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Chapter Text

“I can’t believe that you're dragging me through the fae territory right now Marsh!” Richie exclaimed, wiping the raindrops that fell onto his skin as his red headed friend pulled him forward , tripping on the muddy road every once in a while .

“Shut up Richie , and it was your idea, you dipshit!” Beverly hissed back , bringing her hand up from where a small flame shone in the dark , leading the way for the two mages .

“You know what ? I’ve heard that they eat people, do you think they’ll eat us if we get caught ?Either way I would taste delicious-”

Richie continued to ramble as the two made their way through the dark , unfriendly woods . The map of Derry in Richie’s hands would have already soaked through if it wasn't for the heat from Beverly’s hands which kept it dry . The map was old , yellow and dirty , with lines and circles going all around it, marking each clans’ territory all over Derry . You could clearly see the witches’ territory and the vampire territory up in the north and the deep woods that lined the fae and werewolf territory in the south of Derry .

“You know , I’m still mad that we weren't let in , I mean we’re part of the community , especially you ! I mean you're a fucking pyrokinetic witch ! Side note , where's your fri-” , Richie continued on, only to be abruptly stopped by a hand to his mouth and the darkness suddenly enveloping him from all the sides . Before he could scream Beverly’s big , blue eyes were right in front of him , one of her still glowing, a finger pressed to her lips . She quickly tore the map away from him , hiding in it in her coat as she gestured to the clearing in front of them . Slowly the two made their way from the muddy texture of the soil onto the rigid rock of the cliff above the infamous quarry . Beverly’s eyes were narrowed , her eyebrows netted together and her eyes dancing around the surroundings all the time .

For the eyes of a simple human the quarry was just a regular place where treenagers went to make out get away from the adults. You know , live a little . To adults it was basically unknown , buried so deep in the Derry woods that none of them really bothered to ever go there . But to the extraordinary community of Derry , the quarry was a great deal of importance . Whilst the fae resided there and the werewolves had their annual new moon parties , the northerners never showed up there hence why Richie and Beverly were both most likely to be skinned alive if someone unfriendly saw them there .

But as well as a great bonding place, the quarry was a grave . 3 deaths as of the start of the month exactly have had the bodies show up in the dark waters of the quarry. First was a werewolf boy , his breath stinking of verbena . Second was one of the fae , drenched in silver from head to toe and last but chillingly not least was one of their own .

Betty Ripson , your average “girl next door” type that would bring you brownies (not the good ones if you know what i mean) and sometimes come to collect herbs for her spells and hexes , not able to hurt a soul , was found in the quarry; her body burned only so that her birthmark could determine who she was . Quite obviously suspicions circled from one group of supernaturals to another , slowly but surely ruining already quite unstable relationship between the supernatural communities .

As the two witches looked down into the dark waters of the quarry , their figures hooded by the shadows of the tall trees, a chill went down Richie’s body , as he noticed something swaying in the calm waters . The two mages looked at each other , worry and fear evident in their eyes as Richie nodded towards the narrow path that led down from the cliff they stood on , to the waters . Carefully the two made their way down to the water , stepping carefully over boulders as they walked down the narrow road .
A rustle disturbed the quiet of the dark ,making Richie’s ears perk up at the sound and Beverly’s hands start to glow again . Both stopped, throwing quick, serious glances to one another , as Richie pulled his huge glasses closer to his eyes , ready to concentrate on anything he had around him which he could flunk at the enemy .

The rustling continued , getting louder second by second making the two friends stop completely , edging towards each other until the pint where they were back to back .Like in those spy movies Richie likes so much . Beverly’s hands glowed and Richie could already feel his own nervous energy charge the things around him . Another second and two hooded figures emerged from the other side of the woods , making both witches whip around to face the potential enemy , their strolls elegant and quiet , different from the previous loud steps .

In no time Beverly’s right hand went ablaze , as she held it in front of Richie and her , like a barrier .

The hooded figures stopped before one of them lifted their hood .

A sigh of relief escapade from Beverly’s lips as she lowered her glowing hand , making her way to the boy in front of her .

“What the hell are you two doing here ?” , she asked , fiddling with the rose quarts bracelet on her hand .

As Richie came closer to the two figures , he too released a sigh of relief before throwing the two vampires in front of him a questionable look .

“I c-can s-say the same thing about y-you B-Bev” Bill Denbrough uttered , looking around , his voice nothing but a whisper in the night . His perfect spot-less skin shone dully in the pale moonlight as another vampire, Mike Hanlon lifted his hood , coming up to Richie and Bev , giving the girl a hug .

“There was another murder” Beverly said quietly as she pulled back from the hug , looking at the two vampires . It was impossible not to notice just how rigid Bill’s body went at the sound of murder as his eyes widened . And Richie was quick to pick up on that , but before the Trashmouth could speak up Mike interrupted his though process.
“ Wait how do you know ?”he asked throwing a worried glance at Bill .

“Wait something happened didn't it ?” Richie retorted, taking a step forward ;towards Big Bill .

Bill’s eyes scanned the surroundings as he sighed deeply ,looking down at his dirty converse .

“G-Georgie is m-missing” he finally answered , his voice hitching at the mention of his little brother .

You could easily argue that all vampires were in a way a big , bloodsucking family . But it was quite different with the Denbrough brothers . Richie never bothered to ask for Bill’s real age since they weren't that close of friends but he knew enough about his family to know how much Georgie meant to the boy . Georgie was his baby brother that the vampire Denbrough family adopted after the small vampire boy was brought by the head vampire to the night children’s headquarters . Ever since Bill took full responsibility of the boy. And if that was one thing that Richie was sure about it , it was that Bill Denbrough would kill anyone or anything for Georgie.

Meanwhile , Beverly’s eyes went wide as she edged towards her friend grabbing his hands .

“What happened?” ,she asked carefully , as Bill continued to look down at the ground . Mike and Richie exchanged worried glances as both continued to observe the picture unfolding in front of them.

“I l-let h-him g-go for a w-walk w-with t-this g-girl S-Sadie , she didn't mind s-supervising h-him a-and n-neither came back. Last p-person who s-saw them s-said they w-were h-heading h-here”

Bill cursed in between his words as his stutter worsened with each passing second , indicating the boy’s nervousness . Mike’s hand was on Bill’s shoulder in a second ( literally ) tugging onto his friend’s hoodie .

“Shit” Richie said ,throwing an unintentional glance at the water that was below them . Gladly only making Mike shift his eyes to the figure in the water , the boy’s jaw tightening .

Mike was gorgeous . With his dark skin and thoughtful eyes , his brain full of history and wiseness beyond his age .

Although could you really apply that to a fucking vampire ? Richie wondered as the four stood in the heavy silence .

“So who told you?” Mike asked again , shifting his eyes that shone a bit red in the night to Bev.

The red head threw a doubtful glance at Richie before turning back to the two vampires , her mouth opening to tell them , something Richie presumed would be a lie .

But she never got to say what she was planning to say , as a melodic voice interrupted the tense mood .

“I did” said the voice from somewhere above, making the four look up to stare at two boys that sat on a tree branch .

The taller one smirked as he caught Richie’s confused gaze , before he intentionally moved some of his curtly hair to the side exposing his pointy ears .

Richie’s heart seemed to stop for a second as he threw a shocked glance at his red headed companion .

“ Fucking hell Beverly , don't tell me that’s your friend” Richie said quietly , as she only raised one of her perfect eyebrows at him , one eye still focused on the two boys on the tree .Richie didn't know why he was still getting surprised by Beverly .

Of course she had people on the fae side . How did he not think about that ?

And then just like a bird , the taller boy leaped from the branch landing gracefully onto the ground in front of the four . The other boy squeaked , as his friend landed , his hand gripping onto the tree.

As curly head stood up ,he patted his khaki shorts rolling his eyes in irritation realizing his companion wasn't by his side . He whipped around to look up at the tree .

“C’mon Eddie come down!” he shouted at the boy as the other looked at him as if he asked him to kill somebody .

“Are you mad , Stanley !?Do you know the probability of me breaking my hand or leg or god forbid falling onto my spine and fracturing a vertebrae and staying paralyzed for the rest of my life is? Nah-ah I'm going down the old way”

The small boy ranted on as Stanley rolled his eyes , turning back to look at the others whilst the smaller boy gripped onto the tree trunk and started to carefully move down , stepping onto each branch; his red shorts riding up just enough to make Richie smirk , and wink at the boy as he caught his glance , making the other trip and almost fall onto the hard ground .

“Hey Stan”
“Hey Marsh”

The two exchanged pleasantries as the small boy made his way to his friend . His hair was ruffled and some twigs seemed to be stuck in his hair . He had a pink polo shirt on with some red shorts which Richie mentioned before . He was short in comparison to everybody else , except for Bev whom he was taller than . His big brown eyes looked over the group in front of him up as his eyes paused at the sight of Richie .

Richie made his was to the boy extending his hand for a handshake . The boy’s eyes fell to Richie’s hand , skepticism obviously painted on his face ; yet he still took it . Making Richie tug on his arm to bring the boy a bit closer to him , close enough to see his pointy ears show through his messy hair .

Richie flashed a smile as the boy’s eyes went wide and he let go , looking at his friend .

“Oh my God ! What the hell Stan , they're witches and those ? Those are vampires ! Are you insane if we get caught-” he angry whispered to his friend, suddenly very weary of his surroundings .

“Who are these people , Stan ?” he said finally , putting his hand on his friend’s shoulder and making him turn with a flick of his wrist. Super strength , a common fae ability .
“I’m Beverly Marsh”, Bev stepped in , a small but nervous smile tugging on her lips . Eddie threw a questionable look at Stan , the two having their own little conversation in their heads .

“Eddie , Eddie Kaspbrak” he finally said , extending his hand to Beverly who took it giving the boy’s hand a firm tug .

“I see you brought back up” Stanley pointed out , his tone nonchalant , as he looked at the two vampires that stayed silent for the past minutes .

“We’re not back up’’ Bill stepped up , leadership evident in his tone as he stood at the same height as the fae boy .

“What the hell are two vamps doing here then?” Eddie asked, his hands on his chest .

“We’re looking for somebody” Mike answered , earning a nod from Eddie who stepped forwards to look at the water .

“Maybe you've already found it” Eddie said , looking into the quarry . The rest of the little group came up behind him facing to look into the waters. The moonlight shone onto the dark waters of the quarry as a small body swayed in the water . Neither clothes nor hair could be made out in the shadow of the moon but it was obvious now .It was a small body , a child’s body, maybe a teen’s. Bill’s breath hitched in his throat next to Richie and the next second the boy was pushing him out of the way making his way down the little path at lightning speed , the others on his heels .

As they all came down to the waters edge Richie could see Bill’s body jump into the water , fully clothed as the group made their way to the edge of the rocks that stood by the water .

And then a figure moved somewhere next to Richie , in the bushes right next to him and Mike's .At lightening speed , Mike’s hand shot up grabbed somebody by the hand before Richie could even react . The group’s attention suddenly snapped from Bill’s moving body to a boy who's hand Mike had a grip on . Mike pulled him closer into the light , making the boy drop The book he had in his hands onto the rocky ground . Bev’s hand immediately went ablaze as she shone the light onto the boy’s face . He was chubby and very obviously sacred . Richie was about to say that he was was probably just a human ,before he looked down at the boy’s wrist where a werewolf mark in the shape of a crescent moon , was carefully placed on his skin . He was a changed werewolf , Richie noted . The crescent moon indicating that he didn't inherit his werewolf abilities .

The boy’s eyes went wide as he tore his hand away from Mike , falling to the ground to pick up his book.

“What are you doing here ?” Beverly asked as she leaned down to help the boy pick up his notebook. As she looked at the werewolf , the boy’s face went red making Richie roll his brown eyes , and sigh with exasperation.

Fucking hell Bev , thought .

“I know what you're thinking” he said , eyeing the group as he clenched the book to his chest . His voice was serious , his eyebrows netted together .

“If you know what we’re thinking answer her.”

Richie’s words rung in the cold air as he stood closer to his friend , his hands crossed at his chest.

The boy looked around rolling his head over his shoulders , the vertebrae fixing themselves into place .

“I was sitting on our territory” he pointed out , looking straight at the two fae in their group “ and this group , the Bowers gang , they walked by , not noticing me obviously and they were talking about a murder” he continued , the name of “Bowers Gang” earning a shudder from everybody in the group. “So at first , I thought they were talking about the witch girl they found last week” he whispered , looking a Beverly who's flame slightly jumped at the mention of the girl “ but then they said something about ‘new’ and ‘vamp’ so i figured another one happened . I rushed here as soon as i could , I’ve had this theory for ages , somebody or something is killing these kids , I means it cant be a coincidence .”
His voice was full of frustration as his hand went up into the air , almost dropping the book again. The boy's eyes scanned the eyes of the 5 suspicious teenagers in front of him as his mouth made an “o” shape .
“I didn't do it guys” he finally finished , looking back at the group and then shifting his gaze to the water .

“He isn't lying”

All heads suddenly turned towards Eddie , Richie’s eyes catching the boy’s stern but exhausted gaze on him .

