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libraryofgage · 6 months

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Mermaid/Pirate Steddie Five

One | Two | Three | Four

*slaps top of the fic* this bad boi has everything: mermaids, fluff, reunions, Eddie being a simp, protective mom Steve

Anyway, stick around to the very very end for a meme hot off the presses about this part lmao

as always, if you see any typos, no you didn't ;P

----

It takes Robin and the guppies three days to reach the ship Erica mentioned. They're all irritable, and the only thing that keeps them from snapping at each other is the idea that Steve might be hurt or in danger. Robin thinks they might have torn each other apart otherwise, and she can't even say for sure that she would have stopped the guppies from engaging in a full-on brawl.

So, to say she's beyond relieved when they finally catch up to the ship is an understatement.

But now they need to plan. The ship is way too close to a port city; close enough that any of the pirates could survive long enough to swim that way and spread the story of a murderous pod. Which, honestly, wouldn't do much for keeping all mermaids safe and on good enough terms with humanity that regular humans don't hunt them for sport. It does nothing to stop the pirates, but still.

"We could just make sure to drown everyone," Max suggests, watching the bottom of the ship with narrowed eyes.

Robin almost agrees, but then she stops. Because she knows Steve. If even one person on that ship wasn't an asshole to him, he'd say to spare them, and that could result in the aforementioned spreading of murderous pod stories. But after he's been trapped for so long, Robin wouldn't be able to argue with any request. She's already imagined him dead and strung up like a trophy more than she'd like to admit. She couldn't stand to see him frown after that.

So, she shakes her head, a frustrated bubble pattern flaring from her gills. "We need to be smarter about this," she says.

"We didn't strategize before sinking the other one," Will points out.

"That one kidnapped him. This one might have rescued him, and we should show mercy if that is the case," El says, stretched out and floating on her back. She's the most relaxed of them, and Robin wonders if it's because of that sixth sense she's got going.

"El is right," Robin says, crossing her arms and studying the ship. "We should be more careful about this."

"We could try signaling him," Dustin suggests. "Like, uh, dolphin noises or something."

"If we do that," Lucas says, "we'll need to give him enough time to respond without anyone around."

Robin nods, agreeing with both of them. "Okay, here's what we're gonna do. I'll swim closer while you guys stay here. We have that dumb screech system Steve made us memorize, so I'll use that to signal him. Then we'll wait until the sun rises tomorrow. That should be enough time for him to respond. If he doesn't, we'll sink the ship," she says.

"What if he's not on it?" Mike asks.

"We'll keep one human alive for questioning," Will says, looking at Robin and flashing a tiny, relieved smile when she nods in agreement. "We'll probably have to drown them either way, though."

"Well, we don't need to tell them that," Erica says, snorting as she reaches out to pet a fish that swims by. It's tiny enough to weave through her fingers twice before swimming on.

"Yeah, definitely won't be telling them," Robin agrees, trying and mostly failing to hold back an amused smile. "Okay, stay here. I'll be back after a few minutes. While I'm gone, Erica is in charge."

A chorus of protests chases after Robin as she swims away, heading toward the surface. The sun shines brighter the closer she gets, and she winces when her head finally breaks through the water. It reflects off the ocean, sparkling and blinding as the water shifts and flows.

Robin huffs and sinks down until only her eyes are above the water. The ship is a few yards away, and she can't see anyone moving around on the deck from this distance. She slowly moves closer, her ear fins straining as she tries to listen for any sign of life. Or Steve. Actually, she'd love to hear any sign of Steve from the ship.

Unfortunately, she doesn't.

Once she's close enough to touch the ship, hiding in the shadow it casts over the water, she circles it once. There are a few windows along the hull, but none of them are actually open. That could make it harder for Steve to hear her, but Robin will just be extra loud to compensate.

Robin clears her throat, rolls her shoulders, flicks her tail, and rises until her chin is above the water. She then lets out a sound that can only be classified as the dying shrieks of a dolphin and seagull's abomination of a love child. She makes this noise twice, but each one lasts a few seconds.

Robin can't risk any of the humans seeing her when they investigate the noise. If they are holding Steve captive, they might hurt him even more if they know another mermaid is around. So, she dips below the water, completely submerging and waiting anxiously for a response.

----

Steve has discovered the wonders of just sprawling on a solid surface, his arms thrown to the side and his tail stretched out as he stares up at the ceiling. It's oddly calming, and Steve can almost trick himself into thinking the bobbing of the ship is the ocean itself.

That's what Steve is doing now, forcing himself to relax and brace himself for telling Eddie that he has to leave for a while to find Robin and the guppies. His eyes are closed, and he's running through every possible outcome of that conversation. The second best case scenario (Eddie decides to come with him in a tiny boat) is playing out when he hears it.

The Emergency Shriek.

The last time he'd heard it, Dustin was desperately crying out for help as he struggled against the net that dragged him to the surface. Steve's reaction then had been the exact same as his reaction now. He jolts, his eyes wide and all of his fins flaring in preparation for the fastest swimming of his life, and his lips are pulled back in a vicious snarl to display his fangs and scare off the threat.

But he's on a boat, in the captain's cabin, and that window is way too small for him to climb through. Steve doesn't really think (he can't, actually; his brain has officially gone into Guppies and Robin In Danger Mode). He drags himself to the door of the cabin, digs his fingers into the space beneath, and uses all his strength to rip it off.

The wood groans and the hinges shriek and then the bottom half of the door comes off in his hands. Steve tosses it to the side and crawls through, his tail twitching and flopping in a vain attempt to move faster. If anyone were to actually witness this, they'd probably find it somewhere between utterly terrifying and unfortunately hilarious. A giant fish is dragging and flopping along the floor, but it's also exuding the most intense aura of bloodlust most creatures have ever encountered.

And that bloodlust only gets worse when Steve comes to the stairs that lead to the deck. He stares at them, anger building in his chest at the obstacle they present and just how long it will take to climb them. By the time he reaches the top, Robin and the guppies could be dead, and Steve will have wasted time by uselessly trying to climb some stupid stairs.

He grits his teeth, claws digging into the wood beneath him. And then Steve suddenly realizes that he doesn't have to climb the stairs himself. He takes a deep breath, his gills flaring some to pull in more air, and screams as loud as he can, "EDDIE!"

