These Dreams – Chapter Four

by taitofan

Rated M for talk of past sexual situations, but this chapter is pretty tame

Disclaimer: I don't own Gravity Falls or its characters.

Author's Note: Ages and forms are still canonical. For now. Everything else? Not a chance.

If you have any CC, please share and I'll listen. Please read, review, and enjoy! Finished 04-15-15

While Dipper was very glad that his head was uninjured for the first time since his stints in the mindscape began, he was quickly reminded that he was not the only one to sleep in the attic, and he'd been very loud in his dream. If even a fraction of that came through in reality, Mabel was going to—

Or perhaps Mabel would be sound asleep, snoring softly.

…He honestly hadn't expected that.

"Don't worry, she won't remember a thing." It took Dipper a moment to adjust himself to the sight of Bill surrounded by color, but he quickly shook the novelty aside and shot Bill a confused look.

"What are you talking about?"

"Oh, you really should have seen Shooting Star's face when I first popped in here! Seriously, I would have killed a small country for a camera!" Dipper was rather impressed that he hadn't done just that. "As cute as it is to see you get all flustered when she calls me your boyfriend, I'm afraid this simply won't do. So I, you know, suppressed her memories of everything involving me since the whole possession incident."

Dipper was out of his bed and standing defiantly before Bill in record time. Bill didn't look in the least bit concerned.

"You said you wouldn't hurt her!"

"And I didn't," he stressed, flippantly waving him off. "I didn't even erase her memories, I just locked them away for a while."

"Well, why would you—"

"Look kid," he cut off, suddenly looking a lot more serious, "the hardest part of all this will be the very beginning, while this bond is still new and as fragile as your meaty little body. If Shooting Star says the wrong thing around the wrong person, everything could go wrong faster than you would realize you were dead. So no one can know about this until I have time to make sure you can defend yourself if I can't keep you safe. The last thing we need is for some pissy little demon deciding they want revenge against me by killing you. Understand?"

Dipper wasn't sure he'd ever seen or heard Bill sound so sincere. Of course, considering his life was on the line if anything happened to Dipper, it wasn't that much of a surprise. Self-preservation was going to be Bill's top priority now that he had same stake in his own mortality.

"Y-yeah, okay," he agreed, not wanting to start things off by angering Bill, "that make sense."

"I knew you'd see it my way!" Just like that, Bill's normal attitude was firmly back in place. The mental whiplash it gave was almost impressive. "I mean, I wouldn't bind myself to a stupid human or anything. Now, let's see… If we start your training right away, I'd say well be good to go in… Ten years."

"Ten years?" Dipper sputtered. Did Bill not realize how long that was? Had living so long distorted his perception of time? "I'll be in college by then!"

"Oh, you humans and your skewed priorities," he tutted, petting Dipper's head in what was possibly the most patronizing manner possible. Dipper didn't bother not to scowl up at him. "Pine Tree, you are bound to a demon. You have exactly an eternity to learn useless things. First, we need to build up that latent magic you have flowing in your puny little body. Add what you get from our bond and you'll be up to speed before you know it!"

"Wait, hold up!" He ran the words through his head a few more times, making sure he hadn't misunderstood Bill. "Did you say, latent magic? Like, in me?"

"Oh, did I forget to mention that?" The amount of apology in his voice was approximately zero percent. "You've got some talent in you, kid. I mean, whether I like you or not, do you really think I'd agree to this if you weren't capable of something more than being a useless sack of flesh?"

No, he supposed that would have been suicide. Still, this was the first he'd heard of having anything magical about him. Just what did that consist of? Dream magic like Bill, or something more?

"Couldn't tell you! We'll have to work on that and find out. I just know it's hiding in you."

He really wished Bill wouldn't do that.

"Too bad!"

Dipper sighed, wondering how long it was going to take to get used to this. And how long it would take before he could block Bill's prying mind. Maybe he could even do the same to Bill one day…? Oddly enough, Bill decided not to answer those unspoken questions.

"So… What? You're going to kidnap me or something?"

"Kidnapping?" Bill laughed, and it was amazing that the entire town wasn't awake with how loud and obnoxious he was about it. "Dramatic much? You'll just be taking a little decade long vacation. I'll even let you play 'normal' for the rest of the summer. When I'm sure you won't get yourself killed, I'll even let you see your family for a bit."

"Do I have a choice in this?" he grumbled, glancing over to Mabel's magically induced sleeping form. Well, at least Bill wasn't loud enough to break his own magical spells.

"No, not really." Dipper flinched at the blunt answer, and Bill sighed exasperatedly. "Pine Tree, what did you think would happen?"

"I don't know!" he admitted, feeling just as Bill sounded. He wasn't even sure if these were actually his feelings or if Bill's were bleeding through this bond of theirs. He really wasn't even sure of the details yet. "You sprang it on me while we were… Um…"

Bill snickered and poked his cheek. It seemed rather affectionate, and it certainly didn't help Dipper's quickly reddening face.

"Now you're shy?"

"S-shut up! I don't… I don't know what I was thinking. Not a lot I guess. I just knew… that I didn't want to be away from you."

"And you won't."

