Hello faithful readers to the third chapter ooooooof: Fragments of Old! Join along as we meet Mabel and continue their journey!
Disclaimer: I do not own Gravity Falls, nor the characters within it, these are property of the studio that created Gravity Falls
Dipper and Pacifica were waiting next to the single bus stop for the person that would no doubt assist them as soon as she knew the situation. They had left their Riverside home a few hours ago as their house was on the outskirts of the Gravity Falls town, since living in the town would be much too loud and cramped as contradictory to popular belief, Gravity Falls had grown in population after Bill Ciphers invasion, since tourists all wanted a look at the place where Weirdmaggedon had been. The new rise in tourism was bliss to Soos and his wife, well, would be bliss, if they weren't missing.
Pacifica had changed into a new outfit, she was dressed in a plain white shirt underneath a brown fur jacket and a pair of simple faded denim jeans. Aalong with her she carried a purple shoulder bag containing many supplies for their trip, ranging from a small bit of food to a massive folded cotton sheet. She had changed her hair style to a simple bun from the cascade of blonde hair she had last night.
A large bus pulled up next to the small shaded area that had been built for waiting bus-riders. Off the bus stepped a young woman; she wore a blue sleeved V neck shirt with the sleeves rolled up to her elbows, underneath she wore a white dress shirt with the collar and cuffs folded over her shirt and sleeves. She also had a bright red skirt and regular sneakers. Her hair was in one large large pony tail held together by a large pink band halfway down. Mabel had grown from a playful girl into an organised woman, though she still retained her childish nature.
"Bro!" she called as she charged towards Dipper and Pacifica, tackle hugging Dipper to the ground. She held him there for a good half minute, happy to see her brother after a full year apart after her last visit. Dipper smiled at his sister, and for a moment all worries he had were washed away as he embraced Mabel, until he remembered the news he had to tell her. With a solemn look overtaking the smile, Dipper stood up and hoisted Mabel up after him. Mabel had a big grin from her antics until she noticed Dippers stern expression.
"What's wrong Dipper? That expression makes you look like Grunkle Stan." Mabel muttered, her attempt at a joke thwarted by the solemnity of the atmosphere. While Dipper tried to piece together the right way to tell Mabel what happened, Pacifica took over.
"Mabel, something terrible has happened, we need your help." Pacifica explained, her tone calm but had undertones of sadness. At first Mabel looked shocked, but her expression changed to one of determination. She knew from the looks on both her brothers and her friends face's that the situation was dire. After a few seconds of silence Dipper finally spoke up.
"It'll be better if I just show you what happened" he said as he set down his travelling pack and began rifling throgh it. Soon Dipper pulled out what he had been looking for, a small hand held camera with a screen attached. Dipper opened the screen and inserted the video card that had been delivered to them, he then turned so Mabel could see what was happening on screen and the glare wouldn't get in the way. Once the video had ended Mabel's expression had changed again to one of horror, only to again be replaced by determined one.
"Well what are we waiting for! The Mystery trio! Back in action." Mabel spoke, her sense of humour keeping the group in higher spirits even though the situation was terrifying.
"Well, the first step would be to investigate people around town, find out if the've seen any suspicious activity, or if they seen Grunkle Stan or anyone else" Dipper reasoned, his mystery solving skills already kicking in. After two other signs of agreement from Pacifica and Mabel, the trio started to move off, heading towards the growing town of Gravity Falls.
Much had changed in the town over the past 6 years. For one, all the shop owners had more money, thanks to the tourists, so many shops had much more lavish settings. Before Old man Mcgucket had disappeared, he had regained most of his memory, and had bought the North-West mansion for himself, thanks to the influx of cash from the government, thanks to his inventions and blueprints, though, unlike her parents, Pacifica had not been affected by this, she had a certain 'friend' to live with. The water tower had grown larger to support the whole town as had the town dump, in fact the dump had been moved outside the town boundaries since it was too big.
Dipper, with Pacifica beside him and Mabel just behind, entered through the main town entrance, all looked regular, no evidence of any disappearances. Dipper extracted all three of Grunkle Fords journals from his pack, handing one to Pacifica and Mabel, and keeping one for himself. He had used these journals on many previous adventures, identifying weird cretures and entities, so there was no reason to believe that they could not help them right now.
"Ok guys, if you see anything weird, see if you can find it in the journal, it may be what we're looking for, now lets split up, I'll see if I can interview anyone about this" Dipper spoke, his mind already working overdrive to solve the mystery.
"I"ll go check the alleys and streets, what we're looking for may be hiding in plain sight" Pacifica reasoned, she had had some experience with mysteries, spending 6 years with Dipper would do that to you.
"Ummm, I guess I'll just check over everything, just to make sure you guys didn't miss anything" Mabel responded, she already knew of the relationship between Dipper and Pacifica, but now she felt like more of a third-wheel than ever, though soon enough Mabel just shrugged it off. Her bond with Dipper would come back, it always had and always will. Very soon after they had all decided on what they were doing, they had separated, desperately searching for anything that could be a clue.
Dipper himself wasn't having much luck, he had interviewed Mr. Corduroy, Wendy's father, Mr. Gleeful and his wife, Gideon's parents and dozens of people who had shopped at the Mystery Shack. While many of them were distraught and depressed due to the loss of their family, none had any information relating to the vanishing of 6 prominent Gravity Falls residents. Dipper found this to be a bit strange, and wrote it down on a small note pad, he would investigate further once his compainions returned, that was his plan, until he heard Mabel yelling for him and Pacifica.
Pacifica wasn't having such a great time either, all the back alleys and streets were filled with rodents and other foul substances, but no sign of clues anywhere. Pacifica had questioned herself several times why she had chosen to search the streets, and she kept coming up with the same answer.
"For Dipper" she still felt like she had to pay him back for the many times he had saved her life, from the woodcutters ghost back when they were 12, and many other times over the previous 6 years. Pacifica sighed, she had searched all the back streets, yet nothing had come up, so she decided to head back to Dipper, maybe he would have something, that was until she heard Mabel yelling for them.
Mabel herself was having a much better time, chatting with people, trying to get information without making people feel uncomfortable, like Dipper does when he interviews people. That was until she came across a street that caught her eye, there was a dull glow coming from down it, though with the sun's glare it could be easily mistaken for just a light trick, but Mabel had an odd feeling about that alleyway, so she approached it, poking her head roud the corner, what she saw made her yell for both her companions.
Once they had both arrived, panting from their sprint here, Mabel was still staring at what was within the alley. Once Dipper and Pacifica had finally regained their breath, Dipper was the first to speak up.
"We thought you were being attacked! What are you staring at Mabel?" Dipper said, his tone sounding annoyed, but ended up sounding curious, since not much could keep Mabels attention occupied for this long. After a bit of waiting, both Dipper and Pacifca simultanously decided to look at what Mabel was staring at, so together they looked down the alley, and gasped at what they saw.
It was a rip, in the very fabric of reality. A hole leading straight to a different dimension.
There we have it, Chapter 3. Now quickly a couple of things, 1. Can I get some reviews? I really want to see what you guys think, and dont be afraid to piont out anything I've done wrong or could improve on. 2. Some quick Shoutouts to some people who have followed from the beginning! Aliurophillia, Ultimate Spider Girl, A very angry ravage and Abbydobbie. So until chapter 4, Cya!
