(Back with Dipper)
Dipper looks around as everyone continues to cheer what was going on?! He gives Bill a 'Please fill me in look.'
"It's about time!" One of Louisa's uncles, Stuart says. Everyone cheers and marches away. "I've been thinking about this all year!" He laughs.
"It's a Johansen tradition." He explained. "All we have to do is be the first to get our flag up there."
Bill points to a hill, the highest point of the park.
"So, it's like King of the Hill. Oh, I rock that game." He stops as he realizes. "Wait, we don't have a flag."
"Seriously?" Bill gives him a look. "The power of imagination here." He reminds him and with a flick of his wrist he commands. "Flag of victory!"
Dipper gives him a dubious green as a golden flag appears. "Flag of victory? Someone's a bit cocky."
"I have the strongest magic here, even with half of it gone." Bill explained.
"What does magic have to do with King of the Hill." Dipper asked.
"Oh, we use magic to fight off the competition." Bill says. "The winner gets to look down on everyone else for a whole year!"
So, it's like Mario cart meets King of the Hill." Dipper says. "You know this was a good idea, your family seems more relaxed."
"I know right, I dominated the adult table!" Bill exclaimed.
"Don't get this wrong." Dipper whisper as everyone gather at the starting line. "But why was that so important to you?"
"My father is under a lot of stress." Bill whispered. "I thought if we-if I showed him I could handle being responsible then I could lighten his load. There would be no need for secrecy, and we could take on Tad and Toffee together."
Dipper gives him a knowing smile. "You have matured, even if your dad still thinks you're not ready, you have."
Bill smiles, what did he ever do without this guy.
Manfred walks to the front of the group to kick off the game. "The game will commence when all participants are ready."
Everyone shouts their approval and Dipper looks back to see Hannibal sitting off to the side with Luisa.
"They're not playing?" Dipper asked.
Bill laughs, "Nah everyone complains when father wins, something about being the king and how its cheating." He waves at his parents who give him encouraging nods.
Luisa shouts her encourage and cheers her son on. Usually, she joins in the festivities but decides to give her husband some company. "I'm sorry she upset you."
"Don't be I'm use it, Williams behavior however…" Hannibal trails off.
"I know he's grown so much as of late." Luisa admits. "I feel like we're missing it."
"I can't believe I'm saying this, and if you repeat to Stanford I'll deny it." Hannibal smiles. "But I think he was right; Mason is a good influence."
Luisa smiles. "Yes he is, we're truly grateful that…" She trails off, not wanting to remind her husband that he almost…
"I was wrong, about a lot of things." Hannibal seems to read her mind.
"We're not going to be able to keep the truth from them are we?" Luisa says the obvious.
"We knew that the moment we sent William to Earth." Hannibal reminded her. "Stanley said as much."
"I know, but part of me wants to shelter them forever, these kids shouldn't have to live in a world where tyrants are trying to destroy everything they love." Luisa chokes back tears as Bill gives them a beaming thumbs up and looks away.
"It will be over soon." Hannibal swears gravely, "I'll make sure it does, I will die before Seth rises again!" Yes it was obvious what Toffee was really after, it didn't take a genius to figure that out.
Luisa only hoped they could stop him in time.
"Wow your family really doesn't like your dad do they?" Dipper blurted out without thinking as they turned their focus back on the game.
"Sometimes, it's only like this when Tad causes trouble." Bill explained. "They want someone to blame, the royal family has never lost their magic to the enemy before."
"Here's to another spirited game of Flags." Manfred continued. "Please let us not have a repeat of last year's unfortunateness."
"What happened last year?" Dipper asked.
"Just before he reached the peak, Uncle Lump got his body cut off." Bill whispered.
"What?!" Dipper exclaimed.
"Relax. He's fine. He's right over there." Bill assured him.
Dipper looks to see the uncle in question, he's cut to a lump and his head is sewn onto a horse's body and is holding a blue flag in his mouth. He neighs happily.
"I think he likes it better this way." Bill said.
"Isn't a horse body cheating?" Dipper asked.
Bill smiles wickedly. "Yes so is having the power of imagination, keep up Pine Tree."
Manfred clears his throat. "Ready, set, flags!" He declares.
Everyone bolts and Dipper follows Bill into the fray, he's still kind of freaked out about using magic since the whole abduction, but he doesn't need to worry.
"Her we go!" Bill screams and punches the ground screaming. "Avalanche of Chaos!" The ground suddenly begins to shake toppling their opponents over and giving them an early lead.
