The group stood in the clearing, Bill sitting on a fallen tree a little ways away with Tad guarding him, a portal swirling before them. Tad had decided to join them after he made sure everything was back to normal, the fires put out, and all the trees put back in their regular places. The forest was returned to exactly how it had been, as if nothing had happened in the first place.
When he first heard what happened to Bill, Tad had burst out laughing. It was the most emotion anyone had ever seen from him.
"Well," Mabel said, smiling sadly. "Guess this is goodbye... for realsies, now." "Yeah, guess so." Paz replied. Gideon held his hand out to Dipper. "Well, it was nice meeting you." "Yeah, it was nice to meet you too." Dipper agreed, shaking his hand. Mabel and Paz shared a quick hug, then Mabel walked up to Other Dipper. "I'm going to miss you." She told him. He smiled sadly. "I'm actually going to miss you too." He noticed the sharp glare from his sister. "Uh, I mean, I won't miss you at all." He amended. Mabel laughed and hugged him tightly.
Ford walked up to Will. "That was pretty smart, turning him into a human." He said. Will smiled. "Oh, uh, thanks. I feel kind of bad leaving him with you guys though."
"It's no trouble." Ford replied. Stan rolled his eyes. "Yeah, right. I'm half-tempted to leave the gremlin in the woods and let nature take its course." He said, jerking a thumb in Bill's direction. Will laughed. "I guess you could if you wanted to, but I'd recommend just trying to teach him how to be a human. It might knock him down a few pegs." "I guess we could take that into consideration." Ford shrugged.
The group finished their goodbyes and the Gleeful twins, Paz, Gideon, and Will all walked through the portal, journeying back home.
Then, the Pines all turned toward Bill collectively. "So," Dipper crossed his arms. "What should we do with him?"
Bill glared at them as he crossed his arms as well, mirroring Dipper. Stan sighed. "You know what, we'll let you kids decide." He and Ford both walked back towards the shack, arms over each other's shoulders.
"Yeah, as much as I'd like to see this, I should get back home. Good luck dealing with him." Tad shared one last glare with Bill before disappearing.
"So," Bill said, breaking the silence that followed. "What are you going to do with me?" He tried to look tough, but Mabel could see the fear in his eyes. Going from a feared dream demon to a powerless human must make him feel very vulnerable.
"Well, we could take you in and teach you how to be a human?" Mabel suggested. Bill scoffed and rolled his eyes. Dipper scowled. "Hey, you're lucky that we're even offering you this. What, would you rather we leave you alone in the forest to get attacked by a bear or something?" He retorted.
"Maybe!" Bill replied. "After all, a human life is only seventy to eighty years on average! Might as well get it over with!"
Dipper clenched his fists. "Well, fine! Have it your way then!" And with that, he stalked off to catch up with the Stan twins. Mabel stood in her place, reluctant to leave. "You better go, too, Shooting Star, I doubt you want to stay here." Bill said to her. She sighed and went to follow her brother, only to stop after a few steps and look back.
He looked so helpless, at least in her eyes. She knew she couldn't leave him out here on his own. She was too kind hearted for that.
She walked back to the fallen tree Bill sat on, and she sat next to him. There was silence between them for a moment as they both listened to birds chirp and the leaves rustle in the wind. "You know, I find that life is a lot easier and way more fun if you have a friend." Mabel said. Bill glanced up at her, then turned away. "Why are you so insistent on helping me, Star?" He asked, irritated. Mabel smiled. "Because I'm too stubborn for my own good. And because I believe everyone deserves a second chance."
Bill laughed hollowly. "Yeah, right. You think I haven't been given second chances before?" "Well, then, let's say this, like, your forty-seventh chance. And now, you don't have any reason to waste it." Mabel said. "So, what do you say? You ready to give being human a shot?"
Bill looked at her. "You're not going to stop bothering me until I say yes, aren't you?" He said. Mabel nodded happily. "I'll drag you to the Mystery Shack if I have to."
