Fair warning for blood and very heavy violence that will be demonstrated in this chapter. There's a lot of violence. ;-;

Okay, so the male shapeshifter usually forms into Bill and Ford. His name is Edward. He's the one that has been in most chapters. The female shapeshifter takes the form of Stan. Her name is Jenna. It may seem odd, but eh. I address the "Stan" shapeshifter with male pronouns when she's shapeshifted as Stan to make it less confusing. (If that makes any sense...)

This whole chapter takes place in the dreamscape, so I won't do the "sideways letters" for this chapter. Keep in mind that what's happening continues on from the last chapter, and that Bill and Ford are in the dreamscape. c:

Here's chapter 49 of "Welcome Home"!

"Tell me what's going on, Bill." Ford practically pleaded, cringing at the tight grip Bill kept on his wrist as they ran towards the elevator.

"Okay, I might've made some deals in the past with a shapeshifter to offer him complete access and control inside your entire dreamscape until the day you die." Bill informed in a casual manner.

"You did what?" Ford shot, giving Bill a look of horror that the demon couldn't see.

"Oops." Bill said, chuckling awkwardly.

Ford huffed. "Well never mind that, our task now is getting away from-" He began, only to be interrupted by the sound of an explosion coming from the bedroom. Bill and Ford looked behind them as they ran, seeing the door that had been thrown and yanked off its hinges. Edward, the shapeshifter that took the form of Ford, floated out of the room with orange fire under his boots.

"You're not leaving!" The shapeshifter hollered, a glare on his face as he saw the two men head into the elevator.

Bill kept hitting the button on the elevator in hopes that it would close quick enough. As he did this, Ford looked horrified at the figure of himself with flames emerging from his hands and feet.

"How the hell does the shapeshifter have powers in my body?" Ford asked.

"Ohh..." Bill said, cringing over at the shapeshifter as he continued to press the button on the elevator. "I also gave him access to pretty much any unnatural abilities you could possibly think of." He said.

"Dammit, Bill." Ford groaned, facepalming. The elevator doors were closing just as the shapeshifter was coming closer. "What chances do we have against this thing?"

Bill sighed. "Honestly, not much." He said. "But we're in the dreamscape! We can get whatever powers we want." He reminded.

"Well, at least there's that." Ford muttered. He closed his eyes and summoned his lab coat and sachel, feeling the black strap and lab coat make their way onto his torso. He opened his eyes and was relieved to see his coat, along with his belongings, back with him.

The shapeshifter clawed at the elevator door and forced them open just before the elevator could go up. Bill and Ford jumped at this, but got into defensive stances regardless. Ford flipped the side of his lab coat back, grabbing by his hip and pulling a gun out of his holster.

Ford cocked the gun and pointed it at the Edwards head. The shapeshifter swung his recently formed claws towards Ford. Bill grabbed ahold of the scientist and tackled him to the elevator floor before he could pierced with the claws. From the ground, Ford pointed his gun and pulled the trigger, the bullet firing at Edwards leg.

The shapeshifter let out a scream, jumping backwards and holding onto his leg with his arms. Bill pressed the elevator button once more, and the dented doors shut. He sighed and leaned against the back wall of the elevator, sliding towards the ground and putting a hand in his hair. Ford looked down at the other man who was in distress.

"This is all my fault." Bill groaned. "I put us both in danger." He muttered.

Ford frowned and took a knee beside the demon. "We'll be alright." He assured, resting a hand atop Bills shoulder.

"You can't be sure of that." Bill retorted. "These shapeshifters are crazy. If we can hardly escape one, how are we supposed to handle the rest of them?" He asked.

"We'll think of something." Ford said. He thought more thoroughly for a second about what Bill had said and looked at the man with a raised eyebrow. "Wait, there's more than one of them?" He asked with wide eyes.

Bill gave a guilty nod. "Back when I was making deals with ol' Shifty Shafty, he was the only one in your mind. He mentioned that things would get lonely for him and I understood. So I added something extra to the deal and gave him a family of shapeshifters." He revealed.

"Well, that would sound like a very considerate thing to do, if it wasn't dooming my mind." Ford stated.

"You're not helping." Bill said, facepalming. Though he knew that the guilt-trip (Whether it was intentional or not) was something he knew that was deserved for making such a foolish deal that he hadn't been aware he would regret.

"No matter what happens to us," Ford said. "Just know that I'll protect you." He vowed.

"You shouldn't be protecting me." Bill said.

"And yet I do so anyway." Ford replied. The two exchanged a smile for a moment before the elevator doors opened. Ford stood up quickly and held his hand out. Bill grabbed hold of it, and Ford pulled him up from the floor.

"Where do we go? What do we do?" Bill asked, rushing up the stairs with Ford.

The other man gave a shrug. "If either of us would know what to do, it would be you. You know what the shapeshifters can and can't do." Ford said.

"But it's your dreamscape." Bill reminded. They threw the vending machine door open, rushing into the gift shop and catching the attention of another shapeshifter that posed as Stan. Ford's false brother turned around, looking at the two in the room. Ford glared and pulled out his gun once more, pointing it at his brother. He felt guilty for taking such an action, and had to remind himself that the creature wasn't truly his brother.

The shapeshifter, Jenna, who posed as Stan raised an eyebrow, putting his hands up. "Woah, woah! What's wrong with you, Sixer?" He asked.

"Don't play dumb with me." Ford said with furrowed brows. "I know who you are."

"Of course ya' do, we're brothers." Stan said. "What's wrong with your head?" He questioned, putting his hands on his hips.

"You!" Ford snapped with a glare. "All of you! Yourself and whatever other shapeshifters that are stuck in here. That's literally what's in my head!" He said, clenching a fist and holding the gun with a tighter grip.

Stan's confused look slowly turned into a smirk. "Huh. So the nerd finally figured it out." He muttered to himself. He turned to look at Bill. "Here's a good question; how much did the ex-threat spill to the human after going soft?" He asked.

