I AM SO, SO, SO, SO, SO SORRY! I wanted to get this out sooner, I really did, but I had so many tests these past weeks and I had a major case of writers block. I only had an idea about what to do next two weeks ago and I was SO busy with school and other things too. But luckily…
IT'S SUMMER VACATION!
I will have more time to write and I can get chapters out much quicker. I have overcome my writer's block (I hope) and I know what I am doing now! Woo hoo!
Also, in case anyone is worried that I will abandon this story, stop worrying. I have a lot more planned and I won't stop until I say the whole entire story is over. And trust me, it will be a while. So if you really enjoy this story, expect more to come!
Anyways, now for the reviews…
arapyanime: I'm glad you loved the chapter!
Mabilluv13: First off, I love your name! Secondly, wow. That's a lot of ideas. I'm thinking that I may use some of them. However, I might use some of the areas you suggested in the Ever Changing Realm also.
Mylittlechainsaws123: I'm happy you thought my chapter was wonderful. Yes, Bill is scary. I would have made him worse, but it's a T rating and I'm trying not to make it too bloody. And a candy realm you say? Hmm… I think I might just use that! While Mabel would be in heaven, Bill would be in hell! I could just see the look on Bill's face.
Bloodstone38: Yes, yes he is.
Sam: I'm sorry it's taken so long to update! Writer's block is the bane of my existence! Also, thanks for calling my story awesome!
Awesome: I'm updating as fast as I can with writer's block! Just stick with me! Thanks for complimenting my story to!
TheMemeMaster: I'm so happy you think my story is that good! For the realm idea, I have a thing or two planned for a realm like that, but it won't have a shadow shard in it. Something else will be happening.
doritowoman4: Awwww! I'm touched that this is your favorite MaBill story! I must be doing something right! Thank you so much! Your future realm idea is an interesting one. Maybe I can have them travel to Time Baby's time! Heh, Bill wouldn't be too happy about that.
As for your volcano realm idea, I may use that. I'm going to be having a chapter where lots of places are involved, so I'm going to be using a lot of ideas. This one will probably be one of them. Also, I am updating right now!
Guest: Here comes another chapter! I'm glad you think that they are good!
Urgent: Yes, I am going to update! I'm going to update until this whole entire story is through! Expect more chapters from me!
Cryingman: The update is here! Don't worry!
Thanks all you amazing people for reviewing! Speaking of reviews…
I HAVE OVER 50 REVIEWS! WOO HOO!
Not only that, I have over 60 followers, and almost 40 favorites. I know that may not seem like much to most people, but this absolutely makes my heart explode with happiness! Thank you all SO much! You all get a cookie! (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::)
Also, thank you to anybody who has read my story up to this point. To my calculations, there are around 250 people who have been sticking with this story. Again, I know this may not seem like a lot to most people, but just knowing that people out there really like what I write, it nearly brings me to tears. Thank you SO much!
This has been a really long author's note, but it just had to be said! Now sit back, relax, and enjoy the chapter!
WARNING! This chapter is a little dark/gruesome at a certain part. Just a warning. If I am getting to dark for the T rating, please tell me. This should be the last chapter with something this dark in it, but just in case…
Disclaimer: I do not, under the slightest of circumstances, own Gravity Falls. Only the outstanding Alex Hirsch and Disney have the rights to this fantastic show.
Mabel's eyes darted back and forth as she watched Bill pace, er, float in circles around his study. He was still in his human form (much to her surprise) and seemed to be deep in thought. She had decided five minutes ago to stay quiet and let him think.
It had been two weeks since their first victory of obtaining the shadow shard in Glacier Town. Bill had finally allowed her back into his Mindscape and she thought it was because he knew the location of the next shard. However, she was starting to doubt her earlier assumption due to all the thinking he seemed to be doing.
When Bill started mumbling nonsense to himself, she thought it was time to intervene.
"Bill," Mabel drawled. Bill's head snapped up. When he saw that it was her who spoke to him, he stopped moving and gave her a look. She couldn't exactly decipher what it meant though. It looked something like a glare, a face of confusion, and she swore there was a smirk thrown in there somewhere.
