TWO MONTHS AFTER THE BATTLE OF STARCOURT

At first all Billy could see was colour. Everything was just blocks of colour that he couldn't comprehend. He didn't understand what was happening around him. His whole head felt like it was under water. His ears didn't work. He couldn't talk. Couldn't move. He didn't know what to think. He just tried to do anything. Found that he couldn't. His brain so sluggish he couldn't even worry about it.

It took hours for him to awaken again. His mind hadn't even realised it had went dark in the first place. This time he could see more than just colour. The blurs had definition, not clear definition, but enough that he could see his bed. The rest of the room around him was blurred. He didn't recognise his bed and the wires and tubes connecting his hands and arms to machinery next to him and that had him panicking.

He liked to think that he was a very unflappable man. That he had stared down his father, monsters and even the rejection of his own mother and never showed weakness. He just kept going. Kept fighting...

Wait... Monsters?!

He felt panic grab a hold of his heart and tighten, his airways constricting as he began to really panic. He couldn't understand the memories he had. The last things he remembered were just black holes leading to no where until he vaguely remembered that... Thing...

What was that? What the hell happened? Where the hell am I?

Am I dead?

Where is it? Is it dead?

Shit. Max.

Where was Max?

Where was anyone?

His vision was so blurred that he couldn't see the small body occupying the chair on his bed side. He worried that he was truly dead this time, that there was no coming back and he was alone. So he did what anyone who thought they were alone would do...

He tried to make a break for it.

Shakily he lifted up his left hand, hating the tugging sensation of the tubes as they moved with his arm. He managed to throw his hand down onto his left, grasping weakly as he tried to pull out the tubes. He couldn't manage it. He had no grip. He had no way of dealing with it himself...

A small hand stopped him in his tracks, pulling his right hand away and glasping his left tightly. He tried to focus on the hand, he really did, but his mind wouldn't stop spinning. His ears were too muffled, too loud, his head feeling like it was under water.

Another set of hands removed the first and then he was back into total darkness again. The next time he had a chance at working out what was going on he found everything was even sharper than before. The entire room this time was clear. He could make out more than just his hands but it didn't help to make anything clearer in his mind. All of the questions from before came rushing back, his heart speeding up as he began to overthink once again.

Yet this time he felt more in control then he had before. He felt like he could actually grab ahold of his emotions and force them to be what he wanted them to be. He still felt like he was underwater but he was definitely more awake. This time he could actually look at the person who was slumped over in the chair next to his bed. It took him a few seconds but he worked out that it was Max.

She was here.

She was fine.

Max is fine...

Billy never thought that simple sentence would bring such relief with it. He stared at her, using the rise and fall her body breathing as a grounding force. After a few minutes he managed to get his body and mind working a little bit slower than they were before. Max was sitting with her hands on the bed, next to Billy's, as she dozed lightly. He didn't trust himself to speak with his mouth so parched so he tried to inch his fingers across the short space to nudge hers.

It was way more effort than it should have been. When his fingers did eventually graze hers it didn't even cause her to stir. Billy felt frustration brew in his system and he tried again. This time he tried to put as much force behind as he could and finally he managed to pull her finger. This did get her to stir a little bit so he tried again, pulling until she finally woke up with a grumble. Max wasn't really aware of what was going on and she was only a few seconds away from falling back asleep.

Billy risked his voice in the hopes that it would grab her attention, "Max." It came out as a croaked whisper but it was enough. Even if it had him cringing at how weak he sounded he was pleased with the look of recognition on her face when she realised who was speaking to her.

She shot up, no longer comfortable slouching as she stared at her brother. The very man she thought was gone. She was certain she had lost him that day. It felt like a dream seeing him looking back at her.

He didn't quite know what to say to her. Didn't know how to act around her. So much had changed and he didn't know what to do. It felt like an invisible wall had been put up infront of them that neither wanted to acknowledge.

So they didn't.

Max acted as if there were no monsters to discuss. No life changing events that needed to be brought up. She simply said, "Shall I get someone?"

Which he agreed too. And they came quickly. They ushered Max out of the room and within an hour he was in a much more comfortable setup than he was when he woke up. A lot of the medical equipment had been taken off of him and he had been given a drink. He was only allowed a small bit of food which they gave him to eat slowly and then it was back to being on his own. Only he wasn't on his own for very long as Max came back into the room, studying him as she did.

