Demetrius the Abada from the previous chapter bad annotation: art/Abada-597647277
Here's what Dipper got up to with Bill while Mabel was out with our two-horned unicorn in the last chapter; enjoy!
Light trickled in through the window and bathed the room in a soft, orange glow that welcomed Dipper to the waking world. He rolled over and released a satisfied hum – he'd slept surprisingly well considering the events of the previous day and he felt refreshed. Cracking his eyes open, he noticed his sister's absence from her bed, odd since he was nearly always the first to wake up unless it was a special occasion like their birthday or Christmas. He looked at the clock and saw that it was only nine thirty-seven, the usual time he woke up. 'Maybe she's still upset about yesterday,' he thought, 'I should go talk to her.'
He sat up and got out of bed, he grabbed his hat and put it on before heading downstairs in his pyjamas, halfway down the stairs, he called his sister; "Mabel?" but he got no answer. "Mabel, don't give me the silent treatment, I just want to talk," he called out as his feet touched the floor.
"Dipper?" Stan's head popped out of the kitchen to look at him, "I thought you went out with your sister?"
"No? Where did she go?" he walked into the kitchen and was greeted by the sweet smell of pancake batter.
His Great Uncle shrugged; "kid just said she'd going out, didn't say where. I thought you were with her." Dipper shook his head silently. Where would his twin have gone? "While you're here, do you want any pancakes?" Stan asked and the teen agreed.
"Could you go get my brother? He didn't eat anything again last night and I'm sick of calling him," Stan said as he sat down and put three plates of pancakes at the table.
"Uh, couldn't… you go get him?" Dipper pleaded. He still didn't want to talk to Ford yet and would be happy if he didn't for a long time.
"Kid, I just cooked the food you're eating; give me a break and go get 'im."
The boy sighed and stood up, heading down to the basement to fetch his Great Uncle Ford. "Great Uncle Ford," he called in an irritated tone as he walked down the stairs and sighed again. He heard a chair falling over abruptly from down the stairs and a frantic shuffling of papers and closing drawers. "Great Uncle Ford?" he called again, more curiously this time. What was the man doing that he'd hide from the boy? There was a loud creak and a screech that indicated the man was moving something heavy; a table or a shelf.
As he entered the main room of the basement, he saw Ford leaning slightly on his desk, red faced and slightly out of breath. It couldn't be easy moving heavy objects at his age. "What were you doing?" Dipper asked warily.
"Nothing. Why are you down here?" Ford asked.
"Was you moving your desk? Or a shelf?" Dipper ignored the man's question and glanced around the room.
"Yes, I just fancied a, uh, change of scenery."
"Why didn't you just go outside?"
"I'm a busy man."
"Really? So what exactly were you moving 'cause it doesn't look like anything has been moved in here."
"Why did you come down here?" Ford dodged the question.
Dipper pondered on whether or not he should ask again, but decided against it after a moment: "Grunkle Stan wanted me to come get you for breakfast."
"I'm not hungry."
"Fine, whatever. Just thought I'd tell you," the boy glanced around the room again and noticed a small, black ball curled up on a piece of newspaper. "Is that the cadon?" He asked and stepped toward it slightly.
"Yes, I've been keeping it here while it recovers," Ford said, and the unspoken words hung in the air: 'from what you did.' The teen stepped toward it to see its condition, and the creature popped its eyes open to look at him and lifted its head. The boy reached down cautiously but it hissed at him. "It can sense Cipher's presence. That's probably why it attacked you at Soos' house, I wouldn't be surprised if other animals were just as hostile toward you just because of your deal," Ford informed him. When Dipper thought about it, Waddles and Gompers had run away whenever they saw the boy or tried their best to avoid him. He said nothing and stuffed his hands in his shorts' pockets before heading back upstairs.
"Where is that nerd?" Stan asked as Dipper walked back into the kitchen.
"He said he's not hungry," the boy repeated and kept eating his pancakes.
"Of course he'd say that," the man grumbled, "why didn't you go with your sister?"
"She left before I was awake."
"What, did you two fight over something again?"
"Kind of."
"You wanna talk about it?"
Dipper was surprised by the question and looked at the man opposite of him who looked sincere in his question. He sighed and spoke: "she was telling you about Bill the other day, right?"
"The demon? Yeah."
"She's upset 'cause I made a deal with him and now I won't break it off. She thinks Bill is evil and that he would hurt us and..." he trailed off and looked at his food, pushing it around his plate with his fork.
"Want some advice from an old man?" Dipper looked at him and he continued: "don't worry about it. She's your sister, she's going to worry. And heck, I don't like the idea of my nephew hanging out with a demon, but a man can choose what he does. But hey, if Bill does mess with our family, he's got it coming from all of us, and I know you won't hesitate to do the right thing, kid."
Dipper smiled. "Thanks Grunkle Stan," he said sincerely.
"No problem. Anyways I gotta go run the gift shop, see y' later, kid." And with that, he got up and left the boy alone.
The boy smiled and finished his breakfast; just as he stood up a familiar voice came from behind him: "Morning, Pine Tree."
He turned to face Bill and wasn't quite sure what to say, so he stood and stared at the demon for a full minute before deciding on something: "what did you say to Mabel yesterday?" He knew the truth, his own sister had told him and he believed her, but he wanted to know if his demonic companion would lie to him.
"What are you talking about, kid? I didn't say anything to Shooting Star that you didn't hear," he lied.
"Yes, you did. Why are you lying when you know that I know the truth?" Bill said nothing, so he spoke instead: "you threatened to kill her, why?"
"Is that what she told you? Kid, why would I ever need to kill Shooting Star? I only kill people who get in my way, and she's not… yet," he mumbled the last word so quietly that the human didn't hear.
"Stop lying, I know you are so stop trying to deny it. What do you have against Mabel?" he was getting frustrated with the demon now and his voice rose in volume slightly.
"Pine Tree, I think you need to calm a bit," he floated over to the boy and rested an arm on the brunet's head. "Now," he said, "listen to me," he tapped on Dipper's head a single time and something seemed to click in his brain, causing the anger to quickly fade away into a more tranquil feeling. "You're going to calm down and we," he tapped again, "are going to go find something new to mess with," and again. "Alright?" and once more. He floated away to look into Dipper's eyes, and the boy found himself readily agreeing to what the immortal had proposed; he felt as though he should be angry, fuming, furious, with Bill. But he wasn't. "Alright," Dipper said.
"Great," Bill clapped his hands together; "oh yeah, I have something for you. I know that last time you didn't want the dodo heart so I found out that you humans apparently like flowers. I don't know why, but… meh. Here you go," he clicked his fingers and a small, black vortex opened above the boy. From the void dropped a cluster of red flowers and the vortex closed as they dropped. They were tied together with something like a dark brownish black rope, but much softer. Dipper caught them and found a small heart shaped – a real heart, not a cartoon one – piece of card taped to it that read 'Pine Tree.'
"You got me roses?" the boy asked incredulously; who could have thought that Bill could get him anything remotely normal? He ran his fingers along the soft string tying them together as he inspected them.
"What? No, you really think I'm that boring and un-original? That red colour is the blood from the ogre I had to kill to get them. And you see that string tying them together? That's not even string, it's ogre hair!" just as the demon finished that sentence, the petals of the bud curled open elegantly, however it revealed the not-as-elegant inside: instead of the beautifully bright stigma one would expect from a flower, there was a single eye staring at the boy from each flower. They blinked at him all at once and he dropped the flowers in shock, screaming at the disturbing sight.
"What the heck, Bill?!" he exclaimed, "where do you keep getting this stuff?!"
"What, you don't want these either? It was hard enough travelling through time for that dodo heart but travelling to the 13th dimension wasn't any easier; do you have any idea how much energy it takes? You should show more gratitude when someone gives you a gift."
"It's not like I asked you to get me this stuff, and even if I did why couldn't you just get me normal things?"
"Well what sort of things do you like?"
"I don't know, anything except organs or weird flowers," the boy said.
"Sheesh, fine," he snapped his fingers and the strange flowers burnt away in a blue flame; an odd smell was released as they burnt and Dipper had to pinch his nostrils to guard his nose from the stench. "So, are you ready to go?"
"Go where?" the teen asked, his voice nasally from having his nose pinched.
"Where do y' think, Pine Tree? We're gonna go find a monster."
