"I feel like our ship's going down tonight.
But it's always darkest before the light.
And that's enough…
Even if I say that it's over now.
Even if we want to move on somehow.
And just like that, we come alive…"

"Whatever You Want," by P!nk

Chapter 1 – One Last Game…

"Man, this is kinda like Déjà vu, isn't it?"

Wendy Corduroy turned towards her pink-haired friend walking alongside her.

"I mean," Tambry noted, her eyes glued to her new smartphone, "Didn't we do something like this earlier this summer?"

"Kinda…" A sly smile formed on Wendy's freckled face. "And just like then, you have your nose stuck against a phone screen, being no help whatsoever."

"Hmph! Whatever…"

As annoying as it was to have Tambry's attention divided because of that stupid, little machine, Wendy could only sigh and offer a gentle beam. This was definitely a better alternative than watching her (and the rest of their group) be zapped into stone statues by otherworldly monsters.

It had nearly a week since the calamity attacked their quiet mountain town of Gravity Falls. The dream demon, Bill Cipher, and his nightmarish landscape dubbed "Weirdmageddon" had been wiped from the face of the Earth. Thankfully, life went back to normal for the two teenage girls, save for a few bad memories here and there. A shiver traveled up Wendy's spine as the feeling of helplessness of being transformed into tapestry came and went yet again.

The rest of Gravity Falls appeared to follow suit, as nearly all the town came out to participate in the annual "End of Summer" block sale. Lined up and down Main Street, dozens of residents set up fold-up tables and chairs, hoping to pawn off their unwanted goods on an unsuspecting rube walking along the road (or at the very least, trade treasures with each other).

Such was the case for the near penniless cashier hoping to find a truly special farewell gift…

"So, why are you doing this again?"

"Huh?" Wendy looked up from a random box of junk she was shifting though.

"I said," Tambry repeated, barely breaking eye-contact with the screen inches away, "Why are you doing this again?

"Well…" Wendy stood up and brushed the gathered dirt from her jeaned knees. "I…" Her expression twisted as she paused to find the right words. "I dunno. I mean, it's just…feels right, y'know. It would be nice if I can give him something special to remember me by."

"Or…"

"Or what?" The lumberjane asked as she continued on with her best friend.

Tambry's thumbs jammed against the phone's touch-keyboard at lightning speed. "Or you could just tell him the truth…"

"Oh, not this again!" Wendy crossed her arms and rolled her emerald eyes.

"…about how you really feel…"

"I did, Tambry!" Wendy insisted. "Back in the woods when it was just Dipper and me. I told him exactly how things have to be, and he seemed totally cool with it."

"That's not the same thing, and you know it, Wen…"

Wendy groaned aloud, making several patrons look back towards the two girls passing down the street.

"Okay, then." Tambry challenged. "Care to prove me wrong?"

"Gladly…"

"If that were true, then why aren't you doing the same for his sister? You know, "Girl-Dipper!"

"Mabel." The taller teenager corrected. "But that's different. Mabel's great and everything, and a total blast to hang with, but with Dipper. It's…a bit more special. He's my boy.

"Boy-what?"

"Wha-?"

A thin smirk spread across Tambry's face. "I think you mean "boy-friend!""

"You know exactly what I meant!" The redhead pouted, tucking her arms deeper against her flannelled chest. "We've been through so much these last few months. We even led the charge against – "

"Careful…" Tambry held up a finger. "New rule, remember? Don't let your mouth get you tossed in "ye-old-stocks"…again."

"Ugh! Don't remind me…" Wendy took a peek around, minding the town's most recent law before whispering to Tambry, "you-know-who" and helped save the town! And I think Mabel would be able to get that."

"Of course she does." The goth agreed. "We all do!"

"You…do? Wait, who's "we?""

"Everyone you could think of…" Gripping her cell tightly with her right hand, the punk-rocker began to count off with her free fingers. "Me, the rest of the guys; especially Robbie." Tambry glimpsed at Wendy out of the corner of her eye, and mumbled, "Thank heavens that's over with…"

"But – "

Tambry interrupted and went on, "And not to mention how bad the kid gets razzed by his sister and the old man over you…"

"Get out!" Wendy exclaimed in outrage. "They do not!"

"Believe it, girl. All the time."

The clerk began to wonder, "Then, why wouldn't I heard something about it? I do work there, you know."

"Work" is an awfully strong word…"

"HA-HA!" Wendy responded mockingly. "Funny! Real funny!"

"And why do you think they keep you in the dark? The same reason they wouldn't dare to say it to you face-to-face: you'd kick their sorry butts up and down the street!"

"Darn tootin'" Wendy prided.

"Besides, that kid gets himself in enough trouble as it is, with ghosts and all that crazy stuff. I'm sure the last thing he'd want to do is bring more heat down on him."

Wendy paused to reflect. It wasn't like she never had to leap to Dipper's defense over teasing before.

