"GENTLY!" Dipper cried panicking. This was so bad! He should go get Ford...but Ford might try to shoot them and despite his paranoia, even Dipper could tell these two weren't malicious spirits. Anything who would give his sister a Bouncy Castle couldn't possibly be evil.
The man laughed and easily caught the castle before it hit the floor. "OOPS! ALMOST THERE! HAAAHAHA!"
Melody frowned. Ok. This needed to stop. Unfortunately there was no place she could bring these two drunks since the 'magic barrier' around the shack would prevent such a thing. Maybe she needed to distract them somehow.
"Hey Dipper." Melody turns to glance at the boy. "Can you go tell Soos to move the bouncy castle away from here? I know there's some room on the other side of the Shack where we can put it."
"--Sebastian, you come over here," Bill said abruptly, backing up Mabel a little bit further, as he thought of something. "Mabel wants to pet you, too."
"Oh!! Can I? Can I?" Mabel asked excitedly, practically bouncing in place.
Sebastian, intrigued, got up unsteadily and walked his way over to inside the barrier, to plop himself down on the ground. --Which kept Seb from doing any more magic or weirdness while he was underneath it.
Mabel squealed in glee as Bill finally let go of her and let her approach Seb.
Dipper nodded, though he looked worriedly at his sister who was now petting the man's hair, as well as 'coo'ing at him. He didn't want to leave her here alone with Bill of all people, but she was handling herself surprisingly well... and Melody was there, too. He glanced at the girl on the ground where more plants were growing around her. Surprisingly none of the tour group seemed to have noticed the plant growth.
"Alright. Mabel, be careful." He told her and waited for her to give him a thumbs up before he ran off to talk to Soos. It was a miracle no one had come over to question the two cryptids and he didn't want to risk it.
Seb hummed in pleasure, leaning against the girl's soft touch. No wonder Miz has granted her wish. He loved this! He was glad his real niece didn't know about this because she would force him into submission to her every desire!
Mabel giggled, stroking the man's long black hair. "Your hair is so soft and pretty, sir!"
"M'Sebastian…"
"Ok, Sebastian!" Mabel exclaimed excitedly and continued petting him. "Are you a pretty dragon too?"
Seb shook his head and smiled sleepily. God, sleeping sounded so good right now…
"I-I am...A fire spirit...yeah...I make fiiree an- an heeaat and moove stuff with mah mind," Seb giggled. Lying was bad...but he wasn't exactly lying to his family so it wasn't that bad…
Mabel gasped and put her tiny hands on his cheeks to stare at his brown eye. "Like a fairy?!"
"Yeah...Yeah...Hand-soome fairy…"
Bill walked over to Miz. "Look, you got your Dreamscape together and working last night, right?" he said under his breath to her. At the blinking nod he got, he said, "Thought so. This much fatigue is normal at first," he informed her quietly. "Why don't you sleep for a bit? I'll keep watch against anyone trying to enter your Dreamscape for you, if you want me to," Bill told her. Getting her to fall asleep was the short-term solution for her, he figured. Sleeping would get her less tired, hopefully more sober again, and keep her from granting wishes in the meantime.
Miz pulled herself up and shifted the plants growing around her until they were larger, thicker, sturdier, and created a bed out of leaves and vines. She knew she should be talking with Bill to find a way to get to his Exit door but...earning the Pines's trust was also a good idea.
Also sleeping. That sounded like a really good idea. No wonder Ax loved to sleep so much...
Mabel's eyes shone with a destructive and hyperactive nature. "You can shoot fire?"
"Of courseee I can, Shootting Star!" He tried to make a blue flame with his hand. "Huh?"
Bill stepped away from Miz's preparations for sleep, to reach out and bodily grab Seb's wrist. He yanked Seb's hand around until it was outstretched past the edge of the barrier. "Try now."
Seb frowned, tried again, then grinned as he made a blue flame dance in his palm. "Go, toouuch itt!! It doesn't hurt!"
Mabel scooted a little closer to the edge of the barrier and stuck her hand outside the barrier, too. She did as she had been told and laughed as she made the flames shift from side to side.
Melody intervened. "Mabel I don't think that's safe."
The bounce castle was moving away as Soos and Dipper directed the tourists back to the front of the Shack.
"Make Dipper float, Sebastian!" Mabel giggled excitedly and, obeying the adorable girl's orders, Seb raised his hand and made Dipper from this dimension start to float upwards. The child shrieked and Seb brought him closer. "Your twin!!" The man smiled widely. "Was saved!"
Bill frowned. No. NO. He snarled and grabbed Seb's wrist again, shoving it inside the barrier again and following bodily inside, crossing the line. He acted quickly enough that Pine Tree, only a few feet up, dropped to his feet, knees, and hands safely. "--Don't touch him!" Bill snapped, losing his temper. Physical touching was one thing, humans expected that, but grabbing him with his powers?! No . PINE TREE WAS HIS .
Seb pouted mockingly. "And if I doooo, whatcha gonna do, kid?!"
Bil glared at him. " Do you really want me to answer that question? " Bill told him, dangerous and low as he loomed over Seb.
Miz raised a hand lazily. "No touching other people's thingssss without asking, Seb…'s rude or shomthing…"
"Kid, get inside the barrier NOW," Bill called out to Pine Tree, without taking his eyes off of Seb. He didn't see that Dipper had already been racing to the side to do just that, giving both him and Seb a bit of a wide berth.
Just to annoy both demons, the black-haired man grinned and turned to look at the girl watching him curiously. "Hey pumppkinn what do you want? Your friendly friend will give it to you!" Seb extended a hand for Mabel to shake.
"Yes!" Mabel exclaimed, reaching forward.
"NO," said Bill, smacking Seb's hand aside.
"Mabel! Stop asking the DRUNK magical creatures to do stuff for you!" Dipper cries. Seriously?! Why do they all like Mabel so much?!
"Don't be soo boring, Massonnn!" Seb stuck his tongue out.
Dipper looked completely freaked out that this almost complete stranger knew his name.
Melody moved back behind the barrier and gently took Mabel's hand, tugging her to her feet and moving her farther away from Seb -- to Bill's relief -- while scolding her. "Really, Mabel, you really shouldn't take advantage of them when they're impaired like this."
"Nooo! Mabeell!!" Seb sobbed. He wanted his niblings back... He missed them so much!
"Stop!" Dipper said, looking weirded out.
