Cubert's stomach growled.
Again.
He wished it would shut up; it could give away his position.
"Where is he, boys?" A human called out, "I know the freak is here somewhere!"
They were getting closer to his hiding spot. He was squeezed behind a dumpster, praying that he would make it through the night.
The footsteps became louder and louder and soon the faint glow of torches could be seen on the walls. Humans shouldn't have scared Cubert; he was a mewman knight!
Well, he was training to become one at least. When Eclipsa took over the castle, the program had been halted because she said they had no need for an army. He'd been infuriated; it had been his life's goal to rise past his humble beginnings and make a name for himself.
But look at him now, cowering from confrontation. It wasn't his fault, though. Humans were frightening. The cities were filled with protests and massive bonfires lit up the night. They didn't like that their planet had gotten some new visitors. Not one bit. Instead of trying to make the best out of the situation, they started to hunt down the monsters. And when they realized that the monsters weren't the only thing that had infiltrated their planet, they started to hunt down mewmans too.
Where was his queen? That was the person he'd always rallied himself behind. She helped him on his path to knighthood and when she left the castle, he followed. Life wasn't as luxurious by the riverside, but Moon still looked out for everyone. If only she were here now, she would tell him what to do.
The humans were so close now that Cubert could hear their breathing. Looking in-between the dumpster and the wall, he could make one of them out. Like most other humans, it wore that ridiculous clothing; ripped blue jeans and a shirt. There was no style to it. Cubert looked down at what he was wearing and sighed. Attire became the easiest way to differentiate between humans and mewmans.
He had to face the facts; Moon wasn't here to help him. If he wanted to survive, then he would need to blend in better. He needed to learn to act like a human, or at least pass from one at a distance. Maybe then he could find some food.
"Maybe he found a way out of the alley," the human said. The others murmured similar sentiments and turned around. It was a more than a little unsettling when Cubert realized they were speaking mewman. Perhaps the two races were closer together then he'd originally thought, because there was no way that the humans had already learned his language. Especially not these city rats.
Cubert once again thought of how things used to be before everything got messed up. It all started when Eclipsa came back. She ruined everything!
Not that Cubert actually hated the monsters. In fact, growing up he had befriended one or two of them. But he had been an exception to the norm, and that had always been okay with him. Eclipsa forced everyone to bend to her radical beliefs and not everyone was willing to hear it. She disrupted the balance that everyone had worked so hard to create. It was no wonder so many mewmans had volunteered to be a part of the Solarian army, Cubert included. He'd just wanted things to return to how they used to be. He wanted to be a knight for the royal family and have a nice family near the castle.
And now none of that would ever happen. Someone did something and now his entire culture was being hunted down, but what could Cubert do? He was just one man. He couldn't possibly do anything to help. Someone needed to take charge, someone that he could follow.
Peeking out from the side of the dumpster, Cubert scanned his surroundings. No humans, or any living creatures for that matter, in sight. The dumpster scraped against the concrete as he pushed against it to get out from behind it and Cubert winced. He hoped no one was within earshot.
Or maybe he did. Running from every little thing was beyond stressful. He was always on edge and had become scared of his own shadow. This wasn't the man he'd dreamed of becoming; someone scared of his own shadow.
He could hear someone else's footsteps on the cobble walkway, but instead of running and hiding, he stood his ground. No more cowering.
A young teenager in a red coat stepped came around the corner. He stopped when he saw the mewman in the alley.
No fear, he chanted to himself as he charged.
"Woah there!" The teenager yelled, holding his hands up in surrender, "I don't want to fight."
Cubert's eyes widened and he slowed to a stop. Something about the person in front of him seemed familiar. He definitely wasn't a mewman though, his clothing made the obvious distinction.
"Cubert...?" the human asked hesitantly, "It is Cubert, right?"
He nodded.
"I don't know if you remember me, but I'm Marco. We were in knight training for a little bit."
His eye's widened; that's exactly where he remembered his face from! Marco was always around Moon's daughter. The relief must've shown on his face because Marco smiled.
"What are you doing this far from the castle? I figured most mewmans would flock there, even if it isn't the safest place at the moment…" He trailed off, but Cubert's hopes soared.
"You know where the castle is? What about Queen Moon?"