Steve is absolutely going to reward Eddie for his speed (later, after his guppies and Robin are safe) because he immediately hears something crash above him, followed by swearing and frantic footsteps that stop at the stairs. "Stevie, what the fuck?" Eddie asks, panting as he hurries down the stairs.

"On the deck," Steve says, pushing up onto his tail and wrapping his arms around Eddie's neck when he starts leaning down. "Right now, Eddie. Actually, two minutes ago. As fast as you can. And to the edge of the ship. The railing. Now!"

Eddie, his wonderful and incredible Eddie, doesn't question him. He just scoops Steve up and carries him back up the stairs, fingers digging into Steve's waist when he nearly trips over the final step. He finds his balance again, barely, and strides over to the railing.

Steve can't see anything wrong with the water, but he knows the surface doesn't actually tell him anything useful. He frowns and looks at Eddie. "I'll be back," he promises before letting go of Eddie's neck and twisting to place his hands on the rail.

In one swift motion, he launches himself over the side, grimacing when he feels the edge of his tail fin smack Eddie's cheek along the way. But Steve doesn't let himself linger and focuses on the rush of water around him as he dives below the surface. His gills flare and he breathes for the first time in a while, his hair and body familiarly weightless, and Steve fully realizes how much he fucking missed being in the ocean.

But he can't linger on that relief and joy either.

Steve shoots through the water, swimming to wear he thinks the Emergency Shriek came from, only to be tackled as he rounds the edge of the ship. He yelps, his breath knocked out of him as he goes careening, arms wrapping around his waist like he's going to disappear. It takes exactly one second for him to recognize Robin, her hair floating in front of his eyes and her claws digging into his back.

"You're okay!" she shouts as their momentum starts to falter.

Steve wraps his arms around her and holds her close, one hand on the back of her head and the other around her waist. "Where's the danger?" he asks, scanning the water around them and frowning when he sees nothing.

Robin laughs and pulls away, grinning at him with relief clear in her eyes. "There isn't any, dingus. I was trying to see if you were on that ship," she explains.

Before she can say anything else or Steve can respond, several bodies crash into him from behind. "STEVE!"

They all go careening through the water again, and Steve can't help laughing this time. He tries to hug as many of the guppies as he can, running his fingers through their hair and over their shoulders to reassure himself and them that they're together again. They don't let up, though, and Steve is getting pulled deeper and deeper as they pile on top of him, each trying to get closer as Robin wraps her arms around his neck and buries her face in his nape.

"Okay, okay!" Steve says, a stupidly happy grin on his face, "I'm fine, I promise. I'm not hurt."

"But you were!" Will shouts, managing to push forward long enough for Steve to see the red in his eyes from crying. "We saw your scales in the other ship."

"I healed," Steve promises, gesturing at his tail. This gets the guppies to back off long enough to inspect his tail, all seven of them circling around and inspecting for new injuries.

"What's this?" Erica asks, pointing at the new scar.

"That's the wound that healed."

"I'm so glad you're okay," El says, finishing her inspection first and grabbing Steve's hand.

"Yeah, now we can wreck that ship!" Max says, her eyes lighting up with a vicious glee as she looks at the Corroded Coffin in the distance.

Steve blinks. "Wait, what?"

"This has been healed for a while, Steve," Max explains, gesturing to his tail, "So, they must have been keeping you captive, right? Let's sink them."

"I bet they've got some great treasure on there," Dustin says, lingering closer to Steve's shoulder even as he looks at the ship, studying it with the same face he studies squids he wants to try trapping.

And, yeah, Dustin would be right. There is some great treasure in the Corroded Coffin. Steve's treasure. Eddie. "We are not sinking the ship," he says, his voice firm. It's his official Caretaker Voice, and it makes all the guppies stiffen slightly as they look at him. "The...humans there saved me."

A few seconds pass, and then Robin behind him gasps. "You fell in love!" she shouts, using Steve's shoulders to brace herself as she pushes up and leans over his head. "With a human!"

"Wh-how could you tell?!" Steve asks, looking up at her as the guppies start clamoring for his attention as well.

"Was it the captain?" Will asks, eyes a little brighter but also warier.

"Is he ugly?" Mike asks, his tone implying that he already believes the answer to be yes.

"Dude, how could you fall for a human?!" Dustin shouts, his nose wrinkled up in slight disgust.

"Have you been courting a human the whole time we've been looking for you?" Erica asks, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Yeah! How long have you been healed, then?" Max adds, moving next to Erica and glaring at Steve.

"Wait, so we're not sinking the ship?" Lucas asks, failing to cover his disappointment as he gazes at the ship longingly.

"Congratulations, Steve. I'm sure he's very nice," El says, smiling at him, and Steve almost cries at her simple and accepting response.

"I want to meet him," Robin says.

And her words get the rest of the guppies to quiet down. They all share a few looks and then nod at Steve in sync. "Yeah, we need to meet him," Dustin says, apparently the spokesperson for the group.

Steve blinks, looking at the guppies and Robin. He wanted Eddie to meet his guppies and Robin, of course, but he's a little worried about what they'll do to Eddie. "Only if you promise not to drown him," he says, shooting each of them a hard look.

"I'm insulted you think we would," Robin says, scoffing as she swims to the guppies, facing Steve. "Now, go get your soft and very drownable human down here."

Steve rolls his eyes and motions for the guppies and Robin to follow as he swims toward the surface. He doesn't plan to let them out of his sight, and he knows the feeling is mutual.

----

Exactly twenty minutes and 13 seconds have passed since Steve threw himself over the rail of the ship, and Eddie hasn't moved. He knows his crew is a little concerned, especially when they notice the red cut across his cheek, but he waves them off when they try to pull him away from the railing to focus on something else.

He just can't risk Steve surfacing and not seeing him.

And his paranoia feels validated when Steve does surface and immediately smiles brightly at him, looking somewhere between relieved and ecstatic. "Eddie!" Steve shouts, waving like he doesn't always have Eddie's undivided attention, "Jump in!"

Here's the thing. When a gorgeous merman that Eddie has spent a bunch of time courting (and then kissing) tells him to jump into the ocean, Eddie is going to jump into the fucking ocean. "Just a second," he shouts back.

