Summary: God, how much more torment can these children take? Soon enough there won't be anything left but broken bones and shattered hearts.
A/N: DOUBLE DISCLAIMER: This chapter gets very dark. Please read at your own risk. There semi-graphic descriptions of self-harm and some very, very predatory behavior on the part of 001/Peter/Henry/Vecna (whatever you wanna call him). If that will upset you, skip this chapter, I'll TLDR in the bottom notes.
REGULAR DISCLAIMER:This is a work of fiction. As the author I do not always agree with the actions the characters take. The MC has Haphephobia. The depiction of such in the story may not be entirely accurate and I do not claim it to be so. The depictions of anxiety and OCD are based on my own personal experience and do not apply to the illnesses as a whole. There will be mentions of various sensitive topics which are updated in the tags, read at your own risk.
November 10, 1983
Mornings at Eddie's trailer were always odd, this one made odder by the fact that Wayne was still up and cooking breakfast instead of sleeping like he usually was. Mads stumbled out of Eddie's room, still wearing her clothes from the day previous, but stopped – wide eyed – at the sight of Wayne standing in the kitchen. His eyes met hers, weary but not uninviting.
Making matters worse, Eddie tumbled out of the room behind her, shirtless with his hair sticking up in every possible direction. He bumped into her with a sleepy grumble. Wayne's eyebrow's shot up to the ceiling, coffee halfway to his lips, grease crackling from the skillet in front of him.
Then Tris exited Eddie's room, rubbing her eyes, and bumped into Eddie which knocked him into Mads, which pushed her further into the kitchen. She wasn't sure how Wayne's eyebrows could go any higher than they already were.
"G'mornin' kids," he said in that gruff voice of his, turning back to the stove. The back of his neck was bright red.
Now Eddie was awake, sputtering and pale faced. Could this situation look any worse than it already did? Two girls just spill out of his room with him, and he's shirtless. Wayne's embarrassment was plain in his body language. Fucking hell.
They'd only slept. Really, that's all that happened. Mads had been worried that Jake would report to Mr. Wilson that she'd come back late again and asked to stay over. Tris had tagged along because she was too scared to go back home. Too scared to be alone.
So that was how they all ended up there, at Eddie's trailer. He offered the girls his bed and took the floor, though he didn't want to think about the last time he'd washed his sheets. Mads had insisted he sleep right next to the bed so she could hold his hand. Tris didn't say much as they talked their way to sleep, which was unusual for her since she always chattered so much. At first that was a bit annoying, but now he noticed when she didn't, and that it was usually because she was upset.
But all they did was sleep.
However, Wayne didn't seem to think that's all that happened. Why the fuck was he up so early anyway? The fishing pole and tackle box propped up next to the front door answered that question pretty quickly.
"It's a good thing you girls are here, I reckon," Wayne sighed, breaking the silence. "Been meanin' to talk to Eddie about this anyhow."
If it were possible, Eddie paled further, his tattoos standing out starkly like black ink on parchment. Please don't be that, anything but that. Oh shit, oh shit, ohshitohshitohshit!
Wayne settled himself at the counter with his coffee and breakfast, grumbling under his breath. The three teenagers stood there in the hallway, too scared to even move. He beckoned them over with a curt wave of his hand. They obeyed, fidgeting.
"Now, it's none of my business what you three get up to in private," Wayne began, craggy face red with embarrassment. "But I gotta know, are you bein' safe? Using protection n' all?"
A choking sound emanated from the back of Eddie's throat. Holy shit, he could not believe his uncle was grilling him about using rubbers with two girls, let alone one. Tris was groaning like she was in pain, wishing the earth would open up and swallow her whole. They both so dearly wished for death.
Mads frowned, cocking her head to the side. "We've got plenty of protection. But how did you know?"
Tris squealed incoherently behind her. Eddie's mouth gaped like a fish.
"I mean, it's pretty obvious, kid." Wayne looked like he'd rather be dead than having this conversation.
"No!" Eddie shouted, clapping a hand over Mads' mouth before she could say something else. "That's not what we're doing! At all! Ever! Thanks Wayne, we're gonna get ready for school now!"
With that, he dragged Mads back into his bedroom – face burning like a thousand suns – Tris hot on his heels. She slammed his bedroom door behind them, leaning against it like she was afraid Wayne would come bust it down.
