#this should be a byler gate

[inutaffy]

you guys gonna hear me out yes or no

#this should be a byler gate #it all started when i went searching for a wizard of oz au..... #there's like none btw #stranger things #byler #smalltown boy mike is sooooo dorothy #SOMEWHHHERREEE OVER THR RAINBOW??? CMON #max mayfield #will byers #mike wheeler #el hopper

[wibble-wobbegong]

Mike is Going to “Die” in S5

In season 5, we’re going to be presented with a scenario in which Mike is going to have a fake death like Hopper did, or everyone is going to believe he’s dead like they did with Will in season 1.

There are two major points to this; Mike’s seasonal death tags and his pattern of predicting future events through DND.

Seasonal Death Tags

I’m only going to cover the most obvious death tags that aren’t really up for interpretation and keep it to the point.

Season 1

Mike jumps off a cliff, prepared to die. He’s almost immediately saved by El.

Season 2

Mike is caught by the vines that almost killed Hopper. He’s saved by Steve, but only after a cut off in which we see El face the mother gate and watch the Mind Flayer turn its attention to her. definitely not a coincidence

Season 3

- Mike talks about sacrificing himself and Lucas to end Will’s campaign. His character is never saved and that’s the end of the campaign.

- Mike, in an attempt to save El, draws Billy’s attention. Billy was going to kill El, and now his intent to kill is turned on Mike. He’s saved by El.

Season 4

- In the opening DND game, Mike’s character is zeroed out. Dead. The game ends with a saving throw from Erica, but Mike’s character doesn’t come back.

- Mike is referred to, directly, as Romeo and marked with Romeo’s last name; Montague.

“Surf’s up, Romeo”

‘Montague’ is written on the oven left of Mike’s head.

Mike’s Predictions Through DND

I can’t use as many images since I’m on mobile, sorry about that.

Mike predicts an occurrence in every season through DND.

Season 1

In the first ever scene of the kids, Mike’s campaign predicts that the Demogorgon will attack Will. As far as we know, that’s what happened because that’s what Will and everyone else believe happened.

Season 2

This prediction is actually made at the end of season 1, but it doesn’t apply till season 2.

When Mike wraps up his campaign, the other party members start questioning him about unfinished plotlines, one of which is about “the cave with the weird flowers in it.” That’s something that appears in season 2; the cave tunnels with weird flowers that spit toxins into the air. It never truly gets explained what those tunnels actually are, either. They’re the only UD related thing that never gets an actual name.

Season 3

When Mike plays in Will’s campaign, he predicts one major event: Hopper’s death.

He describes killing the Juju zombies by lighting the chambers on fire and sacrificing himself to save the Khuisar. According to what everyone else hears, Hopper saved townspeople from the mall fire and died doing so. What we know is that Hopper sacrificed himself to close the gate and save all of Hawkins. Mike’s story intertwines these two versions of Hopper’s death story.

Knowing that, we can assume that whatever Mike does in the opening DND game of season 4 is a prediction for future plot events.

What happens to Mike’s character? He dies. I don’t think this is meant to imply the death of any other character for two reasons; one being the number of death tags he’s received that haven’t led anywhere and the other being the figurines shown to describe Mike’s character’s death.

We’re shown a Paladin on the left, so we know this is directly tied to Mike.

Mike’s character is the one that dies, so that would imply Mike is going to actually die. Or it would, if Eddie didn’t tip over the other figurine.

Eddie knocks over the figure which, dare I say, looks like a ‘dark sorcerer’. Mike’s Paladin doesn’t actually go down, despite his character supposedly dying. Mike, as he’s represented on the board, doesn’t die. It’s only believed by everyone else that he does.

Another thing is that we aren’t shown what Mike actually rolled. This is a direct contrast to the other dice roll scenes we get from Dustin and Erica.

Dustin’s roll, 11, predicted that El wouldn’t be enough to beat Vecna. Erica’s roll, 20, beats Vecna. What that number means will most likely be shown in season 5 when Vecna finally goes down.

If these rolls are prediction shots, then why aren’t we allowed to see what number Mike rolled?

Vecna ‘Killing’ Mike

I think the most obvious answer as to who will be the one ‘killing’ Mike is gonna be Vecna. I have a whole post about that here.

With all the evidence in that post about why Mike is an ideal target for Vecna, I also wanted to add here that Mike must have rolled a low number in order to get his character killed. The Duffers never use plot irrelevant numbers, so the only low number they could use that they would want to keep secret from the viewer is One.

Mike is so fucking dead.

#mike hostage theory #kinda? #should i give this a gate name #is it even a gate??? #i actually have no clue what a gate is defined by in the byler fandom #mike wheeler #byler #my theories

[athiestpaladin]

What if part of the reason that mike was upset about hopper keeping el hidden in season 2 was because he thought that if el HAD been around, they wouldve been able to find out what was wrong with Will quicker, or even prevent him from getting possessed all together.

Unlike Hopper, Mike never argues about her going to close the gate, nor does he second guess her. He just lets her go with a "Just be careful, okay?" Mind you, this was directly after learning that she didn't actually die, which was what he thought for the better part of a year (+after breaking down about that to Hop)

When he does tell her: "I cant lose you again." It isn't only because of the clear reason that he'll miss her, but also because if anything else were to happen (which he could be anticipating by this point) they wouldn't have another way to fix it that they know of.

#what then #ALSO #When everyone else was questioning if El should go to the gate #Mike just said “even if El can...” then proceeded to say theres “another problem” #he fully supports the plan as long as will is okay #That being that Will could die because of the plan #i still think he loved her #It was just an idolization thing though #Im a huge supporter of the “Mike idolizes El for saving Will and everyone else” concept #if you cant tell #mike wheeler #will byers #byler #stranger things

[heartsgettingwiser62]

4+2+1=7. AND, this is the scene where Jon shows Will Should I stay or should I go, song that would keep him alive in the UD after he scored a 7 and the demogorgon got him

(I should really go to sleep right)

#also- am i really dumb or should that clock say 16:21 since it's 4pm?? #byler #<<target audience #will byers #jonathan byers #byler gates #byler theory #stranger things theory #byler number theory

[stranger-chichka]

When blue meet yellow in the west (8:44 gate)

8:44 is the closest to where two arrows of the clock meet.

