The Lemon Meringue Boy

Part 17

We just stared at each other a while. All three of our collective eyes were stretched wide. No words were coming to my mind. There was nothing I could say. Nothing I could do but stare. My jaw hung slack. Eventually I noticed something strange. Before saying anything witty or intelligent or even relevant, I brought this to attention;

 "You're not...floating." Which was true. It was probably the first or one of the first times I had ever seen Bill on the ground. It surprised me how small he was. He was just the size he was the first time I'd seen him. About as tall as Gideon. Including the hat. Now that he was on the ground it was plain to see. He was...tiny.

"Observant. Now I know why why ol' Sixer is treating you like some sort of kid genius. I could tell that's what he looked for in a prodigy. Non-blindness. Now if you'll excuse me." He stood for a moment. He appeared to be trying to do something, his eye closed and his brow drawn with concentration. Was he trying to float?

"You're still not floating, Bill." I expected Bill to shoot something back. Anything. He didn't. He just looked dumbfounded. Depressed even. Maybe frustrated. Maybe even a tiny bit... helpless. 

That's when I knew. The all-powerful Bill Cipher, immortal demon, the cause of so many nightmares, had lost his powers. It made sense. I don't know what I had expected, I'd brought him here from a state of total disfigurement. It wasn't like he was just going to fly right back to the Nightmare Realm he's from and start all over again. 

Something didn't feel right. Then it hit me. This wasn't in my head. Bill was really here, standing in front of me. The world was in full color. He was in a physical form. I don't know what I was thinking. I guess I had to confirm my theory. The next thing I knew I had reached out and poked him in the face. 

It felt rough like bricks, but also soft, like flesh. An excerpt from journal three came to mind, a comment on my sister's "centaurtaur". "Don't think about it too hard". He pulled away and looked me up and down.

"What the hell do you think you're doing pine tree?!" I quickly shushed him. The gang was still sleeping upstairs and I had to get Bill out of there before anyone got suspicious.

"I know this whole thing is super weird, but you have to work with me on this Bill."

"'I know it's weird' says the kid who just poked me for absolutely no reason. I suggest you don't tell me what I have to do, fleshbag."

"And I suggest you do what I say unless you want to die again." Neither Bill nor I was used to the fact that I had more authority now. It gave me shivers. I'd spent so long living in fear of the guy that it was the strangest feeling to look down on him. Sure he had the seniority and wisdom and whatever, but he still needed my help. I tried not to think about it.

 I could tell Bill was in a state of denial too, but he would have to accept it once he was... that's when I paused a moment and the reality of what I had done crashed over me like a tidal wave. I had brought Bill Cipher, the single most despised being in the entire town, back from the dead. And what was I going to do with him now that he was out? No clue. Did I ever stop to think about what I was doing when I made that huge decision to unlock him? Nope. Heck, who knows how long I'd have to keep him hidden! It's not like I'd taken in a baby bird to nurse back to health then set free back into the wild. This was a psychopathic criminal. I turned my attention back to Bill, who was still trying to use his powers. He looked like an idiot.

 "Give it up, it won't work." He glared at me and put his hands down. "Ok, here's what's going to happen; I'm going upstairs to make sure the coast is clear. You're going to stay here, be quiet, and try not to hurt yourself. I'll come back down and we'll go to the forest."

"And why should I listen to you, meatsack?"

"I can give a list to the moon and back, but I'll stick to the top three. First, it's my house. Second, whether you choose to believe it or not, you're tiny and defenseless. Third, and this is very important, I don't actually want you here, and I have no problem sending you back to where you came from by any means necessary. Got that?" 

I marveled at how easy it was to get Bill to grudgingly agree. As I walked up the stairs I started to think. It seemed like for the whole reunion Bill was just...off. Maybe when he lost his powers, he lost his will to fight back too. You'd assume I'd be happy about that, but for some reason it just made me sad. Maybe in a weird, mixed up way I guess I missed fighting Bill. It was part of what made the last summer so unbelievable. I shook my head to clear it. Those thoughts weren't productive.