Bill mentally cursed and physically moved to put himself between Sebastian and Shooting Star --Bill had to, now, as per the mutual nonagression agreement he had with Stanley, Bill was obligated to help defend Pine Tree and Shooting Star if someone outside of the agreement attacked them. And Pine Tree had just said 'stop' -- he'd indicated that he was being mentally attacked.
...And this 'him' knew nothing about the agreement, and hadn't had Stanley's explanation of what 'no' and 'stop' actually meant in that context. So the first order of business was for Bill to tell this 'him' to--
"STOP." Bill repeated to Seb. "Stop, or I will LET Pine Tree shoot you, Sebastian." Bill warned this other 'him', while at the same time reminding Pine Tree of the fact that he was armed with a potentially deadly weapon that he could use at any time. "I will HELP Pine Tree do it." He glared down at Seb.
"I CAN do worse than simply killing you by blowing you up and taking away your current body." Bill informed Seb cooly. He squared his shoulders as he looked down at Sebastian. "You do NOT want me to do worse." Mainly because Bill didn't want to even so much as threaten to go back on what he'd already told both (--in front of other witnesses, even!). He didn't want to say that he wouldn't help Seb get home if this other 'him' kept on doing what he was doing -- because he knew what home meant to him , what it would mean to any 'him' -- because that kind of threat would likely push this 'him' to the very edge and across a line, one that this other 'him' would NOT be able to tolerate, and…
...wait. This 'him' was a 'Sebastian' that had grown up alongside a Stanley, human. The reason he wanted to return was because he wanted to get back to his family. And hadn't he said he wanted his human-brothers back? Maybe this 'him' only needed a kick in the brainpan with the right set of associated word-concepts to make him understand--
"Keep your powers off my Zodiac, Sebastian," Bill gave his ultimatum. "You don't want me messing with your family?" he said, repeating nearly verbatim what Stanley had told him not so long ago, "Then don't mess with my Zodiac."
But in response to this? Seb just grinned.
'Scare them! Make them angry! They don't get to order you around, Seb!' Bill2 cheered.
Sebastian tried to make some fire appear but it didn't work while he was within the barrier. Miz grumbles loudly from her vine hammock. "Dun be a JERK Seb…" She waved a hand vaguely in his direction. "I'd smack you...but I can't reach you…"
Dipper stared over at the girl. "How come you can't go past the barrier?"
"Because I am entirely made of magic and energy. Seb is...half human…" She was slurring less now as the energy she poured out of herself helped to burn the alcohol out of her system. Now she was just tired.
Seb wiggled a bit as he tried to reach for Mabel around Bill, who kept moving to get in the way. Seb wanted to get pet some more. Compared to Miz, he was still drunk, as evidenced by his attempts to use his powers while inside the barrier and growing more frantic when it didn't work.
Miz groans. "Take three...steps back…" ugh...maybe having a Dreamscape wasn't such a good idea. She was having trouble focusing as her body wanted to sleep.
Seb shakily stepped back and fell backwards to the ground; he landed outside the barrier again. "I imagine death so much it feels more like a mem'ory…" He said tiredly, not realizing his random statement was going to be part of a musical years later.
"When's it gonna get me? In my sleep, seven feet ahead of me?" Miz continued the verse sleepily, knowing about said musical. "If I see it coming do I run or do I let it be?"
Dipper was freaking out. Was the magical creature making a prophecy right now?! He opened the journal to an empty page and began quickly jotting it down. It must be super important. It was a DEATH prophecy!
Seb also was confused by Miz's singing but made fire flicker in his palm. Yay! It worked again! "I AM the HUmAn TOrch!!!"
Not knowing how her words were being taken, Miz continued "Is it like a beat without a melody?" Melody frowned as she wondered whether it was referring to her or if it was a coincidence. "See I never thought I'd live past twenty...where I come from some get half as many…"
Bill -- and, without knowing, Seb -- flinched hard at that, both thinking of 'Liam…'
"Ask anybody why we livin' fast and we laugh...reach for a flask...we have to make this moment last…" Miz rolled over. "That's plenty…" she was getting sleepier and her words growing more quiet, more mumbled.
Dipper leaned forward. "Wait! Don't sleep yet! What's the rest of it?"
"...not a moment…'s movement...hungriest brothers with something to prove when...foes oppose us...we take an honest stand...claimin' our promised land…"
"Dipper, she's rapping!" Mabel giggled.
Dipper was writing this down frantically. It certainly SOUNDED important...and by the pale and stressed expression on both Bill's and Sebastian's faces, it must be significant somehow.
"And if we win our independence...izzat a gar...tee...freedom for our...descendents…or will the blood we shed...begin...endless cycle of vengeance and death with no..." Miz slumped limply and finally lost consciousness.
Sebastian felt awful. It had been fun at first but his face was red and burning, the bright sun was there, shining and making his body sweat. Gasping for air, his entire body caught in flames, just like it did the day Mabel met Mermando at the pool. Dying…he was dying…He couldn't…
Seb's eyes rolled backwards and he passed out.
Melody gasped in shock as the man passed out, his entire body covered in flames. The fire wasn't burning his body, but the blue flames were sneakily running across the grass and setting the leaves on fire.
Bil snarled and jumped back across the barrier. NO RUNAWAY FLAMES. Not again, not here, NOT EVER. NEVER AGAIN. He stood tall, braced his feet, and made a wide sweeping gesture, and all of the flames went out. ALL OF THEM.
Bill stared at the ground, chest heaving. He slowly moved his head to look around at the damage from the uncontrolled fire he'd just forcibly extinguished.
Bill looked up at the two other 'him's, both of them drunk and passed out on the ground like a couple of humans who had had too much alcohol.
And then Bill heard the sound of Stanley's car coming up the road to the Shack.
"Fine," Bill said quietly under his breath, almost to himself, with a not-quite-sane glint in his eyes. "You don't want to do it the better way with me? Nearly burn everything down instead? --I can do it the 'easy' way instead. Which is the hard way for you."...At least, Bill hoped so. He was working off a lot of assumptions and partial information, here.
As the car engine turned over, and the car doors slammed open, Bill balanced himself on the heels of his feet, then leaned forward abruptly, brought his hands together in front of his chest in the shape of a triangle, and screamed out loud at the top of his lungs: " !!!L-T-O-L-O-X-A!!! "
There was a moment of frozen silence, when time itself seemed to stop and stand still.
And then--
----
Miz blinked slowly as she floated in the ocean. Oh. She fell asleep. There was a shift in the currents and a large pink creature swam up to her. Oh. Ax…
Ax!
