"Nancy!" Steve called out.

"Where are you?" asked Jonathan.

"Jonathan! Steve!" Nancy yelled.

The boys couldn't hear Nancy.

"Nancy!" they continued calling out.

"Jonathan, Steve, I'm right here!" Nancy screamed.

That's when the boys heard Nancy.

"Nancy, we're here!" Steve shouted. "Just follow my voice!"

Steve and Jonathan found the slimy tree.

Nancy hid from the monster. It eventually left.

"Nancy, follow my voice!" said Steve.

A hand came out of the hole. Steve knew it was Nancy. He grabbed her hand and pulled Nancy out.

Right as Nancy was pulled out, the hole in the tree closed itself.

Steve and Jonathan hugged Nancy, relieved she was okay.

Stranger Things

Chapter 6

The Monster

At the Byers', Joyce and Hopper were sitting in the dining room, talking.

"I told you everything I saw," said Hopper.

"Tell me again," said Joyce.

"Upstairs or downstairs?" asked Hopper.

"Upstairs," Joyce replied.

"There was a laboratory," Hopper explained. "It was where they must've done experiments or something, and then there was… these kids' room."

"How do you know it was a kid's room?" asked Joyce.

"Because of the size of the bed, the stuffed animals, the drawing," Hopper explained.

"You never said there was a drawing," said Joyce.

"There was a drawing of an adult and two children," Hopper explained. "It said 'Eleven' and 'Twelve' on it."

"Was it good?" asked Joyce.

"It was a kid's drawing," Hopper retorted. "It was stick figures."

Joyce grabbed a sheet of paper with one of Will's drawings.

"Was it Will?" she asked.

Hopper walked towards the Living Room.

"Earl said he saw some kid with a shaved head with Benny," he explained. "I pressed him, he said it might be Will, but maybe…"

"Maybe it wasn't?" asked Joyce.

Hopper showed a newspaper and continued his explanation. "This woman, Terry Ives, claims to have lost her daughter. She sued Brenner, she sued the government. Now, the claims came to nothing, but what if… I mean what if this whole time I've been looking for Will but have been chasing a different kid?"

At the Wheelers', Nancy was in the shower. She was traumatized by what she encountered.

In Nancy's room, Jonathan was setting up a sleeping bag to sleep on for the night. Steve was gonna sleep with Nancy. Nancy came into the room, getting the boys' attention.

"Better?" asked Steve.

Nancy nodded.

"Is this okay?" asked Jonathan. "I found it in the closet."

"Yeah, no, I…" Nancy stammered. "I don't wanna be alone. Do you?"

Jonathan shook his head.

Jonathan tucked himself in on the sleeping bag. Nancy and Steve climbed onto the bed. Nancy had trouble sleeping because she was still traumatized by her encounter with the monster. Steve saw this and tried to comfort her.

"Don't worry, Nance," he assured. "It can't get us in here."

"We don't know that," Nancy retorted.

Steve wrapped an arm around Nancy. Nancy felt a bit better knowing she wasn't alone.

Jonathan saw Steve and Nancy cuddle each other. He laid awake with his thoughts. He's had this crush on Nancy for quite some time. This was the main reason why he hated Steve. He was jealous. Despite all that, Jonathan had to face the facts. His chances of being with Nancy were slim to none. She and Steve were meant for each other.

The next morning, Jonathan sat up to see Nancy sitting up on the bed. Steve was still sound asleep.

"Couldn't sleep?" Jonathan asked Nancy.

"Every time I close my eyes, I keep seeing that thing," Nancy replied. "I think that thing lives here. It feeds here. That means if Will and Barb…"

"My mom talked to Will," Jonathan replied. "If he's alive, then there's a chance Barb is, too."

"That means she's trapped in that place," Nancy replied. "We need to find it again. We have to find it again."

"You wanna go back out there?" asked Jonathan.

"Maybe we don't have too," Nancy replied. "When I saw it, it was feeding on the deer. It's a predator." She grabbed a book about predators. She turned to a page about lions. "It hunts at night like a lion. It doesn't go in packs though, it's alone, like a bear. Remember when Barb cut herself at Steve's party? That deer was bleeding too." She turned to a page about sharks and read., "Sharks can detect blood in one part per million. One drop of blood in a million. They can smell it from a quarter mile away."

"So you're saying it can detect blood?" asked Jonathan.

"It's just a theory," Nancy replied.

"We could test it," Jonathan suggested.

Nancy nodded.

That's when they heard the doorknob jiggle. Nancy locked the door, so Karen couldn't enter.

