"No!" cried Bill. "Stanley, let me— What?"
Bill looked around to find that he was half-buried but alive in a beautiful forest. He climbed out of the dirt and brushed himself off. "I'm alive?" he wondered in amazement. He looked up to see that the rift was gone, but at least he was alive.
"How long has it been?" he wondered aloud. He shrugged. "Ah, who cares? I'm restarting Weirdmageddon!" Laughing evilly, he flew into the air...
...and fell.
"What the— No! What's happened to my powers!?" He tried creating fire, changing the Gravity Falls water tower into a monster, and turning a nearby butterfly huge, but nothing worked. "What's going on!? I can't do anything!"
Dipper and Mabel arrived at the Mystery Shack and got off the bus. Soos appeared via smoke bomb, coughing right afterwards.
"I think I gotta work on that," said Soos.
"Soos!" exclaimed the kids in unison.
"Hey, there! You here for another summer?"
"We've been waiting so long!" Mabel announced, hardly able to keep still.
Soos knelt down. "I can see you brought your pig along, too." Waddles trotted forward and licked the man's hand, making him chuckle. "Let's get you kids settled in."
"So, where are Grunkle Stan and Ford?" asked Dipper as they unpacked.
"They're coming back from an adventure," answered Soos. "They should be here in about an hour."
"I can't wait!" chirped Mabel. "I got a new scrapbook and everything!"
Soos chuckled. "That's great, hambone."
As the kids finished unpacking and rested, there was a knock on the door. "Guess who's back," called a raspy voice from outside.
Soos answered the door, the kids following close behind. "Our grunkles!" exclaimed Mabel.
"How was your adventure?" asked Dipper as they hugged.
"It was great," replied Stan. "But it feels good to be back here, too."
Once everyone was settled in and caught up, Mabel decided to take Waddles on a walk. Mabel gasped, and Waddles ran away squealing when they saw an all-too-familiar, triangular figure.
Mabel glared. "Bill!" she shouted.
Bill turned around sharply. "Ah!"
Mabel stomped forward angrily with Bill backing away. "What are you doing here?" she demanded. "Shouldn't you be dead?"
"I don't know why I'm alive," replied Bill, "but if you hurt me in any way, I-I'll burn you to a crisp!"
Mabel stopped walking forward, her glare turning to a look of concern. "Are you okay?"
Bill's eye widened, surprised by the question, as he continued backing away. "I'm fine!" he insisted. "Just leave me alone!"
Mabel came forward again, more gently this time. "It's okay," she told him kindly. "I won't bite."
"Really? After everything I've done to you?"
Mabel smiled softly. "Really."
Bill stopped backing away and sighed with relief. "Thank you, Shooting Star."
Mabel nodded. "So what happened?"
"I don't know. All I know is that I'm alive, but my powers are gone."
Mabel's eyes widened with surprise. "They are?" Bill nodded, and Mabel smiled. "Hey, that means you can't hurt us." She gasped with excitement. "And you can't restart the apocalypse, can you?"
"No."
"Do you know what this means?"
"Uh, no, and I don't think I want—"
Mabel interrupted him with a hug, and he glared in annoyance. "That means you have no choice but to be my friend! And I know just where to start! But first, have you seen Waddles?"
"Not since he ran away."
Mabel heard whimpering and looked in a bush to find her trembling pig. "It's okay, Waddles. Bill won't hurt you." She stroked him until his whimpering stopped before turning to Bill. "Anyways, follow me!" She didn't give him much of a choice, however, as she grabbed him by the wrist and pulled him along.
"Hey, Shooting Star," said Bill as they went.
"Yeah?"
"Do you think I'm... a coward?"
"No. Why?"
"Well, ever since I lost my powers, I've been kind of paranoid. You saw me when you approached me."
"I saw you. But you're just scared because you feel helpless without your superpowers, and that's fine. It doesn't make you a coward."
As they approached the Mystery Shack, Mabel felt Bill fighting back, digging his heels into the ground. "What's wrong, Bill?"
"I'm not going in there!" he told her. "Maybe you're gracious and trusting, Shooting Star, but I doubt your family feels the same way."
"I'll stick up for you," she promised. "Will it make you feel better if I hold your hand?"
He glanced down at her outstretched hand and gratefully complied.
Mabel opened the door, Waddles walking in and Bill hiding behind her. "Hey, guys," she called to her family, "you won't believe who I just found!"
"The pizza man?" Ford guessed.
Mabel laughed. "No, not today. So, while I was walking Waddles, boom! I found this guy!" She grabbed Bill by the wrists and spun him around next to her.
"Um, hey," he said, trying to appear confident.
Mabel's family gasped with shock.
"What the— He's alive?" cried Dipper.
"Not for long," retorted Stan, making a fist.
"Grunkle Stan, wait!" cried Mabel, stepping in front of her frightened friend. "It's okay! He's lost his powers, so he's not a threat anymore."
"What?" asked Stan, pulling his fist back.
"Lost his powers?" asked Ford. "How is that possible?"
"We have no idea," replied Mabel.
Ford glared warningly. "You know this is another one of Bill's tricks, right?"
"It's not a trick, Grunkle Ford. I saw him. He was so scared of me."
Bill glared at the ground, wanting to argue, but he managed to hold his tongue.
"Mabel," said Dipper, "can we talk to you alone for a bit?"
"Sure," she replied. They walked up the stairs to Mabel and Dipper's bedroom and closed the door so Bill wouldn't hear.
Bill paced endlessly outside the door, groaning with impatience every now and then until the door opened.
"So?" asked Bill. "Can I stay?"
Mabel smiled brightly. "Yep!" she chirped, running up to him and hugging him, earning another annoyed look from him.
"On one condition," said Stan. "Mabel is gonna look after you, so if you need anything, bug her, not any of us."
"Got it," replied Bill.
"So what do demons need anyway?" Mabel asked as they walked down the stairs.
"Physically?" asked Bill. She nodded. "Nothing, really."
"Is there anything you would like?"
Bill rolled his eye slowly, thinking. "Uhh... Do you play chess?"
"I love chess! Dipper is better than me at it, of course, but I'd still be more than happy to play with you." Bill's bottom eyelid lifted, as though he was smiling.
They played three games in a row with Bill winning each one.
"Okay, you're officially better than me at this," said Mabel.
Bill shrugged. "Eh, there's nothing to be ashamed of when you're beaten by an interdimensional champion."
They both laughed, but they stopped and turned to look as Wendy and Soos walked into the room and gasped.
"Dude, what the—" cried Soos.
"What is he doing here?" Wendy snapped.
"I lost my powers," Bill answered, "so I'm staying with Shooting Star here and her family."
Wendy raised an eyebrow. "Does Stan know about this?" Mabel and Bill nodded. "All right. If Stan's cool with it. But I'm watching you, triangle." She backed into the shadows, pointing to her eyes and then to him, Soos imitating her right afterwards.
"Should I be worried about that?" Bill asked Mabel.
"Nah, they're just worried you'll hurt someone. Just behave, and you'll be fine."
Wow, this was long! I got the idea for this from a YouTube comment pointing out that since Bill's mental form is destroyed, even if he did come back, he would just be like a triangular human without any powers, at least mental powers. Please R&R! :)