A/N: No content warnings in this chapter. Just wrapping up the story with a mostly feel good bow.
Each of our main characters will get wrap up section, with the exception of Mike, who got his in the end of the last chapter and who will be replaced by Will.
One Month Later
Christmas wreaths hung in every window of the Wheeler house as snow drifted weightlessly to the ground outside. In the basement, Will sat with his friends around a table, focused on the outcome of a Dungeons & Dragons campaign in full swing.
"Something is coming. Something angry." Mike glanced seriously between him and their two other friends. "Hungry for your blood. It is coming."
"What is it?" Will asked, eyes wide.
"It's the thessalhydra, I'm telling you," Dustin predicted knowingly.
Lucas made an annoyed gesture. "It's not the thessalhydra."
"I'm telling you, it's the thessalhydra," Dustin repeated.
Mike slammed the game piece he had been hiding from them on the table and proclaimed, "The thessalhydra!"
"Damn it!" Dustin groaned as Lucas threw up his arms in defeat. Will wasn't surprised that his friend knew it would be the thessalhydra. Dustin was always the best at predicting these things.
He watched with bated breath as Mike emphatically narrated. "It roars in anger!" The dark-haired boy turned to him. "Will, your action!"
Oh, no. He wasn't good at quick decisions. Will petitioned Dustin and Lucas for help. "What should I do? I-"
"Fireball him," Lucas replied as if it were the obvious solution.
He glanced at Dustin, who brought his hand to his chin in thought. Then, with a smirk Dustin, said the same thing. "Fireball the son of a bitch."
Will smiled brightly at his friends and reached forward for the dice. Shaking them quickly in his hand, he sent them flying over the table. They all watched closely as the dice landed on a number.
"Fourteen!" Dustin screamed, the others joining him in a loud cheer.
"Direct hit!" Mike proudly announced, "Will the Wise's fireball hits the thessalhydra! It makes a painful…" He screeched like a dying animal. "And then…" He dropped to his knees dramatically. "It crumbles to the ground."
Will giggled as Mike reached out to him. "It's clawed hand reaches for you one last time and, and, and, and…" Mike threw the rest of himself to the floor, feigning death as he, Lucas, and Dustin leapt to their feet in celebration.
"Yeah!" They simultaneously rallied. Will wrapped his arms around Lucas in a hug and he joined Lucas and Dustin in a victory dance around the table as Mike climbed back into his chair.
Mike began the conclusion of the campaign, "Lucas cuts off its seven heads, and Dustin places them into his bag of holding." Dustin triumphantly held up his backpack as he narrated, "You carry the heads out of the dungeons, victorious-" Lucas gritted his teeth and gave a victorious grunt. "- and you present them to King Tristan. He thanks you for your bravery and service."
Will frowned. That couldn't be the end.
"Whoa. Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa," Dustin held his hand up, looking confused as they all sat back at the table. "That's not it, is it?"
"No, there's a medal ceremony-" Mike added, trying to placate them.
"Oh, a medal ceremony," repeated Dustin sarcastically. "What are you talking about?"
"And-" Mike tried to interject.
"The campaign was way too short," Lucas replied.
"Yeah!" Will nodded. It was way too short.
"It was ten hours!" Mike snapped. He shook his head at Mike in amusement. Even if his friend was great at storytelling, he always flubbed the ending.
"But it doesn't make any sense!" Dustin yelled back.
"It makes sense!"
"Uh, no, what about the lost knight?"
"And the proud princess?" Lucas asked.
"And those weird flowers in the cave?" Will reminded Mike.
"I don't know, it's-" Mike began defensively. However, he and Will and the others looked up as the basement door opened and someone came down the steps from the first floor.
"Oh geez, what's that smell?" Jonathan asked as he made a face. "Have you guys been playing games all day, or just farting?"
Will wrinkled his nose in disgust as other boy's giggled, amused, and with a wide smile Lucas joked, "Oh, that's just Dustin. He farted." Dustin's smile slipped off his face and Lucas began to imitate fart noises as he sang, "Dustin farted. Dustin farted. Dustin farted. Dustin farted!"
