The Little Dipper Effect

Liar, Liar

"Bill!" Yowled a voice, echoing through the halls of the home base, footsteps tapping in a quick rhythm. The smooth, white and creamy colored almost-glassy walls giving off distant, wavy reflections of him as he ran past. Baby blue eyes darted around,  dilated with worry. "Bill? Where are you?"

Where could he be? After all, he did say it was an urgent matter. A very urgent matter.

So where was Bill?

Panic that had already begun to settle in his chest grew almost suffocatingly; multiplying by the seconds.

Will paused, freezing up, whirling around as he recognized a faint aura near him. It may have been a mistake; a simple error; an illusion as a result of fear; but the presence was so much like Bill's.

It was the same powerful, relaxed aura that Will had grown accustomed to while they were still demonlings. Even if it's been a few centuries since they had last encountered one another, Will would know his brother's aura anywhere.

But this presence... was somewhat different than Bill's.

While the blonde demon's aura was that of a flaunting power; of a warm, tingly fire that presented as a warning not to come any closer unless wanted to be burned; this aura was softer, more of a mischievous presence of power than a warning symbol.

This was Bill, yet this was not Bill.

Yet, Will tested the waters anyways. "Bill...?"

"Who are you?" Piped a young voice, cautious and distrusting, and Will jumped, the hairs at the back of his neck ticklish as he turned to face the newcomer in a quick, desperate movement.

Will's baby blue eyes met golden ones, and the two demons stared at one another from across the hall.

"You're not Bill." Murmured Will weakly, heart fluttering in its beats with mild, confused fear.

The not-Bill hissed. "And neither are you, yet here we are."

—Four Years Later—

Bright, golden eyes peered up at him, sparking with impatient, eager wonder. For a moment, everything was still; even his own breaths. No, he daren't breathe. Not when those familiar eyes seemed to stare into his own of the same captivating color.

No, not when his own kin, his own offspring, was there, staring, waiting, for his next move.

"Alcor." Bill murmured, almost numbly, his jaw feeling just about slack with shock. "I... I didn't..." The demon shook his head. "I didn't realize how much I would miss you when I went after Sixer."

Alcor provided the older a small, awkwardly placed smile. "Sixer is stuck in another dimension now." A pause. "You didn't have to leave, you know, dad." He reasoned softly, his thin, small bat wings fluttering slightly as a cool rush of wind hushed through the dark dimension.

"It was a priority." The blonde defended himself, though it sounded lame to even his own ears. "Sixer could've been the key to world domination... but I guess I could lay back for a few years while he's... out."

"Yes." Alcor replied, though a certain sadness casted over his gaze. It was hard to spot; as his eyes fixed on the ground at that moment. "That sounds nice..."

The brunette leaned forward, wrapping his arms around Bill's waist, burying his face at his father's torso. "I missed you."

The dream demon stood unresponsively at his kin before taking in a sharp intake of breath. Carefully, he returned the hug, selectively nesting his head on top of Alcor's. For a moment, the brunette's hair tickled at his face, but he quickly became accustomed to it.

Yes, here Alcor was. The boy's scent of pine trees and a tang of mysterious sweetness so very familiar to Bill that sent him into a nostalgic state even though it's only been a handful of years, not a lifetime.

Shit, but it sure did feel like a lifetime.

"I missed you too, kid." He uttered into Alcor's hair.

A genuine, authentic statement.

For a handful of moments, they stayed in that position, the closest they've been to one another in years.

Bill was the one that pulled away.

"Let's get to the base." The blonde said, carefully wiggling away. His tone was hinted with sheepishness, as if embarrassed he was the victim of a hug. "Have you behaved for Will?"

"Yessm." Replied the brunette, sending his father a sharp smile. "You should've told us that he would be babysitting me, instead of telling him to report to the base for an emergency and coming across me. You do realize how awkward that meeting was?"

Bill only laughed, and Alcor continued.

"Scared him shitless, on accident. He scared me too. We didn't start on very good terms."

The blonde demon shrugged, weighing the option of apologizing for having to leave so soon, but in the end no words came from his mouth. All he really wanted to do was drop where he stood and take a long nap, but that would have to wait until after he talked to Will.

——

The moment the duo wandered into home territory, Alcor was tackled into a hug by a blue blur. "Alcor!" Cried the nostalgic voice of Will, the demon's tone sending off waves of relief into the atmosphere.

Almost frantically, Will clawed his nephew closer to him, pushing the younger demon's head under his own. "You ran off! Where did you go? Please, you can't keep doing this, Alcor!" Pled the male, nuzzling at the brunette. Will's heart skipped a beat, seeming to finally notice the strong, familiar aura beside him, and breathlessly, he flicked his gaze to meet Bill's own.

Now, Will was a very harmless-looking creature for a demon. In contrast to Bill's solid, fiery golden eyes, Will's were a fluffy, soft blue that held a certain look of timidness. Unlike Bill's blonde hair, Will's was a shade of pastel cyan. All in all, while Bill and Will were, in terms, twins, their personalities seemed to be polar opposites.

No, Will was anything but brave, and Bill was anything but shy.

Now, though, in the heat of the moment, in the state of shock, it seemed as if that statement didn't apply, because Will was frowning at him.

"Hello, little brother." Bill greeted almost awkwardly, but he managed to keep his tone and outward look passive.

"Hello brother." Will returned politely, words quiet. On nervous habit, he began to absentmindedly fiddle with Alcor's hair. "Where have you been?" He didn't need to ask. He already knew, Bill knew that, and obviously so did Will.

The older demon shrugged. "Places." Was all he replied with, averting his eyes in a casual attempt. He knew Will was a sucker for affection, so Bill pressed himself beside his two family members, slinging his arms over the both of them and settling into a hug.

"Look, I was gone for a few years, yeah, but that doesn't change anything." The eldest demon reasoned with a small shrug. "I'm here now."

Will's eyes went downcast, his emotional gaze fixed on the hand he had brushing through Alcor's hair. It was a sign of discomfort, maybe? No, Bill continued, Will was mad at him.

He had to face away from his twin in order to hide the small, growing smile of immature amusement pulling at his lips. When he had finally fought back the action, he turned back to face Will.

"Will." The golden-eyed demon simply said, and the blue demon let out a choked sob. Will leaned into Bill's half-hearted hug with a disgruntled huff.

"You and Alcor seem to vanish out of nowhere, often. I hope it isn't a habit."

Bill couldn't provide a sensible response to that.