#max changed the trajectory of els life

[eclipsebyler]

oh my god... season 3 elmax playing the silly little spin the bottle game to spy and see what the chosen person is doing through the void...

and season 4 el crying as she spins the bottle with max as her chosen person in mind and not finding her presence in the void...

what if el tries to do that everyday hoping that one day she would finally see max there and she imagines that once max is recovered, they would be able to play again, go shopping, have sleepovers, and just spend their days the way they used to.

FUCK I'M SO DEVASTATED. MAX HAS TO WAKE UP IN SEASON 5 SO SHE GETS TO GO ON A DATE WITH LUCAS AND EL. ELUMAX DATE IN S5 OR I DONT WANT IT

[wolfsplosion]

Do u have any specific things ud like to see n the new stranger things? :>c

HRHGHRGHH . YES . A LOT OF THINGS . SORRY THIS IS GONNA BE A LONG ONE ↓

Mike and Max friendship; I KNOW it's probably not gonna happen bc there is Shit Going On and they are probably not going to have time for slice of life interactions (this is going to be a reoccurring theme on this list methinks) but the little crumbs of madwheeler bestieism we get make me CRAZY like they are so similar in a lot of ways but also the opposite sides of a coin (e.g. uncaring family situation, Mike coming from wealth and Max from poverty) and every time we see a flashback of the events directly prior to s4 they're next to each other and it only makes me crazier .. I just want like ONE scene of them being platonic best friends PLEASE

Will happy ending; this can mean a lot of different things tbh I just cannot have him die or end unhappy .. this also means that anyone he cares about has to be safe too like Joyce and Jonathan and El and the rest of his friends!! if he's not unequivocally happy in the final episode I will change the trajectory of the Duffer Brothers lives

Eddie flashbacks; like how we see the aftermath of Max's brother's death effecting her, I want to see Dustin mourn too (I mean, I don't Want to see it, I want him to be happy, but like. I want to see it. you know what I mean.) also the rest of Hellfire, especially Lucas and Mike and Erica .. show their reactions too I'm begging . my little pet headcanon is that Eddie made Mike realize some things about himself (🤨🏳️‍🌈❓) (not in a ship way I'm not a freak I just think he had an Awakening) so like seeing him process Eddie's death would be so. it'd be so

Byers-Hopper found family; I think I am almost guaranteed this in some way but I'm still crossing my fingers for it! show me WillEl twin behavior or ELSE

more siblingism in general; I appreciate s4 for giving me more Lucas and Erica screentime crumbs bc they are so sweet and I love their sibling dynamic sm, I wish we got more of that with Mike and Nancy as well like remember in s1 when they were like "no more secrets between us!" and then didn't fucking do anything with that. let them be siblings please

Byl3r (<- censoring for superstitious reasons a.k.a. I do not want to invoke ship discourse here); I have extremely controversial thoughts abt this ship, like as in I don't . I don't really think the writers are gonna . no I shan't say for fear of my life . but it'd be nice if it did!!!! Will deserves to get what he wants all the time always

Steve surviving; I am so fucking scared

parallels between Will and Henry; weird little boys with strange(!!) powers and trauma....... I think they're probably going to do this at least subtly considering the lines are already there in s4 but if they were more direct I'd be happy, I'd probably care a lot more about Henry's whole thing if Will was involved I'm not gonna lie to you

Max getting out of That Whole Situation; I'm not saying what exactly happens at the end of s4 because Ro might be reading this and we haven't watched the end together yet & I don't think he knows what happens . Ro if you are reading this it's fine everything is fine but also it's so not fine and I'm so scared and afraid. Max bestie we gotta get you out of there

more Argyle; speaks for itself, I'm obsessed w that funky lil stoner & I need him to give Jonathan more terrible therapy it's awesome

El autism diagnosis; this one is a joke. or is it. no it is. or is it

time travel; I'll get a little more into this down there ↓ but I think it's likely to be an element of s5 .. we'll see

now hear me out. here's some things I either do Not want or would be very nervous if they included:

Eddie coming back; WAIT STOP HEAR ME OUT PLEASE .. I want him to not be dead as much as the next Eddie fan and I think the ending they gave him was complete horse shit awful. but I also do NOT have any faith that they'd do a bringing-him-back storyline properly . I've read some good fanfic about it which only would make the reality of whatever they'd do more disappointing ! BUT the exception to this is if they pull some time travel bs, which I think is a good possibility tbh, like with the upside down being stuck in the day Will went missing and stuff, and then they could prevent all that from happening in the first place. I'd still be nervous about the quality of the writing but I'm on board w this conclusion nonetheless! but Eddie coming back as Kas or whatever.. well. I'd just be nervous putting that in the hands of the stranger writers I'm sorry

M!leven endgame (<- censoring for superstitious reasons a.k.a. I do not want to invoke ship discourse here); I just don't know how anyone likes them romantically I'm ngl . it's fine if you do please do not come for me I just don't get it . I fear they will end up together anyway but I don't like it . I'm a Mike apologist but El deserves better than a guy that can't even physically say that he loves her

Will with a gun; this sounds like a joke but I'm so serious hglkjfdgk, I know a lot of people want him having a badass moment with a gun mirroring the shot in s1 where he's taken by the demogorgon and that sounds cool but I just. don't think it suits his character I'M SORRYYY I love that he's a protagonist who's gentle and sensitive, there are other characters who can kick ass violent style rather than my special little dude

anyway that's just off the top of my head, I have so many thoughts swirling around in there so I might be back to add more thank you so much

[imsodishy]

I posted 4,731 times in 2022

That's 3,878 more posts than 2021!