“How do you know?” Richie asked , eyeing the boy up and down .

“Because Stan’s hand has been on his shoulder all this time” a voice answered for him , as the group once again whipped around to face the drenched Bill , who was carrying a small body from the water .

Indeed as Richie glanced at Stan , the fae’s hand went off chubby boy’s shoulders as the latter looked at him in shock . It was common knowledge that the fae used their own inability to tell a lie as a weapon to seek out truth in the others .

Mike was immediately by Bill’s side as the drenched vampire lowered a cloth covered body onto the rocky floor.

Without having to even say anything , Richie’s hand went out , making the leaves shuffle as dry branches flew from the woods and fell onto the ground besides the group . Immediately Beverly’s hand was submerged in the branches catching the twigs on fire , lighting up the space .

It occurred to Richie that even thought Bill was head to toe covered in water the boy didn't seem to be cold until he remembered that the night children didn't ever feel cold .

As all seven lowered themselves onto the rocky floor , the air around them seamed to tighten in a way , oxygen supply suddenly shorter as all looked at one another .

Bev’s shaky hand went up to grey cloth , that was wrapped around the obviously dead body . Her eyes locked with Richie’s as he reached his own hand to hold her other hand , her palm still warm whether it be from starting another fire seconds ago or from being nervous .

As the group exchanged glances between one another , she squeezed Richie’s hand as she took a deep breath , quickly dragging the cloth from the body .

Eddie who sat on his knees next to Richie , stumbled back , a terrified squeak escaping from his lips , whilst the others stared at the body of a teen in front of them.

A stake was stuck in the middle of the body , their big green eyes wide open , pure terror .

“Sadie” Bill uttered as he stared at the body of the girl in front of him . The girl that was with Georgie when he went missing . The girl nobody even thought of looking for .

Her lifeless blond hair , sprawled itself on the rocks as her lifeless body laid on the ground .

“Holy shit” Richie uttered as Beverly carefully turned the girl’s hand around .

The words “you’ll float too” were smeared with presumably her own blood onto the hand , finger marks left on her hand .

A shocked “fuck” escaped the chubby boy’s lips as they all looked between one another ,a silent question hanging over Bill’s head .

“If that's Sadie-”Mike started , uttering something the three others that knew what he was talking about were afraid to say .

“Where’s Georgie?” Bill ended for him , turning all of the group’s attention form the dead girl in front of them to him . His voice cold and lifeless .

“Who’s Georgie?” Eddie asked , softly , as he edged himself towards the vampire , glancing at Richie and Stan before returning his attention to Bill .

“My brother”

“Son of a bitch"

Chapter Text

“What the hell do we do now?”

That seemed to be the question that kept on coming up in Mike’s life a lot rather recently , especially judging by the past few hours . Without another word , the group dumped the body of the young girl back into the quarry her blood , immediately painting the water a light shade of red making Mike swallow hard before turning his gaze away from the scene to Bill , who unlike him , focused on the already rotting corpse , his eyebrows furrowed .

The most unlikely company stood at the mouth of the water , as the body of the dead vampire girl floated further and further away . As much as people liked to believe Mike wasn't the biggest fan of dead people, and that's coming from a dead guy . Unlike many vampires that resided up in the north-east of Derry , Mike wasn't too keen on the crimson liquid that kept him existing . Yes ,existing ,not living. Unlike many Mike didn't go out on midnight hunts for drunk folks or the homeless to feed a little .

It was the young witch , Beverly Marsh if he recalled correctly , who called all of the attention to herself as she settled down next to the bloodied cloth , tearing a piece of it off and stuffing it inside her pocket before setting the cloth aflame . Mike found it peculiar that for a being a creature who was easily killed by fire , she could control it . It was common knowledge that witches burned like dry wood , just like vampires perished from the good old stake to the heart . They locked eyes, Mike trying to find some answers as he stared into her clear blue eyes . He wasn't planning to read her mind , he never did without permission but something told him that even if he tried he would never get past whatever walls she had up in her mind . But she knew what he was thinking without having to read his mind as the corner of her mouth went up , shinning some light in the dark and solemn atmosphere and she shrugged her shoulders a little as if to say “ i don't know how i do it ?”, before she lifted herself off the ground and her gaze left Mike’s eyes .

“So what do we do now ?” , a small voice asked and once again the group was facing the small Fae boy who stood on the side . His face ever so serious but his hands visibly fidgeting with the hem of his red shorts .

“I mean” he started panting “ that's what ? Fourth body in the past month?” , the boy’s heart beat went up as the werewolf next to Mike flinched at they loud sound of Eddie’s thundering heart “and so what now ? What if somebody saw us , what if the killer saw us , what if-‘

“Holy Hecate would you shut up for a second !?”

The loud voice belonged to none other as well known “trashmouth’’ of the north side , Richie Tozier . The boy was known for his sharp tongue and his weird abilities who unlike his red haired friend didn't hide them whatsoever . Richie always got into trouble with all kinds of authority both the magical committee as well as the vampire clan thanks to his little tricks .

Eddie threw the boy a long , annoyed glance as Stan , the other fae placed his long fingers onto Eddie’s shoulder . The small boy’s exhale was shaky but he seemed to relax under his friend’s hand as he rubbed his eyes , suddenly reminding Mike of an old man living his exhausting life through a young boy’s body . Perhaps he was ; fae were immortal after all .

“ How about , we all move out of the place where anybody can see us for starters?” the werewolf reminded everybody , pointing to how stupidly they all stood right in the clear .

“ What's your name again ?” Richie asked him , his glasses reflecting the fading moonlight .

The chubby boy seemed to be startled by such a simple question before he regained himself , clearing his throat as if he was about to give the group some sort of speech but instead all he said was his name . Ben Hanscom , better known as the “ new kid “ he pointed out , an annoyed expression lining his face as he said it , earning a soft chuckle from Beverly .

“ So what do you have in mind ?” Stan asked , his long arms crossed at his chest as he stepped closer to the werewolf boy . Unlike his sheepish but equally very angry companion ,Stan was the most passive beings Mike has ever met , and he has known Stan for an exact measure of 14 minutes and a half . Fae were known to be a bit more thoughtful and quite passive aggressive , so in other words Stanley was they perfect definition of a fae boy. Once again Mike wondered if Stan was just as hundred old fae warrior trapped inside a body of a boy , on the other hand a hundred old warrior would never involve himself in the stupidity they got themselves into .

“ Um , so there's a cabin not too far from here , we could … um … discuss whatever that was ”

Ben gestured to the floating body and the group , his face a bit aghast as he looked around at the group of strangers before him.

Mike’s eyes locked themselves with Bill’s thoughtful ones as the other vampire slightly nodded at him , indicating that they should go on . It was obvious why both the witches standing on Mike’s left and him and Bill would be more weary of this situation . They were arguably on ‘enemy’ ground which meant that if they were found , serious consequences could follow as well as accusations of murder and none of them wanted that .

Beverly and Richie seemed to be having a soundless conversation as the boy had his hand on her shoulder as the two looked at each other . Mike could only wonder what they were possibly discussing but they were discussing something for sure .

Mike’s gaze moved onto the fae who seemed to be unfazed by the proposition judging by the fact that they were basically on their own territory and then slowly he examined the werewolf boy . Despite their differences he pitied the boy . He was a new wolf , as suggested by his crescent moon mark and on top of that, unlike him and others the boy didn't have anybody to back him up in the hard situation they were all in , so Mike did what he did best . He gave Ben an encouraging smile , toothless , just so that the guy wouldn't freak out , although he doubted he would . Ben Hanscom was a tough one , that was obvious.

“Look , I don’t want to burst your beautiful silent conversation right there , but sun is coming up and I don’t think that our vampire friends are gonna appreciate the sunlight too much”

Stan’s stern but sarcastic voice felt like a bucket of cold water , poured onto Mike . With slight panic both Bill and Mike looked up at the night sky only to notice the slight hues of light that lingered on the horizon .

Well shit , Mike thought as he and Bill instinctively moved further into the darkness of the woods.
In contrast to contrary belief the night children didn't go up in flames in the sunlight and in fact could walk around in sunlight in the early hours of the morning . The only problem was the midday, which was slowly but surely approaching . Although sunlight didn't kill , it certainly drained the power out of them, leaving every night child completely vulnerable. So yes , Mike wasn't the biggest fan of sunlight .

Richie adjusted his glasses , his eyes flicking to Bill and to Beverly .

“Well in that case , lead the way Haystack”

——————————————————————————————————-

Richie’s awfully cheery voice lingered in Mike’s ears as they made their way through the forest . The lanky boy went on about something random as him and Beverly , marched together through the woods . The two fae boys , stayed close to one another but didn't talk , Eddie rolling his eyes at comments Richie would make whilst Stan looked over the group , his gaze full of skepticism and something else , something Mike couldn't quite put his finger on .

Mike walked side by side with the werewolf boy . Regardless of their differences that have put werewolves and vampires neck to neck for centuries neither of the boys seemed to mind each other's silent company as Ben carefully lead the group through the woods towards the cabin he mentioned .

Mike kinda felt bad for the boy . He was the only one out of their unlikely group who didn't have somebody he cloud to rely on , so Mike stayed with him . Bill was walking at a close distance to Mike , staying in his area of vision at all times , but every singe fiber of Mike’s body told him not to bother Bill . Bill who was one of the best people he has ever met , sulked as the emotions on his face changed from worry ,to anger ,to fear , but as much as he wanted to give his friend a hug , Mike knew that it was better to just leave him alone for the time being .

Richie’s loud voice once again boomed through the quiet forest , echoing off the trees and sending bird to scatter , their cries still audible. Eddie whipped around , stopping to hit Richie in the arm, muttering something about “you witches just want to get us all killed” under his breath before returning to Stan’s side , like a loyal puppy .

“ How far is it Ben?” Beverly asked , as she ran up to get ahead of all of them , her hands on Ben’s shoulders all of a sudden as her eyes bored into his .

The boy stopped , as some blush crept up his neck , making a smilie tug onto Mike’s lips .

“Um , we’re almost there” Ben finally answered , mesmerized by the girl before him . She smiled , shaking something off his shoulder before stepping back to walk to Richie who chuckled at Ben’s response making kissy faces at her . She playfully slapped her friend as Stan rolled his eyes , although Mike could still see that the fae boy found the situation quite amusing , judging by little flames dancing in his eyes .

It only took them to walk a few more yards before they reached a small house . It was clearly abandoned , floorboards ripped out and mold lining the front steps .

“That's it”

Ben gestured to it , as he opened the door , the floor boards creaking under him .

“Oh hell no, I’m not going in there” Eddie started , as he gagged at the sight of the dust that lined the windows .

“Germaphobe much ?’’ Richie teased as the boy run his finger on the outside glass of the window. His finger trailed down as he curled up to draw something that soon turned out to be a dick . Beverly rolled her eyes pushing forward through all of them to enter the house after Ben , her hand motioning Richie forwards.

“You’re such a child , you know that right ?” Eddie huffed as he made a face of disgust at Richie’s now , dirty fingers . The lanky boy only smirked , rubbing his fingers against his jeans .

“That's not what your mum thought about me last night” retorted, his eyebrows moving up and down playfully , as he rushed after his friend , his laugh echoing all around them once again .Eddie shouted after the tall boy , his feet coming up the stairs , eager to enter the house and scold the young mage for his inappropriate jokes . Stan smiled , shaking his head at his friend as his eyes locked with Bill’s and Bill’s gaze softened .
The three boys looked between themselves , as Mike searched Bill’s worried gaze for answers and Stan’s eyes for any kind of trick that the boy could have under his sleeve .

“Shall we ?” Mike asked , flashing his famous smile . His teeth glistened in the few rays of sunshine that made their way through the leaves and the branches of the woods .

Bill chuckled , as he moved towards Mike , his shoulders sulking . Already at the steps Bill looked back at Stan , his hand outstretched towards the fae boy .
Some would think that this was just your regular act of kindness which wasn’t something rare for Bill , but you would be mistaken . The fair folk were never on good terms with particularly anybody , which obviously included both the vampires and even more strongly the witch kind . So as Bill stretched out his hand , Stan stopped in his tracks , his eyes wide with surprise before they returned to their usual skepticism . Bill was offering a peace treaty of some sort , just a small gesture of trust that he put in his supposed enemy. And that itself was something not anybody were willing to do . After what seemed like years Stan’s pale hand reached for Bill’s and grasped it , the two boys locking eyes .

Maybe it was stupid to think so , but Mike turned away either way . The moment felt intimate in a strange way so Mike stepped closer towards the door and made his way inside , Bill and Stan right behind him .

———————————————————————————————————————————-

“We should have hid the body”

Stan let out a shaky breath as he pressed his body against the cold stone of the fireplace which was currently the only source of light save for the dust covered windows . The group all sat or stood around the room . Richie and her settled down on the rather clean carpet , their backs against the sofa as Richie’s long fingers reached reached for the warm fire that burned in the fireplace . She didn't remember the last time she has used her powers as much as she had today . First she shone their way through the forest , then she set the bloody cloth on fire and made two fires , all in a span of just few hours. Beverly sighed , as she slid her hand over the bridge of her nose , closing her eyes for a second . Her hands were still warm as she felt Richie’s reassuring squeeze .