He trusted his voice much more now and didn't feel as awkward when he spoke. "Why are you here?"

If Max had expected her brother to say anything when he woke up it certainly wasn't that. She had hoped he would be more open or at least happy to see her but it seemed that he was still angry or at least snappy. She didn't really know how to respond so she shrugged, "I want to be."

"I don't need you to watch over me." He coughed, his body not used to speaking so much.

"I just wanted to make sure you were okay..." Max tried again, her body deflating.

"Look Max I'm never going to be okay. Whatever that was... I don't understand it. I don't know what's happened to me." His heart rate monitor began to speed up as he spoke.

"Calm down Billy-"

"Calm down? Are you joking? Did you not see that thing? It stabbed me Max. I died. I died."

"Billy would you just stop and listen?" She cut off his ramblings, the beeping irritating her further as he panicked. "You did die yeah but they brought you back. You're safe. You're in hospital."

"How? How did they do it?"

"I don't know." She smiled thinly. "They didn't tell me all the details just something about knowing the right medicine to give you. Said it was experimental but it seems to have worked. Then they patched up your cuts. You've been here ever since."

"How long?"

"How long you've been here for?" He nodded. "Two months and fifteen days. It's the 19th of September."

He let his head sink back into the lumpy pillow at that information. How had he slept that long? What had he missed? What had happened in that time? What did he need to know? Did anything major happen?

"There's somethings I should tell you Billy..." Max spoke again as she sensed he was beginning to spiral again. "But I'll wait till your better."

"No." He shifted. "Tell me now."

"Billy-"

He interrupted her with a cough, "Cut the shit. Tell me."

She thought it through. Blinked. Took a deep breathe. "You were possessed by the Mind Flayer. Can you rememeber it?" He nodded in response, not trusting his voice again. "It made you do... things... Things that weren't your fault. But it's gone now and you aren't in any trouble. You were just a victim of the mall fire and the people you... Worked with when possessed were also in the fire. They weren't as lucky."

"Fire?"

"Thats the story the media is telling." She shrugged. "You'll get someone speaking to you soon about it. We all did. Don't worry about it though they can't do anything to you with you being eighteen."

"Shit."

"Yeah. Shit." She agreed.

He seemed to process it all for minutes. His eyes shut as he did. Max was even certain he had fallen back asleep until he spoke again. "Where is everyone?"

"Who?" She frowned.

"Susan. Neil." Billy didn't want to ask about them. He didn't want to know about what was waiting for him when he got out of hospital. He could picture it now and it wasn't pretty. If his dad was wound up about getting the Camaro scratched up one time back in california imagine what he would be like once he saw the medical bills from this...? Billy literally didn't want to think about it.

"My mom is around somewhere. I haven't seen her for a few weeks. She came in once when you got out of surgery but apart from that..." She tailed off, looking towards the door longingly. She wished that Susan had been around more, desperately needing the company the last few weeks and didn't have enough energy to worry about Billy and her at the same time.

Billy picked up on her sadness and knew he wouldn't like the answer she was about to give in regards to his father. But he had to know. He had to brace himself for what was to come... "My dad?"

"Gone."

Billy thought for a second that his ears must be filled with cotton wool. He could have sworn he heard her say he was gone but the man would never leave him behind. He would never move on that easily. Billy knew he was always going to have the man following him around for the rest of his life so Max's statement made no sense. "What?"

"He left the day it happened. They brought you in... Told everyone that you had died. Chances were slim of you even recovering if they could bring you back." Max paled as she remembered that day. "He didn't even let them finish. He went. Didn't take his stuff from the house. We've been waiting for him to show but he hasn't yet. Mom seems to think that's it."

Billy didn't want to speak. He couldn't. He felt a relief like never before. He screwed his eyes shut as tears welled in them. Later, when he would look back on this moment, he would tell himself it was just because he was tired. He would never admit that it was from a heavy burden being thrown off of his shoulders.

"You should rest Billy. We will talk more when you wake up."

He followed her advice. Only after that day he didn't speak much anymore. He kept his thoughts and feelings his own as he laid down in the increasingly restrictive bed. He had begun therapy to walk again and each session made him want to punch a wall. But he was stubborn and kept at it. He wanted to be out of the hospital as soon as he could.

