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November 6, 1983

The party sat in the Wheeler's basement consisting of: Will, Lucas, Dustin, Mike, and Celeste they were playing D&D on a quiet Sunday evening laughing and having fun as kids should.

"Do you hear that? Listen..." Mike said dramatically.

"Something is coming...something hungry for blood." He kept going.

They sit around a card table. A grid map is spread out on the table before them, along with a nearly empty pizza box, canned cokes, and the all-important Dungeons And Dragons Monster Manual. Mike Wheeler, age 12, is the "Dungeon Master" and de facto leader of the group.

"A shadow grows on the wall behind you... swallowing you in darkness... it is almost here."

The boys and Celeste lean forward. Riveted. Lucas Sinclair, age 12, playing as a knight. He is very small but his loud mouth more than makes up for it.

Dustin Henderson, age 12, playing as a dwarf. He is the most fearful and least confident of the group.

Will Byers, age 12, playing as a wizard. He is soft-spoken, gentle, delicate.

Celeste Wheeler, age 12 playing as a mage. She is quiet, soft-spoken the very opposite of her brother.

"What is it?" Will asked.

"What if it's the Demogorgon? We're screwed if it's the Demogorgon." Dustin said anxiously.

"It's not the Demogorgon." Lucas says.

Mike waits for them to settle down. Then:

"An army of Troglodytes charge into
the chamber!."

He slams six winged miniature onto the map. "Their tails drum the floor. Boom!
Boom! Boom!."

"Troglodytes?!" Dustin said almost relived.

"Toldja." Lucas said.

Dustin scoffed at his friend while Celeste giggled. Mike looks over his shoulder. His eyes grow wide.

"Wait... do you hear that? Boom!
Boom! BOOM! That sound... it didn't come from the Troglodytes. No. It came from something else..."

Mike slams a large two-headed monster miniature onto the map. Mike continued "The Demogorgan." The gang stares. "We're so screwed." Dustin says knowing he was right. "Will, your action." Mike told his friend.

Will swallows. God, he wishes it wasn't his turn. "I- I don't know." Will stutters out. "Fireball him!" Lucas exclaimed. "I'd have to roll thirteen or higher." Will said.

"Too risky. Cast a protection spell." Dustin said.

"Don't be a wimp! Fireball him!" Lucas yelled.

"Protection spell!" Dustin argued.

Will turned to Celeste begging for help in his eyes. "Cast protection Willy." She said.

"The Demogorgon is tired of your silly human bickering. It stomps toward you. Boom!" Mike yelled.

"Fireball him Will!" Lucas yelled once again.

"Another step. Boom!" Mike continued.

"Cast protection!" Dustin yelled once again.

"It roars in anger." Mike says.

"Fireball." "Protection." Lucas & Dustin argued. "And." "Fireball!" Will exclaimed.

Will rolls the dice. A little too hard and the dice scatters off the table onto the floor. "What is it?!" Lucas asked.

"Where did it go?" Celeste asked.

"I don't know!" Will exclaimed.

"Is it a thirteen?" Dustin asked.

"I DON'T KNOW!" Will yelled.

The boys scramble to look at the dice when,

The basement door swings open. The kids look up to find Karen Wheeler, Mike and Celeste's mom, standing at the top of the stairs. "Mom, we're in the middle of a campaign." Mike said. "You mean the end." She taps her watch. "Fifteen after." She told her children.

Mike and Celeste ran upstairs leaving their friends searching for the dice. "Just twenty more minutes." Mike asked. "Please mom." Celeste said.

"It's a school night, Michael, Celeste, and I just put Holly to bed. You can finish next weekend."

"That'll ruin the flow." Celeste said.

"I'm serious, Mom! It took two weeks to plan. How were we supposed to know it'd take ten hours?"

Mike and Celeste's dad, Ted is watching tv or trying to. The signal is terrible, a snowstorm of static obscures the image.
He smacks the TV. "Dad, don't you think-"

Ted (not even listening) "I think you should listen to your mother. daggum piece of junk!" He smacks the tv again. The static flares.

In the basement Lucas, Dustin, and Will stuff belongings into backpacks. "Does the seven count?" Will asks. "Shoot It was a seven?" Lucas asks, Will nods.

"Did Mike see it?" Lucas asked, Will shakes his head. "Then it doesn't count." Lucas concluded.

The boys zip up their backpacks and race up the stairs. Dustin holds up the pizza box. Still one slice left. "Hey guys anyone want this?!" Dustin asked holding the box out. "No." Both boys reply proceeding to walk upstairs. Dustin looks back at the pizza. Considers.

