"Not to be a wimp, but can I maybe sit in the car for this visit?" Robin asked with a small sigh, in the front seat. "Cause this is gonna totally and royally suck."
"It'll be fine." Nancy reassured her.
"I just can't stand to see those dull eyes of Eddie's break again." Robin exhaled loudly again.
"I'll do it." Clove suggested from the middle of Max and Lucas. "I've been told i'm good at breaking bad news."
"It's true." Lucas nodded. "I never thought i'd be moved hearing about how basketball was getting funding cuts for better school chairs."
"Hold up, they cut basketball funds for better school chairs?" Steve asked in disbelief.
"Yes, Steve, they did." Clove turned around to give him an offensive look. "And you know what? No one has fallen and broken their chairs sense. And the basketball team? They're hand me down shoes look amazing after I cleaned them."
"After she forced me to help her clean them." Max spoke up. "After passing out from the smell."
"You were happy." the blonde laid her head onto her shoulder.
"At least he can drink himself into feeling better." Steve hummed as he hoisted a six-pack up.
"That's what my mom does." Max rolled her eyes, Clove reached up to pat her head comfortingly, only resulting in getting a finger to the eye. "Ow."
"Sorry." Clove patted her hand instead.
"Why don't we just give it a trail run?" Robin suggested with a clear to her throat. "Why, Eddie. Uh, good news first this time. We got you some Dustin-approved junk food and that six-pack you requested. Oh yeah, and we found Vecna. Only the bad news is that he's in that other, darker, much scarier dimension, that we told you about and the gates closed, so we have no way of getting to him. He's entirely shut off to us, so basically you're screwed. And, no, no, I know you were already screwed, but now you're doubly, triply screwed."
"I vote we let Clove say it." Dustin pointed out.
"We're one step closer to finding Vecna." Nancy nodded as she turned down the road. "That's what we say. That's what's important."
"See, Robin? Positive spin can make all the difference." Steve pointed out in a mocking manor.
"Uh-hu." she mocked.
"What is that?" Clove leaned off Max, frowning her eyebrows at the flashing lights as they got closer.
"Oh, shit." Nancy spoke alongside her, gapping at the cops
"The news crew is here. They know me." Clove nodded as she got out of the car. "I'll let you know?"
"Hurry back." Nancy nodded her head.
Clove walked, she felt a blister forming on her left toe, finding the familiar dark hair. "Anna, hey."
"Clove, hi, sweetie." she looked back. "What are you doing here?"
"I was just driving by, with an adult, and I saw the police cars. Is everyone okay?" she gave a curious look, her blonde side bangs blew back when the wind picked up.
"There was a murder." Anna's words sent a chill down Cloves spin, feeling her heart rate pick up.
"Murder?" her voice was a little higher. She feared Eddie's death. She hadn't been able to join Hellfire, but he often let her sit in on their campaigns due to Mike or Dustin usually being her after school ride. He also signed every petition she ever had, mainly because he hated the jocks, but it still meant a lot to her.
"An 18-year-old senior from Hawkins High, Patrick McKinny. His limbs...his body, uh, it was disfigured." She looked disturbed, shaking her head. "The chief says he couldn't imagine letting his family see his body."
"He was a sweet boy." Clove nodded with frowned eyebrows, her few conversations with Patrick always rather comforting, unlike when she would speak with Jason or the majority of the other jocks. "Was he the only body found?"
"Yes, but they have identified a person of interest-" Anna nodded, holding a photo out to her. "Eddie Munson."
Clove tried not to look guilty, but she was like her Dad, she had a horrible poker face. "How vial."
"If you know anyone with any form of information, the chief would love to hear from you." Anna nodded, holding her shoulder a moment. "You be carful out there, sweetie."
"You too." her red lips turned into a small smile, taking the photo she gave and hurried back to the car.
"Dude, i'm telling you, you're taking us the wrong way." Steve ranted as Dustin lead the group.
"It's north. I'm positive. I checked the map." Dustin argued.
"Dude, it wasn't a popular make out spot until I made it popular." Steve
rolled his eyes, catching up to him. "I practically invented it."
