cut him off. "Our entire childhood, I followed you around. I wanted to play with you. I wanted to be your best friend. I wanted to be inseparable. I wanted to do everything with you. But you pushed me away."

Alice could feel her powers slowly growing out of control, but she didn't bother to get the control back. She was going to use every ounce of her abilities she had and even the parts she's never touched.

"You never played with me," she continued as her powers were focused on messing with the fence around the baseball field. "You snapped at me. You told me to go away. You said you hated me."

The fence wrapped around Henry's hands and wrists. He tried to fight them off, but Alice had the upper hand. She made the other end of the fence go deep underground, forcing Henry to his knees.

"You said you hated me," Alice continued as the fence wrapped tighter around Henry. "But I kept telling myself you were just angry about Mommy and Daddy moving us to Hawkins. I kept telling myself it wasn't my fault. Even after you killed Mommy."

Alice tightened her fists, making the fence wrap around his neck. She was practically seething as she said, "I visited Daddy."

"What?" He said through his teeth.

"I told him what you've done," she said, stepping toward him. "I told him exactly what you've been up to. Do you want to know what he said?"

Henry opened his mouth, probably to object but Alice didn't give him the chance. As she told her brother about her reunion with their father, she made him mimic what she was telling.

"He grabbed my hands like this," Alice said as she used the fence wrapped around his wrist to pull them together in front of him. "Then he brought me in close. He told me he was happy my twisted brother hadn't killed me too. He made me promise that I would run from you and live my life."

"And yet," he smirked, "here you are."

"I'm fighting for my home," she said through her teeth. "I'm fighting to protect people." She paused before adding, "You want to know the last thing our father said to me, Henry?"

He looked away from his sister but she could tell he wanted to know.

"He told me how much he loved me," Alice said, her voice breaking. "And then he told me to do whatever I needed to do to stop you. Even if that meant killing you."

"Yeah right," he scoffed, his anger showing through the vein popping in his forehead. "Father wouldn't tell you to kill me."

"You killed Momma," Alice said, her voice seething. "You killed the love of his life."

"And now I'm going to kill yours."

Alice's fear sneaked through. Her mind immediately went to a certain boy locked in the middle school with a group of kids. She forced herself to refocus and tighten his bonds.

"You are not laying another finger on any of them," she said, sounding calmer than she felt. She walked closer, stopping directly in front of him. Alice slowly knelt down so she was looking directly into her brother's eyes.

"You could stop this," she whispered. "We could start over."

"Start over," he scoffed. "Like it's that easy. Wake up, Alice. I can't go off and live a normal life. You can't either, little sister."

She tried to ignore that verbal stab but she couldn't. She hated knowing he was right.

"They can," she said shakily. "Those kids can have a normal life. And I will do whatever it takes to make sure they get that chance."

Alice ignored the feeling of guilt slowly creeping up inside her as she lifted her hand, her palm toward him. She didn't look away as she used her ability to reach through to him. She ignored his screaming as she tore him apart.

She couldn't move as she watched her brother slowly whither away. Nothing broke her focus. Not even the sound of the kids trying to break down the door drew her focus away from her brother.

Steve could barely see outside. Every once in a while, he could see Alice or Vecna. But then, he couldn't see either of them.

"We have to do something," he said angrily pushing a desk across the room.

The kids watched him, none of them knowing what to say. They've noticed his change. They've seen how Steve acts around Alice and none of them could imagine what he was thinking right now.

"Alice wants us to stay here," Robin said carefully. "That's why she bolted the door."

"He is going to kill her," Steve said harshly as he glared at her. "I'm not going to sit here and let that happen."

"Steve," Nancy said before Robin could try to defend herself. "Alice wanted us safe."

"But. . ." He stuttered. "He'll kill her."

"We don't know that," Dustin jumped in. "Alice is pretty badass. She may kill him."

"She has to," Robin shrugged. "She knows that the only way to truly protect us, protect you, Steve, is to kill her brother."

Steve looked out the window, wishing he could see if she was alright. He sighed, his stomach sinking.

"Doesn't mean she needs to do it alone," he mumbled.

"Steve. . ." Nancy started.

"Killing her brother isn't going to be easy on her," Steve continued as he turned back toward the group. "She can do it but that doesn't mean it's going to be easy. Killing your sibling? She needs us."

"Steve's right."

This was the first time that Eleven had spoken up since they got to the school. She knew she couldn't defeat Vecna on her own. Alice was their only option.

"Alice is the only one who can beat him," El said, standing up. "But she is going to need us there when she does. She's going to need someone to pull her back."

Eleven walked toward the door and closed her eyes, trying to imagine how Alice could have bolted the door. It took a little while but she was finally able to get the door open.

The second it was open, the group ran outside. They froze when Alive and Vecna came into view. Vecna was wrapped in wire that went into the cement. Alice was standing before him. Vecna wasn't Vecna anymore. He was Henry. And he was screaming.

Steve tried to run to her but Johnathan and Dustin held him back. He watched as Alice slowly got weaker. None of them knew what to do as Alice slowly killed her brother. Steve tried to listen when he noticed Alice say something to her brother moments before she ended his life.

"I'm sorry but you gave me no choice," she whispered. "I love you, Henry."

The group watched as his body turned to ash. The children cheered as Vecna completely disappeared. Well, almost everyone watched Henry die. Steve's eyes never left Alice. As her brother withered away, Alice's knees got weaker and weaker. The world around her started to spin as her entire body felt like it was weighed down.

Steve started running toward her when he saw what the others didn't see—Alice starting to sway. He didn't get to her in time.