Chapter Seventy-Eight: Victor, Vecna, and Vengeful Demons

We didn't waste any time getting up from the picnic tables and heading back to our cars.

"I'll catch up with you guys." Nancy said, heading back to her car.

"Whoa, whoa, Nance. Nance!' Steve called, jogging over to stop her. "Where are you going?"

"Oh, there's just something I wanna check out first."

"Something you maybe wanna share with the rest of us?" Dustin asked.

"I don't wanna waste your time. Its a real shot in the dark."

"With you?" I questioned. "I'd take those odds. I'll go with you."

She nodded and I walked over to join her.

"Yeah ok, are you two out of your minds?!" Steve asked. "Flying solo with this Vecna creep on the loose? No, its too dangerous, you guys need...you need someone to...Here you go," He turned around, tossing his keys to Robin, "I'll stick with Riley and Nance. You guys take the car, check out the shrink."

"I don't think you want me driving your car." Robin told him.

"Why?"

"I don't have a license."

"Why don't you have a license?"

"I'm poor."

"I can drive." Max suggested.

"No, no! Never again, please,anybody but you, no." Dustin raised his eyebrows in questioning. "No chance."

"Come on!"

"No-"

"Alright, ok, this is stupid," Robin said, handing the keys back to Steve, "Us ladies will stick together," She moved to stand beside us, "Unless, you think we need you to protect us?"

We all put our hands in our pockets, looking at Steve expectantly. Robin laughed at his lack of sresponse, leading the way towards Nancy's car. Nancy shrugged, following her and I moved over to stand in front of Steve.

"I don't like this." He said.

"I know," I put my hands on his face, kissing his cheek, "But you're the one who said I'm strong and tough and all that. I think we can handle it. Just do what you do best, ok?"

I turned around, following the girls.

"What do I do best?!" He called. I turned around, smiling at him and holding my hands out to my sides.

"Be the babysitter!" He shot me a look and I chuckled. "Your words, HAIRington."

"Yeah, yeah, thanks a lot, Barbie. Glad to see you're feeling better." He said dryly. I shot him a two-fingered salute before jogging to catch up with Nancy and Robin. "Be careful!" 

~~~

"So Eddie's Uncle, Wayne, thinks that Victor Creel, escaped from Pennhurst Asylum and that he's the one running around committing all these murders?" Robin asked as we walked towards the Hawkins Public Library.

"Pretty much." Nancy told her.

"But Victor committed the eyeball murders, like way back in the '50s."

"Well, '59." Nancy corrected as they each opened one of the double doors. I walked inside ahead of them.

"So, that means these murders pre-date Eleven and the Upside down by about thirty years?"

"Yeah." We came to a stop in front of the circulation desk, which was empty. I rang the bell.

"Which makes spooky Victor Creel like 70 years old."

"Yep." I rang it again, glancing at Nancy as I began sensing some hostility from her towards Robin.

"So he's a grandpa murderer who can turn invisible an dlift people into the air."

"It doesn't make sense. I know," Nancy said sarcastically, "That's why I said it was a shot in the dark."

Nancy reached around me, rinigng the bell again.

"I know, I just thought that by 'shot in the dark' you were just being modest or hiding something super solid up your sleeve that you were gonna wow us with later. But this is like really, truly a shot in the dark, like we are snipers with blindfolds on who've been spun around 50 times."

She reached around me again, beginning to ring the bell over and over again.

"You know," I said quietly, "I'm just now noticing that this is probably the longest conversation the two of you have had."

Nancy shot me a 'No, duh' kind of look just as the librarian, who's name was Marissa I recalled, came out of the back room.

"Coming!' She said, setting a stack of books down on the desk. "Oh, hi Riley!"

"Hi Marissa." I greeted. She glanced down at my shirt, clearly recognizing it, and I smiled back remembering when I had come in with Dad to research Hawkins Lab when Will first disappeared. Based on the somewhat guilty expression on her face, I'd bet she was too.

"I was so sorry to hear about your father," She said, causing both Robin and Nancy to glance at me, "You know we had our differences but...he was a good man under all that." I nodded.

"Thank you. He was," I agreed, "Uh, sorry, but we're kind of in a hurry? Could we have the keys to the basement archives?"

"Of course. Anything you need, you just let me know ok? Give me one sec." She went off to find the keys and I looked around the library, desperately trying to ignore the sympathetic looks that were being shot my way.

"Are you ok?" Nancy asked. I shrugged, finally living up and turning to look at them.

"Yeah. It happens everywhere I go, so...kinda used to it by now." I answered. It was only now that she looked down and observed the shirt I was wearing. She smiled sadly, reaching up and straightening the collar. "Nance, I love you...but please stop looking at me like that."

"Did I come off mean or condescending or something?" Robin burst out, very suddenly and randomly changing the subject.

"No." Nancy said, rather unconvincingly as she turned to face forward.

"Right. Sorry, its just...you seem annoyed whenever I talk to you." She pointed out. "You don't know me very well. I don't really have a filter or a strong grasp of social cues."

"Ok."

"So if I say something that upsets you, just know, that I know its a flaw. Believe me, my mother reminds me daily."

"Got it."

"Alright ladies," Marissa said, coming back and handing me the key, "Here you go. Have fun."

"Yep. We'll try." Nancy told her, glancing at Robin before leading the way towards the basement. Marissa shot her an apologetic smile, and Robin just shrugged. I simply winced, patted her shoulder, and followed after Nancy. 

