Chapter 34: Controlling the Election
(Emily's P.O.V)
Okay, the last thing I EVER expected to happen in my life was to suddenly get transported into a lovable cartoon in which I've seen every episode more than once. Though that little surprising ship has sailed, I still find myself getting caught of guard.
For example, a tentacle poking me awake.
Apparently Globby decided that now was a great time for me to stop my dreaming state, and poke my cheek nonstop. I groaned and opened my eyes to see Globby looking at me with his eye. His tentacles was raised, and he poked me again.
"Gah, okay, okay, I'm up!" I whispered and sat up, making sure I didn't wake the twins, before I picked him up and walked downstairs.
It was pretty earlier out and I put Globby on the table and walked to the cabinet. I opened it and grabbed some beef jerky for Globby and cereal for me. I poured some into bowls for us and Globby started picking up the pieces and eating while I poured the milk and finally noticed that it was way too dark in here. I attempted to turn the switch, but nothing changed.
"Right, lightbulb went out in the first few minutes." I grumbled as the twins and Soos walked in.
"Hey Emily, what's up?" Mabel asked and I sighed.
"Lightbulb's out, where do we keep the replacements?" I asked.
"Haha, sorry dude, Dipper used up all of them to make me a lightbulb suit, it is something I will cherish for the rest of my life." Soos explained wholeheartedly. I nearly face-palmed, feeling silly for forgetting that specific part and sighed.
"Well I guess we will have to eat in the dark." I shrugged and Ford then walked in while carrying a bag.
"Fear not everyone, for I have the solution!" Ford declared and held out his own lightbulb. Globby then stiffened and quickly latched onto my back. I guess he is still hesitant around him.
"What do you mean Great Uncle Ford?" Dipper asked eagerly and Ford showed us his lightbulb.
"Seeing the lightbulb suit you made Soos got me thinking about how this simple device can be improved even more!" Ford explained and he removed the current lightbulb and started to replaced it.
"Ugh. Rough start to a day, but it's all gonna be worth it when I fix that light bul..." I turned to see Stan walking in just as Ford was finishing screwing the lightbulb in.
"And...we're...done!" Ford said as the bulb then lit up, causing the twins and Soos to cheer.
"Does anyone see this? This is what a hero looks like right here." Mabel commented, gesturing to Ford.
"I thought we were out of light bulbs." Stan questioned.
"Oh we were, so I invented my own! It will last a thousand years and the light it emits makes your skin softer." Ford explained and everyone started to rub their skin.
"Oooh!"
"Never have I known such softness!" Soos exclaimed with delight.
"Anyway, where were you?" Ford asked, Stan simply dropped the new thing of lightbulbs in the trash and sulked to the t.v room. I gave a side glance at Ford.
"And THIS is why communication is important." I muttered and followed after Stan, who was settling into his chair.
"Well, TV at least you appreciate me. Give me the good news." He grumbled and turned it on.
"Don't hold your breath..."
"This just in, the mayor is dead." Shandra Jimenez reported.
"WHAT?!" Stan cried as the twins walked in.
"Whoa, what's going on?" Dipper asked.
"Raised by bears in the wilderness, Mayor Eustace Huckabone Befufftlefumpter was best known for raising the water tower, possibly starting World War I, and putting town menace Gideon Gleeful behind bars, in actual adult prison. A memorial statue is already being carved in the deceased mayor's honor." Shandra then started tearing up as her co-host started comforting her.
"I'm sorry. It's just been so long since we've had real news. I'm just so happy!" She cried and kept crying as he co-host turned to the screen.
"There will be a town hall meeting this afternoon to discuss replacing him." He announced and Stan rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
"New mayor huh? Wonder who it could be..." He smirked, looking at his reflection in the t.v as the American flag waved on the screen.
We all know what this means, cue theme song!
"Well, looks like we're going to the town hall today." Dipper said as Stan rushed to get dressed.
"Yeah, this will be fun! Politics!" Mabel cheered and I facepalmed.
"Mabel, I love how you are so optimistic, but you're gonna be disappointed." I muttered and patted Globby's head, causing him to unlatch himself from me and I sat him on the couch. He then used all of his tentacles to grab my arm and pull me back.
"Sorry boy, but you can't come to the town meeting with us. You might scare a few people." I said and he seemed to pout and I patted his head. "I won't be gone long okay, just stay out of trouble."
"Aright kids, lets go! No time to waste!" Stan urged us, and practically pushed us out the door and into the car.
A short drive later, we were all at the town hall and Nate was quick to wave us over and we sat down at the bench with him and everyone was talking wildly about the whole thing. Not that I blame them, this guy was Mayor for so many years, nearly a century I believe. So it made sense for everyone to be somewhat excited.
"So, you doing okay?" Nate asked.
"Yeah, why wouldn't I be?" I replied.
