Chapter Text
Will falls on the floor after Vecna drops him, looking at the floor, panting as he processes what Vecna just told him. Vecna goes back into the upside-down. Will’s eyes roll back, and his head snaps backward as he taps into the hive mind without wanting to. He sees the first-person view of the demogorgon going to attack Robin, then it shifts to Lucas and then to Mike. Mike raises his hands, putting them in front of him to shield himself.
…
Will hears a familiar voice in his head: Robin’s voice. “I was looking for the answers in somebody else, but I had all the answers.”
A memory flashes in his head. A very happy memory of his. It was the first time he met Mike. He was sitting alone on the swings, and little Mike sat on the swing next to him. “Do you wanna be friends?” Will nods.
More memories flash in a matter of milliseconds as he hears Robin’s voice again. “I just…needed to stop being so goddamn scared. Scared of who I really was. And once I did that, I was so free. It’s like I could fly.
…
Mike pants as he shivers in fear, still shielding himself with his hands, and he expects to feel pain or something, but nothing happens. He hears the distorted shrieking of the demogorgon in front of him. He puts his hands down and stares in shock as he sees that the demogorgon seems to be stuck in place. He looks forward, and he sees Will. Will is holding out his arm almost as El does. His eyes seem to be completely white, no colour whatsoever. He lifts another arm as he stops the demogorgon that was attacking Lucas. He looks up and stops the demogorgon attacking Robin, too. The demogorgons elevate higher, their bones snap, and they fall to the ground dead. Will had managed to kill three demogorgons at once. He falls on his knees. Mike and Joyce both look at him in awe. Will feels blood dripping down from his eyes.
Mike runs to him, kneels down to his level, and hugs him. “You’re a sorcerer! A real-life, honest-to-God sorcerer! You did it! You really did it!”
Will hugs Mike back and blinks, but he realises it is the same with his eyes open or closed. “M-Mike…” he feels Mike’s back. “Mike…I can’t s-see you…” He backs away from Mike and feels his shoulders, making sure Mike is still there. “I can’t- I c-can’t see anything-” Will says, panicking.
“Your eyes…they are bleeding…and white-” Mike says in a worried tone as he helps Will get up.
Joyce comes up to them both and hugs Will. “Oh, baby”
“Mom.” He hugs her back as he recognises her voice.
“Oh, baby,” She says again as she holds him close.
“Mom- I can’t see you- I can’t see!” He starts panicking again. Was this the cost of his powers? Was this permanent?
“W-What?! Will! Your eyes- There’s blood-” Joyce says, worried.
“Shit- shit shit shit…” Mike was also equally worried. “W-we can fix this…we can fix this alright?” Mike reassures Will.
Will doesn't listen as he rubs his eyes frantically. “I can’t see- What is wrong with my eyes?!”
“Will stop.” Mike holds his hands and stops him as Will tries to break free. “Stop it! You are going to make it worse. We’ll figure something out, okay? I promise. I promise.”
Will nods as he calms down at the sound of Mike’s soft voice. As soon as they discuss the kids, helicopters fly overhead, and Mike acts quickly. “The tunnels. Radio Shack.” Mike grabs Will’s hand and guides him toward the radio shack, and Joyce helps. They find Lucas, injured in the tunnel.
“Lucas? ShiT” Mike kneels in front of him.
“Hey, guys,” Lucas says.
“Oh shit,” Mike says, looking worried.
“It’s just a little scratch…Whoa. Will, what’s with your eyes?” Lucas says, looking at Will. Will doesn’t reply.
“He- He saved us, from the demos and…that- that happened,” Mike explains as he and Joyce bandage Lucas’s wound.
“Whoa- so that was you?! So you know what that means, right- you are Will the Wise for real!”
“He is more like a sorcerer,” Mike explains.
“Right. Yeah, we have our second El.” Lucas says excitedly.
“I’m not a second El. I just siphoned powers from Vecna…and El didn’t have to go blind for her powers.” Will says, a little annoyed.
Mike and Lucas look at each other, not knowing how to comfort him. They reach the end of the tunnels, and Mike helps Will and Lucas out.
Later inside the WSQK, Mike helps Will to the restroom, and Will washes off the blood from his eyes. He washes as if he is trying to get rid of the blindness along with the blood. Mike stands there watching him.
“Hey, hey, hey. Whoa, okay. Will.” Mike stops him. “The blood is gone. We can go to the hospital later, after all this is done. And I’m guessing if we kill the bastard, this will go away and never come back.”
“W-What if I end up like this forever? What if it doesn’t go away?!” Will sounds like he is about to cry.
“You saved us, Will. If it wasn’t for you, we would be demo food right now. Whatever happens…I’ll be there for you, alright? We’ll be there.” Mike says, grabbing a towel and wiping Will's soaking wet face.
Will sighed. He felt way better after Mike’s counselling. “So, how do I look? Do I look cool? Do I look like a Tiefling?” Will says, trying to distract himself.
“Uh- yeah, you look…you look cool,” Mike says as he looks at Will. He felt like he was turning red.
Will in fact loooked really cool.
“Liar,” Will says, noticing Mike’s off tone.
“N-NO! I’m not lying!” Mike says knowing Will is more sensitive than usual.
Will chuckles. “Well then, thanks.” He was wishing he could see Mike right now. His heart beats faster as he senses Mike staring at him.
Robin opens the door. “OH my god. Your eyes are actually white.” She did not believe what she was seeing. “That’s so cool!” She was genuinely impressed. “You took out the demos-” She rambles on, making Will feel a little bit more better.