Chapter 9: Lakeside

12-1-11-5-19-9-4-5

16-15-19-20-5-4 28 10-21-12-25 2015

Mabel took a deep breath through the nose, smelling the freshness of the lake. The sun's bright but gentle rays shined down on her halter top as she exhaled through her mouth. In one hand she held a basket filled with food. The other grasped her sandals so that she could feel the sand between her toes. With a smile, she placed the basket on the shore. She was a few minutes early and, as expected, a quick scan of the lakeside showed no sign of Arjun.

The brimming excitement that would normally bubble within her chest was duller than normal. She struggled to keep herself moving. Mabel felt so tired, though she was sure it had nothing to do with the late night she had. This was a mental exhaustion, one that made her feel like she was endlessly caught in emotional webs that became more tangled the more she struggled. But letting herself stay still in that prison would mean that she would be walking down another road where her thoughts were more weighted and life was bleaker…

Medications were good. They warred away the extremes of her moods, though not completely. Complete control meant numbness and apathy. She still felt slight cycles of mania and depression, where one would last a few weeks before switching to the other. This time, her mind was plugged into empty depression. The worst part was that it was only the start of the cycle. It was bound to get a lot worst over the course of the next few days.

Although Mabel wanted to go home and do nothing all day, she was not about to let her mood control her life. She made this date with Arjun, and she was determined to go through with it. Besides, being around people always started as a chore but the more human interaction she got, the better she felt.

She continued pumping the optimistic thoughts into her head as she checked her phone for the time. Instead, she saw a text message under Wendy's name. Mabel felt a pit bore in her heart. The redhead texted her every day since their spat at the Summerween party, telling Mabel she was sorry for lying to her and that everything would make sense if she could only explain. Guilt gnawed on Mabel. She wanted to make things right with Wendy, but with all of the hustle of Bill moving in and her dates, she hadn't had the mind to figure out a way to sufficiently make things right between them without revealing Dipper's letter.

Mabel turned off her phone screen and slipped the device into the picnic basket. She needed to wait until she was mentally up for dealing with her. In this state, she didn't think she could concoct lie good enough to fool Wendy, though the very idea made a lump in Mabel's throat. She hated lying.

She looked back at the lake. No matter how many times she saw it, or how long she stared, she always found the glimmering surface breathtaking. The water was the deepest blue she had ever seen in her life, so intense in hue that it looked solid from a distance. The lake was huge, but still surrounded by the rustic forest that made Gravity Falls. She looked up at the looming mountains and the islands scattered across the water, feeling as though she was standing in the middle of a soup bowl.

A content sigh left her lips. She would never get used to the nature around her. Piedmont and Burbank were bustling cities in their own rights, though the suburbs CalArts is located in tries it best to be speciously strung through nature. To be so fully immersed in a land seemingly torn from a fairytale painting was beyond unbelievable (mostly since there was an entire ecosystem of supernatural beings in the woods surrounding her).

Mabel checked her surrounding again, still finding no dark skinned man among the few tourist picnicking and loading rented boats. He still had a few minutes, so he wasn't exactly late yet…

She blew air between her lips, swinging her arms as she bounced on her heels. Maybe she got here too early. She should have arrived right on time. That way she wouldn't be so bored and so tired right now. She needed something—anything—to pass the time. There was the fishing shop some ways away from her, though she didn't see how baits or fishing rods could be remotely interesting. She saw the docks and realized that she had yet to walk down them.

Feeling a dull vibe glee, she skipped off to the old wood pathway, leaving her picnic belongings behind. Even with the constant stream of tourists, she doubted anyone would want to steal a wicker basket that looked older than her grandma (God bless her soul). The dock creaked under her feet as she meandered down it. The water looked more wonderful up close, like it was brimming with that certain something that made the rest of Gravity Falls picturesque. A tourism website called it the "local charm." Mabel called it magic.

She reached the end of the dock as she remembered Dipper's mission. Although her talks with Bill had revealed bits and pieces of Dipper's life, she was still no closer to figuring out what he wanted her to do. The answer lied in the next letter, but she had no idea what to make of the hint—look where everything began.

