Chapter Text
Time seemed to slow down for Mike as he stared at the whites of Will’s eyes. He barely processed the demogorgon corpse laying at his feet, the fire raging around him, the dead soldiers piled nearby, or the fact that they had failed in their mission to protect the kids.
For a drawn out moment in time, all Mike could focus on was Will’s hazel eyes slowly rolling forward from the back of his head. He stiffly, almost methodically, reached up a hand to wipe away the blood trickling down his nose as his face slackened.
He looks so beautiful… A distant part of Mike’s mind echoed, which he didn’t have the current level of cognitive functioning to consider in any more detail.
There would be time to worry about the ramifications of what this all meant later. For now, Will looked exhausted. His eyes were hooded and he gave a few lazy blinks from where he was kneeling on the ground. After a few moments, Will’s eyes closed fully and he slumped forward to the ground. That was what finally caused reality to snap back into focus for Mike— as if he had been in some kind of trance before.
There was a ringing in his ears left over from the blast that had sent him and the kids careening to the ground earlier. He was aware of the blood that had splattered on his face, the prickling uncomfortable feeling of the blazing fire drying his wet clothes, and of the ache in his body from being thrown around. Dimly he heard Mrs. Byers yelling for Will, but by then Mike had already pushed himself into an unsteady run over to where Will had fallen. His focus single-minded as he saw him collapsed amidst the smoke and bloodshed, looking so drained and small— a stark contrast to the strength he had exerted mere moments ago in order to kill the demogorgon.
Mike was still off-balance and he practically collapsed to the ground as he came to a skidding stop at Will’s side, “Will, Will!” He yelled, grunting as he turned the other boy onto his back in order to assess whether he was injured.
He didn’t seem to have any visible injuries, yet he didn’t stir at Mike’s desperate shouting. Vaguely, out of the corner of his eyes he could see Mrs. Byers hurrying over to Will’s other side, “Come on Will, wake up,” Mike pleaded as Mrs. Byers tearfully caressed his face and called out his name.
The small rise and fall of Will’s chest and the soft breaths of air coming from his mouth were the only things keeping Mike sane at the moment. Will would be fine, Mike refused to consider any other option. Seeing Will collapse like that had made his heart drop like a lead weight into his stomach. Protecting Will was second nature to him, not just in their campaigns, but in real life too. He had always been the person Will came to when he had a problem, or when he was upset about something. There was an almost instinctive response in him when he saw Will collapse, that had shattered him out of that awestruck trance.
“We need to get him back to the Squawk,” Mike said urgently, “He needs somewhere safe to rest.”
If Mike had to guess, Will was probably just drained from using his powers, and god, was that still so insane to think about. Will had powers. He was actually a sorcerer in real life. Mike’s hunch had been right, and Will had been smart enough to figure out how to use his powers in the blink of a moment. The knowledge almost made him giddy as he imagined talking to Will about it when he woke up again.
“Will,” Mrs. Byers pleaded for her son to wake up again. She was likely still in a state of shock. Getting tossed like a rag doll to the ground likely wasn’t helping much either, Mike hoped she hadn’t gotten a concussion or something. The jury was still out whether Mike had one as well.
“Mrs. Byers, we need to get him away from here, now, Vecna could come back and Will isn’t in a state to fight back this time,” he urged again. Will’s mom looked up at him, her teary eyes hardening at the prospect.
The spark of determination returned to her eyes at the prospect of Vecna returning for Will, and she was quick to move into action, “I’ll go find a car-- or something that we can use to get back to the station. Can you—”
“I got him,” Mike said before she could ask, “I got him. Get a car, get Erica, and we’re getting Will out of here.”
She gave him a grateful look before stumbling back to her feet to go and find some kind of transportation for them. While she was gone, Mike started the process of getting Will off the ground. No one, including himself, had ever claimed that he was strong, and Will’s body being completely limp wasn’t helping matters either, but Mike managed to pull him up from the ground. He carefully leaned down and maneuvered Will so that he was supporting most of his weight on his back. From this angle, Will’s head lolled over Mike’s shoulder, and the quiet sound of him breathing was right next to his ear. It was a constant, comforting reminder that Will was ok, and Mike found himself pausing for a few moments just to listen and allow the shallow puffs of Will’s breath to soothe his concern.
