WELL, WELL, WELL, WELL, WELL—Hi!

I had realized I forgot to mention that the academy also teaches regular school things along with their training.

Thank you for all the positive reviews and such! I miss a certain character, do you? Well, no worries, ta-da!

Disclaimer: I don't own Gravity Falls.

Bill hissed once more at the constant pain at his side. It's been awhile since he was damaged this badly; the scalding burn was stinging continuously at his flesh. However, he didn't bother worrying about death or infection. Plus, his healing factor was rapid as long as he focused on his injuries. Albeit, it wasn't that fast compares to the other full-fledged demons. Healing himself always felt so strange too, almost as if he wasn't healing properly. Yet, he ignored it and continued on with his advances.

In his opinion, this was one of the terrible downsides to immortality: feeling the annoying pricks of every single nerve that was affected and the discomfort in your cells as much as possible without death to consume him. He tried to make it easier for himself and enjoy unbearable pain in his earlier days, but it never actually worked out for him like it did for some others.

He silently laid underneath the shade of the tree and stared upwards to the sky, past the little leaves that were already fading from green to yellow. It was a sign of withering, was it not? Soon, there would many leaves detaching themselves from their branches. They would drift to the forest floor, only to perish for good. Then, it would restart in the spring, just as all life seem to do, just to die again. It made the sight a whole lot better with his perspective.

He was glad to find himself unbothered by the animals or other creatures of the forest. They wouldn't dare to go near him. His being radiated darkness from the Nightmare Realm. That was truly fine; he didn't desire a speck of company, anyway. Not from some doe, or human, or demon, especially. He almost laughed at how easy it was to escape from the other demons' maniacal clutches.

Bill hid away his face with his top hat and closed his eye, despite already seeing darkness. He listened to the sound of the breeze cutting through the swaying grass. The stream nearby was running calmly; the occasional sounds of life would alert his ears. It was the epitome of a peaceful atmosphere.

With a quick snap of his fingers, fire engulfed the nearby trees in roaring flames, the grass around him burned to ash in a beautiful wave, and the sounds of sentience halted in a moment of utter cacophony. Even though he couldn't produce destruction at an extremely large-scale, this was enough for him. Lifting up his hat, he smirked at the currently lifeless surroundings. It stretched far enough where he could barely see anymore luminous greenery.

Mentally, he scoffed with contempt. Peace hadn't, wouldn't, and can't stop destruction. To survive within this wretched universe, you must be ruthless.

The once glorious area of nature was completely eerie and monochromatic now. The only thing that appeared alive and well was the tree he rested under.

That's why when a chubby, pink body abruptly plopped itself roughly onto his chest, he was jerked upright in surprise.

Bad move, he thought briskly. The wound on his side bloomed with pain once more, leaving him two areas to be irked about. He growled at the current animal gazing up at him innocently with beady eyes. His hands burst into the bright blue and golden flames with an intent to murder it. Maybe eat it, too; just for revenge.

"Wait! Wait, wait, wait!" A young girl, who looked around his "age," sprinted up to where he laid, and doubled over. She panted and attempted at talking, but instead, odd, incoherent noises were spluttered out. He furrowed his blonde brows at the struggling girl. She was very familiar. Wasn't this the same one he had observed some night before?

She cleared her throat and fixed herself up, patting down her skirt and briefly combing her hair. Then, she abruptly came down on both of her knees with her arms outstretched in front of her.

"Please, don't hurt my poor Waddles! I saw the flames on your hands, but he meant no harm! I had been walking him and then he bursted off to this place! Let us go, and I'll get you some Smile Dip!"

Her voice was muffled by the ground when she was talking speedily. Then, she sat up and looked expectantly for his answer. He was bewildered by her sudden offer, and the fact that if he was anybody else, he wouldn't even be able to understand a single word that she voiced.

Really, though, Smile Dip? Bill mused briefly, What kind of human device is that?

He was too worn out to try and make a deal; the pain seemed to be growing horridly since he wasn't focusing on it. However, he seriously needed her to get out of his sight. Her soul was attracting him again. Not knowing her name, he looked at something to distinguish her by. An idea clicked as his eye caught onto her sweater.

