Disclaimers: I do not own Gravity Falls
Author's Notes: Thank you all as always for reading and please review.
(Back with Bill…)
Within moments the face of Hannibal Cipher, ruler of the Nightmare Realm, and Bill's father, appeared on the mirror.
"Bill?"
"Dad?" Bill looks confused, his father appears to be riding on a warnicorn in the middle of what appears to be the Forest of Certain Death. "What are you doing?"
"Sorry sweetie, your father and I are still leading the search." His mother, Luisa came into full view, which meant they must be using a personal Mirror Phone. Bill didn't even know his parents had one of those.
"Still?" Ford asked looking worried. "You haven't found either of them."
"Afraid not." Hannibal answer, taking back the mirror phone. "Now I'm assuming something is wrong." He said giving his son a look of disapproval.
"Wow," Bill said. "Of course you assume the worse."
Hannibal huffs and presses on with the search as Luisa takes back the phone. "You'll have to forgive your father he's starting to lose his patience. Was there something you needed?"
"Oh well we're in the middle of a lesson." Ford said since Bill looks too annoyed with his father's attitude to answer.
"Oh a lesson, how nice." Luisa looks around. "What are we learning today?" She gives Bill an expecting look.
Bill sighs. "I asked for a lesson, so Axolotl made my spellbook throw Dipper into my closet. Now he's stuck in there."
"Goodness." Luisa looks worried. "Is he alright?"
"I'm fine your majesty." Dipper calls from closet.
"Anyway Axolotl says the only way to unlock it is with magic, and since I don't have my cane, Axolotl wants me to 'dip down' as he put it." Bill cut back in.
Hannibal's eyes widened a little at this. "Axolotl wants you to...dip down?"
His mother also looks surprised but for another reason "Wait...you asked for a lesson?"
"Yes, and I'm starting to regret it." Bill growled as his father takes back the mirror phone.
"I didn't learn how to dip down until I was 19." His father admitted.
Bill's eyes widen. "So I'm like advanced! Cool."
"Are we sure he's even ready?" Hannibal asked.
"We don't have much of a choice." Ford stated the obvious. "If Tad learns how to use the magic he has stolen, Bill may be the only one that can stop him."
Hannibal nods. "Well if it's pointers you want then you need to stop thinking about this logically."
Bill raises an eyeball. "Okay and how does one perform a spell un-logically?"
"William dipping down has to do with unlocking your magic from within." Hannibal explained. "Think of your magic as a river trapped by a damn. The water, the magic is not going to give way as long as the damn stands firm. You've got to let-""
"Okay when does the hobo soup come in?" Bill asked, looking confused.
"The what?" Hannibal asked.
"Axolotl gave me the whole metaphor with the hobo stew," Bill told his Dad, who had a look of disbelief on his face. "But he was pretty vague about how I go about doing it."
"Well, that certainly sounds familiar," Hannibal grumbled. "Listen, son. Dipping down is not easy to do on the first try. If you want to do it, you have to summon everything you have emotionally; you've got to go deep inside yourself; gather everything inside of you and let it out!" Hannibal told him.
"Just, let it out?" Bill asked. "Just take out my emotions on the door?"
"Break my shack and you're dead!" Stan shouted.
Bill deflates. "How do I go all out and not break things old man!" He yells.
"Well I'm sure you'll figure it out." Hannibal assures him. "I know I am hard on you son, but I have the at most faith in you."
Bill looks up with surprise. "Thanks dad."
"Alright well I'll leave you to it." Hannibal says trying to regain his serious composure. "Ford…good luck." He says with a sly smile, ending the call.
Meanwhile Bill made his way to the closet door, ready to do the one thing he had never done before:
Listen to his father's advice.
