"Last minute of the match, one more score and the Local teams wins...Hargrove has the ball, he's dribbling close to the basket and...SCOOOOOOOOOREEEEEEE!! It's a definite win for Hawkins Team! Everyone, a huge round of applause!" the referee yelled, making me jump from my seat, up and down, and cheer as loud as I could, my heart so happy for Billy.
"King Billy! King Billy! King Billy!" everyone from our highschool screamed, making me join their chant as they carried him on their shoulders, outside, so they can celebrate.

I grinned and went outside behind the huge crowd that kept congratulating and praising Billy and my heart swelled seeing his beautiful and genuine smile. I didn't care that everyone around him was there just because he was popular and cool and all they wanted was his fame and a good fuck, I just enjoyed the beautiful sight in front of me.

Of course, the cheerleaders jumped on him, hugged him, kissed him, but my smile never left my face, no matter what everyone did there.
At one point, he seemed to look around and as soon as he spotted me and made eye contact, my grin widened and I gave him two thumbs up, to which he smiled softly and nodded in appreciation, before having his attention taken away by the rest as they got him in their cars and went to a bar to drink, scream in happiness and fuck at their leisure.

Stretching a bit, I go to my motorbike and drive back home and continue studying and listening to music, just as I always do.
Many hours later, however, I got a phone call...I never get phone calls. The kids, if they wanna talk, only use the Walkie Talkies.
I pick up the phone and say a shy greeting, before I was met with a very slurred and loud voice.

"Hey, babe! S'me, Billy! Fuck, I'm so drunk...You home?" he asked, barely coherent.
"Yes, I am. Are you okay? Did something happen?" I worry, making him chuckle.
"Aww, look at my little Kitten worrying so much over someone like me, ain't she adorbz as all hell...Would you be a good Kitten and get me the hell outta here? I drank to much and I don't wan' crash ma' car. It's a totes chick magnet, m'kay?" he stumbled over his words, making me sigh and facepalm.
"Okay, Billy, where are you?" I asked, preparing myself for the worst.
"Y'kno', just tha' strip club...Uh...Can't remem'r the name..." he mumbled in a hushed voice.
"Oh Jesus Christ, Billy...You're making me go to a...A...To a place like that to pick you up? You really have no shame, do you?" I dragged my hand down my face in annoyance, sighing exasperated.
"Mnooo, c'mon, toots, if I was tha' shameless, I'd have talked so dirty with ya that...Tha'...M'dunno, but I'd sell my house to see ya blush like tha'...Ah, fuck, now I got sucha hard on..." he groaned in annoyance, possibly punching a wall.
"Uhm...Billy...Did you just punch a wall?" I asked softly, hoping for a negative answer.
"Urgh...Ye...Ah, fuck's sake, now there's blood. Baaaabe, hurry up and take me homeeeee." he whined like a spoiled child, making me laugh.
"Is your car there? Also, do you want to stay over at mine, or you want to your home?" I asked for the details, putting on my socks.
"Ye, 's here...Yours, don' wan' see ma' fath'r. Fuck tha' fucktard. Fuck 'im." he cursed with rage in his voice, making me sigh once more.
"It's okay, Billy, I will be there in 10 minutes. Please, go outside and sit in your car, can you do that?" I got up, reaching for my jacket, and as I heard his positive mumble, I told him to wait for me and hurried outside to my bike.

The drive into town was pretty fast and after I parked my motorbike, I searched for Billy's Camaro, and found it easily, since instead of staying IN the car, he was staying ON the car.

Godamn it, Billy.

"Billy, why are you on the hood of the car?" I asked, walking in front of him.
"Why aren't ya next t' me?" he gave a drunk smirk, reaching out to me.
"Let's go home, dear. Can you give me the keys?" I took his hands and got him off the hood.
"Sure, babe, anythin' for ya...Only if ya kiss me." he winked, leaning down to my height.
"Need I remind you that I'm doing this for you, not for me?" I smiled awkwardly, tilting my head.
"Ah...Yeah, guess so. Here." he grumbled, passing me the keys and getting in the passenger seat.
"Can you put your seat belt on, dear?" I asked, getting in the car and shutting the door.
"Ye, 'f course I can, who do y'take me for?" he laughed, but his hands shook so much that he couldn't do it.
"Here, let me do it." I said patiently, putting my hands over his and fastening the seat belt.
"Awww, Kitten's holding ma' hands and she's so soft~!" he teased, but that only made me chuckle in amusement as I turned on the ignition and driving to my home.
"Are you feeling alright? How much did you have to drink?" I spared a glance his way, only to realise he was already looking at me with a very out-of-it smile on his face.
"Probs too much. Drank a whole barrel o' beer. King Billy, YEAH BABY!! WHOOO!!!" he screamed really loudly with his head out of the window, which made me yelp and drag him back inside.
"Never do that again, please! Also, we're almost here, so please be patient." I pouted, making him tilt his head left and right.
"Y'kno'...You look so much hotter than those good fo' nothin' whores at the club." he slurred, placing his hand on my inner thigh, making me blush and bite my lip.
"U-Uhm...Could you, like, please touch my leg?" I muttered in a low voice, which only made him ask me to repeat myself as he squeezed my thigh gently.

