WITHOUT YOU
Dipper and Mabel lay as flat as they could against the forest floor, hidden behind a long dead tree trunk. The two of them passed nervous glances to one another, but neither dared to speak. Yet another monstrous howl filled the air, causing both of them to wince.
Suddenly, the beast that pursued them came into sight once again, its low, crouching body practically slithering across the litter of pine needles as its four powerful legs carried it noisily across the forest. The creature was obsidian black, with glowing emerald eyes and a mouth full of teeth that looked like they could easily break through a mouthful of diamonds. Its most notable feature were the hardened spines that covered almost the entirety of its upper body.
"WHERE ARE YOU?" It roared in a deep, snarling voice. "THE PINES FAMILY MUST PAY".
The nightmarish beast curled up into a spiky ball and began to roll its way through the forest, knocking down several trees in its path. Thankfully, it stayed far away from the twins' hiding spot, eventually rolling away from them into the forest again. Dipper heard a sudden whine from his transceiver, and the voice of his great uncle Ford soon emerged from it.
"Ford to Dipper", he said. "Do you read me?"
"Great Uncle Ford", Dipper replied, "it's still so close, what do we do?"
"Listen, both of you", Ford said, "I have a plan, but… It pains me to ask this of you but… I need the two of you to lure him".
"Are you crazy?" Mabel said, snatching the transceiver. "No way are we letting that evil buttface see us".
"I'm sorry Mabel", Ford said, "but if we don't stop him now, he might end up reaching the town and tearing the whole place apart searching for us".
Dipper and Mabel glanced at one another, and at long last, they both nodded.
"We'll do it", Dipper said.
"Alright, now tell me, what's your position?" Ford said.
"We're still behind that fallen tree", Dipper said. "Do you remember, the one we spotted earlier?"
"Yes, and that's ideal", Ford said. "I need you to head directly south of your hiding spot. You'll see a clearing if you keep heading that way. I need you to bring him out in the open so I can directly target his weak spot. The sealing crystal is finally ready".
"Okay, on it", Dipper said.
"Stay safe, both of you", Ford replied, before finally cutting off the signal.
"Dipper, do you really think we can outrun that thing?" Mabel said.
Dipper could see the worry etched on his sister's face, and he had to admit, he felt the exact same way. He struggled to answer.
"I don't think we have any other choice", he said at last.
The two of them grabbed one another's hands and squeezed comfortingly.
"Alright, on the count of three", Dipper said. "One, two, three".
The two of them leapt up from their hiding place and began to make a racket.
"HEY HEY HEY, OVER HERE", Mabel yelled.
"TWO PINES, RIGHT HERE", Dipper shouted.
The two continued to make as much noise as humanly possible, and before long, the monster did indeed reappear, rolling out of the distant trees and coming to a halt a short distance away. Its jaws spread into a sickening, sharp toothed smile.
"Well if it isn't the little twins", it growled mellifluously.
The two of them didn't hesitate for a second longer and instantly bolted in the opposite direction.
"Runrunrunrunrunrunrunrunrun", Mabel urged.
"What does it look like I'm doing?" Dipper panted.
The monster laughed sadistically before curling into a ball once again and rolling after them.
"Yes, yes, flee", it said, "your fear only makes it all the more enjoyable".
The twins ran like they never had before, weaving between trees and leaping over loose branches and roots. Slowly, the ball of hate that was rolling after them grew steadily closer, knocking over yet more trees as it went.
"Come on, come on", Dipper wheezed, "where the heck is that clearing?"
Mercifully, the clearing appeared ahead of them almost immediately after he had mentioned it. Dipper and Mabel cleared the last stretch despite the burning of their heavily protesting muscles. The creature started to laugh maniacally as it closed in on the two of them, barely a few metres away by now.
The twins burst out into the clearing, and as they did, the monster sprung from its ball and pounced high into the air, its jaws opening wide in anticipation as it aimed towards the siblings. Then, before it could reach its goal, Ford swung in on a rope from the branch of a tree on the opposite side of the clearing. Taking aim with his crossbow, he fired a bolt tipped with a glowing green crystal straight into the creature's throat, its only true weak spot.