"What is it, Shooting Star?" Mabel lifted an eyebrow when she heard him growl after saying her nickname. Before she could question it, the dream demon was back to his floating. But Mabel could tell he was still waiting to hear what she said.
"Could you explain to me why I'm here exactly?" she asked. He must have brought her here for a reason. People don't just bring people into their homes to watch them pace all day. Then again, Mabel thought, Bill is a dream demon, not a person. For all I know, he could have brought me here just so that I would think that we were getting the next shadow shard when we really weren't.
"Well, Shooting Star," he stopped short again and said something about "ignoring it" and "just a drug" under his breath. Once again, before Mabel could question it, he was back to answering what she had asked. "I have an idea of where the next shadow shard is, but I need to check in with an old... friend, to put it lightly, and get some more information."
Mabel raised an eyebrow again at his answer. She had a feeling that his friend wasn't exactly a friend. Does Bill even have friends? she thought. She knew that he considered the Nightmares to be his friends, but they seemed more like pieces on Bill's chessboard than his friends. Of course, they wouldn't be the pawns on Bill's chessboard; they would either be the rooks, bishops or knights. Bill would, obviously, be the king (it helped that his ego was bigger than the Earth itself). But the queen? Mabel couldn't picture who it would be. Pyronica seemed like the only girls in his group, but she seemed more like a knight or a bishop than the queen.
Mabel furrowed her eyebrows. No matter how much she thought, she couldn't figure out who the queen would be. The best answer she could think of was that Bill eliminated the queen from the chessboard entirely. It seemed like something he would do.
She was snapped back into reality when something long and hard hit her head.
"Chessboard!" she randomly shouted. When she realized what she said, her eyes darted to Bill. He was looking at her strangely. At first, she thought that he had been reading her mind, but a second look at him pushed that thought out the window. It was clear by the expression on his face that he did not know what she had been thinking.
Bill sighed and made his cane disappear in a flash. He put a hand to his nose and pinched the bridge of it in annoyance. "Care to tell me what enraptured you so?"
She scoffed. "Well, since you didn't bother reading my mind, I have a feeling you don't really want to know." Bill said nothing and Mabel smirked. "That's what I thought."
"Shooting Star, we are wasting time here. We need to talk to my friend before he disappears again. I had enough trouble tracking him down this time; I don't want to have to do it again!"
A sigh escaped Mabel. "Fine, I'll pay attention." Bill nodded and turned back to a map that was on the wall nearest to him. A map that wasn't there a minute ago. She blinked once to see if it was really there. It was. Mabel guessed he made it appear while she was deep in thought. She stood up from the weird couch that she (reluctantly) was sitting on and walked over to the map.
"So, where is this friend of yours anyway?" Bill pointed to a spot on the map and Mabel squinted her eyes at where he was pointing. It was so small, she could barely see it. When she thought she saw it (she couldn't tell if the spot was the place or a smudge), she turned back to Bill. "What is that place?"
"It's a very small realm that not many people know about. It's called the Reverse Realm-"
"And the name is very original in your opinion, am I correct?"
Bill smirked. "Couldn't have said it better myself." He paused. "Actually, I could have. I do everything better."
Mabel rolled her eyes and flicked the dream demon's head.
"We get it Mr. Flying Dorito, you have a big ego. Anything new you'd like to tell me?" Bill snorted and turned back to the map.
"Well, in the Reverse Realm, time goes backwards. For example, in the year 618 B.C. in your world, it was the year 3618 A.D. in their world."
"Oh," Mabel exclaimed. "So, what time period are they in now?"
Bill put a hand to his chin in thought. "I believe the 1700's, last time I checked."
Mabel's forehead scrunched up. "But how does that work? If it was about three thousand years later before, how is it only three hundred years apart now?"
"That's simple, Shooting Star. The laws of physics and time work differently in that world than the one you reside in."
"Oh," was all Mabel could muster. Bill snapped his fingers and the map disappeared in a flash, blinding Mabel for a moment. He turned to face her and clapped his hands together.
"So, now that all that business is settled, are you ready to go, Shooting Star?" Bill shot her a mocking smile.
She sighed. "Do I have a choice?"
"Unless you want the shadows to kill you," Bill's smiled turned into a smirk, "then no, you don't."
