Archive of Our Own

Something about Crawl nights levelled Steve out. It could have been the routine, or the task to focus his energy towards, but either way, while the rest of the party buzzed with nervous energy, Steve settled. He knew his job. He was good at it. He could do this.

Then;

"Jonathan, can you drive the van this time?" Joyce asked, bringing everyone in the underground room of the radio station to a screeching halt.

Jonathan blinked. "What? Why? That's Steve's job."

Fussing with some papers in front of her, Joyce avoided eye contact as she stated, "I need Steve to come with me."

The way Jonathan's back straightened, accompanied by the narrow-eyed look he gave him, made the hairs on the back of Steve's neck stand on end.

"What for?" Steve frowned, praying the answer would stop the burning sensation of Jonathan's eyes in the side of his head.

"There's just something else I need you to do," Joyce shrugged, eyes still averted, hands busy darting across the desk.

Steve was certain that, were he an alpha, Jonathan would be accusing him of starting something with his mother.

"Whatever," Dustin dismissed, waving a careless hand. "Doesn't matter who's driving."

"I'm not worried about the driving," Jonathan started, taking an aggressive step in Steve's direction before Nancy stopped him with an arm across his chest.

"If Joyce needs Steve for something, you can drive, right?" Nancy clarified, eyeing Jonathan with something like a warning.

Though he clenched his jaw, Jonathan was cowed by his alpha's words, nodding once.

"Thank you, Jon," Joyce murmured, abandoning the desk to move to her son's side and kiss his cheek. "Steve?"

Baffled, Steve shrugged. "Sure?"

Joyce nodded firmly, then hurried off towards the stairs, pausing to wave Steve after her.

"Okay..." Steve fished the van keys from his pocket, holding them out for Jonathan. "I better get her back in one piece, Byers," he warned as Jonathan rolled his eyes and tugged the keys from his grasp.

"Be thankful it's not the beemer," Robin muttered, smothering a smirk with her hand.

"I'd make him walk before I gave him the keys to the beemer," Steve said bluntly, stepping around Jonathan and heading after Joyce as she scurried up the stairs.

Only once he was walking down the grassy slope behind the WSQK with Joyce did Steve venture for more answers. "Soooooo..." He knocked the knuckles of his fists together a few times, something anxious crawling up his back. "What-?"

"Hopper wants you to go on the Crawl with him," Joyce blurted out, eyes locked on the trees ahead and shoulders tense.

"He... what?"

Drawing in a slow breath through her nose and exhaling steadily through her mouth, Joyce stood a little straighter. "Hopper wants you to join him on the Crawl."

Steve blinked rapidly. "Yeah, I heard you... Why? He's never let anyone go with him before; why the sudden change of heart?"

Fidgeting with her fingers, Joyce sighed, "I can't tell you. Jim wants to explain it himself."

"Okaaaaaaay..." Steve slowed and lengthened his steps, watching Joyce out the corner of his eye. "Okay, but how come he wants me to go with him and not, like, the girl with superpowers? Or Nancy? Not that I want Nance in the Upside Down, but she's at least an alpha. An alpha with a shotgun."

Shaking her head, Joyce muttered, "The last thing he needs is another alpha." She breathed a sigh, then reached over to pat Steve's arm. "Believe me, I don't like the idea, but Jim... He can't do this on his own. He needs your help. Specifically."

As they stepped into the treeline, Steve decided not to dwell too long on that statement.

As soon as they reached Hopper and El waiting by the tunnel entrance, Steve found himself being pulled into a dark jacket with more pockets than every item of clothing he owned put together. Then, with a petulant glare from El on his back, he was bundled into the tunnels with Hopper, trudging towards the middle of town.

"So... why me?"

Hopper huffed and shook his head ahead of him. "I'll tell you when we get there."

"Oh my god," Steve groaned, dropping his head back. "Seriously? You're dragging me into the hellscape without any information?"

"Just..." Rubbing a hand across his face, Hopper grunted, "Kid, I'm gonna need you to trust me. I know that's a lotta faith to ask for right now, but please. I can't think of any other way. If I could, I wouldn't be risking bringing you with me."

A pause, then Steve mumbled, "Trusted you once. Might as well do it again."

