Amongst the tall trees and dense bushes, three pairs of footsteps could be heard. Two of them walked in unison, but would often dissonate whenever the third one would find something interesting.

- What's that?
- That's fern, sweetie. The same we have in the house, but bigger.
- What's that?
- That's a swallow. It can fly very fast!
- What's that?
- That's an entrance to the elves' grotto. If you go there, they will trick you into a financial scam involving pots of imaginary gold, thus ruining your life.

Tyrone Pines did not know that. He sat on the nearest rock (checking beforehand if it's not dirty), opened his bound drawing book he proudly named a "Journal" (Dad had one so why couldn't he?) and started drawing. Tyrone was aware that he had to learn a lot, so every time he heard or saw something new he had to write or draw it down. His parents wanted to send him to The School next year, and he knew that in The School teachers ask you questions, so he wanted to be prepared. After all, there could be lots of questions, and he might need to visit The School more than once to answer all of them.

- Looking great! - he heard his Mom's voice behind his back and soon felt her kiss on his cheek.

Mom always liked his drawings, even though they not always depicted exactly what he wanted to draw.

- I think we should head home guys, it's getting late.

Dad was right. The entire forest stopped being green long time ago, and it started getting more and more orange, as the sun was setting behind the horizon. The problem was, Tyrone hasn't explored all of the forest yet. Come to think of it, he never could, but he always tried.

- Five more minutes! Please!
- Alright, champ, off you go. - his Dad said, kneeling down and ruffling through his messy hair. His looked a lot like Dad's except it was red, like Mom's.

Free and ready to roam, Tyrone wandered in between the bushes with clear aim to find the last (and best) treasure for today. Not long after that, he spotted a funny looking mushroom he definitely hasn't seen yet and had to perform his chronicler's duty to record this find in his journal. He turned around to find another rock so sit on, but instead saw something wildly different.

It looked like a rock covered in moss, a rather large one, that has partially sank into the ground. What Tyrone immediately noticed was that it was slanted, and the corners were sharp, as if chiselled. For a moment, it looked like a huge toy block that someone had dropped from the skies, but then Tyrone saw that the shape's edge would take a sharp turn downwards and the rock started looking less and less brick-like. That, however, wasn't what brought Tyrone's attention.

The Weird Rock, (which was a codename Tyrone decided to apply to his newly found discovery) had an arm. An almost human-looking one, but much skinnier, and - from the look of it - made from rock as well. At least, that was his current hypothesis. When he started walking around the Weird Rock, (in order to see if all Weird Rocks have only one arm) he noticed another formation at the top of it. His first thought was that it looked like very long tin can, but he quickly understood he was wrong: it was a hat!

It was different from the one he was wearing, though. Dad gave it to him once, but Mom would often tease him by putting it on her head. Whenever it happened, Dad would blush and then Dad and Mom would cuddle and kiss. Tyrone liked his hat, even though it was old and all patched up, and the blue colour has faded away from the front. He once thought that there was no other hat like that in the world, but then Grandpa Stan showed him a whole bunch of them in his shop! Tyrone was very sad, but then his Dad told him that the reason his cap was so worn out is that he wore it on all of his travels, and these new hats haven't had their adventures yet.

That hat looked very weird. Just like the hand, it was made from rock and was covered in the same green moss as the rest of it. But the most puzzling thing was that the Weird Rock had no head. Heads would usually be found underneath a hat and above arms, so the Weird Rock would have to either have a) a very thin head that would fit into a hat, or b) a small, but wide enough head that could support the hat, but be barely visible. He took a few steps forward to see if he was correct, and was about to climb the Weird Rock's body, when he was drawn to the bulged shape in the middle of it. At first, it looked like it was wearing a t-shirt with a circle on it, but then Tyrone rotated his head and almost screamed.

An eye! An enormous single open eye was staring at him from the Rock Creature's torso (name "Weird Rock" has been dropped in favour of a more accurate term). Now that was something worth calling a proper discovery!

- Mom! Dad! Come to see it!

Two pairs of footsteps could be heard walking towards the third one, then rushing and simultaneously halting soon after.

- Dipper... is that...?
- Tyrone! Get away from that thing right now!

Dad's reprimand was loud and he sounded vaguely scared. Before Tyrone could ask him why, he was covered by his Mom's arm and taken up and away from the find he was so proud of.