He kicks off his shoes, waves off Asher and Jeff when they try to convince him to not jump off the ship, and then launches himself over the railing. For a brief moment, Eddie feels weightless, and then he hits the water. His legs sting a little where they broke the surface, the cut on his cheek practically screams in protest, and a cascade of bubbles block his vision just as much as the salt that stings his eyes and makes everything blurry.

The blurriness does nothing to keep him from recognizing Steve when he swims closer, though. Steve is still grinning at him, and Eddie's grin in return falters slightly when he tries to kick to the surface and Steve stops him. Before Eddie can try to signal that he cannot, in fact, breathe underwater, Steve kisses him.

As they kiss, Steve's tongue pushes against Eddie's lips, carefully prying them open. Eddie leans closer to Steve, figuring he doesn't mind dying like this, and falters when he feels a bubble of air roll down his tongue and lodge in his throat. Steve pulls away, and Eddie inhales on reflex. The bubble in his throat gets a tiny bit smaller, and Eddie doesn't get any water in his lungs.

"Tug my arm when the bubble gets too small. You won't be able to talk underwater, but you won't drown." And then he notices the cut on Eddie's face. His smile drops some, and he leans forward, gently tracing his finger along the wound. "Sorry, I didn't mean to hurt you," Steve says, his voice echoing and surrounding Eddie in the water.

Eddie shakes his head, waving his hand dismissively. It's at this point that he notices some blurry shapes a distance away, but he doesn't pay them too much mind. He focuses back on Steve and takes his hand, squeezing reassuringly before kissing his palm.

"It doesn't hurt, right?" Steve asks, his voice a little softer and slightly muffled but still one of the most beautiful things Eddie has ever heard.

Eddie shakes his head again and wraps his free hand around Steve's waist, pulling him closer. This is much easier to do in the water. He kisses Steve again, tasting salt more than anything else, and Steve takes the chance to replenish the air bubble despite its minimal use so far.

When he pulls away, he looks more relaxed. "Promise you'll let me know if you need more air?" he asks, his tone insistent and firm. Steve waits for Eddie to nod before grinning. "Great, because my guppies and Robin want to meet you. And, uh, they're really disappointed about not getting to sink your ship, but don't hold that against them."

Eddie blinks, suddenly wondering if maybe he shouldn't have jumped into the ocean at Steve's beck and call. But then he notices the way Steve moves so naturally in the water, how his hair floats and moves around him, how bubbles rise from his gills as he speaks, and Eddie knows he'd jump without thought all over again.

So, yeah, he guesses it's time to meet some guppies and Robin.

----

Tag List (the tag list is full! I wasn't able to fit everyone, so if you aren't on here, I'd suggest following #high seas steddie. I think you should still get updates on your dash if you do)

@mugloversonly, @raisedbylibrarians, @thegirlwiththelibrarybag, @savory-babby, @vankaar, @beckkthewreck, @itcanbepalped, @imfinereallyy, @finntheehumaneater, @mightbeasleep, @weekend-dreamer7

@whenindoubtb72, @troublemaker2azz, @just-a-tiny-void, @upallnightogetloki, @mxmakessense, @ellietheasexylibrarian, @haelreadsshit, @y4r3luv, @starman-jpg, @littlewildflowerkitten, @estrellami-1, @stevieschrodinger, @gaelicblue, @they-reap-what-we-sow

@5ammi90, @noodle-shenaniganery, @acrolius, @hallelujahimatheist, @rainbow-freckle, @desidrarry-wolfstarshipper, @goodolefashionedloverboi, @79chevyimpala, @aliea82, @hopefulcookieoperatorpersona, @sani-86, @queenie-ofthe-void, @goosesister, @hello-fellow-nerds, @luthienstormblessed, @xtkxkrzrizir, @potato-of-the-lord, @geekymagicalpotato, @child-of-cthulhu, @aizawa-emma, @m-owo-n, @newtstabber, @cartercaptainofthemoon, @spectrum-spectre, @a-little-unsteddie

And, if you've made it this far, here's a little meme for your entertainment

#steddie #steddie fic #high seas steddie #steve harrington #eddie munson #merman steve harrington #pirate eddie munson #robin buckley #the party #mermaid/pirate au #stranger things fic

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dearhargrove · 2 years

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𝔰𝔲𝔪𝔪𝔞𝔯𝔶: basically the sauna scene from season 3 but with you. Also, I changed the events a bit so beware

ʙɪʟʟʏ ʜᴀʀɢʀᴏᴠᴇ x ғ!ʀᴇᴀᴅᴇʀ

𝔱𝔴'𝔰: violence, Billy being an asshole ;(

𝔴𝔬𝔯𝔡 𝔠𝔬𝔲𝔫𝔱: 2,974

reader is Billy's age, reader has powers bcs I love that concept

𝔞/𝔫: you don't know how badly I've been wanting to write this but didn't have the motivation... so enjoy! Though this is more for me than anything ngl

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Planning how you were going to free Billy from the Mind Flayer was a lot different from executing it. You were as excited as you were scared, having had your lover be distant and hateful for the past weeks. All in all, you were tired of it. You take a deep breath, standing behind the kids and waiting for Billy to realize he'd been locked into the sauna.

You watch as his face contorts into anger and he clenches his jaw, stepping to the glass. The boys back up a little, Billy's presence more than scary.

"You better get me out of here right now, you shitheads." he threatened, his voice low. You gulped, looking around. Lucas was checking on Max, who's been the most hurt from this - along with you. Max gathered herself and raised her head in a brave way.

You turn back to your boyfriend, just as he starts banging his fists on the door, waiting for what he still thinks to be a prank, to be over. You bite your lip, taking pity on him.

You couldn't describe how badly you wanted to open the door and take him in your arms. It'd been so long since he even looked at you with a fond look in his eyes. You missed him. So fucking badly.

You flinch when he falls down, seeing Lucas and Mike cast nervous glances at each other. What's happening?

You can't help but slightly freak out when he starts sobbing. You dig your finger nails into your palm and try to take deep breaths.

The moment he starts whimpering about it not being his fault you break. There's a short moment of no one doing anything. You take a step forward, fully convinced you could go in there and calm him down right now.