Hopper glanced back at him, poised to speak, then his face fell with a sigh. "Thanks," he said instead, leading Steve ever onward under the ground.

The transition from tunnel to military camp to the back of a truck was a blur of intense focus and breathing as quietly as possible. Steve winced as the familiar throb of a tension headache made itself known behind his eyes as he and Hopper finally clambered to the ground, flinching at a crack of thunder and flash of red lightning.

"So," Steve whispered when they were far enough away from the possibility of being caught, "why'm I here?"

Hopper heaved a sigh, then grabbed Steve's arm and dragged him deeper into the trees. "Okay." He planted Steve's back against a tree. "Okay." Dragging both hands down his face, he paced back and forth a few times before turning to face Steve fully. "I found Munson."

Body washing cold, a muffled ringing filled Steve's ears. "You... what...?"

One of Hopper's hands landed strong and sturdy on Steve's shoulder. "I found Eddie," he clarified slowly. "Last Crawl. But I couldn't bring him back by myself, so I needed-"

"You needed the guy who told you, in confidence, that he had some serious feelings for him to help you drag his body back?" Steve spat, something hot and painful pulsing behind his ribs.

"No," Hopper hissed, glancing anxiously around them. "No, I... I didn't find his body."

Steve's face fell into a deep frown. "Then what-?"

"I found Eddie," Hopper emphasised, gaze boring into Steve's. "Upright. Moving around. Alive."

Everything went black for a moment, though Steve wasn't sure how long, given how naturally dark the torturous world of the Upside Down was. "He's... alive?" Steve whispered, his vision blurring.

A short huff, the Hopper muttered, "Harrington, I really don't have space for you crying right now."

"Why didn't you tell me?" Steve demanded, voice twisting hysterical at the end.

"Because I knew you'd get like this," Hopper gestured to Steve's state, "and we never woulda got in here. I needed you calm and focussed, and you'd never've been either of those if you knew."

Gripping his hair with both hands as a shattered breath left his lungs, Steve had to admit Hopper was right. "Fuck you, man," he mumbled regardless.

"Yeah, yeah, fuck me," Hopper muttered, stepping back. "You wanna see him or not?"

Steve nodded quickly, shakily pushing off the tree. "So..." Sniffing to compose himself, he cleared his throat. "What do you need me for?"

Hopper's next sigh was long and resigned as he began leading Steve through the trees. "Look, he's not... He's not okay," he explained poorly. "He's... Fuck, Steve, he's feral."

Steve's heart lurched.

"I can't get anywhere near him," Hopper continued, shaking his head. "First whiff of alpha and he'll tear me to pieces."

Shoving his trembling hands in his pockets, Steve supposed, "So you brought me in."

"I brought an omega with a familiar scent, who he was pretty attached to before this happened," Hopper corrected.

"We... We were just flirting," Steve admitted quietly, eyes on his feet as he navigated the tree roots.

"It's not 'just flirting' if it gave you isolation sickness."

"I just missed him," Steve huffed, though his stomach turned at the memory of the first two weeks after Eddie's death.

"Missing someone shouldn't make you smell like you're rotting on the inside," Hopper stated flatly, shooting a look over his shoulder at Steve.

Skin washing cold, Steve whispered, "Could everyone tell?"

Hopper shook his head. "Wheeler probably could, but not the others. That smell's s'posed to ward off other alphas."

Swallowing hard, Steve focussed on keeping in step behind Hopper.

"Here," Hopper murmured eventually, having checked in with Dustin via radio a few times. "I don't wanna hang around too long, especially since I don't wanna have Dustin complaining in my ear that I'm not in the right sector, but I'm here to make sure things don't go to shit, alright?"

Steve almost choked. Forest Hills was just as gloomy as last he had been here in the Upside Down, but now a familiar trailer had most of a side missing, a chaotic mess inside, and a hunched figure prowled the edge of the road.

"He won't let me anywhere near his den," Hopper explained, pointing to the trailer. "Or him, for that matter."

"Guess he only knows you as the police chief," Steve muttered, scanning the area.

A grunt. "Be careful," Hopper warned lowly, giving Steve's shoulder a squeeze before gently pushing him forward.