"I know where the castle is, but Moon is a little more complicated," Marco said, "I'm currently scavenging for some food; come with me and I'll tell you what I know." Cubert eagerly nodded.
"But first, we need to get you into some new clothes," He said, "It's outdated on this planet and makes you stick out like a sore thumb."
So he wasn't the only one that noticed that distinction. They spent a few minutes looking around the alley and found a tattered blue pullover that fit Cubert. It reeked, but smelling like literal garbage was better than being dead so he put it on.
"I don't think we'll be able to find you anything else, but this should be good enough as long as we stay our distance."
They talked as they raided the surrounding area. Cubert had been lucky enough to be near a supply of corn when the two worlds collided and had been able to feed himself off of that stockpile until recently, so he wasn't really used to scavenging. Marco on the other hand, seemed like a pro. He knew exactly where to look to find any potential scraps.
Cubert had suggested that they go looking through houses, but Marco had shut it down immediately.
As they raided alleys and abandoned buildings, Cubert also got a better look at Marco. Honestly, he looked terrible. Maybe it was the scarcity of food, but his eyes were sinking in and he just looked exhausted.
"You said you could tell me where Queen Moon is," Cubert said.
"Well, she hasn't been a queen since Eclipsa took the reins," Marco started, "But I can tell you what I know.
"Butterfly Castle is located in a city called Los Angeles. In the beginning, the castle was a safe haven for mewmans and monsters, but the locals saw it as a place to direct all of their negative energy towards. Within a few days there was a massive riot that broke through the outer walls and they destroyed everything. The last I saw of River he and his men were on the frontlines trying to buy civilians as much time as they could to escape. Moon was somewhere inside with Eclipsa as far as I remember. I have no idea if they made it out…"
"Did you actually see them die?" Cubert asked.
"No."
"Then that's where I'm headed. How do I get there?"
"It's a four-hour drive south from here," Marco rubbed his chin, "I have no idea how long it'll take to get there by foot, though, which is probably how you'll have to get there."
"Doesn't matter," Cubert said. His spirits were through the roof. This was the best news he'd heard all week! A lead to find Queen Moon. He wasn't sure why Marco had ever left her side; she'll know exactly how to fix everything. Maybe she would even make him a royal knight.
There was only one slight problem…
"Uh, what is South?"
Marco groaned before trying his best to explain how to get to LA from where they were. A lot of it went over his head, but Cubert nodded like he was getting it.
"So," Cubert asked sometime later, "It sounds like your headed away from the castle. May I ask why?"
Marco seemed to get irritated by the question.
"We're headed to some place called Gravity Falls." He said.
"Oh," Cubert responded, "Okay." Marco's face softened and he continued.
"It's some city in Oregon. Star and the others decided that it was our next course of action when I was out scavenging for food. They didn't even consult me on it and refuse to give me a straight answer about why that place is so important. As far as I know, they're making plans as we speak without me. I would refuse to collect the food at night so that maybe they would tell me something, but after travelling with them all day I just need to spend some time away.
"It's like they formed a secret club when I wasn't looking and so many things about them don't make sense. They're hiding things from me and it's infuriating. Especially with the way that Star's been acti-"
Marco stopped midsentence when he saw the look on Cubert's face.
"I'm sorry," he said, "I didn't mean to explode. There's just been so much on my mind and there's no one I can talk two and the nightmares are getting worse and I'm just so tir-
He stopped himself again, "And I'm rambling again. Sorry about that."
Cubert didn't how to respond so he didn't say anything, instead choosing to shrug his shoulders in sympathy. The man was clearly going through some stuff.
They searched through the night and found a few cans of vegetables. Marco tossed him the can of corn.
"Here, I doubt you even know what are in these other cans," He joked. Cubert looked at the labels. Marco was right, he had no idea what the words 'Green Beans' or 'Carrots' meant so he gladly took the food of his home planet that was somehow also available on this one.
That was a train of thought that Cubert felt was best left ignored.
With that, Marco went back to wherever he had come from and Cubert was left on his own.
Again. But it wasn't the same as before. Now Cubert had hope.
Now, he had a destination. He was headed to Los Angeles, wherever that was.
(Line Break)
Dipper liked to think it took a lot to rattle him. He may have been a little… squeamish at the beginning of his stay with his gruncle in a small town in Oregon, but he'd survived and matured.