~~~

The three of us searched the filing cabinets for newspaper archives, and then sat in awkward silence as we pursued the microfiche copies. I'm not really sure what is going on with Robin and Nancy...I mean, there's no denying the fact that the two of them couldn't be more different, but they're both incredible in their own way. But then again, Nancy never really has been very good at making friends with people different than her. I think I was the exception to that. 

"Anything...Juicy over there?" Robin asked, though I guessed this was more directed at Nancy than me.

"Nothing new." Nancy said, rather passive aggressively.

"Yep, same here. Victor seemed like a normal guy. Dead family, missing eyes, took a plea deal, sent to Pennhurst, blah, blah, blah, blah."

Nancy leaned around her desk, shooting me a 'is she serious' kind of look. I simply furrowed my eyebrows at her.

"What are we looking for exactly?" Robin asked, only to get no reply. "Nance?" She knocked rhythmically on her desk, forcing Nancy to lean around and look at her. "Any mentions of dark wizards or alternate dimensions? Things in that vein?"

"I don't know, ok? Its starting to seem like this was just a big waste of time," She stood up, walking a little ways away from us, "You're obviously bored, so why don't you call Steve? I'm sure he'll come pick you up, I mean, we're not really in any danger here, so...I'm pretty sure Riley and I can manage just fine on our own, without you."

"Ok, why are you acting like this?" I asked, turning around in my chair. "Robin has been nothing but nice to you, albeit in her own awkwardly charming way, and you've been acting like she was something stuck to your shoe ever since we got here."

Nancy looked shocked, clearly not expecting me to et involved. She simply shook her head, walking back towards the stairs where the filing cabinets of Microfiche were. Robin and I shared a look before getting up and following her. Robin squatted down on the stairs. 

"You do know that Riley and I aren't like, BFFS or anything, right?" She asked, causing me to furrow my eyebrows. 

"What?" Nancy asked, turning around to look at her.  Robin continued down the stairs, moving to stand beside her.

"You know, you and Riley are best friends, you have been since High School, and you're always gonna be best friends, but I just wanted to make sure you knew that I'm not like, replacing you, or anything, I mean the nature of our relationship is completely different than yours," She sighed, walking over to the furthest filing cabinet away from her, "Just in case that's adding any tension between us."

"It wasn't." Nancy said, rather unconvincingly.

"Nancy," I said, stepping up beside her. She shook her head, putting her focus back on the cabinet, "Nance, is that what this is about? You think I've replaced you with Robin?"

"No! No, of course not," She said, finally looking up at me, "Its just...you know, in High School? We used to be inseparable, attached at the hip, and then I started dating Steve and...you know things were still pretty normal, if not a little uncomfortable and then...You started dating Steve and I started dating Jonathan and it was just awkward after that, so we just opted to hang out with our boyfriends, and you started hanging out with Robin and Dustin, and now Jonathan is gone and you have all of these friends, and seem to be getting along just fine without me whereas I...I have nobody."

"Nancy...I had no idea that you felt that way." I said, leaning an arm on the filing cabinet. She shrugged, looking down at it. "Look, I...I'm sorry. Our lives are so chaotic, and they just ended up going in completely different directions. We're so different you and I, and...yeah, I'm sure me dating your ex-boyfriend didn't help much, and it made things a little awkward, but...Nance, you are still my best friend, and you always will be, and I'm sorry I haven't been there for you-"

"No, its not your fault," She said hurriedly, "This isn't-I wasn't blaming you, by any means, it all just happened, I just...I missed you...and when Jonathan wasn't here to distract me from that fact it just...it hit me a little harder than usual." I smiled sadly.

"I missed you too," I pulled her away from the filing cabinet and into a hug, which she accepted through a laugh, "And Robin's right. She's not a replacement for you," I pulled back to look at her, "But you and Robin alike are so beyond incredible in your own unique ways, and I just think you haven't gotten the opportunity to see that about each other yet. And I hope that you can because...I don't know...it might be nice to be a trio again." 

"Holy crap," Robin said suddenly, looking down at a box of Microfiche, "The Weekly Watcher, I can't believe they have this."

"Don't they write about like, Bigfoot and UFOs?" Nancy asked, moving away from me to look at her.

"First of all, UFOs are absolutely real. Bigfoot, I'm still on the fence about, but may I remind you we are looking for information on dark wizards? If someone's gonna write about that, its gonna be these weirdos." She explained, coming over to stand beside us. Nancy and I shared a look and she shrugged.