Hannibal can't help the surge of pride as he watches. "That's my boy."
"Keep up Pines." Bill yells, but he doesn't need to, the kid matches him step for step. Not surprising, this was nothing to them. They had faced monsters, Tad, and Toffee, they could handle a simple game like this.
Simple, Dipper laughed, it was chaos, magic flying everywhere. Of course, The Johansens weren't as powerful as the Cipher family, but being of noble blood they were of pure demonic heritage. Not as pure as Hannibal's family, but a close second. This meant their power was lethal as well, but not everyone in the family had magic either. Somewhere throwing homemade gas bombs and fighting each other with sword as they climbed.
"Okay don't think I need to tell you, but coolest family ever!" Dipper informs Bill of the obvious.
"Oh, I know." Bill says as they reach the base of the large Hill, it's larger now, more like a mountain, and Dipper looks to Bill as if to say. "Was this you're doing?"
Bill shrugs, "Not much of a challenge if it's one little hill." He confirmed as they began to scale the mountain with the others.
Dipper scoffs, he must have done it with the Avalanche spell. Bills powers were getting more skilled by the day. It was a lot easier to learn without so much chaos energy. He supposed that was one positive about Tad stealing half. Of course, it was also a negative, if it was this easier for a beginner like Bill to master new things, than nothing was stop Tad either!
Dipper pushes the worried thought away, he and Bill have been practicing hard since Bill learned to dip down. All in hopes of preparing him for Tad's return, they would be ready, right now was about letting off some steam and having some fun.
Dipper yelps as he slips suddenly, Bill reaches out for him on instinct, but just misses his hand.
Dipper manages to grab on to a ledge before slipping all the way down.
Bill's second uncle Heartrude holds out hand to help. "Oh, here, my dear boy. Allow me to assist you."
Dipper nods and almost falls for it.
"Pine Tree!" Bill warns, but it's not needed, Dipper remembers the everyone cheats warning just in time. He veers back just as Heartrude lunges for him, the cheeky uncle slips, plums downward and into a bear trap.
"Oh! Well done my boy my troth, surely ate it on that one." Heartrude praised.
"Nice takedown." Bill praised as Dipper caught up.
"Hey I got skills." Dipper reasoned.
"And yet not enough game to score a girlfriend." Bill teased.
"Hey!" Dipper punches him in the shoulder...HARD!
"Careful we're going into the rain zone." Bill warns.
Dipper looks up in amazement, the sky is halved, one with normal weather and the other with rain. Thunder rumbles as the rain begins to pour down on him. "Wait!" He exclaims remembering. "I cannot do wet socks."
"Flags doesn't care what you like!" Bill shouts as they jump over a body that comes rolling down. "We gotta keep moving."
They move further up the mountain where Etheria is in the lead followed by some of Bill's older cousins.
Etheria throws a handful of seeds which sprout into vines and drag the cousins underground, leaving two flowers in their place as Dipper and Bill run by.
Dipper slows down as something seems to come to him. "Wait a minute!" he exclaimed.
"Eyes on the prize, Pine Tree." Bill advised not letting up.
Further up the hill is a Johansen. He holds up his flag, which gets struck by lightning, and plunges it into the ground, laughing as the electric shock tears a path in the ground, sending large rocks downhill.
"Bill, we gotta go back!" Dipper exclaimed.
"We are never going back." Bill says as if it's obvious. They friends dodge large rocks as they try and scale the mountain. Another Johansen is hit by a rock and falls downhill.
"I think your family's really trying to hurt each other!" Dipper rasped.
"Yeah. Isn't it awesome?" Bill asked. Suddenly Lump's head comes rolling down the mountain.
"Not again, not again, not again!" The head cries as he rolls out of sight.
"And there's the repeat of last year. Adieu, Uncle Lump." Manfred Narrates. "Who shall take the hill? I am beside myself with anticipation."
Meanwhile back on the hill, Bill and Dipper are trying to climb up a snowy path as they enter the winter section of the mountain.
Manfred continues as more people fall to their dooms. "And the herd of participants is being further culled. There is now only a handful vying for the top of the hill. So dreadfully exciting." He looks through opera glasses to see clearer. "We have, Lady Etheria and Lord Grunt lead the pack followed by…oh, my. The Prince Bill Cipher and his friend Mason."
"He's in the front!" Luisa exclaims.
"Not bad." Hannibal praises. "But he'll have to be conning to beat Etheria."
"She does have her ways." Luisa agrees.