"Oh, uh, no thanks. I really need to find Mabel and talk to her."
"Kid, you can do that later, just come with me right now."
He shook his head, "I really need to apologise to her."
"For what?"
"For…" he thought for moment, but couldn't quite remember why he wanted to apologise. He wracked his mind for a moment and the demon waited patiently as if for a specific answer. "Oh yeah, for the deal," he finally remembered and spouted the words without a second thought. He went over the words again in his mind. Why did he have to apologise for that? Mabel was the one who couldn't handle the deal that he made; like Stan had said, he was his own man and could make his own choices: he didn't need his sister trying to keep him safe. 'But still,' a small voice of reason said in the back of his head, 'she's trying to keep me safe. I should be thankful; I should apologise for making her so upset.'
"Why should you apologise for the deal? It's your choice, not hers," Bill interrupted his thoughts and he wasn't sure if he should feel the same way or not.
"Just give me some time to think about it. We can go monster hunting in the meantime, right?"
"Course we can, we're going somewhere a bit different today."
"Really, where?"
"You'll see, now go get dressed so we can go."
( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)
He looked at his surroundings as the flames died away quickly to see that they were on a familiar island. Large rocks and tall pine trees were scattered around the island and nailed to one of the largest trees was a big wooden board: "Scuttlebutt island," Dipper read out.
"Heh, Pine Tree, check it out," Bill appeared in front of the sign and covered up the first half of it with his triangular body; "Butt island," he laughed.
"It wasn't funny the first time, Bill," the boy replied, "so, uh, why are we here?" he asked.
"Sirens," the demon said simply, floating toward him and away from the sign.
"Sirens? Is that what we're here to see?"
"Bingo! There weren't any in the forest, so I bought you here to find them," Bill said, "quick word of warning: don't listen to anything to anything they say. They'll just try to flirt with you and then kill you when you least expect it."
Dipper pulled out his journal and opened it to a clean double page, quickly scribbling down the notes; "where are they right now? I don't see any around," he glanced up from the journal to scan the area.
"Hey there, little boy. Why are you all alone, talking to yourself?" a light voice spoke from behind him and he turned around; "wouldn't you rather talk to me?"
Sitting on the edge of the shore, her waist down below water and her arms resting on the grass, was a woman. She owned a slender frame and pale, porcelain skin that had not a single blemish on it. Blonde, wet hair curled down to her stomach and over her chest, wide blue eyes looked at him directly and red lips curled into a flirtatious smile. Behind her was a beautiful, green tail that swayed gently in the water.
"Oh, uh, hey…" Dipper said as he looked her over, "who are you?"
She giggled lightly and started drawing patterns in the grass with slender fingers; "My name is Asherah, and I guess you could call me a mermaid. What's your name?"
"Oh, cool, my name is Dipper," the boy said nonchalantly. Perhaps if she was willing to talk to him – until she planned to kill him – he could ask her some questions; "could I ask you a few questions?"
"You can ask me anything," she winked at him. He sat down on the grass near her – not within arm's reach of her – and put the journal in his lap, ready to write. "Oh, are you gonna draw a picture of me? How nice," she giggled.
"Uh sure," he started sketching a quick picture of the siren on the left page.
"You're so good at drawing, are you an artist?" she said and he knew she was lying to gain his trust.
"No," he said simply. He didn't title his page on the mermaid-like creature just yet in case she saw him and tried to attack him for his knowledge of her kind. "So," he said as he finished the sketch, "what can mermaids do? Do you have magic, or…?" he trailed off expectantly.
"No magic, sadly. I wish we did though, the things I could do…" she sighed lightly.
"She's lying," Bill interrupted, "they do have magic and I'm betting she's going to use it pretty soon if you're patient. Don't get too close, Pine Tree."
"Ok," he said to the demon but could easily pretend he was talking to Asherah, "how exactly do you breathe? I mean, clearly you're fine in and out of water, but how does that work?"
"We have lungs and gills and the ability to choose which we use depending on where we are. Lungs in air, gills in water."
"Where are your gills?" he scanned the area of and around her face in search for any fish-like features as such, but found nothing.
She pulled back her hair to reveal what looked like fins in place of – or perhaps in front of – her ears. She wiggled them for show.
"Can you hear through those?" he furrowed his eyebrows and she giggled;
"Of course not, silly," she turned her head to reveal a pair of human ears hiding behind the fins.
He hummed in thought after he jotted down the notes, "what… what do you eat?"
She hummed in thought, too. Perhaps thinking of a believable lie? "Seaweed and sand," she then said.
"Sand?" he laughed, "how does that work?"
"We have very strong stomachs and there is limited food in the sea," she explained.
"Lies, they don't eat seaweed or sand. They eat humans or when there isn't anyone around for them to eat, they kill and eat each other," Bill said and a shiver ran down the boy's spine at the thought. He scooted back unconsciously and thanked that Asherah couldn't see or hear the demon.
"Can you come out of the water at all? Or does your tail restrict you?"
"We're restricted to oceans, sadly. If only I could walk, I'd love to come over right now and sit next to you, to touch you. It's been so long since I've made contact with a human," she said.
"Nope, they can easily get out and move around on land. It's pretty funny to watch, but you'd probably find it pretty freaky to have a bunch of sirens chasing you. Also, she ate some poor sap just yesterday, so it hasn't been too long," Bill said.
Dipper had to hold in a laugh at the thought of legless women with tails trying to hop around on the shore to eat him, how scary could they be?
"Just wait, Pine Tree. If you're lucky, she'll climb out and start chasing you with her friends."
"What about hobbies? What do mermaids do for fun down in the ocean?" Dipper asked.
"We like to sing," a grin lit up her face, "do you want to hear?"
"Say no," Bill instructed firmly. Dipper wasn't oblivious to the legends of sirens; he knew that they were well known for their songs, songs that distracted men and caused them to shipwreck, songs that lured men closer and closer, songs that beckoned men to talk to them until snap. The sirens always killed the men.
"Uh, no thanks. I'm not a big music lover," he made up an excuse.
"Oh, come on. Just one song?" she pleaded.
Without his consent, she opened her mouth and started to sing and Dipper couldn't deny that her voice sounded like an angel's. He found his mind quickly becoming foggy, and he wanted to get closer to Asherah, to hear her voice more and for it to never stop and before he knew it, he was climbing to hit feet and slowly stepping closer to the girl. In that moment, he couldn't care what happened or if he died, he only wanted to listen to that angelic singing forever. He was snapped back to reality, however, when his feet stopped suddenly and his body numbed.
'Thanks, Bill' he thought, knowing that it was the demon that had stopped him from nearing the siren. The girl in front of him, however, seemed frustrated at his sudden stop and started to sing louder, her jaw stretching open so far that it looked like it might snap.
'Looks like things are gonna get interesting, Pine Tree. Prepare to get chased by legless women,' his laugh resounded in the boy's head and he felt the urge to laugh, too. So he did, loud enough that Asherah could hear.
"Dipper, do you dislike my s̵o͟n͝g?" she asked innocently. "Do you think my s̷̵ò̵n̕͝g̢̀ is f̨̌ͤ̽͡u͑̇̐̈́̀͏҉n̢̨͛̒nͮͪy̓͌̀̚͞?̨̓ͤ" Her voice distorted and sent a chill down the boy's spine. "D̞̯̝̉̃͐ͦo͓̜͙̬̣͔ͤͅ ̟̳̗͎͈͉̼͎̾͛̂̂ͬ̑͑ͪy͙̫̞͖͖͕̯̲̣̎͆̾ͥ́̋o͇̜͉̦̱̰̺̠͖͗̿ͥͥͮͭ͛u̘̝ͮ̀̑̒ͅ?͖̜̬̠͎͓͍ͨ̉"
'Better start running, Pine Tree,' Bill thought to him but the boy couldn't move. Not because the demon prevented him from doing so, but because he was stuck staring at Asherah in morbid fascination.
