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Bill stared down at the bag he held in his hands. He had done what his Pinetree wished for and he had burned his body. It had only been a week since the elder Pine has died, and Bill already felt empty without his other half by his side. Even during his life, dwindling so, he lit up Bill’s sorrowful demon life with much more life than he had ever known.
Bill remembered, even now, when his Pinetree had told him he wished to continue ageing. It was an agonizing conversation for the both of them, neither wished to really speak of this. It had always been an issue in their relationship. Dipper and his human body wouldn’t last forever, he would have to move on at some point. Bill’s magic couldn’t prolong the inevitable forever.
But even then, it was Dipper who caved in first - not his magic. Dipper had been stuck in a 20s body for centuries, and it was no wonder that the man wanted to release. At least Bill could go into completely different dimensions and find new and ever-changing things. Dipper had never had that option.
Bill brought himself back to reality as he felt his eyes sore. He had told himself - and his Pinetree - that he wouldn’t cry, especially not at the funeral. But he hadn’t been able to help it. He had almost cried on the ashes upon seeing them. But had held back with everything he had left. This was not a moment he ever wished to replay in his mind.
Bill stared down at the bag once more before sighing. He took out a little note and read what had been written carefully. After reading he scrunched up the note slightly by jamming it into his pocket before he left for the forest next to the Mystery Shack.
This was going to be a long journey.
-
It had been a few hours until Bill finally found what he was looking for. The tallest tree that he and Dipper had ever been able to find shortly after Mabel’s death. She hadn’t been buried here, nor were her ashes about, but memories of her still were stitched onto the tree.
As Bill walked to the tree he saw the small heart he and his Pinetree had carved into the bark, as well as the Mabel memoirs strewed about. The picture of them as children was dirty now, as Bill nor Dipper had been able to get to the tree in the past decade, due to Dipper’s dwindling health.
Bill cleaned everything quietly, shaking slightly as he did so. After ensuring everything was in pristine condition, Bill added a small gravestone for his Pinetree, signalling where his ashes would be spread. They had both seen it fitting, as they had already made magical protections all over the tree and its surrounding area. There had been talk about being put next to Mabel, as the two twins had spoken about as a pastime, but Dipper had far grown from how Mabel once was.
Neither of the men had found it fitting.
After Bill had firmly put the gravestone in place, he added a picture of the Dipper he had been with throughout the majority of the other’s life. The young, youthful-looking Dipper. He had wanted to be remembered like this, as he had told Bill many times, but he wished to grow old, and finally let go.
Once everything was set in place Bill began to climb. It wasn’t the tree itself he was climbing, but the magical steps he made next to the tree. It took Bill about 10 minutes before he reached the top of the pine tree. He took the big bag, full of the human’s ashes, and spread them. Bill did it to the entire tree, and eventually, as he reached the bottom once more, he also added it to the ground next to the tree.
The entire tree itself now resembled everything Dipper had been, with his human ashes surrounding its exterior. Bill had a little bit of the ashes left before he finished. He stared at them for an extended period of time. He didn’t want to part with them. It was the last of his Pinetree that he might ever have.
Suddenly Bill had an idea. He quickly made a small bottle with a chain placed around the bottle, to be able to turn it into a necklace. The bottle itself was made of impenetrable glass, so they would always be seen. Bill quickly put the last bits of his Pinetree’s ashes into the bottle and then around his human neck.
He had decided to stay with his Pinetree for a little longer.
-
It was a bright and sunny day. Bill hadn’t known that before he had brought himself back into Gravity Falls for his regular visit, but alas, the weather did not bother the demon to any degree. The demon was still in his human form, with the bottle around his neck.
He came to visit Gravity Falls every 5 months. And the Shack was included. He began at the Shack and ended at the Shack. With many memory lanes in between. Not many people really noticed his presence whenever he walked by, and he couldn’t blame them, he seemed very uninteresting in comparison to the modern reality that Gravity Falls had become.
He now stared at the Shack with a silent wish. It hadn’t ever come to fruition before, but today the wind felt different. Something had changed, something large. Bill walked quietly towards the Shack and opened its door. He heard movements abruptly as he walked inside the home and suddenly noticed how clean everything looked.
Bill cleaned whenever he came through, but it seemed as though that wasn’t needed today, and someone had taken shop in here. He moved around the front a little, taking steps to walk around and examine the cleanliness of the person who had come to live here. He certainly hoped it was the man he was wishing for, but he didn’t have high hopes.