She sat on the edge, letting her feet hanging a few inches above the surface of the water. A frown forced the smile from her face. She felt lost. She wanted to tell someone about everything, but every person she was getting close to couldn't be trusted. Wendy lied, Bill's a demon, Arjun works for the government—

A breeze blew, running its cool fingers through her hair.

ziv blf...

She gasped, whipping her head around to find the source of the voice. No one was behind her, or in front of her, or anywhere near her. She was completely alone.

ziv blf gsv krmv givv?

Mabel scrambled to her feet. The voice was neither feminine or masculine, nor a mixture of the two. It was a whisper of a sound she had never heard before, one so pure that hearing it quelled and alarmed her all at once.

ziv blf...

It was coming from the water. She looked down, approaching the edge carefully. The thumps of footsteps reached her ears, though she couldn't tell if they were someone else's or her own. She couldn't bring herself to care, not when there was no one who seemed to be below the surface. She felt her heart hammer in her chest. Was it a siren or a ghost or some other monster that could only exist in Gravity Falls? If only the voice would speak up again…

A force pressed against her back and pushed her into the lake.

Bone cold water engulfed her as she plunged below the surface. She screamed and water filled her lungs. Mabel wanted to flail and kick her way to air, but she couldn't tell which direction the surface was. She squinted at the dark water, hoping to see a sign that would tell her how not to drown on her second date.

She needed air.

A soft glow lay in the distance.

Suspended in the water, hair surrounding her like a brown aura, she stared at it. The glow was every color at once, both warm and cold at the same time. It pulsed like a beating heart, each palpitation sending little zaps of energy in Mabel's direction. They felt like static shocks, but soothing instead of jarring. The voice returned, this time obviously coming from the glow.

r hvv... blf ziv gsv hsllgrmt hgzi... ylim fmwvi gsv hznv hgzih, uiln gsv hznv dlny... hzxivw gdrmh lu nrhuligfmv...

She felt an invisible tendril wrap around her, paralyzing everything it touched. She held back a scream as, under the surface of her skin, a painful buzzing ensued. Mabel squeezed her eyes shut. She wanted to scream and cry, but the water was suffocating her.

ORHGVMRMT GL NV, HSLLGRMT HGZI.

She gasped, a large bubble of precious air escaping her mouth and floating towards the surface behind her. The voice was loud—louder than thunder or gun shots. She felt like her ears were about the bleed as the speaker continued their gibberish speech.

GSV KRMV GIVV DZH MLG HFKKLHVW GL WRV... SRH HGIRMTH HGROO VCRHG ZMW GSVB ZIV XLMMVXGRMT GL BLF. RU... MLG XZIVUFO... BLF DROO YVXLNV...

ULI GSRH DLIOW GL XLMGRMFV VCRHGRMT, GSV HSLLGRMT HGZI NFHG WRV.

BLF SZEV ML XSLRXV. GSV LIRTRMZO KRMV GIVV HVG BLF—

Arms wrapped around her, pulling her out of her state of paralysis. Her vision was smudged with black as she was carried away from the glow, saving her eardrums while ridding her of the warm comfort of the speaker. She didn't know what the voice was saying, but she knew it was important. She wanted to hear more—needed to hear more—or else she might fling herself back into the watery depths.

The water disappeared as air suddenly surrounded her. All of her senseless thoughts vanished as she coughed the virulent water from her lungs and replaced it with sweet oxygen. A large hand rubbed circles into her back. "Are you alright, my Belle Plum?"

If she hadn't nearly drowned, Mabel would have objected to having Gideon Gleeful be the one to rescue her, but the dull ache in her head made her thoughts unclear. She nodded, swallowing the soreness from her throat as she stayed in Gideon's arms like a rag doll. She could still hear the echoes of the voice in her head, the last line of its speech repeating like a broken record. It filled her with dread, like something huge was coming and she had no way to defeat it.

Gideon carried her to shore, easily holding her in his arms like a wounded princess as he talked. "Here I was, just taking a peaceful stroll along the lake when I see you just fall into the water! I jumped in immediately and swam to get you—I was so afraid that you were going to be unconscious or worst."

He placed her on the ground next to her picnic stuff (how he knew it was hers, she didn't know), where she noticed that his phone and coat were neatly folded next to the basket. She grimaced. If he immediately ran to save her, why did he have enough time to take off his more expensive belongings?