As Steve stepped onto the road, the figure froze, a pair of red eyes flashing at him dangerously. "Eddie..." Heart thundering in his ears, Steve barely noticed the growl rumbling from beneath the mess of dark curls ahead of him. "Ed... It's me..." Shuffling a few careful steps forward, Steve kept his hands where Eddie could see them.

A harsh warning sound barked from Eddie's throat, crouching lower, ready to pounce.

"It's just me..." Eyeing the way tension coiled in Eddie's body as he took another step, Steve stopped. "M'not a threat, Ed," he said softly.

Another growl, teeth bared.

The Eddie he knew had to be in there somewhere. God only knew how long he had been this way, but Eddie had to be somewhere beneath all that protective rage.

An idea formed in the back of Steve's head.

"Careful, kid," came Hopper's distant voice.

With a slow inhale through his nose, Steve bent at the knees, carefully lowering himself down. He settled kneeling on the road, sitting on his heels, gravel biting his legs through his jeans. "It's me, Ed," he called gently, exhaling long and slow, pushing out a wave of his scent. "I won't hurt you."

Eddie sniffed the air, head tilting curiously, but face never losing its menacing edge. A low, consistent growl sounded as he crept a few steps closer.

"It's okay," Steve encouraged, resting both hands on his knees. The brief thought that he had never submitted like this to anyone tugged at something in his gut. "It's okay, Ed, it's me. It's Steve."

All of Eddie's muscles tensed. He sniffed again, crouched so low he had one clawed hand on the ground in front of him. When he loped closer, Steve could hear him breathing, each intake of air rattling a dangerous growling noise in his chest.

"Ed..." Staring at the alpha he had so sorely missed, now only a few feet away, Steve swallowed the urge to cry. "It's Steve. I'm here to take you home."

Eddie's lip curled, revealing his alpha fangs with a rumbling huff.

"What do you need me to do?" Steve asked, more to himself, as his brain scrambled for an idea. This wasn't enough, Eddie needed something else. He didn't trust him yet, there had to be something...

A warning growl from Eddie made him flinch.

"Please work," Steve whispered, tipping his head to bare his neck in full submission.

Eddie's pupils dilated to pinpricks in the red sea of his irises, and for one frozen moment, nothing happened. The next moment, he launched himself at Steve, jaws wide, clamping his teeth into Steve's neck when he collided with him.

A yelp leapt from Steve's mouth, fear rushing his bloodstream, Eddie's possessive growl above him.

"Steve!" Hopper panicked, but Steve threw a hand out behind him in a motion to stop.

With Eddie's teeth deep in his neck, firmly clamped into his mating gland, Steve carefully held the back of his fluffy head. "Not going anywhere," he whispered shakily, wincing at a tug of Eddie's teeth. "M'right here."

Slowly, Eddie's fangs withdrew from Steve's flesh, his growl still rumbling as he lapped at the bite left behind. He nuzzled his face in against it, snuffling up Steve's neck and around his cheek before dropping back down to the mark from his teeth.

"Yeah, yours," Steve said softly, threading his fingers through Eddie's tangled curls. "S'okay, Eds, we're okay."

Nothing for another moment, then Eddie grabbed him, clawed hands sliding under his thighs and hauling him in close, wrapping both of Steve's legs around his hips and hoisting him off the ground. With a satisfied grunt, he turned and started carrying Steve towards the damaged trailer.

"Swing back around," Steve mouthed silently to Hopper.

Face full of concern, Hopper held up his fist, thumb pointed to the side in question. When Steve gave him a thumbs-up in return, he shrugged reluctantly and headed off to scout his next sector of the map.

Steve clung to Eddie's shoulders as he was carried with unprecedented strength into the scrappy remnants of the Munson trailer. It looked more of a mess than Steve expected, though he supposed it had survived quite well given that it had become the den of a lost, feral alpha. The mattress in the middle of the living room floor was ratty and grubby, but supportive enough when Eddie lowered him onto it.

Staying exactly where Eddie put him, Steve watched as the alpha paced in front of him, then climbed onto the mattress with him. He found himself shuffled and maneuvered onto his side, Eddie tucking up behind him with his face pressed into Steve's bitten neck.