Dipper took a deep breath, wishing he could tell what Bill was thinking. This demon had called him his bride, swore to protect him, but what were his real reasons? Was spiriting him away to who-knew-where really necessary? Was there not better human to be bound to out there? Why him? Why now? What was Bill even capable of feeling for him?

"I know, but… I'm going to live for as long as you do, but what about my family?"

"I said you can visit them if you make enough progress," Bill reminded. Dipper wondered if he was ignoring his mental questions now, or if Bill just wasn't prying into his thoughts for the time being. "Remember, I'm not going to be very happy if you get depressed. And hey, just think about how funny Shooting Star's face will be when you see her in three years, popping out of thin air as a gangly teenager! I'll make sure I have a camera then."

"Teenager?" He looked down at his preteen body for a moment. "I'll still age?"

"Well yeah, that's what happens to kids when the cruel hands of time rub all over them. Don't give me that look, kid." Dipper couldn't exactly help but wonder if Bill had worded his example like that on purpose or not. Time certainly wasn't the only thing rubbing him lately. "Anyway! You didn't think immortality meant you'd look like that forever, did you?"

"How should I know?" He threw his hands up in the air, getting more than a bit fed up with Bill assuming—for no good reason—that Dipper would just inherently know any of these things. "…But for the record, how does that work?" Bill rolled his eye, and though it occurred to Dipper that maybe he shouldn't be so short with a demon—bound to him or not—Bill luckily seemed to be in a good mood.

"You'll age normally until you have enough power and control to look as old as you want to look. Trust me, glamour is an important thing to master if you want to blend in with humans."

It sounded simple enough, he supposed. He'd even read about glamour in the journals—the magical cloaks that made magical creatures fit in with their surroundings. Once Bill taught him how to, if he wanted to look older, he could. If he still wanted to look twelve in fifty years, he could. Hell, if he wanted to look like a big dumb triangle demon, well, he wouldn't, but he could!

Then something hit him.

"So could you—"

"Stop right there, Pine Tree." He held up a hand, his face showing his clear dislike of the subject. "It's not a matter if I could. It's a fact that I won't even attempt it. Fleshbags don't suit me anyway."

"Oh." He laughed nervously; he hoped Bill hadn't gotten the wrong idea. "I mean, that's fine! I don't mind or anything, I just thought that, you know, some things might be easier if you had…"

"Human anatomy?" he supplied when Dipper trailed off.

"Y-yeah, that." He looked down at his feet, not wanting to start anything. Not here, not now. And giving Bill an inch in these situations kept seeing the demon take a mile.

"Trust me kid," Bill chuckled, floating close enough to reach out with his cane and lift Dipper's chin up. "I don't need a cock to keep you satisfied for an eternity."

"B-Bill!"

Bill cackled as he floated backwards, not an ounce of shame coming from him. Dipper wasn't sure that the word was even in his vocabulary.

"You're really cute when you blush, you know? Keep that up and I'll won't be able to wait to have a taste of you…"

"No way mister." Dipper crossed his arms; if trying to ignore the situation wouldn't work, he'd just have to be assertive. At least, as much as he could against a demon. "I don't care if she's under a spell—Mabel is still here, and I'm not doing anything with my twin sister around!"

"If that's how you want it…" Bill backed off a little too easily for Dipper to let his guard down. He didn't know exactly what Bill was capable of in the real world, but he didn't want to risk more tentacles popping up out of the void and catching him unaware. "Fine! I'll wake her up and go make sure everything is set up on the mountain. I'll get you tonight, so think up a good excuse for your family. You've only got a few more weeks with them, after all!"

A few more weeks. Then he'd be gone for a very long time… Away from Mabel, and Grunkle Stan, and his parents…

Well, maybe not all of that was bad.

"Right…"

"Don't look so down! This will all be worth it, I promise. And here's your first lesson—demons don't break their promises." At Dipper's incredulous look, he continued. "It's true! We may twist things and find loopholes, but get solid enough wording, and you're golden. Contracts are very binding, even verbal ones. And I promise you Pine Tree, I'm going to make sure you don't regret this deal. You just need to trust me."

If Bill could be trusted, then that was certainly a relief. That was the thing though—could Bill be trusted? It was a dangerous thing to do, but…

"I'm pretty sure I'm past the point where I can't not trust you."

"I knew you were a fast learner." He reached out and patted Dipper's head again. "Now then, I'll see you tonight!"

Dipper sighed as Bill popped out of existence. He added teleportation to a mental list of powers he knew Bill had in the real world. How much would Bill be able to teach him…?

Suddenly, a sharp pain hit his ass.

"Ah! What the—" He whipped around, seeing Bill floating there, gripping his cane tightly. "What the heck was that for?"

"Just a taste of what will come if you try anything funny!" He tapped the cane into his open hand. "Besides, no matter what, you could probably use a good spanking!"

Then he was gone again, his laughter echoing in the room. Dipper flushed at the thought; everything they'd done so far had been in his dreamscape, but now that Bill was in the real world, things would eventually happen to his actual body too…

"Hnn… Brobro?" Mabel slowly sat up from her bed, rubbing her eyes. Dipper was relieved to see that she looked okay; the fact that she was a welcome distraction helped too. "What time is it…?"