"Sorry it's just that...I know you've faced this kind of thing before, and I don't want you to be upset by it." Nate explained, rubbing the back of his head and my eyes widened in realization.
"Oh...oh!" Nate was worried how I was holding up...since I'm no stranger to death...that was really sweet of him and I guess of never occurred to me. I knew the late Mayor was going to die and who would be replacing him since the whole episode revolves around that subject. After a few moments of silence I gripped Nate's hand tightly.
"It's sweet that you're concerned, but I'm okay. Thanks."
"Okay, just wanted to make sure." Nate said and Sheriff Blubs then hit the gavel down.
"Alright. Order! Order everyone! Calm down now! We're here to choose a mayor for the first time in almost a century. According to the town charter, a worthy candidate is defined as anyone who can cast a shadow, count to ten, and throw their hat into the provided ring." He explained as he read off of a scroll.
"Did a bat just fly out of that paper?" Nate whispered to me in confusion.
"I'm more concerned about the requirements." I whispered back as Deputy Durland brought out the ring and Bud Gleeful tossed his hat in before it was even all the way on the floor.
"Well now I do believe I fulfill all the requirements." Bud said proudly.
"See?" I deadpanned.
"Wait, Bud Gleeful?" Dipper questioned.
"He looks good! Considering we threw his son in jail." Mabel commented.
"That was a good day." Stan said, sitting back as Bud walked up to the podium.
"Now folks, I know our families had its fair shares of whoopsie daisies in the past, but I'd like to make up for it by formally announcing my candidacy for the mayor of Gravity Falls! Any questions?" He asked.
"Yes, are you still in contact with Lil' Gideon?" Toby Determined asked, holding out his turkey baster.
"That's a great question, I'm giving you 50% off a used car." Bud replied.
"Fifty percent?! FIFTY PERCENT?!" Toby cried, ripping his notepad in half with excitement.
"Politics, where no one answers the right questions." I grumbled and Nate nudged me playfully.
"In fact, everyone look under your seats!" Bud exclaimed and started pointing to people in the crowd as people found the coupons for the used car under their seats with delight. "You get half off a used car! You get half off a used car!"
"Wow, a colorful piece of paper? He's got my vote!" Mabel smiled.
"Please don't." I pleaded.
"Guys, I've got a really bad feeling about Bud Gleeful as mayor." Dipper said.
"Uh duh, he's clearly gonna free his son the second he's in office." Nate deadpanned.
"We have to hope someone else gets elected." I added.
"I dunno, dude, it's not like we have a lot of good mayor options. Everyone in this town is a tad strange. Except, ironically, Tad Strange." Soos said and everyone turned over to Tad.
"Hi guys, Tad's the name, and being normal's my game." Tad greeted.
"Loving you, Tad!" Mabel smiled happily.
"And I love bread!" Tad said, holding up his slice of bread.
"I'm just gonna assume that's his breakfast." I commented, I mean, why else would he have that slice?
"It's a shame Ford isn't here, he'd run. And win! And be a great mayor!" Dipper sighed and Stan was visibly upset by this and stood up as Bud held up the gavel.
"So since everyone's happy I'll just take the oath of office now, sound good, gavel up?" Bud asked and enter Stan's fez in the hula hoop and the gasps of the crowd.
"Hold it right there Bud! I'm taking you on!" Stan declared.
"Stanford? No offense but you're just some two-bit carnival barker. And your head is more ears than face!" Bud smirked and I glared darkly.
"At least his niece and nephew aren't in jail!" I cried, standing up and the crowd gasped again.
"Yeah! And...well your face is more fat...than...not fat!" Stan added, and the crowd gasped even more.
"Oh snap!" Tad commented and Stan turned back to the crowd.
"Whaddya say folks? Are we just gonna let Bud win? How about a real election!" He asked and Tyler stood up and reached for his cap.
"Get in there, cap!" He cried, throwing his hat in along with a handful of the town joined in the hoop, much to Bud's dismay.
"Well, looks like we've got some competition here folks. Which I'm fine with, totally fine with!" Bud laughed awkwardly and I glared as he pulled Stan in to 'talk'.
"I was gonna let bygones be bygones Stan, but you just made a powerful enemy. I'll win either way, and when I do, you might not like the Gravity Falls you wake up in!" He threatened and punched the Mystery Shack right out of the Gravity Falls map, causing me to flinch and the twins to gasp.
"Election! Election! Election!" The people started chanting and rushed out of the town hall.
"Let the madness begin!" Blubs cried and fired the cannon, causing the cannonball to burst through the wall.
"Wasn't that an ancient artifact?" Nate asked and I sighed.
"I don't even want to know." I said as the twins walked over to Stan and we joined them.
"Grunkle Stan, what are you doing?" Mabel asked in disbelief.
