"Grab the chair!" Angie shouts, "Hurry!"
Dustin throws it beneath the portal, stepping back for instructions.
"Stay here," she demands, lowering her voice, "I'll be back soon."
He moves to protest when she launches herself into the portal, leaving no room for argument.
Angie quickly searches the darkened room for any scattered weapons.
Her eyes widen.
Of course!
How could she have forgotten until now?
She dashes into her bedroom, tossing the piles of clothes from the closet floor.
A pistol lay neatly against the other contents of the box.
Angie doesn't waste another second.
She throws herself out the front door, following the trail of bats further into the trailer park.
The swarm only grows bigger the closer she gets to it.
Handfuls of them dive into the center.
Her heart drops when she spots him.
Eddie.
She can't let him take the fall for this.
"Hey!" she shouts, "Over here!"
Her hand raises firmly, emptying the magazine into the air.
The army of bats turn their heads at her, leaving Eddie behind.
Her heart pounds angrily in her chest as she sprints away from the trailer park.
She doesn't dare look back, keeping her eyes focused on the tree line.
One of the bats snarls, creeping closer to her.
It snags her pant leg and drags her to the ground.
Angie kicks it away, scrambling back to her feet.
She grabs a fallen limb and raises it high, planting herself firmly.
Like Eddie said: no more running.
The bats dive, readily accepting the challenge.
Angie swings the wooden weapon, beating them away.
But, they keep on coming.
One after the other.
Claws raking.
Teeth sinking.
She cries out as two bury their teeth in her sides.
Her eyes fall to Eddie in the distance, his presence seeping through a gap in the storm.
He's moving fast-- too fast.
He's gonna get hurt.
"Stay away!" she yells between clenched teeth, "Go!"
But, he doesn't listen.
Instead, he throws himself into the storm as she falls to her knees.
He beats them away with what's left of his shield, ignoring the way his own lungs protest.
And, then-- suddenly-- the swarm dissolves, hundreds dropping flat against the solid ground.
Eddie tosses the shield to the ground, turning to find Angie.
His heart sinks in his chest as she lay bloodied against dirt.
Her eyes are wide and dripping with tears, struggling to stay open as her body begins to give up.
"No, no, no, no." he mutters softly, cradling her against his chest, "Why would you do that? I was trying to protect you."
"But I needed to protect you," she sobs, "You have to live, Eddie."
"I can't. Not without you."
"You can," she assures him, grabbing his hand, "You have to."
Eddie's head shakes rapidly, tossing his tears onto his jacket.
"Promise me... that you'll look after my family," Angie begs, choking against the blood seeping into her lungs, "They need you."
A sob struggles against his lips as he tries to muster up even the smallest smile to comfort her.
He only nods.
"And... you need to promise me that you'll graduate," she jests, wheezing, "For me."
"Okay," he cries, "I will."
Another tear falls down her cheek as her heart slows.
"But... most importantly... tell Steve that I love him... and that I hope he can forgive me."
Eddie can't help but shake his head, not wanting to accept the situation.
He leans his head down, pressing his forehead to hers, "Because of love, you're already forgiven."
Her final breath sits heavily against his skin as her hand falls limp in his own.
He tries to take a shaky breath in, but it only gets caught.
Every breath he attempts seems impossible without his little sister there to share it with him.
A pained, cursed wail floods from his lips, echoing into the consuming darkness.
Quick, shuffling steps creep up from behind him.
"Eddie!" Dustin shouts, "Eddie."
The silence that follows is louder than anything that could've been used to describe the pain seeping from his body.
Tears creep into Dustin's eyes as he drops to his knees beside them.
He throws his arms around her chilling body, chest heaving.
"I tried to save her, Henderson," Eddie insists, not daring to look anywhere but the tree line, "I tried, but she-- she was too fast. She--"
"--She protected you." Dustin interrupts, pulling back, "Because that's what she does."
Eddie nods, his own body betraying him with grief.
The ground shakes around them, pulling them from their thoughts.
In the distance, a glow creeps up from behind the dirt.
"We need to get out of here," Dustin mumbles, helping Eddie stand with her.
They move swiftly toward where they knew the Creel house resided.
Every step-- every breath-- is a fight.
Eddie tried to think of anything but the fact that his baby sister was lifeless in his arms.
The idea made him sick.
And it only got worse when they approached the torched lawn and her three best friends were standing defeated on the porch steps.
Steve leaps for her first, muttering a strings of curses and denials.
"She wanted me to tell you that she loved you... and ask for your forgiveness on my behalf," Eddie says, forcing himself to stand upright, "And it was the last thing she ever did."
He takes her lifeless body from her brother's arms, kissing her bloodied lips softly.
Robin takes his side as their tears mix against Angie's cold cheeks.
They all sink into the silence on the lawn of their enemy.
Because in that moment, nothing else mattered.
Not Vecna.
Not Hawkins.
Not anything.
Their best friend had died, and that trumped it all.
YOU ARE READING
Angelica "Freak Two" Munson
Fanfiction"Hey, Harrington!" she reverses against her heel, flipping him the bird, "The names Freak Two, actually. If you're gonna insult me, you might as well do it right." ---------- Angelica Beatrice Munson, aka "Freak Two" is Eddie Munson's younger sister...
