Will hid his damp hands in his sleeves as he watched Hopper put out their fire. He felt a cold in his core, but sweat was building on top of his skin; making him nausea's. The last thing he could remember was his room, the dark lingering over him as he forced his eyes shut to ignore the nagging voices in his head. He had felt like he needed to be somewhere doing something, but he didn't know what.
He knew he should have been concerned about the sleep walking, but he had never gone as far as his front door. His mother had found him a few times; standing in the hall way for who knows how long. His brother had found him in the living room, sitting with the T.V. on white noise countless times. He always thought it had something to do with the PTSD all the lab doctors told him he had.
The room dimed as the fire steamed from the small bucket of water Hopper was slowly pouring on top of it. He could hear El in her room, moving as the floor boards creaked under her feet. He felt as if his palms were dripping. He looked down at his balled up sleeve, hiding his small hands; blotches of red showing on the fabric.
Was that blood?
His heart began to pick up speed sending waves of energy through his veins. He pulled his sleeves up, his arms slowly shaking. His fingers showed blood, most of it coming off of his shirt as he pulled it up his arm.
"Kid!" Hoppers voice made Will jump as he began to beat on El's door. Will threw his hands behind his back, looking over to Hopper who put his ear against the door. El's footsteps had become quiet. "El?" There was a small shuffle on the other side of the door, Will drew closer as he rubbed his hands on the back of his dark blue pajama pants. Hopper looked over to Will than back at the door as it slowly opened.
Will could still feel his heart in his chest as the girl slowly peeked out of the door. She wore a tank top the gash in her chest still bleeding; cut deep and sharp. He looked back down at his hands slowly as she looked at him and then to Hopper. She pulled her body away from the door, throwing the dish towel back over her cut, revealing a steak knife in her other hand; blood on the blade. She showed it to Hopper who slowly looked down at the bloodied knife and then back up at her. Will could see it all happen in slow motion as he debated on what to do. He was as far away from the front door as he could be, Hopper in the way of him getting to it. There was no escape; he had done this. But why?
"Will?" Hopper said in a deep voice. He knew his eyes were bulging out of his head, in all honesty he knew he deserved to be punished, but he knew that this wasn't him; he didn't do this.
"I swear," Will said with a shaky voice. "I don't know what's happening. I don't know how I got here."
"I don't want to do this," Hopper said walking over to his belt that hung from the hat hook by the front door. He pulled out metal hand cuffs, looking over to Will with sad eyes. "Just trust me that I won't hurt you." Will felt fear pulse through him. He wasn't a bad kid. Sure sometimes he didn't eat all the vegetables that his mom wanted him to, and yes he did cheat on his history test, but that was just once.
"Please," he said in a sad voice. "I told my mom I would never get arrested." He felt hot tears fall from his eyes. What was happening to him? Why couldn't all of this go away?
"You're not arrested buddy," Hopper said slowly walking over to him, "but until I know you won't turn and randomly hurt her; I would feel much better if you just sat in these cuffs until I got you home." Will looked back down at his hands as Hopper slowly made his was to him. El watched from her door way, one hand on the dish towel, the other on his knife.
…
She had never had pain like this cut. It really didn't hurt that bad, just stung every time she moved the cloth around it. It wouldn't stop bleeding, and she had never seen blood come from her other than her nose, her ears, and maybe her eyes. She thought the head aches she would get after doing something that involved too much energy gave her worse pain than this cut, but when she moved the rag to look down at it; she realized that it was going to take a while to heal.
She could hear faint sniffles from the back seat as they drove. At first she didn't know if she should feel anger, fear, or sympathy for Will. She didn't know if he was aware of the darkness the loomed over him. By the end of tonight she knew he would have some sort of idea what was still lingering in him. For the past few weeks she had ignored the signs. The feeling of something wanting to bust out of him every time she drew near. She could now understand that even though the mind flare flew out of him, it still lingered in the roots of his being.
"Has it stopped?" Hopper asked as he sped down the road.
"No," she said placing the rag back over the wound. She had found the old tank top at the bottom of her dresser drawer, it was big on her and she knew it probably belong to Hopper. The white color was slowly becoming more of a red as she bleed all over it. She was beginning to get really cold; she had forgotten her coat as they left in a hurry. The blood loss wasn't making her feel any warmer.
"You might need stitches," Hopper grumbled as he turned down the long drive to the Byers house. He honked his horn as they drew closer to the house, trying to wake Joyce before they got out of the car. He put them in park as the watched the living room lights come on; Hopper looked back at Will. "I'm sorry I had to put you in cuffs," He said to Will. El looked back at him, Will gaze falling on his mother as she came out of the front door.
El jumped out of the front seat, while Hopper struggled to get Will from the back; undoing his cuffs when he finally got him outside.
"Will?" Joyce said loudly, running from her spot on the porch. "Why is he in hand cuffs?" She threw her hands over her mouth as she began to panic. El watched as Joyce pushed Hopper aside, bringing Will into her arms. She could she Will crying over his moms shoulder, and El felt sadness cover her heart.
"Let's go inside," Hopper said, trying to lead the two to the front door. El closed her car door with a slam, pressing harder onto her chest with the cloth, hugging herself to keep warm. Jonathan appeared by the front door, his hair strewed with confusion all over his face. El slowly made her way up the front steps behind everyone, listening to Hopper try to explain to the Byers what had happened. El stopped at the front door, listening to the ruffling of something far off in the trees. She looked off to her left at the forest that surrounded the house, feeling eyes watching her. Her stomach tugged, making her move towards the noise, but before she could get any real distance away front the door, Hopper placed his hand on her shoulder.
