Chapter Text
Robin’s POV
I couldn't stop twitching in the back of the van. The plan was set. Everyone knew their job. I trusted Nancy with my life.
That wasn't the problem. The problem was that every worst-case scenario kept replaying in my head.
As I felt El reaching for me, I closed my eyes and steadied my breathing.
Robbie... relax your brain.
Easy for you to say, Ellie.
A small pause.
It isn't easy.
I sighed.
I know. I'm sorry.
Another pause before her voice softened.
We can do this. I know we can. And deep down, you know it too.
I'll keep checking on you and Max. I'll help whenever I can.
A pause.
I love you, Ellie.
I love you too, Robbie.
I opened my eyes to find Nancy staring at me. The intensity of her gaze caught me off guard.
Before I could ask what was wrong, Eddie groaned dramatically. "Could you please keep it in your pants for five minutes, Wheeler?"
Nancy didn't even look away from me. "At least I can have dessert whenever I want." She finally turned toward Eddie with a smug smile. "How's that working out for you, Munson?"
Steve spun around from the driver's seat. "Both of you, stop. Dustin is literally in the van."
Dustin grinned. "I think it's funny Robin still doesn't notice." Before I could ask what he meant, Steve slammed on the brakes.
The van lurched to a stop outside Eddie's trailer.
The sudden jolt threw me sideways. I landed squarely in Eddie's lap.
He immediately went quiet. Not because of me. I could practically feel the guilt rolling off him.
I looked up at him, desperate to distract him from wherever his thoughts had gone. "So, Munson." I smiled. "What's your poison of choice for your big debut?"
He looked down at me. "And ruin the surprise, Birdie?" His grin returned.
Good.
"From bard to bard, you'll tell me nothing?" I placed a hand dramatically over my heart. "For shame, Eddie."
Dustin rolled his eyes. "You didn't even know what a bard was until I made you and Steve read my campaign notes."
Steve visibly shuddered. "I still have nightmares about those notes."
Nancy opened the van door. "Good." She climbed out. "Then you're already prepared for the nightmares ahead."
One by one we climbed out. As soon as my boots hit the ground, a crushing wave of dread slammed into me.
The buzzing inside my head started again. I stumbled.
Eddie caught my arm. "Birdie?"
Nancy was beside me almost instantly. "Robbie?"
I forced a smile. "I'm okay." It wasn't convincing.
I moved beside Steve instead, staring up at the glowing gate hanging in the ceiling of Eddie's trailer.
Steve climbed first. He pulled himself through before leaning over the edge with a grin.
"What?" I called out. "You want a round of applause?"
Steve huffed playfully. "It would be appreciated." He lowered the rope.
Nancy reached for it first. Before she could climb, I knelt beside her. She looked at me. Then silently stepped into my cupped hands. I lifted her toward the opening.
She caught the edge, and Steve pulled her the rest of the way through. Eddie laughed behind me. "That girl's going to eat you alive."
I grinned without looking back. "I'd happily volunteer for round two." I turned toward him. "Now give me a boost."
Eddie barked out a laugh. "Steve's going to have an aneurysm. Dustin's still standing right here."
I climbed onto Eddie's hands. Steve and Nancy grabbed my arms and hauled me into the Upside Down.
"Our secret weapon, ladies and gentlemen," Steve announced.
I punched him lightly in the shoulder. "Shut up, dingus."
While Steve helped Eddie and Dustin climb through, Nancy joined me at the broken doorway. We looked out over the ruined remains of Hawkins.
"He'll try to get inside your head." Nancy's voice was barely above a whisper. I nodded. "I know."
She stepped closer. "Don't let him win." She tucked a loose curl back beneath my beret. "I need my light in this darkness."
I leaned forward until our foreheads touched. "I'll always come back to you, Nance."
Our lips met in a soft kiss.
"I love you, Robin Buckley," she whispered. "I love you too, Nancy Wheeler."
The three of us pedalled toward the Creel House. Nancy insisted on taking the bikes.
