Chapter 3: Dreamscapes
'Having terrorized her first target, Catherine has her next target in sight, one she plans to have a lot of fun with!'
Previously
Reality
Gideon's eyes quickly fly open with him shooting up with a start. Gripping his chest, Gideon can feel that his heart is beating out of control. Breathing heavily, Gideon coughs a couple of times and shakes his head.
"It's worst than I thought it would be!" Gideon panics. "I can't even sleep peacefully! I've got to find my book at all costs, even if it means-"
Swallowing the newly formed lump in his throat, Gideon closes his eyes to prepare for what comes out of his mouth next.
"Paying Dipper Pines a visit." Gideon finishes.
Catherine's Cabin
"I see Bill did exactly as I asked him to." Catherine lightly chuckles, the image of a distraught Gideon visible in her crystal ball. "Having one's greatest fantasy mold into their worst nightmare, what more could I ever ask for?"
Grabbing the '2'journal, Catherine flips to where her last journal entry left off and begins writing down what just took place with Gideon. While writing, the image of Gideon now disappears in a smog of blue and quickly clears to show an image of Pacifica and Dipper in the shack's kitchen. Placing her pen down, Catherine notices the image of the two, a mischievous smile appearing on her features with her focus landing purely on Pacifica.
"Oh there you are, Pacifica is it?" Catherine says as she begins lightly tapping her chin with her right index finger, making sure her long finger nail doesn't leave a bruise. "I was hoping to "see" you again and now that I have, I just have one question for you. What exactly is your worst nightmare?"
Currently
Staring into her pristine crystal ball that is sitting atop the ball's stand on her desk, the look in Catherine's eyes from an observer's view, she is delightfully enjoying watching Gideon sweat and squirm from the nightmare that he had and that she created!
"I see you're resting well Gideon." Catherine speaks with a sinister laugh. "Glad I could be of assistance."
Raising her right hand, Catherine now waves it over the ball, which causes the image of Gideon to become smoldered in a haze of blue. Waving her hand over the ball once more, a purple smog appears in the glass that quickly clears to reveal a crystal clear picture of Pacifica Northwest at the shack with Dipper. From what can be seen, Dipper and Pacifica are talking on the front porch with Pacifica's limousine and driver waiting outside of the shack. Smiling deviously at the scene, Catherine leans in closer to the ball.
"I had a really nice time today Dipper." Catherine hears Pacifica say as she intertwines her fingers in Dipper's. "I wish I could stay longer, but my parents-"
"Would have Stan arrested on the charges of kidnapping." Dipper finishes her sentence with a playful eye-roll. "I know I know, don't worry, but there is always tomorrow right?"
"Yea, it is." Pacifica nods in agreement. "So same time then?"
"You know it." Dipper replies.
The couple shares a quick kiss and Pacifica runs to her limousine. The driver opens the door for the blonde with her climbing in and the driver closing the door behind her. The car now pulls away with Dipper waving after the vehicle. Mabel can be seen stepping out onto the porch and standing next to her brother. The chocolate haired girl has a very wide brace filled smile on her face.
"You know Dip, I'm glad to see you happy." Mabel says, Dipper turning to her. "Even if it is with Pacifica. I like her more now than I use to."
"I'm sure the feeling is mutual Mabel." Dipper replies to his twin.
A fierce but low growl escapes from Catherine's throat as she narrows her eyes at the sight of Mabel.
"Hello dear sister!" Catherine growls. "Or should I say traitor! Don't worry, my battle with you is coming up and very soon! I can't wait to see the look on your face when you see me before I put your lights out for good! Just you wait! I'm twice the fighter from when we last met, that I can't wait to show you so prepare yourself!"
"Do I sense a little bit of sibling rivalry?" Bill's voice speaks to Catherine, the clone's attention now being turned to the demon.
"Of course not!" Catherine snidely replies as she waves her hand over the ball, a red hazy smog clearing the image of the twins out of the glass. "I just had a bad memory come back to me is all."
"Care to discuss it?" Bill urges, now planting himself on the desk in front of Catherine. "I'm all ears, you know, if I had them."
"Not at the moment, but in due time." Catherine calmly replies to the dream demon. "However, I am very pleased with the job you did with Gideon. I couldn't have done it better. I laughed and cried, but mostly laughed. That'll teach him to mess with Catherine Pines!"
"No sweat shoo-, I mean Catherine." Bill replies, quickly correcting himself to avoid the wrath of Catherine. "Nightmares and night terrors are my specialty."
"That much is evident and you do your job well." Catherine replies as she begins tapping her right index finger to her chin, a mischievous smile appearing on the clone's face. "So Bill, tell me everything you know about Pacifica Northwest."