"Get in before you get frostbite," He said pulling her out of her gaze. He pulled her through the door, the warmth of the house engulfing her as Hopper slammed the door shut behind her. She looked at Will sitting on the couch with his mother as Jonathan loomed over them. "Let's take a look at this cut," Hopper said pointing towards the kitchen. Will looked up at her, his eyes dark with exhaustion.
"I didn't mean it," he said looking at her. "I didn't know what I was doing." She looked at him, not knowing what to say. She nodded her head as if understanding while walking with Hopper to the kitchen.
He had her take a seat on top of the counter while he rummaged around the kitchen looking for paper towels. He let the facet run hot, disappearing into the bathroom and coming back out with a hand full of supplies.
"This is going to hurt kid," he said putting down a brown bottle of something she had never seen before, some bandages, and soap beside her. "I'm going to try and get some water into that cut, see how deep it is, then get some peroxide in there to clean it up." He took her hand away from the cloth, pulling it away from her gash. The blood wasn't flowing as much as it had been. Hopper took the cloth and ran it under than water, pink flowing down the drain.
They sat in silence as Hopper wet the cloth several times, applying it back to the cut and cleaning the blood from her skin. To her surprise it did hurt, but she didn't want him to see her in pain. She tried to think about other things while he grumbled under his breath; trying to be as gentle as he could.
"How bad is it," Joyce came into the kitchen, hugging herself as she walked closer. She looked up at El with sad eyes, guilt falling all over her face.
"It could be worse," Hopper said. "I don't think you'll need stitches kid," he looked up at her with a smile. "You might have a nasty scare if it doesn't heal right though." El nodded her head, even though she didn't really understand what stitches were. Hopper put the cloth down opening the brown bottle and pouring the clear liquid onto a paper towel. "This is going to hurt," he said looking into her eyes. He grabbed her shoulder placing the paper towel over her chest and pressing down. The liquid seeped into her cut, bringing a sting she had never felt in her life. She let out a hiss as it began to bubble under the towel. "This is killing the germs," he told her, "so it doesn't get infected."
Joyce helped with the bandage, making sure it was big enough to fit across her chest. She looked down at the tapped cotton finally feeling like she didn't have blood oozing out of her. Joyce went to get her a new shirt, while Hopper helped her down from the counter looking out the kitchen window. He stared out at the trees, squinting his eyes in order to see through the darkness. El turned and looked with him, she felt a wave of cold wash through her and she began to shiver.
"Is everything okay," Joyce said, coming in with a blue long sleeve shirt. She handed it to El, both her and Hopper looked away from the window.
"I thought I saw something," Hopper said. "I think I'm just tired, or paranoid, maybe both." He shrugged his shoulders. "Why don't you go change in the bathroom and then we'll get out of here," he said looking down at her. She slowly walked down the hall, going into the bathroom and shutting the door. She looked down at the lock on the doorknob, finally clicking it to secure the door.
Her shirt was slightly sticky; she threw it into the sink and turned on the water. Joyce's long sleeve was only slightly larger than her, hugging her in all the right places to make her feel warm. It smelt of laundry detergent, making her smell the fabric with a small smile. She rinsed the shirt in the sink, ringing it out before turning the water to her face. She slashed herself with semi cold water. She looked at herself in the mirror, taking in the fact that she looked older than she remembered, her hair slightly long than she thought it was. She actually was looking like a girl.
She heard a click on the bathroom window, as if the lock had undid itself. She could feel herself wanting to move towards it, like a magnet forcing her to move, but she tried to remain in her spot. She was trying to memorize her face. She didn't know what it was, but the feeling kept appearing to her for the past few hours. She had a need to run, to what she didn't know. She just felt as if she needed to leave, and whatever she was running to was going to bring some understanding to herself.
"You almost done in there," Hoppers voice pulled her out of her thoughts, her eyes facing the window and not the mirror. She turned from the sink, moving to the door in slow motion, stopping as if she heard something behind her. She felt a hard tug, forcing her to want to move to the window, so she followed it. "Come on kid," Hopper said again, "we need to go and get some sleep." She made it to the window. Undoing the lock, letting the cold air in. She peered out into the trees; the night was quiet and cold. Snow was starting to fall from the sky.
…
Hopper didn't know what was going on. He was totally done with trying to figure things out and really just wanted to lie down for just a few hours. Days were starting to merge together, and for the past two weeks it had been nice not having to worry about anything strange happening. Tonight was weird, worrying, and to be honest terrifying. He couldn't focus on the issue until he got a few hours of sleep.
Joyce had offered them her bed, but Hopper didn't feel right having El and Will in the same house. El had been acting strange lately; she was sleep walking and seeing things in the void. Now Will was doing the same, but harming her while he was at it.
Hopper sat at the bathroom door listening to what was happening inside. There was a silence that was making the hairs on his arms stand up. "Hey kid," he said again. He had been waiting for at least a minute for her to open the door, but nothing had happened. "I'm going to bust down this door if you don't open up," the warning rang in the silence for half a second. Joyce appeared at the end of the hall, they both looked at one another. Hopper felt a chill run from under the door, he put his hand on the door knob and twisted it; it was locked. Panic slightly ran through his blood as he slammed his body onto the door, making Joyce jump and walk over to him. He hit the door again, a third time; finally opening to an empty room. The window was wind open snow falling onto the window pain.
"Shit," Hopper said under his breath. Joyce put her hands to her mouth, looking around the bathroom to see if she could find her.
"Where is she," Joyce said as Hopper looked out the window. He could feel his stomach churning as he thought about staring out the kitchen window just moments before. He thought he saw someone in the trees, but the figure was gone as soon as he did a double take. Hopper stormed out, paying no attention to Joyce fallowing behind him. "Why would she leave?" Joyce continued as they walked down the hall. "She doesn't have a coat; it's snowing. What's going on? Does she do this often?" Joyce's voice was becoming annoying.