Bill growled and took a quick step forward with a death glare on his face. Ford, who still had his gun pointed at the shapeshifter, put his other arm out to the side to stop Bill.

Bill looked at Ford with narrowed eyes. "What? I can't kill him?" He asked, putting his hands on his hips. "I thought you wanted to get out of here alive, smart guy."

"There may be another way." Ford responded, not taking his eyes off the shapeshifter.

"Tell me you're joking." Bill said, looking at the scientist with a look of disbelief. "Are you just resisting because he looks like your brother?" He asked.

"Partially." Ford admitted. "But there's more to it."

The shapeshifter could only laugh at the two arguing. "This is interesting. The misfit couple can't even agree on how to take down just one of the threats." He mocked. "If ya' can't get through me, how are you gonna get through the rest of us?" He asked.

"How many of you are there?" Ford asked, his tone firm.

"Doesn't matter." The creature posing as Stan replied. He grabbed hold of the 8-Ball cane by the wall, pointing the tip in Bill's direction and grinning as a blast of fire was shot at Bill. The demon didn't have enough time to react, and the fire created a hole through his arm, burning at his flesh on the sides of the circular injury. Bill shouted in surprise and excessive pain shooting through his body, and got down on his knees as he clutched his arm.

Ford looked at Bill with his mouth hung open, unsure of what move to make. As Bill's painful shouts pierced through his ears, Ford began to wonder if shooting the shapeshifter was a better idea. At remembering this was the dreamscape, he pointed a finger down at Bill's arm and healed the injury, the skin healing as his arm returned to it's usual state. He knew that Bill couldn't very well heal himself when in pain from the fire. Bill sighed in relief and stood back up, his legs shaking.

"On second thought," Ford began, taking a step closer to the shapeshifter, gun still in hand. "Perhaps it wouldn't be so bad to finish you off now." He threatened.

Stan just laughed. "Hah! This is the mind, nerd. You should know that if ya' can heal your little boy toy's injury, a puny bullet of yours won't do nothin' to stop me." He said. "But just to be sure that you won't try anything funny," He began, lifting his cane up and pointing it at Ford. Before the others could react, Stan threw the cane into the air. It turned from a cane into five large, sharp spikes. Using one hand, Stan kept the spikes in the air, and with the other he levitated both Bill and Ford up off the ground.

The shapeshifter made a forwards motion with one hand, and all five of the spikes went dashing towards Ford. The scientists eyes widened as he was forced against the gift shop wall, being pinned to it as one spike trapped each one of his arms and legs. He looked at the fifth spike that was yet to be used on him, only to gasp for air when it darted towards his chest. The spike pierced through his chest in a quick motion. Ford shouted in pain and threw his head back as his body felt every sensation of the pain inflicted. Blood was quick to soak his turtleneck.

"Stanford!" Bill cried out just before being slammed against the vending machine by the shapeshifter. Bill groaned and fell to the ground, getting on his knees and glaring at the creature. He tried to free Ford from his state by weakly holding an arm up towards the man, until he felt that his hand couldn't move. Bill raised an eyebrow and furrowed his brows in annoyance, attempting to use his other hand to heal the man.

Stan smirked. "Sorry. Can't have ya' helpin' him out." He said. Bill was slammed against the vending machine a second time. He growled and glared at the shapeshifter, his eyes red. Bill ignored the pain and ran towards the shapeshifter, making claws with his hands. He jumped up and slashed the false Stan across the cheek as his first strike. He planned to do many more, though this would merely stun the shapeshifter. Stan held his cheek and groaned. Bill glared and made a deep claw mark on the con mans back. Stan glared at Bill and held a hand out, another 8-ball cane being summoned. He pointed it at Bill, and before the demon could react, he was shocked by electricity, and thrown across the room.

Ford saw the attack through blurred vision. "Bill..." He wheezed, too weak to get out of his current situation. Bill just barely heard the man's voice.

"Hang in there, Sixer." Bill said. "This guy's forgotten that I can turn into whatever I want." He said with a smirk. "Now, I wonder what would hurt the most for someone like yourself." He said with a grin directed towards the shapeshifter.

"By you? You're not powerful like you used to be." Stan said with a scoff. "You're nothing against me, without your old form." He stated.

"My old form..." Bill thought to himself, looking down and humming. A wide grin creeped up on his face. "My old form!" He repeated. The shapeshifter took a step back as he saw the death grin that was directed towards him. He watched as Bill levitated off the ground slightly, a beam of light surrounding his body. The shapeshifter screeched at the bright light, and Ford merely closed his eyes, too weak from the blood loss to where he could hardly move.

The beam of light surrounding Bill ceased, and when Ford and the shapeshifter looked over, Bill was floating in the air, his ordinary triangular self.

"Oh, yes!" Bill beamed, looking down at his four-fingered hands, his voice echoing as he spoke. "I can already feel my power boiling!" He said.

Ford looked on through his blurry vision in disbelief. He brought himself to wonder if Bill was now going to be stuck in that form once again thanks to the near unlimited possibilities of the dreamscape.

Bill looked at the shapeshifter and laughed. "I can't wait to tear you and the others limb from limb!" He said, rubbing his hands together.

"You have no idea how to defeat us!" Stan claimed with a glare.

"Just you wait! It's only a matter of time until ol' Fordsy and I get out of here, leaving your rotting corpses behind." Bill responded

Stan smirked, regardless of the fear rushing through him. "You can't escape with him if he's dead." He said.

"Wh- huh?" Bill questioned, confused. He turned to look over by the vending machine and saw Ford still pinned against the wall, barely able to fight to stay awake.

"Damage might not be permanent in here, but if he bleeds out, he's a goner for real." Stan said.

Bill's eye got large. He brought a ring of fire down upon the shapeshifter before rushing over to Ford's aid. Bill heard the humans labored breathing and wrapped his arms around one of the large spikes. He placed his feet on the side of the wall and struggled to pull the large spike out of the wall. The shapeshifter saw his attempt and laughed.