"That's what I thought," Mabel grumbled. For what had to be the hundredth time, Bill levitated her up into the air and snapped his fingers. Everything around them turned into one dark blur and the two were shot forward. Not even a millisecond later, they stopped.
Mabel was dropped to the ground and for the first time, her stomach wasn't churning. She glanced at her stomach in awe and stood up. She poked it once or twice to make sure it really did feel fine. It didn't even grumble. "Wow," she whispered. "I guess it doesn't hurt after a while."
"Told you," Bill said in a sing song voice, gliding past her. Mabel rolled her eyes and followed him up a giant hill. It took her a second to spot him because of how dark it was, but it wasn't too hard.
"Why is it you take joy in these type of things?"
The dream demon threw his arms into the air and stretched. "What things?" Mabel could practically here the smirk in his voice.
"You know. Always being ri-" Mabel froze in place as they got to the top of the hill they were climbing. Her jaw dropped open at the town below. "D-did we go back in time?" she questioned.
The town looked like something out of her history books.
The village was small and had a wide, lush green field surrounding it. The streets in the town were made of cobble and the houses were also made of stone. They had dark wood roofs and almost every house had a chimney popping out of them. Mabel wished she could have seen more, but the moon didn't provide enough light to look at all the nicks and crannies of the town.
"This looks like something I saw in a history book once!" Mabel gasped.
Bill smirked. "I thought only Pine Tree and Sixer were obsessed with books, but apparently a certain Shooting Star is too."
Mabel slapped his arm. "It was for school you butt head."
A sigh escaped the dream demon. "Do you have any new comebacks? This one is beginning to get annoying."
"Then I'm doing my job." Mabel smirked and started the trek down the hill. Bill sighed again and followed her.
By the time they reached the town, the moon was high in the sky and the only lights were from the candles that were flickering in people's window. However, even those were few in numbers.
Mabel squinted her eyes at the streets. "How on earth are we supposed to find your friend?" she whispered. "I can barely see two steps in front of- Ack!" For the second time that day, Mabel shielded her eyes from the sudden light that appeared. She gave her eyes a hard rub and then slowly opened them.
She caught Bill finishing an eye roll. His face was lit up by the medium-sized blue flame he now held in his hands. "Shooting Star, can you please stop over reacting? You're going to wake up the whole town. I don't want hoarding people into houses to be added to our To-Do list." Bill made a piece of paper with the words "To-Do" written on it to emphasize his point.
Mabel scanned the paper and grunted. "There is literally only one thing on that list!"
"My point exactly." The paper disappeared and Bill floated farther down the street before Mabel could respond. "Now come on. We don't have very much time." Mabel muttered an incoherent comment under her breath and trudged after the dream demon.
They were rounding a corner when Bill stopped her. "He's here."
Mabel frowned and eyed the area around them warily. "Explain to me why every secret meeting has to be done in an old, abandoned alley. I mean, this happens in every movie that has a secret meeting in it."
The dream demon sighed in annoyance. "How am I supposed to know that?"
Mabel's frown turned upside down. "So… You're saying you don't know everything?" Bill let out a low growl and Mabel giggled. "And here I thought you were the all-powerful and all-knowing Bill Cipher. Guess I was wrong." She let out a playful sigh.
"I could know the answer," Bill muttered through gritted teeth, "but I don't waste my time thinking about stupid things like that!" Bill made sure to keep his yell a whisper. He didn't want Acornus to hear them.
"Who says it's stupid?"
"Oh, I don't know. Maybe about every person and being in existence!"
Mabel smirked again. "I'm a person in existence and I don't think it's stupid."
Bill face palmed. "You know what; I don't have time for this." The dream demon snapped his fingers and bright blue flames surrounded him. How nobody woke up and saw the fire was beyond Mabel's knowledge. When it disappeared, Bill was back to his regular, triangle shaped self.
"Now Shooting Star, you stay here." He glared at her. "And do not move from this spot. Got it?" Mabel nodded. "Good."
Bill adjusted his hat and straightened his bow tie. With a final glare in Mabel's direction, he turned the corner and disappeared around a wall.
However, just because Mabel couldn't see him, didn't mean she couldn't hear him.