"Running for mayor! Did I...did I not make that clear?" Stan replied in confusion.
"Oh no, you made that quite clear." I deadpanned.
"Grunkle Stan, it's not that we think you can't do it, it's just..." Mabel started before her twin cut her off.
"No no, it's okay, Mabel. We don't think you can do it." Dipper insisted and I facepalmed.
"Way to soften the blow." I muttered.
"He's gotta be a better Mayor than Bud or my dad." A familiar voice spoke up and we turned towards the voice.
"Pacifica! Oh hey, what...what are you doing here?" Dipper asked, I couldn't help but notice the dopey grin he now had on his face.
"Hi Pacifica! How are you doing today?!" Mabel greeted waving wildly and Pacifica waved awkwardly back.
"Uh...fine? I just came here to see what was going on about the new Mayor, that, and it was an excuse to get out of the house." Pacifica explained and I nodded sympathetically. If I had parents like the Northwests, I would want out as much as possible too.
"Ye-yeah, that's cool!" Dipper laughed and Mabel looked between the two and got a familiar gleam in her eye. I decided too cut Dipper some slack and cleared my throat.
"I believe we were just asking Stan why he wants to run for Mayor in the first place." I said, gesturing to Stan and we all turned to him.
"Yeah, where did all this come from?" Dipper asked and Stan sighed.
"Look, kids. The mayor kicking the bucket got me thinking. I'm an old man, and I'm not getting any younger. My dumb brother's research is probably gonna make him famous. And what do I have to show for my life? Do I really want 'crooked grifter' on my tombstone? How about, 'crooked mayor'!" Stan explained and Dipper turned to the rest of us.
"Psst, guys, let's talk. I know Stan isn't the best candidate. Heck, he's committing voter fraud right now." Dipper gestured to Stan piling a whole bunch of vote slips with his name into the ballot box. "But Bud's definitely up to something, and we're the only ones who can stop him."
"You're right, Dipper. Besides, Stan has a kind-of charisma. How hard could getting him elected be?" Mabel agreed and the two suddenly spawned two matching hats and 'Vote Stan' campaign stickers.
"How about you guys? You in?" Dipper asked.
"Sure, this could be fun." I nodded.
"Count me in!" Nate cried, wrapping his arms round my shoulder and I laughed.
"Anything to keep me out of the manor, plus this could be fun." Pacifica shrugged, giving a soft smile.
"Okay, the lets get Stan elected as Mayor!" Dipper cried, extended his fist in the air.
"Yeah!" We cried, copying his gesture.
"Right after we stop him from committing voter fraud." Dipper added.
"Wait he's still doing that? STAN!" I cried and rushed over with Nate to pull him away.
"Let me go! This is gonna work!" Stan exclaimed.
"You haven't even started your campaign yet!" I fired back.
Once we got Stan away from the ballot, Mable recruited Candy and Grenda to help us out, Wendy and Soos joined us and we went back to the Shack. Mabel skipped to the front door and opened it, but instead of walking inside, she froze and screamed on the top of her lungs.
"WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!" She cried and I rushed up to her and grabbed her shoulders.
"What is it? What's wrong?!" I cried and looked down at Mabel and realized one crucial detail, Mabel was smiling.
"IT'S. SO. CUTE!" She squealed and pointed inside as everyone rushed to the door entrance and Mabel pointed to the couch where both Globby and Waddles were sitting together. Both a little startled by her out burst, but I had to admit that the two looked absolutely adorable together. Mabel rushed in to get a better look at the two.
"Uh, what is that?" Pacifica asked, slightly horrified and Dipper patted her shoulder in comfort.
"That's Globby, he's a cycloptopus and Emily's new pet. And don't worry, he doesn't seem to want to eat human flesh." Dipper assured her.
"Okay then..." Pacifica said, still a bit on edge.
Later we had the Shack all decked out for Stan's campaign. The whole place was decorated, we had a phone bank, and everyone was hard at work. Wendy was writing on Waddles 'Swines for Pines" on one side and 'Bud's a Dud' on the other side, that got a chuckle out of most of us.
"Spread the word, pig!" Wendy cried, and Waddles ran off as Dipper came up holding a scroll.
"Alright everybody, eyes up here." He announced and opened the scroll for us to see. "Okay, Gravity Falls Elections are based on two events. The Wednesday Stump Speech, held on an actual... stump, and the Friday Debate wherein townsfolk throw birdseed at the candidate they like most. At the end, they release a freedom eagle who will fly to the candidate covered in more seed and bestow a birdly kiss upon him anointing him mayor."
Needless to say, everyone (but me) was kinda dumbfounded. Dipper noticed our looks and just started to roll up the scroll while frowning.
"I couldn't make this up if I wanted to." He deadpanned.