"So… You didn't tell Wayne we were lookin' for a way to bring Will back?" Mads asked, blinking owlishly.
Eddie glowered and threw her jacket at her. A shocked laugh escaped Tris' lips. Mads could really be so naïve. And she was the one who grew up on the streets.
"What?" She pressed innocently. "What did I miss?"
"Don't worry about it," Tris said, obviously suppressing laughter as she pulled on her own jacket.
Then it dawned on her, and what she'd admitted to.
"No," she breathed, eyes wide.
"Yep," Eddie said, popping the "p" sound while struggling to pull an "Iron Maiden" t-shirt over his head.
"No!" Mads wailed, burying her face in her jacket.
She would die. Her friends, though still mortified, began giggling like children at her reaction. They were laughing and she was going to die. There was no way she could make it past Wayne now.
"Wait," she gasped and ran out the door.
Wayne, who was finishing up the last of his breakfast, looked up at her, startled. His fishing gear was indeed by the front door. She couldn't let him go out today. Not while the monster or Pa— Dr. Brenner! – was on the lookout for her and El.
"Wayne," she all but shouted. "I'm not fucking your nephew; neither is Tris! And you can't go fishing today, or for a while!"
Her outburst caused Wayne to choke on his coffee, sputtering in his attempt not to spew it everywhere. Before he could reply, she had already disappeared into the bathroom. He got up to wash his dishes when Eddie reemerged from his bedroom, dressed and looking somewhat presentable. His face was still beet red.
"What was that girl on about?" Wayne asked, waiting for the water to warm up.
"Uhhhhhh…" Eddie started, unsure of what to say. "I mean, we're not…"
"Not that, I mean about the fishing!" Wayne interrupted.
So long as they said they were using protection or not… fucking as Mads so eloquently put it, he was fine with staying out of his nephew's business. He wanted to know why she demanded he cancel his day trip.
"Wayne… It's not safe right now," Eddie said softly, the seriousness on his face giving the older man pause.
"Whaddya mean, son? Are you in trouble? Some of your father's friends mess with you?"
"No! Nothin' like that. Just… don't go in the woods or out to the lake for a while, okay?"
Wayne studied Eddie's face for a moment before nodding solemnly. Whatever was going on, for Eddie to warn him like that, it must mean something. And as usual, he wouldn't ask questions. He never liked to pry into his nephew's life, and he wasn't going to start now. At least until he started coming home with his body battered and knuckles bloody again.
Mads, Eddie, and Tris decided it would be best for them to attend school again that day. Will's body being discovered gave them little excuse to be out of school since the searches had effectively been called off. Three teens roaming about would catch the attention of normal townsfolk, not to mention Dr. Brenner. No, it was best not to blow her cover. Hide in plain sight.
But the day dragged, and dragged, and dragged. She didn't know when she'd get to see El again, much less for how long. But she yearned to see her again. It felt like a lost piece of a puzzle, finally coming back to where it fit in her life.
It only made Ms. O'Donnell's that much harder to sit through. Finding Will was more important now than ever, since Dr. Brenner was on the move – looking for El and trying to cover up Will and Barb's disappearances.
Mads was fighting to keep her eyes open, listening to Ms. O'Donnell prattle on and on about career paths and college. Of course, most kids think that their lives in the present are more important than school, college, or choosing a career path; but, Mads? Mads' present objective was definitely more important than that.
Eddie and Tris were also just about to pass out in their seats when Ms. O'Donnell called on Mads.
"Madison," she called, all eyes turning to her seat. "What about you? Do you have a career in mind? Something you would like to study in college?"
"I haven't really thought that far ahead," she replied, not bothering to wipe the sleepy look off her face. "I didn't think I'd live past sixteen."
"We—ell," Ms. O'Donnell continued hesitantly, as though she regretted calling on Mads. "You're emancipated, aren't you? You could become a social worker to help other children who were like you."
A scoff escaped Mads lips before she could think to stop it. Then she realized she didn't even care. "Yeah, most kids like me either end up dead or in an institution."
Ms. O'Donnell pretended like she didn't hear the gasps coming from the other kids, or Eddie and Tris' snickers of amusement. This topic was important and these kids should take it seriously if they wanted to graduate.
"Exactly," She agreed, attempting to put a positive spin on Mads' dire words. "You could be a big influence on young minds."