The siren climbed out of the water easily, lifting herself up by two hands and clawing at the grass to pull herself onto the shore. As soon as her body was laying on the grass, it started to deform: her arms grew impossibly longer, the skin over the ligaments stretching and the bones beneath the flesh cracking loudly as they twisted in ways no humanoid bones should. Her waist also thinned out, showing her rib cage that threatened to tear through the skin and poke out, her spine bulged grotesquely and deformed, cracking and splitting unnaturally. The once majestic tail shed its smooth, bright scales and beneath was marred, bruised, scarred and white skin - if it could be called skin; it was bloodied and didn't look remotely fish or human-like in anyway, it appeared to just be a white, useless, bloodied stump. Her blonde hair didn't change but was quickly drenched in blood that poured from her face. Lifting her head to look at Dipper, she allowed the two to peer at her face briefly: her face had hollowed out and looked deathly thin, her her eyes sunk into her face but remained their blue colour, however blood poured from various cuts and wounds on her white skin. "Ḓ̡̰͖̗̱̱̱̰̝̟͚̫̹̭̅ͯͩ̈́̊̇͌̈͘͠͞ͅį̧̰͉̲͔̟͇̞͍̠̭͇̒̏͋̒ͪ̄ͦͦ̒̃́̓ͩ̃ͩ̎̃́̚pͤͧ̄͑̽̈́͐̒͟҉̡̡͓̜̩͉̗̞̗͕̩p͐͐ͦ͗̃̂͒̔͏̷̧̨̪͎͕͇͓̹̹̮̳̜ͅͅe̛̠̮̠̪͈̦͖͉̼͔̗̖̘̫͇̣̓ͫ̓̽́͟͝r̵̸̹̙͙͓̫̱͔̬̙̣̟͔̳͌͋̌̊͗̏͋̿̎̎ͪ̌̂ͯ͂̓́̓̚͢͞ , d͉̻̗̞̘̭̮ͭͧ̅ŏ͓̩͕͝n̲̝̼͍̜͐̇͛̇͜'̷̓ͥ̿͐̑̐̏t̷ ̬͙̜͔ý̷̗͔̹͖̭̣͚̔ͬͬo͂͑͐͂ͨ̋͏̞̜̙ͅu̘̦͕̖̯̝ͣͬ̓ͤͤ͋͑ͅ ͕̰̼̬̗̙̀̓͋͗̓̀ḻ͚͎̠͂ͦͯ̎͝î̊̋͆҉̳̥̘̼̲̣͖k͖̱͎̈́͑ͪ͝e̶̹̜̖̦͇͗ͯ ̸̼̦͊̈́͆͒͛̃̋m͕̟̼͈̩͂ͭ͌ͧͭͯͧy̫͍̯̖̭͚̍̅ͤ͗̑̚ ̙͇̳͈͑͂̋͛̂̆ͦ͜s̓̃̏ͨ̀ͪo̧̱͖̳̹̿n̝̖͢g̨͕̞̺̓̾?̷̜̙̬" she asked, her voice nightmarish and nothing like the beautiful melody it had been before. She moved her twisted arms forward and dug her claw-like fingers into the ground, pulling herself along by the bony appendages.
"Nope, I think I'm gonna go now, bye," Dipper laughed nervously and turned to run.
"D̨͉̥ͬ̚iͩͭ͌̑͏̣̳̙͔ͅp̟͎͍͓͜p͇̫̠̾͝ͅe̷͍̩͇͔̖̳̗͗ͩr̭̮͔̲̃ͤ͊͋̃͢!ͫ̍͗̏ͮͦ͜" she shouted after him and clawed her way along the floor, chasing him.
He sprinted away from Asherah as fast as he could, desperate to get away and begging his mind to let him forget the horrific scene he'd just witnessed. 'Not as funny as it sounded, right, Pine Tree?' Bill thought in his head.
'Now is not the time! Can't you teleport me away from here or something?' He shouted back in his head.
'Of course I can. I just don't want to.'
'What?! Why?! I am clearly in danger right now and I really don't want to be here with that thing!'
'Meh, it's more fun to watch you get chased around an island by a bunch of sirens.'
'Gee thanks! And last I check there was only one siren.'
'Might wanna check again, kid.'
Dipper looked behind him and saw not only Asherah but two other deformed creatures chasing after him, "Oh come on! This isn't fair!" he shouted aloud.
"D̨͉̥ͬ̚iͩͭ͌̑͏̣̳̙͔ͅp̟͎͍͓͜p͇̫̠̾͝ͅe̷͍̩͇͔̖̳̗͗ͩr̭̮͔̲̃ͤ͊͋̃͢!ͫ̍͗̏ͮͦ͜" A̴̕͡s̸͞h̸͜er̕͠ah͟͡ called after him̵̨͢.
He made a swift turn around͘͠ a corner and headed through a path that was vo̷iḑ̴̨ of trees and looked behind͘͠ him again. The sirens were unsurprisingly s̸low so the boy jumped behind a nearby tree and started to r͋͟u͊͂̍͐̅̂̅͟n into the forest, h͞op̀in̛g to lose them. 'Why isn't their song affecting me? Are you using magic or something?' he asked in his mi̴nd͠.
'Course I am, no human brain can resist a siren song so I had to use magic to make sure you don't hear it.' Bill answered.
"Dipper," called a sweet voice - Asherah, "Where are y̨̛͟͠͠o̷͡u̸̕?"
"Can you teleport me back now?" Dipper spoke in hushed, a̸n̢g̨r͟y whispers.
"Nope," B̶̶̢͞ì̴̛l̨̀ļ͝ spoke through him and popped the 'p'.
"Ugh, fine then how can I kill it?" he whispered and peered around the tree to search for the s̴͡i̴͜r҉e̕ǹ̴s̴͟. He saw Asherah by herself, searching around the area.
"You could always chop̶ off its head, that'd work."
"Any other way I can k͘il͜l it? Preferably less v̢i̛olent ͢a̴n͞d͟ ̢b͞l̛oody҉..."
"Nope," Bill said cheerily and the word cau̸ǵht the attention of the siren nearby.
"D͘͡͏i̷͟҉̕͜p̷͜͟p͘͏̕ę́̀̕r҉̵̨͞," she called and turned to him.
"Bill, are you sure there's no other way?" he asked and his b̢l͞ooḑ ran cold when Asherah began c͘l̛͟a͘͜w̴̵i͟n͢g͝ her way toward him.
"Nope, sorry kid. But hey, I can do it for you if you like! Been a while since I've killed anything," Bill offered, far too ć͞͏h̵͘͟e͜͢eŗy͠ for the subject.
"Fine, fine just hurry up!" Dipper was glued in place by his f̷͢͢e̸̕͢a̸͝r̀͘͝ of the siren while she moved toward him. Just as she reached him and reached up a fi͝lt͘h̵y, b͟loo͜d̸iȩd ҉han̷d̶̷̑̂͗͊̽ͣ̌̋ͬͣ҉̡́ to c̶l̶̨҉aw̛͝ at his f̵̷͡l̴̸͡ȩ̵̕s̕h̨̀͞, the creature was k̨nòck͏̴e̸̡̧d back a̸̕͜b͟r̶̛̀ù̢p̵͝tl̷̕y͝. The boy's hand was c̴͜l̀e̷ǹc͢͜͡h͠͠ed͟ in a t̴i͝͝ģh̡͡t̴͝͝ ̢́f͟͞i̶̶͢s̕͝͠t̀ and engulfed in a bright, blue f̛́́l͢à̸͠m̷̨͝e͢͟͞. B͌̒ĭ͒̏͐̑l͌͗̂̔l̋͌̓̈́͂ͣ̚ moved the boy's body forward toward the M̢҉̸͢͝o̷҉͏ń̨́͘S̸̨̕͢͞T̶̷̨̨̡e̛͢͢͝R̛͠͠ and knelt down besides its hͦ͐͆͑͒̿̏̇Í̛Ḑ̷̢̛͜ė̃̋ͯ̐ͧ̽̔ͬͨo̿̿͐ͫ͒̔ͫ͗̃̍ͦ̐̿Ủ͑̏͒̾̏̏̉̇ͥ̓̎̑̓̎͂ͫ̌ͧs̋ͤ̽̽ͩ̄͊ͤͬ͆͊ͭ̊̒ͣ́͂ͮ ̀ͤ̍ͫ̇ͦͪ̒fͬ͋̆̍̄Ơ҉r̾͌ͩ͐̏̔͆̉̊̒ͭ̅͌mͨ̃̊͒ͬͪ̿̾̾̅͆̅̑ͪ; he studied its g̴Ŗ̸O̶ţ̨̕e͟śQ̷͞U̧͞e̸͜҉ facial features as it moved to claw at him, but he simply grabbed a hold of its hands to s̛͜to͏P̸̷̛ them from m̢͂͒̃͂̉͋̎͆͆͝҉̨ǫ̡̿̈́ͭ̒ͤ̀͢V̴̴ͫ̊̉̈̓ͤ͊ͮͨ̌́͌ͯ̆͞͡҉i̵͋̔͌̇̅̾̏ͭ̋ͫ͂ͩͩ̊ͩͮ̅͗̚͏n̵̛ͭ̊ͬ͐̿ͩ̒́̌ͬ̈́̃̀̕̕͟G̍̈̂͐̾ͨ̅͛͋ͧ̓̈́̈̓̈́͏̶. Suddenly, Bill s̢͝n̢͘a̛̕͡͡p̵̸̨͠Ṕ̧͢͞͠ȩ̶ḑ̧͏ the arms back at the e͢l̸b͞o͢w҉ ̸jo̢in͟t, pulling an é̕͠A̡̡r̸-͝͞pi̧e̴͝r̴͘c̸I̸͡n̵̛ǵ͏ S̡͞C҉̛R̵͏̸E҉̧́͢͝E̛͏̴͘C̸҉̛H̡͠ ̵͠ from its r̡a̕w̴͞ throat and Dipper wanted to c̡̨͞r͡i̡̕͞n͜͞G͘e̵͘͝ at the l̵ou͜͠d̵͏ sound. 'What are you doing? You were meant to decapitate it, quick and painless - not torture it!' he shouted in his head at the demon.