He suddenly took a turn, headed down hill.
"Steve. Where are you going? Steve!" Dustin called as Steve headed in a completely different direction.
"Stop whining. Let's go. Trust me." Steve waved him off, the group following close after.
"Ow." Clove winced as she rubbed her ankle.
"You okay?" Max looked over, pushed one of her head phones off her head.
"Platforms aren't the best for hiking." she admitted, rolling her ankle again. "But, obviously, hiking in the woods never crossed my mind when I put them on."
"I mean, they kinda suit you too much to not wear them." Max cracked her a small grin. "So does the blonde, and the red."
"I definitely feel a lot better with the red." she rubbed her lips together slightly. "Like i've got a piece of you with me."
"That was so cheesy." Max laughed.
"Cheese is my middle name." she held her hands up slightly.
"So not true." Max laughed. "I don't- Oh my god, I don't even know what your middle name is."
Clove rose her eyebrows. "Yeah, you don't wanna know it."
"No, I really do." Max begged. "Come on, I know you wear a gross night guard but I can't know your middle name?"
The blonde gave a sigh and looked over at her. "Lyrist."
Max gapped. "Excuse me, what?"
"Told you." Clove inhaled.
"That's what Mike called you. When we first met." Max nodded. "When I offered to be his zoomer."
"Yup, that's my Class." Clove gave a small laugh. "It was also my Dad's Class back in the day, so, you can see how that played out."
"How long did it take to convince your Mom?" Max gave a single snort.
"Rumor has it he sneakingly put it on the birth certificate." the blonde had to laugh. "I hope they're okay."
"I mean, it's your partners, they're always okay." she pointed out in return. "Your Mom was literally suppose to be dead and then came back because she made a grand escape."
"True." Clove nodded. "And now we have a free bunker, so, there's a plus."
"It's aroudn here, isn't it?" Max frowned her eyebrows.
"Y-" Clove began, laying her eyes on Lucas. "Give me a sec?"
Max nodded, walking forward as Clove moon walked backwards. Lucas hid a laugh as she robotically turned to him. "What is on your mind, master Lucas?"
"Was that your robot voice?" he asked in disbelief.
"What, you don't like it?" she gapped.
"It sounds like like you have something stuck in your throat." he broke the news to her.
Clove smiled as she nudged him. "I'm sorry about Patrick, I know he was a friend of yours."
"I just keep thinking." Lucas explained to her, their shoulders shoved together. "I mean, it's...it's like, why him? But then, I remember this one day, he-he came to practice with a black eye. He said he fell, but clearly he was lying. It's like everyone Vecna targets has something in their. I-I didn't really know Patrick, so it was easy to just look the other way, I guess."
"No one could have known unless it was repetitive behavior or he mentioned it to someone." Clove shook her head over at him.
"But, I feel like i've done this before." Lucas looked over at her. "With you, with Max."
"With me?" Clove frowned her eyebrows.
"Yeah." he looked to her. "With your Depression, I mean I knew something was off. I saw how you wouldn't leave your room for days at a time, how you didn't want to eat some days or ate everything other days, all the times you were upset but said you didn't know why."
"Lucas, I didn't even know what was going on. I never expect you to." she shook her head. "It's not like I went around announcing it's either. It isn't your responsibility to know when something wasn't okay."
"But, I feel like if i'd have said something sooner, or asked your parents, we could have avoided what happened at Christmas." Lucas' words made her clam up, looking away.
"Nothing would have stopped what happened at Christmas." she mumbled. "I wasn't right in the head then. I was going through an episode, and I had all these thoughts, but I couldn't tell anyone. It was selfish of me."
"It wasn't selfish." Lucas looked over at her. "It's what finally made your parents get you to a doctor though."
"Yeah, I just wish I would have said something before so I didn't have to put all of you through that." the blonde admitted. "I feel so guilty for it."
"You don't have to be." Lucas promised, putting an arm around her.
"You don't have to be either." she promised, looking up at him. "If I promise to always tell you if something is wrong, will you promise to do the same?"