"Or my mind would be affected. Think about that?" Mads drawled, twiddling with a pencil.
When Ms. O'Donnell faltered with a rebuttal, she continued. The whispers and stares of the other students spurred her on.
"Why is it that someone has to be traumatized to help others? Don't I deserve to have an easy job? An easy life? Why should I subject myself to more of the traumas 'kids like me' have endured because I might have experienced them too? I also have a job already."
The classroom fell silent, save for the stifled laughter coming from behind and to the right of Mads. The Hellfire trio. Troublemakers and bad students, the lot of them. Out of the three, Mads was the only one with above a B- in Ms. O'Donnell's class. But that didn't mean the teacher liked her any more than the other two.
"Right…" Ms. O'Donnell said, pursing her lips.
Mads cocked a brow, waiting for her to continue.
"Maybe see me after class."
"Sure thing."
"All three of you."
Eddie and Tris immediately stopped laughing.
They received detention for that evening, with – you guessed it – Ms. O'Donnell in her cold, mildewy classroom. It wasn't so bad really, except for the fact that they couldn't talk to each other and could only do their homework. Which would have been easier if they had been able to talk to each other.
Until Mads had the brilliant idea to slide into their minds and give them some choice words about what they could put in their essays. It took everything Tris and Eddie had not to burst into laughter right then and there.
Detention dragged on so long, Mads even attempted to find El. But when the lights began to flicker, she received two paperballs to the back of the head from different directions. Fuck, this had been a shitty day. First, Wayne tried to have 'a talk' with them, and now they had detention with O'Donnell for an indefinite amount of time and she couldn't use her abilities to make things more interesting. Or find El.
With a huff and a roll of her eyes, Mads turned her attention back to her work. Waiting, longing, hoping El wasn't doing something stupid and dangerous with those boys. Praying they could find a way to get to Will before something bad happened.
November 11, 1983
Tris had gone straight home after their detention, leaving Mads and Eddie alone. It didn't feel right to go on an adventure without her, but Tris said her parents were going to be pissed enough about the detention, she couldn't risk getting caught out after dark again.
So, Mads and Eddie went to Wheeler's place to see if they could try and find El, but she wasn't there. And neither were the boys. She really hoped they hadn't gone and done something dumb…
Instead of tracking El down, the two of them returned to Mads' motel room to smoke and do homework, or whatever the fuck else. Would it be worth it to track her down? Probably, but they really wanted to smoke and they weren't about to do it around kids.
It was simple, easy, the way they fell into silence and eventually into sleep. Eddie again had taken the couch, leaving Mads all alone in the big queen-sized bed. However, the feeling of his warm, callused fingers brushing her hair away from her face woke her from a deep slumber.
When she turned to look behind her, she saw Eddie kneeling there in just his ripped-up jeans. Dark hair traveled down the flat planes of his abdomen, trailing beneath his waistband. His hair fell in dark waves over his chest and back, his lips parted in reverential wonder. She could see every bit of him perfectly.
When had the light turned on?
Her body moved slowly, as though she were in a dream, opening her arms to him. There were no words between them, just worshipful silence and the rustling of clothes and sheets. It felt odd… Even when Eddie was nervous, he always babbled. It was like he didn't know how to shut off the words, especially nonsense words.
But as his bare chest was pressed against her clothed torso, their lips a hairsbreadth away from touching – the scalding heat of his breath and desire darkened eyes ignited something in her she didn't know existed. And when he cupped her cheek and brought her mouth to his, her breath left her in a wild gasp.
This is what kissing was supposed to be like.
This is what lust was supposed to feel like.
When her oversized t-shirt disappeared over her head, leaving her bare to him, she felt like she couldn't breathe because her heart was in her throat. She forgot about the light, forgot about Eddie's strange silence. Those callused fingers trailed carefully over her body, like she was something precious, fragile. The cold bite of his rings sent delicious shocks through her nervous system.
Then his mouth was on her body and she was on fire. There was no other way to describe it, just the most intense burning sensation she'd ever experienced. But it didn't hurt. It only left her wanting more.
When she couldn't take it anymore, he settled himself above her, dark hair falling in curtains around them, her eyes flying open to see only darkness and the red light of the alarm clock she'd replaced days before. Confusion clouded her mind; when did the lights turn back off? Why was she laying on her side? Where was Eddie?
