- One: Like you, I didn't fit in with the other children. Something was wrong with me. All the teachers and the doctors said I was... "Broken," they said. My parents thought a change of scenery, a fresh start in Hawkins, might just cure me. It was absurd. As if the world would be any different here. But then... to my surprise, our new home provided a discovery. And a new found sense of purpose. I found a nest of black widows living inside a vent. Most people fear spiders. They detest them. And yet, I found them endlessly fascinating. More than that, I found a great comfort in them. A kinship. Like me, they are solitary creatures. And deeply misunderstood. They are gods of our world. The most important of all predators. They immobilize and feed on the weak, bringing balance and order to an unstable ecosystem. But the human world was disrupting this harmony. You see, humans are a unique type of pest, multiplying and poisoning our world, all while enforcing a structure of their own. A deeply unnatural structure. Where others saw order, I saw a straitjacket. A cruel, oppressive world dictated by made-up rules. Seconds, minutes, hours, days, weeks, months, years, decades. Each life a faded, lesser copy of the one before. Wake up, eat, work, sleep, reproduce, and die! Everyone is just waiting. Waiting for it all to be over. All while performing in a silly, terrible play, day after day. I could not do that. I could not close off my mind and join in the madness. I could not pretend. And I realized I didn't have to. I could make my own rules. I could restore balance to a broken world. A predator... but for good.
- Jim Hopper: The last time I was with El, she wanted just about nothing to do with me. I was just in her way, really. I think back to the way I was with my dad at that age. I was the same way. The exact same way. I think it must be hardwired into us to reject our fathers. So we can grow and move on. Become something of our own. I hope that's what she's doing. Coming into her own.
- Dustin Henderson: Okay. Seriously? How many times do I have to be right on the money before you guys just trust me?
- Steve Harrington: Jesus Christ this kid's gotta get his ego in check
- Eddie Munson: It's his tone. Right?
- Steve Harrington: I know!
- Chief Powell: And what exactly were you all doing at the lake?
- Dustin Henderson: Uh... it's compl...
- Max Mayfield: We were... We were just going for a walk.
- Officer Callahan: A walk? At 9:00 p.m.?
- Dustin Henderson: To the lake. We were gonna... take a little swim. Little night swim.
- Dustin Henderson: Hey, uh... remember when I said they wouldn't be stupid enough to go through Watergate?
- Lucas Sinclair: Yeah...
- Dustin Henderson: I overestimated them.
- Jim Hopper: We'd die as monster slayers. You'll be a legend.
- Dmitri Antonov: But still a traitor. You forgot traitor
- Jim Hopper: Monster slayer trumps traitor.
- Dr. Sam Owens: But I don't see any progress out there, Martin. You know what I see? I see a frightened, traumatized little girl. Good for us.
- Robin Buckley: So the good news is I'm pretty sure wooziness is not a symptom of rabies. But if you start having hallucinations or muscle spasms or you start feeling aggressive, like you wanna punch me, let me know.
- Steve Harrington: Robin.
- Robin Buckley: Yeah?
- Steve Harrington: I kinda wanna punch you.
- Robin Buckley: Sense of humor's still intact. That's a good sign.