Note: This is just a little one-shot. I don't plan on a sequel or anything, but I'm fine with someone else maybe writing one. You don't even need to ask me about it, you can just do it. As long as you credit me for the prequel and link it to me through a PM or reviews. I would love to see what you guys come up with!

Snowball

"Why are we out here, again?" Bill asked. The 16-year-old Pines twins had dragged him out into the snow on a freezing winter day while they spent winter break at their Grunkles' cabin in Oregon like they always did. Bill hated the cold. He would much rather be inside with Dipper and Mabel (though mainly Dipper) sitting by the fire, watching cartoons and complaining about their stupid plots, even though they all knew he liked them. But no. they just had to stand out in the snow for no apparent reason.

"We told you, it's a surprise!" Dipper insisted as he rolled a big ball of snow and began stacking two more on top.

"I'll get the carrot and buttons and stuff!" Mabel giggled, dashing inside with a mischievous gleam in her eye.

Bill frowned, narrowing his golden eye. Mabel knew about his whole Dipper thing and was constantly dropping hints to her oblivious brother. Why did Bill have the feeling this was another set up?

"So-" He began awkwardly. Before he could continue, a freezing cold force slammed into his face. "Agh!"

Dipper burst out laughing. "Snowball fight!" He yelled. Mabel ran down the steps of the cabin with Wendy close behind. Immediately, a barrage of snowballs hit Bill, all thrown by Wendy and Dipper. Mabel groaned inwardly. Oh, Dipping Sauce. How can I set you up when you do things like this?

Her brother hit her with a snowball and she couldn't help but laugh. "Hey! You started without me!" She complained, returning the favor. They spent the next hour pelting each other (but mostly the former triangle) with snowballs and building forts. When they split into teams, Mabel called Wendy, saying it was girls vs. boys, but it was really just an excuse for Dipper to be on the same team as Bill. How could he be so oblivious?

Finally Ford, who had moved back into the Mystery Shack last year, called them inside for some hot chocolate. Up until then, Bill hadn't understood the purpose of snowball fights and hot cocoa. But now he realized why humans liked snow at all. It was fun! Even though it had made his face completely numb.

As he took a sip of his hot chocolate for the first time, the warm liquid washing over his tongue, he sighed in content. "Wow. Chocolate is delicious!" He gasped.

"Well, duh." Dipper laughed, giving him and incredulous look. "You do know that stuff is scolding hot right?" he asked, looking at his drink. "And you just drank some without the slightest problem?"

Bill shrugged, giving Dipper a strange grin. "I've known hotter." He said ominously. Mabel giggled a little and exchanged knowing glances with Wendy. Dipper looked down at his steaming cocoa.

"I suppose the Nightmare Dimension must have a lot of fire and stuff. And you do that fire-hand deal thing." He replied. Mabel looked dumbfounded. How could he be so oblivious?

Bill's gaze dropped to his own cocoa, slightly disappointed. "Yeah." They were all really quiet for a moment. Then Bill sneezed. Dipper snickered just a bit and Mabel had an energetic look on her face, like she was looking at cat pictures online or making Waddles memes with her friends.

"You sneeze like a kitten." Dipper said, a huge, sly smile on his face. Bill just huffed like a toddler and made a tissue appear, blowing his nose and throwing it playfully at Dipper for the little comment. "Agh! Demon snot!" He yelped, jumping out of his seat to avoid it. "Dude, is your snot made of freaking gold?" He asked, staring at the shimmering content of the tissue.

"Yeah. You got a problem with that?" He asked, grinning.

"I honestly have no idea." Dipper replied, blinking at the tissue.

"Your demon snot is so sparkly!" Mabel gasped, staring in awe.

"Dude. That is awesome." Wendy said. She had a grin similar to that of Bill's on her face.

"Why thank you, Red. See, now there's a meat sack with manners!" They fist bumped.

"Welp! This is getting weird!" Dipper said. He turned and tried to leave, but Mabel grabbed his arm and pulled him into his chair again.

"Aww, come on, Dipping Sauce! Just give in and have some fun for once!" She insisted.

