Archive of Our Own ^beta

                The plan had been simple. Find a human, manipulate them into building the portal, take over the world, discard the human pawn. Easy.

                Or at least, it should have been. But how could he have accounted for someone like Ford? Intelligent, naïve, easy on the eye- Stanford Pines had been perfect from the very beginning. Hell, he’d summoned Bill first! That never happened! And on top of that, Ford was practically begging to worship him from the start. These days, he often caught the human staring at him like he hung the stars in the sky, and he’s lost track of the number of times he’s heard Ford murmur, “Anything for you, my Muse.”

                So, yeah. Perfect.

                He’d never realized how much of a problem perfect could be.

                Ford made him feel… Well, Ford made him feel. It was… weird. And not in the usual way. He’d never really had feelings for anyone like that before, but recent events had awoken feelings that raged through him like a storm, powerful and overwhelming and destructive. Dangerous. It had come on so suddenly he'd be dizzy if he hadn't been in the mindscape at the time. For one moment, the momentous force with which these feelings slammed into him, washed over him, as for one moment, there was a spark of hope in whatever blackened dead husk he had in place of a heart.

                He’d led on dozens of pawns before, but he’d never caught feelings for one. Who caught feelings for a tool? It was a liability.

                And yet.

                Somehow, Ford had blown through each of his defenses with little more than a few adoring looks and some earnest words. He must be off his game or something, for a lowly human to be able to affect him like this. If Ford wasn’t so valuable, Bill might’ve abandoned him to try again with someone else. As it was, he’d be a fool to get rid of Stanford.

                Even so, he was lucky that the Henchmaniacs couldn’t see what went on between the two of them in the dreamscape, or they might think he was going soft. Lately, Ford had taken to trying to introduce Bill to human experiences- insecure in his value (though why, Bill had no idea) he had recently requested a one-for-one system, where Bill would show Ford something one night, and vice versa the next. It did wonders for Ford’s morale, so he’d found it largely harmless to indulge.

                Now, he was beginning to question his decision. And all because of one little comment, one strong reply to Bill’s teasing, and he’d been blown out of the water and into the frying pan.

                He’d constructed a human form to wear for the occasions, if the situation called for it- it allowed him to get a more accurate understanding of what it felt like for Ford, which was the point of the whole thing. Last night, Ford had taken him stargazing in a meadow of soft, white flowers. He’d asked Bill to put on the human form for it, and they’d laid on a blanket of lush grass side by side for hours.

                Ford had anxiously expounded on the scientific value of using the human form for this, clearly out of nerves, so Bill had decided to tease him a little bit.

                “You seem awful interested in my form, Sixer. Are you sure you don’t just want the chance to look at the pretty meatsuit I made for you?” he’d asked, rolling onto his side to throw up one knee and trail a hand down his thigh, putting his body on display. Not that he was actually showing anything off- he was fully clothed and it wasn’t a real body besides. But that hadn’t stopped the blush from rising to Ford’s cheeks.

                “Actually, in terms of pure aesthetic, I prefer your original form,” Ford had confessed, before launching into yet another diatribe about how he wanted to show Bill the feeling of the dew on his skin and all that sappy shit. But the damage had already been done.

                It had planted the idea in his head, after all. That Ford might truly like him as he was, rather than for what he could do. He’d never considered the option before, never considered that there might be an even deeper form of devotion that Ford could give him.

                Love.

                He hadn’t had anything like that in a long, long time. He knew he’d never had anything like the pure adoration that Ford bestowed upon him, and suddenly, an avenue had presented itself that might allow him to keep that forever.

                To keep Ford forever.

                If he made Ford his, he could stick around for more than just the afterparty when the portal was finally finished. They could rule the world together, side by side, could make a world just for them.

                And all at once, that became the plan.

                Step one, secure Stanford as his. It would be easy, judging by the doe-eyed glances and lingering touches Ford didn’t seem to be aware he was giving. Step two, finish the portal, together. Step three, remake the world, together. Step four, happily ever after, together.

                Easy.

                Or at least, it should have been.