I let my head hit the chair rest in exasperation and I thanked every living creature in this world that we arrived, 'cause I might have gotten pretty pissed off otherwise.
I took off my seat belt, then opened his door to open his seat belt and since he was stumbling on his feet, I put his arm around my shoulder and dragged him to my room, laying him down on my bed.
I helped him take his jacket and boots off, putting them away neatly, but I couldn't possibly do that for the rest of his clothes, right?

..............................

Wrong.

I was dead wrong.

He puked his Tshirt and jeans and fell asleep.

And now he's snoring like a bear.

Fuck. Me.

Slapping my face in annoyance, I take a deep breath and somehow manage to take of his shirt, putting it in the bathroom sink, then for his jeans...Oh, dear God, here we go.
First this stupid belt, okay...Then, the buttons and the zipper...God, please, don't wake up now, please.
Then to drag them off...Oh, Christ, why are they so tight on him. Damn it, Hargrove! You owe me your whole damn life for this!

I managed to take them off completely somehow and God forbid, he truly wasn't a shy person...
Banging my head on the wall hard, I calm down and got myself to the bathroom where I started washing his clothes, making sure there'd be no stain on them by the time he wakes up.
I swear, the stench of cigarettes and alcohol is so disgusting...

By the time I got back to my room...He was on the floor, asleep...
But there was vomit on the floor.

How much does a person puke in one night before they lay off?!

I groaned in exasperation and went to get the cleaning products to wipe away the mess from the carpet, then had to use my powers to put him back on the bed - Such a godamn heavy jerk - and wash his face softly to get the vomit away from his face.

Okay, now I'm scared to sit on the bed in case he pukes on me...
I'll just stay at my desk and chill until sleep takes over me or something.

But...That wasn't the case.

His snores were so loud that I couldn't fall asleep no matter how much I tried, making me pull at my hair when I noticed it was already 5AM and there was no way in hell I could get a proper sleep.

Curse you, Hargrove.

As I kept my head on the desk, trying to at least calm my headache, I heard a pained groan, which made me look at him - He was awake and frowning confused.