Stranger Things 4 opening scene lasts 8 minutes 44 seconds. The timestamp for 8 minutes 44 seconds in 1x01 is the name of the actress that plays Karen. Mike’s mother.

Mr Munson describes the man who committed the murders “pure evil.” Karen means “pure.”

Maybe all these connections between Wheelers and Creels exist because Mike considers his mom one of the reasons Will died. Because she didn’t let them finish the campaign. Because as a result, Will biked home that night, something horrible happened to him at that exact time and Mike never saw him again.

But, wait, the man is responsible. The man did it. Not just a man, but someone, whose name meant “pure.” And guess what, Lonnie’s name means“ready for battle,” “lion” and “noble.” Pure and noble are synonyms (so is the word “righteous” I’ve mentioned here).

We’re shown that the demogorgon/Vecna took Will, because El opened Mothergate into the Upside Down. In original timeline Lonnie took Will, because Karen (the mother) opened the door into Mike’s basement and stopped their game.

8:44 is the time Will met with disaster — Lonnie, his father/papa (Matin “warlike” and Lonnie “ready for battle”), was killed by him, and Mike really lost him.

Why did I ask about this lake? Because the timestamp for the episode 4 (4 chimes, 4 kills, 4 gates) from s1 is the name of the episode — “The Body” is followed by the image of that lake.

It must be Lake Jordan. Jesus Christ — and Will is a Christ figure in ST (read @henrysglock and @pinkeoni posts on biblical references to see the vision) — was baptised in Jordan River, whereas Will was…drowned in Lake Jordan.

Oh, and 8:44 is four 4’s.

#i guess i ruined blue meet yellow in the west is about mike and will meeting in lenora i’m so sorry😭 #my brain hurts my eyes hurt my heart hurt if that true fuck lonnie #and i probably should take a nap before oscar’s because it starts 3:00 am in my country and i need to be at work by 11 am #manifestation theory #8:44 gate #mike wheeler #will byers #byler #karen wheeler #lonnie byers #martin brenner #the wheelers and the creels #stranger things theory

[viviennehoang]

Guys. Since the birthday gate has now been confirmed by the Duffers, should we think of the flowers that Mike gave to El as a present in the airport scene when he reunited her in season 4??? What if those flowers weren’t something that Mike supposedly gave to El as a reunion gift? But it was something that Mike intended to give Will as a birthday gift at first, then completely forget about the idea later so he decided to give it to El instead (for the flowers were mostly yellow - the Will’s color)???? Don’t you guys feel strange about that???? Why gave El yellow flowers when she obviously had no history of liking this color before???

#byler #birthdaygate #I know that you like yellow so I handpicked those for you #excuse me mike who said she liked yellow #maybe there is something in his head reminded him that the one he truly loves like the color yellow #and because Vecna’s influence on Will’s birthday memory #he can’t remember exactly who is the one that he should give the present to #that’s why he unconsciously gave it to el #because in Mike’s thoughts El is officially his gf #and he should do that because boyfriends are supposed to write letters and give presents to girlfriends #even though none of the things that he did for El has carried any significant meaning #with those thoughts in mind he switched from Will to El and decide to give the wrong person those flowers #idk guys but I just had those weird thoughts after watching the Duffers messing around with us about this gate theory

[spyofthestorm]

hold on we're calling it flickergate now?

oh awesome !! knew that name would catch on

#slowly got confident in it but i didn't know we were actual gonna use it #was i the first person to come up with it? #ion know probably i'm assuming #(check paladin-n-cleric's comments on the posts where she asks what we should call the gate) #back to the topic i do wonder who first came up with it if it wasn't me #byler

[skyfallslayer]

Should We Stay or Should We Go? || Prologue

-A ST Rewrite Feat. Steve Harrington x Henderson!OFC-

Main Masterlist || Series Masterlist

��Summary: On the night of November 6th, 1983, Stephanie Henderson decided to walk her little brother’s friend, Will, back home. However… they never arrive. Now, Dustin, Mike and Lucas, and soon the exception of the girl’s ex-best friend, Steve, must band together to find out what happened. Meanwhile, Steph and Will must fight for their survival in this nightmarish version of Hawkins, Indiana.

🎲Chapter Summary: When they interlocked their pinkies none of them ever expected the weirdness that follows the years after. None of them ever expected to start growing apart. None of them ever expected the red string to stay attached. And none of them ever expected that they would be out saving the world with a baseball bat and wings. Yeah... you can’t make this stuff up.

🎲Pairings: Will x Platonic!OFC; Dustin x Sister!OC; Slow burn! Steve x Henderson!OFC (Ex-bestfriends to Lovers); Slow burn! Byler

🎲Rating: Teen-Mature

🎲Word Count: 921 (Small Introduction)

🎲Date: 3/6/24

🎲Warnings: Angst; Swearing; Implied Broken Friendship

🎲A/N: Extremely small chapter, hence why it's just the prologue. I just wanted to show my readers what the big picture is of this story, which is the Steve x OC relationship. However, just like above, this will contained the loving sibling relationship of Dustin, and even Will, between OC. This story also contains Jopper (a personal fav), Jancy, Mileven and the slow burn of Byler (I got to give this boy some love and if you think Will has been a background character for the last few seasons like I have then don't you worry! I'm giving Will a time for him to shine throughout this fic). Anyway, don't want this paragraph to be longer than the actual chapter. Lol. Enjoy!

Pinky Promise.

It’s a bond between two people, a vow that’s taken so it shall not be broken. Childish, you know, but to a small kid it means everything. When they locked their pinkies together, muttering their promises to one another, they both had barely turned five, barely ready to take on the world head first. 

But a promise was a promise— Yet a pinky promise was so much more. It holds so much more weight than crossing your heart or giving a handshake. 

At least it was to these two very best friends…

.

.

.

“Wow.” The blue eyed girl said, genuinely surprised (She can’t even believe their conversation is so calming in a situation like this). “That explains so much. And… you never mentioned that to me before?”