"Okay. Very mature, Lucas," Dustin replied, whining when Lucas continued. "Oh, shut up!" Will smiled at his friends' antics. A few weeks had passed, but his favorite moments were when they were together like this.
"Will," Jonathan beckoned him, "Come on."
He nodded and jumped to his feet, gathering his things and waving to the others. "Bye guys." Jonathan always gave him rides now. After everything that happened, their mom didn't really feel comfortable letting him bike home after dark anymore. Not that he really wanted to, either.
"Bye, Will," chimed Dustin and Lucas.
"See you, Will." Mike waved and Will smiled at him, happy everything was back to normal.
Lucas raised his arm as he passed him, and they high-fived. Dustin came over and punched Lucas playfully on the shoulder. Lucas stood from his seat and hit him back, so Dustin retaliated.
"Stop," Dustin told him.
"No, you stop," Lucas replied.
"No, you stop."
Will stopped briefly at the top of the stairs and looked down at his friends. Their playful fight turned into a wrestling match in which Dustin had Lucas in a headlock. Lucas struggled and groaned as he attempted to free himself, letting out a high-pitched squeal as Dustin twisted his other arm.
"Yeah, scream!" Dustin mocked Lucas. "You're like a little girl!" He watched as Mike turned away from their fight to peer sadly at the small fort in the back of the basement.
He guessed not everything was normal.
Mike hadn't touched the fort in a month, preferring to keep it up. He had told him that it was where Eleven had slept, and that he kept it up because it was comforting somehow, as if she was merely away on a trip and would be back.
Will smiled sadly at his friend. There had been no sign or contact from Eleven. She was gone. And it was times like these, when they laughed and played together, that he knew Mike missed her most. Turning away, Will followed Jonathan out of the basement.
"So, you have fun?" Jonathan asked him, looking down at him fondly.
"Yeah," Will smiled.
Mrs. Wheeler glanced up from the Christmas cake she was decorating when they passed. "Hey, boys," she greeted them.
"Hi," Will cheerfully responded. He always liked Mike's mom. She was a real homemaker. Basically the same as his mom if she suddenly learned to bake and clean.
"Hey, Mrs. Wheeler," Jonathan said, shoving his hands in his back pockets.
Karen smiled warmly at them. "Hey, wish your mom a Merry Christmas for me, okay?"
"Yeah," Will nodded. His mom would be happy to hear from her. He knew she didn't have many friends.
"Yeah, thank you. Uh, Merry Christmas," his big brother added.
"Merry Christmas."
They made their way to the front door, Jonathan continuing his inquiry about his day, "So, uh, you win?"
"Yeah!" He thought about the fireball he had landed. About how the previous one had missed against the Demogorgon. Maybe that was a sign that everything was looking up.
"Awesome," Jonathan replied.
"Hey, Jonathan, wait up." Will and his brother glanced up to see Nancy darting quickly down the stairs with a wrapped Christmas gift in her hands. She walked straight to Jonathan and presented the gift to him.
"Uh…" His brother took the gift awkwardly.
What was that for? And since when did Mike's sister give Jonathan stuff? Will was only gone a week and he still felt like he had missed so much.
"Merry Christmas," Nancy told Jonathan.
"Thanks, um. I - I didn't get you anything," Jonathan flashed her an apologetic smile. "I - I feel bad."
"No! No, it's uh, it's not really a present," Mike's sister smiled kindly at his brother. Then she leaned forward and, standing on tiptoe, she kissed Jonathan's cheek.
He diverted his attention away quickly, hearing Jonathan whisper, "Merry Christmas." His big brother turned to him, blushing. "You ready?"
"Yeah," Will answered, feeling awkward.
"Let's go." Outside of the Wheeler's house, he and Jonathan climbed into the older boy's car. His brother rubbed his hands together for warmth and glanced at him. "All right. Buckle up."
