Chapter 4
What was I going to tell Wendy? Should I tell her that I was the cause of Robbie's disappearance? Should I tell her that I wished him away? But after I tell her that, will she forgive me? Will she ever talk to me again? I want to tell her, I don't want her to hate me. Oh Dipper, what will you do?
"Maybe we should just resume playing." Mabel spoke. "And who knows? We might get lucky and the next player will get a 'wish' card and just wish Robbie back."
"That may be easier said then done." Ahmed said to her. "If I'm correct, the redhead is next, then Robbie is. Unless a 'wish' card is drawn, or something else that allows us to skip his turn or something, it is hopeless. All will be lost and things can't go back to normal."
"What?" My sister wanted to know. "You mean we can't play for him or something?" Ahmed shook his head.
"I'm afraid that is not how Funmanji works. It keeps records of who plays and if a missing player can't play, then the game won't continue until that player plays."
"You have to play, Wendy!" I said, determined.
"But Dipper," She started. "What if I can't get Robbie back? You heard what Ahmed said."
"I know. But you won't know unless you try!" Mabel grabbed my arm. She looked at Wendy and Ahmed.
"Twin conference!" She dragged me a little ways so that Ahmed and Wendy couldn't hear. She looked at them. "This won't take long!" She looked back at me. "Dipper, what are you doing!?"
"I'm trying to get Robbie back." I told her. "This may be our only chance."
"But Dipper, if Robbie comes back, you won't be able to have Wendy to yourself. Don't you want that?"
"I do want that, but I want Wendy to be happy too. I won't be able to go on with my life knowing that I made my girlfriend's boyfriend disappear because I was jealous and mad. I have to see how this turn plays out even though it means it might break my heart."
"Are you sure you want this?"
"Yes, even though we might not get Robbie back, at least we had the chance of getting him back."
"Okay, whatever you say bro." She smiled. "I hope we do get Robbie back." I smiled too.
"Me too." And with that, my sister and I held hands as we walked back to Ahmed and Wendy.
"We're back!" Mabel announced. "Let's get Robbie and get this thing over with!"
"All right!" Ahmed spoke. "That's the spirit; way to be enthusiastic!"
"That's my sister all right." I said. We sat down. Ahmed handed Wendy the die.
"It's up to you on what happens next." Ahmed told her. "Good luck!"
We sat in silence for a minute or two. Wendy was just staring at the board, not doing anything. Mabel finally broke the silence.
"Why aren't you taking your turn?"
"What if I can't get Robbie back?" Wendy asked, bereft. "What if it's his turn next and he's not there to take it? What if he's stuck in the game like Ahmed was? What if…" I interrupted her.
"Just take it and see what happens. We may get lucky and Robbie's turn will be skipped or something."
"But that's the freakiest part; not knowing what's going to happen."
"I know it's scary." I told her. "But we'll get through this." Wendy smiled at me.
"Thanks Dipper." I smiled back.
"Can we just play?" Mabel wanted to know.
Wendy nodded and gulped; she shook the die and moved her piece. We all held our breaths as Wendy grabbed her card and turned it over. She smiled.
"You're right Dipper." She said as she showed it to me. 'Skip the next player's turn', it read. She looked back at it. "Strange, this is the only normal game card we've seen in the game so far." She put it in the discard pile.
"Okay Mabel," She said to her. "Your turn." Mabel grabbed the die and shook it.
"Beware the tornado." She read. She looked confused. "I don't get it. The weather's fine." I looked outside and gaped, my eyes widened. The sky was all green and animals were running like mad. The weather vane was spinning a million miles an hour!
"I wouldn't be sure about that." I said. "Look!" Mabel, Wendy and Ahmed looked at to where I was pointing. We then saw a tornado touch down in the far distance. Ahmed's eyes widened.
"Quick!" He shouted. "We must get to a safe place!" He looked at us. "Do you have a storm caller?"
"In the front of the Mystery Shack!" Mabel informed him.
"Good! We must go there at once!" We all ran outside.
"Come on Waddles!" Waddles oinked, stood up and ran after Mabel.
When we were at the storm caller, I remembered something. The game! Did someone remember to grab it?
"Did any one of you guys grab the game?" I asked them, yelling over the growing roar of the wind. They all looked at me.