“Well, can you blame me?” He asked, with a small smile and laugh. “I think it kinda does. I think, like, right out of the gate, like, I’m super confident. But I’m also, like, an idiot. Which is just…” He shrugs. “I mean, it’s a brutal combination. But, I mean, the good news is, I get a big enough thump on my head, I can change, you know? I can learn. I can crawl forward.”

She noticed his pace was slowing, and his brown eyes of his were becoming distant. “Steve?”

“Listen–” He stops them both, face looking like a lost puppy now. “I guess what I’m trying to say in a really stupid, roundabout way is, um… is thank you.”

She tilts her head, confused. “Thank you?” She watches him nod, adding fuel to her emotion. “For...?”

His face softens. “For giving my head the biggest thump of its life two years ago.” He chuckles. “Nancy, you know, she gave me the push, but you, Stephanie, gave me the thump I needed. It’s changed my life. And now I’m crawling forward in a way I never thought I could achieve. Slowly.”

And now he’s frowning, looking down at himself, engulfing himself in the glum. “I just wonder sometimes... you know, if... if I had just opened my eyes before I met Nancy, would things have been different? Like… part of me thinks we would’ve made it without our relationship falling apart.”

“Steve–” She croaks, teary eyed and shocked.

“And… you know what the craziest… most messed up part of the story is?”

“What?”

His lips curled up just a bit. “Remember the dream I told you about? About the Winnebago? Seeing the country with my six lil’ nuggets? It’s all true. Every last word. But… the mess up part?” He swallows, also getting emotional. “The mess up part is when I first thought of that dream… is that… you’re there. You’ve always been there.”

“Steve–”

“And that…” He smiles. “That’s my pinky promise to you, Miss Stephanie Henderson.”

.

.

.

The creature shrieked above, its claws waving around frantically –trying to get a nick out of him– as he held it back with some piping. He watched the pupils go all ‘cat-like’, fangs coming out that he swears were growing with each scream. 

He was struggling, he knows this, and he knows he has to buy the kid some time to get a radio signal out to his girlfriend, but he was slipping, fuck it. However, he knows deep in his heart he can’t back down from this.

His jaw clenched and his eyes flash with determination. “I don’t care what you’ve become! I ain’t leaving you, Henderson!” He shouted, hoping his words would get through to her. “That’s a pinky promise.”

.

.

.

“I’m helping you and Dustin out.” He insisted, knowing damn well that she didn’t even want him near her brother, let alone near herself.

She sends him a look, skeptical, on edge. “Why?”

“Look, I know you don’t want to talk–”

“Damn, right.”

“Steph.” He says, stepping in front of her way to get her attention. “We’ll just put this on the backburner. Right now, and I mean it, I just want to help you and Dustin, keep you guys safe. Pinky Promise.”

.

.

.

“Steve–”

“I’m not going anywhere.” He says, while playing with his hands, nervously, worriedly. “Not until I know you’re okay.”

She frowns apologetically. “You know that might be a while.” 

“I know.”

“I have Dustin and my mom, you don’t have to stay here.”

“I know.” He breaks eye contact. “But what if I want to?”

That made her chuckle. “Well… if you want to.” She says, making them both smile. “Fine sleeping in a chair?”

He nods. “If that’s what I’ll have to do.” He replies, making her hum.

She raises an eyebrow. “Is that a pinky promise?”

“Yeah.” His expression grows. “Pinky promise.”

.

.

.

But what if you break it? The promise? What if you don’t follow through? That is the unfortunate part of this story. The promise was to stay together forever, to make their friendship last a lifetime. For them, they were two peas in a pod, polar opposites that still attached themselves to one another… until they couldn’t.

When the boy decided to become a King, the girl became a peasant. The boy was showered with love and affection, and the girl was on a quest of loneliness that became bitter.

This was a story about Steve Harrington and Stephanie Henderson.

A story, where no matter what happens, the red string still stays attached to their pinkies despite their attempts to take it off.

This was story where the two of them decided to save the world–

Their families–

Their friends–

.

.

.

And their friendship.

(TBC)

A/N: I was so surprised when everyone was asking to be added in just a few short days. Makes me really happy :D

.

-Taglist is Open-

@ladygrey03 @poppet05 @tooearlyforthis @lovesfics @lordzzz

#steve harrington #steve harrington fic #steve harrington x you #steve harrington x reader #steve harrington x henderson reader #stranger things fanfiction #steve harrington fanfiction #dustin henderson #dustin henderson x sister reader #dustin henderson x reader #eddie munson #will byers x reader #will byers x platonic reader #will byers #stranger things x reader #jopper #jancy #steve harrington x oc #Stephanie Henderson #my fanfic writing #skyfallwrites

[justmy-account]

List of byler-gates

I’m just bored, but read it anyways, it’s fun

there sooo many of them, and i’m still pretty lazy so this isn’t perfect, but just let’s start

Mikhailgate

This is practically anti byler theory, but nvm

So, Dimitri has a son named Mikhail, which is russian version of name Michael, Mike

So, people were just saying that instead of Mike, Will will end up with Mikhail(who’s technically Mike bc of the name, yk)

I think everyone was just joking, oh, good ol’ times

and willloveinterestgate is the same

Lettergate/Pocketgate

These theories aren’t the same one, but it’s basically the same concept, ig

The basic thing is, that Mike wrote a letter to Will(singed Love, Mike)

In pocketgate, Mike has the letter saved in his triangle pocket, bc in st, characters many times has letters, that were important to them, in their left pocket(above the heart), for example Hopper and El(Hopper’s heart-to-heart), Jonathan(acceptance letter to college) etc.

