ahhh will’s part is here. i love him and i think its a shame they didn’t get to talk in canon. without further ado, 2.2k words of will and eddie :)
max | dustin | [will] | lucas | mike | ....
The third kid who finds him is the one who died and came back, and Eddie doesn’t even question it this time. He knows it's one of Steve's kids, and it doesn't take long for that to be confirmed.
iii. will byers
After helping Dustin, it's like the floodgates are open. Eddie sees Dustin and his friends everywhere, usually with Steve or Robin with them. Robin never looks happy to be there, unless Steve is with her.
Eddie ignores the way his insides twist at the sight of them together, seeing the way they interact and mingle with a familiarity that Eddie used to—he shakes his head violently to dispel the thoughts, trying to focus on the task at hand. He plucks a few notes out of his guitar, the one his uncle got for him right when he came to his care. It was something to help bring Eddie out of his shell, and he still uses it frequently, practicing songs and writing a few when the muse finds him.
School would be starting in a few weeks, the heat of summer making it difficult to exist. The trailer had AC, but they rarely put it on, electing to keep the windows open and fans blowing instead.
Unwittingly, his thoughts trail back to the last few weeks.
Dustin seems to have decided they're friends, not that Eddie really minds. The kid has an attitude problem, but he's a good kid. He wonders when Steve became their…friend, he supposes, given everything Dustin has said. He's brought a few of his friends to meet Eddie, so he's now aware of Elle, Lucas and Will. He's heard tale of Mike, but according to Dustin, he's on the outs with Elle so he's been avoiding everyone.
Wayne appears in his doorway, knocking on the frame. "Put a shirt on, boy," he says, exasperated.
Eddie sticks his tongue out, "It's hot," he whines. He does have a fan pointed directly at him, but even that is barely enough to keep him cool.
"Well, there's a kid on the steps askin' fer ya," he tells him, "Looks harmless."
Eddie sets his guitar to the side and then stands up. His knees crack as he does, causing him to groan softly.
"Max?" he asks, but Wayne shakes his head.
"A friend a'hers, I imagine."
"Go ahead and let ‘em in," Eddie confirms. Wayne rolls his eyes.
"He's here fer you," the man grumbles as he walks away. Eddie takes the privacy to pull a shirt over his head.
"Uh," he hears from the doorway as he tugs the shirt into place. He turns and Will is bright red, pointedly looking down at his feet.
Eddie bites back a grin, "Come in, little Byers. I don't bite," he snaps his teeth together playfully and Will burns crimson. Interesting. He grins.
Will shuffles in, glancing at the door anxiously, where Eddie knows Wayne is about to take a nap before he heads to the plant for the night.
"You can shut the door," he says and Will doesn't hesitate before pushing it shut until the latch clicks in place.
"What brings you to my chambers?" Eddie asks, grabbing the guitar. He strums absently, random notes and chords that keeps his hands busy.
Will watches him play for a minute, before shaking his head. "These are for you," he says, face lightening to a soft pink rather than the beet red that had taken over his features. He stares at the opaque yellow tupperware that Will thrusts forward with an arched eyebrow.
"What's this? More offerings?" he asks, taking the box from the kid. Peering inside, Eddie sees cookies. There looks to be a few different types, monster cookies and chocolate chip cookies, maybe others.
"Steve made them," Will mumbles. "He wanted to thank you for looking out for us."
Eddie raises his eyebrows, humming curiously. "He doesn't need to pay me," he says, though he knows that's not why Steve made them.
Will shook his head, "Steve bakes for every occasion," he smiles softly, ducking his head. "He's pretty great."
Eddie huffs, "You know, I'm starting to get that," he admits, though he doesn't elaborate. "What can I do for you?" he asks, offering one of the cookies to Will.
"Thank you," he says shyly, smiling as he takes the cookie. Eddie bites his own cookie and moans, tipping his head back.
"What the fuck," he mutters, no doubt spilling crumbs down his shirt as he does. Will laughs, the sound brightening his face.
"Good, right?" the kid asks. Eddie nods vigorously, finishing the first cookie and immediately taking a second. He puts the lid back on and sets it beside him on the bed.
"Sit down, Byers. You're making me nervous," Eddie says, and the boy hesitates only a moment before sitting next to Eddie. He looks at his hands, avoiding eye contact with Eddie.
"Well, we both know you didn't come by just to bring me these delicious cookies," Eddie leads, taking in the nervous form of Will.
Will shakes his head, but doesn't say anything for a moment. Eddie looks at his profile, the way he picks at his nail beds as he sits there, feet flat against the floor, like he's ready to bolt at a moments notice.