Will buckled his seat belt over himself as his brother started the engine. He looked down at the gift Nancy had given him and felt a wave of curiosity. "Can I open it?" He asked. Fast as he was growing, he still hadn't lost that childlike excitement over opening presents.
Jonathan looked down at the gift, then to him, and smiled. "Yeah, sure." His brother watched him just as curiously as he tore off the wrapping paper.
"Whoa," Will mumbled, impressed. He held up the box for Jonathan to see, revealing a brand new camera. "Pretty cool."
His big brother chuckled softly to himself. "Yeah. Yeah, pretty cool."
"It's from Steve, you know." He had seen Nancy's boyfriend bring the package over around lunch time. Jonathan threw the car into drive and they headed home through the snowy night.
"Yeah..." Jonathan muttered softly. "I know."
As they drove through downtown, Will saw a familiar face walking on the sidewalk. "Hey, look," he said to his brother. "It's Valentin!"
Just recently, Jonathan had brought the other boy over and introduced him to their family. The older teen was a bit strange, for sure, but he really liked him. He liked how Valentin wasn't afraid to be himself, and he also liked how nice and attentive he was. Plus, he had discovered that the older teen was an artist too!
Not that any of that mattered.
Will was happy that his big brother had finally found a friend, no matter who it was. He and Jonathan waved at Valentin as they passed, seeing him wave back.
Steve sat comfortably in his black reindeer Christmas sweater on the couch in the Wheeler's living room, trying to ignore Ted - who was snoring loudly in his recliner with a bowl of popcorn sitting on his lap. He glanced up as Nancy stepped over her dad's feet and around the coffee table to join him on the sofa. He smiled when she curled up beside him, wrapping his arm around her.
He had been so happy that she had forgiven him and agreed to be his girlfriend. After everything that had happened, it had taken a lot of work. But eventually his charm had won the day, and thanks to a bit of help from Valentin for their first date, things were going strong.
Granted, it had only been a couple of weeks, but he had faith they could go the distance. Stroking her side, Steve asked, "Did you give it to him?"
Nancy peered up into his face and nodded. "Yeah."
Steve grinned, satisfied, and held her hand in his as she nestled her head tiredly on his shoulder.
The Byers' humble home glowed with warm lights. Christmas music played softly as the family dog barked. But, when he was ignored, he quickly placed his front paws up on the kitchen counter and snagged a large chunk of ham from the cutting board.
In the living room Jonathan looked down at his little brother. "What you got there? That one of yours?" He asked.
"Yeah," Will replied, holding a large wrapped gift in his hands as he squatted by the Christmas tree.
"Looks pretty big," Jonathan mumbled as he focused on the gift, trying to guess what was inside the box through the lens of his new camera.
Their mom never told him what she got Will for Christmas anymore. Not since he had spilled the beans one year when he was twelve. The light flashed as he snapped a photo, before turning to see if his mom needed help in the kitchen.
Will dropped the gift he was holding and Jonathan gently scolded his little brother, "Be careful. You'll break it."
Their mom was setting dishes of food onto the dining room table when he came in and he snapped a photo of her. The bright flash surprised her and she glanced at him, wide-eyed with an embarrassed smile.
Joyce helped her hands up in defense. "What are you...what are you doing?"
"Documenting," Jonathan chuckled.
"Oh, why…"
"Because…" Jonathan snapped another photo as she laughed. "It looks great." It definitely didn't, but she tried so hard and he didn't really mind the mush.
"Oh, this is just so overcooked." His mom fretted gestured at the meat. She picked up the spoon in the mashed potatoes and scooped some up before letting them drip back into the bowl. "And look, the potatoes are runny."
"Mom." Jonathan said gently.
"They're so runny."
Jonathan edged around the table and patted his mother's back. "Mom, it's gonna be great."
"It's definitely an Atari," Will announced as he took his seat beside them at the dining table.
"An a-what-i?" Joyce asked.
"The green present. It's an Atari," Will repeated. "I felt Dustin's today, it's the same exact weight."
