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yurtletheturtlehenderson · 5 years

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S.T. REWRITE - S2:E3; Chapter Three, The Pollywog - [Pt. 4 - FINAL PART]

A Will Byers x Reader Series

Dustin adopts a strange new pet, and Eleven grows increasingly impatient. A well-meaning Bob urges Will to stand up to his fears while Y/n’s powers grow stronger, bringing to light many questions about her past.

A/n: HOLY SLEEP DEPRIVATION, BATMAN. I wrote most of this at like 3 am. Ok, now THIS is a long chapter. I would advise you to take some breaks but I don't know how many of you will actually listen so... yeah, happy reading and count this your daily reminder to drink some water! :D

||3rd Person POV||

El marched through the woods. She had been walking for several hours. Finally, she reached the edge of the woods, and her attention was drawn to the sounds of giggling.

She followed the noise and found just up the hill was a mother pushing her child on the swing.

"Pump your feet," The mother encouraged, smiling.

El couldn't help but feel saddened by this. More memories of Hopper came flooding back.

[FLASHBACK]

"I would feel so sad if I was a disappointment to her,"

Night had fallen and El had been tucked into bed. She listened intently as Hopper read Anne of Greene Gables to her, much like he did for his daughter before her passing.

"because she didn't live very long after that, you see. She died of a fever when I was just three months old. I do wish she'd lived long enough for me to remember calling her mother. I think it would be so sweet to say 'mother.'"

"Do I have a mother?" El asked timidly.

"Yeah, of course you have a mother. You couldn't really be born without one."

"Where is she?"

"She..." Hopper's face fell. "She's not around anymore."

"Gone?"

There was a pain in his eyes as he told her this.

"Yeah."

El's eyes began to water, and Hopper felt a weight on his heart.

"I'm sorry about that, kid." He said sincerely.

There was a moment of silence, and Hopper continued as El quietly wiped the tears from her eyes.

[END OF FLASHBACK]

"Is your mom here?"

El was still staring at the new empty swing set, lost in the memory.

"Sweetie?"

El tore her gaze away to the mom who now stood before her, holding her child's hand. A concerned look was etched on her face.

"School." El croaked. "Where is school?"

The mother only looked more concerned and confused. Reluctantly, she replied.

"The school? It's, uh... it's about a mile that way. At least." She gestured.

She offered El a kind smile.

"Where are your parents?"

El shifted her attention to the swing and the sound of chains rattling grabbed the attention of the younger girl.

"Look, Mommy, look."

The woman looked behind her to see she swing her daughter had previously occupied was now wrapping itself around the structure of the swing set.

Astonished, she looked back to El, only nobody was there. She had vanished.

+++

All Joyce could think about the rest of the day was those mean nasty boys.

The second she walked in the door, she went straight to the video camera. She recalled it being in Will's room. She threw open the door and scanned the messy room.

She recognized the device laying on Will's desk and she made a beeline for it.

After much turbulence and a confusing call with Bob, she got the tape hooked up to the TV and pressed play.

She saw a clip of Bob teaching the boys how to operate the camera. She frowned, as she looked at the buttons on the device. She found the fast forward button and pressed it, scanning the screen carefully. After a considerable amount of time, the camera shifted and was angled up at the sky.

She immediately pressed rewind and then play, right before the incident must have happened. It was the view of Y/n Henderson running after someone, Mike she gathered from her distant voice in the video. When sure enough, just as Bob had said, out of nowhere three teenagers in masks and makeup appeared.

"Watch it, Zombie Boy!" A boy dressed as a werewolf said, before disappearing.

"Trick or treat, freak!"

"Boo!"

As Joyce watched the tape, carefully trying to identify the boys, her face contorted in disgust. She could feel her blood boil at the sight.

By now the camera had fallen to the ground and was angled at the sky. For a moment nothing happened, that was until she heard a familiar voice.

"Will?" It was Y/n, and she sounded worried.

Joyce heard shuffling and then soon enough, Y/n came into view, and her voice rose as she yelled at the fleeting bullies. Her arms waving in her fit of anger.

"Hey, piss off! You leave him alone, you hear me? You leave him the fuck alone!"

Joyce never bothered to fight the small smirk that made its way onto her face. Those pricks had it coming to them. She reminded herself to thank Y/n later.

Her small moment of relief was immediately replaced with heartache when she heard Will begin to call out, frightened.

"Y/n! Mike!" She saw him wander carefully and cautiously into view.

Suddenly, she noticed a pause and then Will running away, followed by a very concerned Y/n.

The screen flickered ever so quickly and she paused the tape when she noticed the faint outline of something.

The screen flickered once more before it stopped. Her eyes caught on the mysterious invisible shape the camera had picked up. Something clicked in her head and she stared at the thin wispy outline in horror.

She jumped to her feet and ran to the kitchen. She ripped open one of the supply drawers and grabbed a sheet of parchment paper, and one of Will's crayons.

Joyce ran back to the television set and put it against the screen, and quickly traced it. When she finished, she knew she recognized the shape and ran it back to the table, comparing it to Will's drawing of the giant monster.

It was an exact match. And her worst fears had been realized.

||Reader's POV||

"This is the reason I was late for class," Dustin assured.

School had just ended, and Dustin, Max, Lucas and I were all gathered around Mr. Clarke's desk. Will and Mike hadn't joined us yet, they were still at their lockers and Will insisted he had to talk to Mike.

