JQ: Hey friends! Sorry about the late update. Work and all. I hope this one makes up for it. It's pretty long. Happy reading!

Chapter 4: This Man Needs Your Sympathy

The Mystery Shack, Gravity Falls, Oregon

It was just before noon when Dipper decided he was going to read some of the new journal entries, that McGucket and Candy had given him last night. He was so intrigued by their entries that he didn't register Mabel's announcement that Grenda and Candy were coming over. He did find out eventually, that they were coming.

But it was too late.

Grenda and Candy burst through the doors, and promptly joined Mabel in the living room for their 'Ditch the Mess; Pick the Dress' marathon. They loudly commented on people's choice of wedding attire, as well as laughing at random infomercials. Their obnoxious loudness was, however, quite miniscule in comparison to when they started talking about girly stuff again.

"That's it," Dipper announced from the living room table, "I can't handle all this girly stuff anymore!" Mabel eyed him, critically.

"We aren't talking about girly things!" Mabel rebutted.

"YEAH," Grenda added, "WE'RE TALKING ABOUT BOYS!" Dipper rolled his eyes. He secretly wished that in being pansexual, Mabel's boy craziness would subside. That was not the case at all; she just became overly crazy with everything. Dipper sighed, and got up from the table.

"I'm headed out." He said, as he approached the front door.

"Where are you going?" Mabel asked him.

"For a walk," Dipper replied, "a MANLY walk!" he slammed the door to emphasize his annoyance. After exiting the shack, he began to walk through the woods.

Somewhere, in the woods

Dipper really hated not having any other guys around him. Soos was always managing the Mystery Shack, as well as being with Melody. Stan and Ford were still mystery hunting around the world. Gideon was like a boy version of Mabel, and he didn't like him anyway. Nate, Lee, Thompson and Robbie were a little too into their summer jobs.

It honestly wasn't even the whole issue of Mabel and her friends being 'too girly'; it was more due to the fact that Dipper wouldn't have anything to say about boys. He just wanted a chill friend that had similar interests as he did. Dipper honestly didn't know any more potential friends. Wendy was the closest thing to a chill friend, but she still wasn't back yet. Dipper sighed, and continued to walk.

Suddenly, Dipper began to hear a muffled sound. It sounded like twigs breaking, under some kind of weight. At first, he brushed it off as a deer nearby, or literally any other animal that was native to this kind of environment. However, it became louder. Dipper deduced that it was obviously approaching. His heart rate was speeding up, and his brain began to do that thing where it chooses to fight or flee. The footsteps were getting faster, and louder; the unknown animal was charging now. Dipper accepted the challenge, picked up a branch from the forest floor, and turned around with a battle cry.

However, it wasn't a scary animal or monster.

"Pacifica?" Dipper asked, bewildered.

"Who else, Dorker?" Pacifica retorted, a little annoyed.

"What are you doing, out in the woods?" Dipper asked her. She rolled her eyes, before responding to him.

"I'm jogging," She began, more annoyed because Dipper blatantly ignored her jogging attire. "This part of the woods is a part of my family's new property." Dipper nodded, and lowered his weapon. He completely forgot that McGucket's new 'shed' was the Northwest's previous home. Jeez, Dipper thought, how much were McGucket's inventions and patents worth?

"Right." Dipper said. There was an awkward silence, before Pacifica's curiosity got the better of her.

"What the heck are you doing in the woods?" She asked, a tint of her old self was very visible, "Monster tracking or whatever?" she guessed aloud. "Don't you usually do that with Mabel?" Dipper almost missed it, but the way she phrased the question made him think that she was more annoyed that Mabel hadn't joined him, rather than him just ruining her jog routine.

"I just needed to get away from Mabel for a while." Dipper answered. "Wait, you jog?" Pacifica looked confused, as she pointed to her whole outfit.

"Didn't I already say that I did?" Pacifica was regretting talking to him now.

"Sorry, sorry," Dipper told her, "I just…I don't know. I wish I thought of going for a jog, before storming off." Dipper did not expect Pacifica's response.

"Well, I just started. You wanna borrow some of my dad's old stuff?" Pacifica asked him, "He keeps them in the very back of his closet, so he definitely won't miss them." Dipper smiled and laughed a little.

"What? He's that rich and lazy that he can't even fetch his own clothes?"

"That," Pacifica explained, "and the fact that the servants won't get it because they think there's another ghost in there, or whatever." Dipper smiled.

"Well, let's go find out." He told her. They made their way back to Pacifica's new home, in a comfortable silence.

