HAT: How many times do I have to rewrite this plot?! UUUUGH! Also- as you will probably figure out if you ignore this, chapter twenty-five was replaced with an actual chapter so you're gonna be a little lost if you don't go back and read it... enjoy!
Disclaimer: I only own the OCs and plot... Gravity Falls belongs to Alex Hirsch!
"Shmeb, go back to the Shack," she orders as she stuffs her knife into her picket and starts running towards the town immediately.
Please don't be dead, please don't be dead, she thinks the entire time she's running. The thought of McGucket dying is unthinkable. Unfathomable. Wrong. Despite knowing that Dan is much faster than her, she still has this irrational thought in the back of her head that she could outrun him and get to McGucket before Dan.
It takes ten minutes- her past record being thirteen- but she makes it to the junkyard and runs through, ignoring the angry raccoons. She goes straight to the shelter and bursts inside and is hit with the warmth of a fire.
"P'cifica?! What's wrong, hun, you aren't supposed ta be over here," McGucket says while walking forward with worried blue eyes. Pacifica's own blue eyes tear up and she throws herself at him while wrapping her arms around his torso and she sobs into his chest with pure and utter relief that he's still alive. He soothingly runs his fingers through her hair and cranes his neck to try and see her face. "What happened? It's okay, it's okay."
Ten to fifteen minutes later and Pacifica's calm enough to talk.
"I-I saw Dan and he said he was gonna kill you," she manages.
He stiffens. "Oh, darlin', ah'm aw'right, but ya can't just run 'round by yerself. There're more things that kin hurt ya than just Dan, sweetheart."
"I'm sorry, it's just-"
"Ah know, ya weren't thinkin'. Just promise me that ya'll be careful and think next time?" (A/N: "Ya'll" is different from "y'all" completely. While "y'all" is "you all" in the south (and north in some places), "ya'll" is "you will" and they're pronounced slightly differently for those that don't know or were confused)
She nods. "I promise... I'm sorry."
He smiles. "It's okay, darlin'."
"Will you come live at the Shack? You know, until after this Dan thing passes?"
He grimaces. "I dunno, yer gonna haveta ask."
She reaches into her bra to grab her phone, but finds that it isn't there. "Oh, no... I think my phone fell when he tripped me."
"That ain't good..."
-With the Rest of the Pines-
"Where's Pacifica?" Stanley asks as he walks in from a long day at work.
"She went out to walk Shmebulock," Dipper answers absentmindedly while stuffing his mouth with popcorn.
"How long ago was that?" Stanley demands.
"Uh..." Both brunettes look up at the clock and their brows furrow. "I dunno."
He pinches the bridge of his nose. "Okay..."
"You know how long she takes walking Shmebulock," Dipper says.
Mabel frowns. "I dunno... I think she left after taking to Great Uncle 'Ford."
Stanley walks into the back and opens his brother's door. "'Ford! How long ago did you talk to Pacifica?"
"About... forty-five minutes ago," he answers after glancing at the clock before stiffening and turning to look directly to his brother. "Why?"
"She's not in the house. I've been looking for her to clean up her mess in the gift shop for the last ten minutes and the kids said she went out to walk Shmebulock."
Stanford relaxes a little. "She always walks him for a long time, she'll be back soon."
"Grunkle Stan! Shmebulocks here!" Mabel calls.
Both Stans share a look and run out and see Mabel and Dipper standing in front of Shmebulock... by himself. This causes all four Pines to have a sinking feeling in their gut that Pacifica got hurt or kidnapped or was killed.
"Where's Pacifica?!" Stanley demands angrily.
"Shmebulock!"
Shmebulock goes through the smaller door build within the larger door and runs on all fours out to the edge of the forest and then pauses.
"Kids, you stay here with Soos just in case Pacifica comes back and call her phone and if she doesn't answer, call again," Stanley orders while putting on his gloves. "Soos! Stay here and let me know if Pacifica comes back!"
"Yes, sir!"
"No! We have to go see if Pacifica's okay, too," Dipper shouts.
"She's our friend and we wanna see if she's alright," Mabel adds.
Stanley looks to his twin for advice, not eager to have the kids come with them just in case something is out there- which most like they are.
