The Hellfire Club
Catherine walked into the living room of the Henderson household, a smile fixed to her face. She lifted her arms as she span in a circle, showing her dress off to her family. Her parents had proud smiles on their faces whilst her brother rolled his eyes- he'd rather be playing Dungeons and Dragons with the Party at Mike's house than watch his sister perform a mini fashion show. "What do you think?" Cat asked, coming to a stop as she faced her family.
"You look lovely, sweetheart." Her mom grinned. "I can't believe my baby is going off to her first high school dance." She lifted a tissue to her eyes, wiping away a stray tear.
Cat looked down at her red dress she'd picked out three weeks prior with Nancy Wheeler and Barbara Holland. "You think?" She asked, looking back up at her parents. "You don't think it's too bright?" Claudia shook her head in answer.
"You look perfect." James Henderson smiled. "You'll be the prettiest girl at the dance."
Cat looked down at her feet as she rolled her eyes. "You guys have to say that." She muttered. "You're my parents." She turned her gaze to her younger brother. "What do you think, Dusty? Give me your honest opinion. Do I look ridiculous?"
Dustin shook his head. "No, the dress suits you Kit."
"Thanks, Dusty." Cat smiled, crossing over to the couch he was sat on. She ruffled his hair, causing him to frown in annoyance and shove her hand away.
"There's just one thing missing." James said, picking up a small box from the floor next to the sofa he was sat on with his wife. At Cat's curious look, James handed her the box. "Every princess needs the perfect shoes."
Even though Cat hated it when her father called her anything girly- such as 'princess'- she couldn't help but smile as she held the box in her hands. She removed the lid, a small gasp leaving her lips as she saw the shoes her father had gifted her. "Oh, wow." She whispered, taking the shoes out of the box. She placed them on the floor, gently slipping her feet into them as her father took back the empty box. "Dad, I don't know what to say... They're just like Dorothy's in the 'Wizard of Oz'. Thank you." Her eyes filled with tears as she tried not to cry from happiness.
James smiled as he observed how happy his eldest was. "I'm glad you like them, sweetheart."
Cat couldn't tear the grin off her face as she spun for a second time, this time admiring her shoes. They were a deep red colour, with little gems sparkling as they caught the lights dotted around the room. "They're perfect." Cat breathed out.
Claudia clasped her hands together on her lap, aware that the time was edging closer to the time of the dance. She didn't want her daughter to be late to her first ever high school dance. "So, is this date of yours coming to pick you up?" Claudia asked.
Cat shook her head. "No, I'm meeting Eddie there. Barb's driving me." At the odd look on her parents' faces she added, "She got her licence a few weeks ago. We'll be okay."
"And is Barb driving you home after?" James asked.
Cat walked over to the window, seeing a car pull up outside. "Um, Eddie's gonna drop me off." She began walking to the door, not wanting to leave her friend hanging outside for too long.
"Catherine, are we ever going to meet this boyfriend of yours?" Her mother asked. She wouldn't usually ask such a question but the thought had been bugging her for a while. "You've been dating this... Eddie for almost two months now and you've yet to introduce him to us."
Cat gulped as she pulled the front door open, looking over her shoulder at her mom. "Oh, uh... You'll meet him soon. I promise." She sent her family one last smile before disappearing out of the house, making her way to Barb's car.
***
Cat linked her arms with both Nancy and Barb's as they made their way into the school hall. Sure they'd been to many school dances back in middle school, but this was high school. It was different, and Cat could feel her nerves shooting through every vein in her body. "I'll see you two later, yeah?" She said to her best friends, locking eyes with Eddie across the hall.
"Yeah, we'll see you around Cat." Nancy smiled, watching as the girl let go of their arms and skipped across the hall to her date.
"Well, well, well." Eddie smiled as he threw his arm around Cat's shoulder. "Don't you clean up well Henderson."
Cat chuckled, leaning into his side. "I could say the same for you, Munson." She laughed, placing a kiss on his cheek. "I don't think I've ever seen you in a suit."
"First and last time." Eddie joked, leading her to the table filled with drinks. "What's your poison for tonight?" He asked, looking from the array of beverages to Cat.