The D҉̢͡͡e̵m̸̸̧͜͞O̵̶̷̷ǹ̢͝ laughed aloud before replying: "Kid, I'm just making it easier. If I didn't do this, that monster would still be fighting and trying to eat your kidney right now. You don't want that do you?"
"N-no, but-"
"Exactly, so just let me handle it," B͟҉̡̢̢į̛l̷ļ̵̛͏̡ said.
He didn't give the boy time to a͏́͘͏r̀͠g̨ù̷̡̡̧ę̵̕͜ as he clicked his fingers; the si̵r̸e̷̕n͟͞͝'̸̸s̛ ͘h̶̀ea͞d̶ seemed to b͜ừ̕l̢͢g̵e̷ à҉n̸̴̴d̵̷ d̢̛͠e͡f̧o͘ŕ̛m̡͢͏ ̶̢e͜v͏͟͜e͝n̸ ̢m̴̕ó̧͟r̛͜e̛. The im̵m͟ort̷a͜l̴ ́gr̸i̢n̵ǹed̀ sͣͣ̆̑͊ͪ̈́̅ͯ̃ͥͥͭͯ͑aͪ̔̐ͯͦ̇ͦdͭ̂̓ͤͭ̓̓ͩ̒i͑ͭͬ̿ͥ͂ͭ̑̋͒̌ͨ͛̚Ş̸̸̢̪̟̖̬̼͎̞̫̤̮̗̝̟̠̳̙̱̘͔t̑̂̽͋ͤͮí̂͂ͥͣͦ̍̃ͬ̾ͤ̑̒̏̚cͪ̑ͨ̈ͦͥ̊̐͗̂ͣ͐͋a͒̊͗͂̂͑̊̑͆͋̿ͯ͐̉̇̚ ̶̹͇͖̠͢Ļ̵̱̥̯͕̝͖͎̳̲̝͢lͣ́͆̔̔ȳ̊̄̑̈̉ͭ ͮ̑̈̌and moved the boy's body back cautiously.
'What's happening, what did you do?' Dipper thought.
"You'll see," the demon l͠a͠ug͡͏͢h҉͝e͏̧d́̕ again.
As the s̕ki̸ņ̸̕ morphed and s͢h̸i̴f̡̀t͏̷ȩ̴d͜ ͡h́͘ó̧r̨͜r͜͡i̶͏b̷̡l̵͞y̵̵͢, the duo watched in m̷̨͠o͏̶́͞͠r͜͏̴̛b́̕͝͡i̶͠͏̕͠d̢͢͝ fascination. What Dipper didn't expect was what happened next: the s̵̡͟͝k̵͜҉͟u̷l̷̢̧͜ļ͢ and b̨͞Ŕ͠ái̶Ņ̷ e͘̕X̡́p̷̨l̕o҉̷̶D̷͞E͟d̶͠. B͜l̡o͞od,̀ b̵r҉ains,̴ bodi͝ly̵ fl͠u̵i҉ds a͟nd ͏o̵the̷r̛ v̢i̶s͢c҉era ̕s̡pla̶tt̀er̕e̶d͘ ov̶er ̀his͝ ̸bod̸y̶ ́şud͜d̴en̕ly҉.̨ I̢t ̴w͘a̴s̸ all͡ the b͟o̧y̴ c̸oul͠d͞ do ͘to͟ ͜stay̵ s̴tąnding̵, a͞ g͠ri͟n ̨l̵it u͏p҉ his f̢ac̢e, ͞bu͢t͘ ̨it wąs̀n't́ his ͠ow̢n.҉
̨̢̕ ̴̡͘ ̀͘ ҉̸̡͞ ̛́̀ ̸̶̧̡͠ ̷̴̵̢ ̨͡͞͝͡ ̸͟͝͠͡ ҉̵̸̕͡ ̧͜ ̛͘͝ ̶̢̧ ̸̕ ͠ ̛͢͜ ̢̕ ̀́ ̡͠ ̷̕̕ ̸̷̢́ ̸̵́͠ ̴҉̶͜ ̶ ҉̧ ̛͜͏ ̕ ́҉͟͝ ̷̶͜ ̸͡ ̢̛͘͘ ̸̢͢͟ ̢̨̛́ ̷̸̨ ̴̴̵ ́̕͢͢͝ ̵́̕ ͏̶̀ ̀͢͠ ̛͟ ͟͞ ̴ ̡́͜͟͜ ̴̷̧̕ ҉́ ́́͟ ̶̨̕͏҉ ̴̡́ ̸̢́҉ ̶̡̛́͘ ̴̵͞ ̢̛ ̛͟҉̷ ̶̧̀͢ ̢̀́͞ ̵̛͢ ̡̀́͟͝ ̶ ̴̴̨͡͡ ̵̸́͠ ͟҉̧͠ ̶̸ ̸̵̧͜ ̨ ̕͏ ̵͢͝ ̶ ͟͟͢ ̧̕͞ ̸̀͝͡ ̶͝͞͠ ̸̀̕͜͠ ̶̡̕̕͞ ̵̵̧ ̴̴̷̡̛ ̶̸ ͏̸̨̢͜ ̵ ͜͜͝҉ ̸͢ ͠ ̕̕͡ ̡́ ̵̕ ̶̵̀͡ ̡͘͡͠ ̶҉̨͘ ̸̢̢ ̨́͝ ͡͠ ͟͠͝ ̛̕͘͟͞ ͠҉ ̴́͢ ̶̷̛͜͜ ̶̢ ̶̕ ̀̕͠͠ ̶̡ ̵̵̸͟ ̸̵̵͏ ̧̕͜͏́ ̷̸ ̶̨͝ ͝҉ ̀́ ͟҉ ̀͢҉ ̛͞͞ ̸̴͘͠ ̧҉̨̢ ͘͞͝ ̛͜͢͟͠ ҉̡ ̸̛̛̛̀ ̵̧́͘ ̴́͜͡ ̶̶̡҉ ̸͢ ͏̷̴͢ ͢͏ ̶̡́͟͝ ̶͞ ̵̵̕҉͞ ̨̨̀͠ ̷̕͜ ̶́̕͡͠ ҉̸̛̛ ̶͘͞ ̧͢͝ ̧҉ ̀̕͢ ̵̢͞ ̸͠ ̢͏͘͡ ̸̸̷́ ͜͟͞ ̛͡ ͜͡͞ ̵͝ ̸̡̕͞ ̷̢̨͜ ́͝͠͞ ̵̢̛̛ ͏҉̕͡ ̵͟ ͞ ͢͠ ̵̵̡ ̷̵͡ ̶͏̧͝ ̶́͡ ̶̀̀͠ ҉̢̕ ̷̛͝͠ ̶̶͢͝ ̕ ̶̕͟͡ ̷͜ ͠҉̴̨͟ ͘͢͠ ̸̧̛ ̴̶̛́̀ ̨͞ ͟͝ ͡͡͏̵ ̸͟͠ ̛̕ ̀̀ ̶̷̛́͘ ̷̡̢͜ ̀͘͞͝ ̢ ̸̴̧́͘ ̸̵͢ ̶̢ ͏̀ ̛̛ ̸̨͡͠͡ ̨̧͘̕ ҉̨ ̡̢̀ ̨̧͞͡ ́͢͠͝ ̨̡̛͜͡ ̷̕ ̧̨ ̨̨ ͏̶̢̀͞ ̨̀͟ ̨͠͞ ̵̧̕͡ ̶͠ ̷̀͝ ̸͘͠͏ ̴̨͝ ̶̵͟ ̨̡͡ ̢̕ ̶̧͟ ̧̀͠ ̴́̀ ̨͏ ̢̨͝ ̵̢́͝ ̨̢̕ ̴̡͘ ̀͘ ҉̸̡͞ ̛́̀ ̸̶̧̡͠ ̷̴̵̢ ̨͡͞͝͡ ̸͟͝͠͡ ҉̵̸̕͡ ̧͜ ̛͘͝ ̶̢̧ ̸̕ ͠ ̛͢͜ ̢̕ ̀́ ̡͠ ̷̕̕ ̸̷̢́ ̸̵́͠ ̴҉̶͜ ̶ ҉̧ ̛͜͏ ̕ ́҉͟͝ ̷̶͜ ̸͡ ̢̛͘͘ ̸̢͢͟ ̢̨̛́ ̷̸̨ ̴̴̵ ́̕͢͢͝ ̵́̕ ͏̶̀ ̀͢͠ ̛͟ ͟͞ ̴ ̡́͜͟͜ ̴̷̧̕ ҉́ ́́͟ ̶̨̕͏҉ ̴̡́ ̸̢́҉ ̶̡̛́͘ ̴̵͞ ̢̛ ̛͟҉̷ ̶̧̀͢ ̢̀́͞ ̵̛͢ ̡̀́͟͝ ̶ ̴̴̨͡͡ ̵̸́͠ ͟҉̧͠ ̶̸ ̸̵̧͜ ̨ ̕͏ ̵͢͝ ̶ ͟͟͢ ̧̕͞ ̸̀͝͡ ̶͝͞͠ ̸̀̕͜͠ ̶̡̕̕͞ ̵̵̧ ̴̴̷̡̛ ̶̸ ͏̸̨̢͜ ̵ ͜͜͝҉ ̸͢ ͠ ̕̕͡ ̡́ ̵̕ ̶̵̀͡ ̡͘͡͠ ̶҉̨͘ ̸̢̢ ̨́͝ ͡͠ ͟͠͝ ̛̕͘͟͞ ͠҉ ̴́͢ ̶̷̛͜͜ ̶̢ ̶̕ ̀̕͠͠ ̶̡ ̵̵̸͟ ̸̵̵͏ ̧̕͜͏́ ̷̸ ̶̨͝ ͝҉ ̀́ ͟҉ ̀͢҉ ̛͞͞ ̸̴͘͠ ̧҉̨̢ ͘͞͝ ̛͜͢͟͠ ҉̡ ̸̛̛̛̀ ̵̧́͘ ̴́͜͡ ̶̶̡҉ ̸͢ ͏̷̴͢ ͢͏ ̶̡́͟͝ ̶͞ ̵̵̕҉͞ ̨̨̀͠ ̷̕͜ ̶́̕͡͠ ҉̸̛̛ ̶͘͞ ̧͢͝ ̧҉ ̀̕͢ ̵̢͞ ̸͠ ̢͏͘͡ ̸̸̷́ ͜͟͞ ̛͡ ͜͡͞ ̵͝ ̸̡̕͞ ̷̢̨͜ ́͝͠͞ ̵̢̛̛ ͏҉̕͡ ̵͟ ͞ ͢͠ ̵̵̡ ̷̵͡ ̶͏̧͝ ̶́͡ ̶̀̀͠ ҉̢̕ ̷̛͝͠ ̶̶͢͝ ̕ ̶̕͟͡ ̷͜ ͠҉̴̨͟ ͘͢͠ ̸̧̛ ̴̶̛́̀ ̨͞ ͟͝ ͡͡͏̵ ̸͟͠ ̛̕ ̀̀ ̶̷̛́͘ ̷̡̢͜ ̀͘͞͝ ̢ ̸̴̧́͘ ̸̵͢ ̶̢ ͏̀ ̛̛ ̸̨͡͠͡ ̨̧͘̕ ҉̨ ̡̢̀ ̨̧͞͡ ́͢͠͝ ̨̡̛͜͡ ̷̕ ̧̨ ̨̨ ͏̶̢̀͞ ̨̀͟ ̨͠͞ ̵̧̕͡ ̶͠ ̷̀͝ ̸͘͠͏ ̴̨͝ ̶̵͟ ̨̡͡ ̢̕ ̶̧͟ ̧̀͠ ̴́̀ ̨͏ ̢̨͝ ̵̢́͝ ̨̢̕ ̴̡͘ ̀͘ ҉̸̡͞ ̛́̀ ̸̶̧̡͠ ̷̴̵̢ ̨͡͞͝͡ ̸͟͝͠͡ ҉̵̸̕͡ ̧͜ ̛͘͝ ̶̢̧ ̸̕ ͠ ̛͢͜ ̢̕ ̀́ ̡͠ ̷̕̕ ̸̷̢́ ̸̵́͠ ̴҉̶͜ ̶ ҉̧ ̛͜͏ ̕ ́҉͟͝ ̷̶͜ ̸͡ ̢̛͘͘ ̸̢͢͟ ̢̨̛́ ̷̸̨ ̴̴̵ ́̕͢͢͝ ̵́̕ ͏̶̀ ̀͢͠ ̛͟ ͟͞ ̴ ̡́͜͟͜ ̴̷̧̕ ҉́ ́́͟ ̶̨̕͏҉ ̴̡́ ̸̢́҉ ̶̡̛́͘ ̴̵͞ ̢̛ ̛͟҉̷ ̶̧̀͢ ̢̀́͞ ̵̛͢ ̡̀́͟͝ ̶ ̴̴̨͡͡ ̵̸́͠ ͟҉̧͠ ̶̸ ̸̵̧͜ ̨ ̕͏ ̵͢͝ ̶ ͟͟͢ ̧̕͞ ̸̀͝͡ ̶͝͞͠ ̸̀̕͜͠ ̶̡̕̕͞ ̵̵̧ ̴̴̷̡̛ ̶̸ ͏̸̨̢͜ ̵ ͜͜͝҉ ̸͢ ͠ ̕̕͡ ̡́ ̵̕ ̶̵̀͡ ̡͘͡͠ ̶҉̨͘ ̸̢̢ ̨́͝ ͡͠ ͟͠͝ ̛̕͘͟͞ ͠҉ ̴́͢ ̶̷̛͜͜ ̶̢ ̶̕ ̀̕͠͠ ̶̡ ̵̵̸͟ ̸̵̵͏ ̧̕͜͏́ ̷̸ ̶̨͝ ͝҉ ̀́ ͟҉ ̀͢҉ ̛͞͞ ̸̴͘͠ ̧҉̨̢ ͘͞͝ ̛͜͢͟͠ ҉̡ ̸̛̛̛̀ ̵̧́͘ ̴́͜͡ ̶̶̡҉ ̸͢ ͏̷̴͢ ͢͏ ̶̡́͟͝ ̶͞ ̵̵̕҉͞ ̨̨̀͠ ̷̕͜ ̶́̕͡͠ ҉̸̛̛ ̶͘͞ ̧͢͝ ̧҉ ̀̕͢ ̵̢͞ ̸͠ ̢͏͘͡ ̸̸̷́ ͜͟͞ ̛͡ ͜͡͞ ̵͝ ̸̡̕͞ ̷̢̨͜ ́͝͠͞ ̵̢̛̛ ͏҉̕͡ ̵͟ ͞ ͢͠ ̵̵̡ ̷̵͡ ̶͏̧͝ ̶́͡ ̶̀̀͠ ҉̢̕ ̷̛͝͠ ̶̶͢͝ ̕ ̶̕͟͡ ̷͜ ͠҉̴̨͟ ͘͢͠ ̸̧̛ ̴̶̛́̀ ̨͞ ͟͝ ͡͡͏̵ ̸͟͠ ̛̕ ̀̀ ̶̷̛́͘ ̷̡̢͜ ̀͘͞͝ ̢ ̸̴̧́͘ ̸̵͢ ̶̢ ͏̀ ̛̛ ̸̨͡͠͡ ̨̧͘̕ ҉̨ ̡̢̀ ̨̧͞͡ ́͢͠͝ ̨̡̛͜͡ ̷̕ ̧̨ ̨̨ ͏̶̢̀͞ ̨̀͟ ̨͠͞ ̵̧̕͡ ̶͠ ̷̀͝ ̸͘͠͏ ̴̨͝ ̶̵͟ ̨̡͡ ̢̕ ̶̧͟ ̧̀͠ ̴́̀ ̨͏ ̢̨͝ ̵̢́͝ ̨̢̕ ̴̡͘ ̀͘ ҉̸̡͞ ̛́̀ ̸̶̧̡͠ ̷̴̵̢ ̨͡͞͝͡ ̸͟͝͠͡ ҉̵̸̕͡ ̧͜ ̛͘͝ ̶̢̧ ̸̕ ͠ ̛͢͜ ̢̕ ̀́ ̡͠ ̷̕̕ ̸̷̢́ ̸̵́͠ ̴҉̶͜ ̶ ҉̧ ̛͜͏ ̕ ́҉͟͝ ̷̶͜ ̸͡ ̢̛͘͘ ̸̢͢͟ ̢̨̛́ ̷̸̨ ̴̴̵ ́̕͢͢͝ ̵́̕ ͏̶̀ ̀͢͠ ̛͟ ͟͞ ̴ ̡́͜͟͜ ̴̷̧̕ ҉́ ́́͟ ̶̨̕͏҉ ̴̡́ ̸̢́҉ ̶̡̛́͘ ̴̵͞ ̢̛ ̛͟҉̷ ̶̧̀͢ ̢̀́͞ ̵̛͢ ̡̀́͟͝ ̶ ̴̴̨͡͡ ̵̸́͠ ͟҉̧͠ ̶̸ ̸̵̧͜ ̨ ̕͏ ̵͢͝ ̶ ͟͟͢ ̧̕͞ ̸̀͝͡ ̶͝͞͠ ̸̀̕͜͠ ̶̡̕̕͞ ̵̵̧ ̴̴̷̡̛ ̶̸ ͏̸̨̢͜ ̵ ͜͜͝҉ ̸͢ ͠ ̕̕͡ ̡́ ̵̕ ̶̵̀͡ ̡͘͡͠ ̶҉̨͘ ̸̢̢ ̨́͝ ͡͠ ͟͠͝ ̛̕͘͟͞ ͠҉ ̴́͢ ̶̷̛͜͜ ̶̢ ̶̕ ̀̕͠͠ ̶̡ ̵̵̸͟ ̸̵̵͏ ̧̕͜͏́ ̷̸ ̶̨͝ ͝҉ ̀́ ͟҉ ̀͢҉ ̛͞͞ ̸̴͘͠ ̧҉̨̢ ͘͞͝ ̛͜͢͟͠ ҉̡ ̸̛̛̛̀ ̵̧́͘ ̴́͜͡ ̶̶̡҉ ̸͢ ͏̷̴͢ ͢͏ ̶̡́͟͝ ̶͞ ̵̵̕҉͞ ̨̨̀͠ ̷̕͜ ̶́̕͡͠ ҉̸̛̛ ̶͘͞ ̧͢͝ ̧҉ ̀̕͢ ̵̢͞ ̸͠ ̢͏͘͡ ̸̸̷́ ͜͟͞ ̛͡ ͜͡͞ ̵͝ ̸̡̕͞ ̷̢̨͜ ́͝͠͞ ̵̢̛̛ ͏҉̕͡ ̵͟ ͞ ͢͠ ̵̵̡ ̷̵͡ ̶͏̧͝ ̶́͡ ̶̀̀͠ ҉̢̕ ̷̛͝͠ ̶̶͢͝ ̕ ̶̕͟͡ ̷͜ ͠҉̴̨͟ ͘͢͠ ̸̧̛ ̴̶̛́̀ ̨͞ ͟͝ ͡͡͏̵ ̸͟͠ ̛̕ ̀̀ ̶̷̛́͘ ̷̡̢͜ ̀͘͞͝ ̢ ̸̴̧́͘ ̸̵͢ ̶̢ ͏̀ ̛̛ ̸̨͡͠͡ ̨̧͘̕ ҉̨ ̡̢̀ ̨̧͞͡ ́͢͠͝ ̨̡̛͜͡ ̷̕ ̧̨ ̨̨ ͏̶̢̀͞ ̨̀͟ ̨͠͞ ̵̧̕͡ ̶͠ ̷̀͝ ̸͘͠͏ ̴̨͝ ̶̵͟ ̨̡͡ ̢̕ ̶̧͟ ̧̀͠ ̴́̀ ̨͏ ̢̨͝ ̵̢́͝ ̨̢̕ ̴̡͘ ̀͘ ҉̸̡͞ ̛́̀ ̸̶̧̡͠ ̷̴̵̢ ̨͡͞͝͡ ̸͟͝͠͡ ҉̵̸̕͡ ̧͜ ̛͘͝ ̶̢̧ ̸̕ ͠ ̛͢͜ ̢̕ ̀́ ̡͠ ̷̕̕ ̸̷̢́ ̸̵́͠ ̴҉̶͜ ̶ ҉̧ ̛͜͏ ̕ ́҉͟͝ ̷̶͜ ̸͡ ̢̛͘͘ ̸̢͢͟ ̢̨̛́ ̷̸̨ ̴̴̵ ́̕͢͢͝ ̵́̕ ͏̶̀ ̀͢͠ ̛͟ ͟͞ ̴ ̡́͜͟͜ ̴̷̧̕ ҉́ ́́͟ ̶̨̕͏҉ ̴̡́ ̸̢́҉ ̶̡̛́͘ ̴̵͞ ̢̛ ̛͟҉̷ ̶̧̀͢ ̢̀́͞ ̵̛͢ ̡̀́͟͝ ̶ ̴̴̨͡͡ ̵̸́͠ ͟҉̧͠ ̶̸ ̸̵̧͜ ̨ ̕͏ ̵͢͝ ̶ ͟͟͢ ̧̕͞ ̸̀͝͡ ̶͝͞͠ ̸̀̕͜͠ ̶̡̕̕͞ ̵̵̧ ̴̴̷̡̛ ̶̸ ͏̸̨̢͜ ̵ ͜͜͝҉ ̸͢ ͠ ̕̕͡ ̡́ ̵̕ ̶̵̀͡ ̡͘͡͠ ̶҉̨͘ ̸̢̢ ̨́͝ ͡͠ ͟͠͝ ̛̕͘͟͞ ͠҉ ̴́͢ ̶̷̛͜͜ ̶̢ ̶̕ ̀̕͠͠ ̶̡ ̵̵̸͟ ̸̵̵͏ ̧̕͜͏́ ̷̸ ̶̨͝ ͝҉ ̀́ ͟҉ ̀͢҉ ̛͞͞ ̸̴͘͠ ̧҉̨̢ ͘͞͝ ̛͜͢͟͠ ҉̡ ̸̛̛̛̀ ̵̧́͘ ̴́͜͡ ̶̶̡҉ ̸͢ ͏̷̴͢ ͢͏ ̶̡́͟͝ ̶͞ ̵̵̕҉͞ ̨̨̀͠ ̷̕͜ ̶́̕͡͠ ҉̸̛̛ ̶͘͞ ̧͢͝ ̧҉ ̀̕͢ ̵̢͞ ̸͠ ̢͏͘͡ ̸̸̷́ ͜͟͞ ̛͡ ͜͡͞ ̵͝ ̸̡̕͞ ̷̢̨͜ ́͝͠͞ ̵̢̛̛ ͏҉̕͡ ̵͟ ͞ ͢͠ ̵̵̡ ̷̵͡ ̶͏̧͝ ̶́͡ ̶̀̀͠ ҉̢̕ ̷̛͝͠ ̶̶͢͝ ̕ ̶̕͟͡ ̷͜ ͠҉̴̨͟ ͘͢͠ ̸̧̛ ̴̶̛́̀ ̨͞ ͟͝ ͡͡͏̵ ̸͟͠ ̛̕ ̀̀ ̶̷̛́͘ ̷̡̢͜ ̀͘͞͝ ̢ ̸̴̧́͘ ̸̵͢ ̶̢ ͏̀ ̛̛ ̸̨͡͠͡ ̨̧͘̕ ҉̨ ̡̢̀ ̨̧͞͡ ́͢͠͝ ̨̡̛͜͡ ̷̕ ̧̨ ̨̨ ͏̶̢̀͞ ̨̀͟ ̨͠͞ ̵̧̕͡ ̶͠ ̷̀͝ ̸͘͠͏ ̴̨͝ ̶̵͟ ̨̡͡ ̢̕ ̶̧͟ ̧̀͠ ̴́̀ ̨͏ ̢̨͝ ̵̢́͝ ̨̢̕ ̴̡͘ ̀͘ ҉̸̡͞ ̛́̀ ̸̶̧̡͠ ̷̴̵̢ ̨͡͞͝͡ ̸͟͝͠͡ ҉̵̸̕͡ ̧͜ ̛͘͝ ̶̢̧ ̸̕ ͠ ̛͢͜ ̢̕ ̀́ ̡͠ ̷̕̕ ̸̷̢́ ̸̵́͠ ̴҉̶͜ ̶ ҉̧ ̛͜͏ ̕ ́҉͟͝ ̷̶͜ ̸͡ ̢̛͘͘ ̸̢͢͟ ̢̨̛́ ̷̸̨ ̴̴̵ ́̕͢͢͝ ̵́̕ ͏̶̀ ̀͢͠ ̛͟ ͟͞ ̴ ̡́͜͟͜ ̴̷̧̕ ҉́ ́́͟ ̶̨̕͏҉ ̴̡́ ̸̢́҉ ̶̡̛́͘ ̴̵͞ ̢̛ ̛͟҉̷ ̶̧̀͢ ̢̀́͞ ̵̛͢ ̡̀́͟͝ ̶ ̴̴̨͡͡ ̵̸́͠ ͟҉̧͠ ̶̸ ̸̵̧͜ ̨ ̕͏ ̵͢͝ ̶ ͟͟͢ ̧̕͞ ̸̀͝͡ ̶͝͞͠ ̸̀̕͜͠ ̶̡̕̕͞ ̵̵̧ ̴̴̷̡̛ ̶̸ ͏̸̨̢͜ ̵ ͜͜͝҉ ̸͢ ͠ ̕̕͡ ̡́ ̵̕ ̶̵̀͡ ̡͘͡͠ ̶҉̨͘ ̸̢̢ ̨́͝ ͡͠ ͟͠͝ ̛̕͘͟͞ ͠҉ ̴́͢ ̶̷̛͜͜ ̶̢ ̶̕ ̀̕͠͠ ̶̡ ̵̵̸͟ ̸̵̵͏ ̧̕͜͏́ ̷̸ ̶̨͝ ͝҉ ̀́ ͟҉ ̀͢҉ ̛͞͞ ̸̴͘͠ ̧҉̨̢ ͘͞͝ ̛͜͢͟͠ ҉̡ ̸̛̛̛̀ ̵̧́͘ ̴́͜͡ ̶̶̡҉ ̸͢ ͏̷̴͢ ͢͏ ̶̡́͟͝ ̶͞ ̵̵̕҉͞ ̨̨̀͠ ̷̕͜ ̶́̕͡͠ ҉̸̛̛ ̶͘͞ ̧͢͝ ̧҉ ̀̕͢ ̵̢͞ ̸͠ ̢͏͘͡ ̸̸̷́ ͜͟͞ ̛͡ ͜͡͞ ̵͝ ̸̡̕͞ ̷̢̨͜ ́͝͠͞ ̵̢̛̛ ͏҉̕͡ ̵͟ ͞ ͢͠ ̵̵̡ ̷̵͡ ̶͏̧͝ ̶́͡ ̶̀̀͠ ҉̢̕ ̷̛͝͠ ̶̶͢͝ ̕ ̶̕͟͡ ̷͜ ͠҉̴̨͟ ͘͢͠ ̸̧̛ ̴̶̛́̀ ̨͞ ͟͝ ͡͡͏̵ ̸͟͠ ̛̕ ̀̀ ̶̷̛́͘ ̷̡̢͜ ̀͘͞͝ ̢ ̸̴̧́͘ ̸̵͢ ̶̢ ͏̀ ̛̛ ̸̨͡͠͡ ̨̧͘̕ ҉̨ ̡̢̀ ̨̧͞͡ ́͢͠͝ ̨̡̛͜͡ ̷̕ ̧̨ ̨̨ ͏̶̢̀͞ ̨̀͟ ̨͠͞ ̵̧̕͡ ̶͠ ̷̀͝ ̸͘͠͏ ̴̨͝ ̶̵͟ ̨̡͡ ̢̕ ̶̧͟ ̧̀͠ ̴́̀ ̨͏ ̢̨͝ ̵̢́͝ ̨̢̕ ̴̡͘ ̀͘ ҉̸̡͞ ̛́̀ ̸̶̧̡͠ ̷̴̵̢ ̨͡͞͝͡ ̸͟͝͠͡ ҉̵̸̕͡ ̧͜ ̛͘͝ ̶̢̧ ̸̕ ͠ ̛͢͜ ̢̕ ̀́ ̡͠ ̷̕̕ ̸̷̢́ ̸̵́͠ ̴҉̶͜ ̶ ҉̧ ̛͜͏ ̕ ́҉͟͝ ̷̶͜ ̸͡ ̢̛͘͘ ̸̢͢͟ ̢̨̛́ ̷̸̨ ̴̴̵ ́̕͢͢͝ ̵́̕ ͏̶̀ ̀͢͠ ̛͟ ͟͞ ̴ ̡́͜͟͜ ̴̷̧̕ ҉́ ́́͟ ̶̨̕͏҉ ̴̡́ ̸̢́҉ ̶̡̛́͘ ̴̵͞ ̢̛ ̛͟҉̷ ̶̧̀͢ ̢̀́͞ ̵̛͢ ̡̀́͟͝ ̶ ̴̴̨͡͡ ̵̸́͠ ͟҉̧͠ ̶̸ ̸̵̧͜ ̨ ̕͏ ̵͢͝ ̶ ͟͟͢ ̧̕͞ ̸̀͝͡ ̶͝͞͠ ̸̀̕͜͠ ̶̡̕̕͞ ̵̵̧ ̴̴̷̡̛ ̶̸ ͏̸̨̢͜ ̵ ͜͜͝҉ ̸͢ ͠ ̕̕͡ ̡́ ̵̕ ̶̵̀͡ ̡͘͡͠ ̶҉̨͘ ̸̢̢ ̨́͝ ͡͠ ͟͠͝ ̛̕͘͟͞ ͠҉ ̴́͢ ̶̷̛͜͜ ̶̢ ̶̕ ̀̕͠͠ ̶̡ ̵̵̸͟ ̸̵̵͏ ̧̕͜͏́ ̷̸ ̶̨͝ ͝҉ ̀́ ͟҉ ̀͢҉ ̛͞͞ ̸̴͘͠ ̧҉̨̢ ͘͞͝ ̛͜͢͟͠ ҉̡ ̸̛̛̛̀ ̵̧́͘ ̴́͜͡ ̶̶̡҉ ̸͢ ͏̷̴͢ ͢͏ ̶̡́͟͝ ̶͞ ̵̵̕҉͞ ̨̨̀͠ ̷̕͜ ̶́̕͡͠ ҉̸̛̛ ̶͘͞ ̧͢͝ ̧҉ ̀̕͢ ̵̢͞ ̸͠ ̢͏͘͡ ̸̸̷́ ͜͟͞ ̛͡ ͜͡͞ ̵͝ ̸̡̕͞ ̷̢̨͜ ́͝͠͞ ̵̢̛̛ ͏҉̕͡ ̵͟ ͞ ͢͠ ̵̵̡ ̷̵͡ ̶͏̧͝ ̶́͡ ̶̀̀͠ ҉̢̕ ̷̛͝͠ ̶̶͢͝ ̕ ̶̕͟͡ ̷͜ ͠҉̴̨͟ ͘͢͠ ̸̧̛ ̴̶̛́̀ ̨͞ ͟͝ ͡͡͏̵ ̸͟͠ ̛̕ ̀̀ ̶̷̛́͘ ̷̡̢͜ ̀͘͞͝ ̢ ̸̴̧́͘ ̸̵͢ ̶̢ ͏̀ ̛̛ ̸̨͡͠͡ ̨̧͘̕ ҉̨ ̡̢̀ ̨̧͞͡ ́͢͠͝ ̨̡̛͜͡ ̷̕ ̧̨ ̨̨ ͏̶̢̀͞ ̨̀͟ ̨͠͞ ̵̧̕͡ ̶͠ ̷̀͝ ̸͘͠͏ ̴̨͝ ̶̵͟ ̨̡͡ ̢̕ ̶̧͟ ̧̀͠ ̴́̀ ̨͏ ̢̨͝ ̵̢́͝ ̨̢̕ ̴̡͘ ̀͘ ҉̸̡͞ ̛́̀ ̸̶̧̡͠ ̷̴̵̢ ̨͡͞͝͡ ̸͟͝͠͡ ҉̵̸̕͡ ̧͜ ̛͘͝ ̶̢̧ ̸̕ ͠ ̛͢͜ ̢̕ ̀́ ̡͠ ̷̕̕ ̸̷̢́ ̸̵́͠ ̴҉̶͜ ̶ ҉̧ ̛͜͏ ̕ ́҉͟͝ ̷̶͜ ̸͡ ̢̛͘͘ ̸̢͢͟ ̢̨̛́ ̷̸̨ ̴̴̵ ́̕͢͢͝ ̵́̕ ͏̶̀ ̀͢͠ ̛͟ ͟͞ ̴ ̡́͜͟͜ ̴̷̧̕ ҉́ ́́͟ ̶̨̕͏҉ ̴̡́ ̸̢́҉ ̶̡̛́͘ ̴̵͞ ̢̛ ̛͟҉̷ ̶̧̀͢ ̢̀́͞ ̵̛͢ ̡̀́͟͝ ̶ ̴̴̨͡͡ ̵̸́͠ ͟҉̧͠ ̶̸ ̸̵̧͜ ̨ ̕͏ ̵͢͝ ̶ ͟͟͢ ̧̕͞ ̸̀͝͡ ̶͝͞͠ ̸̀̕͜͠ ̶̡̕̕͞ ̵̵̧ ̴̴̷̡̛ ̶̸ ͏̸̨̢͜ ̵ ͜͜͝҉ ̸͢ ͠ ̕̕͡
"Pine Tree~" a familiar voice sang in his ear, "wake up~"
His eyes cracked open slightly and he found himself in the clearing he'd woken up in yesterday again and he was leaning against the large tree once more. "Bill?" he asked.
"Yup, have a good sleep? I made sure to keep the nightmares away for y',"
"Nightmares?" he asked when everything came crashing down on him; the horrific events with the sirens on Scuttlebutt island. "What happened with the, uh..." he trailed off and averted his eyes from the demon's.
"First siren died, obviously. The others? I don't know, I teleported us here before they showed up."
"You couldn't have done that in the first place? Now I'm gonna have nightmares for God knows how long."