Dustin heads upstairs, pizza box in arms. He walks up to a bedroom door. Through a crack in the door, he sees... Nancy Wheeler. This is Mike and Celeste's older sister, 16, girl-next-door pretty. She is on her bed in pajamas, a phone in hand, fingers twisting its cord, slender legs kicked in the air.

"I know, I know, but - I don't
think so - yeah, he's cute, but -- Barb - BARB!- listen to me." Nancy said into the phone.

Dustin waves, getting her attention. Holds up the pizza box. "Hey Nancy, there's a slice left if you want. Pepperoni and sausage."

"Hold on." She said into her phone. Nancy walks over and shuts the door in Dustin's face.

While outside Celeste was getting ready to bike with Will to his house it basically became a tradition for them whenever Celeste or Will were at one another's house they would bike with each other back home before heading home themselves.

Dustin shuts the garage door behind him. He's in the middle of eating the last pizza slice.

The other three boys are out here already: Lucas, Celeste and Will are climbing onto their bikes; Mike is seeing them off. "Something's wrong with your sister." Dustin said talking with a mouthful of pizza. "What're you talking about?" Mike asked. "She's got a stick up her butt." Dustin said.

"It's 'cause she's seeing that douche bag, Steve Harrington." Lucas told Mike.

"Yeah, she's turning into a jerk."

"She's always been a real jerk."

Dustin climbs onto his bike. "She's a teenager guys." Celeste told her brother and friends. "Nu-uh. She used to be cool. Like that time she dressed up as an elf for our Eldertree campaign." He argued.

"Four years ago!"

"Just sayin'." Dustin said.

Dustin and Lucas bike off out of the garage. Will and Celeste linger behind a second longer. Turning back to Mike.

Before Will and Celeste left Mike said. "Celeste be safe." "I will Mikey don't worry." Celeste and her brother have always been super close, they told each other everything and didn't keep secrets from one another. "It was a seven." Will said. "What?" Mike asked.

"The roll. It was a seven. The Demogorgon- it got me. Will shrugs before saying: "See you tomorrow."

Will smiles at Mike, then bikes away with Celeste, joining the others. The light in the garage flicks. Strange. Mike switches it off and heads back inside.

The boys bike home. Their handlebar lights wink in the night. And good thing, because it's very dark out here. Lucas peels off from the group. "See ya, ladies."

"Bye Lucas." Celeste said.

"Kiss your mom 'night for me." Dustin teases.

Lucas flips him off and bikes up a driveway towards a Two-Story-House. It looks almost identical to Celeste & Mike's.

Will, Celeste, and Dustin bike on in silence for a beat, then: "Race to my place? Winner gets a comic?" Dustin said.

"Any comic?" Will and Celeste asked in unison.

"Yeah."

Will and Celeste had heard enough. They start pedaling. Fast. "Hey!" Dustin pedals in pursuit. But he's already behind. And...

Will and Celeste whizz past a house at the far end of neighborhood. They wave at Dustin. Now fifty yards back. "I'll take your "X-Men" one-three-four!" Will exclaimed. "And I'll take your "Spider-Man" one-six-seven!" Celeste exclaimed.

(I just realized Will still hasn't gotten his X-men One-three-four Matt! Ross! explain yourselves!)

Dustin stops. Out-of-breath. Really bummed he says: "... Man."

Will & Celeste are now biking along an empty forest road. All alone. Will lives much further out than the rest of his friends. It is even darker out here and quiet; unnervingly so. Only the sound of cicadas and a gentle breeze to keep them company.

They bike past a large metal fence. A warning sign reads: HAWKINS NATIONAL LABORATORY. RESTRICTED AREA. NO TRESPASSING.

Their bike's headlights flicker. Will looks down at it. After a beat, the light returns to normal. They look back up and....

A tall figure stands in the middle of the road. Will and Celeste yank their handle bars losing control They veer off the road and crashes.

Will & Celeste each fly off their bikes. The skids, rolls, eats dirt. As he lies there on the ground, gasping, they hear: Strange guttural sounds. Coming from behind them. "Run!" Celeste said.

They push to their feet and turn to the sound. Foliage shudders. The sounds grow. Something is coming. They abandon their bikes and run.

Will & Celeste burst out of the woods. Up ahead: Will's house. It is small, one story, lower class, falling apart.

"C'mon!" Will yells. Will slams the door shut behind him and bolts the lock. A shaggy dog, Chester the mutt, race to greet them.

