Dipper didn't know what to do. Time was running out. Bill was almost finished with his plan, and none of them could do anything to stop it, short of killing the Dream Demon himself. Of course, as a being of pure energy, he couldn't be killed. And even if he was possessing a body, his new power levels would prevent anything from touching him. And if someone somehow managed to hurt him, he could simply abandon the body and find another schmuck to make a deal. The twelve-year-old sighed and kept flipping through the pages of the journals. The Stans were trying to delay Bill with whatever traps and spells they could, and Mabel was out recruiting the forest creatures to fight. And Dipper was doing nothing! He couldn't even find a single hint to a solution! The only thing he'd found was that Bill could be killed whilst in a body, but he already knew that no one could touch him if he was possessing… The thought trailed away as a new idea prodded at his mind. He followed it carefully, trying desperately not to lose the trail of bread crumbs. Bill had to be in a body. He couldn't be touched while in a body. He would leave if he thought he was in danger. But he was still a demon, which meant that he could be forcefully bound to an object. If bound, he wouldn't be able to leave a damaged body. And though a body couldn't be hurt while he was there… It could be hurt beforehand. If Cipher was bound to an already dying body-no, he'd know ahead of time, like always…Wouldn't he?

Dipper frantically turned through the pages until he found the guide to sigils and symbols. Before he did anything else, he took out a piece of chalk and quickly drew a large circle on the wooden floor and marked it with the signs for warding and blindness. It would do for now. Then he turned back to his books, searching for the binding sigil. He found it on a page of its own, decorated with little sketches of what happened when the process went wrong. He shuddered but kept looking. It was very complicated, and the more powerful the intended victim, the larger the sigil had to be. But with the supplies stored in the lab, Dipper thought they could do it. Then came the issue of killing a body slowly. Bill could not be allowed notice he was dying until it was too late for him to do anything about it, like sinking the continent in revenge. That meant more blinding sigils, in addition to the one covering the binding trap. Feeling sick but forcing it away, Dipper flipped to the page on toxins and poisons. Most of them were actually too deadly, killing much too quickly. Finally he found one that, although "very unpleasant" when first ingested, was unnoticeable right up until the end. Again, its ingredients were in the lab. Dipper laughed. They could do this! They had a chance! Then the other side of the plan fell on him. His insides felt like they were melting into a cold pile of slime in the bottom of his stomach. Bill could only possess someone if they made a deal with him. Someone was going to have to die. A tiny voice in his head tried to point out the memory of his last conversation with the demon, but he frantically shut it up. The feeling got worse anyway and he started shaking as he unwillingly began counting people off the list. Only someone who had dealt with Bill before had the experience to do it, and the only person outside of the Pines family was Gideon Gleeful, who… That was better not to think about. Besides, the voice whispered, he probably wouldn't kind of deal with someone who wasn't of Pines blood. That left the four of them; the three people he cared most about in the world. Mabel, though she would be willing, was unacceptable. Dipper would not let his sister die. Either of the Stans would also be willing, but Stanley's knowledge was needed to stop what Bill had set into motion. And after these events, Stanford was the only person the world would trust with the future. He needed to be around for the people of Gravity Falls and for the rest of the world to rely on. Insistently, the voice reminded, Bill swore that the only vessel he wanted was, "PinETReE." And so… And so-

Dipper jumped out of the circle as the feeling in his gut became unbearable. He made it to a garbage can before throwing up. He clutched the can with trembling hands, tears streaming down his face. There was only one way to stop Bill, to save the world: he had to kill himself.

He knelt, shivering and crying as his brain raced to find another solution. Surely he could find someone else, or call the Stans, or Mabel, or anyone else to help him think of a way out of this. But Stanley didn't have a phone yet, Stanford's was broken, and Mabel… Mabel couldn't know about any of this. Not until Bill was gone and she was safe. He had to save his sister. And there wasn't enough time to find anyone else. He had to save Mabel. He waited to make sure that he wouldn't get sick again, then climbed unsteadily to his feet. He had to save his sister.