"Listen, Shooting Star, you might want to get out of here before I kill you." He forced steel in his voice and put on a cold stare. She was taken aback by his venomous attitude. Not knowing if she should stay apologizing or run off, she sat still on her legs, eyes wide. Waddles climbed off of him to move next to her, but she was frozen in place.

He visibly frowned at her lack of response. "Are you deaf? I just said that—"

His voice caught in his throat as an intense pain soared throughout his side when he tried to gesture her to leave. With a moan of pain, he slumped down onto his back once more. The gritty, solid bark gave no assistance to his current trial. Mabel snapped out of her daze the moment her kind heart took over. How did she overlook his injuries? He was hurt!

"What's wrong?" She instantly crawled over to his side and saw his face was contorted in pain. Examining his state, his seemingly dapper clothes were a mess, and his side was exposed. A large, nasty burn was stuck to his side, leaking out blood in an alarming rate. Her own expression twisted slightly at the sight, yet she didn't back down. Bill could feel the comfort that reached out to him from her aura. Nonetheless, he still managed to bare his teeth at her.

"Geez, are you dumb? Who goes closer to their killer?" Mabel's face fell noticeably, but she unexpectedly pinched his cheek, hard. Even though he was a good-looking boy who was literally bleeding to death, he sure had no manners.

"Ow! What was that for?!" Bill whined in a childish manner. He remarked afterwards, indicating he read her mind. "I don't die, so your concern is wasted."

She blushed suddenly, hoping he didn't read the other part. Shaking her head adamantly, she eyed him suspiciously.

"Geez, are you dumb?! Who doesn't look for help when they're hurt? Especially this badly!" She used his words against him as she inquired strongly. He just crossed his arms defiantly, "I don't need anyone's help, and that includes some human like you!"

She bit her cheek, feeling greatly surprised at how insulted she was. Then, a cheery smile cracked onto her face. He noted that it was a bit too cheery to be real.

"Since you asked so very nicely, I'll make sure to pay you a visit everyday until you're all better!"

He panicked inwardly. He would have to deal with her everyday until he was healed? Even he wasn't sure how long that would take, and he definitely didn't want to hear her squeaky voice and shiny face from now on. Something about her soul was making him think unclearly, and not as he usually did. Almost as if it was… affecting him, in a way he certainly didn't want to be affected!

This girl was either straight-up stupid or crazy to stay with him, though. Why hadn't he killed her yet?!

"See you tomorrow, mysterious boy! Come on, Waddles!"

She skipped away in victory, and he laid there, dumbfounded. Maybe if he had told her his name, then she would've ran for the hills before any part of their conversation could have occurred. Stanford must've mentioned him sometime about being annoying or vicious, right? Bill decided to think about it later since his mind was worn out. But he planned to tell the girl his name the next time she came. He ignored the strange tickling sensation in his chest; the same one he felt the first time he saw her. With a low grumble, he drifted off to sleep.

Back at the shack, Dipper sulked on the porch as he waited for his sister to return with his pig. He seemed too upset at the moment to worry about where she went. All he knew was that she was going to start taking Waddles outside early in the morning.

It was already a few days since the incident with Pacifica. He slapped his forehead once he realized his mistake. If he joined the academy, he would be mixed in with the younger children, and he'd be the laughing stock of the older kids. Great, more bullies, just what he didn't need. Yet, who was going to teach him now? Argh, if only...

Dipper sighed and remembered why he wanted to learn Soul Fighting so much. To protect his sister, and now, even his great uncles. He had a family again. He couldn't be just another burden.

"Hey, kid, what's wrong?" Stan popped up and sat next to him. Dipper shifted slightly to face him. "I think I'm making a mistake, Grunkle Stan. How could I ever be a Soul Fighter? Not to mention being one of the best…"

Ford overheard their conversation from within the shack. He opened the door, causing his brother and his grandnephew to look at him. Swiftly, he sat on the other side of the younger, "And here I thought you were smarter than that, Dipper!"

"What?" He looked at him in confusion.

"You've got two great uncles that can teach you all you need to know, and more!" Ford told him. Stan added, "Yeah! You don't need to go waste your time somewhere else, just waste your time here!"

Without sparing a glance, Ford elbowed him.