"Kitten...? Where am I? Why 'm I sick?...Oh, fuck-" he cursed, rushing out of the room, making me yell "FIRST ON THE RIGHT!" so he'd know where the toilet is.
"There, there, it's okay now. Do you need a glass of fresh water?" I asked softly, holding his hair back and rubbing his shoulder.
"Urgh...Yeah...The hell happened?" he groaned, coughing a bit.
"One second, please." I excused myself before running to the kitchen to get him some water before I kneel next to him and hand him the glass, getting the hair away from his face. "Well...What do you remember from yesterday?"
"Ah...Not much. I won the match then I went to some strip club...And I drank way too much, I guess." he drank the water in a heartbeat, nodding his thanks as he panted slightly.
"You...Do you remember calling me?" I rake my fingers through his hair, but he shook his head.
"No. I know I kept thinkin' 'bout you, but that's all. Wha' happened?" he asked with a dazed expression, looking like he was about to die.
"Uhm...At around 2AM you called me to get you out of there...Which...I did. That's the gist of it." I explained plainly, earning a nod of understanding.
"And why am I naked? We couldn't've 'ad some fun, 'ight? I'd've remem'red it, fo' sure." he chuckled looking through hooded eyelids.
"Maybe you dreamt of that. But it was far less gracious. You puked yourself...And, you're not naked, okay?" I laughed awkwardly, leaning back.
"Urgh, haven't done that in a long time. Did ya take off my clothes?" he slurred his words, making me look away.
"Did you want to sleep in your own vomit?" I tried to reason, but he only hit his head on the toilet seat.
"Ah, godamn it. The only time my Kitten does somethin' naughty to me, I'm not conscious. Fuck's sake." he groaned in mock annoyance, which made me blush and scratch at my neck.
"Uhm...So...H-How are you feeling? Any better?" I try to encourage him, but he only rolled his eyes and puked again.
"Think Imma barf for the next 10 hours...Or years." he groaned, making me pat his back.
"It's okay...It's Saturday, at least." I muttered, leaning on the bathtub, struggling to stay awake.
"Did I do anythin' bad to ya while I was drunk?" he murmured slowly, making me shake my head. "Don't lie, I know I did somethin'. Can't fool me." he smirked knowingly, making me blush in shock.
"Uhm...I-It's no big deal. You just flirted a lot, like usual and uh...Y-You, j-just...Kinda touched my leg, haha, don't worry." he tried to laugh it off.
"Look, Kitten, if it were after me, I'd stay between your thighs all my life, but I was a drunk shithead today. Next time I do that, I'll be sober." he tried to apologise, before vomiting again.
"D-Don't worry, it's fine...Just, get better soon, okay?" I reassured him awkwardly, waving my hands around, but then I stopped abruptly, seeing the blood on his hand. "Damn it...I'm so stupid." I muttered before getting up to fetch alcohol, cotton wool and some gauze.
"Wha' this fo', babe?" he asked, dazed, most likely not realising his hand was bloody.
"When you called me, you punched the wall...I forgot all about it until I saw it again, I'm sorry. Will you let me fix it?" I asked as I gingerly held his hand. "It's...Gonna sting a bit."
"Babe, you're made o' soft'n'gentle, how 'm I supposed to resist ya?" he chuckled, putting his arm on the toilet seat as he looked at me with a little smile on his face. "Do yo' magic, make me better." he murmured, resting his head on the arm on the toilet.
"Okay...If it hurts, you can squeeze my hand, okay? I'll try to make it not hurt though..." I sighed, dabbing the cotton wool in alcohol and applying on the scraped skin on his knuckles. "Shhh, it's okay, dear, it will be over soon." I cooed gently as I finished disinfecting the wound and wrapping it in gauze, finishing with a kiss on the back of his hand.
"Why do ya keep kissin' ma' hand, babe? Ain't I supposed to do tha'?" he whined, taking my hand in his.
"I am...Well...What was the expression...Kiss it better, was it? So it will heal faster?" I smiled at him, putting his hand on my cheek and leaning on it. "You're so adorable when you're genuine and sincere with yourself. You are finally you, yourself, Billy, not some creation made by trauma and complexes induced by others." I explained, kissing his wrist. "Which only makes me want to show you that violence isn't always the answer, and that sometimes, being yourself...Accepting yourself as you are and not having to act a certain way to be accepted...Well...It's very reliving. You're a wonderful person, Billy. Don't let other dictate the way you live. You're smart, beautiful, talented and strong...What more could you want from life?" I grinned at him, feeling my heart beat faster seeing the shocked look on his face which clearly showed that nobody ever said those things to him and mean them.
"You." he replied bluntly, which made me tilt my head in confusion. "You are all that I'd need. You're the only one to ever-" he began but had to vomit again, making me sigh and rub his back soothingly.
"It's okay, dear, you can tell me when you're all better. Which reminds me...How long does this take? Until you get better and can lie down?" I asked, having no idea what to do.
"Ma' record's 'bout 3-4 hours o' huggin' the toilet. Not the best sight. It's already been an hour, not much longer, I hope." he sighed in exasperation.
"Can I bring you anything? Painkillers for your stomach? Or...Uhmm...Some other pill to take away the vomit sensation? Or more water? I...Really have no idea how to help you, I'm sorry." I smiled awkwardly, leaning back on the bathtub again.
"You did more than I could've asked fo'. Go sleep, I'll come when I'm done over 'ere...I kept ya up all night and t'wasn't even fun." he grumbled, making me chuckle in amusement, but didn't move a muscle to get up. "Didn't ya 'ear me? Go sleep, babe. You'll get sick stayin' on the cold floor tiles." he continued, making me shake my head.
"You're here, I'm here. I'm not moving till I know you're feeling better, so stop trying." I insisted, which only made him shake his head and rest his head on the toilet again.

We chatted a bit more, but honestly, my eyes were burning me so much from exhaustion that I had no idea when I fell asleep there, leaning on the bathtub, provided that when I woke up I was in Billy's arms and goodness gracious, it felt so good and warm that I could only smile and snuggle closer into him.

I didn't care what time it was, that I was hungry, that I should've studied or anything of the sort, nor that he may or may not be awake, I just stood there, letting that warmth and calm engulf me completely.

"You up, Kitten?" Billy asked all of a sudden in a very low, hoarse voice, which made me snuggle even closer to him and grumble a negative answer. "Aww, look at her being adorbz. C'mon, babe, I wanna see your sleepy face." he chuckled, poking my cheek.
"Mnoo...It's so warm...Lemme sleep..." I pouted, which made him hold me tighter, playing with my hair.
"I'd do anything in this world to be able to wake up like this every morning." he whispered lightly, making me shake my head in amusement.
"You'd get bored of me easily." I sighed, closing my eyes once again.
"How do you know that? You keep saying all these things, but you don't know that." he tsked in annoyance, but that only release an amused breath, raising my head a bit to look at him.
"People get bored of others so easily...They always want something new, something challenging, something to excite them. Once you get to understand and discover me, you'll get bored and leave." I explained with a serene, yet sad smile on my face.
"We will see about that." he stated firmly, but I only shook my head.
"No. We will not 'see' about that. No...Because everytime that happens, I'm the one getting hurt, not you or the others. And, honestly, I don't think I can take one more heartbreak." I sighed, rolling on my back to look at the ceiling, reaching my arm towards it. "I'm exhausted. I know when I've reached my limit, and I know I have. I'm more unstable than you could imagine. I'm very close to just cutting off all the emotional bonds that I have and make me even the littlest bit happy and wallow in self-pity and solitude my whole life." I muttered, closing my fist in the air. "So, no, Billy, I won't 'see' anything. It's either black or white and I won't settle for grey." I let my arm fall down on the bed, letting silence engulf us for a moment.
"Good, 'cause Grey sucks anyways. I mean, seriously, it's ugly as hell...Ugly like Tommy H." he joked, making me look at him with jaw agape and shocked, before bursting into fits of laughter.
"Is that your way of reassuring me that if we get together, you won't leave me for stupid reasons?" I asked between giggles.
"A stupid answer from a stupid guy. Kinda fits, huh?" he tried to laugh it off, but raised my upper part and frowned at him.
"Never say that about you ever again. It's not true. You're a smart guy, Billy and I won't hear otherwise." I say as firmly as I could, putting my hand on his face.
"Not smart enough to pass your tests, though." he muttered as he leaned his face on my touch, which made me blush slightly at the sweet sight in front of me.
"It was just one time. Next time it will be much better, I'm sure of that. Pressure always makes your performance rate go down the drain...And I don't mean time, but your stupid excuse of a father...Oh, wait, sorry, that was mean of me..." I bit my lip realising what I said, but he only grinned.
"You're not wrong about that one. He is stupid and I can't wait to get rid of him." he rolled his eyes, kissing my wrist.
"Oh, Billy..." I shook my head with a slight smile on my face before getting back in his arms and relaxing.

