A/N [from 2020]: This chapter is dedicated to all the amazing readers that have read, voted, and commented on my story. I love you 3000 <3 Please read the longer Author's Note at the end where I get even more sentimental.

{The Battle of Starcourt, Part IV}

Alice hadn't seen Dr. Owens in months.

She was technically supposed to check in with him every six weeks. When Hawkins Lab shut down, he gave her a special, secret phone number and password to use to get in touch.

"I want you to keep practicing with your powers," he had said, "and update me on any changes with your health."

Had Alice done that? No, no she hadn't.

She still didn't completely trust him, so she "accidentally" let kitten Tews chew on the slip of paper until it was unreadable.

Now, she sat in the back of an ambulance with him while he checked her vitals and gave her a new dosage of his miracle cure. She felt a half-percent shitty for blowing him off like that.

Dr. Owens could tell that she had been through hell, though, and didn't grill her for "forgetting" to call.

"You know, Alice," he said, setting up an IV of his power-fixing, side-effect-dampening medicine, "you're my favorite patient."

Alice scoffed.

"Yeah, sure," she said drily.

"It's true!" Dr. Owens said. "On the count of three, I'm going to inject this, okay? One—"

He injected her with the IV on one.

Alice grimaced. The needle's pinch was nothing compared to the pain of her concussion—and the pain of failure.

Maybe that was a tad overdramatic, but Alice still blamed herself for not getting to Billy in time. If only she had done things differently...

"Sorry about my little white lie," Dr. Owens said. "Most patients like it better when they're not expecting the pain."

"It's fine," Alice said.

Dr. Owens frowned.

"No sarcastic comments?" he said. "No quips?"

Alice shook her head.

Dr. Owens let out a low whistle.

"You really are hurt," he said wryly. "Alice in full health would've insulted me ten different ways by now."

That caused Alice to crack a small smile.

"Now," Dr. Owens said, "I need to speak with Mrs. Byers. I'll be back in a few minutes to check your vitals again. The medicine should work and get you back to full health in no time. I'll also give you some new doses to take home just in case—and my new office number. Seems you lost the last one?"

He winked before climbing out of the ambulance.

Alice sat on the gurney, mesmerized by the purple liquid rushing into her veins. She already felt better after only a few minutes.

The ambulance doors were left open, but there were no other nurses around. Dr. Owens had explained that Alice was a "special" patient, and only his men should work with her. The Hawkins General EMTs seemed a bit confused, but didn't question it. Probably because Dr. Owens' nurses held massive guns and mean stares.

Alice watched the firefighters, soldiers, and EMTs rush around the parking lot, checking on all her friends. Anyone who wasn't with the government was under the impression a gas leak at the mall caused a fire and explosion—a half truth.

From across the lot, Alice saw Steve leaning in the opening of the ambulance Nancy and Jonathan were in. He wore his shock blanket like a cape, like he was some kind of superhero.

"Super Steve," Alice murmured to herself. "Perhaps a better nickname than Mr. Good Hair?"

The cool summer breeze felt nice on her face. She wondered if they had really done it—defeated the Mind Flayer for the last time.

She hoped so. She couldn't handle anymore stress.

When Dr. Owens returned, he reported that the medicine already seemed to be working.

"You look healthier already," he said. "Does your shoulder still hurt?"

"A little," Alice admitted, rotating it and wincing.

"I'll send someone to get you some ice," Dr. Owens said. He snapped his fingers, and one of the soldiers standing guard by her ambulance raced off.

Dr. Owens read something from his clipboard with a furrowed brow. Alice knew she shouldn't interrupt him, but something was bothering her.

"Hey, Doc," she said. "Is it possible that...oh, I don't know...I have other secret powers that we haven't fully discovered yet?"

This caused Dr. Owens to look up from his papers and raise an eyebrow.

"Come again?"

"Just, you know, hypothetically," Alice said.

"Well, hypothetically," he said, "anything is possible. The experiments your mother was a part of caused a myriad of side effects and reactions. It's not likely but entirely possible you were given multiple abilities."

"Cool cool cool," Alice said, trying to play it casual. "No doubt, no doubt."

Dr. Owens opened his mouth to ask her more questions, but she cut him off.

"Could my powers cause me to see things?" she blurted out. "Or predict the future...kind of?"

Dr. Owens tucked his clipboard under his arm.

