𝐩𝐚𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐜𝐮𝐭

xv. COMPASSES

In the basement once again, Mike demonstrates and explains what Mr. Clarke explained to them to Eleven, as he pokes a hole into the paper he was holding up, her eyes widen. "It would take a lot of energy to build a gate like this." Mike explained to her as Charles came to sit down with them on the couch, on the other side of Eleven.

     "But that's got to be what happened." Charles spoke as Mike looked at him and nodded. "Otherwise, how'd Will get there, right?" Mike asked as he looks at the girl again who still had the blonde wig and pastel pink dress on. "Right." She said, but hesitantly and in a small voice, Charles almost couldn't hear her. "What we want to know is, do you know where the gate is?" Lucas asked.

     Dustin did a spin, staring down at the tiny object in his hand, Charles' eyebrows furrow as he watched the curly haired boy do this while Eleven shook her head to Lucas' question about the gate. "Then how do you know about the Upside Down?" Lucas asked and Mike looked at Eleven who looked down at her hands, she fumbled with them.

     She looks at Charles who looks back at her, he smiled sympathetically then she looked behind him, he does the same, looking over at Dustin who was pacing now, still holding the same object in his hand. "Dustin?" Charles says.

     "What are you doing? Dustin?" Mike said then he and Lucas shout the boy's name louder and louder until he looked over. "I.. I need to see your compasses." He says to them.

     "What?" Mike said with a confused scrunched up look on his face. "Your compasses. All of your compasses, right now!" He said and Charles sighed, standing up from the couch as Lucas and Mike gave each other confused looks.

      Charles grabs his coat, reaching into the pocket of it and taking out the three compasses he had. He stares at the large one, he slips it into his pocket because he didn't trust his friends with it before walking over where they all set their compasses down onto the table on top of their board game that happens to always be there.

     Charles watched Dustin put them all together, "what's exciting about this?" Mike said before looking at Dustin. "Well, they're all facing north, right?" Dustin says, looking at Mike with a smug tone and smug look on his face. "Yeah, so?" Lucas said in his usual annoyed tone. "Well, that's not true north." Dustin said and Charles sighs.

     "What do you mean?" Mike asked and Charles rolls his eyes. "Sorry, he forgets you're idiots. He means that the needle is pointing in the wrong direction.. Meaning that way isn't north." Charles said as he points towards where the compasses were pointing. "That way is, the sun rises in the east and sets in the west." Charles said as he pointed all of ways he is stating. "So.. what you guys are saying are the compasses are broken?" Mike said with another confused scrunched up face.

     Dustin sighs, picking one of the compasses up. "Do you even understand how a compass works?" Then he held up the compass to his face, "do you see a battery pack on this?" Dustin asked as Charles smiled, amused now. "No." Mike says.

     "No, you don't. Because it doesn't need one. The needle's naturally drawn to the Earth's magnetic North Pole." Dustin continued to explain to the two that didn't seem to know much about compasses. "So what's wrong with them?" Lucas asked and Charles looks down at the compasses.

     "Well, that's what I couldn't figure out, but then I remembered. You can change the direction of a compass with a magnet." Dustin said and Charles looked up. "If there's the presence of a more powerful magnetic field, the needle deflects to that power." Charles explained further.

     "And then I remembered what Mr. Clarke said." Dustin said. "The gate would have so much power—" "it could disrupt the electromagnetic field." Mike cut off Dustin who he looks up at. "Exactly." Dustin said with a smile and nod at him.

     "Meaning, if we follow the compasses' north.." Lucas trailed off, finally understanding it as Mike was as well. "They should lead us to the gate." Dustin said and Charles smiled instantly at that, his hand slipping into his pocket where his other compass was. He doesn't fail to notice Eleven, he glanced over and saw her face. He frowned, noticing how distraught she looks.

     After they plan them following the compasses, Charles walked home with his compass in his hand, staring down at it. It was a really old looking one, a hand-me-down from his grandparents on his birthday, his grandfather said it was from his father, said he had it since he was a kid and his father had it since he was a teenager. Charles loved it since he got it, he always had it on him.

     He got it when he was six years old, Will was there when he opened it and Will said he liked it too. He sighed, slipping the compass into his pocket as he starts to think about Will.

     In his bedroom, an hour before meeting his friends, Charles packed his backpack, he fills it with protein bars and bottles of water like always, he also puts in a flashlight just in case and a pair of gloves if it gets cold. He slips on his shoes and his jacket before heading downstairs. "Mom. Mom?" He said as he sets his bag down by the stairs.

     "Mom!" He shouted then stops in his tracks at the entry of the kitchen. An old woman and his mom sat at the table, drinking tea. He smiles, "hi mom.." He says and she sighed, wiping away at the underneath of her tears. "Why.. why are you crying?" He asked in a protective tone, rushing over. "Sweetheart," she says, grabbing her son's hand.

     "This is your grandma, Priscilla.." She said and Charles got confused at this, looking to the woman who smiled up at him. "Mom?" Charles looked at his mom, she sighed. "She's your father's mother.. They just moved back from living in Chicago since he died.." Sarah told him.

    He looks at Priscilla, the lady smiled more. "Hi, Charleston." She said and Charles looked at his mom. "I-I have to go meet with my friends." He stammered out then he is rushing out of the kitchen, grabbing his backpack on the way out the house. "Sorry.. He's shy." Sarah sighs and Priscilla wavered her hand to the woman. "His father was like that too." She said and Sarah smiled at that.

  

   

   

    

authors note yo carmen sandiego is kinda a baddie ngl i love the show lmao