Back at the Mystery Shack

Mabel, Candy and Grenda were sitting at the living room table, enjoying Soos' stash of gummy koalas and raspberry twists. Mabel was feeling a bit down, due to Dipper's words. Since he'd brought it up, Mabel did sort of agree that being boy crazy 24/7 might be a little boring. She also felt a little guilty that they never really had any Dipper-friendly activities when her friends came over.

She also wasn't even totally boy crazy at the moment. Ever since the young blonde Northwest had shown up, she couldn't shake the thoughts out of her brain. She decided that it was high time to grow up a little, and come clean to her friends. I don't know, Mabel thought to herself, I know they're my best friends...and it is 2016…but they come from a small town. Mabel groaned, while her friends continued on with their activities.

"BOYS! BOYS! BOYS!" Grenda chanted.

"Weeeeeeeeeeeeeee!" Candy chimed. Those two were obviously having fun, oblivious to Mabel's internal struggle. Mabel decided to speak up.

"Hey, guys?" Mabel said, nervously. Candy and Grenda looked away from the television, towards Mabel. They noticed her expression and their own faces turned stoic. They didn't like when people were visibly upset.

"What is it, Mabel?" Candy asked, her voice laced with concern.

"YEAH, WHAT'S UP?" Grenda also questioned. Mabel sighed.

"There's uh…something I need to tell you guys." Mabel took a deep breath, and began to confess her only secret. "Um…I'm not…" However, she didn't know how to come out to them. When she came out to her family, they saw her making out with her friend, Jennifer, in the backyard. She didn't exactly know how to bring this stuff up. "I'm…not as boy crazy as I once was…" Candy and Grenda looked puzzled.

"WHAT ARE YOU GETTING AT, MABEL?" Grenda asked.

"I'm not just boy crazy," Mabel explained, carefully, "I'm also crazy for girls…and girls that wanna be boys…and boys that wanna be girls." Mabel took another deep breath. "I like everyone equally. I'm…Pansexual." Mabel, shut her eyes, as if to brace for impact. She waited a few seconds before opening her eyes. Candy and Grenda were smiling at her, sympathetically. Once she relaxed a little, Candy and Grenda enveloped Mabel into a tight group hug.

"Oh, Mabel," Candy said, "We're so proud of you!"

"YOU'RE MAKING MY HEART ACHE WITH JOY FEELINGS, AGAIN!" Grenda exclaimed, through happy tears.

"You're not upset?" Mabel asked, both in disbelief and relief. Candy and Grenda began to shake their heads.

"No, of course not!" said Candy.

"YEAH! IT'S 2016, MABEL!" Grenda pointed out.

"You girls are truly the best!" Mabel shouted, hugging her closest friends again. "Thank you."

"NO PROBS MABEL." Grenda said.

"We'll always be behind you," Candy told her, "100 percent!"

After some more heartfelt talking, the three girls came to the consensus that they should do something, other than talking about boys, shopping and middle-aged women reality television. Mabel got the idea to take the journal for another adventure.

"Let's get the journal, girls!" Mabel exclaimed, "There's gotta be some cool adventuring that Dipper and I may have missed!" quickly, Candy and Grenda followed Mabel towards the attic.

The 2nd Northwest Manor

Pacifica was showing Dipper the new Northwest Manor, after their workout. For some reason, it was bigger and better than the very first one. They were in the west wing of the home now, and Dipper's lower jaw was threatening to unhinge.

"…and this is the 3rd ballroom. Over there is the library. Then around the corner, is-!" Pacifica was cut off by Dipper's gasp. He was pointing to a room on his left that Pacifica didn't point to.

"Oh my god! Is that a videogame roo-!?" Pacifica quickly placed her hand over his loud mouth.

"Yes, it's a videogame room!" She confirmed, "Now keep it down! If my parents figured out I use our second cinema room for gaming, they'll toss it all!" Pacifica was showing genuine concern for her secret room and Dipper gasped even louder.

"You really are a gamer girl, aren't you?" he asked her. She nodded in response. "Since when?"

"Um, since I started getting into it, duh?" Pacifica deadpanned. "For a smart person, your incompetence is showing, tremendously, today."

"I'm sorry." Dipper apologized, "It's just that 3 years ago, I would've never pegged you for a fan of gaming." Pacifica shrugged.

"Honestly, I wouldn't have either." There was a mild awkward silence that followed this new found information about Pacifica. However, Pacifica was enjoying Dipper's company. It was nice to hang around someone who wasn't totally afraid of her for a change. "Hey," she began, "I'm kinda spent from our run. Wanna play Zombie Bashers: Bloodbath 11?" Dipper sniffed.

"That's the most beautiful question I've ever received."