"I promise." he nodded, tightening his arm around her.
"Doesn't make sense." Dustin stared at the rock as they all finally made it down.
"Yeah, yeah. Even with it staring you in the face, you can't admit it." Steve waved him off. "You just can't admit that you're wrong, you little butthead."
"I concur." Eddie's voice rung as he hoped from the rock. "You, Dustin Henderson, are a total butthead."
Clove smiled in relief to see him, slipping her hand into Max's and just hoped Eddie wasn't homophobic or at least just figured they were friends.
"Jesus, we thought you were a goner." Dustin hugged him.
"Yeah, me too, man." Eddie hugged him back. Clove nudged Max with a grin, nodding to Steve's look of jealousy. It brought a comical look to Max's face.
"Eddie." Clove spoke up, getting his attention. "You have a lot to explain in a matter of a few minutes. Let's hear it, loud and clear."
He took her advice and explained to the group what happened with Jason and Patrick in the water. "When I got to the shire, I tried calling you guys, but, uh-"
He took a long sip. "-my walkie was busted, man. Drenched. So, uh, I did the thing that I do now, apparently. I ran."
"Do you know what time this was? The attack?" Nancy asked him with a questionable look.
"Yeah, no, I...I know exactly what time it was." Eddie looked down at the black watch. "My walkie wasn't the only thing that got soaked."
He tossed it to Nancy as she barley caught it. "9:27"
"Same time our flashlights went kablooey." Robin confirmed.
"Which means what, exactly?" Steve looked to the pair.
"That that surge of energy was Vecna attacking Patrick." Nancy said in return.
"Well, we're one step closer." Robin spoke up again.
"More like a very, very, very tiny crawl." Clove rolled her eyes, not in annoyance of Robin, but just in general.
"We know how Vecna attacks." Robin pointed out to her.
"And where be attacks from." Lucas agreed.
"So now we just need to sneak into his lair into the Upside Down and drag a stake through his heart." Max looked around the group.
"If he even has a heart." Robin sat up more.
"A stake? Is he like a vamp? Is he a vampire?" Steve lokekd up.
"Oh, shit?" Clove rose her eyebrows. "Some-some garlic, maybe? I hate ghost."
"Vampires aren't ghost, dummy." Steve stared at her.
"I mean, they kinda are." she argued. "They are dead but walking the earth. Depending on your theories, ghost do the same thing."
"I wouldn't argue with her." Max gave him a warning look. "You're asking for some hurt feelings and a lot of yelling."
"Yeah, i'd rather spare my feelings." Steve shook his head and waved her off.
"A bullet should work on him, right?" Eddie looked over.
"Maybe so." Max looked back at him.
"I say we chop his head off." Lucas tilted his head.
"If he's like the Demogorgan and likes it cold, maybe fire would be our best bet." Clove crossed her arms. "I mean, they are both from the upside down. And, the Mindflayer died from fireworks."
"She has a point." Robin nodded.
"All of the above, but we can't do any of that till we find a way into the Upside Down." Nancy looked around at the group knowingly.
"We need El to get her powers back." Max huffed loudly.
"Everything was like way easier." Steve explained, looking to Eddie. "We had this girl, She had superpowers."
"Superpowers. Yeah, you mentioned her." Eddie hummed with a nod of his head.
"She's the coolest, a little quiet, but don't take it personal." Clove shook her head.
"Hey. Uh, Henderson's not, uh, cursed, is he?" Eddie looked at Dustin as they all followed his gaze, looking to a pacing Dustin.
"Curse? No, no. He's fine." Steve shook his head. "Mental? Absolutely."
"Boom!" Dustin shouted at the top of his lungs, turning to them.
"Brace yourself for this." Clove slung an arm around Max's shoulder.
"Bada...bada...boom." he pointed a finger as he approached. "I was right. Skull Rock was north."
"Seriously? You're serious?" Steve asked him in disbelief. "This is Skull Rock! Okay? You're totally, absolutely. 100% wrong. Right now."
"Yes." Dustin leaned in. "And no."
