Live Like Legends

This is our time
No turning back
We could live-
We could live like legends

When Dani finally comes to, she blinks in confusion as her dimly lit surroundings slowly come in to focus. A moment passes and then she realizes she's in Chief Hopper's cabin. There's an afghan draped haphazardly across her and she pushes it off as she sits up. Immediately her head throbs.

"Ow." Groaning, Dani rubs at her temples. "What.. the fuck."

"Told you, you used too much power." Billy saunters into the room, a small wet wash cloth in his hands. He looks entirely too good in his men's white tank top and too tight blue jeans.

Averting her gaze and her thoughts, Dani grimaces. Then realizing it's entirely too quiet in the cabin, she asks, "Where is everyone?"

"Left them at the hospital to meet the other dweebs."

"Hmm. And how long was I out? You weren't wearing what you're wearing at the pool."

Billy smirks. "You checking me out, Lewis?" She rolls her eyes and makes room for him on the couch as he gets closer. Just as he takes a seat, he tosses the wet wash cloth in her lap. "You still have blood on your face."

Frowning, Dani picks up the cloth and wipes at her nose. She's had nose bleeds before, but that was back when she was in the care of the scientists and they pushed her to her limits. But all she had were nose bleeds, never had she passed out or woke up feeling like death warmed over. "Are they okay?" She meekly asks after her face is clean.

"Are you?" Billy retorts, eyebrows raised. "Back at the pool, that was.." he trails off, sighing. "That was intense."

Thinking back on it, on how Heather reacted and at how weak they all were against her makes Dani feel small and inadequate. Tears prick her eyes and her chest aches from how she suddenly isn't breathing properly. Choking back a sob, Dani sniffles and then she shakes her head clear. "We're in way over our head here, Billy. Chief Hopper is gone, my dad is gone, and we.. we're just kids! What hope do we have surviving against this monster?"

"Don't bitch out on me now, Lewis." Though his words are rather harsh for her moment of vulnerability, his tone is soft. "When everyone froze as Heather was choking the kid out, you were the only one to move and do something about it."

"She's my sister. Of course I had to do something about it."

"Then do it again," he encourages her and Dani finds herself relaxing the more they talk. "This is only the beginning of whatever fight you assholes dragged me into."

Against her better judgement, she grins. "Excuse you, the monster dragged you into this. If I hadn't been with you that one fateful night, your ass would have been grass, Hargrove. You'd be the monster's bitch right now and not Heather."

"We'll just agree to disagree."

Dani hadn't realized just how close the two of them had gravitated towards one another and tenses when she notices he's twirling a piece of hair between his fingers. She gulps and does her best to glare when Billy realizes that she's realized how close they are, but he merely smirks back at her. His gaze darts to her lips and then back to her eyes to gauge her reaction, and Dani lets her own gaze falls to his lips. She mentally groans when she sees his tongue peek out and swipe across his bottom lip, and Dani finds herself holding her breath and leaning forward.

The front door opens with a bang and Dani immediately jerks back.

Billy closes his eyes, grumbling. "So close."

"Shut up." The kids all rush in with Jonathan and Nancy behind him- the two older teens looking quite shaken. Dani puts a bit of space between her and Billy, asking, "What happened?"

"The Mindflayer's infected more people," Nancy says. "I worked for Heather's dad. He and another co-worker of his attacked Jonathan and I at the hospital when we went looking for Driscoll."

"But we killed them. At least we thought we did," Jonathan frowns. "Their bodies.. they turned into these masses of gooey flesh and then merged into one to create some sort of creature."

"It nearly ate Nancy," Will then mutters. "But El stopped it and-"

"And totally kicked it's ass!" Lucas whoops.

Max rolls her eyes, punching at her friend. "It still got away. They're.. unkillable."

"So what we need now is to find the Mindflayer itself. Or at least the first person it possessed to see where it's taking it's victims," Mike informs her.

Dani thinks for a moment and then says, "Brimborn Steel Works."

He blinks at her. "What?"

"When Billy and I were attacked, that's where it was. I remember we picked up his car the following morning and it was in front of that abandoned steel works building."

There's a moment where everyone is quiet and then Mike explodes. "Are you fucking shitting me!"

"Mike, language!" His sister is quick scold him.

"We've been overworking El all this time trying to find where this thing is and you already knew?!"

Dani gapes, flinching under the kid's heated stare. "I didn't- we were busy! It's been non-stop and I don't know why I didn't realize sooner, but-"

Mike sneers at her. "Some help you are."

