While Alex was brushing his teeth, trying to get rid of the disgusting taste of Pennywise's blood, the others were watching what Castiel was about to do with the clown's blood that Alex had thrown up into a plastic container.
And what they were seeing was… wrong.
Pennywise's blood was strange. Not just strange — horrifyingly strange. Instead of behaving like a normal liquid, it seemed to ignore gravity entirely. Droplets floated freely in the air, slowly merging and separating again, as if they were suspended in open space.
Castiel had to put on an elaborate display of a complex spell — more for show than out of necessity. The magic he and Alex used did not belong to this world and could raise far too many unnecessary questions. So he deliberately created the illusion of a ritual, mixing ingredients and drawing familiar symbols while muttering incantations under his breath.
Everyone watched in silence as the clown's blood drifted in the air, until Castiel touched the container with his hand. In that instant, the blood stopped levitating and turned into an ordinary dark liquid. Castiel immediately poured it into a special vessel, where it was meant to mix with the remaining components.
When Dean asked what kind of spell he was planning to use, Castiel answered evasively, saying it was necessary to keep the clown in place. He did not mention an important detail: this was not simple containment, but anchoring Pennywise to a single point in time so that he would be unable to slip away.
Meanwhile, Alex had just finished brushing his teeth. As he spat out the remaining toothpaste, he suddenly coughed up a small piece of the clown's costume. The moment it touched the sink, it transformed into writhing white maggots.
Suppressing a wave of disgust, Alex snapped his fingers. The larvae flared up for a brief moment and turned to ash, which he washed away with water. Wiping his face with a towel, Alex looked at his reflection and smirked.
His anger at Pennywise for what he had done to Wednesday faded, replaced by a cold, almost cheerful interest. Now Alex did not simply want to kill the clown — he wanted to strip him of everything.
When Alex had come close to touching the deadlights, he had felt Pennywise's true fear. Not fear of pain, and not fear of death. The clown feared something else — being no longer feared. The disappearance of fear. And with it, the loss of his sustenance.
More than anything, Pennywise feared the future.
Staring at himself in the mirror, Alex recalled everything he had seen while being so close to the deadlights — including Pennywise's predetermined end… and, at the same time, the beginning of his other life. Alex did not question why he had seen only one possible outcome. He already knew the answer.
He had no past and no future — only the "here and now."
And those connected to him were protected. The rings he had created for his girls would not allow any being capable of manipulating time to reach them. That had been done deliberately.
When Alex finished washing up and was about to leave, the bathroom door opened. Wednesday stood in the doorway, looking at him with a calm, attentive gaze.
Alex smiled faintly and lightly poked her nose with his finger. Wednesday, as usual, rolled her eyes, irritated by his childish antics. She pushed his hand away, grabbed Alex by the collar, and sharply pulled him toward her, kissing him on the lips.
If Wednesday ever took the initiative, she always did it in her own way. During the kiss, Alex felt her lightly bite his lip. He froze for a moment, and Wednesday, pulling back, ran a finger over his lips, wiping away the remaining lipstick.
Before Alex could ask what exactly had happened to her during the encounter with Pennywise, Wednesday simply turned around and walked back to the others. Alex only smiled and shook his head. In his eyes, Wednesday would always be Wednesday — a girl capable of frightening even a creature that fed on fear.
When Alex returned to the others, all eyes immediately turned to him. He looked at Castiel, who nodded, signaling that everything was ready.
"So, are you finally going to explain what the hell happened here?" Dean said, crossing his arms over his chest. "Wednesday has black tears, you're puking the blood of some cosmic clown, and we haven't gotten a single normal answer."
"In short," Alex replied, pouring himself some water, "Wednesday's gift has grown stronger. She managed to enter something like Pennywise's personal world."
"That bastard clown is called Pennywise?" Dean snorted. "What a stupid name. Though… fine. At least it's not Clown Bobo."
"You can tell him that when you meet him," Alex replied calmly, raising a finger. "In general terms — he pulls out your deepest fears."