Stanford glances at his brother. "They'll follow us anyway."
Stanley sighs. "Fine. Hurry up any get ready."
All Mabel has to do is pull on her boots since she's wearing her sweats and sweater already. Dipper- on the other hand- is in shorts and a t-shirt. He runs to the back and runs back out in under a minute wearing sweats over his shorts, one of Mabel's sweaters, a beanie, and a his sister's boots.
Both older men share a look at his thrown together attire, but make no comment on it.
"Let's go," Stanley grunts and walks out while grabbing his 8-ball cane.
"Call Pacifica," Stanford orders as he follows his brother.
Mabel's the first to pull out her phone and calls Pacifica's number, but it goes to voicemail much to everyone's dismay. She tries again as both pairs of twins follow Shmebulock through the snow into the forest to get to the place where he last saw Pacifica.
It doesn't take a mind reading device to know that all four of them are thinking of what could have happened and absolutely all of them end terribly: death by a monster or man could be one of them or looking into the eyes of a gremoblin to see her worst nightmares being another that could leave her in the hospital for days at least. Everything that could have happened to her that would end with her demise flash through their minds.
"Hurry up Shmebulock," Stanley snaps as he nudges the gnome with his foot.
"Don't rush him, he's going as fast as he can," Mabel snaps before pulling the ear away from her phone and redialing Pacifica's number.
Stanford doesn't seem better off than his twin when it comes to attitude despite his anger being more contained and less visible- to a degree. Normally he has a soft frown on his face and his eyebrows together by one-fourth of a centimeter at most- his rest face or- rather- normal face- but right now his lips are slightly tighter, shoulders more tense than usual and his eyebrows are a together to the point that they're half a centimeter closer together- not to mention his hair is much wilder than usual. These small differences contribute to the vibe of irritation and worry that emits form him.
Dipper pauses when he hears something. "Wait, guys stop moving."
Everyone freezes- even Shmebulock despite knowing they're near to the place where Pacifica left him- and starts listening. Suddenly it stops and Mabel pulls the phone away from her ear. She shares a look with her brother and they share a nod and Mabel redials the number after a few more seconds and the ringing starts again.
Without hesitation the small search group rushes towards the sound of the phone and Stanford's the first one to get to the source of the ringing with Stanley and the kids close behind and Shmebulock trailing behind.
Stanford picks up the phone and inspects it for a moment before handing it to his twin. "Can't think of anyone else's phone being in these woods."
Stanley immediately goes to her contacts and closes his eyes before sighing. "It's hers."
"But where could she be?" Mabel asks with worry tinting her voice.
Dipper frowns. "That doesn't make sense... what happened?"
"I think I can answer that," he says, having inspected the snow. "It looks like someone older came here and attacked her. This looks like a place of struggle and where she'd land... the other person's footprints disappear after a few feet going towards town while Pacifica's goes straight towards down."
"She has to be at the junkyard!" Dipper shouts.
"Why would she go to the junkyard? She had no reason to visit McGucket today," Stanford says before noticing that the other man in this group has been unusually silent. "What do you think, Stan?"
After a moment Stanley finally speaks. "She's safe- I feel it- and if she's with McGucket now he'll probably bring her back to the Shack and they're either already there or almost there by now by how long it took for us to track her phone and how this isn't a direct route to the junkyard. I say we head back."
"Shmebulock..."
Mabel picks up the gnome. "C'mon, let's go back to the Shack. You did a good job."
"Yeah, little buddy," Dipper adds while scratching him under the chin.
And then the four head back.
HAT: I decided to change it up a little with the point of view for a change... and since everyone's out trying to get Stanley out of a black hole, I'm left to say this by myse-
Stanford: Don't go into the light! It's not real!
Wendy: Oh, God, you're heavy, Mr. Pines 1!
HAT: *closes door and laughs nervously* Um... review, please... excuse me. *slips out of studio* Oh, no! The Teletubbies are attacking! *door shakes, but doesn't open* WHO LOCKED THIS?! NO! Nooooo!
Director: Um... we're just gonna end it here.
Camera Man: Aren't we going to help them?
Director: Burn the evidence and they won't know we didn't help them.
*cuts off to colors on the screen and a loud, continuous, and high-pitched beep echoes through the room*