Chapter Text
Chapter 1: This is the end, our new beginning
“Mike!” He hears Nancy scream from the other side of the field. His heart sinks as he feels another piece of his pack bond rip away. “No!” She screams, and Steve screams at the loss with her. The realization that they have already lost is setting in. They’ve lost so many already and the fight feels like it had only just begun.
“Mike!” Eleven cries, snapping out of the trance she had been in. She was their last hope, fighting Vecna in his mind. Keeping him occupied as the rest of them fought off waves of his army of monsters.
Nancy let out a guttural scream and she fired round after round into the demogorgon that had torn Mike apart. She was fighting in a blind rage now, not paying any mind to the bats starting to swarm her now.
“Argh” Steve heard to his side and no. No. No. “No” he screamed as Dustin fell to the ground behind him. Steve saw the clawed hand of the winged beast they had yet to name had just smashed into the side of Dustin’s head. Steve ran to him as he hit the ground and cradled him in his lap.
“Dustin! Dustin stay with me buddy I got you” Steve looked him over, he was still breathing but bleeding profusely from his head. He realized they didn’t have long left now.
Steve was bleeding from his stomach, a bite taken by a demodog in the same place the bats had once feasted. He could feel his body slowing down now from the blood loss.
Tears fell as he looked across the field. He could see the bodies of his friends, his family, fallen to the forces of evil. Joyce, Mike, Will, Lucas, Erica, Robin. The monsters had taken them all. He looked to Eleven, held up by her father as he stood between her and the ugly flying monster that had hit Dustin. He saw determination in her face.
“No!” She screamed with an otherworldly force behind it. From one breath to another, Steve could feel the change in the atmosphere. He blinked and suddenly they were no longer on the field by the high school. They were in a dark blank void. Only the few of them left standing could be seen.
“Jane?” Hopper asked as he looked around at all the people left. Steve saw himself, holding on to Dustin who was barely conscious. Nancy was limping over to Jonathan as he sobbed over his mother’s body. Steve could see his arm was gone and his face was ashen. He was on the brink of death. They all were.
His heart was breaking apart from the loss of so many pack members at once. He felt their loss like a lost limb. He couldn’t breathe, couldn’t think. This couldn’t be real. He shook his head and looked over again at Eleven and Hopper, hoping they would know what to do.
“Dad, I have one last idea I can try, but I don’t know if it will work” she says. She speaks softly but in this quiet void they all seem to hear her.
“What is it? Whatever it is we need to work fast, we don’t have much time left. We need to retreat as fast as we can” he demands.
“Dad” she says. “I felt the power of the upside down. I think I can connect to it and use it to push you all back to where it began.”
“What does that mean?” Nancy asked. She sounded resigned. Weary. Steve looked over and was surprised at how sturdy she looked. A strong soldier until the end he thought looking at her.
“I don’t have time to explain it all” Eleven replied. She sounded so tired. Blood was pouring from her eyes and nose. So much she didn’t bother wiping it away this time. “Those of you alive will be sent back to the time the upside down was formed. It’s stuck in time as the night Will was brought here and linked this world to Hawkins.”
“Wait why just us,” Hopper asked, “where will you be?”
“And what about everyone else” Nancy added.
“This power requires a sacrifice” Eleven says. Her knees have started to buckle and Hopper is the only reason she is still standing. “Doing this will take everything I have and make me part of the upside down. But it gives you a chance to go back! To fix our mistakes and save everyone.”
“No, there has to be another way!” Hopper screams. He’s starting to cry now. Eleven reaches up and wipes the tears off his face.
“We are all going to die here if I don’t do this” she says. “You will see me again and you can stop all of this from happening, save them, save everyone”
Nancy, ever the leader makes the decision for them. “What do you need from us? Let’s do this, now, before he finds us here”
“Hold on to me everyone, quickly” Eleven reply’s weakly. Steve uses the last of his strength to drag Dustin and himself over to where El and Hop are standing. Nancy grabs Jonathan and pulls him over with her. They are the only ones left and they barely have any life left in them.
“Don’t let go and close your eyes” she says and then the void starts to fade around them and they are back in the upside down. Steve slams his eyes closed and holds Dustin’s hand to El’s wrist and grips her shoulder tight with his other hand. He’s pinning Dustin to El with his own body as much as possible, refusing to let go of him for a moment.