She peeked at Jonathan and he looked down at his plate. He didn't know and he hadn't told, he swore. "Really? Well…" she muttered.
"Yeah." Will nodded, remaining unaware of him failing to smother his grin from across the table. Will always was the smart one in the family. Based on his mom's reaction, Jonathan would be willing to bet that the present was, in fact, an Atari.
"We'll have to see won't we?" Joyce said simply. Will glanced momentarily at his plate, before he stood from the table and began to walk away. Their mom reached out to him as if to pull him back. "Hey, no more snooping," she told him.
"No, I forgot to wash my hands," his little brother replied. "I'll be right back."
"Okay," she turned to Jonathan as Will stepped away and whispered, "He's washing his hands?"
He chuckled, laid his dinner cloth over his lap, and waited. They never started dinner without everyone at the table. His mom fidgeted for a moment before she spoke again.
"Hey, so..." She looked at him curiously. "What is Valentin doing for the holidays?"
Jonathan blinked at her before answering, "I think he's just spending it alone at home. Why?"
"Alone?" His mom frowned. "No, no, no. You tell him he's spending Christmas with us."
"I'm not sure if he will want to, Mom. He doesn't really know you guys that well." Truth be told, he didn't know Valentin that well either yet.
They had only been friends for about two weeks. And it had taken a lot of insistence on the other boy's part for that to even happen. Not that Jonathan didn't like him, but he had just been weirded out by the guy. After everything with Will, he wanted some semblance of normalcy back in his life. But Valentin had insisted, he suspected in part due to Steve, and after thinking it over he realized that the blond wouldn't be the worst friend to have. In hindsight the guy had actually been quite helpful during the week of Will's disappearance.
Jonathan had quickly found himself really liking the other boy, and had actually thought about inviting him to their Christmas already, especially after Valentin had told him that he didn't celebrate it with his own family.
But he was worried that it would seem weird. Not that Valentin was normal. But his mom and Will had both really liked the guy when they had met him. Especially Will. His mom had actually been concerned that Will liked him a little too much, but Jonathan had told her that he thought it was more of a role model kind of thing.
"Nonsense," Joyce interrupted his thoughts. "He's such a sweet boy. We can't just let him spend Christmas alone."
"Okay," Jonathan nodded. "I'll call him tomorrow and ask."
"Oh?" She sat up and flashed him an excited look. "He has a phone now?"
"Yeah, just hooked it up the other day. Can't believe it took his parent's this long to get one," Jonathan replied, thinking about the deeper meaning behind that.
"Right?! You know, when I told Hopper that their family didn't have a phone, I thought he was going to -"
Jonathan let out a merry laugh as his mom began to ramble on about the chief. All things considered, he had a feeling that it would be the best Christmas ever.
Steve was pulling into the driveway of his home in Loch Nora when he noticed a figure sitting on his front porch. The corners of his mouth turned up into an amused grin when he saw the Santa hat sitting on the figure's head, then lowered again when they saw the owner's emotionless face. He stepped out of his car and into the cold, adjusting his jacket as he made his way toward the festive looking person.
"Hey, stranger. What are you doing here?" Steve extended his hand and gripped the other boy's, helping lift him to his feet. "I was going to swing by your place tomorrow, remember?" Valentin suddenly smiled at him, face coming to life like a battery had been inserted into his back. His cheeks were pink from the cold and he let go of his hand.
"You said that your parents would be in town for the holidays, so I did not want to trouble you," the blond replied.
Steve listened to his friend's explanation as he unlocked his front door, ushering them both inside to the foyer. He flipped the light on and shut the door behind them.
"Come on," he groaned. "How many times do I have to tell you? It's no trouble, really." He turned and stared at the Santa hat on the other's head, chuckling when the bell on top jingled.
The week prior, he had asked Valentin what he wanted for Christmas. Ever since that conversation the blond had been wearing the festive red hat. Originally, he had figured he would give his gift to Valentin around Christmas Day, but then his parents threw a wrench in that idea when they had called a few days ago and shocked him by telling him they would be flying in tomorrow.