Dipper and Bill jump from rock to rock as they reach the lava pits as Heartrude catches up to them. He is stuck in the bear trap and being carried by a servant.
"You've been a stone in my poulaines for too long, my incorrigible little Nephew! You're about to abdicate the throne!" He tries to hit Bill with his flags, but he dodges and trips the servant, who drops Heartrude and stumbles on the edge of the rock. Dipper jumps, pushing the servant away from the lava and saving his life.
"Sorry if my heroism offends you." Dipper declares as he races after Bill. What was he doing? This game was getting way too out of control. "Bill, this game is changing you. It's not about who versus who or rivalries or whatever. It's about winning no matter what. And that's just not you." He has to scream to be heard over the shouting of family members around them.
"I DON'T CARE!" Bill yelled. "I need to show them I can do this; I'm strong, I don't need to be protected! I can help fix everything!"
"You're strong, brave and smart." Dipper argued. "It doesn't matter if they think so. Don't prove yourself their way, show them a better one."
Bill stops and looks his way, his face stern and determined, he looks ready to tell Dipper off when he notices all of his relatives are fighting one another. 'This isn't right.' He realizes. 'Our family is mid crisis we should be banding together not tearing each other apart.' He gives Dipper a nod. "How do we fix this?"
They're your family." Dipper says.
"None of them will stop until they win." Bill says and smiles. "That's it!" He declares. "Follow my lead." He jumps right in the fray and starts swiping his family's flags.
Dipper, always loyal follows his lead and together they capture all the flags.
"What is he doing?" Hannibal asked looking confused.
Luisa, however, smiles proudly. "Something I failed to do."
"My lady should I call it off?" Manfred asked.
"No I got this." Luisa assures him and jumps into action.
Hannibal lens back ready to watch his in-laws get schooled, and really they had it coming to them.
Meanwhile, Dipper and Bill are barely managing to stay in front of the stampede that is Bill's family.
"Get back here!"
Dipper winces as the gap closes, they weren't going to make it.
Suddenly they are all stopped by a blinding blue glow as snow falls all around them.
Mom?" Bill asked as the blue aura disappears, Luisa's eyes are glowing a fierce blue as she stands proud in front of her family.
"Are you alright, darling?" Luisa asked Bill as she reached out to cup his face.
"I'm all alright, mom." He assures her. "I'm sorry I was just trying-"
"I know sweetie, and I'm very proud of what you were trying to do, but as the adults we shouldn't need help acting our age." Luisa said with a glare to her family.
The Johansen's look around, sheepishly.
"We are mid crisis, and we need to band together now more than ever." Luisa explains. "That is what Bill was trying to do by initiating flags and you all failed miserably."
"I may have gotten carried away myself." Bill admitted, seeing what Dipper was trying to tell him. "I just wanted to prove to all of you that I was ready to help with the adult things."
"Oh, don't be in a hurry to grow up love." Etheria warns him gently. "You can still be young and have fun all while taking on more responsibilities." She gives Luisa a knowing look.
"Yes perhaps we have been a bit over protected." Luisa admitted. "It's just we love you so much…" She trials off looking to Hannibal.
He nods as he flies over to them. "We can't promise we will stop completely; it is a parent's nature to protect after all."
"But we can try." Luisa cut in.
"I'm proud of how you handled today." Hannibal says to Bill. "We put this together to make you feel more at ease. To put a sense of normalcy back in your life, it's been a rough year and you've proved you're to take on more responsibility. You are shaping into a fine king to be."
"Thanks…father." Bill finds it hard to find his words.
"Now let's take these flags up together!" Lump declared.
The family laughs and together they take their flags up the mountain.
Bill smiles as he and Dipper plunges their makeshift flag into the ground as the sun begins to set on this perfectly normal day.
"So, what did you think of our little family reunion Mason?" Hannibal asked.
"Little?" Dipper laughed uneasily. "Well, it puts mine to shame."
"Nonsense I'm sure a Pines family reunion is quiet the spectacle." Luisa teased.
"Well of course Stanley is there." Hannibal joked.
"Oh, come on, he can't be that bad." Bill said trying to stand up for Dipper's family.
"Oh no he is." Dipper said. "He once got us all arrested for counterfeiting." He revealed. "…on my birthday…."
"Okay Dipper wins, the Pines family is officially the worst." Bill joked.
The group laughs wishing this moment could last forever, knowing tomorrow would bring them back to the dark reality at hand.
But for now, Bill tries to live in a moment, knowing there are something he can't control. Maybe his father was right, he was maturing after all.
-To Be Continued