Miz's eyes widened and she looked down to see she was Bill again. Top hat and all. He looked up at his...father...and winced at the look on his face. Ax wasn't quite...MAD per say but he certainly looked upset.
"Hi Ax…" Bill said sheepishly. "How did you ah...find me?"
Ax continued staring at him quietly, stern and unhappy. Bill looked away and flicked his bowtie a few times. "Yeah...I know I fucked up. I know I went behind your back and opened the door anyway...sorry…"
Ax still wasn't talking to him. It was almost worse. At least if Ax was scolding him or doing ANYTHING else, he could feel like he was being properly chastised for this. But Ax was just staring at him and Bill couldn't stand it.
He couldn't hear Ax's thoughts, never could. It made it so hard to tell what the big guy was thinking. As the silence stretched on though, Bill started getting angry. "Hey! I know I broke my promise not to open the door but…" he shook with pent up emotion. "You also lied to ME!"
That finally got a reaction from the salamander. Ax frowned and a guilty look appeared on his face for a split second before he was stern once more.
-It was for your own good. You were not ready. You would have gotten hurt-
"I am NOT a child Ax!" Bill fumed. "And why didn't you tell me I could SLEEP?! Was that something that would get me HURT?!"
-Yes-
The response floored Bill. He thought Ax would have looked guilty about his millennia of sleep deprived suffering. But Ax was sticking to his decision?!
"What...do you mean? How would sleeping hurt me?" Bill demanded.
-You should already know the answer to that- Ax says calmly.
Bill wanted to be mad. He wanted to STAY mad. But Ax was right. Just thinking about it for a little while was all it took for Bill to understand what Ax meant. "Because it would have left me vulnerable…" Bill said quietly. Not just physically, his constructs were empty vessels. It meant any other energy being passing through could possess it if he was no longer there.
If Bill had gone to sleep, letting his Mind and Soul go off and prance around his Dreamscape then pretty much ANYTHING could have come by and taken his body. And more importantly, back when he had first gotten his powers, falling asleep would have meant his powers would leak out and destroy everything around him while he was unaware of the world.
He understood Ax's reasoning but…
"But I'm old enough to take care of myself now. I can sleep without hurting anyone else. I can protect myself now." Bill says sadly. "So why wouldn't you trust me to do so?" his voice cracked a little.
-I didn't want to risk it- Ax's expression softened. He reached out his large arms and took the triangle into his embrace. -I was too worried about what terrible things might happen-
"You're more paranoid than I am…" Bill grumbled but hugged Ax back. "But I'm not that broken child anymore. I'm still cracked...and I suppose...I MIGHT still be a little...young…" he didn't like admitting it. "But I'm old enough to take care of myself. You don't have to hide things from me because you think I can't handle it." He pouted at Ax.
-I will...try to keep that in mind…-
Ax seemed a little hesitant. -You're not...mad at me?- he asks quietly.
Bill scowled. "Oh I am FURIOUS." He hissed. The AXOLOTL flinched. "What the FUCK Ax?! You...you LIED to me! For...over 500 BILLION YEARS!!!"
The God of All had the decency to look sheepish.
"And YES I can see why you were worried about me opening my door to meet the other Mes." There were infinite doors. By simple probability there were bound to be some who were AWFUL, terrible people. "But goddamnit Ax! Did you SEE Sebastian? He's a Woobie! An adorable Woobie who needs help!"
Bill thumped a tiny fist on Ax's squishy arm. "I want to help people. You KNOW that! There are so many other Bills out there who are suffering!" He started crying. "I can HELP them! I CAN!"
Ax sighed. -You can't do that Bill- he pulled Bill away and stared it him sternly. -You cannot keep interfering with their lives. It is against the rules-
"Screw the rules I'm BILL CIPHER!" Bill snapped. "It's not FAIR!" his tears dribbled down his plane.
-The world isn't fair-
"Why not?! You're the AXOLOTL! Why can't you let this be?" Bill sobs.
-You KNOW why I can't…-
Bill sniffled. Yeah. Free will. That's why the world is unfair. Because in order to make a perfect world where everyone is happy, one would need to remove independent thought. And Bill understood just how terrible that would be.
He hated that he could understand where Ax was coming from. He hated that he couldn't refute it. "M' still mad at you…" Bill mumbled grumpily. Ax hugged him close and rumbled. -Are you ready to come home?-
Was he? Could Ax really just...pluck him out of a dimension and bring him home? Bill blinks. "Not yet." He says quietly. "I want to make sure Seb gets home first. I want to say bye to Bill."
He feels Ax nod. -Alright then. You can open a door on your own now-
Bill grumbled. "Can't believe you set my Mindscape to get sealed up when I go to an alternate reality…"
-I didn't want you getting too far away. It took me a while to track you down…I wouldn't have found you at all if the Bill from this world hadn't invoked me-
Bill rolled his eye fondly. "Sorry I made you have to actually get up and DO some exercise." When Ax gave him a pout, an actual POUT, Bill devolved into hysterical laughter. He eventually calmed, wiping a tear from his eye and snuggled into Ax's face. "I love you Ax." He said. And he meant it. Even if part of him was still hurt and angry that he'd been LIED to...it didn't change how he felt.
He still loved the AXOLOTL. Probably always will. The two held each other until Bill woke up.
---
Miz woke up and whimpered at the pounding headache. Fuck...hangovers suuuuck! She rolled over and groaned. She laid there for a few seconds before jolting up in surprise. "Shit!" She looks around. She wasn't in the backyard of the Mystery Shack.
She had been moved while asleep.
Yeah, this was the sort of thing Ax was worried about. Miz groaned. Where was she? Who moved her? Her tail twitched. Oh. She still had that. She was distracted for a bit just twirling her tail and admiring her work. Even drunk, she still managed a spontaneous bodily mutation without tearing her body apart or completely ruining her vessel.
She glanced around. Ah, she was in the underground bunker. She could see the cryo pods and shuddered. Trapped. Frozen. Imprisoned.
God damn paranoid Ford.
This was definitely Ford's idea. Miz groaned, her head ache sucked. Miz took a deep breath and sat up with her legs under her in a proper kneeling position as she reached inside herself for her Mindscape. Might as well get THIS fixed. Unlike before where Ax had blocked her off from it (to stop her from moving, to stop her from getting more lost), this time she easily felt herself enter the theater/bedroom that made up her Mindscape.
She glanced around and easily found the Exit door. It was ajar. She walked over and closed it. She didn't want to accidentally get sucked out before she was ready. Also, it was kinda dangerous for the door to remain open. Who knew what could use that door to sneak inside her mind?