They came into the living room as he went for the front door to his truck to find a flash light. "Does she feel like we can't protect her anymore? Will didn't mean to hurt her."
"Joyce," Hopper turned to her, his voice rising. "I need you to be quite." He went through his tool box, finding his large flash light and slamming his tail gate shut. "I need Jonathan to come with me, you stay here with Will." Joyce nodded her head as they walked back into the house. "I saw someone out there," Hopper continued. He looked down at Joyce, her face contorted in panic. "I thought I was just seeing things, but I thought I saw someone in the trees. A girl." Hopper walked down the hall, pulling the gun from his belt. He walked into Wills room where Jonathan sat on Wills bed, reading him The Hobbit.
They both looked up at him with confusion.
"What's going on?" Jonathan asked, placing the book on the bed, sitting up a little straighter.
"El's not here," Hopper said. "Can you come with me to look?" Jonathan nodded his head.
"Where did she go," Will's small voice drew through Hoppers ears. "Is she going to be okay?" Hopper looked down at the small boy, feeling a mixture of frustration and sadness towards the kid. He was angry at him for hurting El, but at the same time felt bad for that anger.
He trued to the door, leaving Will with an unanswered question because he didn't know how to answer it honestly.
"Do you still have that gun?" Jonathan nodded his head, heading into the living room and crouching in front of the couch; grabbing a hold of the gun and pulling it out. "We are going into the tree, watch your back. I don't know what we are walking into. It could be people from the lab, or something else," Joyce joined them, tears forming in her eyes.
"Please be careful," she said; putting her hands to Jonathans face before letting them rush out the back door. A cold sweat rush past Hopper face, but all he could feel was determination.
"Red alert! Red alert!" Mike felt like he was being raised from the dead. His head was warm and heavy on his pillow; he could almost feel the chill coming from his closed window. "Is anyone there?" Will's voice was panicked making Mike sit straight up. He pulled the covers from his body, grabbing the walkie from his desk.
"Can't this wait until morning?" Lucas's voice wined. Mike sat with the device in his hand, waiting for Will to say something back. "Over?" Lucas added after a few seconds of silence.
"I," Will voice came in funny. "Then-she-I don't" Will's house was too far for Mike to pick it all up. He moved around his room with the walkie talkie held high in the air to get a better connection. "Now she's gone." Will ended. He assumed it was his mom, and Mike felt panic course through him. What happened to his mom, did his dad come back and do something? Was it men from the lab?
"What do you mean she's gone?" Lucas said. "And what do you mean you cut her? Over!"
"What is happening," Mike said to himself as he threw the walkie talkie onto the bed and ran for his closet. He took a sweater from its hanger, throwing it over his long sleeved shirt. He went through his dirty pile of jeans, pulling out the ones he wore yesterday because they were good with the cold.
"Mike!" Lucas voice yelled. "Mike! Wake up!" he rolled his eyes, grabbing the walkie from the bed as he tripped over his long legs; his pants half on.
"What's happening, over," he said throwing the walkie back onto the bed while pulling his pants up.
"El's missing!" Lucas said loudly. "I repeat El is missing, this is a red alert. Get to Wills! Over and out!"
"What," he said out loud, grabbing some socks throwing them on while pulling things into his back pack as fast as he could. He had been with her, just a few hours before at the dance. How could she be missing?
He ran out of his bed room door; backpack in one hand, shoes in the other, running to Nancy's door as quietly as he could. He entered without Knocking, throwing his backpack on her bed waking her up. "Wake up!" he said in a loud whisper. Nancy sat up fast looking at a frazzled Mike as he slipped his shoes on. "We have to go, El is missing." Without a word Nancy flew out of bed, running to her closet and putting jeans on over her night dress. Mike turned around as she changed.
"What happened?" Nancy said. Mike went through multiple scenarios in his head. They saw her at the dance, they followed them home, and they got her in her sleep. The bad men, they have been watching, they were always watching. Mike could feel the panic poor from his eyes.
"I don't know," he said trying not to cry. "I just know she's missing." Nancy put her hand on his shoulder, he turned around. She wore a jean jacket, shoes already on her feet.
"Let's go," she said moving to her window so they could sneak out.
Hopper was panicking now, he was really panicking and he didn't know what to do. He started running through the trees, flashlight in one hand, and his gun in the other. The snow was falling with peace, as if nothing chaotic was going on. He could feel the panic in his chest as he tried to bring in air, but couldn't. Jonathan followed close behind, his breath coming out in clouds as he tried to catch his breath. They had been walking for thirty minutes with no sign or sound from anyone.
"This can't be happening," Hopper said out loud. "How is this happening?" He stopped in his tracks looking all around him as if the lack of movement would help his see through the dark trees.
"Do you think she went a different way? Maybe she was just scared of what happened with Will and ran home." Jonathon rested the long gun on his shoulder, shining his flashlight through the dark woods.
"She's not stupid," Hopper said. "She wouldn't leave without telling me." He didn't know what to do; he didn't know where to go. All he could think about was the fact that he was her dad for just a few days and he already messed it up.
"I think we need to head back," Jonathan said. Hopper looked at him with anger in his eyes. "The snow is falling faster, we haven't seen or heard anything since we stepped foot in here." Hopper turned to look back, searching as hard as he could through the darkness. The snow was getting deeper, the air was slightly colder. "We haven't even seen tracks in the snow," Jonathon continued. "We need to go back and gather our thoughts. Like you said, she's not stupid." Hopper bowed his head in frustration.
"Yeah," He replied turning around. Jonathan led the way as they slowly walked their way back. Every once and a while Hopper would take a glance back at the chance that maybe she was following behind. They walked through the cold, Hopper finally realizing he was shaking as the snow covered the shoulders of his police jacket.