Dipper couldn't believe his ears. They were right! He didn't need that academy if he had his grunkles! As a bright smile dawned on his face, he outstretched his arms as far as he could to fit both of them into an attempt of an embrace.

"Thank you, thank you!"

Stan grinned at the kid's excitement, and Ford chuckled a little with him. Once he let go, Ford designated the times and what exactly they would be practicing and learning, while Dipper listened avidly. He was practically bouncing in his seat.

"This is great! I can't wait to tell Mabel!"

Stan noticed that she wasn't around and scratched his chin, "Yeah, where is she, anyways?"

Dipper perked up as if he'd just remembered, "Oh, taking out Waddles; her new routine."

Just then, she appeared with said pig beside her. She was also smiling from ear to ear, much to her family's qualms. Mabel placed her hands on her hips, "What? A girl can't be happy coming out of the woods?"

"Compelling argument, Mabel. But, guess what!" Dipper didn't even wait for her to respond and continued on, "I don't need that snobby academy! I'll just learn on my own with our Grunkles!"

Mabel shared her excitement with Dipper as they both hopped up and down in place. She cheered, "That's awesome, Dipper! I got some good news too!"

He blithely inquired, "Yeah?!"

She responded with the same nonchalantness, "I met this injured and mean blonde boy who can produce flames on his hands!"

"WHAT?" Ford's abrupt shout paused their repetitive movement. He simmered down swiftly and refrained from showing his embarrassment, "Mabel, do you know his name?"

She thought about it, but shook her head sheepishly. He only grew more worried at how their encounter played out.

"Do you know what he looks like?"

"Oh, yeah! Messy blonde hair, yellow coat with coat tails, black pants, hat, bowtie, and shoes, and a weird eye patch on his right eye…" She described him dreamily and oddly very detailed, listing each component with a finger. "I think he looks pretty good in yellow and black, too."

Ford inhaled a sharp breath, and Stan just groaned.

"What's up?" Dipper didn't really catch on, and looked between the both of them for the answer. Ford laid a hand on his grandniece's shoulder and looked her in the eye. It was a bit unsettling for her, but he spoke anyways, "Listen, dear. That boy you met was… Bill Cipher. He's a notorious dream-demon of Gravity Falls. Even though he isn't exactly the most dangerous type around, he can still cause trouble."

Stan piped up while scratching the back of his head, "Sweetie, it's best if you make sure not to come in contact with him from now on."

Mabel frowned at this discovery. So, sure, she just arrived in town, and didn't know as much as her great uncles did. Sure, he threatened to murder her in cold blood. Sure, his cuteness was eliminating all rational thought. However, she believed that he wasn't as bad as he people made him out to be! Was she the only one that had this kind of judgement towards people? Their words and actions were all kinds of hostile, but their was just this feeling they gave out, and a look in their eyes that spoke otherwise.

"I'm sorry, but he didn't try to hurt me at all! Or well, he couldn't because he was injured… and then he did threaten me… but no! He can be good, I know it!"

Before Ford continue the argument, Dipper interrupted, "Do you plan on meeting him again?"

She shuffled her weight on each feet and nodded. "Every day, until he is healed."

Dipper clapped his hands together and declared, "Good, I'll come with you next time, on behalf of our Grunkles."

"What? Stanley and I can just go ourselves with her!" Ford disagreed quickly. But Dipper just shook his head. "If he knows you both like you two know him, then chances are he'll teleport somewhere else so you don't banish him or whatever."

It's not like he knew how to banish Cipher, but his grandnephew had a point. It wouldn't do much for them if he ended up fleeing before they got there. Ford sighed and Stan got the memo. They weren't going with them.

Dipper just smiled and put a thumbs up next to his face cheekily, "Don't worry, I'll make sure to be extra critical."

His statement earned approving nods from his great uncles and an eyeroll from his twin sister.

Suddenly, they heard the sounds of talking and leaves crunching underneath footsteps. A group of people appeared in front of them, all holding cameras and wearing tacky shirts. A man in the front had stepped up to ask, "Is this the Mystery Shack?"

While the twins were confused as to why these random tourists were here, Grunkle Stan grinned and flew his arms outwards to gesture the building. "Why, yes it is! Come one and come all to these items that you won't find anywhere else!"