And he would just take it out in the middle of confession or sth

+the triangle always points to Will like an arrow

Lettergate is just basically the same, ok, idk how to describe it differently 

Twelvegate

Not exactly a byler, but theory, that Will was number twelve in HNL, and that he’s El’s actual twin

And from that, there’s theory that Will has powers, but wasn’t n. 012

Okay, back to byler

This is same as rainbowgate i think

Flickergate

This theory is very lovely! after Will tells Mike that rolled seven in s1, the light behind them flickers

and since ud is frozen on nov6 83, when you signal sth from ud, it should appear at nov6 83-s1

this connects to electricgate(i dunno if sth like this exist, but just keep reading), the electricity~are friends electric~will possibly having electric powers

so mike and will could go together in s5 to ud on a mission or sth, and kiss in wheelers garage, and that would make the light flicker(i’m so good at explaining things, right😐)

will and mike going to ud together is predicted by mike and will sitting on upside down couch in last ep. of s4

Birthdaygate/Memorygate

Soo, remember how they forgot Will’s birthday? what if all wills memories, that people reminded him of in the shed are gone? his birthday, building castle byers, meeting mike… and that’s why mike says that his life started the day he found her, bc he doesn’t remember meeting Will

for me, it’s really weird, they couldn’t just forget Will’s birthday, no, this ain’t it

Kiss at lovers lake

I’m not sure if this has a different name, but it’s that their first kiss will be near lovers lake

evidence: patrick(the kid who died at lovers lake), had a nickname “berlin wall” or sth(we saw this in the school newspaper), and it was devided to four, same as hawkins

and song heroes is abt couple who lived at different sides of berlin wall, and idk, it just connects, okay?

when will painted the map of hawkins while he was possessed, mike was holding blue and yellow meter

Eightfifteengate

Context: will left the wheelers at 8:15 in s1

in s1e1, time mark 8:15 is literally the shot where will disappears in the shead

i think there’s a season 2 soundtrack called eight fifteen

tw: time fuckery: while will was recording on halloween night, the time says 8:04 while he’s recording mike saying “did you agreed with this?”, but when joyce rewatches it, it show 8:15(byler)

“ it’s 8:15, you’re late”

btw, clocks and watches from hiroshima are stuck at 8:15

aaanywaaay, there’s just too much 8:15 things, aaah(this is just a few)

what it has to do with byler?

well, 15-8=….(wait for it)….seven. a byler number. it was a seven!

also, “the first lie”, when murray says this to jancy, the time mark is… guess what, 8:15

there’s this theory with the songs “the first lie” and “the first i love you”, and it just connects 

Motelgate

theory, that after mike’s “love” confession to el, they went to a motel for sleep, and mike and will had to share a bed, and we could possibly see flashbacks of it in s5, and it would kinda explain the two day skip

Colorgate

blue and yellow meet in the west, i’m sure you know this one, and there’s sooo many evidence in this

mattduffersbasementgate

It’s too late for this to be true, but the duffers are(/were) holding every cast member that ships byler in their basement, lol

bloopergate

Bloopers from byler scenes, basically, for example “not when i was the spy, oh fuck”, basically Finn and Noah being all giggly, i guess

bloopergate implies to every blooper, but why not to mention it

curtaingate

Sth like, that when there’s some fight happening between characters, if curtains are open, it means they’re open with their feeling and opposite 

Example: milkvan make out scene-closed, but you don’t love me fight-opened

Bonus: „ but they like the curtain. people like us are just trying to look behind the curtain”(my very bad quotation of murray, yk what i mean)

Also, Suzie had blue and yellow curtains, and they were opened

And, “and i love her and i can’t lose her again”? Also curtains closed, like wtf, this fandom is crazy

piggybackgate

El knows abt Mike and Will. she saw how they act around each other, she’ve heard will saying “you’re the heart” to mike, saw that mike has Will’s painting now

New Coke Theory

basically, old coca colla is mileven, new coke is byler. it contains some of the old ingredients(mike), and new ones too(will). not everyone likes(bc its gay ship). and when you look at scenes with can of new coke, it’s many times symbolizing byler vs. milkvan

one of my favorite new coke theory examples is this: in s3, after el gets attacked by the flesh monster, she tries to crash a can(but she doesn’t have her powers, so she can’t). this is a can of new coke(byler) and she can’t crush that/destroy it. and in this scene, we get a flashback to the lab, where she crushes aka destroys regular coke(mileven)

phonegate

mike and will not calling each other, bc of joyce’s telemarketer job(he won’t stop whining abt it)

————

i miss all these little silly theories abt literally everything

i hope the byler tag will be like this once again

maybe we could start naming our new theories “gate”s again

for example: heartfeltgat, strangerwritersgate, snowkissgate or sth

anyway, byee

#stranger things #byler #st5 speculation #byler gates #will byers #mike wheeler #mikhailgate #willloveinterstgate #lettergate #pocketgate #anti milkvan #twelvegate #flickergate #birthdaygate #memorygate #byler kiss at lovers lake #eightfifteengate #motelgate #colorgate #when blue meets yellow in the west #mattduffersbasementgate #bloopergate #curtaingate #piggybackgate #new coke theory #phonegate

[robynrocksforbrains]

I'm about to ramble like I've never rambled before.

Season five is going to have the most well executed displays of affection and romantic moments not only because byler will be happening but also because this show has always been about LOVE. Love has been constant throughout the entire show. It's always been about love saving the day. Which is why we see what happens when love is unwavering. When it's hidden. When it's suppressed. We see the consequences of believing there is a "right way" to love. We see the consequences of performing love. And we see the rewards of just loving. No matter what other people say. No matter if people think you're crazy. If you love someone you fight for them even when everyone tells you it's wrong. Or that you shouldn't. Or that you should give up.

That is most prevalent in season one and two.

In season one the whole town thinks Joyce is crazy. But she says it herself "Maybe I'm crazy! Maybe I'm out of my mind! But god help me I will keep these lights up until the day I die if I think there's a chance that Will is still out there!" Jonathan and Nancy team up to kill the demogorgon because they love Will and Barb respectively. Mike, Lucas, and Dustin continue to search for Will even when it will get them in trouble. Even when it's dangerous. Even when everyone believes he's dead. They keep searching and they keep fighting because they love him.

In season two Joyce, Jonathan, and Mike do not stop trying to reach Will. Even when he appears to be gone, they keep reaching. And once they reach him they keep holding on. And even when Will tells them to close the gate, likely knowing it will kill him, they don't accept that. Joyce finds a way. Mike, Lucas, Dustin, Max, and Steve find a way to give El and Hopper a fighting chance. All of their actions are fueled by unwavering love and loyalty for each other.

