Think it'll work?

It would take a miracle.

(Will's POV)

I stiffened reflexively as I woke up, cautiously gauging my surroundings before daring to open my eyes.  I didn't appear to be restrained, which was usually a good sign, and I wasn't currently in any sort of debilitating pain.  I was also warm and somewhat comfortable.

Tentatively opening my eyes, it all came rushing back to me.  I suddenly remembered where I was and what had happened.  I was still leaning against Bill; we were both still sitting at the edge of the forest where the bubble had once been.  I remembered it had been late afternoon when I'd fallen asleep, but it was morning now.  I knew Bill didn't usually sleep, but it seemed unlikely that he'd sat there all night just so I could rest.

I sat up and stretched.  Bill glanced at me.

"All right?" he asked.  I wasn't quite sure how to answer.  Obviously I wasn't all right, but there was nothing to be done about that right now.  Safety as a concept had ceased to exist for me the moment Y/N had disappeared.

Bill was waiting for an answer, so I mumbled a vague "yeah."

He looked at me a bit too knowingly, but instead of pressing the issue, he turned to look up at the Fearamid.  I followed his gaze, the floating black monolith an intimidating silhouette in the early-morning sunshine.

"Do you think we can do it?" I asked quietly.

Bill scoffed. "Of course we can.  I'd have done it already if I wasn't so busy repeatedly rescuing you."

"I'm s-sorry," I mumbled. 

He waved it off.  "I guess it's my job.  But if you think I'm not going to make about a thousand damsel-in-distress jokes once this is over, you're going to be sorely disappointed."  He grinned mischievously. 

I sighed.  Guess I walked into that one.  But I still winced at the reminder of what had just happened.

"I d-don't understand," I whispered to myself, tucking my chin into my knees.

"What?"

"What does Strange have against m-me?"

"Nothing," Bill said forcefully.  I looked up, surprised at his sudden vehemence.  "It wasn't about you.  He took you just to get to me."

"He did?  Th-that's..."

"Unforgivable," Bill finished.  His eye was still fixed on the Fearamid.  "But don't you worry.  Murdering Strange in an extremely painful fashion is at the top of my to-do list."

Normally the idea of violence would turn my stomach, but at the moment I'd have liked to tear a few choice appendages off of Strange myself.

"What's the plan?" I asked him.

"We split up."

"Seriously?" I asked incredulously.

"No, listen.  I've had a few hours to think about this, and I've come up with a plan I think might work.  Strange is stretched thin, can't you sense it?  He's using up all his magic to keep control of the town.  If I attack the Fearamid and force him to defend himself, it'll weaken him further and give us a chance to kill him.  Meanwhile, you can find Y/N and get her out of danger."

I had to admit, it sounded like a solid plan.  Except, you know, the high probability that it would fail and we would all die.

"Wipe that skepticism off your face," Bill snapped.

"S-sorry."

He climbed to his feet and I followed suit.  "Are you ready?" he asked.

"No way."

"That's the spirit!  Let's do this!" he cheered sarcastically.  I rolled my eyes, but prepared to teleport.

I landed in a hallway of the Fearamid, stumbling a little.  My landings never were all that good.

I looked around warily, but the hallway was empty and featureless.  I picked a direction and set about searching for Y/N.  The floor rumbled before I had gotten far, indicating that Bill had begun his attack.  I quickened my pace.

My, what have we here?  a voice emanated from nowhere.  I skidded to a stop, suddenly uneasy.

Little lost demon, all on his own, the mental voice purred.  I looked around wildly, spotting an unassuming black cat crouched in the shadows.  Unassuming, that is, until it turned its glowing eyes on me like infernal spotlights.  I took a reflexive step back, preparing to run.

Because that's what you always do, isn't it? the cat asked, slinking towards me silently.  Run from your fears, your problems, and your feelings.  Utterly dependent on those around you, incapable of acting on your own.  You're a pretty pathetic specimen of a demon, aren't you?

I backed off as he came closer.  "You don't k-know anything about me."

Oh, don't I?  The cat purred in amusement.  I know more than you do.  I've been watching you since the very beginning.  Can you honestly say you've never heard my voice, whispering in your ear?  Have you never seen me out of the corner of your eye, but dismissing it as a shadow? 

"You've b-been watching us?  But why?" I cried, both anxious and skeptical.

Power, fool.  I've been working towards this moment for centuries, manipulating that simpleton Strange and using you and your idiot friends as my hapless little puppets.  The cat was practically shaking with mirth.

"A-are you saying-  It was you?  All this time, you've b-been influencing our thoughts?"  A horrible thought occurred to me.  "That night- the fight, the deal- that was all YOU?!"

Oh, no.  Those unwise decisions were all on you, though I must take credit for nudging you in that direction.  It would never have occurred to you to betray Y/N's trust the way you did if I hadn't been for me, I confess.

"I-I-  y-you-"  I was speechless, eye filling with tears from either shock or grief or some combination thereof. 

Aww, what are you going to do, crybaby?  You've never stuck up for yourself in your life.  The cat swished his tail, confident in his assessment of my personality.  Even now, with everything on the line, you're still ready to run away.  After all, that's all you're good for, isn't it?

I could feel his words twisting themselves into my psyche, urging me to obey.  I felt my knees weaken in response, preparing to turn and flee the way I always did.

No.  I can't.  Not this time.  Y/N's life is at stake. 

Beneath the effect of his poisonous words and my own cowardice, I felt a part of myself that I hadn't ever accessed bubble to the surface of my consciousness.  The years of suffering at Dipper and Mabel's hands, the pain and fear and humiliation, had never been enough for me to feel this intense emotion.

Y/N was enough.  This cat, who had so freely admitted to destroying the only happiness I had ever had, was now the object of this newfound feeling.

What had Bill said?  This is a golden opportunity to get very, VERY angry.

My hands burst into flames.  Smoke leaked from under my eye patch.  The cat hissed, taken aback, then started to stalk towards me.  As he moved, he expanded until he was the size of a tiger, growling at me with fangs that were suddenly menacing.

Undaunted, I lunged at the giant cat with a growl of my own.  He pounced on me, pinning me to the ground, but I grabbed at his neck with my flaming hands and he withdrew with a hiss, singed.  I scrambled back to my feet and placed one hand against the wall.

Lines of yellow light shot along the wall, spreading to the floor and ceiling.  The cat tried to retreat to escape the spell, but he was surrounded in an instant.  The lines on the floor grew brighter, becoming burning hot, while the ceiling began to rumble.

The floor burst into flames surrounding the cat.  He screeched, a terrifying sound that was like nails on a thousand chalkboards.  He spun and tried to leap away, but the ceiling collapsed on top of him at the same moment.  Huge chunks of black stone rained on top of him, burying him completely in the flames.

The screeching continued for an endless moment, then trailed off.  The flames died down slowly.  The rocks, which had begun to glow red-hot, did not shift or tremble.  Just to be sure, I approached cautiously.  I nudged a rock with my foot, flinched back and waited for a moment, then shifted the pile with magic.

Under the pile of rocks, the cat had shrunk back to normal size.  He was curled up on the floor, looking for all the world like he was sleeping if smoke hadn't been rising from the charred corpse.

I stared at the dead cat for a moment.  Then the building shook again, reminding me that I had to hurry.  I turned back the way I had come and took off running.  I had to find Y/N, and fast.