Christine and Steve were leading the pack of kids walking through the woods, the talking veyr minimal due to the fact that everyone was mad at each other. They were almost out of the woods when a voice called out, Steve looking over at Christine with a confused expression.

"Hello?! Who's there?! Who's there?" The voice called, the small group traipsing out of the treeline and into the view of Nancy Wheeler and Jonathan Byers.

"Steve?" The two said at the same time, shock on their faces as they took in the view of the group.

"Nancy?" Both Christine and Steve said at the same time, the girl walking past Steve and to the girl.

"Jonathan." Dustin said, surprised to see the Byers boy there.

"What are you doing here?" Nancy asked, walking up to Steve and Christine.

"What are you doing here?" They said at the same time again, Steve letting out a frustrated breath as they turned to glare at each other.

"We're looking for Mike and Will." Nancy answered, Jonathan and Christine standing face to face as Steve and Nancy mirrored them.

"They're not in there, are they?" Dustin asked, talking directly to Jonathan.

"We're not sure." Nancy said, still looking confusedly at Steve and Christine, the girl wanting to know exactly why they were together in the first place.

"Why?" Jonathan asked.

"Hey sorry I never got around to introducing myself. I'm Christine. Nancys cousin but I'm sure you already kno-" Christine was cut off by the ominous screeching from inside the building, the girl dropping her hand that she was lifting to shake Jonathans. Jonathan was quick to jump into asking questions, Steve trying to explain everything he could while they all talked over each other.

"The powers back." Nancy called, all of them turning to look at the lab. The power being back on made them all rush towards the security booth, Jonathan running inside and pressing the button. There were no signs that the gate was opening, all of them looking between the gate and Jonathan who continued to try and press the button.

"Let me try." Dustin said, pushing past Jonathan who was still pressing the button. "Let me try, Jonathan!" Dustin proceeded to mash the button rapidly, Christine locked her fingers behind her head and letting out a groan as the gate was the only thing stopping them from getting inside. After a few more moments of pressing the button the gate started to unlock, Dustin cheering from inside the booth as Jonathan rushed out. Nancy and Jonathan jumped into the car, driving almost as soon as they got the door closed. They all stood there in anticipation for a few moments, Steve resting against the pole and flipping his flashlight.

"Guys." Max said, all their attention turning to the road as two cars came flying around the corner. Christine pulled the kids out of the way of the honking cars, the Hawking Police car stopping right in front of them all. Christines eyes widened as she saw who was inside, the police chief giving her a look of recognition as he yelled.

"Lets go!" He yelled, Steve immediately pulling the door open. Christine made sure all the kids filed in, the girl pushing Steve into the car by his ass, the boy falling into the back as he squeezed in with the kids. The girl jumped into the passenger seat and closed the door, the chief taking off before she even did that. His driving was terrifying, the chief looking over at the girl in the passenger seat as a new mystery was revealed before him.

"You! What are you doing here?!" He shouted, his eyebrows furrowed as he drove viciously to wherever they were going.

"Uh...I don't know! Something to do with demogorgons! Shit man, you drive like a lunatic!" Christine yelled as she gripped the dash and the handle. He ignored her words, shaking his head and turning into the Byers driveway. Everyone was familiar with this home but Christine and Max, the kids urging her to get out as Hopper ran inside. Before Steve could go fully in the house, Christine stopped him, her eyes wide as she looked at the house.

"What the hell is happening? What are we doing? Steve what is going on?" Christine questioned, the girl needing some kind of explanation to everything that was happening. Steve grabbed her by the wrist, starting to pull her inside as he spoke.

"I'll explain it all inside." He said, but Christine stopped again, her feet planting as she refused to go into that home.

"Steve, I need to know what I'm getting myself into." She said, a warning tone in her voice, but also some fear riddled in there. Steve gave up trying to pull her inside, his grip on her wrist tightening a little bit as he stood in front of her, their chests almost touching.

"You're just gonna have to trust me Chris." Steve said, his eyes catching hers as he pleaded with her to just go inside with him. Christine looked over his face, trying to decide if Steve was someone she could trust this much, and then gulping.

"Alright." She said, pulling her wrist from his grip. She gave him his jacket back, pushing the fabric into his chest and heading inside. Steve held the jacket for a second, shaking his head and then preparing for what he was about to endure inside, his thoughts traveling to Nancy and Jonathan who had showed up together.

