Make a deal with God, and swap our places

Starcourt

  "Hey, are you ready to end this" hopper said holding up the briefcase, Joyce nodded in response. They each grabbed a key, Hopper went to the left console and Joyce went to the right.

Hopper pressed the button on the walkie-talkie and said "Murray, you all set down there?" Murray replied "all set but, I've got some company I'd like you to obliterate"

"Will do, hang tight" hopper said; they both put the keys in "on three" hopper said, "on three" Joyce repeats.

"One...."

"Two..."

Just as he finished saying two, hopper was thrown across the room by Grigori, hitting his head hard.

Joyce gasped and lunges her body at the gun, grabbing it, desperately trying to shoot, but it was out of ammo. He's about to grab her when she rolls out of the way.

She scampered up quickly backing up, dodging his blows, knowing that she could not fight him head on. She ends up on the catwalk with no where to run, Grigori moves quickly trying to grab her, she up against the railing he's about to throw her over when, she uses her small stature, to slip away from him.

She's running away when, he grasps her wrist. She realizes she still has the gun in her other hand, and throws the butt of the gun in his face.

Hopper groaned his head was throbbing, he slowly stood up. He saw Joyce getting knocked down by the Machine.

Grigori slowly moved towards Joyce, touching the cut on his head from the gun. Then hopper heard it, the voice of one Dustin Henderson saying "hurry!"close it now!"  "Close it!"

Hopper looked at the console then, at himself without quick thinking, he takes off his belt and wraps it around one of the keys.

Joyce slides under the Russian soldier's legs, and out behind him, pushing him into the Machine.  Part of the machine explodes, producing an electrical barrier.

"Close it now!" hopper hears Dustin say urgently "close it!"  He grabs the key and looks up he sees Joyce standing there looking at him. His heart hurts he tries and convince himself. He can't do it, she gives him a nod and a slight smile he knows what he has to do. His eye begin to burn as tears fill them. He can't bear to watch her die. He closes his eyes and turns the keys.

He looks up not seeing her,a tear runs down his cheek. He walks out onto the catwalk looking around "Joyce" he rasped out his voice thick with grief "Joyce" he said again. He looked around not seeing her his heart was ripped in two, part of it died with her.

"Jim" he hears Murray say witch pulls him out of his thoughts "where's Joyce?" "She's gone" is all he can say. he hears the door open and he sees Russian soldiers "let's go" hopper says walking away glancing back one more time.

Hopper crawls into the vent biting his lip so that he doesn't cry, when he gets out of the vent he helps Murray up. Soldiers come running up,
Murray says "don't shoot Americans, Americans."

The soldiers escort them out as Hopper looks around for his daughter, he hopes, prays that nothing happened to her too. He walks forward and sees El, even with her leg she rushed into his arms, sobbing he hugs her and kisses the top of her head. He glanced over and sees Will wrapped up in a blanket he lets go of El and she asked "hey where's Joyce?" Hopper starts walking towards Will, thinking "gosh how Am I going to tell him his mother isn't coming back?" "That poor kids been through so much, now to lose his mother?" But he knows one thing for sure he is making sure that Lonnie doesn't get them.

He walks over and sees Nancy cuddled up to Jonathan and Steve talking to Will. Will was so caught up in talking to Steve he didn't see Hopper walking up. Hopper gave a big sigh which, directed all the attention to him he slowly sat down next to will and a lump forming in his throat. He had to do this. He had the same gnawing feeling he had when he told Joyce about Will. "Umm" hopper said, trying to find the right words for hey, I killed you mom."your..uhh... mom..is...ummm" he spit out, as a tear jerked down his cheek "is...is.. not coming back."

"W..w..what?!" Will stuttered looking completely broken, he glanced up seeing Jonathan's head in Nancy's shoulder sobbing,
Will start crying uncontrollably, hopper quickly took Will into his arms hugging him. "Noo!" Will sobbed "she can't be gone!"

Now El was crying into his shoulder too, he clung to the boy in his arms like a life line slowly rubbing circles on his back. "W..w..where are we going to go" Jonathan said, taking a break from sobbing "w..with her gone" he said "please tell me we won't go with lonnie, my eighteenth birthday isn't far off maybe if I..."

"I was thinking if it's ok with you guys, that you'd come live with me and El"

Then Will spoke up "I think that's what mom would want" he gave hopper a teary smile and hugged him.

The moment was broken up by Dr. Owens  walking up "hey Hopper I was hoping to talk with you" he said. "Ok, I'll be back in a bit" hopper said softly, he looked back, while he was walking away, seeing Will and El hugging each other.

Hopper followed Owens, to the biggest helicopter, Murray was talking too some soldiers, then hopper sat down at the edge of the helicopter. Hopper was worried why he brought him over there, "oh" he thought "please don't tell me they have her body."
He opened his mouth to speak but, all that came out was a silent sob he took a deep breath and said "d..did you find her...body?"  "No" Owens said softly "your Russian Scientist was right everything turned to dust"

Tears were freely flowing down hopper's face "just please tell me that it worked... that..that thing is dead" hopper said. "It's dead, We can only guess but, we think it's closed for good....."
Owens took a big breath and asked "is there anything I can do, or get for you?"

Hopper was about to say no but then he said, "Owens I know it's a lot to ask but, can you get me custody of her kids, I mean their father's a jerk and I owe it to her, and I care about what happens to those kids."  "I'll see what I can do chief" Owens replied "thank you" is all hopper says before walking away.

Hopper walks up to the kids and says "come on kids I'll take you home."