Dustin placed the trap on Mr. Clarke's desk, as he began explaining.

Mr. Clarke ran a hand over the closed trap.

"Pretty neat. These doors function?"

"Well, yeah, obviously. But it's not about the trap. It's what's inside. Now, this very well may change your perception of the world."

Mr. Clarke shrugged lightly.

"Consider my interest piqued."

"All right, first, let's just clarify that, this is my discovery, not yours."

Lucas began flailing his arms.

"Dustin, Jesus! Just show him!"

"I'm just trying to clarify--"

"Dustin!" Max insists.

"Okay, fine"

He reaches to open the trap, but before anything can happen the door swings open. Mike comes sprinting in, Will behind him.

"Stop!" Mike yells frantically.

"What is it? What's going on?" I ask.

"Nothing." Mike quickly squeezes in between me and Lucas and grabs the trap, holding it tightly to his chest. "I'm sorry, Mr. Clarke. It was just a stupid prank."

"What the hell are you doing?" Dustin asks angrily.

"I told him to stop. We need to go. Right now."

Max and I share an equally concerned look.

"Mike!" Dustin pleads.

"Right now!" Mike screams, sprinting back into the hall.

+++

Mike had dragged the original party back into the AV room, forcing us to leave Max outside.

"I'm really, really sorry Max. It should only take a minute." I quickly stepped back and explained to her.

The boys shut her out with no effort of explaining so once again, I was trying to undo some of the damage. Hoping she'd still want to be my friend.

"Wait, seriously Y/n?"

The guys were already shutting her out, and now I had to. I hated this.

"I know, I'm so sorry, but I wouldn't be doing this if wasn't absolutely necessary."

"Y/n!" Mike called from inside the AV room, and I huffed.

"I'm really sorry." I started to close the door, but then I met her eye and just before shutting it I lowered my voice. "Please trust me."

Before I had closed the door, she seemed to relax in the slightest. As if considering my words.

I walked over to stand next to Lucas and looked to each of them.

"You better make this quick..." Their expressions all shifted to that of concern at what I said next. "I have something I need to tell you too."

Now that we were all gathered around the trap, Mike caught us up.

Will had said he saw Dart last year. We were all trying to process this, and I guess some time had passed since Max began pounding on the door.

"Hello? Hello?"

I barely made out a sigh from the other side of the door.

"Guys, come on. Can I come in yet?"

I was about to reply when Mike answered her.

"No!"

I glared at Mike's behavior.

He rolled his eyes in response.

"I don't understand," Lucas said finally, ignoring our silent argument.

"What do you not understand?" Mike asked.

"Will saw something that looked like Dart last year?"

"Kind of, but there was no tail," Will answered timidly.

"But then he heard it yesterday. The exact same sound." Mike explained quickly.

"What, the screeching?" I ask.

"Doesn't matter, why didn't you tell us before?" Dustin asked.

"I wasn't sure," Will said quietly.

"So it's a coincidence," Dustin confirmed.

Mike countered. "Or not. What if when Will was stuck in the Upside Down, he somehow acquired True Sight?"

"Remind me what True Sight is again?" I asked.

"It gives you the power to see into the ethereal plane."

Lucas sighed and gestured for Dustin to continue. "Elaborate."

It clicked in my head.

"The Upside Down," I say, in shock.

"Exactly. Maybe these episodes that Will keeps having aren't really flashbacks at all. Maybe they're real. Maybe Will can somehow see into the Upside Down."

"So that would mean..." Lucas trailed off.

"Dart is from the Upside Down." Mike clarifies.

Dustin sighed heavily.

"We have to take him to Hopper," Lucas stated, and Mike quickly agrees.

Dustin, of course, jumped at the chance to defend Dart. "No way. If we take him to Hopper, Dart's as good as dead."

"Maybe he should be," Mike snapped.

I roll my eyes.

"How can you say that?" Dustin asks shocked.

I raise my hands, signaling them to stop.

"Guys, come on." I sigh and turn to Dustin. "Look, Dustin. It's sweet that you care about Dart. But you have to realize what's at stake here. This is exactly what I was talking about before, we don't know anything about him or what he is capable of."

"But that doesn't automatically mean that he's bad. Besides, we have a bond."

Mike scoffs. "A bond? Just because he likes nougat?"

"No, because he trusts me!"

"He trusts you?" Lucas asks slowly, sounding concerned.

"Yes, I promised I would take care of him," Dustin exclaimed.

Suddenly, the trap began to rattle violently and we all stepped back.

There was more pounding on the door.

"Guys, what's going on? Come on."

We could all hear Dart from inside the trap as it shook.

"Dustin, what the hell's wrong with him?" I asked, my pulse quickening.

"I-I don't know!" He stuttered.

The ghost trap shook so much it vibrated and then it was tipped on its side.

Mike grabbed the speaker from one of the radios and held it high, ready to strike.

Dustin threw his hand up, pointing at Mike.

"Don't hurt him." He warned.

"Only if he attacks," Mike argued, eyes never leaving the trap.

"Just open it already." Lucas urged.

Dustin reached for the attachment that opens the device, and after a brief moment of hesitation, he opens it.

We all stare in disbelief as Dart comes rolling out. He was twice his previous size, and several shades darker.

"Holy shit," Lucas stated, sounding disgusted.