This show has always been about love. It has been the lifeblood of the entire series. It has been a constant, so much so that you almost become blind to it. Because unwavering love is the baseline, you don't really notice it until something changes. That's what seasons three and four did. They made us notice that the baseline existed in the first place. We started to see fluctuations.

In season three, Mike and El are constantly off in their own little world, they aren't considerate of their friends. Will is feeling completely and totally isolated and like the group is falling apart. Dustin is separated from them for the entire season. Will says it best in the rain fight "where's Dustin? See you don't know and you don't even care! And obviously he doesn't either and I don't blame him!". The Party has their good moments in season three, but gone is the shameless love and unwavering support that they once offered each other. Lucas and Mike leave Will out and make fun of him. Which is so unlike them. None of them actually believe Suzie exists, and they humor Dustin in a condescending manner. Dustin isn't an idiot, he knew that they were being condescending. But he chose to give them the benefit of the doubt and tolerate them because it was so unusual for them to be so mean to each other. In conclusion, season three shows us the consequence of the loss of that unwavering and unselfish love.

(color code for this point on: genuine love / performance / something that is not loving)

In season four, there is even more fluctuating. The season starts off with El lying in her letter to Mike. Ending a letter of lies with "Love, El". Which is an interesting juxtaposition to the concept of "true love". Will's feelings are spotlighted by the mention of the painting and the "girl" he might like. Mike and Dustin are not supportive of Lucas, and they are not there to celebrate his accomplishments. Will is supportive of El and tries to comfort her in the face of her "failures". (Not that I think her class presentation was a failure, she did amazing. But she felt like she had failed.) Lucas continues to reach out to Max and pay attention to her even when she continuously pushes him away; even when she's mean. We see Mike and El putting on fake smiles, it's clear that they can't be themselves in this relationship. They're once again ignoring Will. Mike and Will fight again. Mike and El have their fight about Mike's inability to say "I love you" and about how he makes El feel like a monster. Joyce and Murray go to FUCKING RUSSIA to save Hopper. Mike and Will begin to patch up their relationship. Will gives Mike the painting and along with it his veiled love confession. And although it's hidden behind a flimsy lie, it is such a beautiful act of love. Because the lie is not selfish. He's lying because he believes it is what's best for Mike, not himself. He hands over his heart on a silver platter for Mike and tells him that it's someone else's because he believes that's what Mike needs. Although it is dishonest, it is closer to the concept of "true love" than El's letter from the beginning of the season. (Not a lot of consistency. Well, there's consistent inconsistency. This season is so far from the baseline)

And then we have Mike's monologue. Mike's monologue that brings the concept of "love saves the day" to front and center stage. And for the first time we see them completely and utterly lose.

(I'd like to say that I hate the way people say that the deaths in season 4 are Mike's fault because of the monologue. They are not his fault, he is 14 oh my god please stop putting that on him. But the loss is crucial to understanding why that baseline I was talking about is so important.)

In the first two seasons, when we were at this "baseline", the show never told us that love was going to save the day. It didn't have to tell us. It was obvious, but not in a dramatic and cheesy way. The monologue is dramatic and cheesy. It uses romance tropes that no one actually likes. It doesn't line up with any of Mike's behavior throughout the entire show. This is the first time that the show states over and over again "love is going to save the day". It's this big dramatic moment that falls flat on its face because we have never needed them to tell us this before. So why are they telling us now?

"Forced conforming. That's what's killing the kids."

For the first time, stranger things conforms to the usual dramatics of the "love saves the day" trope. And a kid literally dies.

In season one, when they find Will in the UD, we know what has led to this moment. We know that Joyce has fought her way to this moment fueled by nothing but unwavering love and an unyielding belief that her son was out there. That he was alive. Then they find him dead. But Joyce and Hopper fought for Will for that entire week, why would they stop fighting now. So Hopper starts cpr, and it's an intense moment. But it's not dramatic. It's just real, and raw. It's a mother desperately begging her son to come back to her. And Will lives.

Compare that to the dramatics of the monologue while Max is being murdered? It doesn't take a genius to figure out what happened there.

El brings Max back in a quiet moment. She finds her resolve and she says "No. You're not going." And this moment feels similar to when Will was resuscitated. Lucas is sobbing and desperate for someone to help. And El helps. That moment is not a performance. No one is there to see what she does. That moment is an act of true love. It's not fueled by a dramatic monologue. It's just love. For this one moment, we come back to the baseline.

Season four was about the performance of love. And conforming to the "right way" to love. That is why they failed.

I believe that season five will see the return to this baseline that I talked about. For all the types of love we see in the show, but the one I'm focused on is romantic love. (This is not me saying that romantic love is more important, it's just the one I'm thinking about the most right now)

Because not only has the show always been about love, it's also always been about Will. It started with him; it started with the group's love for him. If love is the lifeblood of the show, Will is the heart and soul of the show. And now there has been so much attention drawn to Will's romantic love for Mike, and his desire to be loved in that same way. He is so so sad because he believes that this form of love just isn't for him. His love being requited is a satisfying ending to his arc, but is also the perfect opportunity to bring the show back to its "baseline". Will's arc concluding with his love being requited is the perfect way to drive home the message they've been sending this entire time. The heart of the show deserves to receive the love it has inspired.

Will has loved Mike. Mike has loved Will. They don't need a big dramatic confession. They just need to be honest with themselves and honest with each other. True love.

This was just a ramble so I don't really have a conclusion and I don't know if anyone will understand what I'm trying to say. But this is an aspect of the show that I absolutely adore and I am so passionate about it and I just had to talk about it.

#byler #stranger things #anti mileven #mike wheeler #will byers #will byers my beloved #mike wheeler is queer #will byers is gay #mike wheeler is in love with will byers #will byers is in love with mike wheeler #byler analysis #idk what else to tag #hope this makes sense #i just love this show so much

[bylerficrecweek]

The themes are out! As a reminder, the event will be running from the 3rd of March to the 9th of March, so you have plenty of time to get lists together or go searching for that one fic you forgot to bookmark. Since the titles are a little vague, there's an in-depth explanation of each below the cut.

Detailed explanations of each theme

Day 1: Post-canon

Fics set after the hypothetical events of S5, where the canon plot has already been resolved. Examples include stories about their late highschool years post-Vecna, their college experience, and their lives in the current day.

