Sincerely Yours, Bill Cipher

Our Story Together

Tyler morphs into what his true form should have been, yet he still retains much of his permanent glamour to look like the child he replaced. His teeth turn sharp, his eyes a beady black, yet he still looks so... human. I wonder what he would think if I told him that.
     I have no clue what to do next. We could all take him on, I'm sure. Only problem is, it's bad news if any of us or even Tyler gets hurt because of it. Even if Tyler were just a regular human, he might still be stronger than I am as a human now. As a paranormal being such as this... Well, I could easily stop him with iron or even blood, but that would break Yule's heart. I'd only do something like that as a last resort. The only problem is, I'm fast approaching the last resort zone. Unless...
     But I need Yule's permission. I cannot do this without that. Knowing it won't matter if Tyler sees me or not, I mouth to Yule, Can I tell him?
     Yule understands. I can see the anguish on his face. He knows we have no other choice. "Yeah," he responds, defeated. "You tell him, and I can make him believe you."
     I quickly turn from the window and go into the house through the door. My friends yell at me to come back, but this is what we have to do. And I know that Yule, trapped or not, will never let me get hurt.
     "Tyler," I address the changeling before me, who growls angrily in response. He twitches, looking ready to make a strike. "Tyler, there's something  we need to tell you. You may not believe me, but he'll make you understand."
     "He'll?" Tyler asks, his brief confusion buying me a little more time.
     "Your brother," I reply earnestly. "Not the boy in front of you. No, your real brother. Yule Shields is in this room right now."
     "Do you take me for an idiot?" Tyler's lip curls. In my peripheral vision, I see that Florian has crawled over and broken Yule's salt barrier.
     "The ghost you've been trying to rid yourself of, the one who's been with you in your house for the past week, the one who just wants to be with you, not hurt you or harm you, is Yule."
     "You've crosses the line, Cipher," Tyler snarls hatefully, though I can see the doubt in his eyes. He lunges anyway with outstretched hands, aiming for my neck.
     I duck and scramble back. "Yule, show him now!"
     Tyler comes to an abrupt halt when Yule wraps himself around his brother. Tyler shivers, overcome with a chill. "Please," he grimaces. "Any spirit can do that. I already know that!"
     "Then ask him a question. About an object in this room, perhaps. An answer that only he and you would know," I suggest, my voice quieter, fearing him to take another move on me or my friends.
     He hesitates, but surprisingly does as I say. His love for his brother is stronger than his hatred for me. "Yule, if it's really you... show me what thing in here replaced mom's glass kitten that we broke all those years ago. We bought it in apology."
     Yule looks around, and for a painstakingly long moment, I think that he has no idea what Tyler is talking about.
     But he glides over to the corner of the room. On a side table rests a vase of fake poinsettias, which is odd because it is the middle of summer right now. Yule focuses his attention on it, and it begins to float. As he hovers it, he says, "Aunt Carol came with us to buy them because we were too young to go by ourselves." And I relay this sentence to Tyler.
      His eyes fill with grief and his jaw drops, his voice cracking as he gasps, "It is you." His features turn humanoid again.
The corners of Yule's mouth pull back as he starts to cry. "I didn't want to tell you," he whispers through his gasping cries. "I thought this would just be so much more painful for you."
Tyler's face falls when I tell him what Yule's said. "Oh, Tide... I want to see you, to talk to you! I can't do this- not with a freakin' translator!" he exclaims sorrowfully, hugging his arms tightly to himself.
"I know!" Yule bursts out. "That's what I'm saying! Please, just forget you ever knew I was here. Please," he whimpers, sputtering over his words. "I can't live like this." I repeat.
     It's like I can see Tyler falling apart. "I can't forget you. I can't forget this. You don't know how much I've missed you. It makes me want to die too... but I can't. I can't as long as mom is here. I couldn't do that to her."
     "Please don't tell mom," Yule murmurs. "I can't see her live through the pain of knowing her son is still here, yet never being able to talk to her, hug her, or even come home to her again. It just isn't fair to her. She's better off knowing I'm gone. Because... well, in a way, I am, right? As far as I knew, death wasn't supposed to work this way..." Though this phrase is probably getting redundant, I repeat. You know what? At this point, just assume I'm going to repeat everything that Yule says to Tyler, because I will.
     "Yule, I have to tell her. You know she cries herself to sleep every night? She doesn't think I can hear, but I do. She smiles, but it never reaches her eyes. I hug her, but her arms are limp as she hugs me back. Your death has been killing her, Yule! It's been killing me! We are her world, and half of it was just ripped away from her!"
     "Of course I know!" Yule snaps. "It's been me in this house for the past week! But telling her this will not ease her pain!" he shrieks, and I know that no matter how I relay these words to Tyler, he will never hear, never understand what kind of exasperation and sorrow Yule is throwing into his words.
     Tyler is at a loss for words. He doesn't know quite how to respond. He looks to be aching to share this news with his mother, but I think Yule's point is getting across to him.
     "Comfort her for me, Ty," Yule pleads. "I can't do that anymore. I'm dead. I made that choice for myself, to save my friend. Bill had no hand in my death, nor did anyone else who isn't one of those demons that was here that day, who are long gone now. And that's that, Tyler. No matter how much I wish, I won't be truly part of the living world again."
     Tyler sighs. "Maybe not the living world," his eyes shine with grief as he continues, "but you will always be part of our world, Yule." He breathes heavily again. "You were the best part of my life, Yule. When I'm gone someday, this world might forget the fact, but you never forget it, okay? I think our story together has to come to an end, and I'm sorry. You know it's best for both of us this way. Even mom, for that matter. So, no, I won't tell her. You've made your point, and I think you're right."
     His eyes glisten and his voice hitches. He swallows back a cry. "But I love you, you hear? I love you. We had a great life, and I'll keep the story alive for the both of us." He unsuccessfully tries to bite back another sob. "So, because I never got to say it before- goodbye, my little brother," he says gently, his voice breaking at the end. "Goodbye, Yule."