With a choked cry, the startled beast collapsed to the ground just a foot away from where the twins were. The monster remained motionless apart from agonised spasming, amber coloured saliva frothing at its mouth. Dipper and Mabel came to a halt, gasping for breath, Dipper clutching a stitch in his side.
"Never…" he panted, "ever again".
"Yep", Mabel said. "Never".
Ford approached the two of them.
"Are the two of you alright", he said, wiping the sweat from his brow.
"Define alright", Dipper said.
Ford laughed from nerves and relief, and he pulled the two of them into a brief hug, something that was very rare from their great uncle.
"That was much too close", Ford said.
"Where's Grunkle Stan?" Mabel said.
"He's fine", Ford said, "he took a hit from the demon and he's unconscious, but he'll be fine. It wasn't a direct hit".
Suddenly the demon roused from its paralysis and let loose a roar of sheer agony, one that was so loud that it forced all three of them to shove their hands against their ears. The creature's pained howls continued as a pentagram of green light formed around it.
"The sealing has begun", Ford said.
It was then that a burst of energy flew out of the monster's forehead and collapsed on the ground before the three of them, solidifying into the form of a man with a scraggly black beard and olive skin, dressed in a robe of grey and black with various black magic symbols patterned into it.
The man slowly, weakly got to his feet as he glared at the family.
"The Pines family must pay for…" he began, but was cut off when Ford punched him in the face, causing him to collapse once more.
"So nice of you to join us again, Vexis", Ford said.
The monster that the dark wizard had been possessing now lay unconscious on the ground, the glow of the pentagram seal getting ever brighter. Recovering at last, Dipper and Mabel immediately went to check on one another.
"Hey, are you okay?" Both of them asked each other.
"Well, I think we can agree that that was some of our best work ever", Dipper said.
"Sure was", Mabel said. "I wouldn't have thought you could run so fast with your noodle legs, bro-bro", she joked.
"Neither did I", Dipper said, laughing. "We were awesome".
"Heck yeah we were", Mabel readily agreed.
The two of them high fived.
"We were awesome just now, right Grunkle Ford?" Mabel said, beaming.
"Yes, you both went above and beyond the call of duty", Ford said, ruffling his Niece's hair affectionately. "Once again, I'm proud of the two of you".
"Fools", Vexis hissed as he tried to right himself again, failing miserably as he collapsed once more. "You will all pay for the crimes committed against me by Jebediah Pines".
Ford's lip curled in disgust as he remembered the wizard's presence. He grabbed the man by the collar of his robes and glared straight into his eyes.
"You will never have your revenge", Ford spat, "NEVER".
And with that, he threw the wizard back on the ground.
"You'll see, you'll all see", Vexis whimpered pathetically.
A great tendril of light spread out from the seal and pulled him away. The wizard screamed his last hateful scream before vanishing into the seal. Now, yet more tendrils began to coil around the unconscious demon.
"Man, who'd have our family's dealt with the supernatural since way back", Dipper said.
"Yeah", Mabel agreed, "I don't even know who Jebediah Pines is".
"No, I can't say the name rings a bell either", Ford said. "But from what dear old Vexis said earlier, it sounds like he was around during pioneer times. He must have been a traveller on the Oregon Trail when he met Vexis, but whatever the case, he sealed that revolting wizard away, thankfully".
"It's like our family's just tied to all this paranormal stuff somehow", Dipper said.
Before they could continue the conversation, however, a groan filled their ears, and they saw Grunkle Stan emerge from the nearby trees clutching his forehead.
"God, my head feels like sh…" he cut himself off as he noticed the presence of the twins.
"Grunkle Stan", the two of them said cheerfully, running over to their uncle.
"How are you feeling?" Ford said as he also approached his brother.
"Like I said, like sh…" Stan censored himself yet again. "Terrible", he amended, "but okay I think".