Christine walked through the door, her eyes landing on Mike who was standing with Dustin, Lucas, and Max. He looked back at her, the girl rushing over to pull him into a hug as he looked at her confused.

"What are you doing here Christine?" Mike asked, his arms wrapping around the girl as she breathed out a sigh of relief.

"It doesn't matter, I'm here. And I was getting worried about you." She said, pulling back and putting him at arms length. Mike figured that having Christine on their side wasn't too bad, another capable person to help them out. Jim was on the phone by the time Christine looked around the house, Will Byers laying on the couch surrounded by Jonathan who was trying to apologize to him, and Nancy who was comforting Jonathan. Steve walked in a few moments later as Hopper started to shout on the phone, the boy looking upset and a little hurt. Before Christine could say anything to him again Hopper hung up the phone, turning towards the kids at the table.

"They didn't believe you, did they?" Dustin asked, all of them awaiting the answer.

"We'll see."

"'We'll see'? We can't just sit here while those things are loose!" Mike shouted at the chief, Christines eyes widening at her cousins outburst.

"We stay here, and we wait for help." Hopper shut him down, the man walking away down the hallway. The silence that filled the home was almost deafening, all of them thinking about what the next move was, and what they had already lost in the process. Hopper had mentioned that Joyce Byers boyfriend Bob had died while they were trying to escape, and although Christine didn't know him or the Byers all that much, she felt her heart break for them because they had lost someone they loved.

Christine leaned against the counter beside Steve, the girls fingers brushing against his. He looked up at her, the girl trying to give him a reassuring smile as she saw how defeated he already looked. It was then that Christine took in the state of the home, her eyes tracing the long lines of papers taped across the floors and the walls. Mike seemed to be looking too, the boy standing up and walking over to a cube that was sitting on a table. They all watched after him, wondering what he was going to do or say.

"Did you guys know that Bob was the original founder of Hawkins AV?" Mike asked, his fingers running over the cube.

"Really?"Lucas asked, all of them looking at Mike still.

"He petitioned the school to start it and everything. Then he had a fundraiser for equipment. Mr. Clarke learned everything from him. Pretty awesome, right?" Mike asked, the other kids agreeing as he sat the cube down on the table. "We can't let him die in vain."

"What do you want to do, Mike? The Chiefs right on this. We cant stop those Demo-dogs on our own." Dustin said, looking at the Wheeler boy in question.

"Demo-dogs?" Max asked.

"Demogorgon dogs. Demo-dogs. It's like a compound. It's like a play on words--" Dustin over explained, Max shaking her head and cutting him off.

"Okay."

"I agree with Mike on this. We can't let the...demo-dogs run around town without at least trying to do something about it." Christine said, pushing herself up onto the countertop.

"I mean, when it was just Dart, maybe..."

"But there's an army now."

"Precisely." Dustin agreed with Lucas.

"His army." Mike said, seemingly losing everyone in the room when he said that. Christine looked at Steve in confusion, the guy shrugging his shoulders as they all looked at Mike again.

"What do you mean?" Steve asked, his confusion evident.

"His army. Maybe if we stop him, we can stop his army too." Mike said, quickly turning ro run through the house. They all shared a look before getting up and following him, Christine and Steve having no idea what they were talking about in the slightest.

"The shadow monster." Dustin said, the boy holding a creepy little drawing of a big giant terrifying spider-like creature.

"It got Will that day on the field. The doctor said it was like a virus, it infected him." Christine did recall the day on the field, the one when she was called by Mike, and Will had been on the field having an episode.

"And so this virus, it's connecting him to the tunnels?" Max asked, Christine getting her answer as to what the drawings all over the floors and walls were.

"To the tunnel, monsters, the Upside Down, everything." Mike said, Steve quick to interject.

"Whoa, slow down, slow down." He grabbed the paper this time, him and Christine sharing it as Mike began to speak.

"Okay so, the shadow monster's inside everything. And if the vines feel something like pain, then so does Will." He explained.

"And so does Dart." Lucas added.

"Yeah. Like what Mr. Clarke taught us. The hive mind."

"Hive mind?" Steve asked again.

"A collective consciousness. It's a super-organism." Dustin explained.

"And this is the thing that controls everything. It's the brain."

"Like the mind flayer." Dustin said, the three boys seeming to understand while the other three all looked up in confusion.

"The what?"