434 posts created (9%)

4,297 posts reblogged (91%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@ariesbilly

@lazybakerart

@ickypuppi3

@bendingsignpost

@memes-saved-me

I tagged 2,602 of my posts in 2022

Only 45% of my posts had no tags

#billy hargrove - 647 posts

#harringrove - 604 posts

#fanart - 268 posts

#the duffers are bad writers - 92 posts

#dishy answers - 67 posts

#fic - 65 posts

#steve harrington - 64 posts

#stranger things - 61 posts

#ask game - 61 posts

#dishy writes - 55 posts

Longest Tag: 138 characters

#it’s such a deliberate change. a set decorator didn’t just drop that in on a whim for some flavour. it is a specific and deliberate choice

My Top Posts in 2022:

#5

how that scene in the RV should have gone.

Steve: I want six kids

Nancy: I don't want kids at all

Steve: Hmm, guess we never talked about that kind of stuff when we were together, because we were, and still are, teenagers with a shitload of other stuff going on.

Nancy: I guess we're not really compatible on a lot of levels, and even though the nostalgia of first love is potent we shouldn't let it sway us into believing we should try again.

Steve: Yeah, you're probably right.

end scene

1,375 notes - Posted August 9, 2022

#4

I'm gonna fucking say it: Billy is the least bad of the human antagonists on that fucking show. Those little shits in season one literally made Mike jump off a cliff while holding Dustin at knife point. Jason whipped up a vigilante mob and got himself a gun at the drop of a hat. Brenner kidnaps and tortures children. Henry is a literal serial killer before anyone ever interferes with the trajectory of his life.

1,472 notes - Posted August 1, 2022

#3

drives me up a wall that fanon interchangeably calls Steve the babysitter, big brother, and mom, like those aren't all wildly different vibes??

Anyway, the vibe Steve actually gives is oldest cousin still stuck at the kids table at a family reunion.

1,523 notes - Posted September 30, 2022

#2

stranger things really screwed the pooch by never having a scene where all the siblings pairs (Mike and Nancy, Will and Jonathan, Lucas and Erica, Max and Billy, and Steve and Dustin) are having 5 simultaneous but separate, high volume arguments, while El and Robin just 👁👁 👁👁

(Steve and Dustin started in the only child group but they set each other off, and they lost their high ground spectacularly)

2,387 notes - Posted July 29, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

really truly cannot stand when Steve is painted as a fragile softboi who will crumble at an unkind word.

Steve is a (barely) reformed mean girl. His instinct is still going to be to bite back meaner. We literally see it as recently as season 4 when Dustin is getting too close to the bone, Steve goes too mean. He immediately cops to it and apologizes (because, reforming) but that's still how he's wired.

His skin is thick, his mouth is mean. Steve is a bitch (and I like him so much)

4,521 notes - Posted August 16, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

[jazy3]

Thoughts on ST4 Promo Pics

Did anyone else think Eddie would be younger? When I heard that new characters had been announced and I looked up information and saw that he would be the leader of the D&D club at Hawkins High I pictured him being closer to Mike, Dustin, Lucas, Max, and Will’s age then Nancy, Robin, and Jonathan’s. I’m excited that Suzie is back! I feel like Dustin is going to be mad when he finds out that Will, Mike, and Jonathan got into Suzie’s room before he did LOL! I’m interested to see how the California gang plus Mike manage to get past her super relgious Mormon parents to talk to her as its been established that if they ever found out she was dating Dustin they’d have a cow. 

I’m also dying to know how Joyce winds up splitting off from the rest of the California group and going to Russia with Murray to rescue Hopper. I want to see them reunite, but leaving her kids to go find him after they’ve been shot at doesn’t seem like something she would do so something must happen that results in them getting split up. I’m hoping we’ll see Murray and Erica interact more because her comments in Season 3 cracked me up! I’m also interested to see the relationship between El, Will, Jonathan, and Joyce this season. They will all have been living as a family in California for several months when we return and I’m excited to see that dynamic. How will they talk about each other? 

Do El, Will, and Jonathan refer to each other as siblings? Do they all call Joyce Mom? Or do they continue adressing each other the way they have in the past and only refer to each other that way in front of other people for safety or simplicity’s sake? Also, El looks really tired and worn down in the promo pics. I think they’re all going to need a vacation from their vacation by the time Spring Break is over. I can’t wait to see Hopper and Joyce back on screen together! I’ve really missed them. They are by far my favourite pairing on the show. I’m really hoping we’ll get to see them reconnect and actually get together for real this season. I’ll be interested to see how that changes things for Season 5 as that likely means Hopper will move to California after the events of Season 4 to parent El and date Joyce which will change the household dynamic quite a bit. 