Grunkle Ford pulled the twins over as Stan led the people inside. He gave a quick explanation before they could ask, "Sometimes in my research, I get parts and pieces I don't need. So, Stanley takes them and sells them. Although, the shack isn't always open."

Dipper and Mabel made a small noise of understanding before they decided there was nothing left for them to do at home. Both bid goodbye to their great uncle. There was still more to be explored in their town.

Pacifica's boots clicked as she walked down the hallway. Finding the room she needed, she knocked twice before walking inside. The teacher welcomed her as the students stood back in silence. She asked, "What's the problem?"

The teacher chuckled nervously and brought her to the control panel of the simulation where students would train. Except, it wouldn't turn on. And it actually produced a bit of a spark and smoke before whining down. The teacher flinched while Pacifica just took out a communication crystal from the small pouch on her belt. After putting in a certain dial on the surface, she called, "Ramirez or McGucket! Room 308-C needs a problem fixed."

It wasn't long until she got, "On it, ma'am!"

She smiled patronizingly sweet at the teacher before rushing out. The meeting was to start soon, and she just wanted to get it over with. As Pacifica was walking in stride to the teleportation pad that was installed in her office, a lady hurried up to walk beside her. "Seven minutes and forty-two seconds until it starts, headmistress. I got you your papers and a pen!"

Once she got to her destination, she took the items hastily and gave her a nod of gratitude. In no time, she saw the white light consume her vision and felt her body tingling all over. In a blink of an eye, she was somewhere new. A grand building filled her vision as the rising sun gave it a holy glow. There were older men and women standing around, talking amongst themselves.

She started walking fast-paced again. Arriving at the two doors, she entered carefully and slid into her seat at the long-rounded table. Some of them took notice of her, but didn't choose to interact. The others inside the room were talking in hushed voices or different languages. Pacifica always hated feeling small compared to the other academy headmasters, but she had no choice for these meetings.

Soon, everyone was surging into the room and settling in their positions. All seats at the table were divided by continent, country, then region. She was the leader of all the academies in the northwest of the United States, which left her quite a bit to manage when it came to keeping up with the status of the entire region. It wasn't unbearable, she supposed, with all of her secretaries and other staff workers. She watched as the executive leader joined them from the inside of the building. He managed the entire system of Soul Fighter academies. He had inherited from his family's bloodline, who had built it up from working with several others until it became a worldwide chain.

Bud Gleeful was as friendly as he looked, but she's never seen him draw his weapon. Although, no one would dare fight him, so she had never seen his skill or power either. It made her wonder how he stayed in power and kept a grip on all sectors.

"Greetings, 'fellas! And ma'ams." He tipped his fancy white hat at only her, which only made her sink a little more into her seat. "I'm glad you could make it all today! As it seems, there has been an increase of small happenings here and there where darkness sprouts, producing monsters."

He displayed a chart that had the entire world on it, and red spots varying in a few areas. Pacifica analyzed the projection and quickly noticed that Gravity Falls had more clumped up dots than the other locations of the world.

"As you can see here, my officers Durland and Blubs made an evaluation of all the sighted sprouts. It's happening in Gravity Falls the most for inexplicit reasons."

Some of the headmasters started to whisper as questions arose in their heads. Bud stopped them before they became too noisy, "Settle down. We're going to find out soon enough with the researchers we have on our team. But with generations of new Soul Fighters coming in, they'll be able to handle it. Over the years, we may come up with a solution, but for now, we'll have to hold it back."

Afterwards, the meeting went on about other things, but Pacifica didn't really focus on it much. More monsters, and possibly demons, would be appearing in or around Gravity Falls. It was ultimately up to her to make sure that the Soul Fighters were trained well enough to fight back, and to not die. She'd have to start assigning certain classes to hold down the various sprouts of evil. She shuddered at the thought of losing her students to a mission.

Once it came to a close, Bud went over to the blonde headmistress and smiled, "Pacifica Northwest, how are you?"

"I'm good, thank you. Is there anything you need?"

"Yes, well, I'm sure you're already coming up with a plan and all to make sure that your students are properly trained to fight." She nodded in confirmation. He questioned, "Have you thought of having a strategist come with you to these meetings? It would help you lift off some work if someone else were there to do this part for you."