Bill turned around, his eye turning red at the shapeshifter. When he snapped, the fire around the creature grew larger.

"Magic..." Ford forced out through half lidded eyes, glancing over at Bill's struggling. The demon stopped struggling and looked at him in confusion. Ford coughed twice and gasped for air before attempting to speak. "Y-you... have magic, d-don't you?" Ford reminded.

"Fair point." Bill said. He raised his hands as the spikes were all removed from Ford at once, causing the old man to fall to the floor. He managed to lean up against the wall whilst sitting down, however unfortunately that was about all he could manage to do for the time being.

"Please..." Ford said in a near whisper. Bill knew what the man was hoping for. He was able to heal Ford's wounds, however the blood that had been robbed from him still remained absent in his body.

The shapeshifter in the form of Ford came up from downstairs. He saw the wreck that the gift shop was in, the blue fire surrounding Stan, Bill looking like his ordinary self, and worst of all, Ford suffering from blood loss. The shapeshifter turned to look at Stan and glared.

"You idiot!" Edward hollered, walking towards Stan with a glare. "We need Pines alive. Otherwise we'll all end up dead." He said. The male shapeshifter levitated Ford into the air, not bothering to be gentle.

"Hey! Be careful with him, you bird brain!" Bill said, glaring at the shapeshifter.

"Don't think about insulting me." The shapeshifter posing as Ford said. "I can make things much worse for you, just as much as I can with him." He warned. Before Bill could respond, he was taken aback when Ford was surrounded by a red substance that quickly fled towards him, entering him through his skin. Ford groaned at this, but could feel himself becoming stronger than his previously weak state. After a moment of confusing pain, he was dropped to the hard floor.

"You can torture Stanford all you want, but don't let him die." Edward spat.

"Ugh, alright." The female shapeshifter who posed as Stan muttered. "What do we do with them now?" He asked.

The supposed Ford shrugged. "Well, I suppose we should-" He continued, until he looked over at where the two others recently were. He growled when he noticed that Bill and Ford had fled from the gift shop.

"Don't let them escape!" Edward commanded before himself and the supposed Stan bolted out of the gift shop and into the living room.

Meanwhile, Bill and Ford had sped through the living room, and out the back door. Ford was limping slightly being that he had just been on the verge of death, not to mention the pace that the blood had entered his body. Bill couldn't very well help Ford along, being that his triangular form was likely too small to do so.

"How do we defeat shapeshifters again?" Bill asked. The echoey tone made Ford flinch, as he wasn't used to hearing it. Regardless he adjusted his glasses as he limp-ran.

"We can freeze them in chambers." Ford responded.

"Freeze them in chambers, yet still keeping them inside of your mind?" Bill began, looking at Ford with confusion in his eye. "There's gotta be another solution." He said.

Ford huffed and glared, glancing over at the demon as they proceeded to rush through the woods. "Well, we... wouldn't have been in this mess, had you not... made deals with them in the first place." He spat, panting slightly as he ran. Bill seemed to have either ignored his statement, or gone silent. Ford stopped running, and leaned an arm against a tree. Bill noticed the man had stopped running and turned around.

"What's the hold up, smarty pants?" Bill asked, putting his hands on his triangular hips.

Ford, who clutched his throat as he breathed, sighed. "I'm sorry." He muttered. "I... shouldn't have said that." He said.

Bill groaned with an eye roll. "Now's not the time for regrets, Sixer." He said.

Ford gave a nod. "You're right." He said, still trying to catch his breath a bit more before running again. He started off too quickly and fell to the ground not long after taking motion once more. Bill saw the man drop to the grass and stopped again. He hovered down to the ground and grasped Ford's arm with his hands, trying to hold up the arm to lift the human. Ford could hear Bill struggling and took his other arm, placing it on the ground and getting up on his knees.

"No... no, I'm... I'm fine." Ford tried to assure, regardless of his labored breathing.

Bill gave him a deadpan look. "You nearly died back there, Stanford. You're not fine." He stated.

"I refuse to stop." Ford responded, getting on one knee. "I'm not dying until I know that we- you will get out safe." He said before standing up from the grass, his legs shaking slightly.

Bill felt a bit of guilt for causing the situation that Ford and him could potentially die in. The guilt felt odd- if he was his normal self (At least, in the dreamscape) how come he still felt the human emotions if he had gotten access to all his power? He wondered if the humans he had been around for the past year had rubbed off on him, infecting them with their feelings. Surely it couldn't have been him that had made the change, no matter how close he had gotten with Ford over the year. Just because he shared similar affection with the human didn't mean he was going soft.

"We'll kill these suckers one way or another." Bill said. He held a small hand out, and a blue flame sparked. "I've got my old power back! So we have an advantage as long as I've got this body." He said with a grin. Just after Bill said those words, he felt a strange feeling building up inside of him. He looked down at his hands in confusion to see them turning from small and black to longer and pale. He gasped as he felt himself fall to the grass. Bill looked down at himself, only to see that he was a human once more.

"Seriously?" Bill whined. "Every time, every time! Why do we always have to be jinxed?" He asked.

"It's quite odd, actually," Ford agreed. "It's almost as if fate is determined as the opposite of most things we say to create fictional comedy." He said, narrowing his eyes as he thought on this.

"Now's not the time for pointless theories, Sixer!" Bill spat with a huff. "Do ya' think I can turn back again?" He asked, standing up.

Ford thought about the question for a moment, only for nothing to come to mind. "I'm... not sure." He admitted in a mutter. Bill hummed and tried to turn back once more.

"Trying is pointless." A voice from behind said. The voice was female, and familiar to the two. Ford and Bill turned around to look at the creature who had spoke to reveal a shapeshifter that took the role of Wendy.

"Which one are you?" Ford asked with narrowed eyes.

The shapeshifter ignored Ford. "We just made it so that the two of you can't use any dreamscape powers you or any other ordinary person could have in reality." She said with a mocking grin.