He had been even more shocked when he shared the news with his friend and was told that Valentin had never celebrated the holiday. Or any holiday. In fact, he had told Steve that - similar to him - his parents were virtually always gone on business, so he spent every holiday alone. Steve had sympathized heavily because - unlike him , who's parents at least returned for most major events - Valentin's parents didn't care at all.
Some people just weren't meant to have kids.
Steve felt even worse when his father had shot down his attempt at including Valentin in their Christmas celebrations, not wanting him to associate with the town pariah. His eyes shifted down, just then noticing that Valentin was holding a small gift bag in his right hand.
"What is that you have there?" He asked, gesturing at it.
"I brought you a gift. I believe it is customary." The blond lifted the bag, which he took carefully while frowning. "Is that okay?" Valentine added when he saw his unhappy expression.
"Yeah, yeah of course. It's just…" Steve's words trailed off. Valentin tilted his head at him in that way that he did when trying to figure something out. "You shouldn't have spent money to get me anything."
"Noted," Valentin replied blankly, his go-to way of saying it wasn't up for discussion.
Steve knew from the state of his friend's house that the blond operated on lower income, and knew he probably needed the money. "I really appreciate it," he said, deciding not to argue the point. He suddenly remembered something, and shouted, "Wait here!" He turned and ran clumsily up the stairs. As he made his way to his bedroom, his mind wandered back to the conversation that they had a week prior.
"Glasz," Steve had proclaimed confidently across the booth from Valentin. "That's the color of your eyes."
Valentin had tilted his head at the sudden information that he was sure his friend already knew. He had brought them to the diner across from the Family Video and Palace Arcade downtown. They actually went there pretty often.
"Yes. And your eyes are technically hazel," Valentin responded. "Though to most they would appear brown."
"Yeah, but that's obvious." Steve played with a a french fry. "When we first met, I couldn't figure out what your eye color was. So I went to the school library and looked it up."
"I am glad that you found your inquiry rewarding."
Steve laughed at that, having grown used to his friend's quirkiness. He liked to know things, and the eye color had been bothering him for a long while. He stared at his friend, watching the blond sip on his chocolate milkshake and turn to look out the window. He was very grateful for their friendship, if he was being honest. After the situation with Nancy and the Hawk, breaking his friendship with Tommy and Carol, he wasn't on top at school anymore.
He didn't want to be.
Nancy and he were dating now too, lowering his already abysmal social status even more. That meant in the eyes of Hawkins High School, Steve was a loser. Tommy Hagan made sure to remind him of that frequently. Yet Valentin had stuck by him, as if he couldn't be happier to be his friend, loser or not.
"Hey. I've been doing some thinking, you know?" Valentin turned to gaze at Steve as he started to talk again. The blond had that look in his eyes, like what Steve was about to tell him was the most important thing in the world. He liked how Valentin always seemed to value what he said so much.
"About how you said I made no sense. That day at the Hawk, you asked me who I would choose to be. And I didn't know, the more I thought about it the more confused I felt." Valentin didn't say anything, just smiled softly. That was something that had gotten much better. His smiles no longer seemed fake and creepy. Steve continued, suddenly very interested in his food.
"So, lately I've been replaying every big decision I made over these last few years. I thought about every mistake, every time I was nice, or mean. About those moments that changed how people saw me." He looked back up at Valentin, meeting his eyes. "And each time I replayed a moment, I would ask myself: what is it that makes me...well, me?"
Valentin tilted his head again. "Were you able to determine an answer?"
"No. But that doesn't mean I'm confused. It just means I'm the same as everyone else." Steve nodded his head to himself in reassurance that he had explained his thoughts correctly.
"I see. You are choosing..." Valentin seemed to process what he had said before finishing, "to be Steve?"
That made him laugh so hard that he felt dizzy. He had been so sure that what he said was profound, and then Valentin came in and made it sound so stupid. The blond watched him for a moment before joining in on the laughter. He calmed when he saw the waitress giving them a dirty look, no doubt because of their noise level.
