WORD COUNT : 6.6k

"Hey..." The single word came out as a raspy whisper from Nancy's lips as she approached Owen in the gym lobby. Nancy pressed her back against the same wall that Owen had slid down to meet her on the floor, sitting so close they could feel the other's warmth. Using the ends of her sleeves, Owen had made quick work of any tears left on her cheeks as soon as Nancy stepped into the room with her. As if Nancy wouldn't immediately notice the pink end of her nose or the puffiness of her eyes.

"I'm sorry, I don't know why I'm crying," Owen breathed, feeling the traitorous tears reignite now that Nancy was here. Despite Owen's worries, Nancy just let out a long sigh – one that sounded like it had been held deep within her lungs for a while now. Hesitantly, Owen glanced over at Nancy, whose eyes were fixed blankly on the floor in front of them.

"No, don't worry about it," Nancy reassured her, shaking her head. "I'm just glad someone else knew her. Like, really knew her. With you here, there's another person who saw her as more than just someone you walked past in the hallway or flipped over in the yearbook," Nancy explained with a sniffle.

That tightness returned to Owen's throat as she listened to Nancy describe Barb's existence at Hawkins High. She was never going to be one of the Carol Perkins or Steve Harrington types. Hell, she probably wasn't ever going to be a Nancy Wheeler type, either. Perhaps that's why Barb and Owen connected so quickly that day in chemistry. With their popularity track records, they were likely destined to be skipped over names and faces in the school's yearbook. Their memories of one another were likely going to be the only proof that they even attended that school. That is, if things hadn't gone so horribly wrong.

"I'm so sorry, Nancy," Owen murmured, her arms extending towards Nancy in a rare initiation of a hug. The brunette immediately leaned into Owen's open arms, finding a way to wind her own limbs tightly around her in response. Owen rested her cheek atop Nancy's head, feeling a few tears slip out and roll downwards to meet soft brown hair. Nancy's small frame shuddered beneath Owen's arms, quaking with the power of silenced sobs.

The two girls sat like that for a while, allowing the tears to finally flow freely. If you had told either girl back in October that this was their fate in just a month's time, they would have laughed in your face. However, having been through nearly every step of that insane process together, Owen and Nancy just felt lucky to have each other. Having someone who even minutely understands your plight makes carrying the weight of it all so much easier.

The girls' tears had become dried stains on their cheeks when Hopper, Joyce, and Jonathan burst into the lobby. Owen and Nancy had practically leapt out of their skin at the intrusion, but were left in utter confusion as the three merely barreled out into the parking lot. Where would any of them be headed at a time like this? Nancy and Owen turned to each other slowly, quietly listening out for any bits of information that could filter through the walls.

Make it back,

You stay,

My son,

Joyce!

The sound of an engine revving and headlights shining into the gym's lobby put an end to the conversation outdoors. Only fragments of shouted conversation had made their way to Owen and Nancy's ears, but the girls hoped that they had heard something wrong. Surely, Joyce and Hopper weren't just leaving them alone there.

Unfortunately, the sound of wheels squealing away from the school confirmed their suspicions. The freshness of the sound hadn't even left their minds yet when Jonathan stepped back into the building, slamming the door behind him. His expression was just as forlorn as the girls' as he slid down the wall beside Nancy to meet them on the floor. The three of them sat in silence for a moment, completely unsure of what to do next. After all, it seemed like they were suddenly on babysitting duty.

"Where are they going," Owen asked quietly, peering over at Jonathan.

"They said they're gonna get Will back," Jonathan mumbled, eyes still trained on the floor. Despite the words leaving his mouth, he couldn't bring himself to believe them. Bringing Will back? To Jonathan, it almost felt like they were bringing him back from the dead. It all just seemed that fantastical and unlikely.

"We have to go back to the station," Nancy said after a bit of reflection. Her lower lip quivered after the words left her mouth, arms tightening around her knees that had been pulled up to her chest.

"What?" Jonathan questioned, keeping his voice just as soft as hers.