"Hey!" Billy barks, blue eyes going steely as he quickly pushes himself up to his feet. Nancy and Jonathan tense, and Nancy reaches to pull her little brother back. "We're doing the best we can with what little we know, you little shit. If you and everyone else would pull your heads out of your asses to come up with a solid plan, maybe your little girlfriend wouldn't be working herself to death to save our asses!"

"Oh I'm a little shit? I'm a little shit?!" Mike raises his voice and Dani quickly stands, grabbing Billy by the arm when his fists clench. "That's funny coming from you."

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"Mike.." Max breathes, shaking her head. "Drop it."

Billy glares at his step-sister, nostrils flaring. Dani doesn't know all that went on between the step-siblings, but from what little she could piece together she knew it wasn't good. But that was their business, and since she's been in Hawkins she's never seen the side of Billy she's heard horror stories of.

"The next time you come at me, kid or not, I'm gonna knock your goddamn head off your shoulders," Billy warns him. "You want so badly to be angry at everyone else for letting harm come to Dani's sister, but it's funny how the only person who made a move to even help the kid came from Dani and not you. You were too busy cowering and making your little girlfriend save your ass."

The room is deathly quiet and Mike's features shift in his anger at being told off. He can't come up with a reply and eventually backs down when Eleven grabs his hand. Shaking her head at him, Mike completely deflates.

"Yeah. That's what I thought." Billy stalks off, disappearing into another room of the cabin.

Dani exhales loudly, her breath having caught at the intensity in which Billy defended her. "I'll, uh, I'll just go check on him." She catches Max's eye before she flees the room and the red head offers her a nod of thanks.

As she walks off to go find her overheated friend, she finds him pacing back and forth in the back bedroom. From the looks of it, and knowing that only two people live in the cabin, she realizes it's Chief Hopper's room. Entering the room with a sigh, she closes the hanging sheet that acts as a door to offer them a semblance of privacy.

"Hey, are you-"

Billy cuts her off by whirling on her, his expression still contorted with the anger from yelling at Mike. She's only just steeled herself before he's crowding her against the wall, and Dani barely manages to keep a yelp at bay when his hands reach down and grasp at the back of her thighs to lift her up. Her hands automatically find purchase on his shoulders and she stares down at him surprise.

"Well would you look at that? Someone isn't as grossed out by me as she likes to pretend."

The anger disappears in an instant and in it's place is his all too familiar smirk. Dani huffs and feels herself surprisingly relaxing, chuckling quietly while letting her hands slide up and over his shoulders so her fingers tangle together at the back of his neck. Feeling bold, she wraps her legs securely around Billy's waist and this time it's Dani's turn to smirk. "Don't play dumb, Hargrove. You know what those pretty eyes of yours does to the female population of Hawkins." Then lowering her face and voice, she stops just shy of actually pressing her lips to his. "If you're gonna play, Billy, then play. But just know I'm not fucking you with the kids just on the other side of this sheet."

Immediately closing the gap between their lips, Billy's chaste kiss is hard. Dani angles her head to the right and slightly parts her lips, she letting the tip of her tongue flick against his bottom lip. Billy returns with a bite and Dani groans, she digging her nails into the back of his neck in retaliation.

Panting and heaving after just a few moments of tongues tasting one another, Billy manages to carry Dani over to the bed and drop her there. She swallows hard as she scoots up the bed, her heated gaze never leaving that of Billy's. She lays there, resting her weight on her elbows and pulling up her legs to bend at the knees. Her knees partially fall open and Billy wastes no time in fitting himself between them with a mumbled, "Fuck."

Holding himself up with his hands bunched into the sheets on either side of her head, Dani laughs at his eagerness- laughter which he quickly smothers. Kissing Billy is and is not exactly what Dani expected, but she finds that she likes it. In fact she likes it so much that she finds herself rolling them, surprising Billy as she ends up on top of him. Sitting up and panting, Dani's hands clench Billy's shirt as she stares down at him. Flipping her hair over her shoulder, she leans back down and languidly presses her lips to his once more.

Billy immediately tries to deepen the kiss and Dani lets him, she breaking it with a muffled moan after a few moments to trail biting kisses down his neck. Billy's hands grip either sides of her waist and nudges her down his body until she rubs against the newly formed bulge in his jeans.