- Tyrone, are you alright?

That was strange. His Mom's sounded equally concerned, and she even started looking around his body, as if there was something dangerous, or dirty on it.

- Son, did you touch it? Did it do anything to you?

"Do anything"? How come a rock can do anything, except get more rocky? Tyrone was getting confused more and more, so he explained how he found it. Despite his answer, his parents were still looking very sad and troubled.

- But how? - Mom suddenly asked - How could it... how is it even possible?
- Maybe it fell from the floating pyramid? - his dad answered looked up, as if there was something in the sky.

Pyramid! Of course, how could he forgot that shape's name? Dad had drawings and photos of them in his old notebooks. They were much bigger though, and some of them were yellow, not grey. Dad told him, that before Tyrone was born, both he and Mom were archaeologists, which means they went inside these old buildings and dungeons deep underground to look for treasures and stuff. Mom preferred the name "tomb rider". It sounded way more practical - Tyrone imagined that it would be really boring walking through these long corridors, so riding was definitely a better option.

His parents would tell him all sort of amazing bedtime stories, but the best ones were about these adventures they had. He had to ask really nice for them, though. It worked better with Dad, but he would sometimes get carried away, so Mom would had to step right in the middle of it and correct it. And sometimes it would be the other way around. Their tales were better than the ones in his books, but Dad kept telling him that he would learn more when he grows up, and that knowledge is the key to success.

When Mom finally put him on the ground (which was a clear signal that all the danger was gone), Dad walked closer to inspect the Little Pyramid Creature (which was way better description, Tyrone thought).

- Holy... - he stopped for a moment - ...smokes. So that's where it fell down, huh. But that's not even close to the place he-
- Do you really remember where it happened?

Tyrone did not know what they were talking about. But it must have been important, because Dad took out his journal and started shuffling through the pages. But most notably, it confirmed his theory: someone has dropped it from the skies!

- We are here, and the river's there... Wait, no, that's quadrant 26, we've already documented things here. Twice.

New word - quadrant. And more shuffling.

- Maybe it was a landslide? It was raining recently. - his Mom suggested.

Whenever Dad was lost, Mom would usually find a right answer straight away. It sometimes made Dad very annoyed. And Mom was right, they had a lot of rain last month! So much so, there were days that made all of stay at home. It was then when Tyrone read about the pyramids in Dad's books. He snook into Dad's study to read them, but Dad got angry when he found out, so he would only read them when Dad wasn't looking.

When his parents stepped aside and and unfolded a huge hand-made map (presumably looking for "the quadrant"), Tyrone decided to examine the pyramid even closer. So far, he knew it was a thing (a huge progress compared to his observations), and that it fell down. Maybe it was friendly? Tyrone extended his hand to reach the statues', but promptly stopped to ask for permission.

- Can I hold his hand?

A sharp and roaring "No!" echoed through the woods as both of his parents launched forward to secure Tyrone between their bodies, almost knocking him to the ground. A moment later he felt his Dad's hands on his arms; Tyrone was scared, he has never seen such an angry and worrying grimace on his Dad's face, even when he called him a moment ago. Dad was shaking him, as if he was trying to wake him up, and Tyrone could hear Mom's heavy breathing on his back.

- Did you shake his hand? Tyrone, answer me! Look into my eyes!

His dad kept staring at his face, as if he had a wasp on a nose. It happened once when he ventured too far, and that was the only time he has seen Dad reacting so quickly. But this time, he did nothing wrong! Dad's image started getting blurry as more water poured into Tyrone's eyes.

- No, Dad, what's wrong? - he sobbed, even though he tried best not to look directly at his Dad, feeling he would think he's a crybaby.
- Oh god, he's safe, Wendy.

His Mom's grip around his body got a bit looser, so that he could turn his head around. He heard a soft sniffing behind his ear, and to his horror he found that Mom was crying as well! Her eyes were puffy and red from tears. A moment later he felt Dad's arms tighten around him and Mom, and soft apologies being whispered into his ear.

- I'm sorry, Tyrone. I just... didn't want you to have anything to do with this statue.

Tyrone sniffled his last tears back. A statue, huh. So it's not something, it was someone. Just like that weird guy with the bowtie and long nose in the centre of the town, that is a statue as well. He remembered climbing it once, but his parents told him it would be illegal and unhygienic. Tyrone turned his head and looked at the statue once more. Mom and Dad were right, it would have been bad if he touched it, it looked all dirty, even from afar! Whoever this person was, hasn't had a bath in a long time.

