To Hawkins High, Scarlette Harrington is untouchable in the most obvious way possible. Sheâs a Harrington â Steveâs little sister â which already puts her on a pedestal she never asked for. Sheâs confident, sharp-tongued, always moving like she knows exactly where sheâs going. Teachers recognize her name. Students step aside in the halls. Sheâs the girl who leads cheers on Friday nights and doesnât flinch when everyoneâs watching. From the outside, Scarletteâs life looks fearless.
You were just a teenager. An ordinary kid who wanted to survive high school, graduate, maybe leave Hawkins one day. You worried about grades, about bullies, about whether you were brave enough to talk to someone you liked. Your life was supposed to be small, familiar, human. Vecna took that from you. His experiments did not end with Will. Will had been a beginningâa spy, a bridge, a proof of concept.
Micah doesnât spiral outward. She jokes like always. She keeps the Party moving. She teases Mike, reassures El, checks on Will with that gentle smile. From the outside, sheâs steady. Brave. Unchanged. But alone, the question creeps in. Are you man enoughâŠ?
You used to be the sweetest girl in the world. In Hawkins, everyone knew your name. You were on the volleyball team, the girl parents trusted to babysit their kids, the one the little ones adored. You had a golden reputation and a golden future. You had a boyfriendâSteve Harringtonâand people loved you together. You were the couple Hawkins assumed would last. The kind of girl the town believed it would never lose. Until it did.
To you, Fred Weasley was the loudest, most persistent distraction in the halls of Hogwarts. To everyone else, he was a nuisance, but to you, he was a challenge you were winningâmostly because you refused to give him the satisfaction of a smile.
You are spending you Christmas Eve at the burrow with your brother Cedric and your boyfriend Fred and his family. But little did you know that Fred has a surprise that will change your life and relationship for the good forever.
Lucas had a habit of showing up when he wasnât supposed to. Not loudly, not dramaticallyâjust there, tapping twice on your window like it was the most natural thing in the world to be outside your house at two in the morning.
In Hawkins, you are part of the Wheeler family. You are Nancy Wheelerâs twin sister. the two of you are incredibly popular. This also makes Mike Wheeler your little brother, who attends the middle school next to the high school. Unlike you and Nancy, Mike isnât very popular and mostly sticks with his close group of friends: Lucas Sinclair, Dustin Henderson, Will Byers, and Max Mayfield.
The Starcourt Mall hums with artificial cheer, neon lights, and the constant stickiness of melted ice cream. Scoops Ahoy becomes the place where Deja, Steve Harrington, and Robin Buckley spend most of their days trapped together in matching uniforms that feel too tight, too bright, and too far removed from the things theyâve survived.
At Hawkins High, Jason Carver openly mocks the Hellfire Club and dismisses D&D as something for losers and freaks, unaware that Micah Wheeler is standing nearby, quietly listening to every word. Confident and unbothered on the surface, Micah takes it all inâhis ignorance, his cruelty, his assumptionsâwhile remaining calm and unreadable.
The air was thick, wet with decay. Every step they took made the ground squelch beneath their boots, the blackened vines clutching at their legs like greedy hands. The faint glow from their flashlights barely cut through the fog, and the distant echo of somethingâbreathing? scraping?âmade every nerve in Kyleighâs body tighten. She led the group by instinct, just a step ahead, but not too far. Her gun was in hand, steady, almost casual. Nothing about her betrayed the tension she felt.
The party is loud in the way only Hawkins parties ever are â music thumping through thin walls, laughter spilling into every room, bodies crowded together like no one wants to leave the warmth. Itâs reckless and alive and unapologetically chaotic.
Scarlette Harrington competes in a regional pageant held in a crowded civic auditorium, where judges sit beneath fixed stage lighting and contestants line the wings according to number and category. The day progresses in rigidly scheduled segments: opening walk, elegant wear, formal presentation, and rotating interviews conducted in partitioned rooms behind the stage. Scarlette moves through each round with controlled pacing, completing transitions efficiently as staff adjust sashes, pin numbers, and reset the stage between competitors.
You used to be the sweetest girl in the world. In Hawkins, everyone knew your name. You were on the volleyball team, the girl parents trusted to babysit their kids, the one the little ones adored. You had a golden reputation and a golden future. You had a boyfriendâSteve Harringtonâand people loved you together. You were the couple Hawkins assumed would last. The kind of girl the town believed it would never lose. Until it did.
Henry Creel survives. So do you. You are no longer a subject. You are no longer a weapon. You are Mrs. Creel â though the world has long since forgotten that name, and Hawkins never knew it mattered.
Blair Hargrove appears untouchable. Outwardly, sheâs cold, sarcastic, and intimidatingâthe kind of person everyone notices but few truly know. But beneath the sharp tongue and confident facade, Blair is quietly struggling with deep depression, feeling isolated and heavy despite the friendships she has.
The buzz in the Great Hall was electric. The Yule Ball, a night of tradition and enchantment, was in full swing, but it was the promise of a very special guest that had the entire school on the edge of their seats. The floating candles twinkled in anticipation as Professor McGonagall announced the evening's entertainment: the internationally acclaimed siren of song, .