Gideon knelt in front of her, sand sticking to his soaking slacks as he came to her eye level. "Just what are you doing at the lake all by yourself?" he asked as water dripped from his dress shirt. "A young little thing like yourself shouldn't go anywhere alone."

"I'm on a date," she said, voice as weak as she felt. Her ears still ached.

He looked surprised. "A date? Well, congratulations, Miss Pines." He made a show of looking around. "Where is he right now?"

"Um…" She pulled her phone from her wicker basket, eyes widening at the time. Arjun was very late. Her heart hammered. He was so excited to go on this date. What could be holding him up? She looked askance at Gideon, feeling his charming eyes slither up and down her body. She shivered. "I think he's in the parking lot," she said, struggling to her feet. Gideon jumped to his and quickly helped her balance herself. "I need to talk to him…"

"You're much too weak to move right now," Gideon said. "Sit down and let me go grab him for you."

She pulled out of his grasp. "No, I can do it."

"At least let me escort you." Gideon gave her one of his most elegant smiles. "We wouldn't want you to fall into another lake."

She frowned, but she was starting to get too worried to put up any more objections. Mabel ignored the way Gideon's arm was wrapped around her waist as she dragged herself to the parking lot. In her head, she begged over and over again in a mantra for Arjun to be waiting there for her. She didn't know how she was going to get rid of Gideon without his help.

A pack of male tourists were just slamming their trunk closed when they entered the parking lot. Mabel looked down the lot of fine brown dust, finding no sign of the agent anywhere. Gideon released a shallow sigh, pulling Mabel closer to himself. "Looks like Arjun Nalluri isn't here," he said. "It's almost like he never came to your date in the first place."

She swallowed, going to Arjun's number in her phone. "Just let me call him first—"

The moment the call started, the jingle of a ringtone sounded near her. Gideon stepped away as she searched for the source of the faint music. If she didn't know any better, she would say it was coming from the inside of the tourists' trunk…

The pack of tourists were hurrying into their nondescript car, all dressed in similar plain shirts. None of their faces were remotely remarkable, none too handsome or too ugly, and that alone was enough of a red flag for Mabel. The driver made eye contact with her as he started to pull the van out of its parking spot. "Go call the police," Mabel ordered Gideon before dashing to their van. She waved her arms in the air. "Hold it!"

She skidded to a stop at their trunk, hands clipping on to the handle as she pulled on it. "I need you to open your trunk right now!" she shouted. She felt something bang against the door, confirming her suspicious. "Open it now before the police come!"

She heard one of the van doors open and close. "Hey, Miss? Can you step away from our car?" It was the driver, holding up his hands as a sign of peace. One of them gripped the car keys. Up close, Mabel could see a scar splicing his eyebrow into two pieces. "We don't want to give you any trouble, so can you just—"

She kicked him in the groin. He howled in pain, bending down enough to give her a clear shot of his head. She punched the side of his face, sending him reeling into a nearby car. The keys fell from his hands and onto the ground. As the alarms went off, yellow and red lights blinking, Mabel grabbed them and shoved the key into the lock. Two other men climbed out of the van, ready to give her a piece of their mind. She turned the key, hearing the quiet clink of the locks undoing themselves.

The trunk door burst open with such force that she fell to the ground. Stars danced in her vision as a figure jumped out of the trunk, twisting around in time to deal the driver another kick to the stomach. Mabel scrambled away, confusion disorientating her vision. She was positive she was looking at Arjun twist one of the new thugs' arms at a painful angle before flipping him over his back and onto the ground, but there was something off about it. She knew this was Arjun, but he held himself differently. His normally straight back was curved in a slight hunch, and his deft movements were filled with a ruthlessness she never would have expected from him.

Mabel could do nothing but watch as Arjun stomped on the grounded thug's stomach. He wasted no time in smashing a rancorous fist into the other man's face, sending him back into the injured driver. The thug below him grabbed his leg and twisted it. Arjun flew onto the ground, glasses knocking off of his face.

The agent paid it no heed, rolling onto his stomach right as the thug jumped onto him. The thug tried to pummel him with both of his fists, but Arjun caught them easily in his hands. In an instant, Arjun raised his head and banged his forehead into the thug's. Blood splattered on Arjun's face as he kicked the unconscious man away.

Mabel backed further away from the fight. She realized for the first time that she hadn't gotten a good look at Arjun's face yet.

