Going Under (BillDip) ON HIATUS

Chapter 7

Dipper and Mabel couldn't stall any longer. If they did wait for the siren to wake up, Captain Ford or someone might come down to the brig and they'd be forced to explain what had happened. So, with guilty glances, the twins each grabbed one of Bill's arms, lifting him up and, between the two of them, carrying his limp body upstairs. The closer Dipper and Mabel were to the siren, the easier it was to identify just how starved and weak he was. However, judging from Bill's recent actions, looks could be deceiving. As the Pines twins made their way up the stairs, the unconscious siren between them, Dipper couldn't keep his mind from wandering. He would have guessed that his thoughts would be about the siren, but in fact, his thoughts were brought back to a memory with his dad...

"Dipper, be careful, those embers are hot."

Young Dipper Pines looked up at his dad from where he was leaned over on the edge of the brick furnace in his father's workshop. Dipper never understood why his father, who was a wealthy man at the time, chose to make swords and axes among other tools, as opposed to the higher class things that most other men his stature were doing. When he voiced his thoughts to his father, sitting up off the furnace edge, the man smiled warmly.

"Let those fools squander their money, Dipper. Wealth is fleeting, and if we make the wrong choices, or aren't prepared, Life will pull the rug out from under our feet and we will tumble down into the deepest of chasms, where no one will be able to bring us back up." His father explained. Dipper considered this, his seven year old mind still trying to wrap around concepts like that. He let out a laugh.

"You should have been a poet, Father!" He declared, half teasing, half genuine in his declaration. The man laughed and ruffled his son's hair as he passed.

"That flattery will get you out of some tight spots, Dip. I can see it already has in terms with your mother. How did you manage to get out of today's chores, young man?" He inquired, raising a teasingly suspicious eyebrow as he cooled the sword off in the bucket of cold water. Dipper grinned.

"I told her I was worried that my dear father would hide away in his workshop the rest of his life, and that Mabel and I would grow up without ever knowing our father." Dipper recited in a stage voice. His father laughed, setting down the sword he had just finished.

"Did she buy it?" He wondered. Dipper shrugged and shook his head.

"No, but Mabel offered to do my chores for me if I let her have my dessert tomorrow." He revealed. This was rewarded with another laugh from his father, who picked up his son and sat him on his knee, sitting himself on a cleared bench.

"You and your sister sure are something." He noted. Dipper grinned, not quite sure wether that was a compliment or not, but he didn't really care. Suddenly, his dad adorned a very serious expression.

"Dipper, I need you to promise me something..."

"Is everyone alright? Dipper! Mabel! What happened?!" Ford demanded when the twins emerged from below deck, struggling under the limp weight of the siren. Dipper exchanged a glance with his sister. She had always been better at making up stories and calming their uncle, but the light in her eyes was still shattered, so Dipper took a deep breath and looked at his great uncle.

"He knows not to cause any funny business." He said finally. Ford pursed his lips in disbelief, but decided to leave well enough alone and just nodded.

"So long as no one's harmed. Wendy, Soos, fetch a bucket of seawater." The captain ordered. The two crew members scrambled to find a bucket and rope to tie to it. Once the two had successfully raised a rather large bucket of seawater, Ford placed it in front of the unconscious siren and twins.

"Hold his head under." He instructed. Dipper gaped at him slightly.

"W-What?" He stuttered. Captain Ford sighed and put a hand on the boy's shoulder.

"Dipper, I understand your hesitation, but...please, just trust me on this one. He's a siren, remember? He can breathe underwater. All those scars and scratches will go away if he turns out of his human form. He doesn't have the strength for the winged one, but he has enough to turn back into a siren, so long as he is in water. We can't risk completely submerging him, so we'll just have to convince his mind that he is." Ford explained. Dipper could see many flaws in this plan, but he also saw the sense in it, and he almost felt bad for protesting. Not to mention forgetting that sirens could breathe underwater. Trying not to let his embarrassment show, Dipper nodded and, with Mabel's help, gently knelt Bill down in front of the bucket. Dipper took a deep breath, as if he was the one getting dunked under, and put the siren's head completely underwater. Bill's eyes flew open and he immediately started to struggle. Dipper's eyes shot to his captain, panicky and questioning. Ford ran forward, his eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

"I don't understand! He should be transforming!" He exclaimed. Just as Dipper was about to let Bill out of the water, the siren grabbed his wrist with surprising strength. Dipper let out a short cry and tried to wrench himself free, but Bill wouldn't let go. When Dipper cried out, Mabel jumped away from the siren and raced to him, Ford still trying to figure out what he had done wrong. Bill raised his head from the bucket, his eyes shining bright gold and filled with rage. Then his glare fell onto Dipper and all anger left him. He let go of his wrist and sat back, his eyes not meeting anyone's gaze. When Ford got to his feet, Bill flinched terribly, but the captain didn't strike him. Instead, he crouched beside him, concern in his eyes. Bill was almost too scared to hope that the concern he saw was true.

"I...I thought that...why didn't you change?" Ford wondered. The siren narrowed his eyes slightly.

"Because a deal's a deal, no matter when it was made." His eyes began to glow again, the cuts and gashes fading as large glowing gold wings materialized on his back. "I want what belongs to me!"