The noise of an engine sputtered to life in the distance, and Mike turned to see the headlights of one of the military trucks flicker on. It seemed Mrs. Byers had managed to find a car that escaped significant damage in the massacre and hotwire it. Mike grunted slightly as he shifted and shouldered the full weight of Will’s body draped over his back. In retrospect, he could have just waited for Mrs. Byers to come to him. But all he could think about was getting Will out of this place and away from the gate as quickly as possible, so he began to slowly make his way towards the direction of the car as it drove toward them.
Mrs. Byers drove as fast as she could through the square, trying to avoid the bodies and military equipment scattered around. Mike winced as he watched, with all the dead bodies it was impossible not to hit some as she drove. She drove forward anyway, and Mike did his best not to look at the bloody mess it caused. They were dead, it didn’t matter, what mattered was getting Will to safety, and the car was the best way to do that right now. If that meant driving over, and desecrating, some corpses, then so be it.
Mrs. Byers pulled the car into a screeching halt once they were close enough and leapt out to throw the back door open for Mike to get Will inside. Her face was practically white as she took in Will’s pallor tone and his bloodied face, “Will, baby…” she trailed off, gently stroking some blood off his face for a moment before looking back over at Mike, “Keep an eye on him until we get back.”
“Of course,” Mike breathed, still a little winded from carrying Will as he slid into the back next to Will’s unconscious form. He shifted Will’s body so that it was leaning against him in case they hit any more bumps on the way out and it jostled him.
In the front, Mrs. Byers was quick to start the car again and step on the gas, being even less careful about how she was driving now that they were inside. Erica had made her way down from the church to join them at some point, and she was now sitting in the passenger seat. She had always acted as if the upside down stuff didn’t scare her, or even phase her in the slightest. But even she looked shaken by the scene in front of them as they drove out of the battlefield. There was a distinctive lack of smart comments from the normally outspoken girl. In fact, the entire car was silent. Mrs. Byers was totally focused on driving and Mike was focused on Will.
————
The Radio Station was empty when they returned. The truck being gone was a good sign that Robin and Lucas may have been able to get some of the kids out after all, but the healed incisions burned into the ground left Mike with the distinct feeling that it might not have gone as well as they hoped.
Erica practically collapsed on the first couch when they walked inside, looking a little shell-shocked still. It probably wasn’t helping that none of them had slept since waking up on November third, that was days ago now, nearly three. Erikia hadn’t got involved until the fourth, but she was likely just as exhausted as the rest of them.
For Mike’s part, he knew he should be dead on his feet right now. But instead he felt as if his whole body was buzzing, still trying to process what had happened in the past few hours. Maybe the adrenaline was still getting to him, but he didn’t think he could sleep right now even if he wanted to. And he didn’t want to. Someone had to watch over Will while he rested in case something happened, and Mrs. Byers looked exhausted. It had to be him.
The two of them left Erica to rest upstairs and worked together to carry Will down the stairs into the room that they used as their meeting place. There was another couch in the corner where Mike and Mrs. Byers carefully maneuvered and laid down Will. He didn’t stir despite the manhandling, his face remained serene in his resting state. There wasn’t a wrinkle on his forehead or a tenseness that would suggest that he was being plagued by any mental attacks or visions while in his weakened state, thankfully.
Laying there, looking peaceful, he reminded Mike painfully of Max in her hospital bed. It wasn’t a comparison he wanted to think about even remotely. Even the brief connection between the two of them in his mind was enough to have his heartbeat spiking with a nervous buzz, and he had to remind himself that their situations were completely different.
There was no denying that if Will was one of Vecna’s targets before, he was even more of one now. Mike doubted he would appreciate someone hijacking his army. But Will had powers now, or maybe he had had them for years and only now realized how to tap into them. All Mike knew was that he was a goddamn sorcerer now, and Vecna wouldn’t be able to defeat him so easily anymore. The thought gave him a vicious sense of satisfaction, if anyone deserved to kill the bastard it was Will after all the shit he was put through in the upside down.
And if Vecna did try something while Will was resting, then they would be ready. They had walkmen ready in the station, one for each of them, with their favorite song inside prepped to play. If he caught any sign of discomfort on Will’s face he wouldn’t wait to find out if it was Vecna or not before he started playing the music. The bastard couldn’t touch Will here, for now he was safe, and Mike would make sure he remained that way.
Mike didn’t know how long he remained staring at Will as he sorted through his thoughts, but a shaky breath from Mrs. Byers reminded him of her presence, “You should go get changed out of those wet clothes, I’ll do the same for Will,” she told him with a bone-weary look on her face that made her look older than her years.