"I'm starting to see why the Mayor was in office as long as he was." Pacifica muttered and one of the phones rang from the 'phone bank' and Mabel quickly grabbed it.
"Okay Grunkle Stan, are you ready for your first radio interview?" She asked excitedly.
"I got my mouth, don't I?" Stan asked playfully as he walked over and Mabel went back to the phone.
"Okay you're on with the candidate." She said before handing Stan the phone and I turned on the radio, allowing us to hear the questions as well.
"You're listening to Falls Radio: 24 hour news and bear rampage alerts, and now here's the T-man." A man announced.
"Hello!" Toby greeted. "Candidate Stan first question: How do you feel about the American flag?" He asked.
"Meh, I can take it or leave it, too many stripes. Next question." Stan replied and we gave each other nervous looks.
"What would you do to help educate our kids?" Toby asked, seemingly unfazed.
"Ha, simple. Put them on an island and make them fight for dominance. Also teach kids swears. That'll bring them to the real world." Stan answered and I face-palmed.
"Other people are listening to this." I mumbled.
"What would you do about the crime in Gravity Falls?" Toby asked.
"Wait, do you mean crime in general, or just the specific crimes committed by m..." Stan was cut off by Dipper literally cutting the phone cord with scissors.
"You couldn't have just hung up!?" Nate cried I'm disbelief.
"And now we need another new phone." I added as Dipper laughed awkwardly.
"Haha. Okay, interview's over. Candy, what's the damage?" He asked worriedly as we turned to Candy, who was holding a laptop and had Pacifica and Grenda looking over her shoulder.
"Your approval ratings started at zero. Now it's a number lower than zero." Candy reported.
"Wait, that's a thing?" Pacifica asked.
"Apparently." I muttered as Wendy showed us her phone.
"You're meme-ing fast, and none of them are good." She explained and Nate looked at the meme.
"One does not simply teach kids swears." He read and held in a laugh.
"Look Grunkle Stan, people are like smell markers, and you're black licorice! It's not that you're un-sniffable, you just need to learn when to keep the cap on." Mabel explained.
"From now on, maybe you should read our prepared remarks." Dipper suggested as he held up a paper. Stan took one look at it and tucked it into his jacket.
"Heh heh. Sorry kids. I always say words that come out of my brain. If my head says, that lady's got an ugly baby, my mouth says, 'whoa, lady, you got one ugly baby.'" Stan explained and as the twins looked at one another worriedly, I facepalmed.
"This is not good." Nate muttered.
"Any ideas on how to help him?" Wendy asked.
"The only things I can think of is all the stuff my dad did in situations like this, and I don't think sabotaging the competition is the way we want to go." Pacifica grumbled.
"Now there's an idea!" Stan grinned, giving Pacifica a finger gun. I quickly intervened.
"Yeah, no. We aren't going to go out of our way to make our competitors look bad. If we get caught, then the heat will just be against us." I explained.
"Then we don't get caught, it's that simple." Stan shrugged. I sighed and turned towards the twins.
"Dipper, do you have any idea...and where'd he go?" I questions seeing that he was nowhere to be seen.
"We can still try and get Stan to be lovable to a crowd right?" Mabel asked and I sighed.
"Fingers crossed Mabel, fingers crossed." I muttered.
I can't believe how fast the day went by. I didn't even get to see Mabel and Dipper use the tie on Soos...though that was probably because I was walking Nate home. He and I have been doing so well and it was so nice for us to just get a peaceful moment.
"Well, I guess I'll see you at the stump speech tomorrow?" Nate said as we came to his door and I nodded.
"Yeah, I guess so. Love you."
"I love you too." We kissed and I watched him go inside and smiled as I walked down the street. That's when I noticed a familiar figure running down the streets and I did a double take before running after.
"Pacifica, hey wait up!" I cried and she froze before relaxing and turning to me.
"Oh, hi Emily." She greeted as I caught up to her.
"What are you doing all alone on the street?" I asked and she sighed.
"Trying to sneak back home without my parents catching me." She muttered and I did not expect that response.
"Wow, you actually snuck out? I figured you could come and go as you pleased." I admitted as we started walking down the street.
"Soft of, but if I told my parents that I was going out for the town meeting they'd never let me go. They are still salty about the party. Dad claims that the manor still stinks of 'peasants' his words not mine." Pacifica explained.
"Yeesh and I thought he was a douche at the party." I joked and she laughed. "So if you knew your parents would be upset with you, why'd you come? The meeting wasn't that important."
"Well...I just wanted to see Dipper...AND YOU GUYS! I wanted to see you guys!" She cried quickly and I noticed the faint blush on her cheeks.
"Oh really?" I smirked and she groaned, burying her face in her hands to hide her red blush and I laughed. "Relax, I won't say anything, but I feel obligated to tell you that Mabel will figures it out for herself."