Stan noticed the demon in the midst of being sealed.
"So, you caught it, eh?" he said.
"Yep, we wrecked that stupid poophead", Mabel gloated.
"And what about that wizard?" Stan said.
"Sealed", Ford said. "Good riddance, too. He was more of a pain in the neck than Probabilator".
Suddenly a howl of rage filled their ears as the demon came to. The monster, though freed from its possession, was no less vicious than before. It struggled futilely against the tendrils that were now wrapped tightly around its form, howling and roaring in abject fury.
"Deal with it, you stupid monster", Mabel said mockingly.
"I wouldn't tease it too much while it's still here", Dipper said worriedly.
"I wouldn't worry too much Dipper", Ford said, "It should be secure now. That seal can hold it in place with ease".
Regardless of Ford's reassurances, Dipper couldn't help but be anxious as Mabel got a little too close to the struggling beast for comfort and began to dance victoriously right in front of it.
"Hey monster, PFFT PFFT PFFT PFFT PFFT", she said as she repeatedly blew raspberries at it.
"Look, maybe yer brother's right", Stan said as he approached Mabel, "I still don't want you near that thing".
"Relax Grunkle Stan", Mabel said as she continued her victory jig, "What can it possibly do now?"
Despite its restraints, the beast managed to rear up and began to puff out its chest, sucking in as much air as it could.
"MABEL WATCH OUT", Dipper yelled.
He ran out in front of his sister and spread his arms wide, just as the creature made a horrifically loud noise that sounded halfway between a cough and a gunshot, firing something out of its mouth. In an instant Ford and Stan both ran towards their niece and nephew, but before they could reach either of them, a bright green flash and a loud bang filled the air as the seal was finally completed. The monster let loose one final furious cry before it and the pentagram vanished, leaving behind nothing but the tiny sealing crystal. They were all briefly blinded in a haze of white from the flash, then slowly, their eyes readjusted.
Dipper was facing away from all of them, his arms still spread out, his breathing hard and raspy.
"D-Dipper?" Mabel said. No response. She tapped his shoulder, but there was still nothing.
"What's wrong with him?" Stan said concernedly.
Ford said nothing, but stared with great worry at his nephew. Slowly but surely, Dipper turned around, and the sight that met them made all three of them gasp. Dipper's chest and arms were covered in black spines much like the larger ones that covered the monster's body.
They had penetrated deep into his flesh, and blood now flowed freely from the wounds. All colour had drained from his skin and his face had a distant, vacant expression.
Mabel clasped her hands to her mouth as she let out a whimper.
"Is it bad?" Dipper said lightheadedly, before he collapsed on his back, instantly falling unconscious.
"DIPPER", Mabel shrieked, and in an instant she was on her knees by his side. Tears welled up in her eyes as her breathing became rapid and panicked.
Wordlessly, Stan and Ford ran over to the two of them.
"Jesus", Stan said, unsure what to do, panicking just as Mabel was. "Is he gonna be okay?" he said, grabbing his brother's collar. Ford took a moment to recover from the shock of it all, but as soon as he did he said,
"Yes, but we need to get him back to the Shack immediately".
Stan nodded and scooped his nephew up into his arms. Without another word, he ran in the direction of the Mystery Shack. Mabel stayed where she was, unable to move as the tears poured down here face.
"D-Dipper", she said, her voice barely a whisper as she was overtaken by a full blown panic attack.
"He'll be alright", Ford said reassuringly, but even he couldn't keep the panic out of his voice. "Come on Mabel, we have to go".
Mabel barely seemed to hear a word he said. Ford quickly grabbed his niece and placed her up on his back, where she clung on tightly. Ford then briefly stopped to pick up the sealing crystal before running as fast as he could after his brother.
A short while later, all four of them were in the living room. Dipper lay under a blanket on the armchair, the spikes removed from his body and the wounds sealed up. He was tossing and turning restlessly, shivering madly.