Dart dragged himself along the desk. When he stopped, thin webs of skin where we had seen movement from earlier, were stretched out until they sprouted two new legs. And what looked like watered down jam splattered around the desk.

"Oh, my God," I mumble horrified, and sick to my stomach.

Everything went by all too fast after that.

"Oh, shit!" Lucas exclaimed, jumping back.

He looked in the direction of Lucas and me and screeched for the third time.

Mike launched at Dart, but Dustin interfered.

Dart, in an attempt to escape Mike, suddenly launched off the desk and right towards me not caring that I was in his way.

I scream.

The next thing I knew, my arms were outstretched in front of me, shielding myself and it almost felt as if a wave of body heat had rolled off me. Dart let out a painful screech and hit the edge of the desk before tumbling to the ground.

Everyone began yelling at once.

"Shit, Y/n! Did you just-?" Lucas screamed.

"I don't know!" I cried out, scrambling back. "That's kinda what I wanted to tell you guys about but I didn't know I could do that!" The words tumble out of my mouth quickly, in a weak attempt to explain as I scramble after Dart, the others after him too.

"Grab him! Grab him!"

"What do you thinkI’m trying to do?!" I yell in frustration as I scramble after him.

He had made a quick detour under the desk and around the legs of the desk, completely out of my reach.

"Wait, where did he go?"

I had almost had him, but then I lost my footing and stumbled to the ground. I looked up just in time to see Dart make his way towards the door.

It swung open to reveal a confused Max, who must have picked the lock.

"Wait, no, no, no-!" I attempted to get up, only to get trampled by the boys in the process.

The boys spilled out into the hallway, who had also managed to knock down Max.

I finally scrambled to my feet and stumbled into the hallway, my heart pounding against my ribcage.

"Where'd he go?" I asked, looking around frantically.

Max got to her feet, ignoring the question. "What was that?"

Mike whipped around to face her, his face going red with anger.

"Dart!"

"What?"

"You let him escape!"

In turn, Dustin got in Mike's face, jabbing a finger in his chest. "Why did you attack him?"

Mike pushed him aside and ran off. "Come on."

I followed after Mike, and Dustin called after us.

"Don't hurt him. Don't you hurt him!"

||3rd Person POV||

El waited patiently, in the safety behind the trees until the last bus left before she stepped out into the open.

Spotting the bike rack, she quickly sprinted across the parking lot, coming to a stop when she recognized the wide outstretched handlebars of one particular bike.

It was unmistakable. The single light that rested in between the handlebars, the seat that was so worn down, it had been taped back together. And of course, the extra seat attached to the back.

It was his bike.

And it meant he was still here.

+++

Mike made a left turn, walking swiftly down the hallway.

He waited until he passed the few stragglers that were still in the hallway, to clear the area.

"East is clear. No sign of Dart."

He trudged up the stairs, muttering angrily to himself.

"Where'd you go, you little bastard?"

He made his way to the gym, passing several hallways in the process.

El, who sensed movement, reached the end of the hallway, where he had just been. Contemplating which way to go, opted to take a right. Unknowingly growing further and further from Mike with each and every step she took.

+++

In a separate wing of the school, Dustin was scanning his area. He had donned his headset during his search. Dustin turned a corner near one of the exits and had run into Mr. Clarke, who was leaving for the day.

He plastered on his most innocent looking smile and sent his teacher off with a salute, to which he returned and Dustin got back to work.

"West is clear too. Will?"

+++

Will exited the last classroom he had checked. "South is clear. Lucas? Anything?"

Lucas ran down one of several hallways in the north wing, coming across a classroom door, just slightly ajar.

Assuming Dart was behind the door, he ran towards it, kicking it open.

Only to find his math teacher packing up for the day.

"Excuse me! Mr. Sinclair!"

"S-sorry!" He spluttered. "I was looking for study hall. Bye."

He chuckled nervously and backed out into the hallway, his face dropping and he spoke quickly and sternly into the walkie.

"Nothin' here, man. Y/n?"

She was constantly on the move, all over the school. Sweeping the halls in case Dart had narrowly escaped before any of the others had seen.

Her voice crackled over all of their comms.

"I've got a lot of ground to cover, but so far so clear," she quipped. "I'll keep you guys posted though,"

+++

Mike entered the gym, and his attention was immediately brought to the creaking noise across the room.

He noted it was the door to the locker rooms swinging back and forth.

He frowned suspiciously. Quickly and quietly he walked across the gym.

He walked into the tight hallway, most of the lights had turned off and he was starting to feel less confident.

He saw a mop to his left and grabbed it just in case. Slowly but surely, he crept through the locker spaces, and he heard something clatter. His heart pounding, he hid behind the locker, readying himself to attack.

He jumped out from hiding, yelling as he did so. Only for his voice to catch in his throat when he saw Max, board and all, looking at him like he'd grown a second head.

"What the hell are you doing?"

"What are you doing? Why are you in here?" He snapped back.

"I'm looking for Dart." She defends.

"This is the boys' room."

"Yeah, so?"

"So you should go home." He threw the mop to the ground and stormed out.

Max started after him, fuming.

She trailed him all the way out into the gym.

All her anger had finally bubbled over and she raised her voice, allowing herself to scream at the boy.

"Why do you hate me so much?"

"I don't hate you. How can I hate you? I even know you." He threw the words over his shoulder, not bothering to look at her.

"Yeah, but you don't want me in your party." She argued.

"Correct." He spits.

"Why not?"