"KATRINA, ANSWER! CODE RED! CODE RED! FOX, ARE YOU THERE?! CODE RED!!" I could hear my Walkie Talkie blaring for the first time since the first incident with the monsters and I lunged to it, turning it on.
"Fox here! What's the matter?! Are you guys okay?!" I screamed, trying to keep my cool but I was worried beyond control.
"Fox, we're at the old junkyard!" Dustin explained, but I cut him off.
"Who is there and WHY are you there?!" I asked, confused beyond reason.
"Uhh, me, Lucas, Max and Steve." he replied slowly.
"Why's Harrington with you?!" my voice shocked beyond boundaries.
"Doesn't matter! We came here to see what the fuck is going on here with the Demodogs-" he started, but I yelled "DEMODOGS?!" cutting him off, but he continued. "Yes, Demodogs! Sorry, we were all too busy to explain everything in detail, but now we're going to Will's house so meet us there and we'll fill you in with everything, okay?! HURRY UP, WE NEED YOU!" Dustin screamed in the Walkie, making me widen my eyes and rush.

I got my axe and shotgun, put them on the motorbike and drove to the Byers' house as fast as possible, running inside and seeing everyone there, safe, and trying to nurse a very sick Will.

"Is everyone okay?! And, like, can everyone tell me WHAT THE HELL I'VE BEEN MISSING?! I mean, I think I ought to know by now, right?" I panted, dropping my weapons on the floor and crashing on the sofa, trying to get some energy back.
"Dustin raised a Demodog since it was a slug and then lost it." Lucas sighed, making Dusting curse him.
"What the-" I muttered in shock.
"And Will is possessed by the Mindflayer." Mike continued.
"No way in hell-" I slapped my hand over my mouth. "Do you want me to try and get in his head? Maybe I could get the Mindflayer out of there?" I asked unsurely, which made Joyce look at me with desperation.
"Can you do that? Can you please do that?" Joyce got in front of me, barely keeping herself from crying.
"I can't guarantee it will work, I'm not sure how strong it is, but I can try. And if it doesn't work, there may be some other methods we could try...Don't worry, they shouldn't endanger Will, just the thing possessing him." I put my hands on her shoulder and she hugged me tightly, thanking me for trying.

Taking a deep breath, I sit on the ground, telling everyone to keep quiet while I tie a scarf around my eyes, just like how I and El would do some time ago, and tried to reach out to Will.