Well, matured as much as one can with a crazy sister like Mabel around.
But it took everything he had not to break down on the bus. It was their second day travelling from L.A. to Gravity Falls and for some reason the bus system was still working. It was more mysterious than anything Dipper had ever come across – and that was saying something.
He was getting sidetracked. Back to the point. They'd boarded this bus before the sun had risen and since the windows were heavily tinted, it had been hard to see what was on the other side of the glass. Well, now the sun had risen and Dipper saw exactly what Star had done to his home planet.
Now, he believed her when she said that she never intended for it to happen, but it was hard not to blame her when it was the actions on her planet that had to her destroying the realm of magic.
The rural country looked largely undisturbed, but there were occasional pockets of what Dipper assumed was a mewman village. Things got much nastier in urban areas, especially where the two cultures clashed. Just like in the other cities they'd been through; the scars of violent crime were evident. There were also many cars left abandoned on roads. The bus driver did her best to avoid areas such as highways that were totally impassable, but there were times when she had to put the bus into reverse and try to find a different way through the city.
This particular city reminded Dipper of Piedmont, his home town. It had a similar atmosphere, or he felt that it would've a few weeks ago. But now there were xenophobic signs and calls for civilian action. California had transformed from one of the biggest voices of antigun laws into the wild west in under a week. It would've been ironic if the circumstances didn't break Dipper's heart.
Mabel stirred in her sleep next to him. Dipper was glad she wasn't awake to bear witness to what he was looking at. She'd cried enough since the collision.
This catastrophe felt so much more… dangerous wasn't the right word – maybe real?
No, that wasn't right either.
Dipper couldn't think of the right word to compare the two biggest challenges of his life. With Bill, it had been dangerous and terrifying, but it had also been refined within Gravity Falls. And they also had a general idea of what needed to be done (Defeat Bill. But now things were much different. This event was much less contained; news reports had spotted monsters all over North America and even overseas. The government was struggling to stay in control and innocent lives were being lost every day.
And Dipper had no idea how to fix it. With Bill, the plan was to defeat him, and they did. But this was caused by a 'realm of magic' that no longer exists. Their plan wasn't to reverse it, it was to find someone that might know how to reverse it, because despite what Star or Mabel think, the Earth cannot survive like this for much longer. Mabel always saw the best possible outcome in every situation, but that wasn't what he was seeing out the window. What he saw was destruction and vandalism and cruelty and hopelessness.
Even if they managed to somehow make things normal again, would life ever be the same? The government failed, civilians created untold crimes against humanity that would haunt them for the rest of their life, and they received definitive proof that they aren't alone in the universe.
Well, technically mewmans were from a different dimension, but the point still stood. Aliens exist and there isn't a thing anyone could do to cover it up anymore. Dipper would've been elated under other circumstances.
He glanced to his left. Star was looking at the window and Marco was twitching in his sleep; he must be having a nightmare. In the brief time that Dipper had been reunited with him, it seemed like he was always having nightmares. Dipper had also caught him quietly whispering to himself once or twice recently.
It wasn't like they were really friends but Dipper did feel bad for him. Marco lost the memories of everything that happened last summer and it meant that they now had to hide things from him. Dipper had barely talked to him, but he'd sacrificed himself to stop Bill and it felt wrong to keep that from him. Star had said it was best to keep him in the dark, though, and she knew him much longer than he or Mabel had.
AN: Here's Chapter 7, I hope you enjoy it! Cubert is the first OC in this series (I think) and while you may only see him once or twice more in this story, he plays a big role. And I also think it's cool to get an outsider's perspective. If you liked it, then let me know and I'll do another about Buff Frog and what he's been up to since he left Star and Marco after they escaped Butterfly Castle!
The last little bit was just because I feel like I've been focusing on Star and Marco too much lately so I wanted to write about Dipper for a bit. I guess you could technically consider this chapter a 'filler' chapter, but I don't really view it that way because it sets up a lot of things that will come up later and it still progresses the plot forward.
Also sorry about not posting this chapter sooner. It's been basically done for three days but I just kept pushing off making the final edits and writing this AN. For some reason three in the morning was the right time and so here it is.
Also, is Marco okay?