Wendy's room was quiet and dark. Dipper wrapped his arms more tightly around her and snuggled into her back, as he listened to the sound of her deep, even breathing. They'd stayed up late, talking about anything and everything, purposefully avoiding the subject of Ragnarok, and the accompanying "what ifs."
Dipper lifted his head and glanced over Wendy's shoulder, to the bit of hallway visible through her open bedroom door. He half-expected Manly Dan to be looming angrily in the doorway, but it was empty. Beithe had somehow convinced Dan to let Dipper stay this one night with Wendy, under the condition that they kept her door open. The lumberjack had grumbled about wandering hands, but after a short, muttered argument with his wife, Beithe got her way. After all, no one would say it out loud, but everyone was thinking it: Dipper was leaving to accompany Fenris to the Norse realm and set off Ragnarok—and there was a very good chance he might not make it back.
That thought sent a shiver down Dipper's spine. He pressed his face into Wendy's shoulder blade, and breathed in her warm, earthy scent as he tried to stop trembling. He had to be strong for her. He was terrified, but he didn't want to add to the concerns that Wendy already had about him acting as Fenris's bodyguard during their bastardized version of Ragnarok.
"Dipper, why're you shaking?" mumbled Wendy groggily.
Dipper didn't say anything. He just squeezed her tightly and placed a single kiss on the nape of her neck.
Wendy sighed and rolled over, curling up against Dipper's chest, and burrowing her head under his chin. Her breathing slowed and deepened once again. Dipper kissed the top of her head, as a single tear rolled down his cheek.
/
The light of the moon filtered through the attic window, casting a pale triangle against the floorboards of Mabel's bedroom. Fenris and Mabel lay in her bed, face-to-face, holding each other.
"Fen?"
"Hmm?"
"I can't sleep."
Fenris opened his eyes and was met with Mabel's warm brown gaze. "I can't either," he admitted.
"Don't go," Mabel said weakly. She looked away, embarrassed at the pleading tone of her voice.
Fenris placed his hand against Mabel's cheek, and ran the pad of his thumb over her lips. "I promise you, Mabel, if it wasn't necessary for your safety, I wouldn't go. I'd never leave your side."
Mabel's lips twitched up into a semblance of a smile. "Well, you might want to leave my side for, like, going to the bathroom and stuff."
Fenris chuckled low. "That is true. But please understand, I am not willingly leaving you. You are the most precious person in the world to me."
"Ugh," Mabel sighed. "Prophecies suck. I don't get why you have to go all rage-and-destruction on the Norse realm. What about self-determination?"
Fenris raised a single eyebrow. "You remember who my dad is, right? I'm going rage-and-destruction so that he leaves you alone. Among other things."
"But you're a good boy," whispered Mabel, stroking Fenris's cheek.
Fenris took a shuddering breath. The way she said that had sent a wave of warmth throughout his body. He put his hand on the back of Mabel's head, twining his fingers through her soft hair, and pressed her face against his. He took a deep breath of her scent before placing his mouth on hers and kissing her deeply.
He didn't know how many mythological cycles he'd lived through, but he knew, without a doubt, that nobody had ever affected him as deeply and profoundly as Mabel. She was his twin flame, destined to burn together with him for eternity.
As if she read his thoughts, Mabel murmured against his mouth: "If you don't come back to me, Fen, I'll come after you. I promise. You're part of me now. I'll find you, no matter what."
/
The dim, gray, predawn light peeking in through Wendy's curtains alerted Dipper that it was morning. He hadn't slept. He'd held onto Wendy throughout the night, trying to retain the feel of her body in his memory. He did, however, want to spend some time with her while she was awake, before he had to set off on his and Fenris's new adventure.
"Hey, Wen," he said softly into her ear, trying to sound as cheerful as possible. "Time to get up!"
Wendy groaned and rolled onto her back, throwing an arm over her eyes. "What time is it?" she mumbled.
"Too early to be awake," admitted Dipper. "But I miss you already. I'd like to hang out with conscious Wendy for a couple hours before I have to—" He paused, trying to talk past the lump in his throat. "Before I leave."
Wendy's eyes flew open. "Fuck. I was hoping all that was a bad dream." She sat up and leaned back against her headboard, staring at Dipper with her piercing green eyes. "You're sure you'd rather me stay with Mabel than come with you?"
Dipper nodded. "You two watch over each other, and Fen and I will do the same. Everything will be okay." He sounded more convinced of that than he felt.
The dull thud of footsteps sounded in the hallway, accompanied by the soft screech of something heavy and metallic being dragged on the hardwood floor. A moment later, a sleepy-looking Manly Dan glowered at Dipper through the open door. He was holding the handle of a large ax, letting its head rest on the floor.
