Work Text:
“Sleep,” says the Axolotl. His tail curls over Bill, and he falls asleep almost instantly.
Not long after, he awakens, but not really. He was dreaming. This time, in Liam’s room. Bill felt his heart grow heavy. It was weird, feeling something so humane.
He wasn’t in his body, but he was watching from afar. He wasn’t visible, though. It was as if he was a ghost. He saw himself, probably around seven or eight years old, sitting on Liam’s bed as he read “Secret Garden” for probably the millionth time.
Liam pauses, before closing the book. “Alright, Billy. That’s enough for tonight.” He finally says, his tired eye trailing over to the younger Bill.
“Aw come on! We barely even read through anything!” the equilateral sulks, voice high and pitchy.
“Billy, we nearly read through eight chapters.” He sighs, squeezing his eye shut. Billy let out an exaggerated sigh, flopping his body down on Liam’s bed.
“Can we get to my favourite part, at least?”
“Alright.”
As Liam continues the story, Bill blinks and suddenly, he’s in his younger body.
“Hey Billy?” Liam stops reading, looking down at Bill. “…Yeah?”
Liam’s eye starts to tear as he averted his gaze. “Do you ever wish it could’ve stayed this way?”
Bill’s eye widens, and woosh, blue flames engulfed the bedroom. Liam, together with everything in the room disintegrated into dust before him until only sapphire blaze lit up the darkness.
No. Not again. Please not again.
He awakens, this time in front of the Axolotl. He wasn’t curled up against his tail this time. “I take it you had a nightmare?” The pink creature muses, and Bill growls in anger.
“Let me dream once more,” Bill demands. It was soon met as his tail twined over the triangle once more. “Very well. But you cannot sleep forever, and do not try to avoid the inevitable.”