We always need an escape plan. She wasn't wrong.
The Upside Down somehow smelled even worse than before. Heavier. Like the air itself was rotting.
We weaved around thick vines snaking across the roads until finally abandoning the bikes near the house. We crouched near the house in silence.
Then... The signal.
A distant guitar echoed through the air. Metallica. Even muffled by distance, I recognised it instantly. Master of Puppets.
The bats poured from the house.
Nancy grabbed my wrist. "Let's go." Steve lingered for half a second, watching the swarm disappear.
I tugged his sleeve. "He'll be okay."
We moved through the dark house. The Creel's family portraits still lined the walls. Victor Creel another member of my bloodline driven to madness. I hated that thought.
A vine wrapped around my ankle. I hit the floor hard. Pain ripped through my leg.
"Robbie!" Nancy was already beside me, knife flashing through the air.
One swing. The vine dropped away.
Steve was kneeling beside me before I could even sit up. His backpack was already open. "What do you need?"
Nancy checked the cut.
I shook my head. "I'm okay. It just stings like hell."
A voice echoed inside my head.
Interesting.
I froze. I looked around. No one. Just another trick.
Steve helped me to my feet while Nancy watched every inch of the room for moving vines.
Strangely... They'd all retreated.
We climbed the final staircase without another interruption. The attic door stood before us.
I closed my eyes.
"Robbie." Nancy gently cupped my face. I looked up. "Yeah?"
She smiled. "Light him up, baby."
We stepped inside. Seeing Vecna in person stole the breath from my lungs.
Steve lit the first Molotov. The bottle crashed against Vecna's body. Flames exploded around him. Heat blasted across the room.
He crashed to the floor. Then slowly looked up. His eyes found mine. "Seven." The word hissed from his mouth.
I swallowed. Then lit my own bottle. I never broke eye contact.
"Father."
I threw it. Fire engulfed him again.
Nancy stepped forward. Shotgun raised.
One blast. His shoulder exploded.
Another. His stomach.
Two more. The second shoulder.
Vecna roared. Nancy calmly adjusted her aim. One final shot.
The blast caught him through the neck. His body lurched backward. Then disappeared through the attic window.
Silence.
I stared at Nancy. She looked... God. She looked incredible. How had I somehow convinced Nancy Wheeler to fall in love with me?
A buzzing exploded through my mind. Louder than before. Then... A pull.
I staggered toward the opposite window.
The buzzing stopped. Silence.
Before I even realised what I was doing, my legs were already moving. I sprinted.
Down the stairs. Past the vines.
"ROBIN!" Steve shouted. Nancy yelled my name right behind him.
I burst through the front door. Jumped onto my bike. And pedalled as fast as I could toward the trailer park.
I reached for El. All I found was terror. Pure, overwhelming terror.
Then I saw the bats circling overhead. I pedalled harder.
I reached for El again. This time I found her. She was holding Max. Max wasn't breathing.
No. No. No.
I lost control. The bike skidded out beneath me. I hit the ground hard before scrambling back to my feet.
Ahead... Eddie was pinned beneath a swarm of bats.
Blood. Too much blood.
Max. Eddie. No. Not again.
I screamed. Every ounce of control I had left shattered.
Every bat froze mid-flight. Invisible threads spread through my mind. I could feel them.
Every single connection. I grabbed hold.
"I'm scared, Robbie." Max's voice echoed inside my head. "So am I."
I tightened my grip on the invisible threads.
"But I'm not letting him take you from me."
I screamed. And pulled.
Every thread snapped. Every bat dropped lifelessly from the sky.
Silence rang in my ears.
"Max..." I whispered. Closing my eyes, I reached for her again.
The Void. El held Max against her chest. Then—Max gasped. Air rushed back into her lungs.
Alive. She was alive. But she wasn't safe. Not yet.
I reached forward wrapped my arms around her. And pulled her gently into the safety of my own consciousness. Just as I felt my body give.