KETCHUP AND MUSTARD
MEET
BATMAN AND ROBIN !

☀︎

STEVE HAD DROPPED THE THREE OFF AT THE HENDERSONS BEFORE DRIVING HIMSELF HOME ALL ALONE. Alex had made quick excuses to Dustin to give them the space she had needed to talk with Robin all alone. Entering into her room, Alex quickly shut her door and locked it behind her while Robin had slowly observed her room in curiosity. It was very much Alex Henderson, Robin had thought. It was an organized mess with pictures of her friends pinned up around her room and her bed left unmade.

Taking off her jacket, she had failed to notice through her observation that Alex had seemed frantic as she tossed clothes onto the bed for the two to change into. "Don't change yet," Alex had instructed as she threw another article of clothing over her shoulder from her closet. "Keep your jacket on too because... well, we're leaving and..."
Turning around she had spotted Robin with her jacket in hand and gave a small frown.

Coming out of her closet, she had taken a seat at her desk with a heavy sigh. Telling Robin the gist of every traumatic event that had happened to her and her group of friends, she knew there would be no going back. Robin was the type of person to dive in more for the adventure than the terrors that could possibly come with. Looking up to her, Alex gave a sad smile. "Do you really want me to ruin your life?"

"I think your dingus boyfriend all ready did," Robin chuckled.

"Somehow what I'm going to tell you is way worse than working with Steve. I just need you to trust me which might be easy because we somehow managed to rope you into hunting down evil Russians with us..."

Pulling back on her jacket, Robin just wanted the story to be told. "Just spit it out, Henderson."

"You know Hawkins Lab, right? So they were super weird and opened a portal to another dimension, we call it the Upside Down but that's beside the point. That place has these weird monsters and, so, you know, no big deal, but I went to that creepy place and met a monster."

"Did you shake its hand?" Robin laughed. "Come on, this is stupid. I'll translate Russian and crack codes but..."

"This thing put a baby monster in me and I threw it up," Alex admitted loudly over Robin's disbelief in her story. "And it gave me this weird connection to this bigger thing that sort of runs that alternate dimension. Only me and another person saw it and it talked to me." Standing up, Alex had grabbed onto Robin's arms, holding on tight as she met her eyes. "Robin, I swear to god, I'll kick your ass if you tell anyone what I'm telling you. This shit ruined my life, and I'm unfortunately ruining yours now. And I'm telling you this because I trust you, and I trust you to not even tell Steve this last part. But I felt it."

Robin remained quiet as she tried to remove herself from Alex's grip. "Felt what exactly?"

"That thing that talked to me. It didn't actually speak to me this time but... but I felt him. Like he was..." Alex felt a chill down her spine as she dropped her arms down from Robins. Shaking her head, she managed a small laugh. "I shouldn't even be saying this. It's crazy. It's supposed to be dead."

Robins emotions that were once confusion and concern had soon mixed with fear as she saw how truly scared Alex had looked. Her demeanor changed as she made her way over to the window, lifting it open. Robin had decided her two best options were to either run, or to be there for someone she just really felt she was becoming friends with. The strangest part of it all was she wasn't all that concerned with sounding just as crazy believing it, instead she felt compelled to be there and join in. "Then how do we stop it if it is back? I'm pretty sure even Harringont in those shorts won't even scare it off."

Alex turned back over to Robin as the corners of her lips had twitched down. "You actually believe me?"

"No," Robin admitted. "But I do know that there's Russians in Hawkins so anything could be possible. And it would explain why you've always been a little weird. I just gotta know if this is why we're leaving."

"I need to find Will. If he's feeling what I am, then these Russians are the least of my concern," Alex explained. The thought of the men they had seen with guns strapped to them and the suspicious boxes they delivered to Starcourt were going to be nothing compared to what Alex had in mind, she had felt a shudder of fear course through her. For some reason, that compelled her even further.

Heading towards the window, Robin looked out at the pouring rain and gave a small sigh. Working with Steve Harrington was not supposed to lead her to chasing down a kid she didn't even know in the pouring rain. Still, she had put one leg through the window and looked over to Alex. "This isn't some prank? Harrington's not going to still be parked out front, getting ready to laugh at me?"