(Back to Dipper)
"Man, when Bill said that this was his 'junk closet,' he wasn't joking around," Dipper said sarcastically as he looked around the massive closet and the piles of things lying in it. Ever since Axolotl told him that something in this closet would help Bill 'dip down' and use magic without the cane, Dipper had been trying to find it. Sadly he couldn't find anything worth the trouble. Nothing around him, despite how awesome wasn't going to cut it. And there were some pretty impressive stuff in this closet: a collection of various swords, axes, and battle staves surrounded him. There was also various random junk that one would expect to find in an Earth teen's closet. Shoes with strangely not matches, socks that were unfortunately in the same boat, and piles upon piles of dirty clothes. Seriously Dipper was beginning to wonder if Bill had even bothered to do the laundry since he arrived.
Bottom line, Bill had a lot of stuff in his closet, but so far, nothing that looked to be what Axolotl was talking about. And Dipper was running out of ideas. "Think, Pines, think. What else could be in here to help Bill?"
"Pine Tree? You still in there?"
Dipper jumps slightly at the sound of Bill's voice, but regains his bearings. "Yeah, still here…like I could go anywhere else." He had whispered the last part, but he was sure Bill still heard him.
He did, but choses to overlook it. After all, being locked in a closet full of junk was probably wearing on his nerves. "How goes it?"
"Well, I've gone through a lot and you're right, this place is full of junk." Dipper admitted.
"I told you." Bill wined, ignoring Ford's and Stan's looks. "My dad said that to dip down, I need to experience an overwhelming amount of emotion all at once. You know break the damn, but there is nothing in there that would do that."
Dipper looks around. "Axolotl sure thinks so."
"That Lizard, honestly I wonder why people listen to him. He's insane." Bill pointed out.
"True, but you have to admit, he does breed results." Dipper pointed out.
"Well I think it's good that Axolotl is forcing you to think for yourself." Ford cut in. "After all, Dipper might not always be there to get you out of…tight situations." He was going to say trouble, but thought better of it at the end.
Bill nodded his agreement begrudgingly, as much as he and Sixer clashed heads, he did appreciate all he was doing for him and his family. After all, Bill being here had done nothing but put Ford and his family in danger. Still, they all risked their lives for him time and time again, and of course he was grateful.
He wasn't a total monster.
"Well, I'm not much for magic." Stan admitted, still holding the camera. "But I do know a thing or two about kids and what things they hide in closets."
Bill raises a brow. "And what do you think I am hiding in my closet."
"Well Axolotl sure thinks it's something that will make you lose control." Mabel pointed out.
"Make me lose control." Bill laughed. "Do you guys remember when I used to lose control without even trying?"
"Yeah this is better." Stan admitted.
"I must admit, it is a nice break." Ford agreed, "But we need Bill to learn this Stan." He argued. "Tad has power now, Bill's power. If he learns to will it, we could have another Seth situation on our hands."
"And a multiveral war to match." Dipper added.
"Exactly." Ford agreed.
"Interesting…" Axolotl reappears in front of Dipper "Slacking off I see."
"I'm not slacking off." Dipper argued. "I've looked through this whole closet…well just about."
"Hmmm...Very interesting," Axolotl said to himself as he inspects Dipper's work. "Yes perhaps I did speak in haste."
"Why does he keep all this useless junk anyways?" Dipper whispered.
"Oh he's a hoarder." Axolotl answers casually.
"I am not a hoarder!" Bill yells kicking the door.
The kick must had had some magic backing it up because the closet shook around him.
"Oh no…" Dipper's eyes go wide as the piles of stuff around him give way to a massive avalanche of destruction.
"Dipper?!" Mabel exclaims.
Dipper wrestles himself to the surface, the junk around him like an ocean. "Bill! You just messed up all my work!" He pulls himself out the rest of the way and sighs "And I was almost done too."
"Glade to hear one of us is so successful!" Bill snapped.
"Bill!" Mabel and Ford say in unison.
"No it's fine." Dipper shouts. "I get it." He sighs. "Bill, I know this is hard for you."
"You don't know the half of it." Bill groaned. "Everything comes easy for you!"
