Silly thing requested over on my tumblr, amaranthephemera

Oddly enough, Bill first realizes something is very wrong while watching Dipper eat.

He's followed the boy to school against his wishes yet again but Dipper has stopped complaining at this point. It's become a daily event, Bill following him about, and he even smiles when Bill prattles on about the inanity of human schooling. Dipper insists on doing these frivolous things: attending school, listening to lectures, and whatever else serves to educate mortals. Bill has offered him knowledge, power, fame, anything - still, he remains here, untempted by Bill's many attempts at seduction and unafraid of his many empty threats.

Each failed attempt only makes him more and more entranced by Dipper and his strange, ironic strength.

Bill has offered him gold today, not to mention a squirrel's tail he detached from the animal's body, but Dipper has determinedly ignored him. He's tucked away in a corner of the school courtyard, sitting on a bed of moss with his books strewn in front of him and a heated meal perched on his knee, a squirrel's tail thrown somewhere behind him, still simply sitting there despite his orders to reattach it to its owner.

It's very rare to see Dipper eat and thus it has become a bit of a novelty to Bill. His meal now is a sloppy mess of cheese, that's all Bill can tell, and Dipper eats distractedly, eyes trained on his work.

Bill has to prod him to get him to eat he's so entranced, literally jabbing his arm with a sharp finger, "Isn't this time of day called lunch or something equally uncreative? Eat."

Dipper bats at him weakly but stabs the mass of food with a fork. He gets sauce on the corner of his mouth after almost dropping the forkful of food. Bill laughs, far more amused by it than he should be.

"You're disgusting!" Bill titters and reaches out to wipe it from the corner of his mouth, his claw pressing against the boy's skin, leaving a red mark in its wake.

"Ow! Jesus, Bill!" Dipper hisses, looking away from his books for the first time all day.

Bill's eye crinkles and he feels strangely warm. Dipper's glower suddenly shifts and he blinks, a wide, honest smile slowly spreading across his face. Bill quirks his brow but allows Dipper to reach out to him, touching a finger to his side carefully, "You know, you start to glow brighter sometimes… Like you're blushing."

All of that warmth drains away along with Dipper's laughter, replaced with a frown. Before Dipper can speak, Bill smacks his hand away, "You're an idiot. Just go back to reading your books. But you should know quarks - yeah, that shit in your book! They're a lie! Reality is an illusion! This is all an illusion! You're an illusion!" he cries, poking Dipper's cheek before quickly pulling away, unwilling to touch him for much longer.

Dipper gazes at him unflinchingly, the barest hint of a smile on his lips, and that's when Bill realizes. Terror is slowly sinking in - and that's not acceptable, none of this is.

Fists clenched, Bill huffs and turns away, determined to ignore Dipper's giggles and the terrible feeling overtaking him.

Dipper, he realizes, almost shaking now, has become much more than a toy.

And with that realization, he knocks Dipper's hat from his head, tugs his hair, and then flees, laughing hollowly as he goes.