Mike and Ben and Bill , all settled down on the small couch that stood in the living room of the broken down cabin . Whilst the old rocking chair was occupied by Eddie who brought his feet up to the chair, placing them under himself and hugging his knees .

“ And do what with it , Stanley?”

Eddie’s voice was lined with irritation as he glanced up at his friend lacing his fingers together and squeezing his knees just a little .

“ Well our pyromaniac could’ve blasted it up into flames , for example !” Stan exclaimed , throwing his hand up in the air .

“ Leave her alone , noodle head!” Richie , exclaimed , his grip on her hand tightening as he frowned at Stan .

“Drop it Rich”

He faltered , as her voice rung in his head , whilst her lips stayed closed . It was a sort of hex they have used ever since they were little kids , communicating between each other at all times . It went illegal a few years ago after an incident that made a young witch go mad , but Bev and Richie never broke their bond , and continued to do the hex in secret . It was the first scar she got on her body , but it was one she actually cherished . The others… to put it in a slightly less traumatizing way , were uncalled for .

“ N-no” Bill muttered , from his place on the sofa . Beverly whipped her hand around , to face the boy . She had known Bill for quite a while now . They've met years ago when she found him after the Bowers Gang beat him up . She and Richie patched him up , even though he swore that he’d be alright . Which was technically true , but Beverly couldn't stand the blood that the boy’s body was practically soaked in . After that they've hung out a few times, mainly at social events or on days like today . When they got in trouble .

His face was pale and his eyebrows seemed to freeze in a constant furrowed expression . She could almost see the cogs turning in his head as she searched his face for answers . But he didn't want to meet anybody’s eyes as his gaze burned a whole in the wooden floor under their feet .

“ L-look I knew t-that g-girl” he stated, his breath hitching as he rubbed his eyes “ a-and she w-would n-never leave G-Georgie , she w-was one of t-the best” , he took a deep breath which startled Bev for a minute , considering the fact that Bill was well , dead .

“ W-whoever i-is doing t-this , h-has G-Georgie and I'm finding m-my brother” he stuttered out , glancing up at the group in front of him . His eyes filled with determination .

Mike’s hand landed on Bill’s shoulder as Beverly stood up to come up to the boy .

She felt the eye of the group trace her footsteps as she made her way towards where Bill sat , she lowered herself onto her knees , her legs trembling a bit from fatigue of the day .

His eyes met hers as she smiled sadly at her friend , taking his cold hands into her burning ones . Many were immediately reminded that Bill was practically dead when they touched his marble cold skin , but Beverly never thought that way . To her Bill Denbrough was one of the most alive people there were . He might have not breathed or maybe his heart didn't beat , and maybe she didn't know why it didn't beat but what Bev did know , was that he was better than so many living assholes that walked the earth .

She squeezed his hands in hers , as he stared into her blue eyes . She tried to channel as much reassurance as she could as she squeezed his hands tighter . She could feel the remains of her power flooding into him as the scar on her back tingled reminding her of the hex . Another one she loved having . She tried to channel every feeling of hope she'd ever felt , like every time she was with Richie or her first kiss or the time she and Richie went swimming in the quarry when they were obviously not allowed .

She wasn't putting her thoughts into his head or messing with his feeling , because that was something she would never do to someone . Instead she made sure that he knew how she felt , she wanted to make sure he knew that she would be by his side in this .

“ Thanks Bev “ Bill said quietly , moving his hands out of hers . A sad smile tugging on his features .

“ I just wanted you to know , that we’re all in this together now . We’ll find him Bill” she whispered , but it was loud enough for everybody to hear her in the quiet of the room .

“ And I would like to point out that when I say , I mean all of us!” ,she said , louder this time as she turned around to face the other guys . Even thought she was the only girl in this room , she didn't let herself get intimidated by the amounts of testosterone around her, ‘cause Beverly Marsh didn't take anybody’s shit.

Richie chuckled , nodding at Bill , a lazy smile on his face .

“ Everything for Big Bill”

“ Of course !” Mike exclaimed , giving Bill’s shoulder a tug . Earning a soft smile from the vampire boy .

“ I mean I've known you for two hours , but I'll help” Ben shrugged , smiling at Bill and Beverly , making the girl , blush a little as she turned her gaze to the last two members of their little club .

“ Stan” Eddie started , looking at his friend “ we have to” he said , standing up from his seat and making his way to Bill .

“ Go spaghetti !” Richie whooped , as Eddie flipped him off .

“ Our word isn't enough” Stan said sternly as he made his way to the group . His eyes locked with hers and Richie’s as he raised an eyebrow at the two witches.

Richie’s eyes went wide under his coke-bottle glasses as he let out a shaky laugh .

“ You're fucking insane noodle head” Richie chuckled , shaking his head .

Richie’s eyes locked with hers as he raised his eyebrows at her. No mind conversation was required as she shrugged.

“ Wait are you suggesting-?” Eddie started , horrified at his friend’s idea .

“ A blood oath , yes” Stan replied , not letting the boy finish his thought .
Everybody looked around at each other , mixed feelings in each other's eyes .

“ He's right” Mike said bitterly , as he raised the cuff of his shirt to expose his entire arm .
“ I agree” Ben backed up .

“ I mean , lets think realistically . What were the odds that we all met? As well as that I think we've all noticed that some of us are northerners and others are from here . It's natural that we don't trust each other right away. So I agree with Stan and Mike , it's the next logical thing” Ben stated, looking around at the group as Beverly considered his words .

Next to her Richie sighed , as he lifted his palm up .
“ Alright you've convinced me” he exclaimed , winking at Stan as Beverly chuckled at her best friend’s behavior.

“ So are we all doing it then ?” she questioned as she took her left palm out of her sweater where she hid her hands for a while now .

As her gaze went around the room she was met by silent but determined answers as the boys stared back at her . Until her eyes met Eddie’s . The boy’s anxiety lined his features as his eyes danced around they room before his and Beverly’s met . She didn't know much about Eddie but all she could tell was that he wasn't quite the fae she had in mind as Stan described . Eddie was an interesting one and she couldn't help but notice her over excited best friend's attempts at flirting with the boy . Richie was helpless so help him Hecate . She always thought it was weird that the fae and the witch kind never got along . All of the children's book had fae as the main antagonists but right now she would never in a billion years believe that these two guys in front of her would steal her presents if she was naughty . So she smiled sweetly at Eddie , as she pulled up her palm to show him an abundance of scars . Scars that healed perfectly , and were never infected . Eddie’s gaze shifted to his own palm as he stood up to walk towards her , his palm outstretched.

“ Fine “ he muttered , as Beverly and Richie exchanged a glance before getting to work .

Candles lit up the room as the group stood in a neat circle , each looking at one another .

“ Now Bill “ she stared , “ Say what we’re swearing to . You go first , and slice your palm , then go on with us” she told him , as the boy furrowed his brows and nodded at her.

“ W-we s-swear that w-we’ll f-find G-Georgie Denbrough , and w-we’ll b-bring justice to those of that h-have f-fallen” he stated , as the group looked around at one another . Finished with his little speech , Bill glanced at her as she handed him the knife she always carried around with her . Her initials carved into the wooden hilt of the knife .

Bill took it the hilt trembling against his palm as once against , surprisingly he took a deep breath . She could only guess it calmed the boy down . A look of sudden determination lined his features as he plunged the knife deep into his palm , wincing only a little at the feeling. His blood was a much darker red than that of a living person and so was Mike's as he went around cutting everybody’s palms . She didn't know how he could resist the blood on their hands , but she could see that he was holding himself back with all his might . As he came up to her last , she gave him her hand , her gaze fixed in his as if making sure he didn't pay attention to all the blood that leaked onto the floor forming red puddles . Her eye flinched only a little at the sharp pain but she was used to it , hence the scars from the burns on her hands . Every witch had to get used to it one way or another .
He looked at her , as if to ask what he was supposed to do next but she just grabbed his hand , pulling him back into a circle as she held onto Ben’s hand next to her . She and Richie locked eyes , as he slowly nodded at her .

“ What the hell did we get ourselves into, Marsh ?” rung the tired voice in her head as another scar on her other palm ached .

“ Shut up and concentrate Trashmouth” she retorted , closing her eyes letting the power that the blood bond entailed rush through her veins . It hit you it different ways . For some it was as if a lightning bolt hit you , for others it felt like a tidal wave closing in on you or the feeling of your breath being knocked out of your lungs as you fell . So she felt it immediately , as the earth seemed to tremble under her feet although she knew she was the only one feeling it . The hands around her own tightened the grasp as Ben gasped and Bill’s finger gave a nervous twitch . It was a feeling of being completely overwhelmed as she let out a shaky breath , the earth still trembling under her feet . And then in a matter of mere seconds the world was back to normal .

They all opened their eyes , letting go off each other's hands only to notice scars in a shape of neat crescent moons visible on their skin. Some stared in awe whilst her and Richie exchanged a knowing smile as they all looked up at each other .

“ Did you feel it?” Eddie asked quietly , his brown eye wide open and his hands shaking just a little.

Everyone nodded still feeling a bit dazed from whatever experience they've had .

“I guess that's it” Richie wondered out loud , as the group’s attention shifted to him .

Bill shrugged , as the two boys looked at each other . A look of newfound hope and sudden determination in Bill’s eyes . He stood straight , his gaze unfaltering as he nodded his head at everyone .

“Guess that's it”

Chapter Text

“I cannot believe that out of all , I was put with you! I mean when's the last time you've washed your hair ?”

The familiar woods around , calmed him just a little as Eddie and Richie Tozier made their way through the woods , all the way from where the North Side and South Side met , on the kissing bridge .

Eddie couldn't be more weary of his companion . He’s heard things about witches , about what they did or could do . He remembered the stories his mother told him ,about people burning them alive for their sins , for things they did . But looking back at his life , right now he doubted every single word his mother ever said to him about anyone was true. After all Bill didn't seem like a “soulless , blood thirsty killer” but rather in Eddie’s eyes he was just a boy , scared for the fate of his brother .

“You know Marsh , she wanted us all to interact more . I’m pretty sure you're aware that my kind and your kind don't really like each other”

Richie’s voice seemed distant , although it never really lost it’s undertone sarcasm no matter how distracted the boy was by the green surroundings as he marched behind Eddie .

Richie was right though , throughout the whole entire history of this god forsaken town , the fae never really got along with the witches . The distrust was rooted somewhere very deep , beginning from the times when Derry wasn’t even a thing , maybe even when USA wasn’t a thing . The witches and the fae raged wars against each other , as the fire mages burned down Fae woods and fae set those exact fire mages on fire . Ironic , in Eddie’s opinion . Even now in relative peace , no fae would hesitate to kill a witch is they saw one . Eddie guessed that no water under the bridge could wash away centuries of blood spilled onto Derry grounds .

But it wasn’t just them. Fae is general weren't the friendliest out of the lot , but in Eddie’s eyes it was better that way. Fae were practical and bringing people , whom you've raged wars against didn't seem like a logical decision to the fae kind . And still , they didn't despise the werewolves that much , no matter how many times called them dirty dogs . They never bothered them and never went against the fae , so they let them stay and occupy the east of the Southern territory of Derry .

“Duck!”

Suddenly Richie’s hand was on Eddie’s shoulder pushing him down to the ground . A squeal of terror started to build up inside Eddie as Richie’s warm ( and fucking sweaty) hand clasped over his mouth .
In no time the two boys were buried deep in some bush , body against body . Richie’s hot breath sending shivers down Eddie’s neck as the taller boy’s body pressed him closer to the ground . Both of their hearts beating like crazy .

Richie’s eyes were focused on something ahead of him . Sweat showed on his forehead as Eddie nudged him a little to catch the four eye’s attention . Richie shuddered looking down at Eddie , as if he forgot the smaller boy was still there , practically pinned under him .Eddie’s eyebrows rose in annoyance as Richie quickly removed his palm from Eddie’s mouth , a blush starting to creep up the taller boy’s neck .
Eddie’s hand shot up to wipe his mouth as Richie’s warm body moved off of Eddie , making room inside the bush , for the smaller boy to see .

In case you were wondering , the two were the first ones on the infamous wood patrol that Ben “Haystack” as Richie would call him ( chuckling at his own joke like an idiot ) had suggested as the group parted their ways the day before , brand new scars on their palms . And it was Eddie’s job to lead himself and Richie back to the place where they found the body , the day before , to look around for any clues as other groups did their parts .