"I know a lot more about it then you think." Dipper admitted, as he started his task of organizing the closet once again. "You feel responsible for what happened…what's been happening. Every time you use magic its well chaos, and I'm always having to fix it. You feel powerless and responsible for putting us in constant danger. What happened with Toffee, that was the final straw, you can no longer deny that you're dangerous. That just being associated with you can be dangerous."
"Is there a point to all of this?" Bill wasn't trying to be hateful, but Dipper was hitting a nerve. He hated that Dipper was kidnapped, and deep down he knew it was his fault, he caused it by being reckless and giving Toffee an opportunity to breach their defenses. Then to makes matters worse, he couldn't even save him. No Dipper ended up saving the day as usual. Bill hated the fact he wasn't strong enough to save Dipper. He hated his uncle who constantly threatening him and his friends. He hated Toffee for laying a finger on Dipper.
"Look all I'm saying is I know you feel like it's all your fault, and while there are some things that are, you never let it bother you like you are now." Dipper pointed out. "I think, at some level your feelings about what happened, is the reason why you haven't been able to use magic. You've heal Bill, and while you've lost power, it was only half. Sure you can't make your own spells any more, but you have experience with magic, couple that with half of your usual power and you should be able to perform a simple spell like Recludo."
Bill shifted uncomfortably, he really didn't like that Ford and Stan were here for this, or that they were getting this on camera.
"This is Blackmail gold." Stan whispered to his brother.
"Give me that!" Ford wrenched the camera out of his hands.
"Hey!"
"Bill, I think you incautiously locked what was left of your power away, because you're afraid that you'll hurt someone, or we'll end up in danger again."
The truth hits him like a ton of bricks. Of course that's what he had been doing, but he didn't know that blaming himself would have such dire consequences.
"Magic is linked to emotions." Dipper lectured, still sorting through the junk. "In extreme stress it can either come out violently or become completely suppressed."
"He's right, you need to find a happy medium." Ford cut in. "Unfortunately, now that power has been locked away, you need a strong emotion to let it out."
"I was so close…" Dipper muttered.
"That bad?" Bill asked.
"Yeah you basically thwarted all of my progress." Dipper admits, then looks to Axolotl. "But then again you did have help."
Bill sighs and slides down the closet door hanging his head in defeat. "Well I guess this is it, turns out I'm not a dipper, I'm just a skimmer. A skimmer of that magical, hobo-gravy. That watery, hobo-gravy."
"Okay, now you're just being dramatic." Stan said.
"Not helping." Ford mouthed.
"It might not be so bad." Bill said, ignoring them.
"Yeah." Mabel agreed. "We could slide food under the door, Bring him clean clothes, some hygiene products, his homework. Life could be good."
"Mabel, I'm not going to spend the rest of my life in a closet." Dipper said. "We just have to think of another way to get me out of here."
Axolotl sighs. "Well I suppose a good teacher would give his student a little nudge." He flicks his tail.
At that moment, Bill's Spell book began to wobble and shake on the ground in front of Dipper, catching his eye. Then, the book suddenly sky rocketed into the air before hitting a top shelf. "What kind of nudge is that?" Dipper snapped.
"The best kind." Axolotl smiled and that when the spellbook fell back down, only it wasn't the spellbook.
It was a small, leather-bound book with the initials B.C written in a gold triangle.
"Let me guess: this is what you wanted me to find?" Dipper asked Axolotl.
"Yep. You found it, kid. I knew you could!"
Dipper rolled his eyes. "Hey, Bill," he called out from inside the closet. "I finally found the thing. It's this little book!"
"A book." Bill's brow raised. "I don't remember throwing any books in there."
Dipper opens the book. "It's written in ancient demon…" He said trying to make out some words. "My demon isn't that great." He admitted.
"Really?" Axolotl smiles at this, liked he just heard a funny joke. "Turn to a later entry."
Dipper absent-mindedly flips deeper into the book. "Oh, hold on! I found a section of it in English!"
