matter of time - harrington

volume nine

Eliza was driving herself crazy. She'd been over her notes a million times and still was nowhere near figuring out what was going on in Hawkins. The newspaper clippings from a year ago sat scattered around on her desk. She felt silly, huddled over the news about her brother's new friend and his disappearance. If anyone had walked in on her in that moment, Eliza would have been extremely embarrassed. Why did she care so much? Why was she so convinced that something weird was going on? She wasn't sure what it was, but she had a hunch, a suspicion, a gut feeling that there was something wrong. And if her little brother was involved, Eliza had to get to the bottom of it so that she could protect him no matter what. 

After another few minutes of reading and then rereading the articles about Will and Barbara, Eliza had to get out of her room to clear her mind. She stood suddenly from her desk and marched into the hall with no destination in particular in mind. 

Without realizing it, Eliza found herself in her little brother's room. Jack wasn't much of a decorator. The walls were painted navy blue to match his blue and red comforter. He had posters and pictures posted on the walls. Most of them depicted shows, movies, and games Eliza didn't recognize. Her little brother was a bit of a nerd. She recognized the Star Wars poster, mostly because Jack forced them to watch the movies all the time. 

As she strolled casually around her brother's room, Eliza searched for anything that might give her the answers she needed. She walked over to her brother's desk and saw a book opened on it, turned to a page that had a large picture of a horrific looking monster. Eliza frowned at the book as she grabbed it and turned to the cover to see what her brother was looking at. 

Advanced Dungeons and Dragons- Monster Manual

She rolled her eyes at the title and nearly dropped the book completely before the picture once again caught her eye. Eliza stared down at the monster. It was horrifying with two heads and an overall vicious look. Scribbles in the margins of the book caught her eye, dragging Eliza's attention away from the picture. Her brother's messy scrawl was easy to recognize. 

The real Demogorgon only has one head. It fears fire and is attracted by the scent of blood. It can come in and out of the Upside Down by using portals. 

Dart might be a Demogorgon. 

Next to the note was a crude drawing of a creature that terrified her more than whatever the Dungeons and Dragons creators had imagined. 

Eliza snatched the book from her brother's desk and hurried into her bedroom. She opened the book to the first page and began reading the information both written by the authors and scribbled in the margins by her brother. 

The things she was reading seemed so impossible. Eliza wasn't completely willing to believe it until she turned to a page with several newspaper clippings shoved into the crease. She gently flipped through them and found all of the clippings she'd been obsessing over for hours. 

Barbara was taken to the Upside Down and killed there.  

Hawkins Lab- human experiments. Eleven, not a Russian spy. 

Will was never dead. Hawkins Lab pretended he was to cover up. 

Eliza had read enough. She stood from her desk and hurried down the stairs to the phone in the kitchen. Her gaze roamed over the cork board beside the phone until she located the piece of paper with all of her brother's friend's phone numbers listed. She grabbed the paper and ripped it from the wall before hurrying back upstairs to her own phone. 

She grabbed it from the nightstand and dialed the number of the Byers' house, hoping that her brother was still there and safe rather than getting himself even further involved in some government conspiracy. 

The dial tone rang for several minutes before the machine clicked and asked for her to leave a message. 

"Hey it's Eliza Turner, I was just calling to check on Jack. Please call me back when you can." 

The next number she dialed was to the Wheeler house. Unfortunately for her, however, the line was busy and she wasn't able to leave a message or learn anything new about her brother's whereabouts. 

With a sigh, Eliza dialed the one number she wanted to avoid. It rang for a few moments before it was answered. 

"Harrington residence," Steve's mother answered sweetly.

"Hi Mrs. Harrington, it's Eliza Turner, I was just calling to talk to Steve," She replied nervously, spinning the chord of her phone around her finger. 

"Oh hello Eliza, Steve just left here. He didn't say where he was going, but I can take a message for you if you want?" 

"That's okay, Mrs. Harrington, I'll try again later."

Eliza hung up and groaned. She stood in her room, fidgeting slightly before she saw a familiar red car parking in front of the Wheeler house. She sighed in relief and hurried down stairs and out of her house. 

"Steve!" She screeched, causing the boy to stop in his tracks and turn to her with a surprised look. 

She hurried down the walkway and to his side, barely stopping in time not to run into him completely. Steve reached out and settled the girl slightly, a concerned look taking over his features as he checked over her and made sure she was safe. 

"I know," Eliza murmured, trying to catch her breath. 

"Know what, E?" He asked. 

"I know everything, Steve." 

Eliza replied, looking up to meet Steve's gaze with a determined look in her eye. She was practically daring him to lie to her. The two teenagers faced off for a few moments before Steve sighed and ducked his head down. 

"We have a lot to talk about I guess," Steve replied. 

Before Eliza could reply, however, the two of them were interrupted by Dustin Henderson.