As Eddie’s hand moved away a branch , he had a clear view of the water, bare meters away from him where a group of men gathered around the dead body . As much as Eddie hated to admit the girl looked even more dead than she was when the seven found her . Her skin was a sickish blue colour as her hair sprawled onto the rocky wood , looking like a mop . Her eyes were rolled back , only the white was seen as one of the men kneeled to have a closer look at the girl . Her body seems to already start decomposing away . Even the stake that was still stuck in her body looked like a part of it broke off . The men and now a woman joining them rolled over the body bringing it closer to Richie’s and Eddie’s hiding spot . The woman muttered something , pushing back her hair and turning to face the bushes where the two boys hid . Eddie immediately recognized her as one of the heads of the Fae Official Council or FOC for short . She was a tall woman with bright red hair . She wore an abundance of jewelry , including huge , flashy earrings showing off just how wealthy she was . Eddie’s eyes trailed over the rest of the group , a man with glasses was whispering something to her as she lowered herself to the body .

Eddie’s breath hitched as she turned over the hand where the seven found the writing , but the hand was clean , no trail of blood left on it . He could hear a soft “shit” behind him as Richie pressed himself closer to Eddie , his steady heartbeat calming Eddie just a little .
This boy knew exactly what he was doing as Eddie felt his cheeks get red. He could almost see the shift eating grin that probably lined his face .

They looked over the group for a while , the muscles in Eddie’s body aching for staying in the same position for too long . He couldn't even imagine how the taller boy must have felt if Eddie was highly uncomfortable . The group didn't talk much , only occasional pointing out of the obvious and whispers between each other at such a low level , even Eddie’s sensitive ears couldn't catch them , no matter how hard he tried .

“Well , whats the verdict ?” , the council asked looking at the man whom Eddie recognized as Mr Bowers , one of the werewolf authorities . He was the father of Henry Bowers, the biggest asshole in the whole town . The boy would kill animals for fun and do things much worse than that too. But if he had to be honest , in this case the apple didn't fall far from the tree . Mr Bowers was a big ass himself but everybody feared him and his cruelty, so he stayed out of trouble . Pretended to be some kind of supernatural cop of some sort . A fucking dick , just like his son.

“It’s hard for me to say it” the man started , his voice quite obviously over dramatic as he turned away from the read headed woman towards the bush , a wicked smile tugging on his lips .
“…but the markings . It looks like the work of a witch” he finally stated , looking back at the woman , hits stare alarmingly serious .

She didn't seem surprised as she sighed , throwing the body an uninterested look .
“They’re back at it ,those dirty children of Hecate” she said , her words dripping with venom as she rolled her eyes .

“Should we file?” Mr. Bowers asked , a weird sense of curiosity and unmasked hope in his words .
She chuckled , giving him a piteous look .

“Look Bowers , you and I both know war is going to break out . It breaks out every 27 years . This place is cursed , I advise you take your son and get out of here before all hell breaks loose”

Her tone seemed amused , which unnerved Eddie . I mean , the woman was talking about murder, even of her own people . Eddie’s possible death !

“Dirty children of Hecate !I showered this morning!” , a whisper reached Eddie’s ears as Richie huffed in annoyance .

“But why run?” Bowers suddenly asked , catching her hand as she turned back to leave the crime scene .

“Why not just kill them all off , let It kill them” he whispered quietly , a glimmer that of a madman in his clouded eyes . Eddie’s breath hitched again as Richie tensed behind him .

“It wont be commanded by us, and you know it Bowers” she replied , her stare serious , yet her eyes seemed to sadden at the thought of “it’’ not being in her domain of command .

“Oh I have a plan , all we need is more of those kids” Bowers finished off , a wicked grin spreading over his face . Richie gasped as Eddie suddenly felt queasy at the thought , a cough escaping his mouth as he gagged .

“We’re not alone Bowers” the council pointed out , her eyes moving slowly to the bushes where the boys hid .

“Eddie” Richie’s voice was low , as he whispered Eddie’s name alarmingly into his pointy ears.
“Hide your ears” he said , before grabbing Eddie’s hand , turning the boy’s face away from all the adults and leaping from their hiding place , making their way down the only road that wasn't blocked by the seven adults . Further and further into the woods .

Cries and shouts erupted behind them as the two boys ran for their lives , stumbling over roots and broken branches once in a while . Eddie’s lungs burned as Richie's hand dragged him , once in a while looking back at the smaller boy , worry in his eyes .

They ran for a mile straight ,but the screams and running didn't seem to stop as Eddie’s breath hitched and he felt like his lungs were gonna rip , his head spinning . And then his legs seemed to give out as he landed onto the hard ground , his head hitting a root of the tree as he screamed .

Richie stopped , running back to Eddie , pulling the boy up as 5 adults showed up from the horizon . Some moving at incredible speeds whilst others huffed and puffed behind them.

“Go Richie , go!” Eddie screamed at the witch ,his voice breaking as he coughed .

What the actual fuck was he doing ? Why was he trying to get his mortal enemy out of potential death ?

“Yea like the fuck I will” Richie muttered , as he stood in front of Eddie , his body shielding the Fae boy .

He closed his eyes , as the people neared them , the boy’s energy charging everything around them as he lifted his left hand up .

Eddie’s eyes went wide as the tree he tripped over slowly rose off the ground , its roots breaking as nature screamed at the top of it's lungs to put the tree back . Eddie ignored the screams ,too mesmerized by what Richie was doing . Energy ran all around him, as Richie’s black curls lifted themselves up into the air moving in a way along with the tree. In no time the huge oak tree hung silently in the air as Eddie nervously looked back at the men running towards them .

And then Richie dropped the tree , it trunk hitting the floor as the roots immediately started to bury themselves into the ground , blocking the path , high enough to not let any being jump over it easily .

Without a second glance Richie wiped the sweat off of his brow , turning around , grabbing Eddie from under his knees placing the boy’s feet onto the ground .

“You good , man ?” Richie asked ,concern in his eyes as he looked Eddie up and down .
Still not over the boy’s stunt he nodded fast , letting Richie drag him through the unfamiliar part of the forest .

————

They finally slowed down after another 15 intense minutes of running, Eddie gasping for air , and Richie crumbling to the ground breathing heavily. After all the guy practically moved a fucking tree and then dragged him through the forest . The screams of their followers stopped right after they reached Richie’s tree , their curses audible from miles and miles away ,as the two boys wielded their way through the woods , trying not to make obvious tracks . Something Eddie suggested .

They now slumped by the stream of cold water , as Richie crumbled in front of it washing his tired face.

Slowly , in exhaustion Eddie lowered himself onto the ground next to Richie. Cringing a little at the touch of the wet soil on his knees .

“thank you” he breathed out , as Richie’s hands stopped . The boy’s not so dirty face whipping around to look at Eddie . His freckles stood out in the afternoon sun as Richie’s brown eyes bored into Eddie’s similar ones . Little flames of amusement dancing in them.

“No problem, Eds” he chucked , winking at Eddie before splashing the fae boy with the water making Eddie gasp and stumble back .

“That’s not my name you asshole!” He screeched , moving back to the stream his palm barely hovering over water , creating a small wave ; hitting Richie square in the face with it .

“Hey that's not fair , Eds!’’ Richie screamed his face pulled into a fake-shocked expression as his long arms moved towards Eddie , pushing the boy straight into the shallow stream , launching himself right after that .

“I’m gonna kill you!” Eddie screeched , his hand suddenly on Richie’s face , which turned out to be shockingly close to his own , making the smaller boy blush and bite his lower lip .

Richie laughed , pinching Eddie’s cheek as the sun light of mid afternoon crept through the leaves a cascade of ray bunnies landing on Richie’s curls and face ,making the boy glow a little .

Eddie’s heart gave a twitch as he suddenly turned away from Richie’s suddenly very attractive face as the world around them seemed to quiet down . The leaves didn't rustle as much as Eddie glanced back at Richie , both of them sitting in freezing cold water staring at each other as if for the first time . Richie was the first to break eye contact , his head moving down , his dark lashes shimmering in the light . A blush crept up Richie’s face as his long fingers brushed Eddie’s hand under water ; a sudden jolt making Eddie jump a little . Richie’s blush spread even more as he quickly locked his fingers , placing them on his lap . His eyes were wide and embarrassed .

“Oh my Hecate , sorry Eds . It only shocks when I’m nervous” he muttered , looking away again as the current washed over them once again .

“Why are you nervous Rich?” , he asked quietly as Richie’s eyes looked back at him . But Eddie never got the answer , as Richie’s eyes widened in horror and the boy jumped to his feet , moving towards something behind Eddie .

“Shit , shit , shit” Richie muttered as Eddie made his way in his soaked clothes , behind Richie.
What the hell just happened? ran through Eddie’s mind as he came behind Richie , trying to peak over the taller boy’s shoulder as the latter turned around to see him , his face even paler than it usually was .

Before Eddie could even ask , a piece of yellow material was handed to him as Richie’s eyes ran back and forth , suddenly deep in thought .

Hesitantly Eddie took the cloth , his concerned eyes moving from Richie to the piece of clothing in his hands .

A little gasp escaped his lips as he looked at the little yellow raincoat that he held in his hands , the name “Georgie Denbrough” embroidered on the sleeve .

————————————————————————————————————-

“Why are you wearing a hat indoors ?” Bill Denbrough asked curiously as Stan lowered himself soundlessly onto a chair next to him and Mike Hanlon .
The three were on library duty whilst Eddie and Richie (ugh that witch ) went looking around for clues on the dead body they found . The two others seemed to be going around talking to people , but frankly Stan didn't care much .

He still thought that the blood oath was a good idea despite knowing that it really wasn’t. But either way he was now stuck on the north side of the town two vampires by his side whilst his head was boiling inside the beany which he stole from Eddie . All to cover his bloody ears .

“Did you find anything?” Stan responded , not bothering to answer Bill’s question as Mike helpfully gestured to his own ears making the other boy nod .

“Just bits of things on the history” Mike pointed out , flipping through the album in his hands; the words “History of Derry” standing out on the cover of the album .

Stan had to admit that as much as he was supposed to hate everyone and everything that came off the north side he couldn't bring himself to hate either of boys . So far they seemed to prove themselves to be complete opposites of what you would expect of your typical vampire from children’s story books . They didn't seem to want to rip his throat out or lure him into their cave and feed on his blood before giving his bones to their pet bats . Stan knew that that was obvious bullshit but still he expected a bit more… snark ,maybe even some evil gleams but both boys seemed to prove him wrong with each passing second .

Bill Denbrough was probably the most caring person he has ever met in his life . And that didn't only go for his little brother , that also went to Mike , who he made sure was okay after the ritual . He offered peace to him .Stan had nothing on the guy to make him hate the vampire . He was a practical angel , a born leader with beautiful eyes .

And then there was Mike Hanlon .Now if Stan might have thought Bill was nice , Mike was good hearted to a whole other level . Stan got tired of counting how many times Mike would ask Bill if he was okay , high five him , rub his shoulder in an encouraging manner . He brought a blanket for Beverly back at the cabin and made fucking herbal tea for Eddie who was visibly shaking after the ritual . Also , he gave the best smiles that made everything on the inside melt .

“Um Stan are you listening?”

Mike’s soft voice made him jump a little as he nodded at the two gorgeous guys in front of him and scooted closer to them to have a look at another album which lay open in front of Mike and Bill .

“Sorry” Stan muttered his eyes meeting Bill’s for a second before a small smile stretched across the boy’s face making Stan’s heart do a little jump .

Stay calm heart .

“I’ll re- explain”

Bill’s soft voice started off , as Stan looked over the boy’s features before actually trying to listen to him .

“O-Okay s-so according t-to this d-data it s-seems like t-this h-happened before , and m-more than once o-or t-twice , and w-war b-broke out e-very time”

“ The fae-witch wars , yes I’ve heard of them”
Stan’s gaze was thoughtful as he leaned into the book , his body suddenly pressed to Bill’s shoulder as he peered into the book .

Bill swallowed hard , as his thoughts seemed to trail off . Mike took off from then , locking his soft brown eyes with Stan.

“It appears to be that every 27 years a killing spree of all different kinds of supernatural sweeps the town and just like right now , everybody blames their “enemy”. Its just a cycle of deaths going round and round . Even the style of deaths is the same , its just… weird.” , Mike finally finished , looking up at Stan his eyebrows furrowed ,his eyes concentrated and curious . And then just like clockwork both seemed to turn to look at Bill , who’s gaze seemed to stick to something in the opposite corner of the library , closer to the doors which Stan went through around 15 minutes ago .

Right there next to the library doors stood a woman placing a missing poster to the lamp post right outside the library , which was clearly seen through the glass windows .

“Holy shit” Bill muttered standing up from his seat and making his way out of the library , faster than any human would ; Stan and Mike on his heels .

“We’ll be back Susan” Mike said to the librarian who looked at them in bewilderment as she scoffed ,waving the boys off .

Throwing the glass doors open ,the three made their way out of the library to the poster, Stan tugging nervously on his hat, pulling it as low as possible as he stepped into the light .

“Wait a minute , that's a normal kid’’ Stan pointed out as they crowded around the poster .

“Exactly” Bill muttered , looking into the details . A girl of 14 years old with curly ,brown hair and clear eyes smiling back at them .