"Is it working?!" Mike asked impatiently, which made me tsk in annoyance.
"Shut up, Mike. I barely got inside his mind...It's so dark...Oh, I see Will. Poor dear, he looks so scared and frail..." I trailed off, but by this time I wasn't sure if I was just talking to myself, in Will's mind, or if it was reaching outside too.
"Will...? Will the Wise Wizard? Do you remember me? It's Fox the Sneaky Rogue." I say gently, kneeling in front of his crying form, gingerly putting my hand on his head.
"F-Fox...? Is this really you...?" he meekly raised his head to look at me with his red, puffy eyes.
"Yes, Will, dear, it's me. I'm here to save you." I reassured him, kissing his forehead, but he only shook his head.
"You can't save me...I'm gonna die...These shackles are impossible to destroy..." he sobbed again, only then realising that his wrists, ankles and neck were chained.
"Let me try to break them, then. I'm not sure if it will work or not, but even if my powers aren't strong enough for this, we have other ways to get you out, okay? We're all here to save you." I coo soothingly, holding him in my lap and petting his head softly.
"M-Mummy is there too? A-And Jonathan...?" he sobbed into my shirt.
"Yes, they are. Mummy is holding you now just the way I am holding you here. She's desperately trying to get you back to her. She misses you." I explain, channeling my powers to destroy one of the chains around his ankle.
"I miss mummy too...I miss her...I-I want this to end! It's so scary here, it's driving me crazy!" he choked on his sobs, gripping the back of my shirt tightly, crying in my neck.
"I know, baby, I know, but you're not alone, please don't forget that. We're close to bringing you back to us and banishing that monster. We're very close." I kept saying reassurance words, kind of absent-mindedly, before the first chain snapped with a very loud clink, scaring the poor boy and making him look back.
"Y-YOU DID IT! YOU BROKE ONE OF THEM! OH MY GOD!" Will exclaimed in a pitched voice, throwing his arms around my neck and thanking me over and over again.
"Okay, sweety, only 4 more left, okay? You're a strong boy, you are Will the Wise Wizard, okay? We can do it, together!" I encouraged him, kissing his forehead and starting to snap the 2nd chain, on his other ankle.
"I am only strong because I have you, my Party. Without you, I'd be just a lonely and frail wizard. I need tanks, healers and close-ranged dps players to be able to do anything, otherwise I'm vulnerable by myself." he trailed off, trying to stop his sobbing.
"You are strong, Will, but it's as you say, none of us is alone here, that's why we are a Party. If one of us falls, we all fall, so we will always save the one who needs help." I force myself to say as I broke the next chain.
"FOX, YOU DID IT! YOU DID IT!" he cried with a huge grin on his face, but I could feel the energy in me starting to drain and I was panting for air.
"Yes, Will, just 3 more, okay? We can do this. We're so close..." I whispered to him, not trusting my own voice as I felt my eyes start to bleed.
"Fox, oh no, this isn't good...You're overusing your powers on me...We don't know what happens when you overuse your powers!" he exclaimed, shaking my shoulders, making me a bit dizzy.
"It's just 3 more chains, Will, don't worry about me. I can handle it." I assure him as I cough some blood.
"FOX! FOX, NO! FOX, IT'S NO GOOD!" he shouted, trying to stop me, but just as he tried that, another very loud snap was heard, indicating that one of his wrists was liberated.
"Just...2 more...No big deal...I-I can do this." I closed my eyes, trying to get back my breathing, but my lungs were burning...It felt like I was drowning, but I didn't stop trying to break the 4th chain.
"Fox, please, don't hurt yourself for me! Just....Just come back later after you've healed! I've been here for so long, a few more hours won't hurt me! Please, Fox, please don't do this!" he started crying again, his voice barely above a whisper, frightened, but not for him, but for myself.
"Just...Just a bit more...And...And...J-Just....A bit...More..." I kept trying to push myself to finish this, but my sight started to become blurry, and before I could let that happen, I screamed in annoyance, forcing myself to use more power on this chain, making it snap.
"Fox, can you see me?! Fox, can you hear me? It's Will, please, answer! You're bleeding so much, I-I don't know what to do! Fox, please, say something!" little Will sobbed in desperation, shaking me, trying to get me back to my senses.
"This fucking monster is stronger then I imagined...But...1 more chain...Just one more...And you're...Gon' be okay..." I muttered to myself, blinking away and trying to get my sight back to normal, but before I could start working on the chain around his neck, the monster appeared out of nowhere, behind Will, screeching into the air.
"NOOOOOOOO!!! FOX, DON'T LET HIM TAKE ME!! FOX, PLEASE, SAVE ME!!! FOX!!!" Will shrieked in desperation, trying to run towards me, but the chain around his neck was strangling him, dragging him backwards, to the monster.
"BRING ME BACK MY BABY, YOU FUCKASS! YOU HAVE NO RIGHT TO TAKE HIM!" I somehow managed to jump on my feet and use my powers to stop the monster in his tracks, but he was too strong, and managed to use one of his tentacles to slap me away, making me scream in pain and somehow take off the blindfold in the real life, panting and choking blood like mad.
"Kat, what happened? You're bleeding like hell, what did you do?" Hopper crouched in front of me, trying to steady me.
"I was s-so close...B-But th-that monster g-got to us...A-And I-I'm kinda at my limit n-now...Will was chained with 5 chains...I broke 4...I-If we manage t-to destroy the 5th from outside...H-He's back, I think." I coughed so much blood that I felt like I was gonna be sick.

Hopper nodded, going to the phone to call the military, Joyce went to her room, probably to calm down and sob away her sorrows...And I just laid down on the carpet next to will, holding his hand gingerly, trying to get back my energies.

