Freedom To Another Cage [BILLFORD]

Chapter 7: Memory Part 3: Intervene

Mabel didn't know what to say. How was someone supposed to react to something like this, anyway? Her mouth felt like cotton.

Eventually, all the blood was cleaned off and the rag was put aside. Bill spoke up after a moment of silence, "... What do I do..?"
Mabel didn't know what to say, but after some time, she managed something. "You should... forgive yourself for what you did."
Bill's eyebrow lowered to his eye. "I don't..." his words wondered off for a bit. "How?"

"... It'll be hard, but it'll be even harder to keep living like this," she shrugged slightly. She was trying.
Silence for a moment.
"But," Bill squinted, looking off to side. "What if... What if I'm not exactly... ready.. to let it go..?" There was an ache in his throat, which existed somewhere.
Mabel fell silent, thinking about his words. She knew it wouldn't be as easy as just "letting it go". Something so horrific, it's going to linger with him for a long time.
She exhaled slowly and let her mind try and come up with some sort of response. "You don't have to let it go right now. It's okay if you're not ready yet... But someday, you will have to move on..."

"Then what?"

Mabel wasn't sure how to respond to him this time... She wasn't even sure what to say about her own problems half the time, but she definitely wasn't going to mess this up. She could feel Bill's shaking; his emotions were practically radiating off of him. "You... You start healing from this..."

Bill eventually turned to face her more directly. "You... You're a good kid, Shooting Star. Let's hope you don't change," he chuckled, wiping the tear stains off.
"As if! But I can tell you've changed," she observed. "Yeah," Bill started, "I guess therapy was kind of working.." he shrugged.

Mabel never really expected "Bill Cipher" and "Therapy" to be in the same sentence, but... oh well. "Y'know, you really are a mess, aren't you?" she chuckled in return.
"I know someone else that's a mess. Hint; It starts with a P and ends with an ine Tree." He laughed.
Mabel playfully punched his arm, "Hey, leave my brother alone. You're the most broken one here."

"It's weird... Seeing you like this, I mean," she clarified. "Tell me about it.. The stupid loss of powers made me fall victim to emotions." Bill rolled his eye.
"Oh, so you feel things, now?"
"Yeah. I have emotions, needs, wants, urges..." Bill counted them on his fingers, "It's gross."
"Hey, those things are what make you mortal! Don't diss them, ya doof!"
"I'm not mortal, though! I'm 2-3.D! An ex-god!" Bill bragged.
"And right now, you're a mess of insecurities, guilt, and issues," she reminded him.

"Don't rub it in." He gave her a small, brief glare. Mabel chuckled, finding it oddly comical the way he was trying to look at her with a glare. "Hey, I'm speaking the truth. You're a mess of issues that needs a hug... And therapy, apparently." Mabel then quickly added on, "But if ya try ripping out your teeth again, I'm telling everyone what happened." Bill squinted with some annoyance. "Whatever. I'm outta here." He said, floating over and out of the room.

-

Ford walked into his room to see Bill on the old couch with one of his old notebooks, flipping through. "What are you doing with that?" Ford walked over and snatched the notebook from Bill's hands, looking down at him with a slight glare. Bill didn't answer. Ford placed the aside before looking down at Bill again, crossing his arms too now, looking a bit annoyed. "Answer me, Bill."

Still nothing.

"Don't start getting stubborn now." Ford sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose as if he was starting to get a headache.
"Ford doesn't deserve me talking to him. Maybe then he'll learn." Bill was still mad. Stanford sighed, "Look, I didn't mean it to come out like that-"