She fully understood now.
That Void of Doors was her TRUE Dreamscape. A pathway that leads to all the other infinite realities. And she had the door shut firmly this whole time. On Ax's orders she had locked the door behind a shelf and stayed away from it. Because it was too dangerous.
If she entered the void of doors and left the door open...if any OTHER Bill Cipher could sneak into her Mindscape and take over her vessel…
Yeah, no wonder Ax made her seal it away, trapping her out of her Dreamscape and the sleep it would grant. But it's fine. She can create a separate Dreamscape for herself now. She's figured it out. After she gets her new friend Seb back home...she would seal off the door again.
It would be sad not being able to visit Seb, but she would need to set up more security features around her Exit before she trusted herself to explore her Dreamscape any more. Too dangerous.
Miz opened her eyes back into the real world and sighed. Her attention was caught by heavy footfalls and she blinked as THE Ford Pines came down the stairs and paused when he saw her awake. Miz stared.
Oh no he's hot.
Miz blushed and quickly averted her eyes. Oh man...those fanarts were RIGHT! She wondered if that said something about her...she saw a younger Ford in the other world and he WAS incredibly cute...but this older Ford with his gray hairs and strong jawline with faint age lines…
Miz squealed and wiggled in place. Eeeeeee!!!!
Ford raised an eyebrow at her, confused as to what that reaction was for. The high pitched squeals she was making were odd. Was that her native dragon language? She was wiggling and turning red and... Ford suddenly realized that she was acting like his great niece when she spotted a cute boy.
Ford turned bright red and prayed to the AXOLOTL that he was wrong in his observation. From the way the little magical creature was sneaking shy glances at him before squealing again dashed his hopes. 'Oh no.' He really couldn't deal with this.
"Ah… are y-you alright?" Ford said, trying to hide his embarrassment. He was still suspicious about this girl -- she had been with that man with Bill's tattoo on his back! -- but despite what Stanley might think, he wasn't heartless. He had carefully checked this girl with every non-intrusive test he could, and they all came back consistent with her earlier claim: she was what she said she was.
A dragon.
'Perhaps she doesn't know her companion is somehow controlled by Bill Cipher?' Ford reasoned. Melody had said she had claimed to be foreign and had come to Gravity Falls on the recommendation of some… unknown people. Ford frowned. Dragons had powerful magic. Perhaps Bill had sent a puppet to lure her here so that he could devour her.
'Yes. That must be it.' Ford was sure of it. Bill Cipher could not be trusted and, according to Melody, Bill had wanted -- actually WANTED -- to speak with this girl. Why would Bill of all people, want to socialize with another magical creature, if not to feed on their energy and steal their power for himself?! --And that would be doubly more the case now , given Bill's current situation.
Miz looked around the room. She shuddered when she spotted the crude barrier runes scratched into each of the walls, lining the room. She twitched and patted herself down to make sure there were no binding runes on her. Thank Ax she found none.
Wait.
"Where's Seb?" Miz asked Ford worriedly. No. He couldn't have. He better not have. Her heart sank when Ford's expression darkened.
"Your... companion is not who he seems," Ford informed her curtly.
Miz furrowed her brows in worry. "What do you mean?"
"Do you… know who Bill Cipher is?" Ford asked.
Miz nodded. Just play along until she could go free Seb from where she knew he was being held. "Everyone knows who Bill Cipher is," she said. Because everyone in the supernatural world knows who Bill Cipher was.
Ford pursed his lips. "Well, your companion was being controlled by Bill."
Miz blinked slowly. "Um… no he isn't."
Ford frowned. "...Yes, he was. I found Bill's zodiac tattooed on his back. And one of his eyes was… Bill's eye!"
Miz rolled her own eyes. "Seb got drunk one night and got that tattoo. Thought it was funny. And please don't talk about his eye, he's sensitive about it." She bullshit easily.
Ford looked to be at a loss for words. "But… he… is one of Bill Cipher's puppets!" he told her, trying to communicate the true gravity of the situation. "Your companion is being possessed."
"Where's your proof? I MET Bill Cipher and frankly, he seemed like a perfectly nice demon." Miz crossed her arms.
Ford pulled in a breath. Trust Bill to have actually introduced himself to his victims. --That triangle demon never changed! He felt seconds from tearing out his hair in frustration. "There are no good demons! They're demons!" Ford told the little dragon.
"That's racist." Miz deadpanned. Ford looked like he was gonna have a fit. It was pretty hilarious.
Frustrated, Ford looked down at the floor and tried to think of a way to convince her that what he was telling her was a valid concern.
Meanwhile, Miz began walking off to search for where Seb could be. Ford looked up just in time to realize she'd nearly left him behind in the room alone, and rushed to try to stop her from leaving. Except he didn't feel comfortable trying to grab her by the arm, because…
Miz watched as Ford reached out towards her, but kept holding himself back from actually touching her, an odd look on his face. "Wait!" she heard him say. "You can't just…"
"Seb and I need to get home." Miz said simply.
Ford, not to be deterred, got ahead of her and ended up standing in the doorway to try and stop her from leaving. "You have to stay here where it's safe! Bill is going to hurt you!"
Miz frowned. "Look, I don't know what your problem with Bill is but he seems like an okay dude. He's been nothing but helpful and he even offered to help us get home."
Ford made a frustrated noise.
---
While Miz entertained Stanford (who she'd left momentarily aghast), Seb groaned as he opened both his uncovered eyes. Now he imagined death, he wished it came. His head was killing him.
Seb raised a hand to rub his forehead but found them heavy. The confused man whined and looked down at his hands, only to find his wrists wrapped with shackles and chains.
' Urgh, paranoid old man…' Bill2 huffed.
Panicking, Seb tried to stand up but his ankles also had chains. He stared down himself in horror, realizing he was shirtless, and saw some strange symbols on the floor, not remembering what they were. He cried. He felt -- or rather, did not feel -- the itchy cloth over his eye and immediately he knew what happened. He whimpered and pulled at the chains desperately, but it was useless.
"Help!! S-Stanford!!! LET ME GO! MIZZ!! MIIIZZZZ!!!!" The man sobbed, pulling at the chains. No, no, no!! He was never going to get out of here! He would never return to his niblings! Ford was going to kill him!
'Your brother would do the same, you are a monster.'
"MIIIZZZZ!!!!!"""
---
Miz perked up, she and Ford could hear the wailing cry. "Seb!" Miz called back. Ford was nervously still standing in front of the door.