"I got that...it's why I haven't said anything. I guess I just never really felt this way about someone. But after the party, I couldn't stop thinking about him. The way he laughs, how smart he is..." She paused and realized that she was rambling.
"Welcome to crush ville. We've been expecting you." I laughed, and Pacifica seemed to relax before joining me.
"Come on, let's get you home." I suggested and we snuck back up to the manor and Pacifica thanked me before heading through the garden. I smiled after her, she really was a good person, she just needed to be around the right people. I sighed and quickly rushed him before my least favorite person in Gravity Falls found me.
The next morning seemed to rush by, but what stood out to me was the fact the twins did not seem too eager to share their information about a certain mind control tie. I felt like that scene was skipped over by me. I almost thought that Dipper might not have taken it in the first place. Though that theory was thrown out the window when I actually went to the debate.
The twins were backstage with Stan while Nate waved me over to a bench and Pacifica joined us. We watched the speeches, but in all honesty I was not really listening. I knew who would be Mayor if this episode would follow the script. That, and most of the speeches were not worth listening to. I'm glad that the episode skipped over the speeches. Maybe a montage would have been okay, but speeches can get long.
"Education, get it. Prosperity, get it. A Gravity Falls we can be proud of, get iiiiit!" Tyler cried and the audience clapped for him, and so did I. As much as I love Stan, Tyler was a good fit for the Mayor. He walked off stage as Blubs looked down at a slip of paper.
"And now, Stanford Pines!" He announced and Stan walked up on stage and my eyes widened upon seeing the tie he was wearing.
"Uh oh..." I muttered and Nate turned to me.
"Huh?"
"Nothing! It's nothing!" I said quickly.
"Hiya there! Stan Pines here. Let's get real. Do you think the women of Gravity Falls wear too much makeup?" Stan asked and I fought the urge to facepalm. He suddenly stiffened and cleared his throat.
"Uh, what I meant to say was: you ladies all look great. And have you done something with your hair? Girl, you are working it!" Stan said, snapping his finger as the ladies in the crowd seemed impressed.
"Yes!"
"That is exactly what I needed to hear right now."
"Whew. I'm Stan Pines. You may know me as the guy who accidentally let all those bees loose in that elementary school a few years back." Stan said and there was another moment of static shock before Dipper started speaking through him.
"But I believe in things. America. Freedom. Ameri-freedom!"
"Good! He's saying all the right things!" The guy with an American hat and shirt nodded with tears in his eyes.
"Like my opponent pointed out, I may not have a pretty face, but if you want a candidate that will listen to you, well, I'm proud to be all ears." Stan joked, holding his hands up to his ears and the crowd laugh.
"Now, watch me break it down!" He cried and started to breakdance and the crowd started to cheer for him and he walked off stage.
"I'm sorry, but what was that?" Nate questioned.
"Uh...I don't know." Pacifica added. "Stan just seemed...different."
"Yeah, and since when can he breakdance?" Nate asked and they turned to me as I tried to not groan in frustration.
"Are you okay?"
"Haha, I'm fine...just fine..." I laughed and sighed heavily. "Yeah, I'm fine."
"You don't sound fine." Nate pointed out.
"Well I don't know about you guys, but I think something weird is going on." Pacifica commented. "Or maybe Stan just took Dipper and Mabel's advice after all."
"If only it were that simple." I mumbled.
And so, the campaign went on, the twins kept speaking through Stan, wowing the crowd and gaining several points. The twins were so secretive about their plan that they didn't say anything to me. I was starting to get worried. If they kept this a secret, than what were the chances that they told me something really important? Like Bill suddenly appeared in their dreams. I've already made a few changes and who knows what else could happen between now and 'YOU KNOW WHAT'. I know I shouldn't be the one to talk like this since I've kept the biggest secret from them, but even if I did tell everyone the truth then it could very well make things worse for everyone!
"Emily, hey Emily!"
"Huh what?" I asked, Dipper must have been trying to get my attention as I was thinking to myself. Was I that distracted?
"I asked if Stan had called you at all today?" Dipper asked. The twins and I were at Greasy's Diner waiting for Stan to arrive before the final debate today.
"Uh, sorry no. I haven't heard from him." I replied and sighed. Maybe I could use this time to talk with them. Might as well right?
"Listen, there's something I've been meaning to..."
"HEY-O!" Stan cried, bursting through the door. OH COME ON, REALLY?!
"Stan!" The crowd cried happily.
"Now just the ladies!"
"Stan!"
"Now just the ladies my age!"
"Stan!"
"Woof, never mind." Stan said and sat down at the booth with the twins. I was just standing to the side of the booth and leaning on the edge. Lazy Susan then gave Stan a stack of pancakes with a tiny flag reading 'Stan 4 Mayor'.
"On the house, mister big shot!" She said and Stan happily begun eating.