Will holds you firmly by your wrist, shaking his head. You breathe heavily, scared.

"It's not my fault, Max." Billy whimpers and you wait for him to say more. Max starts walking towards the door and you get nervous. She couldn't get hurt. You don't think you'd ever be able to forgive yourself if any of them got hurt - but Max especially. She's been somewhat of a little sister to you since you met Billy, so obviously you cared for her a lot.

She stops in front of the window, head tilted downwards, probably to where Billy was sitting.

It was a bit hard to understand, the blood rushing in your ears making it harder to hear. "I've done things, Max. Really-" your heard him gasp through a sob, "really bad things. I didn't mean to. He made me do it." You frowned. While you were all aware of the Mind Flayer taking over Billy's mind, you had never taken into consideration just how fucked up this really was. Sure, you didn't take this lightly. You'd be stupid to.

But the realization that Billy couldn't control what he was doing, that there was something in his mind, was horrifying. And if Max and El had been right and he was the one to abduct all the people, you couldn't imagine the terror he was going through knowing he did that.

"Like a giant shadow." Billy described the Mind Flayer. Max continued asking about what it had made Billy do, but he broke down again - understandably. This was probably his first time since being the host that he had a clear mind, so this must be a fucking lot.

You feel miserable. How did this happen? How could you let this happen to him? All because you got drunk one night and he had to pick you up. Except he'd never arrived and you got a vision later of his car crashing and some big shadow taking him over.

Billy begs for Max's forgiveness and you see her start crying, too. A silent tear rolls down your cheek but you stay silent, waiting for what would happen next.

In the next second Will touches his neck and Billy breaks the glass of the small window, screaming at us to let him out along with other insults.

You gather in the middle of the room, just as Billy starts grunting and lights flicker.

Black veins spread over his torso and he starts throwing his body against the door.

The second it breaks, El steps in front of you, her hand held up.

You have half a mind to push her towards Mike, stepping closer to Billy.

"Billy..." you slowly say, catching his attention. For a second there's a flicker of recognition in his eyes, before the eerie emptiness takes them over again. He clenches his teeth, taking a step closer to you.

"I don't want to hurt you, please..." you cry, tears already running down your cheeks and your hands shaking.

While El was only able to lift things and move them telepathically for a limited period of time, you were a lot stronger and more trained as well as experienced. She had made it out of the lab before she became a teenager, but you had been captured there until you were 15.

He falters for a moment before stepping so close to you, you felt his breath on your face.

"Billy..." you pleased once more and in a moment of weakness you missed his hand shooting forwards, grabbing you by the neck.

You choked on a breath, hands gripping his. You could use your powers but you weren't ready to hurt him. Not him, not when didn't deserve it. "Please..!" you coughed and saw out of the corner of your eye as El's hand lifted and something started tugging him backwards, away from you.

"y/n! Do something!" Max screamed, wanting to help but not being able to. You tried looking at her and realized that you'd have to hurt him in order to rescue him. Taking a breath you turned to him, glaring. You loosen your hands on his wrist, his grip around your throat having lessened due to Eleven helping.

You know he noticed when he tried keeping you in place, but didn't succeed. You raised your hand, closing your eyes. You couldn't do this while looking at him.

The familiar feeling returned to your hands and you closed one to make a fist. You hear him gasp for air before you feel him letting you go. Your eyes start watering as you open them trying to steady yourself.

There was nothing more torture than having to hurt him like this. You sobbed and let your hand fall, whispers of 'I'm sorry.' and 'please forgive me' falling from your lips. You didn't register Billy getting up again and moving towards Eleven.

"No! Get away from her!" you hear Mike yell, picking up discarded pipe and hitting Billy over the head with it. You gather your strength as you see Mike getting in front of El.

"Don't hurt her, you piece of shit!" he grunted at your boyfriend.

You saw it as your opportunity, getting up and lifting both of your hands this time.

You let out a pained noise as you see Billy starting to levitate, his arms stretching and the black of the Mind Flayer flooding his body once again. You walk around him until you're in front of him. "Leave him alone!" you scream, your voice breaking. You watch as the black shadow that had caused so much pain and anger starts coming out of his mouth, that was forced open.

You hear him choking and breathe in desperately, the air coming to you less and less as it was starting to take a toll on you.

You fell to your knees, trying to win this fight that would only last a few more minutes. You didn't feel Eleven helping you out, but you hear as she falls to the floor, passing out in Mike's arms.

The help that she gave leaves abruptly and it all becomes too much as you momentarily lose consciousness.

The friends watch helplessly as Mike and Lucas try getting El out of the way while Max rushed to your side. "No! Wake up!" she sobs histerically.

Billy laughs in the most frightening way so far and lunches forward, Will barely able to pull Max into his arms and out of the way. Billy takes you by the neck just as you'd woken again. He throws you against the wall, the contact making you wheeze as the air leaves your lungs once again.

You try getting up, but before you're able to, he grabs you by your throat and pushes you against the wall. "Not so brave now, huh?" he grins, the empty look back in his eyes.

You see everything as if in slow-motion, Will trying to keep Max from getting back to you, Mike crying while El lays unresponsive in his arms and Lucas.

You see Lucas just as he loads his arm sling with a piece of Metall, fixates it and- it hits Billy right on the back of his head.

But doing nothing.

He only let's out another chuckle, choking you more. "Billy-" you cough, barely managing to raise one hand. You place it on his cheek and a small smile takes place on your bloodied lips. "I love you..." you whisper, dragging your hand to where his heart is.

He blinks a few times, seemingly fighting with the demon inside of him for control.

He misses your other hand moving to the back of his head before you grip his hair and pull his head back, hard.

You close your eyes, nervous as you hadn't done this more than once because it had drained you so bad that you'd slept for two days straight.

You conjure up a picture in your mind. A picture in which the Mind Flayer leaves Billy's body, and instead...

enters yours.

Opening your eyes, you watch Billy's body become numb as the Mind Flayer leaves his body and he falls to the floor. It rushes inside of you and you throw your head back, gasping for air.

You close your eyes once again and start fighting the mindset of the Demogorgon that's threatening to take over yours. You scream out, memories of Billy and the party filling your head. You remember the day he'd taken you on a trip to California, having wanted to show you the beach since forever. The way his hand had felt laying on your thigh the whole ride.