"We can still hurt you." Bill threatened. "And with the specific body you're in, it won't be too difficult for me to punch ya' to Mars." He said.

"You know, I'd like to see you try." The shapeshifter posing as Wendy replied. Bill growled at the supposed teenager, but chose not to attack just yet.

The shapeshifter posing as Wendy laughed. "Wow. What a coward." She mocked.

"I'll show you who's the coward when I see you begging for mercy before me!" Bill shot with a glare.

Wendy smirked. "Interesting. Where'd you learn to toughen up like that, softie?" She proceeded to mock.

It took every sense of resistance Bill had to stop himself from strangling the teenager. He turned to Ford with a glare. "Can I kill her?" He asked.

"I'm not sure if we can." Ford replied. "As much as I hate to admit it, they may be too powerful compared to us." He said.

"What's this?" Wendy began. "Stanford Pines, giving up?" She questioned with an innocent smile.

"I'm not giving up any time soon." Ford shot back with a glare.

The shapeshifter smirked. "Well then, this'll be fun." She said before extending an arm out by her side, a long, sharp katana sword appearing in her hand. Once she felt the weapon in her hand, she ran up to the other two, her eyes directed at Ford.

The sword was slashed at Ford. Luckily the scientist had ducked down just before the sword could slice through his skin. He ignored the sore feeling in his chest and slung his leg at the shapeshifter from the ground, tripping her and rolling out of the way as Wendy fell to the ground. She looked up at the scientist with a glare apparent.

Bill tried summoning a weapon, only to be reminded that himself and Ford no longer had access to those basic dreamscape abilities of summoning objects thanks to the shapeshifters. He attempted summoning fire and was relieved to see a blue flame emerge from his palm as Wendy arose from the ground.

"Ha!" Bill exclaimed with a evil grin. "I've still got my basic magic, lady." He revealed.

Wendy scoffed. "That won't do much to help you." She said. "Do you even know how to attack with your magic?" She asked.

Bill was about to speak, only for him to stop himself. Other than snapping and setting things aflame, he had never exactly learned any defensive actions or moves with his magic. He wondered if Ford would be willing to explore that idea with him later on- if their slim chances of making it out alive came true, that is.

"I know enough to burn you to a crisp." Bill replied with narrowed eyes.

"Scary." Wendy said with obvious sarcasm in her voice. Bill put both his arms beside him, bending his arms and igniting flames in both his hands, the flames circling his palms. The shapeshifter held her katana close, holding it out towards Bill when he came closer to her. Bill poked the tip of the sword with his index finger, the blade going up in flames. He giggled at the drop of blood trickling down his finger. His smirk grew when he saw Wendy exclaim in alarm, dropping the sword immediately and pulling away, her arms close to her as she cowered away from the sword. The katana that was aflame disappeared before it could fall to the ground.

"Child's play." Bill cooed with a mischievous grin.

Wendy looked at the demon for a moment before speaking. "Okay..." She began. "Okay." She repeated. "So maybe you're not so powerless. But we still have the upper hand against you puny humans." She spat. Wendy raised a hand up, yanking it down as Ford was forced down to the ground on his stomach, his chest aching from the sudden fall after his previous attack with the spikes that had nearly killed him. before Bill could help the man, he gasped at the sight of a deep black pit that looked like a portal on the ground behind him.

"Hasta la vista." Wendy said to the demon. Before he knew it, a large, sudden gust of powerful wind pushed him up off the ground slightly. Bill felt himself flowing backwards towards the black hole where he would surely face his death. And with nothing to hold onto, no way to fight back, there was no way for him to fight back against the powerful wind Wendy had summoned. Wendy smirked at the fearful look on Bill's face. Ford could feel the wind blowing his hair, however the force keeping him down on the ground made it so that he was unable to fall backwards alongside Bill.

Ford looked over at Bill as the demon began to pass by him by the force of the wind. He could just barely move his arm if he pushed himself to do so. Groaning at the intense pain shooting through his body at the attempt to move against the force holding him down, he managed to grab hold of Bill's ankle just before the demon was too far from him to reach out to.

At the moment, the only thing keeping Bill from floating backwards towards his death was Ford's grip that held onto him. Wendy glared at the scientist that was keeping Bill still standing on the edge of life.

"My father wants you dead!" Wendy screamed with a scowl, releasing another wave of wind that caused Ford's grip on Bill's ankle to loosen. Surely if he only had five fingers, his grip on the other man would have been loosened completely. This was a very uncommon moment where Ford felt grateful for his abnormal birth defect. He kept his grip strong once more as he felt Bill begin to slip away from his grasp. The gust of wind forced Bill's head back, the demon crashing to the ground on his back. He groaned at the intense feeling of the hard ground hitting his back, however he knew that it was much better than the more dangerous fate only about ten feet away from him.

"You don't know when to quit, do you?" Wendy grumbled. A third and final gust of wind caused Ford to finally lose his desperate grip on Bill. The demon cried out as he felt the warm hands touch off his ankle. Ford used all his strength to fight against the deep force that was keeping him down, inching just a bit closer to Bill so that he could weakly grab hold of him. Ford squinted his eyes shut as he pulled Bill's leg closer to him slowly but surely.

"Why are you helping him?" Wendy asked Ford. The man ignored the shapeshifter and proceeded his desperate attempt to bring Bill to safety. "After all he's done to hurt you?" Wendy continued.

Ford heard the shapeshifter, yet he didn't respond.

"What's he ever done for you?" Wendy questioned more thoroughly, still controlling the wind with her arms out. "Nothing good from what I've seen in your memories. He's lied to you, manipulated you, and worst of all; he's broken your heart." She reminded.

"Stop talking." Ford commanded suddenly, his voice raspy.

Wendy smirked. "You can't deny the truth, old man." She said. "His evil ways have caused you and your family so much misery. Yet instead of returning the favor and letting go of him, you feel the need to save his life?" She said, disbelief in his voice. "You're a foolish man, Stanford Pines." Wendy stated.