The other man finally pulled away from the driver, unsheathing a switch blade. Arjun stared at him, face turned from Mabel's line of sight. Dust caked his jeans and shirt, but he seemed unaware of either as he waited for the man to make his move. At last, the man run towards him, knife aimed straight for Arjun's chest. The agent stepped easily aside before grabbing the man's arm and yanking it to an unnatural angle. The man screamed before falling to the ground, holding his dislocated shoulder.

Arjun now held the knife in his hand. He approached the driver with hard steps, the knife in plain sight. Mabel cringed. She couldn't imagine sweet and gentle Arjun to use a knife against anyone, but then again, she couldn't believe Arjun capable of doing any of the things she had just seen him do. Wendy had said that the government agents were dangerous, but surely not like this…

Arjun shoved the blade under the driver's neck, not enough to make him bleed but enough to instill authority. "Go. Away."

Shivers ran up Mabel's spine. That wasn't Arjun's voice. His was a sweet baritone that could sing a baby to sleep. This voice was a low hiss, the kind that came from feral animals under attack. It was a horrible noise that made Mabel's instincts scream for her to run away. She never wanted to hear it again.

The driver gulped and nodded. When Arjun stepped away, the driver helped his two companions to their feet and into the van. Mabel watched the van pull out of its parking spot before speeding out of the lot, a cloud of dust left in its wake.

Mabel coughed, forcing herself to her feet. What in the world did she just see? Why would anyone want to kidnap Arjun? How could Arjun be so merciless in his retaliation? Waving the dust away, she squinted until she could see Arjun standing stiffly in the middle of the cloud. He was so still that

Mabel didn't think he was breathing. "Arjun?" she called out.

Somehow, he was able to stiffen even more.

Mabel stumbled through the remaining dust that hovered at their feet until she was right at his side. "Arjun?" She touched his shoulder.

He crumbled like dust, falling to his knees in sudden exhaustion. "Oh God…" He breathed, sounding like himself. His back rose and fell in heavy pants. She crouched next to him, rubbing soft circles over his spine and ribs. He patted the ground until his hand touched his glasses. Shaking, he placed them back on his nose. He turned to face her, and Mabel could finally see his face. Blood dripped down his forehead while bruises and scratches marked up his cheeks and chin. One of his glasses lenses was cracked, but he didn't seem to care.

A haunted look consumed his eyes as he stared at her. "Mabel… what happened? Did you see everything?" he asked. She never heard someone sound so terrified before in his life.

Any fear she felt of him earlier melted away. She wrapped her arms around him, ignoring the way he flinched when she laid her head on his shoulder. "I think some men tried to kidnap you," she explained. "You beat them up, though, and they escaped."

"I beat them up?" His eyes widened as he connected the dots in his head that Mabel couldn't see. Gasping, he shoved Mabel away. She landed on her hands, concern warping her face. "Don't touch me!"

Her mouth hanged open as she felt her chest slice open with hurt. "Arjun?"

She saw the same pain she felt dance across his face. He looked his eyes, trying to bite back his guilt. "I'm sorry Mabel. You just need to stay away."

"Why are you shutting me out?" she demanded. "I can help you, Arjun. You just need to tell me what's wrong."

"There's nothing you can help with. Please, just go home," he pleaded, enough hurt in his voice to shatter Mabel's resolve. "I'll call you later, I swear. Just please get away from here."

She took one last look of his face. Shadows marked the area under his eyes, which looked ever so slightly blood shot. He would have been the portrait of exhaustion if there hadn't been such an abundance of fear painting him. His nails dug into his arms, trying to suppress his trepidations for her. She gulped. He was falling apart at the seams, yet he was putting all of his efforts towards looking under control all because he didn't want her to panic.

Or figure out what was wrong.

She bit her lip, trying to hold back the feeling of betrayal taking root in her chest. "I thought you said that you were never going to lie to me," she said. "Why can't you just tell me what's wrong? I can help."

"I'm not lying to you," he replied. "I just want you to protect you."

"I don't need protection." She moved closer to him, careful not to make exact body contact. Her brown eyes met his as she looked at him with all of the loving reassurance she had within her. "I can take care of myself. Please let me help you."

