𝖕𝖆𝖗𝖆𝖓𝖔𝖗𝖒𝖆𝖑 || 𝘀. 𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘁𝗼𝗻

S4E8: Papa

"Nancy!" I scream, violently shaking her, knowing it's useless. "What's taking them so long with the music!?" I ask Steve. "Tell them to hurry! Nancy, come on, wake up. Stay with me."

I rack my brain trying to figure out what her favorite song is, but I don't have a clue. It also seems unlikely that, being in Eddie Munson's trailer, he'd have the kind of music she likes. Nancy never seemed like someone who would like W.A.S.P. or Dio.

Nancy gasps and her eyes shoot open. She collapses into my arms.

"Woah, Nance," I say, trying to hold her up. "Steve, help me!" He rushes to my side and helps me set her on the floor. "It's okay," I assure her, holding her close to me. "It's okay now. You're okay."

We re-group in Max's trailer in the normal world and Nancy tells us about the vision Vecna showed her.

"He showed me... things that haven't happened yet." Her voice is shaky and just barely a whisper. "The most awful things. I saw a dark cloud spreading over Hawkins. Downtown on fire. Dead soldiers. And this... this giant creature with... a gaping mouth. And this creature wasn't alone. There were so many monsters. An army."

His army, I remember what Will had said in the past. It makes me wonder if Will is experiencing anything in California. If he can feel something is off.

"And they were coming into Hawkins. Into our neighborhoods. Our homes. And then... He showed me my mom." Nancy's voice breaks and tears well up in her eyes. "And Holly. Mike. And they... They were all..." she trails off, unable to finish. She draws in a shaky breath. Tears roll down her cheeks.

"Okay, but... he's just trying to scare you, Nance," Steve tries to ease her nerves. "Right? I mean... I mean, it's not real."

"Not yet," she whispers, tearing her eyes off the floor to glance up at Steve. "But there... there was something else. He showed me gates. Four gates. Spreading across Hawkins. And these gates, they looked like the one outside of Eddie's trailer, but... they didn't stop growing. And this wasn't the Upside Down Hawkins. This was our Hawkins. Our home."

Silence passes between us like a cold wind. Everyone tries to process the news. It's so hard to imagine that that's our future if we fail. So much is riding on us and our nonexistent plan to stop Vecna.

"Four chimes," Max says from the corner of the room. "Vecna's clock. It always chimes four times. Four exactly."

Nancy lifts her head. "I heard them too."

Max steps closer. "He's been telling us his plan this whole time."

"Four kills," Lucas realizes. "Four gates. End of the world."

"If that's true... He's only one kill away," Dustin says solemnly.

"Oh Jesus Christ." Eddie buries his face in his hands. "Jesus Christ."

Steve motions to the phone. "Try 'em again. Try 'em again."

Max takes the phone off the wall and dials the Byers' number again.

Steve leans back on the sofa beside me. He places his hand on my knee, but not in a reassuring way. Not like, it's okay. More like he's making sure I'm still here. Making sure someone is still here to ground him.

I place my hand over his and intertwine our fingers.

"Anything, Max?" I ask anxiously.

"No. Rang a few times, then went to busy signal."

I shut my eyes and breathe out. What if something happened? Is Will okay? Can Vecna reach them from the other side of the country?

"Maybe you punched it wrong," Steve suggests. "Try again."