"Don't listen to her, Sixer!" Bill pleaded, noticing that Ford had stopped pulling him forward, only holding onto him now.

"Bill's the one who got you into this mess in the first place." Wendy reminded. "He made all those deals my dad told me about, and never even thought to mention it to you until it was too late!" She said. "You have a chance to get rid of him once and for all, why not take it?" She asked.

Ford was silent for a moment, looking down at the ground below him. "You're..." He began, speaking proving itself to be a challenge as the force tried to keep him down on the ground, Ford still holding onto Bill's ankle. "You're right." He agreed.

"Wh- Wait! " Bill called out, a fearful expression apparent.

Ford nodded his head slowly, a movement that wasn't difficult. "You're absolutely right. Bill has caused a lot of trouble. Both in the past, and recently. There are many logical reasons why I should let go of him right now." He said.

"Stanford!" Bill wailed, his eyes wide.

Ford glanced down at the ground once more before drawing his eyes over to the shapeshifter, a scowl on his face. "But I won't." He stated. "I won't let go. And I won't let you talk me out of it." He said. Bill gave a sigh of relief at this. He felt like kicking himself for thinking that Ford would turn unloyal on him so suddenly.

The shapeshifter narrowed her eyes. "You're making a mistake." Wendy claimed.

"Perhaps in your eyes." Ford admitted. "In fact, I would have felt the exact same way just last year. But things are different now. A type of different that I wouldn't expect you to understand." He said.

"Think about the deals he's made!" Wendy tried.

"Hey, you listen!" Bill commanded, just barely managing to look over at the shapeshifter without his head being thrown back once again. He grunted before continuing. "If I hadn't made those deals, you wouldn't be alive right now, kid!" He stated.

The shapeshifters eyes widened. Suddenly, the wind began to stop and fade to a breeze. Bill fell to the ground, the black portal disappeared, and the force keeping Ford from moving was revoked. Ford was quick to rush to the other man's side. Wendy's arms slowly fell beside her as she looked on at Bill in disbelief.

"Is... Is that true?" The shapeshifter asked, a look of both confusion and guilt apparent.

Bill then sat criss-cross on the ground, ignoring the pain in his back. "Yeah, it is." He replied. "If I didn't make those deals back then, only your dad would exist right now. Well, if he wasn't dead by now, that is." He said.

The shapeshifter was in complete shock. A tear welled at the side of her eye before she dropped down to her knees, covering her face with her hands as a teardrop rolled down her cheek.

"And here I was, about to kill you." The shapeshifter posing as Wendy wept. She swallowed and spoke, regardless of the lump in her throat. "I'm so sorry." She apologized, putting her hands in her hair as she squinted her eyes shut, tears falling from her eyes.

Bill wasn't sure how to respond. His mouth hung open slightly as he looked on at the emotional creature. "Hey, uh... don't cry, kid." He tried, unsure of how to comfort the shapeshifter.

"I almost killed my creator." Wendy said in a near whisper, looking down at the palms of her hands below her.

Bill looked at the shapeshifter, then away, then back at her again. "So... does this mean we can leave?" He asked.

"What?" Wendy began. She shook her head. "No. My dad would be furious." She stated. "If I can even call him that..." She added in a mutter.

"We're toast." Bill groaned, his forehead falling atop Ford's shoulder as he sighed. The thought of him and Stanford both facing the edge of death just within an hour was hard to fathom, and he was sure that they would both be faced with many more challenges.

"Please, is there any way you could assist us?" Ford asked the shapeshifter.

Wendy went silent for a moment, unsure of how to answer the question. "Honestly..." She began, shaking her head. "I don't think so." She admitted. "My dad wants information from Bill. Information on how he can become immortal and emerge to other dreamscapes even after you die, Stanford. Without that, he expects that Bill will become a literal dead man." She informed.

"I already told that bonehead I don't know how to do that." Bill spat, folding his arms and looking away.

"He's convinced you're lying." The shapeshifter replied.

Bill looked at the teenage shapeshifter. "Me? Lying?" He said with a scoff. After a moment of silence he grinned. "Smart of him to assume so." He praised.

Wendy tilted her head. "So you do know how to do what he's hoping?" She asked.

"Oh no, I don't know that." Bill clarified. "But what I do know is that he's a big jerk who I shouldn't have given powers to in the first place." He said through clenched teeth.

Bill felt a hand on his shoulder, and assumed it to be Ford's hence the warmth from it, as well as the extra finger. Not to mention that Ford was right beside him. From behind, he said, "A foolish mistake on your behalf, wasn't it?"

The true Ford shivered when he heard his voice coming out of another brings mouth. He turned his head to look behind Bill, seeing a figure of himself standing there with his shoulder atop the demons shoulder.

"No need to rub it in my face further, Sixer." Bill said with an eye roll.

Ford glared at the creature standing behind Bill and brought his hand down towards his hip, grabbing hold of the gun that he kept in the holster that was typically hidden by his trench coat. He charged up the gun and pointed it at the shapeshifter, letting the bullet shoot the creature in the chest. Bill heard the supposed Ford scream and turned his head around in confusion, only for the low shout to be replaced by a high pitched screech.

"Dad!" Wendy exclaimed, looking at the other shapeshifter as green blood emerged from his chest. She ran over to her father, getting on her knees and healing the other shapeshifter.

"Follow me!" Ford commanded suddenly, grabbing Bill's wrist as he dashed away from the others, going further into the forest.

"Where are we going?" Bill asked, pushing past branches that threatened to hit him in the face as they ran through bushes and around trees.

"I'm not sure." Ford admitted. "Anywhere away from the shapeshifters for the time being." He said.

Bill tripped over a stump and fell face-first onto the ground. Ford turned around and saw the fallen man. Bill got to his knees and took hold of Ford's extended hand. Bill felt himself being pulled up back on his feet by the other man, and the two proceeded to dash through the forest.