It took him a month. A month of nonstop work. Of practicing when he was alone. Blood sweat and tears literally poured out of him everyday as he pushed himself to his limit. Max came by every single day but he never spoke. He never could wokr out how he was healing so quickly. He had too many memories he had to sort through. Too many distractions. He let her talk about whatever but never responded. Only a few words here and there to keep the conversation going. He felt like he was starting from scratch, like his whole life had been uprooted and he had to somehow piece it all back together.

At some point during his stay during the night one of the government personnel Max promised him would visit persuaded him to take hush money in lieu of his silence about what really happened that day. He would have told the man to stick it, to keep his money and shove it. But Billy knew that Max wasn't doing so great on her own and he had no idea how much aid Susan was providing her with. The kid spent every minute she could with him and she constantly looked more worn and tired. He wanted to have something to be able to help them both, to make everything just that little bit better. They may have a long way to go in mending their relationship but Billy hadn't been lying that day...

They were family.

So he swallowed his pride as they handed him over a large cheque. They gave him back his car keys with the promise that it would work even better than he remembered it too. They had already parked it at his house ready for him and they would escort him out of the hospital and back to his house. He told them to wait, that he wanted to wait until Max came the next day and they would leave together.

He had some things he wanted to say to her before they got back to the house. He didn't want this chapter to close without saying anything.

So he sat at the bottom of the bed in sweatpants and a t-shirt absentmindedly picking at his fingernail waiting for her to return. She always visited like clockwork so he knew it would be any second now...

The door clicked open softly as Max stepped into the room. She had noticed how quickly Billy was getting back on his feet but she really didn't expect him to be waiting for her. "You look better today."

"Max I need to know something." He cut right to it. "I need to know exactly what the hell that... thing was."

"Thing?"

"The Mind Flayer." He clarified. "Because I have memories of this thing... getting me to attack people. To kill them. To force them to join it and I don't understand it at all. I need you to help me. Because I'm scared that once we leave this room I won't be able too anymore."

His admission of fear was like pouring cold water onto her entire body. "Why? What's going on?"

"We are leaving today. Some guys in suits told me that I can have this," He waved the money envelope around. "If I never speak of it again. Speak of what happened. They told me bits and pieces but it's not what I want to hear. I want to hear the truth. And I know you know what that is. So tell me. I want to leave this behind and I don't want to dwell on it once I leave."

"It was from the upside down. It's what me and my friends call this... other dimension that opens up in Hawkins from time to time. Monsters bleed in from their world and affect ours. My friend, you know Jane? She was part of this experiment. She has abilities. The Mind Flayer wanted her to use them and it possessed you to get others. It needed strength and you could provide that."

"Slow down. Other dimension?"

"It's like this but upside down. Hence the name." She said matter of factly.

"What did I do to Heather?"

"Billy you didn't do anything."

"Cut the crap Maxine." He knew her full name would wind her up but he didn't care. "I've got memories. Memories of hurting her. Hurting others. I want to make sense of them. Tell me what I did."

"It doesn't change anything."

"I need to know." His face was hard as he stared the girl down.

The stare always worked on her. She couldn't not be intimidated by her older brother who could muster up so much anger in only a few seconds. "The Mind Flayer made you kill her."

Her voice was so quiet anyone else may have struggled to hear but not Billy. He heard every word. He nodded very slowly. He stood wordlessly and made his way to the door, holding it open for his sister to pass through before he slammed the door behind them. He didn't give the room a second look. He wanted to forget the room ever existed.

He didn't look over at any of the nurses or staff as he continued to walk through the sterile corridors with Max by his side. Max kept up with his hurried pace well until they reached the main doors.

Billy had been so excited for this moment. The moment where he can finally get his life back under control. It didn't matter how much pain he was in... He just wanted to be out and away from the hospital.

He took a deep breath, looking over at his sister as she watched him wearily. "Ready shitbird?"

She blinked, pushing the doors open and stepping outside of the hospital. Billy watched her go, an invisible force seemingly keeping him in place until he realised that he could do it. The Mind Flayer was gone. It wasn't waiting for him. He wasn't going to be possessed again. He had Max and nothing was going to happen. His dad was long gone and he had a huge lump sum of money with his name on it. His car was fixed and he had the house to himself...

So why was he struggling to move?

It was as if he was scared to start this new chapter in his life. He had forever been seen as a tough person. Someone who couldn't be upset easily. He had worked really hard to keep that persona up regardless of what was going on. But he had brief snapshots of memories. Memories that showed him hurting others and one particularly confusing memory that was strangely clearer than the rest. He could remember searing heat. Pain. Anger. He could actually feel himself coming through for a second...

