More Than The Upside Down - An IT (2017) & Stranger Things Crossover

Experiments - Part 1

Bill

They arrived for the Byer's house just in time for a woman, who appeared to be in her late-thirties to early-forties, to run out of the front door. Her large, brown eyes appeared frightful, but worn with also fatigue and anxiety. The car stopped and everybody got out.

The woman ran up to Mike, ushering him into her arms and squeezing tightly. She then let go and proceeded to hug Dustin and Lucas.

"Are you boys alright?" She asked worriedly, pulling away from Lucas.

"Yes, Mrs Byers," Mike answered them.

Mrs Byers then proceeded to look around at the others, "Are you guys okay, as well?"

"Oh yeah, totally. I mean, it's not every day you meet your doppelganger after all," Richie replied sarcastically, a smirk etching on his face.

Mrs Byers rolled her eyes, "I would usually snap at such sass but I'm too exhausted to care right now."

A boy and girl around the age of sixteen to seventeen walked out of the house. The girl had brown eyes, the same shade as Mike's, but hers were they were slightly smaller and she had dark brown curls that hung from a high ponytail. She ran up to Mike and encircled him into a hug.

Mike flinched at first but eventually hugged her back.

Hopper was bobbing up and down on his feet and he impatiently said, "C'mon guys, we can do this inside."

They all obeyed Hopper's request as they walked quickly into the house.

*

Bill was squished between Stan and Cassie as they all sat around a circular wooden table. Mrs Byers was staring at him, Eddie, Richie, Stan and Cassie curiously.

Finally, she said, "I want to read something to you and I need you to tell me what you honestly think about it. This could help us figure out what's going on."

"Shuh-Shuh-Sure," Bill replied politely.

Mrs Byers began to walk away, but not before Hopper gently grabbed her arm, stopping her.

"Joyce," Hopper warned, "Are you sure you want to show them that? I don't think they're ready yet."

"I think it's what's best, Hopper, no more secrets. If I have to keep anymore then I feel like I'm going to burst with guilt," Mrs Byers argued.

And with that, Hopper let her go and she walked down the hallway to her bedroom. Bill sat, his heart racing out of impatience and curiosity. A twinge of nervousness occasionally flashed in there but Bill found that justified, considering what they had been through the past few days.

Mrs Byers rushed back a few seconds later, holding a torn newspaper that was beginning turn to brown. She sat back down in her chair and held it up to her face:

"Ms Kaspbrak, a woman from the supposed town of Derry claims that Dr Brenner has been experimenting on her child, Edward Kaspbrak (5) and others. The other children include William Denbrough (5), Cassandra Denbrough (5), George Denbrough (9 months), Richard Tozier (5), Stanley Uris (6), Beverly Marsh (5), Michael Hanlon (5) and Benjamin Hanscom (5). Allegedly, the beloved paediatrician has been tricking the children's parents/guardians into medication that causes certain abnormalities to grow within the body."

Bill began to grow numb to the words as he swallowed. They had all been experiments, including Georgie. Betrayal and shock coursed throughout his spine, causing him to shiver and goosebumps to raise on his skins. He looked around at the others and they all seemed to share the same thoughts that he had.

"The parents/guardians of the other kids have not responded to these allegations though, and Dr Brenner has denied them himself. In fact, none of them appear to be in Hawkins and supposedly have gone back to Derry, a town that can't even be located on the map. Strangely though, Dr Brenner has quit his position at the local clinic and has moved back into his job at Hawkins Lab. Whether Brenner is guilty or not is completely up to interpretation, but we will perhaps never know the truth." Joyce continued.

She looked Bill directly in the eye, "Does this sound familiar to you?"

Bill nodded shakenly, "Th-Th-That's us. W-W-We're th-th-those k-k-kids." The words flew out of his mouth stubbornly as he attempted to get his body out of the shock and back into reality. He needed to think.

"I'm Edward Kaspbrak," Eddie mumbled numbly.

Joyce's hands flew to her mouth as her eyes grew wide. She reached over to grab Eddie's hand supportively, "I'm so sorry."

The girl that sat beside Mike spoke up, "You went missing for a few days when you were five."

Mike frowned at her, "What?"

"You went missing for a few days and were found outside Hawkins Lab," She explained. "Apparently the people there had found you walking around the woods near that area."

"But that doesn't make sense," The boy next to her interjected. "Your mum said that they searched all over the woods for him, even Will tried to help."

"So you're saying that I'm an experiment like them, a freak?" Mike accused.

"No, that's not what I'm saying, Mike," The girl added defensively.

Mike stood up and began to walk away from the table, "I don't care! I don't want to see you or Johnathan right now, Nancy."

Nancy sat there, bewildered at Mike's outburst.

"Um, Mrs Byers, where's the bathroom?" Richie asked weakly, his flesh beginning to turn pale.

Mrs Byers pointed to it, "Just down the hall sweetie, are you okay?"

Richie nodded, "Yeah, I just need a minute."

He darted off to the bathroom in a hurry, avoiding the others worried looks. Five minutes passed, ten. Until Bill had the courage to ask Dustin and Lucas to talk to Mike while he and the others checked on Richie. Hopefully, they could sort this out as soon as possible, so they can go back to finding Will quicker.