Mabel had recovered from her initial shock, but she was still panicking as she paced back and forth in front of the armchair. Stan stared at his brother as Ford placed a hand on Dipper's forehead.
"He's freezing cold", Ford announced.
"Just tell me what's gonna happen to him", Stan said.
"He should be fine if we take the correct procedures", Ford said. "The venom of an Anvirex isn't lethal, but it places the victim into a deep coma, because the demon likes to eat its victims whilst still alive", he added with a shudder. "Thankfully, that thing is out of the way. We need to gather the ingredients for the draught of living death, it's the only remedy to Anvirex venom".
"Alright, so we need to get these ingredients, are they all easy to get?"
"Yes", Ford said, "thankfully Gravity Falls is rife with the enchanted plants and other materials needed for the potion".
"How much time we got?" Stan said.
"About twenty-four hours", Ford replied grimly. "We need to gather the ingredients and brew the potion before then, or else… Dipper won't be able to wake up ever again".
Mabel gasped as a fresh wave of horror raced over her.
"Why'd you have to say that right in front of her?" Stan growled.
"I'm so sorry, that was tactless", Ford said.
He knelt down by Mabel and grasped both her shoulders.
"Mabel, listen to me, everything will be fine", he reassured. "Stan and I will have the potion ready well in advance, Dipper will be completely fine, I promise. Okay?"
Mabel nodded, trying to suppress a few more tears.
"Stan, I'm going to need your help", Ford said.
"No way, I ain't leavin' while the kid's in this state", Stan said.
"Trust me, gathering these ingredients will be a lot faster with the two of us. The more time we save, the better".
Stan looked down at his panicking niece, and a guilt ridden frown crossed his face. Dipper had been badly hurt on his watch. He had to do as much as he could to help, but he didn't want to leave Mabel alone while she was so upset.
"Mabel sweetie", Stan said at last, "I'm so sorry to leave you like this, but I need to help Ford out on this one".
"Don't leave me", Mabel said. "What if Dipper gets worse while you're gone, I won't know what to do".
"Mabel, you can take care of yer brother better than anyone", Stan said. "The two of you look out for each other more than anyone I know. It'll be a lot quicker if I go with Ford, and I know I can trust you to take care of Dip in the meantime. Can you do that for me sweetie?"
Mabel hesitated, then nodded.
"Okay", she said, wiping new tears from her eyes.
"It's gonna be fine, I promise", Stan said.
He pulled his niece into a tight hug.
"Alright, let's do this", Stan said.
"Remember, try to warm him up as much as possible", Ford said. "And if it gets worse, try not to worry, because that could very well happen, and it'll still be fine".
Stan and Ford headed towards the living room door.
"We'll be as quick as we can", Stan said.
Mabel nodded in acknowledgement before the two Stans vanished from sight. Finally, she turned her attention back to her brother. She placed her hand on his forehead and found that, just as Ford had said, he was icy cold.
"Oh, Dipper", she muttered. "Warmth, need to give him warmth".
She very rapidly made her way to the kitchen to fill up a hot water bottle. When she returned, she saw that Dipper was breaking out into an icy sweat, his tossing and turning growing slightly more restless. Mabel placed the hot water bottle on his stomach and tucked the blanket he was under more tightly around him. Next she ran upstairs and opened a wardrobe, pulling out several of the warmest spare blankets that she could see.
She raced back downstairs, but thankfully at this point it seemed that Dipper hadn't got any worse. Pulling off the pale blue sweater she was currently wearing, Mabel managed, despite his restless motion, to wrestle her brother into it. She then set the hot water bottle on his stomach again, re-tucked the current blanket, then placed the four she had brought down with her on top of it, tucking each one more tightly than the last.
After pacing for a while longer, Mabel felt Dipper's forehead again. She was relieved to see that his temperature had gone up. He was still cold, but no longer so cold that he felt like a human popsicle. Even his restlessness settled down, until he was completely still, and even his breathing calmed down significantly, although it did remain uncomfortable and rough.