"Look," Tambry's full attention went back to her smartphone. "I can see that this is buggin' you…"

"It's not – "

"Dude, I'm not even looking at you, and it's more than obvious. Instead of going on and on with some great scavenger hunt for the perfect "good-bye" gift, maybe you should ask yourself why this "good-bye" means so you much to you…"

"It's…" Wendy cleared her throat after being caught off-guard. "It's easier said than done."

"Maybe it's you making it harder for yourself. Think about it, Wendy. You goof off all day with Dipper at work. You help him out with his weird little experiments. Heck, I've never even seen another boy in house because of your dad, and yet, you guys haven't missed a single movie night yet.

"What can I say?" Wendy shrugged. "Dip's super small, so he's easily to smuggle in places."

"You should say that he means a lot to you, genius! You'd probably never admit it, but you're going to miss all that aren't you?"

Wendy took a second to gather her thoughts. "So, what do you think I should do then?"

"Seriously?"

"Seriously."

"If you want my honest opinion," Tambry's trademark frown twisted into another smile. "I think you should find the kid a step-stool so he can actually reach to kiss you good-bye before getting on that bus…"

"Alright!" Wendy threw her curled fists down to her sides in a fit of rage and spun towards the source of her mockery. "That's the last – " She froze in mid-step as her eyes focused on something glimmering behind Tambry. "That's perfect!"

"Wha?" Tambry, still in flinched state, reopened her eyes to see Wendy hurrying past her and towards a table filled with clutter. From the top of the pile, the ginger plucked a small round device that looked almost like an old-school portable CD player. Its black plastic had chipped and faded with age. The see-though portion of the CD tray had been scratched up beyond belief. A tiny LCD screen at the very bottom was cracked straight down the middle. Strangely enough, it had a bit of hidden girth to it.

Wendy noticed a series of control buttons of the lower-front of the player. "Let's see: skip back, skip forward, play, stop, reset; wait, here's open." She flicked a fingertip against the button and the CD tray shot open, releasing a cloud of dust onto Wendy's freckled face, making her gag loudly. Tambry covered her mouth, to both keep the filth out and to hide her laughter.

"Yuck!" Wendy exclaimed between forced coughs, "It looks like this baby hasn't been cleaned in decades!" Taking a step back, she held the machine at a distance and gently blew into the open compartment, sending the remainder of the dirt flying. Once the air cleared, Wendy peered into the raised piece and noticed the shining CD lens to the upper right to the worn-out spindle. A warning had been etched below it, warning her in every known language to "NEVER TOUCH THE LENS."

After closing the CD tray, Wendy flipped the device, upside down, noticing an oval-shaped power button on its tip and two extension ports labeled "Control 1" and "Control 2." On the underside, a series of copyright information and regulations had been pressed into a black and white label.

"Okay," Wendy began to read aloud. "So, this little guy is called a "Wega Multi-Wonder." Despite noticing a slot for batteries, the teen saw that a power adapter was attached to its back end and led back to the table mixed along with several other unknown cables.

"This is awesome!" The high-schooler turned back towards Tambry with her discovery in the palms of her hands. "It's all sorts of perfect, right?"

"To be honest," Tambry's sights broke away from her the glowing screen. "I'm surprised I didn't notice it earlier."

"I think Dip's going to love it!" Wendy walked towards the table and began to wrap all the loose cabling up at neat as possible. "It may not seem like much, but he really digs old-time retro stuff like this. Heck, he spent half the summer carrying around that super-bulky laptop, so he'll get a kick outta this!"

"Imagine that." Tambry mused as she went back to typing on her phone. "A super-small, often forgotten toy that most people see as a hunk of junk, but yet, a select few can see its inner beauty. Yep; absolutely no parallels drawn here."

Wendy ignored her friend as she searched around. "I wonder whose table this is?"

"A-hem!"

The green-flannel girl saw that Tambry reached out with an open hand.

"Wait? This table is yours?!"

"My folks, actually." Tambry explained. "But I'll be more than happy to take your barely-earned funds off your hands."

"Fair enough." Wendy dug through her pockets for her wallet. "Whatcha' want for it?"

"Hmm…I think…50 dollars would sound about right…"

"50 bucks?!" Wendy nearly dropped her wallet in shock. "That's highway robbery!"

"No," Tambry elaborated. "That's the added fee for "sentimental value.""

"Grr…" Wendy took a breath and regained her cool. She took a step forward and used her index finger to lower Tambry's phone. "How's about I make you a counteroffer?"

"I'm listening…"

Standing face-to-face with her friend, Wendy went on, "Here's what I'm thinking: I'll give you 10 bucks for the Wega CD-thingie, and as a bonus…" She paused, took a ten-dollar bill out of her wallet, and cracked her knuckles loudly so that Tambry would hear. "…I'll forget about how you've been ripping on me and Dipper all day long. Deal?"

Without thinking twice, Tambry took the money from Wendy's hand. "Pleasure doing business with you, girl," she replied sarcastically.

"Nah, the pleasure's all mine…"

"Now, I know it's not exactly what you wanted," Dipper hurried into Wendy's room as she closed the door behind them. "But I found this one movie in Stan's secret stash, and it really looks messed-up!"

