EVERYONE WATCHED EL as she sat still, her eyes shut in concentration. A ragged photo of Barb was placed in front of the girl, Will's walkie playing soft static next to it. Her lips quivered, and the light above the dining table began flickering.

Jasper and Mike sat the closest to El, gazing at her encouragingly. Dustin stood behind the chair the redhead was sitting in, his hands rested on the back of the seat.

Suddenly, El's eyes opened slowly, and the static grew fainted. She looked at everyone with remorse. "I'm sorry," she mumbled quietly.

"What?" Joyce stammered anxiously. "What's wrong? What happened?"

Tears burned in Eleven's eyes. "I can't find them," she uttered, her voice breaking with sadness.

Jasper let out a small breath she had been holding, brushing back a loose strand of red hair. "That's okay," she smiled reassuringly at El, taking her friend's hand. "There's another way. There has to be."

El simply gazed at the redhead, a somber look on her round face. "Jas," she whispered softly, tears pouring down her cheeks.

"It's okay," Jasper got to her feet, beckoning eleven to follow. "We'll be a minute," she addressed the others quickly before leading El into the bathroom. Once the door was shut, El let out a strained sob.

"I'm too weak," she murmured, her brown eyes lowering to the tiled floor. "I'm so sorry," she apologized once again.

"It's not your fault," Jasper shook her head, turning on the faucet and soaking a small rag. She kindly handed it to El so that she could wipe her face. "El, can I ask you something?"

Gradually, El applied the damp rag to her face. "Yes," she replied, giving Jasper a soft look. "What is it?"

"Back at the quarry," Jasper leaned against the wall. "You channeled me and gave me your powers. How is that possible?"

El slowly shook her head, breathing quietly. "I don't know," she stuttered.

"Can you at least control it?" Jasper questioned, placing her hands on the sink.

El answered with a curt nod. Suddenly, her eyes tore away from the redhead as she whirled around. Curiously, she gazed at the empty bathtub. "The bath."

"Wait," Jasper straightened up, beginning to realize what El was thinking. "You're saying you can find them?"

El approached Jasper cautiously, before roughly wrapping both her hands around Jasper's wrists. The girl let out a pained gasp as dark images began flashing through her head. All sound drained out of her ears until she felt like she was drowning in white noise.

The redhead opened her eyes, shocked to find her no longer standing in Will's bathroom. Instead, she was deep inside what appeared to be a laboratory. Voices echoed down a gray corridor, catching Jasper's attention.

Another gasp escaped her lips as two doors opened, revealing Eleven and a strange man. "El!" Jasper called out to her, dashing towards her friend. "Where are we—" She cut herself off when she placed her hand on El's shoulder, only to find her dissolve into dust before forming again.

"What?" The redhead murmured in confusion. Slowly, she backed away from the two and watched as they climbed up a small flight of stairs. Then, she noticed the big water tank in the room and a man standing next to it on a platform.

Her eyes didn't move from El as the girl approached the top of the tank. The man standing next to the tank, dressed in a long white coat, gently placed a helmet on her as she ascended into the water.

Jasper's eyes squeezed shut as she felt a cold chill rack through her body. When she opened them again, she was back in Will's bathroom with El.

A trickle of blood dripped down El's left nostril. Instantly, Jasper felt the same metallic blood taste touch her lips. Hastily, the girls wiped away the blood with the rag. Both of them had begun to get used to the strange effects.

"The bath," Jasper shuddered, clutching her chest. "It's a sensory deprivation tank."

Jasper and El left the bathroom, hurriedly walking down the hall. The boys had been explaining to the others about El, and how her powers wear her out. "We know a way to find them," Jasper announced.

Everyone's heads snapped towards the two girls. "What?" Joyce asked eagerly.

"I can find them," El confirmed. "In the bath."

"Dustin," Jasper snapped her fingers, pointing at her best friend. "Do you still know Mr. Clarke's number?"

"Maybe," the boy shrugged. "Why?"

Jasper led the Henderson boy over to the phone. "We're gonna need to call him. Ask him how to build a sensory deprivation tank," she demanded.

