𝐌𝐎𝐈𝐑𝐀 // M. Wheeler

[𝙿𝚛𝚘𝚕𝚘𝚐𝚞𝚎]

MOIRA noun

: individual destiny : the will of the gods : fate

***

Sunday Nov. 6, 1983

It's just another Sunday night in Hawkins, Indiana. Work and school will come about in the morning, routine will fill the place of the lull of the weekend. It's just a normal night. On a culdesac, the Wheelers' basement is being used for what has been a very long campaign of D&D. Four boys- Mike Wheeler, Dustin Henderson, Will Byers, and Lucas Sinclair- pizza, the board, and soda. It's been an intense game. Which, to especially her son's dismay, Karen Wheeer cuts short. They disperse quickly and Dustin challenges Will to a race.

 When it becomes clear Will has this race won, he shouts back his comic selection to the huffing boy behind him. That's the last time anybody will lay eyes on the youngest Byers for quite some time. He rides his bike easily for a few moments, before the eeriness of the dark and the sounds that come with it begin to press in. Then he gets nervous, riding a little bit faster, too observant for his own good. There's a sudden movement in front of him, a figure, causing him to swerve his bike off of the road, crashing in the leaves below. 

He pulls himself up, even more scared than before. The sounds he heard on the ground replaying in his mind. He turns toward them only for them to grow, the trees shifting. This is enough for the boy- Will bolts, leaving the bike. He races up to his house, throwing open the door; throwing it shut.

 He checks every room, desperate for company. But his luck is out. He's alone. After peering into the yard and seeing the figure disappear from it's previous spot, Will tries to call 911. The only answer is static and suddenly, the chain link begins to pull back, seemingly of it's own accord. This is not good. He races back out of his house, to the shed, slamming the door once more behind him. 

The lone lightbulb buzzes as Will Byers searches for something, anything to defend himself with from that thing stalking him. He finds a gun, pulls it down, and searches frantically for the bullets that go inside. Finally locating the box, he dumps some out and messily loads it. He holds onto it like it's a lifeline. The same figure rises behind him and he senses it, turning around. Will is petrified- he doesn't move. His eyes are wet. "P-please."

A shriek fills the shed. The lightbulb brightens impossibly. Then it dims again. And the shed is empty. 

***

Across town, Kathryn Moore sits on her roof in the darkness with her brother, Joshua Moore. The twelve-year-old girl isn't afraid of the dark. After all, a sensible person isn't afraid of the dark; they're afraid of what could be lurking in it. Besides, her favorite person in the whole world is less than inches away. She's spent the last hour trying to explain D&D to him, right after she spent half an hour telling him all about her new friends. He'd listened patiently as she went on about Dustin's swearing, Lucas's determination, Will's soft-spoken sweetness, and Mike. Josh swore Mike's name and everything about him would forever be etched in his mind. His sister was an observer; a tendency left over from when she'd had no friends. In other words, quite a few years. So, she had the littlest details about the party down cold. It made him sad sometimes, that she knew so much about others. Because it always reminded him that while he had never had trouble fitting in (he was the most popular guy at Hawkins Middle even now), Kathryn had always been alone. It wasn't that he hadn't tried his best to include her...she was just stubborn. 

"Right, so it's like a game. Where you make decisions..? And then you roll some dice and somebody tells you if it worked or not based on the roll? And you make characters?" 

"Pretty much." She smiled, clearly pleased he'd caught onto the basics. "Sounds fun, right?" 

"Sure..." Not to Josh, but to each their own. "But- that doesn't explain why they didn't invite you." 

"I told you, they planned it for two weeks, and I was sick with the flu for half of that. It wouldn't make sense to try and squish me in. Besides, it's one night, I think I can deal." She raised an eyebrow and he understood her meaning. She'd been alone on Sundays night for quite some time, she could last one more. "So, what do you think about them?"

Joshua made a sound. There was a ghost of an amused smile playing on his lips. "Well...They're hella weird- but you like them. That's enough." 

She punched him on the shoulder playfully, secretly really glad he approved.After all, his opinion (even if it wouldn't have stopped her from becoming a member of the party) meant the world to her. "If Dad heard your language, you'd be in for it, Joshy-poo. You'd get a 30-minute lecture on approriate language, and then an hour's worth about the current happenings at his work-" 

He groaned, no doubt remembering last time he'd been caught swearing. "Don't remind me, Kat." He whined. 

The twins are at a good place in their lives. Kathryn finally feels like she belongs somewhere, Josh is happy for his sister and looking forward to seeing Jennifer Wilson the next morning, and they're as close as ever. Kathryn has no clue- and neither does the rest of the party- that their cleric has gone missing. Little do the twins know, their life (and the lives of several other Hawkins residents) are about to be turned.... upside down.