A/N: having been consumed by the Transcendence AU, here's a little something that's been floating around for a while. There's gonna be fluff and feels probably? Most likely a one-shot, might continue if it's well-liked.

Alcor the Dreambender, Dipper Pines, knew something was out of the ordinary as soon as the summons tugged at his gut. He was in a sour mood, and under normal circumstances would have dismissed the summons and retired to his personal pocket of the Mindscape for some well-deserved rest, however, this was no casual summons, he felt. Something about it was desperate.

It beckoned.

He resigned himself to its pull, tessering into existence at the location of the summons. His heart wrenched as a paralyzing wave of nausea washed over him, or the distant impression of it, anyway. Physical feelings were always dull and muted, but that didn't stop the horror that slithered up his throat as he stared, wide-eyed at his summoners.

There was no dingy basement, thank the Gods- cults were incredibly unimaginative and he was frankly quite tired of seeing them, there was no sacrificial virgin or innocent woodland animal bleeding at his feet. The setting was almost frighteningly mundane, he thought, as he hovered a little less than a foot over the penciled-in summoning circle on the kitchen floor, tainted only by two small drops of blood against the peachy tile.

The kitchen floor of the Pines family residence, in Piedmont, California.

Dipper felt a knot rise in his stomach as he stared at his parents' faces, looking a little more lined and tired than he'd last seen them, but no worse for wear. The muddled blues, yellows and greens that swam in their auras betrayed their feelings.

Hatred. Sadness. Fear.

There was no recognition behind their uncertainty- the fledgling demon wasn't sure whether to be glad or absolutely crushed that that was so.

But his musing would have to wait, he realized, as the awkward silence grew.

"Who are you, and why have you summoned me, Alcor the Dreambender?" He asked, notably devoid of his usual theatrics. He asked, knowing the answer in the back of his mind but deciding to hear it from them. He could pretend to be normal, at least in that sense.

"W-well," his mother stuttered, "I am Anna and this is my husband, Mark Pines."

Dipper nodded knowingly, toying with his cufflinks and smoothing down his tailcoat.

"And we want to know if it would be possible," she swallowed hard, drawing away as though she expected him to smite her at any moment, "for you to bring back our son?"

His heart dropped.

The demon let his dark eyes drift away, a soft sigh escaping him as he bobbed in midair. "Sorry," he murmured, sounding more apologetic than he'd meant to. "I... I can't bring back the dead."

The pair looked devastated, deflated, but Mark- his father- steeled himself to ask another question.

"Could you tell us, then, if we did alright?" His voice wavered, and Dipper found himself wanting to cry. "Was there anything we could've done? Anything to have kept from losing him?"

A shard of self-loathing made him squirm as it pierced his gut, but he had to do this. There was always a price, and besides...

"I can tell you all you like about your son," he deadpanned- if he didn't, he'd surely break down. "But in exchange, I want an evening."

Anna Pines looked so bewildered, Dipper almost thought to revoke the deal, but steeled himself and waited for her to recover.

"An evening?" She echoed. The demon could taste the bitter fear in her aura, and almost recoiled. There were too many almosts for his liking during this particular summons, he decided. He would need a long break before accepting another.

Dipper nodded, "That's right. I will tell you all you want to know in exchange for spending an evening with you. I can't replace what you lost, but we can pretend for a while."

Mark's fear was etched on his features, glimmering in his eyes. He was looking desperately for loopholes, and Dipper knew there were many, but his parents weren't exactly the demon-summoning type. They were lucky it was him and not another demon, he thought with an internal shudder. They'd given him their true names without hesitation, and would be long dead or enslaved if that were the case.

"I don't understand what's in it for you," Mark ventured.

Dipper shrugged, letting his melancholy show as he drooped a little in midair. "Being a demon's more stressful than you'd think. I need to relax a while." It wasn't a total lie.

Mark and Anna exchanged glances before Anna spoke guardedly, "We'll take it."