“M-Mike , d-didn't you s-say that o-only s-supernatural kids h-have been attacked b-before?” Bill asked his friend , still not tearing his gaze away from the poster , coming as close at possible to it tracing his pale fingers along the paper , his perfect eyebrows furrowed .

“Yea” Mike replied shortly , his breath hitching .

“I think this is the first time a human is missing” he added , swallowing hard .

If they had to start to defend humans now , Stan didn't know how they're going to do it.

“Fu-” Stan started but he never got to finish his sentence as Beverly Marsh and Ben rushed past them only to turn around at the sight of them and run up to the three boys . Just like Stan , Ben made sure to cover up his werewolf mark by wearing a sweater. The two were catching their breath as they panted , a few words escaping Bev’s lips before she gave up talking , concentrating on catching her breath .

“W-what's wrong ?” Bill asked , putting both of his hand on the girl’s shoulders steadying her as she regained her breath .

“Bill you gotta see it , Richie and Eddie they found something” she started , swallowing down her saliva as she managed to get the words out .

Bill’s eyes locked with hers as she calmed down.

“It’s about Georgie”

Her words rung in the air as Bill let go off her shoulders staggering back , Mike’s hand protectively on his shoulder right away.

The world seemed to slow down just a little as the whole group sans Eddie and Richie stared at Bill , waiting for him to say what they were gonna do next . Stan could feel a slight tingle in his scar which bloomed on his palm .

“Lead the way” he said finally , as Beverly grabbed Ben’s hand making the boy blush and gestured for the rest of the group to follow them , Bill immediately at the front asking Beverly questions .

Stan’s head hurt from all the information and all the past events as once again he zoned out , only to be brought back by Mike’s encouraging hand on his shoulder . His lips asking him is he was okay , to which Stan could only nod , making a comment on all the craziness that was going on around them ; earning an understanding nod and a warm smile from Mike .

Stanley Uris was so fucking glad that nobody could see how red his ears got from under the stupid hat .

Chapter Text

“So why the hell are the two of you looking like that?”

Beverly’s voice broke the deadly silence that settled onto the group as they all stood by the small river that ran through the woods of the Werewolf territory . Ben could hear how Eddie’s heartbeat quickened but could only glance at Bev who just had one of her perfect eyebrows raised at the two boys despite probably knowing exactly what was going on . Beverly told Ben about Richie Tozier , her best friend , a wild bisexual , a Trashmouth and a horrible flirt according to the girl .

Richie only wiggled his eyebrows as Eddie’s face turned red and he started coughing obnoxiously into his fist .

Although the question didn't really change the mood too much, for a second the tension seemed to diffuse.Before once again all the eyes were on Bill as the boy traced his brother’s embroidered name on the sleeve of dirty , yellow raincoat . Bill’s eyebrows were furrowed and for a second Ben thought he could see tears glisten in the boy’s eyes before he closed them , taking a deep breath through his nose .

“W-where d-d-did y-you f-find it ?” ,Bill asked as he tore his gaze away from the raincoat to Eddie and Richie who stood silently by the water .

“It was right there , on that log” Richie said as he pointed to a huge piece of wood that laid on the left side of the small river bank .

Ben looked around, catching Mike’s and Stan’s worried gazes directed at Bill and the silent conversation Beverly and Richie were having as the girl raised her brow at the boy and looked around nervously . It was kind of annoying that pretty much everybody but him had some kind of abilities . Vampires could read thoughts , Witches could do all sorts of things like talk by using telepathy and Fae could make you only tell the truth .

And what about him ? He could run fast and transform into a dog . Okay maybe that was kinda cool .

As Mike and Bill whispered something to each other ,Ben took the time to look around where they were . It looked like a narrow river bank that seemed to lead right away from the Quarry . He knew that this was the werewolf territory but it didn't seem like any werewolves were particularly eager to live there , judging by how desolate and wild the place was . His eyes traveled further as his nose sensors peaked trying to get a whiff of something , anything . And he did , a slight foul smell that led further down the stream .
The smell was just a whiff but God, was it disgusting. It smelled like rotten flesh and trash and so much more at the same time , that Ben almost gagged the nearer he approached the smell . Ben could register Beverly’s hand on his biceps for only a moment before she let go , and in a few seconds he could feel the group following him close behind .

At this point he was knee deep in freezing water as the current led him right to the smell , bushes and logs everywhere as the group tried to get make their way through the waters . If Ben looked back he’d see Stanley’s shorts ridden up right up until his boxers and Mike’s blush at the gesture . He would see Richie & Eddie pushing each other around and Richie’s red face as once in a while Beverly would whisper something into his ear . He would also see Bill right beside him , his hands clutching the yellow raincoat with inhumane strength . It seemed like the fabric could tear right under his fingers but Bill didn't look like he cared .

“ Oh what the fuck is that smell ?” Richie exclaimed , pulling Ben out of his thoughts as the whole group looked at him and Bev . Everyone but them had better sensing abilities , so if it stunk to Richie and Bev it meant they were close .

“Did you just notice ?” Eddie asked him in disbelief .

“Well it does kinda smell like Eddie’s mum’s underwear.”

“You’re disgusting”
Eddie’s face formed a grimace as Stan chuckled by his side .

“Yes , call me dirt-”

“Beep ,beep Richie”

Beverly’s muffled voice , turned all the attention to her. The girl’s nose was buried inside her sweater’s sleeve as she gagged at the foul smell .

“You don't feel it half as bad as we do”, Mike pointed out , chuckling . A smile on his face . Beverly shrugged, still keeping her face buried inside her sweater , but laughed at Mike’s own disgusted face as another wave of the smell hit the group .

Something in Ben stirred . He liked Beverly , she was not like any other girl he has ever met . She was strong and she could stand up for herself . And after their little adventure that afternoon he realized that he was slowly but surely falling in love with the red headed pyrokinetic. ( AN:I don't think that a word but lets roll with it) So maybe that's why a pang of slight jealousy hit him as Ben looked at the warm smile she gave Mike before elbowing the boy playfully . Maybe he was overthinking stuff , maybe he was just being stupid . After all , Mike was gorgeous , fast and a northerner ; somebody who she could actually be with .

Maybe he was overthinking the gesture a little too much .

————————
Bev elbowed Mike playfully as he made a face of disgust at the awful smell. She and Mike were marching at the very front , right behind Ben and Bill who seemed to be both buried deep inside their own minds .

Mike breathed out heavily next to her making her turn to look at the boy . Once again she caught herself thinking why Mike was breathing . Why was somebody who was , well…dead , breathing ?

“Why do you breathe?” She asked , flames of curiously dancing in her blue/green eyes.

“Why do you light your hands on fire for no reason” he retorted , keeping his gaze stuck to Bill’s frame ,worry lingering in his brown eyes .

“I do it to feel alive” she finally said , looking up at the taller boy , her eyes narrowed but determined .

And she wasn't lying . For years of she kept her powers inside of herself , for years she was told by her father to not be herself .

“The world is cruel Bevvy”
“They wont understand you Bevvy”
“Your magic isn't pure baby girl”
“You don't wanna be like your mum , right Bevvy?”

And she believed him , she would keep it hidden on the inside as she slowly felt her own mind slip from under her fingers , the fingers that craved the warmth of a fire .

She first found out her powers when she was only three years old , she was just a baby when her parents left her in the living room , all alone with her toys . They didn't really think that a three year old would be so invested in the flames that she would walk up to them and put her hand right into the flame . It never burned her ,only tingled a little as she waved her small , still chubby hand around in the flames ; giggling a little to herself as the fire bent under her touch .

She remembered as her mother screamed , grabbing her right by her waist and tugging her out of the fireplace , screaming for her father . She remembered her mother crying in hysterics as she examined Beverly’s hand and how awed she was when she saw no burns on her daughter’s skin . Only slight redness , but that's all it was .

Beverly was a fenomenon of some sort . It was a known fact that witches went up in flames like dry wood, so most didn't keep the fire anywhere near them , except for her family. Her father , a man to whom magic was just a word ,insisted on having a fireplace in his home ; not really caring of the dangers it would bring to his wife and daughter . On the other hand , her father never really cared about anything anyways . Her mother was petrified by her daughter’s powers . Anything to do with fire control was usually viewed as dark magic , something dirty , maybe even sinister . Her mother couldn't bear that , so she left. Left Derry, left Maine , left everything behind only to come back 7 years later , insane and a criminal. Beverly still remembered as her mother showed up on her porch , her ginger hair lined with streaks of black like a star less sky , her veins as dark as the bottom of the sea . She was scary , not the woman she saw on the photographs she found in old , dusty family albums . So she called for her dad who didn't hesitate to give her in to the magical committee , who condemned her for the usage dark magic .

Even now she could still hear her mothers screams as they dragged her away from Beverly .

“I did it for you ! For you!”

After that even more questions rose around Beverly , but her father insisted that she had no powers , that she was 100% human , just like him. But when she turned twelve , it began harder and harder to hide it . To hide the fact that she was a walking bomb , ready to explode . When she turned twelve she did explode . It was during her first kiss , she and Bill kissed each other . It was sweet and innocent. She still smiled at that kiss , neither were really into each other but both wanted to know how it felt like , and if you're wondering why she just didn't kiss Richie . Just no , is the answer . It would be like kissing a brother she never had.

So during the kiss , right as their lips touched she let go of her hold on the power , maybe it was something she did on purpose , maybe she was just caught off guard . But to cut long story short she went up in flames , even her lips scorching Bill a little as they jumped from one another . Bill was freaked out , but not as much as Beverly as she moved her hand around , a small flame dancing on her palm .After that it was pretty much impossible to hide her power , so she would light the home fire and warm up her tea when it got cold . It were small surges of fire , but they kept her sane even if she still had to hide it from her father , from the society , for some time even from Richie .

“Well, me too”

She jumped at Mike’s answer making the boy furrow his eyebrows at her .

“You good?” He asked ,placing his hand on her shoulder encouragingly as she smiled at the boy .

“Yea , just got lost in thought for a second there” she answered quietly , scrunching her nose at the awful smell .

“Bev , are you alright” a voice rung inside her head as she turned around to look at Richie who was helping Eddie get over a huge log . His hand was outstretched to the boy but he looked at her , worry in his gaze .

“Yea” she answered to him , their conversation left unheard to the others as he nodded returning his attention to the boy .

She turned back to Mike , his hand still on her shoulder . They mingled for a minute , catching up on the things that happened over the time they haven't seen each other , which was just under a year . You’d think they'd be seeing each other everyday , living in a town as small as Derry.

Her thoughts lingered on his answer for a second . She wondered how it felt to not be alive , your heart not to beat and you to not need oxygen or water to keep yourself alive . It must've felt a bit lonely sometimes , just existing , not being able to fit into any group, even the one full of non-ordinary people . Maybe making his lungs work and breathing in air was Mike’s warm cut of tea or fireplace . She wondered if it was his way of keeping himself sane .

“Guys”
Ben’s voice silenced the group as they all turned to look at the boy who was way ahead of everybody , Bill by his side . Mike made his way quickly to stand by Bill’s side as Stan let go of his shorts and hurried promptly after the boys . She chuckled at the gesture that went unnoticed by the rest . She would totally ask him what that was all about later .

She exchanged glances with Richie who was left behind as Eddie hurried after Stan . Their gazes met as she grabbed her best friend by the hand and led him to the rest who all stood looking at something .

As they edged closer to where the group all stood , they grimaced at the smell before standing by Ben’s side . There was a clearing in front of them or more like where a clearing was supposed to be . There was trash scattered all over the water as they all made their way onto a small piece of land , their feet getting caught in plastic bags and torn clothing . There was a wall on the other side , a huge hole drilled into it , leading to something inside . They made their way skipping onto rocks and wood from time to time . Once in a while the noise of Eddie’s gagging was heard as the boy whispered how many diseases there were in the waters they walked through , as more trash showed up.

Bill lead the group , Mike and Stan close by , Eddie next , Richie , Her and Ben right behind , closing their little line .

“Where do you think we are?” ,he asked her , his breath scalding the back of her neck as shivers ran down her spine. Beverly turned around to look at the boy , shrugging at the boy.

—————————

“Is this the-” Mike started only to be interrupted by Stan.

“Sewers?” , the fae boy finished for him .

“Wait what” Eddie chimed in , pushing by Stan ,looking into the hole that led to the Derry underground sewer system .

“This isn't possible , they closed all the outdoor entrances into the sewers after some incident 54 years ago when some weirdo went on a killing spree and brought all the bodies to the sewers through one of these entrances”

The group turned to look at Eddie , questions on everybody’s minds .

“ I-in the n-north they s-still ex-exist” Bill said .

“Well I guess they didn't close all of ‘em” Richie pointed out , his hand gesturing to the entrance in a demonstrative way .

“Y-yea , n-no shit S-Sherlock” Bill spoke up, taking a step inside the muddy water , Richie close behind him .

“All of this trash is probably floating out of there” Ben said gesturing at the not so clear clearing they were standing in , as the others nodded at him .

“I-it’s n-not that d-deep” Bill stated , showing how the water only rose up to his ankles .

“B-Bev ?”