His soft snoring from the couch told her everything she needed to know. That and the lingering, aching tingle in her abdomen. She'd just had a fucking wet dream about her best friend. Holy shit. Guilt engulfed her, extinguishing every other feeling that lingered. She was a bad, bad friend.
Mads had no one to tell her these dreams didn't really mean much of anything. That yes, they were sometimes indicative of attraction, but oftentimes the subconscious sometimes just conjured images that didn't mean anything at all.
Suddenly, Eddie's sleep noises stopped on the other side of the partition and he shuffled past her bed and into the bathroom, taking no notice of her flinch. The loud sound of the bathroom fan drowned out any other noises, even the occasional car driving by on the road. She began to drift again, despite her troubled heart.
But soon enough, through her sleep-muddled mind, she felt the bed dip beneath Eddie's weight. Instead of him pulling the covers around him and curling up like he normally did, Mads felt his arms snake around her body, pulling her flush against him. She could feel everything. The tickle of his long hair, the wiry muscles of his torso and arms, the burning heat of his skin… and. Oh God.
Her eyes flew open.
Eddie must have felt her stiffen because he tightened his arms around her, pressing the palm of his left hand just above her chest. It burned. Everywhere he touched her burned and her own insides threatened to engulf her in flames.
Why had he changed his mind? Why do this now? Had she said something in her sleep? He said he didn't think of her that way, and she agreed. Yes, she thought he was very handsome… but she didn't want him. Even in spite of that goddamn dream. So why was he going and ruining everything?
"Shhh…" He murmured in her ear. Mads could feel the rumble in his chest, in his throat.
No! She wasn't going to shush. She was going to knock him out of bed and chew him a new asshole. He must have gotten into the beer she hid from the Wilsons in the very back of the fridge. It was no excuse, but it was the only reason she could think of for his behavior. Nothing else made sense.
She was about to pull herself away when his hand slid up the column of her throat. Ohmygod. Beneath the puckered calluses on his fingers she trembled, feeling his smile on the side of her face as he stroked the scars there.
He never touched her there.
It was the one place she said he was never allowed to touch. And he promised. He promised. He promised!
"Let—" She started, but his hand gripped her jaw, cutting her off.
Two of his fingers snaked between her parted lips, opening her mouth to him, cool metal bit into the flesh of her face. Icy fear flooded through her from head to toe. Not even Axel had been so forceful.
"Good girl," he purred, his lips brushing against her cheek.
Fine, if she couldn't command him with her voice, she would invade his mind. Screwing her eyes shut, Mads willed herself to relax in spite of the burning flesh of his bare torso pressed against her.
Her consciousness pressed at the corners of his mind, but found it walled shut. Terror flooded her stomach, her brain. He shouldn't know how to do that. Even Kali didn't know how to do that. Normal people shouldn't be able to wall up their minds.
Then his mouth was on her and she nearly wet herself. No! She wasn't going to let anyone do this to her. Never, ever! Using all the force she could muster, Mads bucked and kicked against him, but that only managed to push her oversized t-shirt up around her waist. His hand tightened on her jaw, forcing her mouth open wider, his other hand tangling into her hair at the root.
"Now, now, Madison," his voice rumbled through her like thunder. "Is that any way to behave when you've invited me into your bed?"
Madison. Madison. Eddie never called her by her given name, ever. Not since she gave him permission to use her nickname. Eddie didn't speak the way he was speaking. Eddie didn't touch her the way he was touching her now. He didn't force himself on her. And if he did ever want her – if he ever got the courage to say anything – he would ask her what she wanted.
That was the thing about Eddie. He never took.
But she knew someone who did.
"I like this," 001 said in Eddie's voice with Eddie's lips, tugging at the roots of her hair with Eddie's hand. "It's so much easier to play with."
He pulled Eddie's fingers from her mouth before she could think to bite down, splaying his hand over her lower abdomen. Finally, she could speak.
"You just like the control it gives you," she spat.
He laughed Eddie's laugh. "That too."
"Let me go," she commanded, throwing every ounce of energy she had into those words.
He didn't budge. Just smiled with Eddie's mouth. It looked so wicked.
"I told you; I can give you whatever your heart desires." His voice was smooth, even, too collected to be Eddie, even if he tried.
"I don't want anything you have to offer!" She snapped, bucking against him again.