She shrugged her shoulders. "I'd say punch, but then again someone's probably hijacked it with alcohol." Her eyes surveyed the room, looking around at all her dressed up peers. Her gaze landed on Steve Harrington and she unknowingly tensed up slightly. He was with some girl Cat had never been bothered to speak to- no doubt a popular- with his hands round her waist.
The pair were childhood friends, meeting at age five when Cat was pushed off the climbing frame by some older boys. But since starting Hawkins High, the pair had barely hung out. Steve would always be with the popular kids- in particular Carol Perkins and Tommy Hagan who Cat despised with a passion-, and Cat would be left to hang out with the older siblings of her brother's friends. She didn't mind this, Jonathan and Nancy (and of course Barbara) were lovely people and had Cat had quickly become closer friends with them. But it hurt to see that Steve Harrington was slowly drifting away from her.
"On second thoughts," Cat spoke again, turning her gaze back to Eddie as Steve begun snogging his date. "I'll brave the punch." She reached forward, pouring herself a cup. She grimaced as she downed the beverage, the alcohol prominent in the drink. "Yep, that's been spiked." She laughed, gagging slightly from the taste. Cat spared one last look to Steve and the girl he was with, irritated with how happy he looked. Against her better judgement, she poured herself another drink, turning her back on Steve Harrington and his date. If he couldn't even look at her at the school dance then he wasn't worth her time, Cat decided in that moment. She was done with Steve Harrington.
***
Cat shot up in bed, slamming her hand down on her alarm clock to turn it off. She groaned, running her hand across her face. She hadn't had a dream like that in a while, nowadays they tended to be nightmares from the events of the past few years- Hawkins in danger, someone she loves dying and the Upside Down tearing apart her town. But dreaming of an old memory, that hadn't occurred in a very long time. Before she could wake up properly, the phone on her chest on drawers began to ring. Cat sighed, climbing out of her bed and crossing the room to the phone. "Hello?" She spoke into the receiver.
"Cat?" Came Steve's voice through the phone.
Catherine sighed. "Yes, it's me Steve. It's too early, why are you calling me?"
"Um, I thought I was giving you a lift to work today." He spoke, and Cat's eyes widened- she'd forgotten. "And we've got to drop Robin off at the pep rally first."
"Shit." Cat swore. "I forgot. How many minutes do I have to get ready?" She asked.
"Maybe ten." Steve answered. "Wait- Please don't tell me you've only just woken up..."
Catherine was quiet for a moment as she bit the inside of her cheek. "No..." She heard Steve sigh. "Anyway, it doesn't matter. I'll be ready by the time you pick me up."
"You promise?"
"I promise."
"See you in ten. Love you."
"Love you too." Cat grinned, putting down the phone when she heard the static telling her Steve had hung up. She spared a glance at the clock on her bedside table, showing that she had overslept- despite having set her alarm for an earlier time. She let out a sigh, pulling her work uniform from her wardrobe. It wasn't anything special, just a plain light-blue top with the shop's logo on the chest.
Once dressed she made her way down the hall to Dustin's room. Sometimes Dustin caught a ride with Cat in Steve's car, but it wasn't a regular thing. Cat knocked her fist against his door. "Hey, Dusty. Are you ready? Steve's gonna be here soon." She slid the door open, leaning her side against the frame. "What are you doing?" She questioned, furrowing her eyebrows at the radio machine Dustin used to talk with Suzie and the notebook with various words crossed out in a list.
"Uh, nothing." Dustin answered quickly.
Cat cautiously stepped further into the room, her eyes lighting up when she realised what her brother was doing. "Oh my God! You're hacking into the school's system?!" She cried.
"Shut up!" Dustin hissed, leaning back in his chair to see if their mom had heard. "Not so loud. If mom hears, I'm dead."
Cat scoffed. "Bold of you to assume I won't tell her any way." She leaned forward into the walkie-talkie part of the radio. "Hi Suzie." She greeted.
"Hi." The girl's voice replied, sounding uncertain.
A car horn beeped outside, and Claudia Henderson yelled for her daughter. "Right." Cat sighed. "Steve's here. You coming or what?"