"Acornus." A man in a brown coat, trousers, and old boots turned around at the mention of his name. The man had black hair and dark brown eyes that were so dark they almost seemed black. Acornus gave Bill a thin smile.
The two were in a well sized space between two dirty alleys. Acornus already had a fire going, but it seemed like it was going to burn out at the slightest gust of wind. It provided enough light to see each other at the very least.
"Bill Cipher. I heard you've been looking for me. I guess the rumors were true." The smile got wider and even creepier. "What took you so long?"
"Well," Bill said, making his cane appear, "you're not exactly easy to find."
Acornus sighed. "Ah, yes. Being a shape shifter does have its perks." He turned into a gigantic three-headed-dog to prove his point. The dog was the same color as Acornus' eyes and had the same smile to.
"But being a dream demon has even more," Bill countered. With a snap of his fingers, nearly five hundred cobras had appeared and surrounded the dog. The snakes hissed and had their fangs bared, ready to pounce.
Acornus sighed again. "I can't argue with that." He quickly turned back into a man and glared at the cobras. Bill snapped his fingers again and the snakes disappeared.
Acornus shook his head and the thin smile returned. "But I know you didn't take all this time to find me for idle chit-chat. What do you want?"
Bill shrugged. "It's simple, really. I want the location of the shadow shard."
The man stiffened, but quickly relaxed. "It's in the Ever Changing Realm." He laughed. "I'm surprised you took the time to find me for this information. I'm sure that there are a few demons who are much easier to find and would have this information too."
The dream demon was the one to laugh this time. "Oh, I never asked what realm it's in. I already got that info." Acornus stiffened again and Bill floated closer to him. "I'm asking a different question and you know that I am. So, I'll ask you again. Where is the shadow shard in the Ever Changing Realm, Acornus?"
The man in question took a few steps back. He swallowed the lump in his throat and frantically looked around.
"I-I can't say Bill. They'll kill me if I do."
"Well, to bad then." Bill's voice dropped a few octaves. "If you remember correctly, we made a deal that stated I would give you control of the Shifter Realm, in exchange that you would help me whenever I needed it. I already had one demon go back on a deal this week, and his punishment was bad enough. You wouldn't want to be on the receiving end of the second one."
Acornus swallowed shakily. "H-how did y-y-you find out t-that-"
"That you knew where it was? Simple. That shard was the only one the shadows had and hid. Or should I say the one they told you to hide. You worked for them and you hid the shard. And if your wondering how I knew this information...well... I have some friends here and there." Bill's eye narrowed. "Now tell me," his cane disappeared and blue flames appeared in Bill's hands, "where is the shadow shard?"
Acornus didn't mean to, but he was starting to stutter. He was usually calm, but when the Shadows of the Underworld were involved... "B-B-Bill, I... I can't tell you." He started to looking around again, scared that the shadows might be listening. Acornus wasn't scared of much, but the shadows were a whole different story.
"But you have to. We made a deal." The flames in Bill's hands grew. Bill could feel his anger rising. He nearly killed the first demon who broke a deal with him. And within a week, another demon was. He was beginning to lose his patience.
"You hid it in the only place you can leave the Ever Changing Realm," Bill continued. "The only place anyone can transport out of that accursed place. I don't want to be stuck their forever. I have plans that I want to see put into action. I have people I want to see dead by my hands. So, I'll ask you one more time. Where is the shadow shard?"
"Why... W-why do you even care?!" Acornus shouted. He tried desperately to change the subject. "The shadow shards won't do anything to increase your power or kill people or anything like that! The only thing they can do is trap the shadows in the Underworld!"
"That's right. However, I have made a deal that will greatly benefit me in the future. And I want to see the deal go through." The flames grew once again. "So, where is the shadow shard?"
"I... I... Argh!" Acornus tried to transform into something, anything that would get him out of the situation he was in. However, Bill was too fast and used his powers to stop the transformation before Acornus could even react.
Bill levitated Acornus high up into the air and then threw him down to the ground. A deafening crack and shriek was heard his he hit the cobblestone street.
Bill floated over to him, cherishing all the pain Acornus was in. He was screaming in agony and clutching at his now broken back. Bill scoffed at that. Stop whining, he thought. It could have been worse. He went back into his somber demeanor began and glare at the man. Two blue flames reappeared in his hands.