He merely pressed his hand into her abdomen with more force, pinning her hips to his. She didn't like this; she didn't want this. It felt gross and wrong.
"It seemed like you wanted this boy," he growled in her ear, tightening his other hand around her throat.
Now 001 sounded like himself. She could feel Eddie's rings disappearing from his hands as the air struggled through her throat and heart pounded in her ears. She found that her powers wouldn't even make him budge. He'd gotten stronger; knew how to deflect her.
"Stay out of my head," Mads choked out, struggling against his hands. Clawing them.
"You. Belong. To me." 001 snarled, his hot breath searing her skin, burning lips brushing her ear.
"I belong to me!" She cried.
With a force that would have hurt anyone else, she brought her elbow down into his side, yanking against the manacles that were his hands. His answering growl nearly turned her bowls to water and her stomach dipped to her toes.
She was pulled beneath him, his hands wrapping around her throat – they were so large that his fingers overlapped as he squeezed and squeezed and squeezed. Just like that night. That horrible night when her life really began.
Through the light bursting before her eyes, she could see 001's beautiful, angelic face pulled back in terrible snarl. His golden halo of hair was wild and disheveled and he was naked from the waist up, at least what she could tell. She didn't want to think about the weight of his torso between her legs as he pressed his elbows into the mattress, using all his strength to crush her windpipe.
But just when dark spots began to dance across her vision, he released her, oxygen rushing into her lungs like floodwater. She gasped, scrabbling against his hands, her nails ripping into his skin leaving bloody lines etched in their wake.
"You've displeased me again, Madison," he whispered, ignoring her writhing struggles beneath him. "How much longer must I wait? How many times must I punish you for you to learn? What can I offer you so you will listen?"
"Fuck off!" She shouted hoarsely, and spat in his face.
He smiled that gentle smile of his and cupped her cheek in his hand, then, before she could realize what he was doing, reared back and cracked it across her face. Ringing filled her ears and hot, burning tears sprang to her eyes. Her cheek throbbed; the coppery tang of blood filled her mouth.
"I do this because I love you," he murmured, capturing her jaw in his hand.
"I don't think you know what love is," she whimpered.
He laughed. It lit up his face beautifully, like the holy face of the archangel Michael. And just like the archangel's brother, the darkness overtook him once again, bleeding into his very essence. Rebelling against his creator and his siblings, bastardizing the gifts he was given and using them for torment.
Fashioning himself a God.
"Oh, Madison," he murmured, pulling her upward by her jaw. "You sweet, idealistic little thing. Imagine what we could do together if you would just give in, accept the way we're connected…"
The images of his perfect, burning world rushed through her mind. Of her, wild and untamed, unleashing herself upon the earth – upon the people who hurt her. Her, wreathed in dark, sensuous colors sitting on his knee, his long fingers tangled in her hair. Their lips, teeth, tongues crashing; their bodies entwined. Nausea churned in her gut.
"You can even have your little friend as a pet, a plaything," 001 breathed, his lips ghosting over her own. "I'll let him survive that long. He can satisfy you, indulge you, so long as you swear yourself to me."
But she didn't want Eddie that way. Why did everyone always assume they were fucking? She wanted to decide for herself what she wanted. She wanted to find Will and protect El. She wanted to find someone she could trust with her heart, be that Eddie or someone else.
"Where is she? Where is 011?" 001 demanded, pulling them upright on the mattress, Mads refused to look lower than the pale expanse of his stomach.
She noticed they were no longer in the motel room, but somewhere much more opulent. Ivory and gold dripped from every surface and the bed looked as though it were made of the softest material she'd ever laid eyes on.
"Like I'd tell you," She hissed through her teeth.
"I'm losing patience with you, Madison."
"Then fucking kill me already!"
His face dropped in shock, blue fire smoldering in his eyes. "Why would I kill you? I need you."
"What the fuck?" She spat, pulling her jaw from his grasp, her fingers digging into the flesh of his wrist. "You're a grown ass man, you don't 'need' me. You want me because you're sick in the head!"
001's expression darkened and his hand twisted from her hold, gripping her wrists tightly as he jerked her to him. His other hand grabbed a fistful of her hair again, forcing her to look up into his face. It was changing again, like before when the illusion blurred. High cheekbones sharpened, an eye glazed over, his hands formed claws.
The rot was returning.