With horror Will and the others watch as your body starts being lifted in the air, the black of the shadow monster surrounding you in an unnerving way. Billy lays knocked out on the floor, and Will makes sure there's no black features left on him before he let's Max go.

She rushes to Billy and shakes his shoulders. "Wake up!" she yells in desperation. When he stats stirring she just hugs him closer. "Max..." he grunts. "Yes, yes, I'm here." she confirms and starts crying harder.

Billy curses under his breath before sitting up and taking in the scene around him. That's when he notices you.

You, as the horrible dark shadow that had been inhabiting his mind for weeks tries doing the same with you. "No..." he whimpers, completely shocked at the situation.

Through the rushing in your ears you hear him. Hear him pleading for you, begging for the Mind Flayer to let you go.

The last thing you feel before passing out is fresh air entering your lungs.

With horror, the group around you watches your body fall to the floor and the shadow flee through the wall, breaking it in process.

When you wake up, it's two days later.

As you weren't... normal, they weren't able to bring you to a hospital and Dr. Owens worked too close with the Lab and Brenner for them to trust him.

You open your eyes slowly, looking around. You see the small kitchen and table with chairs, discarded Christmas lights littering the floor.

You then your head to the side and see all of the party sleep on the floor around you. While Dustin and Steve, yes the Steve Harrington who'd become more of a babysitter than anything, were sharing a mattress (with Dustin on the floor while Steve had the blanket wrapped around him and was comfortably taking up the whole mattress), Max was sleeping on the love seat, Will, Mike and El all in sleeping bags in front of the TV and finally, Billy.

He was seated on a pillow, his head resting on the couch close to your stomach. His hand held yours tightly and you smiled. While he didn't look like it, he loved nothing more than cuddling during the night.

You silently sit up, seeing some light on the veranda. Joyce or Hopper probably. You can't keep the small wince from escaping you as sharp pain spreads through your whole body.

Billy wakes startled, looking around before seeing you. You, with a sheepish smile on your face and his hand held tight in yours.

Before he can say anything you put a finger on his lips, motioning him to stay silent. "Baby..." he whisper, emotion flooding his voice.

You nod, a smile on your face. Slowly you get up, tugging him after you towards the guest bedroom where you had slept more times already than you could count.

You two tiptoe through the house until you open the door. He picks you up with care and closes the door with his foot.

When he lays you down on the bed you reach up and tangle your arms around his neck, tugging him down. He grins happily, letting you place kiss after kiss on his lips.

"Y'know, you really scared me when you passed out back there." he mumbles, letting his lips wander over your neck, placing kisses here and there as you brush your fingers through his hair affectionately.

"No way," you acted shocked, "I spooked the Billy Hargrove?" he pouted, moving his head back up and lightly knocking his forehead into yours. "Don't tease~" he whines.

You just chuckle happily. "Really missed you, baby." he murmurs with his deep, rumbling voice.

"Couldn't think while... it was there. Felt like.. I dunno. Lost all control over my body and had to watch as he- as he slaughtered all those people." Billy's voice wavers a bit and you shush him, trailing a hand down his back.

"And none of it was your fault, my love." he just huffs, obviously blaming himself. "If you don't stop blaming yourself I'm going to start blaming myself for not protecting you from this." you raised an eyebrow, knowing very well that in his eyes you could never do anything wrong.

"No, baby, don't say that." he warns. You make a 'really?' face, watching him realize what you actually meant by what you said. He groans, dropping his head next to yours. "C'mon you missed out on me for weeks, there's no way you can resist my charm now." he says and you're quite sure that logic makes absolut sense in his head.

"Billy, I don't know if you've noticed but we're dating. You don't need to charm me anymore, yeah?" he rolls his eyes at you and you weakly punch his torso. "Don't be so rude." He acts like you shot him, dramatically falling next to you and holding his chest.

"You killed me." he deadpans, "only a kiss can make it better~" he grins lazily. Well, not like you mind. You lean on one elbow, laying a hand on his cheek and stroking the skin under his eye. "Have you been sleeping, babe?" you ask, taking note of the dark circles under his eyes.

He frowns, shrugging. "Y'know I can't sleep without you..." he replies, putting one arm over your waist and pulling you closer.

"Well then, it's time for bed, Eh?" you chuckle and he looks at you like you're crazy. "I just got you back from sleeping for days and you're tired again?"

"Hmm..." you pretend to think, "yep." popping the p you turn to the alarm on the nightstand on the side, reading 12:43 AM. You nod towards it and lay your head on his chest, off which he had yet to pull his muscle shirt. "damn, didn't even pay attention to the time."

"Realized that. Now get rid of the shirt, it's bothering me, and then we're going to sleep. No discussions." he grinned, placing a slow kiss on your lips. "God, I missed you so much, baby. You can't imagine." he slides one of his hands under your shirt and just holds you, feelings his skin against yours.

"Me too. Missed you a lot. A small town is kinda boring when there's no one to scandalize the old ladies." you joke and he chuckles.

"Alright, let's get you to sleep, princess." with that he pulls the shirt over his head, leaving his torso and abs free to you. And wow had you fucking missed this.

"You're injured and need to rest so get those thought out of your mind, idiot." he remarks, pinching your waist lightly.

"Cockblock." you pout, even though it was you who'd wanted to rest initially. "Alright, enough insulting your poor boyfriend." he grumbled and pulled the blanket over your bodies.

While you got comfortable on his chest, he already had his nose buried in your hair while enjoying the warmth he'd missed out on for so long.

And here with you and all the people he appreciated, he thought that maybe someday you could all forget about the traumatic events that had taken pace in this cursed town.

very probably going to write a part two with more fluff for this :') anyone else think billy would be the biggest softie secretly?