"So," Steve switched subjects, suddenly very serious. He crossed his arms on the table and leaned forward, staring at his friend. "What does my new best friend want for Christmas?"
Steve snapped out of his memory as he stomped down the staircase and stopped in front of Valentin, panting and holding a poorly wrapped box with a bow on it. It may be ugly on the outside, but it was what was inside that counted.
"Here!" He handed him the object, Valentin's gift bag still in his hands below it. "I know it's kind of soon, but… Merry Christmas!" Valentin carefully started to pick at the poorly wrapped paper, but he stopped him.
"Wait!" Steve yelled dramatically. Valentin looked up in alarm, no doubt seeing a similar look on his own face. "Don't open it in front of me, man," he whined with wide eyes. "Do it when you get home."
"Okay." Before the blond could ask why, and he knew Valentin would want to, he pushed past him and stared out the thin window next to the door.
"Hey. It's snowing pretty heavy now!" Steve said, voice low. He turned back to Valentin as he pulled his keys back out of his pocket. "Better get you home."
Valentin shook his head. "That is not necessary."
"You sure?" He raised an eyebrow. "I really don't mind driving you."
"I like the snow," Valentin admitted, taking him by surprise. In the going on two months they had been friends, Steve never really heard Valentin talk about things he liked or enjoyed. He actually had a New Year's resolution to help his friend figure that out.
Maybe their friendship really was normalizing the blond.
He didn't question Valentin again, knowing that the other boy would have zero problems with accepting the ride if he wanted it. He watched him turn and open the door, the boy taking a step forward before he paused and turned back to look at him.
"Everything okay?" Steve asked as Valentin stared at him very seriously.
"Steve..." Valentin began, seemingly uncomfortable. "I do not know if this is appropriate, but..." He raised his eyebrows as Valentin stepped back inside and moved closer to him. "I would very much like to hug you right now." He snorted, which was apparently interpreted as rejection. "You are right, my apologies, I only assumed because other friends-"
"Hey, what did I say?" Steve interrupted the soon to be rant. Valentin stopped talking and stared at him again, tilting his head. He quickly walked forward and wrapped his best friend into a tight embrace as he answered himself, "I told you to stop apologizing."
After a brief moment, Valentin lifted his arms and hugged him back. It was honestly kind of nice. Steve gently pushed his friend away. "Goodnight, Val."
And for the first time since he had known the boy, Valentin gave him a genuine heart-warming smile. "Goodnight, Steve." With that, he turned and set out into the night.
Steve shut the door behind him and looked down at his bag. Technically, he did say they couldn't open them in front of each other. And technically they were now no longer in front of each other.
He rushed to his living room, sitting down on the sofa and beginning to pull the gift paper from the bag. He was jumpy with excitement. He had other presents, sure, but he had a feeling that whatever Valentin had gotten him would be very true to who he was. The guy was weirdly observant like that.
He found a card first and pulled it out, examining the surprisingly elegant scrawl.
'Steve, This is my first time giving a present to someone. I am happy that you are that someone. I do hope that you are not disappointed by my gift. I believe that your hair is your best feature. Sincerely, Valentin.'
It took Steve a long time to decipher the message, like always, but he was even more curious of what was in the bag after he had. He carefully reached into the package and his hand hit a hard, cold, smooth surface. He retracted it with the item held tight, almost dropping it when he realized what it was.
"What in the…" He muttered, eyes wide.
'Your hair is your best feature,' the card had said.
A can of Farrah Fawcett hairspray was staring back at him. He dug through the bag and also found a Faberge Organics shampoo and conditioner kit, before finally dropping the bottles and beginning to laugh hysterically.
Valentin had waited until he was out of sight of Steve's house to open his own gift. He hadn't originally intended to discuss his desire to hug the other boy. But after seeing the way Jonathan had hugged his brother, or Will hugged his friends, he was beginning to fear that their friendship wasn't as legitimate as he had thought.