"I'm sure she's fine," Jonathan said. "She was able to survive a while on her own out here. Maybe something spooked her and that's why she ran."
"That's not how El is," Hopper said. "There's something going on. There's something going on with Will, and there is something going on with her." They continued to walk in silence, finding their way back to the house where every light was on through the windows. Hopper followed Jonathan up the back steps, voices playing in his ears as Jonathan opened the back door.
"What do you mean?" Mikes voice boomed from the living room. Hopper let out an angry groan as he slammed the back door shut. Why was Wheeler here? He looked down at his watch, 3:00 A.M.
"I'm sorry," Hopper let his angry voice haler form the kitchen. He walked quickly into the living room; all four boys looking up at his. "Why the hell are you guys here?" He yelled. "Do you know what time it is? Do your parents know where you are?"
"Where is she?" Mike said as if Hopper didn't say anything. "What happened?" Hopper could feel himself deflate in front of them as he looked for Joyce around the room. Out the front window he saw a lit cigarette. He looked at all four boys, not knowing what to say.
"This is all my fault," Will said. Tears fell from his eyes as he pulled the blanket over his shoulders. Dustin put his hand on Wills back for comfort, looking up to Hopper for words that he couldn't begin to think of.
"I need a second," Hopper said. He placed the flash light on the couch, putting his gun back on his hip and he went out on the front porch.
…
El forgot to wear socks and she's so mad at herself for that. The air around her was getting colder and the snow was getting deeper. All she knew was that she had to keep walking, but she didn't know what she was walking for. The pull was getting stronger, it was making her head hurt a little bit and she hated that it was snowing. She hated winter time.
She stopped to look behind her, seeing nothing but her foot steps from where she had been. Ever since she left if felt as if someone was watching her, but every time she looked around she couldn't find anyone. Everything was quiet, making her feel creeped out.
She knew she was taking the long way to Mirkwood. She had circled around the house slowly when she had jumped out the window, walking through the side trees by where Hopper had parked. She had heard boys shouting earlier, but now as she walked all she heard was the snow falling and her cold breaths as she stepped through the forest.
She stood in front of the gate; looking up at the tall chain linked fence. This was the last place she wanted to be, but at the same time she was so curious. She glanced around her for a second. There was nothing to see but the same trees that had always stood there. The tug in her stomach was lessening, the slow pounding in her head becoming quite. She had never climbed a fence before, but she had seen boys do it on the T.V. so she supposed it couldn't be that hard. It was coming to the top; pointed wires like springs stabbing at her, she knew getting over was going to hurt. She could feel her cut opening back up as she made her way over and down; jumping off the last few feet.
As she drew closer through the trees, she could smell the chard building. It had been a few weeks since the fire, yet it still felt like she had seen the flames just yesterday. The building wasn't as tall as it used to be. Some of the levels had caved in, while the lower half was still in tacked. She walked through the empty parking lot, snow gracing the ground with beauty. Her room had been on the lower levels, she knew she would be able to find it if she went in.
She followed the road to the lower front doors, a sign was placed over the doors, Caution Danger placed in big red letters over the plastered sign. She looked at a way in, and the windows of the doors were busted out. She got on her knees, crawling under the sign and into the building.
Everything was dark, but as her eyes adjusted she was able to find her way. Water on the floors was becoming slippery from the cold; turning to ice as the night went on. The walls were blackened by the smoke, and El could see familiar doorways and halls come into her view.
She thought back to the time she had the chicken pocks. She had lain in her bed until it made her body ache; Papa came in and read her stories while she got better. He had given her a toy than; a stuffed animal. That was the only time that she could remember where she actually thought her life was okay.
She looked through a door way, into a small room; too dark to see into. She realized where she was, looking around her surrounding with a heavy heart. Why did she come here? She had a feeling in her heart, he feeling in her gut. She was forced here, like she was told she had to come.
She heard something fall in the distance, like a heavy metal object falling onto the floor. It echoed throughout the entire building, making El's heart race. The noise was followed by silence, a silence that wasn't there before. She could feel it, like something was there, or someone. She thought of all the places she could go, all the rooms she could hide in, but her mind went to one place; the copper room. It was tucked away in a corner, where no one would think to look. It was lower down, under where she stood. She took a few steps down the hall, trying to be as quiet as possible, but as she heard a heavy foot fall behind her she knew she had to move faster.
She took the stairs, running on the lower level. The floor had less water, there was less fire damage, but black still covered the walls. She moved down the long hall way, coming to the small corner and peering into the small room. It was darker than she remembered it, colder than she thought it would be. She hesitantly took a step in putting her hand on the heavy door to close it slightly. She put her back against the side of the copper wall. Foot falls echoed, making it sound like they could be coming from anywhere. She took in deep breaths to calm her panicked heart.
"The kids are stressing me out," Joyce said as Hopper joined her on the patio. "Did you find anything?" Hopper shook his head, looking out into the front yard, trying to find anything that could help him understand.
"No foot prints, no anything," Joyce threw her cigarette walking over to him and looking out at what he could see. They stared in different directions of the yard, listening to the snow, and the silence.
"He's been sleep walking," Joyce said looking up at Hopper. "I didn't say anything about it because I didn't think it was that big of a deal after everything that happened." She put her hands to her face. "What am I supposed to do? I mean who do I go to about this? What kind of doctor do I look up for PTSD from possession from another dimensional being?" Hopper shook his head.
"We knew something was up," Hopper said. "I even told you it wasn't over." He let the silence play for a moment as he thought of El, lying in the forest screaming. "She was having dreams, she wasn't sleeping, Will was sleep walking. I mean, it was all in front of us but we didn't even push them to tell us what they thought was happening. All I did was tell her to stop going into the void." Hopper let out a frustrated breath. "She has my name for two days and I can't even keep her safe."