"That's great, Dip…"

Wendy stood against her wooden bedroom door as she watched her devotee bounce about with an excited energy – something that didn't happen often – and yet, somehow she was one of the few (if not only) that could bring that out of his usually-gloomy interior.

For all the craziness said earlier, Tambry did have one thing right: their remaining time was indeed limited, and when everything was said and done, Wendy was undeniably going to miss this. She was going to miss him.

As Dipper kicked off his sneakers and settled onto her fluffy bed, Wendy gradually approached him, trying her best to find the right words.

"…but before we start "Movie Night," there's – there's something I want to talk to you about."

Dipper, sensing the seriousness in his crush, scooted towards the edge of the bed, and let his noodle legs dangle. "Y-Yeah. Of course, Wendy. Is – Is everything okay?"

"Everything's cool. It's just that – "

"Is it the nightmares again? I'm still having them, too, but – "

"No, Dipper – just – just listen for a sec, okay?"

As asked, her little buddy went silent and remained as still as possible. Wendy turned towards her backpack and dug through it for her surprise. "Give me – it's here somewhere. C'mon! Aha! There you are!"

Confused, Dipper shifted to his side and tried to peer over Wendy's towering form to no prevail. He went back to position as she came back around with her arms tucked away behind her back. Dipper watched with a quiet awe as Wendy knelt down on one knee to meet him at eye level. To his surprise, he could have sworn that his crush was starting to blush slightly.

"Sorry about that," Wendy apologized. "Now, this might seem kinda cheesy, but I got you something…"

"Me?" Dipper asked. "But why?"

"I dunno." His partner in crime said with a sense of uncertainty. "I guess I just wanted you to have a cool keepsake to take home with you. Y'know; make you think of me and this place when you get down in the dumps…"

"Wendy, I – " Dipper's face fell as he came to a realization. "But – I don't have anything for you…"

"Pfft!" She blew her tongue between her lips. "Whatever! The way I see it…" Wendy gave him a love tap on his cheek with her free hand. "You helped save the town, freed my family from being stone statues, and made sure I didn't spend eternity as a carpet. Kiddo, you and I are more than even!"

She slowly bought her other hand around to her front. Dipper's eyes lowered to the ancient contraption resting in Wendy's palm. His natural curiosity taking hold, the young sleuth analyzed the player from every possible angle.

"This…" He flipped it upside down to see the label. "This is a Wega Multi-Wonder …" He looked up at Wendy with a blank expression.

"Oh, man…" Wendy's heart sunk into her stomach. "He totally hates it! He probably thinks it's the lamest thing ever!"

All of a sudden, Dipper's expression instantly changed. A wave of pure excitement and joy overcame him as he proudly clamped onto the CD player with both hands. "Wendy, I can't believe it! You got me a Wega Multi-Wonder!"

Before Wendy could react to his sudden transformation, Dipper leapt up from the bed and tightly wrapped his arms around her torso. "Thank you! Thank you so much!"

"You're…welcome…" The older teen took a moment to get past her initial shock. She shook her head clear and placed her hands against the back of Dipper's head. "I mean, you're more than welcome, little guy." Once Dipper let her go, Wendy couldn't help but ask, "Now, don't get me wrong; I'm glad you like it, but isn't it just some old clunky CD player?"

"Ah," Dipper proudly wagged a finger. "Looks can be deceiving." He turned the unit right side-up and used his hand to highlight a tab at the top of the machine. "You see this part here?"

"Yeah."

"Watch this…" He applied a bit of pressure, and with a somewhat rusty swing, the hinge collapsed into the system.

"Whoa?" Wendy's eyes grew wide. "I didn't know it could do that."

"Of course it can!" Dipper declared elatedly. "The Wega Multi-Wonder is a "Multimedia CD-Rom Entertainment System!"

"Uh…" His not-so-secret love raised an eyebrow. "In English, Professor?"

"Wendy…" Dipper's smile stretched even further. "It's a video game system!"

"That little thing?" Wendy pointed at. "Hold on. I thought old-school games were big and bulky and looked like VCRs?"

"Not this baby. Maybe I can – " Dipper raised his head. "By chance, this didn't come with any sort of wiring, did it?"

Wendy held her backpack outwards, "Only a sea of 'em, chief."

Carefully placing his new item on Wendy's bed, Dipper began to nosily dig through the sea of wires. He murmured to himself with each new discovery. "Oh, yeah, that'll do nicely…"

Even with her height advantage, Wendy had to shift from foot to foot to try to see into the mess below her.
"Find anything good?"

"Tons of stuff!" The small boy struggled with the tangles in his hands. "It may look messy, but I really want to show you – "He groaned with sight frustration. "- something really great is hidden inside of that little thing. I know that sounds kinda stupid…"

Wendy folded her arms as she watched her aficionado continue to work, easily able to see the irony in his statement, remembering Tambry said something similar earlier.