After about two minutes of running, Bill felt as though his lungs were on fire. Ford seemed a bit out of breath, though he had grown used to running for long periods of time throughout his travels in the multiverse. This distance was nothing compared to how long he could run for. Bill couldn't say the same, however. Even through the crunches of leaves and twigs below them as they ran, as well as the rustling of the branches, Ford could hear the blondes labored breathing from behind him.

Bill was both confused and relieved when Ford stopped running. The scientist turned around to look at the other, seeing Bill gasping for air as he placed his hands atop his knees.

"Tired?" Ford asked, even though the answer was clear.

"Psh, y-you kidding? I... I could... do this all... all day." Bill wheezed, failing to catch his breath. Ford wasn't sure if Bill was being sarcastic, or hoping to be reassuring as to not worry him about his lungs that felt as though they could pop at any moment.

"I'm not so sure if I can rely on that reassurance." Ford replied. Without warning, he took one of Bill's arms and slung it over his shoulder, picking the blonde up from off the ground and carrying him bridal style. Bill gasped at this, in fear that one of the shapeshifters had grabbed him, and coughed violently just after torturing his lungs with such an action.

"There has to be a way out of here." Ford said, proceeding to move forward as Bill huddled up close in his arms, his chest heaving.

"There's... there's one way." Bill revealed quietly.

Ford looked down at the man. "And you didn't think to mention that earlier?" He asked in a firmer manner than he had intended. Bill didn't respond, and for a moment Ford got distracted with the feeling of the blondes warm breath brushing the side of his neck rather than looking where he was going. Ford knew the forest well, though he dreaded the chance of him taking a wrong turn and being confronted by the shapeshifters again.

"What is it?" Ford then asked. He heard the noise of a twig snapping from behind him, and began to run once more. "What do we have to go to get out of my mind?" He questioned.

"It's a... I-It's a..." Bill tried, his breath failing him.

"Come on, Bill." Ford encouraged desperately, looking down at Bill and shaking the man gently.

Bill took a moment. Ford was patient with him, trying to ignore the fact that they were crunching on time until the shapeshifters potentially caught up to them.

"W-We'll ha-ave to stop." Bill said.

"We can't stop." Ford responded. "They'll find us."

"S-So let's leave before they can." Bill said.

Ford sighed and proceeded to run through the forest. "You're right." He muttered. Ford let go of Bill with one of his hands, holding Bill around his waist as Ford kept him close. Bill gave a quick cry of surprise at the sudden motion. Using his other hand, Ford jumped up and grabbed hold of a branch on a nearby tree. Bill whimpered as he felt himself being lifted up off the ground, and clung to Ford in fear that he would slip away from the stronger man's grasp. Bill felt pathetic for not being able to do anything but depend on Ford's instincts, though on the other hand he couldn't stop himself from feeling safe in the scientists care.

"I've got you." Ford assured, making his grip around Bill's waist tighter. He pulled them both up with help of the branch he held onto, and kicked one of his feet up, his boot against the bark on the tree. Ford gave a grunt as he pulled himself and Bill up a bit higher, high enough to where they could sit atop the sturdy branch.

Bill looked down at the ground and shuddered at the possibility of him falling. He wrapped his hands around the branch in hopes that it would help him if he were to slip off the branch.

"So, what was that about the solution to this situation?" Ford asked.

"The trick will let us out of your mind, but the shapeshifters can just bring us back here whenever they please." Bill informed.

"Perfect." Ford grumbled under his breath. He looked at Bill. "So our only permanent solution is to kill them?" He asked.

"Killing would work." Bill agreed. "It's a long shot, but if we have the right techniques, we might have a chance at getting out of here alive." He said.

Ford sighed. "I just wish we weren't in this mess to begin with." He muttered.

Bill nodded slowly, frowning. "Yeah. I just wish I could call this whole thing off." He said. Bill folded his arms, not paying any attention to the ground that was about seven feet below him. He thought about the situation for a moment, his eyes beginning to widen.

"Wait..." Bill began, a skeptical look on his face. Ford raised an eyebrow at this. Suddenly Bill gave a wide grin. "That's it!" He exclaimed with a grin. "If I call off the deal, these suckers won't be able to do anything about it!" He said. "We have to find the shapeshifters." Bill stated.

Ford hummed at this. "Are you sure about this?" He asked. "We just escaped for a bit, and now you want to go back?" He questioned.

"It's our best option." Bill retorted. He looked at the other with a tilted head. "You trust me on this, don't you?" He asked.

Ford went silent. He looked stunned, before taking his eyes off Bill and instead looking at the ground below they hovered above. Trust. That was a sensitive word for Ford. And while he had grown to open up to others again over the year, admitting to trusting someone was still a risk.

Bill, who noticed the hesitancy, shrugged. "I guess I've got my answer." He muttered. He put a leg to the side in hopes of finding a way to get off the tree safely.

"Wait." Ford said suddenly, putting a hand out. Bill froze and looked at the man. The scientist sighed. "Yes. I do trust you on this." He said.

Bill didn't hide his surprise at the answer. "Wh-?" He began, unsure of how to respond. Eventually he smirked. "What's this? Stanford Pines, trusting me?" He teased.

"You seem to know more about this situation than I do, and I would rather see what you have in mind than give up and swan dive into certain death." Ford stated.

Bill gave a nod. "Good point." He said. "Now how are we supposed to get down?" He wondered, looking down at the ground. When he looked back over where Ford sat, the man was no longer there. Bill raised an eyebrow, worried. "Uh... Sixer?" He called out. Bill looked at the ground on the other side of him and saw Ford already down from the tree, seemingly unharmed.

"Jump, I'll catch you." Ford said, his arms out. Bill was hesitant. What if he missed? What if Ford didn't catch him, accidentally or intentionally? Ford saw the look of hesitance on Bill's face. He cracked a quick plan to get Bill out of the tree.