"Deepest fears, huh…" Sam drawled and looked at Wednesday. "And what did he try to scare you with?"
"A normal life," Wednesday replied coldly. "And it didn't work. It only disgusted me."
"Wait… you're saying your deepest fear is a normal life?" Dean asked in surprise. "How can anyone be afraid of that?"
"I'll repeat it one more time, for those who don't hear well," Wednesday said calmly, throwing Dean a contemptuous glance. "He tried. I don't know what exactly that clown wanted to show me. But it was disappointing and repulsive."
Dean was already used to Wednesday's sarcasm and merely shrugged, not taking her words too seriously. Alex looked at her and asked her to explain in more detail what had happened, how exactly she got there, and where she had ended up.
Wednesday recounted everything without much emotion: from the moment she appeared in the sewer tunnels to her meeting with Pennywise. When she began describing his behavior — how he backed away and lost confidence — it became clear to everyone: this time, everything had been reversed. It was Wednesday who frightened Pennywise, not the other way around.
Dean smirked, quietly amused by the clown's stupidity. Sam, on the other hand, sank into thought. He quickly came to the conclusion that Pennywise was capable not only of taking the form of others' fears, but also of altering the environment itself, adapting it to the victim's psyche.
Sam voiced his thoughts and looked at Alex for confirmation. Alex nodded, making it clear that he was absolutely right. After that, everyone involuntarily began thinking about their own deepest fears. Noticing the thoughtful looks from the girls, Alex pointed at their rings, silently reminding them that this did not threaten them.
Lucina, Samantha, and Alice looked at the rings on their fingers and immediately nodded, realizing they had forgotten: the protection worked against almost everything. Enid, noticing this, shot Alex an offended look. Alex smiled and pulled two small boxes out of his pocket. He had been waiting for the right moment, but since Enid had already understood everything, there was no point in delaying.
Enid grabbed her box so fast that Alex didn't even have time to open it himself. A second later, the box was already in her hands. Enid flipped it open — and immediately squealed like a schoolgirl who had just received the best gift of her life.
The ring was made of pink metal with a shimmering pink stone. Enid immediately slipped it onto her ring finger. Wednesday calmly took the second box and opened it. Inside lay a completely black ring with a stone as dark as night. Dean and Sam watched what was happening with the driest expressions possible.
"And what, we're just left without rings?" Dean smirked. "Or did you decide to make something like that for us too?"
"I made these rings with my own hands," Alex replied calmly. "The most you'll get is an amulet. It'll protect you from the clown's influence."
He placed two amulets on the table.
"Or do you want to face your fears head-on?"
"And what exactly can this clown pull out of us?" Dean asked, putting the amulet around his neck.
"Want me to list them?" Alex spoke evenly. "Lisa, Ben, Hell, your parents, losing loved ones. Sam's is the fear that he's still in the cage. And yours, Dean, is losing everything. Including your family."
"Alright, alright, we get it," Dean muttered. "No need to dig up the past. If your amulet doesn't work and that clown shows up in front of me, I'll just shoot him."
"My last piece of advice before we get to Derry," Alex lightly tapped the table with his finger. "Don't believe everything you see. And most importantly — don't be afraid. The more fear you have, the more power he has over you."
"We'll keep that in mind," Sam nodded. "But how are we going to catch him? You said it yourself — Pennywise is part of the city. Are we supposed to wander through the sewers until we accidentally run into him?"
"We'll use bait," Alex replied with a sly smile.
"You're really going to do that?" Alice's eyes widened, and she broke into a broad grin.
"Do what?" Dean asked suspiciously. "I hope this isn't some insane plan."
Dean and Sam exchanged glances, then looked at Alice. Judging by the expression on her face, Alex really had come up with something crazy. Lucina and Samantha raised their eyebrows, then smiled, already understanding what kind of "bait" he meant. Wednesday calmly watched Alex, waiting for him to continue.
Meanwhile, Enid was still admiring her ring and had already taken a dozen photos, completely ignoring what was going on. Butterflies fluttered in her stomach, and she was barely holding herself back from squealing again and sharing the news with the entire world.