Northwest Mansion (Pacifica's Bedroom)
Having taken her nightly shower, Pacifica now exits her bathroom wearing her majestic purple pajamas and brushing her hair, the golden strands having been washed in an ocean breeze shampoo and conditioner. Giving her hair a brush through once more, Pacifica places her brush on her bedside table next to her picture of Dipper, Mabel, and herself back at the shack after the defeat of Catherine that faithful night. Gideon can be seen off to the side, but the focus is mainly on the three. Smiling, Pacifica picks the picture up and begins gazing at it.
"Even though my hair was a mess that night, I looked really great in this photo." Pacifica expresses. "And so does my Dipper Pines. I know I say it every day, but I should have given him a chance when we first met, but I'm glad it wasn't too late to do it when I went for him this time. Now if only I can crowbar him away from his family, mainly his sister, then he can keep being my night and shining armor. Dipper Northwest, I like how that sounds considering taking on his last name wouldn't be that great."
Giving the picture one last glance, the blonde places the framed photo back on the table and climbs in bed. Shutting her light off by clapping her hands, the blonde gets settled into bed and quickly falls into a deep sleep followed by a chorus of medium to heavy snores. With the blonde out cold, a dark shadow slides down from the ceiling, along the wall and down into the blonde's hair. A light blue hue shines from behind Pacifica's eyelids, which doesn't disturb the blonde from her restful sleep, despite a few twitches of her lower limbs.
Pacifica's Dreamscape
Still in a sound sleep, a dark shadow now approaches the blonde with a hand landing on the girl's shoulder gently.
"Pacifica honey, time to wake up." A husky male voice says to the blonde. "You're going to be late."
Beginning to shake the sleeping blonde, Pacifica's eyes flutter open and turns to whom is talking to her. Closing her eyes, Pacifica rolls over and pulls the cover over her head.
"Five more minutes daddy." Pacifica mumbles. "I'm not ready to wake up yet."
"Pacifica if you don't wake up now, you'll be late for work." Her father, Bill Northwest, says to the girl. "You know if you're late again, you'll be written up and possibly fired. You know we need the money."
As if a knife suddenly pierced into the blonde's chest, Pacifica's eyes fly open as she sits up with a start, whipping her attention to her father. Giving him the quick glance over, Pacifica notices that her father is wearing a red and white stripped uniform with a golden name tag saying "Bill N" on the right side of the shirt of the uniform. Feeling her pulse beginning to race, Pacifica's eyes now turn towards her father's head and notices a red and white stripped hat with a plastic corn dog sitting atop it. Beads of sweat rapidly form on the blonde's forehead as she begins hyperventilating.
"Daddy….why…why." Pacifica begins, now giving the man a once over once more. "Why are you….wearing…..that?
"Pacifica, are you ok?" The older man asks, concern evident in his voice. "You act as if you've never seen me wear this before. You know this is my work outfit."
The theoretical knife now pierces further into the blonde's chest, into her heart, her gripping it as if she were beginning to bleed profusely just from hearing her father say the one word she dreads the most!
"Did you say what I think you just said?" Pacifica questions, her voice trailing off into whispers as her eyes widen with worry. "Did you say you had a….had a….a…job? Tell me you're joking! Please tell me you're joking!"
"Pacifica, you don't look so good." Bill replies. "Do you need me to walk you to the bus station so you can see the doctor? I do have enough change for you catch it. I'll just leave your mother a note for when she comes back from the hotel tonight before her starting her night shift."
"BUS?!" Pacifica screams, now throwing the covers on the bed back. "Daddy, we don't take busses remember? You hate taking public transportation! You said you would rather be dead than take public transportation! And what is mom doing working at a hotel?!"
Jumping out of the bed, the feeling of bare flooring under her bare feet immediately catches the girl's attention, her eyes widening once more. Looking up from the floor, Pacifica then looks around the room and notices that she is not in the same room from when she fell asleep. The room is much smaller, has tattered pink wallpaper all over the room, one window located on the west side of the room that has a small crack in the right corner of the window pane, but is covered with newspaper and no drapes, and her white Italian leather furniture is nowhere in sight, neither is her white imported piano from France. Continuing to look around the room, Pacifica can feel herself becoming lightheaded.
"Daddy, where is my carpet?" Pacifica frantically asks. "And the rest of my furniture?! I had imported Italian furniture and a piano from France! My room is bigger than this! Just where am I?"
"Pacifica, I'm not understanding this behavior of yours." Bill replies, suddenly becoming aggravated by his daughter's dramatic behavior. "You know this is where we've always lived. Why are you acting like this?"