It was similar to the other kids, Eddie notes. Most of the time, they look like kids having fun, but there's always a cloud of something hanging over the group of friends. Eddie figures it makes sense, given that Will disappeared, died, and then came back. He remembers the funeral, though he didn't attend. He saw Jonathan in the days that followed, looking hollow next to his mother. Jonathan and he had never been close, but Eddie knew of him in the same way he was sure the elder Byers knew of Eddie.
Now, sitting in front of Eddie, years after the fact, Will looks alive. Which might be a stupid thing to think, of course he's alive, but he remembers when everyone thought he was dead.
"I don't know where to start," Will whispers, looking at Eddie uncertainly. Eddie frowns, scanning his face.
"Wherever you think is best," Eddie tells him.
Will nods, chewing on his lip. "Okay. Okay. Okay."
Eddie bites a grin back, "Okay," he repeats teasingly. Will turns bright red again, glowering at him for a second before sighing and pulling his legs up under him.
"I have this friend," he starts slowly, like he's choosing his words wisely, "and they've always been there for me. Even before I…" he trails off, and Eddie's suddenly faced with the reality that this kid disappeared. For like, a while even. That he probably remembers it. Of course, it was something he was aware of. How could he not be? But seeing Will now, it's the first time he’s really grappled with the fact that he didn’t actually die, that he was out there, alone, for a long time.
Eddie wonders what happened.
"..got lost," Will glances at him as he says the words, like they're practiced. Eddie nods, though curiosity blooms within him. "They believed in my art, and in dungeons and dragons when I wanted to DM—"
"A fellow wordsmith?" Eddie blurts out before he can stop himself, grinning widely. "Shall I be expecting you at my table as well?" he can't help but ask.
Will's face is flushed again, but that might be due to the fact that it's nearly the beginning of August, and the fan is blowing lukewarm air at best.
"I-I hope to," he says, smiling in a shyly pleased way.
"It would be a pleasure to have you there, Will the Wise," Eddie says, and Will laughs in disbelief.
"Did Dustin tell you about that?" he asks, and Eddie raises his eyebrows in question. Will shakes his head, smiling as he explains, "That's uh, that's what my character's name is. Mike picked it out," he says, and the way that Will says his name, pleased and awestruck, hits Eddie straight in the chest.
Oh. He understands now.
"Well, it must be true, then," Eddie declares with a grin. Will laughs, and then gets nervous again.
Eddie cuts in before Will can continue. "I used to have a friend like that," he admits. He doesn't know what it is about the kids that Steve sends his way, but they seem to dig their way into his heart and pull out the parts of himself that he doesn't want anyone to see.
"We were young. Too young to know better. But he was my best friend, and I like to think I was his," Eddie smiles softly at the look of surprise on Will's face, and nods. "We were joined at the hip, and he always listened to the dumb ideas I had. To the stories I crafted. Joined in, even. They were always, somehow, love stories. I don't know if he knows, but they were. At the end of every story, the princes would kiss, or the cowboys rode off into the sunset together, or held hands. It was easier to play pretend, y'know?"
Will nods vigorously, leaning forward as he listens. "What happened?" he asks quietly, already sensing the pain.
Eddie took a steadying breath, "Well, one day, his dad found us in his po—backyard, we were playing pirates. Partners in crime. It was pretty tame for the most part, but he must have seen something. Maybe I looked a little too long, or maybe a touch lingered, I don't know. But he knew. He dragged us inside and then kicked me out." Eddie was never invited back to the Harrington house, and Steve's visits became nonexistent.
When Eddie tried to talk to him later, Steve told him to fuck off, that he wasn't a freak, the ‘like you’ was heavily implied, but not spoken.
They were maybe twelve. Maybe. Eddie was older, of course. When Steve got into high school and became King Steve, it was easier to hate him than to think about it. It was made even easier when he stood by and let Hagan and Perkins do their worst, and that doesn't include what the rest of the sportsball team did.
Eddie shakes his head, "What I mean, is that I get it, kid. And it's scary."
"Yeah," Will breathes, though he looks at Eddie with far more understanding than he was comfortable with. He wonders if Steve talked to him about that, too. If it was as pivotal of a time to him as it was to Eddie.
"And it's going to be scary," he affirms, "but it's okay. There's nothing wrong with it."
Will makes a keening noise that’s honestly sort of heartbreaking. Eddie opens his arms and the boy immediately collapses into them.
"You know, your mom never gave up on you. Honestly, none of your friends did either, from what I hear. Love like that isn't conditional," Eddie murmurs softly as he gently holds the crying teen in his arms. Will nods into his shoulder, sniffling as he calms down.
"I know, it's just…"
"Scary," Eddie completes knowingly. Will hums in agreement.
"Steve kept hinting that I should talk to you," the kid says, pulling away from him. Eddie raises his eyebrows.
"Really?"
Will nods, "He kept saying that you'd understand, probably more than anyone."