"Did you guys know that Bob was the original founder of Hawkins AV?" Mike asked out of the blue.
"Really?" Dustin asked in surprise.
"He petitioned the school to start it and everything. Then he had a fund-raiser for equipment. Mr. Clarke learned everything from him. Pretty awesome, right?" Mike continued, praising Bob.
"Yeah." Lucas approve silently.
"We can't let him die in vain." Mike said in determination, making me raise up in a sitting position.
"Wait, Bob died?! What?!" I gasped at them in horror, not believing my ears.
"Yeah...He saves us at the hospital...He got eaten by the Demodogs, sacrificing himself to save us." he explained, making my bottom lip quiver in pain.
"N-No way...Not Bob..." I muttered, trying not to cry in shock.
"What do you want to do, Mike? The Chief's right on this. We can't stop those Demo-dogs on our own." Dustin exclaimed in irritation.
"Demo-dogs?" Max asked, completely flabbergast.
"Demogorgon dogs. Demo-dogs. It's like a compound. It's like a play on words" Dustin tried to explain, earning a simple, yet completely done with life "Okay." from her. "I mean, when it was just Dart, maybe But there's an army now." he continued.
"Dart...Is that the Demodog you raised or something?" I asked in confusion, and I quickly earned an affirmative answer. -
"His army." Mike breathed out.
"What do you mean?" Harrington asked, possibly more confused than I was.
"His army. Maybe if we stop him, we can stop his army, too." Mike explained, rushing to some of the drawings Will did.
"The shadow monster." Dustin mentioned.
It got Will that day on the field. The doctor said it was like a virus, it infected him." Mike explained to us what happened.
"And so this virus, it's connecting him to the tunnels?" Max asked in confusion.
"To the tunnels, monsters, the Upside Down, everything." Mike said, but was stopped by Harrington who needed a more thorough explanation.

Mike then continued to explain to all of us the idea of a "Hive mind", how if we hurt the vines, we hurt everything around, how the Mind Flayer wants to take over our dimension, seeing itself as a superior being to us...
And then, we decided to try to interrogate Will in the old shack, making sure he wouldn't be able to spy on us.
So, that left Joyce, Hopper, Jonathan, Mike and myself to go to interrogate him as we could.

"What? What? What is this? What? What is this? Why am I tied up?" Will started panicking, tied up to his chair.
"Will, we just wanna talk to you. We're not gonna hurt you." Joyce told him calmly, crouching in front of him.
"Where am I?" Will asked again, no doubt as a way to spy for the monster.
"You recognize this? Do you recognize this?" Hopper asked, showing him the drawing of the shadow monster he did.
"Hey. We wanna help you. But to do that, we have to understand how to kill it." Joyce explained, trying to sooth him down, but it was to no avail. "Why am I tied up?" and "Let me go!" was all he could scream at the top of his lungs, his voice changing tunes a bit, and as well as that, making the lights flicker like crazy.
I started hugging Will, trying to stop his struggling, knowing full well that he wouldn't last too long.
And I was right, for he calmed down pretty easily, which allowed Joyce to sit on the chair in front of him and try talking to him.

"Do you know what March 22nd is? It's your birthday. Your birthday. When you turned eight, I gave you that huge box of crayons. Do you remember that? It was 120 colors. And all your friends, they got you Star Wars toys, but all you wanted to do was draw with all your new colors. And you drew this big spaceship, but it wasn't from a movie. It was your spaceship. A rainbow ship is what you called it. And you must have used every color in the box. I took that with me to Melvald's and I put it up and I told everyone who came in, 'My son drew this.' And you were so embarrassed. But I was so proud. I was so, so proud." she said, barely managing not to cry.

"Do you remember the day Dad left? We stayed up all night building Castle Byers just the way you drew it. And it took so long because you were so bad at hammering. You'd miss the nail every time. And then it started raining, but we stayed out there anyway. We were both sick for like a week after that. But we just had to finish it, didn't we? We just had to." Jonathan crouched down next to his mum, talking to Will, who by this time started trembling, his hand shaking.

"Will, do you remember when I joined the Party? When you saw me, you said I looked so cool and that I just HAD to be Fox the Sneaky Rogue. You've always been my favourite from the party because I felt that you were the only one who could understand me so well. We've both been so emotional and frail all this time, scared to be alone and we just wanted friends and to be happy. This is why I always made sure to protect you in all game we've been playing so far, because you are like my little brother and I'd do anything to make sure you're safe and happy." I crouched down next to him, smiling at him as he started crying.

"Do you remember the first day that we met? It was It was the first day of kindergarten. I knew nobody. I had no friends and I just felt so alone and so scared, but I saw you on the swings and you were alone, too. You were just swinging by yourself. And I just walked up to you and I asked. I asked if you wanted to be my friend. And you said yes. You said yes. It was the best thing I've ever done." Mike confessed, crying as he talked, the look of pure horror and desperation on Will's face getting to us all.

"Will, baby if you're in there, just please please talk to us. Please, honey, please, can you do that for me? Please. I love you so much." Joyce tried again, which made Will shake like a leaf...Until he stopped and with the most dead-pan and serene look, he said "Let me go."

However, in the silence that occurred afterwards, a tapping was heard, and I immediately realised what it was, for I and Will have been cheating at games by talking in Morse Code.

"It says 'HERE'. Will is still with us. Guys, we have to keep talking to him, he is helping us right now as much as he can!" I exclaimed, a rush of adrenaline surging through my veins.

"Do you remember the first time I played you this? Mom and Dad were both arguing in the next room. So I played you the mix tape I made you. And it was the first time you got into music. Real music." Jonathan said as he put on the cassette and played "Should I stay or should I go" by The Clash.

Every time we would say something, Will would tap another letter, and I would write it down immediately.