Miz was annoyed now. She pushed at Ford to try and get him out of the way (ooh...got some muscle there) and pouted. "Move, please." It was quite upsetting that she wasn't physically strong enough to move him. Curse her tiny and adorable body.
Ford stood firm. "You don't understand," he told her almost desperately. "I'm trying to protect you."
Miz glared at him. "I am not a child! Why does EVERYONE treat me like one?!" she proclaimed angrily, before she lifted Ford up into the air with her powers and floated him out of the way.
She ignored his panicked sounds as she stepped through the doorway, grunting a little as she had to tear her way through the barrier seals. She knew how to take down most seals, she'd done extensive research on the subject matter after her incident.
"Seb!!!" Miz called out, letting go of her hold on Ford as she began running down the halls, searching for her friend.
---
Seb looked up when he heard her distant calls and smiled shakily. "M-Miz!!! Help me!!!" She was going to get him out. She had to!
'It is her fault you are trapped. She will not help.'
Seb shook his head. Miz wouldn't do that. She was a demon Bill Cipher but she was nice. He pulled at the chains and whimpered. He really hoped he wouldn't be trapped here forever. If he couldn't get home, who would save Stan and Ford? He couldn't stand the thought of Dillon going yet another year without his father. A father he never got to meet because Sebastian was a FUCKING idiot!
"-eeeeeeb!"
Miz was still calling for him. Searching for him. Seb glanced around. Why hadn't she simply used her All Seeing Eye to find him? Well, there were no triangles here. Even his tattoo had a large bandage criss-crossed over the eye of the Bill tattoo on his back.
"Miiizz!!!!" He shouted. It was the only thing he could do right now. "I'm here!!!" Shouting hurt his throbbing head but he didn't care. He wanted to get OUT. "Please… Please…" He sobbed but then his eyes widened in revelation.
That wasn't his body. He could get out.
With a little bit of concentration, Seb left the vessel he had been wearing the whole time and sighed in relief when he found himself out, staring at the runes and chains holding back the empty vessel. Now to find Miz!
---
Miz continued looking frantically for the man, shouting his name when suddenly, she started hearing him ...but different.
"Miz!" Seb called out, phasing through the walls and doors to find his friend. He spotted her running around, closely followed by an old- and worried-looking Ford. He wasn't important right now, though, so he called out to the girl demon.
"OH CIRCLES, THERE YOU ARE!" Seb shouted.
"Seb!" Miz gasped.
"I'm not as dumb as everyone thinks!" Seb grinned, running a hand through his non-corporeal brown-blond curly hair, god he'd missed his original form!
Miz grinned, glad that Seb had managed to escape on his own. Sort of. "I still need to find that construct so I can dispel it." she told him.
"Eat it." Seb recommended her with a grin, showing her his fangs. Miz grinned with her own set of fangs. She'd never tried eating one of her own constructs before. Pyronica had assured her they were delicious though.
Ford, who couldn't hear Seb's half of the conversation, looked around wildly. "Dispel it? Dispel what?" he said, incredibly confused. Miz and Sebastian ignored him.
"Can you lead me to where he's keeping you?" Miz asked Seb. It was so hard to see down here with all that thick metal and lack of triangles.
Ford frowned. "No. Stop!"
But Miz was already running off down the hall following Sebastian's ghostly image. Ford really couldn't stop her unless he physically restrained her, and he couldn't get close now since she'd put up a force field.
"Found it~" Miz chirped as she came upon the room with the limp construct, Ford following almost at her heels.
Ford did a double take when he noticed the body was no longer breathing. "Oh, no..." He felt horribly guilty, thinking that Bill had killed his host.
Miz shivered at the sight of the circle on the ground. Binding runes AND chains? Paranoid much? She set the circle on fire with a thought. The runes and the body burned up, leaving Ford jumping backwards in shock.
Miz stared into the flickering flames and sighed. "Well. I guess this is what happens." She says quietly. "Oh well." She shrugs as the flames died down to reveal the broken circle and burned body.
"I-I'm sorry for your loss…" Ford said guiltily, staring at the body. He clenched his fists, furious. See?! This was what he meant! Bill was dangerous and he had just killed this poor girl's companion! But a part of Ford also felt vindicated, because now he finally had proof he needed to show that Stanley was wrong! 'Bill is evil and he won't ever change.'
Seb rolled his eye. "Urgh… This guy will never change…"
Miz nodded. Silly paranoid Ford. Boy she sure hoped her Ford wasn't such an idiot. She stepped up to the body and knelt beside it.
Ford coughed awkwardly as he watched her. "If you need a moment to grieve, or… what ARE YOU DOING!? " Ford screamed when Miz twisted the body's leg until it snapped off and took a bite out of it. Much like with the fish she swallowed whole, she gulped down the leg.
Sebastian and Bill2 burst into laughter.
"Hm… kinda dry. I should have seasoned it first…" Miz mumbled with her mouth full. She ripped off the other leg as Ford gagged in horror behind her, slapping a hand over his mouth. She turned to him and offered the leg. "Do you want a bite?" she asked him calmly.
Ford stared at her, wide-eyed and absolutely horrified.
"Throw the leg at him!" Seb exclaimed. Bill2 and him started chanting. "Throw the leg, throw the leg!"
"Guys, guys… Why would I throw a perfectly good leg? If it drops it'll be a waste of food." Miz asked. Seb and Bill2 pouted in disappointment.
"-When I can throw the head!" She grinned and twisted the vessel's head until it came off with a sickening crack. She threw it into the air and used her tail to hit it towards Ford. "Catch!!"
Ford went deathly pale and dropped to the ground, ducking under the grisly projectile. He nearly let out a scream. He hadn't realized-- dragons actually ate humans?!
The three (or two and a half) demons laughed at the panicked man. Miz took a few more bites before dispelling the body back into dust. "Well now that that's done, I have some good news," she told Seb, as Ford slowly backed away from her.
"What?!" the man asked excitedly.
Miz grinned. "Dad found me. We had a talk and I can make doors by myself now! Like a big girl!" She puffed out her chest proudly.
Ford hadn't realized that there might actually be a reason why she and Bill seemed able to get along. Now, he knew. She was likely Bill's latest attempt at a new recruit for his Henchmaniacs -- this was exactly the sort of behavior that Bill's minions engaged in without a thought of guilt, empathy, or remorse.
Unfortunately, Ford also knew exactly how powerful most dragons were purported to be, So, in the face of her ongoing distraction with whatever or whoever she was talking to(?!), he took the opportunity to move himself out of her field of vision, and then quickly bolted for the nearest door. He needed to get himself to a defensible location, and warn Stanley and the others about her!