Arjun opened his mouth, about to object, when he finally relented. Loosening his shoulders, he looked down at his lap. "Can you just sit here with me again?" he asked. "Until my coworkers come?"

She nodded and settled herself next to him. Arjun pulled his phone from his pants pocket, immediately going to a number on his speed dial. "Trigger?" he said, once the phone was answered. "It's Agent Nalluri. I'm at the lake parking lot. My brother's back in town… I don't have my pills… Three men, still alive and on the run… I'm a little scratched up… One. Mabel Pines… Hold on…"

He placed his hand over the receiver as he asked, "Has anyone called the police?"

"Gideon said he was going to but…" She looked at where she had left him, realizing that he had disappeared sometime during the fight. "He's gone. I don't think he did."

Arjun relayed the message back to his superior before finally hanging up. After that, the two waited in silence. Mabel wanted to resume the hug she had given him earlier, but she knew that the physical contact was going to cause him to freak out again. She kept her hands to herself as she watched the lake gleam in the distance, thinking wistfully of the wonderful time she was supposed to have today. She had no idea why those men had tried to kidnap Arjun, but she had the distinct feeling Arjun did. She waited for him to offer some kind of explanation, but his blank staring told her that he was lost somewhere in his own head.

She drew circles in the dirt. Her knuckles hurt faintly from the punch she had dealt to the driver. She wished Gideon hadn't fled. She knew that the fight was terrifying, but she could use him charm at the moment. Even if he was a tad creepy at times, he always seemed capable of handling any situation. She could use a leader like that.

The agents arrived a few minutes later, the three of them split between two black jeeps. The eldest one introduced himself as Agent Trigger, shaking calloused hands with Mabel before briskly asking her to step away from Arjun. She did so reluctantly, barely catching a small glimpse of Esperanza rushing to Arjun's side with water, pill bottles, and a question on her tongue—"Who am I talking to?"

Mabel didn't get to hear the response as a new agent was trying to gain her attention. "Mabel Pines?" he asked, offering her a hand. He was a lanky man whose cheeks round with a comforting smile. "Agent Cooper Gunn. May I have a word?" He guided her to the other side of the jeeps, away from Arjun, as he asked her to explain what happened. His hand occasionally ran through his mop of platinum blond hair as he listened to her talk and occasionally ask questions.

"I'm sorry you had to see all of that," he said once she was finished. "We're in a pretty dangerous line of work and these things kinda happen. If it'll help you rest at night, we can have some of the local police watch over your home."

She shook her head. "I'm not scared," she said. "I just want to know if Arjun's going to be alright."

"Arty's been through worst, don't worry." He clapped his hands together and pulled a key ring from his suit pocket. "So government policy says that once your interview is completed, we have to drive you home."

She gave him an odd look. "But I drove here…"

"We'll tow your car back to you."

"That's not very economical."

He shrugged. "Blame Congress, not me."

Mabel climbed into Cooper's jeep, feeling like she was the boyish man's prisoner. She pressed her face against the window, trying to catch a glimpse of Arjun from behind Trigger and Esperanza. When she did, it was a split second picture of him huddling into himself as Esperanza hushed him with comforting words. Mabel nearly jumped out of the car then, but the warning look Cooper gave her was enough to force her to sit in her car seat and wait.

She knew she was waiting to go home, but it felt more like the ticking minutes before a terrible storm.

EHO ZGQFI JOE LWIUH TS DLW URXSEB:

XZM NIPPOV GN SILCO EFL RJ DTBMXM.

KILRSRY WSIYS NSGZV JZR YXZMU

ZZIMIK BR GZMZPAKDXP YYYJ TLJP.

MW: One day late. Admittedly, that not bad when you think about it. I'm really glad that you all are keeping up with the codes and ciphers, because this chapter has a bit of a doozy for y'all. Let me just say that if can decode it, you'll be opening the floodgates to a whole new set of worries.

There will be another chapter coming out later this week that will also be the host of more trouble for our Mystery Duo (give me a few days to think of a better name for Bill and Mabel). I hope to see you guys there and ready for it!

Quick shout out to an anonymous reader who is currently helping me to ensure that Mabel's bipolar disorder is portrayed in the most accurate way possible. They are awesome and stellar and a great help!

Thank you for reading! Even though our summer is disappear fast, please feel free to review, favorite, or follow!