"Shoot!" Ahmed cursed. He looked at me. "Sorry little man, must've been so shocked about the storm that I forgot."
"I thought you or Ahmed had it." Wendy admitted. "Because I don't have it."
"I thought you would take it, Dipper." Mabel said to me. "I was too busy worring about Waddles to think of the game. How are we going to get it? The tornado will be here any minute."
"I'll get it!" Ahmed spoke. "It's my fault. I should've been paying attention to who took the game. Now, you kids head to the celler, I'll be back with the game."
"You be careful!" Mabel said. Ahmed gave her a wink and a thumbs-up.
"Don't worry about me. Just get yourselves to safety." Ahmed ran back to the Mystery Shack. We all looked at him, hoping against hope that he'll be back all in one piece with the game.
All of us headed down into the celler.
Down in the celler, we prayed and waited for Ahmed to get back. He had to get back! I wanted out of here before Stan and Soos get home. And Robbie, I hope he comes back too. What about Mom and Dad? Will we ever see them again?
And what time is it? It seemed like hours since we started. Does time stop when we play and resumes when we finish (If we finish?)'
I looked at Mabel. I don't need the 'twin instinct' to know what she was feeling. I could tell by her face. She patted Waddles for comfort.
The cellar door opened moments later and there was a windswept Ahmed, game in hand! We all sighed with relief.
Ahmed was about to come downstairs, but the wind was so strong that it lifted him off the ground!
"AHMED!" We shrieked. He held onto a loose nail in the floorboard for dear life. But it flew out, and so did Ahmed. We shrieked his name again.
"Here! Take the game!" He tossed the game to us. I caught it. Ahmed held onto the cellar door.
"Finish the game!" He told us. "Finish the gaaaaaammeeeee!" With a creak and crunch of breaking wood, the cellar door came off and it, and Ahmed flew out towards the raging tornado.
"AHMED!" We all yelled a third time. I tried desperately to run after him, to save him, do something, but Wendy held me back. I collapsed into her hold with Mabel, helpless. We had lost Ahmed.
We all ducked our heads like we do in Tornado Drills at school as the Tornado came closer and closer. But, while the wind whipped about us, and the noise was deafening, we remained safe, hunched together on the cellar floor.
A few seconds later, it disappeared and the green sky turned blue again. We all looked up and went outside.
We gasped. Some pieces of The Mystery Shack were on the ground. But the house was all gone.
"The Mystery Shack!" Mabel cried. "It's gone!"
"That tornado sure did it's job!" Wendy observed. "Look at this place. All of the trees are down."
Suddenly, we heard a muffled cry for help. We looked around and spotted the front door. We gasped. Ahmed was beneath it!
We all rushed to him and Wendy lifted the door off of him.
"Are you okay?" Mabel questioned, worry in her voice.
"Well, I think I broke my leg." Ahmed answered. "Cause it hurts like heck! When the game ends, I'm going to have to go to the doctor."
"That's too bad." Mabel said. Ahmed nodded in agreement.
"Well, you can't change what's been done, but I think I'll be alright once the Doctor looks at it. Now, let's just finish the game so everything can go back to before." He looked at me. "I believe it's your turn young one."
It took a moment until I went back into reality. I was still shook up about the storm and all that happened, worrying if things were ever going to be right again. Mabel nudged me.
"Oh, right!" I said. I laid out the game on a rock and we all sat around it. I grabbed the die and shook it, hoping to land on a card space. I didn't. I sadly sighed, moved my piece and gave the die to Wendy.
Wendy got a reverse space so it was back to me. Just like last time, I didn't get a card space. I gave it to Mabel.
We couldn't believe our luck over the next turn. No one had gotten a card space, but fortunately, we ether skipped Robbie or someone got a reverse card before his turn came. All of our pieces were now close to the end.
I got a card space. I moved my piece closer and picked up the card, praying that it was a 'wish' card.
It was! I couldn't believe it. I stood up.
"I got a wish card!" I announced, showing them my card.
"That's great!" Wendy said.
"What are you going to wish for?" My sister wanted to know.
I hesitated. What was I going to wish for? Should I wish Robbie back or wish for Ahmed to see his friend again? It was a tough decision; this may be the only other time we'll get a card like this and I had only one wish. What should I do? Think, Dipper, think!