"Your mom and Hopper are just walking in there like bait. That thing is still in there. And we can't just sit here and let it get them, too. We can't," Nancy explained, forcing herself to sound determined regardless of the shakiness of her voice.

"You still wanna try it out," Jonathan guessed, already knowing exactly what she meant without even having to look at her.

"I wanna finish what we started," Nancy insisted, glancing over at Owen for reassurance. The two girls gave one another a brief, understanding nod. They needed to do this. For Barb. Nancy cast her gaze back at Jonathan, the intensity in her watery eyes forcing him to look at her. "I want to kill it," she pleaded with her jaw jutted.

✯

"Oh my god. You're totally leaving me and Law out of the action... again," Gordon accused, his thick brows furrowed together in disbelief.

"I swear I'm not trying to. But someone needs to stay here and watch the kids. And someone else needs to go kick monster ass in order to help Joyce and Hopper," Owen sighed, absentmindedly flipping the crowbar around in her hands. She had made sure to pick up her tool of choice when she came back into the gym, not wanting to leave it behind just in case she needed it for monster-killing preparation.

"Well, why don't you stay here and watch the kids and I'll go kick monster ass," Gordon scoffed, arms crossed over his chest disapprovingly. But Owen's feet had already started slowly carrying her backwards towards the parking lot.

"I just think we should leave the kids with the oldest and most responsible one here," Owen reasoned, picking up speed on her way to the car. But the flattery distracted Gordon for only a moment, which allowed for Owen to slip through the doors leading into the lobby. "And Nancy and Jonathan are already waiting for me in the car, so I've gotta go," Owen added, sending her brother a toothy smile and a wave before the door slammed between them. Then, her feet swiftly carried her out into the parking lot, where Jonathan's car was waiting for her with illuminated headlights.

✯

"This could go so, so bad. You both know that right," Owen whisper-yelled into the darkness of the police station's parking lot. When Nancy had said that she still wanted to actually try and kill that monster, Owen didn't realize that breaking into the police station and stealing back all of their equipment was a part of the deal. However, Owen clearly wasn't entirely opposed to the idea, as she made sure to follow closely behind Jonathan and Nancy as they crept towards the station.

Once they were close enough, Jonathan reached out and slowly attempted to open the front door without a sound. Lucky for them, the door had been left unlocked and recently greased, granting them a silent entry. Jonathan opened the door just wide enough for Nancy and Owen to hurry past him into the station.

Owen could hear the sound of a man's voice crackling through a radio, effectively piercing through the silence of the police station. Jonathan stepped past both of the girls, leading the way to Hopper's office. Each of them were just hoping and praying that that box of tools was exactly where they had left them so many hours ago.

As the group progressed down the hallway, Owen came to a halt at the front desk. Just past the deserted front desk area was a lone cop, sitting at his desk and smoking a cigarette. The light of a single desk lamp caught the curling nature of the smoke as it billowed away from the cigarette in the cop's hand. His back was turned away from the front desk, only giving Owen a view of his no-nonsense haircut. The radio that Owen had heard when they first entered sat beside his ashtray, a man's voice still rattling on about the news.

Nancy's hand wrapped around Owen's wrist and tugged her down the hall. Owen shook herself out of the anxiety-induced haze she had been in just in time to see the ajar door to Hopper's office. It was exactly how he had left it when he dragged the group to see Nancy's house earlier that day. When Jonathan pushed the door open further and revealed the box full of their military surplus purchases, the three of them each had to hold back a relieved sigh that was threatening to escape.

Jonathan couldn't grab the box fast enough, spinning on his heel to hurriedly step back out into the hallway. Owen winced at the metallic rattling coming from within the box, fully able to identify which sounds were coming from that damn bear trap she had insisted on getting. Just as they had entered, Jonathan led the group back out towards the front door. As they rushed down the hallway, Nancy snagged the fire extinguisher from off of the wall. Owen didn't even bother asking, knowing that Nancy's brain was already three steps ahead of where they were at that moment. With just a few more paces, the group exited the building just as hastily and silently as they had entered it.