Mike whirled around to face her, releasing all his anger.

"Because you're annoying." Max recoiled at his words, but he only continued to yell. "Also, we don't need another party member. I'm our paladin, Will's our cleric, Dustin's our bard, Lucas is our ranger, Y/n's our druid, and El is our mage."

Max's face scrunched up in confusion. "El? Who's El?"

Mike shook his head. "Someone. No one."

She raised her eyebrows. "Someone or no one?"

"She was in our party a long time ago. She moved away, okay?" He sighed, hoping she would drop the subject as quickly as possible.

Max, who had other plans, set her skateboard down and began to glide around the gym.

"She was a mage?" Genuinely interested. "Well, what could she do? Like, magic tricks or something?"

She jumped off the board and planted herself in front of Mike.

"Well, I could be your zoomer," she offered.

Mike rolled his eyes. "That's not even a real thing."

"It could be," Max insisted, not refusing to give up.

She got back on her skateboard and began to skate in circles around Mike. He just stood there in annoyance, watching her. She had her arms outstretched and smirk on her face.

"See? Zoomer,"

"Mind-blowing," He deadpanned.

"Come on, you know you're impressed,"

+++

El walked quickly passed the gym. The memories flooding back to her all at once every time she turned a familiar corner. She stopped suddenly when she heard a distant voice.

"I don't see any tricks. You're just going around in a circle,"

She knew that voice. Her pulse quickened, and her palms began to sweat.

Granted his voice was slightly deeper but it was his. Mike.

But then she heard a female voice.

"If it's so easy, you try it,"

El didn't know that voice and it scared her.

Nevertheless, she poked her head around the corner, and she saw the gym doors. The voices continued.

"No,"

"Why not?"

"I don't know how,"

"So, then you admit it's kind of impressive,"

"I think if I spent, like, all day practicing, I could do that,"

"I would give you a million bucks if you could,"

"Okay, you're making me dizzy,"

El crept towards the gym doors, terrified of what she might find.

This wasn't how it was supposed to go.

"Please just stop,"

"I'll stop when I join your party,"

El made it to the gym doors and she saw him. He was taller, much taller but he was still himself. But there was a girl. A pretty girl with long red hair with him. Smiling at him.

"It's a simple question. Am I in or out?"

And there it was. He smiled at her. The way he used to smile at El and the girl was just as happy. El felt her heart grow heavy, she hated this feeling. And after all the excitement for seeing him, everything she had risked to see him.

And yet, for some reason she could not explain, it was hard to stay mad at him. She felt herself getting angry at this girl. Like it was her fault. Like this girl was intentionally replacing her.

Her jaw clenched, and her hands balled into fists as she focused her attention on the front two wheels of the girl's board, and ripped it out from under her.

The girl was thrown off her board, landing on the gym floor with a grunt.

El's face fell as she saw Mike jump to the girl's aid. "Jesus! Are you all right?"

Nothing about what El did made her feel good.

The girl began to sit up, grasping her side. "Yeah, yeah. I think so,"

Mike grabbed her hand and helped her up, and El began to water as she watched the exchange.

"What happened?" Mike asked, his hand lingered on the girl's wrist, hurting El even more.

"I don't know. It was like a magnet or something pulling on my board," The girl explained, quickly shaking her head. "I know that sounds crazy,"

Max walked after her rollaway board, and Mike's eyes widened in familiarity.

He looked over his shoulder, from where he had entered the gym and made a run for it.

It had to be her. It had to be. Right?

And yet, his heart fell when he was met with an empty hallway, no one else in sight.

+++

Will could have sworn he heard noises coming from the bathroom, and he hadn't heard from anybody over the comes for a while.

And so, gathering all his courage, he pushed open the door and crept inside.

He hadn't realized he had been hoping to find nothing until he heard the all too familiar chittering from the furthest stall down and his stomach dropped.

He tiptoed towards the noise, not wanting to scare him off. He reached the stall closest to the windows, slowly reached out a hand and cautiously opened the stall door. Sure enough, there sat Dart.

He was curled up in the corner, where the two walls met. He looked up at will and chittered.

Will raised his walkie slowly, and spoke calmly into it, taking every precaution not to scare him away.

"Guys... I found him,"

"Where?" It was Dustin.

"In the bathroom by Mr. Salerno's," Will whispered.

"Copy that," Mike relayed.

"I copy. I'm on way," Y/n responded.

Dart began to slowly recoil, and Will tried his best to seem as unthreatening as possible.

"It's okay," he said softly. "I'm not gonna hurt you,"

Dart looked at Will before letting out an earsplitting scream.

Startled, Will dropped his walkie and ran out of the bathroom in fright.

He stopped once he left the bathroom to catch his breath, not wanting to let the others down.

There was a loud thud that came from down the hall to his left, and he froze. The lights began to flicker. This wasn't happening again, he didn't want to believe it. He looked at the lights and when his gaze returned to the hallway to his left, the hallways were covered in vines, and everything was slimy. He was back.

An exit. There was an exit just his right. Out of nowhere, a black fog oozed out of the hallway in front of it, heading straight for him. He turned on his heel and ran.

He reached the painted paw print on the wall. He made another right. He quickly looked over his shoulder as he ran and it was still gaining on him. It wasn't relenting.

There was another exit. But he was beginning to believe he wouldn't make it. The farther he ran the quicker it seemed to get. He was panting heavily now but this fog had formed its own tendrils that were reaching out for him.