#stranger things imagine #billy hargrove x reader #stranger things 4 #stranger things x reader #stranger things #dacre montgomery

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buck1eys · 1 year

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okay but can you IMAGINE how devastating it is for the party when Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings comes out in 2001 and against all odds it's actually GOOD? Like Mike and Will are in town visiting Joyce anyway and Dustin suggests getting the old gang together to watch it and so the six of them all pile down to Indianapolis (Hawkins cinema shut in '98 and God if the passage of time doesn't bring a lump to El's throat she can't explain) and prepare to hate on it, apart from Max who goes because she knows how much it means to Lucas and El because she just likes to see her old friends. But then it's GOOD it's actually wonderful and Will can't help but shudder at Weathertop when Frodo is attacked because he knows how it feels to be marked with a burden forever and Lucas is thrilled by Strider the ranger and Mike loves Sam with his whole heart from the second he steps out of the Shire. Merry and Pippin have them giggling like idiots. The first real blow is when Gandalf dies and Max and Mike are surprised when El grabs their hands so hard her knuckles turn white, they wonder what she's thinking about. But the real kicker is the end, everyone's invested by this point, even Max who found the books too dry and weirdly written to get past Rivendell (though she did love the Hobbit when Lucas got her a copy) and even though they know what's coming it still hurts like hell when the orcs attack and the party is separated forever, and the sad shire music is only making it hurt more so when Boromir is hit once, twice, three times defending the hobbits and Aragorn is too late to save him there are more than a few sniffles, but then Will turns his head and sees Dustin on the end of the row, thirty years old and silently sobbing his heart out. He nudges Mike to get his attention but then he sees that Mike is staring, glassy eyed at the screen too. It's not til they get out and pile back in the car and have dissected every costume decision and deviation from the book (where was Tom Bombadil, Mike wants to know, but Lucas and Dustin say good riddance) that Will brings up the ending, gently, hey, the breaking of the fellowship was really well done, and there's a silence before Dustin says, yeah man, Eddie would have loved it.

#ramble 💯#i needed this pain out of my head asap so... bon appetit #stranger things #eddie munson #byler #dustin henderson #mike wheeler #lucas sinclair #max mayfield #how do u tag el idk #will byres #*mp

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weirdmorefics · 1 year

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Hi!! Could I please request a stranger things imagine where the reader (Elevens younger sibling) feels like el doesn’t see R as a sibling figure, and so constantly puts themselves in harms way to prove themself. And one day, they almost die and let’s it slip on why they’re acting the way they are, and El assures the reader that they are siblings and is worried about reader and protective?

x sister!reader

If You Ever Do Anything Like That Again I’ll Kick Your Butt

Pronouns- She/Her

Word Count- 1,090

Summary- The Mind Flayer tries to attack Eleven but the reader protects Eleven and gets seriously hurt.

I can't believe I am here again, putting my life on the line. Just so I can finally convince El finally sees me as a sister. I will do anything so El knows that I am her family even if it means dying I am just so tired. I am really not sure how much longer I can keep this giant nasty monster from killing us. El is helping she is the stronger of the two of us I hope I will be as strong as her one day. I stand behind her trying to hide the nosebleed from over-exerting myself when I see the monster go for her leg. Before I can think I push her out of the way and the monster grabs me instead.

I am flying in the air swinging around with no control. I hear everyone screaming like crazy. Eleven has used all her energy already so she tries to pull me down physically and Mike comes to her aid then the rest join in trying to yank me back to the ground. My whole body is quaking in fear I want to scream so badly but nothing will come out.

Jonathan screams for nancy to shoot it and I want to scream that will just make it angrier but all that comes out our anxious labored breaths and tears from my eyes. This frozen feeling happens to me a lot even in the lab it would happen where I felt so much fear I could not move or speak. I think papa would call it a panic attack.

Nancy shoots and I can hear the bullets woosh by me and I think this may be my end. If I die for Eleven will she see me as the sister I see her as? Nancy screams Lucas’s name and he starts trying to chop the monster apart with an axe as Nancy shots more. They start pulling on my arms even harder it feels like my arms will be ripped off and I will fly into the night sky as the monster tears me apart.

Lucas chops one of the monster’s limbs off causing me to fall to the ground with it. I am exhausted I just want to close my eyes and wake up from the nightmare and go back to eating egos with El. Eleven tries to talk to me but the words don’t make sense in my mind. Her eyes widen when she looks at my leg. I follow her gaze to my leg and see part of the monster still attached to me. With little energy, she has left she yanks it off with her powers. My voice is back due to the blinding searing pain that causes and all I can do is scream until my throat hurts.

Eleven looks angrier than I have ever seen her and she turns around and faces the monster. She screams and holds her hands up toward the monster. I can’t really see what is going on right now my eyes are blurry from the tears and pain but I hear the disgusting noise of flesh ripping. I see Eleven fall from exhaustion I try to stand to catch her from falling but my leg will not function. Mike luckily catches her but this just makes me feel like a failure of a sister. Why can’t I protect her as she protects me.

Max and Lucas help drag me to my feet and help me limp outside as Mike carries Eleven. Nancy and Jonathan are screaming go over and over as they rush us out the door and slam it behind us. We all scramble into the car and Eleven is still knocked out as I whine in pain.

Mike screams to nancy, “drive”

We arrive quickly at a store and Nancy and Jonathan break the door so we can get in. Max and Lucas help me inside as Mike helps a groggy El in. I can’t stop groaning in pain. Nancy and Jonathan are ransacking the shelves and giving orders to everyone. Max and Lucas set me gently on the ground and pull my pant leg up.

I see Eleven’s eyes widen and Max gasps “Oh shit.”

I groan in more pain it just keeps getting worse and I really think I might die here.

Nancy says she wants to clean the wound but Max corrects her and tells her how to treat it properly. I honestly don’t care how they do it I just want it to stop.

“Eleven hold this keep pressure,” Max orders seriously.

I scream as El puts pressure it is just making it worse. Eleven quickly looks to Max to see if she is doing it right and Max nods. Max lists more instructions to everyone but everything sounds distorted to me.

Everyone leaves to get supplies except El who continues to keep pressure on my wound. It starts to feel a little better now that I am sitting and I think the bleeding is not as bad now.

Eleven looks at me seriously, “Why would you do that?”

“Do what?” I shrug

“Push me out of the way? It was going after me first,” she frowns.

I sigh trying to think of some lie so I don’t sound like a dork but I just say the truth anyway, because I mean this wound is probably going to kill me tonight anyway what do I have to lose? “Eleven you're the only family I have I know you don’t see me as a sister but I see you as one. You always protected me in the lab it was about time for me to return the favor.”