He was loath to leave Will’s side at all, but Mike could admit that he wanted out of his damp clothes that were making his skin itch. All of them had extra clothes stored here. It wasn’t just their communication center, it was a base of operations for them. There had been plenty of nights Mike had slept on one of the couches here after a crawl instead of biking home late in the evening. It was the same for everyone else, and it certainly came in handy now.
Mike knew later he would have to go back to his house and retrieve some stuff from the ruins, but he wanted to put that off for as long as he could. Truthfully it hadn’t fully set in yet what had happened at his house. He knew his parents were in critical condition, he knew Holly was missing. He was all too aware of it. But he couldn’t think about what that meant right now, he couldn’t worry about the ramifications-- at least until they had Holly back and Vecna was dead.
He could use a shower as well, but for now he settled on throwing on some clothes, which he hoped were clean, from a bin in the storage closet and changing into them. By the time he returned to the lower level of the radio station, Mrs. Byers had changed Will into a sweater and a pair of sweatpants.
She had pulled up a chair from the nearby table in order to sit next to the couch. Her eyes were closed and she had her hands clutched tightly in front of her, her grip so tight her knuckles had turned white. As he got closer he could see the faint line of tear tracks on her cheeks that remained after being wiped away.
“Mrs. Byers,” Mike broached hesitantly.
Her eyes opened slowly, an utterly drained look in them. She tried to offer Mike a tense smile anyway. It was like she had aged ten years in the span of one night. Mike didn’t blame her, it had been a stressful few days leading to an even more stressful night. He was sure all she could think of right now was her worry for Will, he wanted her to know she wasn’t alone in that regard. He knew it was different, Will was her son, Mike worried about him in a completely different way than she did. But he was right there with her with his concern.
He had never been good at heart-to-hearts. He usually avoided them all together. The few successful ones he could think of off the top of his head were mostly the ones he had with Will. But it was different with Will, it always was. Mike didn’t know what it was about him, but something about Will always made it easier to speak about how he was feeling honestly. Maybe it was because they had known each other so long. They had been so young when they became friends that Mike didn’t remember a time in his life before he met Will.
“He’s going to be fine,” Mike said as gently as he could as he leaned against one of the arms on the couch, “He’s just majorly drained from killing that demogorgon, but he’ll wake up once his body recovers its strength and he’ll be totally ok. Better than ok even! Now that he knows he can control the hivemind, he’s stronger than before.”
Mrs. Byers let out a tired sigh, “That’s what I’m worried about,” she said in a strained voice, “That-- that bastard was already targeting him. Now that Will is a threat to him, it’ll draw even more attention to him. I can’t-- I won’t lose him again,” Mrs. Byers choked out angrily.
“And you won’t,” Mike promised, his voice tightening in anger as well at the very prospect, “I won’t let that happen, none of us will.”
Mrs. Byers sniffled, “He’s been so insistent on helping recently too. He even disobeyed me to go out and look for Holly with Robin. He’s never not listened to me before. I know he’s getting older, but he’s still my baby, and after everything that’s already happened to him all I want to do is protect him,” the words tumbled out of Mrs. Byers mouth, like she was incapable of holding them back for a moment longer, “Now that he knows he has these powers he certainly won’t let himself be sidelined. I already have to let El go out there and fight this bastard, but Will too? How is this fair?”
“It’s not,” Mike replied, “But if we really want to kill Vecna and make sure Will, and El, and everyone in Hawkins is never in danger from the Upside Down again, they’re gonna have to fight,” His words certainly didn’t seem to be comforting to Mrs. Byers at all, and Mike decided to switch tactics a bit, “In D&D you don’t throw your spellcasters on the front lines unless you have to. They typically have lower constitution in exchange for being able to deal massive amounts of damage, so when going up against Melee units you want them in a safe spot where your melee units can protect them, but where they’re still in range so they can still deal massive damage,” he explained, “But Vecna is like a spellcaster and a melee unit all in one, if we tried to throw our melee players against him, like Steve and Hop, they wouldn’t stand a chance. We have no chance at beating him unless we unleash the full force of our strongest players against him. Our spellcasters, our heavy hitters. that’s Will and El.”
Mrs. Byers stared at him blankly after his speech, looking a little confused as she attempted to follow the analogy. Mike had a feeling that nothing he was saying was really processing to Mrs. Byers with her limited knowledge of D&D. He sighed, deciding to just move on instead of explaining again, “Besides, he won’t be alone,” Mike added, “Wherever he goes, I will too. I’ll keep him safe, I’ll protect him Mrs. Byers, I promise,” he swore resolutely.