"Not at all, Dip. I know exactly what you mean."

At long last, Dipper was able to free a series of wires from the mess in Wendy's knapsack. He scooped up the game system behind him, and headed towards the old tube television on her dresser. He immediately started to plug the foreign cables into it.

"Neat! Your TV has the right ports!"

"Just watch the antenna, please." Wendy asked. "I just got the signal down right. You don't know how hard it is to get reception in the middle of the woods!"

"I won't mess with it! I swear!"

After a few seconds, a new, upbeat tempo filled Wendy's room. Dipper stood back from the television screen and prided over a job well done. Wendy walked over to the dresser, watching a colorful, rainbow-esque logo spin wildly over the backdrop of the Milky Way Galaxy within the confines of the monitor.

"Wega CD…" She read aloud. "Your entryway into a new dimension…"

"Yeah," Dipper said. "That was the company's motto to try to appeal to kids of the '90s."

"Heck, I'd bought something like this if I knew about it."

"Wendy," he laughed. "You are technically a '90s kid."

"Boom!" The lumberjack princess pumped a fist into the air. "Child of the best era!"

"Well, of course." Dipper turned back towards her. "Why do you think people pay out the nose online for this thing?"

"What are you talking about?"

"Usually," Dipper went into detail. "The Wega Multi-Wonder goes for a few hundred in online auctions."

"A…few…hundred?!" Wendy stuttered and stared at the tiny game player in disbelief. Dollar signs flashed before her eyes for a split second, before she refocused on the grateful thirteen year old in front of her. Swallowing her guilt, she patted Dipper on the back. "That's…incredible, man!"

The two buddies watched in quiet awe as the images within the TV screen morphed and flipped around without rhyme or reason.

"So, how do we get this going?"

"What?"

"You know," Wendy pressed on. "You said we can play games on this, right? So, let's play already!"

"Um…" Dipper scratched the back of his head. "It's not that simple. I mean, we have all the wiring and even some controllers here, but we don't have any games for it."

"Boo!" Wendy hissed. "Lemme guess: the games are worth a ton of cash, too, right?"

"Some are." He admitted. "Remember, they stopped making this stuff even before you were born.

"Dude, are you calling me old?"

Dipper stuck out his hands and waved them, "No! No! I didn't mean – " He stopped as soon as he seen Wendy flash him a toothy grin. "Aha! You got me. But seriously, the games are really uncommon."

"Does that mean we're outta luck?"

"Not exactly." Dipper said with a hint of hesitation. "But…"

"But?"

"There is a way to get some games for us to play, but it's definitely a gray-area."

"Ooh!" Wendy rubbed her hands together. "I do love the gray-area!"

"Well," Dipper began to theorize. "The Wega Multi-Wonder was made before CD copy-protection was created…"

"Meaning?"

"Meaning that we can basically download games from the Internet and they'll play like store-bought ones."

"Then, what are we waiting for? Let's get to it!"

"But, Wendy. It's not exactly…um…legal." Dipper rubbed his chin. "But at the same time, the majority of those game companies were shuttered decades ago."

"So, it's like a victimless crime?"

"I didn't say that exactly – "

"I know! I know! Gray-area!" Wendy lowered herself to Dipper's eye-level. "Listen, Dipper. I'll worry about that kinda stuff, and you worry about getting this thing off the ground. Besides…" She looked away as her own words struck harder than she expected. "Besides, when's the next time you and I are going to have a chance to do something like this again?"

Convinced by his crush, Dipper nodded in agreement. "Alright, Wendy. We'll do it. This is what I'll need…

"Yes! Chalk up another win for me!"

"I can't believe it…" Dipper banged his head against the Pine-Tree comforter decorating Wendy's bed. "When did you learn how to do the special moves in "Fight Fighters"?"

Wendy placed her controller down. "What's that old saying? Oh, yeah. "A gentleman never asks, and a lady never tells"…"

"That doesn't – " Dipper argued. "That's a totally broken analogy!"

She scoffed. "The only thing "broken" is your fighter on the ground over there." Lying on her stomach, Wendy leaned over and pointed at the K.O.'ed character at the bottom of the TV screen. "See? That's you, right? And he's out like a light! D-E-A-D!"

"Okay, and with that said…" He moaned and swung his legs over to the floor. "I think it's time for a new game." Dipper opened the Wega CD Player, popped the current disc out, and inserted another homemade game.

Once more, the two waited patiently as the psychedelic intro screen came to a standstill. The CD drive grinded loudly as it read the newly-received data. After a few seconds, a blue and white logo appeared against a black backdrop as a sing-sound effect blared through the television's speakers:

"WE-GA!"

"Man, all this load-time is the pits!" Wendy complained. "I don't know how people used to put up with it."

"Wendy," Dipper tried not to laugh. "There's loading in video games today!"

"But still!" She insisted. "Nothing is as long as this! It's almost like a lame-o version of torture!"

"No one said it was a perfect trade-off. It's called Fight Fighters CD for a reason; crystal-clear sound in lieu for a brief pause between rounds."

