the bloodstone pass  

. ✧ ・゜. +・o ✧

Brandon Fairgrieves paced the halls of Hawkins Lab, an unlit cigarette dangling from his lips. They were all waiting for one of their coworkers to arrive back at the Lab with the names of the kids who had been with Eleven when they had contacted Will Byers at Hawkins Middle School, and he couldn't be more afraid.

 Because he knew all of the names, but he'd kept his lips sealed and hadn't said anything to Brenner. Pretended he had no idea who the other boys calling Will's name were. The only one he couldn't pretend not to know was his own daughter's voice. How had she come to be mixed up in this? Why did it have to be her? His daughter, the only one he had after Linda had run away... he'd dedicated his entire life to protecting her, and now there was nothing he could do. They were going to find out eventually, just like he had. 

She must've been so afraid when it first exploded out of her. Nine years old, the very night her mother ran off. He didn't know what, exactly, she could do, but he did know that it was dangerous. Being afraid, and alone, and now they were going to do lord-knows-what with her and her friends. God, it was so messed up.

He looked down at the notebook in his hands with a frown. He'd realized the file was missing a day ago. Alina had broken into his office, stolen the file on the subject, the girl who had messed things up royally for him in the first place. So he'd gone into her own room this morning, searching the drawers for it, only to come up with something else in one of her drawers. After returning everything back to normal, he'd read the entire thing, and a chill had gone down his spine.

He read about Alina's first experience with the Subject, the day they met in the Lab. He read about the clues Alina had tried to put together, the strange feeling in her stomach when she first saw the subject. Brandon knew that the children exposed to MKUltra were connected somehow, so that added up. He read about the second time his daughter and the subject met, the day she escaped, and the gate was opened. He had been this close to catching her that night. She was only a ladder and thin wooden walls away.

Brandon Fairgrieves read about his daughter's encounter with Dustin Henderson, Lucas Sinclair and Mike Wheeler, and how Subject Eleven first demonstrated her abilities by shutting the door to Mike's room. He read, captivated, as Alina slowly put together the clues. And he read—his tears splashing onto the pages—the hateful things she'd written about him.

He read about contacting Will, and the Upside Down, as she called it. He thought it was a pretty good name—they hadn't come up with anything. And finally, Brandon read about Subject Eleven throwing Lucas and nearly killing him. All of this proof in his hands. All of these things she'd discovered.

He's going to find out anyway, Brandon thought to himself. Connie's going to be back soon. He clutched the notebook so hard his knuckles turn white. He's going to find out. Maybe he'll be easier on Alina if I turn this in.

So Brandon Fairgrieves did.

Alina lay on Lucas's bed, like she'd done the day after Will's fake body was found. Her eyes were squeezed tightly shut as she tried to recreate the strange void she'd been transported into yesterday, after Eleven had thrown Lucas into the car. She remembered blackness, stretching everywhere, and a strange, watery substance lapping over her feet. She remembered the feeling in her palms.

But she couldn't replicate it.

She'd gone right over to Lucas's as soon as she'd woken up this morning, after missing yet another day of school yesterday. She didn't think the teachers minded. She was practically invisible in their eyes, a girl who got below-average grades and never spoke to anybody. Well, that had been her. Now she was a girl who'd solved mysteries, trekked through forests, and had abilities she still didn't understand.

Finally, Alina opened her eyes, and found Lucas watching her. He looked away at her gaze, embarrassment tinging his cheeks. "Sorry," he murmured. "I'm just—you did something yesterday, didn't you. That's why your nose was bleeding, and your face was all bruised. Like... like the weirdo."

Alina swallowed thickly. "Yeah. I did. You were unconscious, and I was so scared—I did it again, and I figured out what it was. It's energy. Somehow, I can convert energy into these... sort of red bullets and shoot them out of my palms. It sounds cooler when I say it like that," she added, when Lucas's eyes had gotten big, an awestruck look gracing his young face.

"But anyway," Alina continued, "because I'm using this energy and converting it into whatever that is, it makes me really tired afterwards. Like, more tired than Eleven. And I end up passing out. Except in the junkyard. I think it's because of the adrenaline rush I got..."

"So, like, if you drank five energy drinks before using your powers, you'd be able to stay awake at the end?" Lucas asked, leaning forward in interest.

"I don't know," said Alina. "But my powers—or whatever you want to call it—aren't like El's. I can't control them at all, and they only come out when I have a strong emotion, like anger or fear."

Lucas just shook his head in disbelief. "I can't believe two of our party members have superpowers. Well, one. The freak isn't one of us."

Alina's eyes widened. "I'm a part of the party? Really?"

"Yeah, of course." Lucas looked surprised that she'd even asked. "Mike might not think so, but Dustin and I both agree, and... and if Will was here, he'd agree too. We all think you're really cool, Al."

Alina smiled softly. "Thanks, Lucas. But... but El's not a freak. I know what she did yesterday was way out of line—"

"She threw me into a car!"

"She boiled over," said Alina quietly. "Just like I did. Just because she has better control over her powers than I do doesn't mean that it's perfect. She must've been overwhelmed by the fight you and Mike were having. I'm not saying that what she did was justified, but..."

Lucas groaned. "Can we not talk about the weirdo? Let's talk about our game plan for today. You have your switchblade, right?"

Alina held it up, sunlight streaming in from Lucas's window glinting off the silver blade. "Affirmative."

"Binoculars?"

"Lucas. Don't worry. I have everything."

Just then, the sound of the ringing doorbell reverberated from downstairs. Lucas let out a sigh and got off of his bed. "Come on," he said. "We can talk more downstairs anyway."

Alina nodded and followed her friend downstairs, where he pulled open the door. A grimace immediately came to his face when he saw the two boys who were standing outside. Mike was chewing on his lip, looking as if he didn't want to be there, but Dustin's face lit up when he saw the girl standing behind Lucas. "Hey, Al."