His thoughts were interrupted by their parents' raised voices.

- ...but what IF he comes back?

His parents noticed Tyrone was still in-between them and immediately calmed down, freeing him from their grip. Tyrone wasn't sure why they were still so angry, so he asked them, just to be sure.

- Did I do something wrong, Mommy?
- No, sweetie. - his Mom keeled and extended her arm to hold him close once more. - It's just... we are worried it might be something dangerous.
- Why? - asked Tyrone. How could a statue be dangerous?

His Mom paused and gently stroked his head.

- Listen, you know that there are a lot of bad things in the forest, right?
- Like these roots that I tripped over once and hurt my leg?
- Yes.
- And like these plants that look too good to eat them, because it will make my tummy hurt?
- Yes.
- And like that time I met that wolf and you said it's dangerous because it's a wolf?
- Yes, that goes without saying.
- But I've got a card that makes all the wolves up to level 7 friendly to me!

Tyrone let go his left hand of Mom's shirt and reached to his backpack to show it to her, but he must have forgotten it when packing. His Mom looked at him agape before pulling him closer.

- No, sweetie, that's from a card game, it doesn't work in real life.
- Yes it does! - his Dad backed him up - It has helped me onc-

Tyrone couldn't quite see Mom's face, but judging from how white Dad's has become, she was giving him a very concerned look. She did that a lot. But Tyrone knew that story and he knew it was true!
His Dad once fell into a den full of wolves playing cards, and they told him that he cannot go away, unless he beats them all. And he did, but not because he knew how to play. He just knew that dogs have troubles seeing some colours, so he set up the cards and chips in his favour. That's how he won that card. Something he learned from Grandpa Stan.

Grandpa Stan tells the best stories. Lots of them are about cops and robbers and trying to run from many angry men all named Tax (that's a very weird name). But he usually falls asleep in the middle of telling them, so Tyrone has to make up endings himself.

Speaking of names, one thing has escaped Tyrone.

- What's his name?

Mom and Dad once more stopped their subdued conversation, looking absolutely bewildered.

- He... he was called Bill.
- Oh, stop treating him like a human being. - his Dad interrupted - It doesn't deserve it.
- What did he do?

His parents shared the same anxious look as before. Truth to be told, Tyrone was very proud of himself. There were days when his questions would puzzle one of them, sometimes both, but they would usually smile and start giving him hints, so he can find an answer himself. Or if they genuinely did not know the answer, they would open some book, or maybe the computer and check it for there. But today, Tyrone was on fire, asking one difficult question after another!

- He... It was a bad... thing. It tried to hurt your Dad and me. And it would have hurt you as well, if he could.

Oh, no. Tyrone knew what that was, it was an emergency and it was time for him to hug his Mom.

- Are you hurt, Mommy?

She laughed and lifted him up to give him a kiss on a cheek, before putting him on the ground again.

- No, not now, sweetie, but I was once. And not only me, it hurt grandpa Stan, Ford and even aunt Mabel.

Mom was listing more people, but Tyrone stopped listening after hearing that last name. That couldn't have been true. Aunt Mabel got hurt? This... this monster must have done something really nasty to her, since aunt Mabel was the toughest person he has ever met. Although Tyrone wouldn't admit to it in front of Dad. Dad liked it when Mom called him the toughest.

But why would Bill even do that? No one was as kind and amazing as Aunt Mabel, she was trying to be friends with everyone! She would go with him for walks, taught him about animals, made him all sort of sweaters, bought him lots of plushies and colourful books, and of course would tell the best stories! Better than Dad's or Mom's, but he wouldn't say that aloud either. Sometimes they were a bit too girly, but he still liked them. She kept telling him about her friend named Waddles, and they were the best of the best, cos' they two had a lot of adventures together. Tyrone asked her what happened to Waddles and whether or not he can meet him, but that made Auntie sad for some reason. Perhaps he travelled somewhere far away and she forgot his phone number? Tyrone didn't want to press.

Needless to say, that was a line Bill has crossed. Hurting Aunt Mabel definitely classified him as a baddie. His angered thoughts were once again interrupted by Mom's voice.