"I think I'm going to need you to explain yourself," he said gently.

Alice explained everything: the visions of rabbits, the omens of death, the illusions that seemingly came to life, and so on.

Dr. Owens listened intently, brows furrowed the whole time.

"That was...a lot," he said when Alice was done. "Maybe we should transfer you to one of our new research facilities for study—"

"No!" Alice said quickly. "I, um, I just want to go home."

Dr. Owens smiled and patted Alice on the shoulder.

"I completely understand," he said. "Take a few days to refresh. Then, call my new number. I'm not going to require you to run experiments or tests anymore. I just want to help you understand. Promise you'll call?"

"Okay," Alice said with a nod. "I will."

"Good," Dr. Owens said. "Oh, and as for the, what did you call it? 'Cotton-tailed Omens of Death'?"

"Yeah," Alice said, blushing. "I couldn't think of how else to describe it."

"That seems like nothing more than anxiety warping your powers," Dr. Owens said. He looked at his watch. "I mean, it's July 5th now, and you're still here! You've been through hell, but you made it."

"Not everyone did," Alice muttered, looking down at her shoes. She thought of Billy and Hopper.

Dr. Owens opened his mouth to offer some final encouragement, but he was interrupted.

His nurse returned with a bag of ice the size of North Dakota.

"Is this sufficient, sir?" the nurse asked.

"Oh, gee," Dr. Owens said, hefting the large bag of ice. "Yes, this is plenty, thanks. Um, Alice? Let me, ah, break this up for you. Okay?"

☆☆☆

July 30th, 1985

Alice Henderson's Actual 18th Birthday

Most 18-year-olds celebrated the occasion by buying a lottery ticket and a pack of cigarettes, just because they could.

Since Alice technically wasn't 18 until February—according to the government, that is—all she could do was eat cake and throw a small party.

After the Battle of Starcourt, Alice explained to Mrs. Henderson that she had met her biological aunt on her trip. She said that she explained when her actual birthday was, and that she could meet up with her mom if she wanted.

Alice worried her mom would be upset about this news. On the contrary, Mrs. Henderson was delighted.

"Oh, Alley Cat!" she said, hugging her daughter close. "This is wonderful news!"

"It is?" Alice asked, gasping for air in the suffocating hug.

"Yes!" Mrs. Henderson said. She loosened her grip and added, "I know just what to do. I'll invite your mother to your party?"

"What party?"

"Your birthday party!" Mrs. Henderson said. "Since your birthday is in July! We'll just have to celebrate twice for you now. I'm sure Dusty won't mind."

"I do mind!" Dustin called from his room, where he was eavesdropping. "I want two parties, too!"

Mrs. Henderson, ever the loving mother, agreed that Dustin and Alice could have a joint party. She immediately threw herself into the planning, wanting everything to be perfect.

Alice didn't actually care about celebrating her real birthday, but her mom got so into it, she started to get excited about it, too.

A week before the party, she delivered handmade invitations to all of her friends by inviting them to the coffee shop.

"Hear ye, hear ye!" she said, bursting into Ben's Beans. "I, Alice Henderson, am throwing a party."

"What? No way," Quincy said. "You don't party."

"I do now, my friend," she said, handing him a stack of envelopes. "Once you've stared death in the face as much as I have, you learn to loosen up."

"Amen to that," Maria said. "Give me those!"

Quincy handed her the invites. Maria, Robin, and Steve all took one, oohing and ahhing at the drawings.

"You made these?" Steve asked. "They look awesome!"

The invitations were embossed with the title, "Alice and Dustin's Merry (Un)Birthday." There was a portrait of the siblings in the bottom left corner, and the party details were surrounded with tiny tea cups and rabbits.

"Aw, shucks," Alice said, taking a seat next to him. They laced their hands together under the table.

"I'll be there," Robin said. "Any excuse to avoid responsibility for just a bit longer."

"Are your parents breathing down your neck about a new job, too?" Steve asked.

Robin nodded.

"It sucks," she groaned. "I survived a mall explosion less than a month ago, and they're already sliding job applications under my bedroom door."

"The pool is looking for new lifeguards," Quincy offered.

"And get this hair wet?" Steve said. "No way."

Everyone laughed—except for Alice, who rolled her eyes and playfully slapped Steve's shoulder.

"Is poor Stevie afraid of a little water?" she teased.