Mabel cracked a genuine smile, and her worry managed to calm itself a little as she saw how much more relaxed he was. She slumped down at the foot of the armchair and allowed her tensed muscles to relax.
To her delight, Waddles came trotting into the living room, oinking curiously.
"C'mere", she said, making grabby hands in the air. Waddles gladly did as he was bid, trotting over to his master, who picked him up and started cuddling him tightly.
"Thanks Waddles", she said, yawning deeply as she rested her head on top of his.
She couldn't believe it was only four PM on the same exact day. She hadn't got much sleep last night, on account of being woken early, along with the rest of the family, when Vexis had been freed from his crystal prison and had loudly declared vengeance against the Pines family. Woken by his magically increased (and obnoxiously loud anyway) voice, the four of them had gone outside to fend off his attack on the Mystery Shack, and after an extensive rant about Jebediah Pines, they had then been faced with hours of running around the forest after he had possessed the monster.
It felt like something that had happened on a totally different day. Everything except what had happened to Dipper just felt so long ago.
Now, overcome with her lack of sleep and her exhaustion from the chase, she slowly nodded off.
Later on in the day, Mabel was abruptly awoken by a loud groaning noise. Instantly she was alert; putting Waddles aside, she jumped to her feet and saw that Dipper was rolling about again, more restless than ever. His sweat had broken out again with a vengeance, drenching him. To top it all off, he was now groaning and muttering, and it didn't sound like it was a good dream that he was having.
"Oh no", Mabel said as she was filled with worry once again. She placed her hand on his forehead, but thankfully it seemed that her warmth measures had taken effect, as he had warmed up even more than before.
"Well there's that at least", Mabel said.
Going to the kitchen, she wetted a cloth, then returned to wipe away the copious sweat that drenched his face. Afterwards she patted his face dry with a towel. Checking the time, she saw that it was now seven PM, and Stan and Ford still weren't back. Her gut clenched in panic, but she tried to remind herself that there was still plenty of time to go yet.
Her stomach growled with hunger, but she knew that eating would prove to be impossible right now. She didn't know what else she could do as the groaning and muttering grew worse, but she tried to calm herself. Grunkle Ford had said that it might get worse, and that if it did, it'd still be fine.
She sat herself on the arm of the chair, gazing down at her brother. He was still sweating furiously despite her efforts to clear it up.
The groaning only got steadily worse over the next hour, and he was moving about more restlessly than ever. Mabel was rocking back and forth, praying that her Grunkles would be back soon. She opened her mouth to speak to Dipper, then closed it again. A lump was forming in her throat, and she didn't know why. She opened and closed her mouth several more times, until finally she managed to speak.
"Dipper, I…" she began. "I… You… You jumped in the way of that thing to protect me today".
Tears were starting to well up in her eyes again, which she batted away.
"Just… without even stopping to think about your own safety, you jumped in its way and took the hit for me. I… I'm sorry Dipper".
The tears returned, and this time she couldn't stop them from flowing freely.
"You were right", she said, "I shouldn't have got so close to that stupid monster, but I ignored you, and now you're really hurt because of me. When… when it happened, I thought… I thought… I thought I was gonna lose you, bro-bro".
She burst out sobbing.
"I thought you were gonna die and leave me forever. I've never felt worse than I did in that moment, it was terrible. Even when Grunkle Ford said everything was gonna be okay, I still couldn't move. Just the thought of losing you forever… It's too much. And it would have been my fault, too. I hate this, because even now I'm just like, lingering on what'll happen if I really do lose you some day. Life's unpredictable, one of us could die at any moment. And… And how am I supposed to even live life without my twin brother? You're like my other half bro, my soulmate. I wouldn't even feel like a whole person without you".
Her sobbing grew worse, and it felt like the pain of all this was going to crush her. It was then, however, that she felt a hand grab hold of her own. She was briefly startled, but upon looking down, she saw that it was Dipper that had grabbed her hand. Even in his unconscious state, he had sensed his twin's pain. Dipper's groaning and muttering had come to a stop, and instead he squeezed Mabel's hand firmly. She squeezed back, drawing comfort from his grip.