- ...Don't worry, sweetie. It's no longer... here. Grandpa Stan gave him a whack on a nose and he scared it away for good. It won't harm you.
- But what did he do? - Tyrone kept inquiring.

His Dad sat next to Mom and took over.

- He... would start by saying something you wanted to hear, like... that he can give you toys, or books, or sweets. Something you want, or maybe something to praise you. And then it will turn out that he wants something in return, and that would hurt other people. Or maybe even you, but you wouldn't be aware of it, because he would spin his story so well, flipping everything around. That's why we were so afraid of you shaking his hand, cos he's not someone to make deals with. You understand?

- Uh-uh. - Tyrone nodded. Dad was smart, way smarter than him, and if he said that no one should be messing with Bill, he's not gonna do it. Dad would know better than to make deals with shady guys, that's for sure.
- Listen, Wendy, I might give Ford a call, just to be sure. Maybe run some tests, to see if... anything is still active?

Upon hearing that name, Tyrone quickly turned his head around.

- Grandpa Ford is coming? - he cheered, expecting a positive answer.
- Heh, Great-Grandpa Ford, buddy. - he smiled, swiping his finger across the magical moving screen of his phone - Well, Great-Grunkle to be precise...

His dad would always stick "great" before Grandpa Ford's name. He didn't have to. Tyrone knew that Grandpa Ford was awesome! He gave him lots of presents and puzzles that are supposed to make him smarter, but Tyrone liked them just because they had weird-looking parts that he could swap and look at them from different angles. There was this one time he couldn't work one of them out - it had many, many pieces! - but then Grandpa Ford told him that it was his own fault, since one could only solve it in a town called "Fourth Dimension". Tyrone couldn't find it on a map, so he added that to a list of places he wanted to visit.

Grandpa Ford told him about much more of these locations he has travelled to. Come to think of it, he was the one that told the best stories. It had monsters, action and journeys to different planets and galaxies. Deep down Tyrone knew that grandpa Ford was making some of them up, since no one has been that far, but he still enjoyed them.

Hang on...
It felt from the skies.
Maybe Bill was from another planet? That would explain it, aliens were always baddies. Well, except that one that wasn't. And these two that also weren't. And that robot with huge eyes that wasn't either. And that other robot that fell from the skies, got all broken, found a human friend and then-

A loud yawn escaped Tyrone's mouth. It was getting really, really late, since the sun lurking behind the trees was almost red. Once more he felt his Mom's gentle arms around his body and quickly grabbed her shirt to secure himself. He knew that his Mom won't let him go, but she always said to do so, just in case. It's been a very long time since Mom would carry him in her arms like that. She kept saying that he is already too big and too heavy for that. But he liked it, especially since he could hug her at the same time. She smelled like home and her warmth made Tyrone yawn again, which his parents almost immediately commented on.

The glade they've visited was slowly getting further and further away from them. From his Mom's back Tyrone looked one more time at the triangular statue that gave his parents so many problems.
"Was Bill Cipher really that bad?", Tyrone thought. "Hurting Mom, Dad, auntie Mabel and grandpas was mean, though." And Tyrone knew he should stay away from meanies. But he also knew that bad guys would always turn good at the end, usually when they learn a lesson - that's how all his books ended anyway. And Grandpa Stan did that, didn't he?. And if he is no longer bad, then maybe he could ask Bill about the stories he was telling people. Maybe they could be better than Ford's, or even Auntie Mabel's? He had to check it out one day.

Tyrone didn't want to be rude, so he took his tired hand from Mom's back and waved at the motionless statue. He fell asleep before seeing if Bill waved back.

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A/N: This work is quite obviously inspired by an amazing piece of art by elentori-art ( elentori-art . tumblr post . c_o_m /139676916922/i-invoke-the-ancient-power-that-i-may-return-25, remove spaces and underscores to get it, ff is stupid as heck), showing Dipper and Wendy's kid, Tyrone, seeing Bill's petrified statue.

I do hope that the author of it will forgive me for using it, but it has resonated so strongly since I first saw it, that I had to write something about it.

Tell me if you solved the code!

I have no idea if "pre-somnal narrative" is a correct fancy equivalent of "Bedtime story", but it sounded cool. Feel free to correct me.

Oh, and the wolves playing cards is a spin on this series of paintings: en . wikipedia . c_o_m / wiki / Dogs_Playing_Poker