He finally made it to the doors and he threw them open as hard he could. He was now on the field but he was still in the Upside Down. And that that thing was still after him.

+++

BAM

Dustin threw open every stall door of the bathroom.

He sighed in relief when he opened up the last stall, and even Dart made a noise in contention, having recognized Dustin.

Dustin smiled at his small companion. "Hey, buddy,"

Dustin knelt down and held out his hands, Dart quickly scurried over to him.

"Come here. You know I won't hurt you,"

Dart happily jumped into Dustin's open palms and he calmly stood up. "It's okay. It's just me. You're okay,"

"Let's go. Down here," Mike's voice echoed from the halls.

Lucas could be heard soon after.

"We're coming!"

Dustin panicked, knowing his friends would try to get rid of Dart so he knew he had to buy some time.

Holding Dart in one hand, he moved his headset to hang around his neck, and took off his hat, and put Dart on top of his head, before putting his hat back over Dart.

"Stay low, and keep quiet."

Mike came marching in, Lucas and Max behind him.

"Where's Dart?" Mike asked.

"I don't know. He's not here. Where's Y/n?" Dustin countered, changing the subject.

Mike began looking for Dart and he checking the stalls when he heard he wasn't there.

"We don't know. Figured she'd got here before us," Lucas said.

"He said by Salerno's, right?" Max asked.

"Yeah, maybe Will has him," Dustin quickly lied.

Lucas crossed his arms and looked at Dustin skeptically, while Mike went pale.

"Where is Will?"

+++

Will pumped his arms as he sprinted through the field. He struggled to keep his breathing check so he wouldn't have to slow down.

He could feel the presence getting closer. And the memory of that morning's conversation with Bob flashed in his head.

"Only this time, I didn't run."

His legs came to a stop. Will's eyes widened, his heartbeat quickened, and his palms began to sweat. He grew pale. But he knew it was worth a shot.

He told himself he needed to do this.

"This time, I stood my ground."

Will was panting heavily, but he slowly turned around coming face to face with the monster. It towered over the school, looking directly at Will.

"I said, 'Go away. Go away!'"

Will gathered all his courage, tears brimming his eyes and he cried out.

"Go away!"

It got closer. It was swooping in like vulture but Will didn't give in.

"Go away! Go away!" Tears were streaming down his face, and the monster got closer. "Go away! Go away! Go away!"

The monster bellowed, and one large tentacle began twirling down onto the ground, the size of a small tornado. The swirling gust of black fog engulfed Will.

He stood frozen, now trapped in the swirling fog. Several black tendrils spawned from the mass and invaded Will and he could feel the evil presence as it possessed his body and settled in his very soul.

He felt every essence of warmth cease to be, and all that existed was icy darkness.

"Easy peasy, right?"

"Easy peasy."

Will was gasping for air but every breath he took felt like hundreds of daggers were being plunged in his lungs.

"Just like that."

||Reader's POV|| -MINUTES EARLIER-

I turned yet another corner, my eyes scanning the floors. They flew to my walkie when I heard it crackle. I didn't need any confirmation from the voice to know it belonged to Will.

"Guys... I found him,"

I stopped in my tracks. My ears perked up.

"Where?" It was Dustin.

"In the bathroom by Mr. Salerno's," Will whispered.

"Copy that," Mike replied.

I briskly turned on my heel and began speed walking where I came from. I raised the walkie to my lips.

"I copy. I'm on way,"

Salerno's. I was close.

I turned the corner, releasing the speaker button on my walkie. I passed by countless classrooms in my rush to the bathroom, mindlessly making turns. My mind began to wander to Dart and just how much convincing Dustin is going to need seeing how attached he already was.

'But in all honesty, how can one find that-'

My legs stopped carrying me forward, and my body failed me, I just stood there, glued to the floor staring at what I had accidentally stumbled upon. My breath hitched, I gasped and I could hear my heartbeat in my ears.

"Oh, my God," I breathed, my eyes welling up with tears. "Eleven?"

+++

Tag List: @dickkwad @aimee-lucass @iblesstherainsdown-in-africa@miscellaneoustoasts @happyandlonely

DM me if you want to be added!

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yurtletheturtlehenderson · 5 years

Text

S.T. REWRITE - S2:E3; Chapter Three, The Pollywog - [Pt. 3]

A Will Byers x Reader Series

A/n: Another long chapter ahead, featuring a callback to book 1!

||3rd Person POV||

El laid still and unmoving on her bed, where she had been since her fight with Hopper. He had left hours ago and she had been left alone with her thoughts once more.

She gazed at her reflection in the TV set that was still in her room from the other day. She sat up, thinking. She wasn't in the mood to watch TV, again. But maybe she could look for Mike again?

Her eyes glazed over the bed frame and they spotted the blindfold, and she quickly tied it over her eyes. It wasn't until then that she realized it wasn't 3:15, he would still be in school.

El sighed, taking off the blindfold in defeat. Hopper's words from earlier popped into her head.

"You're gonna see him. Soon. And not just in that head of yours. You're gonna see him in real life."

So El decided would. She got up, grabbing one of the warmest pieces of clothing she could find. She ended up putting on an old flannel that Hopper had washed and given to her.

With timid steps, she crept out of her room and slowly towards the front door. She knew she wanted to this, she had been dreaming about doing this for months, but suddenly it all became very real to her.