✯

Nancy, Jonathan, and Owen mostly worked in silence as they prepared the Byers' house for their fight with the monster. Nancy spent most of her time drizzling gasoline around nearly every inch of the house, while Owen made sure her beloved bear trap was installed correctly. At some point, the sound of Jonathan hammering a bunch of nails through the end of a baseball bat rang through the house. However, all three of them took on the meticulous task of screwing each individual colored bulb back onto the strings of Christmas lights dangling from the ceiling.

Once all of the preparation had been completed, the three teenagers convened in the Byers' living room with kitchen knives in hand. Owen glanced between Jonathan and Nancy, releasing a pent up sigh that left her shoulders hanging. Although they wouldn't admit to it, all three of them had been dragging their feet through their tasks as much as time would allow. None of them were looking forward to inevitably having to slice into their hands. The pain of the cut, mixed with the incoming monster to claim them as bait, made for the perfect, dreadful cocktail.

"Remember-" Jonathan started.

"Straight into Will's room," Nancy finished for him, relaying the plan that they had all been over again and again since they left the middle school.

"And don't step on the trap," Owen reminded them, knowing that they were screwed if anyone but the monster got stuck in that damn thing.

"Wait for the yo-yo to move," Nancy mentioned, motioning towards Will's room, which held the yo-yo signal that Jonathan had set up.

"Then..." Jonathan trailed off, raising a lighter into view and flicking a small flame into existence. Nancy and Owen each gave him a definitive nod, confirming that they all knew their respective roles within the plan. "All right... You ready," he breathed, eyes flashing between the girls.

Nancy's gaze cast sideways, meeting Owen's and allowing for all of their nervous energy to silently pool between them. Something within them still felt totally unprepared for the fight against this monster, despite everything they had built to ready themselves. But it wasn't like they had any other choice. They needed to follow through with this in order to make sure that Hopper and Joyce came home.

"I'm ready," Owen said with a tight voice.

"Ready," Nancy agreed in a tone just above a whisper.

The three teenagers all lifted their palms skyward, the sharp end of their knives held closely to the skin. The only sounds that could be heard between them were the shared puffs of anxious air as they each prepared for their next move.

"On three," Jonathan murmured, taking a shallow breath that may have been an attempt to calm himself.

"One..."

Owen was suddenly very aware of how sweaty her palm was around the knife.

"Two..."

She could feel her heartbeat nearly rattling her ribcage as they rounded the final numerical bend.

"You guys don't have to do this-" Jonathan sighed, breaking up the suspense that had been building deep within Owen's chest.

"Jonathan, stop talking," Nancy ordered, eyebrows knitted together.

"I'm just saying, you don't have to-"

"Three," Owen blurted, already growing tired of their bickering. With just a little more pressure, the sharp end of the blade slid easily through the skin of Owen's palm. Air was sucked in through her teeth as she winced at the pain, the cut feeling exactly as she had imagined it would. Nancy and Jonathan were quick to follow behind, making long slices in the middle of their hands. Dark blood poured from their cuts, instantly staining any surrounding skin.

"Well, if that fuckin' thing didn't know where we were before, it sure does now," Owen muttered, her lip curling at the amount of blood continuing to seep from their fresh wounds.

"Yeah, let's try and get cleaned up before it shows up," Nancy suggested, her feet hurriedly carrying her towards the Byers' bathroom. Owen could hear the opening and slamming of various cabinet doors, painting the mental image of Nancy's search for first aid materials. The brunette returned soon after, bandages and rubbing alcohol in hand.

Once again, the three of them worked to clean up their cuts in silence. Nancy and Jonathan sat together on the couch, helping one another with their bandages. Owen had cleared off a spot on the family's loveseat, tightly winding a roll of bandage around her own palm. Just as it had been earlier, the silence was filled with unmoving tension – pure anxiety and dread about their upcoming circumstances. Even a faint creak from the front of the house had everyone's attention snapping towards the sound, overly aware of their surroundings.

"Did you hear that," Nancy murmured, pausing as she wrapped a bandage around Jonathan's palm. The group sat in silence for a moment, just listening, trying to see if the sound would replicate itself – or worse, grow louder. But ultimately, another sound never came, allowing for them to relax just slightly.