"Mom?! Jonathan?! Mom?!" He checks his Mom's bedroom his brother's bedroom. No one is home. Their all alone.

Will scrambles back to the living room window. He cups his hands to the glass and peers out into the yard. It is dark.

Murky. Quiet. A gust of wind blows and... Day-old laundry flutters on a clothes line to reveal...

That figure again. Just standing there amongst the blowing laundry. They can't make out any features, but it's proportions look... weird. It's head is huge its arms are way too long. And its body is swollen and bent in a strange, twisted shape.

Another gust of wind. The clothes flutter again and... The Figure is gone. Will pales. His heart in his throat. He runs to the phone.

Will rips the phone receiver off the kitchen wall. Dials 911. But It does not ring. Just hums with low-end static. "Hello?! Hello?!"

Will pauses. He hears something on the other line. But not a voice... it is that guttural sound he heard in the woods. The pitch rises and falls, making a series of strange sounds. Words? It is as if the figure... whoever whatever it is... is somehow speaking to him through the phone receiver.

Behind him, Chester begins to growl at the front door. Will lowers the phone. And looks back at the door. A shadow fills the crack at the base of the door. And then somehow, impossibly, the chain bolt begins to slide open, as if drawn by an invisible hand. The metal shrieks.
Will drops the phone and....

Will & Celeste burst out the back screen door. They sprint into an old wooden shed and Will slams the shed doors behind them.

Breathing hard. His eyes dart. Searching for something. The shed is cluttered and dark, lit only by a Naked Light Bulb, hanging from the ceiling. The bulb buzzes, flickers.

At last he spots it: An old rifle. Will yanks it down, retrieves a few Ammo Shells from a work bench,

And loads the rifle as fast as he can, which isn't very fast at all; he is so scared his hands sweat and shake. Will finishes loading the rifle. He snaps the chamber shut and aims it at the door. The rifle trembles in his hands.

While Will keeps his eyes trained on the door, they notice a shadowed figure slowly rises behind them. Will senses movement. Turns. He doesn't fire. They just stare. Paralyzed by fear. Shock. They fight tears.

"W-Will?" Celeste stutters out.

"P-Please." Will whispers.

A high-pitched Shrieking sound suddenly fills the shed. The terrible shrieking abruptly stops. The shed is empty.

Will & Celeste have vanished.
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Meanwhile the next morning

Jonathan Byers, 16, Will's older brother, cooks breakfast. He is lanky with long hair. Quietly handsome... but he wouldn't believe it if you told him.

"Where the heck are they?!"

His mom, Joyce Byers, races past, frazzled. She wears a wrinkled "Melvald General Store" uniform. "Darn it!" "Check the couch." Johnathan says.

Joyce does. She finds her keys under a cushion. Thank God. She snatches them up, gives Jonathan a quick peck on the cheek, and races for the door, only to pause at the last second, realizing something. She turns back to Jonathan.

"Will? Where's Will?" Joyce asks her eldest. "Sleeping, I guess." He reply's.

"You gotta make sure he's up, Jonathan, how many times?"

Joyce shakes her head. Irritated. She hurries down the hallway and claps her hands. "Will, Will come on, get up." Joyce throws open the door to Will's room. It's empty.

She strides back over to Jonathan. Worried now. "He came home last night, right?" She asked. "He's not in his room?"

"He come home or not did you see Celeste with him?" Joyce asked once again.

"I don't know."

"You don't know?"

"I got back late, I was working." Jonathan said.

"You were working?"

"Eric asked if I could cover for him, I said yeah; I figured we could use the cash."

"We talked about this I told you not to take shifts on nights I'm tending, I specifically told you."

"He was over at the Wheelers' all day. I'm sure he just stayed over."

"I can't believe this." Joyce says pinching the tip of her nose.

"I'm sorry." Jonathan apologizes.

"I can't believe it." Joyce grabs the kitchen wall phone. And dials a number.

A Wall Phone Rings at the Wheelers. It is chaos over here. Mike is grabbing syrup from a cabinet; Nancy is eating scrambled eggs, Ted is watching the morning news and now the phone is ringing. The stupid phone.
Karen answers. "Hello?"

"Karen it's Joyce." Karen isn't that worried about Celeste because her daughter sometimes gets up early to get ready and eat breakfast then heads to school. Joyce finished her conversation with Karen still worried about her son.
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Mike's POV

Me, Lucas, and Dustin ride our bikes past the high school, making our way toward Hawkins Middle School a quaint one-story brick building tucked beneath a water tower.