"Last chance," Bill growled, beginning to get irritated. He thought Acornus would have told him by now. He didn't think he was afraid of the shadows that much. However, every second Acornus refused to tell him, Bill could feel his anger rising more and more. It was a miracle Bill was still in his calm state of mind.
Acornus, still holding onto his back, finally stopped screaming and looked up at Bill. It was clear that Acornus did not expect Bill to be threatening his life tonight.
Well, Bill thought bitterly, maybe you should have thought about what happens when you break a deal with me. …And this item is actual important. The last part was an afterthought, but it was true. What Bill needed was important. If he could get all the shadow shards, he could finish his part of the deal and get his favor from Mabel. Then he could finally defeat the annoying brat that helped ruined what he had worked on for millions of years and the rest of her family.
"Where." Bill growled, "Is. The. Shadow. Shard?"
Acornus shook out of fear. He never expected Bill to physically threaten his life. Something was different this time, but he didn't know what. Nonetheless, anything Bill had in store was better than the torture the shadows would give him. "B-Bill," he gasped, "I... I w-w-won't tell you."
Bill's eye narrowed even more and he let out a creepy laugh. "So, you broke a deal with me. You should know that no one who breaks a deal with me comes out unscarred." His laugh quickly turned into a growl. "You are a great ally to have, and if it was anything or any time else, the worst I would have done was take off most of your body parts. However, one demon already broke a deal with me, and this item is the only thing that can help me get revenge. Let's just say, I'm not feeling very forgiving today. So, I guess this is the last time we will ever meet." The blue flames in Bill's hands grew ten times bigger. Acornus' eyes widened.
"Goodbye, Acornus."
What happened next was complete insanity.
A red and brown blur came out of the shadows, tackling Bill to the ground. Bill shouted in surprise and glared at the attacker.
"What do you think you're doing?!" he screamed at Mabel.
"Trying to save someone's life you butt head!" Mabel screamed back. She tried to punch Bill in the eye, but he caught her hand before she could. He levitated her off him and threw her into a corner.
She grunted at the impact, but it seemed that she would only get a few bruises. Mabel quickly picked herself up and ran at the dream demon again.
Bill was up off the ground and shaking off the attack. He instantly forgot about Mabel though when he saw Acornus getting up and trying to run away. "Oh, no you don't!" he screamed. He snapped his fingers and Acornus was stuck in place. He grunted, trying to move his legs, but to no avail.
Bill was preparing to throw another fire ball at him when Mabel, once again, tackled Bill to the ground.
"Bill!" she screamed. "How will killing him help us find the shadow shard?!"
"Oh, it won't!" Bill shouted back. "But no one breaks a deal with me! I've had enough crap to deal with all week so at this point, I don't really care who dies to get what I want!" Bill was struggling to get up. Mabel was heavier than she seemed.
Bill levitated her off him once again and threw her somewhere. However, she was tackling him to the ground again not even a second later. He screamed in annoyance, his triangle shaped body starting to turn darker. He threw Mabel off him yet again but the same thing happened.
Acornus was looking at the whole thing, shocked.
Okay, Bill thought, time for Plan B. When he threw Mabel off him again, he threw her father away than the last two throws. He wasted no time in flying up in the air and searched for where she landed. Right when Mabel stood up, Bill tackled her back down to the ground. She was now pinned under him.
However, that only lasted a second. Mabel easily threw Bill off of her and to the other side of the alley. He started to float before he hit a wall.
"Nice try!" Mabel taunted. "But you said it yourself. You're pure energy. I'm not. Skin and bone beats pure energy any day of the week!"
Bill screamed in annoyance again. His colors grew even darker and his body was a very dark orange now. He could feel his control over his anger slipping, but he was still calm enough to stop himself from going all out. Sure Mabel was being a pain in the butt, but he still had some tricks up his sleeves.
"Well then," he shouted back at her, "let's make this an even fight!" Bill snapped his fingers and blue flames surrounded him once again. When they were gone, he was back in his human form. The only difference was that his clothes were a dark orange and grey, unlike the usual yellow and black.
"What the heck?!" Acornus shouted from the area he was still stuck in. Bill ignored him and flew towards Mabel at top speed.