"Hey," Joyce said. "You have been a great father figure to her. I know it, and she knows it. This is something we don't have a handle on, because this is something that we weren't prepared for." Hopper shook his head at her words. The sound of a car played in their ears as head light came around the bend. A Hawkins Energy van parked behind Hopper truck.
"Oh shit," Hopper said under his breath as he flew through the front door, Joyce on his heels. "Take Will to his room," Hopper said to the boys. He grabbed his gun from his belt.
"What going on?" Mike asked, while Lucas and Dustin pulled Will out of the room.
"You stay in that room until me or Joyce tell you it's safe." Hopper said, looking to the boys eyes. "Make sure Jonathan is with you, make sure he has the gun." Mike gulped slowly, "Go!" Hopper yelled. The boy turned in his spot, running down the hall. Joyce looked out the front window; Hopper listened as her breaths came in uneven.
"Why are they here?" She asked him before their front door barged open. Men filled in with their large guns, pointing at Hopper and Joyce. They yelled for him to put his gun down, Hopper slowly put the gun on the floor before putting his hands up. At most ten men; all crowding them in the small living room. Hopper looked over to Joyce, her face fell with anger.
"Get out of my house," She yelled. The men drew in closing, making Hopper grab Joyce and threw her behind him. He put his hands in front of them, trying to signal for them to stop.
"Well well," a voice rang from the open front door. The men stood their ground, guns pointed, eye glaring. Brenner came into the circle, Hoppers stomach dropping as they made eye contact. "I knew she was here, but I tried to give you the benefit of the doubt."
"You're alive," Hopper said slowly.
"Where is she?" Hopper looked around the room, trying to think.
"Not here," Hopper said. "I guess she knew you were coming, ran for the hills about an hour ago." Brenner's face fell, the smirk on his lips disappearing. He pointed at three men from his left, showing them the door. They left, guns and all; going to look for her.
"Here's what's going to happen." Brenner started. "We are searching this house top to bottom. Everyone is getting questioned," He points at Hopper, "and you are coming with me." Hopper let a laugh build in his chest.
"I'm not going anywhere with you, you son of a bitch."
"Yes well," Brenner step a little bit closer, "This is now a government investigation. You were hiding a fugitive, this is what's happens when you disobey the law."
"She's a child," Joyce said behind Hopper. "She's just a child." The room fell silent. Brenner took in a deep breath.
"Search the house," he announced. "Check every nook and cranny. The men spread out, some down the hall, others nocking things over and going through personal items close by."
"Hey," Joyce said loudly. Hopper turned and put his hands on her shoulders to calm her down. The kids yelling down the hall rang through his ears. Mikes voice yelling over all of them.
"Don't touch me!" Hopper could hear him yell. Each kid was dragged into the living room. Nancy grabbing Mike by the caller to draw him closer to her, Jonathan doing the same to Will. Joyce ran to them, tears in her eyes as men tore apart her house. Hopper put his hands to his head, trying his hardest not to think of El; of where she could have gone. One of the guards came into the room, holding a wet bloodied shirt. He showed it to Brenner, who pulled a zip lock from his back pocket.
"We had a break in two weeks ago," Brenner began to say, looking down the line of kids and then finally at Hopper. "One of my patients was taken; kidnapped. We tracked the car to this town; they've been here for a few days." Hopper listened to his words, trying to understand what he meant. Patient?
"You mean one of you experiments was taken?" Hopper said with anger. "Well we didn't do it if that's what you're suggesting."
"Yes well," he drew a little closer to Hopper with a smile. "I know who did it. I'm just trying to figure out why they came here, and the only thing I can think of is that there is something here they need; maybe want." Hoppers mind went to the girl, the one he thought he saw before. El had been having dreams of a girl, dreams of darkness.
"Well I wonder what it is then." Hopper said. "Whatever it is you won't find it here." The room fell silent as they listened to the guards move from room to room; each expression on their faces in anger.
…
She didn't know how she was becoming so calm. One minute the sounds of footsteps was causing her heart to burst, the next she was taking deep calming breaths; her body moving down the wall as she sat on the cold floor hugging her legs. They were getting closer, whoever it was, but all El could think about was how much she wanted to be asleep in her own bed. How she would love for Hopper to wrap her up in a blanket by the fire as they watched more Christmas movies all night. She smiled at the thought; at the feeling of comfort. The feeling remained until her felt a hand on her shoulder, drawing her out of her daze, sending in a wave of realization.
A girl, her red beanie tucked over her ears, eyes wide, a jacket a size to big. El looked into her eyes, ready to send a wave of energy towards her, realizing this was the girl; the one she had been seeing. She was here, crouched in front of her, her hands on her shoulder.
"I just want to help," the girl said quietly. "We've been looking for you." El didn't know what to say, only knowing that the feeling inside of her, the tugging, was starting to make more sense. "I'm sorry," the girl continued. "I used my power to make you come here. To make you feel like you needed to be here. I just made you want to go home." Home? This wasn't her home. This was a burnt down building that gave her nightmares.
El took the girls hand from her shoulder, standing fast looking past her to see shadows coming from the hall way. The girl stood and looked into the hall way with her. El stomped past her, knowing who she was going to find on the other side of the door; Kali and her friends. kali stood straight from the wall as El came out. El looked into her eyes, not sure what to feel.
"We need to go," kali said. "I'm sure Brenner has people following us. We've stayed in one place for far too long." Brenner, the name rang in El's ears. Brenner, Papa. They should leave? She couldn't go; her friends were here, her family.
"I'm not leaving," El said. "I'm not leaving my friends." She walked past the group in the hall way.