If my math is correct Jonathan, Nancy, and Robin should all be heading off to college and university in the fall which will also change the dynamic in the Byers-Hopper household. They’ve established that it’s been Jonathan’s dream to go to NYU for photography since he was 6 so I think that’s likely where he’ll end up going. Based on her internship in Season 3 it looks like Nancy will most likely go for journalism and based on her love of languages I think Robin is likely to go for linguistics or something travel related. I’m curious to see how they handle Steve’s predicament about the future because it’s all well and good for Steve to be working at Scoops Ahoy for the summer after graduation and the video store while Robin is in her last year of high school, but it’s quite another for him to be left behind in Hawkins working dead end jobs for the rest of his life while everyone else goes off to college and university and moves on.

They’re going to have to find some way to address that this season because otherwise that creates a very sad ending and trajectory for Steve which he does not deserve. Today someone in Steve’s position could simply do a victory lap or what used to be known as Grade 13 here in Canada to upgrade his courses and reapply, but I have no idea if that’s an option in the United States or what year that option became available. I’m excited to see the Hawkins gang using a computer for the first time! While we’ve seen computers in the previous seasons this is the first time they seem to be featured prominently which makes sense given the time period. I’m also super excited to see Nancy and Robin become friends! Having read the book about Robin’s backstory I would love to see them talk about Barb and for them to have a heart to heart about Steve. 

I’m interested to see if Robin will share the fact that she likes girls not boys with Nancy. I could see it coming up if Nancy thought that the reason Robin wasn’t dating Steve was because of her and the fact that they used to date and Robin telling her that’s not it. I’m really excited to see the two of them hang out! It would also be cool to see Steve and Robin get more friends their own age or closer to it and I love the idea of Steve, Eddie, Robin, and Nancy being friends and fighting monsters together. Did Nancy loan Robin those clothes that we see them wear at the jail? Because that is not an outfit that Robin would normally wear. Why do they have to conceal their identities? 

Also can we talk about the hair and the clothing this season?!?! Just based on the promo pics alone this season looks wild! We’re getting into that era of bad eighties hair and even more garish clothing! I love it but I also hate it at the same time. I’m not sure who Dustin, Lucas, and Erica are talking to, but other keen eyed fans pointed out that it looks like they’re using a Lite Brite possibly to communicate with others. I’m excited to see more of Lucas and Erica’s dynamic this season and I’ll be curious to see if Holly becomes more of a full fledged character in Season 4. I’m also curious to know if and how El will get her powers back and whether or not Will’s sexuality will be explored. 

I think there’s a lot of potential to explore some interesting terrority about being gay in the eighties, how Robin and Will’s experiences would differ, and the HIV/AIDS epidemic without being preachy or over doing it. Will is known for being dramatic at times and feeling things very deeply so I feel like it would fit for his character for him to clue the others into how he’s feeling and what he may have discovered about himself since moving to California in a big speech or outburst. It would be interesting to see El’s reaction versus everyone else’s because she grew up at the lab she doesn’t have the kind of societal conditioning around homophobia, racism etc. that the other characters do. 

I could see a situation in which Will tells the others how he’s feeling and El is confused as to what the big deal is and Mike has to find a way to explain it to her without insulting or upsetting Will and potentially Robin and Steve by extension. It would also be interesting to see Hopper’s reaction if they do make Will canonically gay as police officers are not typically very friendly towards gay people, but most cops also wouldn’t go to the lengths that Hopper has to find and save Will, protect and take care of El, and help keep the rest of the kids safe. We also know that Hopper spent part of his career after he was discharge from the military as a homicide detective in New York City. NYC has long had a large gay community and that’s something that Hopper would be aware of. 

It’s also been established that when he puts his mind to something he’s very good at getting to the bottom of things and working things out. Which means in all likelihood if Will is gay Hopper probably already knows or at least suspects that that’s the case, but hasn’t said anything so as not to out him. I’d love to see the reactions of all the characters really because Hawkins is a small town and calling someone a gay slur as an insult was pretty common in the eighties and it’s likely each character would have a very different reaction depending on how that kind of thing is or isn’t talked about at home. Something else I’m really hoping for, as impossible as it might be, is for Steve and Robin to both get great new love interests this season. My hope is that maybe we see some new characters that are in town visiting relatives over spring break and that Steve and Robin can finally find people who are capable of loving them back and are a good fit for them. Fingers crossed! 

[theonewiththefanfics]

Hawkins’ Charm (Part 3/?)

Synopsys: They had gotten out of Hawkins. After all the shit that had happened, all the heartache and pain, Billy and the Reader had gotten away from that hellhole, building their life in California as he had dreamed. But when Max’s graduation rolls around and they go to celebrate, it’s as if the Upside Down was just waiting for all of them to return. And it has a bone to pick.

Pairing: Billy Hargrove x f!Reader; platonic!Steve Harrington x f!Reader

Genre: angst, fluff

Warnings: swearing, drinking, smoking, I don’t think there’s anything else :)

Word count: 3998

DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT CONDONE BILLY’S ACTIONS AND THE THINGS HE’S DONE! THIS IS BASICALLY AN AU, WHEN REALLY LOOKING AT IT! SPOILERS FOR S3! READ AT YOUR OWN DISCRETION!