Dustin shook his head. "I'll cycle. I'm meeting Mike anyway." Cat nodded at him, bidding both him and Suzie a goodbye before heading out the room.
***
"So, Robin." Cat spoke as the Buckley girl climbed into the back seat of Steve's car, band costume in hand. "You up for a trip to Creel house?"
"You were being serious about that?" Robin asked, looking at the blonde through the mirror in the front of the car. Cat nodded her head, pulling her hairbrush from her bag and beginning to style her hair. "I thought you were joking." Robin's eyes were wide. "Why the hell would you want to break into Creel house? Isn't it supposed to be haunted?"
Cat's hands paused as she twisted strands of her hair into plaits. "Well, I guess so? And, um..." She looked across to Steve, wondering if she should disclose the real reason to Robin as to why she wanted to explore the house. She opened and closed her mouth a couple of times as she thought, settling on not telling the full truth. "I just thought it would be something fun to do on one of my days off during spring break." She shrugged her shoulders.
"You have a weird definition of fun." Robin commented.
"Robin's right, you know." Steve interjected, glancing across to his girlfriend.
"So," Cat began, looking over her shoulder to Robin. "Would you go?"
Robin didn't answer, having tuned out her friends to concentrate on applying mascara to her eyelashes. She used a small pocket mirror Cat had gifted her over Christmas. "Um, what?"
By now, they'd already made it out of Robin's neighbourhood and were driving down the main road that lead to the high school. "Cat wants to know if you'd go to Creel house with her."
"And I'm assuming as the protective boyfriend you are, you're going too?" Robin spoke. Steve nodded his head. "Okay, well... sorry Cathy, but I'm not sure." The dark blonde told her. "It's seven in the morning, it's too early too make a decision, and we have this stupid pep rally, and I woke up looking like a corpse." She lifted her hands to her hair, trying to tame it.
Cat smiled at her through the mirror, tying a hairband around the ends of her plaits. "That's okay. I wasn't expecting you to decide straight away if you'd come or not."
"You're worried about a pep rally? You expect us to believe that?" Steve asked, taking a hand off the wheel and gesturing between himself and Catherine.
"Yeah? So?"
"So..." Cat chimed in. "We all know what this is really about. You're worried about looking good for Vickie." She teased, turning in her seat and drawing a heart in the air.
Robin shook her head. "Absolutely not." She denied, swatting Cat's hand away.
"It is." Steve argued. "You know what else?"
"I don't care-" Robin started but was cut off as Steve continued speaking.
"You gotta stop pretending to be someone else when you're around her." Steve told her, Cat nodding her head in agreement as she turned back around in her seat. "You just gotta be yourself."
Robin scoffed, rolling her eyes as she applied lip balm to her lips. "You're literally quoting me to me." She deadpanned. "You do realise that."
"Well, maybe you need to listen to yourself." Steve replied. "Ever think about that, smarty-pants?"
"It's... it's not as easy for me as it is for you guys." Robin sighed, leaning back in her seat. "Okay, let's go back to when you and Cathy weren't dating." She said, hypothetically. "If you asked had her out and she said no, big deal. Nothing happens. Maybe your ego's a little bruised. But I ask out the wrong girl, and bam, I'm a town pariah."
Steve nodded his head, glancing at her through the rear-view mirror. "Vickie is definitely not the wrong girl." Cat spoke up.
"But, Cathy, we don't know that." Robin pointed out.
"She returned 'Fast Times' paused at 53 minutes, 5 seconds." Steve told her. "Do you know who pauses 'Fast Times' at 53 minutes, 5 seconds? People who like boobies, Robin."
"Ew!" Robin cringed.
Cat pulled a face as she stared at her boyfriend. "Gross, Steve. Don't say boobies."
Steve took his eyes off the road for a second, turning his head to look at his girlfriend. "Boobies." Cat cringed, slapping his arm as he faced the road again. "Look, it's not a big deal. Okay? I like boobies. Robin, you like boobies." Cat bit her bottom lip, trying not to laugh. "Vickie likes boobies. Definitely."
Cat chuckled. "Steve is right though." She said, looking back at Robin. "Nobody pauses 'Fast Times' at 53 minutes and 5 seconds unless they like ladies. Trust me."