"Oh my god." Steve placed his hands on his face.
"This compass worked correctly when we left the Wheelers." Dustin went on to explain. "It was correct when we got in the car on Curly. But it started to slip the further ease we went. Now it's way off. When I was leading us here, I wasn't wrong. The compass was."
"So you're using faulty equipment. You're still wrong." Steve explained with a toss of his hands.
"You say that now but if you had a clue about what happened last time our compasses went bonkers.." Clove trailed off with a head tilt.
"It isn't faulty." Dustin held the compass up. "Lucas, Clove, do you remember what can affect a compass?"
"An electromagnetic field." Lucas looked his way.
"Yep." Dustin nodded.
"I'm sorry. I must've skipped that class." Robin gave an odd look.
"What? You didn't take a class about little bald girls, with super powers, that escape Hawkins Lab?" Clove gave her a teasing look as Robin grinned in return.
"In the presence of a stringent electromagnetic field, the needle will deflect toward that power." Dustin pointed as he explained. "So either there's some super big magnet around here, or there's another gate."
"But we're nowhere near the lab." Nancy looked over.
"Maybe there are multiple gates." the blonde looked over at Nancy.
"A gate that we don't know about." Dustin agreed. "It has to be smaller. Way less powerful."
"Snack-size gate." Robin confirmed.
"How? Why?" Steve shook his head.
"No idea. All so know is that something is causing this disturbance, and the last time we've seen anything like it, it was a gate." Dustin explained, Clove almost smiled at the old memories, missing her missing trio. "And I hope it is because when we'd have a way to Vecna. And a shot at freeing Max from this curse."
Dustin turned, walking off. Clove and Max shared a small shrug as they headed off with him.
"Where you going?" Steve called. "Hey, hey, hey, hey! Eddie's still a wanted man. We can't just go for a hike in the woods."
"I can be his lawyer." Clove shrugged dramatically.
"I thought you were a future president?" Nancy rose an eyebrow.
"I'm both, a multi-tasker." she shrugged with a smile.
"This little steel capsule might be the key to saving both Max and Eddie." Dustin held the compose up. "What say you, Eddie the Banished?"
They all turned as he he scratched his face. "I say you're asking me to follow you into Mordor, which, if i'm totally straight with you, I think is a really bad idea. But, uh, the Shire...the Shire is burning."
Dustin jumped up and down as Eddie stood. "So, Mordor it is. As long as I get Clover as a lawyer if things go side ways."
"You know it." she gave him a salute.
"Somethings happening." Dustin sprinted through the woods, his hand clamped on Cloves as she nearly tripped on her shoes after him.
"Dustin? Can you slow down? Dustin?" Eddie called, close behind him. "Clove!"
"It's not me!" she yelled in return.
"I think we're getting close!" Dustin called over his shoulder, right in her face.
"Say it, don't spray it." she gave a gross look.
Eddie caught them before he could step into the lake. "Watch your step, big guy. Almost threw the Prez in the water."
"Oh, man." Steve huffed. "You gotta be shitting me."
"Yeah." Eddie agreed. "I thought these woods were familiar."
"Lovers Lake." Robin nodded.
Clove looked back to make sure Max was behind her.
"This is confounding." Dustin looked around. "Clove?"
"Someone just died here, Dustin." she whispered to him.
"There's a gate in Lovers Lake?" Max frowned her eyebrows.
"Whenever the Demogorgon attacked, it always left an opening." Nancy pointed out. "Maybe Vecna's the same way."
"Yeah, only one way to find out." Clove looked back. "So, who's going deep diving?"
"I think I have you beat, Prez." Eddie shook his head, heading toward the shed, pulling a boat out to the water.
Steve helped Eddie put it in the water. "Easy. I said easy."
"Sorry, dude." Eddie huffed.
"Yeah, i'm just gonna do that." Robin held onto Steve as she got in the boat.
Dustin went to get in next as Eddie held a hand out. "Hey, hey, hey, you trying to sink us? This thing holds three people tops, okay?"
"Keep an eye out for trouble." Nancy looked to Dustin.