"Oh no," Mabel muttered. She tried to dodge his attack, but Bill was too fast. She was pinned under him in less than a second. He had his hands on her wrists, pushing them into the ground to make sure she wouldn't try and punch him again.
She tried her best to get away from him, but he was a lot stronger in his human form than he was as a triangle.
Once Bill knew Mabel wasn't able to do anything, he levitated her a few feet in the air and held her there. She tried to move her arms and legs but found, like in the geyser, that they wouldn't budge.
Bill glared at Mabel and floated over to Acornus. Acornus' face was one of pure shock. Bill took a deep breath, trying to calm himself, but his clothes were still a dark orange. He knew he had to finish off Acornus quickly. There was a certain Shooting Star he had a feeling he might kill if things got any worse. He still needed her alive so he had to try and stay calm.
"Now," Bill muttered, his voice low. "You know that I technically don't need you. I know you keep a log about every job you go on, including the one you did for the shadows." Acornus' eyes widened. "You telling me would have been easier, and killing you might not help us find the shadow shard as easily," orange flames appeared in Bill's hands, "but there are other ways to get what I want. Plus, you broke a deal with me. And like I said before, no one breaks a deal with me. So," the flames grew, "I think it's time to say goodbye to your life Acornus."
He was about to throw the fire ball when Mabel, once again, interrupted him. This time with words instead of an attack.
"Bill! You can't just go and kill someone because they won't tell you what you want to know!"
Bill growled and whipped around to glare at Mabel. "So you're telling me you don't want the shadow shard and you want to be killed by the shadows?"
"W-well," Mabel swallowed hard, "no. But killing someone won't help us! He clearly isn't going to tell us, even if you're about to kill him, so what's the point?!"
"The point is that he broke a deal!"
"You break deals with people all the time!"
"But no one breaks a deal with me and gets away with it!" Bill screamed. His colors turned even darker and he could feel the last threads of his control being cut. He turned back around and began making the fire ball even bigger.
"Bill, even so, he still doesn't deserve to die!" Mabel screamed, desperate for Bill not to kill this demon. She didn't know Acornus, but she could tell by the way he sounded that he was only breaking a deal because he was afraid of what the shadows might do to him. She could sympathize with that, seeing as she was in a similar situation involving the shadows.
"Shooting Star..." Bill growled, the flame in his hands still growing greater in size. He could feel his eye twitching.
"Look, I get that you don't like it when people break deals with you-"
"Shooting Star." Bill interrupted, this time a bit louder. Although he wanted her dead more than anybody, he didn't want to see her dead yet. However, stopping him from killing Acornus wasn't exactly helping Bill keep his anger under control.
"But he doesn't deserve to die because of it! He's a living, breathing person!" She shook her head. "Or demon in this case!"
"Shooting Star... shut your stupid mouth." He mumbled the last part under his breath. Bill could practical hear the threads breaking.
"You don't just kill someone because they broke some dumb deal you probably forced them to make!"
"Shooting Star!" he shouted, the orange flame both growing and getting darker by the second.
"So stop being an idiot, butt head of a dorito, get your stupid face out of this realm, and stop all of this dumb nonsense!"
The last thread snapped.
"Shut your face you stupid, meaningless brat!" Bill's appearance finally changed to red and white. He let the fireball disappear and turned towards Mabel.
Her face was frozen in fear.
Still levitating her, he lifted her a little higher, then threw her into a nearby was. She let out a shriek of pain as her head hit the stone.
Mabel was finally able to move her arms and legs and her hands quickly darted to the back of her head. She could feel blood trickling out and into her hair. Nothing seemed broken, but it hurt like crazy.
What happened next surprised her more than anything.
Seconds afterwards, she felt her airway being crushed. Her hands left the back of her head and flew to her throat. She began clawing at her neck, trying to figure out what was happening.
When she looked up, she had her answer.
Although her eyes were watering, she could see Bill clear as day. One of his hands was creating another fireball, while the other was in her direction and was twisting. She quickly connected the dots.
B-Bill..." she choked out, trying desperately to get precious air into her lungs.