"Honey, are you up?" she asked.

"Yeah, I'm getting dressed," Nancy lied.

"I made blueberry pancakes," said Karen.

"I'll be down in a second," Nancy replied.

They heard Karen walking away. The two looked at each other and realized they were holding hands. They quickly let go.

"Your mom doesn't knock," Jonathan remarked, trying to lighten the mood.

Meanwhile, Dustin biked over to Mike's house and met up with him in the basement.

"I can't believe they didn't come back," Mike said, pacing the room.

"They gotta be close," Dustin assured.

"Elle said it wasn't safe," Mike said. "She just messed up the compasses to protect us. They didn't betray us. I shouldn't have yelled at them. I never should've done that."

"Mike, this isn't your fault," Dustin assured.

"Yeah, it's Lucas's," Mike replied.

"It wasn't his fault either," Dustin replied.

"So you're saying he wasn't out of line?" asked Mike.

"Totally," Dustin replied. "But so were you. And so was Eleven."

"Give me a break," said Mike.

"No, give ME a break!" Dustin yelled. "All three of you were being a bunch of assholes, and I was the only reasonable one! Bottom line, you pushed first. You know the rule, you draw first blood…"

"No, I'm not shaking his hand!" Mike interrupted.

"This isn't a debate," Dustin retorted. "It's a rule of law. Obey or be banished from the party."

"No," Mike replied.

"Good," said Dustin.

Dustin went to his bag and grabbed a jacket.

"Where are we going?" asked Mike.

"What do you think?" asked Dustin. "We're going to get Lucas, and then we'll find Eleven and Twelve."

Flashback

Brenner woke Elle up one day.

"Today is a special day," he told her while sitting on her bed. "Do you know why? Because today we make history. We make contact."

Pause Flashback

Elle woke up in the middle of the woods. She woke up Elvis and they walked off. Elle kneeled towards a lake and put on her blond wig. She took it off soon after. A lot of thoughts flooded her mind. She screamed, causing the water to move.

Karen went to check on Nancy. The door was still locked. Having had enough, she used her hairpin to pick the lock. She opened the door to see the room empty.

Meanwhile, Mike and Dustin made it to Lucas's house. They rang the doorbell. Lucas answered. He got frustrated seeing his friends there.

"What do you want?" he asked.

Mike stood silent for a bit. When Dustin nudged his arm, he spoke up. "I drew first blood, so…" He brought out his hand to shake.

A bit later, the three were in the Living Room. Lucas paced and pondered if he should shake or not. Eventually, he made his choice.

"I'll shake," he said. "One one condition. Forget the weirdos and go straight to the gate."

"Then the deal's off," said Mike.

"Fine!" Lucas screamed.

"No, not fine," Dustin got in between the boys. "Seriously, you two? Do you even remember what happened on the Bloodstone Pass? We couldn't agree on what path to take, so we split up the party, the trolls took us out one by one, and it all went to shit. We were all disabled. So we stick together no matter what."

"I agree," said Lucas. "But the whole party is in this room."

"But Elle and Elvis are part of us as well," Mike retorted.

"No they're not," Lucas shot back. "Not even close! Never will be. They're liars and traitors."

"He didn't mean to hurt you," Mike defended. "They were just trying to protect us."

"I could have been killed!" Lucas retorted.

"Which is exactly why we need them," said Mike. "They're both weapons. Do you seriously wanna fight the demogorgon with a wrist rocket? That's like R2-D2 going up against Darth Vader. We're no use to Will if we're dead!"

"If you wanna waste your time on a couple of traitors, go ahead," said Lucas. "But I'm not spending my time with either of them anymore. No way! I'm going to the gate! I will find Will!"

Lucas walked off.

Meanwhile, Elle and Elvis left the woods. They found a mini-market. They walked inside. Seeing people staring at Elle reminded her of that infamous night.

Continue Flashback

Elle was brought into a room. There were many people staring at her.

"It's okay, don't be frightened," Brenner assured. "These are all friends. They're just here to watch. Don't focus on them." He touched her forehead. "Stay in here, like before. Now remember, that thing can't hurt you. Not from here. There's nothing to be afraid of. It's reaching out to you cause it wants you. It's calling you, so don't turn away this time. Find it, understand?"

Elle nodded. She sat on a bench and closed her eyes.

When she opened them, she found herself in the void again.

Pause Flashback

Elle snapped out of her trance when she heard someone call her.

"Is your mom here?" asked a stranger. "Your dad?"

"Mouth breather," Elle muttered before walking away.

Elle and Elvis found boxes of eggos in a freezer. They grabbed as many boxes as they could and made a run for it.