"It's just the wind," Jonathan tried to reassure her. Although, he could still see the fearful glint in her blue eyes. "Don't worry. My mom, she said the lights speak when it comes," he explained, just loud enough for Owen to hear him from her place on the loveseat.

"Speak?" Nancy asked him the same question that had shown up in Owen's mind as well.

"Blink," he rephrased, "Think of them as alarms."

"Well, that explains why we took so much time fixing all these damn lights," Owen muttered, already starting to pick at the piece tape holding her bandage together. One of Owen's legs had been propped up lazily on the couch with her, her elbow sagging against her knee. It felt so odd to just sit around and wait for this monster to show up. Something about it felt like she was just sitting in the waiting room of her own demise.

"Is that too tight," Nancy asked quietly, having resumed her work on Jonathan's hand.

"N-No, it's fine," Jonathan stuttered in response. Owen couldn't help but become very interested in the nervous energy Jonathan was radiating, likely brought on by he and Nancy's close proximity. Owen desperately tried to suppress the cocked brow and smirk that threatened to tear across her face. She was honestly just surprised that she hadn't noticed Jonathan acting like this around Nancy before. Or maybe he had been acting just like this, but Owen was far too preoccupied with the knowledge of this monster running around to notice.

An abrupt banging at the front door instantly tore Owen from her thoughts, forcing her out of her lax position on the couch. Everyone's eyes darted towards the front door as whoever was on the other side continued to repetitively bang their fist against the wood. Owen's first thought was to grab the nail-studded bat that had been settled on top of the coffee table. She had been interested in that thing since the moment she saw Jonathan crafting it earlier. She wouldn't say she was hoping to test it out on this intruder, but she wouldn't be too upset if she had to.

"Jonathan?" Finally, a strangely familiar voice rang through the door. "Are you there, man? It's... it's Steve!" Owen's eyes nearly rolled to the back of her skull when their surprise guest revealed his identity.

"This asshole again," Owen gasped, completely in disbelief. Didn't Steve have other things to do besides terrorize her and her friends?

"Listen, I just want to talk!" Steve just kept talking and banging on the door, in spite of the lack of reply. Nancy shot Jonathan and Owen a look of total confusion before stomping over to the door.

"He needs to get the hell out of here," Nancy mumbled, shaking her head in disapproval. They all knew that the monster could show up at any point and they did not need Steve getting in the way. Nancy cracked the door just slightly, only allowing for her face to poke out. From her spot in the living room, Owen could only hear their two voices bouncing back and forth.

"Hey, Nancy. What-"

"Steve, listen to me. You need to leave," Nancy ordered firmly.

"I'm not trying to start anything, okay?" Owen's hands tightened around the baseball bat, growing irritated at the sound of his voice that she didn't even notice the throbbing pain in her palm.

"I don't care about that. You need to leave."

"No, no, no. Listen, I... I messed up, okay? I... I messed... I messed up," Steve insisted, his voice swirling between frustration and almost pitiful gentleness. "Okay? Really. Please. I just want to make things right. Okay? Please. Please," he begged, his voice so fragile that it barely even sounded like him.

Despite his groveling, Nancy stood silently in the doorway, unsure of what to say next. But Owen knew that they would be royally screwed if this monster showed up now. If she wasn't going to say something to get him away from the Byers' house, then someone had to. Owen stood to her feet, stepping towards the front door to dismiss Steve like one of those door-to-door salesmen.

"Hey, what happened to your hand," Steve murmured softly. His tone had Owen freezing in place, completely unaccustomed to hearing him speak like that. "Is that blood," he asked, grabbing at Nancy's bandaged hand to get a closer look. However, she tugged it away from his sight, hiding the wound behind her back.

"Nothing. It was an accident," Nancy bluffed, jaw jutting forward in mock confidence.

"Yeah, what's going on," Steve questioned, as if he was reminded where he had found Nancy, of all places.

"Nothing," she insisted, her voice sounding tighter than usual.

