Dipper heaved a frustrated sigh as he walked through the forest. "I can't believe I said that…"
The 'that' in question was an extremely lame pun that he was going to blame on Mabel's terrible influence. The problem with it was the look Wendy gave him. Yeah, she had laughed but it was laughing at him, not with him. He could tell. He was back to being a little kid in her eyes.
With a groan he stopped at a tree, leaned back and let his head thump heavily against it as he looked up at the sky through the branches. "I'd give anything to be able to fix things with Wendy."
"Done!" A far too cheerful voice proclaimed.
Dipper felt his blood turn to ice as he turned to the yellow triangle floating nearby, somehow looking smug in spite of having only one eye and no mouth. "I wasn't talking to you!"
"Sure you were, kid. Like I said… I'm watching you. You were obviously making a deal with me since you weren't talking to anyone else and that sure was a deal if ever I heard one." Bill said cheerfully. "And now you can fix things with Wendy! I'm even so generous that you can fix things with anyone! Don't like how an interaction went? Just will them to forget and they will! You can try again and get it right!"
"What is the price, though?" Dipper demanded angrily. "I didn't agree to anything!"
"Oh, yes you did. Anything. That's exactly what you said." Bill laughed as he spun wildly. "But don't worry, kid, I get the feeling you'd be a better friend than enemy so it's nothing you'll miss."
"Tell me!" He shouted but Bill vanished and he woke with a start still leaning against the tree. He looked around nervously, trying to figure out whether that had been a dream or Bill had actually been present. Either way it made him nervous and he headed back to the Shack at a quick jog.
Wendy was listening to music and flipping through a magazine looking bored, when he approached she looked up and smiled - not the same smile or knowing look he was expecting. "Hey, Dipper. Where you been? I thought we were going to hang out."
"Yeah… Hey, do you remember what we were talking about earlier?" He asked, fighting back the nervous twist in his stomach.
"Uhh, not really. Did we talk earlier? Was it important or something?" She asked with a lopsided smile.
"Not at all." He grinned. However much he smiled, there was still a sick feeling in his stomach. Yes, it was a relief she didn't remember the stupid joke but what had Bill done to make it possible? It didn't sit well. "Hey, I'll be back in a few minutes, just need to talk to Mabel about something."
As soon as he was out of sight he dashed for the stairs, seeking out the only person he could trust to talk to about this.
"Are you okay? You don't look good." Mabel said as he burst into the room. She had a black sweater and hat on Waddles and was trying to teach him to use the grappling hook.
He struck that absurdity from his mind and focused on her. "Mabel, I think I might have done something really stupid on accident…"
"Is this about breakfast? I told you not to put eat the cereal with syrup on it… Been there, done that - it's not worth the sugar crash." She sighed, clearly disappointed in the outcome.
"What? No… Listen, I said something stupid to Wendy earlier and when I wished I hadn't Bill Cypher heard and thought it was some kind of contract. He won't tell me what the price is but now I can make people forget things I say if I want to."
Mabel halted her teaching efforts and stared at him in disbelief. "You made a deal with that guy? The guy the book says is super dangerous, never call or deal with him?"
"Not intentionally." Dipper said defensively.
"All you have to do is not use the power, right?" Mabel asked, frowning. "You can't just go around making people forget stuff all the time… You have to at least figure out what he's taking in trade, though."
"He wouldn't tell me." Dipper repeated. "He just said it's something I wouldn't miss. He could be taking a hair for each use for all I know."
"You shouldn't have been making deals over Wendy, anyway." Mabel huffed. "It's not right."
"It's not like I summoned him!" Dipper protested. Did she really think he'd do something like this intentionally?
"Do dream demons show up in the real world on their own?" Mabel asked pointedly. "Haven't seen him around without someone summoning him."
"I didn't!" He insisted as his temper flared. She really didn't believe him? What had he been thinking? He wished he'd never told her about this.
Mabel's eyes glazed over for a moment as he realized what he'd just thought. When she looked back at him she tilted her head. "Hey, Dipper. What's got you so upset?"
"Nothing… I'm fine…." He said, backing out of the room. This was going to be a lot harder than he thought.