Now Bill looks really confused. "What demon book would suddenly have English?"
"Don't look at us." Stan said. "It's your closet."
"That's just it, I haven't thrown any books with demon writing in my closet since I got here." Bill said.
"All right, here goes," Dipper said as he began to read aloud. "Chapter 2: All the Reasons Why Dad's a Dolt."
"Dad's a Dolt?" Bill gasped, bolting up from the floor. "Pine Tree No, no, no, no, no, no!"
"I thought you said you had nothing to hide?" Stan teased.
"It wasn't in my closet!" Bill yelled.
"Oh I put it there." Axolotl said, appearing beside him.
"You planned this!" Bill screamed.
"Yep, why do you think I had you kids run around chasing a spellbook? I needed time to find your journal."
"You keep a journal?" Mabel asked.
Bill ignores them and starts bounding on the door. "Pines, drop that, now!"
Dipper bites his lip as Axolotl reappears by him.
"Well go on, it's working." The all-knowing being urges him.
Dipper nods and keeps reading. "Dear journal today I have been banished to a new Realm, My dolt of a Father is dumping his problems on someone else perusal…Ouch Bill."
"Pine Tree stop reading!" Bill growls.
Ford and Stan scoot away to the further side of the bed.
"We might want to take cover." Mabel insisted.
"Good idea." Ford agreed and the three decided to duck behind the other side of the bed.
Dipper flips through more pages before he continues. "Earth is not so bad, the human here practically worship me as a god. I have many fans and followers." Dipper rolled his eyes. "Really Bill, could you be any more full of yourself?"
"Dipper, please stop reading that right now!" Bill goes from anger to desperation in a heartbeat.
"Seriously Bill it's not that bad." Mabel tries to assure him.
"Not yet." Stan snickered.
Ford gives him a look.
"What? It's obvious he doesn't want us to see something in there." Stan reasoned. "So what is it?" He asked Bill.
"Nothing, it's nothing." Bill insisted, pulling on the door.
Dipper smiles as he flips forward some more. "Then I guess you won't mind if…" He stops as he sees a new chapter. "Chapter 11: My Thoughts on..." The closet light goes out. "Seriously?" He squints. "My thoughts on…Pine Tree?"
Bill gasped and suddenly the air seems to change around them. "Dippp doowwwnn..." Bill said as he began to levitate in the air his eyes as black as a starless sky. He waves his hand at the door and with the click of the lock, it opens.
Dipper looks out the door to see Bill returning to the ground. His eyes turn back to normal and he smiles.
"I did it," he said quietly. "I DID IT!" He repeated, now shouting. "I DIPPED, Pine Tree!" He called as he gleefully bounced his way over to Dipper. "I'M NOT A SKIMMER, I'M-" he gets control of himself and clears his throat. "I mean I knew I could do it."
"Didn't doubt it for a second." Dipper praised as he closed the book and held it out to him.
Bill yanks the book out of his hands...and then smack him on the head with it.
"Ow! That hurt!" Dipper complained.
"You deserved that!" Bill hissed.
"So." Stan said with a big grin. "What did it say?"
"Yeah." Mabel agreed. "What is so important about Dipper that you didn't want us to hear?"
Bill looks at Dipper, he shrugs.
"Don't look at me, I never got past the title."
"Really?" Bill asked.
"Really, really." Dipper answered.
"Well now that we got past the hard part." Axolotl said popping up out of nowhere. "Why don't you give it a whorl?"
"What?" Bill asked.
"Cast a spell." Dipper said.
Oh right." Bill takes a deep breath and says. "Open says me." As he waves his hand at the bed room door.
Said door goes flying off the hinges and up through the bed room celling.
"Yes, I'm back baby!" Bill exclaims.
"Cipher!" Stan screams.
"Oh boy." Mabel says.
"Bill." Dipper whispers as Stan closes in.
"Yeah Pine Tree?" Bill asked with a gulp.
"Run!" Dipper yells.
And he did.
-To Be Continued...