"Wait a sec, did he do this to you?" Concern colored Steve's voice as he processed everything.

"No," Nancy said with as much conviction as she could muster. But Steve was already pushing against the door, even with Nancy arguing against his entry.

"Nancy, let me in," Steve huffed, overpowering her and barreling his way into the house. He came to a halt almost instantly, pausing to grapple with his chaotic surroundings. All of the Christmas lights, the weapons strewn around the room, the gaping hole in the living room wall, Jonathan Byers, and Owen Webb with a nail-embellished baseball bat in her hand.

"What is... What the-" Steve began to speak, his gaze still snapping all about the room and still managing to notice a new detail every time. Now able to actually see him, Owen noticed how rough Steve still looked. It was like he hadn't cleaned up even a bit after his fight with Jonathan earlier. Dried blood was still smeared across his nose, temple, and lower lip, mixing in with the bruising that had painted his left eye. Even Owen could admit that he had seen better days.

"You need to get out of here," Jonathan pressed, stepping forward in an attempt to shove Steve back outside. Steve distractedly fought against him, his hands coming up to clutch Jonathan's shoulders roughly.

"Whoa, whoa. What is all-"

"Listen to me. I'm not asking you, I'm telling you. Get out of here," Jonathan stressed, still wrestling against Steve's pushing.

"What is that smell? Is that... is that gasoline," Steve asked, his tone growing increasingly frenzied. Every terrified and angry thought possible was raging through Steve's mind at that moment. He just couldn't understand what the hell was going on and why Nancy was caught up in something like this. Jonathan and Owen were a little more believable, but whatever they were doing seemed absolutely insane.

"Steve, you need to get the fuck out of here," Owen warned, stepping forward. With all of the blood still smeared across the boy's face, they were surely running out of time before the monster decided to show up. Her hands swung the bat upwards, brandishing it in a threatening position.

"Wait. What? Owen, what is going on," Steve shouted, hands coming up defensively. He knew that Owen wasn't his biggest fan, but physical threats were a new low – even for her.

"I'm being so serious, Steve. Unless you want to get your shit rocked for the second time today, you need to leave. Now," Owen threatened, her eyes narrowing at him.

"Stop! Okay? There's no need for the bat or... or whatever else-" Steve's pathetic begging was drowned out by the chill running up the back of Owen's neck. It was followed up by that familiar shooting pain at the base of her skull, causing her grip to falter on the bat for a moment. Creating the perfect storm, Owen could feel the wet trail from her nose to her upper lip – producing even more blood on the scene. And just to make matters worse, Steve was still babbling about how violence never solved anything.

"Shut up, Steve," Owen grunted, her free hand raising to wipe away the blood that had flowed so severely that it had begun to pool between her lips.

"Guys... guys, the lights," Jonathan pointed out. Everyone's attention was immediately drawn to the flashing Christmas lights overhead. The various colors illuminating the room could have been pretty, had they not been signaling the arrival of the monster.

"It's here," Nancy murmured in shock. Everyone but Steve began to move in unison, following through with the plan as best they could. Owen tossed the bat to Jonathan before grabbing her crowbar, as Nancy picked up her gun.

"Wait, what's here," Steve blurted. Jonathan, Owen, and Nancy all stood nearly back-to-back in the middle of the living room, rotating swiftly to make sure they weren't caught off guard by the monster. The Christmas lights overhead just continued flickering irregularly, the electrical surges acting as anxiety-inducing background music.

"Where is it," Nancy demanded, unable to focus on anything for too long.

"Where is what?" Steve felt like he was screaming in silence. The lack of response to his very pertinent questions was mind-boggling, to say the least. He stumbled back a couple of steps as Nancy swung the barrel of her gun past him, basically looking through him at that point. "Whoa! Easy with that thing!"

"I don't see anything," Owen fretted, trying to ignore the incredible throbbing behind her eyes.

"Where is what? Hello? Will someone please explain to me what the hell is going-" Steve was cut off by the deafening sound of breaking wood and drywall clattering to the ground.