"Now this I could get used to!" He laughed.
"Grunkle Stan, what's with the outfit? You're missing your lucky tie." Mabel asked, gesturing to the clothes on the seat if the booth.
"Power tie, gotta wear it." Dipper deadpanned.
"Aw come on, have you seen the polls? I can debate naked and I can still win! Huh, come to think of it..." Stan said thoughtfully.
"I'd get off that train of thought." I warned as Mabel laughed nervously.
"Seriously though, we need you to wear that suit and tie, Grunkle Stan." She pleaded.
"Suit and tie, gotta wear it." Dipper added.
"Ugh! What do you kids have to constantly tell me what to do? Everyone in this town is finally showing me respect! Maybe you kids should too." Stan frowned as he crossed his arms defensively.
"Grunkle Stan, we'd respect you if you took things more seriously!" Dipper retorted and Stan slammed his fist on the table.
"I am taking this seriously! If you haven't noticed, everything that has come out of this golden mouth has put us on top! With or without your dumb advice!" Stan cried.
"Dumb advice?!" Dipper exclaimed in disbelief.
"Yeah! Dumb advice." Stan said and it was Dipper's turned to slam the table with his fist as he stood up.
"Dang it, Stan! Every one of those speeches we were controlling you!" Dipper cried.
"Dipper!" Mabel warned.
"WHAT?!" Stan and I cried as the same time as Dipper held up the tie.
"This tie is a mind control device invented by Ford! If it wasn't for this tie, you'd be losing!" Dipper explained angrily and Stan started to shake in anger.
"Well, you can tell that know-it-all Ford that he can keep his fancy light bulbs and magic ties! I'm gonna win this debate on my own, without any of you!" Stan cried and stood up.
"Stan, wait! You can't..." Dipper was cut off by Stan slamming the door in anger.
"I cannot believe you two!" I cried in frustration and the twins turned to me.
"What?" They asked and I crossed my arms and glared.
"You were controlling Stan's actions, what were you thinking?! If Stan had one, it wouldn't have been him winning. It would have been someone different. Not only that, but did you ever consider that the tie could have seriously have harmed Stan in a serious way?" I questioned and they looked at each other and when I could see that they didn't have an answer I continued.
"I thought so, and I honestly thought better of you both. Did you learn nothing from Bill? And don't try and tell me you did enjoy not having control of your body. This isn't like either of you." I added and the twins looked down in shame.
"We just didn't want to lose the Shack again..." Mabel explained and I sighed.
"I know, but you're going about it the wrong way. I'm going to look for Stan. Just please don't do anything that could make things worse." I pleaded and before they said anything I rushed out on the diner and looked for Stan, who unfortunately was nowhere to be seen. I groaned in frustration and ran down the streets to look for him. I guess he must had went to the memorial for the election. I decided to rush over there and Nate waved me over.
"Emily!" He cried and rushed over to me and he frowned when seeing that I was out of breath. "Hey, you alright?"
"Yeah...fine...where's Stan, I gotta talk to him?!" I cried, scanning the crowd. When I suddenly Shandra started to make her introduction.
"Welcome all to the final debate in what sure to be on a cosmic scale a forgettable blip in human history." She announced and we turned to stage seeing Bud, Stan and Tyler walk on.
"And here come the three most popular candidates!"
"Oh no, the debates about to start, you're too late." Nate said and I sighed as I attempted to catch my breath.
"Yeah...looks like I was..."
"But what's this? One new candidate has entered the ring!" Shandra announced and my eyes widened as I saw Soos walk on stage and I glared.
"I can't believe it." I growled.
"Yeah, I didn't take Soos for a politician." Nate commented.
"Cause he's not one!" I cried.
"Let the debate begin!" Shandra rang the bell and Manly Dan started to read the first question.
"First question. What's your position on axes! Wait, I mean...taxes!" He asked.
"Easy! Taxes are the worst. I propose we stimulate the economy by waging wars on neighboring cities. We. Have. The cannons." Stan answered, only for the crowd to boo him. "What? Uh..."
"Ahem...well I Uh...I don't know much about taxes, but I can promise you a kitten in every pot! That doesn't make sense, Mabel. You don't make sense Dipper!" Soos cried and the tie started to spark.
"Friends, friends. Can't you see what's happening on this stage? These politicians are dancing around the issues. Well... I can sing around the issue!" Bid exclaimed and ripped apart his clothes revealing his dance outfit.
"And I wish I bleached my eyes." Nate deadpanned as Bud began to sing.
"Oh crime is bad! Crime is oh-so bad! Vote for Bud and there ain't gonna be no crime! Crime's bad. Vote Bud." He laid in his side and winked as Tyler clapped for him.
"You may now throw your bird seed!" Shandra announced and the crowd cheered as they threw their seeds in Bud's bin. Much to Stan's dismay.
