Chapter Thirteen

"Can you please explain to me why we're following your sister and Blondie around town like we've got nothing better to do?" Bill asked in a bored tone, eyeing the two girls as they ran off to do who knew what.

Dipper huffed, sneaking around near the blonde. "If it weren't already blatantly obvious, I'm trying to set them up together," he said, leading the way towards the building Pacifica and Mabel had gone into. "They're so into each other it hurts."

With an amused hum, Bill followed after him. "You sound like Shooting Star," he pointed out.

"What can I say?" Dipper shrugged, adjusting the cap on his head. "She gets results."

Bill scoffed, watching the brunette stop in front of the building and peek his head around the corner. Seriously, had he aged at all? "This might be the most childish thing I've seen you do since I've gotten here," he said with a snort of laughter.

Dipper glanced back at him with a grin. "Other than you?" he queried sarcastically, focusing his gaze back where it needed to be.

Bill furrowed his brows for a moment. "Wha- Oh... Oh!" His face reddened in realization at what the brunette meant by that. "That's not funny!" he exclaimed, mortification apparent as ever on his face and the pitch of his voice heightening indignantly.

Dipper chuckled, keeping his voice low. "It's pretty funny."

Bill just grumbled, turning his head the other way and crossing his arms. Low blow. And it made him both ashamed and horribly proud all at once knowing that Dipper had come up with it. Right there on the spot, no less. Oh, hell.

Dipper was picking up Bill's snarkiness.

And that was dangerous to his pride.

"Shut it, kid," he finally huffed, looking back at the duo they'd been following around all day. Dipper gave a soft laugh, stepping around the corner he stood against. Bill went after him, letting the brunette lead him wherever the two girls went.

But eventually-

"Where the hell did they go?"

Dipper's frustrated sigh caught Bill's attention, as he'd just about zoned out after almost an hour of near silence. Creeping up on his boyfriend's sister while she was on a 'date' wasn't exactly his ideal image of a day alone with Dipper. Since they could've spent it doing actual interesting things. Ford would be in the basement working or searching for anymore supernatural hot spots, and Stan would be taking over for Soos while he was spending his final few days in Portland.

That gave the couple quite a few options.

Bill could think of a lot of things he would've preferred doing with Dipper over this. Most of them weren't even dirty, so it wasn't like the brunette would have ended up throwing a fit or making it difficult for him. He didn't always have an ulterior motive. Geez. But of course, Dipper went blind to everything else whenever he set out to do something. It was both a charm and an annoyance to Bill, but he couldn't really stay mad with the damn kid.

Hell, he was practically smitten with him.

Though he'd never admit it.

Dipper waved in front of the demon's face. "Earth to Bill. They're gone," he said with a pout, lowering his hands to pocket them. Bill jolted slightly, eyes wide and blushing slightly. It was a good thing Dipper wasn't the one that could read minds, because that would've been a bit embarrassing. And by that, he meant he would've never heard the end of it ever.

"Sorry. Where'd you last see them?" Bill asked, regaining his focus enough to pay attention now. Dipper seemed a bit shocked the word sorry had genuinely left his lips at all, his brows furrowed in what could only be described as confusion.

But he let it go without a remark. "Here." He pointed up at the sign of the little store they stood in front of. "But they left really quickly and I guess I wasn't watching closely enough.." he mumbled. Like hell he'd tell Bill he'd gotten distracted by the blonde staring at him so intently. Not if his life depended on it.

Bill chuckled and ruffled the other's hair teasingly, smirking sideways at him. "How sweet of you, kid," he commented with a scoff, glancing up at the sign. "An antique shop, huh. Why here?" He ran a hand along the door frame, which was chipped and a bit splintery.

Dipper just shrugged. "Mabel's always liked looking for weird little knick knacks. They're just about the only things she won't cover in glitter," he responded, looking around in one last ditch effort to spot his sister and Pacifica. But unfortunately, they were nowhere to be seen. He tapped his foot impatiently, and Bill didn't restrain his amusement. He'd actually been about to comment on the brunette's lack of observation skills when something else caught his gaze.

A dusty grand piano sat inside the shop, looking a bit scratched on its edges, but otherwise in pretty good condition. Bill grinned, pulling the door open. "Kid, have I ever told you that I know how to play piano?" he asked, stepping inside. Dipper, of course, followed after him, snickering quietly to himself.

"Oh, yeah?" he asked, a smirk forming on his lips. "So can I."

Bill hummed, running a hand over the top of the wooden instrument. He glanced at the clerk, who didn't even bat an eye when the blonde sat down in front of it. He pressed his index finger down on a B sharp key, listening to the note reverberate throughout the store. It sounded more or less in tune. Maybe slightly flat, but that hardly bothered him. He looked up at the brunette expectantly. "Well? Sit down and prove it then," he said, scooting to the side of the seat.

Dipper scoffed, but did so anyway. "You would know if I was lying," he replied with a roll of his eyes. Then he looked down at the keys and adjusted the position of his hands to play a simple piece he knew from memory. His parents had taught him to play when he was pretty young. Mabel didn't care much for instruments, but she would always sing whenever he sat down in front of one. It was one of Dipper's favorite things about being a kid, spending so much time with her. There had been no barriers between he and his sister. There were no complications or worries before they started school, because all they needed was one another.