It truly was high school all over again. As Y/N and Billy walked around the newly rebuilt mall, he kept bickering with Max about her going to a party. They had decided to meet up with everyone for a bowling game instead of sitting with Susan and Neil in tense silence by the dinner table, but the two were going at it like they would at home.        “You were so much worse at my age than I am,” Max exclaimed throwing her hands in the air. “Besides, I wouldn’t get drunk or even drink, I have graduation the next day.”        “You could be drinking water and still get roofied,” Billy’s hand slid into the back pocket of Y/N’s jeans. “Trust me, guys your age only think with their dicks.”        “Like you did?” Max’s ginger eyebrow rose, a smirk on her face as her brother only glared at her.        “Watch it, Maxine.”        “Call me Maxine again, and I’ll drive your Camaro into the lake.”        Billy pointed a stern finger at her as they entered the bowling alley. “Touch my car and you’re dead.”    “How're things between you and Lucas?” Y/N butted in, tired of their arguing. They really were siblings, and it didn’t matter if they were related or not, they definitely acted like it.        “We broke up.”        Billy snorted. “Which time is it now? Twelfth?”        “Fourteenth.”        “What happened?” Y/N asked lacing up the shoes the guy behind the desk had given her, but where she thought it’d be just stupid teenager drama, Max’s face completely fell.        “He’s going to NYU… got his acceptance letter during Spring Break.”        “Max, that’s amazing,” Billy said but his sister’s mood only soured.        “Yeah, well for him, not for us… he’s going to NYU I’m going to UCLA, but the thing is we’d talked about applying to the same ones, and he did it behind my back!” she exclaimed. “He didn’t even tell me he was thinking about it! That’s what pisses me off the most.”

       Billy grunted standing up after having put on his own shoes. “Do you want me to beat him up?”        “What? No!” Max rolled her eyes. “I can do that myself. I just… this isn’t the kinda shit we usually break up over.”        Y/N gave her a sympathetic look. Before she’d ever met Billy, she had been thinking about going to NYU as well. And if she was being honest, for the first few months they lived in California, she had regretted not going to the Big Apple. Things had obviously worked out just fine, but it was a little tear in her heart to know her plans hadn’t really gone the way she thought they would. Then again, Y/N didn’t think she’d have to fight the Mind Flayer either, so there was that.        “And what kind of things did you usually break up because?” Y/N asked as she and Max went to pick out their balls, Billy quickly ordering some drinks and food for them and the rest of the Party as they’d join later.        “I dunno,” the redhead sighed and looked up at the board showing her name. “Like in eighth grade, I dumped him ‘cause he stepped on the back of my shoes for a week. He thought he was being funny, so I told him to back off. Another time was ‘cause he’d been copying my homework, but when I wanted to do the same he wouldn’t give. That’s the kind of stuff we argue abou-“ her train of thought was interrupted as everyone else loudly entered the alley, Nancy's hand in Johnathan's as El, Dustin, Mike, Will, Alex and Lucas all barreling in.        Max's blue eyes locked onto the latter’s brown ones for a moment, before he broke the gaze and took one of the bowling balls. The silent treatment was in full force.          “Did he say he was going?” Y/N asked, after having scored a spare and sitting down onto one of the seats. El was instantly by their side, wanting in on the girl conversation.        “No,” Max groaned looking at Lucas who was holding the ball by his face, trying to figure out the trajectory that would give him a strike. “But that’s not the point. The point is, he didn’t even tell me he was applying… like I think we would be able to manage a long-distance thing… but it’s just… like he didn’t trust me, like he was afraid I would discourage him from doing it.”        “Would you, have?” Y/N hesitated to ask but knew she should. “If he had told you he wanted to go to NYU, knowing you’re set on UCLA, do you think you’d try and talk him out of it?”        “I just…” Max dragged a hand through her hair, tears she never let fall glistening on her lower lash line.  “I love him. I don’t wanna lose him. But he doesn’t trust me.”        By that point, Nancy, Johnathan, Steve with the addition of Robin who’d been busy earlier that morning had joined in on the game, and were all preoccupied with beating the kids' scores.        “Y/N!” Billy shouted, “You’re up!”        “Look, Max, I think you two need to sit down and talk about it,” the girl stood up and went to grab her bowling ball. “Maybe he was scared of losing you too… maybe that's why he didn't say anything...”        Her Y/E/C eyes zeroed in on the pins, arm pulled back and with a little skip forward, she let the ball go, knocking down the ten white pieces of wood.        STRIKE! The board announced with a little animation on it.        Max just huffed at the implication it had.