Dani loudly moans before she can smother it and the both of them freeze, her eyes widening in horror. Billy's eyes suddenly take on a glint of amusement and she glares down at him as he continues to guide her hips back and forth over him. Her eyes flutter, but she's quick to shake her head clear and punch his chest. "Stop it. You're gonna get us caught."

"Me get us caught?" His thumbs rub up and down her hips, and Dani swats his hands away.

"Stop that!" She hisses. Then climbing off and dropping into the spot beside him, she pokes him in the ribs. "Now's not the time for this."

"I don't know. You seemed pretty on board just seconds ago."

"My mind was in a haze, dick. Now you better get rid of that," she says while gesturing to his hard-on, "before one of the kids walks back here."

"Easier said than done, sweetheart."

"Mhm. Just think about whose bed you're in right now. Chief Hopper's." Billy grimaces and Dani smiles wide. "Yeah. That's what I thought." He sits up and climbs out of the bed, and Dani lays down with small smirk. Sighing, she makes herself comfortable and lets her eyes droop closed. "Wake me up when they figure out a useful plan. I need to recuperate since portaling that many people through the shadows took a toll."

- X -

Dani jerks awake, eyes blinking rapidly as she tries to figure out what exactly woke her. The room is still dark, colder than it was before, and her heart is beating furiously.

"Billy?" She sits up, scooting out of bed and patting down her hair. Glancing around, the stillness and quietness of the cabin sets her on edge. Frowning, she calls out once again. "Billy?"

Dani walks towards the door and shoves the curtain open.. only to have a petite hand shoot forward and wrap around her throat. Her eyes widen at the sight of a sickly looking Heather and she immediately starts clawing at the hand on her throat.

"MIKE!" Eleven's voice suddenly pierces the air.

Heather wickedly smirks at the sound of the girl's panic. "N-No!" Dani rasps, shoving at Heather and trying to dislodge herself from the monster in order to get to Eleven. But Heather merely turns Dani around with a forceful push, her hand then wrapping in Dani's hair as she marches Dani down the hall and towards the front room.

"He can't hear you," Heather taunts. When they emerge into the front room, Eleven's scared gaze darts between Dani and the monster at Dani's back. "You shouldn't have looked for me."

Heather tosses Dani at Eleven's feet and she quickly scrambles up, making sure Eleven is okay before placing herself in front of the younger girl.

Heather tuts at them before dropping her gaze to Eleven. "Because now I see you. I see both of you," she says, her voice resonating oddly around the room. As Heather walks further into the room, Dani pushes Eleven back. "Now we can all see you."

Eleven sobs in fear and Dani reaches back, grabbing the girl's hand in her own.

"You," Heather points at Eleven, "let us in and now you are going to have to let us stay."

"No," she whimpers.

"Don't you see? All this time we've been building it. We've been building it.. for you."

Eleven sobs some more just as her back hits the table and Dani hurriedly drags her around it to keep as much space between them and the monster gaining on them.

"All that work? All that pain? All of it.. for you. And now it's time. Time to end it. And we're going to end you."

"Like hell you are!" Dani snaps.

"And when you're gone, we're going to end your friends."

"No," Eleven cries.

"And then we're going to end everyone."

Eleven steels herself, flinging her hand up. "Get away!" She screams and sends Heather flying back with the force of her power.

"Nooo!"

Dani jerks awake, really awake this time, and scrambles out of bed. Billy, who'd been smoking a cigarette by the opened window, startles in surprise and doesn't hesitate to rush after her. Someone is screaming in the front room, mixed in with the sounds of everyone's panic at not knowing what's going on.

The moment they enter the room, Eleven flings herself from Mike's arms and into Dani's. The two girls fiercely hug one another, sobbing as they sink to the floor together.

"What the hell is going on?" Billy asks.

Max shrugs, eyes wide. "We don't know. El went under to find Heather and then all of a sudden she started screaming."

He frowns. "Dani was sleeping. She woke up at the same moment Eleven started flipping out."

Everyone glances at the girls then, not exactly sure how to approach them while they're like this. They all hesitantly take seats, waiting it out as the girls' sobs quiet down until they're nothing but sniffles and then hiccups. Mike and Max are the two to go to the girls when they've finally accepted whatever it is that happened to them, Mike helping Eleven to her feet and Max helping Dani.

Dani and Eleven are then led to the couch where they're gently pushed down to take seats, and Dani immediately wraps an arm around Eleven's shoulders. Just as Eleven sinks into her embrace, loud bangs and crackles echo throughout the forest, and the girls jump in fear.