"Look, little man," Ahmed said to me. I looked at him. "I know what you're thinking and don't fret; wish that Robbie teen back."
"But what about your friend?" I asked. He shrugged.
"Maybe I'll get lucky and bump into him one day. If not, that is life. He is so far gone, besides- you must get your friend back. I'm just lucky that I'm out of the game. So it's okay, wish Robbie back!"
I hesitated again. I still wasn't sure. I looked at Wendy. She looked at me.
"You'll make the right choice, Dipper." She said. "You're a smart kid." I gulped and finally made my decision.
"I wish Robbie was back here with us." I said. There were a few moments of nothing. Just as I was starting to feel a hopeless gnawing in my gut…
Robbie then pinged into view by an overturned tree.
"What happened?" He asked woozily. Wendy ran to hug him.
"ROBBIE!" She cried. "You're back! I thought I might never see you again!" She looked at me. "Thank you for bringing Robbie back, Dipper." Robbie was confused.
"Wait," He pointed at me. "He wished me back?" Wendy nodded.
"He sure did!" She winked at me. I grinned nervously. Did I do the right thing? Or should I have wished for Ahmed's friend instead? I was thinking about this when Mabel spoke up.
"Where did you disappear to?" She questioned. Robbie shrugged.
"Don't know! It was totally white. It was really weird."
"Weird!" Robbie then looked at the board.
"You guys are almost done? There's no way I'll catch up!"
"It doesn't matter!" I said. "The only way for everything to go back to the way they were before is if one of us gets to the end!"
"But I can't be beaten by a ten year old!" I rolled my eyes, I was starting to regret my wish.
"Twelve!"
Wendy took her turn. She moved her piece to the spot next to the finish.
"Shoot!" She said. "Almost got it. I just needed one more spot." She handed it to Robbie as he took his turn. He handed the die to Mabel when done.
Mabel took her turn. She got to the same spot as Wendy.
I was about to take my turn when we heard a click of a gun. We looked at Ahmed.
"It wasn't me." He admitted. We looked up and gasped. It was the same poacher as before!" Waddles squealed, and hid behind Mabel.
"Give me that pig!" He commanded. Mabel spread out her arms, looking serious.
"You CAN'T have Waddles!" She screamed at him. "Not now and not ever, so you can just forget it! Just pack your gun and leave!" The man chuckled.
"I don't think so!"
"Dipper," Ahmed whispered to me. "Take your turn." I whipped my head at him.
"But what about my sister?"
"She'll be all right. I won't let anything harm her." I hesitated.
"Go on! She'll be fine!"
I was still unsure, but I went to the game and took my turn anyway. I moved my piece and…got to the end!
"I won!" I cheered. I looked at them but gasped. The poacher had fired his gun straight at my sister! I lunged in between.
"MABEL, NOOOOOOO!!"
Suddenly, just as the bullet was inches to my chest, a sudden wind blew it astray.
"Huh!" I looked at the poacher with a shrug. "That was a lucky break."
He was about to shoot again when the wind picked up, stronger this time. I looked around; it seemed to be coming from the game board! We held hands and I held onto a sturdy tree branch for all of our lives. Waddles clamped onto the bark with his teeth.
All of a sudden, like that tornado, a ton of animals flew by and got sucked into the game. The poacher did too.
"I CAN'T HOLD ON MUCH LONGER!" I shouted over the wind.
"WELL, HOLD ON UNTIL THE WIND STOPS!" Mabel shouted.
"I CAN'T!"
I lost my grip. We all screamed as we sailed towards the game.
The wind died down all of a sudden. We all fell to the ground. Waddles went up to Mabel. Mabel hugged her pig. We all got up and looked around.
The Mystery Shack was back in perfect condition. It was like nothing had happened to it.
"We did it!" Mabel cheered. "We finished the game!" She looked at me. "Oops, I mean, Dipper finished the game! Thanks for saving me Bro!"
"No problem!" I told her. "You're my twin sister; we got to stick together!" Mabel smiled, and then bent down to Waddles.
"Waddles, what do you say?" Waddles oinked. I rubbed his head.
"You're welcome." Waddles gave out a happy grunt.
"Well," Wendy spoke. "Everything's back to normal."
"Thank goodness!" Robbie added.