She faced the many locks on the front door. They were there for her protection, of course, not for keeping her in. She recalled the day she had been brought to live at the cabin.

[FLASHBACK]

Hopper swung the old door open, and before stepping inside, began kicking the doorframe with each foot, shaking off all the snow. He stepped inside and discarded his jacket, while Eleven, repeated his actions by kicking the snow off her shoes.

She began looking around at the dusty and cluttered cabin. She could see the beams of light streaming in from the dust that littered the air.

"My granddad used to live here, long time ago." Hopper shut the front door, preventing any more cold air getting in, and discarded his hat. "I mainly just use it for storage now,"

El listened as she walked slowly through the cabin, trying to take it all in.

There were boxes everywhere, and cloth-covered all the windows so it made the cabin quite dark. There were cobwebs everywhere.

Hopper walked across the room and picked up one of the old boxes, and moved it. "Lot of history here,"

Sighing, he put his hands on his hips and shrugged.

"So, uh... what do you think?" He asked. "It's a work-in-progress. You know, it's, uh... it takes a little imagination, but uh... once we fix it up, it's gonna be nice. Real nice."

There was a small pause.

"This is your new home," he confirmed.

Hopper smiled kindly at Eleven and she looked at him, a new sense of hope blossoming in her chest.

"Home," she answered.

+++

Hopper quickly rifled through the box of old records he had stumbled upon until he finally found one that caught his eye and painted a grin on his face.

It was Jim Croce's "You Don't Mess Around With Jim"

He pulled it from the selection and showed it to Eleven, who had found a place to sit.

"All right, this," he pulled the record from its sleeve and put it on the record player. "this is music,"

Eleven looked at him skeptically, not knowing what to expect. Hopper put the needle on the record and the rhythmic sound of bass and drums began to play, Hopper snapped his fingers in tune with the music.

Eleven watched in stunned silence as the usually grumpy man began to bounce around with a large toothy grin.

"Uptown got its hustlers The Bowery got its bums"

Eleven's brows furrowed softly as she watched the man continued to bounce. His face was scrunched up now and he began to sway his body, something that confused Eleven even more.

"42nd Street got Big Jim Walker"

"All right,"

Hopper suddenly clapped his hands together and spoke, seemingly returning to normal.

"Let's get to work,"

"He's a pool-shootin' son of a gun Yeah, he's big and dumb As a man can come"

Eleven ripped the old cloth off the small bed, unintentionally whipping a thick cloud of dust in her face. She was sent into a coughing fit.

"But he's stronger than a country hoss"

Eleven was trying to sweep while Hopper cleared out the boxes. Having never used a broom before, she was attempting to sweep by pushing the broom forward, and in turn, wasn't making much progress.

"But he's stronger than a country hoss"

Hopper ripped the old and tattered pieces of cloth off one of the windows, soft morning light spilled into the room.

"And when the bad folks All get together at night"

Hopper glanced over in Eleven's direction and noticed her attempts at sweeping. He gently pulled her aside and asked for the broom.

"You know they all call big Jim 'boss' Just because"

Hopper pulled the broom back in swift motions, showing Eleven through demonstration. She watched carefully.

"And they say You don't tug on Superman's cape"

Hopper was knelt down on by the front door, as he screwed in various locks to the front door as an added precaution.

"You don't spit into the wind"

Eleven had now grabbed the broom from Hopper's hands, getting the idea. She began sweeping, just as he had and Hopper returned to the boxes.

"You don't pull the mask Off that old Lone Ranger"

El plopped down on the bed she previously been cleaning, bouncing up and down as tested the mattress. She looked to the tiny red lamp they had found and plugged in and began to feel more at home already.

"And you don't mess around with Jim"

Hopper had set up the old CB radio he had found, and was teaching Eleven morse code. This was how he would contact her from outside the cabin, and she would always have a guide to look at for reference.

"Well, outta South Alabama Come a country boy He said I'm lookin' for a man named Jim"

Hopper was now stocking the kitchen with groceries and kitchen supplies. Eleven had found an old jigsaw puzzle, and she happily got to work. It reminded her of Y/n, who had left Eleven some of her puzzles to play with while her and the boys were at school.

"I am a pool-shootin' boy My name is Willie McCoy"

Hopper cast a glance over his shoulder and saw how invested she was in the puzzle, and how much more relaxed she had become since they had arrived and he felt himself relax as well. He smiled to himself as he pulled the box of Eggos from the grocery bag and put them away in the kitchen.

"But down home they call me Slim"

Eleven repeated the sequence that Hopper had beeped in the CB radio, and he smiled at her. She smiled in return, knowing she had successfully translated the sequence.

"Yeah, I'm lookin' for The king of 42nd Street"

Eleven looked up from her puzzle, to see Hopper carrying in what she recognized to be a TV set and she watched hopefully as he set up.

"He drivin' a drop top Cadillac Last week, he took all my money And it may sound funny"

At night, Hopper had gathered some old mousetraps and made several adjustments to them.

"But I came to get my money back And everybody say, Jack, don't you know"

He knew he needed to take precautions to intruders or any possible threats. He needed an alarm system.

"You don't tug on Superman's cape You don't spit into the wind"

He attached bullet shells to each trap. Blowing away the piles of sawdust as he worked under the lamplight at the kitchen table.

"You don't pull the mask Off that old Lone Ranger"

He wound up the spool of wire around another nail in one of the many trees surrounding the cabin.