"Uh-huh. That's interesting and all, Mr. History, but why don't you sit your butt back down and let me wail on you some more, okay?"

Zinged, Dipper returned to his seat on Wendy's bed. "We'll see about that…" he uttered under his breath.

"What was that?"

"I said, "Hey, look! The game's starting!""

Within minutes, the duo found themselves within a cartoony-kart racer. They selected their characters and raced countless laps, racing alongside a half-dozen of computer-controlled opponents. Halfway through the race, Dipper found himself caught off-guard by a random question.

"Hey, Dip?"

"Mmm-hmm?"

"You know I was kiddin' before, but I gotta ask: how come you know so much about this stuff? I mean, I know you like games and all, but you literally brought this back to life in seconds!"

Dipper blushed. "It's nothing really. To be honest, I was recently taking a page from Grunkle Ford's book, and doing some research – try to learn a bit of history about these things…"

"But why?"

He paused for a moment, while breaking eye-contact and returning his attention towards the glowing screen several feet away. "Because…I can't help but think about all that weird stuff we went through at the arcade…"

"Oh…" Wendy's mind instantly began to race. A flash of still images appeared before her; a literal nightmare made reality as she remembered being entrapped in a virtual world by a wicked hero turned villain, looking to draw Dipper into a twisted game of revenge.

Even worse, after making their escape, both teenagers were tricked and attacked by foreign forces of the gaming universe only weeks later. Through faith in each other and perseverance, they were able to send the wickedness back through and restore a brief peace to Gravity Falls.

"But, that shouldn't matter now, right?" Wendy thought. "After all, I literally fought side by side with that Rumble guy during the assault on Bill's fortress. If that doesn't mean things are cool between all of us, I don't know what would."

"It's just that there's so much we don't know about." Dipper illuminated. "Ford's journals never mentioned any supernatural activity from the arcade, so where did it all come from? And how – "

"Dipper," Wendy finally spoke up, her eyesight constantly switching between the TV and her crestfallen chum. If she didn't say anything now, Wendy knew he'd end up driving himself nuts over it. "You gotta listen to me on this. All that craziness – it's over with. Us getting rid of that triangle-freak saw to that. From now on, games and arcades are simply that; fun things to play and cool places to hang out."

Dipper glanced at his main squeeze with a sober realization before focusing on the task at hand. "Maybe you're right, Wendy. Maybe things are finally going back to the way they're supposed to be…"

"Tell me about it, buddy." Wendy felt a hint of relief seeing Dipper return to a calmed state. "Besides, it looks like you have bigger problems."

"Like what?"

With her hands wrapped around her control pad, Wendy used her chin to point ahead. "Like me about to leave your scrawny butt in the dust! See ya! Wouldn't wanna be ya!"

"WHAT?!"

Sure enough, Wendy's avatar sped pass his game-character on the now split screen of her TV. After an initial shock, Dipper bit his lip and jammed down on the acceleration button.

"What are you – that's not fair, Dipper! How are you doing that with the sparks comin' out of your kart like that?"

"It's called "drifting," Wendy. And it's not my fault you don't know how to do it. Besides," he flashed a snarky smirk. "I thought you knew all the moves…"

"You little – " The lanky cashier had to get serious. They were already through the last half of the final lap. Her cockiness could cost her the race, and with that, everlasting bragging rights. And when the going got stuff, Wendy could always rely on one thing to get the job done.

Without taking her eyes off the road, Wendy began to slightly lean over to the right of the bed, towards Dipper. Luckily the fifteen-year-old was still taller than her slightly younger cohort even with lying prone on her elbows.

"Huh? Wendy! Get outta the way! I can't see a thing!"

"I'm sorry…" She said without a trace of sincerity in her tone. "I just had to reach out and stretch these old bones. YAWN!"

"Wen – Mmm!" Frustrated, Dipper hopped to his knees and looked over Wendy's shoulder to barely be able to see the TV screen. Her cheap maneuver had cost him precious seconds.

There was no way he was going to let this stand.

"Hang on, Wendy!" He drew a finger towards the game from behind her. "What's that on the screen?"

She squinted her green eyes. "What's what?"

Before she knew it, Dipper reached over and tapped on Wendy's brown trapper hat, sending it downward and over her line of sight.

"Right there!" As Wendy shot up in reflex, Dipper slid under her right arm and began to catch up.

"You can't do that!" Wendy attempted to lift her cap while maintaining her grip on her controller. "That's cheating!"

"Really? You're going to call me out for cheating?!"

"You – " She finally regained her vision. "You're darn straight I am!" With only a fourth of a lap to go, Wendy knew it was "do or die" time. "You forget the golden rule here, kiddo…" The girl threw a gangly arm about Dipper's head and held him against her side. "It's my house, so I make all the rules!"

"Not…fair…" The much-smaller adolescent struggled in vain. "But…have…to…make…it…" He tugged and grunted against Wendy's hold. After a few tugs, Dipper freed his head from her grasp, but at a price. His controller slipped out of his hand, dragging across the blanket and landing on the wooden floor with a loud thud."