"One day, Madison, you will bend to my will," he warned, his lovely voice turned gravelly, leaning in close. "You may refuse me now, and the next time, and the next. But I will always be back, and one day you will give in. Because you want this as much as I do, the power I can offer, the revenge you crave. You may think me a monster… but I am no more a monster than you."
"I don't," she argued pitifully, struggling against him.
"There is no other option, Madison. You're mine. You will join me." With those final words, his lips surged to meet her own.
But as quickly as it happened, Mads flew upright in her own bed, soaked through with sweat and shaking. Eddie stood beside her, the lamplight illuminating him in the dark room.
"Mads?" He asked, reaching toward her.
She flinched away from him. She flinched. He hadn't hurt her, it was 001, but still she recoiled. The hurt on his face broke her heart into itty bitty little pieces, but she couldn't help it. How could she, when 001 wore his body like a set of clothes? Used his voice? Touched her with his hands?
"Don't touch me," she snarled.
She didn't mean it, she didn't. But oh God, she was so scared. Fear pumped through her veins making her vision watery and her stomach heave.
Before he could reach for her again, she bolted from the bed and into the bathroom, slamming and locking the door behind her. He could hear her retching from behind the closed door. Then the roar of the shower starting.
"Mads?" He called, banging lightly on the door, but she refused to answer him.
She stripped off her t-shirt and underwear, vowing to burn them later, and threw herself into the scalding hot water. Anything to burn his hands off her skin. Anything to wash away her disgust and shame. She scrubbed and scrubbed at her skin, wherever he touched until the water ran pink against the white acrylic of the tub. Until the soap began to sting.
"Mads!" Eddie shouted, his banging growing louder and louder with each slam of his fist.
She wouldn't cry. She wouldn't.
She wouldn't shewouldntshewouldntshewouldnt!
The lights began to flicker, and static poured from the radio and TV.
"Mads, just fucking answer me please!" Eddie begged and the desperation in his voice released the scream that had been building inside her since she woke up for the final time.
The banging stopped but the screaming didn't and her nails ripped into her flesh at the hips, thighs, face. Anywhere and everywhere 001's skin touched. The water was running red and cold. Burning pain was the only thing keeping her conscious at this point, as her shaking body lowered onto the floor of the shower. The electricity began to surge, the lights flickering so violently there was sure to be another town wide power outage.
The funny thing was, she couldn't tell how long she had been in there.
A great crack shook the bathroom and the shower curtain was ripped away. Mads found herself looking up into deep blue eyes, recoiling weakly, then realized they were the eyes of Pam Wilson, whose face was a mask of horror and revulsion. The flickering lights only added to the horridness of the situation.
"Don't come in here, Jamie," She warned, rushing to turn off the water. "You don't need to be seeing this."
"What did you do, boy?" Jamie demanded, his voice like thunder.
Eddie could only form incoherent defenses, trying to explain without actually explaining anything.
"Eddie didn't… do anythin' to me…" Mads rasped as Pam lay a towel over her nude form, pulling her from the tub.
"You swear he didn't touch you?" Pam asked gravely.
"Eddie didn't touch me at all."
"Okay sweetheart, okay. Let's get you cleaned up and into some dry clothes."
Pam ordered Eddie to grab something loose and comfortable for Mads to wear, informed Mr. Wilson what Mads said, then shut the broken bathroom door the best she could. She grabbed the first-aid kit from under the sink and began swabbing Mads' obviously self-inflicted cuts with isopropyl alcohol, then Neosporin, covering the worst of them with gauze and tape – some with Band-Aids. When she reached for the nail trimmers, Mads' hand shot out to stop her.
"No," she begged with pleading eyes.
Pam sighed, gently pulling her arm from Mads' grasp. "If you keep doing this, Madison, you're cutting your nails. Something tells me this isn't the first time you've done something like this."
The way Mads wouldn't meet the older woman's eyes told her everything she needed to know. Instead of berating her, she took the wide-toothed comb sitting on the counter and ran it through the tangled mess of Mads' hair. When Eddie's hesitant knock on the door came, Mads had been bandaged from head face to thigh, dried off, and hair combed.
He was dressed again when Pam opened the door, his "Iron Maiden" t-shirt rumpled, hair wild and eyes crazed.
"Is she okay?" He asked in a trembling voice.