"This's the safest place you found, huh?" Steve hummed, lifting his hips just a little so Eddie could wriggle an arm under him until both were wrapped firmly around his waist. "Made your den here."

Eddie huffed into his neck.

"Yeah..." Slowly, Steve covered Eddie's hands with his own. "Just want you safe, Eds," he whispered, thumbs stroking along Eddie's. "I know you're in there somewhere... You're okay, Eddie. Please come back." He closed his eyes, forcing himself to settle and allowing himself a quiet purr, which had Eddie nuzzling closer. "Please come back."

According to Steve's watch, it was just over half an hour later that a tiny whimpering noise reached his ears. "Ed?" he checked carefully, sliding one hand in circles against the back of Eddie's palm.

Another little noise, then a feeble, "Steve?"

Pressing his eyes shut against a wave of relieved tears, Steve almost laughed. "Yeah, Eds, it's me."

Eddie poked at Steve's neck with his nose. "Purring," he croaked.

"I'm really glad to see you." Squeezing Eddie's had, Steve prompted, "You wanna get up? Hopper's here, we can take you home."

A pitiful little whine. "Home."

"Yeah, home," Steve murmured.

With a wet sniffle, Eddie nodded.

"C'mon," Steve encouraged, slowly sitting up and turning to check on Eddie slumped on the mattress. "You okay? You're shaking..."

"Cold," Eddie mumbled, face pressed into the mattress as he trembled.

Steve's stomach dropped. "C'mon, let's get you outta here," he whispered, scooping his arms under Eddie and lifting him bridal style. "Hopper can't be far away."

Tucking his face back into Steve neck, Eddie made a vague noise of acknowledgement.

"Okay." Steve peeked into the darkness as he carried Eddie out of the remnants of the trailer. "C'mon, Hop..." he muttered, scanning the trees.

The next moment, Hopper's head poked out from behind a tree, relief flooding his features as he dropped his head forward. His shoulders heaved with a breath, then he met Steve's gaze and waved him over.

"We're getting you out, Eds," Steve whispered, walking quickly to meet Hopper. "You'll be safe, I promise."

"Christ," Hopper muttered when they arrived, already setting off towards their transport back through the gate. "Y'know, you made that look easy."

Steve snorted. "Nice it looked that way, I guess."

With a concerned glance at Eddie, Hopper checked, "He's okay, right?"

Stomach twisting, Steve admitted, "I dunno. He's cold and got really weak..."

Hopper nodded in understanding. "Right..."

"I didn't think alphas went into drop," Steve worried, nosing at Eddie's hairline and earning a meep in response.

"It's not drop," Hopper sighed. "Just an adrenaline crash."

"Oh." A tension Steve hadn't noticed released in his chest. "Okay... Makes sense, I guess..." He eyed Eddie tucked into him, limp and making the occasional pitiful noise.

Barely a shadow of the feral alpha that had jumped him not an hour earlier.

Hopper paused a moment, one hand to his ear as someone spoke to him through the radio. "Yeah, yeah, all done," he confirmed for the person on the other end. "We're headed back now."

Even Steve heard the screeching response, wincing as Hopper flinched hard.

"Back soon, talk later," Hopper stated, then tugged the earpiece out. He threw a glance back at Steve. "They're... coming to terms with the fact I brought you with me."

Fighting a smirk, Steve just nodded.

Wrangling Eddie into the back of the truck had been a task, and the reverse on the other side of the gate required some careful timing to avoid the military, but eventually, Hopper was helping Steve lower Eddie into the tunnels. Steve ditched his jacket, Hopper wrapping it over Eddie instead, before they began the silent trek back through the tunnels.

"There you are!" Joyce fretted as they finally clambered up from the underground, her eyes widening at Eddie's slumped form. "Oh my gosh, we need to get him inside."

Despite how light Eddie was - a fact that concerned Steve over the limited sources of food in the Upside Down - the constant weight of carrying another adult was straining his back and shoulders as he hiked out of the trees and up the hill to WSQK. His thighs and calves burned, gritting his teeth to focus himself.

Get Eddie inside first, then collapse.