"Nah, I'll make sure you only have sweet dreams in your noggin. And it was fun watching you get chased for sirens, as short as it was. It was also pretty fun exploding a head, you have no idea how long it's been since I did that," he laughed.
"Right," the boy muttered.
"Kid, cheer up. I made sure to get the blood off y' so you have nothing to worry about."
"B-blood?" he stuttered.
"Yup, such a shame. It really suited you."
"O-oh, uh..." he thought for a moment, unsure of what to say. "I need to get back to the shack."
"Already? You that desperate to leave me, Pine Tree? I'm offended."
"No, I just need to talk to Mabel," he said surprisingly calmly - he was exhausted after the day's events and couldn't bring himself to put any effort into putting emotion in his words.
The demon hummed before saying; "oh yeah, I forgot to give this to you. You left it back at Scuttlebutt Island so I picked it up for y'," he clicked his fingers and the journal dropped into the boy's hands. "Now then, I'll take you back to the rat-hole you call a house," he took the boy's hand without further word or a reply and they were quickly engulfed in a blue flame.
"Have fun, I'll see you tomorrow, Pine Tree!" Bill waved to the teen once they arrived and instantly flashed away.
"Bye," Dipper said to the empty air after the demon had disappeared. It wasn't too late in the afternoon and when he walked into the shack, he walked straight past Wendy without a word.
"Hey Dipper, how's it hanging?" she asked as he passed but he only ignored her. He only wanted to talk to his twin at that moment. After discovering that she still hadn't returned - where had she gone? - he simply sat down in the living room and watched TV while he waited.
"Dipper?" came a voice from the doorway; it had only been forty five minutes since he'd returned himself and he turned his head to see his sister. The words flowed from his mouth all at once and he, himself, wasn't entirely sure what he was spouting but he knew he had to, he wanted to, apologise to Mabel:
"Mabel, I'm so sorry. I know I'm being selfish and I should have broken the deal with Bill, I shouldn't have made it in the first place but I don't know why, I just can't, I- "
"It's fine," she interrupted him.
"W-what?" he stammered. The night before she'd been so upset and had cried herself to sleep - when had she come to terms with his choices?
"I'm pretty sure you're the only guy that could ever like Bill, Dipper," she said, "and I don't know how you could. But I guess if you're happy when you're with him then I'll put up with it, it's not like he'd ever hurt you, right?"
Dipper smiled sincerely and nodded, "yeah. Thanks Mabel," he was glad that she'd finally accepted it.
"Besides, it's so funny watching you get all flustered because you're in love~" she drawled out the last word tauntingly.
His face heated up, "no, I'm not- don't ruin the moment, Mabel."
She laughed before opening her arms, "awkward sibling hug?"