Bill ignored her and turned towards Acornus. "Now," Bill growled, "that that pest is out of the way..." Bill created a blood red fire ball in his hand and gave Acornus a sadistic smile. "...I believe it is time for you to die."
Mabel let out a strangled cry as she watched Bill kill Acornus. The shape shifter let out an ear splitting cry as he was engulfed in the flames. His clothes instantly disintegrated and his skin became bubbly and charged. Some of it melted off him and his bones turned to dust.
Mabel couldn't tear her eyes away from the scene. She would later wonder how no one woke up and saw this, but there was only one thought in her mind at the moment.
That she was absolutely horrified.
And not only horrified at the burning, horrific death of Acornus, but at the dream demon that caused it. He was floating in the air, laughing like a maniac. The sadistic grin was still in his face, and as the bloody fire illuminated his features, Mabel swore she was looking at the Devil himself.
The fire disappeared not even a minute later.
And that's when Mabel remembered that she still couldn't breathe. She began to claw at her neck again, trying desperately to get rid of the invisible hands that were chocking her. "B-B-B-B-Bill..." she managed to choke out.
The dream demon didn't hear her the first time. Or the second. Or the third. He was staring in awe at the charred corpse and ashes that lied before him. Somebody would probably find the body in the morning and be horrified.
But he was content as could be at the sight of it. He got what was coming for him, Bill though bitterly.
Only when Mabel choked out his name one final time did Bill finally hear her.
He whipped around at the sound and saw Mabel clawing at her neck, her eyes bulging and her face blue. She looked just about ready to pass out.
At the sight of her, his colors slowly turned back to normal. He also felt something... different inside his... heart?
It wasn't the usual jumping he felt when he said or thought about the person or words Shooting Star, but it was something else. It felt like a twinge of... something. Something he couldn't quiet put his finger on. Drug must be wearing off? he wondered. He only pondered on the situation a second longer however, when he realized that Mabel was starting to pass out.
He quickly ceased twisting his hand in her direction and stopped levitating her. She fell into the ground and began taking in the air in giant gulps. There were tears coming out of her eyes and she could barely pull herself up into a sitting position.
Bill grunted and floated over to her. When she looked up, her eyes widened and she threw herself back into the wall, as far away from him as possible. She looked just as scared as the time he attacked her with her worst nightmares in Stanley's Mindscape.
Bill once again felt that twinge of something in his heart when he looked at her. He growled in frustration and clenched his hands. He took a deep breath to calm himself and then once again floated over to Mabel.
He waited until her breathing turned back to normal to try and talk to her. However, before he could get a word out, he finally noticed that she had been looking at something for the past two minutes. He turned around and saw that she was staring, horrified, at the charred remains of Acornus. Bill silently turned back and levitated Mabel back into the air. Mabel never took her eyes off the body.
"Let's go," he muttered. With a snap of his fingers. Bill transported them both back to his Mindscape.
"What were you thinking?!" Bill exploded once they were safe in his study. Mabel was surprised for a second at his bluntness, but quickly shook her head and glared at the dream demon.
"What was I thinking?! What were you thinking?! You just went up and killed someone!"
"Because he broke a deal with me! I thought we already went over this! If someone ever breaks a deal with me, they pay the price!"
"Even so, you shouldn't kill them!"
"This is the second demon who broke a deal with me in a week. Let's just say that I wasn't in a very forgiving mood!"
"So you think killing someone is the best punishment?!"
"Yes!"
"Well you have a stupid way of thinking!" Bill screamed in irritation and threw a blue fire ball into a nearby wall. At least it isn't red, Mabel thought bitterly. Her mind flashed back to the blood red flames that killed Acornus and she shivered.
Bill breathed heavily for a moment then started towards the door. Mabel burned holes into his back. "And where are you going?!"
The dream demon whipped around and glared at the teen. "I'm going to cool down." At the look Mabel gave him, Bill glared even harder. "I'm not going off to torture someone for your information. I'm still going to be here." He turned and floated towards the door again. "I sped up time here in the Mindscape so I don't have to wait for you to go to sleep again in the real world. I suggest you go back to your room and rest for a few hours." He growled. "And don't look for me for any reason. If I see even a hair of you, what I did to Acornus will look like cake." Bill floated out of the room, shutting the door behind him.