Bill made a gesture , reminding her of setting a match aflame . So getting the hint she sighed before stepping into the disgusting grey water , trying not to think that she was walking around in gallons of Derry pee .

She stepped onto the concrete floor , the water riding up a bit higher than her ankles since she was shorter than Bill . Just for a second she registered how wet her shoes were from first walking through a river and then through sewer water .

The group lingered around , searching through the sewer water with some wooden sticks Mike and Ben found outside . Richie and Eddie bickered about germs, Bill and Stan talked about something in soft tones and Mike and Ben we're looking at something on one of the walls .
Beverly walked around for a bit , her hand glowing just a little for everybody to be able to see things around them , but the day light seemed to provide them with the most light anyways .

“Bevvy”

She whipped her head around at the sound that seemed to be coming from somewhere deeper the sewers .Her light went off .

“Bevvy come here” it repeated , as Bev’s breath hitched and she took a few steps closer to the darkness of the sewers , the voice was awfully familiar as she stood there , much further away from the boys than she was just seconds before , trying to listen into the darkness .

“Closer” the voice called out , closer now , much closer than it was before . She felt her blood run cold as she stood her ground , not able to move her feet , paralyzed with fear . Somewhere very faraway she could hear somebody call out her name but she didn't react . It seemed like she wasn't in complete control of her body as she stared into the darkness before her . She didn't know why she didn't use her powers , why she didn't call upon the flame to light her way as she stumbled further into the darkness , her hands searching around before she felt her right grip onto something metalic .

She felt around it , as the metal curved under her palm ,her fingers tracing the cold surface . She let out a shaky breath .

“Come here, baby”

Fuck . The voice wasn't just familiar , it was her . Her mother’s voice as she called out to ten year old Beverly who started at her from their porch . It was the voice of the woman who scooped her up from the flames of the fire place and carried her around , crying . It was the voice of the woman who left her only to come back insane .

Not knowing why ,she put her second hand onto the metalic surface . She searched inside her mind what the metal reminded her off .Something thin , round…

A cage.

Holy shit.

“Bevvy , show me your face” the voice spoke up , inches from Beverly’s ear . She could feel a scream build up inside her as she heard voices call out to her somewhere far away .

“N-no” she whispered to the voice , gripping onto the cage bars .

“Show me your flames Bevvy , do it for mummy”

It couldn't be here . She was locked up . She was probably dead. She couldn't be here.

The thoughts swam in her mind as she felt a lump in her throat . Curiously was eating her up from the inside as Beverly struggled against lighting her hands up , to see her face . To see if it was really her , here in the sewers . Beverly’s grip onto the bars tightened as she breathed in sharply and her palms tingled , sparks flying out of her fingers . Her heart beat faster with each passing second , as the voice behind the bars teased her , going around . Clicking it’s nails on the metal bars , whispering into her ear .

“You can’t be here” she breathed out , her voice no more than a whisper .

The voice chuckled as she felt somebody lean down from the other side , closer to her ;closer and closer , she could almost feel her heart tighten form fear .

Cold breath touched her neck as the voice lowered itself to her year’s level .

“Prove it” the voice teased her .

She let go . Her palms going aflame . So much as sparks even flew off her hair.

The room around her lit up as her gaze fell onto the figure in front of her .

She screamed on top of her lungs .
The figure in front of her was indeed her mother , but not how she remembered her from the photographs and neither how she remembered her from 7 years ago . What was in front of her could be barely pass as a human at all . Burns ate through her skin ;showing bone , her hair was long and the most ginger they have ever been . Exactly the same shade of her own. Her mouth was ripped at the sides and dark , black blood leaked out of her wounds . But the most disturbing of all were the eyes . The same eyes as Beverly’s , with hues of blue and green were replaced by white sockets as the corpse of her mother stared back at her ;its hands reaching for her through the bars .

“Look what they did to me Bevvy! They’ll do this to you too! They did it to them , because they were different ! They’ll do this to you too!” , what was left of her mother screamed at her as Beverly screamed again, even louder this time , stumbling back and falling into the dirty , sewer water .
Her tail bone hit the floor under the water as she howled out in pain , moving back from the figure as her mother slowly squeezed herself in between the bars , making her way onto Beverly’s side .

It felt like she was living in a nightmare . This couldn't be happening to her .

Her palms hit the water , making the flames go out immediately. Only the sparks that were still falling off her hair , gave her the idea where her mother the creature was and how it was edging its way towards her, its strides lazy and triumphant . She stumbled even further back only to meet a wall with her back .

She didn't remember a wall there .
The figure come closer and closer towards her as she tried to make her hands go up in flames but it was pointless no matter how many times she tried .

Why wasn't it working?!

She felt the creature’s fingers touch her knee as a sob escaped her lips . She didn't even realize that she was crying until now , until she felt hot tears run down her cheeks .The fingers trailed their way up to her chin grabbing it form both sides as she shut her eyes . She could feel a warm glow emit from somewhere but didn't dare to pry her eyes open . She knew what she would see and she didn't want that to be her last memory . It felt like death itself was knocking on her door as she tried to think back to good things that happened in her life . Her afternoon with Ben , the countless adventures she had with Richie , her playful banter with Mike… but she couldn't think about any of that , the only things that stood behind her closed eyes were the lifeless , white sockets and what was left of her mother .

The creature dug its finger nails into her face . In a second she could taste blood on her lips .

“Open your eyes for mummy , Bevvy” the voice cooed one last time, but before she could do anything something flew into the wall next to her as the fingernails disappeared, practically evaporating into thin air .

“Bev, where are you?” Richie’s voice called out into the darkness . She didn't dare to open her eyes even though something told her that this was Richie , this was the real.She whimpered , feeling her hand catch fire as she kept her eyes closed.

“Holy fuck”

She could feel Richie’s warm , alive hands on her shoulders in a second as she moved back instinctively .

“Bev , its me. It's me , Richie” the soft voice of her best friend called out really close to her ear .
Slowly she opened her eyes , the tears spilling out immediately as she saw her best friend’s worried face. She let herself fall into his arms as he called out to the others who came running through one of the entries .

She buried her face into his ugly , Hawaiian shirt , heavy sobs escaping her mouth every second . She could feel herself being lifted up by a strong set of arms as Richie whispered words of encouragement next to her ear . She felt so vulnerable , so small , like a child being carried back to bed after they came crying to their parents about a nightmare . Her hands lit up the way as the group made their way out of the sewers in silence , only Richie’s voice and her own , quiet sobs echoing around the room .

Slowly her world started to fade into black and she let it take her .

Chapter Text

“Beverly talk to me”

Her response was a heavy sigh as the group all sat around the all too familiar cabin , Beverly’s head on Richie’s lap as he looked down at his red headed friend .

C’mon Bev

He squeezed her hand . Whatever she saw in the fucking sewers must have messed her up, and it was quite hard to get to Beverly Marsh .

After what seemed like forever ,a fine rung in his head as she let out a sigh and sat up . From the outside it might have seemed like she was unfazed all of a sudden , this Wonder Woman ready to take on any challenge . To Richie , she was a different kind of Wonder Woman thought . It wasn't because she could compose herself so quickly , Beverly was Richie’s personal hero because the world around her could be crumbling , and she could be breaking on the inside but still ,she would make everybody stand up and follow her. She shared that quality with Bill .

There was an aura of concentration on her face as she sat up , making the flame in the fireplace simultaneously rise higher dancing in her eyes .

“I think I’m going insane” she whispered into the quiet of the room.

Nobody laughed .

“I saw somebo-something there , in the sewers but its impossible . I couldn’t have seen it .” she said looking around the room , her face lined with concern as her eyes met Richie’s once again . He remembered how he ran into the room , as Beverly screamed for something to get away from her . He remembered randomly swinging a brick at whatever was in Beverly’s direction , only later realizing that he could have hit Bev instead . That thought haven't left his head ever since .

“What did you see Bev?” Richie asked gently , touching the girl’s hand . From the corner of his eye he could see Ben glance down at his hand , but all Richie could do was chuckle to himself . He and Bev always found it hilarious when people thought they were together .

“I saw her Richie” she finally said , choking on her own words as tears stung her eyes . It felt like the rest of the room disappeared , like everybody else in the room just ceased to exist all of a sudden .She didn't let her tears fall , throwing her head back ; breaking eye contact with Richie and taking a deep breath through her nose.

For a second Richie’s brain searched for all connotations of “her” in his head ,only coming up with Greta before he realized who Bev meant .

Beverly didn't really talk about her mother , like ever . It was one of those topics she didn't feel quite comfortable to discuss , even with him ; and at first he blamed himself . For not being a good enough of a friend or got mad at her for not trusting him but as they grew older and closer he came to realize that there was something different . It was a topic Beverly seems to push away even from herself , like her own consciousness tried to protect her from the thoughts about her mother .

“Who’s she?”

Eddie’s voice broke the silence as the group glanced at the small boy who stood in the corner of the room , his eyebrows furrowed , his hands on his chest . Eddie seemed like the kind of person who would keep quiet in this kind situation but the boy kept of surprising him with every second , in fact in this situation he expected somebody like Stan to say something regarding the situation but the noodle head stayed quiet; a slightly surprised brow raised in Eddie’s direction .

Eddie didn't seek to falter under the stares of his friends as he made his way to Beverly cautiously and sat down on the arm of the sofa .

“Stop looking at me like that everybody , we’re a team now” he said ,throwing the rest a death stare as he showed Beverly his scar , just like the one every single person in the room had. It was reminder they all had of the situation they were all in . All .

Richie was about to protest when Beverly put her hand on his , a signal to shush .

“He's right” she said , her voice lined with fatigue .

“My mum , she left when she found out about my powers . You see , she was afraid they’d associate her with dark magic so she left” she started , swallowing a visible lump in her throat . Richie’s heartstrings gave a little tug on his heart as he looked at her face. It seemed like she lost all emotion as she stared aimlessly into the fire .

“… she came back , when I was 10 , all black veins and her hair tinted with streaks of dark magic . She screamed that she did it for me , that she pursued dark magic to come back and help me out”

Beverly’s eyebrow twitched .

“ I guess she got carried away” she finished , her gaze fixed on the fireplace , her thoughts miles away from the little cabin .

“She was framed for dark magic” she continued , her gaze not moving for a second .

“ I-I was told she died there , 3 months ago” she said , her voice barely audible yet still flat like she didn't care ; but Richie knew she did.

Still it was something new to him , he never knew that her mother actually died in the court’s prison , probably the scariest place on the whole entire earth . Another thing he wished his best friend would share with him but he told himself to shut up.

Her hand went up as she stared at her palm her eye brows furrowing a little , causing the skin on her forehead to scrunch up .

“In the sewers I heard a voice , her voice , calling to me , calling me her girl” she continued , a little flame starting to dance in between her fingers .

“She teased me , and taunted me , urging me to use my powers” Beverly’s voice suddenly had a edge to it as the flames danced faster and brighter on her fingers .

“I-I don’t know why i didn't use them right away , it was like , like a gut feeling telling me to run”

Her voice became louder as notes of anger danced in between her words .

“ But she continued to ask me for it . So I did! I showed her, or whatever it was my powers , but you know what i saw?”

She was close to shouting now as she looked up at Eddie who hasn’t moved an inch , still sitting close to the witch , listening close to every word that came out of her mouth . His face wasn't sympathetic or cold , neutral ; perhaps even in a way analyzing but Richie didn't dwell on it , listing close to his best friend.

“ A fucking corpse , a skeleton of what my mother used to be , but with my fiery red hair ! And i looked her in the eyes , but you know what I saw?” ,she shouted ,her voice rising even more , the whole entire room seemed to heat up as even her hair seemed to be blowing little sparks off them.

“ Two white , lifeless sockets staring back at me ! The last thing that I had from her stripped away from me!” , she screamed as her hand flew forward as she flung a fireball into the fireplace making the fire rise up and roar , mirroring her mood as she breathed heavily , trying to cool off . It would be silly to assume that a girl with pyrokinetic ( A/N: send help , is this even a word ?) powers would be short tempered .

Eddie’s hand landed on her shoulder as the boy nodded at Beverly a look of sadness in his eyes all of a sudden. She put her hand onto his ,on her shoulder and looked into his eyes . Something seemed to run through them as they shared a look , full of weird familiarity , almost understanding .And then Beverly cracked a smile , earning the same thing from Eddie . And just like that Eddie was off the couch and back to his place by the wall .

“So it couldn't be her ?” Ben spoke up , looking at Beverly , as she shrugged in defeat .

“I , I honestly don't know . I don't even know how far dark magic stretches but she couldn't practice magic , she was in a prison !”

“What i-if s-she got out?” Bill pointed out , his hand gesturing to the door.

“Impossible”

“W-why?”

“Because she’d come for me Bill , and she never did” she snapped at the vampire, shifting her shoulders a little ;her hands rubbing her tired face .

“Except f-for t-today” Bill finished , his tone solemn .

“Look-“ Bev started , but Richie had enough of this .