Alex raised a finger, showing Alice that she had guessed right. She immediately bounced in place. The next moment, Alex's body flared with bright light. Dean and Sam instinctively squeezed their eyes shut. When they opened them, Alex was gone. In front of them stood a boy about ten years old — wearing a black hoodie with the hood up and black shorts.
"Dude… you're a shorty now," Dean said in shock.
"I'm ten years old right now. What did you expect?" Alex replied, trying to ignore the fact that Alice was already holding him in her arms and showering him with kisses.
"I really hope we don't have to do the same thing," Sam coughed dryly.
"Do you want to go back to when you were ten?" Alex asked flatly, looking at them.
"No," Dean and Sam answered simultaneously, without hesitating for a second.
"Then don't ask unnecessary questions," Alex shrugged. "Let's go to Derry. I'm hungry. In this form, I'm definitely not cooking."
He rolled his eyes.
"There's a Chinese restaurant along the way, I think."
Looking at Alex in the form of a ten-year-old child, whom Alice was holding with obvious delight, Dean couldn't help but grin. He got up from his seat and headed for the driver's seat to start the motorhome and continue the journey. It was already clear that Derry was very close, which meant the next destination had been fully decided.
Alex, taking advantage of the moment, managed to wriggle free from Alice's grasp, who clearly didn't want to let him go, and immediately jumped onto Wednesday's lap. She cast him a brief, appraising glance. Alex decided to hide from the girls' excessive attention — they were looking at him far too pointedly.
When Enid finally finished admiring her ring, her gaze fell on Alex in his child form, calmly sitting on Wednesday's lap. She started to move toward him, but Wednesday silently extended a hand and gave Enid a cold, commanding look.
Enid immediately stopped.
She pouted in frustration, glancing at Wednesday, but the icy stare didn't waver. In the end, Enid had to give in — though nothing stopped her from secretly photographing Alex or recording him on video.
Meanwhile, Alex sat completely relaxed on Wednesday's lap, swinging his legs cheerfully and already anticipating his encounter with Pennywise.
Lucina leaned on the table, propping her cheeks with her hands, and studied Alex carefully. It wasn't difficult for her to guess what was going through his mind. It was obvious that Alex was planning to chase the clown through the sewers… in the body of a ten-year-old boy. The thought only amused Lucina more.
Alex pulled his phone from his pocket to check the situation in Derry with the Control Bureau field teams he had previously instructed to arrive and bring equipment for space stabilization.
The response from the operation's coordinator came quickly: everything was ready, they just needed to place the equipment at the designated points. The field agents had already located these points using specialized instruments.
Next, a message arrived with a map and the marked locations.
Alex scanned it and frowned — some of the points were in the sewers, which significantly complicated the task. The sewers were Pennywise's territory.
He briefly replied that the operation would begin tomorrow, then pocketed his phone and leaned back, resting his head on Wednesday's chest as she calmly read her book.
Half an hour later, the motorhome pulled into the parking lot of a Chinese restaurant about ten minutes' drive from Derry.
Everyone began stepping outside, including Castiel, with Alex perched on his shoulders.
Sitting atop him, Alex looked at the restaurant and immediately recognized it. This was where the Losers' Club had once again confronted Pennywise after returning to Derry.
Alex wondered whether he would see the adult members of the Club… or if Chuck had messed up the timeline so badly that the Losers would appear as children.
Resting against Castiel's head, whose expression remained as impassive as ever, Alex squinted slightly and thoughtfully stroked his chin. The idea of teasing not only Pennywise but also the Losers' Club at the same time seemed quite appealing.
When the entire group entered the restaurant, the woman at the counter looked at the unusual party in surprise — especially at GIR, MIMI, and Stitch.
"I'm sorry, but no animals are allowed in here," she said with a polite smile.
"They're not animals, just kids in costumes," Lucina replied calmly, smiling.
"Exactly, ma'am," Dean added, nodding and struggling to suppress a laugh. "Where have you ever seen animals that walk on two legs?"