"Daddy, this is not where we live!" Pacifica argues back. "This isn't the Northwest Manor! Look at this place! I would never live here! I'm use to the finer things and this isn't the finer things! I'm using to wearing Egyptian silk clothing, Cashmere sweaters, leather shoes, and carrying the most expensive hand bags! Plus I always wear the finest of pajamas to bed and sleep on French silk bedding!"
Having spoken about her pajamas, Pacifica looks down and notices her majestic purple pajamas that are made from the finest silk from the north hills of Africa have been swapped out for a dingy blue night gown. Slapping her right hand over her mouth, Pacifica falls over on the bed with her hair falling all around her face and neck.
"You know Pacifica, you're acting no better than those Pines!" Bill spits. "Just because they are rich, they think they are better than everyone in this town."
Quickly sitting up, Pacifica's gaze catches with her father's.
"Did you say…..the Pines…..are rich?" Pacifica chokes, her words stumbling on top of one another. "Dipper, Mabel, and that disgusting Stanford Pines?! Rich? With my money?!"
"They are the wealthiest in this town, you know that." Bill calmly replies to his daughter. "Stanford is picking us up for work today in his new shiny black limousine so you better hurry and get ready. Your waitress uniform is waiting for you in the living room."
Turning her gaze away from her father's, Pacifica grips her throat, feeling it beginning to close from the stress of her swapped life. Shaking her head back and forth, Pacifica can feeling her pulse is beginning to slow down to the point of her heart almost stopping.
"This isn't happening!" Pacifica voices between panting breathes. "This is not happening! How did it come to this? How did I fall from grace? How am I…..poor?"
A knock now occurs at the front door, catching both Bill and Pacifica's attention. Zipping out of the room, Pacifica rushes to the door through the cramped house while not bothering to notice the look of the house. Nearly ripping the door off of its hinges, the sight in front of the blonde nearly makes her faint! Dipper and Mabel are standing at the door, Dipper dressed in a very pristine white tuxedo with a matching top hat sitting atop his neatly smoothed down hair, pristine white shoes, and is carrying a cane with a diamond to top. Mabel is dressed in a long elegant pink gown with a diamond belt around her slender waist, her hair is done into a series of neat curls that are pinned at the back of her head, dangling diamond earrings on her ears, a diamond headband on her head, glass slippers on her feet, and a matching purse under her arm with a diamond clasp. And most of all, Mabel isn't wearing her braces!
"No! This can't be happening!" Pacifica shouts, her vision never leaving the two twins. "You two are actually…fashionable!"
With her vision now focused on Dipper, a smile spreads across Pacifica's face as she walks closer to the boy.
"Dipper, I must say that you are really wearing that tux." Pacifica says in a flirty manner. "I mean really, really well."
"Hello Pacifica." Mabel snottily speaks to the blonde, turning her nose in the air at her. "I see that you have grown an unhealthy attachment to your old clothes. Of course, I'm not surprised considering you're so poor you have to wear what you can get, but I'm sure with your two twenty five an hour job, you will surely save up every penny to buy new ones while also finding a way to fix up this ratty hens nest!"
"Why Mabel, fixing it won't do the job." Dipper adds in. "But burning it down surely will!"
Dipper and Mabel now break into hysterical laughter, their laughter a painful echo in the blonde's mind with each cackle made. Pacifica's smile fades as she steps back into the house away from the heckling twins, their words of hatred and their looks of deceit stabbing her where the knife already planted itself in her chest.
Slamming the door on them, the blonde leans her back against the door and slides to the floor, the feeling of despair overcoming her tremendously. Closing her eyes, tears begin to stream from Pacifica's eyes.
"Awe, what's the matter little girl?" A haunting voice taunts to the blonde girl. "Having a bad day? Yea, I hate those too. They really ruin your day you know?"
Shooting her head up, Pacifica spots Catherine sitting cross legged on top of the faded blue chair in the living room across from her with Bill Cipher hovering next to the clone. The eye of the triangle formed into a devious expression to match Catherine's. Catherine's smile now forms into a smirk upon seeing the terrorized look in the blonde's eyes.
"Hello Pacifica." Catherine greets to Pacifica, the blonde now scrambling to her feet. "You know it's not nice to slam the door on your guests. That only makes for a bad situation with future visiting now doesn't it?"
"Who are you and how did you get in here?!" Pacifica asks, her voice nearly hoarse from previously shouting. "Wait, you look familiar; like we met somewhere before."
"Could be, who knows." Catherine nonchalantly replies. "I could be anyone or even have an evil twin sister. Oh scary!"
Giving the little black dress wearer a glance over once more, it suddenly clicks in Pacifica's mind where she has seen this woman before.