"A what?" Hopper inquired, clearly puzzled.

"When she says she can find them in the bath, she means a sensory deprivation tank," Jasper explained further. "It must help El with her powers, I guess."

"Fine," Dustin grumbled, pushing buttons on the phone. He pressed it against his ear, waiting impatiently for the teacher to answer. Jasper stood close enough to hear the faint voice of Mr. Clarke and the conversation.

"Hello?"

"Mr. Clarke? It's Dustin," the Henderson boy chirped.

"Dustin? Is everything okay?" He questioned with a tinge of worry.

"Yeah, yeah, it's just I..." he searched for the right words, eyes wide and glued to Jasper. "I have a science question."

"It's ten o'clock on a Saturday," Mr. Clarke spoke in amusement. "Why don't we pick this up—"

"Do you know anything about sensory deprivation tanks?" Dustin interrupted him, casting a sideways glance at Jasper. "Specifically how to build one?"

"Sensory deprivation?" Mr. Clarke stammered. "What is this for?"

"Fun," Dustin replied, squeezing his eyes shut and cringing at himself. Jasper poked his shoulder lightly, holding in a giggle.

"Why don't we talk about it, Monday? After school, okay?" Mr. Clarke spoke, sounding in a hurry.

"You always say we should never stop being curious," Dustin cut him off again, raising his voice. "To always open any curiosity door we find."

"Dustin—"

"Why are you keeping this curiosity door locked?" He demanded. Suddenly, Dustin raced to the table, bringing out a notepad and writing down instructions.

Once Dustin hung up the phone, he immediately turned to Joyce. "Do you still have that kiddie pool we bob for apples in?"

"Uh, I think so," she glanced at Jonathan before looking back at Dustin. "Yeah."

"We need lots of salt."

"How much is 'lots'?" Hopper asked.

Dustin checked his notepad. "Fifteen hundred pounds," he answered shortly.

"Well, where are we gonna get that much salt?" Nancy demanded impatiently.

Jasper and Hopper met eyes. They both knew about the bags of "de-icing salt" in the school. "We know a place," the redhead replied, not taking her eyes away from her dad.

"Where?" Nancy asked.

"The school. Ruby and I will go get the salt," Hopper nodded, drawing back in his chair. "You guys set up the thing in the gym."

"What?" Ruby and Jasper hissed in unison.

"C'mon, Hop," the redhead pleaded, gazing at him with her deep blue eyes. "Let me help. It'll be just like old times," she half-joked.

"No, you're going to the gym with your friends and that's final," he ordered, standing up and grabbing his coat. "Let's go, Ruby."

"Wow, didn't realize now was the time to go all strict on me," Jasper folded her arms, smirking at Hopper. He didn't answer, he only cast the girl an unimpressed look.

Dustin, Lucas, and Jasper all strolled into the gym ten minutes later. The curly-haired boy carried the kiddie pool, dropping it on the floor with a grunt. "This damn thing is heavy," he grumbled, beginning to kick it forward.

Jasper let out a small giggle, wrapping her arms around the pool and lifting it. She threw a playful smirk at her best friend before bringing it to the center of the large gym. "C'mon guys, help me."

"Actually," Joyce entered the gym frantically. her restless eyes focused on Jasper. "We need you."

Jasper exhaled deeply, dropping the edge of the kiddie pool. "Okay. Have fun with this," she gestured to the deflated pool, casting one last glance at Dustin and Lucas before following Joyce into one of the nearby science classrooms.

El slunk into one of the desks, her eyes widening when Jasper walked in. "Jas," she greeted her, smiling.

"Yeah," the redhead nodded, drawing away from Joyce. The woman dashed over to one of the cabinets, digging inside for something. "What's up?" she murmured to El, sitting in the desk next to her.

"Help me," she begged, her eyes gleaming.

"Help you? What do y—" she stopped, her head snapping towards Joyce again. She brought two goggles and duct tape to one of the desks. "Oh," she breathed quietly.

"She shouldn't do it on her own," Joyce shook her head. "She says you can help?"