The girl at the restaurant reception glanced once more at GIR, MIMI, and Stitch. They paid her no attention at all, calmly staring back while continuing to pull chips from their bags and stuff them into their mouths.
In the end, she had no choice but to nod and lead the group to a private room.
Alex, sitting on Castiel's shoulders, looked around, searching for familiar faces. He really wanted to find out how old the Losers' Club was at this point. However, he didn't spot anyone and let out a disappointed sigh.
When the waiter escorted them into a private room and everyone took their seats, Alex settled onto Wednesday's lap. GIR, MIMI, and Stitch, in turn, claimed the laps of the other girls.
While everyone flipped through the menus, choosing food and drinks, Alex continued to look around. He couldn't help but note that the Chinese restaurant looked surprisingly nice, despite being so close to one of the most unpleasant towns around. The private room, tucked away from the other guests, was especially welcome — considering the size of their group, it was perfect.
Turning around, Alex noticed a large aquarium separating the two private rooms.
What he didn't see was that on the other side of the glass sat an African American man, visibly nervous. It was Mike Hanlon — one of the members of the Losers' Club and the only one who had never left Derry.
He was afraid of one thing — that his friends wouldn't come.
But soon Mike's anxiety began to ease: one by one, his old friends started arriving at the restaurant. All of them — except one. Very soon, a warm, joyful atmosphere of reunion after many years filled their table.
At the same time, Alex's group was sitting in the neighboring booth.
Alex himself, perched on Wednesday's lap, was explaining the plan for the next day. He had already laid out the main idea: he would distract Pennywise by wandering around the city in the form of a ten-year-old child, while the others helped the Control Bureau agents install the space-stabilization equipment throughout Derry. There were no objections.
Considering the fact that Alex was far more unhinged than some random clown, the plan seemed perfectly logical to everyone. After all, only Alex could come up with the idea of biting a cosmic clown's hand to get his blood.
As the discussion continued, the waiter began bringing in the food. When laughter came from the neighboring room, Alex only turned his head for a moment, shrugged, and went back to his meal, continuing to explain the finer details of the plan.
The only thing he truly wanted was for everything to go according to plan — even if, at some point, that plan fell apart. For Alex, there was only one thing that mattered: that none of the Bureau agents got hurt. No one wanted to become Pennywise's food.
Shoveling another portion of Chinese noodles into his mouth, Alex briefly thought that he could simply go to that very house leading straight into the clown's lair and end it all in one move.
But his thoughts were interrupted by noise coming from the neighboring booth. Alex jumped down from Wednesday's lap and immediately stepped into the corridor, heading toward the source of the commotion.
The scene he saw was… amusing. While the other adults were backing away from the table as if they had seen something horrifying, one man was holding a chair over his head and smashing it down onto the table with force.
Noticing Alex, everyone froze. Alex himself squinted playfully. Before him stood the adult members of the Losers' Club. As he remembered, they were all there — except for Stanley. The one who had slit his wrists just so he wouldn't be a weak link for his friends.
"Hey, kid, lost?" Billy asked, forcing a smile as he looked at Alex.
"You're way too loud," Alex replied with a cheerful grin. "If the food isn't to your liking, that's no reason to smash the table."
"What are you talking about, kid?" Richie waved him off. "Go back to your parents. You don't belong here."
Alex turned his head toward Richie and tilted it slightly to the side. As he remembered, Richie had always been the chattiest one in the Losers' Club, constantly spouting inappropriate, silly jokes. His gaze swept over the others.
Eddie — a life controlled by an overbearing mother, medicated and convinced he was ill. Ben — a chubby, shy boy growing into a somewhat confident man. Billy — a brother lost, who ran from Derry and became a successful writer, though his books always ended in tragedy for some reason.
Mike — the one who stayed behind in town, waiting for Pennywise to awaken. And Beverly — who survived her father's abuse and later married someone similar.
Alex smirked. For fun, he decided to give them a little scare and raised his hand.