"You don't understand Jane," kali said. "Brenner is looking for you. He has his eyes set on getting you back, and whatever he wants he gets." El didn't look back, she kept walking. She felt herself fell guilty. She felt bad for walking away, she felt sad for not being able to understanding. She thought back to Brenner. How he read to her was she was sick, and instead of feeling peace from the moment she felt anger. Her emotions bounced in her mind as she continued to walk; anger, guilt, sadness. She stopped in mid stride, Kali running into her. El turned to look back at everyone, the girl was in the back of the group, and her nose was bleeding.
"Leave me alone," El yelled at her.
"Please," the girl said whipping her nose. "Just let us explain. We came for you, we came to help." El looked at everyone; they looked tired, a little cold. She thought about her options, about what her next step should be.
"Can we talk somewhere else," El said. She looked to Kali, a small smile played on her face.
"Lead the way," Kali said. She needed to get out side. She need somewhere more open, so if she needed to run, she could.
…
They had stopped looking through Wills house ten minutes ago. They took the Byer's into one room, the boys and Nancy sat in the living room, while Hopper was taken out of the house, men pointing their guns at him while they zip tied his hands behind his back. Nancy had been holding Mikes arm the entire time, never letting him go.
"This is crazy," Lucas said. "It's a good thing we didn't stop by Max's." Lucas had wanted to grab Max on the way, Mike had protested, wanting to get to El as fast as he could. They had already wasted time on getting Dustin out of bed. "Where do you think she went?" He asked, the rest of them remained silent. "She couldn't have gone far with this snow."
"I don't think we should be talking about this right now," Mike said. Nancy nodded her head next to him while Dustin stole a glance out the window.
"Should we talk about how they are arresting the chief of police," Dustin said. "How are we getting out of this one?" Mike thought about the question. Maybe if they caused a distraction, Hopper could get away; go find El.
"Stop sceaming," Nancy said looking into his face. "We aren't getting out of this; we are just going to shut up with our heads down."
"I thought you took these people out," Lucas said. "I thought you exposed them, how are they still here?"
"I don't know," Nancy said. "If they work for the government, exposing them will only do so much. It drew them out of the town, not out of the world." The room fell back into silence as they heard Mrs. Byers yell from the other room.
"Do you think they'll take him," Dustin said. "Do you think they'll take Will?"
"They can't," Mike said. Or can they? "I mean, he's just a kid. That would be kidnapping."
"So!" Dustin said back. "Look what they did to El, you think they cared if she was a kid or not?" Mike heard footsteps come down the hall, Brenner stepped into the room. Mike could see red as he looked into the man's face. Nancy held his arm a little tighter.
"I think we can all agree that we would like this night to be over," Brenner said in a nice voice. "All I need is a little help. Wouldn't you want to say you helped the government take down some bad people?" His voice annoyed Mike. He talked to them like they were small children. Bad people? Did this man know he was talking about himself?
"You won't get anything out of us," Mike said with poison in his voice. "We would never tell you anything, no matter what." Dustin and Lucas nodded at his words. "So go ahead and try," Mike continued. "You'll never find her."
"She couldn't have gone far," Brenner said, his eyes brows raised. "Not in this snow, isn't the right Mr. Sinclair?" Lucas raised his eyebrows looking over at Mike and Dustin. Somehow he heard them talking, he had ears all over the place. "Let's talk," he said; turning to grab a chair from the kitchen and bringing it into the middle of the living room. "Who wants to go first?" Everyone looked at one another, their mouths closed in determination.
…
They hoped the chain linked fence, crossed Mirkwood, and headed back into the trees. She had only been gone for two or three hours, a little bit of that time had been taken in the burnt down lab, but the snow had fallen fast. Each step El took her foot fell a little deeper into the cold snow. Her toes were becoming numb; the fact that she didn't have a jacket was making it worse. They walked for ten minutes in the trees, she knew she was heading back to the house.
"Let's stop here," She heard Kali say. "This is far enough." EL turned in her spot, looking at everyone circle up. Axel hugged himself, his thin leather jacket not enough for the chill. Small bits of flakes were getting caught in his hair. Dottie looked around her, looking up at the tall tree with a smile. "We are here to retrieve you, to bring you away from all of this." El shook her head; she already said she wasn't leaving.
"We also want to help," the girl said. "The darkness, it looms over this city like depression and anger combined ready to combust. I can feel it all over you, all over that boy you were with." She thought about what she meant. The boy, she must be talking about Will.
"What do you mean darkness?" El asked. She assumed it was the Demogorgon, the one that stayed in her void even when she didn't want it there.
"The creature," the girl said, "The one without a face." El looked around at everyone else; her eyes finally landing on Kali.
"We can get you away from it all," kali said. "We can form a plan to take these people down, to take Papa down." Kali's eyes bore into hers; she could feel a shiver run through her. She heard a shuffle behind her, a branch popped and they all jumped.
"Hey," a voice rang. El turned quickly, three men came into view as they rushed forward, guns held at them. She backed into the group, Axel cursing under his breath. "Everyone put your hands up!" El looked at everyone else, Micks hands raised into the air; she looked over at Kali who looked at the men with a death glare.
The man in the middle began to panic, his gun flying to the guy next to him, he yelled at his partner. "Get on the ground," he yelled pointing his gun at the man's head. El looked over at Kali, her nose starting to bleed.
"We gotta go," Axel said quickly. El thought about her options. Should she stay with the group, should she head back to Hopper? These men, they looked like bad men. Everyone starting running for Mirkwood, El looked back at them, then ran in the opposite direction, past the men with the guns.
"Jane," she heard Kali yell.