Owen spun to face the sound, her jaw going slack at the sight of a huge jagged hole in the Byers' ceiling. Loud growling came from within the opening, the entire ceiling shaking and shuddering like it was alive. Everyone but Nancy shrunk away from the intrusion. Instead, the brunette stood her ground, pointing her gun directly at it and firing blindly into the shadowy interior of the hole.

"Go, go, go! You gotta run! Go!" Jonathan shouted, reaching out to pull Nancy back towards the hallway. As he tried to direct the group back towards Will's room, Jonathan seemed to be the only one with a grip on the original plan.

It wasn't until the monster dropped from the opening, landing on all fours, that the group kicked into gear. Jonathan and Nancy took off down the hallway first, just hoping that the other two would follow behind. Just as Owen went to sprint to Will's room, she noticed that Steve was frozen firmly in place. Pushing aside any previous feelings she may have held about him, Owen grabbed Steve by the hand and dragged him along with her towards safety.

"Watch out for the bear trap," Owen called to him as he stumbled behind her, only being propelled forward by the girl's bandaged grip around his hand. "Jump now!" Her shout met Steve's ears just in time, the two of them leaping over the metal trap in the middle of the hallway.

"Oh my god! Oh my god! Oh my god!" The phrase leaving Steve's lips began to messily run together. Owen pulled both of them around the corner and into Will's room, giving Jonathan plenty of time to slam and lock the door behind them.

Even once they were safely within the four walls of Will's bedroom, Steve's fingers didn't move from where they were wrapped tightly around Owen's bandaged palm. Still faced with the horror of the monster slamming into the living room, neither of them thought to let go, at first. It wasn't until Steve tightened his grip and caused a sharp sting to run up Owen's forearm that she even noticed that they were still holding hands. She immediately attempted to tug her hand away from his, but ultimately failed due to the panicky vice grip he had on her. Her jerky movements had Steve's eyes casting downwards in confusion. Seeing that he still had a hold on Owen's now-limp hand, Steve yanked away like the touch of their skin had burned him.

"Jesus! Jesus! What the hell was that?" Steve screamed, immediately trying to change the subject, in hopes of sweeping any awkward energy under the rug. "What the hell was that?"

"Shut up!" The rest of the group snapped in unison.

Snarling from the other side of the door quickly gathered the group's attention . Each of the original three teenagers raised their weapons towards the door, trying to be as prepared for the worst case scenario as possible. With each passing second, the otherworldly screeching from the hallway faded. Eventually, it got so quiet out in the hallway that the only sound that could be heard was the terrified panting coming from the four teenagers.

"What's it doing," Nancy asked, abruptly.

"I don't know," Jonathan breathed. Owen's head tilted skyward, noticing that the lights were still flickering all around them. No matter how quiet it had gotten out there, the monster wasn't far. Jonathan glanced at the yo-yo signal he had set up, remembering this part of the plan. The yo-yo should have been pulled from off of the chair if the bear trap had been triggered. Strangely, it was still just as he had left it. Just as this realization hit, the yellow lights in Will's room stopped their flashing, casting the group in a warm glow.

"Do you hear anything," Nancy croaked, slowly turning towards Jonathan.

"No," he replied quietly, flipping his lighter shut. Jonathan took one for the team and stepped forward, slowly pulling the door open to peek his head out into the hall. Seeing the house shrouded in darkness, he took that as a sign of safety and stepped out of the bedroom. Timidly, the group followed behind him, bracing themselves and their weapons for any sort of encounter. Owen's gaze immediately focused on her bear trap, eyebrow quirking as it lay there, completely untouched.

"Where the hell did it go," Owen whispered in disbelief. Jonathan led the group back down the hallway from which they came, all of them creeping slowly. The full destruction of the living room came into sight as they came around the corner. A layer of drywall and wood was splayed out over the floor, surrounded by walls that were covered in shredded wallpaper. Not to mention the ceiling had an enormous hole punctured through it. A mess like that was going to take forever to clean up.