"Awkward sibling hug," Dipper agreed and opened his own arms. However, as he moved to hug his sister, Waddles snorted and squealed loudly at their feet, startling them both. The pig stood between the duo, watching Dipper almost warningly. "What's wrong with him? He's never done this before." He had a sneaking suspicion that the pig could sense Bill's presence, just as Ford had explained that morning.
( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)
That night, Dipper couldn't help but think over that moment; he was overjoyed that Mabel had accepted what he wanted. He couldn't explain his choices to himself, let alone others and he was glad that Mabel didn't expect him to; she wouldn't try to break the deal or stop him from going with Bill - and for that, he was thankful. He couldn't say the same for his Great Uncle Ford, however. He knew that the man was hiding something; he'd never hidden anything from the boy before, so why now? The only logical answer the boy could think of was that it had something to do with his demonic companion; Bill. He'd been furious when he found out about the deal... was he trying to break it?
Dipper drifted into a peaceful slumber full of sweet dreams, just as he'd been promised.
The siren was a request, and was fun to write. So thanks for that ;D
Siren on Wikipedia: wiki/Siren_(mythology)
Bad annotations: art/Siren-598051772
The weird text effect thingy if you're curious: /
Sorry if the whole weird text thingy got a bit much. I really wanted to give this chapter a scarier feeling, did it work? (I guess it's a bit too short for scary.) If you think I should dial it down a bit with the weird text, let me know and I'll fix it and re-upload this chapter. I feel like some day, this fic is going to reach a whole new level of blood and gore. Sorry in advance... I'll try not to surpass the stuff in this chapter.
Also, you probably noticed above 'bad annotations' well yeah I've just decided that instead of calling them drawings (they're so bad, they can't even be called drawings,) I'm going to call them my 'bad annotations' art series. Since that's basically what it is. If you haven't seen them, they're just my quick sketches/terrible drawings of the creatures I write about in this fic. I only draw the ones that I think are difficult to describe or imagine, and I always label them with really self-critical and sarcastic comments xD. So yeah, check those out if you want to.
Feel free to request any creatures, I love writing for reviewers, it's a lot more fun than finding my own stuff! You can be as detailed or as vague as you want, even going as far as plotting an entire chapter or just giving me the name and letting me have free reign ;).
Anyways, thanks for reading, please review, favourite, etc, if you liked this chapter!