"Wow!" Seb smiled and offered her a 6-fingered hand to high six. "So we can go home now!?" His eye lit up.
Miz nodded. "Yup. But I wanted to say goodbye to Bill first...maybe help him with something as thanks for what he's taught me."
Seb nodded. One part of him wanted to complain, home !!, but his adult part understood. Miz helped him with the portal, it figured she wanted to help Bill too.
"Alright then. Let's get out of here and find Bill." Seb said simply. Miz nodded. "Where is that door?"
Miz felt a little bad about how traumatized Ford had looked. "Hey, don't worry. Sebastian is fine," she said for Ford's benefit. "He is just back in spirit form. He even told me I could eat his body," she shrugged. "It's not like I can't build another one." At the lack of response, she turned around to face him, then she blinked in surprise when she realized the old man was gone. "Huh… he ran."
"Shit really?" Seb looked around. Dammit Ford! "Now how are we gonna get out?" he asked.
Miz hummed. "I can teleport." She says. Though her aim might be a bit off. Trying to triangulate (omg lol) her position while underground and surrounded by thick metal would be harder for her.
Miz reached out to grab Seb's hand. "Hold on tight. You are riding Miz airlines, please keep your appendages inside the warp zone at all times~" she closed her eyes and Blinked away.
---
"Stanley."
"Kid," Stanley said right back.
" Stanley. "
"Kid." Stanley sounded amused of all things, which Bill was less than thrilled about.
"This isn't funny," Bill said flatly, from where he was sitting on the floor in the middle of the living room of the Shack, cross-legged in the exact center of a bunch of chalk-drawn lines that might as well be scribbles for all the effectiveness the stupid things were having on him at the moment. He was covered in paper streamers.
Shooting Star tossed another handful over him. They had tiny lettering on them -- courtesy of Stanford-freaking-Pines himself, by way of Pine Tree diligently copying the runes out of the notebook Stanford had left for him onto the paper, because of course he was doing that .
Bill crossed his arms.
"You know I'm not possessing anybody right now," Bill said to Stanley, with an edge to his tone. Because Stanley had to know how absolutely ridiculous all of this was.
"Yeah?" Stanley said breezily from where he was sitting in his chair-throne in the middle of the room, facing the TV. He was holding a magazine, which he was at the very least doing a good job of pretending to be reading. "Do I know that?"
" YES ," Bill gritted out, glaring at him as Shooting Star threw another handful of paper streamers over him that were doing absolutely nothing to or for him.
"Uh huh," said Stanley. He actually looked up from his magazine to eye him. "So you can explain to me why that guy's eye looks like, the way the kids say your eyes used to look like, when you were possessing somebody?"
Bill clenched his jaw. "WE'VE BEEN THROUGH THIS." Several times by this point, in fact!
"Yeah," said Stanley. "You say you know, but you're not tellin'." He looked back down at his magazine. "That's fine."
" Stanley! "
"It is," Stanley told him, shaking out his magazine. "...You can just keep on sitting there until Ford's sure that you're not actually hurting that guy," Stanley told him. "Or…" Stanley looked up at him again. "You can tell me what's going on."
Bill kept his arms crossed and remained belligerently silent. Shooting Star threw another handful of 'confetti' over his head.
"Suit yourself," Stanley said good-naturedly, looking back down at his magazine.
The phone rang.
Bill glanced over at it, frowning. Pine Tree and Shooting Star ignored it. Stanley got up from his chair to answer it, grumbling under his breath as he started to shuffle towards it.
And then there was a loud noise that startled the lot of them, capturing absolutely everyone's attention in the Shack, because--
---
Good news, she got them back to the Mystery Shack.
Bad news, she hit the side of the Mystery Shack, popping face first against the barrier with a cartoonish 'Thunk!' and sliding down the dome slowly.
It was after hours now so at least there were no tourists around to see her face plant onto the ground. Unfortunately for her, all the inhabitants of the Shack, along with her spirit companions, heard/saw the embarrassing display.
"AHAHAHAHAH!" Seb and Bill2 laughed hysterically. Miz groaned "Uwu…" she rubbed her face, eyes tearing up at the bruise that was no doubt going to form on her cheek where she hit the barrier. "S'not funny…" She whined.
When Seb just continued laughing, Miz rolled her eyes and looked around. The bouncy castle was still visible around the side of the Shack. That's good, she hoped Mabel enjoyed it. She could See that Bill was inside the shack.
She also saw that they seriously thought he was partially possessing Seb. Ugh. She looked over at Seb who was still laughing as he floated around in the Mindscape. "Hey. Bill's sort of in trouble because of you right now."
That got him to stop. Seb sobered quickly and looked worried. "Oh... Is there anything we can do?" That kid might have been absolutely insane, but he didn't seem like a bad kid.
Miz frowned. How could she explain Seb's eye? The zodiac tattoo could be easily and truthfully explained as Seb's terrible drunk decision. Maybe imply that Bill was some sort of infamous celebrity in the supernatural community (which, once again, was the truth). But the eye would be harder.
A birth defect? That would, again, be the truth. Ah, that's it! Miz had already told them all that Sebastian was half-human. She can spin it so that the yellow eye was from his Fire Spirit half -- once again, technically true (Bill was mainly a Fire elemental type demon). And he kept it hidden because he had been raised by humans (truth) and was horribly bullied for it (truth).
She flickered quickly through some more information about Seb's life, realizing afterwards that it might have been a terrible breach of his privacy but she was just so USED to doing this whenever she wanted to know something, and found even more truthful evidence to build the story on.
Sebastian was a half-elemental fire spirit who had been raised by humans. He was bullied all his life for his eye, a sign of his mixed heritage, not that he knew, and only discovered his powers and said heritage when his abilities suddenly manifested. Seeking help to control his powers, he had gone into seclusion to meditate and left his physical body behind to search for someone to help him. That was how he met Miz within the Mindscape and she had taken him around the world to other Supernatural hotspots to let him get acclimated to other forms of magic.
She nodded to herself. Cover story made and, for a lack of time to explain as such, she projected the information directly into Seb's mind. He hissed and clenched his teeth. "Ow...oh...that's…" he blinked as the pain faded just as quickly as it came. "That's pretty cool…"
The door to the Shack swung open, and Stan stepped out onto the porch, squinting out across the grass in Miz's direction.