"It's okay! It's okay," Jonathan soothes them. "It's just fireworks from the fair."

Dani nods and relaxes once more, and then Nancy appears with two glasses of water for the two shaken girls. They both manage faint smiles of gratitude and slowly sip as they try to collect their thoughts.

"He said.. he was building something," Eleven quietly informs them without prompt. "That it was all for me."

Max looks around in confusion. "Building something? Is he talking about the flayed?"

Nancy nods. "He has to be."

"So he's building an army just like we thought," Lucas realizes.

"Yeah, but he's not building this army to spread," Mike says.

"He's building it stop Eleven." Dani frowns at Will who'd spoken, she tightening her arm around the girl's shoulders.

Mike nods and continues. "Last year El closed the gate on him. I have a feeling that really pissed him off."

"Royally pissed him off," Dani mutters.

"And the Mindflayer now knows that she's the only thing that can stop him."

"But he's interested in Dani too," Eleven says. "I don't know how, but he pulled her into the.. mind room with me."

Billy stands a little taller at that piece of information and Dani shakes her head at him. "I'm fine. When he took over Heather during the sauna test, he saw me portaling everyone out. He's intrigued, I think, but his main concern is El."

"And with El out of the way-"

"Game over."

"He also said he was gonna kill all of you," she tells them. Every teen in the room looks startled.

"Yeah well that's nice." Max's sass earns a small grin from Billy which he's quick to mask.

Nancy suddenly pushes off the wall and walks to one of the windows. A moment passes and then, "Do you guys hear that?"

Dani's heart immediately beats double.

"It's just the fireworks," Jonathan tries to assure everyone.

"Heather," Nancy then turns around, gaze on Dani and Eleven. "When she told you this, was it here? In this room?" Dani and Eleven hesitantly nod, and everyone suddenly tenses as they start glancing around.

Will slowly reaches up with his right hand, his hand going to the back of his neck. "He knows we're here," he says.

Jonathan and Billy immediately make a beeline for the door, everyone else scrambling to follow them. They rush out the cabin and down the porch steps, walking all the way to where the cars are parked. Fireworks are going off in the distance, and the largest creature they've seen yet is stomping down the road that leads to the cabin.

"Get inside," Billy grits out. "Get inside now and start barricading the windows!"

The kids all rush back inside, Billy urging Dani to go with them. He, Nancy, and Jonathan make a run for the shed, looking for any available weapon. Billy immediately grabs up a machete and an axe, he weighing both in his hands before tossing Jonathan the axe. Byers nods in thanks as Billy twirls the machete in hand and Nancy quickly scours the shed for anything else. Pulling down a tarp, she comes across a shotgun. In a nearby drawer she produces several shells for it.

"You sure you know how to use that, Princess?" Nancy glances over at him, cocking the shotgun in hand. Billy smirks. "Good to know."

The three rush back into the cabin, they helping the kids barricade the weakest points of the room. Once done, everyone stands in the middle of the living room and glances around. Just what was taking the Mindflayer so long?

Feeling a nudge, Dani turns around and finds Billy at her back. "You good?"

She grins at him. "Yeah. You?"

He scoffs. "Ask me again if we make it out of this alive."

The lights start dimming as if there's a power surge and Dani immediately blurts, "That's not me."

Something- a tentacle of sorts- breaks through a wall by the bookshelf. Everyone scatters in fear, screaming, and the end of the tentacle moves until it's right in front of Eleven as she tries to shield her friends. Jonathan rushes forward, swinging the axe and hitting it twice before the tentacle knocks him clear across the room. The tentacle follows him, the end opening wide to show off some gnarly sharp teeth as Jonathan tries to practically become one with the wall in order to get away.

On instinct Dani gathers the shadows, she falling to the ground and rolling into the wall at her back.. only to come up behind Jonathan. Hugging him from behind, she quickly rolls him back into the shadows she'd just come from.

Nancy shoots once and then twice as Dani reappears with Jonathan, he looking at Dani with wide eyes. "T-Thanks."

"You're welcome."

Nancy shoots a third time, the tentacle a little more than pissed off at her. She goes to shoot a fourth time, but the shotgun clicks empty. She stares at the gun, then at the tentacle as she scurries backwards in fear, and before Dani can shadow travel to save her.. Eleven is stopping the wayward tentacle just inches from Nancy's face.