Steve furrowed his eyebrows at her as he pulled into the parking lot outside Hawkins High. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"Nothing." Catherine shook her head. "Don't worry." Steve rolled the car to a stop, letting Robin climb out the back seat. She gathered her band gear, calling out for her peers to wait for her. "Good luck!" Cat shouted through the open window as Robin walked away. The dark blonde waved at the couple, running to catch up with her band friends.
***
After what had to be the most boring first three hours of her shift, Cat made her way into 'Family Video'. She smiled at Steve, walking over and leaning her elbows on the counter. She opened her mouth to greet him, when the store's phone rang. "Hello, this is 'Family Video'." He sighed. "How can I help?"
"Steve, are you free this evening?" Dustin's voice rang through the receiver.
"Uh, no." He answered, frowning in confusion. "I've got that date with Cat, remember?" Steve reminded the younger Henderson, leaning forward and placing a quick kiss on Cat's cheek. "And anyway, why?"
"Yeah," Cat spoke up, leaning closer to the phone so her brother could hear her. "Why are you trying to steal my boyfriend for the evening?"
Dustin rolled his eyes. "Lucas has his basketball game tonight, and we need a sub for our campaign. Please can one of you just join this one time?"
"Sorry, Dusty, it's date night." Cat told him.
Steve nodded. "And we missed last week because Keith made me work an extra shift."
"Come on." Dustin sighed. "Couldn't you just move your date this one time. Please?" He asked. "You see each other all the time anyway. Why do you need a specific date night?"
"To keep our relationship healthy." Cat answered. "Besides, can't you delay your campaign to another day?"
"No. Eddie says it has to be tonight." Dustin stressed. "Can't you two just move your date till afterwards?"
Steve wrapped the phone cord around his finger. "What, delay my date with Cat in order to hang out with you and Eddie 'the freak' Munson?" Steve questioned. "Uh, yeah, I'll pass."
"Wait." Cat's eyes widened and she took the phone from Steve, holding it to her ear. "Did you say Eddie Munson?"
"Um, yeah?"
Cat nodded her head slowly as she passed the phone back to Steve. "He's not a freak." She chided Steve, tapping his arm. "He's just into a different style of stuff. What you think of as cool, he doesn't, and vice versa." She said to him.
"You're just jealous, Steve, 'cause I have another older male friend." Dustin spoke down the phone.
Steve pulled a face at the boy's choice of words. "Ew. Ugh. Whatever." He looked up as the shop door opened, a trail of teens walking in. "Oh, I got some customers. Either me or Cat will call you back later. Bye."
"Bye!" Cat shouted down the phone just before Steve hung up.
***
An air horn sounded as the Hawkins High basketball team ran into the gym. Cat let out a cheer as she spotted Lucas, loudly wishing him luck from her spot on the bleachers. "You know, the only reason I agreed to come tonight was to support Lucas and Robin." Cat said to Steve as they watched the players warm up. Cat looked across the aisle, catching sight of Robin playing the French Horn.
"Yeah, I know." Steve said, smiling at her.
"You know what would be crazy?" Cat spoke, voicing her thoughts. "If we win the championship like, right after you graduated from the team." She chuckled.
Steve nodded his head slightly, rolling his eyes playfully at her. "Yeah, yeah, that's an interesting point. Thank you so much for bringing that up, Kit-Cat." He smiled sarcastically at her. She smiled back at him, leaning up on her tiptoes to kiss him. The band stopped playing their music as the pair pulled away.
Cat watched as the principle walked up to the microphone placed in the middle of the gym. "Everyone now please rise for our national anthem." He spoke. Everyone did as he instructed, Cat leaning into Steve's side. He wrapped an arm around her waist, pulling her closer to him. "Singing for us tonight, we have a very special guest. All the way from Nashville, our very own Tammy Thompson!" He stepped away from the microphone as Tammy Thompson jogged into the room, waving her hands at everyone as if she was a famous celebrity- which, for a small town like Hawkins, she kind of was.
Cat's eyes widened and her mouth fell open as she shared a shocked look with Steve. He had a similar expression on his face as they simultaneously turned to look at Robin. She was looking back at the pair, her own eyes wide. Tammy began to sing, her voice causing Catherine to wince. "Told you." Steve whispered to Robin.