"Thanks", she said, and slowly, her sobbing calmed down until she was just letting loose silent tears, and finally even that came to a halt.
"Never leave me", Mabel said. "Never. Life wouldn't be bearable without you".
It was then that Mabel heard Stan and Ford return to the Shack, talking amongst themselves. Relief flooded her as she heard them. They were back with the ingredients; everything was going to be fine now.
About two hours later, Ford emerged from the basement once again, now holding a completed potion in his hand. Stan knelt beside the chair, whilst Mabel remained on the arm, still clutching her brother's hand tightly.
"Is it ready?" Stan said.
"Yes, it won't wake him up instantly, but it'll cleanse the poison from his system. He should be awake by morning", Ford said.
Ford approached the chair, and slowly, carefully, he poured the golden, bubbling liquid down Dipper's throat. An enormous shudder spread through his whole body, but then, all of his tensed muscles relaxed, and his breathing, previously uncomfortable and rattly, became deep and calm.
Stan, Ford, and Mabel all breathed a collective sigh of relief. After about ten more minutes of watching over him, Ford headed for bed.
"I'd stay to watch over him a while longer", he said, "but it's been a long day, and brewing that potion took the last of my energy".
"Don't worry about it", Stan said, "you've saved the kid from eternal sleep, you've earned a rest".
"Well, goodnight then", Ford said as he departed the living room.
"Night", Stan grunted.
"Goodnight Grunkle Ford", Mabel yawned.
"Hey, kiddo", Stan said, "It's late, you should probably get off to bed too".
"Nuh-uh", Mabel said, squeezing Dipper's hand again.
"Alright, you can stay up a little later tonight", Stan said sympathetically, noting the concern on her face.
Mabel's stomach growled hungrily again.
"Can we eat now?" Mabel said.
"Yeah, not a bad idea", Stan said, realising for the first time that he was hungry too.
A short while later, they sat at the living room table eating enormous plates of spaghetti and meatballs with garlic bread. Mabel wolfed her food down, relieved to finally have something to eat. She hadn't realised just how hungry she was.
"You did good today Mabel", Stan said.
"Thanks", Mabel muffled over a mouthful of spaghetti.
"I'm sure Dipper felt a lot better to have you there, even if he was asleep".
Mabel thought to how he had grabbed her hand unconsciously, and, smiling at the thought, nodded vigorously in agreement.
"I felt better to be there with him, too", Mabel said.
"You know, I don't let on to this often enough really", Stan said, glancing over at his nephew, "but I'm real proud of Dipper. He's grown a lot this summer, and, well, he's braver than I'll ever be".
"You're super brave too Grunkle Stan", Mabel said, "remember how you saved Waddles from the pterodactyl?"
"How could I forget", Stan said jovially, humorously rolling his eyes. "But you an' yer brother, that's where the real bravery lies in this family. I'd never felt prouder after I heard all about how he beat Gideon. I mean it's crazy, he jumped off a cliff and crashed through a giant robot's eye and actually took that little rat Gideon down with his bare hands. It was really somethin', you know".
"Yeah, that was awesome", Mabel agreed. "And I got to use my grappling hook. That's always fun".
"And that's just it", Stan said, "the two of you do all this crazy, insanely brave stuff to protect each other. Dipper took down Gideon to save you, and then you saved him immediately afterwards with yer grappling hook. And you've done that for each other so many times over the summer. The two of you have somethin' real special, you know that?"
"I do", Mabel said, affectionately glancing over to Dipper.
"Even today, he stood in harm's way without a second thought to protect you", Stan said.
At this, a look of guilt swept across Mabel's face, and she said nothing.
"Hey, why the long face, kid?" Stan said comfortingly.
"It's my fault he was hurt so bad", Mabel said. "If I hadn't got so close to that dumb monster, none of this would have happened".