“Please,please,please” Steve prays to a god he doesn’t believe in to please let this work.
He feels the ground start to shake but he keeps his eyes closed. He hears the roar of monsters, the screams of bats, the cried of his family, his pack, and finally a scream as Eleven is pulled apart in their arms.
He thinks he hears a distant outraged cry from Vecna above them and then nothing. He feels nothing, sees nothing. Silence is the only sound. And then he feels weightless and then nothing.
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Steve wakes with a start and screams. He looks down at himself and, his body looks different. He’s whole again. No bites or wounds. He’s younger, not yet having developed his muscle and body structure from 1986. He must really be in the past. But that means…
He leaps out of bed and reaches for his phone. He hesitates for one moment before calling whose voice he’s dying to hear.
“Henderson residence, Claudia speaking?” He hears before he remembers that he can’t just call Dustin. He has no reason to call him.
“Hello?” Claudia asks, sounding confused.
“Sorry, wrong number ma’am. Have a good day” he squeaks out before hanging up the phone.
“Nancy” he says to himself as he starts to dial again. “Of course Nancy will know what to do” he says as he waits for someone to pick up. He’s disappointed when he gets the busy signal.
“Fuck” he swears as he hangs up again and wonders what to do. He starts to pace as he things about his next course of action. Should he go to school and meet Nancy there? Should he call Hopper and let him know what he remembers? Does Hopper remember too?
After about 5 minutes of worrying and debating with himself he tries Nancy one more time and thankfully the call goes through.
“Hello?” He hears Nancy’s voice through the phone and lets out a breath he didn’t know he had been holding.
“Nance, do you remember? Please say you remember” Steve breaths out.
“Oh thank goodness yes we made it back. How much do you remember? Jonathan seems to remember bits and pieces but he was really gone at the end there. I think it affected how much he actually retained but he remembered enough to call me. I think I remember everything and I have a plan on what we need to do but we need to work fast” she speaks quickly and succinctly leaving no room for argument.
“Tell me where to be and when and I’m there. We can’t mess this up. We have to do this. I can’t lose them again.” Steve says.
“Ok can you pick me up? We can ditch today and go get supplies for everyone with everything we need. Have your parents left yet?” She asks. Steve will never not be in awe of how quick Nancy is to take charge in any situation. He remembers now why he was so obsessed with her at this time in his life. She’s amazing.
He shakes off the nostalgic emotions. He needs to focus on the tasks at had. Steve rolls his shoulders back and mentally prepares himself for this day.
“They left 3 days ago and won’t be home for another week. I’ll grab the emergency credit card and be at yours in 10 minutes. Or do you need me to pick you up down the street?” He asks her.
“Around the corner so my mom doesn’t see” she says.
“Sounds good see you soon” he replies.
He allows himself 2 minutes to collect himself and scream internally with excitement, fear, anticipation and joy. He knows that today will be difficult in so many ways and he needs to be ready
Tonight was the night Barb Holland was killed the first time around. They are not going to let that happen this time. Not now when they know better.
It was also the night he presented as an omega while having sex with Nancy Wheeler for the first time; that would not be happening this time around.
The first time around, he had panicked at the thought of being an omega, being different to what his parents expected of him. So he had pretended to be an alpha with scent blockers and suppressants for the next 2 years, choosing to hide away who he really is in order to maintain his status quo. That was a mistake he was planning on changing this time around. He knows all that conformity was bullshit all along and the real Steve is a pretty great guy. The real Steve is not going to be hidden away this time around. No matter what anyone said or did he was determined to be true to himself.
He couldn’t help but fear the fight that was coming. They had barely survived the first fight with the demogorgon. what if they lost here and ruined their second chance before it could really begin?
He chose instead to hold on to the joy he felt right now. He was alive. His friends were alive! His family, his kids, this little pack they had made for themselves at the end of the world. They were all alive and they had the chance to keep it that way permanently. He was not going to waste one second of this gift Eleven had given them.
He grabbed his keys and ran for the door, hope in his heart for the first time in what felt like years. He was hopeful for his future.
As he started up the car he let out a little whispered “thank you” to the world, hoping the Eleven from their timeline could understand how grateful he was for this second chance.