Day 2: Season 5 speculation

Fics that follow on from the end of s4, where the canon plot has not yet been resolved. They can pick up directly after the final scene of s4 or be set after a timeskip. Examples include apocalypse Byler fics, some gate fics, and Vecnafication fics set after s4. The focus doesn't need to be on wrapping up the Vecna plot, as long as it's part of the setting.

Day 3: Written pre-season 4

Fairly self-explanatory. Since the popularity boom Byler experienced when S4 released, most of the fandom's older fics have been buried beneath all the new content and can be quite difficult to find. The plotlines and backstories they show won't necessarily match up well with the current canon, but that doesn't devalue them as stories. Examples include any fics that began before Volume 1 released. Longfics that started before S4 but are still ongoing count for this category.

Day 4: Friends & family

Fics with a strong focus on the party, the Byers' family, the Wheeler family, or any other platonic relationships. Other ships still can't be a central focus, but it's okay if Byler takes a backseat in fics that fall under this category so long as it's there in some capacity. Examples include coming out fics, outsider POV fics, and sibling bonding fics.

Day 5: Full AU

Fics that place the characters in a completely different setting to canon, rather than adding AU elements to the canonverse. Their setting s and storylines are either completely original or follow the format of another piece of media. Examples include fantasy AUs, SpiderWill AUs, and historical AUs.

Day 6: Canon divergence

Fics that follow canon up to a point, before splitting. Examples of this could include S4 rewrites, fics based on popular theories and gates, Will/Mike gets Vecnaed fics... Fics that include an element of AU while still following the structure of canon, such as soulmate AUs or time travel fics, also fall under this genre.

Day 7: Free day, post anything you haven't already or self promote

Anything goes. Any fics that you want to rec but didn't think matched any of the other categories can go here. Alternatively, if there's anything you meant to rec on a previous day but forgot, then now is your chance. If you're a writer yourself, this is also the day to post your own works and have them shared by the blog.

Exceptions

There are plenty of stories out there that could fit the criteria for multiple categories. If there's a story you want to rec that fits the criteria for more than one day, just use your best judgement about what category it's the most like. For example: a full AU fic written pre-s4 is going to be much more focused on the AU elements than the time that it was written, so it's best to rec it on day 5. If you just can't make up you mind about what day you should rec a fic, either rec it on day 7 or shoot us an ask for advice.

#📌 #🗞 #byler #BylerFicRecWeek2023 #BylerFicRecWeek #byler fanfic #byler fanfiction #byler fic #byler fic rec #byler fanfiction rec #byler rec #byler fandom #byler tumblr

[bylerconfessions]

Byler's like a religion we've all been converted to. We got denominations (bi mike/gay mike), heretics (those who preach fanon doctrines that go against canon), prophets (kaypeace, hawkins school counselor), controversial but influential televangelists (spicy byler polls) and those who oppose them ("puritans"), statements of faith (some adhere to the Byler Bible, others develop their own statements of faith like will80sbyers, others believe we should simplify our doctrine and just believe Mike loves Will), literal Confessions (you), wars (everything that happened in 2022), church history (everything that happened before 2022), scandalous religious leaders (everything re: noah), an enemy religion (Milevens), a gospel message (Byler endgame), a mission field (Reddit), missionaries (Bylers on Reddit), chapels/synagogues/temples (Byler Tumblr/Byler Twitter), religious art creators (Byler fan artists), lay theologians (smaller accounts that come up with new theories), famous theologians (big Byler blogs like pinkeoni), apostates (those who have left the Byler faith), idolaters (multishippers), religious films on the life of Jesus Will Byers (Byler fan edits), religious holidays (Will's birthday), saints (ancient Bylers), contested verses (gates), a literal advent calendar (the lead-up to volume II), mantras ("Mike Wheeler I Know What You Are"), new converts (baby Bylers), and more.

anon please go on with the examples. also i think my head just exploded reading this like i can just imagine someone on screen preaching at a stand "WHO GIVES THE BETTER HANDJOBS"

#st #stranger things #st confessions #byler #byler confessions

[kaypeace21]

It's funny people are losing it over the byler fight possibly being based off a romantic fight, in the highschool musical sequel. Because , byler (long before s4) has been paralleled to romantic pairings - that are from shows/films that are confirmed ST inspo. It's not new. The writers also said the original highschool musical was inspo for s4 ... so the idea the sequel is also inspo, is fairly possible. I even said a few years ago , and got teased by the way ,for mentioning how gabriel/Troy parallel byler because : Byler knew eachother since kindergarten. And in the og film- troy/gabriel say it's "feels" like they've know eachother since they were in kindergarten. They say it a bunch in the first film .And now people are noticing the byler fight (via dialogue and framing) also parallels troy/Gabriella's fight.

But did yall also forget the byler s3 fight (which parallels the s4 fight) was also based off a different romantic scene from a diff series? I noticed/mentioned this parallel - years ago. Duffers said they were huge fans of Dawson's creek.

In the D.C scene the 2 childhood friends try to deny their romantic feelings and fight about it ...one character does so with one very interesting line :

The character who says the same line as mike: is actually in love with their childhood friend. Yet uses this exact line to change the subject/deny their feelings to their friend (when confronted by them).

Also d.c had an endgame gay couple (what's funny is - one had a sister, the other had a brother. Their straight siblings dated before them- but eventually they broke up. And the gay siblings ,started dating later,and were endgame).

Also look at the framing of the gay realization: both occur at the end of an episode where we see them hugging a girl ,and only see the back of the girls' heads - as they zoom in on the guys' faces filled with turmoil.

Even after the gay realization/scene in d.c ,he (jack) pretends to be straight and still dates the main girl for a bit longer. Both are rich guys who initially date the main girl character (because they are in deep denial about being lgbt). And both have a smart overachiever sister who initially dates a guy who is poor,and has a shitty dad.And by the end jack dates the brother of his sister's ex. And this (straight ) brother always assumed his brother was gay and was also an ally to jack,before the jack and his brother dated- reminds me a bit of jonathan.