Joyce held the door open for them, worried eyes darting over them as Steve carried Eddie into the building. His eyes caught their reflection in the glass of the studio booth, his neck and cheek smeared with his own blood from Eddie's face.

"This way, this way," Joyce insisted, ushering them towards the secret stairs and down into the underground room.

The buzz of noise in the room cut off with a sharp gasp.

Eyes wide and shining with tears, Dustin stumbled to meet them when Steve reached the bottom of the stairs. "Eddie...?" A choked noise left his throat, then both hands grabbed Eddie's arm. "Ed-"

Eddie cut him off with a low growl, sending Dustin jolting backwards.

"Hey, cut that out," Steve muttered, swatting at Eddie's leg as much as he could while holding him up. "Don't growl at Henderson."

The growl stopped. With a few shaky breaths against Steve's neck, Eddie croaked, "Shee-pie...?"

"Yeah, one of your sheepies," Steve sighed, shuffling past the stunned occupants of the room to reach the couch. "Don't go all Big Bad Wolf on them." He looked to a shaking Dustin. "Henderson, coat, now."

Immediately pulling of his trench coat with trembling hands, Dustin bundled it on the couch where Steve gestured with his head.

"Sinclair, Wheeler, Byers, gimme your jackets," Steve instructed as he carefully lowered Eddie onto the couch. "Jonathan, upstairs I've got a couple blankets, I need-"

"Already on it!" Jonathan called from halfway up the stairs.

Laying Eddie on his side, head on Dustin's coat, Steve knelt on the floor in front of the couch, holding out a blind hand for the jackets that the teenagers shoved towards him. "You're okay, Eds," he said softly, tucking the jackets in around Eddie as the alpha pressed his face into Dustin's coat. "It's okay, everyone's here."

Eddie shifted his head a little, then, "Wayne...?"

Steve's stomach dropped. "Hop?" he checked, lifting his head to find Hopper standing by the foot of the stairs.

"I'll call him," Hopper nodded firmly, making his way back up the stairs, pressing against the wall to let Jonathan past as he raced back down with an arm load of blankets.

Wordlessly, Steve took the blankets Jonathan handed to him, tucking one around Eddie's back and laying the other over the top of him. "It's okay, Eds," he whispered, tucking Eddie's hair behind his ear to reveal his face, only for Eddie to hide further in Dustin's coat, eyes squeezed shut.

"Could you roll him over?" Joyce asked gently as she knelt by Steve's side, first aid kit in her hands. "I want to check his face-"

"His face is fine." Sitting back on his feet, Steve huffed a long sigh. "I'm prob'ly the one that needs that." He shuffled to sit on the floor with his back against the couch, wincing at the next gasp that reached his ears.

"Steve..." Nancy stepped forward, one hand over her mouth. "Your neck..."

Rolling his eyes as Joyce silently set to work cleaning his bite, Steve muttered, "Yeah, Nance, I noticed."

A beat of nothing, then El stepped forward, eyes moving between Eddie and Steve. "That is why Hopper wanted you to go," she realised, voice low. "He is your friend."

"That bite makes them more than friends," Lucas muttered, arms folded and concern painted across his face.

"Of all things to be doing in the Upside Down, bonding isn't exactly a priority," Nancy huffed.

Shaking his head and flinching as Joyce dabbed at his bite with rubbing alcohol, Steve admitted, "He was... not okay. He didn't mean to."

The statement only seemed to work Nancy up more, jaw tense as she paced back and forth.

"But... he's okay now, right?" Dustin checked, eyes locked on Eddie with tears threatening.

"Yeah, man, he's okay," Steve assured him. Heart tugging, he added, "He's alive, Dustin."

Despite his harsh sniffing, Dustin's tears fell, Will, Mike, and Lucas all shifting to stand closer to him and grab his arms and shoulders in support.

Slowly and quietly, Robin climbed down onto the floor to sit by Steve's side, resting her head on his shoulder. After a long moment of nothing, she said, "Very rude of you to get bonded without telling me first."

Steve snorted, tipping his head a little to lean against Robin's. "Yeah, sorry 'bout that."

"I didn't even get to approve it or anything."

"Well, maybe I don't need your approval."

