Darker Perspective

Chapter 8

Bill was floating in front of him and poked his cane into his cheek.

"Yeah, I didn't have anything else to do." Dipper slipped into the chair, staring at the world around him. There were a few more changes that had been made, such as a path leading up to the blackboard and Dipper's desk was now grey instead of a light brown.

"I thought you said it was perfect?" Dipper asked with a raised eyebrow. The triangle huffed, rolling his eye.

"Yeah well I changed my mind." Bill span around Dipper. "This is my classroom I'll do what I want!"

Dipper watched as Bill floated back to the blackboard. With a snap of his fingers, the board was filled with symbols and writings that he couldn't read.

"Bill I can't read this." Dipper pointed out. Bill didn't answer, drawing the last symbol by hand.

"Welcome to your first lesson!" Bill span around, jabbing his cane at the board. "Language!"

"What?" Dipper asked. The writing looked far too complicated for him to learn in one night.

"Time moves differently here Pine Tree!" Bill answered his unasked question. "I can make it so you have plenty! But this is the backbone of magic, got that?"

"Yeah." Dipper opened his new journal (it had already been sitting on the desk somehow) and wrote a large title.

"I want you to copy all of these down." Bill ordered. A chair materialised under him, and he sat down in it. "And then write only in them for the rest of this lesson."

"What? How can I?" Dipper asked as he scribbled down the translations.

"It's the only way you'll learn it properly Pine Tree." Bill explained with a chuckle. "If I see any human writing when you're in my lessons I'll roast you alive."

"Nice." Dipper muttered.

Bill hummed as Dipper wrote, smile growing more as he learnt more. A quick thing he noticed was that the symbols didn't represent letters – they were sounds. Some of them were sounds Dipper couldn't place.

"What are –" Dipper asked but was interrupted by a sharp cry from Bill.

"Hands up!" The dream demon demanded, floating out of his chair.

"Seriously?" Dipper sighed, raising his hand into the air. Bill acted as if he had only just seen it.

"What is it Pine Tree?" He asked. Dipper rolled his eyes.

"What are these symbols?" Dipper pointed to the four at the end which had no translation beside them. Bill's body glowed and he moved back towards the board.

"Those are the sounds of the Earth." Bill pointed you each symbol as he explained. "The whispers of the wind. The vibrations of the soil. The trickle of water. The crackle of fire."

"I didn't know magic so linked with nature." Dipper looked over at Bill. "No offence, but you give it a chaotic evil vibe."

"That's because I've mastered it! I can do anything I want with it!" Bill cried out joyfully. He quietened again. "But all of it comes down to nature, yes. Too bad meat sacks are too dumb to realise this!" Bill laughed again.

Dipper wrote the symbols carefully, placing them in their own section. Bill peaked over his shoulder.

"They're used for the most advanced magic. Like I said, everything leads back to nature." Bill finished his notes for him. Dipper jumped at his sudden appearance, not used to the triangle being so close.

Dipper knew he must've been in the mindscape for the equivalent of days when he was getting a better grasp on the symbols. After the first few sentences, it came to him naturally, a small tingle of warmth in his fingers.