Darker Perspective

Chapter 6

"Why am I spending my time watching the kid?" Bill asked himself, staring down at the almost asleep Dipper. "Come on Cipher, we have bigger things to be doing!"

But he didn't stop, hovering closer. The teen's face was twisted in distress, and Bill didn't like looking at it for long. Beneath his bangs, he could see a glimpse of the mark of his power etched on his forehead.

"No one in your family thought it was a little strange?" Bill asked skeptically. Humans were dumber than he thought.

Dipper, on the other hand, had shown insight and intelligence that humans didn't usually posses, like Ford had – but unlike Ford there wasn't the needy thirst of ambition and greed intertwined with it. This was half of the reason Bill was drawn to Dipper so much.

The other half he was still in denial about. He was a demon who should never ever feel a fondness for any human. But here he was, finding that he was looking forward to talking with the teen. Bill had seen his struggles, how poorly his family treated him. He saw everything.

Bill felt sorry for Dipper, if he was being truest to himself. The kid couldn't catch a break. Every human took him for granted – couldn't they see how special he was, how much potential his mind had?

"I'm getting distracted." Bill pulled himself out of his tangent, straightening his bow tie. He wasn't sure what to think of the small fondness erupting from him towards the teen.

"Maybe I don't have to use him. I mean, killing him would be a waste, right?"

Right. There was no other reason why he no longer wanted to kill him.

Right.

Bill pulled out his cane, watching as Dipper's eyes finally slipped shut for good. He hovered closer, reaching out a hand and pressing it against the teen's forehead. With a blinding flash, Bill cackled as he entered his mindscape.

~

Dipper was expecting to find himself in his mindscape, and (despite it being the day rather than the night) this time wasn't any different.

His mind was a state, to say in the least; though the world was supposed to be monochrome, most of the colours were deep greys and blacks. The sky was still a twisting void, white lightning striking from the clouds.

Dipper sighed, sitting down on the grass. He waited for Bill, testing his head on his hand.

"Hey Pine Tree!" Bill's voice echoed around him. The triangle was contrasting with the rest of his world, his yellow body glowing brightly.

Dipper didn't greet Bill, his mind racing. He didn't complain when Bill hovered next to him.

"How's it going?" Bill's voice was quieter again. Dipper shrugged in response.

The brunette watched the stream's waters, seeing his botched reflection in the depths. He sighed, shoulders slumping.

"Bad day?" Bill asked. Dipper nodded.

"It's pretty average now." He replied. He looked down at his hands.

In the mindscape, the blazing words "Trust No One" were easy to see, a tattoo in his skin. Dipper stared at them, his thoughts churning.

He was, despite his earlier denial, more at ease in the mindscape with Bill than he was at the Mystery Shack. The role reversal was strange in the least, but the truth was that he didn't have to deal with the constant hurt and betrayal that would be carried on his shoulders whenever he was around his family.

At the back of his mind, he knew that Bill could still be tricking him. But if the demon was going to, wouldn't he have done it already? Wouldn't he be pressuring him into a deal?