Eleven look suddenly very angry... I did not think it would upset her maybe I should not have said it after all.

“What do mean I don’t see you as a sister? You were the only one who even talked to me in that lab! You have always been my sister and that’s why it’s my job to protect YOU because you are the little sister.” She shouts at me.

I smirk “You think of me as a sister?”

“Of course! You mouth breather!” she says affectionately and hugs me.

“Ow,” I say quietly.

She quickly let go, “Sorry.” Then she gets serious again and points at me “ And if you ever do anything like that again I will kick your butt!”

I grin widely at her and nod and she grins back and we giggle together.

#eleven x reader #stranger things fanfic #stranger things fanfiction #stranger things imagine #stranger things one shot #jane hopper x you #jane hopper x reader #stranger things x reader #stranger things x y/n

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most-canon-non-canon-ship-poll · 9 months

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I, the poll runner, made this poll because they suck that much

Why Mileven is shit - a submission-based essay, part 3/3

Mileven - a currently canon het ship from the Stranger Things fandom between Michael (Mike) Wheeler and Jane (Eleven) Ives/Hopper/Byers/IDK

This doesn't mean she will never have another relationship, it doesn't even mean she is "alone" while other people are in relationships (although personally I think there is nothing wrong with not being in a relationship tbh... some people need to unpack this). It just means that she reclaims the power to decide if and when she will give love to someone again, a choice she's never really had. As for Mike, I believe his low self-esteem and what makes him feel so different is his feelings for Will which have steadily stepped out of platonic more and more as time has gone on, and THAT is the truth that is hard to admit, not his apparent love for El that she has been begging for him to say. Mike and Will are written so perfectly as a romantic duo that it is wild to me that anyone would ship Mike with anyone else. Mike deserves more than to be a shitty friend and El's boyfriend (because if he really does just love El, then his actions are just him being mean and weird with no cause or explanation, which I can't imagine is the case), Will deserves more than to be the sad gay in unrequited love who only suffers, and El deserves more than to be some boy's "superhero" who is loved for what she can do more than for who she truly is. She deserves to shake the shackles of male control, and yes... Mike unfortunately falls into this due to his feeling responsible for El's wellbeing because of the unfortunate circumstances they met under. Plus he's, in my opinion, fallen even harden into this parentified role in Hopper's absence (those parallels are insane too, don't even get me started). Anyway, all that to say... Mileven is an objectively bad ship that doesn't fit with the story Stranger Things is telling. It doesn't serve any of the characters involved in a positive way, and Byler is a significantly more touching and well-built couple. Personally, even the argument that El will be "crushed if they break up" doesn't really carry any weight. It's clear that she has already hurt so much IN THE RELATIONSHIP, so ending it just seems like the logical next step (and I'm among the people who believe she wanted to break up at the pizza place tbh). Why should she stay with someone who can only love her in life-or-death situations? Why should Mike be with someone who makes him feel worthless or not enough or like his personal experiences and struggles aren't valid? Why should Mike and El settle for a relationship that takes so much work but makes them both ultimately unhappy (it's giving Karen a d Ted). Why should Will just accept that in a world of demogorgans and alternate dimensions and telekinetic lab children, the craziest and most unlikely thing is a queer boy like him finding requited love with the person who makes them feel better for being different and encourages them to fight on? I just don't think the writers are telling that kind of story. I love El, Mike, and Will... I hope they will get a beautiful ending. To me, a beautiful ending would include Mike and El mutually caring for each other enough to admit that their relationship is not good for either of them as El deserves to be loved and needs time to heal, and Mike deserves to embrace his truth and his own feelings without feeling insignificant or unlovable (and ultimately be rewarded for embodying one of the show's core themes: that forced conformity is bad, you will never feel gratification or happiness by pretending to be something or someone you're not, it's okay to be a "freak" and it's okay to be different and to rebel against the limited, restrictive forms of "happiness" society pushes. After all, forced conformity is one of the real villains in this show, as clearly stated!)

#propaganda #why [ship name] is shit #the (s)hit list #not a poll #anti milkvan #anti mileven #still on this #byler #kinda

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strangertheories · 2 years

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💚 Mike Wheeler

Mike Wheeler analysis

Ok so I thought about how I'm going to do a Mike character analysis, so I'm going to break down his character season by season in chronological order. I'll be talking about his traits in general alongside his relationships with Will and Eleven. This post is not the 'definitive' Mike Wheeler, just my interpretation of him and his character. You guys can feel free to disagree! Also just a warning: this post is very long. Seriously, it's the longest post I've ever written.

Season 1

From the beginning, Mike is shown to be the closest thing the group has to be a leader as they all gather at his house and he's the dungeon master. Him being dungeon master shows that he is imaginative and creative which is reminiscent of Will. Him and Will have more in common that the rest of the group and it's clear that Will is very comfortable around him as he tells him that the demogorgon got him. At the beginning of the series, we see him and his friends getting bullied. Mike and the rest of the group don't seem to fight back against this. The first episode ends with Mike meeting Eleven in the forest.

You can see Mike is a caring person as he immediately takes in Eleven and is more friendly towards her than his other friends. He gives her shelter and food and tries to come up with a plan. This is when we start to see Mike's protective instincts kicking in. Mike knows that he's in danger keeping El but he doesn't care as he's brave and wants her to be safe. After finding out Eleven may be able to help them find Will, he teams up with her. He's very headstrong and refuses to be told he's incorrect as he is being protective of Will.

As a parallel to him earlier in the season not standing up for himself, Mike immediately calls out the bullies when he feels that they are insulting Will. This isn't a 'defending a dead child's reputation' thing because at this point, Mike doesn't think Will is dead. He clearly cares a lot about him and is angry at the homophobic bullies, leading to him knocking him over and humiliating him. Mike defends his friends yet again when he jumps off of a cliff to stop the bullies from hurting Dustin. Mike will do the right thing for people he cares about and he's clearly a great friend.

At the end of the season, Mike kisses Eleven. I don't really view this as romantic. Eleven had the vocabulary of a two year old and had literally no idea what was going on most of the time. Mike and her never really had any romantic moments together before Mike kissed her. She was pretty much the only girl Mike was close to and I think that he thought his platonic feelings and protectiveness which he felt for all of his friends was romantic because she was a girl. In reality, they're just good friends.