And they were all they'd ever known for the longest time.

Dipper supposed the reason he grew up the way he had was because he hadn't grown used to other people or social situations the way she had. He was awkward and felt uncomfortable with people he wasn't close with, but it never felt that way around his sister, no matter how old the two of them got. No matter what got in the way.

Dipper smiled, speeding up the tempo and playing a more cheerful piece. Bill watched his hands with interest, though most of his attention remained solely on the brunette's thought processes. It was always obvious from their first meeting that Mabel was Dipper's weakness, but before he'd experienced the brunt of a family sacrifice himself, he never would've considered devotion a strength as well. It was strange, and seemed to stir something within that pesky soul that was gradually beginning to take over in place of his demonic powers. It was certainly a nuisance, but it piqued his interest all the same.

Bill looked back down at his own hands, resting over the black and white keys, then decided the song Dipper was playing could use something a bit more. He began pressing his fingers down and playing harmony off the top of his head, somewhat echoing Dipper's actions. He handled the lower pitches while the brunette kept the song light and airy through the higher melody. It actually sounded pretty damn good considering the fact that it was just the slightest bit out of tune and Bill was simply rolling with Dipper's actions. The blonde smiled, surprisingly without any of his usual condescension. Strange, how human emotions worked. It never quite made sense to him how stupid things like this made him feel so pleasant. But he couldn't really complain. 'Pleasant' wasn't something that had been on his radar prior to obtaining this form.

Dipper stopped playing once the piece wound down to completion, and Bill followed right after him. "Not bad, kid," the demon commented, looking up from the instument to meet Dipper's gaze. Bill smiled sideways at him, a soft laugh escaping his lips. "Never would've guessed it. I mean, despite the fact that I'm an omnipresent being and kinda knew already anyway." Dipper rolled his eyes at the demon, then leaned over a bit to peck him on the lips.

"Shut up," he said jokingly, standing up and holding out a hand for his boyfriend to take. Bill did so without a word, shifting onto his feet. Very few days went by this nicely anymore. Dipper was often exhausted at work, and his uncles were giving him too much to do. They wanted him spending as little time with Bill as possible, and until Soos came back, they could and would continue to keep them away from each other. Thankfully, Soos and Melody would be back in only another two or three days. Then there was Dipper's demonic issues paired with the stress of yet another possible apocalypse on his hands. It was all about as much as he could take. And it was horrible, because most days the only time he spent with Bill anymore was at night, and the she-demon haunting him wouldn't allow either of them a decent sleep anymore.

Bill hummed quietly to himself, stretching out his arms until his back popped. "Wouldn't have to worry about it so much if Sixer'd get off our damn case already," he grumbled, glancing towards a shelf covered in glass antique toys. A little angel one caught his eye and he snorted, reaching out a hand to pick it up. "That's a pretty idealistic representation, don't ya think?" He cocked his brow at the brunette, who took the angel from his hand and placed it back on the shelf.

"Making the assumption that angels exist is about as reasonable as assuming you don't exist," Dipper responded with a shrug, turning back towards the exit. "It just comes natural to most."

There was a moment of silence. Bill shrugged. "Everyone wants a perfect eternity," he said with a slight huff, turning towards the exit and leaving Dipper behind "But Heaven isn't so great, you know..." Bill's voice trailed off at the end, and he didn't look back to see if Dipper had followed him. Of course, the brunette had. So Bill didn't feel it necessary to confirm.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Dipper asked with an air of curiosity to him, leaning forward to eye Bill's expression as they walked. The blonde, however, looked like he regretted his past statement, and avoided the other's gaze. He exuded an aura of anxiousness, and sped up his movement to leave Dipper behind. "Woah, hold up!" The brunette was concerned then, and clasped his hand over Bill's shoulder, yanking him back. He spun the demon around to face him, interested and somewhat worried.

"We made a d-" Dipper stopped himself.

Bill's eyes went wide, rapidly changing colors. From their usual yellow to crimson to a blinding teal, then finally a familiar gray. His hands shook violently and his mouth hung slightly agape. A few seconds passed. Dipper reached out a hand to steady him, but Bill didn't even give warning before he toppled over this time, falling forward. Dipper attempted to catch the demon, but with Bill's entire weight on him, it seemed impossible to stay standing. Struggling, the brunette lowered himself, then just let himself collapse to his knees the rest of the way. "Bill...?" he questioned quietly, blinking in shock. It just had to be in public this time, didn't it?

Bill opened his eyes after a moment or two, an excruciating pain crawling across his entire body. Especially his eyes. He groaned, raising a hand to rub his temple. "What the hell hap..." He froze once he looked up to see that he was no longer standing outside the antique shop and Dipper was nowhere to be seen. All he could see was a suffocating blackness all around. This certainly wasn't what death felt like, nor was he in purgatory. And he knew that to be fact. He heard the sound of something cracking and looked back. An X-shaped portal seemed to have opened up, colors swirling around inside and creating a vivid contrast against the midnight background.