Somewhere In the woods…again

Mabel, Grenda and Candy were wandering through the forest. Mabel was flipping through the journal, with Dipper's portable (and incredibly nerdy) ultraviolet light. Mabel was determined to find a magical creature. She was flipping through the journal, quite vigorously.

"Uh, Mabel?" Candy said, "Are we 100 percent sure about this 'adventure'?" Candy was quite concerned. She and McGucket did study these thing often, and she wasn't very keen on exploring the forests for fun. Mabel's shoulders bounced along with her laughter.

"Come on, Can-Can," Mabel began, "You of all people know that we of all peeps are totally prepared for the unknown." Grenda nodded with that logic, but Candy still wasn't convinced.

"Mabel, these things are very, very, dangerous. We need to be careful." Candy told her.

"Relax Candy. Your 'Dipper' is showing." Candy rolled her eyes while Mabel laughed.

"HEY," Grenda scolded, missing the joke completely, "THIS IS A KID'S SHOW!" Before Candy or Mabel could contest that statement, they began to hear rustling from the bushes, nearby.

"Did you guys hear that?" Candy asked. Grenda nodded her head.

"No doubt." Mabel answered. The rustling began to approach the girls and their fear increased. The rustling soon became accompanied by growling. Not the stomach kind of growling. The 'an animal is gonna eat you because you made it mad' kind of growling. It seemed to be coming from right in front of them, however, they couldn't see anything. Mabel and Grenda became increasingly confused while Candy was alert and very fearful.

"Uh, Candy?" Mabel asked, "What is going on?!"

"It's the Inviso-Wolves!" Candy screeched. "She began to point behind herself, "Quick! Follow me! Run as fast as you can!" They began to bolt for the exit that Candy had pointed out. Mabel turned to Grenda.

"You know what to do!" Mabel instructed.

"YOU KNOW IT!" Grenda picked up both her friends and continued to run away from the howling, invisible and bloodthirsty, creatures. "HANG ON, CHICAS!"

Northwest's 2nd Manor…again…

Dipper laughed at Pacifica's face, when she missed her serve.

"Shut up, Dorker! I'll wipe that smugness off of your goddamn face with your own hand!"

They were playing Ping Pong, on Pacifica's backyard terrace. She was beating him, but she still berated herself when she made a mistake. He shook his head. Old habits die hard, I guess, He reasoned.

"Pacifica, we're just having a friendly game. Chill-ax."

"My parents say that no competition is friendly." She paused, realizing he said the word 'chill-ax'. "And never say that word in my presence…ever." Dipper snickered. Before she served the ball, they heard faint screaming.

"Did you hear that?" Dipper looked at Pacifica and she nodded.

"What the heck is that?" Pacifica asked. Dipper shrugged his shoulders. Before Dipper could answer, they heard Grenda scream for help. A few moments later, Grenda, Candy and Mabel were at the wire fence, separating Pacifica's backyard from the woods.

"LET US IN! LET US IN!" Grenda pleaded. Pacifica ran for the gate and ushered the three girls inside. They were breathing very hard and sweating like they had just ran a 5K marathon. Well, judging by their appearances, they probably did.

"What's going on?" Dipper asked. Mabel had a guilty smile on her face and Dipper's eyes landed on the journal. He groaned loudly. "Mabel!" he scolded, "I told you not to play with the journal, especially when I'm not around!"

"I'm not a child, Dip-Dop!" Mabel argued. "OHMYGOSH! Are those caramel covered caramels!" Dipper rolled his eyes. Pacifica's servant, Jeeves, was setting the patio table for them. The table had a bunch of house-made desserts on it. Pacifica nodded.

"Go ahead, I'm watching my weight anyway." Pacifica told her, gesturing to the festivities.

"Awesome!" Mabel began stuffing her face with the sweets, immediately. Grenda soon joined in. Realizing that those two were going to be no help, Dipper turned to Candy.

"So what's going on?" he asked. "Why were you guys running in terror?"

"Well, Mabel suggested that we go on an adventure," Candy explained, "so she took the journal, and we went through the woods. Then, out of nowhere, we were ambushed!"

"By what?" Pacifica inquired.

"The Inviso-Wolves…" Candy shivered. Pacifica and Dipper shared a confused expression.

"The what?" Pacifica repeated.

"The Inviso-Wolves are these magical creatures that have an excellent tactic for camouflage." Candy explained. "When their adrenaline gets going, their bodies undergo a chemical reaction, similar to a chameleon's." Dipper nodded thoughtfully, and began to flip through the journal.

"I…I've never heard of them." He admitted. Candy shook her head.