"She sounds like a Muppet." Cat added, mouthing to Robin.
"Okay, she does sound like a Muppet." Robin agreed, looking over her shoulder at them. From next to her, Vickie laughed in agreement. Cat smiled, paying more attention to the pair than Tammy Thompson's performance. Once Tammy had finished singing, the game started. Cat stopped trying to pay attention as soon as she realised Lucas wasn't playing and had been put on the bench. The cheerleaders Catherine had once hoped to join- but never did- began cheering their chants. Cat rolled her eyes, pulling out her notebook and a pen from her bag. She thought the chant was stupid, yelling about pushing the other team back and being on the defence. How was that supposed to help the Hawkins Tigers?
"What's that you've got there?" Steve asked, taking his eyes off the game to see what his girlfriend was writing.
"Just some notes." Cat answered. She had drawn a line down the centre of the page, writing down different bullet points in each. One side of the page was titled 'Dad' and the other 'Creel House'. "I thought it would be best to write up everything I know about the day my dad supposedly died, and Creel House. See if I can come up with anything that would potentially connect them."
"How's that going?"
Cat shrugged her shoulders, resting her head against him. "So far I have barely anything. So, um, not well. I'm hoping that if we actually go to the house, I can find some answers or maybe even just clues about what really happened that day."
Steve let out a quiet sigh, conflicted. "You know that's probably a dangerous idea, right?" He paused, looking across to the game as Cat looked up at him. "I mean, yeah there might be some answers there. But you don't know that for sure. And if in the case you don't find anything, there's a risk that you could get hurt." Cat didn't say anything as she let him speak. "All I'm saying is, Kit-Cat, I don't want you to get your hopes up."
Cat nodded her head, her eyes drifting to the pages of her notebook. "Yeah, I know Steve. But hope's pretty much all I have right now." Steve patted her arm, holding her tight to him. Cat closed her notebook, leaving it resting on her lap as she turned her attention back to the game.
The score for both teams continued to increase as the players scored, the Hawkins Tigers occasionally leading the game. Suddenly Lucas ran onto the court, having been waved into the game by the coach. Cat cheered as she spotted him, waving her arms in encouragement. The basketball game continued until Jason Carver- the team's captain- called for a time-out. Cat looked over to the score; 69:69. The Tigers and the Falcons were tied. "You think we might win this time?" Catherine whispered to Steve as Lucas' team huddled up to make a new game plan.
Steve shrugged his shoulders. "Honestly, I don't know. But they have a better chance than we ever did."
"Lucas is playing well." Cat mused. "I didn't realise he was so good at basketball." Steve nodded in agreement. The match resumed as the teams split up, finding their spaces on the court. The players passed the ball back and forth between each other until Jason threw it towards the hoop. Cat held her breath as it bounced off the rim, Lucas jumping to catch it. He ran backwards a few paces, dodging the boys on the other team. The clock counted down the last few seconds as Lucas threw the ball at the hoop. Time seemed to slow down and Cat held her hand over her mouth as the ball flew through the air. The buzzer sounded as the ball hit the edge of the hoop, circling around the rim before falling through the net. The crowd roared, Lucas had scored the winning point for Hawkins High.
Catherine yelled out in excitement, proud of Lucas. She jumped to her feet, wrapping her arms around Steve. The rest of the team as well as the cheerleaders crowded round Lucas, lifting him into the air. Everyone around him began chanting his name. Lucas seemed shocked but happy as he looked around at the crowd below him before looking across the gym. He caught Cat's eye, waving at her as she waved proudly back at. "Well done!" She mouthed, a big grin over her face.
***
A/N:
Oh boy, am I glad to be back!!
I've genuinely missed this story and writing about Cat Henderson.
What were your thoughts on season 4?
I was on edge the whole time, scared someone was gonna die. The plot twist at the end tho- (I won't say any more in case people haven't finished the whole season yet. but be warned, the comments may contain spoilers, and so will the rest of the book- obvs)
***
Edited: 04/06/2022
Edit 2: 22/02/2023