Dipper found himself alone, surrounded by what seemed to be boundless forest, tree trunks bursting from the floor in thick, black shadows that seemed to loom and twist over him, like giant, black fingers.
The sky was red, twisted with hues of lurid yellow and orange that felt like a constant, cyclonic avenue of flame, threatening to engulf the landscape that travelled with his every step, flexing and pulsating like it was saturated with sticky, hot molasses, or was formed from thick, molten
Branches fell, and those giant, inky trunks began to grip the earth around him. Ripping. Tearing. Pulling the earth underneath him apart like bread.
A horrible, sulphuric smell seemed to blech up from deep below the glowing crust of the cracking world beneath him. Thick, volcanic smoke and a burning heat began to envelop the air, making it difficult to think or concentrate.
He only knew he needed to get away.
Without hesitation, Dipper began to run. He wheezed as he tried to sprint away, his naturally poor stamina leaving him out of breath as he desperately sought peace, sought escape, sought solace - desperately trying to reach normality. Desperately trying to escape the weirdness that was attempting to engulf him.
His chest was heaving, this throat was burning, his face so hot to the touch that it stang and prickled across his neck. Everything around him seemed to be falling apart - everything seemed to be too weak to handle the sudden, vicious, wrenching punishment doled out by those grasping, crawling, digging, heaving fingers.
He piled behind the most stable structure he could find and clung to it tightly - a purple boulder that seemed to remain so steadfast and strong-willed against even this cruel, outsized enemy. He tried to fight back tears as he felt that pounding, heaving, throbbing pain inside him, like something was ready to burst out of his chest.
With a vicious rumble and the sound of dry, tumbling dirt, the ground gave way, and, before Dipper's eyes, that one piece of stability in his predicament plummeted downwards - spiraling into a pair of colossal jaws that slammed shut around it in a veneer of glistening gold.
"You can hide behind anything you like, Pine Tree. But no matter how much your life changes, no matter how much things seem to get better, no matter how much peace you find, you'll never get away from me."
"I'm not interested, Bill! I'm not scared of you! You're gone! Trapped! It's all over for you!"
"You think I'm Bill?! I'm something much worse. I'm your worst nightmare. I'm everything you've always feared. The thing most capable of chewing up everything you love and spitting it out, with no care for the consequences."
That giant mouth spat out the purple boulder, now hewn into the rough shape of a headless, four legged silhouette.
The llama.
"I'm not Bill." The sinister presence laughed.
Dipper scrambled backwards and gawked in horror as, before him, a familiar shape leered, its silhouette lit by a sick grin. A teenager with chestnut brown hair, wearing a familiar hat and a vest.
The twisted reflection of his own form stared directly at him, never failing to keep eye contact as its gigantic finger and thumb lifted the rough-hewn figurine, and crushed it into a fine powder, sprinkling it down into that giant gorge of sulphuric darkness below.
The pubescent amateur detective cried out in agony as something pulsated in his ribcage.
"They're in there, Dipper. Every one of them has horns and claws that will rip you apart, if you let them. What'll it be kid? How will you keep them quiet? Or is the scariest thing knowing that you can't?"
He howled as, under his shirt, he swore he could see several hundred pairs of tiny, glowing red eyes…
"They'll be there even if you wake up.
Wake up…
Wake up!
Wake up! "
"Dipper, wake up!" Pacifica said urgently, shoving her boyfriend as he slumped in the armchair.
"H-huh?!" He stirred awake with a jolt, his hands suddenly gripping the sides of the armchair fiercely as he panted for air, a cold sweat trickling down his brow.
"You alright, hon? You were freaking out!"
Dipper stared up at his girlfriend, the faint, warm glow of Grunkle Stan's stained glass window light picking up a compassionate smile as she sat alongside him.
"Bit of a nightmare?" She asked. "Seems like you've been having those a lot lately."
"T-tell me about it." He sighed, sitting up and wrapping his arms back around her. "Man, that was a weird one…"
"Wanna talk about it?"
"N-no. No, I- I don't think I do. It's- it's just a weird dream."
"Alright. I guess that doesn't count as a secret." She giggled, patting his cheek.
The silence in the shack was deafening, the white noise on the television hissing quietly, the ancient VHS they had been watching now long since over. The scent of lukewarm hot chocolate, Pacifica's perfume and the popcorn they had shared was the perfect remedy.
He took a deep breath, smiled, and nuzzled back into her neck.
"H-hey, watch it!" She laughed. "That tickles! It's late, Dipper!"
"I love you, Pacifica." He smiled, holding her close. "A lot. Y'know?"
She smirked, trying to fight off that rich red that encroached upon her cheeks. "H-hey, I love you too. But you don't need to get all soppy with me just because you had a nightmare. Besides, it's like, 2AM. We should probably get to bed, right?"
"Do you really wanna move? Nobody's gonna mind if we sleep in the chair."
"My hair will, thank you very much."
"Is that really worth having to move?"
"I guess not." She smirked. "Provided you don't drool in your sleep again."
"H-hey! I did not!" Dipper protested - uncertainly. "R..right?"
She tapped his nose and grinned, deciding it was funnier to go without answering the question. "Night, nerd."
"G-goodnight." He replied, his voice almost cracking on cue with that familiar, affectionate motion she seemed to carry as a habit on his coral-pink nose. It was almost like a natural comforter at this point; a regularity that reminded him that things were 'normal'.
The Northwest heir rested her head back against him, nuzzling up close as she shut off the television - reducing the room into an even purer silence, and an even darker atmosphere.
Dipper squirmed, his heart was still thumping. His hands were still shaking.
He winced, his pin-dot pupils travelling down his front, fearful that those… things might stare back at him, ready to rip out and tear his world apart without hesitation. His heart beat harder as his eyes met the very same area he had seen in his dream, his brain screaming at him to stop just in case they might be there, peering back at him with those savage, burning red stares-
And was met by nothing more than he himself.
He exhaled in relief. And, before he could give it much more thought, his heavy eyelids fought back and lulled him back into a light, somewhat restless sleep. Holding onto his rock as tightly as he could - inwardly resolving that, no matter what he did, he would never let go, no matter how much his head told him that it was all for naught.
He didn't need it to have a meaning.
He just needed to know she was there.
And so ends the biggest story so far in Return to the Falls - and the conclusion to a six-episode long slow-burn! Thank you so much to all of you for sticking with me throughout this ridiculous journey, and I hope you've enjoyed it. I'd like to give my utmost thanks to Kyo, my wonderful fiancee and proofreader who's provided a constant sharp eye and critical mind over the series.
I'm now going to be taking a bit of a break while I settle into a new job and focus on the weight of the world - perhaps even work on my second novel. Worry not, my dears, it's not a 'goodbye', more of a 'see you in a bit'. I've already got comic ideas piling up too, so there's plenty more to come to the strange little world of Gravity Falls - even if everything here may seem somewhat final!
Please leave comments and kudos if you enjoy; your engagement means the world and guarantees more chapters and tales to come. It can't be overemphasised that I'm still incredibly new to all this stuff, and am always very worried about the choices I make for a world I cherish so dearly. I hope that, for now, I've kept up my main aim - to basically keep the show's magic alive and capture that same bouncy, cynical and fun little atmosphere that Gravity Falls thrived off of.
Find my artwork:
.
Find my socials:
jamooneyart
:
jamooneyart
Or my alternative history novel:
.