"Pfft, yeah, you do, dingus. You're not allowed to do anything without my approval."

"Not even go take a piss?"

"Nope. What happens if you get lost?"

"In the bathroom?"

"I know, your talents astound even me."

Before Steve could come up with a retort, something brushed at the back of his neck. He focussed, discerning Eddie's fingers feebly playing with his hair. "Hey, Eds," he murmured, reaching back to hold Eddie's hand. "Still here."

A meek whine, then Eddie slowly drew their hands towards his face, nose pressing into Steve's wrist.

"Get some sleep," he suggested, twisting his head enough to look back at Eddie, ignoring the twinge in his neck. "We'll find you something to eat when you wake up, okay?"

Nodding almost imperceptibly, Eddie seemed to fall into unconsciousness almost immediately, his breathing deepening against Steve's wrist.

"Try not to move like that too much," Joyce suggested, keeping her voice down. "I've cleaned the bite best I can. I'd really like to put a bandage over it, but..." Her eyes drifted briefly to Eddie. "I don't want to offend him."

"I'll ask him about it when he wakes up," Steve nodded, dropping his head on top of Robin's again. "I'm not sure he even knows he's done it."

"That's not reassuring," Nancy told him flatly, narrowing her eyes at the sleeping alpha.

As Joyce packed up the first aid kit and moved away, Dustin took the space she left. "How could he not know he bit you?" he asked, sniffing and wiping his nose on the sleeve of his Hellfire shirt.

Breathing a long sigh, Steve wrapped a hand around Dustin's elbow. "He'd gone feral," he explained carefully, squeezing Dustin's arm when his eyes widened. "He's fine now. But... it must've been how he was surviving in that hellhole all on his own."

"Feral in self-defence," Dustin muttered to himself, gaze distant and brow furrowed.

The thumping of the stairs signalled Hopper's returned. "Got hold of Wayne Munson," he sighed, rubbing a hand over his head. "He's on his way." Eyes landing on Eddie fast asleep, he supposed, "Not that it matters now."

"He's gonna need him later," Steve insisted, shaking his head. "And I'm pretty sure Wayne would like proof he's alive."

Hopper tipped his head in agreement. "He thought I was pranking him, at the start." Wandering into the room to stand at the end of the couch, gazing down at Eddie asleep, he admitted, "Never thought I'd make Wayne Munson cry, but here we are."

"What did you tell him?" Nancy asked, still pacing. "The Upside Down?"

With a scoff, Hopper pointed out, "I was trying to get the guy to believe me." He shook his head. "Just told him we found him feral in the woods."

"It's close to the truth," Steve supposed, something warm settling in his chest when Eddie sniffed at his wrist in his sleep.

"I think we should give him some time to sleep," Joyce suggested, ushering the group towards the other end of the room. "Jim, could you wait upstairs for Wayne?"

As people shuffled away from the couch, Dustin and Robin stayed firmly planted either side of Steve. "Just... need to know he's still here," Dustin said quietly, watching over Eddie.

"I get it," Steve nodded.

"I'm just not moving," Robin shrugged.

"Yeah, birdie," Steve snickered, "I know."

Steve woke with a cramp in his shoulder, suppressing a groan as he tried to shift it. The space Robin had occupied was now empty, and Dustin was curled up on his side on the floor, fast asleep. When he chanced a look behind him, he found Eddie peering through his lashes, squinting at him. "Steve?" he rasped.

"Hey..." Wriggling his fingers free of Eddie's grasp, Steve let his arm fall to his side, his muscles screaming in relief of the awkward position. He shuffled to turn, propping his chin on the couch in front of Eddie's face. "You feeling okay?"

Eddie's brow furrowed, then one shoulder lifted in a shrug. "Been better."

Reaching out with his non-strained arm, Steve pressed his hand to Eddie's cheek. "You're more with-it than you were."

A hum. "Hungry."

"I bet," Steve smirked, thumb tracing Eddie's cheekbone. "Do you remember what happened?"

Eddie frowned again. "I don't know... I remember... the bats, and Dustin crying... then..." His eyes pressed shut in focus. "I saw soldiers. The trailer- my den. Then... then you." When his eyes reopened, Steve could finally see those big dark irises, not a hint of red to be seen. "I saw you, and then..."