A figure Bill was all too quick to recognize stepped out of the portal, and it shrank until it disappeared, leaving the world around Bill bare of any color once again. The only things he could even perceive against the darkness anymore were the eyes of his favorite demon bitch. They narrowed into slits at him. "Mind your word choice," she growled lowly, her presence growing colder with rage. "I could kill you anytime I wanted to."

Bill didn't flinch. He stepped towards her, ignoring the way his body screamed for him to stop. "Do it then." His voice had an edge to it even she seemed caught off guard by. But he didn't stop. He was tired of this. "If you didn't need me for something, there'd be no reason to keep me around." He grinned manically, eyes wild. He held his arms out at his sides. "But go on. If you wanna kill me so much, then be my fucking guest."

She didn't respond.

Bill laughed, his voice echoing through the emptiness. "See, that's what I thought! Now listen here, and listen good," he continued, smirking confidently at her. The she-demon remained silent, though she felt even colder than before. "Don't think you can pull this on me, got it? I know your tricks, because I've pulled them all myself, and I'm telling you now I'm sick of it. So go on and spill what you need from me before I grow any more bored of your company." He shrugged.

"I'm liste-"

The demon's hand collided with the side of Bill's face, leaving long, bloody clawmarks. He winced, expression actually somewhat surprised, and raised a hand to cover them. It burned like hell, but he made a valiant effort not to show it. "Alright, Cipher." she spat out his name like it burned her tongue to say aloud. Their surroundings faded from a deep black to empty white, revealing the silhouette of the demon in front of Bill.

She got into his face, flames rising and curling around those glowing circles that she called eyes. "I'll tell you what I need from you," she ground out, hands clenched into fists at her sides. "I need you to use up the rest of your powers already. The Nightmare Realm's running out of time and if I'm going to free it, then I need your abilities."

Bill took a step back, keeping his gaze level with hers. "What makes you think I'd do that when I could just wait for the whole place to implode on itself?" he replied, an eyebrow raised.

The she-demon sighed, leaning back and letting the fire in her eyes fizzle away. "Easy. Besides, you really shouldn't assume I couldn't force the power out of you some other way. At least now I'm giving you an ultimatum." She raised a hand and snapped her fingers. Dipper, his family, and even Pacifica appeared behind her, sitting on the porch of the Mystery Shack. They all looked really, unusually happy. Ford was sitting on the swing with Stan, showing him some sort of map and drawing a line over their course with his index finger. Pacifica sat against the front door, giggling. Mabel had her head on the blonde's lap, looking up at her and gesturing wildly with her hands as she told some presumably ridiculous story. And Dipper was off in his own little world, a Pitt Cola at his side, a book in his hands, and a soft smile adorning his lips. "I'll spare them. Sure, you'll still die in the end. That was a given." The demon chuckled, a grin spreading wide across her face.

"But it's all worth it if they get to live a little longer, isn't it?"

This time Bill went silent, pupils like pinpricks against his irises. She could always be bluffing. Surely she was. There couldn't possibly be a way to make him drain his powers faster...

And yet he had this sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach that there definitely was.

He opened his mouth to shoot an angry response back at her, but nothing seemed to come out correctly. He glanced between all of them before his gaze ultimately landed on Dipper. "Damn..." he whispered regretfully, forcing himself to smile just slightly. He'd picked a bad time to fall for the stupid kid, hadn't he?

"It's your decision, Bill," the shadow cooed, waving a hand. And in doing so, everything behind her began to fall apart. Ford was raised into the air and gave a surprised little sound before a snap silenced him. Stan reached out, looking like he'd just witnessed his own funeral, but collapsed on the ground beside Pacifica and Mabel before he could even speak. All three remaining survivors had horrified looks on their faces. Pacifica screamed, and Mabel seemed beyond words, just sitting up to huddle against the other girl and closing her eyes. Dipper blinked, stunned and horrified all at once. An invisible force yanked the two young girls away from each other by their hair, and Dipper instinctively reached out towards both of them, but had no way of holding on.

"Stop!" Mabel shrilled, looking like she was being strangled by... something. By what exactly, it didn't seem clear. Pacifica as well appeared to be in the same form of agony. Dipper struggled to pry the nonexistent hands off Mabel's throat, then Pacifica's. Nothing he tried worked, and he realized this only when it sounded as if their tracheas had been entirely crushed and they were cast to the ground like rag dolls. He fell to his feet, hunched over and sobbing like a child, hands gripping his hair desperately. "MABEL!" he shrieked, sorrow like needles against Bill's ear drums. He swallowed the urge to run towards the brunette, to pull him away, to tell him it would be fine. But that was stupid. Bill knew better than anyone this wasn't real, but...

Human feelings seemed to override any form of logic at the moment.

The demon hummed, giving a shrug. "I won't force you to agree," she said smugly, hands in the air and ready to snap.

But Bill wouldn't allow her. "No!" he pleaded in desperation, voice reaching a horrified wail he hadn't intended for. He had the face of someone that had been utterly broken down, and it was almost pitiful to look at. She scoffed at him, lowering her arms and holding one out at him. Her smile was so sickening, so sinister.

"So we have a deal then?"