"No!" Dipper watched helplessly as his character sped out of control and slammed into the nearest curving barricade. The vehicle exploded upon impact as a red X flashed on his portion of the screen.

"TOO BAD!"

"The game does have a point, Dip! HAHAHAHA!"

Dipper saw Wendy speeding down the open road; a smile stretching from ear to ear as victory was within reach. He turned his head to see Wendy's legs kicking about gently in the air. With a devious revenge in mind, Dipper skipped backwards and seized his sweetheart's shins in a death lock.

"What in the - ?"

Wendy spun around to see Dipper holding her red-and-orange stocking feet firmly against his chest. Four fingers dangled over her soles like protruding spider-legs. Her eyes instantly became saucers.

"You wanna cheat, eh?" Her pal threatened. "Let's see you win now…"

"Dipper! Don't you dare – GHAHAHAHA!"

Wendy let out a guffaw as Dipper exploited her most secret of ticklish spots without mercy. She bucked and heaved and kicked her legs as hard as she could, feeling the tiny speck being dragged about for the ride.

"W-WHOA!" Dipper exclaimed. Being bounced around wildly, he held on to Wendy's ankles for dear life.

Both teens stared at the TV, seeing that Wendy's car had merely swerved all over the road. She was still in the game.

"TEEHEEHEEHEE!" Wendy swallowed the giggles rising from her lungs. "Not my feet! Leggo my feet!"

"Never!" Dipper pinched a big toe. "Not until you crash, too!"

"But – BWAHAHAHA! B-But you still won't win! It'll end in a draw!"

"I…can…live…with…that…!"

"Well, I can't!"

Wendy fought against the involuntary mirth and forced her eyelids open. Using all of her willpower, she regained focus and used her controller to bring her player back into the center of the road.

"Oh, no, you don't!" Dipper scrapped the edges of Wendy's heels, making her foot bottoms twitch in reflex. "Just give up already!"

Wendy bit down on her lip to maintain control. "You…wish!"

He gently tugged on her pinkie toe as a distraction. "Crash! Crash!"

She dug her fingers firmly into the controller's curved edges. "Ain't…gonna…happen!"

The kart was mere yards away from the digital finish line.

"No! No! No!" Dipper raked up and down Wendy's feet, hoping to break the last of her concentration.

"Yes! Yes! Yes!"

The red car finally crossed the finish line. A miniscule driver donning a bright maroon speed suit hopped from the vehicle and hurried towards a victory podium where they hopped into first place and cheered.

"OH, YEAH!" Wendy exploded with a newfound energy, freeing herself from Dipper's attack. On her knees, she pumped her fists into the air and hissed into the atmosphere. "And the crowd goes wild! When no one believed she could do it, the young up-start Corduroy proves the world wrong, and goes home with the gold!"

"I still –" Dipper rubbed his face in shame against the cuddly blanket. "How did she - ?"

"Believe it, mister!" Wendy pounced on the fallen gamer, pinning his shoulders against the bed as she bragged. "I told you, Dipper! My house! My rules! Cheat all you want – "

"You cheated first!" Dipper protested with a laugh.

"Cheat all you want," she ignored him. "Tickle torture all you want. It doesn't make a difference. You take me on and – ' Wendy opened a closed fist. "BOOM!"

"Yeah, yeah…" Dipper tucked his arms and pouted. "BOOM" says the cheater…"

"And you…" Wendy climbed further and began to poke at Dipper's love handles; a tactic she often borrowed from his twin sister. "Speaking of, what…

"AHA!"

"…did I tell you…"

"GWA! Wendy! Don't!"

"…about tickling?!"

Dipper snorted as Wendy sat back up. Once her guard was down, he lounged at her with a whimpered roar and attacked her sides, sending her back into hysterics.

"NOOOOO! HAHAHAHAH!"

The buddies wrestled back and forth, spinning and twisting over one another across every corner of Wendy's bed. Their joined merriment echoed throughout the Corduroy household as their faces turned beat red.

As they flipped yet again, Dipper lost his balance as his backside tipped over the edge of the handmade frame. In a panic, he scrambled and reached out towards his crush. "WENDY!"

"Dipper!" Wendy rushed over and scooped him up in her arms. Now safe, their eyes met and the silliness of the situation struck them both. They exploded in a barrage of laughter for what seemed like an eternity until they became lost in each other's sights once again.

This wasn't the first time Wendy and Dipper were caught in an awkward silence. It was simply a part of how things were between them, and how things had to be. Yet, each secretly wondered if this would be the last time such an instance would happen ever again.

"Ah-hem!" Wendy cleared her throat. She broke the stillness as she often had to in the past. The limber female stretched her legs and dropped to the floor. Dipper sat up as Wendy walked to the door. She peeked down the hall to make sure the coast was clear.

"Hey, Dip. I'm going to get us some drinks. You stay here and hold down the fort, okay?"