As Bill flew down the hallway, his mind was in a mental war. Part of him was still in a fragile state and would snap at any moment. A different part was trying desperately to stop himself from going out of control and killing Mabel. I still need Shooting Star if I want my favor, he thought. He growled once again when his heart jumped. When is this stupid drug going to wear off?!.
He felt some of his threads snapping again and he took a deep, calming breath. "Relax," he said to himself. "It's just a drug. It will wear off soon. ...Hopefully..." He grumbled the last part under his breath.
He turned left and a wooden door came into his view. Just seeing the door instantly calmed his mind. Now, he thought happily, I can finally relax.
Mabel walked into her "room" and sighed. She debated whether or not to knit a new sweater or to go to sleep. One look at her bed and sleep claimed victory.
She was about to slip into bed when she remembered the blood on the back of here head. She touched the bloody spot and winced. There was going to be a mark there for a while.
She sighed and turned towards a door that was where Dipper's bed would have been. She walked into a black, white, and grey bathroom and grabbed one of the hand towels. She dampened it with water and slowly and carefully wiped the blood from her head. She quietly sang "Taking Over Midnight" under her breath, smiling a bit as the lyrics reminded her of the night Dipper, Grunkle Stan and her all came together as a family to stop those zombies. Those were good times, Mabel thought happily.
Once she was sure all the blood was gone, she placed the towel back in the sink and walked back into her room. The bump at the back of her head could wait till later. Right now, sleep was beckoning her.
Without changing out of her red sweater and blue shorts, she kicked off her sneakers and climbed into the dull grey bed. She was asleep the moment her head hit the pillow.
Mabel was woken up not even an hour later.
The teen groaned and sat up. She didn't bother to rub the sleepiness from her eyes.
Once she gathered her bearings, she looked around curiously. What woke me up? she thought. She was usually a very heavy sleeper, so waking up in the middle of the night was something new.
She sighed and was about to go back to sleep when she heard what woke her up.
Music.
But it didn't sound like something she had ever heard before. It sounded different, almost chaotic. She would have thought the music would have sounded bad like this, but it actually sounded beautiful.
Her forehead scrunched up in confusion. Why on earth is there music? she wondered. Did we somehow bring something back from the Reverse Realm, or does that black hole I found a couple weeks ago actually play music?
Mabel slowly sat up and got out of her bed. She closed her eyes and listened harder. It sounds... like a piano, I think. She deduced that it was coming from a different place in the Mindscape and tiptoed to her door.
She was about to open it when she paused. What if Bill is sitting outside, waiting for me to come out so he can kill me? He did say he would if he saw me... Mabel shook her head. Come on Mabel, don't be ridiculous. Like he's said a thousand times, I'm no use to him dead. However, she wasn't quite sure anymore. He nearly killed her today, albeit by accident. But still...
She swallowed the lump in her throat and backed away from the wooden door. I'll find out where the music is coming from another day, another time. She sighed and walked back to her bed. She flopped into it and pulled the covers up over her.
Then she closed her eyes, letting the chaotic, beautiful piano music lull her to sleep.
And that's the chapter! Yeah, Bill has been getting mad a lot lately, but I think this is going to be the last time for a little bit.
Again, I'm SO sorry this took so long to get out. I'll try to get the next chapter out as fast as possible, but don't expect one for, at the very least, two weeks. I know said that last time, but last time I was still in school and had a lot of end of the year tests. I am kind of the busy the next week or so, but it's Summer, so I have a lot more free time to write than I would if I was at school.
Also, one more quick note, as you probably know by now, the next realm will be the Ever Changing Realm. Now, I could come up with all of the Ever Changing Realm's places myself, but so many of you have left your ideas for realms in the review section, I'm going to be using those instead! However, there are going to be a LOT of places and there are probably going to be two chapters concerning this realm, so I do still need some ideas! If you have ideas for realms or places Mabel and Bill could visit in the Ever Changing Realm, please tell me in a review. I need a lot of places, so ideas are welcome immensely!
Anyways, thank you all so much for reading this chapter and I hoped you enjoyed it! Please R&R, follow and favorite! If you have something you think I should improve on, tell me in a review!
I'll see you all again in the next chapter! Until then...
Peace! GamerFan369