Pacifica frowned at this. She saw other headmasters bring their own, but she had no one she thought was good enough for it. "It's fine, I got it. Thank you for the concern."

Bud Gleeful just tipped his hat again and bid her farewell. She made a bee-line to the teleportation pad. Who knew when the first major strike would come? She didn't want to be unprepared when it happened. Soon, death would be closer than it seemed, and she couldn't have her students failing and her citizens at risk. Once more, she was at her own academy. The lady from before greeted her as her boots lightly touched the pad, but she quickly commanded, "Get me the planning team."

The lady did as she was told and Pacifica rushed to the room where the conferences was held. She made a mental note that she also had to prepare herself in what would come.

Dipper curiously examined the two tickets that his sister possessed. Mabel had claimed it appeared out of nowhere and drifted in her hands. It read, "One-Time Use to Gideon Gleeful's Wonder Show."

They were short slips of paper of a maroon color. A chubby, young boy's face with poofed up hair was poking his cheek cutely while his other hand gestured to the words.

Mabel waved them around. "We should go! I heard he travels a lot so we may never see him again!"

"Gideon… Gleeful?" Dipper stuck his tongue out in thought. The name was strikingly familiar. Then, it hit him like a brick to the face. This was the final person that Grunkle Ford had warned them about. Dipper revealed this to Mabel, who just responded with, "Well, so far I believe two of them are actually good, so maybe he might be, too?"

Her brother replied, "That hasn't even been proven yet, Mabel. And this time, we actually know his name before we meet him. If we go now, we'll be ignoring Grunkle Ford's warning to stay away."

Mabel contemplated with his reasoning. She really wanted to see the supposed spectacular show, but she didn't want to be disobedient too much. It was already enough that they could visit Bill again tomorrow. "Well, maybe—?"

A voice interrupted them as Grunkle Ford came from behind and surprised them both, "Kids! I got a ticket to that Gleeful kids' show! Ha ha, yes!"

He pumped his fist in success, but Dipper looked at him, puzzled. "Why is that a good thing?"

"You see, that boy had made it so no ticket vendor would let me buy a ticket. I guess he's afraid that I'm too much of a threat. But I picked this up from one of the customers at the Mystery Shack who dropped it. This means I can go into his show and stop this hoax, a dangerous one at that!"

"Dangerous?" Mabel asked uncertainly.

"Yes, the magic he produces doesn't give the same aura as a soul weapon does. In fact, it feels mixed up and unorthodox." He kneeled down and surveyed the area. There was no one in a ten-feet radius. Not taking any chances, he leaned in closer to whisper, "I believe that in his shows, the amulet he uses gathers soul essence from everyone in the audience. But, since there are so many people, it only takes small amounts from each person. However, one person that is selected at the finale of his shows ends up hazardly exhausted and weakened."

Mabel squirmed a bit and Dipper rubbed his arm. He admitted, "Uh, Grunkle Ford? We have tickets to his show, too."

Stanford looked surprised, "Is that so? Did you buy them?"

"No, it just poofed out of nowhere!" Mabel declared, gesticulating to emphasize. Their great uncle hummed in thought. He sighed, "You wouldn't happen to want to use them, would you?"

"Maybe?" Mabel clasped her hands together, "Please, Grunkle Ford! This may be our only chance! And I know you said he's dangerous and probably a criminal, but what's the chances of something happening to us?"

He darted his eyes between the two of them, even though Mabel was the only one begging. Regardless, her puppy eyes were just too persuading. Ford caved, "Alright… usually, the people are too excited to notice their energy gets drained. But it shouldn't be too strong to bother you. Now, let's go get our seats before the entrance is packed with the customers."

Mabel clapped her hands with enthusiasm as Dipper felt his familiar paranoia nibbling at him.

At the show, Gideon was behind stage. He shook his arms to loosen up his baby blue blazer. The performances would begin soon. He peeked through the curtain to evaluate the audience. Skimming through, he caught sight of one peculiar girl. The same girl with the long, wavy, brown hair and brilliant smile. Everyone else seemed to be blurry as she stood out. He grinned from ear to ear as his heart jumped for joy. She was so close to being in his clutches, even if that wasn't his main goal. Having a queen by his side would sure be lovely.