Sitting up a little, Steve pressed, "What happened after you saw me?"

But Eddie's eyes went wide, his head shooting up off the couch. "Steve... Your neck..."

"I know," Steve nodded patiently, reaching for Eddie's hand. "I know, Eds, what do you remember?"

"No, no, no..." Eddie dragged himself out of the blankets and jackets, squashing himself into the far corner of the couch with one hand clamped over his bloodstained mouth. "What did I do?" came his tiny voice past his hand, eyes panicked.

"Eddie, it's okay." Carefully scooting a little closer, Steve assured him, "You just bit me, that's all."

The manic laugh that barked behind Eddie's hand shook tears free from his eyes.

"Okay, that sounds bad," Steve conceded. "Look..." He reached for Eddie's free hand, taking it between both of his own when Eddie didn't fight him. "It was just the bite. You didn't do anything else, I promise. You bit me and took me back to your den, then you just held me for a while until you came back to your senses." Squeezing Eddie's hand, he murmured, "I'm not mad at you, Eds." He smirked slightly. "Might not be crazy about the method, but... can't argue with the result."

Eddie just stared for a moment, then eked out a muffled, "You're not mad?"

Shaking his head, Steve shifted closer. "It's not how I wanted it to happen, but I'm definitely not mad I've got your bite."

Nothing for a moment, then Eddie slowly lowered his hand. "Really?"

"Really." Giving Eddie's hand another quick pulse, Steve murmured, "I'm just gonna get something to clean the blood off your face, okay?"

Eddie nodded, his eyes never leaving Steve as he crept around the room, the rest of the pack scattered around and deep asleep. He returned to the couch with a pack of wet wipes, sitting himself by Eddie's side.

Slowly but surely, Steve went through three wipes cleaning his dried blood off Eddie's face and neck. "You're gonna need a proper shower," he hummed as he set the wipes aside, "but that'll do for now."

A pause, then Eddie cautiously reached for Steve, waiting for a nod of permission before pulling him in close to tuck his face into Steve's neck. "Did it hurt?" he whispered, lips tracing the mark left by his teeth.

"Yeah," Steve admitted. "You did kinda jump at me."

Eddie made a pitiful noise in the back of his throat. "Sorry..."

"S'fine." Pressing his nose into Eddie's neck, Steve breathed the scent of smoke and earth, humming when he picked up an underlying tang of iron and electricity. "Missed you."

Grasping Steve tightly, Eddie mumbled, "Missed you, too."

The door at the top of the stairs clicked, followed by quiet shoes on the steps. "Someone else missed you, too," Steve whispered, peeking towards the stairs in time to catch Wayne Munson's eyes fill with overwhelmed tears. "Ed..." Peeling back from Eddie's hold, Steve answered his frown by nodding towards Wayne.

"Christ..." Wayne staggered to the couch and dropped to his knees, hauling Eddie into a crushing hug. "Eddie, thank fuck..."

"Hi," Eddie mumbled, face squished into Wayne's shoulder and hands clutching his jacket.

Steve carefully climbed off the couch to leave the Munsons to their reunion, stretching his aching limbs as Dustin stirred from his sleep. With a quick glance around the room, he found Hopper at the foot of the stairs, who waved him over.

"Look... I'm sorry for springing all that on you," Hopper said lowly when Steve reached him. "But I hope you can understand why I did it."

A nod. "Fuck you, but... yeah, I get it."

Leaning against the railing if the stairs, Hopper eyed Steve's neck. "You wanna do something about voiding that, or...?"

Steve's skin prickled. "No." He shifted back from Hopper a little. "He hasn't had real food in months. We got anything for him?"

"After the meal he made outta you?" Hopper smirked, even more so when Steve narrowed his eyes at him. "Yeah, Joyce is out getting food now."

"Good." Glancing back to the couch, Steve spotted Dustin curled up by Eddie's side, head on Eddie's shoulder as Wayne mumbled conversation with his nephew. "You think Dustin's gonna be alright?" he asked quietly.

Hopper hummed. "You know him better than me, kid. But yeah," he sighed. "Looks like he's been in a pretty deep hole 'til now."

