[ Location: The Wheelers' Basement ][ Date: April 5th, 1985 - Friday Afternoon ]
"Okay," Dustin said, pacing in front of the D&D table. "Let me get this straight. You guys are from Maine. You have a shapeshifting clown that eats fear. And you moved here... to the town with the interdimensional demogorgons... for safety?"
Bill Denbrough stuttered, looking at his shoes. "W-We didn't know about the d-demogorgons."
"We just knew Derry was bad," Beverly Marsh added, sitting on the couch with her arms crossed. "Bad things happen there and adults don't see it. So many kids disappear."
"Sounds familiar," Lucas muttered.
I sat on the stairs, watching the merger of the century.
The Hawkins Party and the Derry Losers were finally in the same room.
And it was weird.
Mostly because of Mike and Richie.
They were sitting on opposite ends of the room, glaring at each other.
"Why is he staring at me?" Mike whispered to Will. "It's creepy. It's like looking at a funhouse mirror."
"Hey!" Richie adjusted his thick glasses. "I heard that, Frog-Face! And for your information, I am the upgrade. I have charisma. You have... what? Mystique!?"
"I have a friends with superpowers," Mike shot back.
" Idiot, everyone have" Max interjected from the corner, popping a bubble of gum.
"Shut up!" Mike shouted.
"Is this a cult?" Richie asked, looking around the basement. "Do we have to pay dues? Because I spent my last quarter on Dig Dug."
"It's not a cult," I said, stepping down. "It's a survival group. We have monsters and you have a clown and right now, they're both in Hawkins."
The room went quiet.
"So we work together?" Will asked softly. He looked at Bill. "Do you see things too? In your head?"
Bill nodded. "The D-Deadlights or... echoes of them."
"Great," I clapped my hands. "Trauma bonding is the strongest force in the universe. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have some work left pending, bye guys"
[ Location: Vivan's Bedroom - The Lab ][ Time: 6:00 PM ]
My room smelled like peppermint and burnt rubber.
Thankfully I have charms and telekinesis to control the smell, otherwise mom would have call me possesd or somthing.
A small cauldron (stolen from Snape) was bubbling on a portable burner on my desk. The liquid inside was a shimmering, silvery blue.
'Spirit Cleansing Potion. Theory: Disconnect the parasite from the host by overloading the spiritual frequency.'
I tapped my Comm-Link.
The holographic screen flickered to life. Hermione Granger appeared, looking tired but happy. She was wearing reading glasses.
"Vivan!" she smiled. "Is it finished?"
"Almost," I said, holding up the ladle. "It's turning silver. But it's unstable. It keeps trying to boil over."
"Did you add the moonstone dust clockwise or counter-clockwise?" she asked instantly.
"Clockwise and three stirs."
"It needs to be counter-clockwise for the final stir," she corrected, pushing her hair back. "Otherwise the binding agent won't settle. It's in Libatius Borage's advanced notes."
"You are a lifesaver, Granger," I grinned. "What would I do without you?"
"Probably blow yourself up," she teased. Then her expression softened. "You look tired, Vivan. Are you sleeping? Without the... nightmares?"
"I'm sleeping," I lied. "How's France? Eaten any snails yet?"
"No snails," she laughed. "But my parents are talking about dentistry conferences. It's riveting."
We talked for ten minutes. It wasn't about monsters or impending doom. It was just... talk.
"I have to go," I said, checking the potion. "It's ready. Time for human trials."
"Please be careful," she whispered. "And don't poison anyone."
"No promises. Bye, Hermione."
I ended the call.
I bottled the silver liquid into a water bottle.
'Time to find a guinea pig.'
[ Location: Starcourt Mall (Construction Exterior) / Downtown ][ Time: 7:30 PM ]
The girls were on a mission. Max, El, and Beverly were walking down Main Street, laughing. They had ice cream.
They had shopping bags.
They looked... normal.
I watched from a rooftop two blocks away, using Remote Viewing.
'Good. Let them have this.'
My attention shifted.
Below me, in the parking lot of the community pool (which was closed for the evening), a blue Camaro sat idling.
Billy Hargrove was inside. He wasn't moving.
I Apparated down, landing silently behind a dumpster.
I walked up to the car and tapped on the window.