"I don't know, darling," Pam whispered, taking the clothes from him, and shut the door once again.
But not before Mads caught sight of the crestfallen look on his face.
She was a bad, bad friend.
Pam helped Mads dress in silence, slipping underwear carefully over her bandaged thighs, the loose nightgown that once belonged to Pam's daughter over her head. The lights had stopped flickering and the static from the radio and TV had ceased. Her body ached, but not as much as her heart which shattered all over the carpet when she exited the bathroom to see Eddie sitting on the edge of her bed, head in hands.
Mr. Wilson leaned against the partition, arms crossed and expression dark. It was obvious to more than just her that the older man suspected Eddie of doing something to her. Guilt and shame prickled in her chest, in her stomach. This was all her fault. Her fault, her fault.
"Eddie," She whispered, falling to her knees before him.
She tugged his hands away from his face, brushed the hair from his eyes, and realized he was crying. The sight of the bandages on her face – her torn lips – brought fresh tears to his widened eyes. Eddie didn't cry. Eddie laughed, he joked, and made up stories to distract her from her troubles. Eddie wasn't supposed to cry, least of all over her. Especially over her.
"Oh, Eddie," her voice e.
Then she was in his arms, her body crushed up against his like he never wanted to let her go while he sobbed into her hair as though he were a little boy. Unbeknownst to them, Pam crossed the room to Mr. Wilson, preventing him from pulling the two teenagers apart. It was clear to her that this boy would never hurt their girl. It wasn't in him.
She could just tell from the way his voice sounded on the phone when he called them. Or the tears streaming down his face when he opened the motel room door. He looked so small and fragile, just like Mads. He held some of the same hurt in him that she did; he could never harm her.
"I thought you— you were gonna— Jesus Christ," Eddie sobbed, his rings pressing sharply through the fabric of her nightgown. "I thought I was never gonna see you again."
"I'm sorry," she whispered over and over and over again.
Nothing she could say or do would make this any better. All she could do was apologize brokenly as she clung to him. And cling to him she did, like he was the only thing holding her together, and it was true because he was. Eddie was the best sort of glue.
When he finally got the courage to pull away, when he finally realized she wasn't going to fall apart because she had him and everyone else to hold her together, Eddie turned to look at the Wilsons.
"I didn't hurt her," he swore, allowing Mads to wipe away a stray tear he missed. "I'd never hurt her."
"We know, honey," Pam said, elbowing her glowering husband in the side.
Silence overtook them, awkward and pregnant. Mads' head rested in Eddie's lap, her fingers fidgeting with the tears in his jeans while he ran his fingers through her damp hair. The occasional sniffle from the both of them broke the quiet, but other than that, no one made any move to speak – or to leave.
At least until Mr. Wilson looked at his watch and grumbled.
"You kids have got some explaining to do," he said, watching as they made eye contact with each other. It was as though they spoke telepathically; he wasn't far off from the truth.
Eddie opened his mouth to say something, but Mads tugged on his hair, not hard enough to hurt – just enough to get his attention. She shook her head solemnly. They couldn't tell the Wilsons; the truth would put them in danger and she'd given them enough grief.
Mr. Wilson sighed. "Fine, it can wait 'till morning. But you're not staying in this room any longer."
"What the hell, man?" Eddie protested, placing a protective hand on Mads' shoulder.
"Now, just hang on one minute," Mr. Wilson said calmly, holding up a hand. "You didn't let me finish. We don't know what's going on here, but Madison isn't staying here anymore. It's obviously not safe for her to be by herself."
"I'm not by myself," Mads interrupted with flashing eyes.
"Which is why she'll be staying with us."
What? Staying with the Wilsons? Abso-fucking-lutly not. There was no way she was getting them mixed up in all of this. Over her dead fucking body.
"No," Mads protested, sitting up on shaking legs. "Not happening."
"Madison, please," Pam begged, moving to kneel in front of her and Eddie. "Please, please come stay with me and Jamie. We worry about you so much. All we want to do is help you out. The arrangement can stay the same, and there will be the same rules at our house as there are here. Nothing has to change; except we can keep an eye on you so this doesn't happen again."
That… that sounded nice. Staying with someone, not having to rely only on herself and two other teenagers, sounded really really good. But that would put them in danger. Nor could she abandon her quest to find and save Will. She couldn't do that. Mads felt like her shattered and bleeding heart was being pulled in two directions.
