Nightmares and Daydreams

Chapter 21: Nearing The End

Dipper's Pov

"What else do you know about him?"

Wirt and I were up in my room, spending most of the morning trying to learn more about this 'Beast'. After Wirt had told me about the strange creature last night, my brain went into theory mode and all I was focused on was learning more about it. This could be the clue to defeating Bill, but first I needed to gather more information.

"He feeds on lost souls, mainly the ones of children. Th-They usually come in the form of edelwood oil, that black stuff on the branches. He needs the oil to survive." I nodded and started writing that down on my whiteboard. So far we knew what he was and a few of his powers, but not how he's still alive or how he's here. "Anything else," I asked while glancing over at Wirt. He thought for a moment but frowned and shook his head. "That's really it. He's a mysterious figure that traps kids in trees and rules over the Unknown. He should be dead after the Woodsman blew out his flame so unless it was magically reignited then I don't know how he can be back. Or how he got here."

I sighed and tapped the marker against my chin while trying to think. First Bill comes back then the Beast. At least I knew something about Bill but this 'Beast' creature was completely unheard of. Or not completely. As far as I knew, only Wirt and Greg knew about it, and even then their information was limited. I circled a small drawing of a lantern and took a step back, surveying our work. "Okay, so we know the lantern is his weak point. But that's in the Unknown." I hummed and looked back over to Wirt. "Do you know how to go back there?" "No. The only way there is by dying. Me and Greg were lucky enough to escape but it would be too risky to try again." 

My eyes widened and I gasped suddenly realizing something. I grinned and ran over to Wirt, throwing my arms around him in a hug. "You genius, that's it! That's how he's still alive!" Wirt blinked and looked down at me with a confused expression. "Um, d-did I miss something?" I chuckled and stood up, scribbling on the whiteboard. Once I was done, I turned to face Wirt and presented my theory.

"Okay, so based on what you said, the Unknown is like a land for the dead." "Right." "So who says only humans can go there?" Wirt tipped his head to the side and asked, "okay, so what does that have to do with the Beast." "Well, what if when we killed Bill, he went there. You know since it's a place for dead people. If Bill went there then he would have had a chance to meet the Beast. They make some sort of deal and are now working together." Wirt ahhed with realization and stood up, adding to the theory. "So Bill could have reignited the lantern, bringing the Beast back. But how did he end up in this dimension? Is that even possible?" I tapped the marker again and thought about Wirt's question. "Well, dimensional travel, while dangerous, is possible. Though that does raise a good point."

I sighed and sat down on my bed, staring at the multiple question marks on the board. We had a theory formed but there were still too many unanswered questions. I needed more. I needed to learn more. If only I could just study this thing. Wirt smiled down at me and ran a hand through my hair. "We should probably take a break." As much as I wanted to keep working, he was right. We had been working since dawn and a break sounded pretty nice right about now. So, I nodded in agreement and rested my head against his sweater. Of course, at that moment, Mabel and Greg burst into the room, startling me so much that I fell off the bed.

"Pfft, you okay Dipping sauce," Mable snickered as she helped me up. I rolled my eyes and dusted off my clothes. "Yeah, I'm fine." "You two missed breakfast!" Greg pouted making Wirt laugh a little. He picked up his younger brother and ruffled his hair. "Sorry, we were working on something." "Sure you were," Mabel said, wiggling her eyebrows and smirking at me. I blushed and pushed her away, knowing what she was hinting at. "We were theorizing about Bill." Mabel's gaze turned serious for a second but then she just smiled and grabbed our hands. "Well, we can worry about that later. Besides Greg and I have something to show you!" "Oh yeah!" Greg jumped down from Wirt's arms and grabbed his brother's hand, both of them dragging us downstairs.