Dipper groaned as he rolled over then yelped as he fell off the bed, face first, onto the hardwood floor. "Good morning!" his sister shouted causing him to cover his ears. "How was your first night in a strange new place we've never been?" Her attitude was cheery, as usual.
"I couldn't sleep," he grumbled as he got up and rubbed his eyes. "I kept thinking Bill was going to murder us in our sleep."
"I thought about that too, but then I passed out." Mabel shrugged with a grin. She sniffed at the air. "Mm, do you smell that? Breakfast!" She ran out of the room.
As he entered the kitchen area he wasn't surprised to see Mabel already stuffing her face with food. Amy was sitting at the opposite end of the round table watching with a surprised look on her face at the girl's hunger. Dipper sat at the table and took a plate of pancakes and fruit.
"I didn't know what to make," Amy said, not looking away from Mabel who was now chugging down a glass of orange juice. "I just assumed pancakes would be okay."
Dipper noticed that Amy didn't have anything. "What about you?"
"I already ate," she said. "I wake up early, eat, and let the sheep out." She stood up. "Just put your plates in the sink when you're done. I'll wash them after my chores."
Mabel waited for her brother to finish eating before putting her dishes away and running to the front door. She greeted Stan who had taken a place on a recliner and was watching television with his feet propped up. "Come on!" she called Dipper who followed after her.
Across the property, just south of the sheep pen, they found Amy leading a large gray ox pulling a plow across some fields. Not far away Bill was laying on a hammock with his legs crossed and arms folded behind his head. Bud was laying on top across his stomach, enjoying the shade of the trees. Both had their eyes closed but only the dog slept. As they got closer they noticed Amy was dancing and singing happily as she worked.
"You can sing, too?" Mabel excitedly ran up.
Amy gasped in surprise and blushed slightly. "Oh, uh, yeah…"
Mabel gasped again at the large ox. "And who is this little guy?"
"Bruno," Amy replied. The ox snorted at Mabel, his breath ruffling her hair and causing her to giggle.
"Did you name all of your sheep, too?" Mabel asked.
"Sure," Amy shrugged. "Sheep one, sheep two, so on. I have twenty sheep."
Dipper glanced over to Bill. "Part of your deal is that he does whatever you want, right? Why don't you get him to do the work?"
She shrugged. "I've been doing things on my own since I was five. Just used to it I guess. Also, he might set something on fire."
Dipper was curious now. "Soooo…mind if I ask you some questions?"
"Well you already are," she sighed and began to lead the ox again. "But I won't explain any more about what I told you guys yesterday."
"Okay, okay. But when Bill said, 'someone like you,' what did he mean exactly? Are you like, magic, or something?"
"You could say that," she said, not looking at the two kids watching her.
"Are you a wizard?" Mabel asked excitedly.
"Uh, no?"
Dipper continued his questioning. "How long ago did you encounter him?"
Amy thought for a moment. "Well, I was in Australia three years ago then I came back in fall to pick up Bud and check on everything. Met Bill, then the three of us went to Africa because I had a trip scheduled already."
"Did you see lions?" Mabel asked excitedly.
"Yeah, Bill tried to get them to eat some tourists, but I warned them."
"I thought he couldn't leave Gravity Falls," Dipper thought aloud.
Amy started to scatter seeds into the tilled soil. "I probably have the answer to that, but it's not important right now."
"How have you not gone insane after all that time with Bill?" Dipper asked.
"I'm used to weird magical things happening around me."
"So, you know about all the weird things that happen here?" He asked, a little excited now.
She smirked. "I grew up with it." She walked over to them and crouched down, whispering. "In the corner of the living room there's a cute little door on the wall. It's called a fairy door, and it's connected to a different realm, but it only opens from this side when that realm's ruler allows it."
"No way," Dipper said. "Seriously?"
"The fairy realm," Mabel was holding her face which had a huge smile plastered to it.
Amy shook her head. "It's called the Myth Realm, the birthplace of magic." She put a finger to her lips. "But don't tell anyone else. I think I can trust you two."
"You bet!" they both nodded excitedly.
Amy stood up and went to release the ox from his plow. It was true, she didn't care much for human beings in general, they were rude and destructive, inconsiderate of each other. But these two kids had peaked her interest. They could be different.
"Is there any farm stuff we can help with?" Mabel asked excitedly.
Amy thought for a moment. "The only things I have left for now are collecting chicken eggs and feeding Flower."
"I call eggs!" Mabel shouted as she ran off towards the chicken coop.
"I'm going to finish up here," Amy said to Dipper. "If you want, you can feed Flower. Unless you're afraid of her, it doesn't really matter."
"Who said I was afraid?" he puffed out his chest. "What do I have to do, just throw some food down there?"