Dipper huffed and crossed his arms like Bill when he had commented on his sneezes, but didn't make an attempt to leave again.

Wendy checked the clock. "Oh, crud! Gotta go, guys. Promised to meet the others for some cemetery truth or dare. Want to come, Mabel?" She asked, glancing at the two boys as she spoke.

Mabel practically rocketed out of her chair. "Yes, please!" She cheered.

"Hey! Why do you get to leave and I don't?" Dipper whined.

"Because," Mabel said as she grabbed her coat, "I'm going to do something fun. You wanted to go and lock yourself in your room all day with your nose in a book." She smiled smugly, giving her brother and Bill a fleeting glance over her shoulder. "There's a difference." How could he be so oblivious?

"Right." Dipper rolled his eyes as she and Wendy scurried out, giggling to themselves and whispering. The last he saw of them was Wendy shoving Mabel with a scandalized look on her face before the door slammed shut behind them.

Bill couldn't help but think of how adorable Dipper looked when he was annoyed. The teenager was just sitting there, tentatively sipping his cocoa and looking at Bill's tissue like it might come alive and start crawling around the table. Bill sighed and flicked his wrist. The tissue disappeared. "All you have to do is ask, you know."

Dipper didn't reply.

Bill sneezed again and the concerned look Dipper gave him tickled his stomach. Curse this emotionally weakened form.

"Are you okay?" Dipper asked. He reached across the table and felt the demon's forehead. It was really hot. No! Not in that way! Ugh, stop thinking like that! Dipper scolded himself internally. "Your forehead is warmer than usual. Give me a minute." He stood and ran out, running through the hall and turning into the bathroom. When he returned, he was holding the thermometer.

"What's that?" Bill asked. He never really looked into the human practice of making one feel better. It was never a priority as a demon.

"A thermometer." Dipper replied simply. Bill narrowed his one golden eye, a little annoyed that Pine Tree hadn't elaborated. Before he could say more, the boy stuck the object in Bill's ear and pushed a button. Bill stiffened suddenly as he did so, clearly uncomfortable, but too nervous to do anything. "Don't worry, it won't hurt you. It'll only figure out your body temperature." Dipper reassured, noticing the nervous look to the former triangle's face. Bill visibly relaxed.

Beep!

The thermometer beeped and Dipper removed it from Bill's ear, checking the small screen. He sighed. "Wow. Demons get colds faster than anything else on Earth."

Bill sniffled. His nose was getting runny. "Yes and no. Technically, I'm supposed to live in a whole other dimension, so I shouldn't even be on Earth. Other than me, no other demons exist here. So I shouldn't count exactly." He explained, conjuring some more tissues.

"This is no time to be technical. Now go to the living room and get some rest on the couch while I make you some soup." Dipper instructed. He ushered the sick demon into the other room. Bill immediately wrapped himself in blankets and sneezed into a tissue, making the thin paper disappear when he was done. He reached over and picked up the remote, turning on the TV while Dipper cooked tomato soup in the kitchen.

When Dipper came back out, Bill was dozing on the couch, the TV playing some old movies. Dipper placed the soup on the end table for him and gave the sleeping demon a brief hug before pulling away and walking out of the room. "I'm not as oblivious as you think, Bill." He murmured. Then he disappeared up the stairs.

Bill was only half-aware of the hug. But he did hear Dipper's words as the boy left. He blinked open his eye and looked sleepily over at the doorway where Dipper had left. "Did Pine Tree just…?" He stopped and looked at the soup. He knew it was wishful thinking, but it looked kind of like blood. Upon closer inspection he saw it was tomato. Not his first choice, but it was still good. He sat up and ate his meal. Bill would have to remember to thank Dipper for the soup. It soothed his throat, which ached from coughing that he hadn't realized he had been doing.

Not too long after Bill finished his soup, Dipper walked downstairs. He had been in his room reading and studying some of his theories until he figured he should check up on his patient. When he walked into the room, he saw Bill sitting on the couch, reading one of his mystery novels. The demon glanced up from the page he was on and greeted Dipper with a small smile.