The young child celebrity was waiting for his cue, and so was Stanford. His plan was to bring out a small laser gun that shot with silent precise aim and break the amulet. With that, his show would stop, and he wouldn't be able to summon another one since it wasn't an actual soul weapon. This would lead to a grand exposure of his scam that he calls a "magical act."

The twins, on the other hand, had been enjoying the show so far. They were trying to bury the feeling of anxiety of what may happen when Gideon would appear, and how Stanford would execute his plan. Mabel had been successful for the most part, but Dipper felt it bothering him greatly.

Ford triple checked his invention, making sure that it wouldn't fail him when it mattered most. The gun concentrated heat energy particles into a fine point, which took a while. Hypothetically, he had one shot of destroying it without having to actually confront Gideon. Just then, the announcer had quieted down the excited audience. With a quick introduction for Gideon, he vanished off the stage.

Then, the young child appeared on stage dramatically.

"Hiya, friends!" There was a moment of cheering. Gideon smiled, "Usually, this would be held for last, but I'd like to do my famous finale first! Allow me to select a random person in the crowd!"

The normal occurrence of the screaming and clawing happened once again. They shot their hands and pushes others out of their way. But Gideon already had his eyes set on someone. With a quick crack of his neck, a roll of his wrist, and an unnecessary pull on his blazer, he pointed right at Mabel. Dipper was felt his lungs freeze as shock filled his mind. Ford was outright enraged, prepared to make a scene. However, Mabel was already being pushed up front.

"Tell me, darlin', what's your name?" Gideon grabbed her hand and gave her a flirty look. Mabel tried not to wince at how clammy it was. Must be from his hard-work, she tried to convince herself. He led her farther away from the bleachers and towards the center of the platform. Sitting her down on a chair, he held his mini microphone from his shirt close to her mouth.

"It's Mabel!" She grinned as convincingly as possible, albeit the intensity of this situation. Her great uncle warned her about him and what he did to the people that were in her same position. He fixed the mic back onto his shirt and gestured to the crowd, "Well, folks, let's give ourselves a hand of applause to this lovely Mabel!"

The crowd gave rounds of applause as Dipper was freaking out on his grunkle. His voice came out as a whisper, grazing the surface of a yell. "What do we do? What will you do? What is gonna happen to Mabel?!"

"Calm down, boy! It'll do you no good if you are worrying about what will happen instead of finding ways to prevent it from happening!" Stanford pulled out his gun stealthily and charged it up. Dipper gasped sharply at the sight of it. He wasn't going to kill Gideon, right? He was still just a boy!

The star child announced, "Now, watch as I manipulate her to somewhere else, with my soul weapon!"

Ford steadied his aim at the collar of his chest, where the amulet was located. Gideon had rose his hands and begun lifting Mabel up high with her still in the chair. The audience "ooh-ed" and "aww-ed" as Mabel clutched her seat. She refused to look down, only hoping that her great uncle or twin brother would do something soon. As much as she tried to believe that Gideon meant no harm, she started to feel an overwhelming amount of apprehension towards him.

Dipper gripped his fists so tightly, he nearly felt his nails puncture his skin. Mabel was going to be okay, she had to be. If he lost her, he wouldn't know what to do.

Suddenly, the chair was ripped from her hold, and she was suspended in the air. She nearly screamed, but it stayed in her throat due to the discovery that she wasn't falling. The audience went wild, their hands flew in front of Ford's line of sight. With a frustrated growl, he attempted to find another opportunity to aim and shoot. However, he realized if he broke the amulet, the power holding Mabel up would disperse and she'd plummet to the ground.

Before Ford could think up of another plan, long strips of cloth started to swirl and surround Mabel. Everyone leaned in to watch what would happen next. The Pines were no exception. Dipper's gaze locked with his sister's, and he saw the severe fear in her eyes. A pang in his heart had him gulping for air.

He blinked, and she was gone.

CLIFFY! Is this how evil it feels to write cliffhangers?!

Anyways, the world they live in is kinda similar to our Earth except the lands are kind've closer and join together, if you can imagine. This is the longest chapter I've written!

Rewritten: 8/19/17

HAPPY HALLOWEEN! 'till next time!