"Pacificaaa! Waaake uuup!" Gideon yelled in his sister's ear as he shook her shoulder.

"What are you trying to do, wake up the whole town?" I complained.

"Nope. Just Pacifica," he told me. Pacifica made a weird sound and rolled over.

"What time is it?" she moaned.

"Almost three," I informed her.

"Okay. Let's go," she said.

A chain-link fence that seemed taller and far more ominous than my escape from last night loomed ahead of us.

"I want to get Mabel, but I also want my clothes back. Mabel's our first priority though," I explained. They nodded to let me know they understood.

I stuck my toes into one of the holes in the fence and pushed off the ground. I found another foothold, and pulled up using my arms.

Gideon looked around like I did when I was nervous or anxious.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

"What if they see us or something happens and we fail?" he said. Darn my negativity and paranoia.

"Come on, guys," I said. I continued my climb over the fence. Pacifica and Gideon followed my lead.

I walked over to the window where Mabel was. It opened just as easily as the previous night. I squirmed through the opening, with the other two right behind me. But as soon as I entered the room changed.

It was dark and empty inside. I didn't see anyone here.

Just as I started to make my way to the door, a voice sounded from the back of the room. "Well, well. Dipper Pines. We meet again." It was Dipper Gleeful. I winced. "I had a hunch you'd be back for your sister."

How did he know I'd be back tonight? Then I remembered the amulet. He must've been able to predict when I'd be back.

"What did you do with her?" Gideon interrogated.

"Oh, look! You brought your little friends too!" he exclaimed. "As for the girl, I have her with me right now!"

A light turned on, brightening the room. I saw Dipper sitting cross-legged in a grey swivel chair with both Mabels on either side of him. The one we were here to rescue stood staring wide-eyed straight in front of her. I gasped when I saw that she was wearing the amulet on the headband. The other Mabel and Dipper smiled maliciously.

I began to charge at them, but Gideon and Pacifica had to restrain me.

Eventually I calmed down. The twins released their grip on me.

Dipper clutched his stone, causing it to glow. A faint bluish light appeared around the three of us: Pacifica, Gideon, and me. We rose into the air as did a pair of shears that glinted in the light.

Oh no! Not again! I thought. This situation was spookily similar to the night I broke up with Gideon for Mabel and he tried to kill me at his warehouse. I wondered if he made it like that on purpose, but how could he have known?

"Listen up," he demanded. "Now I could lie to y'all and say I know absolutely nothing about anythin' in that place you're from. Vertical, no. Gravity! Gravity Falls," he remembered the name of the town reversed from this. "But I know you know I do know somethin', so I reckon I'll tell you flat out. I do believe you know my friend Bill."

"Bill? Who's that?" I lied. He knew I lied. My eyes gave away with everything my words didn't. Especially because I looked straight into his as I said it.

"DON'T LIE TO ME!" he screamed. "I don't like it... when people lie to me!"
Dipper was standing up now. "Bill! Prove that they know the secret to defeating you!"

Time seemed to slow down. Everything in the room turned a shade of grey. A ball of light morphed into the demon.

"Bill, tell me somethin'," Dipper ordered. "Are Mabel and Dipper Pines the ones who previously defeated you?"

" Defeated me? Ha ha! Are you kidding?" Bill said. He would for sure give us away. He had a reason to. And by the look of those floating blades, I wasn't sure I wanted to find out what would happened when he did. Except for one factor. Bill didn't strike me as the type to ever admit defeat. That was the spark of hope I held onto. But I was still guaranteeing that he'd reveal us to be bad someway or another. "Why, I don't even know them! And I was never defeated. Especially not by some kids."

I almost sighed in relief, but that might give away my status.

"Now to eliminate them from my-" Dipper started before he realized what the floating triangle had said. "What? But they're... they're... they're from Gravity Falls!"

"Waddya know?" he replied. "Never heard of 'em." Why did he want us unharmed? Don't get me wrong, I was completely satisfied with Bill's response, but I couldn't help wonder why he was saying he didn't know us.

The scissors fell to the floor, as did we. "Thank you, Bill," Dipper muttered. Bill disappeared. "Here. Have your clothes back." He slid my shoes, hat and vest across the floor to me. I hurriedly put them on. "Now, get out of our house!" he yelled.

"Not until you give me back my sister!" I demanded.

"Mabel, you are free to go with your brother if you want. You want to go with him?" Mabel Gleeful spoke to her as if she was a small child.

I expected her to tear off the headband that held the pocket-sized sphere of power and sprint across the room to us. Instead she folded her arms and turned the other way. My jaw dropped.

"Mabel come on! What are you doing! Let's get out of here and go home! Come on!" I shouted. One of the Gleeful twins snickered.

Mabel made a grumbling sound and shook her head. Pacifica put her hand on my shoulder. I knew as much as she did that we weren't getting her back, not tonight at least. I just didn't want to believe it.

Gideon, Pacifica and I understood the unspoken message in each other's eyes: Let's go home.

I took one last look at Mabel. There was a spark of something I didn't recognize within her brown eyes. As I turned around to leave, I caught a glimpse of Dipper's smug expression.

On the walk back to the Telepathy Shack, I realized how much worse it was to admit defeat to yourself than anyone else.