"Look, an axolotl!" Ford hollered suddenly, pointing up at the sky. Bill's eyes widened.

"Where?" Bill cried out, looking up at the sky. He forgot about his grip on the tree and stumbled sideways. Bill looked at his legs as they slipped off the branch as he fell out of the tree. Ford held his arms out once more and caught Bill as he fell. Bill landed in the man's arms and looked up at him with a glare.

"You tricked me!" Bill scolded, giving Ford a quick slap on the shoulder. He folded his arms and huffed, looking away in embarrassment.

Ford just smiled. "You're out of the tree now, aren't you?" He asked.

"Yeah, but it wasn't a very safe solution, smart guy." Bill replied with an eye roll. "You just wanted another excuse to hold me in your arms." He said with a smirk.

"And you must like it enough to where you're still in my grasp." Ford teased.

"I'm sure there's a few things you'd like to grasp, be more specific." Bill replied.

Ford's cheeks flushed slightly, and he looked on into the distance. Bill noticed the man's expression and just laughed.

"You walked straight into that one, didn't ya'?" Bill said with a grin.

"L-Lets not waste time." Ford stated, avoiding the question and walking back in the other direction.

Bill smirked and shrugged. "Sure, nerd." He said, wrapping his arms around Ford's neck as Ford proceeded to walk back toward the shack. If they died, and if these were going to be their last moments together, he wanted to at least make the best of it. At the thought of this, Bill nuzzled his cheek into Ford's chest with a sigh.


"Where the hell did they go?" The shapeshifter Jenna, who posed as Stan, asked as the three stood in the gift shop once more.

"I'm not sure." Wendy lied. "I was too busy helping dad that I couldn't see." She said. And while she didn't want her father to be upset with losing Ford and Bill, she figured that she owed it to the humans to give them a chance of escape. It's the least she could do for them after nearly sending Bill into a blank, black vortex that would have lead him to certain death.

"We have to find them." The supposed Ford said. "The question is how-"

"There they are." Stan said with half lidded eyes, pointing behind Ford. The shapeshifters all turned around to look at the gift shop door, as it was opened by Bill. Ford stood behind him, looking at their enemies with narrowed eyes.

"Turning yourselves in, I see?" Edward, who posed as Ford, asked with a smirk. "What a shame to see two supposedly strong humans giving up so easily." He mocked.

"Giving up?" Bill repeated with a scoff. "Oh, I wouldn't call it that. We have a little something else in mind..." He said, walking towards the shapeshifters.

"Don't get too close, I just might kill you in front of your precious human." Edward warned.

Wendy's eyes widened. "Dad, that's a little cruel." She stated, only for her father to ignore.

"You had plans to kill me, anyway." Bill replied with narrowed eyes.

"Oh, I would have had plans to kill both of you." Edward said. He took the form of Bill and put his hands on his hips. "Unfortunately, if the human dies, we all die." He said.

Ford put a finger up awkwardly. "Can... can we avoid the human label-?"

"The human is innocent." Wendy argued suddenly, putting her hands on her hips.

Ford put his finger down. "Nevermind, then." He muttered.

Stan put his hands on his hips. "Jenna the sequel, don't argue with your father." He commanded. "What'd the human have to bribe you with to getcha' to say that?" He asked.

"Nothing!" The shapeshifter posing as Wendy said. "But none of this is any fun." She wailed.

"Don't act up now, child." Edward, who now took the form of Bill, commanded. He looked for Ford and Bill, only to see that they were gone.

"Again? Seriously?" Edward scoffed.

Ford and Bill had snuck through the 'Employee's only' door in hopes of getting a moment to talk. They stood by the stairs that lead upstairs, Bill leaning against it a bit.

"What if this doesn't work?" Bill asked suddenly.

Ford furrowed his brows slightly. "Wh- You said that it would work, and that they wouldn't be able to stop it. Surely it will work, won't it?" He asked.

"I hope so." Bill said with a frown. He looked at Ford for a moment before looking away. "But just in case it doesn't... I want you to know that I'm sorry." He said.

Ford raised an eyebrow. "Bill, we don't have time for-"

"Then let's make time." Bill replied. "I messed up, and there's no excuse around it. I-I should have told you earlier, before it had gotten too late. This is all my fault, and I don't want to potentially find out this plan was a bust without telling you that I really am sorry." He said with a sigh.

Ford gave a slow nod. He extended his arms out and embraced the blonde in a gentle hug. Bill frowned and returned the affectionate gesture he felt that he didn't deserve to experience. Ford leaned closer to Bill's ear. In a mutter, he said, "Everything will be alright."

"In your dreams." The voice of Bill replied.

Ford pulled away and looked at Bill with a tilted head. "What now?" He asked, confused. The two looked over by the living room doorframe in unison to see the shapeshifter posing as Bill standing beside it.

Edward walked towards the other two. He appeared to be alone. "There's no happy ending for the two of you, I'm afraid." He said. "And when I get that power of immortality, I won't hesitate to execute you both." He said with an evil-like grin.

"It's me you're after, not him." Bill stated, taking a step closer to the shapeshifter with narrowed eyes. It nearly looked to Bill as if he were looking in a mirror, the only difference being the glare and the grin.

"And what a shame it will be for Stanford to suffer such pain." The supposed Bill said, walking past the real Bill and walking towards Ford. He placed his hands atop the scientists chest. "I really did like you." He said with a smirk. "And all the things we did." He added, licking his lips.

Ford quickly took a step backwards, moving the shapeshifters hands away from him. He wore a look of disgust, horror, and confusion all put into one.

"That... that was you?" Ford asked, shivering at the thought.

Bill's eyes widened, his mouth hung open. "Wait, Shifty was telling the truth about that?" He asked, stunned.

"No, that can't be right." Ford muttered to himself, shaking his head slowly. "It-It was just a..."

"A dream?" The shapeshifter posing as Bill asked, finishing the scientists sentence. He grinned. "I think you're forgetting where you are right now, Fordsy." He said.