"And now a quick intermission." Shandra announced and I got an idea and grabbed Nate's arm and dragged him towards the camera set.
"Uh, what's going on?" Nate asked as I bent down and grabbed the cords.
"Help me tie these together to mix them up! We need to stall the debate!" I explained as I unplugged some the cords and tied them together.
"Okay, sure." Nate shrugged and helped me out. "Can I ask why we are doing this?"
"Long story short, I need to talk to the twins and I can't do that when the debate is going on." I explained and Nate looked up.
"Okay, but it might be hard to talk to them when they are inside the memorial." Nate commented.
"Wait what?" I asked and he pointed to the elevator and my eyes widened.
"Oh darn...come on!" I cried and we rushed over to the elevator and pressed the button to get it down to us.
"Come on, come on!" I urged and we finally made it in the elevator and went up. Once we got to the level we saw the twins tied up and Gideon in the screen on Bud's chest.
"Once I win, they'll hit the plunger for the fireworks display, finishing the mountain's construction, trapping y'all inside. I've been trapped behind concrete all summer, now see how you like it!" Gideon spat and the twins gasped and I clenched my fists.
"Oh he's going down." I growled.
"Say hello to the next mayor of Gravity Falls, kids! Muwahahahahahaha!" He laughed and Nate and I stood in front of Bud.
"Yeah, I don't think so Gideon!" I cried, holding my fists up as Nate and I blocked his exit.
"Well, well, well, if it isn't my dear ol' pal Emily, and her little boyfriend too." Gideon smirked and I glared.
"Okay, A: Nate is clearly taller than me, and B: you aren't leaving until you let the twins go and release Bud from the creepy spell you cast on him!" I exclaimed.
"Oh, I don't think so! Daddy, get them!" Gideon cried and Bud lunged for me, but I quickly dodged and side kicked him.
"Sorry Bud!" I cried and Nate jumped on his back.
"I'm not that sorry!" He said and I rushed over to the twins.
"You two okay?" I asked as I fiddled with the ropes.
"Yeah we're good." Dipper nodded.
"Great, cause I'm seriously mad at you! Why on Earth would you mind control Soos!?" I asked.
"We asked him this time! He wanted to help save the Shack, but he was scared he would say the wrong thing!" Mabel explained.
"Oh...okay that's actually a lot better than I thought." I said.
"EMILY LOOK OUT!" Nate exclaimed and I turned to see Bud running towards me and he shoved me out the nose and I grabbed the edge of it.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Tyler screamed and the crowd turned to see my dangling for me life.
"Help! Help us!" Mabel cried.
"We're tied to a bunch of fireworks!" Dipper added.
"Great...this is not what I wanted to do today..." I muttered and saw Bud looming over me.
"My how the tables have turned." Gideon chuckled and I glared.
"Gideon, this isn't you! I know you're upset, but are really willing to kill me just to get out of prison!?" I asked.
"If it means my freedom, than I'm all for it!" Gideon smirked and I sighed.
"Are you? Cause I doubt you'll be able to actually be okay with it." I retorted and Gideon actually seemed to hesitate. Suddenly a figure appeared behind him and slammed a rock down on Bud's head, knocking him out and them destroyed the tablet.
"Nate!" I cried and he quickly pulled me up and wrapped his hands around me.
"Are you okay?" He asked, not letting me go.
"Yeah, I'm fine...but we gotta get out of here." I said and he let go.
"KIDS!" Stan cried and climbed inside the memorial.
"Grunkle Stan!" They cried and Stan quickly untied them and sighed.
"Kids! Look, I'm sorry I was being stubborn. I guess being the town's hero wasn't enough. I wanted to be yours too." He explained the twins became untied and stood by him.
"We're sorry, Grunkle Stan. We should've supported you, win or lose." Mabel said.
"Probably loose." Dipper added and Stan glared.
"I could still throw you out of the Mayor's nose you know." He deadpanned and I laughed.
"Haha, as much as I enjoy you guys making up, and we please get out of here?" I asked and Stan nodded, then noticed Bud's unconscious body.
"Welp everyone important can walk, let's go!"
"Stan..." I said in a warning tone and he sighed before turning to the twins.
"Kids, if his body crushes me and I die, make sure I get a bigger tombstone than Ford." He said and the twins laughed as he and Nate helped pick up Bud.
"You got it Grunkle Stan." Dipper chuckled and we all walked to the elevator.
"Wait, did Stan seriously climb the memorial instead us using the elevator?" Nate asked and I laughed.
"Don't question it."
Once we made it out of the elevator and were on solid ground, we saw the entire town staring at us with wide eyes. I freaked out cause it looked like we attacked Bud. Suddenly, the timer finished off and flew straight to Stan, it landed on Bud's head before kissing Stan.