Bill had lost time of how long it had been since the day his Pinetree had died and had lost count of how many times he had approached the cabin to revisit.
Bill suddenly turned and saw the door open. Bill’s jaw dropped a little. It was his Pinetree. He definitely looked different, but Bill could tell that he had taken on the form of a human. Dipper’s hair was longer than he usually kept it, and the heavy bags under his hazel-brown eyes were still prominent. Bill almost wanted to laugh from the overwhelming emotions he felt as time slowed down.
He couldn’t tell how long he had been standing there staring at the now demonised Dipper until he suddenly heard the smaller give a cry. Before Bill could even comprehend what had happened, Dipper was hugging him tightly, as if holding on for dear life.
He stared down at his lover as emotions that had been shut off for years came surfacing back up to him. He felt choked as he stared down at Dipper. It seemed unimaginable.
After spending some time processing, Bill finally pulled Dipper closer to him, returning the hug the smaller so desperately gave the elder. There was instantly something about the hug that set off every fibre of Bill’s being back into motion. He felt whole, and the exhilaration he had once felt by his Pinetree’s side started to start back up all over again.
He heard Dipper begin to cry as Bill held him dearly. It was a moment that the two had needed for a very long time. Bill took the smaller up into his arms as he began to walk towards the sofa he knew was still in the Shack, they both needed time to simply bask in each other’s presence, and he knew that it be a lot more comfortable sitting down.
It was going to be a wild ride.
-
The triangular demon in human form trudged through the forest with his lover walking beside him. They had been together, by each other’s sides for two weeks now, never leaving each other alone. It seemed to Bill as if they were both desperate for one another’s presence. He would be lying to say he wasn’t happy to be spending time with his Pinetree once more, after such a long time apart.
The reason they were walking through the magical woods of Gravity Falls today was for a not-so-magical reason. They had come to the forest with one purpose. To come full circle. Bill had shown Dipper his ashes in the bottle hung around his neck. It had been an awkward conversation for sure, but had understood Bill’s actions and felt warmed by his choices.
Dipper had expressed wanting to go see his grave but was not quite ready when they had first mentioned it on their first day together. Dipper had finally felt ready and able to face it today - and they had now been walking for several hours.
They spoke for quite a while at first, but conversation began to wither the further they ventured through the forest and closer to the grave of Dipper Pines. Bill was going to finish what he felt unable to finish back when he first spread the ashes as well.
Today he was letting the bottle go and spreading the last of his Pinetree’s ashes where they were originally meant to be all those years ago.
Dipper was definitely different to how he was when he was human, but Bill could only assume that had been the transformation into a demon. Demons generally felt fewer emotions, and they weren’t as prominent as humans. It was sad to see less of his Pinetree’s excitement and passion for the things he loved, but Bill understood that was only a part of the cycle he had endured, and the ‘reincarnation’ that had occurred for him.
As far as he was aware, Dipper had no knowledge he was any different. His memory definitely seemed a little stretchy or different in some places or missing altogether, but it was indeed the Pinetree that Bill had come to know all the years they had been together, and Bill would be a fool if he were not able to see it.
It wasn’t long now, and Bill could see the tree as plain as day. It was sunny today, just as they had planned, and the sun shone on the tree. Quite a few pine tree’s around the tree had been taken down over the years, but it was still as beautiful to see it in all its glory.
Bill saw his Pinetree begin to quicken his pace as he caught sight of the tree that held his ashes. It was barely a minute before the elder saw his little demon staring at the tree. He could feel the sadness rolling off the smaller in waves and went to comfort him.
The two hugged for a while next to the tree in silence before Dipper had the energy or the motivation to look towards it once more. It was so painful to see the smaller; the picture of his sister and him was a bit too much.
As the blonde-haired demon noticed this, he assured the smaller one he wouldn’t be long and stood in front of the tree he had come to see for years. He gently took the bottle off his neck and took a deep breath. It was alright, he assured himself. He had Dipper now, and that’s what mattered.
The elder took the cap off the bottle and silently spread the ashes amongst the ground once more, finally finishing the job after putting it off for many years. Bill took a sigh of relief as he took a step back, finally knowing the job was done. Bill finished up by attaching the necklace to the tree.
Afterwards, he turned to his Pinetree who looked a little worse for wear. The demon gave a small saddened smile before he hooked his arm around the other’s and promptly walked him away from the grave in utter silence.
It was a new beginning.