Dipper nodded, holding out his hand as it ignited with hungry blue fire. The normal jolt of giddiness that accompanied the sealing of a deal made him squirm delightedly, but he managed to keep his expression blank.

Before their eyes, he shrunk a little until he was the size of a child, leathery wings fading away as his teeth turned dull, ears round and eyes clear. His finely pressed slacks and tailcoat were replaced by a loose pair of cargo shorts and T-shirt, dress shoes becoming sneakers and top hat disappearing with a faint 'pop.' He shuddered a little as corporeality struck him, the cold kitchen air making goosebumps appear on his pale skin.

Mark and Anna Pines both bristled, full of unease and horror at seeing a demon morph into near-perfect clone of their dead twelve-year-old son, but the expression on the kid's face was so earnest that they couldn't help but embrace him. Maybe the demon was doing this on purpose. Maybe it knew how much they needed to see Dipper, even if it wasn't real.

The demon child gave a melancholy smile. He looked just like Dipper, Anna mused, right down to the birthmark on his forehead peeking out from under his tousled curls. The only thing was the eyes- they were a mesmerizing liquid brown, just like Dipper's had been, but they were infinitely sadder. Wiser, older.

So incredibly sad, full of remorse and exhaustion.

Dipper couldn't believe this. He wanted to cry and scream and bury his head into his parents and wail until his emotions were spent, but maintained his stoic expression.

Slowly, his parents grew less hesitant. They wandered over to the couch, inviting him to sit beside them. Eventually the wide berth they offered him was closed as he smuggled close between them. An old ghost-hunting flick, one his parents had always hated, had been picked as they snuggled up for the movie night. Dipper watched intently, making snide comments about how bad the special effect were or how he could totally do better, and laughing at the bad jokes, just like the old days.

He kicked himself a little when he sensed the feelings coming off his parents, something between suspicion and hopefulness. He seized up when his mother spoke.

"You're acting just like him," said Anna with a hopeful smile, the kind that was subdued, prepared for disappointment. "did you practice or is this just coincidence?"

Dipper purred in amusement, just drawing closer and enjoying their company.

However, all good things must come to an end. Once the room darkened and the film's credits rolled idly down the screen, Mark and Anna both stiffened. He had to spill now.

"He loves you," said Dipper. If he ever had a chance to speak his heart, it was now. "He couldn't have asked for better parents. He misses you a lot, every day," His eyes flitted up to meet his parents' before darting away as he continued. "He doesn't want you to be sad. There's nothing you could've done and he doesn't want you to blame yourselves. He just wants you to take good care of his sister… And to forgive her."

There was a long silence.

"Are you telling the truth?" Mark breathed.

Dipper nodded slowly, biting his lip.

"So," Anna ventured, voice soft and motherly and irresistibly drawing Dipper in to rest his head in her lap. "Why did you really want this evening?"

The young demon's breath hitched. "I wanted to pretend, like I said." He caught the Pines' questioning stares, and continued. "I wanted to make like I had a family, if only for a little while."

"Do demons have families?"

Dipper shook his head. He made to say something more, but silenced himself.

"I see."

"If only Mabel knew," he breathed. He thought it was under his breath but Anna heard it loud and clear.

"What'd you say?"

He shrugged a little, sitting up and crossing his legs, scooting forward as not to be swallowed up by the couch cushions. "M-my sister, Mizar."

"I thought demons didn't have families." Anna's sly smile made Dipper relax a little.

He rubbed at the back of his neck. "It's complicated." His eyes flitted to the clock, then between Mark and Anna's faces. "It's late," he murmured, "I guess the deal's done so I should be going."

The young demon made to disengage from the couch and tesser away with a snap of his fingers, but Mark's firm hand on his shoulder stopped him.

"You can stay the night," he offered awkwardly. "Stay the night and have breakfast, too, if you'll help clean up afterwards."

Dipper smirked. "I'd like that. I'd like that a lot."

"Is it a deal?"

"Deal."