"What do you want?" Lucas snapped, glaring at both of the boys who had the gall to be there after the big fight yesterday. Eleven, strangely, was not with them.

For a moment, it was quiet, neither of the two boys responding, when finally Dustin smacked Mike lightly on the shoulder, urging him to speak. Mike let out a groan. "I drew first blood, so..." he held out his hand, expecting Lucas to shake, but Lucas didn't move.

From behind him, Alina gave Mike and Dustin a tight smile. "Why don't you guys come in?"

Which is how, less than five minutes later, Alina sat in a chair in Lucas's living room, while Dustin and Mike stood, Lucas pacing the room and trying to figure out what to say to the boy he fought with. Alina watched him, a little sorry for him. She knew that he had to work it out with Mike, but...

"Okay," Lucas said finally, turning to face Dustin and Mike, "I'll shake." He crossed his arms as Mike held out his hand again, not making a move. "On one condition. We forget the weirdo and go straight to the gate."

Alina let out a sigh. She knew he'd say that. And last night she'd been completely prepared to go along with it. But now she was thinking how useful Eleven would be to them in the Upside Down. Alina had to admit, she was the best fighter of all of them. Which is why she wondered why Eleven wasn't here.

"Then the deal's off," Mike spat, and Lucas rolled his eyes.

"Fine!"

"Fine!"

"No, no, not fine!" Dustin suddenly snapped, drawing all eyes to his. "Guys, seriously? Do you even remember what happened on the Bloodstone Pass?" He was obviously referring to a D&D campaign that Alina had not been a part of, but Lucas and Mike didn't seem to remember either, Mike shrugging and Lucas furrowing his brow. Dustin rolled his eyes and elaborated. "We couldn't agree on what path to take, so we split up the party and those trolls took us out one by one. And it all went to shit. And we were all disabled!" Dustin's voice rose to a yell at the end of his rant, glaring at Mike and Lucas. "So we stick together, no matter what!"

"Yeah," said Lucas, leaning against the chair Alina was sitting in, "I agree. But this is the party, right here in this room." He looked down at Alina. "Everyone in this room."

"El's one of us now," Mike insisted. "Alina isn't."

"Thanks, Mike," Alina snapped, crossing her arms.

Lucas was shaking his head incredulously. "Um, no, the weirdo's not. Not even close! Al's the one who's been trying to help you this entire time. The one who stuck up for Will, who she barely even knows. The one who's actually been there for us, unlike the weirdo, who's a liar, a traitor—"

"She was just trying to keep us safe!" Mike defended. "She didn't mean to hurt you. It was an accident!"

"An accident?" Lucas repeated.

"All right, accident or not," began Dustin, "admit it. It was a little awesome."

"Awesome?!"

"Yeah," said Dustin. "She threw you in the air with her mind!" he looked to Lucas, Alina and Mike, as if surprised that none of them were realizing just how cool Eleven was. Alina was looking down at her feet, her cheeks still warm from Lucas's speech defending her, but she met his gaze and rolled her eyes, jerking her head at the other two to convey her annoyance. Dustin gave a little grin and returned to the conversation.

"I could have been killed!" Lucas was arguing.

"Which is exactly why we need her!" Mike piped up. "She's a weapon! Do you seriously wanna fight the Demogorgon with your wrist rocket? That's like R2-D2 going to fight Darth Vader! We're no use to Will if we're dead."

"Mike," said Alina, "that's kind of unfair. We have no idea how strong the Demogorgon is. We don't know if it's susceptible to rocks."

Lucas was fuming. "If you two," he began, speaking to Mike and Dustin, "wanna waste your time looking for a traitor, go ahead, 'cause I'm not spending my time on her anymore. No way!"

"Looking?" Alina echoed. "What do you mean, looking?"

"El ran off last night," Mike explained. "Lucas probably heard us calling for her."

Lucas clenched his fists and concluded his rant. "I'm going to the gate with Alina. We're gonna find Will."

He pushed through both Mike and Dustin and was halfway to the door when he realized Alina hadn't moved. He turned back to face her. "Are you coming?"

But Alina's mind was reeling. Exactly what she was afraid of happening had happened yesterday, and she hadn't even realized it. Eleven had run, and any of the potential scenarios Alina had been afraid of could've happened. So she stood her ground.

"Look, Lucas," she said. "I know that you don't like Eleven, but we have to find her. Not only is she our best bet at finding Will and escaping the Upside Down with our lives, but we also just can't leave her wandering around Hawkins alone. She doesn't know anything about it. A million wrong things could happen. And... even if you don't like her, El is my friend. And I'm not going to just let those wrong things happen to her."

Lucas's jaw clenched, and suddenly it happened. He blew over. He finally fell off the edge.

"I should've known," he spat. "You say you're on my side yesterday and you go on hers today. You're just like her, Alina. A liar. And you're dangerous, too. I shouldn't go with you. You'll just get me killed." Tears were sliding down his cheeks, and he curled his fists. "Screw you, Al. I take back what I said about the party."

And then he stalked upstairs to his bedroom.

Almost immediately, Alina's lip quivered, and soon she was sobbing. She'd messed it up with Lucas, and messed it up badly. She'd thought she could talk some sense into him, but she was wrong for ever believing she could do anything. She was unlovable.

"It's okay, Al." Dustin rested a hand on the back of the chair. "We're still here. And we need your help to find El."

. ✧ ・゜. +・o ✧

a/n: it physically hurts me to write lucas being mean but i did what i had to do! now alina's with dustin and mike, and you know where that's going to end up. ;)

hope you enjoyed this chapter! wattpad is really bugging me rn but i'm still going to persist! 

'till next time!