It wasn't quite as simple as that. Mabel seemed to hold onto the Journal like a lifeline. She rarely left it. But, luckily, today it seemed Mabel's mind was elsewhere. She left the Journal on her bedside table. Dipper saw his golden opportunity.
He grabbed up the Journal, then looked around. He needed to go somewhere else. Somewhere a little more secret. He chose the room above their bedroom, in the very attic of the shack. The ceiling was steeply slanted, and the window at the far end was triangular and tinted red, with a small little ledge below the window edge that worked as a pretty good seat.
Dipper sat down on the ledge, pulling out the Journal. He glanced out the window for a moment to see Mabel and Norman below having a date. They sat on the table, with Norman's arm around Mabel. Dipper felt like throwing up.
He looked back to the Journal. He ran his hand over the cover, feeling the torn edge. The metal was cold, and the leather was still a little moist. Mabel really should've taken the time to blow dry this thing. He stared for a moment at the four-fingered hand. Its gold metal reflected his own face. He frowned. Maybe this was a bad idea. He shouldn't assume things about people. But looking over at his sister through the window, seeing how close Norman was, how easy it would be for him to hurt her... he had to look.
He began flipping through the book, scanning over the creatures, hoping something would just pop out at him to help him solve this mystery.
He was scanning over a few pages about some rich family in town when be turned a page that almost made him drop the book.
The main image was a humanoid with the skin seeming to drip from his skull. They were wearing a hoodie with a branch sticking out of the hood, just like... oh no. Dipper found the passage next to the picture and immediately began reading, but each word only made the truth that much more apparent.
"'Known for their pale skin and bad attitudes these creatures are often mistaken for... teenagers?!'" Dipper gasped, looking back and forth from the picture to the passage. The resemblance between the illustration and the accused was becoming even more evident. "'Beware Gravity Falls's nefarious...'" His eyes widened at the last word. "'Zombies!'"
Oh man, oh man, this was bad, very bad. He looked out the window again, then pressed himself against it. Outside, Mabel sat on the table, but Norman was standing, limping towards her with an undead slowness.
"No, no, no Mabel!" Dipper shouted, pounding on the red glass.
Norman suddenly grabbed Mabel by the shoulders, a little roughly. Dipper pressed himself harder against the window. But then Norman leaned back, and Dipper could clearly see the daisy chain necklace he'd just affixed around Mabel's neck.
Dipper frowned, slouching down once again. Did that really just happen? This was all so confusing. "Is my sister really dating a zombie," he muttered, "or am I just going nuts?"
"Probably both."
Dipper jumped, losing his balance, he suddenly fell off of the ledge and landed on the floor. Above stood Wendy, the babysitter Ford hired for them. She was laughing. Dipper blushed.
"Oh, sorry, man," she said, holding out a hand, which he hesitantly took. She pulled him to his feet with a quick jerk. "You know, you really shouldn't talk to yourself." She said brushing the red hair out of her face before adjusting her lumberjack hat.
This only made Dipper blush more. Even if she was their babysitter, Dipper still found Wendy mildly attractive. Okay, that was an understatement.
Dipper scratched the back of his head. "Yeah, I know..." he muttered. "Wendy, you've seen Mabel's boyfriend. He's gotta be a zombie, right?"
Wendy's expression went serious. "Totally!" She said, leaning in conspiratorially. "I, like, just saw him eat some brains the other day!"
Dipper's eyes widened. "R-really?"
Wendy suddenly shoved him playfully. "Nope." She laughed.
Dipper stumbled and scowled. "Wendy, I'm serious! Mabel could be in trouble."
Wendy tilted her head, taking a seat on the ledge. "Dipper, if you're really so worried that he'll hurt her, why don't you just spy on them or something?" she suggested.
Dipper pursed his lips, taking a seat next to her. "I don't know. Isn't that kinda creepy?"
"Nah," she said dismissively. "That's how I discovered two of my boyfriends were cheating."
Dipper nodded. "Alright, I'll do some recon, but please don't tell Ford about this. Or the Journal."
Wendy smiled, pinching her thumb and forefinger together and dragging it from one corner of her mouth to the other before flicking them into the empty air. The universal 'sealed lips' gesture.
Dipper smiled, mirroring the gesture. Wendy was truly awesome. Now he'd figured out the next phase of his plan.
Dipper grabbed the old camcorder he'd brought with him from home. It was old and pretty worn, but it worked.
The next couple days, Dipper followed Mabel and Norman everywhere. To the park, the diner, the graveyard. Norman would always do strange things, like smashing his fist through a door window to turn the knob from the inside, or the time he fell into and open grave and clawed himself out before laughing it off with Mabel. Dipper had seen enough.
It was time to confront Mabel. He found her in their room, brushing her long brown hair in front of a mirror.
"Mabel, we've gotta talk about Norman."
Mabel turned around and smiled at the subject. "Isn't he the greatest?" she asked, then pointed to her face. "Check out this giant smooch mark he gave me!"
Mabel turned her head to the side to reveal a big red mark on her cheek. Dipper screamed, stepping back. Oh man, he'd bitten her! He was too late!
But Mabel was laughing. "Gullible. It was just an accident with the leaf blower!" she then sighed as if remembering something pleasant. "That was fun."
Dipper shook his head. "No, Mabel, listen! I'm trying to tell you that Norman is not what he seems!" He reached into his jacket and pulled out the Journal.
Mabel's expression visibly darkened. "You stole my Journal!" She shouted, accusingly.
"Mabel, I was just worried about you."
"Dipper, you worry too much." She said. "It's not like Norman's a vampire," she said. "Although that would be cool."
Dipper held up the book. "Guess again, sister." He opened the book and showed it to her. "Sha-bam!"
Mabel jumped back with a cry of disgust. Confused, Dipper checked the page. He'd accidentally shown her the page on gnomes.
"Oh, wait. I'm-I'm sorry..." He said, flipping to the right page before uttering a less enthusiastic "Sha-bam!"
Mabel tilted her head at the page. "A zombie?" She scowled, planting her fists on her hips. "That is not funny, Dipper."
"I'm not joking!" He exclaimed, beginning to pace back and forth. "It all adds up: the bleeding, the limp. He never blinks! Have you noticed that?"
"Maybe he's blinking when you're blinking."
"Mabel, you're not listening to me!" He said desperately. "Norman's always acting strange! He grunts all the time, he never takes off his jacket! He's got a branch sticking out of his hood!"
Mabel frowned skeptically. "How do you know so much about Norman, anyway?"
Dipper blinked. Oh man, this was gonna be hard to say. "I... I kinda followed you two around for three days..."
"Three days?!" Mabel shouted, making Dipper flinch. "You were spying on us! You don't trust me!"
"Mabel, remember what the book said about Gravity Falls?" He asked, looking over his shoulders nervously. "Trust no one!"
Mabel glared daggers, snatching the Journal away from him. "No, no, you aren't allowed use this book against my boyfriend! You are being such a jerk!" She shook her head.
Dipper suddenly grabbed her around the shoulders. "Mabel," he shook her, "he's gonna eat your brain!"
Mabel shoved him away. "Dipper, listen to me. Norman and I are going on a date at five o'clock," she said, backing him up towards the open doorway, "and I am gonna be adorable," she roughly poked a finger into his chest, "and he's gonna be dreamy," she harshly shoved him out the door, despite his protests, "and I am not gonna let you ruin it with one of your crazy conspiracies!" she slammed the door in his face.
Dipper sighed, letting himself slide down the door. "What am I gonna do?"