Eleven stands with her feet shoulders width apart, one arm held out as she keeps the tentacle at bay with nothing but her mind. The tentacle starts to quiver and then shake uncontrollably, and when Eleven flings her arm downward the tentacle is cut. There's a bunch of squealing as the tentacle disappears from where it'd come, Billy then shouting at Max since she was standing too close to the gaping hole.

"Holy shit."

Another tentacle breaks through another wall, everyone ducking as it makes a beeline for Eleven. She catches it with her powers about a foot in front of her, surprised, and another tentacle explodes through the windows. With two hands spread out and keeping the tentacles from reaching her, Eleven pants and heaves in anger. With a shout, she forcefully brings her arms inward and rips the tentacles apart again.

The tentacles disappear and they're not even granted an ounce of relief as the roof is then ripped open. The Mindflayer roars, it's mouth opening wide in a rage.

"Fuck me," Dani remarks.

A tentacle from the Mindflayer's mouth shoots down and catches Eleven by the ankle. Pulling, it knocks her off her feet and drags her across the floor on her stomach. As she screams, clawing at the floor for any sort of purchase, Dani lunges forward and catches one of Eleven's arms. She struggles to keep Eleven in the room as the Mindflayer tugs on her, and then Jonathan's lunging forward to grab onto Eleven's other arm.

Everyone else finally moves, Billy tossing aside his machete and grabbing onto Eleven's arm right above where Dani has latched on. Mike helps Jonathan, Max grabs onto Dani's waist and Will onto his brother's.

Lucas glances around, not knowing what to do with himself when Jonathan screams, "Nancy, shoot it!"

Nancy's hurrying to reload the shotgun as Eleven screams in pain and terror. Dani screams as well when she loses her footing by trying to pull with all her might. The Mindflayer is stronger than them all and it's absolutely terrifying.

A gunshot finally rings out, followed by a second and then a third. But all Nancy does is manage to piss the creature off.

"Dani, portal us out!" Mike shouts. "Portal us out, portal us out, portal us out!"

"I can't! Not like this!"

Billy yells just as lets go and turns around to pick up the machete he'd previously abandoned. Then marching up to the tentacle, he swings the machete with all his might. The monster squeals as the blade lodges in it, Billy then yanking it out and striking it again. Looking at the kids, he shouts, "Someone pick up that fucking axe!"

Lucas scrambles to do just that and with a terse nod from Billy, both Billy and Lucas work in tandem as they strike the tentacle holding onto Eleven. After several strikes they sever the tentacle and Eleven collapses on everyone who'd been holding onto her.

Eleven whimpers in pain and Mike wastes no time in yanking the piece of the Mindflayer that had stayed latched onto her ankle. She screams in agony, but immediately quiets down when she's free of it's teeth once and for all.

Dani is cradling Eleven in her arms, but then the Mindflayer is roaring once more. It hovers it's face just above the hole in the roof and Eleven pushes herself up to her feet. Glaring and limping, Eleven walks right underneath the hole. She holds her arms up, hands and fingers pointed at the Mindflayer. It roars, Eleven screams, and then with a mighty pull of her hands outwards.. Eleven rips the face of the Mindflayer in half.

The group is stunned speechless before Jonathan gathers his wits. "Go, go, go!"

Jonathan and Nancy scoop up Eleven from where she had collapsed to the floor, Billy then shoving the other kids towards the exit. He holds onto Max with one hand as she tries to scurry by and then reaches for Dani's hand when she's close enough. With the Mindflayer momentarily out of the fight, everyone rushes towards the only two vehicles.

Jonathan loads Eleven into the back seat of Nancy's station wagon while Mike and Will climb in with her. Nancy gets behind the wheel and Jonathan jumps into the passenger seat. Dani doesn't say anything when she realizes it's her car that Billy is shoving Max and Lucas into the back seat of, and she quickly jumps into the passenger seat since she didn't have any keys on her. As soon as Billy plops into the driver's seat, the engine roars to life and he's speeding after Nancy.

With the Mindflayer still back at the cabin, the car's occupants are allowed a moment to breathe.

"Not that it's totally important right now," Dani pants, attempting to catch her breath, "but how the fuck did my car get here when we were using yours earlier?"

Keeping his gaze straight ahead and occasionally checking the rear view mirror, Billy lightly smirks. "My baby's been through too much already. I dropped off my car at your house and picked up yours."

Just as he takes a too sharp turn, Dani slams into the door with a grunt. Billy huffs a laugh at her and she glares at his side profile while rubbing her elbow. "Dick."