Number Four

What's Going On?

"-Whoa, whoa, whoa! Slow down. Start from the beginning." Bonnie Quatre waved her hands as they stood round her in her chair, interrupting the multiple voices speaking over each other in an effort to explain. "What the hell is a Vecna?"

"Vecna is the one who's been doing all the murders." Dustin explained. "He's probably from this dimension called the Upside-down and he has these powers."

"...Right," Bonnie nodded. "And how do you know he's called Vecna?"

"... We don't, that's just what we've been calling him. It's from Dungeons and Dragons, he's like this wizard-lich who... this doesn't matter." Dustin trailed off at Bonnie's wide-eyed confusion.

"The Upside-down is like, this alternate dimension that kind of looks like ours, but it's... not." Lucas offered.

"I actually got that part, I am a physics teacher." Bonnie smiled. "Well... Student-teacher."

"He's evil and he's targeting kids." Max bluntly summed up.

"And he's connected to the Creel House." Nancy said. "Which... you just bought."

"The house was important to someone I once knew." It was clear from the way Bonnie spoke she would explain no more. "I will make sure no one else goes in. We can use the house to find out what's going on."

Dustin's face lit up. "So, you'll help us?"

"Well, I'm no Eleven-grade superhero, but I'll do what I can to help. If we can stop people- kids- dying, then good." She seemed distant for a moment, then shuddered.

"Just curious, what actually is your power?" Robin asked.

"I can... sense emotions. Influence them some too. Make people feel... make them do what I want." She looked at Max. "I've done it to you before- stopped you getting Vecna'd in the middle of school. I'd figured out that much by then. But as I said, it's harder once you know what I'm doing. Easier to notice what's really you and what isn't."

"You're pathokinetic." Dustin said incredulously. "You can control other people's emotions."

"... Is that what it's called?" Bonnie looked pleasantly surprised. "Huh. You learn something new everyday."

"When you say... you can feel other people's emotions..." Robin started. "Is that like... all our emotions?"

Bonnie chuckled. "Oh, I know where this is going. Don't worry, you lot are hardly the worst I've ever picked up on. It's mostly just white noise to me now, unless I choose to tune in on something in particular." With no one looking reassured and several quite uncomfortable, she picked up her keys from the table. "Come on, I'll drive you back."

"She still could be Vecna." Lucas whispered to Steve and Max as they headed back down the stairs.

"So... what do we call you?" Nancy asked, walking side by side with Bonnie.

Bonnie shrugged. "You can call me Four, I don't mind, it's my name- the only one I've ever known. You can call me Miss Quatre, you already have been. You can call me Bonnie- you can call me Bon, if you like." Unlocking her car, she ushered them all inside and climbed in, turning on the stereo.