He rolled his eyes. Another moment of silence expanded between them. "Fine." He said reluctantly. Mabel squealed and shot to her feet, dragging Bill to his. She hooked her arm through his as she led him back to the Mystery Shack. "Yay!! Don't worry, I'll teach you everything you need to know! Ah, this going to be so awesome!"
_
Dipper, Stan, and Ford couldn't say they were happy with their new roommate. But, to his credit, he tried to behave. It was an odd thing to see, but he knew he was a lot more vulnerable now, and Ford made it very clear what would happen to him if he were to step out of line.
But luckily, Mabel was a great teacher, teaching him about the ways of the humans. Bill knew that he would never grow fully accustomed to it, and he'd always be a bit spiteful towards his situation and the Pines family, but he had to admit, it was a nice change from being feared all the time.
Also, as punishment for all the other things he did, he was forced to wear one of Mabel's sweaters every Tuesday, and to work the Mystery Shack gift shop as an employee.
As for Dipper, he enjoyed the rest of the summer. The day after everything went down, as soon as he woke up, he took out his journal and wrote down everything that happened. He even drew little sketches of human Bill, the reverse versions of him and his friends/rivals, and Will. It was funny to think that all this happened just because he had wanted a little adventure.
At the end of the summer, just as Dipper was about to leave to go back to Piedmont, Mabel came up to him. "Hey, uh, Dipper?" She asked hesitantly. "Yeah, Mabel?" He said.
She rubbed her arm. "Um, I just wanted to let you know that... I'm staying in Gravity Falls." She said. "What?" Dipper replied breathlessly. Mabel rushed to explain. "It-It's not because I don't wanna go home with you or anything!! It's just, I think it's best if I stay here and make sure the Grunkles don't kill Bill or anything. Also, I don't belong at home. You know?"
Dipper shook his head. "But Mabel, what about university? What about Mom and Dad?" "I already told Mom and Dad. They thought it was for the best. They knew you'd move here the second you're done with university, just like I knew too. So then I thought, what's stopping me?" Mabel sighed. "Besides, you were always going to be the one going off to university and getting a degree. That was never going to be me. Heck, I barely made it through high school."
Silence fell around them as Dipper processed her words. Then he laughed sadly. "Last summer we were at Gravity Falls, it was me trying to stay. Now it's you." "Yeah, I guess this is sort of a reverse of our last summer here." Mabel agreed. Dipper sighed, but he knew this was for the best. He remembered the tough times they had at high school trying to fit in. They both knew Gravity Falls was where they were meant to be. It would be selfish of him to try to get her to go back home, only to have her struggle to fit in until he finished university so they could move back here together.
"So, I guess I'll see you next summer then?" Dipper said hopefully. Mabel nodded. "Definitely. Awkward sibling hug?" She asked, raising her arms. "Awkward sibling hug." Dipper responded and they both hugged each other tightly, almost afraid to let go.
"I'll miss you, Mabel." Dipper whispered, eyes stinging. "I'll miss you too, Dip." Mabel replied, hugging him tighter, tears threatening to spill over. After a minute more, they let go, and Ford and Stan came out to wish him goodbye, both with back-breaking hugs. And with that, Dipper got in his car, waved to his family once more, and left to go back to Piedmont, California.
_
Well, I hope you enjoyed. This was a blast to write, even if it got tricky at some parts. Hard to believe just a few months ago, fourteen-year-old me found the beginning of this story saved in my google docs and decided to post it here.
I really want to thank you guys for the support. You're comments were some of things that really kept me going. Honestly, if it weren't for you guys, this story would've been abandoned ages ago. Especially with my history when it comes to starting stories.
I've had an idea for a sequel planned in my head, but I'm sort of iffy about going through with it. It'd be a series of one shots about Mabel's adventures in teaching Bill the human ways, since I kind of glossed over it at the end there. So let me know if you want see that.
Also, don't worry GodzillaMaster, I have not forgotten about my Owl House/Gravity Falls crossover. I just took time away from it to spend more time on this. New chapter should be out soon.
Anyways, I hope you guys enjoyed reading this story, and I'll see ya later, entertainers. Peace out.