"You will not find any information there," Candy reassured him, "McGucket and I have only recently begun studying them." Candy adjusted her glasses, "We haven't been able to document much. They are very elusive." Pacifica groaned.

"Well DUH." Pacifica started, "You already said they are basically invisible! You smart people today are really, really slacking." Candy looked to Dipper, for any further information on Pacifica's comment, but he just shrugged.

"Is there any way to stop them?" Dipper questioned. Candy shrugged apologetically.

"I'm afraid we haven't found one yet." Candy told them. Pacifica tilted her head, in concentration. She had a brilliant idea.

"Candy," She began, "didn't you say that they only underwent the chemical reaction when they were on an adrenaline high?" Candy nodded, and Pacifica smirked. "We should tire them out. Then they'll nap and we can move them away." Dipper and Candy smiled.

"Brilliant, Pacifica!" Candy exclaimed. She paused. "But they run fast, like regular wolves."

"YEAH," Grenda commented, with a mouthful of custard tarts, "EVEN MY LADY-LIKE ATHLETICISM IS NO MATCH FOR GHOST WOLVES!"

"Hey, they're not ghosts!" Candy corrected.

"Well they will be, if they mess up my hair." Pacifica threatened. "And don't worry; I have the perfect tool." Pacifica clapped her hands. Two very tall men in suits stepped into view. "Gustav! Pasha! Fetch me the quad!" Pacifica ordered. Both men bowed and said,

"Very good, Miss Pacifica." The servants began to walk, leisurely, to wherever it was that the quad was stored. Pacifica gave a loud whistle.

"We don't have all day!" Pacifica reprimanded them, and they began to run.

"YOU'RE SCARY, SOMETIMES." Grenda commented. Pacifica flipped her hair, vivaciously.

"Thanks, Grenda." Pacifica's expression became serious. "Now, here's what we're gonna do…" The five of them gathered together, in a group huddle. They were very intrigued by the fact Pacifica was taking control of the situation.

In Front of the Mystery Shack…

Dipper and Candy were waiting at the Mystery Shack, armed with a giant net. They were waiting for Grenda, Pacifica and Mabel to ride through on the quad, luring the (hopefully tired) Inviso-Wolves towards their location. The idea was to trap them while they were fatigued, and move them further away from the town. If the wolves get tired, their invisibility will die down. Candy and Dipper reviewed some regular wolf facts and decided it was safe to apply them to the behaviours of the Inviso-Wolves. Wolves typically can run up to 30 miles per day, and at a speed of 35 miles per hour. However, full out sprints are reserved for hunting and fleeing danger. Candy and Dipper deduced that the wolves should be lured in at 50 miles per hour, for about 5 minutes. That way, they'd get tired, but not tired enough to stop their pursuit.

"I hope this works." Dipper confessed. Candy nodded, in agreement.

"Me, too, as well." Both teens sat, in an uncomfortable silence. Dipper began to get eerie flashbacks from that road trip, Grunkle Stan had taken them on. Although he apologized and Candy accepted, he still felt like a jerk for being…well…a jerk. Candy spoke up, in an effort to alleviate some of the tension. "So, what have you been up to, these last few years?" Dipper shrugged.

"Not much, really." Dipper told her, "Just school and stuff."

"Same here, I think." Candy agreed. "Schools been pretty difficult while interning for McGucket, at the same time."

"I could imagine." Before Candy could respond, they heard the roar of an engine, approaching. They both grabbed the ends of the net, and braced themselves. A few moments later, Grenda shrieked and the quad burst through the trees, towards the shack.

"GET DOWN!" Grenda shouted, steering the quad away from Candy and Dipper. Pacifica was sitting in the back beside Mabel, who was dragging a T-bone steak, on a string. Grenda drove the quad around the shack, with the wolves close behind. Dipper could see the fur on the animals, as they passed by. The wolves were getting tired. Once they got close enough to Dipper and Candy, Mabel gave the signal.

"NOW!" Mabel yelled. Dipper and Candy threw the net over all four of the wolves. Their features were visible now, which meant their plan worked. After parking the quad, Grenda, Mabel and Pacifica stood on either sides of Dipper and Candy.

"We did it!" candy exclaimed. The five teens high-fived each other and hugged one another. They were relieved to have subdued the wolves.

Somewhere deeper into the woods…

Dipper and Mabel had already said goodbye to their friends, for the evening. They were driving out further, to release the wolves far from Gravity Falls. In the midst of her off-key sing-a-long, Mabel turned to her brother.

"Did you expect something like this would happen again?" She asked her twin.

"This is Gravity Falls, Mabel." Dipper deadpanned. "Of course I did."

The siblings continued their drive through the woods, looking for the perfect place to free the wolves.