Some also thought the s3 byler fight reminded them of the fight between a gay pairing in " eyewitness". It has no confirmation of being inspo by the Duffers (unlike hsm or d.c). But the framing is very similar... coincidence or not. The boy on the same side as mike (has a gf, and was in serious denial/repression about his romantic feelings for the other guy, during said fight.) That boy had so much internalized homophobia- especially because he was from/lived in a small town. Their fight in a garage, the car in the background, the lighting . Coincidence or not the parallel is definitely something else... lol

Eyewitness even has another similar scene, which i really disliked in both shows: dude in woods with camera records love interest... cough with someone else doing , y'know. Yall remember that mess in s1 of stranger things. Ick.But, I digress.

Also byler in s2 is based off Ghostbusters. And name dropped in the show. Mike said he was Venkman. Venkman's love interest was Dana (Will): who gets possessed, and then can control demon dogs during said possession, one demondog was in her fridge too, they have to close the gate to break her possession. Does any of this sound very familiar. Cause it should...

And in s1 mike writes a d&d story where king Tristan (Will) gives mike and his friends medals at the end of s1. Like the end of the original star wars film where princess leia gave medals to han (her future love interest) and han's friends . Mike, a star wars nerd: replaced princess leia for a king (Will)- who gave medals (to their future love interest) . The medal ceremony was romantic foreshadowing since Han winks at leia after she gives him the medal.

There's more examples.little woman was s4 inspo. Dude dates girl, but he ends up with his ex's artist sibling -instead. Before that-the artist 3rd wheeled her sister and future love interest while the 2 were skating /holding hands. Aka just like Will watching mike and el skate. Or heck "it" series is confirmed inspo too-ben/bev/bill parallels Will/mike/El. Bev (mike) gets romantic poem (painting). Bev (mike) assumes the poem (painting ) is from Bill (El) when it's actually from Ben (Will). Bev was into Bill, but later she realized the poem is from Ben. When she realized the words were from ben- they became endgame. So if Mike ever finds out the truth of the painting (what will happen?).

But literally every season byler is paralleled to a romantic pairing from a show/film the duffers or writers like. The fact byler scenes are often based off romantic pairings/scenes is strange if platonic or one sided. That's all i'm saying XD

#byler #will byers #mike wheeler #stranger things

[light-lanterne]

navigating across morbid accounts, i encountered the most harrowing of stories which i have now turned into a small fic concept for day 2 of @bylerween2023

tw // body horror, gore, disturbing imagery, illness and death - - - - - - - - - - - - -- - - - - - - - ☽ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - dear @foodiewithdahoodie, forgive me for tagging you unprompted but i believe you will find this as absolutely fascinating as it is disturbing.

in 1927, a man called ebenezer byers suffered a fall that left him with constant pain in his arm. advised by his physician, he then began taking a medication called radithor, a supposed endocrine system stimulant that helped ebenezer feel energised. healthier. no longer in any pain.

he took the radithor, often consuming multiple doses a day until —three years later and after 1400 doses— he noticed he could no longer feel any effects from the medication.

so he stopped, became ill and, eventually, died. over the course of a year and a half, ebenezer lost a ton of weight, had headaches, his teeth fell out, his lower jaw became so deformed it had to be removed so he could be fed. his bones began to disintegrate. his skull became riddled with holes.

he passed away in 1932 to what was then denominated "radiation poisoning" (later specified as various cancers), which he acquired from his high intake of radithor, a solution of radium in water manufactured by a college dropout who pretended to be a licensed doctor. unfortunately, this man would go on to die from cancer himself many years later, after creating several other radioactive products, never being punished or prosecuted for knowingly endangering people with his "cures".

and that is the tale of ebenezer byers.

,,,so, and because of the implication that the upside down is radioactive in some way,,,

byler au where the party —and will in particular— start spending more and more time in the upside down as they continue their fight against vecna. multiple years go past and will doesn't know if it's just him, but as time goes on, all the negative side effects the upside down used to have on him stop affecting him and, instead, the longer he's in there, the stronger and healthier he feels.

so he begins asking to go down there more often. joins any mission the party needs to get done. hangs out by the closest gate whenever the others decide he should stay in the rightside up instead. he becomes almost addicted to the way the toxic atmosphere makes him feel to the point that, when the group finally defeats vecna and manages to close the gate, he has to hide his sadness and disappointment from the others.

but he moves on, and life goes on and soon enough, things start feeling normal again.

,,,that is, until will starts feeling sick. weak. his skin begins to peel off. he wakes up every day with one more missing tooth and blood all over his mouth and under his nails. his hair falls out in chunks. his eyes, bloodshot, begin looking more and more deranged as he comes to understand what is happening to him and, perhaps more importantly, as he realises that there is nothing he can do to stop or change this anymore.

after all, it's not like he can open up a gate into the upside down once more, right ?

maybe. maybe not. he tried to hide it from everyone, but of course mike noticed and, loving as he is, mike offers to help, desperate to save will because he is not losing him after everything they've gone through.

thus begins a little game of mutual deception:

on one side, the perishing, almost-zombie-looking will accepts to look for a cure with sweet, naive, innocent mike, subtly trying to manipulate him into helping him open the gates once more because will needs the upside down. desperately. not to live but because he misses it and how it makes him feel.

and on the other hand, the always-determined mike, who's being so kind and loving and diligent in his search for a cure. who is absolutely fed up with humanity after how much pain the entire party had to go through because evil men who didn't care about any of their lives —specially will's.

mike, who is secretly working on a way to open a way back into the upside down because he doesn't care who lives or dies anymore as long as will —who's too kind to wish harm on anyone, hence why it's a secret— gets to survive.

- the end -

(below is a photo of ebenezer for reference. be aware, it is highly unsettling and saddening. also, i looked it up and apparently @henrysglock has a whole theory about the possible implications ebenezer byers' story might have on the stranger things plot. be sure to give it a read)

#🪦 #🎃 #✨ #🧸 #byler #byler fanfic #byler fanfiction #bylerween2023 #will byers #mike wheeler #walpurgis hexes #dark byler agenda #w // gore #w // body horror #w // death mentions #w // disturbing imagery

[bylerweek2023]

CLARIFICATIONS!!!!

👋 Hello everyone

We've noticed that a lot of people are having the same doubts, so we wanted to make this post to clarify some topics.