"Hey, kids, you need to pay for those!" an employee called out.

The kids ignored the man. They made a run for the exit. Elle used her powers to force a woman's cart in front of the man. They then went to the door. Elle used her powers to force the door shut before the man could make it out. Elvis wrapped his arms around Elle, being careful not to drop his boxes. He and Elle flew as far away from the store as possible.

Meanwhile, Hopper just got some information about Terry Ives. He and Joyce drove to Terry's location.

Once they reached the house, they parked the car and got out. They approached the front door. Hopper knocked. A woman answered.

"Can I help you?" she asked.

"Does Terry Ives live here?" asked Hopper.

"Who's asking?" asked the woman.

"The Hawkins chief of police," Hopper replied.

He showed his badge to prove himself.

"And you wanna talk to my sister?" asked the woman.

"If your sister's Terry Ives, then yes," Hopper replied.

"You can come in," said the woman. "But if you want Terry to tell you anything, you're about five years too late."

Hopper and Joyce entered the house. They're led to the room where Terry was. Terry Ives was a blond woman wearing a blue dress and a brown overcoat. She sat on a chair staring at a TV screen. She looked completely zoned out, like she's braindead.

"Hi, Terry," said Joyce. "I'm Joyce Byers. This is Hopper. We drove over from Hawkins. My son has been missing for almost a week now. We were wondering if we could talk to you about your kids, Jane and John."

"What's your relationship with Doctor Brenner?" asked Hopper. "Do you guys keep in touch?"

Joyce showed a picture of Will. Terry didn't say anything.

"What's wrong with her?" asked Hopper.

"I'm telling you, you're wasting your time," Terry's sister replied.

Meanwhile, Lucas packed up some stuff and put on a bandanna. He grabbed his bike and biked away from his house. He saw a guy in a "Hawkins Power" truck and simply waved at him. He then biked away from the house in search of the gate.

Somewhere else in the neighborhood, Mike and Dustin were searching for Elle and Elvis.

"He should've shaken my hand," Mike whined.

"He's just jealous," Dustin joked.

"What do you mean?" asked Mike.

"Your total obliviousness just blows my mind," said Dustin. "He's your best friend, then these kids show up and start living in your basement, and you start paying more attention to them. Especially towards that girl."

Mike knew what Dustin was implying. "That's not the case."

"Yes it is," Dustin retorted. "You know it. He knows it. But no one ever says anything until you both start yelling at each other. Now everything's weird."

"He's not my best friend," said Mike, before realizing what he said. "Sorry, he is, but so are you and Will."

"You can't have more than one best friend," Dustin retorted.

"Bullshit," Mike retorted back. "You're my best friend too."

The two eventually stopped when they saw the police talking to an employee at a mini-market.

"You don't think…" Dustin was about to ask.

"Definitely," Mike interrupted. He knew that Elle and Elvis were there.

Back at Terry's house, her sister, Becky, talked to Joyce and Hopper.

"She was part of a study in college," she explained.

"MKUltra?" asked Hopper.

"That's the one," Becky replied. "It started in the 50s. By the time Terry got involved, it was supposed to be ramping down, but the drugs just got crazier. Messed her up good."

"Was the CIA involved?" asked Hopper.

"You and Terry would've gotten along just fine," said Becky. "'The Man' with a big capital M. They'd pay a couple hundred bucks to give her drugs, then they'd strip her naked and put her in these chambers. It's not like they were forcing her to do this. She didn't know she was pregnant at the time."

"Jane and John," Joyce realized. "Do you have any picture of her?"

"I don't think you understand," Becky replied. "Terry miscarried in the third semester."

Becky led Hopper and Joyce to a room. It looked like a child's bedroom.

"She keeps all of this up," she explained. "Been doing it for twelve years. Terry pretends that Jane and John are real, that they'll come home some day. Says they're special, born with 'abilities'."

"Abilities?" asked Joyce.

"Have you read Stephen King?" asked Becky. She chuckled. "You two look scared, actually. It's all make-believe."

"What kind of abilities?" asked Joyce.

"As for Jane, telepathy, telekinesis, you know, shit you can do with your mind," Becky explained. "As for John, flight. She says he can defy gravity. That's why the big bad Man stole them away. Her babies are weapons, off fighting the commies. You know, the doctors say it's a coping mechanism to deal with the guilt."

"Do you think there is any chance she could be telling the truth?" asked Joyce. "About having had the kids?"

"There's no birth certificate, nothing from the hospital," Becky replied. "Doctors and nurses all confirm that she miscarried."