He nodded, already understanding their agreed-upon system. Manly Dan refused to have boys of any age alone with his daughter under his roof. If fate would have it, Dipper could always make a quick escape through the open window in Wendy's bedroom before trouble would brew. Within seconds, Wendy's footsteps faded into the distance.

"…Dipper…"

His blood ran cold. Dipper searched the room, wondering if he was hearing things.

"What was that?"

"…Dipper…"

He jumped up to his knees and twirled towards the TV. The victory screen from the kart racer no longer was displayed. Instead, a rolling screen of static repeated over and over in an endless loop.

"…Dipper…"

Dipper crawled off the bed as he traced the familiar tone. He looked back at the doorway, to where Wendy left the room moments before. Perplexed, Dipper slowly made his way towards Wendy's television as it appeared to blanket him in a strange glow.

"…Dipper…"

He glanced back at the door, hoping that Wendy would soon pop back into the room, allowing him to examine this oddity with two sets of eyes. But his natural curiosity took advantage. The warm light appeared to call to him, beckoning him to come even closer.

"…Dipper…"

He gulped. An unknown force made him want to place his hand on top of the flashing screen. Dipper stared blankly into the monitor, daring not as much as to blink, as if hypnotized, and he called out in a hushed whisper, "Wendy?"

Suddenly, the static literally took shape and rose from the display. Before Dipper could react, it clamped down around his wrist and pulled the unsuspecting detective off of his feet and into the screen itself!

"WWWWWWWEEEEEEENNNNNNNNNNNDDDDDDDYYYYYYY!"

Wendy stepped back in the room with an ice-cold Pitt Cola in each hand. "Here's your soda. Let's polish these off and get right back to – "

To her surprise, her bedroom was empty. Dipper was nowhere to be found. Even stranger, the television had been turned off as well.

"Dipper?" She set the beverages down and searched around. "Dude," she laughed. "You didn't have to hide. I told you that my dad and my brothers won't be home for hours!"

She received no response.

"Dipper?" Wendy opened her closet and checked passed her hung clothing. She moved her halfway-damaged hamper to double-check. There was nothing there.

"Playing around, are we?" Wendy asked teasingly, dropping to her jeaned knees and checked through the piles of junk under her bed. "Are you – THERE?!"

She saw only the garbage she accumulated throughout the summer months. As the moments passed, the silence became more and more unsettling.

"Dipper!" Wendy stood back up and used a more serious tone; the very same needed when her siblings misbehaved on her watch. "This isn't funny!" The girl pulled her door back to find nothing but a dusty corner. "I'm really not in the mood for hide-and-seek!"

As Wendy went back towards her bed, she noticed that Dipper's black sneakers remained unmoved from when he first arrived. A horrid thought went through her mind. "Oh, please. Tell me he didn't…"

She raced to her window, making sure not to disturb the crystal heart ornament guarding over it. Wendy let out a sigh of relief as she found it still closed. The image of finding a broken Dipper lying outside her bedroom window quickly passed.

"Dipper!" Wendy called out louder, trying to hide any worry from her voice. She returned to the hallway. "I swear if you're trying to scare me, you'll be in for such a pounding! I'm not even kidding!"

But he never did jump out at her. The concerned sales clerk appeared to be all alone in the cabin.

"…Wendy…"

An almost-ghostly whisper filled the atmosphere, spending a chill down Wendy's spine. The TV turned off with a loud clicking noise, followed with an unnatural buzzing sound. The sensation made Wendy hop in place in fright.

"BAH!"

Her emerald eyes focused on the screen several feet away. Lines of static repeated in a continuous loop without beginning or end.

"What in the world…?"

"…Wendy…"

Wendy took a cautious step towards the TV. "Dipper," she pleaded. "Please, please tell me that it's you messing around…"

The scrambled image began to bob and ripple, like a pond that had a pebble tossed inside. The waves within increased frequently, convincing Wendy to stand her ground at a safe distance from the anomaly.

Suddenly, a tiny hand, made up of what appeared to be the TV screen itself, became solid matter and spread its four fingers outwards.

"Wendy!" The echoing voice called out clearer than before. She would know that wailing anywhere.

"Dipper?"

Just as quickly as it appeared, the hand melted back into the curvature of the screen. One last cry escaped through the ether, only to be replaced by a calmed, flicking screen:

"Wendy! Wendy! Don't - !"

"Dipper!"

Her stocking feet flew across the floor to the television. Wendy tapped and prodded the glass covering, finding no sort of opening or parting of any kind. "Dipper? Dipper?!" A new glowing light came from the right. She gasped as the Wega Multi-Wonder shone on and off like a display sign until it returned to its standard dull coloring.

Her nerves shot, Wendy collapsed back on her bed and lowered her head towards her knees. "Get a grip, Wendy-girl! You – You gotta get a hold of yourself! This – that thing – whatever that was, isn't real. It can't be! " She snapped her fingers. "That's it! I probably have heatstroke or something from being out in the sun all day! That makes total sense! I –"

From the corner of her eye, Wendy spotted something that instantly brought her rambling to a halt. She leaned over and picked up Dipper's blue and white Pine Tree hat from the ground. The same fold in the middle; the same burn mark near the top. Wendy knew that there wasn't another in the world like this. Her hands began to tremble.