"Come back," the girl's small voice yelled after her, but she didn't look back. If the bad men were here, that meant they could be with Hopper. He could be in trouble. She heard a gun fire, foot falls in the snow sounded from behind her, but she didn't look back.
"Jane," the girl's voice cried. She was closer behind than she thought. For a while all she could hear was her own breaths, along with the girls as she struggled to keep up. "There's still one after us," the girl said as El looked behind her. One of the men ran, his gun still in his arms, a cloud of breath shooting from his mouth.
El stopped in her tracks, getting herself ready to send the man flying. The girl stopped with her, looking at the man as he continued to run after him, his gun raised. She took in a deep breath, her energy running low from their fast running. Before she could even comprehend what she was doing, his gun fired as a tripped over the root of a tree. She heard the built land somewhere near her; she looked down at herself to make sure it wasn't her. The girl next to her flew back red falling onto the snow.
She felt cold run through her heart, as she drew in a breath of ice. The man stumbled back onto his feet, El looked at him with fire in her eyes; cracking his neck before he had time to gather himself. He fell to the ground with a loud thud.
Men yelled into the forest a small distance away. It came in the direction of the Byers house, El felt herself slowly deflate. She looked down at the girl; her right hand covered her left shoulder. Blood was spilling onto the white forest floor.
"We need to get out of here," She said to El with gridded teeth. She slowly sat up, yelling out in pain. El helped her to her feet, trying to make sure she stayed quiet in the process. Where could she go? They were at the house, the cabin was too far away, and she couldn't run back to Kali, she would be seen before she could even reach them.
"We just need to keep walking," El said. "I need to make sure their okay," she felt her stomach sink. She felt sick, weak, like blood was being drained from her. "You need to stop that," El said. "Whatever you're doing, it's making me weaker." They began to walk slowly; El had the girl's right arm over her shoulder, helping the girl walk.
"I can't help it," the girl said. "I don't really have great control over what I can make people feel. It comes and goes. They would just sedate me in the hospital." El listened to her words. "It's done terrible things," The girl continued, her voice coming out in huff as she tried to breath. "I've made people do terrible things." They took small steps in silence; she could hear men shout in the distance, moving away from them. Maybe she could just check, look at the house from a distance to see if it was safe.
"Let's go this way," El said, heading to her left. "If it's safe I know someone who can help you. My friends," she said, adjusting the girls arm on her shoulder. "Their smart, they'll know what to do."
"My names Tory," the girl said. "I'm sure after this we'll be great friends." El rolled her eyes.
…
Gun shots, Mike could hear the faint gunshots as he sat in the living room, his mouth shut as Brenner looked at every single one of them. Brenner stood from his chair, listing for more. He went for the front door taking the front steps in one big jump, heading for the men that stood outside waiting for him. Mike stood from his spot from the couch; he looked out the front door. All the men grabbed their guns, Brenner yelling at them where to go and what to do.
"You stay with this man," Brenner said, pulling a gun from one of the vans. He pointed at Hopper who leaned with his back against his car. "Don't take your eyes off of him." The guard nodded his head, pointing his gun at Hopper as Brenner took off after the rest of his people.
Mike waiting until he couldn't see Brenner anymore before he took a step outside; looking to the guard, and then at Hopper. Hopper side glanced at him, while Mike continued down the front steps.
"Get yourself back inside kid," the guard said, not taking his eyes off of Hopper. Mike looked at the ground, looking for a rock. He found the biggest one he could find, fitting into his palm perfectly. "I said go back inside," The guard yelled looking at Mike. That's all it took, one split second of distraction for Hopper to fly forward and head-butt the man to the ground. Mike ran to the man, pulling the gun from his hands while the man looked around in a pained confusion. Hopper walked over to the him, kicking his head just right to knock him out.
Mike looked at the gun in his hands, slowly placing it on the ground and whipping his sweaty palms on his jeans.
"Let's get me out of this," Hopper said, his hands still tied behind his back. They both rushed inside, Nancy grabbing a kitchen knife to cut the zip tie from his wrists. "Two gun shots," Hopper said. "There was one, and then a minute later there was one closer to here." Mike felt himself gulp down a breath. They both stared at one another in the light of the living room, Joyce joining them in shock. "They wouldn't shoot at El, not when they have gone so long looking for her."
"What do we do?" Mike asked him. Hopper stared at him for a moment.
"We should leave," Joyce said. Hopper looked over to her. "I have to get Will out of here. He talked about Will, about running tests. I have to get him out of here." Hopper nodded his head.
"Take your car, and take Jonathan; head for the cabin. It's off the grid, and as far as I know, they don't know about it." Joyce nodded her head, heading back into the hall way. Hopper looked at Nancy. "You think you can handle a big gun," He said to her. She looked to Mike.
"I can do it," She said.
"What about us," Dustin said from behind Hopper. "We want to help." Hopper shook his head.
"You can help by staying here," Mike rolled his eyes.
"That's not happening," Mike said in protest. "She needs us out there, looking and helping."
"Kids," Hopper said. "I don't have time to debate with you."
"This isn't up for debate!" Mike yelled back. "We are coming with you." Joyce came back into the room, Will and Jonathan following close behind.
"You guys are heading back With Will," he pulled his car keys from his pocket. "Take my truck," he handed his keys to Jonathan. He looked back at them his figure pointed at them with a stern look. "You are going with Will, and you guys are the look out until we come back with El." Mike felt his stomach drop as Hopper looked at him. "I am coming back with El," he said with sadness in his eyes. Mike nodded his head, looking to Nancy and Joyce and the boys left through the front door.
"It's going to be okay," Nancy said to him. "I'm going to be okay," Mike felt fear run through him. He nodded his head before walking out of the front door.