"Yeah, but that could've been covered up," Hopper suggested.

"Like I said, you and Terry would have gotten along," said Becky.

Meanwhile, Lucas made it out to the woods. He followed the compass to a wired fence. He was blocked. He needed to find a way around.

Meanwhile, Nancy, Steve, and Jonathan were buying weapons to fight the monster. They saw some traps for sale. They decided to buy as many traps as they could.

Once they finished buying their stuff, they left the store. As they were putting their stuff in the trunk, Nancy spoke.

"You know, last week I was shopping for a new top I thought Steve might like," she said. "It took me and Barb all weekend. It felt like a life or death situation."

"But it was worth it in the end," Steve assured, kissing his girlfriend on the cheek. "It was an amazing gift."

Jonathan frowned a bit. Steve noticed this.

That's when a car passed by. Someone opened the window.

"Hey Nancy, Steve, I can't wait to see your new movie," he said.

"What's he talking about?" asked Jonathan.

Nancy got worried. She made a run for it. Steve and Jonathan ran after her.

The three reached the movie theater. On the sign was a spray painted note.

"Nancy the Slut - starring Wheeler and Harrington"

Nancy ran to a back alley and saw Steve's ex-friends spray painting a wall. She approached Tommy, the one with the spray paint bottle, and slapped the bottle out of his hand.

"What's wrong with you?!" she yelled.

Steve and Jonathan arrived.

"What the hell, Tommy!" Steve yelled. "You're such a…" He paused.

"Such a what?" Tommy interrupted. "Finish that sentence!"

Steve didn't finish his sentence. Instead, he started a new one. "Go to hell, Tommy."

Tommy didn't take kindly to that. "You know what, Harrington? I'm actually kinda impressed. I always knew you were a queer, but I guess you're just a little screw-up like your father. Same with you, Byers. Yeah, yeah, yeah, those houses are full of screw-ups."

Steve and Jonathan didn't take kindly to what they were being told. Nancy knew they were tempted to get violent.

"Leave it, you two," she tried to calm them down.

"I'm not even surprised what happened to Will and Barb," Tommy finished.

"Tommy, shut the hell up!" Nancy yelled.

But Tommy didn't shut up. He just continued. "Your families are a disgrace to the entire nation!"

That was the last straw for Steve and Jonathan. They turned around and punched Tommy hard on the face. Tommy did not take kindly to that. He tried to punch Jonathan, but Steve got in the way. Steve blocked the punch before kicking Tommy in the crotch. Tommy pushed Steve to the floor. Tommy continuously punched Steve in the face, even giving him a black eye. Jonathan got up. He was a bit dizzy but overall, he was okay. He grabbed a nearby metal pole and hit Tommy hard on the back of the head with it. Tommy fell to the floor, blood oozing out of the back of his head.

That's when some cops arrived. Tommy's friends ran off, but Tommy himself couldn't move. He was too hurt and was slowly losing consciousness. He was losing too much blood.

"What have I done?" Jonathan asked himself.

That's when the cops came out of the car. They noticed the injured boy and Jonathan holding the pole. They instantly pieced together that Jonathan assaulted the kid.

"You're under arrest for aggravated assault," said one of the cops, Powell. "You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to an attorney. If you can't afford a lawyer, one will be provided for you."

The cops cuffed Jonathan and forced him into their car.

Back at Terry's house, Hopper and Joyce walked out.

"Thank you for your time, Becky," Hopper thanked.

"I'm sorry I couldn't be of more help," Becky apologized.

Hopper and Joyce got in the car. Hopper saw how upset Joyce was.

"Hey, we'll find him," he assured.

"Like Terry found her children?" Joyce retorted. "Twelve years she's been looking for them…"

"And then they showed up at Benny's five nights ago, which means we have a chance," Hopper interrupted. "You know what I would give for a chance? You know what I would give?"

That's when one of the cops called him on his walkie.

"Chief you there?" he asked.

"Yes, I'm here," Hopper answered.

"A kid was injured," the cop explained. "By Jonathan Byers. You haven't seen Joyce, have you?"

At the police station, the receptionist was talking to Nancy and Steve.

"Do you think we'll be out of here soon?" asked Nancy.

"You two, yes," the receptionist replied. "Him, no. He assaulted a child."

"How long are you gonna keep him?" asked Steve.

"You and your boyfriend have big plans, don't you?" asked the receptionist.

"I'm her boyfriend," Steve retorted, a bit defensively. "Not him."

"I think you better tell him that," said the receptionist. "Only love makes you that crazy, and that damn stupid."