"Unfortunately, I still have a broken leg." Ahmed said harshly, clutching it, he was still on the ground. "S-someone will have to drive me to the hospital, please."
"Robbie can drive." Wendy told him. "He'll drive you." She looked at him. Won't you Robbie?" Robbie shrugged.
"Sure, but I'm not paying for the operation. I won't get my allowance until the end of the month so I'm all out of money." He went for the front door. "Come on!"
"Just a minute," Ahmed said. He looked at us. "Thank you for getting me out of the game."
"No problem!" Mabel said. "It was wonderful to meet you."
"Yeah!" I put in. "I don't think we'd have survive without you." He smiled.
"Well, I'm glad I could help. You're clever kids." He then looked serious. "Now, there's something you need to do for me."
"Sure!" I said. "Anything! What is it?"
"While your friend drives me to the Emergency Room, I need you to take this game with all of its contents and throw it away."
"We already told you," Mabel said to him. "It's not ours. It's our great uncle Stan's." Ahmed looked at her.
"Trust me; he'll be better off without it."
"But…but…"
"Trust him, Mabel." I told her. "He knows what he's taking about. Plus, we don't want Stan to face what we faced, espcially at his age. We better throw it out."
"I guess so. Okay, we'll do it."
"I knew you would." Ahmed said.
Once Ahmed and Robbie had left (and after our goodbyes), I sat down beside the game and started putting its contents away in the box. Wendy and Mabel helped. It seemed so innocent, just a hunk of cardboard and paper. Though we knew it was so much more…
After putting the game in the box, I put the lid on.
"Okay," I told them. "Let's go. Hopefully no one takes this out and plays it." Wendy looked at the clock on the wall. She looked confused.
"That's the time?" She asked. "That can't be!"
"What?" My sister wanted to know. "What is it?"
"Well, it was a quarter after noon when we started and it still is."
"Maybe it's 12:15 tomorrow! That means Soos and Grunkle Stan will get home in forty five minutes." Wendy shook her head while looking at her cell phone.
"I don't think so. My phone says it's Monday still."
"Maybe while we were playing the game, no time has passed." I suggested. Mabel just looked at me funny and burst out laughing.
"That's ridiculous Bro! This isn't like the Magic House in the Tree series! You are just too funny and adorable!" She laughed and laughed. She looked at me when she saw the look on my face. "Oh, you're serious?" I nodded.
"It's the only thing that I can come up with." I told her.
"Well," Wendy spoke. "Let's get rid of the game, shall we?"
Outside, I tossed the game in the dumpster.
"Yeah!" Mabel cheered, giving me a high-five. "We did it; the game's gone! Now things can go back to normal."
"Let's just hope that no one opens it up and starts playing it." I said. We headed home.
"Here they come!" Mabel said. We were back in the Mystery Shack, playing Uno until Robbie and Ahmed returned.
We heard the door open and close. We stood up and went to the front door. It was Robbie.
"Where's Ahmed?" Wendy asked.
"With his friend." Robbie answered. "Delmar, I think his name was. Anyway, he was the one who operated on him." Mabel looked confused.
"Wasn't it expensive?" Mabel questioned.
"Since Ahmed was his friend and they haven't seen each other for twenty years, he did it for free. He's operating on him right now, then he'll drive him to his house so that he can live there for a while."
"That's good!" I sighed with relief.
"We'll playing Uno." Mabel told him. "Wanna watch?" Robbie just looked at her.
"Really? Another game? After all we went though?" We laughed
"I don't think we'll need to worry." Robbie sighed.
"At least it's not a board game." And with that, we went back, sat down and resumed playing as Robbie and Waddles watched.
"Hey kid!" Robbie said to me as Mabel and I were getting ready for bed.
"I'll be upstairs!" Mabel said. She and Waddles continued up the stairs. I went over to Robbie.
"Yeah?" I asked him. "What is it?"
"I just wanted to say thank you for wishing me back." He said.
"Uh, you're welcome Robbie." Wow, was Robbie actually being nice to me? He then looked serious.
"But don't think this little chat will change anything. I'll still want Wendy and you still can't have her." I smiled.
"Okay. Whatever you say, Robbie." And with that, I went upstairs.
It was nice to have Robbie saying something nice to me for a change. Although we weren't friends, it was a good start.