It was the only time throughout the entire ordeal that he was him again.

Billy knew he was going to have to spend some time privately unpacking everything he could remember, but now wasn't the time nor the place. He really wanted to leave. He just wanted to get on with it...

He mentally counted himself down in his head, only making a move when he reached one. Max was watching him curiously as he felt the wind on his face and hair for the first time in too long. Billy had to admit that he never thought he would feel this again and despite the pain his stomach and muscles were in he let a smile grace his face as he swept his arms out dramatically. He slowly spun around in a circle, not caring who was watching as he punched the air.

"Eat it Mind Flayer!"

Billy knew he probably shouldn't be shouting about the monster he had sworn never to mention but truthfully he couldn't bring himself to care. If anyone asked he would just say he was still high off of pain medication and the laugh that Max let loose after his shout was enough for him. He began to whoop loudly, hitting his chest with a little too much force as he shouted.

"You hear that Max? That's the sound of us winning!"

He felt delirious. Any fears he had leaving the hospital had literally evaporated in the wind. He immediately felt lighter. He felt untouchable.

He continued to celebrate obnoxiously even as a suited agent swiftly walked over to them and ushered them into the car. He continued to laugh as both himself and Max got escorted back to their home. He didn't even pay much attention to the car ride, not wanting his fears about being in a car again to ruin his moment.

Even pulling up to the familiar house on Cherry Lane didn't fill him with the dread like it used too. He felt free. He finally felt like it was his space and no one could change that for him.

The men in suits vaguely threatened them once again as they were about to step out but Billy paid them no mind. He breezed out of the car as best as he could, panting and wheezing as he walked on his own unaided. He refused to have Max's help no matter how it hurt and how badly he wanted to pass out.

Max had the door key so he let her pass him without much fanfare as she started to unlock the door for them. He turned and watched as the car drove away, clearly satisfied that the pair had gotten home safely and their job was done. He was glad that they didn't stick around. They didn't need them there anyways.

Once Max got the door open she let it hit the wall, not caring to stop it as she moved back to her brothers side. This time he was a lot less resistant, his breathing laboured as he stood hunched.

Her arms swooped around his back. She took some of his weight as they hobbled up the steps, her brother clearly trying to take some of his weight back but failing. He was too proud, too stubborn to admit that he needed help and she wasn't going to make a big deal out of it. She didn't want him to loose any shred of dignity or pride he might have left.

When they got into the house it became clear to Billy that Max had been living on her own for the last however many weeks. Whilst she had never explicitly said she had, the heaps of takeaway containers littering the table and sofa suggested she had been. Max couldn't feasibly get shopping on her own and honestly Billy couldn't blame her for it...

If the roles were reversed he wouldn't be cooking either.

The house also smelt of stale takeaway. He didn't think about the potential cleaning up they would have to eventually do as Max was no longer on her own but rather on what he needed to do for the both of them.

He pushed himself onto the sofa, avoiding a stray food carton, as he tried to get his breath back. He would never admit how bad the pain was. He was struggling to breathe and it felt like his entire system was on fire. His vision swam and his mouth was dry but he didn't care. He didn't think about it too much.

He knew exactly what he needed to do in that moment.

Max had made herself busy in the kitchen (by the sounds of it she was trying her best to get some semblance of order back) so she didn't notice as he puffed his way back up into standing upright. He shuffled over to the master bedroom and made a very conscious effort to ignore the rising tide of dread that filled his system as he stood at the door.

This was a room he and Max were forbidden from entering. Even if the person who forbade them was no longer in the picture it didn't mean Billy could easily forget the person behind it and their actions. This door represented everything bad in his life and he wanted to make a point. He wanted to make a change. This was it. This was his chance to make a point.

So he kicked the door open. Not a slight shove. A full blown kick. He didn't even know where the strength came from and he was sure he could feel his beginning to scar and scab wounds pulling and bleeding but he didn't care. He had enough. The door really did hit the wall with force and there was no way Max couldn't have heard it. The door literally came off one of it's hinges with the force.

Billy felt the power wash over him as he stood on the precipice. The room was clearly untouched and for that he was grateful. He ignored the pain. Ignored the white noise in his ears as he let his anger take control of his limbs.

Stepping into the room felt wrong no matter how rebellious he was trying to be. He couldn't fight it but he could ignore it.

