A/N: There was an annoying grammatical error that I missed when I proofread the first time, I just had to fix it

Alex Hirsch was having a nightmare. He was long used to it by now. It started out the same way it had for years, ever since a few days after the episode Sock Opera had aired for the first time. He was floating in an endless plane of stars. Everything was silent until a cold, cackling laugh echoed across his dreamscape. Alex recognized the laugh, it was his laugh. At least, he had thought it was his. The first time Alex had the dream, he was certain it was just that: a dream. After all, he… he was a figment of Alex's own imagination. The dream was disturbingly realistic, sure, but it was just a dream. But he had the dream again, the next night, and the next, and the next. Alex began to realize that this was no mere nightmare. The demon he had created had come to life.

In Alex's present dream, a dark, triangular shape appeared in front of him, and took form into a yellow pyramid with a top hat, bow tie, and a single eye.

"Bill," Alex muttered with contempt, "To what do I owe the pleasure? You don't normally grace me with your presence unless you want something."

Alex had hoped that Bill would disappear when the series ended, but Bill had manipulated him into keeping the series going in one way or another: the Journal, the bonus books, the Cipher Hunt, and now the upcoming graphic novels. Besides, even if the series was truly over, would Bill ever really be gone? Alex knew that the series would always be alive in the hearts of the fans; would that still be enough to keep Bill alive in this dimension? He had been trying to warn his fans for a while now, sending hints and hoping that Bill would never realize what he was doing. When he desperately tried to keep himself awake to keep Bill out of his mind, he joked about his insomnia on Twitter. Years ago, he left the drawing of Stan, Soos, and Mcgucket in the prize journal at the end of the Cipher Hunt, with Bill hovering in the background, hoping that someone would connect the dots between the characters. A few months ago, the YouTube channel The Film Theorists had come up with a theory that Bill possessed Stan after his memories returned. That was the closest anyone had gotten to the truth. He hoped someone would figure it out. The fans of the show were smart, he knew that much.

"As a matter of fact, there is something I need from you!" Bill said, "You see, its been fun manipulating things from behind the scenes and making your life miserable, but even that gets boring after a while. I wanna make some real change, and to do that, I need to borrow your body. Just for a few days, then I'll leave you alone for good. Deal?" Bill stuck out his hand, and it burst into blue flame.

Alex felt mildly insulted Bill thought he would fall for that.

"I know you better than you do, Bill," he said, "Don't you think I'd know not to trust a word that comes out of your mouth?"

He looked at Bill for a few seconds.

"Or, however it is you talk."

Bill's air of affability dropped.

"Fine, fine," he said, "I tried to be the nice guy, but if I can't get your cooperation, I'll have to do this the hard way."

"I know the rules, Bill. I made them. You can't take over my mind unless I shake your hand."

"Not necessarily."

Alex's calm evaporated.

"What?"

"For the time I've been in this word, I've been exploring," Bill said, "It all started when those kids who won the scavenger hunt shook my hand. Ever since then, I've been making deals all over the world. Boy, are you humans gullible! So many kids try to summon me, just to see what will happen! And you wouldn't believe how much fanart there is of me. It's like having eyes all over the world! I've been getting more powerful by the day."

Bill crossed his arms and flew closer to Alex.

"The point is, boss… I don't need your permission anymore."

Bill snapped his fingers, and the dreamscape was engulfed in blue flames. Alex felt like his body was being ripped apart. Suddenly, he woke up with a gasp. He sat up, relieved that it had all been part of the dream… until he saw his own sleeping body below him. He raised his hand in front of his face. He could see right through it.

"No! No, no, no, no, no!"

The body in his bed opened its eyes, its yellow eyes with vertical, serpent-like pupils. Bill's demented laugh echoed through the room.

Oh, no…