***

       Dustin ended up being the one who scored most.        “It’s the missing bones, I’m telling you!” he laughed as everyone gave back their bowling shoes and made their way out of the mall, the parking lot practically deserted save for a few cars.        Y/N’s hand was in Billy’s, and he was swinging them back and forth.    “How does that make any sense?” she asked looking up at the teenager. All of them had grown so much, it was practically unfair.        “It’s just the way it is.”        “So, you’re like Gumby or some shit?”        “Uh,” Steve butted in, “I’m pretty sure it’s gumbo. We had this conversation years ago.”        Y/N raised her eyebrow and looked at Robin who just rolled her eyes. “You do know gumbo is a dish, right?”        “Yeah, but does it have any bones in it?” he remarked. Nobody had anything to answer, so he just gave them a smug smirk, opening his car’s door. “Thought so.”        Dustin, Robin and Lucas piled inside Harrington’s vehicle while Nancy and Johnathan would bring Will, Alex and Mike home, Max driving with Y/N and Billy.        “We were actually thinking about going to Tina’s after we drop these ones off,” Nancy said, leaning on her door. “So, if you wanna join, we’ll be there in like half an hour.”        Y/N sighed, nodding her head and giving a small smile before ducking inside the safety of Billy’s car. They drove to Max’s in silence, the rock music that usually blasted on high had been turned down low, so Neil wouldn’t hear them approaching.        “Think about what I said. Please,” Y/N said to Max with a sympathetic smile as the teenager hopped out from the backseat.        She responded with a small nod and then closed the door.        The two watched Max skip up the porch and unlock the door. Only when her bedroom’s light was off and there was no other movement in the house did they pull away and started to drive down the road.        “Do you think we could go to that party?” Billy’s question caught Y/N completely off guard. It was already eleven thirty so without a doubt it would be in full swing.        “You didn’t want to earlier today, what changed?”        He just shrugged and looked back at the road, streetlights guiding their way. “Just thought it might be fun… ever since Clara, we haven’t had much time to ourselves. I absolutely love her and would give up everything for her happiness, but I just thought… I dunno… it might be fun…”        Y/N bit her lip as she watched Billy chew on the inside of his cheek. She didn’t really want to go. The thought of seeing Carol, Tommy and the other delinquents was not an appealing one, and, without a doubt, the woman would try to get a rise out of her, seeing as Y/N had helped the bad boy of Hawkins settle down, but he looked so nervous when he’d asked it, she just let out a sigh and nodded.        “Why not… besides, Nance, Steve and the rest are going as well, so… sure.”        But Y/N regretted that decision almost immediately. She didn’t mind parties, just the people that went to them, and when the first people she saw was Vicky Mulligan and Tina Wakefield sucking on some strangers’ necks she immediately decided to scour the place for her friends, if they had to stay.        “Look who decided to show up,” Tommy slurred, already intoxicated with his shirt buttoned open and sweat or beer trickling down his chest. “Ladies and gentlemen, the King of Hawkins has finally graced us with his presence. Though I have to warn you – he’s quite boring now. Doesn’t drink or even fucking smoke.”        Laughter and booing erupted throughout the house, and Y/N saw Carol snicker, as she had joined them by the driveway, a cigarette hanging between her fingers.        Billy didn’t even bristle as he pulled off his leather jacket and slammed his car door closed. “What’s the record?”        “What?” Tommy laughed dragging a puff before exhaling it through his nose.        “I asked what’s the record?”        Tommy’s lackeys all scoffed and crossed their arms before he answered. “You’re still in the lead.”        Y/N saw him smirk and threw her a wink. “Them I’m about to beat myself.”        She sighed, knowing what was going to happen. As the boys all gathered around Billy, grabbing him by the legs and waist to hoist him up, Tommy passing the hose to let the beer flow, she entered the house, harshly slamming her shoulder into Carol’s, Vicky and Tina sneering at her.        Pure Fuel was her mission, and that’s where she found her saviour in the form of Robin.        “You don’t look like you wanna be here,” she stated handing Y/N a red cup filled with the alcohol mixture. They’d shared English with Mrs Nelson during their last year of school, but other than a couple of group projects the two girls hadn’t interacted much, until the summer that changed it all.        Robin was still someone Y/N looked forward to seeing and hearing from, but she also knew that their friendship was nothing compared to hers and Steve’s. In a lot of ways, Robin had replaced Y/N as Steve’s best friend, but she wasn’t bitter about it. In fact, she was truly happy there was someone he could be completely himself without any other intention than being a friend.        “That’s ‘cause I really don’t,” Y/N snorted and gulped down half her drink. “I have no joy sharing air with those three harpies.”        Robin nodded and sipped on her gin and tonic. “It’s truly amazing how they haven’t changed a bit. It’s like they’re still stuck in high school.”        “You’re telling me,” Y/N shook her head. “Carol looked like her eyes were going to pop out of her sockets when I said Billy’s my husband.”        “I would pay to see that,” Robin pointed with a finger at her and chuckled in her raspy tone.        “I mean, imagine how she’d look if you said you have a daughter.”        They snickered for a moment and shook their heads, Robin looking to the garden where the popular ex-kids-now-adults had gathered.        “You find a girl in London?” the question took her attention away and though unexpected it wasn’t unwelcome. She trusted Y/N enough to come out and had never heard a harsh word from her. The blush that crept up Robin’s neck would’ve been enough of an answer, but she did give a soft ‘yeah’ as well.        “Tell me everything,” Y/N leaned forward, genuinely interested in what this person was like, and if she made Robin happy. But she didn’t get a chance to open her mouth when the deafening cheering of boys bombarded their senses.    “The Keg King still lives!” Tommy hollered over the heads of everyone, and Billy let out a yell of victory.    