"Beep-beep, Richie," he said with a wide grin, curling his fingers as if pressing a horn.
At that very moment, the faces of the Losers' Club twisted in pure, primal horror. It was most evident in Richie — he stared at Alex as if before him stood not a child, but something far more terrifying.
Alex was openly enjoying himself. He watched their reactions with barely contained laughter, as if they were witnessing a nightmare come to life, all while continuing to play the role of an innocent ten-year-old.
"You think this is some kind of game?!" Richie snapped, his voice trembling with rage and fear. "Huh?! Then screw you! Screw you, got it?! I'm not afraid of you, damn clown!"
He grabbed Alex's arm sharply.
The other members of the Club immediately tried to stop him, realizing that from the outside it looked like an adult man was grabbing a child. But Richie was already shaking Alex, unaware of the absurdity of the situation.
Alex, however, looked at him with a playful, almost mischievous grin. Then he calmly raised his hands to his face, tilted his head back, and screamed at the top of his lungs:
"Help! A strange man is touching me!"
In an instant, it was as if the restaurant had been muted. Conversations stopped, laughter cut off, and even the Losers themselves stared at Alex, not immediately realizing what he had just done. Richie didn't even have a chance to react.
From the neighboring booth, Alice burst out — with a fury strong enough to fuel an entire hell. In an instant, she was beside Richie, grabbed the hand he was using to hold Alex, and forcefully threw him to the floor.
Richie let out a muffled scream of pain as his back hit the ground. Alice lifted a cold, angry gaze toward the others. The commotion drew Sam and Dean out. They stood in the booth's doorway, silently casting heavy, intimidating looks at the Losers' Club.
"Uh… sorry," Ben quickly spoke up, instinctively shielding Beverly. "It's a misunderstanding. Our friend had a bit too much to drink and… overdid it."
"Your friend had a bit too much to drink and grabs a child by the hand," Alice replied coldly. "Next time, keep an eye on how much he drinks."
She lifted Alex into her arms.
"Come on, Alex. Let's leave these people."
Sam and Dean gave the Club one last grim look and followed. Once they left, Eddie let out a heavy sigh and helped Richie to his feet.
"Looks like the girl got the better of you," he muttered.
"Go to hell, Eddie," Richie snapped, holding his back. "I almost broke my spine."
"She's half your size," Eddie noted with a crooked smile. "How did she even manage that?"
"How would I know?" Richie grumbled. "Let's get out of here before they decide I'm some kind of pervert who grabs kids."
Grimacing, he left the booth.
Meanwhile, Alice returned Alex to their room. There, he had to explain what the hell he had been doing — why he had run off and started screaming.
Alex cleared his throat dryly and calmly explained that he had sensed Pennywise's presence and went to check. That's when he stumbled upon this group of people. He also speculated that they could be the very same children who had survived and escaped the clown… and for some unknown reason had returned.
He spoke cautiously, as if merely speculating — but that was more than enough for Sam and Dean.
After finishing dinner and paying the bill, the group left the restaurant and headed back to the RV.
Alex walked beside Wednesday, holding her hand. From the outside, they looked almost like siblings — both in black, with equally dark hair and calm expressions.
At the exit, Alex again noticed the Losers' Club. Beverly was talking to someone on the phone. He deliberately led the group past them. Dean and Sam gave Richie a stern look, and he immediately ducked behind Eddie.
Then another idea struck Alex. Letting go of Wednesday's hand, he quickly wrote a short message on a piece of paper, folded it neatly, and smirked — like a true villain in the guise of a ten-year-old. He ran up to Billy and handed him the note.
Billy raised an eyebrow in surprise, took the paper… and Alex was already running back to Wednesday, taking her hand again and heading toward the RV.
"I don't know what kind of family this kid has," Richie whistled, looking at the expensive RV. "But that thing must cost a fortune. What did he give you?"
"I think it says that Billy shouldn't hang out with a pervert like you," Eddie smirked. "The one who likes grabbing little boys by the hand."
"Go to hell, Eddie," Richie ground out through his teeth.