"Mabel, we all make mistakes", Stan said. "Your brother took the hit for you because he chose to. Because he cares about you. And besides, I bet you'd have done the same for him, right?"
Mabel smiled softly.
"Yeah", she said, "I would".
After they had finished their meal, Stan and Mabel sat at the foot of the armchair watching a talk show, taking vague interest in the conversation onscreen as they grew steadily sleepier. Eventually, he looked down to see that Mabel had fallen asleep leaning against him.
"Sleep tight, kiddo", he said.
Stan grew ever more tired himself, until finally, he felt his eyes closing as he drifted away into sleep.
The next morning, Stan, Mabel and Ford were finishing up a breakfast of pancakes and bacon at the living room table, still glancing over to Dipper every now and then to check up on him. He still looked very peaceful, but they hoped he would wake up soon.
"Are you sure that potion worked?" Mabel said, a little worry returning to her.
"One hundred percent", Ford replied. "It's fine Mabel, he just needs to sleep it off".
She nodded, but didn't reply. Just then, they heard a groan come from Dipper. They watched closely with bated breath, and then, his eyes cracked open. Slowly, he dragged himself into a sitting position.
"Whazgoinon?" he slurred, looking blearily around himself.
"DIPPER", Mabel shrieked.
She leapt from her seat at lightning speed and practically hurled herself into the armchair as she pulled her brother into the tightest rib crushing hug she had ever given.
"You're okay", she said.
"Y-yeah", Dipper said, returning the hug despite his confusion. "Why wouldn't I be?"
"Don't you remember?" Stan said as he and Ford approached him. "You threw yourself in front of Mabel and got hit by a loada spikes".
Dipper wracked his brain, then remembered.
"Oh, yeah", he said. "What happened after that?"
"First of all, how are you feeling?" Ford said.
"Weak, limp, pretty groggy, but otherwise okay", Dipper said.
"Good, good, I'm glad you're okay", Ford said, smiling. "Just give me a second, I'm going to fetch you some water, you'll be pretty dehydrated right about now".
"Could you possibly get rid of some of these blankets?" Dipper asked. "I feel way too hot under all of this".
Mabel gladly tore away the four blankets she had added, leaving only the first one behind.
"Oh, and the sweater", she said.
Dipper looked down, saw what he was wearing, then removed the sweater.
"Yep, that's better", he said as he also plucked out the now long since room temperature hot water bottle.
"You did real good kid, I'm proud of you", Stan said, ruffling Dipper's hair.
"Uh, thanks", Dipper said, "but I still don't know what happened after the whole spike thing".
"You fell unconscious and got really sick", Mabel said. "So Grunkle Stan and Grunkle Ford made a potion to wake you up while I looked after you and now here you are".
Dipper's mind was still somewhat foggy, but he grasped the gist of Mabel's rushed explanation. Ford returned a moment later and handed him a glass of water. Dipper drank the whole thing without even stopping for breath. He hadn't realised how thirsty he was until then. Afterwards, Stan and Ford left the room to make Dipper some breakfast, and Mabel remained sitting beside Dipper.
"I'm glad you're okay", Dipper said after a while of silence.
"You stupid butt", Mabel said. "You shouldn't have taken the hit for me".
"If I hadn't, it would have been you that was sick".
"What if it had killed you?" Mabel said, grinning despite her protest.
"What if it had killed YOU?" Dipper replied, poking Mabel to emphasise his point.
She went silent for a few moments, then said
"I really thought I was gonna lose you, you know".
"Wait, you did?" Dipper said, looking apologetic.
"Yeah, when I saw you all covered in nasty spiky things, I thought… I thought", it proved too difficult to say it again. "I'm just glad you're okay".
"And I'm glad you're okay", Dipper said, smiling at her.
She pulled him into another hug.
"Thank you", she said as they pulled away. "For everything".
"Don't mention it", Dipper said. "We've always protected each other. It's just our thing, you know".
"Yeah", Mabel said, grinning from ear to ear. "It is".