He couldn’t help himself as he slipped back into that persona that didn’t care about anything or anyone. Obviously, things had changed, and where he used to slink away to find his taste of the week as a teenager, Billy was very much so devoted to his family, but it was nice to let loose for a bit. If only for a moment to become the Keg King.         His wife stood by the door aisle looking at the aftermath of the whole ordeal, but contrary to where her husband had drunk beer for a minute and a half without stopping for a breath basically, she had been nursing the same cup of Pure Fuel the entire time.    In Y/N’s mind, she thought they’d come here, mingle for a bit, maybe talk with a few other of their fellow ex-classmates and go home to rest, but given how it was moving closer to two AM already, she knew that wouldn’t happen.        “Babe, did you hear that?” Billy’s arms were wide open in pride as he looked at her. “I’m still Hawkins’ reigning King.”        Y/N pulled her mouth in a tight-lipped smile and crossed her arms humming in agreement. “Imma get you some water.”       Tommy H scoffed. “Water; if you’re getting him anything get him Pure Fuel. It’s a party, not a sermon.”        “C’ mon,” Billy sighed moving to where she stood, hands grasping at her waist and pressing his forehead against Y/N’s. “Don’t be like that.”        “Like what?”        “A mood killer. This is just one night.”        Y/N scoffed pulling back. “What happened to ‘I don’t drink or smoke’? You were pretty happy to put both Carol and Tommy down when we first met them today, but the second you have a bigger audience it’s back to the old ways?”        “You know that’s not true,” the words were more like a growl than anything else. “I’m just trying to make the best out of a bad situation.”        “You wanted to come here,” she pointed out. “Not me. I’m just tagging along.”        “Well maybe then you should go home.”        That was not the answer Y/N expected to hear from Billy. With wide eyes, she pulled back from his embrace and stepped out of arms reach. “Maybe I will.”        With that, she turned around and weaved between the drunk people, searching for someplace quiet, but given how every single space in Tina’s house was packed, the only unoccupied place would be the woods at the back.        Y/N ran a hand down her face, as she stepped onto the forest floor, the noise of gravel crunching under her feet being replaced by moss, making her steps completely soundless.        “And what are you doing here alone?” a voice from the shadows startled her, but it turned out to be just Steve as it seemed he had run away from Tina’s as well.        “Reliving the first party of senior year, I guess,” Y/N snorted giving the house a quick look. “Billy’s the Keg King again, and I’m hiding in the woods. Seems about right.”        “Shouldn’t’ the Queen be next to her husband?”        “The Queen,” Y/N sighed, “is apparently killing the mood… I didn’t think things would go back to the way they were so quickly…” she bit her lip and exhaled another breath. “Like, I know we’re not that much older, and it doesn’t matter if we’re twenty-two or eighteen, but I thought, you know… we have a kid,” she chuckled. “We’re married… maybe I was just naïve thinking that he’d be the same as he’s in San Diego.”        Steve sighed, a pained look on his face. “Come on, don’t say that,” he went to stand next to Y/N. “The guy’s crazy about you. And I never thought I’d say that about Billy Hargrove. You know, the guy who went around town screwing every girl that would open her legs for him. He hasn’t so much as looked at someone else. He loves you, it’s just those assholes goading him.”        “I know,” Y/N sighed and leaned against the tree trunk. “and I get it, I guess. It’s easier for him to shut everyone out and become someone he isn’t here. At first, it was kind of sweet, that only I’d got to see who was underneath all that brashness and temperament, but now… it just feels like a weight dragging everything down. It’s like all those soft moments we’ve spent together and with Clara mean nothing as long as he gets to beat the record again.”        Steve could understand where she was coming from. They’d been best friends since forever, and after having been through unimaginable shit, he was genuinely happy Y/N had found someone to call her home. And having seen how affectionate Billy could be when they were at the bowling alley, his heart hurt for her.        “Hey,” he tried to distract her, “the junkyard wasn’t that far now was it?”        Y/N shrugged. “A twenty-minute walk. Wanna go?”        And it really was like high school all over again. With the booming sounds of the party remaining in the distance, Y/N walked side by side with Steve, catching up on the things they had missed over the phone or just reminiscing about how things were, and how they’d changed.        “Been drugged by any more Russians?” Y/N quipped as the sound of cicadas chirping trailed behind them.        “No,” Steve replied through a snort. “But anytime I walked into an ice cream shop, I was a bit weary.”        Their conversations drifted from one topic to another without a single pause. Y/N felt like she was seventeen once more, and that feeling only intensified when the smashed carcasses of old cars came in view, both of them dashing to the old bus they loved to sit on top of.        Together they set off into a sprint, loud giggles taking over the quiet of the junkyard, as Y/N leapt onto the hood of an old crushed BMW, but Steve slammed open the door of the bus and decided to use the hatch on its roof.        “I,” she breathed out heavily, “win.”        “You,” Steve mocked her out-of-breath voice, “cheated.”        “I did not!”        “Yes, you did!”        “Really,” Y/N lifted an eyebrow and crossed her arms. “How so?”        “You had a head start!”        “No, I’m just not slow like you.”        At that, he showed her shoulder and she almost tumbled to the ground, had it not been for Steve’s fingers grabbing onto her jean jacket. Billy’s jean jacket that she had stolen to wear. She sighed and leaned her head against Steve's shoulder, nose hidden in the lapel of the piece of clothing, her husband’s smell enveloping her.        “I just really hate them. Hate how they were able to get under his skin when he didn’t even let Neil do it.”        Steve’s arm wrapped around her shoulder as he rested his head against Y/N’s. “Well, Billy was right about one thing – Hawkins’ a shithole.”        For a moment they were silent, eyes trained towards where the lights of the mall glittered brighter than the stars in the sky when something moved between the cars. Something that was coming towards them.        “Steve,” Y/N’s voice trembled as she extended a shaking finger. “What’s that?”