"And you don't mess around with Slim"

Eleven trailed curiously behind him as he carried the unwinding spool with him. Finally, he reached the tree with the mousetrap and softly took a seat on the ground, Eleven knelt down beside him.

Eleven was in charge of holding the wire cutters and he gestured for them, grabbing them and cutting the wire. She watched as he grabbed the end and rigged it into the mousetrap as he talked.

"Now, this is called a tripwire. It's like an alarm. You, uh, set it up like this. And then, anybody gets close, it's gonna make a loud noise like, uh, gunfire."

"Bang!" He said, and Eleven jumped back softly, causing him to chuckle.

He runs a hand over his face and he looked at her, growing serious.

"Those bad men aren't gonna find ya. All right? Not way the hell out here. We'll take some precautions. There's gonna be a couple ground rules."

[END OF FLASHBACK]

El recalled Hopper going over the ground rules with her. She could hear him still in her head. But she didn't care. She needed to see Mike.

She walked in front of the draped windows.

"Rule number one: always keep the curtains drawn."

El ripped the drapes aside, and pulled on the blinds, sending them straight up, sunlight pooled into the cabin.

"Rule number two: only open the door if you hear my secret knock."

Every lock on the door came undone with a series of clicks and El opened the door.

"And rule number three: don't ever go out alone, especially not in the daylight."

Her heart pounding, El stepped outside, into the fresh morning sun, and relished in the crisp autumn breeze. She quickly scanned the area, when her eyes found nothing but open space and an empty forest she knew it was safe.

She heard Hopper's voice once more in her head, and she cast one last glance at the cabin in hesitation.

"That's it. Three rules. I call 'em the, Don't Be Stupid Rules. Cause we're not stupid. Right?"

As El got further and further away, she could feel her heart hammering in her chest, increasing with every step. She stopped suddenly. Not in fear, nor had she changed her mind. But the tripwire. It was right where she remembered it. She glared at it defiantly.

"Not stupid."

She stepped over the tripwire and marched on.

||Reader's POV||

Dustin's trap swung open and we all leaned in to get a better look. My eyes bulged when I caught a glimpse at the slimy creature writhing around inside.

"His name is d'Artagnan." Dustin cooed, beaming at the gross slimeball.

I watched carefully as he took d'Artagnan from the trap and picked him up, still smiling warmly at him.

"Cute, right?"

"Uhh..." I trail off.

Dustin just rolls his eyes at me, and I hear Will give a weak chuckle.

"d'Artagnan?" Mike asks, ignoring our bickering.

"Dart for short."

"And he was in your trash?" Max asked, clarifying.

"Foraging for food."

"Awesome," I mumble sarcastically, less than enthusiastic at the thought that thing was crawling around outside my house.

"You wanna hold him?" He asked hopefully at Max.

She quickly shook her head several times. "No, no"

"He doesn't bite," Dustin insisted.

"I don't want to--" Before she could finish, Dustin had thrust Dart into her hands, giving her no choice but to hold him and she cringed.

"Oh, God, he's slimy!" She panicked and handed him to the closest person who happened to be Lucas.

He recoiled in disgust when Dart jumped into his hands.

"Ugh, he's like a living booger!" He was then passed to Will who gagged.

"Ugh, oh, God" I saw the look in his eyes, he was panicking and he turned to me, the closest person to him.

Oh no.

"No, I don't think that's such a goo-" Dart was writhing around in my hands and my face scrunches up in disgust.

Lucas and Max were right, he was slimy and he did feel like a living booger and my stomach twisted in knots. I felt like I could hurl.

I tensed up, and suddenly Dart let out a horrible screech that hurt my ears and it startles me, making me yelp and jump back in fear dropping Dart.

There was a scatter of worried responses.

Mike was able to catch Dart, and he is the only one out of us who is able to tolerate him. He picks him up to examine him and Dustin lightly scolds me and then reluctantly asks me if I'm okay.

"I'm fine," I grumbled.

"What is he?" Mike asks.

"My question exactly," Dustin replied.

He got out some books from his back and plopped them on the table.

"At first, I thought he was some type of pollywog," he began.

"Pollywog?" Max wondered.

"It's another word for tadpole." He clarified. "A tadpole is the larval stage of a toad."

"I know what a tadpole is," she deadpanned, and I chuckled slightly.

We shared a slight smirk.

"All right, then you know that most tadpoles are aquatic, right?"

He opened up on of the books to a bookmarked page, I glanced at it and I made out the words 'Frog Life Cycle' from upside down.

"Well, Dart, he isn't. He doesn't need water."

"Yeah, but aren't there nonaquatic pollywogs?" Lucas asked.

"Terrestrial pollywogs? Yep. Two to be exact."

He opened up another bookmarked page from a different book.

"Indrana semipalmata" he flipped to another page. "And the Adenomera andreae. One's from India, one's from South America. So how did one end up in our trash?" He concluded.

"Maybe some scientists brought it here, and it escaped?" Max wondered.

"Yeah, and no offense Dustin, but we don't know anything about him. And you just found him, how do we know he's completely safe?"

Before anyone can answer my question, Mike speaks up, his attention on Dart who Dustin let roam around inside the barrier of the coils from his trap.

"Do you guys see that?"

We all lean in to get a closer look. Mike was right, on either side, just above the base of his tail, something began... shifting.

'Okay, ew'

"It almost looks like something is moving inside of it," I said.