Dipper fought the urge to run over and hug her. He couldn't arouse her suspicion. Not when he didn't know what he was going to tell her yet. It couldn't be the truth, but he didn't want to leave her for so long without a single word. There was no way she'd accept him leaving for ten years, minimum. She wasn't going to let him leave for ten days! And as much as he wanted to see what was going on with Bill and this magic that was apparently within him, he didn't want to leave her either.

Suddenly, a terrible thought hit him. He was immortal.

Mabel was not.

Mabel was looking at him, worry in her eyes, but he could say anything with the icy feelings that covered him. A life without Mabel? No… No! He wouldn't allow it!

He'd probably made a big mistake, but it no longer mattered. Even if Bill was lying and using him, it didn't matter. He had to learn all the magic Bill could teach him. He needed to be strong.

If he was going to live forever, so was Mabel. He'd make sure of it.

"Dipper, what's wrong with you? Are you sick?" He finally focused on her, watching as she hugged Waddles close, as if she was afraid for him.

"I'm fine," he laughed, a little too loud, a little too forced. He couldn't tell her yet. "Hey, let's… Let's go ask Grunkle Stan if we can go get pancakes at the diner for breakfast!"

At the prospect of diner pancakes, Mabel's eyes lit up and she leapt from her bed, chanting "Pan-cakes, pan-cakes!" as she raced downstairs, Waddles not far behind. Dipper sighed and slowly followed. He might have distracted her for now, but he knew that he was going to have to think of something before the summer was up.

But what?

"What did you think?"

Dipper thought he could have just died of happiness. Sirens! Real sirens! With wings and hypnotic voices, not those mermaid lookalikes most people seemed to think of. Why, if Bill hadn't put some sort of weird force field around them, he would have been lead in, and they would have picked all the flesh from his bones!

…He realized that wasn't exactly a comforting thought, but it was so cool!

"Oh man, they were the coolest things—hey wait, what's that?"

Bill looked up, following the direction Dipper was pointing. There were two creatures flying in the direction of the mountains, and while they were far too large and humanoid to be normal birds, they didn't look like sirens either. Even though the moon was bright, it was too dark to make out any details. Bill looked rather perplexed at the sight of them.

"Hmm, not often you see those guys leave their island. They're a snobby bunch!" Bill turned back to Dipper, waving off his concern. "Don't worry about some loser crow goblins, kid. You don't need to get mixed up with the likes of them. Probably just got lost and are too full of themselves to ask for directions."

Crow goblins? That sounded kind of familiar. As if he'd heard of that, but not in the journal. On the internet maybe? Or on television…?

Dipper yelped as a familiar weight smacked against his butt. He glared at Bill, who waved his cane warningly.

"I said not to worry, Pine Tree, so don't worry." He floated closer to Dipper, letting his cane disappear and putting his small hands on Dipper's cheeks. "This is our honeymoon, isn't it? Aren't we supposed to do disgustingly sentimental drivel?"

"…You have sex on your honeymoon." Bill looked at him blankly. "You do that other stuff on dates, you know, those things you usually do before you conjure up dream tentacles."

"So I mixed it up a little, big deal!" More like he didn't care or perhaps didn't even know how human courtship went, but Dipper decided it wasn't worth bringing up. He was going to need to learn how to choose his battles if he was going to survive Bill. "Hey kid, catch."

Dipper fumbled with the object Bill abruptly tossed his way, but luckily it was long enough for him to get a grip on it before it hit the ground. He held it up, and he didn't need the moonlight to tell what it was.

"Bill, is this—"

"Just shut up and put it on, Pine Tree."

The chain was silver, and hanging around it was a golden ring. It didn't take a genius to guess the significance. It did make Dipper wonder.

"…Okay, I know you said this is like a marriage, but we're not really married. You know that, right?" Bill rolled his eye.

"You're assuming that I care about human customs again. Do I need to get my cane out here?" Dipper fought the urge to cover his butt. "Just calm down and look at the ring."

Dipper did just that, squinting in the darkness to see that within the band, there were words engraved upon it. It wasn't in any language Dipper understood, though it looked old.

"Ancient Sumerian protection spell," Bill spoke after a few long moments of silence. Dipper looked up at him, but Bill was looking up at the moon. He seemed a bit pensive, but only for a moment. He turned back to Dipper, the normal off-kilter look back in his eye. "You know, in case you get yourself into trouble, which seems to be all the time! The silver will keep lots of creatures from tearing your throat out until I can get to you too."

Dipper smiled and placed the chain over his head. He tucked the ring under his shirt, and he swore that he could feel it hum with magic. Well, marriage or just being bound by a magical contract, Dipper supposed it didn't really matter in the grand scheme of things. He and Bill were in it for the long haul. They'd both just have to get used to each other's quirks.

…Of course, he wouldn't complain if Bill quit trying to spank him.

And of course, he secretly couldn't wait until Bill did.

"The night is young Pine Tree. If you really want me to…"

The first thing he was going to learn was how to keep Bill out of his thoughts, he swore it!