With a deep breath through his nose, Steve admitted, "I didn't know how to make it better."

A snort. "How d'you think everyone else's felt around you recently?" When Steve turned him a curious frown, Hopper pointed out, "You've been off, Steve. I could smell it at first, but the way you've been acting... I know lonely when I see it."

Bristling, Steve muttered, "You would; you saw it in the mirror enough times."

Raising a reproachful eyebrow, Hopper shoved Steve's shoulder. "Fuck off to your alpha, Harrington," he sighed, tromping off into the room to check on El, who was asleep in a chair, face-down on their planning table.

Hopper said it so easily, but his words smacked Steve hard in the chest;

Your alpha.

"My alpha," Steve murmured to himself, unsure whether or not the giddy warmth washing through him had anything to do with the bite on his neck. "Mine."

The next set of footsteps down the stairs drew Steve's attention to Joyce, her arms loaded with bags. He quickly took a few off her hands, earning a tired but thankful smile. "Come on, everyone," she called out, rousing the last of their sleeping pack. "Breakfast."

Through sleepy grumbles, teenagers dragged themselves over to the table, even Dustin peeling himself away from Eddie.

"Here," Joyce murmured, pressing a dish into Steve's hands. "Don't let him get up yet."

So Steve made his way back to the couch, where Eddie was fumbling through feeble attempts at pushing himself to his feet and barely moving. Settling himself by Eddie's side, Steve pulled the blanket over their legs, then peeled the foil away from the top of the dish to reveal pancakes and bacon. "Eat." When Eddie didn't move, he rolled a strip of bacon up in a pancake, then held it out for him. "Please."

Slowly, Eddie took the the pancake from Steve's hand and bit into it, his stomach grumbling loudly. "Don't know when I last had real food," he mumbled around his mouthful.

"Probably don't think about it," Steve suggested, wincing as he tried to imagine what Eddie must have been eating in the Upside Down without logical reasoning skills.

Scoffing his pancake, Eddie turned his big dark eyes to Steve, fiddling with his rings. "So... the bite..."

Steve leaned close to Eddie's ear and whispered, "Thank you, alpha."

Eddie's jaw dropped, huge eyes even wider than normal.

Tipping his head, Steve nuzzled at Eddie's jaw. He took a deep breath of his alpha's scent, his own purr sending a wave of tingling satisfaction across his skin.

"Purring," Eddie said quietly, fingertips brushing the shell of Steve's ear. "You were purring in the Upside Down, too..."

"My alpha was keeping me safe."

Eddie was stunned silent for a moment, then wrapped both arms around Steve and buried his face in his hair. "That's really okay?" he checked, voice barely a squeak.

"It's perfect," Steve promised, curling his fingers into Eddie's shirt and taking another deep lungful of his scent. "You can come home with me," he murmured. "And we can complete this bond properly."

A shudder rolled through Eddie's shoulders. "Okay," he whispered. "Properly as in...?"

Steve pressed his lips to Eddie's skin. "Eat some more. You're gonna need the energy." He grinned when Eddie clutched him tighter.

"You can't just say shit like that," Eddie mumbled, reaching one hand to the dish to grab another pancake. "You're gonna kill me."

"I put too much work into saving your ass for that."

"Boys," came Hopper's stern voice, pulling their attention to where he was standing by the table as the others ate, hands on his hips. "Save it."

When Steve glanced down, he found himself almost on top of Eddie's lap. "Prude," he accused, smirking at Hopper's answering glare.

"Save it," Hopper warned.

"Leave 'em alone, Jim," Wayne snickered, shooting Steve a wink.

"You're the closest we've got to a parent for either of these two; aren't you concerned?" Hopper huffed, turning his full attention to Wayne.

Ignoring the bickering - though Wayne was more dismissing that arguing - Steve tucked back into Eddie's neck. "Eat," he murmured.

Eddie nodded. "Got a job to do," he stated, muffled around a mouthful of pancake. "Don't wanna disappoint."

With a snort, Steve shifted a little closer. "You won't." He ghosted his lips over Eddie's mating gland. "Trust me."

And when he glanced up to find Eddie gazing down at him in awe, Steve finally felt whole again.