"Yeah, Robin, I birthed a demon slug from my mouth and almost gave myself up to a monster living in my head just so I could prank you," she shot back sarcastically. "This is real shit. I wouldn't tell anyone if I had the choice, but I love you now and I'm forcing you to be my friend. And if any of this crap tries to hurt you, I'll throw myself in front of it. So, no, it's not a stupid prank."

Robin looked to her for a moment as she felt the pit in her stomach vanish. All because Alex had said she loved her. She wasn't always so easy to get along with and often was just a passing face to those in Hawkins, and now she had a new friend that was willing to die for her. And she wanted to return that favor. Pulling her other leg through the window, Robin had hopped back out into the rain.

Surprisingly smiling to herself, Alex had followed after, landing on the soft, wet grass. The bottoms of her shoes squished in the mud as they two had raced around the house to find Alex's bike. Pulling it out, she climbed onto her seat and turned to find Robin staring at her in disbelief. "Don't you have a car?"

"There's my moms car, but I'm awful at driving. Don't worry, I'm great on my bike."

A huff of air had escaped Robin's lips as she got onto the back pegs of Alex's bike. Though her words were convincing enough to get her to hop on, she still had her doubts. "I swear if you crash us..."

"I won't," Alex interrupted with a scoff. "Trust me." Pushing off, Alex had began to ride her bike, this time making sure she was fully aware of her surroundings. Of all the times she had crashed, this was the most important time to stay steady. However, the pouring rain was just another distraction for Alex to deal with. Robin's nervous wobble as she dug her nails into Alex's shoulders for a tighter grip had Alex turned her head, losing sight of everything in front of her.

Robin had called out a warning to keep her eyes forward, but it was far too late. As Alex had spun her head back around, she was greeted face to face with a garbage can left on the side of the road. Thinking quick, Robin had jumped off the pegs, stumbling back a few steps as Alex had fallen off to the side and onto the wet pavement.

"That was an accident," Alex stated quickly as she regathered herself to her feet. "I promise I won't crash anymore." Leaning over, Alex picked up her bike and wiped the rain off of her face. Looking down at her hand she had spotted red before it had washed away in the rain. Dropping her bike back down to the ground, she touched under her nose, pulling her hand back to watch again as the rain washed the blood from her finger tips.

Moving quick, she had used the sleeve of her jacket to wipe the rest of the blood away and picked up her bike. "All right, let's go," Alex said, motioning for Robin to climb back on.

Hesitantly, Robin had put her trust into Alex once again. Had it been anyone else, she most likely would have found herself trudging through the rain, all the way back home, never to risk herself getting into a bike accident again. But this was Alex Henderson and for some odd reason, Robin felt there was no better person to trust than her. She was open and honest about things that could have easily been laughed at and taken as a joke, and she enjoyed Robin's company just as Robin enjoyed hers.

Pulling back off into the middle of the street, Alex made sure to keep focus. Ending this night with only a bloody nose would be a success in her eyes. And with Robin hitching a ride on the back of her bike, she felt she owed it to her after one crash to keep her head on straight for a moment.

The two had continued their ride to the Byers when they had spotted two people in raincoats standing on the curb as they spoke to one another. The sight of the red and yellow raincoats had Alex divert her plans for the time being. Picking up the pace, she had raced her bike towards Max and El just as they were about to hop on Max's bike.

When they had came to a stop, Robin jumped off, waiting to see what exactly Alex had in mind for this trip in the rain.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Max question suspiciously over the rain. She knew she had a reason for her to be out in this weather, and it was one she did not want Alex getting too involved in. In fact, she had wanted her in the dark as much as possible.

"We're going to Jonathan's," Alex said. Just as Max had in mind for her own plans, Alex had wanted to be as vague as possible. One thing Alex knew about Max was that she didn't really care to hear about whenever Alex hung out with Jonathan. She didn't really know him much out of the whole group and if Alex was with him, it meant she wasn't spending time with her.

