Hey guys!
I hope you enjoy this chapter, because I had to redo it TWICE!
LONG STORY SHORT, WIFI IS A BITCH.
Hopefully that explains why this chapter is a little late.
Love you guys! Don't forget to leave a review!
-Fly
There is nowhere else. The words echoed in Dipper's head, and he began to realize that Gwyn was right. He and Mabel had been walking south for hours, and they still hadn't seen anything but trees, trees, and more-
"Hey bro!" Mabel piped up, her cheerful words cutting through the somber silence. "Another house!" But it wasn't another house, oh no. It was the same house, with the same chimeny. When they walked in, they saw the same residents as before. It couldn't be true.
Could it?
"See, I told you." Persephone shook her head sadly. "The woods merely loop back around- we've tried every direction, both under and above ground. There truly is no way out."
"We've looked everywhere for a key, too- if even just a clue of how to get outta here." Gwyn walked over to them, his voice steadily rising in volume. "Every rock flipped over, every animal monitored, every tree climbed." He was yelling now, and the twins could feel the bitterness in his every breath. "So if you think you can get out, don't. Because you won't." Mabel was on the verge of tears, and she held Waddles close to her chest.
"Calm down, brother, they're just children!" Gwyn scowled before stepping back, and Dipper silently thanked Persephone. "We were no wiser than they were back then." Mabel wiped away her tears on her sleeve.
"We should go. We'll find a way- we always have." She grabbed her brother's hand, dragging him towards the door.
"What will that way be?" He whispered to her, worried.
"I don't know. We'll just wander around until we find a way out, or we can build our own home. The latter seems more likely though." Tears started to glimmer in her eyes once again as she thanked their hosts once again, dragging Dipper out into the cool night air. The wind whipped at their clothes, and Mabel head to use her brother's hat to keep her hair tame. Waddles stayed quiet, which was a surprise.
"We should've asked to stay the night." Dipper groaned, upset with his sister's independence. "I get that you want to go home as soon as possible, but-"
"Don't you?" She stopped walking, and Dipper waited to see if she was about to cry or if she was just really mad. Waddles oinked loudly, as if he too was suspicious.
"Well, yeah. Of course I do! Why would you think I wouldn't?" Suddenly it hit him. Mabel wasn't going to mess around. Unlike him, she had friends, dreams, opportunities... a life worth living that she would stop at nothing to get back to. "We aren't going to build a home at all, are we?" She shook her head.
"No. We can't rest, we can't settle, and we most definitely cannot become attached to anything here. Getting home is what's important, and we can't forget it." Their time spent in Gravity Falls had really made Mabel a lot more mature, at least when she wanted to be. This was one of those times.
"You're right. Let's keep moving." The twins continued their trek as the wind turned into rain, and the rain turned to snow. The snow stuck, and only got worse with every passing hour.
"H-how is this p-p-possible?" Mabel stuttered, the snow slowing their weary steps. "It's summer, I-isn't it?" Her brother was just as shocked as she was.
"I d-don't know... This place d-doesn't seem to have the s-same weather, or s-schedule as home..." By home, of course, he was reffering to anywhere but that forest. At that point a bed of nails looked more welcoming than the deep snow surrounding them.
"We sh-should reeeally sit down for a while... We'll be dead by morning if we keep walking!" Dipper could only nod, and the two dropped to the ground, hastily brushing away the snow around them. Mabel tucked herself into her sweater, much alike a turtle. Waddles oinked quietly on the inside. Dipper, on the other hand, was chilled to the bone. He could only sit there, slowly freezing in his tee-shirt and shorts.
"T-ry and g-g-get some s-sleep, Mabel." His teeth were chattering, and for a moment he thought he'd die, right then and there, leaning against the same kind of tree his very own hat promoted. He was shaken out of this thought when Mabel shrouded him in her sweater with her. The seams were stretched to the point where she wouldn't be able to wear it from then on, but it provided a warm shelter for them all. He knew it was her favorite, the red with a shooting star, but he was too far gone to argue.
"Good night, Dip." She smiled warmly at him, which was all he needed.
"Good night, Mabel." He tried to smile back, but his lips were numb. Her eyes were closed anyway.
Despite the cold outside, they quickly fell asleep, Waddles included.