1. Rules About Participating:

Prompts:

You DON'T HAVE to follow the descriptions that we posted. Those were more ideas we thought of when brainstorming but you can take the themes how you please! This is about CREATIVITY and ENTERTAINMENT!!!

The point of the theme post was to give you some ideas as a starting point 💡

Submissions Timings:

You DON'T HAVE to post every day's contribution/post ON THE DAY ITSELF!!

We know that asking people to post something new everyday for a week straight is a lot! So we’re going to be accepting submissions A MONTH AFTER THE FINAL DAY!!! So don’t worry or stress yourself, please 🥰

If you want to participate on those days but have incomplete works you can post the WIPs or snippets of dialogues. That way people are more likely to see it as well as look forward to the final post!

Eligible Content:

ANY and ALL posts/submissions that relate to the prompts are acceptable! This means fanfiction and fanart, but also memes, theory posts, gifsets, edits, literally anything. We want everyone to feel like they can participate no matter the skillset. This is about community more than anything else!!!

2. Watch Party:

We haven’t been promoting the watch parties as vocally as we should, BUT we are planning on doing watch parties EVERYDAY of Byler Week!

We would really like to see each one of you on the watch parties, but you DON'T HAVE to watch or join every watch party! You can ALWAYS pop in and out whenever you wish!!!

Logistics:

EACH DAY we will host TWO watch parties at different timings (essentially re-runs).

That way you have a higher chance of joining based on time zones!

⏰️As of right now, the decided timings will be 15:00 UTC (3pm) and 22:00 UTC (10pm)⏰️

We will be posting a POLL SOON to see whether or not these timings are doable for a majority of people (if they want to participate in the watch parties).

If there is a clear majority that are unable to join, we will try and discuss possible new timings.

Although, as a reminder, we are two people who are bound by our own time zones! We can try our best to make it work but there will be limitations!

We will watch between 2-3 EPISODES PER DAY (around 2 hours and 30 minutes ± 10 minutes).

We will be hosting the watch parties on SCENER! Which is a free google chrome extension that allows watch parties of big sizes.

Here's the link to our Scener account:

Schedule:

The day BEFORE each day, we will post the EPISODES we plan to watch as well as posting the LINKS to the scheduled watch parties. This will make it easier for you to decide whether or not you want to join and watch as well as plan!

Additionally, if you can’t watch the episodes with us, this gives you an opportunity to have your own watch parties with your friends (be sure to post if you do!!!)

3. Playlists:

In addition to the watch parties, we also plan to post a PLAYLIST the day BEFORE each day’s theme!

The playlists will consist of around 30 songs (± 5 songs) that will match the day’s theme! If you have any suggestions for songs please feel free to share!

Any contribution will be greatly appreciated!

4.Tagging System:

For the event itself, make sure to TAG EACH DAY with the #bylerweek2023 tag as well as the tag for each day:

#Day 1 DnD/Cleradin

#Day 2 80s Films

#Day 3 Birthdaygate/Byler gates

#Day 4 Summer Love

#Day 5 Secret Identities

#Day 6 Pre-Vol 2

#Day 7 Soulmates

Additionally, it would be helpful to tag the type of content you’re including! (ex: memes, fanfic, gifsets, fanart, etc.)

We will try our best to reblog everyone’s submissions to help spread them around!

Again, this is about community so try and reblog each other's works with compliments and sweet messages!

Let us know if you have any other doubts!!!

💙💛

#bylerweek2023 #byler #mike wheeler #will byers #byler endgame #byler nation #byler tumblr #byler art #byler fic #byler memes #byler gifs #byler edits #byler au

[henbeaka]

What's one of your favorite bylergates??

yay! anon, i love you

okay, so i'm a lettergate girlie forever, it just makes too much sense to me for it not to be true ngl, and it would literally perfectly encapsulate byler and how hard it contrasts milkvan.

thoughts on other byler gates

-> birthday gate

ngl, i feel like it would have been subtly hinted at as something will was bitter about, or at least joyce and jonathon would have remembered. so i actually do think that it was a collective accident.

however! it is a possibility to me that the duffers will maybe retcon it into the script. i am not against that right now, but it depends on how well they pull it off.

-> flickergate

i don't know much about this one but it seems so sweet to me like i want to know!! if anyone's passionate about flickergate, lmk?? it's just that the lights flickered right? i think it does provide ample opportunity to do a flashback in s5

-> my most hot take - will powers gate

will won't have powers in s5, or at least i hope he won't. i think it's so important that will and el are different in fundamental ways, and i think from a byler standpoint it doesn't make sense to mix up such a defining part of mileven's relationship (not a good thing!) with byler's relationship.

as for the sci-fi lore, i'm not too aware of how it would impact the story, but i don't think it makes sense. will is a victim, yes, he has been a victim. but i don't think he needs superpowers to break himself out of it, and i think it would tell a better story if he doesn't have superpowers when he finally reclaims his role as not a victim.

again, i come from a storytelling and byler perspective NOT the sci fi lore. maybe will having powers ties up every thread, and will make sense.

-> phonegate

faves!!!! its so cute and i do think it makes enough sense for it to be real. mike was also really defensive in the roller rink fight but not in a damn i SHOULD have called, but in a this isn't just my fault but i don't want to let you know why way.

-> new coke gate

this makes a lot of sense when you explain it to me, but i was 80 percent sure that it was just a sponsorship (a very long one) when i watched the lucas mike scene originally. i did my research once and i believe that no one really knows, but they have partnered. i don't know that partnering with a brand, (aka NO MONEY) warrants the excessive use of coke, so i do see this being just one of those things that the duffers would do to us.

on the other hand, it is strange to use coke as such a huge part of byler symbolism.

-> any sort of number gate

i'm obsessed with number gates because they always come back to seven and i love seven symbolism with byler. (mainly because of seven by taylor swift and HOW MUCH IT FITS THEM but still)

-> my babies, mikhailgate and localvillagegate

faves 🤞🤞 too good

#byler #stranger things #ask #I LITERALLY LOVE YOU ANON #thanks so much for being my first non hate ask #made my whole freaking week #i dont really remember any other gates #btw