"Wait, I know you!" Pacifica nearly screams despite her disappearing voice. "We defeated you that one night when the power in the town went out! Your name is Cathy or Caddie, or something in relation, but I now know where I know you from! Dipper and Mabel were right all along and I didn't believe them."
Stepping down off the chair, Catherine approaches Pacifica, now standing just a mere inch away from her as she locks gazes with her. Terrorized ice blue eyes looking into condescending and arrogant black orbs.
"Who I am currently isn't important to you." Catherine calmly replies to her as she places her left hand on top of Pacifica's head rather roughly. "But soon enough, you'll find out."
Tightening her grip on the blonde's head, Catherine's long fingernails are now digging into Pacifica's head, a mix of blue and black ooze streaming out of where Catherine's fingernails are digging into.
"Welcome to your worst nightmare!" Catherine hysterically speaks to the girl. "I'm so glad I could be the first of the welcoming committee to say it!"
With Catherine's tight grip on her head, Pacifica's eyes now roll up into her skull with her collapsing to the ground at clone's feet.
"I hope you enjoy the ride!" Catherine says as she begins laughing hysterically with Bill Cipher adding in.
"It'll be one heck of a trip!" Bill expresses, continuing to laugh with Catherine. "And look, she's already exhausted and the trip hasn't even begun yet!"
Pacifica's body begins twitching uncontrollably at Catherine's feet with the two continuing to laugh her expense.
Reality
Pacifica's eyes now shoot open with her sitting up with a start while frantically looking around her bedroom. Through her sleepy unfocused vision, Pacifica squints her eyes and notices that she is in her room of the Northwest Manor; piano, silk clothes, and numerous shoe and hand bag collections included. Touching her hair, Pacifica doesn't feel where Catherine dug her long dagger like fingernails into her scalp. Breathing a sigh of relief, Pacifica lies back down.
"That dream felt so real and that woman." Pacifica speaks to herself. "I know her, but I can't place her name anywhere. I better call Dipper and tell him about this. I know he'll know what to do."
Grabbing her cell phone from her bedside table, Pacifica shakily begins dialing Dipper's cell phone number.
Mystery Shack (3:45am)
Both twins are sound asleep with Dipper fast asleep on his '3' journal and Mabel sleeping soundly in her bed on her back with her stuffed tiger tucked under her left arm. In the pocket of Dipper's vest, his cell phone begins ringing, the current ringtone that he set for Pacifica beginning to play. With the volume at one hundred, both twins are abruptly woken up, each voicing their disapproval of being woken up and so rudely at that after 3am!
"Who would be calling this early in the morning?!" Mabel fusses as she pulls the cover over her head. "It's really rude if you ask me."
"I'll find out." Dipper tiredly speaks to his sister as he drags himself from his bed and over to his vest that is hanging on the coat rack next to the door of their room. Reaching into the right pocket of the vest, Dipper pulls out his cell phone and notices Pacifica's name is showing up on his caller ID.
"Pacifica?" Dipper questions as he hits the answer button. "Hey Pacifica, what's up?"
"Dipper, I am so sorry I didn't believe you and Mabel!" Pacifica frantically replies.
"Pacifica, what happened?" Dipper asks, his mind clearing the fog of sleep to focus on the conversation. "Didn't believe us about what?"
"I had a nightmare about that girl Caddie, Cathy, or something like that and she was with this triangle with one big eye!" Pacifica answers. "I didn't believe you guys when you said she returned. I am so sorry!"
"It's ok, but tell me about your dream." Dipper investigates.
With Dipper on the phone with Pacifica, a knock at the forest entrance of the shack now occurs. Hearing the knock, Mabel slings her cover to the floor in a huff of disgust.
"Does everyone want to wake us up tonight?!" Mabel expresses, now jumping out of bed. Leaving the room, Mabel marches down the stairs and approaches the door. For the knock to occur that early in the morning and since Stan removes his hearing aid every night before bed, the 'visitor' can count their blessings because if Stan were to answer the door that early, things could go from bad to worse in a hurry!
"Whoever it is, go away!" Mabel shouts to the door. "The shack is closed for the night!"
Turning from the door, Mabel begins back up the stairs for when the knock occurs once more. Lowering her head in exasperation, Mabel once again approaches the door, determined to make whoever is at it go away, this time for good!
"I said, we're closed!" Mabel repeats now slinging the door open. "Come back to-"
The girl's rant is cut short for when Gideon lands at her feet, the look of terror present in his icy blue eyes.
"Mabel please, I need you and Dipper's help!" Gideon pleads. "Badly!"
Merry Christmas everyone!