Jasper breathed through her nose, nodding. "Yeah, I guess," her blue eyes met El's again. "What do you want me to do? Just...go with you?"

El gave her a small nod, timidly glancing at the floor. "Yes."

"Oh," Jasper's shoulders fell before she peeled up again. "Well, that's okay. Yeah, uh...I'll help."

"Okay," Joyce walked over to the girls. "Help me with this, Jasper," she handed the redhead a pair of goggles and some duct tape. "Cover the whole thing. It'll keep them both dark for you two. Just like in your bathtub," she nodded at El.

Joyce sighed heavily, looking at the both of them. "You two are both very brave girls. You know that, don't you?" The woman's frail hands wrapped around El's. "Everything you're doing for my boy...Will...for my family. Thank you."

"Listen," she gazed intently at both of the girl's, but mostly El. "I'm gonna be there with you the whole time. And if it ever gets too scary, in that place, you just let me know, okay?"

"Wait," Jasper paused, her eyes trailing down to the shaky hands that rested in her lap. "Is it...is it gonna hurt?"

And in that small, delicate moment, the redheaded daughter of the chief's seemingly unbreakable fear collapsed. It was enough to remind anyone that Jasper Hopper was indeed, still, just a thirteen year old girl.

"No," El responded quietly. "Not as long as we're together."

"Ready?" Joyce's eyes darted between both the girls.

"Ready," they grunted in unison.

Joyce looked at Jasper worriedly, which caused the redhead to shake her head regretfully. "Yeah, I'll be okay," she chuckled drily. "Going to a scary, evil dimension to find my friend has always been on my bucket list."

"I'll be there, too," a new voice boomed.

Jasper spun around to see Hopper and Ruby enter the classroom. "We'll both be there," Ruby nodded, giving her sister a sympathetic smile.

Knowing that both her dad and sister would be there caused courage to spark in Jasper's heart, and she nodded at them. "Okay," she jumped to her feet. "Then let's do this."

The redhead let the others into the gym, noticing the kiddie pool was filled with saltwater now. Dustin gazed at Jasper, offering her a huge grin. It was quickly replaced with a frown, however, as he noticed her begin to take off her shoes and socks.

"What's going on?" he demanded, clambering to his feet and walking over to Jasper. "What are you doing, Jas?"

Jasper heaved a sigh, standing back up and meeting her best friend's concerned eyes. "Eleven shouldn't have to go in there on her own. Now that we know for sure she can give me her powers, she wants me to help."

"What?" Dustin recoiled in surprise. "No! No way in hell are you going to that place!"

"I'll be fine, Dusty," Jasper hushed him, catching his flailing arms with her hands. "Please. Let me do this for El."

Dustin looked at her sadly, but he nodded nonetheless. "Okay. But, Jas, if you're in any danger—"

"We'll pull ourselves out of there," Jasper interrupted him before he could go off on another tirade. "It'll be okay."

Hopper walked over to Jasper, the taped goggles in his hand. "Here," he offered them to her. He looked like he wanted to say something, but was clearly hesitating.

"What, Hop?" She looked up at her father.

"Just know that," he sighed, shoving his hands in his pockets. "I'm really sorry I never told you the truth. I knew all these years and I never really said anything. I, uh, I could've done better," he admitted sadly.

Jasper shook her head, chuckling. "What is it about me going to a dark alternate dimension that's making everyone depressed?" She joked, lightly punching Hopper's shoulder. Seeing that the dark humor wasn't working, she tried a gentler route.

"I forgive you. For everything. As long as you're here now."

Hopper looked at the pool, seeing that everyone was waiting. "Every time I saw you, whether it was with Ruby or just around town," Hopper sighed. "Every single time I saw you, I would think about telling you. But I never did. I let you go. And then you had to find out from a stupid article."

Jasper gave him a tight lipped smile, her face growing in surprise as her dad grabbed her hands. he looked her dead in the eye. "I will be by your side the whole time, Jasper. I'm not letting you go ever again."

"Thanks, Dad," she whispered cheerily, pulling him in for a massive bear hug.

"Now, it's time to find Will."