As we slot our wheels into bike racks, we look around at all the kids streaming in. Looking for Will and Celeste.

"I don't see him. Weird." I said.

"I'm telling you: his mom's right, he just went to class early again." Lucas said.

"Yeah they're always paranoid Gursky's gonna give them a pop quiz." I nod. Feeling slightly better.

"Step right up, ladies and gentlemen! Step right up and get your tickets for the freak show!"

We look to find two kids, James and Troy, headed toward us. We didn't run... we just stand there like statues. This is a regular occurrence, and this is how we deal with it: with passivity. Troy sizes us up.

Who do you think would make more money at a freak show: "Frogface," "Midnight," or "Toothless?"

"Ooof. Tough call, tough call. I'd go with Toothless." James said eyeing Dustin.

"My teeth are coming in, I told you a million times, it's called cleidocranial dysplasia."

"I told you a million times." James mocked.

"Do the arm thing." Dustin hesitates.

"Do it, freak." James said.

Dustin sighs, relents. He pulls his arms across his body. Since Dustin has no collar bones, his arms stretch all the way across. The bullies share disgusted looks.

"Gets me every time! Every time!"
They shove past us and head into the school, laughing.

"Idiots." Lucas muttered under his breath.

"I think it's cool. It's like a superpower or something. Like Mr. Fantastic." I said trying to cheer Dustin up.

"Yeah, except I can't fight evil
with it."

We pulled on our backpacks and head to school. An hour later the bell rings and the chaos starts as a swarm of middle schoolers grab up their books and backpacks and hurry out of class, talking loudly amongst themselves. Our teacher, Mr. Clarke, calls after them.

"Remember: Finish Chapter Twelve, and answer twelve-point-three on the difference between an experiment and other forms of science investigation."

Mr. Clarke silences as he realizes he's talking to no one everybody is gone. Well, that is, almost everybody. "Did it come?" I asked.

Lucas, Me, and Dustin gather excitedly by his desk. Mr. Clarke hesitates. And gives us a sad look.

"Sorry, boys, I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but...It came." He told us.

We headed to AV club and saw the heathkit sitting on the desk in all it's glory. "The Heathkit ham shack. Ain't she a beaut?" Mr. Clarke asked.

"I bet you can talk to New York on this thing." Dustin said.

"Think bigger." Mr. Clarke said.

"California?" Lucas asked.

"Bigger." Mr. Clarke continued.

"Australia?" I ask. Another nod. Holllly crap.

"Oh man. When Will and Celeste see this their going to totally lose their marbles!" Lucas exclaimed.

(I'm not allowed to cuss so those words will be changed.)

I sat down and grabbed the headphones and started talking.

"Ello, this is Mike Wheeler, President of Hawkins Middle A.V. Club." I said in an Australian accent.

Dustin takes the receiver. His turn. "'Ello, this is Dustin Henderson, Secretary and Treasurer of Hawkins Middle A.V. Club, Do you eat kangaroos for breakfast?" Dustin then says in an Australian accent copying me.

A sharp knocking sound interrupts the fun. Mr. Clarke turns. The Principal is in the doorway. "Sorry to interrupt... but may I borrow Michael, Lucas, and Dustin?"

Chief Hopper and Officer Callahan now look at us. Me, Lucas, and Dustin, look at them as our expressions darkening.

We sat down in the Principals office hearing my sister and best friend are missing. "So you were... racing?" Hopper asks.

"He takes Mirkwood home my sister Celeste rides with him then comes back home but when she wasn't at breakfast I thought she came to school early and now she's missing?" I ask.

"Yes you're sister and friend are missing you three are the last to have seen them." He told us.

"I knew something was off about Celeste not being at school she never skips." I said.

We finished answering questions about Will and Celeste then a few hours later school was over we all headed back to my house where my parents were worried sick about Celeste after getting a phone call from Chief Hopper.

We all sat in the basement in silence. "We can't just sit here we have to find Will and Celeste that's my twin and best friend." I said pacing back and forth.

"I know how about we sneak out tonight and look for them?" Dustin suggested.

"Good idea Dustin." Lucas said.

Later that night we went to the last known place Will and Celeste were and started to look for them until we heard a noise out of nowhere we turned to see a girl who looked scared we then took her back to my house and were deciding what to do.

They stayed the night and we camped out in the basement we made a small area for the girl to sleep and then drifted off into sleep.

(I know some of the dialogue is different I've seen the show and I love it I just wanted to make this my own story so don't get mad please and I hope you enjoyed.)

Over and Out.
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The End of Chapter 1