Chapter Text
There was a split second where Hawthorne still hadn’t felt the effects of River’s powers hit him yet. But the moment it kicked in, he felt like he had a splitting headache. He wasn’t used to it, of course. Before now, he’d never had to handle the kind of powers his sister had. And with the chaos going on around them, he could hear everyone’s thoughts hitting him constantly. He couldn’t even pick anything out of the noise, which made it worse.
Hawthorne tried as hard as he could to block it out and drag River away to safety. By now, they were out of fireworks and had nothing else to defend themselves. Save for Hawthorne, though he knew he’d only be able to do so much when he couldn’t totally control these new powers right off the bat. His main concern, though, was keeping River safe now that she was unconscious. It was overwhelming, especially with El in trouble.
From a safer spot on the upper level, close enough to everyone else if they needed help, he could see Billy hunched over El. Something was clearly happening, and he knew better than to interfere, but he kept an eye on them just in case Billy tried anything.
Any attack the Mind Flayer threw at them, he fended off the best he could. While he had a decent idea of River's powers, he still wasn't quite sure how she could handle them so well. But he was slowly getting the hang of it. Admittedly, if you took away the telepathy part, he was enjoying this. For once, he was actually being of some use and not totally wanting to run away. Something about it gave Hawthorne just enough confidence to keep up the defense. With no other plans and their firework supply depleted, he had to be brave long enough in the hopes that El might be okay. And since he could tell El was using her powers to try breaking Billy from his possession, he thought interfering might be a bad move.
To his amazement, though, Billy stood, seemingly snapping out of whatever hold the Mind Flayer had on him. Not far from them, Max and Mike came running in. Hawthorne was relieved to see them. In the chaos, they hadn’t had time to look for them, so it saved him some stress. He spotted a few injuries on both of them, but they weren’t dead, and that might as well be a win for them.
Hawthorne handed River over to Steve as he rushed over to the rail, watching as Billy fended off the Mind Flayer. That was the last thing he’d expected to see tonight, but he supposed stranger things had happened. Though Hawthorne hated Billy, he was relieved to see that El was fine and out of harm’s way because of him. That was all that really mattered to him.
Even from the other side of the room, it was easy to sense Max’s distress as it became clear Billy wasn’t making it out of this alive. The Mind Flayer had him caught as he took one final hit straight to the chest. Knowing River would be safe here with Steve and Robin, he raced down to the lower level of the mall. He ran as quick as he could, and he could already hear Max’s thoughts. They were a mix of concern, confusion, grief, and anger. He wasn’t even sure she knew what she was feeling.
The Mind Flayer collapsed as Hawthorne reached Max, who collapsed in El’s arms. He knelt down and pulled them both close so they wouldn’t have to see Billy’s lifeless body splayed on the floor. Both girls were sobbing messes, but he didn’t mind at all. They’d been through so much, and they deserved to let it out.
He only tried to get them standing when a hoard of soldiers charged in, hurrying them outside to safety. Outside, it was raining, and the fluorescent lights of the Starcourt sign painted the asphalt with bright pinks and blues. Hawthorne tried to focus on small details like that to keep himself grounded. He was a little better at drowning out the thoughts of everyone around him enough to keep his head from pounding.
Ambulances and firetrucks waited outside. They were given medical attention while the soldiers and Dr. Owens did a sweep of the building. Hawthorne wasn’t too badly injured, all things considered. Only drained and ready for a nap. He wiped at the blood dripping from his nose as a paramedic looked him over.
It was hard to think he’d made it through another world-ending catastrophe when he’d been so convinced the first time was pure luck. Maybe he had it in him after all. Hawthorne kept an eye out for Joyce and Hopper, hoping they both made it out just fine. Clearly they’d been able to close the gate if the Mind Flayer had gone down, but there was still worry lingering in the back of his mind. Anything could have happened to them after closing it.
Once Hawthorne was patched up, he went to check on El. He knew she’d probably been the most physically and mentally taxed of them all. But she seemed okay. As okay as she could be, anyways.
Thankfully, Hawthorne spotted Joyce coming out of Starcourt. She was greeted by Will rushing over to hug her. Though she seemed relieved to see her son, something was wrong. Even without River’s powers, he could sense it. For just a moment, he let down the mental walls he’d put up in the hopes of figuring out what was troubling her. He mostly caught glimpses of images, probably her memories as she recalled what happened in the base, but he got the gist. Hawthorne wished he hadn’t looked because his anxiety took over the moment he realized what was wrong.
Hopper was gone.
All the hope he had of everything going back to normal was instantly crushed. Grief settled in, like he’d been punched in the gut. Which might have been preferable to this. This was so much worse.