Billy frowned and unfolded the piece of paper the strange child had handed him. One look was enough. His fingers trembled—and the paper slipped from his hands.
Ben, noticing Billy's reaction, leaned down, picked up the note, and read it. His face paled as well. The message was terrifyingly simple—just a few words:
"Welcome to Derry."
But that was enough. The fear they had buried so carefully deep inside rose once again. Added to that was the realization that Stanley was dead. And exactly what Beverly had said about how he had died. At that moment, it finally hit them: returning to Derry had been a monstrous mistake.
Meanwhile, Alex was letting out quiet, malicious laughter, watching Billy's reaction from a distance. He took pleasure in knowing he had just reopened an old wound.
When he told Wednesday what he had written on the note, she gave a barely perceptible smile. Not disapproving—more like cold approval. Alex had no intention of convincing the Losers' Club to leave. He needed them.
Pennywise would never miss a chance to scare—and eat—those who had once defeated him and managed to escape. Of course, Alex had no intention of telling Dean or Sam this. If they knew he planned to use people as bait, they would both try to ruin the plan immediately.
Ten minutes later, they were already in Derry.
Alex didn't rush things or disturb the Bureau operatives—they needed to prepare for tomorrow. So a collective decision was made: today was for rest, tomorrow was for work.
While everyone was relaxing, Alex thought about going for a walk.
"And where exactly are you planning to go in the middle of the night, kid?" Dean smirked, holding a beer bottle.
"What kind of stupid question is that?" Alex snorted. "Going for a walk to ruin the clown's dinner. You guys just relax."
"I'm coming with you," Wednesday said calmly, slinging her backpack over her shoulder. "I still haven't forgiven him for the chains."
"Well, have fun, kids," Dean laughed. "And if you see an angry clown—feel free to hit him."
Alex just rolled his eyes and glanced at the others.
Enid had just stepped out of the shower, towel-drying her wet hair. Samantha was busy cooking. Lucina and Sam were checking plans for tomorrow to avoid any unexpected incidents. Alice, by her very demeanor, made it clear she had no intention of hunting the clown in the evening.
GIR, Mimi, and Stitch were already asleep—the food coma from the Chinese restaurant keeping them out for at least a couple of hours.
Shrugging, Alex took Wednesday's hand, and the two of them, accompanied by Thing perched on his head, stepped out of the RV.
Out of habit, Alex pulled out a cigarette and held it between his teeth, but instead of a lighter, Wednesday silently took it and put it in her pocket. He looked at her indignantly. She just pointed at his age. Muttering something under his breath, Alex pulled out a candy and popped it into his mouth.
They wandered slowly through the city, holding hands. Soon, a noise caught their attention. Following the sound, they came upon a baseball field—there was a match in progress, and a crowd had gathered. Alex sniffed the air.
The smell of Pennywise was here. Rot, mustiness, and something sweetly dead overpowered even the scent of freshly popped popcorn. Alex tugged Wednesday's hand.
"Are you going to watch this stupid match?" she asked.
"Nah," Alex smirked. "I smell the clown. He's close. And how could we pass up a chance to ruin his dinner?"
Wednesday squinted and nodded. They entered the stadium and started scanning the area. They needed just one child. One alone. Unnoticed. The one nobody was looking at—not even the parents.
Alex covered his nose with his hand, trying not to take deep breaths. Once again, he confirmed: beings born of Chaos smelled disgusting. The only exceptions were Nyan-Nyan and Yog.
Then Wednesday pointed ahead. Alex looked and saw a girl with a birthmark on her face. Her mother hadn't even noticed the child had wandered off.
"That's her," Alex whispered.
They followed and slipped under the stands. The closer they got, the clearer the voices became. One belonged to the child. The other—to Pennywise. A forced cry echoed.
Alex let go of Wednesday's hand, pulled a collapsible baton from his hoodie pocket, and jumped out from around the corner.
"Beep-beep, motherfucker!" he shouted, grinning widely.