***

       Robin’s heart was pumping as if she had just run sixty miles, Nancy and Johnathan scattered throughout the house as they tried to locate Billy. He had disappeared after his little argument with Y/N either gone to a quiet place to gather himself or Tommy had dragged him somewhere and shoved a bottle of tequila in one hand, a pack of cigarettes in the other.        She finally found him when the Californian exited the bathroom, a desperate girl trying to flirt with him, not noticing how his eyes didn’t even lift to look at her. But he did see a panting Robin, that grabbed onto his bicep and pulled him down the stairs.        “I saw something in the woods.”        Billy was beyond confused. “What?”        “Steve and Y/N,” she took in a breath and quickly exhaled, “they were in the woods, talking and then I saw something."        His heart dropped to his feet at the words, but he masked it quickly with a sneer, trying to push through the crowd and into the kitchen, the anger that had returned to his blood since arriving in Hawkins, slowly starting to boil.        “Yeah, well, I hope those two have a grand fucking time.”        “No, you don’t get it,” Robin shook Billy’s shoulder a bit and yanked him hard enough that the man turned around. “I said I saw something.”        That’s when pure fear took over his body. In all honesty, he would rather Y/N cheat on him, to say she didn’t love him, tell him she was running off with Steve ‘the Hair’ Harrington than what Robin’s words meant.        Immediately, he was running or at least attempting to get out of the house and to his car. He could already see Nancy and Johnathan waiting by the door aisle. He was almost out of the woods, when a slurring Tina stopped him in the middle of his tracks, trailing a hand along his exposed chest.        “Billy, where are you going?” she tried to purr, but he just pushed her away in disgust.        “My wife’s missing, so I’m going to find her.”        “You don’t need her.” The woman was relentless, especially when there was liquid courage in her system. “She’s boring, a snooze fest. Bet she doesn’t even put out.”        Her whiskey stained breath slammed into Billy’s nose, and he physically recoiled.    “You need a woman that knows how to take care of a man’s needs,” Tina continued on.       Billy was fuming by that point. Every wasted second was a possibility of Y/N getting hurt. Sure, she had Steve with her, but as far as he knew, neither had any kind of weapon to protect themselves, and if Robin was sure that a monster from the Upside Down was lurking in the forest and maybe even tracking them, there wasn’t much they could use.    “Someone like you?” he asked.       Tina’s smirk widened, and she was emboldened, sliding her palm down his chest, abs and towards his belt buckle. “Someone exactly like me.”    “Listen here sweetheart,” Billy started grabbing ahold of Tina’s hand. “If in these two minutes that I’ve wasted on talking to you or rather listening to you put down my wife something happened to her, it’ll be your head I’ll be coming after. If even a single strand of hair I find amiss on her head, I’ll scalp you with my bare hands.”        “She’s probably off somewhere screwing Harrington!” Carol hollered after Billy as he pushed Tina from where she’d been grasping at the collar of his shirt.        “Go choke!” was the only thing he dignified them with.        Elbowing away Tommy’s hand that wanted Billy to turn around and prod him to do another stand, he rushed out of the house and to his Camaro Robin following suit while, Nancy and Johnathan piled into her car, but not before she took out a shotgun from her trunk and passed it over to Billy, a box of bullets with it.        “The junction before the junkyard. We’ll try and get there from the other side.”        No more words needed to be spoken as the engine roared to life, Billy speeding away from the party.        “Don’t do anything stupid, baby,” he muttered to himself hoping that somehow Y/N would hear his words. “I’m coming. Everything’s gonna be alright.”

Tags (crossed out wouldn't take): 

Forever tags: @lumelgy @palaiasaurus64 @supernaturalbaesduh @breezy1415 @crazy--me @thatawkwardlittlefangirl @sea040561 @staryeyedgirl @deathbyarabbit @s-c-a-r-e-d-po-t-t-e-r @reblogger-not-a-blogger @m-a-t-91 @dalilx @i-need-a-hero-i-need-a-loki @maladaptive-ninja-returns @averyrogers83 @in-the-end-im-still-trash @gallifreyansass @dewy-biitch @avxgers @unlikelygalaxygiver @sweet-ladyy @magicwithaknife @ollyoxenfrees @bnhvrdy @tvwhoresblog @celebsimagines @thatkindofgurl @sj-thefan @teenwolflover28

Hawkins’ Charm tag list: @genius2050 @aiifandomsunite @ashleymarieriffle @littlefool-smalljester @infinitelycharmed23 @llcalumllhoodll @benevolentgemini @rxmanovbby @euphoniumpets @krazykatykat456 @believerofall @cracked-sidewalk98 @ccidk @babechief @meganmj @blackhood5sos @fml9603 @noodlenerd101 @universefinds @kuroidesuchloe @im-a-stranger-thing @grxxn-gardxns @springholland @beforethebraces @robinisourlesbianmom @queeneliza108 @neenaw-neenaw @lexisntthatweird @choicesismylife @mckenzie2020 @kcd15 @snuggleducky @reckless-sofia @didyouseetheflair @silver-winter-wolf @jay-ta-blog @hopeless-lovex0 @anyasthoughts @robinismyqueen @yeah-butyourenot-dacremontgomery @mcrganstarks @psychoticobsession @cutehipstergirl25 @sbfandom @mickmoon @jackyfrost01

A/N: If you wanna be tagged, please drop me a message :)

P.S. I went to see Spider-Man: Far From Home and it was such an adorkable movie, like omg I loved IT!!!!!!!!