“Hey how about you all shut the fuck up ? Let her be , she just fucking told you a story that's obviously not unicorns and rainbows and you're all still interrogating her like some criminal ?” , he spat out gripping her hand as Beverly gave him a tug . A tug that meant shut up and a thank you at the same time .

“We’re just trying to get to the bottom of this” Stan said in Bill’s defense , his eyebrows raised in concern as he glanced back and forth from him and Mike.

“Well we can get to the bottom of this tomorrow” Richie said sternly .

“I agree with him” Eddie said , as his and Eddie’s eye locked and a warm feeling spread somewhere inside Richie’s stomach . Perhaps it wasn't the best moment but the fact that the boy agreed with him , made Richie feel warm for a second .

“R-richie”

“I know Bill ,I do . We’ll find him but I beg you , just not today man . We’ll got to the library-“

“Bill” Beverly spoke up looking at the boy “ We’ll go back to the sewers , just not today okay”

“Bev no , you're not going back there” Richie said his voice lined with fear .

“Yes I am Richie , I need to know what the hell happened there” she retorted , throwing Richie a stern glance .

After a few seconds of intensive staring she looked back at Bill .

“Just not today , okay ?” ,she said and even though it seemed like a question , it was statement and everybody in the room knew that .

—————————

“You know I can stand up for myself right ?” She finally spoke up as her and Richie made their way onto the clear road , finally crossing into the witch territory .

“Yea I know” he answered chucking a little , smiling at her . His eyes concerned but soft .

“I'm sorry that I didn't tell you about her , about her death” she said more quieter , almost not audible in the cold November air .

“Don’t apologize” he said , stopping , taking her still warm hand in his .

Richie Tozier was extremely touchy , always has and probably always will . She'd found it hilarious how so many people thought they were an actual couple and just how wrong they were. Yes they were more than just best friends . They were family , no matter how different they seemed .

“Sorry” she whispered , looking down at the ground , a warm tear rolling down her cheek . It was only around him that she let herself be herself . In a matter of seconds she was enveloped in a hug as Richie’s hands wrapped around her waist , pulling her closer to himself . She could feel his sweater getting wetter under her face as more tears rolled down her face , a sob escaping her mouth once in a while .

They stayed there ,in the cold November evening together, on the desolate road , just two teens with too much shit on both of their plates .

“You know” he spoke softly into ear .

“Haystack has it bad for you , I bet he’d sell his kidney to be in my position” he finished , making her chuckle .

“Ohhhh I can feel your cheeks getting red Marsh” he teased , as she laughed into his sweater . That was the good thing about Richie , he never lingered on something for too long , he moved on and even though she knew that was a coping mechanism of his own , she loved that part about him .

She pulled back hitting his shoulder playfully , wiping the tears and mucus off of her face , a smile finding its way on her face .

“And what about you Trashmouth ? What's going on between you and the fae boy? Are you gonna have a sexy , heated Romeo and Juliet-esque romance ?” She teased back , raising her eyebrow at her friend as he rolled his eyes , his cheeks going pink just a little .

“Well of course , Bev . Although I hope me and Eds can skip the whole dying at the end part” he pointed out as the two made their way down the road , their elbows locked together .

“I bet he’s so good in be-“ Richie went on as she shoved him again , laughing .

“Keep your sexual fantasies to yourself , dipshit!” , she shouted , laughing again . Like she didn't see a haunting corpse of her mother planning to kill her , just a few hopers ago.

“Pass me a cigarette, Marsh ” he said chuckling as Beverly reached down into her bag , that unlike everything else wasn't soaked in sewer water . She tossed the packet to the boy as he took out the cigarette . He always said that he was jealous of her abilities , she didn't even need a lighter . Everything seemed strangely normal , just Rich and Bev walking around at night , smoking and talking about stupid shit and hopeless dreams ; your regular teens . Or maybe as regular as two witches could get.

He took a long drag of the cigarette , breathing out clouds of smoke . They walked down the road like this , smoking , their hands interlocked again . Richie and Bev , the “Slut” and the “Trashmouth”, two best friends . And just for a moment , Beverly felt like maybe tomorrow will never come and they'll just continue walking down the road like this , smoking in comfortable silence . Her and Richie

Chapter Text

Richie Tozier never forgot to throw away the cigarette before he entered his house. It's not that he cared about the rules it's that he didn't want that exact cigarette to go out when his father would press it to his leg, making the boy scream in agony and scarring the skin forever. So far he had 15 cigarette scars. But being a witch nobody would ever think that they weren't just hex scars;so nobody gave a shit about the abuse that was going on in the Tozier home.

He flicked the cigarette onto the still wet road as he walked up to his house,his brain still a bit hazy from what he and Bev have gotten themselves into.First the mysterious killings, then the whole Georgie Denbrough situation and lastly the IT thing, the red headed woman and that Bowers son of a bitch were talking about. He should've told the group something, he didn't know why he hasn't told anybody;even Beverly. It seemed insane to him that those people would just let the town fall into another war but the way they talked about it seemed like the IT thing was inevitable, the way the woman said that it couldn't be controlled still sent shivers down his spine. And now the whole thing with Beverly and her mum, it all made his head spin and not even in the nice way.

He opened the door carefully trying to not let in any of the cold air. He checked around the parlor for a familiar trench coat that his father wore to work everyday.
He didn't see it anywhere which made him release a breath of relief.
“Richie? Honey is that you?” his mother’s warm voice called out from the kitchen.
“Yea mum it's me”
“Well come here I need your help in the kitchen”
He hurried over to the kitchen throwing his cigarettes and dirty shoes into his room on his way.
“Hey mama” he said marching into the room in his socks “what are you cooking?” he asked as he peered over his mother's shoulder .
“I'm making pelmeni” she said as she took some meat from a bowl and put it inside little dough squares.

His mother was a Russian decent, his great grandparents or something ran away during the Stalin regime to America. He always found it interesting that Maggie Tozier didn't speak a word in Russian yet she honored traditions and sometimes made Russian food that her own grandmother and mother would make for her when she was a child.

“Pelmeni are just dumplings mum” he pointed out as he joined her in the making of said dumplings.
“No they're not Richie, now hurry up” she said turning to smile at him. She had jet black curls like his own and clear blue eyes that unfortunately Richie didn't inherit from her.
“Why such rush?”Richie chuckled as he placed minced meat inside dough and rolled it up into a ball.
“You're father said he'll be home early”
Those words always made silence fall in the room.
Richie's mum and dad met back in high school where they peaked,basically. She married him without knowing that Wentworth was a powerful wizard, and when he told her she still didn't turn away because,well she loved him and perhaps he even loved her too. Then Richie was born and then the abuse started, the magical committee were not happy with him so he started to get irritable and his mum couldn't calm him down, she didn’t know how to, so he started hitting her , and when she threatened to leave for the first time he used his powers to manipulate her mind so that she went over to the stove and placed her palms onto it whilst it was still hot. Richie remembered being 9 and rushing over to his mothers side as soon as his dad left to drink in his office but the damage was done and now she had horrible identical scars on both of her palms. Richie remembered praying to Hecate for him to have magical powers, at least some sort of powers just so that he could stand up for his mother.
And then he got his powers, but they weren't good enough. No matter how many times Richie tried to use his telekinetic abilities to fling a stone or two at his dad it never worked. His hands either went limp or the rocks ended up in his own face.

“Oh” he answered, speeding up the process.
“How's Beverly doing?”
His mother loved Beverly unlike many other mothers in Derry who thought Bev was a slut and tried to guard their “precious” boys away from girls like her. Maggie knew that that was all bull shit.
“She's-“ he hesitated cause the word good didn't seem to really apply to the current situation.
“She's just like always” he finally answered.
“So” she continued “have you met anybody nice lately?”
“Mum don't start!” Richie exclaimed, as they put half the pelmeni away into the freezer and threw the rest that were already done into the boiling water to cook.
“Well you've told me countless times that you and Bev are not a thing, and yet you keep coming back home with this wistful smile on your face, who is she, or he cause you know I'd be alright with that?”
“I know mum” he said quietly, focusing way too hard on the bubbled that were forming as the water boiled.
“It's nothing mum” he finally answered “I don't think he likes me anyways” he added, his voice no more than a whisper.
Suddenly he felt her warm hands placed on his shoulders.
“I'm sure whoever he is, he is a fool for not liking such a great man that you are becoming Richard”
He sighed at her words “Thanks mum”.
“What’s his name?”she said, cocking an eyebrow at her son,a signature Tozier thing.
He guessed she would never know “the Eddie” so there was no harm in telling her.
“Eddie” he said,and an involuntary smile formed on his lips.
His mother seemed to read that as a good sign as she smiled and hugged her son.

“Now go change you reek of sewage and cigarettes”

——————————————————————————————————————————-
Ben was still in slight shock after everything that has happened. He stumbled through the woods on the way home,his way only lightened by still crescent moon. Thank god. He wasn't ready for the full moon just yet and with his newfound friends if you could call them that, he didn't want them to see how he still couldn't control himself to his full potential. How he still chained himself to the trees in the woods telling his mum that he was out with some mystery friend. He called him Jason but Jason never existed.
Ben has lived on the south side all his life and after being bitten by the werewolf he was so glad for the coincidence and that he didn't have to explain to his mother why they suddenly had to move across town.

It was almost forbidden for the north and the south to interact in any way imaginable. It might have been cliche that there was still that rivalry between werewolves and vampires but it was rooted way below the cringey teen dramas that had them at each other's throats all the time. It was also that both vamps and werewolves weren’t really the main players here, more like bench if he had to admit it. The main cause as to why they were so separated were the wars that would break out now and then between the fae and the witches. It was like they couldn't possibly get along yet still stayed by one another like they enjoyed the endless conflict.

It annoyed the hell out of Ben that he had to cross the entire forest just to get to the civilized, human part of southern Derry. He also had to cross the Quarry which was as of lately not the nicest place to visit.
He hurried, trying to hide in the shadows. Being a just turned wolf he wasn't really accepted into the gang, he was sort of a loner and an outsider.
Ben’s mind was wrapped around the latest events. The dead bodies, Beverly, the blood oath, Beverly. Oh wait have he mentioned Beverly Marsh! Beverly was like, no other girl he could have ever met. He has heard rumors about her but once again he was a southerner and they didn't even go to the same school, yet still nothing good was ever said about her. It's not that he ever believed rumors cause if you believe everything ppl tell you than you might as well should believe in the tooth fairy or well, vampires,faeries,werewolves and witches inhabiting a small town in Maine.But God Beverly was just out of this world . She was so strong and of what he has heard that night, he was sure that he would've gone insane if he was put in that kind of situation. He admired her wit and her charm when they went walking around Derry looking for clues and talking to locals; the humans of course who knew the bare minimum to feel more or less safe.
Ben was so lost in thought that he almost didn’t notice the faint whispers somewhere by the Quarry. He stopped abruptly, his heals digging a little into the still wet forest floor. He listened closely. There were three people, three voices whispering gingerly and aggressively to each other. Ben listen even closer, using his werewolves abilities to his full potential. It seemed like one of the three people were moving or moving something for that matter since their heartbeat was rapid compared to the other two people standing by, their hearts not missing a beat.
“What are we going to do with this one Deborah”
“Don’t know Bowers, this never happened. To be honest I’m a bit shocked”
She didn’t sound shocked to Ben, more like very very bored and slightly agitated by her companion. Bowers was here and Bowers never meant anything good. Never.
Bowers seemed to pick up on the woman’s tone, being ya know the main representative of the werewolves in the High Committee.
He cleared his throat.
“IT never took human kids” the woman continued, talking more to herself than Bowers.
There was silence for a few more seconds until she hummed a little to herself.
“Whatever, when we find the two that were spying on us this morning, we’ll feed them to IT”
“And what if it was one of your fae?”Bowers retorted.
“I couldn’t care less, if war is to happen then we need to have some of our own die and blame the north”
“I’ll tell Henry to stay away”
“You do that”
There was silence for another moment before Bowers spoke up again, earning an aggravated sigh from the woman.
“Why don’t we do all ourselves, why does IT get involved?”
She chuckled, “I might be old Bowers, but I’m not that old to know why IT cares so much about the war breaking out or why it comes back. All I know is that IT wants us to kill the north siders and I don’t want to disappoint IT”
“And yet IT kills us too” Bowers retorted, a bit lost in his own thoughts.
“Counter balance?” The woman suggested. It was the slight amusement by the situation in her voice that made Ben’s blood run cold.
With that she moved away and went east, Bowers on her heals and the other person walking behind them.
Ben peaked over the bushes, trying not to make any sound, he didn’t even breathe.
And then he saw it. Another body, of another girl was held by one of the men. She dangled off his shoulder like a bag of potatoes as the blood that ran down from her head, left a bloody trail after itself.
Ben wanted to puke right on the spot. But instead he waited for them to leave before reaching the water and the bloodied stones.
A million questions ran through his head as he stared at the disgustingly calm waters of the quarry.
If there was this IT, this monster than why was it killing all of those kids? Why was this woman eager for war? Why didn’t she care about her own people? But most importantly he felt a pang of fear for Beverly and Richie, and for his new vampire friends.