The girl screamed in terror, stepped back, and dropped her plush bear. Pennywise faltered for a moment—just a fraction of a second. That was enough.
The iron collapsible baton slammed into his face with a sharp crack.
The girl, sobbing, grabbed her bear and ran back to her parents as fast as she could. Alex, not wasting a second, struck again—this time to the head. Pennywise growled, opening his mouth wide like a predator showing its fangs.
By then, Wednesday had arrived. Alex didn't even notice where she had gotten a flashbang grenade. Without hesitation, Wednesday tossed it straight into Pennywise's mouth. A deafening explosion followed.
The clown's head exploded like a bloody flower blasted open: blood, shards of bone, and pulverized bits of brain flew in all directions.
Alex kept hitting—grinning broadly, almost joyfully, raining blows on Pennywise's body.
"Like harassing kids, huh?" he shouted, not stopping. "I'll give you a fun time now, bastard! I told you I'd come for you. Here I am! Get up! Let's fight! Let's kill each other!"
But there was no response. Pennywise's body trembled, contracted—and burst like a balloon filled with blood and guts. In an instant, Alex and Wednesday were drenched from head to toe.
The last thing they heard was a cheerful, mocking laugh echoing from the darkness. They lifted their eyes. In the dark, bright yellow eyes glowed.
"Beep-beep, kiddies…" Pennywise's voice whispered. "Let's keep playing. Next time, we'll play again. How many more will you save, boy, smelling of other worlds? How many can you protect?"
He chuckled.
"Playing with you is more fun than with the Losers' Club… He-he-he. They're already here."
The eyes went out. Darkness became empty once more.
Alex, splattered with blood, stared blankly for a few more seconds at the spot where Pennywise's eyes had just been. Then he clicked his tongue softly and slipped the collapsible baton back into his pocket.
He turned to Wednesday. She stood there calmly, without a trace of emotion, as if being completely covered in blood was perfectly normal for her.
Alex snapped his fingers.
Their clothes were instantly clean.
At that same moment, they heard voices. The very same girl was dragging her mother by the hand, breathlessly explaining that some people had attacked the clown.
Alex grabbed Wednesday's hand—and they vanished, teleporting beyond the stands.
Having deprived Pennywise of yet another victim, they continued their walk as if nothing had happened, hand in hand. If Alex hadn't looked like a ten-year-old child, from the outside it could easily have passed for a date rather than a brother-and-sister stroll.
When the noise of the stadium was far behind them, Alex looked at Wednesday.
"My love," he said thoughtfully, "where did you get the flashbang grenade?"
"At the bunker," Wednesday replied calmly. "I took it just in case. As it turns out, not for nothing."
"They usually use those a little differently…" Alex drawled. "But who am I to judge? I fight with whatever's at hand myself. Although…" he grinned widely, "it was fun watching his head explode."
"I agree," Wednesday nodded. "You don't get to see the head of a creepy clown explode like a sinister party popper every day."
"So, can we say the date was a success?" Alex asked cheerfully. "We beat up a creepy clown, blew his head off, and thoroughly humiliated him. Are you satisfied, my love?"
"If we ignore the fact that my fiancé is pretending to be a ten-year-old child," Wednesday replied evenly, "then yes—this date perfectly suits my taste."
"Minor details of life, dear," Alex declared philosophically. "The important thing is having fun while someone else's mood gets ruined."
Wednesday raised an eyebrow, looked at him, and allowed herself the faintest smile.
When they returned to the motorhome, Alex immediately began recounting everything that had happened. He did it deliberately—so that everyone would understand: Pennywise was not something to be afraid of. If you meet him face to face, you strike first.
To be continued…
(Overall, I'll try to wrap up Derry as quickly as possible, well, how should I put it. I just don't see the point in dragging it out. Like I said, I can show the others facing their fears. But is that really necessary? Alex's girls are protected by rings, Sam and Dean might be afraid, but ultimately, it's just another monster in their path, ready to be shot. So I think it'll just be a simple chase through the sewers after a clown, and Alex pestering the Losers' Club.)
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