Going Under (BillDip) ON HIATUS

Chapter 20

"Dipper...? Psst! Dipper, wake up!"

The whisper stabbed through the blankets of slumber draped across the brunet teen's subconscious and his face scrunched momentarily in resistance to the awakening. Dragging himself out of the pull of sleep, Dipper Pines forced his eyes to open, blinking in the light that found its way into the wide-mouthed cave. The sound of the waterfall cascading into the cove slowly seemed to rise in volume as Dipper's senses caught up with him. He was aware of something warm pressed against his body, but as he struggled to regain his bearings, eyes aching from the less than satisfactory sleep, he couldn't recall what it was. His gaze finally fell upon the owner of the voice, his twin sister Mabel, and he furrowed his brow.

"Mabel? Whadisit?" he mumbled, his words slurring together. Mabel's lips cracked into a small, sad smile at her brother's antics as she began to work on relighting the fire.

"You should probably eat something. We've got some left-over fish from yesterday that should be sufficient," she informed him. Dipper's eyebrows scrunched even closer together until the events of the past few days and last night finally returned to him. His eyes widened and his head snapped to look down at the creature nestled against his chest. His heart clenched, his stomach twisting, as emotions fought on his face. The humanoid siren was still in deep sleep, his breathing not as labored before, his skin a shade more natural than the night prior, but his wounded arm was still streaked by black veins, Dipper's bandanna-turned-bandage soaked through with the gold and black blood and in serious need of a change. Bill's forehead was beaded with sweat, yet he still shivered slightly against the brunet, curling up closer to the warm body involuntarily in sleep. Dipper's face felt hot as he adjusted himself into a sitting position, trying not to jostle the sleeping demon siren.

He pursed his lips as he struggled to rearrange Bill's body so that he wouldn't be lying on the cave floor, but also so Dipper could move his arms. No sooner had Dipper's arms left their embrace of the siren than the blond stirred, grunting in his sleep. His brow was furrowed, a confused pout dancing across his lips as he unconsciously squirmed, his body curling in more on itself to make up for the sudden drop in warmth. Dipper frowned at the pitiful sight, unsure of what to do with himself.

Mabel watched them silently, chewing the inside of her cheek, looking between them with a sad, yet almost knowing look in her eyes. The fire was crackling in front of her as she cooked the fish, but her attention was not on the food. Her thoughts drifted back to the night prior, how distressed her brother had been, how he clutched the demon siren close, fighting tears. She had the feeling she was beginning to understand what was happening, more so than Dipper himself did.

"Did you get any sleep last night?" Dipper's question pulled Mabel out of her thoughts, causing her to blink once or twice before answering.

"Not really..." she answered honestly. Seeing that her brother was not to happy with that response, his mouth open to offer his thoughts, she shook her head with a small laugh. "It's fine! I'm fine. The island is relaxing at night, it was nice. Almost meditative. Besides," her voice drifted into a more somber tone, "I felt like I owed you, after running off and leaving you up there by yourself to get attacked..." Dipper frowned at her, rubbing sleep out of his eyes.

"Don't say that," he scolded gently. "It's not like there was any way you could have known that those shadow creatures were around. If anything, it's Cipher's fault for not letting me have my sword before letting us wander off," he reasoned. Mabel considered this, her eyes moving to rest on the shivering boy resting with his upper body braced against her brother's leg.

Boy. She repeated the word in her mind, turning it over to examine it at all angles. Boy. At the moment, curled in on himself and shuddering, weak from illness and blood loss, he seemed nothing more than that. His golden blond hair was in disarray, his back patterned with the memory of scars that seemed to have faded faster than normal scars do. In the tired morning light, the serenity of the island resting like a blanket across their world, Mabel had to remind herself of the truth of the creature that was subconsciously attempting to curl into Dipper's warmth. Images of a devilish grin, teeth sharp to a point, flashed through her head. Memories of the insane light in his eyes and the brilliant golden power of his fiery wings wove through her thoughts, and she shuddered slightly at the remembrance of the explosion that had her floating in wreckage until a royal patrol boat stumbled across her. The golden flick of his tail, the immense alluring strength of even a simple humming of his dreaded songs...