"Mads will stay with you tonight and we'll tell you everything," Eddie answered for her, earning a sharp jab to his lower ribs which he didn't bother to flinch at. "You can decide if you want her to stay with you still in the morning."
"Sounds reasonable to me, son," Mr. Wilson grunted, shoving off the wall. "Let's get you some things, Madison."
Pam stood, smiling, with hands extended to help Mads to her feet. It wasn't easy due to the stinging pain she'd inflicted upon herself, but she managed. She'd been dealt worse hands.
"C-can Eddie stay with me for the rest of the night?" She asked Pam, gripping the older woman's fingers tightly with her own.
Pam glanced over her shoulder at Mr. Wilson, who shrugged, then nodded at Mads with a smile. They gathered up a few things for her for the morning, and bundled her up into the station wagon. Before they shut the car door, Eddie pressed a Mars bar into Mads' bandaged hands. Neither adult knew the significance of the gesture, but the sniffles coming from the backseat told them it must have been important.
Pam stood in the entrance to Mandy's old bedroom, nearly untouched since that day all those years ago when Hop came to their door with the news, watching the rise and fall of Mads' breathing as she and Eddie lay curled up in Mandy's bed. She knew her daughter would want it used. Mandy would have given up the bed herself for the bandaged girl that slept in it now, had she still been alive. That's just the kind of girl she was.
Mr. Wilson stood behind his wife, placing a hand on her waist, and pulled her close. Most men would be furious if a teenage boy was sleeping in the same bed as a girl they'd sworn to protect, but Mr. Wilson was different. The Munson boy was good, despite the tattoos and weed – yes, he knew about that. Jake bought some for him and Pam often enough. He couldn't even bring himself to give a shit about the boy's hair because he'd sported a long braid when his little girl was born.
They had wanted to bring this girl into their home almost immediately, but knew she would never allow it. She had secrets and problems out the wazoo, and she needed someone to keep an eye on her. Someone who wasn't a kid themselves.
"What do you think he meant by 'You can decide in the morning'?" Pam whispered as she watched the girl sleep. She still had chocolate on the corner of her mouth.
Mr. Wilson thought a moment before answering, resting his chin on top of his wife's head. They were cryptic kids, that much was for sure. There were hundreds of things the boy could have meant by that statement, but he had a hunch it was to do with the weirdness that had started when Mads came to town.
"I don't know, my love," he answered, holding her tight. "But I expect we'll be finding out soon enough."
This town had been strange since he and Pam were young as well. The DoE swooping in and setting up shop in the forest. Then that whole Creel business, which went down when they were in their twenties, shook the town to its core. Hawkins had always been strange… But this girl with her wild ways and hair made things even stranger.
A/N: TLDR: 001 uses Eddie's likeness to try and seduce Mads, when it doesn't work he continues to abuse and try and manipulate her to join him as his goddess/counterpart. When the illusion diffuses, she harms herself in the shower with her fingernails. Eddie calls the Wilsons and they take Mads into their home. End of TLDR
So, I've decided to take 001's character and kind of turn him into a dark version of the Beast from the original story of "Beauty and the Beast", in case you couldn't tell. In the og story, the Beast proposes to Belle each night with the hopes she will fall in love with him and break his curse. I always felt a bit creeped out by this version of the story and thought it would fit. Especially since JCB does both versions of Beauty/Beast so well. I felt like 001's actions towards El were very... grooming. Yes, probably for serial killer-y-ness but, I mean, I got so uncomfy when they would interact (bc he's evil ofc). So... Idk 001 grooming Mads wouldn't be much different. I am in no way glorifying or recommending a Mads/001 ship. No. He's bad.
This is me y'all each time there's an 001 scene:
reel/Chk-zPDMEV1/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link
Leave me a comment and tell me what you thought?
Chapter title is taken from "The Devil is Human" by AURORA as a vinyl exclusive (and single on Spotify) on the studio album "The Gods We Can Touch" released in 2022.
Thanks for the follows, favorites, and reviews! I appreciate each one! (Please don't forget to leave a revirew if you liked the story so far!)
This is the "mixtape" I created for this fic. It's not entirely period accurate, but I feel like these songs fit the theme of the show and characters.
playlist/2w0Fg6UPmVvj5L3EIMRYfw?si=d8e38810c96f4875