The first thing he did was grab the lamp on his fathers side table and ripped it out of it's socket, the cable swinging as he gripped the metal like a baseball bat. He didn't think about it twice as he lobbed it as far as he could, grinning at the satisfying crash and rainfall of glass as it hit the wall.

He then grabbed the handle of the draw connected to the side table, forcing it out of the cabinet and down onto the floor. Various knick knacks and treasures tumbled onto the floor which Billy stepped over to get to the wardrobe.

He tore through the small space without a care in the world, grabbing all of the hideous dress shirts his father insisted on wearing and slinging them over his shoulder like a rag. He collected as many as he could carry. Each cheap well worn cloth reminded him of something he would rather forget so he was really happy with how they hung haphazardly on his shoulder. His dad would have never let him touch them let alone toss them around like this...

Why is why he enjoyed every second of it.

He made sure to tread over the fallen items as he left the room and over to the kitchen. He ripped open the cabinet next to the fridge, snatching his dads favourite whiskey from it's permanent spot in the house and then proceeded out the front door. He didn't care about shutting the door as he stomped around the property with as much bravado as he could manage. He wouldn't let the pain show. He had to let his cocky exterior rule him now.

At the back of the house, sitting abandoned under the bathroom window was a long disused barbecue that his dad had insisted they purchased one year when he wanted a grilled steak once. Billy had hated watching his dad grill as he was forced to do nothing else. The man had desperately wanted attention and was willing to threaten anyone who wouldn't give him it. Max had sat herself down on the damp grass, fingers playing with the dirt as Susan clung to Neil's side. Billy had stood with his back on the wall, arms crossed over his chest, scowling at the pair as he craved a cigarette.

Now he didn't feel that anger. He felt powerful as he dragged the barbecue away from the wall as best as he could with his tired muscles. Once he was satisfied it couldn't set the house on fire he tossed the clothes into the barbecue, drenching them in the alcohol before walking back into the house.

His arm unconsciously came to rest around his stomach as he walked, each step straining his entire body. Max was stood in the living room, looking warily into what was once their parents' bedrooms.

Billy didn't kick his own door open but rather pushing it with force. He was looking for his lighter. Or at least his backup lighter.

He didn't dare think about where his main lighter had gone after the... incident...

His eyes drifted around the space that didn't feel unlived in. Despite the fact that he hadn't been in the room for months it was clear that Max had been crashing in his room. Normally he would have hated it. He would have sent her packing with a yell but he wasn't bothered anymore.

He had more pressing matters to attend to.

He swiped the lighter off of his side table and moved back through to the garden. Once there he didn't give it a second thought as he clicked the lighter and tossed it onto the clothing.

Immediately the fabric began to burn as the fire slowly seeped through the flammable clothes. Billy watched the flames grow higher, his eyes never leaving the fire as it spread. He knew he looked manic, a large grin on his face as it burned, but he didn't care. When the shirt on the top eventually became consumed by the fire Billy laughed, actually laughed, as the thick smoke filled his lungs.

He had been waiting for this moment his whole life. Everything had been building to this moment. He was happy. Unbelievably happy. It was as if everything became clear. Despite waking up from his coma months ago it was this very moment which made him think he was awake. The smell was more addicting than nicotine. It was intoxicating and he loved it.

He couldn't stop laughing. He couldn't stop the happy tears pricking at his eyes as each shirt became more and more burned. Small pieces of ash became churned up by the light breeze, swirling around in the air like feathers.

Max had heard the commotion and understood this was something Billy needed to do. In a way she needed it too. She might not have been dealing with the older man for more than a few years but it was enough.

She wanted to prove to herself that she was no longer under Neil's thumb. That he had no hold over the pair as they moved forward into this new chapter. She had hated when he and Susan decided that she needed some skirts and dresses. The clothing never even saw the light of day and Max did feel slightly guilty that the reason she was blowing the cobwebs off of the material was to set it alight. Someone else might have enjoyed the design...

But she didn't. And that's what's important.

She held it tightly in her grip as she stepped through the house to join her hysterical brother in the garden. She tossed the fabric onto the flames from a distance, not wanting to get too close.

The pair stood and watched the fabric burn until the flames had died and nothing but hot ash remained. Neither understood how monumental this moment was for them. Neither knew how to recover from everything they had seen.

But standing together and bonded by mutual trauma Billy knew anything was possible.