It is said that in the Tarot, the Tower represents a
drastic and unforeseen change, one which can be
characterized by danger, crisis, and liberation.
While many are "afraid" of the Death card appearing
in a reading, the card one must truly look out for is the
Tower because it brings unavoidable change.

When the Tower appears one must let go and heal
from their past in order to not be trampled by their future.
This is why it can also symbolize a warning or revelation before disaster strikes...

"MAYBE THIS WORLD
IS ANOTHER PLANET'S HELL."
– Aldous Huxley

synopsis!

IT WAS SPECULATED THAT IRENE VASQUEZ HAD THE GIFT OF SIGHT.

The girl at the corner house who spoke broken English and brought empanadas for lunch was an oddity to those around her, leaving many who met her to pass exaggerated legends amongst each other. From tales of possession to mind control, Irene has never been given the opportunity to tell her story. Speculations always seem to trump actual truths when it comes to who she really is. To her mother she is a legacy – someone who she prayed would inherit her gifts with pride and did.

The rumors, as vile and haunting as they were, had some truth to them.

Precognition was a rare phenomena that burrowed itself within the Vasquez family tree for years, but it was a gift whose colors were beginning to fade. The 20th century offered no welcoming committee to those with precognitive abilities. To the majority of society, those who claimed such gifts had to have worshiped the devil, either that or they were on serious drugs...which were also works of the devil anyway. Because of this widespread fear, many of the Vasqeuz family members hid their abilities — some refused to practice them altogether. All hope of their gift reaching further in their bloodline was practically lost.

Perhaps, Irene was chosen or maybe she just got lucky. Nonetheless, out of her and her brother, she was the one who bestowed the ability to see beyond the present and into the vast future.

And thus our story begins here, the summer of 1985 in a quaint town called Hawkins. Irene and her mother have a feeling for what this town will bring, but because their gift isn't as strong as it should be they feel as if they are walking into a void. Not only that, but there is one puzzling aspect of this new journey that Irene can't quite come to terms with – something she has yet to tell her mother.

The Tower was a card she knew well, it was one that always accompanied either hope or destruction. It was a card that made her feel extremely uneasy. So, one can only imagine the kind of turmoil that it brought once it flung from her grasp and landed onto the table in front of her during a self-reading. She heard murmurs of the "cursed" town in Indiana, but also knew firsthand just how twisted stories can get. She prayed that for once she could have a normal summer – a normal life at that.

1985 will be the year her powers are put to the ultimate test and all for the sake of some kids she hardly knows anything about. They'll battle not only inner but outer demons and a pact of friendship will be formed. Even though the summer will be anything but normal, for once her story will be told her way and she won't be outcasted for it.

But after the war seems over, the Tower will return during the spring of '86 and it will be far more destructive than before, but why get ahead of ourselves?

cast!

victoria moroles — as irene "rena" vasquez
THE CLAIRVOYANT /
THE STAR

"i can't just close my eyes and
see the future, you idiot!"

niko guardado  — as mateo vasquez
THE SCORNFUL BROTHER /
JUSTICE

"did you know carbon
monoxide is a silent killer?"

stephanie beatriz — as sofia vasquez
THE UNCONVENTIONAL MOTHER /
THE EMPRESS

"you can't run from fate."

joseph quinn — as eddie munson
THE FREAK / THE FOOL

"you're not gonna tell me i'm gonna die, right?"

THE KIDS WITH ALL THE ANSWERS
millie bobby brown — as eleven/ jane hopper
finn wolfhard — as mike wheeler
jaeden martell — as will byers
caleb mclaughlin — as lucas sinclair
gaten matarazzo — as dustin henderson
sadie sink — as max mayfield
priah ferguson — as erica sinclair

THE SELF PROCLAIMED GROWN-UPS
winona ryder — as joyce byers
david harbour — as Jim hopper

matthew lillard — as murray bauman

THE BABYSITTERS CLUB
joe keery — as steve harrington
maya hawke — as robin buckley
natalia dyer — as nancy wheeler
charlie heaton — as johnathan byers

disclaimers & dedications!

credit to the duffer brothers & netflix for this amazing show. also, credit to the creators of the psd filters used!
i do not own any of the characters from stranger things or any dialogue used from the show. however, i do own the characters whom i've created, the plot, and any other dialogue I choose to add. with that being said this story is best read in the font hoefler text OR helvetica neue in the smallest size!

warning!⚠️
this book contains mature themes such as:
gore, horror, violence, death,
slight sexual references, mentions of suicide,
and foul language.
read at your own risk!

this book is dedicated to:

-firestar - on of my inspirations for the creation of this book! her eddie fic is amazing & you should go read it!

-melatonindreams - my literal bestie, ily ily ily <3

bayports - park, i adore you & will always appreciate your support. thank you for always checking up on me :') parks graphics are amazing, pls go check them out!

80s90swriting - belle, you are the sweetest and have stuck around since my eighties phase <3 congrats on 1K!!! go read her eddie fic too!

starryeyedturtle - the sweetest human being to ever grace this planet, no lie. thank you imogen for your endless support, it is always appreciated! <3 pls go support her works, her st story "paranormal" is literally so good!

&

@ anyone else who stumbles across this book
full of chaos and horror, i love all of you who
give my works the time of day.

AUTHORS NOTE
well holy crap, i actually did it and it took FOREVER. i kept going back and taking things out and adding things in and then taking them out again and it was just agonizing and I don't like that my brain fixates on a problem or hobby or person or thing and can't rest until I've done something about it. nonetheless, here is my stranger things story *sound of applause*

I debated whether I should scrap the plot or not and if I really wanted to start in season 3 but I think it'll give me more time to flesh out Irene's character and give you all the best insight into her past & her gift. I also just really wanted her to establish relationships with some of the characters so we're not walking into season four acting like we know everyone. I was really debating with myself all yesterday and today, but I think it's fun to give readers a preview of what they're getting into!

Alrightly my loves, I truly hope you enjoy this story because it's honestly what brought back my inspiration to write and I love that! Irene and her story means a lot to me and I'm so thankful that there are those of you who are willing to read it. I really hope you like it. . .