"This is crazy. This is crazy. This is crazy," Steve muttered to himself, sounding like he was in a total mental spiral. "This is crazy! This is crazy! This is crazy!" His hands swung animatedly in front of him before he dug them through the thick strands of his hair. Steve dove for the phone on the wall, likely struck with the horrible idea of calling the police.

"God, you think we haven't thought of that already? I mean, seriously, did you think that fighting this thing was fuckin' Plan A," Owen berated him, her head cocked tauntingly. It was like he didn't even hear her, as he continued to punch in a phone number. Nancy, on the other hand, had a more straight-forward approach to Steve's antics. She angrily marched over to him, grabbing the phone slinging it across the room.

"What are you do-... What are you doing? Are you insane," Steve scolded, one of his hands still reaching out for the now-useless phone.

"It's going to come back! So you need to leave," Nancy demanded, her eyebrows furrowed together menacingly. "Right now," she enunciated. The forcefulness in her tone had Steve grasping for words. His eyes darted around the room, settling on Jonathan and Owen's faces over Nancy's shoulder. He knew that he was scared shitless, but it felt wrong to just leave them alone with this thing whenever it came back.

"If you're not going to be helpful, then just get the hell out of here, Steve," Owen muttered, looking more exhausted than angry. He instantly recognized that look as the same one she had given him that day that he broke Jonathan's camera. He didn't know what that look was then, but he knew at that moment. It was this strange and awful look of... expected disappointment; as if she had anticipated him not living up to any expectations she may have had.

Steve didn't like the way that that look made him feel then and he certainly didn't like it now. His lips screwed into frown, feeling as though he had been pigeonholed into this good-for-nothing asshole role by Owen yet again. She had told him to prove that he wasn't an asshole that day at the movie theater, but he still had no clue how he could possibly prove something like that to her. Figuring he didn't have much time to solve that puzzle, he gave Nancy a cursory look before hurrying from the house.

Nancy, Jonathan, and Owen watched as he raced through the front door, making sure to slam it behind him. The gust of cold air from the open door had barely even dissipated through the room when the lights began blinking again. Owen could hear Nancy and Jonathan's breath leaving them in heavy puffs, their nerves returning tenfold.

"Where is it," Nancy trembled, spinning around in every direction.

"Come on. Come on, you son of a bitch," Jonathan muttered, provocatively. "You guys see anything?"

"No, where-" Nancy started, but couldn't finish due to her strained breathing. Owen's gaze was tearing across every inch of the room, looking for any sign of this thing showing back up.

"Come on. Where are you? Come on!" Jonathan was literally trying to taunt this thing out of its hiding place – a completely different tactic than they had originally started with. Much to the group's dismay, the flickering stopped and covered them in complete darkness. The only light they were working with were the small beams of moonlight that were peeking through the uncovered slivers of the house's windows.

Before one of the shivers could rack her spine, Owen's head whipped around to face Jonathan. Just over his shoulders, the moonlit outline of the monster loomed behind him, as if stalking his completely oblivious victim.

"Jonathan! Watch out!" Owen cried out. The abrupt sound caused the monster to rear back, letting out a spine-tingling screech before launching itself at Jonathan. The two fell to the ground, with the monster pinning Jonathan to the floor with one of its massive, clawed hands. Jonathan's bat rattled out of his reach, leaving him completely defenseless. Long strands of drool connected Jonathan and the monster as it crouched closer to his face and let out an elongated growl.

Nancy was belting out horrified screams of Jonathan's name from beside Owen, as the two girls stood clueless over what to do next. None of this had even been mentioned in the plan. So, what better time to deviate from one's designated role? Owen figured this was as good a time as any.

Don't just hit at it, hit through it. With her jaw clenched, Owen rushed forward and slammed the flat end of her crowbar into its side. The metal pierced through the monster's surprisingly thin skin before Owen yanked the tool back out. The monster released a pained, gurgling screech before rising to its full height again. Although it was Owen's intention to prevent this thing from literally eating Jonathan, she forgot that she would suddenly become its new target.