"And then the party escaped into the sewers, and there were those big insect things, and you guys were still on level one." Mike remembered him.

"Remember when I took you to the lake one night and we had so much fun swimming that we didn't realise it got dark until it started to rain like crazy, then we ran all the way back to your home and had a sleep over, listening to music with your brother while your mum baked us cookies?" I nailed it, earning a new letter

"Then you cast Fog Cloud and you saved us. You saved the whole party." Mike got another letter from him.

"You saw that little girl and she was in the sandbox and she was crying. You gave him your Tonka Truck and I told you we couldn't afford to buy another one. You said she should have it because she's sad. "She's sad, Mommy." I love you so much. So, so much." Joyce poured her soul out, before I tapped her on the shoulder and showed everyone the paper with the letters I got.

C-L-O-S-E_G-A-T-E

Great.

The worst part was that the phone rang in the house which made Will start to shake like crazy, meaning that the monster realised where we were, so Joyce had to sedate him and we got him inside.
Hopper gave us weapons to defend ourselves from the monsters that were screeching like crazy outside, and somehow, one was thrown through he window, dead...But when the door opened...

El walked through.

Everyone was speechless, but I was so shocked and happy that the shotgun fell from my hands and I threw myself on her, screaming her name and letting a few tears fall down my face.

"El! El, goodness, thank God you're alright! I missed you so much! I can't believe I'm seeing you again!" I sobbed in our embrace as she patted my back.
"It's good to be back." she muttered, letting go and smiling at me softly.

After our hug, Mike and El hugged, then Hopper and El...Making Hopper explain everything that happened, as El hugged everyone else.

"El, you know about the gate, don't you? Do you know if we can close it?" I asked her, and she nodded.
"Yes. I can do it." she said, which made me blink.
"I'm not letting you got through this alone, El! I don't want to risk you dying or...Or I don't know, something like that!" I protested, but she only shook her head.
"I saw you in Will's mind. You overused your powers breaking his chains, that's how you were able to talk to him in the real world. You've done enough, you don't have the power to close the gate. But I do." she looked me dead in the eyes, which made me sigh.
"Guess I'm pretty useless, huh?" I scratched my neck, looking away.
"No, you're not. You did everything to ensure Will's going to come back to us alive and safe. Now, let me continue your work." she hugged me tightly, making me rest my chin on her head.
"I'm scared of letting you go alone..." I confessed, but she only smiled and looked at me.
"But I won't be alone." she nodded at me.
"But, hold up a second. If we close the gate...The Mind Flayer's army will die, right?" Mike asked, agitated. "Will is still part of that army. Kat wasn't able to break all 5 chains, right?" he asked, looking around for confirmation.
"Even if all 5 chains were broken, Will would have still been a host. The chains were a way to get through to his mind and get the answers." El explained, making us shocked at how much she knew.
"He likes it cold...That's what he kept telling me..." Joyce said, closing the window. "We keep giving him what he wants!"
"So we need to burn the virus out of him, right? How are we gonna do that?" I asked, biting my lip.

We broke down in 3 parties:

El and Hopper to close the gate.
Joyce, Jonathan and Nancy to get the virus out of Will.
I and Harrington to keep the kids safe in case of Demodog attacks.

"Harrington, can you take care of the kids for like...10 minutes? I need to go out and make sure there are no monsters around the premises, okay? I will be back in a bit, I will try to hurry as much as I can." I ask Steve frantically, looking from him to the kids, trying to make sure they listen to me.
"Yeah, sure, it seems I can be a pretty good babysitter." he nods maybe a bit too much. "Oh, and, uhm...Kat? Can I call you Kat? I'm sorry for being a jerk all this time to you." he apologised, wetting his lips and looking at the ground, guilty.
"I appreciate it...Steve. Yeah, you can call me Kat, no problem. Thank you...And take care of yourselves, all of you." I smiled at them before getting my axe and walking around the premises.

I kept saying in my head over and over again that there would be no demodogs around, but luck is never on my side, as I heard snarling around me.

"Fuck" is all I muttered as I steadied myself as one of the demodogs leaped high into the air, trying to pounce on me, but I managed to side-step and hit it as hard as I could with my axe.
For the other two, I used my powers to hit them on trees again and again, making them all dizzy, then one by one I split in two, using my powers and falling on my knees, coughing blood and panting.

"Okay, Kat, it was just 3 monsters, no big deal. Okay, it seems like all's clear and I can return to the others...I gotta wash my face..." I groaned, getting up, taking the axe in one hand and holding my head with the other as a headache took over me.

When I opened the gate, however, I was shocked to see Steve on the ground, his face bloody, and Billy holding Lucas by his shirt.