[hawkinsschoolcounselor]

Billy’s redemption arc pleeeeease

Let me preface this by saying I am a sucker for a good redemption arc. The idea that a person who did terrible things could atone and be forgiven is such a powerful thing to me. I will gladly discuss Billy and his redemption arc, and I will use another famous redemption story for comparison.

Billy was shown to be a number of things in Season 2, none of them good. He was abusive, controlling, racist, and belligerent. He did not know how to go through life and approach a problem without using violence and fear. This is a classic villain, complete with the lack of concern for the aftermath of his wrath. He taunts Steve, and makes it a point to dethrone him as the King of Hawkins High. He’s top dog, and he won’t settle for anything less. He uses fear to control Max, going as far as to make it seem as if he would run over a group of kids. He warns her to stay away from Lucas. One could argue it’s not racially motivated, but we seem to be meant to see it as such. He makes an actual attempt to assault Lucas, a 13 year old, simply for interacting with Max. 

These are the actions of a violent man, but, more importantly, an unstable man. Billy is constantly on edge, ready to fly off the handle. It was not surprising at all to find him the victim of an abusive father. Billy shows his own fear as his father tears into him for not taking care of his sister. It’s not really unrealistic for him to twist this into controlling her, as that would be a means to avoid his own abuse. It’s not something he should be forgiven for, but it does change the context significantly. Billy isn’t a purely evil villain at this point, he’s someone trying to keep himself free of abuse. His actions are ultimately rooted in fear and insecurity. The seeds of pity begin to be sown. This man didn’t need to end up like this.

When he has his fight with Steve, Billy becomes completely unhinged. Steve starts off winning the fight. In Billy’s mind, if he returns from that house, battered and bruised in defeat, without his sister, he may as well reserve a bed at the hospital for when his dad is done with him. He’s fights as if he’s impervious to pain, and it’s likely due to running on absolute adrenaline. Losing is not an option here. In the end, it took Max threatening to take away his masculinity, which he worked hard to build up, before he relented.

After Season 2, we’re not meant to forgive Billy, but we are meant to see there is more going on there than meets the eye. He’s an asshole, but not evil.

Season 3 picks up with Billy continuing to court Karen Wheeler. Billy could theoretically pick up any woman he wants, so why go for Karen? I hate Freudian analysis, but I can’t help myself here. We’re later shown that Billy loved his mother, and it irreparably changed his life when she was driven away by his father. Billy is looking to satisfy that emptiness in his life. He wants a loving mother again, even if it’s not his own. He isn’t simply attracted to Karen, and this is why we are shown him resisting the urge to attack her, but not Heather.

Billy is also shown as terrified when the monster attacks him. He’s depicted as helpless. All of his masculinity, his strength, was powerless to save him. He’s supposed to be a tragic figure at this point. He’s being torn down, slowly but surely. He cries as the Mindflayer threatens El through him. He grovels and laments his actions in the sauna before the Mindflayer activates. He’s horrified at what he’s being made to do. Again, we’re meant to see him as not evil. Not good either, but not evil.

This has the workings of a classic redemption story. If we look at Darth Vader in the Star Wars saga, we see a man who followed a similar trajectory. He was a happy enough child, but his fears twisted him into something horrible. He caused tremendous amounts of pain and terror. In the end, though, he was redeemed through his actions. But his redeeming action wasn’t killing the emperor. No, it was saving his son, Luke. He knew doing so would kill him and require him to betray his master, but he prevailed. The important thing here is that Vader was redeemed because he earned forgiveness for his actions. Luke was able to see the side of Vader that he always believed was in there. He did penance for his destruction of the Jedi, the ultimately fatal attack on his wife, and the violence against his children. 

Billy’s redemption is not complete, and unfortunately never will be. The problem here is that while he gave his life to save El, it was never El’s forgiveness that he needed. His biggest victim in his reign of terror has always been Max. Curiously, Max was seen as being worried about Billy to a degree that depictions of their relationship doesn’t support. Sure he’s her brother, but she fears for him as if she loved him. This was a characterization change that we would have needed to witness to allow us to fully forgive Billy and redeem him. Yes, we get to see that Billy was a much different person with his mother in his life. He was happy, and he’s spent most of his life burying that memory due to the pain it causes him. Not only is the memory of his lost mother painful, but being that happy, carefree child resulted in his father’s abuse. 

What we needed, but didn’t get, was for Billy to sacrifice himself for Max, rather than El. We needed to see him struggle against the compulsion to attack Max, but instead we see him one-shot her as she tries to get through to him. There’s no warning Max to step aside, no hesitation to suggest he tries to resist, he just decks her and keeps going. 

The writers could argue that El had to be the one because only she saw the memory that got through to him. (Side note: the Mindflayer seems weak to happy memories).They could have found a way around this though. Instead, we get a jarring end to Billy in that we’re meant to believe that Max would be that devastated at the loss of her abuser. Billy’s redemption falls short because of this, tragically ending an already tragic character. He dies human, but not redeemed.

One thing I would like to point out is a (perhaps unintentional) parallel to Will. In addition to their similar names, both come from broken families with abusive fathers and loving mothers. In Billy’s case, he ends up with the abusive father, but Will gets the loving mother. To me, Billy is a dark reflection of Will. Could Will have ended up like Billy if he were forced to be with Lonnie? Would Billy have been more like Will had he been able to stay with his mother?