" Great ," Stan muttered, as he stared at the 'dragon' standing out in his backyard. Just what he had needed today. "'I'll keep her isolated someplace safe,' sure, Ford," he grumbled out. "Whatever you say," he added sarcastically, because sometimes, his brother , Stan swore…
"--Hey!" Stan yelled out, in such a way that his voice projected across the yard so that it would be heard, not quite 'Mr. Mystery'-style. "You didn't eat Ford, did you?"
Miz grinned, a tiny mouth filled with sharp teeth. "No, but Seb asked me to eat his vessel because he woke up chained and bound in runes. He didn't appreciate it and wanted to get a new one."
"Uh huh," said Stan. "Who's Seb, and what's a vessel?" Stan asked. He didn't actually have to ask what a vessel was; Bill had first brought that up when the 'human-ish body, not possessing some random person!' thing had been a thing, and it had come up again during some of that 'anchor-not-a-binding' talk he'd had with the kid two days ago.
Miz gestured beside her. "Seb's over here but he's in spirit form so you can't exactly see him." She turned to speak to what Stan only saw as empty air. "Do you want a new vessel?"
Seb nodded. "Same one?" He asked. Miz shook her head. "Naw, something...a little closer to your 'true' form this time." She winked at him and he grinned, excited to see what she would create this time.
As both Sebastian and Stanley watched, Miz held her hands out and began pulling at the air before her, fingers moving as if she were weaving something. The air swirled and this time she made deliberate dust clouds to cover the process of a body being built from the ground up. Bones, organs, muscles, skin…
The appearance this time was similar to Sebastian's real form mixed with the new one she had made a day ago. Bright blond hair mixed with black, a handsome face and mismatched eyes. This time though she added a little something extra. Golden markings that looked like flames now decorated the skin of his face and body along the side where his demon eye was. Miz was going to milk the idea of the eye being a sign of his Fire spirit heritage showing through.
If they asked, she would say his previous, fully human appearance was created on his requests due to a desire to fit in.
Stan watched this whole procedure without comment, or any real expression on his face at all. Once she was done, Stan grimaced slightly, scratched the side of his cheek, and said, "Yeah, okay. You didn't kill Ford, did you?" in the same tone of voice that he'd used when he'd asked if she'd eaten his brother not a minute earlier.
Miz shook her head. "I wouldn't do that. Even if he was super rude, he hasn't caused me or Seb any truly lasting damage." She tilted her head at him. "But if he DID then I confess I might try to take a bite out of him."
"More like a nibble, your mouth is so small." Seb said teasingly as he settled into his new vessel. He admired the swirling golden pattern along his skin. This was so fucking awesome!!
"Uh huh," Stan said without really any inflection to his tone. "You want to tell me what you want with the kid?" he asked her, while more or less ignoring the weird body she'd pulled out of nowhere. Stan assumed that was why she was back at the Shack, anyway.
"Well you see, I came here as a vacation thing to feel the magic in this valley." Miz answered politely. "But I realized a little while after we came that there seemed to be a barrier around this whole area. Supernaturals can come in but they can't leave."
Stan gave her a long look, but didn't say anything. That was lie number one and two.
Miz sighed. "I asked around for anyone who might know how to help and heard about the Mystery Shack. And here I met Bill. And um...I realized that I needed his help if I wanted to leave and go home."
Lie number three. Stan was less than impressed at this point, already. 'Meeting Bill here' seemed to be on the mark. He wasn't too surprised that Bill hadn't been the one to reach out first; he'd had a long talk with Bill about what a bad idea it would be to get involved with any of his 'Henchmaniacs' right now. ...Stan was less sure about that last one, though. 'Help' for a demon was a concept he was still working on working out with the kid, still.
Seb watched Miz quietly and sighed. He could tell Stanley wasn't buying it. "Hey Miz, I think we can trust Stan with the truth. He's not Ford. I think he would understand." Seb glanced up at this alternative version of his brother. Stan might not be into science, but he had always been more truthful than Ford, he believed you. Even his wife-to-be believed him!
"Trust an old con-man?" Stan gave them both a Mr. Mystery grin. "Sure -- you can step right up and try your luck!"
Miz glanced at Seb. He gave her a calm look and she sighed. "Fine," she pouted. "But I was having fun making up a cool story to use." She took a deep breath. "I disobeyed my dad and did something I wasn't supposed to and it led to me getting lost and stuck here. And I thought I needed Bill's help to get home."
Stan lost the fake grin and his eyebrows went up. As far as he could tell, the dragon wasn't actually feeding him a line this time.
Seb had a grin as he nudged her. "And…?" He asked.
Miz pouted harder. "And Bill DID help. He called my dad...and I got sort of lectured...but everything's good now and I can get us back home…" She rubbed her arm and shifted shyly. "And I came back here because I wanted to thank him for his help. Both for calling my dad and also for teaching me how to get over my insomnia."
"Huh," Stan said contemplatively.
Seb laughed at her, which made her blush in embarrassment. "Aw~little Miz got scolded by her papa~" he teased.
Miz kicked him in the shin. As Seb jumped around hissing in pain, Miz folded her arms and pouted even harder. Bill2 was laughing loudly ' Pathetic! You're getting beat up by a girl half your size! Weaaakk!'
"Eh, well, I'll pass along the thanks to the kid," Stan told them. "He's a little... busy right now," he added with not quite a smirk.
Miz nodded but looked a bit disappointed that she couldn't tell Bill herself. She thought for a bit before coming to a decision. "Can you give Bill a message for me?" She asked.
"Sure," Stan said, leaning up against the wooden porch-post to his right. "What's the message?"
Miz thought about how to phrase it. "Tell him that I know he hates my dad and I understand why and where he's coming from. But I know that even if my dad's...neglectful...he really DOES care. Deep down. And he's just too afraid and kinda stupid to know how to show it."
Stan frowned slightly. "You sure you want me to pass that along to him?"
Miz nodded. "I know he won't appreciate it but I think it's important." She bit her lip, wondering how much she was allowed to say. She didn't want another lecture about keeping the alternative realities separate and stuff. "I know dad also loves him too. If he didn't...then Bill wouldn't have survived as long as he has…" she left it at that, unwilling or unable to say more. Seb was frowning at her while Bill2 screamed 'What kind of bullshit is that?! The Axolotl 'loving' us?! What a joke!'
Stan gave out a sigh. "Look," he said. "Enough with the cryptic bull that's gonna make the kid that much angrier." He gave her another long look. "The kid talks to me, yeah? And there's only one thing that kid hates," he told her. "And it's 'that stupid lizard' of his. I know exactly what he thinks about the 'it' you're talking about. I tell him what you just told me? And the kid might just write you off completely." He watched her carefully. "You sure you want me to pass that along to him?"