She nodded. "There's raw beef defrosting in the fridge. Just throw that down into the basement and close the door after."
Dipper was using cooking tongs to hold the piece of meat while he put his other hand on the doorknob. "Okay," he took a breath in. "Just open the door, throw the food in, and close the door. Simple as that… No problem…" He stared hard at the door.
"You gonna do it or what?"
He jumped at the voice behind him and turned to see Bill towering over him. "Ah! I mean, what do you want?"
"Nothing," Bill shrugged. "Just watching."
"Hmph." Dipper glared at him before turning and slowly opening the basement door. It was pitch-black and he could only see the first couple of steps before the rest faded into darkness. "Talk about creepy basements," he muttered and flung the raw steak down into the dark. It was only seconds before he heard the creature viciously attacking the food. The boy turned just in time to see Bill roughly kick him down the stairs and slam the door shut.
The wall separating the living room and the kitchen was one big fish tank, and Amy was throwing food in for the fish when Bill passed by. "What's that smirk?" she asked suspiciously.
"Hm? Whatever do you mean?"
"What did you do?" As soon as she asked she heard screaming and banging coming from the door at the end of the hallway. She gasped and rushed to the door. When she opened it, Dipper plopped onto the floor, his clothes were torn and he was covered in scratches and bite marks. "Are you okay?!" She quickly closed the door and helped him up.
He could barely get any words out. "Dark…bear…claws! Him!" he pointed at Bill who was standing at the other end of the hall. "You threw me in the basement with that thing!"
"I didn't throw you in there, I kicked you."
"Bill!" Amy shot him a glare.
"What?"
Dipper sat on the couch with a scowl as Amy cleaned the cuts on his legs. "Whoa," Mabel said as she came in with a basket full of eggs. "What happened to you?"
"He fell in the basement," Stan said as he flipped through TV channels.
"Hey! I did not fall. Bill kicked me in!"
"Did you meet Flower?" Mabel smirked.
"What do you think all of this is?!" he held out his now bandaged arms. "And why are you covered in feathers?"
Mabel laughed. "I may have had a run in with the rooster, no big deal." She coughed out a feather.
"There," Amy said as she stood up. "All patched up and infection free. Probably."
"How are you still in one piece living with him?" Dipper threw himself back on the couch.
Amy placed her hands on her hips. "Bill? He's never done anything to hurt me. Actually, he fusses at me for doing things that might get me hurt, like when I climb trees."
"Really?"
"Wait," Mabel said. "You climb trees? Why?"
Amy smirked. "There are these old oaks and birch trees deeper into the woods and their branches are really close together. They make a big canopy of sorts. I like to run across the top and freak out all the birds."
"Whaaaat," Mabel smiled. "I want to freak birds out. Grunkle Stan, can I chase birds out of trees, please?"
Stan grumbled. "Eh, yeah sure. Just don't, I don't know, fall, or something."
"Yes!" Mabel turned to Amy. "Can we go now?"
Amy thought for a moment. "Hmm, well you're not my responsibility, but I have a feeling that you'd try it with or without me anyway, soooo sure. If you break anything though and Ford asks, I wasn't there, and I never mentioned it. Ever."
Mabel nodded. "Yes ma'am!"
"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Dipper followed the two girls through the forest. Amy's dog had decided to tag along and was walking at an even pace with the boy.
"I never said it was," Amy replied. "Here we are." She stretched out her arms at the trees before them. Many of the trees were thick and tall with moss covering their bases. Their thick branches loomed overhead tangling together, allowing only small shafts of light to break through. The shade made the area feel much cooler and gave off a very different vibe than the rest of the forest. "Are you climbing, too?" Amy asked Dipper who was staring into the woods.
"Huh? Me? Oh, uh, no. I'm good."
"Okay," she said. "Then stay with Bud, otherwise you'll get lost here. He's got a great nose." She poked the dog's big wet nose before turning to see Mabel already climbing up one of the trees. "Be careful," she laughed.
Dipper watched them disappear into the leaves then turned back to the quiet forest. "Ready for some exploring?" Bud barked happily, his long tail swishing back and forth. He liked the idea of exploring with a canine companion. The dog's constant sniffing made him feel like they were detectives or something searching for clues or treasure. "I wonder why this part of the forest looks like this," he mused aloud. "It must be really old." A few leaves and blades of long grass appeared to move as something whispered. "Did you hear that?" Bud whimpered in response then looked up as birds took off noisily from above. They could hear Amy and Mabel laughing in the treetops.
"Rawr!" Mabel held up her hands and shouted causing several small birds to shoot out of the nearby leaves. "Did you see that!?" She pointed and called to Amy.