"You keep an eye out." he argued with her. "It's my goddamn theory."
"Dustin, watch your fucking language." Clove reached up and smacked the back of his head, Max hid a laugh.
"You heard Nanc." Robin looked at the curly haired boy. "And, Clove."
"Who put her in charge?" Dustin asked in disbelief.
"I did." Robin confirmed, looking to the blonde. "You're in charge when we're not here."
"Was I not in charge the whole time?" she looked in disbelief.
"To be far, she kinda was already in charge when she was voted President." Eddie pointed out.
"True, now I get to wear all my dresses regardless of the straps." Nancy smiled as she sat down.
"I got your back, and your shoulders, Nance." the Reyes give gave her a little point.
"Compass." Nancy held her hand out to Dustin as he huffed and gave it to her.
"Hey, there you go." Steve tossed the bag to Dustin, hoping on the boat after giving it a push.
"You said three!" Dustin yelled.
"Bed time at nine, kiddos." Robin called back to the trio.
"Wait until they find out I actually go to sleep at eight." Clove watched them all paddle away.
"Are you kidding?" Lucas gave her a look of disbelief.
"No, Lucas, i'm not." she gave him a dumb look. "Smacking Mike with my clip board takes a lot of energy out of me."
"Excuse me, Mike isn't the only one you smack around with that stupid ass clipboard." Dustin gave her a side glare.
"I miss my clipboard." she sighed loudly. "I also miss Mike."
"He's probably living it up in California right now." Dustin rolled his eyes.
"He 100% took credit for El's flowers even though I helped him pick them off the road." she shook her head. "Still, kinda miss that little jack ass."
"What if he comes back with a tan?" Max gave a snort. "I can't imagine Mike tan."
"Absolutely not. He's a vampire for life." she agreed. "Likely will be the shade of a literal tomato."
"Somethings wrong." Dustin peered through the binoculars, grabbing the walkie. "Guys, what's going on? Talk to me."
"Uh, Dustin, your compass has gone from wonky to wonky with a capital ahh." Robin explained.
"Did you understand that?" Max frowned her eyebrows at Clove, getting a head shake.
"See anything suspicious?" Clove asked Lucas.
"Just Steve and how harry he is." Lucas cringed.
"Steve's taking his clothes off?" Clove gapped. "In this situation? Do people loose brain cells when they reach adult years?"
"I guess so, because now he's hopping in the water." Lucas agreed.
"What!" Dustin yelled, yanking the binoculars.
"What are you doing?" Max looked over as Clove grabbed the walkie.
"Robin, why's Steve's just taken off his clothes and jumped into the water?" Clove rose her eyebrows as she spoke.
"Oh, you know-" Robin exhaled. "-we found the gate."
"Found the gate." Clove looked to Max with a wide smile.
"You guys realize, if there's a gate down there, it's technically a water gate." Dustin gushed in their direction. "Watergate."
"Let's just hope Steve doesn't get eaten." Clove nodded her head. "If so, I got thrown in the pool by some jackasses at the beginning of Freshman year so I can definitely swim after him."
"I thought you said Mike was the one to throw you in the pool?" Max frowned her eyebrows.
"I stand by my statement." she nodded, the sound of yelling caught their attention.
"Shut. Down!" Lucas whisper yelled at the sight of the officers.
"It was on the shoreline!" one of them yelled.
"Dude, they think we're Vecna." Clove whisper panicked.
"Shh." Max clapped a hand over her mouth.
"Dustin, you're a goddamn Einstein-" Robin rang over the walkie as he hurried to switch it off, cutting her sentence short.
"Cops." Max exhaled as they got close.
"Shit." Dustin panicked, Clove attempted to say something from behind Max's hand.
"Can't let them find Eddie." Lucas exhaled.
"Stay with me." Max let Clove go, getting to her feet. "Hey, officers!"
All three of them shhed and scolded her at once.
"Over here, I found the killer!" Max shouted, grabbing Cloves arm and taking off as the pair followed.
•
kylie speaks
did you guys know clove is
a capricorn and a slytherin?