"Hello, Pine Tree. Just having a look at one of those books you're always reading. I never really understood the value of reading for pleasure, but this is surprisingly interesting." He commented, flipping the page. "They could have been named better, though. I mean, The Case of the Caper Case Caper? I can't be the only one who thinks that's dumb."

Dipper smiled a bit. "Oh, everyone thinks so. But you know what they always say." He replied, leaning against the doorway.

Bill looked up at him with a quizzical look. "What?"

"Don't judge a book by its cover." He replied, ominously. Then he turned and walked into the kitchen to have some lunch.

Bill blinked after him, awkwardly adjusting the eyepatch over his right eye. He looked back at his book, but his mind was elsewhere. Am I reading too much into this? Is he just teasing me? Does he mean it? He would never admit to some of the other thoughts that crossed his mind.

"I'm ba-ack!" Mabel sing-songed as she walked through the door. "And I got the cold medicine you wanted, Dipper. So where is he?" She asked.

"Living room." Dipper called back. There was a yummy smell floating through the kitchen to where Bill was sitting. Were those cookies?

Mabel paraded through the door with a grocery bag in hand. "Okay, let's assess the damage." She got to work on giving Bill an unofficial check-up, looking at his throat, taking his temperature, testing his reflexes, and so on. "Alright, Bill, all you have to do is take some medicine and get some rest and you should be fine in a day or two." She announced.

Bill shrugged and she handed him his dosage. The former triangle scrunched his nose. The medicine smelled terrible. "Do I have to?" He whined. It was hard to imagine that the man in front of her was older than time the way he acted like a toddler.

"Yes. Doctor Mabel has spoken." She replied.

"But-"

"Bill." Bill turned and saw Dipper back in the doorway. "Please?" He asked. Bill's cheeks turned a slight shade of pink. He ducked his head so Dipper wouldn't see, having just enough time to see the 16-year-old turn a similar shade and grin like he had won, which he had.

Bill took his medicine and lay back down. As Mabel passed her twin on her way out of the room, she gave him and odd smile, eyes asking him 'what happened?' He responded with a 'tell you later' look. Then they traded out. Dipper sat on the T-rex skull they used for an end table and gazed at Bill.

"I'm not stupid. I noticed, I know, I'm just acting dumb to tick off Mabel." Dipper put simply. Bill's dumbfounded stare returned. "Don't act like you don't know what I'm talking about. I've been listening and watching and I see what you've been up to. Also Mabel is bad at keeping secrets."

Bill groaned a little and pulled his blankets up over the lower half of his face so only his eye showed.

Dipper smiled and moved to sit on the edge of the couch. "It's cool. I… I kind of… well, I think I…" He groaned and dragged a hand down his face. "Why is this so hard?" He asked. Bill came out from under the blankets again, smiling back at Dipper.

"You have no idea." He sighed, smile never wavering. The two just sat there for a while, enjoying each other's company. Finally Dipper stood. He gave the demon a kiss on the forehead and walked out of the room, a wide, mischievous smile on his face. Bill blinked in surprise, flushing a little as he watched the teenager leave.

"When you're better, you can have a treat." Dipper called, the sound of a tray sliding out of the oven and clacking onto the counter followed and Bill wandered whether he meant the cookies he smelled or if he was trying to imply something. Why did human emotions have to be so confusing?

Dipper's smile didn't leave for a while, until Mabel ambushed him during the process of frosting the cookies he had been baking, leading to a glob of the sugary stuff landing on his face.

"So! You finally got some sense, huh?" Mabel smirked as she spoke and Dipper flushed red, whether from embarrassment or anger he wasn't sure. Maybe both.

"I always had the sense, I just pretended not to for the amusement of seeing your reaction." Dipper informed her, swiping the frosting from his cheek and regaining his previous composure.

"Right. So. Did you kiss?" Dipper jumped again. Mabel just got right to the point there, didn't she?

Dipper's grip on the butter knife tightened and he ducked so Mabel couldn't see his face. It was currently a bright shade of red. "No. Shut up."