And since Steve never hugged him, he assumed the other boy didn't want to. But for some reason, as he crossed the threshold with his gift, he felt as though it was one of those opportune moments he had read about it in one of his books. The ones where displays of affection were appropriate.
To his surprise, Steve had willingly hugged him, without so much as a question. The sensation was strange at first, and he had flinched reflexively at the foreign contact. But it felt... nice.
Comforting even.
He was also surprised to admit that he felt genuine excitement at the prospect of what might lie in the box in his hands. In his entire life, Valentin could not recount a single time he had been gifted anything, so the contents of the poorly wrapped present held great significance to him. Sitting on the curb, he carefully pulled apart the sloppy casing. Using his house key, he cut open the tape and lifted the flaps of the box.
It was a small device, with headphones attached to it. Next to the device lay a cassette tape and an envelope. Valentin opened the envelope delicately, as if it were the most valuable item in the box, and read;
'Val, I promised you that we would get you to experience new things. Let's start with expanding your mind to the wonders of good music. I know you've gotten a little taste here and there, but I put a list together of songs that I think fit you. Pop the tape into the Walkman, put the headphones on, and enjoy! Merry Christmas! - Steve.'
Steve's writing was sloppy, and there were a few spelling errors, but he thought that the sentiment behind the words counted most.
It wasn't like Valentin didn't know what music was. Of course, he knew the definition. But he didn't understand, he had never had the opportunity to experience it. And, before Steve, he had no reason to pursue that understanding.
There was a distance between knowing and understanding.
But thanks to Steve, and Jonathan, and Will, and so many others, he was finally starting to bridge that distance. He examined the small tape, following Steve's instructions. He took off his hat momentarily, and tucked his hair behind his ears. His chest felt warm as he slid the headphones into his ears before covering them with the hat. Tossing the wrapping paper and box into a nearby trash can, Valentin turned in the direction of his house and pressed play. The familiar music started as he took his first steps forward. All around him snowflakes danced in the wind as the notes filled his ears.
'Ground Control to Major Tom, Take your protein pills and put your helmet on.'
For the first time in his life, Valentin finally understood what it felt like to be happy.
A/N: Thanks so much for making it to the end of my first work! I really appreciated the support and feedback (if you chose to give any). I wanted to talk a short bit about my original character. You will eventually get more info on who he is (outside of what you got), but I sprinkled in a number of hints everywhere at it. I also wanted to ask about / point out a couple of other details, as I'm curious if they landed as I intended.
Obviously he is a big fan of Alice in Wonderland, which was the book referenced in the first few chapters. Did you also notice he quoted it quite a lot? That is a byproduct of his lack of social experience, relying on other things to bridge the gap. The red rose at the funeral is also a nod to Alice in Wonderland.
I also wanted to see if all the references to his powers read clearly before the actual reveal. If you noticed often in scenes with other characters the word compel was used frequently to allude to him manipulating their actions. And specifically in the flashback with Hopper in chapter 3, both the hand holding and the staring at the secretary alluded to his ability to absorb and alter memories. You also might have noticed in the same chapter his focus on the pictures in the red room. This was a reference to him looking for the one showing the Demogorgon, which was the photo Jonathan was mentioned to have hidden.
I also want to be upfront and say, a lot of the things that will happen in the additional works outside of the main seasons will take inspiration from moments in my life, so be prepared for homosexual experiences, but Steve and Valentin are very much going to stay platonic best friends. While I am sure it is obvious that Valentin, like Will, is gay, this is by no means going to turn into a love triangle involving Steve and Jonathan, so please don't feel like that's where its headed.
The next work in this series will be titled "The King's Gambit" and will start being uploaded as soon as I am able, no available date yet. It will cover Steve's backstory, and how he came to be the King of Hawkins. Expect cameos from many characters, such as minor ones from later seasons!
It will also be entirely canon compliant, as major canon variation really does not start until season 3.
Until next our stars align.