Mike adjusted the lamp so it was hovering over Dart. And once again, he screeched, exactly like he had before, startling all of us. I start to panic when he crawls over the barrier of coils and jumps off the desk. Dustin quickly catches him.

"Whoa. It's okay. It's okay. I gotcha little guy. I know you don't like that. It's okay" I stared at my brother in shock and confusion.

Lucas and I shared an uncomfortable glance.

"And there's another thing," Dustin said, perking up. "Reptiles, they're cold-blooded. Ectothermic, right? They love heat, the sun. Dart hates it. It hurts him."

My brow had quirked when I heard this.

'Heat. Of course.'

It happened again. It must have. When I held Dart I must have burned him or something by accident and that's why he reacted.

'Shit, I really need to learn how to control that.'

I tried ridding my brain of the thought and leaned in to get a better look at Dart as my brother spoke.

"So, if he's not a pollywog or a reptile..." I urged.

"Then I've discovered a new species."

I looked around as I took in the information. However, I noticed that Will had an odd look in his eye. I was about to ask him with the bell rang, startling us all. The six of us grab our stuff and file put into the hallway.

"We gotta show him to Mr. Clarke," Lucas suggests, and I nod my head.

"No, what if he steals my discovery?"

"He's not gonna steal your discovery," Mike states.

"Yeah, I really don't think he would," I add.

"You know. I'm thinking about calling it Dustonius Pollywogus."

I laugh. "I'm sorry, the what now?"

"Dustonius Pollywogus. What do you think?" He turns, asking Max.

She laughs and shakes her head. "I think you're an idiot."

"You know, when I become rich and famous for this one day, don't come crawling back saying 'Oh, my God, Dustin, I'm so sorry for being mean to you back in 8th grade. Oh, my God'."

I laugh. "Yeah, I don't think you have to worry about that."

||3rd person POV||

Joyce was more than happy to be surprised by her boyfriend Bob at work. He had shown up to work to surprise her and the two were currently enjoying a pleasant lunch on a bench outside.

"Last night was fun."

"Mmm-hmm." Joyce agreed with a warm smile on her face.

She hadn't felt this happy in years. Bob always knew how to make her happy.

"I'm sorry if I overstepped anything," Bob spoke, referring to his previous suggestion of moving.

Joyce was shocked to hear this. "No! No, you didn't." She assured.

He weakly smiled. "Okay. I mean... I... I like you so much. Not just you, everything that comes with you. Your family, your boys."

Joyce felt as if her heart would burst. She smiled at the man as he continued.

"And I hope it's not wishful thinking, but... I kinda feel like I'm breaking through with them. Not so much Jonathan. He's a tough cookie to crack, but..."

She smiled and nodded along. "Yeah,"

"But with Will, I don't know, I feel like we're connecting."

She grinned at the man. "He likes you, too."

Bob smiled hopefully at this. "Yeah?"

"Mmm-hmm. I can tell."

Bob smiled to himself and reached for his Dr. Pepper. He popped open the drink and it fizzled. His mind quickly wandered to the video he had found that morning and he suddenly grew nervous. Bob knew he wasn't in trouble of course, but he hated making her upset. But he knew she needed to know.

"Oh, there was... something else I was gonna mention, but... and it's not a big deal at all, but...I just noticed this morning that my JVC was a little dinged up."

Her eyebrows furrowed. "Your what?"

"The video camera."

Joyce seemed taken aback. She felt bad that his camera was shaken up but she knew that didn't sound like something the boys would lie about. Not her boys.

"Oh,"

Bob nodded his head. "Yeah. It still works fine and everything. I just...I went back and watched the tape... there were some older kids picking on Will."

Joyce set down her lunch immediately, and her expression hardened. "What?"

Bob carried on with a wince. "They scared him."

"Who were they? Were they the Zimmerman brothers again?"

"Um, I don't know. They were wearing masks or sort of makeup and... Maybe. They were the right age."

Joyce looked away and rage-filled her system. "I'll kill them. I swear to God, I will... I will kill them." She scathed.

Bob looked at her with adoration and pride. He shook his head slightly. "That's what I love about you. You punch back."

"And, I know this does not make any of that or what happened okay, but if it's any consolation, that friend of his, Y/N right?"

She nodded, unsure of where he was going.

"Well, she cursed them out something awful. I think she was ready to actually punch them." Bob let out a weak chuckle as he spoke.

Joyce felt a sense of pride. "Good. They have it coming to them."

She shook her head, still fuming from the knowledge.

Bob chuckled. "I was never really one to put up a fight. I struggled a lot like Will when I was a kid. With bullies. It's ones like us, that don't punch back, that people really take advantage of, you know? Really, rub your nose in it. Just a little bit more."

Joyce fell silent as she listened to Bob. She couldn't recall him being this passionate about something and she was listening, captivated.

"That's why, that's why it makes it all the more special. People like me, and Will. We are fortunate enough to find people in our lives that punch back. Like you, and Y/N. Will and I, we are some of the luckiest fellas on earth, cause we are fortunate enough to have people like you and Y/N around, and Will has you both. And me?"

Joyce smiled, and she felt all the anger melting away as Bob continued.

"Look at me now! I get to date Joyce Byers! Ha!"

A laugh escaped her lips and she smiled, leaning forward and pecking him on the lips.

And the two enjoyed the rest of their lunch together in peace.

+++

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