Looking over to Robin, both Max and El looked her up and down. Already Max had liked Robin from what she's seen at Scoops Ahoy. All the comments and faces Robin had made at Steve always caused her to crack a smile. "And who are you?"

"Oh, this is Robin. Robin, this is Max and El," Alex introduced. "She knows a bit about all our stuff."

"Something about Alex gave birth through her mouth..."

Turning over to Robin, Alex had flashed her a dangerous smile. "That's all you picked up on?" Earning a simple nod from her, Alex returned that nod and looked back to Max and El with a forced, lip-tight smile. "She's the Robin to my Batman, but that might change if she brings that up again."

"Noted," Robin chimed in.

Hearing the thunder rumbling from above and the lightening crack through the sky, Alex had been reminded of how awful the weather truly was. "Why the hell are you two out here? You should go home. It's raining and you could get sick. Not to mention..."

"Blah, blah, blah," Max mocked in interruption. "Steve's turning you into a mom now."

"Yeah, Alex. Blah, blah, blah," El said, earning a grin from Max. Pointing a finger at the two, Alex was at a loss for words.

"Yeah, yeah. We get it. We're going home. We better see you tomorrow though... You too, Robin," Max said as they climbed back onto her bike. Letting her hand drop back down to her side, Alex let out a sigh.

"They seem cool," Robin shrugged. "So you're friends with children too?"

"Shut up," Alex scoffed. Placing her hands onto her handles, Alex was prepared to head back into the night when a chill had came over her. Even with the cold rain pounding on her back, nothing compared to how she felt in this moment. The goosebumps began to hurt from the cold, causing her to get off her bike and let it fall to the ground. Her chest had grown tight as a panic had began to settle over her.

Robin had watched as Alex looked down the street with her hand holding the back on her neck. Her eyes had grown wide as she searched through the pouring rain for the lingering shadow that had loomed over her all this time. That haunting feeling never did go away and tonight it had only gotten worse. She had been so focused on her hovering fears that not even Robin's questions of worry could break through to her.

Then the house they had stood in front of had called to her. Dropping her hand down, Alex tunneled in on the Holloway house. Standing at the window was Billy Hargrove with a grin to his face that began to grow unsettling.

Making her way to the front door, Robin trailing behind with many questions, Alex marched her way up just as the front door pulled open. "Hey, Alex," he greeted with a coldness lingering to his voice. "What brings you here?"

She was quiet, her lips parted as she searched for why she had been there. All he could do was smile and all she felt was her blood run cold with her eyes trained on him. "Why are you here?"

He chuckled as he hung his head. "You caught me," he said as he looked up to her. "I'm on a date. Thought I would take your advice and stop seeing Mrs. Wheeler. She's not my type after all."

"Maybe we should go, Alex..." Robin said softly, trying to lightly pull on her to leave.

Billy's eyes never lingered away from Alex's as he looked to her. "Why don't you two come in and have dinner with us until the rain stops? It would be a real treat to have someone like you join us, Alex." A smile twitched on his lips, "It would really mean a lot to me."

"No, uh, I actually have somewhere to be," Alex explained nervously. There was an uncomfortable shift in how he had once been the other day compared to tonight. "Are you okay?"

"Is there any reason I shouldn't be?" He laughed as he leaned his arm against the door, staring her down with a grin. "God, Alex, all you do is worry about me lately. Don't you have a boyfriend to worry about?"

Her brows had furrowed together as the chill on the back of her neck continued to creep. "You have to tell me if something happened to you. This doesn't feel right... and this isn't... Billy, you have to promise me if anything happened..."

His smile had faded and that cold stare had turned around. Pulling himself up off the door, he had fought for himself against a being so dark and dangerous. "You should go, Henderson," Billy stated plainly as he pulled his eyes off of her. "Don't you have somewhere to be?"

"Billy," she began gently, but he had backed away from the doorway.