…
"We're almost there," El said as she dragged Tory through the snow. "It's going to be okay." Tory hadn't talked in the past few minutes. She groaned and let out a harsh breath as El dragged her at her side. She felt herself fading, Tory's energy was rubbing off on her. She could feel sickness growing inside of her, as if the blood dripping for her cut was pouring out of her body.
The trees began to thin as the small Byers house came into view. She let out a sigh of relief, stopping for just a second to take in a breath of air. Hawkins Energy vans sat in the drive way, a man on the gravel passed out. Hoppers truck was missing and she began to feel acid in her stomach reach her throat. He had left, he had left without her. She walked closer to the house, looking down at the man on the ground, blood running front the temple of his head.
"El!" She felt Tory jump at the noise. Hoppers voice sounded of anger and relief. She looked up at him, Nancy standing behind him with a big black gun. He ran over to her, she felt her legs give in as her and Tory hit the snow. Tory let out a cry of pain as El tried her best not to pass out.
"Get Joyce's key," Hopper yelled behind him. She could feel his hands on her face, but was having a hard time keeping her vision straight. Tory lay on the ground next to her, blood falling from her shoulder. "What happened," he asked her. She couldn't get words to fall out of her mouth. His hands left her face as he looked down and Tory. "Jesus," he breathed.
"Let's get out of here," Nancy said, the car keys jingling.
"You take El," Hopper said, "Ill grab the girl."
…
"Watch your step," Joyce said to the boys as she stepped over a patch of snow. "Trip wire," Mike felt his eye brows raise as he looked at Lucas and Dustin. In any other situation he would have thought that was cool, but at this moment he just took his step a little wider. The cabin looked cold, and as Joyce opened the front door he realized it was because it was.
The space was small, a small table for two in the kitchen, barley any space for couch in the living room, and a single bed sitting by the fire place. This is where she was living; cramped in this confined space with Hopper for a year. He looked around at everything, a small drawing on the fridge, and empty eggo box in the trash. He walked up to the closed door, debating if he wanted to look inside.
"This is crazy," Dustin said. Joyce fiddled with the fire place; while Will took a seat on the couch. Jonathan took one of the kitchen chairs, placing it by the front door to sit with his gun.
Mike looked back at the door, his hand on the door knob. He finally found the courage to slowly open it, adjusting his eyes to the darkness of the room. A dim light flowed in as the fire Joyce was building grew. The wall painted orange from the small flames. A bed sat in the corner, blood covering the sheets. A book shelf, with actual books, sat against the opposite wall. He walked deeper into the room, noticing a teddy bear sitting on the bed. He picked it up; looking at it was a sad expression. 353 days, she had sat in this small cabin. 353 days and she had been so close.
"I didn't mean to do it," Will voice said from behind him. He jumped slightly at the extrusion. "I don't even know how I got here. It would be like an hour walk. I don't even know how I got inside." Mike looked back down at the bear in his hands, and then the bed. Blood sat on her sheets. He looked over to Will, guilt playing in his eyes. "I don't know why I did it." Mike thought of about it. I pictured Will standing over El with a knife, he couldn't see it happening.
"It wasn't you," Mike said. He put the bear back onto the bed. "The mind flayer," Mike continued, "it must have some kind of hold on your mind, even though it's gone." Will looked down at the floor. "We'll figure it out," or would they? Mike thought about it, about all the impossible things they had done in the past year. "We always figure it out." He grabbed a hold of Wills shoulders; looking down at his friend with hope in his eyes. "We'll find El, we'll get rid of these bad men, and we'll figure out how to take care of you." Will gave him a small smile. Mike led him back into the living room, Dustin and Lucas sat on the couch, slowly falling asleep. Joyce sat with Jonathan, the second chair pulled next to him. Now, they wait.
…
"You need to keep your eyes open," Hopper said from the back seat. El could feel a little bit of her energy come back as she sat in the passenger seat. Nancy sped down the road, heading to the cabin. "You can't fall asleep, we're almost there." Tory gave a small moan; El looked down at her hands, blood covering them.
"Her names Tory," El said. She turned to look at Hopper. His tall frame looked bigger than usual in the small back seat of Joyce's car.
"What happened?" Hopper asked her as he applied a little more pressure to Tory's shoulder.
"Long story," El said back. She felt herself slightly deflate into the seat. Nancy looked over at her.
"We're almost there," Nancy said. She veered off the road into the trees. Slowing down on the snow covered path. "Can you walk on your own," Nancy asked her. El nodded her head, seeing Hoppers truck appear in front of them. Snow continued to fall from the sky as they got out of the car. "Do you think they'll see the tire tracks?" Nancy asked Hopper as he stepped out of the back seat. She helped him pull Tory from the back seat and into his arms.
"Hopefully the snow will cover it right up," He huffed as he took a step forward. El let him lead the way. She looked at all the foot prints in the snow as they past, almost covered up by a new pool of white. Nancy ran past them, up the steps of the cabin, a dim light played on the inside. She pushed open the door as Hopper climbed the stairs, bringing Tory inside.
"Oh my god!" she heard Joyce yell. EL took to the steps slowly, feeling the weight of the night fall on top of her. Nancy cleared the table, Hopper placed Tory on top of it.
"El?" Mike came around the couch, running to her and pulling her into a hug. The warmth of his body made her want to crumble. "I thought I lost you again," he said softly. He pulled her back to look at her. "Never leave like that again," he said firmly. She nodded her head in agreement.
"I promise," she said to him.
"Was she shot?" Lucas said, coming around the couch. Hopper turned on the facet, waiting for the warm water to start pouring.
"We need to stitch her up," Hopper said. He looked over to El. "Get towels, and the first aid kit. Find the threading needle, and some dental floss." El nodded her head. She turned from Mike, closing the door, and securing every lock before getting to work.