Disclaimer: I don't own Gravity Falls. Probably for the best, though.

Summer's End

There was a tenseness in the air as the twins looked at the group before them. Their Gruncles Stan and Ford, Mcgucket, Soos, Wendy, and even Robbie and Pacifica were here. They stood there looking at the kids silently, instantly reminding Dipper of how they were all here last week, ready to take down Bill and Gideon once and for all. Bill had proven unbeatable and all they could do was banish him back to his own dimension and pray he would never find a way back. Gideon was rather easy to overpower after some planning, though no body was ever found.

All that was last week. Today was the final day of Dipper and Mabels' time in Gravity Falls and they were at the bus stop waiting for the ten o'clock. Where there been resolve and determination in the bunch before, now there was a somber feel to it all. Candy and Grenda were present unlike the last time, for they had not been part of the mission, and the twins were loaded with suitcases and backpacks. Even Robbie, who tried to keep a cool and aloof appearance, kept finding himself shooting fond glances at those two kids he couldn't stand less then a month ago.

The Pines kids looked up when Stan took a deep breath and walked toward them, kneeling down so that he was on eye-level. With their eyes firmly set to him, his own darted around nervously and sparkled with tears.

"You promise to take care of Waddles. Right?" Mabel asked Stan for the fifteenth time that morning.

"Yes, Mabel, for the last time. Nothin'll happen to your pig any time soon." Stan huffed in annoyance, but his face softened when Mabel smiled at him. "I promise." he said softly.

"Good!" Mabel beamed. "I'm gonna hold ya to that, cuz I'll be checkin' in every once in a while." she smirked. Stand chuckled.

"Wouldn't have it any other way, kid."

"Dipper, I've got something for you." Ford said, reaching into his coat pocket. Before Dipper could ask what it was, Ford pulled out three familiar-looking books. They looked like his own journals, only brand new, and blank when Dipper took one and flipped through the pages, aside from the writing on the back of the cover; Property Of Dipper Pines. Each book was labeled 1, 2, or 3, but in place of the six-fingered hand was...A pine tree.

Dipper's heart thumped in a mixture of joy and amazement as he looked up at Ford, who smiled at him proudly. Dipper took his new journals and placed them hurriedly but carefully in his backpack. "You know my past, but I would certainly like to hear about all your adventures this summer. Might even make for some good stories one day."

Stan cleared his throat awkwardly. "Look, uh...be sure to write us as soon as you get home, okay kids? Wanna make sure you get back safe. And...say hi to your folks for me, would ya?"

"That goes double for me. I want to hear about everything I've missed." Ford smirked until Dipper tackled him in a surprise hug, as Mabel did with Stan. After a moment of affectionate squeezing, the kids unlached and switched gruncles, with Mabel hugging Ford and Dipper hugging Stan.

"We'll miss you guys, too." Dipper smiled.

"We'll write everyday if you want!" Mabel beamed. The elder Pines twins exchanged amused smirks as they went to sit on a bench. There seemed to be a silent pact; take turns saying your goodbyes and take a seat on the bench. Soos barley reached where the Pines brothers had stood when Dipper and Mabel ran to and hugged him.

The words seemed to escape him as he looked at them. These kids, who were practically family, were leaving for almost a year, and he was too choked up to manage a goodbye. Go figure. Through his tears, Soos did eventually manage a shaky sentence. "Y-you little dudes come back next year, ya got it?"

"You bet." Dipper grinned and Mabel squeezed his big belly with all her might. Wendy had to tap on Soos's shoulder to signal she was waiting for her turn and he went to sit with Stan and Ford. She keeled the way Stan had, and she gave them a sad smile.

"Things'll be really boring without you guys here." she said. "You sure you can't stick around?" she half-joked. The twins both smiled as she hugged them. Dipper thought his heart might explode when Wendy lifted his hat, brushed back his bangs and planted a kiss on his birthmark. "I'll miss you guys so much."

"We will, too." Mabel smiled as she let go and moved to the bench. Pacifica awkwardly walked up, looking somewhere between remorseful and frustrated. Dipper was too distracted by the kiss to notice, but Mabel could have sworn she saw her newest friend's eyes flit from Dipper to the bench – more specifically, to Wendy – and back to Dipper, looking sullen.

Pacifica almost wouldn't be recognized. She wore no make-up and her hair, which had been cut curtsy of Tambry after some was burnt off, was a bit unkempt – perhaps she'd woken up late and scrambled to make it to the station in time. What's more, she was wearing her Llama sweater – a gift from Mabel and what marked her as one to go on the mission with the rest of them. That her parents absolutely despised the thing was just icing on the cake.

It seemed for a moment that all three of them had lost their voices; not terribly unusual for Dipper or Pacifica, but quite the remarkable feat for Mabel. Pacifica was first to speak.