Eddie hums contemplatively, too many thoughts swirling around his mind to form anything coherent, but the information tucks itself neatly into his mind with the rest of what he's learned of Steve over the last several weeks.
"Mike's got a girlfriend," the boy says quietly. "I love El, don't get me wrong. She's basically my sister, you know? And they're…happy, I think."
"A ringing endorsement," Eddie snorts, thinking of Dustin telling him Mike and Elle weren’t actively together.
"I'm happy for them, I am," he insists, but it sounds a lot like heartbreak, and Eddie is intimately familiar with it.
"It's okay to not be," Eddie says softly, making intentional eye contact. Will's face pinches and then they're hugging again as he cries into Eddie's shoulder. He rubs his back and wonders for the nth time how he got here. As he looks down at Will, he's just glad that he can be there for him.
"Why can't it be me?" Will asks, sometime later, when his tears have dried.
Eddie sighs, hopes it doesn't come off as annoyed, because he isn't. Steve was right about Eddie understanding more than anyone.
"I don't know," and it's as much as a response to Will as it is to his own unspoken questions. "You wanna know what I think?"
Will hums curiously, tilting his head to look at Eddie from where he's laid against his mattress.
"I think that you should spend time with your other friends. Give them some of the energy you've given Mike," Eddie tells him, quiet and honest. "You, Will Byers, have so much love around you. Romance isn't the end all be all for love."
Will swallows thickly, looking again at his ceiling. He nods after a few beats of silence. "You're right," he admits. He looks a little less like the world is gonna come for him than he did when he came in, so Eddie takes it as a win.
"Want another cookie?" he asks, peeling open the lid.
So, I've been seeing mentions for a long time that the name Gremia can be found quite often in cut content. We have: Altar of Gremia
as well as Tomb of Gremia and Chapel of Gremia. As well as Gremia's Blood Hunter Set.
Let me just put a link on the website - Here
Also, the Madman's set was called the Gremia Set. As was Forgotten Madman, which has internal name Madman of Gremia.
So where do we stand with this? Gremia in the early concepts of the game was either a land or a Great One, or maybe both. But that it was the Great One is confirmed by the Tomb and Chapel locations. Gremia existed in the lore of the game before Oedon took its place.
Based on the fact that Gremia's altar is a female, I can also assume that the deity it was associated with was female?
Bonus justification for this is the roots of the name Gremia. As @fantomette22 pointed out, the name Gremia is most likely a variation of “Jeremiah”, which is a strong reference to King Jeremiah from DS3, which in turn is a reference to Old Monk from Demon's Souls, which in turn is a reference to LOVECRAFT. Uh-huh. “The King in Yellow.”
Jeremiah is a prophet, his name literally translates as “the Lord will exalt” or “the Exalted One” (And also “may the Lord exalt”, “the height of God”). But he is also a “weeping prophet” and also “Blessed Theodoret even calls him ‘the mother of Jerusalem’ for his truly maternal love,” suggesting that the Great One who bore the name Jeremiah (Gremiah) may well have been female.
Where is our wonderful, popular and universally loved NPC located? In the Chalice of Izs, on the call for Ebrietas! And you can also find Ebrietas in Yharnam by going up through the Chapel of Oedon (Gremia). There feels a kind of connection, as if one comes from the other. It really does feel like that!!!
Also what do we know about Ebrietas? She is a mourner. And when a player finds her, she is crying over something outwardly resembling Rom (but with a couple of differences). And the prophet Jeremiah comes to mind again, weeping and mourning. Perhaps the Great One Gremia looked the same way Rom looks, for Gremia is “exalted” like Rom.
There is a parallell between Gremia and Ebrietas, and since Gremia may be a female deity, we can assume that Gremia is the mother (/father??? both???) of Ebrietas!
It's worth noting that out of all the NPCs with default faces, Gremia is the one with that face that can be seen and considered unlike Annalise, Eileen. So I can safely say that this face is his. And it just so happens to be the one that is taken as the “default” face.
So we have a regular NPC, the Tomb Proscpector in the Chalice of Izs, who bears the name of the Great One, summons to Ebrietas, and serves as the basis for all other faces when creating a character. (aaand has uniiique baaatle style)
Bottom line: Gremia is Sky and mother of Ebrietas. Sky and Cosmos are one! And his face is supposed to be worn by the hunter of Yharnam. That is, the hunter is the reincarnation of the lost Great One, an echo of whom wanders in the Chalice of Izs (or once did). It turns out that Gremia is reborn time after time to end the Nightmares of Yharnam 😎
so I uh. I. what if I drew @pebiejeebies and @homobrainjuice 's objectsonas. what if I did that. how would you feel. what if I told you that I did, in fact, do so. and this is them. what if I said that.