"Mayor Pines! Mayor Pines! Mayor Pines! Mayor Pines!" The town cheered and fireworks began to go off.
"Well, guess we know who won." Dipper said and noticed Pacifica waving to him from the crowd and he waved back.
"Looks like everything worked out." Nate added.
I bit my tongue to keep from laughing.
"This just in! Stanford Pines lose!" Shandra announced as a red banner appeared over Stan's face on the t.v, reading 'DISQUALIFIED'.
"WHAT?!" We all exclaimed from the couch. Globby tensing up in my arms.
"Despite winning an overwhelming 95% of the vote, election officials had to disqualify him due to discovery of an extensive criminal record." Shandra explained.
"Oh boy." Stan sighed.
"Stan, what did you do?" Mabel asked.
"What didn't I do?" Stan questioned and Nate groaned.
"Crimes include shoplifting, teaching bears to drive, a new crime he invented called 'burglebezzlement', first-degree llamacide..." Shandra read through the papers with confusion.
"That llama knew too much." Stan said while shaking his fist.
"Due to this shocking development, it would appear the mayorship passes to the only candidate who filled out their paperwork: local enthusiasm enthusiast Tyler Cutebiker." Shandra reported and the screen cut to a video of Tyler been given a mayoral sash and bouquet of flowers.
"Got it." He whispered happily.
"Well at least he's happy." I commented as Shandra was given a large stack of papers.
"We will dedicate the rest of this broadcast to listing Stan's crimes. First-degree thermometer theft. Pug trafficking..." Stan quickly turned off the t.v.
"Whew! At least they didn't list any of the bad ones. On an unrelated topic, I have a lot of cheap pugs and I need to move them fast." Stan said thoughtfully.
"Just don't hurt anyone on the road." I pleaded.
"I'm sorry Stan. I actually think you as mayor would've been fun." Dipper said.
"Eh, maybe it's for the best. I got close to the dream, though, kids." Stan sighed.
"Hey, I knit you something." Mabel then gave Stan a knitted sash that read 'OUR HERO'. "It's not official, but I think it fits." She said and Stan began to sniffle.
"Grunkle Stan, are you crying?" Dipper asked and Stan quickly wiped his eyes.
"I got campaign confetti in my eyes!" He denied and put on his sash as he stood up.
"Come on, kids. Wanna go vandalize Mayor Tyler's mansion?" He asked and the twins cheered.
"Yay!"
"He-hey, vandalism!"
They ran off, leaving me and Nate alone and I quickly pulled him in for a kiss, which he returned. Once we broke it, he gave me a playful look.
"What was that for?" He asked with a smirk.
"Oh, just thanking you for saving me from falling. That was really brave of you." I replied and took his cap. He tried to get it back, but I extended my arm laughing and he wrapped his arms around me, snatching it back.
"Nice try, but you'll never get my hat for long!" He teases and I laughed.
"I know." We smiled and leaned in for another kiss, but Ford had come in and started yelling.
"Okay, I know you have it!" Ford yelled and stopped when he saw me and Nate were in the floor by the t.v.
"O-oh my apologies...I was just looking for Journal 3...I believe it took it." Ford explained and pointed to Globby. I then noticed he was sitting on a familiar book, that was open, and got up to push him off.
"Come on Globby, that's not yours." I scolded and Globby growled but allowed me to get the Journal back, and I handed it back to Ford.
"Sorry, I don't know why he would take it." I said and Ford looked at the pages and his eyes widened.
"Interesting..." He murmured and I peaked over his shoulders to see that it was a page he recently wrote. It had a picture of me! Sweet!
"Huh, nice picture." I complimented and picked up Globby. "Come on boy, let's walk Nate outside."
We walked out an Nate said his goodbye and we kissed again. Once he was out of sight I noticed Globby was fiddling with my necklace and chuckled.
"I'm sorry you missed me today. Just try not to steal Ford's stuff again." I teased and Globby hugged me as I walked back inside. Happy that another episode was completed.
(Third Person)
"Goodnight Emily!"
"Goodnight Mabel, Goodnight Dipper!" Emily said as she settled into her mattress with Globby and Bear-Bear before the lights went out.
She closed her eyes and she and the twin fell asleep. Emily's breathes were steady and her necklace suddenly started to pulse softly, it then became a constant glow and Emily's eyes shot open.
Glowing a bright green.
AUTHOR'S NOTE:
I MADE IT! It's still May and I'm sorry that I waited so long to post this chapter. This was not one of my favorite episodes so I was a little stuck. That, and I was SUPER busy this week. So sorry, hope this was worth the wait and I hope to get the next chapter out super soon!
Don't forget to wash your hands and leave a review!
Linz2: Glad you liked Globby, and more flashbacks to come!
Guest: Please stop asking about the gun. Thank you.
Pizza01: So glad you enjoyed the chapter!