"Guys, I...I'm really sorry for how I treated you before we...I-I'd like it if –" Pacifica was stunned into silence when Mabel pulled her into a hug and Dipper was quick to wrap his arms around both of them.

"It's not like we're never coming back." Dipper chuckled as they let go of each other. Pacifica blushed at his hand which lingered on her shoulder, very aware of the touch.

"Yeah, and next time will be even better. We'll have all summer to hang out!" Mabel said. Pacifica gave the Pines twins a small smile.

"I'd like that." she said as hugged Mabel her again. This time, the Pines girl made it a point to squeeze her. Pacifica took a deep breath, steeling herself as Mabel released her and she faced Dipper. He grinned good-naturedly at her, but before he could speak, Pacifica plucked up her courage for something she'd been meaning to do since their mission.

She kissed him.

Granted, it was only a small peck on the lips, but it left the boy frozen none the less. Mabel was now too wrapped up in her goodbyes to Candy and Grenda to notice, and Wendy smirked from the bench as Pacifica shyly hurried over to them, her face red and keeping her eyes on the ground in front of her.

After wishing Mabel a safe trip home and even tolerating a hug from her, Robbie crouched down so he was on eye-level with Dipper and squinted his eyes as though he were in deep thought. That pretense was destroyed, though, when he lifted a hand and soundly smacked Dipper out of his trance.

"Wha?" Dipper asked, his head still reeling and vaguely registering the already fading pain on his cheek. "Where was I?" he asked as he sobered up.

Robbie rolled his eyes and Dipper tried to glance elsewhere. Although he and Robbie had come to an understanding and had even come to respect one another, they still weren't exactly friends.

"Look, kid, just...Keep safe. K-keep your sister safe." Robbie said a bit awkwardly.

"Yeah...Always..." Dipper said, rubbing his arm and looking away. Not really knowing what else to do, Robbie supposed his work was done, though as he walked, he caught Wendy's eye, who's expression seemed to say 'you can do better'. Giving himself a sigh, Robbie called to Dipper over his shoulder without even stopping.

"See ya, Squirt."

Finally, there was McGucket. Much like Pacifica, he would have been hard to recognize at first glance. Still the same wild look, lazy eyes and overall appearance, but there was a difference in how he carried himself. Ford had promised to take care of McGucket, to make amends for costing the man his life, and it showed quite well. The old man was clean shaven now with a respectable set of cloths and he was beginning to put on a healthy amount of wight. He was still a bit kookie, but he had been doing a little better everyday in the past week.

"See ya around, McGucket." Dipper smiled and shook his hand as Mabel lurched foreword to hug him tightly.

"See ya next year, kids." the recovering old hermit grinned. He honestly didn't know if he could thank them enough for all they've done for him. "And I promise, I'll round up everyone who overdowsed – o – overused the memory guns. Help 'em like you helped me."

"We'll be looking foreword to it." Dipper said as he pulled Mabel off of McGucket. As the others all walked up to stand with McGucket, the bus finally pulled up. As soon as the kids boarded the bus, they raced for a window to take one last look at their friends. When the bus began moving, Wendy, Candy, Grenda and Pacifica started running alongside it until the bus picked up too much speed and left them waving goodbye to the twins. Soos had tried to give chase, too, but he hadn't made it more than half as far at the girls.

Since Gravity Falls wasn't what one would call a big town, it wasn't long before the bus took to a dirt road in the woods. While Dipper took out a pen and a long-neglected calendar from his backpack, Mabel continued to look out the window. When she noticed something, she gasped.

"Dipper, look!" she said, getting his attention. What he saw made him smile. A manitor, a malti-bear, a young pterodactyl, and a trio of gnomes riding a unicorn were running alongside the bus, looking at them as if to bid them farewell. "So when's the earliest we can come back?" Mabel asked.

"Way ahead of you, sis." Dipper grinned, going back to pinpointing the start of their next summer. With any luck, they'd be back by sundown of the first day of next summer break.

About an hour later, Mabel was sleeping soundly. Dipper had moved sits to give her more room, and now he was reminiscing about everything that had happened. It had all started with those creepy little gnomes turning into a monster...

'You know my past, but I would certainly like to hear about all your adventures this summer. Might even make for some good stories one day.'

Dipper smiled at his Gruncle's words, promptly opened his backpack and dug out journal number one – his journal number one – and opened to the first page. After taking a deep breath, he began writing.

August 27th. 2012

Ah, summer break. A time for leisure, recreation and takin'er easy. Unless you're me.

My name is Dipper. The girl about the puke is my sister Mabel. You might be wondering what we're doing in a golf-cart, fleeing from a creature of unimaginable horror. Rest assured; there is a perfectly logical explanation...

I think it came out good. Might end up doing a prequel with shots of the mission (minus the actual fight, I'm not good at those), or a sequel about the kids are back in California, showing their scrapbook to their parents. Review!