Season 2

At the start of Season 2, Mike was struggling with the loss of Eleven. Even though I don't ship them, he did really care for her and losing a friend like that is a lot to handle. However, like we saw with Will, Mike refused to believe she was gone when everyone else accepted it.

Mike is still very caring and protective over Will. They clearly have the closest relationship out of the group. For example, when Will is going into therapy Mike notices that he seems quiet but Lucas says he's always quiet. This shows that Mike notices and understands Will in a way that his other friends do not. When Will is having visions, Mike is the one who notices and comforts him.

After a particularly bad episode, Will and Mike go and hang out in his basement. Will shares his feelings with Mike because he feels as though Mike is the only one who can understand him. Mike admits to Will that he thinks he's going crazy too. This is an important moment for Mike. Mike is tough, brave and protective but is rarely emotionally vulnerable. He and Will are able to open up to each other in a way that he can't be with his other friends. After Will gets possessed, Mike immediately comes to his side as a result of his protective and caring instincts. Mike was the only one of Will's friends to stay with Will all of the time, even pausing his attempts to reach Eleven after 353 days in order to be by his side.

Speaking of Mike's relationship with Will, when Will seems to have fully succumbed to the possession, we see Mike again letting down his guard and being more emotionally vulnerable with Will. He tells Will the story of how they first met and says it's the best thing of his life. As I said earlier, Mike is usually pretty guarded so it shows how much he cares about Will above other people.

Eleven returns and Mike is angry at Hopper for hiding her. This is understandable, but not nessecarily romantic like a lot of people make it out to be. This is very fitting with Mike's protective and caring nature that we've seen towards his friends. Of course you'd be angry after losing someone you cared about. When they went to the Snow Ball together, they shared a kiss which, again, could very easily be him confusing platonic feelings for romantic ones. Mike is not in touch with his emotions and is guarded, so he probably doesn't fully understand or think about the reasons why he likes Eleven beyond a pretty girl interacting with him. Now onto season 3.

Season 3

Season 3 is more of the same with Mike. He is constantly with Eleven, abandoning his other friends and Will to be with her. We see that he still is observant about Will and cares about him a lot as he notices Will is acting weirdly at the cinema in a way that his other friends don't. He also stares at his lips for some reason. Will and Mike are more distant due to Mike's obsession with Eleven, but you can see through scenes like the one mentioned that he still cares a lot for Will and has a deeper emotional connection with him.

Mike and Eleven make out a lot, to the dismay of Hopper. Hopper gets Mike to stop obsessing over Eleven and instead of opening up (like he does with Will), Mike uses lies in order for Eleven not to break up with him. He doesn't really understand what he's meant to do in a relationship beyond just smooching unlike Lucas and Max who have a sort of cycle they go through. He follows Lucas' advice which doesn't work, leading to a break up.

They're both inexperienced and their relationship seems very movie puppy love-esque and it never really evolves beyond that. After they break up, Mike doesn't seem to want to be with her for her personality or his love for her. He just wants to be able to say he has a relationship. It's all very superficial and it feels like they only date each other because they feel like they should rather than because actual romantic feelings.

Even when Mike confesses he loves her, it's because he doesn't want her to die which could very easily be a platonic thing. And then when they try to talk about it, Mike cannot open up and will go around a lot of stuff to avoid saying the word 'love'. When Eleven says I love you too and kisses him, he looks very blank in comparison to him looking overjoyed after talking to Will, the only person Mike opens up to in the show.

This season I think that Mike is vaguely realising that he doesn't love Eleven (or girls). They just seem to be together for convenience and not because he actually loves her. We see more of Mike being overprotective and caring towards her but as I've established, he's like that to all of his friends. He just assumed it was romantic because she was a girl and that's how it should be. The only person he's truly comfortable and himself around is Will but this season, he's a lot more guarded and rude towards him. This could be because Mike doesn't want to think about his feelings towards Will and instead is just obsessing over the one girl who shows him attention.

Season 4 Volume 1

Because season 4 is not finished yet, I'm going to keep this shorter. Mike is now in high school and is trying to find his place but like before, he's still doing stuff because he should and not because he wants to. Eddie says Mike used to dress like whatever his mother chose him, but he's still trying to emulate a style of someone he's not; Eddie. He's wearing his Hellfire Club t-shirt and he's growing his hair out to look like him. I think this might be a little crush of his as he clearly looks up to and admires Eddie in a manner we've not seen with Mike before. I think by this point, Mike knows deep down that he's gay and is trying to ignore it and act like someone else to avoid confronting it.

When Mike goes to California, he seems kind of uninterested in everything. He's distant from Will, not affectionate with Eleven and he can't open up to anyone. Eleven and him fight because Mike is unable to say that he loves her. Their relationship is falling apart. Mike feels like he should say he loves her just to make her happy but he can't. He says this when he opens up to Will yet again, the only person he can be vulnerable with. Later on in the season, Will speaks to Mike about how it's scary to open up (because he's gay) and this really gets to Mike. Mike is unable to be open and vulnerable and I think that through Will he's able to connect with himself emotionally and realize things about himself.

Conclusion

Mike is brave, protective, headstrong and moral. He cares deeply about his friends but seems to confuse platonic feelings for romance. The reason Mike and Eleven's love never evolved because it was never love for Mike. He dated her out of obligation and never was able to open up to her. He clearly has a close relationship with Will and he is the only person he can be himself around because he is gay and has romantic feelings for him.

This post was super long and is definitely not the definitive Mike, just my interpretation of him. If you view Mike as bi or in love with Eleven, that's fine, but this is just how I personally think Mike is written (and it seems to fit with his characterization throughout the series). This isn't one of my theory posts in which I say what I think is going to happen, it's my personal interpretation of a character and his arc throughout the show.

Thanks for the ask, anon.

#stranger things #stranger things four #byler #st4 #stranger things analysis #mike wheeler #byeler #mike wheeler is gay #byler proof #will x mike #mike x will #byler tumblr #stranger things season one #stranger things season two #stranger things season three #stranger things season four #st1 #st2 #st3

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