The unnerved ginger shot up, dug into her jean pocket, and retrieved her flip-phone. She flicked it open and scrolled through her list of contacts. Wendy jammed on the green call button, and held the receiver up to her ear, daring not to take her eyes off the spectacle before her.

"C'mon…" She pleaded. "Pick up already…"

"Uh…hello?"

"Tambry!" Wendy hid her anxiety, not wanting to alert her friend. "Hey! Um, listen, I need to ask you something really fast. Remember that weird CD player thing I bought off you for Dipper?"

"Oh, yeah. How did your little shadow like it?"

Wendy narrowed her sights on the video game system. "He, uh, he loved it! Seriously, I can't get the poor kid away from it! Anyways, I – I mean, we were wondering where did your folks find it?"

"Actually," the goth explained. "I put it there. Remember those two dorky brothers from school? The ones whose dad owns the Arcade downtown?"

"Y-Yeah…?" Wendy stammered, as her suspicions were slowly coming true.

"Well, they dropped off all this junk for me to sell because they said they didn't have time to do it themselves. Some of it was supposed to be broken scraps, and the other stuff were spare parts from when the place was being repaired by that blue-haired guy. You know; the one you were crushing on hard?"

"Wait…" Wendy asked for clarification. "You're telling me that the CD player came…"

"…from the backroom of their Arcade. What's the big deal?"

Wendy's lower lip quivered in shock. The cell phone pressed against her head nearly slipped out of her hand. All of the air rushed out of her chest as she stared at the tiny electronic in absolute horror.

"Not again! It can't be happening again!"

"…are you still there, Wendy? Wendy!"

"I'm…here." The distraught teen replied. "I'm here, Tambry. Thanks for the info. Listen, I have to go now…"

"Hang on!" Tambry demanded. "I want to know how those creeps got my phone number in the first place. Did you have something to do with that?"

"Seriously, Tambry. I'll talk to you later."

"…because Robbie's getting mad over it and – "

*CLICK!*

Wendy forced herself to sit as her entire form filled with an uneasy tension. It was almost like she felt trapped in her own house with this possibly-demonic machine. She could leave, but didn't have the heart to leave Dipper behind like this.

However, Wendy didn't have the faintest idea on where to go from here. This didn't make any sense. How could this be happening? They defeated all of the evil monsters from the gaming dimension, and sent them back from whence they came. And didn't the town's weirdness stop when the two Stans destroyed that Bill-guy?

But here she was – the polar opposite of what happened earlier in the summer. Dipper was trapped within the confines of her TV, and he was calling out for her to save him!

"But he also said, "Don't." Why would he tell me not to help him? Maybe he didn't want me to get stuck inside there, too…"

Either way, Wendy knew what she had to do. No matter what mysterious terrors lied in wait for her on the other side of the television screen, she had to follow Dipper into the game. It was the only way to bring her favorite dork back home.

But where to begin? Wendy started to make a battle plan in her mind. She reopened her cell. "It'll be okay. I'll get a hold of Mabel and Soos, and definitely Ford. They'll be sure to lend a hand and – "

*BEEP!*

Wendy looked at the new sound stemming from the TV. A new screen had appeared. Neon green text was placed within a same-colored circle against a pitch-black background. A ray of light spun in a complete clockwise motion like the arms of a clock.

"GAME READY TO BEGIN!"

"NO OTHER PLAYERS WILL BE ACCEPTED IN 6 SECONDS!"

*BEEP!*

With the passing of another beep, the countdown timer dropped to five seconds.

"Ah, crap!" Wendy jumped to her feet. "There isn't time to call for backup!"

*BEEP!*

Four seconds…

She jumped into her lumberjack boots and snatched the handheld axe from beneath her bed, twirling it in her fingers and securing it to her belt.

*BEEP!*

Three seconds…

A desperate idea formed in Wendy's mind. She threw open her closet and found a swindle of rope on the floor. The lumberjane used to carry it around when trying to scale the highest redwoods of the Gravity Falls Forest. Wendy wrapped the rope around her waist and tied it in a knot.

Two seconds…

Wendy took a knee and secured the other end around her bedpost. She gave it a few quick tugs to make sure that her anchor to the real world was more than secure.

One second…

She ran towards the TV and nudged the screen, finding that it had no response. "Are you kidding me?" Wendy smacked it harder. "How do I get you to go – "

The Wega Multi-Wonder had begun to flash again. The brightest light came from the Start button on the nearest controller. Wendy picked the pad up, and after a brief pause, jammed down on the button.

"Player 2 – START!"

"Hang on, Dipper…" Wendy felt her body become incredibly light. The whole world around her seemed to vanish, save for an everlasting white radiance.

"I'm coming!"