"You need to leave," he instructed. "I'm fine. If anything happens, I'll call you. I have a date to get back to." Shutting the door, he had left her with nothing, or so she had felt. However, when that door had shut behind him, he had given up his fight to keep her away. He had seen enough through the memories of the monster in the sky that he saw no other option but to keep her away from the mess he could no longer hold control of. He was alone and he felt he deserved that and much worse.

Outside in the rain, Alex had gave a kick to the Holloway's front door. "Damn him," she cursed before looking to Robin. "Was that weird to you?"

"You both were weird," she admitted. She had known there must have been something much more to Alex's questioning of Billy Hargrove and excepted that weirdness was not an awkward conversation between two teenagers attempting to be friends after everything, but instead much deeper. "What was that all about?"

"I just had this feeling..." Alex said as her hand traveled to the back of her neck. "Maybe it's all the rain and crashing the bike." Her mind had raced but to Alex, all she ever did was search for everything to fall apart. Just because she felt her life slipping away did not always mean the world around her would fall just the same. "Let's get out of here," she frowned. "I can take you home if you want. I'm really sorry for dragging you out here in the rain."

"No, no," Robin said quickly. "Don't you have another kid you wanted to check up on? I'll go with you to make sure you don't accidentally kill yourself riding a bike." Walking beside one another back to the bike, Robin had leaned down and picked it up. "Just tell me where to go and don't get lost."

"You don't have to ride my bike," Alex said sadly. "I'm not gonna make you come out in the rain and then drag me around Hawkins just because I have a weird feeling."

"Shut it, Henderson. Climb aboard." Robin had truly given her no other option as she had taken control of the bike. Defeated, Alex had held onto Robin's shoulders as she stood on the back pegs, calling out directions from the Holloway house to the Byers.

Not as fast as Alex, but a lot safer, Robin had managed to navigate her way through the pouring rain, occasionally wiping clear her face until the Byers house had came into view. Halfway up the driveway, Alex didn't wait until Robin had came to a stop as she jumped off, nearly tripping herself over as she raced to the front door, her feet splashing in the mud with every step.

Her fist collided against the door, calling out the names of the Byers and gotten no response in return. As Robin made her way up onto the porch, Alex had moved over to the window to peek into the dark and lifeless house. "Did we just come all this way for nothing?" Robin asked curiously, giving a look inside as well.

Ready to give it up for the night now that the two were freezing and soaked to the bone, Alex took a step back with a huff of air. "Son of a bitch," she scoffed.

"Shut up," Robin instructed, her eyes looking off into the distance. When Alex had opened her mouth to sass her back, Robin raised a finger to her lips. "I hear something," she whispered.

It had taken Alex a second to hear the thud of a bat to know exactly where the noise could be coming from. Moving passed Robin, Alex had taken off to head behind the Byers house, letting the mud splash up her calves, ruining her white socks until she saw Castle Byers.

Broken down and left nearly lifeless in the dark, cold weather, Castle Byers had laid to ruin just the same as Will's childhood. He kneeled down in front of Castle Byers, the rain masking his tears that fell down his cheeks, audibly crying as he destroyed the place he knew he felt safest.

Not caring of the mess that would come of her skin, Alex fell to her knees against the mud as she immediately threw her arms around him. He didn't even think much of it as his hand had wrapped around her arm, clutching it against him as he allowed himself to have someone be there as his life had passed him before he was ready to grow.

"He's back," Will sobbed, burying his head into her shoulder. Everything around him— his friends, his brother, everything— changed, yet he had found himself in a timeless state that the Mind Flayer had engulfed him in. However, he was certain he was never going to be alone. There was no other reason Alex could have been there and if she was, then he knew his ideas could only be coming true.

Rather than speak, Alex had pulled him into her, unable to cry, all she could was close her eyes. Everything around her could keep moving, continue on, and she knew she was forever stuck. Nothing she could do would let her move from this cold, endless nightmare she had fallen into. The Mind Flayer was back and the summer was going to change rapidly. No more poolside babysitting and ice cream at Scoops Ahoy because even if they were there, her fears and paranoia will stay with the Mind Flayer.