Before he could defend himself, the bell above the door to the shop jingled.

Samuel stepped inside, looking like a lost puppy.

"Samuel!" Alice called, waving him to their table.

When he saw them, he smiled and made his way over.

"Uh, Al?" Maria whispered. "What's he doing here?"

They hadn't seen Samuel since the events at Starcourt. They assumed he was too busy with Tammy to hang out.

Alice didn't respond. Instead, she pulled another invitation out of her backpack and offered it to Samuel.

"You're cordially invited to the Henderson sibling unbirthday party," she said regally. "It's going to be a mad good time."

"Wicked," Samuel said. "Thanks Al. How have you guys been?"

"All right," Robin said coolly. "How about you?"

"Yeah," Quincy said. "Where's your plus one?"

Samuel looked down at his feet.

"Tammy and I aren't together anymore," Samuel said.

The others shared a look.

"I'm sorry, man," Alice said.

"Oh, no, don't feel sorry for me," he said, cracking a smile. "I'm delighted."

The tension around the table dissipated.

"Oh, thank goodness," Maria said with a laugh.

"You're finally free of her!" Steve said, patting Samuel on the back. "How did you do it?"

"Actually," Samuel admitted, "she broke up with me."

"What?!" Robin said.

"It's crazy!" Samuel said. "She and I were on a date at the Hawk, and halfway through the movie, she said, 'I think we should see other people.' Then she left me to watch Back to the Future alone!"

Alice tried—and failed—to suppress a laugh.

"Okay, that's kind of sad," she said, "but also hilarious."

Samuel chuckled.

"Yeah. At the time I was bummed, but now I'm relieved. I couldn't handle her any more. She's too controlling."

"I guess it's true what they say," Robin said. "Never judge a book by its cover."

"Even if she's a beautiful blonde cover with curly hair and the voice of an angel," Samuel said wistfully.

"If she comes crawling back," Steve said with a raised eyebrow, "you're not getting together again, right?"

"No!" Samuel said, snapping out of it. "No way. She and I are through. She's moving anyway."

"Moving?"

"To Nashville to record an album. She has an uncle in the music business."

Steve and Robin gasped.

"Oh, no," Robin said.

"'If you only hold me tight,'" Steve sang, sounding a bit like Kermit.

"'We'll be holding on forever!'" Robin added.

"She doesn't sound like that," Samuel protested.

After a few minutes of teasing, he admitted that Tammy's voice had a Muppet-like quality to it that no one could deny.

The day of the party, Mrs. Henderson flitted around the house putting up decorations and setting out snacks. She was in full-on party planner mode, wanting the day to be perfect for Alice and Dustin.

"Alley Cat, where should I put the finger sandwiches?" she called.

"Anywhere is fine, Mom," Alice said. She was in the kitchen with Dustin, trying to perfect the frosting roses on top of the un-birthday cake.

Well, she was working on the frosting. Dustin was eating the failed attempts at frosting roses.

The doorbell rang.

"I got it," Dustin said, shoving one last rose in his mouth before racing to the front room.

"Hey!" Alice shouted. "That one was perfect!"

"Perfectly delicious!" Dustin shot back. "Oh, hi, Steve."

"Hey, Henderson," Steve said. "Happy Un-Birthday!"

"Yeah, yeah," Dustin said sullenly. "Alice is in the kitchen."

Dustin sulked back in, Steve a few steps behind.

"Dustin, are you still giving me the cold shoulder?" Steve asked, a slight frown on his face.

Dustin shrugged, eating another one of Alice's frosting roses.

"Dude, quit it," she said. "Why don't you help Mom with the decorations?"

Dustin bumped Steve's shoulder as he walked out of the kitchen.

"Keep your hands off my sister, Harrington," he shouted as he left.

"He's really not happy that we're dating, is he?" Steve said, blushing.

Alice shook her head.

"Nah. He really thought you and Robin were going to get together. But he'll come around."

"Need any help?" Steve asked.

"I'm about done here, actually," Alice said. "Just one more rose..."

She tried for the last rose, but the sound of the doorbell again startled her. She butchered the last rose.

"Ah, shit!" she said, throwing down the frosting bag.

"Hey, hey, it's okay!" Steve said. "It looks great."

"Sorry," Alice said with a sigh. "I'm just stressed."

She took a seat on a barstool and put her head in her hands.