"Worth a shot." I stated.

~~~

Robin took the wheel in front of the Microfiche while Nancy and I stood behind her, watching over her shoulder. The first headline read; ELVIS CLONED BY ALIENS.

"Ah," Nancy said, "Elvis cloned by aliens."

"You never know." Robin answered. Nancy walked away from her, and I moved over to lean against one of the desks, flipping through a random book as she came to lean on the desk beside me. 

"So," She said quietly, "How have you been with...everything?"

"Everything?" I asked. "Sorry Nance, but you're gonna have to be a bit more specific. 'Everything' is quite a long list." 

"Your dad?" She specified. I nodded, looking down at my feet, "And Eleven?"

"I've been...wishing they were here," I said honestly, looking up at her. "I don't know...I always felt a little bit better in these situations knowing that they were out there somewhere if I needed them. And I know, Eleven is I just...I don't want to drag her into this, if she isn't involved already. She has no powers right now, she...she deserves a shot at a normal life."

"So do you." She pointed out, bumping her shoulder against mine. I shook my head.

"Nah...that ship sailed a long time ago," I pointed out, "Besides I got...a whole childhood of normal. She's never even had a chance." 

"And what about the visions?" She asked, tucking her hair behind her ear. "How are you doing with that?"

"As of last night? Pretty bad," I admitted, "But you know...after a heart prescription of a Steve Harrington pep talk I'm just...I'm determined to do whatever it takes to stop Vecna."

"You guys are good together," She said quietly, "Way better than we ever were."

I shrugged.

"I don't know about that," She furrowed her eyebrows, "Sometimes...I don't know...sometimes I wonder if him being with me is some kind of...death sentence. Like with you, he could've had options, some semblance of a normal life...he could've escaped this place and now...he's stuck dealing with this circus yet again."

"Do you honestly believe that?" She asked skeptically. I shrugged.

"Sometimes...yeah." I told her.

"Riley...Steve loves you."

"Yeah, well therein lies the problem, doesn't it?" I asked. "I mean he...he would do anything for me, he-he would die for me, no question and that thought...it terrifies me. I just want him to be safe and alive and happy, and I've been thinking...if separating myself from him gives him that opportunity-"

"Stop," She interrupted, "Don't even finish that sentence."

"Its true, isn't it?"

"Not a chance," Robin chimed in, turning around in her chair,  "Safe, maybe, but is anyone really safe in this town? Alive, sure, but he's alive now, and as far as Happy...I don't see a world where Steve Harrington can be truly happy without you. I mean, you mean everything to him."

"I know that," I told her, "And he means everything to me, and that's what scares me. I know how far I'm willing to go so..."

"You seem to be forgetting that relationships are a two way street," Nancy pointed out, "You may think you know what's best for him, but Steve still gets a choice in this too. You can't just take that away from him." I sighed, averting my eyes to the ground as Robin turned back to the Microfiche. 

"Yeah...yeah, I guess you're right. He wouldn't even let me say it out loud."

"Yeah? So what does that tell you?" Nancy questioned.

"Victor Creel claims vengeful demon killed family." Robin said in a joky, ominous voice. "The murder that shocked a small community."

"Ha, ha. That's very funny." Nancy said dryly, looking up at her. 

"I'm. not. kidding. Get over here." We both rushed over, looking over her shoulder to see the headline she had just read. "According to several insiders, Victor believed his house was haunted by an ancient demon. Victor allegedly hired a priest to exorcise the demon from his home." She looked up at us. "Pretty novel for the '50s. Exorcist wasn't even out yet."

"Keep, keep going." Nancy prompted.

"Ok, so Victor claimed this exorcism failed, but it angered this demon, which then murdered his family, removing their eyes. Victor believes he was spared as punishment."

"That's pretty convenient for Victor."

"Yeah, or super inconvenient," Robin argued, "Victor was declared legally insane by the court, right? But what if this is why? I mean, it sounds pretty insane, it just didn't go public because..."

"The plea bargain," Nancy finished, "The records were sealed."

"What if a demon did invade Victor's home?" I asked. "But it wasn't just some demon."

"It was Vecna."

~~~

We burst through the library doors just as I tossed Robin my radio.

"Dustin, do you copy?" She asked.

"Yeah, I copy."

"So, Nancy's a genius, Vecna's first victims date back all the way to 1959, her shot in the dark was a bullseye."

"Ok, that's totally bonkers, but I can't really talk right now."

"Wait, what are you doing?" She asked just as we reached Nancy's car.

"Breaking and entering into school to retrieve some confidential and extremely personal files."

"Can you repeat that?" I shook my head.

"I'm sure you heard correctly." I told her.

 "Just get your butt over here, stat. We'll explain everything."

"I thought they were talking to Ms. Kelley." Nancy exclaimed, climbing into the driver's seat.

"We leave them alone for two hours." Robin agreed.

"Are either of you really surprised?" I questioned. They shared a look.

"No."

"Not really."

I nodded.

"Yeah, I didn't think so.