Over the Falls

Chapter 12

BILL

"Branches."

No response.

"Antlers."

Wirt continued to pick up logs silently.

"Wirt!" Bill yelled.

"What is it, Bill?" Wirt spit out, clearly not in the mood for conversation.

"Can we talk?" Bill tried to ask nicely, but it came out more irritated. Not as irritated as Wirt looked, though.

Wirt gave Bill a look and threw the logs that were under his arm into the cave. It started to rain as night approached and Bill didn't want to get wet. Wirt thought it was because he didn't want to feel what Dipper's body was like when it was soaked, but Bill claimed it was because he wouldn't be able to use his powers as strongly as he liked to. Wirt searched for awhile before finding a cave Bill approved of, and now he was asking for a fire. And to talk. Wirt wasn't in the mood for these childish things.

"I thought you wanted me to build a fire!" Wirt yelled over his shoulder as he picked up more logs.

"You have enough logs! Just get in here now!" Bill yelled back, arranging the wood into a pile.

Wirt rolled his eyes but entered the cave and saw that the logs were burning already. The fire was large and beautiful.

"Wha- how'd this happen?" Wirt asked, sitting down.

Bill held up a hand which he sparked with blue flames. "Perks of being a demon, I guess."

"Oh. Well, thanks. Good job."

Bill nodded and kept his eyes on Wirt.

Wirt noticed. "Oh yeah. You wanted to talk."

"Um, yeah."

"Well go ahead," Wirt said, the impatience catching in his throat.

Bill fidgeted. He cracked his knuckles and adjusted his position. "Earlier today, you um...you let me touch you."

"Yeah?"

"What did it feel like?"

Wirt laughed.

Bill cringed a little at this. He thought it was a serious question.

"What did it feel like? It felt like someone touching me, Bill. What else is there to say?"

Bill shrugged. He didn't know where this conversation was going, but he knew Wirt must have felt something other than just physical touch. When Bill touched him that day, Wirt's eyes seemed to calm down, he looked like he was...okay.

"You acted different," Bill said slowly, he didn't know how Wirt was going to handle this subject.

"Did I," Wirt said into the fire, sounding uninterested.

Bill nodded, confused as to Wirt's whole reaction with this. "Are you even listening to me, beast boy?"

"Uh huh."

Bill narrowed his eyes and shuffled over closer to Wirt, grabbing his chin and making the boy look at him. "If you were listening, you would've heard in my voice that I'm being serious about this, that I'm actually trying to get some answers."

Now Wirt's eyes were narrowing. "In case you haven't noticed, I also have a problem. A real problem, my brother is missing and every day I get closer to becoming a real monster. So excuse me if I don't seem as interested in your problems about whether or not you're having feelings."

Wirt's words were cold and hard, stabbing Bill in the chest.

Bill let go of Wirt's chin and stared at him.

Wirt didn't seem to back off any, but he got up, frowning at the ground. Then sat right back down, huffing, and pushed his face into his hands.

WIRT

Wirt knew he could've handled that better. He knew Bill had emotions, even if he himself wouldn't admit it, but he didn't understand why Bill wanted to talk about it right now. Especially when Bill knew Wirt was stressing over his own problems.

"...I'm sorry, Bill," Wirt said through his hands.

Bill just sat there, his eyes now looking into the flames.

Wirt peeked over at him, pushed his hair out of his face, and moved closer to the demon.

"I'm sorry, Bill. I am. I overrea—"

"No," Bill interrupted coldly. "Stop talking, this doesn't matter anymore."

Wirt sighed and took Bill's hand.

Bill jerked it away, looking right at Wirt now.

"What are you doing?"

"Shut up, I'm helping you. Don't you want to know about your emotions?"

Bill eyed Wirt. "That depends on what you were about to do..."

Wirt rolled his eyes. He knew he was in no position to do this, Bill wasn't his and he didn't exactly want him to be, but Wirt knew he had to teach this to Bill somehow. Especially if Dipper ever made a reappearance.

"Give me your hand," Wirt instructed softly.

"No."

Wirt held out his hand.

Bill stiffly placed his hand in Wirt's after a minute. His fingertips were hot but the rest of his palm was cold.

Wirt spread out his fingers a little to relax Bill's hand. Bill let him, but was scanning Wirt's face and leaning back a bit.

"Which emotion is this?" Bill asked, trying to sound as if this touching weren't affecting him.

Wirt shrugged, he wasn't exactly sure. It wasn't love, he didn't love him. It was a little more than care, since this was perhaps considered intimate. "You'll understand when you feel it."

Bill's eyes were wide as he watched Wirt's fingers intertwine with his own. Wirt's hands were cold and full of calluses, but it felt nice to touch.

Wirt cracked a smile at the demon's expression. His mouth was just slightly open, his eyes were bigger than they'd ever been, and he kept glancing at Wirt's face then down to their locked hands.

"What does it feel like to you?" Wirt asked gently.

"Um...warm...it feels warm," Bill whispered.

"No, how does it feel on the inside?"

Bill was quiet for a second, thinking, then responded with, "Warm...warm, too."

Wirt nodded, accepting this as a valid emotion.

The two boys stayed like this for a few minutes. Even if this was nothing to Wirt, it was everything to Bill. It was all new to him. Wirt was patient with Bill, letting their hands stay this way since Bill seemed so entranced.