Mabel giggled, clearly coming up with another false relationship theory. "Sure you didn't." She said, sarcastically.

"Well, he's sick anyways, so even if I wanted to-"and admittedly he kind of did "-I couldn't. Now would you leave me alone?" He requested, though with a certain force that said he meant it. Mabel just lazily dragged a finger through the contents of the frosting container and put the finger in her mouth.

"You know he's been crushing on you for a couple years now? Since we were fourteen, actually." She pointed out. Dipper was a little surprised. That long? He had been oblivious then for at least a year. "Yeah, came to me about it. I've been helping him out with the whole thing since. You just really know how to block." She smiled, amused by Dipper's reaction.

"Mabel. Please. Leave?" He curse his voice cracks-and yes, he was still having those-for making it sound like a question.

Mabel's smile grew. "My work here is done anyway. See you later, Dipping Sauce!" She chirped. Then his overly confident twin skipped away, up the stairs to her room. She was never going to change, that girl, and Dipper didn't really mind. Mabel was Mabel no matter how old she got.

Dipper sighed and thought over the conversation. He spread some frosting over a cookie and placed it on the tray, frosting another and another until he was finally done. He decided that what he had been mulling over with himself should just be locked away for a while, just to cleanse his thoughts for the most part. Dipper picked up one of the cookies and went back to his seat at the table, biting into it, subsequently taking the head off the snowman design on it. He stared down at Frosty the Headless Snowman and sighed again, unsure of what to do next.

He finished off the cookie and walked over to the living room. Bill was asleep now, The Case of the Caper Case Caper was laying on his chest, forgotten, opened to some random page in the middle of the book, and his head lolled back so it was hanging slightly over the arm of the couch. Looks like he took the advice of rest to heart, Dipper observed. He walked across the room and sat on the T-rex skull end table, turning on the TV. He wasn't really paying much attention to the shows, though. He was gazing at Bill in concern, care, and (of course, because Dipper can't help himself) slight curiosity. Despite the fact that his mouth was open a bit, his hair was messy, his clothes were rumpled, and he was paler than usual from lack of sufficient sun and sickness, Dipper still thought he looked strangely beautiful as he slept. Less hostile and demonic and more angelic and nonchalant.

Dipper twirled a finger through the other's blond hair and settled down so he was more comfortable on the end table, turning back to the cartoons. He silently promised himself that he would be there when Bill woke up…

…And he was. When Bill blinked open his eye and sat up, he saw Dipper asleep on the floor, curled on the carpet. To be perfectly honest, he thought his Pine Tree looked adorable that way, like a puppy awaiting the awake of its master. He stood and walked into the kitchen. As he suspected, a tray of cookies were on the counter. One was off to the side with a different design than the others and a note.

As Bill neared, he saw the note was addressed to himself. Picking it up, he read it to himself quietly.

Here's a special treat! We finally did it, you old triangle.

~Mabel

(P.S., Dipper frosted this cookie for you. and if you hurt him, so help me I will tear you limb from limb and send you back to whatever twisted place you came from. Have a nice day, feel better!)

Bill smiled at the note, amused by Mabel's ferocity. He looked at the cookie again. Frosted on top was a yellow triangle and blue pine tree, side by side, each with one eye. He remembered telling Dipper about his alternate universe demon form, Alcor.

"Well played, Pines. Well played." Really he meant both the Pines twins; Mabel's hints and helping and Dipper's snowball fight and cookie. "I suppose it takes three to tango." And he bit into the soft cookie, avoiding the two shapes in the center unconsciously, and stared out the window as snow began to fall. Fat white flakes that looked so soft as they fell and fluttered to the ground, helping rebuild the trampled surface of the blanket of snow from last night's blizzard. In reality, the fluffy things were like frozen daggers, and Bill knew this first hand. Something so seemingly harmless, and yet so potentially dangerous. He looked over at the living room, knowing Dipper lay on the shag rug in the room.

"We are snow, Dipper Pines, we are snow…"