Mrs. Byers let out a wet laugh, “I know you will, you always have,” she smiled at him, the fond expression tinged with sadness, “And I hope you know how thankful I am for that. But you’re a kid too, Mike. I don’t want either of you in danger.”
“It’s too late for that now,” Mike replied awkwardly, “Besides, we’re the same age as Jonathan and Nancy were when this all started. You and Hopper have always trusted them to play their roles, so trust us now. We’ll all play our part in killing Vecna and ending this once and for all.”
“I never wanted Jonathan, or Nancy, or Steve and Robin for that matter, to have to shoulder all this responsibility either,” Mrs. Byers replied sorrowfully, “I guess it was a little different because Jonathan always tried to act older than he was to be there for Will, and I let him, encouraged it even,” she admitted, sounding a little guilty, “But that doesn’t mean it doesn’t kill me every time he puts himself in danger for his brother. But Will has always needed more protecting than others, and Jonathan knew that too. I just knew I couldn’t stop him if I wanted to, and Will needed him just as much as he needed me. I guess it’s the same with you kids now. With everything that happened, it feels like time has moved so quickly, I forget you guys aren’t twelve anymore.”
Mike didn’t know what to say so he just nodded tensely. Mrs. Byers gave him another fond look, “You’re a good kid Mike, Will is lucky to have you.”
Something about the way she said it caused a warm burst of pride in him. If anything, Mike felt like it was the opposite. He didn’t know what his life would be like now if he had never approached Will on the swingset that day. Maybe he would have never gotten involved in this craziness with the upside down in the first place. Maybe he would be blissfully ignorant of what was going on right now. Maybe his family would have left Hawkins before the quarantine ever went into effect. He could be safe with a bright future ahead of him, and no troubles beyond his next test in school.
But the very notion repulsed him. Sure, maybe he would be safe. But he would be alone, so painfully alone. Even if he had different friends. It wouldn’t be the same as Will. And Mike’s opinion hadn’t changed since that moment in the shed where he had told Will that approaching him on the swingset that day was the best thing he ever did. Even if it came with the requirement of fighting interdimensional monsters through every single one of his teenage years. If Mike found himself back in that moment with the knowledge of what was to come in the future, there wouldn’t be a single part of him that hesitated to ask that fateful question to Will once again. He’d prefer to relive every horrible, painful moment of their fights against the upside down over and over again if it meant getting to be friends with Will.
Mike swallowed heavily at his own thoughts swirling through his head. There was a weight to them that he couldn’t quite admit. The part of him that had always categorized Will differently than everyone else, placing him in his own special ‘Will’ category in his mind that was separate from his other friends, knew that wasn’t how people usually viewed their friends-- even their best friends.
He knew if he told Will about that, he would smile and tease him about it because he was embarrassed. But he would be happy about it, really happy. Yet, Mike imagined thinking of Lucas or Dustin in the same way and couldn’t comprehend it even though they were his best friends too. Nor could he imagine they would be touched about it in the same way Will was if he told them something similar-- more likely they would be confused. And something about that was bothering him, like he was so close to realizing something, and yet a part of himself already knew and wanted nothing more than to ignore it.
“Mrs. Byers, I can watch over Will for a while,” Mike offered, “You haven’t slept in days, you should rest. None of us will be any help if we collapse before the final battle.”
Mrs. Byers shook her head, “You need rest too Mike.”
“I’m not tired,” he lied, “Please, just… I can watch over Will and try to contact the others. Go rest with Erica for a bit, I’ll wake you up if anything changes,” Truthfully, Mike wanted to be alone right now. His thoughts, especially the ones about Will, were a jumbled mess, and even though a part of him wanted to ignore it and remain blissfully ignorant. Another part of him thought that if it was the end of the world, and they all might die in the next few days, he owed it to himself to take the leap and try to sort himself out. Besides, the thought of Will being out of sight right now, while he was in such a vulnerable state, was out of the question for Mike.
Mrs. Byers looked like she wanted to insist he get some rest once again, but something in his expression must have convinced her about how serious he was, because she relented, “Ok… but if you hear anything over the radio, or something with Will changes come get me.”
“I promise,” Mike agreed quickly. Mrs. Byers stood up from her chair and offered the spot to Mike instead. She gave him a gentle pat on his shoulder, and one last worried look towards Will, before going upstairs in order to find somewhere to get some sleep.
Mike slumped in the chair, leaning forward and looking at Will’s peaceful face as he slept, “Wake up soon,” he said softly, even though Will couldn’t hear him.