Bill groaned. "Please tell me that the hypnosis you mentioned was true, too." He practically pleaded.

"Oh, it was." Edward said with a nod, turning to look at Bill. He grinned. "How unfortunate that the human couldn't tell the difference." He said with a laugh. Bill clenched his fists and growled, jumping at the shapeshifter and technically tackling himself to the ground.

"Sixer, get your gun out and shoot this jerk!" Bill commanded, twisting the shapeshifters arm. Edward groaned and punched Bill in the stomach, making a somersault with him and tackling him to the ground. Ford was quick to pull out his gun before he lost track of who was the real Bill. Edward smacked Bill across the face before Bill grabbed his wrist, kicked him between the legs, and turned them around in a quick motion. Edward groaned and glared at Bill as the demon grasped his shoulders, shaking him roughly to where the shapeshifters head hit the hard floor with every slam.

"Shoot him!" Bill shouted, glaring at the shapeshifter below him as he proceeded to take his rage out on the creature.

Ford looked at the two in unsureness. He tried to read who was who based on their facial expressions. The Bill atop the other had Bill's signature rage-glare apparent, whereas the Bill below the other was groaning and wailing at the intense pain. Ford had seen both Bill's rage-glare, and how he reacted to pain he couldn't seem to find funny. They were both exactly accurate to how Ford had studied Bill's moods throughout the past year.

"What are you waiting for?" Bill asked Ford, proceeding to slam the shapeshifters head against the floor. He wondered if he hit the creatures head against the floor enough, perhaps it would prevent the poser from remembering Ford's touch.

"F-Fordsy, help me!" The other Bill pleaded in a wail, panting and letting out a loud cry of pain as his head continued to be attacked onto the wooden floor. Ford narrowed his eyes. The Bill he was looking at sounded much too desperate to possibly be the Bill he knew. If the Bill being attacked really was the real one, he would be trying to fight back, rather than just taking the pain and begging for someone to help. Ford was quick to charge up his gun, shooting the Bill on bottom a total of three times in the chest.

The other shapeshifters had heard the gun shots, and were quick to rush over towards the others. Jenna and her daughter Jenna the sequel, looked down at the other who had been shot. Edward screamed in pain, green blood splattering about. Jenna covered her daughter's eyes in hopes of keeping her child from seeing such a horrifying thing.

Before the other shapeshifters could rush to Edwards aid, Ford shot a warning bullet down at the ground right in front of the others, which stopped the shapeshifters from moving. Bill then took the opportunity to snap his fingers, blue flames making a circle around the creatures.

Edward proceeded to screech in pain. Bill got down on his knees and grabbed the shapeshifters yellow shirt, pulling him close as Bill looked at him with a glare.

"The deal's off!" Bill shouted, starting the shapeshifter down. Edwards screeching only intensified. In a matter of moments, Edward saw his family turn into dust from the sidelines of the fight.

"No!" The shapeshifter had the strength to shout. "Y-You'll pay for this, Cipher!" He vowed.

"That's what they all say." Bill replied with an eye roll. He stood up and put his hands on his hips with a grin. "Hmm, let's see. We've got our ordinary dreamscape powers back now that you've lost all your authority here. Let's decide your fate, shall we?" He said with a laugh. Bill lifted Edward into the air, the creature unable to breath as he did so. Bill grinned an evil-like grin and slammed the shapeshifter against the wall twice before tossing him up in the air. He let Edward hit the ceiling before Bill looked at him, shooting lasers out of his eyes and making quick work of turning the creature into particles that encircled the air.

Bill panted heavily, his fists clenched by his sides as he looked above at the creature he had finally gotten rid of. Ford looked on with wide-eyes. He had seen much worse situations, yes, though he was stunned that Bill had gone off so brutally on the shapeshifter.

"Good riddance, bastard." Bill spat with a grumble. He turned around to look at Ford. He saw the surprised look on the man's face and gave an awkward chuckle. "So uh... that happened." He began.

"This was an unpredictability wonderful outcome." Ford said. "I can't believe it worked." He continued.

"Did Fordsy doubt my methods?" Bill asked with a smirk.

"Well, partially-" Ford admitted.

"Don't make that mistake again." Bill advised. Ford raised an eyebrow, but nodded nonetheless with a chuckle.

A moment of silence passed by. Eventually Ford sighed. "So, should we return to reality? There's no point staying here any longer now" He said.

"Heck yeah, I'm all worn out." Bill said with a nod of his head.

"Well, then I say suppose there's only one thing left to do." Ford said. Bill nodded in agreement.


The two woke up in the bed in unison, sitting up slightly. They looked at the clock, then at each other to tell that a total of three hours had gone by.

Bill sighed. "Well, at least that's all over with." He muttered, getting up close and comfortable with the other man. Ford draped a strong arm overtop Bill and ran a hand through the demons blonde hair. Bill looked up at him in the dark room with half-lidded eyes. Ford tilted his head to the side and grabbed the blondes chin in a gentle manner, stealing a kiss from the man. Bill hummed into the kiss softly before shutting his eyes, sleep catching his attention after leaning his head by Ford's shoulder.

Ford gave a small smile. Sure the past few hours may have been horrible, however Ford was just glad he as well as Bill had gotten out of the dreamscape alive. Alive and alright. That's all that he could find that mattered in this moment. They were safe now. As safe as they could be, that is.

For the time being, anyway...

Well, there's the end of this chapter. I'll admit, I feel a bit insecure about bits of it. I wrote the last 2kish words of this last night at 5:00 in the morning, so that's probably where most of the insecurities are coming from. Heh... well, I'm sorry for the wait, a lot has been going on recently, and there was a lot of action in this chapter that I had to attempt putting down into words. I hope the action was good. This chapter is a longer one, so hopefully the word count makes up for the wait..? I don't know.

The shapeshifters are gone now, but there's still mystery that lurks around the corner...

The next chapter will be up soon. c: