Where was that place?

Who was I?

The map I unfold is colorless

To the south

To the south


I shudder at the memories, only to return to a harsh reality. Though there wasn't really too much difference between the memory and the reality. I was in my room. Alone. My hair had been reduced to a giant rats nest. My clothing choice narrowed down to my pajamas. My makeup had already been removed, the prove being the wipes in the trash bin. This left my real face bare and exposed. Naked and vulnerable. This described my current mood perfectly.

It's not like this is the first time I've been in this mood. I've had my ups and downs throughout life. Mostly ups. Whenever I'd go down, I'd usually just lock myself in my room. My stage persona would be removed, revealing the hollow and shallow girl I am. I'd often hide in a blanket fort, said fort collapsing just like my world. That's exactly what I have been doing. There is just one thing missing from this routine. Something I may never receive.

I remember how close we were. Both our bond, and to our goal. With my amazing detective work, I was quick to decode the Shack's puzzles and mazes. Dipper was able to crack the codes. We had gotten our hands on Book 3. Sure, it shocked us both since we were expecting the number 1. Still a pleasant surprise though. Especially to Dipper. There was one specific code though. When he cracked it in the impressive amount of time he had, he had the most ambitious look yet. "THE PORTAL WHEN COMPLETED WILL OPEN A GATEWAY TO INFINITE NEW WORLDS AND HERALD A NEW ERA IN MANKIND'S UNDERSTANDING OF THE UNIVERSE. PLUS, IT WILL PROBABLY GET GIRLS TO START TALKING TO ME FINALLY." were it's words. I was both astonished and dumbfounded. We can officially confirm the writer had no love life. Or a life.

It was an amazing feeling seeing my brother so happy. It's what I exist for. To make others happy. That's the entire point in putting together the tent. To make others happy. I was often described as a shooting star for my ability to enchant and enlighten the audience and my peers. Now, I guess I've had a fall from grace in a way. It's like my best quality had been stripped away. It's almost been a year. Well, 2 months shy from that technically. Sighing, I sink back into the covers.

Exiting my room later to get a snack, I begin to overhear something. Cravings forgotten, I peer into the living room. There I witness a meeting of some sort. Between Grunkle Stan, our parents, and the police. The last part nearly made me freeze. The adults oblivious to my presence, I continue to eavesdrop. They're talking about me. Without my consultancy. How rude. ...what? No. Dipper, you snitch. Heartbroken, I rush away in silence.

They,...they're gonna try to take me away. Eventually. They'll find out. And no amount of money nor my charm could ever get me out of it. I love my brother, but I can't face him. If he's willing to snitch like that behind my back, breaking all loyalty, ...I can't even complete the thought. I don't wanna leave. I can't. This is the only amount of life I have left. It's not exactly living. But it's the only thing I can call life. I don't wanna lose it. Just, no. I collapse in my own tears.

Makeup and hair redone, I think this is my only option now. If I can't have this life, and I don't want the one they are offering, then I shall settle into a new one. With the cover of night, it's much too easy to sneak out of my room. I didn't pack too much. Some food, water, 3 pieces of jewelry, a small makeup bag, 2 skirts and 3 tops, one extra pair of shoes, a coat, and a picture of my family. And of course a large stack of money. Not to mention my amulet. I don't intend to use is as selfishly anymore. But it is my best means of self defense. These all packed into one shoulder bag, I head out.

My tan wedged boots clicked against the sidewalk. It's too late to take the bus now. The nighttime temperatures didn't bother me at all. If anything, the coolness of the summer air felt nice. I wore something similar to my usual outfit. A pink dress with my trademark blue blazer. My pink bow headband was too match, my left bang un tucked and glamorously hanging in my face. My makeup was the usual with teal blue eyeshadow, simple eyeliner and pink lipstick. And I never go without the blush. Accessories included the white belt with the Tent of Telepathy star, silver hoop earrings and my amulet dangling around my neck.

The Gleeful's being asleep, it was pretty easy to pick a lock and break into the shack. It's one of the reasons why I love bobby pins so much. Used for fashion purposes, and for spy work. Hmm, where was that place? That place I was so close to decoding last year before our fall from grace. Oh, there's the vending machine. I kinda feel stupid now. DERP!

After what felt like hours spent going through a series of possible combinations, my brain wants to kill me. WHAT THE HECK WAS THE PASSWORD ANYWAYS!? I swear, this is really getting to me here. We made it pass the vending machine last year. *sigh*, calm down Mabel. You've broken many passwords and picked many locks before. Let's just try this again. 1, 3, 2, 5, 7.

To my pleasant surprise, it actually worked. The vending machine actually creaked open. The password actually worked. How about that? After struggling and barely making it through another round of complex codes, I finally reached it. I'm honestly surprised I actually made it this far. Dipper and I almost got here, though some struggles kept us from getting pass the second pass code. Plus we had other matters to attend to. But now I'm here, in the same place he wanted to. He was always quite a bit on the curious side. Curiosity killed the cat.