“Ben”
Ben felt his body go rigid.
“Benjamin” a voice called out from the bushes. It seemed like a mix of voices all put into one, both male and female. Young. Painfully young.
“Benny help us”a young girl’s voice called out.
“Benny find us, avenge us”
The branches moved again and into the badly lit pathway stepped out a girl. It didn’t take Ben long to realize that it was the girl that the people just took away. The human girl. She had a bloody gash on her head that was rotting now at an incredible rate. Right before his eyes the girl turned into a walking corpse as maggots and flies circled her body.
Ben felt paralyzed, his feet seemed to be glued to the ground beneath them and all he could do was stand there and watch as she slowly made her way towards him.
Then the bushes opened up a bit more and another girl emerged. Sadie, the vampire girl that him and the gang found when they first met. The stake was still stuck in her chest and seemed to be teasing him as she touched it, plunging it deeper until her body started to decompose in front of him as well. Then more followed, many more than just the four bodies that they all knew about. There was the witch fae and the fae boy and the werewolf boy, who’s entire body was covered in poisonous to wolves verbena. And the more people he never knew about. More girls and boys, all supernatural crowded as they started reaching for him. Their hands reached for him as he drew in shakey breaths backing up until his body was pressed to a rock.
The girl in front of him, the human was now awfully close, close enough to touch him.
“Why didn’t you help me Ben?”
And then his instincts kicked in. He let out a growl as he felt adrenaline rush through his veins, his eyes turned yellow and he felt the fangs start to replace his teeth. He growled at the girl and she backed up, her dead hazel eyes widening in shock.
He felt every muscle in his body tense up and every sense highten. He measured up how many there were but they kept coming. One, two, a dozen; there were too many to count.
He now felt the horrible pain of his bones breaking and remaking themselves into paws and claws replacing his nails, he growled and whined which seemed to draw away the corpses.
He felt his body break and transform, he closed his eyes from the pain and then when he opened them, they were all gone.
He was completely alone.
Ben closed his eyes again and then opened them.
Still nobody .
What the hell?
He stood there pressed to a boulder, panting and half way through his transformation.Ben was distraught. He looked around, walked back to where he was, opened and closed his eyes a few more times, listened into the still midnight air and still nothing.
He was going fucking insane. Fantastic.
After what seemed like forever Ben’s claws turned back into his short nails and his bones cracked back into their usual place. His ears subsided in size and he could feel that his eyes have turned into their usual blue. He was back to himself.
Slowly, he picked up his back pack that laid abandoned, dangerously close to the quarry waters, and hauled onto his shoulder.
He gave the quarry one last look before he was going to head over, looking for where the people took away the dead human girl.
He felt his breath hitch. The bloodied trail that she left behind was gone, not a single drop of blood was on the stone ground. It was all gone, every trace of it.
The words of the woman echoed in his head “IT’s helping us out”.
His eyes widened as sudden realization hit him. This IT whatever it was, was probably messing with his mind right now. IT was really helping the fae.
With that he turned on his heel and hurried the hell away from the quarry.

Chapter Text

Bill was the first one to arrive at the shack. He messaged everybody in their new Whatsapp group neatly titled “monster hunting project” or more like Richie called it that and nobody cared enough to change the name. It was dawn and as much as he and Mike would prefer to do this at night, they both had to comply to others. Since he really needed their help in finding Georgie , especially Beverly’s and maybe even Eddie’s and Stan’s. Stan. Stanley Uris, was killing him or at least had some fairy power to do so without a  stake to the heart. His messy curls and wise eyes made Bill go a little bit insane but at the same time Mike’s warm smile and an encouraging hand always sent little spiders crawling down his body, and made butterflies beat the walls of his stomach. 

He sat down on the old arm chair. It used to be red, a long while ago but now it was just a faded coral color that was stained and worn out. 

Bill sighed loudly putting his head into his hands. He was going insane over Georgie, he couldn’t believe he would leave his baby brother like that,all alone with some girl. And then he thought about Sadie, the poor girl he begged to watch Georgie just so that him and Mike could go to the movies together. God,it was all his fault and Bill didn’t know for how much longer he would be able to hold on to that guilt until it ate him from the inside out, like a worm eats through a juicy green apple. Only that his heart was already rotten enough for thousands of worms to make it their home.  He buried his hand in his pocket where he had the thin raincoat material that Georgie wore on that day when he went missing,  the top part that had his name embroider on it. Bill remembered how his mum carefully weaved his name in beautiful cursive letters , and how happy Georgie was to see the name Denbrough next to his first name. Georgie was still so small when they found him but he was always so smart, and so grateful for the Denbroughs to take him in, he never knew any other family. Bill never knew any other brother or anybody closer than Georgie. That’s why it hurt so fucking much. He should’ve paid more attention to the murders. He should’ve taken care of his smaller brother, like any big brother would! 

“Agh!” Bill let out in anger as he scrunched up the material into a ball and threw it at the wall only to ran up immediately and take it gently into his cold hands, putting it away back into his pocket. 

The weird thing was that there was no scent or no trail left on the material; like it was stripped of any sort of physical knowledge. Neither Richie and Bev nor Ben the werewolf boy could pick up the tracks.

“Hey” a monotone, familiar as off a few days ago voice called out from the doorway. Bill scrambled to his feet and turned to face the intruder.

It was Stan. 

He stood there, leaning on the door with a ghost of a smile forming in his plump lips. Stan had sort of ethereal beauty, something just out of this world , Bill caught himself thinking that he has never seen that sort of soft look on the boy’s face.

“Hey” Bill answered, coming up to the fae boy.

“What are you d-doing here?” he then asked, suddenly looking at his watch. It was 6 am and the gang were supposed to meet at 9 because Eddie seemed to insist on beauty sleep and Richie wouldn’t stop whining.

Stan shrugged and his usual “very bored,don’t care” face was back “Couldn’t sleep and decided to come here early and then, there was you”.

Bill nodded in acknowledgement and went back to his place of the old, worn out couch.

“Now, my question is what were you doing here?” Stan asked, emphasizing the “You” as he threw himself onto the couch which made dust fly in all directions.

Stan coughed which made them both laugh as they settled back.

“Well, I don’t s-sleep and I couldn’t stay h-home” Bill started, the smile that was there when they laughed just bare seconds ago has already evaporated “my parents, they’re really attached to Georgie”

Stan nodded in silent understanding. 

“Tell me about him” the fae boy said, scooting closer to Bill. 

“Umm… well he’s the best kid. Sorta worships me to be completely h-honest, we found him whe-when he was just a small vamp. We never found out who his parents were,but definetly vamps. He loves trains and boats, sooo many boats in our house you don’t even know . He wants to go into navy when he grows up…”

Bill continued to speak about Georgie,his dead unbeating heartstrings pulling on his heart every so often. Stan was a good listener, he wa-

He felt Stan’s warm hand on his cheek whipping away the tears that were streaming down his face. He didn’t even notice them. 

He held back Stan’s hand, as he swallowed hard from the tears. He opened his bleary eyes, to look up at Stan, inches away from his face.

He felt  hot breath on his icy cold skin.

Fuck! They were so close. 

Somebody coughed. 

The two boys sprung from each other like they were set on fire. Mike stood in the door way, sweat glistening on his skin beautifully. He looked like a Greek God in that lighting.

Georgie. Mike. Stan. Bill silently prayed to Hecate to end his misery.

Him and Mike had been best friends since they’ve been kids which was like what, 30 years or so ago. They were born vampires so they aged only to a certain look, if you weren’t born a vampire then you were stuck in whatever age you were bitten. 

Mike was his friend at first but with time they both felt that their relationship was starting to develop into something different. And then Stan appeared out of nowhere.

Mike stood there, hurt and jealousy flames dancing in his eyes.

“Am I interrupting something?” He asked, if you listened hard enough you’d hear notes of scarcasm which were out of character for Mike.

“What, no hey” Bill answered, hastily, standing up.

Bill sent Mike a warm smile, and Mike’s facial expression seemed to soften and he was just shaking his head right now as if saying something to himself.

“I was looking for you, I was worried” Mike finally said, stepping in.

“So you ran here?” Stan asked from his place on the couch. 

Unlike Mike, his voice always had sarcasm in it, it was an undeniable asset of Stan’s character.

Stan’s eyes glistened with amusement at the current situation.Fae loved uncomfortable situations especially when they only slightly involved them.

“Umm, well no I didn’t specifically run here I just ran around the entire town before I thought that perhaps you’d be here, strange though, thought you’d be at our place” Mike said, his eyes returning to bill.

Bill only shrugged.

“Well, anyways. I’m gonna text Beverly and Ben cause they both seem to be awake and then we’ll get Eddie and Richie, if most of us are already awake we might as well get to it early” Mike said, his voice serious but still warm and cheery in the unmistakable Mike fashion.

Mike then walked off to call everybody and Stan quickly excused himself to go to Eddie’s house and wake the boy up. Apparently that was some sort of trip of itself, since Eddie’s mother was  a “manipulative,freakish hell beast” as Stan put it gently, all whilst speaking in the flattest tone possible.

That left bill alone in the house again. All to himself. He played with the fabric a bit more and stared into the empty fireplace until he heard quiet footsteps approach him from behind.

They were small,and awfully quiet, like a child trodding past their parents’ bedroom on their tippy toes.

The shoes squeaked a little. Bill’s head went up straight. He still didn’t turn around to look.

He felt someone edging towards him,slowly;like a wild cat stalking it’s prey. 

He felt like he should let it do that.

The footsteps kept on getting closer and closer until a bump of somethi-,somebody being stopped by the couch echoed in Bill’s ears.

And then he felt a cold breath on his neck. If his heart was still beating it would have stopped that very second.

Bill wanted to turn around and look but it felt like the more he tried to turn the more he was being pinned down by some invisible force.

And then the voice spoke.

“Billy” it uttered. 

He uttered.

Suddenly the force was gone and Bill turned around as fast as he could, jumping off the couch.

“Georgie” he shouted , making the voice echo around the room.

Empty room.

There was nobody there. 

Bill stood bewildered for a moment before he felt his body slowly start to sink to the floor. Hot trails of tears ran down his cold cheeks as a sob escaped his mouth. 

Georgie wasn’t there, he was never there.

“Bill!” Mike came running in, his phone clutched in his hand. Beverly on the line, repeatedly asking what’s wrong.

“I’ll call you back” he said into the phone before hanging up without waiting for the girl’s answer.

Bill was on the floor, his head against the fireplace, his eyes closed, his chest unmoving. As per usual.

Without a second thought Mike rushed towards the pale boy scrambling on the floor towards him, grabbing his face with both of his hands.

Bill’s eyes shot open, and more tears streamed down his face.

“Hey what happened?” He asked gently, pulling away a little.

“I” bill wiped the tears away with the sleeve of his hoodie “I’m going crazy!” he finished, laughing a little as he continued to rub his eyes until they turned red.

“I think I just saw, no heard Georgie!” Bill said, his voice sounding a bit hysterical. Mike furrowed his brow.

“I t-tried to turn around and get a b-better look but it’s like this force, G-God that’s stupid!” Bill interrupted himself  “ I-It was holding me down Mike-ke-ke, and then I heard his voice. G-G-G-Georgie’s voice and I turned and there was nobody t-there, fuck Mike, f-f-fuck I’m going insane!” 

It was like Bill couldn’t stop talking even if he tried to, so Mike lunged forward enveloping the smaller boy in the tightest hug. He felt shivers run down his spine as Bill buried his head in Mike’s t-shirt, his wet cheeks staining Mike’s shirt immediately .

“Listen to me, you’re not going insane. And I know that because Bev also saw something strange remember? She saw her mom. But it wasn’t real, she wasn’t  real. And Georgie, that was not real Bill, we’ll find him, we will.” Mike whispered into bill’s ear as the boy in his arms relaxed and pulled back from the hug.

“Thank you Mike, t-thank you”

“Guys what the fuck happened!?” came from the door, Beverly stood in the door frame. Her hand on her bag in which crystals were clicking against each other. 

The boys sprung from each other and Mike stood up quickly, lending a hand to Bill but the boy didn’t take it. Standing up by himself as the rest of the group piled into the room. 

Beverly and Stan came in first with Ben, Richie and Eddie on their heels.

“I j-just heard G-Georgie guys” Bill uttered, his soft voice echoing around the room.

Beverly’s face was immediately lined with worry and Stan instinctly looked around the room, his ears moving a little, trying to detect any sound.

“But” Bill continued “I d-don’t think he was r-real, I think something is m-messing with us.”

“You mean IT is messing with us” Eddie spoke up, making all heads turn to him at once. He wore a serious look on his face that didn’t match up with his fluffy bed head or super short pajamas shorts. Still somehow he managed to sound menacing.

“We have to tell you something guys, about what we saw before we found Georgie’s raincoat” Richie said nervously, inching towards the smaller boy as they exchanged silent looks. 

The rest of the group stared at them waiting. Then Ben, ever so quiet and observing spoke up to the stressed company.

“I have to tell you guys something too”