Miz sighed. "Yeah. I figured. I just...wanted him to stop being angry all the time. He's never gonna get over his trauma and pain if he keeps holding onto it." She shuffled her legs in the grass. "I was sad for the longest time. I lost my brother and nothing else seemed to matter anymore...but dad told me to go find some friends. And I have. And they're my family now. They'll never replace my brother but I can think about him without as much pain as I used to…" She looked away sheepishly. "I know it sounds kinda pretentious but I kinda wanted to help Bill feel better too."
"Look," Stan said, feeling uncomfortable at the mention of a 'lost brother', but deciding to level with her over this. "The kid's not gonna stop being angry until he fixes everything that that lizard-dad of yours won't," Stan told her flat-out. "Words ain't gonna help. He's had a trillion years to think about every last thing he doesn't like about everything, and..." Stan shook his head. "Kid still doesn't know how he's going to pull it off -- hell, not like I know any better -- but he ain't giving up. That's his line. ...One of 'em, anyway." Stan shrugged at her and straightened back up. "I'll tell the kid what you told me, but all you're really doing is telling him how much you don't know that he thinks he already does."
Miz sighed. "Figures. I suppose he IS older than me...well thanks anyway. If you think it'd be better for him not to hear you can just forget it, I'll leave it up to your judgment.."
Stan shrugged. He'd probably tell Bill. Later that night, when no-one and their pig was listening in. The kid had surprised him before; maybe he'd handle it better than Stan thought.
Miz gave Stan a polite bow and was about to leave when she thought of something. She smirked. One last bit of chaos. She flicked her fingers and created a quarter. It looked like any regular quarter. She played with it for a bit before walking up and leaving it at the edge of the barrier. "A little gift for you, for listening to me ramble and...for taking care of Bill. If there's anyone who can help him heal...it'd probably be you."
"Thanks," Stan said sarcastically with a knowing look, crossing his arms. "But I don't take gifts from demons for junk I'd do without a bribe." And 'healing' wasn't exactly what he was trying to do anyway. Kid was completely insane. If this dragon-demon or whatever didn't get that… well, that wasn't his problem.
Miz smiled. "It's a Quarter. A perfectly normal US Quarter...that'll always return to you within a day of you spending it." She shrugged. "Take it or leave it. I don't particularly care."
Stan's eyebrows went up.
"I'll think about it," Stan said casually, eyes alight. But what he was really thinking of was getting the kid to check it over after the two whatevers had left, and to make more of the things if he could. Could come in handy someday, or at least at the slots in Vegas...
She turns to Seb who was still gazing at Stan. Circles, he missed his brother so much. 30 years. That was how long this Stan spent to get his Ford back. Seb clenched his hands into fists. I'll get them back. I WILL. And I will never stop trying until I do. He thought. Seb took a deep breath, trying not to break down here, and slipped his hand onto Miz's. "So we're heading home now huh?"
She smiles. "Yeah." With a twist of her power she materialized the Exit door. The two looked back at the Shack one last time before they stepped through. It swung shut behind them and vanished. Stan watched them go. And he waited a minute.
Then he turned around and called out loudly, back into the house, "Hey, kid--"
---
It wasn't difficult to find Seb's door. Not now that she understood what this place was and everything it meant to her. They appeared in the Mindscape, Seb's vessel burning away in-between dimensions. He looked around and saw his body lying on the bed fast asleep.
The house was still dark and when he checked the time he saw that it was the same time as when he'd originally left.
'At least our meatsack's not dead.' Bill2 said comfortingly, if comfort were a pillow filled with toenails. Seb ignored him to turn and look at his companion. They'd only met a few days ago but Sebastian already found himself feeling sad that this was goodbye.
It had been nice to hang out with a Bill Cipher who WASN'T evil.
"So...I guess this is bye?" He asked awkwardly. He never had learned how to say goodbye. He generally just...left without saying anything. So Seb didn't know how to do this.
Miz grinned at him before giving him a soft hug. Seb stiffened before relaxing and patting her head. "Bye Seb. It was really nice meeting you." she says quietly into his shirt.
Sebastian grinned. "Yeah. Me too kid."
"Not a kid!" Miz had her cheeks puffed out in annoyance and Seb laughed. "Right. Right."
They broke from the hug and Seb sighed. "So, now that you've got your door powers working, are you gonna come visit? I am still sure Shooting Star would love you!" He asked hopefully. "Especially in your dragon form…"
Miz smiled sadly. "I'd love to but once I get home I need to lock the Exit door back up. It would be dangerous if any of those doors let out a less nice Bill Cipher. I can't risk that." She sighed. "But I'm gonna do some research on creating better mental defenses. Once my shields are up, I'll come visit again."
Because like it or not, she was attached now. Forming emotional bonds has always been an easy thing for her. She could talk to someone for a few hours and already decide she was fond of them. So, someday...she wanted to come and visit again. Definitely.
Seb looked a bit sad but understood her reasoning. "Alright. Yeah, I know… Well… stay safe kid… I… hope your Pines are born soon, don't drive them too crazy…" He smiled. "But mess with Pinetree. It is always fun to mess with Pinetree, any Pinetree!" He opened his arms to receive another hug and the girl grinned before hugging the man tightly.
Bill2 rolled his eye and Seb waved at her before diving into his body. The blond took a deep breath but otherwise stayed sleeping.
Miz nodded and gestured to make another Exit door. It really was easier when she and Ax weren't in opposition. A part of her was still mad (Ax didn't apologize, he justified!) but Miz would talk to him about that some other time. For now she just wanted to go home.
---
The Void of Doors was quiet. Miz looked around. The chance of some other Bill getting in here was slim but with an infinite number of doors… it would be more likely than she thought.
She quickly found her own door and went through, checking quickly for any intruders. Ax's blessing be with her because no one had broken in while she was gone. Miz sighed in relief and closed the door, once again moving a large shelf in front of it.
She'll research security settings later. For now, she had to go hug each one of her friends and tell them how much she loved them.
She left her Mindscape and returned to the waking world. The theater/bedroom sat quietly. The exit door thumped, as if something on the other side was hitting it. A few short knocks. The door didn't open, the shelf holding it firmly shut.
A few more knocks, softer. Testing.
A heavy BAM as whatever was on the other side struck it with great force. The door held. The shelf held. There were no more knocks as if whatever (whoever) it was had given up.
It was quiet in the Mindscape again.
A little stuffed rabbit was lying on the ground.
---