The receptionist handed Steve some ice to help with his black eye.

Steve approached Jonathan and gave him the ice bag.

"I found some ice," said Steve.

Steve put the ice bag on Jonathan's head.

"Everything okay?" asked Jonathan.

"Yeah, everything's fine," Steve replied.

"Listen, I'm sorry for those things I said before," said Jonathan. "About you being 'just another jock obsessed with his image'. I now realize you're much more than that. Thanks for saving me back there."

"No problem," Steve replied.

Little did either of them know they were holding hands.

Meanwhile, Mike and Dustin were in the woods searching for Elle and Elvis. They shouted out their names. That's when they're approached by Troy and his crony. Troy had a switchblade in hand.

"Hey there Frogface, Toothless," he greeted menacingly.

"Shit!" Mike and Dustin shouted in unison.

The two boys made a run for it, the bullies following in hot pursuit.

Once Lucas made it around the fence, he realized that the compass was pointing towards the other side of the fence. He climbed a tree to get a good look at the other side. He saw a lab, and some cars labeled, "Hawkins Power" pulling up.

"Oh no," he muttered.

Meanwhile, Mike and Dustin kept running from Troy. They were cornered by Troy's friend. Mike grabbed a rock while Dustin grabbed a stick. They held their weapons out in defense.

"Don't come any closer!" Mike warned.

Troy's friend didn't listen. He ran towards Mike. Mike threw the rock and it hit the boy hard on the forehead, knocking him out.

Troy screamed and ran towards Dustin. Dustin tried to slash Troy's cheek with his stick, but he missed. Troy grabbed Dustin and held his knife against Dustin's throat.

"Let him go!" Mike demanded.

"Stay back or I slit his throat," Troy threatened. "How'd you do it? How's you make me piss myself?"

"It wasn't Mike," said Dustin. "Our friend has powers and she squeezed out your bladder."

"Liar!" Troy shouted before turning to Mike. "You know what? I'm feeling nice. I'll make you a deal. I'll let him go, but first, it's your turn to wet yourself."

"Fine, deal," Mike replied.

Mike was about to piss himself, when Troy stopped him.

"No, not like that," said Troy. "I mean I want you to jump into the lake." He gestured to the cliff they were next to, which led to a lake. "Or toothless here will have lived an early life."

"Alright, hold on," said Mike.

Mike walked over to the edge, ignoring Dustin's calls to not make the jump. Troy quickly realized that he's making a bad move.

"Mike, wait!" he called out.

But it was too late. Mike made the jump. Troy and Dustin ran over to the cliff. They saw something unexpected.

Mike was floating. He was carried up back onto the cliffside.

Mike turned to his left and saw Elle and Elvis approaching them. Elle jolted her head in a certain direction. This forced the switchblade off of Troy's hand.

Elvis approached Troy and grabbed him by the collar. Elvis lifted himself off the ground, carrying Troy with him. Elvis hung Troy by the edge of the cliff.

"Don't ever do that again," said Elvis menacingly.

"I won't, I swear," Troy replied.

Elvis threw Troy back onto the ground. Troy got up. He woke his friend up, and they made a run for it.

"That's right!" Dustin yelled. "You better run you sons of bitches! They're our friends and they're crazy! You come back and they'll kill you!"

Continue Flashback

Elle walked around the void. She eventually heard a noise. She saw the monster. It appeared to be eating something. Elle touched the monster. It turned around and roared. It knew Elle was there.

Elle woke up and screamed. Before anyone knew it, a hole tore open in the wall.

End of Flashback

Mike hugged Elle.

"Mike, I'm sorry," said Elle. "I opened the gate. I'm the monster."

"No, you aren't," Mike assured. "You and Elvis saved me."

Elvis and Dustin joined in on the group hug.

Later, the quartet returned to Mike's house. Unbeknownst to all of them, they were being watched by a man in a "Hawkins Power" truck.

"I have eyes on them," he said through a walkie talkie. "They're heading home."

Mike, Dustin, Elle, and Elvis walked into Mike's house.

A.N.

This was one heck of a ride for everyone.

Steve and Jonathan are growing close now. Can't wait to see what becomes of them.

Troy did show a bit of regret for almost having Mike kill himself. I'll admit, Elvis hanging him over the edge was a bit cruel, but I still feel it was necessary. To be clear, this doesn't mean Troy will make amends with anyone he's bullied. There's no way anyone should forgive him.

So, Elvis's real name is John. I just think it really fits. Elle and Elvis. Jane and John. It works really well in my opinion.

That's all I have to say.