Gravity Rises (S3)

SP: Part Eight

Lincoln glanced back at the crowd of people gathered at the barrier. He, Ford, and Bill were headed away from them, but the general hubbub of noise was still audible as they approached the Mystery Museum. Lincoln thought he caught glimpses of the Corduroys and Yingtai Chiu trying to keep the peace in the crowd. Seeing them filled him with a mixture of pride in those he mentored and pain from their secrets.

Approaching the Museum felt surreal, not least because Lee was currently outside of his body. He followed Ford and Bill to the building, which was sheltered back in the trees but not too far from the road. The trees muffled the distant sounds of the crowd. Lincoln looked at the log cabin that was Ford's home — Lincoln's home, too, before his memory loss. The cabin looked vaguely familiar, but he couldn't remember anything about it.

It was in that moment that he realized, with a dim rush of panic, that he couldn't let Bill enter the Museum in his body. If this was the first time he'd been here in thirty years, then he had to be in his body for this moment. Plus, weren't there children staying here with Ford? Dipper and his twin sister Mabel, who had been possessed by Bill herself? Lee couldn't meet them as a ghost. He had to have his body.

"Lord Cipher," he said, though it suddenly pained him to refer to Bill as his lord. "Please, wait for a moment."

Bill stopped, putting a hand on Ford's arm to stop him as well. Ford flinched at his touch but stopped walking. "Yes?" asked Bill.

"I. . . May I have my body back?" The words sounded strange, and he wondered if anyone else had asked the demon so politely to stop possessing them. "Please, I. . . I want to see the Museum for myself."

"You can see," Bill pointed out, though it sounded like he knew what Lincoln was talking about.

"What's he saying?" asked Ford.

Bill glanced to him. "He wants his body back," he said, "to enter your home."

Ford started to answer, but Bill held up a hand as Lincoln spoke. "And I need it to meet his. . . our. . . relatives," Lee added. "I don't want them to know me as. . . well, as you, before they know me as me."

"Yes," said Ford, though he hadn't heard Lincoln's addendum. "Yes, give him his body back. You know how upset Mabel and Dipper are. They need to meet their uncle." His lip curled slightly. "They have no need to see you again," he added, glaring at Bill.

Bill raised his eyebrows. "So inhospitable," he said.

Ford folded his arms. "I'll only let Lee in," he said. "Not you."

"And if I stay in this body forever?"

The very thought was horrible to consider, and Lincoln forcefully told himself that Bill was just asking a hypothetical question. "Please," he said. "Please, Lord Cipher. I. . . I need this."

Bill glanced to him, unamused. "I'm sure you think that you need it."

"Give the man his body back," Ford demanded in frustration.

Bill sighed. "Fine. But I'm taking it back to talk to Gideon."

"You'll be talking to him through a vending machine," Ford replied. (This earned a confused look from Lincoln, but he figured he'd understand soon enough.)

Bill rolled his eyes like a petulant child. "Hold me up," he instructed Ford. "I don't think Lee here wants to wake up in the snow." He leaned back in Ford's arms. "Have fun explaining to the kids about your amnesia," he said to Lincoln.

"Tell Pacifica where I am," Lee replied. He tried to ignore the barb.

Bill's eyes closed, and the body fell still as a yellow triangle rose from its chest. Seeing Bill in his triangle form brought Lee more pain and even a faint anger, though it was mostly smothered by the pain. He forced himself to say, "Thank you," to Bill before flying back into his body.