Approaching the table, I smiled as Bud had left everything prepared for me. Thank you. With the minimal amount of button pushing and switch flicking, it was only a matter of seconds before the portal lit up. And with one final pull of the lever, it was nice and ready for entry.

Can I really do this? Was I really willing to bend the rules of time and space just to avoid a tragic fate? No matter how wrong I knew it was, there wasn't a glimmer of doubt in my mind. I had to get away. Simple as that. This town can survive without me. And I may be able to find a new life over on the other side of the portal. I snatched up the 3 books for safe keeping. The last thing Dipper ever wanted was for the Gleeful's to get their hands on such ultimate power. Plus without the instructions, there'll be no one to go after me. That's all they were. Instructions. They weren't whats keeping the power up. You can't build something without a blue print. And that's their entire purpose in this. With a single brave inhale, I stepped through the portal, ready to face my new life.

I arrived in a place like the Shack. I was still in the same room. Same portal. Same desk. Same buttons. Same books. Hold on. Rewind. Noticing that all 3 books were still on the desk, I took another look at my hands to be sure my eyes weren't playing tricks on me. The ones I snatched were still in my hands. 1, 2 and 3. I don't really understand what's happening or where I am. Perhaps I am merely discovering the other books that belong to this new place. I really don't know. Going through the same route of hallways and stairs, I find the back of the machine. And there are voices from the other side.

Pressing my ear against the machine's wall, I can hear the muffled sounds of familiar voices. Sounds like Grunkle Stan. I recognize his voice anywhere. I then begin to hear Wendy and Soos. I guess here they work at the Shack instead of the Tent. Interesting. So that must mean that the other Pine Twins are also associated here. These thoughts aside, I continue to eavesdrop on their conversation.

Stan is barking orders. No surprise there. Soos sounds pretty obedient considering how often I hear what I think is "Yes Mr. Pines." While Wendy groans, I think there's a bit of excitement about something. And if she's anything like the Wendy I know, then this excitement has nothing to do with work. Continuing to listen, they seem to be having a conversation. They're expecting someone. There's the word Piedmont. Hmm,...oh. It's the other Pine Twins. Here's another keyword: visit. I think I have figured out what's going on. The other twins are going to be visiting from Piedmont California. Sounds like that will be soon. Well, Summer is about to be over.

It's only a matter of minutes before I managed to put two and two together. Gideon was visiting for the Summer from Florida. The other Dipper and Mabel seem to have Summer visits coming from Piedmont California. Seems to make sense. It's also only a matter of minutes before things turn to my advantage. I hear Stan bark a few catchphrases: "The Portable Toilets are Clogged Again" and "I'm gonna go hit the Jon." A few separate footsteps tell me that they left to do their tasks. Now's my chance. Slapping on a hoodie I brought with me, I dared to creak the machine open.

Stepping out carelessly, my breath gets caught in my throat. Crap. There's Wendy. Not only does she look freakishly different than I remember, but she's also there at the counter right in front of me. After having a panicked look on my face for a few moments, I realized that she doesn't seem to notice anything. Shutting up, I can barely hear the music blaring from her headphones. How has that girl not lost her hearing yet? Her eyes were glued to a page in Indie Fuzz Magazine. Wow. While the two Wendy's are certainly a bit different, they both sure are oblivious. Eying the door, I make my escape undetected.

Later that day I wait for the bus to Piedmont California. While waiting amongst some other random strangers, my mind began to wander. I don't really know where I'm going. I just knew I had to get away from my home. By coming to a separate dimension, I knew no one could ever track me down. That's as far as I had ever thought. This wouldn't be the first time I've ever been to Piedmont. As a Child Psychic, Dipper and I have done plenty of touring. I think there was a place there I could settle in. I'm not sure though. My memory is a little foggy since I was much younger back then. Plus this dimension is a bit different than back at home. I don't need to go back though. Still, where was that place? Where was the place that could make a nice home?

The last time I went to Piedmont I was still pretty little. It was before Dipper and I found Journal#2. And that was awhile back. I think we both had changed a bit after discovering that book. I think. I assume there was a time before that. Who was I during that time? Who was I? It was so long ago.

My train of thought is interrupted when the bus arrives. The small crowd of people climb on before it is my turn. Boarding the bus, I pay the driver with some of my own money before snatching my own seat. Said seat being far from comfortable to my standards. It'll have to do. I reach into my purse, fishing out a piece of paper. Unfolding it, I look over the colorless map I printed from the library. Reviewing my travel plans, the bus begins to move. Goodbye Gravity Falls Oregon. I'm now on my way to Piedmont California. To the South, To the South.