"Billy...?" I asked, stepping carefully into the room. "What are you doing here...?"
"Kat! Kat, you're hurt! There were monsters out there, weren't they?!" Max gasped worriedly as she pushed past her brother and jumped in my arms.
"Yeah, but don't worry, I took care of everything. Nothing I couldn't handle." I nodded slightly, throwing the axe in a corner. "Now, can anyone explain to me what in the world is going on here?" I asked again, getting a tissue and wetting it, to clean my face before I started walking towards Billy, who by this time dropped Lucas and looked at me paralysed.
"What are you doing here?" he asked, looking at me, his obvious rage dissipating into mere confusion.
"I should ask you that! I thought you had a date today, you said your parents were home and you didn't have to look after Max and-...Oh no...Billy, come here, please..." my eyes widened in realisation as I extended my arms towards him.

He walked slowly in front of me, looking as if he just came from a war, and as I gingerly put my hands on his face, a tear escaped my eyes as I managed to breath out "He hit you.", my only confirmation being a nod.
I hugged him tightly rubbing his back, his chin resting on my head and we stayed like this for a few minutes, before I pulled back and made him sit on the couch, and crouching in front of him, I told the kids to stay away from him.

"So, first things first...I will explain to you briefly what-" I tried to begin, but he cut me off.
"Why was there blood on your face?" he muttered, his crystal eyes looking into my jade ones.
"I...Look, I will explain this very briefly. I won't ask you to believe me, but it's all real. You know I'd never lie to you, okay?" I told him, earning a nod. "The gist of it is...I have superpowers and I've been fighting a few monsters that have been threatening us for a while. I know, it sounds stupid, but-" I continued, but was cut off by Steve.
"But we have proof in the fridge." he mumbled, going to the kitchen.
"I'm sorry, WHAT did you say?!" I got back to my feet, looking after him in shock.
"Don't blame me! Mike made me put it in the fridge!" he shouted as he threw the dead demodog at our feet.
"You guys are...Just...I have no words for you." I facepalmed, looking at the ceiling exasperated, not realising Billy was looking at that thing like mad.
"What the fuck is that?" he asked, looking at me.
"That's...The monsters we've been fighting. They are called 'Demodogs'. And uhm...We're pretty much fighting the army while the others are out there destroying the Gate." I tried to explain, making him facepalm.
"I just wanted to get laid today, and instead, I have to deal with that fuckass of a father 'cause the little shit ran away without telling anyone, and now you're telling me we have to fight some fucking monsters?! Really, Kat?!" he screamed in rage, making me sigh.
"I'm not telling you to fight with us. You're new to this, I can't blame you. You can just go to your date and tell that jerk that she's at a sleepover and their mother tried to call Susan but it didn't reach or something. I'll make sure she comes back safely, okay?" I tel him, petting his hair.
"I fucking HATE redheads, I swear to fuck. You're all so fucking annoying and only bring be trouble! Yes, I mean both of you! YOU THINK I WON'T GET IN TROUBLE EVEN IF I TELL HIM THE TRUTH?! YOU THINK IT'S ALL THAT EASY FOR ME?! DO YOU EVEN FUCKING CARE AT ALL ABOUT WHAT THE FUCK IS GOING ON WITH ME?!" he screamed at me, making Max hide behind me.
"Yes, Billy, of course I care about you. If I didn't, I wouldn't have ever tried to calm you down or help you with anything. If I didn't, I would have just started beating you up for threatening the kids. If I didn't, I wouldn't have cared about what that fucktard does to you. If I didn't, I wouldn't have helped you get that scholarship, I wouldn't have tried to motivate you in any way and I wouldn't have stayed around you more than a second. Billy...This isn't about trauma anymore, this is about OUR lives! At this point, I can't afford to feel scared...Or shy, or anxious or anything anymore! I can't afford to blush o-or to be rooted to the spot or to say 'I won't bother struggling' because WE! MAY! FUCKING! DIE! And I'm NOT about to let ANYTHING get in between me and saving the kids if need be. So, Billy, what I am asking you right now is...Will you help me kill this army and put our lives at stake to save everyone...Or are you just going to sit there, whining that you missed a hook up and jerking off to the thought of some random chick you don't even know the name of?! TELL ME, AND TELL ME NOW, FOR WE HAVE TO GO!" I said, looking him dead in the eyes with shocked him, for I was never able to have eye-contact with anyone.

He just stood there, rooted to the spot, looking at me, his mind blank and having no idea what to do. He was just randomly thrown into a whole other world with nothing to be explained to him and the person he cared the most about just shouting at him that he has to fight or fly away.

I used my powers to get the axe back into my hands, while in the other I held the shotgun, and looking once again at him, I said "Tell me now." in a very low and determined voice, but he was still paralysed by everything new around him.

"Guys, get in the car, I'll be there in a sec. We're going to where you said and we're going to fuck up this whole army, okay?" I told them in a dark voice, making them all scatter to the car, dragging Steve with them. "I'm only going to ask you one more time, Billy, and after that, I'm leaving to take care of the kids. Will you come with us and risk your life fighting these monsters? Or are you going to stay here and wait for us with cookies and muffins?" I ask him, narrowing my eyes and waiting for an answer.

He said nothing, just looking down at the ground, making me tsk in annoyance and slam the door behind me, walking towards the car and cursing my whole existence for letting him get mixed in all this bullshit, only adding more trauma to the mix.

As if he didn't have enough as it is...