Billy jumped. He looked terrible. His eyes were sunken, his skin grey. He rolled down the window.
"What do you want, Frostwell?" he rasped.
"Thirsty?" I asked, holding out the water bottle.
"I told you," Billy snarled, though his hand shook. "I don't want your water."
"It's not water this time," I said seriously. "It's medicine. You're sick, Billy. We both know it. The voice in your head? The blackouts? The heat?"
Billy froze.
He looked at me with genuine fear. "How do you..."
"Drink it," I ordered. "Or let Him take you completely."
Billy snatched the bottle. He unscrewed the cap and downed it in one go.
For a second, nothing happened.
Then, Billy screamed.
He thrashed in the seat, clutching his head. Black sludge—liquid shadow—poured from his nose and ears. He coughed, hacking up a tar-like substance onto the steering wheel.
"Get it out!" he screamed. "GET IT OUT!"
Then, he stopped. He slumped against the seat, panting.
He opened his eyes. They were blue. Clear. The black veins in his neck had receded.
"Frostwell?" he whispered, looking at me. "My head... it's quiet. The screaming stopped."
'It worked. Partial exorcism.'
"It's a patch, Billy," I said grimly. "Not a cure. I bought you time. Maybe a month. So Keep drinking Hot water and stay in the sauna and keep the heater on"
"What is happening to me?" he asked, terrified.
"You're the canary in the coal mine," I said. "Try not to die for max"
Suddenly, my head spiked with pain.
[ Telepathy Alert: Resonance Detected. ]
I felt fear.
Not Billy's.
El's.
"Stay here , Turn around and Close you eyes," I told Billy.
After he did.
I didn't run.
'Apparition.'
CRACK.
[ Location: Alleyway behind The Gap ][ Time: 7:45 PM ]
Max and Beverly were backing away, shielding El.
Floating at the end of the alley was a Red Balloon.
And holding it was a Clown.
Pennywise grinned, his teeth razor-sharp. He wasn't in the sewer. He was on the street.
"Hello, girlies," the Clown giggled. "You smell... delicious. Especially you, little number Eleven. You taste like girl with daddy issues."
"Get away!" Max yelled, throwing a soda can at him. It passed right through him like smoke.
"Feisty!" Pennywise laughed. "I like feisty. It marinates the meat!"
He lunged. His arm stretched unnaturally, fingers turning into claws, reaching for El.
The girls screamed.
But people on the main street—just ten feet away—didn't look. They walked by, chatting, laughing.
El didn't freeze.
She stepped forward and screamed.
"NO!"
She thrust her hand out.
A blast of telekinetic force hit the Clown.
BOOM.
Pennywise was slammed backward into a dumpster. The metal dented.
He didn't look hurt at all.
But instead
He looked... delighted.
"Yes!" he hissed, dissolving into a swarm of rats. "That's the flavor! Power! Fear! Delicious!"
The rats scurried into the drain.
CRACK.
I appeared behind the wall and ran towards girls, wand in one hand, Glock in the other.
"Vivan!" El grabbed me.
"I'm here," I scanned the alley. "He's gone."
"No one looked," Beverly whispered, shaking. "We screamed and no one looked."
"That's how he hunts," I said darkly. "He makes them look away."
[ Location: Walking Home ][ Time: 8:30 PM ]
I walked them home.
The mood was heavy.
"So," Max said, kicking a stone. "We have a Mind Flayer building an army and a Clown eating people and they're both really here."
"Yeah, you think I was joking before" I nodded.
I looked at the woods. The shadows were moving.
But they were avoiding the drains.
'They aren't working together,' I realized. 'Pennywise wants to eat and the Flayer wants to conquer. They are competing for the same food source: Us.'
A plan formed in my mind.
A cold, ruthless plan.
"If we fight them both at the same time!" I said softly. "We don't have the firepower."
"So what do we do?" El asked.
"We make them fight each other," I said. "We invite them to the same party."
Ding!
[ System Quest Generated: The Clash of Evils ][ Objective: Manipulate the Mind Flayer and Pennywise into direct conflict. ]
[ Reward: 2000 Points + Choice of 3 Enemy Abilities. ]
I grinned.
'HAHA'
"Checkmate."
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