Amy laughed as she walked quickly along intertwining branches being careful not to trip on small twigs and knots. "Your voice is echoing up here," she laughed. "All the birds for miles will hear you coming!"
Mabel was jumping from branch to branch pretending to be a squirrel. As she landed on one her foot caught between two limbs and she fell forward with a yelp.
Dipper and Bud jumped in surprise at the shout and looked up to see Mabel hanging upside-down from the canopy. She spat out leaves and grinned. "I'm okay!"
Amy climbed down to where the girl's foot was stuck and examined it with a smirk. "Nice, that's exactly what I did the first time I did this."
"What are you doing?" Dipper and Bud turned at the annoyed voice. Bud barked and approached Bill.
"Man, you show up out of nowhere," Dipper muttered.
Amy was sitting on the branch near where Mabel's foot was caught. She shrugged. "You know, just hanging around." Mabel snickered at Amy's response. Amy forcefully pulled the two branches apart. Before she could say anything, Mabel was trying to pull her foot free. "Wait, don't—"
Her foot suddenly came free and she fell with a thud into some bushes below. After a few moments she called out, "I'm okay! Again."
"You left your shoe behind," Amy tossed the shoe down but before it hit the ground Bud snatched it midair.
"Hey!" Mabel hopped after the dog. "I need that!"
"Amy!" Bill ignored the girl and dog running in circles around him. "Get down!" Amy narrowed her green eyes and smirked before taking off through the tree branches. "Amy!" His annoyed shout was followed by a series of Bud's barking as the dog dropped the shoe and took off after his master.
"No, Bud wait!" Dipper tried to call the dog back to no avail. "Dang it! We'll get lost if we don't keep up!"
"Then let's go!" Mabel had slipped her shoe back on and ran after the dog with her brother close behind.
Amy was defiant by nature, it came from her mother's side. She loved to tease Bill, but she never went so far as to enrage him. She smiled at the sound of her dog barking after her and stopped for a moment to look around. She looked up at a nearby mountain covered in old trees. The mountain had been there forever but no one ever climbed that particular one, of course, she knew why, but it still intrigued her.
Amy was lost in thought when the tree she stood on suddenly began to shake and swayed back in a strange way that caused her to lose her balance and fall. She shouted in surprise more than fear and gasped when Bill caught her. It took her a moment to get over the shock before she relaxed and crossed her arms. "That's not fair," she huffed.
"Pfft," he rolled his eye and set her on her feet. "Fair, schmair. You shouldn't have been standing in a tree." He shrugged nonchalantly.
Mabel had caught up before Dipper who leaned against a tree, panting. "Aw man, I really need to… exercise more." Mabel laughed at him, and Bud went over and licked at the boy's face. He broke away from the dog and watched as Bill and Amy argued over her being in the treetops. Neither of them sounded angry but one was definitely sterner than the other. "What's it to you if she climbs trees and runs across them?" Dipper asked. "It's not like you'd care if she got hurt."
Bill shot the boy an annoyed look. "I need her alive. She could've broken her neck. You humans are too sensitive." Amy rolled her eyes.
"Couldn't you just find someone else like Amy? Whoever or whatever she is?"
"You ask too many questions that I don't want to answer," Bill stated bluntly before turning around sharply and staring into the dark forest.
Amy was also staring in the same direction. The twins tried to locate what they were looking at or what they might have heard, but they couldn't see or hear anything. It was eerily silent all of a sudden, and they began to feel uncomfortable at their silent staring. "What are you guys looking at?" Mabel was the first to break the silence.
Bill continued to silently stare but Amy quickly turned back to them at Mabel's question. "I… thought I heard something." She said after a moment then glanced at Bill. "Did you?"
His eye didn't look away but he turned his head slightly in her direction. "You didn't hear anything." He said quietly. It was rare for him to speak in such a hushed tone.
Suddenly, the silence was gone, carried away by a soft breeze and the chirping of birds. The eerie feeling had lifted and was replaced by a feeling of serenity. "Well that was weird," Mabel chuckled awkwardly.
Amy nodded. "This area is…" Bill shot her a glance that she didn't notice. "Special," she finished. "Let's get back. It's time for lunch." Bud barked loudly at the proclamation of food.
To be continued…
Yeeeeess... So I had the tree thing and the Flower "encounter" planned but overall this chapter stumped me a bit. In case you were wondering, Amy is the main character but I like to switch from her point of view to the kids'. For the most part, I try keep it like you'd be watching a show, so it's mainly dialogue and random scene switching. That's also why a lot of the chapters will seem like fillers and are just kinda random. It'll get better, I promise! Questions, suggestions, or any feedback please! This is the first time I've written anything fan fiction that's not Pokemon lol