Steve sat in the barstool next to her.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Steve asked. "Or do you want a hug?"

"A hug would be nice," Alice mumbled.

Steve put his arm around Alice. She leaned her head on his shoulder.

"Did I tell you my birth mom was invited?" Alice said quietly.

Steve nodded.

"You mentioned it," he said.

"But I don't think she's actually going to come."

"Why not?"

Alice shrugged, pulling away from the hug.

"I don't know. She missed a lot. If I was her, I don't know if I'd want to meet me."

Alice bit her nails—a nervous habit she had so desperately tried to break, but couldn't yet.

"If she doesn't want to meet you," Steve said, "she's a bigger idiot than I am."

Alice snorted.

"You're not an idiot, Steve Harrington," Alice said. She turned to gaze at him. "You're incredible."

"And you're amazing," Steve said, playfully nudging Alice's shoulder with his.

He leaned in and kissed her.

Alice kissed him back, putting one hand on his cheek.

"Ew, gross!"

They pulled apart, narrowing their eyes at Dustin, Will, Lucas, and Mike.

"When did you get in here?!" Alice snapped.

"While you two were making out," Will said. "Nasty."

"We weren't making out!" Steve said defensively.

"Sure you weren't," Mike said. "And I'm not taller than Nancy now."

"Now that you idiots are here," Alice said, "you can carry the rest of the food out front."

The boys grumbled, but agreed.

When the door to the front room opened again, Alice saw the rest of her friends mingling.

Nancy and Maria were talking about something they'd seen on TV—a news report trying to make sense of the Starcourt Mall tragedy.

Quincy, Robin, and Jonathan were talking about some new song that had just released.

Willie and Samuel were arm wrestling—and Samuel was losing because of Willie's knowledge of physics.

Max, Eleven, and Erica were laughing at Mike for dropping the bowl of cheese puffs, making the boy blush.

Mrs. Byers and Mrs. Henderson talked with their heads bent together, trying to make sense of having super powered kids.

"The gang's all here," Alice said glumly.

Steve turned to look at her, noticing her furrowed brow.

"If she doesn't come," he said quietly, "it's her loss."

"Right," Alice said, wringing her hands. "Totally."

Steve reached over and grabbed her hand, lacing it with his.

"You ready to go out there and party?" he said.

Alice nodded, and turned to smile at him.

"If I'm with you, I'm ready for anything."

☆☆☆

{Posted March 8th, 2020}

{Edited July 21, 2020; Republished March 12, 2025}

A/N [from 2020] Hello old friend. And here we are, you and me. On the last page...

I came up with Alice's story after watching Season 2 in 2017. I wanted to post more fanfiction on this account, but had trouble sticking to any story for too long.

However, after watching Tangled, Alice's story started writing itself in my head. I knew I had to get it out!

The story you're reading today wasn't always the way it was. Originally, Alice wasn't related to Dustin at all. Her name was Alice Weatherby, and she lived with her dad and a (different) younger brother. Her mom had died, but was still part of the lab stuff before Alice was born.

Alice's friends (Maria, Quincy, and Sam) didn't always exist either.

I lost some motivation for Alice the Amazing in 2018 when college got crazy, but when Season 3 came out, I knew I had to bring it back. I had so many new ideas.

I'm glad I waited so long to continue writing and actually posting the story—I was able to introduce Robin all the way in season 1 as one of Alice's band/drama friends. I also knew what I was building to, and could establish more of Alice's powers.

I can't believe I made it this far. I've never finished a fanfiction, and I never expected to fall in love with a story's characters and plot the way I have with Alice and her friends. She feels real to me, feels like a part of me, and I don't want to let her go.

...That's why I'm not! I'll definitely continue writing this when Season 4 comes out. Until Stranger Things officially ends, Alice's story won't.

ALSO, I'm going to write lots of bonus chapters on Through the Looking Glass. I'm going to fill the space between Seasons 1 & 2 and 2 & 3. There's so much more I want to explore that doesn't fit in the canon of the show, and I have a space to do that. Check it out on my profile, and add it to your library and/or reading list so you never miss an update. :)

Lastly, I want to dedicate this book to: you, the person reading this. Especially the people who've been voting and commenting for a long time. Your support makes my day every time I post a new chapter. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

Don't forget about Alice just yet, and always remember to Stay Strange ;)

- rachel xo xo xo