Hawthorne caught Joyce’s gaze for a second, and she gave him an apologetic look. One that made his heart ache and twist. In that one look, he could tell she was just as grief-stricken as him.
It wasn’t long before River came to, and his hold on her powers finally gave. She had them back, and it felt like a weight was lifted from his shoulders. How she controlled that much power was beyond him. For once, though, he was glad he didn’t have to deal with that everyday.
Steve was sitting with River in an ambulance, a shock blanket wrapped around them as she was getting her arm set in a sling for now. Though she was clearly still in pain, she looked relieved to be outside. Though he didn’t want to ruin that, Hawthorne knew he had to tell her about Hopper. Someone had to.
Hawthorne tried not to let his grief show as he walked over. River’s arm was a bit swollen, but it looked better than he thought it would. “How’s your arm doing?” he asked.
“Not too bad,” she said. “Could be a lot worse.”
He wasn’t sure if it was because she had her powers back or if she just knew him that well, but her brows furrowed, and she seemed to sense something was off. She looked him over, probably checking for injuries, before finally asking, “What happened?”
Hawthorne opened his mouth to speak, but it took him a few tries before he could say anything. He was worried about how horribly she was likely to take it.
“Hopper didn’t come back,” he finally said. As he expected, River’s entire demeanor shifted drastically. Before, she’d at least appeared to have some hope, but now that was gone.
“What do you mean?” He was sure she knew the answer, but he’d expected her denial.
“He’s gone. Joyce came back, Murray came back, but no Hopper.” It felt way too real the more he had to say it.
River finally seemed to be processing the weight of the reality. Tears welled up in her eyes, and his heart sunk. Hawthorne hated to see her like this, but he knew he’d done the right thing by telling her. She curled up into Steve’s side, and he took that as his cue to let her be.
Despite the loss tonight brought, everyone else was intact physically, if not mentally. Hawthorne let Rex out of Jonathan’s car. The poor dog mostly seemed shaken by all the noise and people, but he was otherwise okay. Naturally, though, his instinct seemed to be checking on River, because he found her rather quickly. Noticing her saddened state, Rex hopped up with some help and curled up next to River. Hawthorne knew she needed the comfort, so he let Rex stay with her. Tonight felt like the longest night of his life.
Joyce let Hawthorne stay at the Byers house for the night since the rest of the kids were staying. Besides, River took Rex and went with Steve, and he wouldn’t be able to sleep in the cabin alone. He’d never sleep if he did. And he was sure El shared the same sentiment. Being around their friends might be for the best.
Nancy even stayed, which he’d been hoping for honestly. He was glad to see her and Jonathan were doing better. It gave him some peace of mind among everything else that was going horribly wrong in his life.
The kids were working out sleeping arrangements, though they all seemed content to sleep in a pile to keep each other close and comforted. Hawthorne would have been fine taking the couch for himself, but Jonathan insisted he join him and Nancy in his room. It was probably for the best. He was a tall guy, and curling up on the couch wouldn’t have been comfortable.
Jonathan’s bed was big enough for the three of them when they piled together. Hawthorne had Nancy laying on his chest and his arm wrapped around Jonathan as he held him close. He felt much better being able to hold them. It grounded him, and he knew they were safe now.
Surprisingly, Nancy was the first to pass out, though neither of them blamed her. That left Hawthorne and Jonathan, who tried to keep their voices low for her sake.
“How are you feeling?” Jonathan asked, looking up at him with concern in his eyes.
Hawthorne didn’t want to lie to him. He felt awful. “Tired,” he answered. “But I don’t think I’ll be getting much sleep after this.” He didn’t think he really could when his mind kept drifting back to what he’d seen from Joyce.
“That’s okay. You lost your dad today. I don’t think anyone will blame you for feeling like shit for a while.” Coming from Jonathan, it was oddly reassuring. He always had a way of making Hawthorne feel like the world wasn’t totally against him.
Though he didn’t feel his best, it was enough for him knowing that he had both of them to help him through his grief. He kissed Jonathan’s forehead and relaxed for now. Even from here, Hawthorne could just make out the kids hushed voices, clearly unable to sleep just as much as him. It comforted him knowing he wasn’t alone. Especially once Jonathan fell asleep, his breath becoming even and tension leaving his body.
He wasn’t sure how long he was awake, but the silence, interrupted only by the occasional whisper from the kids, was starting to lull him to sleep. Though he wasn’t sure he wanted to sleep, not knowing what might await him in his dreams, Hawthorne felt himself giving in. He deserved some rest after such a long night. Tomorrow, he could worry about everything else. Even when he finally fell asleep, his protective grasp on Nancy and Jonathan didn’t loosen.