Even though Owen was taking rapid steps away from the monster, with its supernaturally long wingspan, it was easily able to swing at her. Its clawed hand swiftly connected with her torso, the perfect angle for throwing off her balance. The force of the hit sent Owen flying backwards into the Byers' dining room. But instead of landing in a compromised position like the monster may have intended, Owen met the floor as gracefully as she could. The hand that wasn't clutching a crowbar was pressed against the wood panels beneath her, balancing her. Her left knee was propped below her and her right foot was flattened to the ground, allowing for her to slide to a stop before hitting any of the furniture.

"What the fu-" Owen started, unsure of how she had even managed to fall like that.

"Go to hell! You son of a bitch!" Nancy's shouting, paired with the sound of gunshots had Owen's head darting up to check on everyone. Nancy had placed herself directly between Owen and the monster, shooting at it repetitively despite the bullets having no effect. The monster was moving eerily slow, only illuminated by the now-flashing Christmas lights overhead. Nancy recoiled but she kept firing bullets, before that dreaded clicking noise replaced the sound of gunshots.

"Oh fuck..." Owen breathed, eyes widening at the lack of bullets in the gun's chamber. Clearly irritated now, the monster's face widened into that tooth-covered, star shape and let out a garbled shriek. Before Owen could even get up from her place on the floor, another fighter emerged, landing a hit across the monster's head with the nail-studded bat.

"Steve?" Nancy gasped. After a second, Owen was finally able to focus amidst the flashing colorful lights. She almost couldn't believe her eyes. Steve had come back and was single-handedly facing off with the monster. With a grunt, Steve landed another hit against its chest, causing the monster to release a guttural roar that practically shook the foundations of the small house. Without another thought, Owen heaved herself onto her feet again and scrambled towards Steve and the monster.

"Behind you," she called out to Steve, before swinging the curved end of her crowbar and swiping a hit against the monster's thigh. Using all of her body weight, she pulled the crowbar back towards her, effectively digging a chunk of meat from the monster's leg. The unexpected attack had it stumbling backwards down the hallway, headed right where they needed it.

"Get it into the bear trap," Owen directed, earning an understanding nod from Steve. She stepped back towards the living room, giving him room to swing the bat as far back as he needed. In true Steve fashion, though, he managed a playful, borderline annoying little twirl of the bat before smacking it right in the stomach. This final hit sent the monster staggering right into the bear trap, which roughly closed around its ankle.

"It's in the trap! It's in!" Owen called out, feeling oddly proud that her idea actually worked. The monster tried to shake itself free from the chains, but to no avail.

"Jonathan, now!" Nancy shouted, prompting him to step forward and flip his lighter open. Without even thinking twice, the flame was tossed onto the floor in front of the trapped monster. Due to the amount of gasoline Nancy had doused the place with earlier, the hallway went up in flames almost instantly. The monster screeched and howled as the fire engulfed it, the intense brightness and heat causing the group to flinch away.

Before the flames could claim the rest of the house, Jonathan remembered the fire extinguisher that Nancy had taken from the police station. He dashed back into the living room to grab it.

"Get back!" Jonathan grunted before sending the white tendrils of powder billowing into the hallway. It didn't take long for the fire to go out, sending the room into darkness yet again. The group's heavy panting, paired with the clouds of smoke and powder filling the room, was not a good combination. The four teenagers coughed wildly, arms swinging to try and clear the air.

All of the house's lights returning back to normal had Owen letting out a frustrated groan. "You've gotta be kidding me," she muttered, a hand waving towards the bear trap. She couldn't even bring herself to look at it a second longer, a sleeved arm coming up to wipe the cold sweat from her forehead as she panted. The rest of the group slowly stepped closer to the trap while Owen slumped against the wall behind her.

"Where did it go?" Nancy murmured in a raspy tone, coughing into her fist again.

"It has to be dead. It has to be," Jonathan shook his head, not wanting to believe what he was seeing. The monster should have been in a burnt heap on the floor. The four of them should have been celebrating their victory over this son of a bitch. But nothing is ever that easy anymore, is it? Clearly not. Because instead, all they were left with was a patch of singed carpet and an empty fucking bear trap.