1 Work by smallandsilver
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The Paladin Laid Down His Sword (The House Did Not) by smallandsilver
Fandoms: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
18 Feb 2026
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Summary
After the countless interactions with real life monsters and other dimensions, it’s hard to question things as small as a weird noise coming from the attic or an orb in a photograph without assuming it's part of all of that trauma he had experienced due to the Upside Down. But that part of his life is long over, there is no reason to overreact, all of it is over. He is safe. So when he starts getting caught up on small things, he has to tell himself that he doesn’t need to worry about it, ignore it and push it down far, far away from his consciousness. Because after dealing with the Upside Down, he doesn’t want to get himself stuck in any more save the world situations. Mike Wheeler is no longer that protector he once was. No longer the paladin that Will Byers admired for so many years. All of that trauma he experienced comes rushing back when he really starts to notice things in his new house are not quite right. Maybe he should be questioning the noises in the attic and the orbs that seem to show up in all of his photographs he has taken since he moved into this strange house. Maybe he has to reach out to his old party for help, or maybe he can ignore it for just a while longer…