"Sleep well?" he grunted.
"Not really," answered Dipper, without thinking. "Well, not at all, actually."
"What?" spat Dan. He glared at Dipper as he moved into the room, and began to lift his ax.
"Nonononono, Dad!" cried Wendy, jumping out of bed to stand between her dad and Dipper. "Nothing happened! I promise, okay? I slept."
Dipper hopped up from the bed as well, and held his hands up. "Whoa, Manly Dan, I definitely didn't mean anything like that! I just couldn't sleep—too anxious about Ragnarok. Nothing happened, I swear!"
Dan lowered his ax, his frown both grumpy and skeptical. "I need coffee," he finally grunted, turning to trudge toward the kitchen.
Wendy sighed with relief, and turned to Dipper, running her hands through her hair. "I need to grab a shower… then how about we go on a walk—take the long way to the Gravnemeta?"
Dipper nodded. "I hear your mom and brothers stirring. I guess I'll go say my goodbyes while you get ready."
As Wendy headed toward the bathroom, Dipper turned the opposite way, which led him to the Corduroy's kitchen. Dan was slumped at the table, his chin resting against his propped up hand. His eyelids drooped. Beithe was puttering about, pouring boiling water into her French press, and pulling out the ingredients to make pancakes from scratch. She heard Dipper's hooves clacking against the floor, and turned to smile at him.
"Good morning, dear! Pancakes and coffee?" she asked.
Dipper sat at the opposite end of the table from Dan, eyeing the lumberjack warily. "Yes, please. I, uh, wasn't able to sleep, so I'll take my coffee as strong and sugary as you can make it."
"Strong coffee coming up," said Beithe, turning back to stir the pancake batter. She continued to chatter while she cooked. "Dan couldn't sleep last night either. Seemed like he would twitch at every little noise. I had to physically restrain him from patrolling the hallway at one point."
Dan grumbled inaudibly.
"What was that, honey?" Beithe asked. She plunged the French press and poured a steaming cup of black coffee, handing it to her husband.
"I just worry about Wendy, is all," Dan said, before taking a sip from his World's Best Dad mug. "She's still so young for—well, you know. Even if she is handfasted."
Dipper felt his cheeks grow warm, and he looked down at the table. "Well, at least you'll be able to sleep better, knowing I'm in an entirely different realm from your daughter," he said bitterly. A mug of beige-colored coffee was plunked down in front of him. He looked up to see Beithe standing over him, a single eyebrow raised. "Thanks for the coffee," he mumbled. He didn't know what her look was supposed to mean, but it made him feel slightly chastised.
"Now that's not fair," said Dan, suddenly defensive. "Wendy loves you, and you being gone is going to be hard on her. It'll be hard on… all of us."
Dipper took a large gulp of coffee, then grinned at Dan. "Why, Mr. Corduroy, I didn't know you cared!" he drawled in a ridiculous mockery of a Southern accent.
Manly Dan frowned at him, but his eyes were kind. "You're good for her, kid. Make sure you come back in one piece." Then he looked down at the plate of pancakes Beithe set before him, and began shoveling in his meal, barely breathing between bites. It appeared that he had nothing else to say on the subject.
Dipper smiled to himself, as he tucked into his own plate of pancakes.
Wendy and her brothers soon joined the others at the breakfast table, and Dipper made sure to say goodbye to everyone before they left. Finally he and a still-wet-haired Wendy emerged from the Corduroy's cabin into the crisp morning air.
The couple held hands and ambled slowly in the general direction of the Gravnemeta, trying to put off their inevitable parting as long as possible.
/
Mabel and Fenris woke up in a tangle of each other's limbs, the covers of the bed laying in a heap of the floor, having been cast aside at some point in the night. Fenris blinked sleepily, a small smile playing on his lips. His hair, untidy at the best of times, simultaneously stuck up in clumps, and fell into his eyes.
"Hi," he said softly, noticing Mabel looking at him.
Mabel opened her mouth to reply, but she couldn't get any words out. Today was the day Fenris left her. She just shook her head and held onto him, her knuckles white. She pressed her face into his chest, inhaling the smell of musk, pine needles, and wood smoke that always clung to his skin.
Fenris sighed, and kissed her forehead. He didn't have to be at the Gravnemeta just yet. He could blip there instantaneously when it was time, anyway. He tried to push thoughts of what he'd soon have to do from his mind, and focus on the warm presence of Mabel, as she tried to press herself as close as physically possible against his body.
He didn't know what to say. He'd told Mabel of his love for her, but he felt like mere words couldn't do the enormity of his feelings for her justice. She was light and life. Her gentleness like the first warm breeze of spring, or the light touch of a honeybee alighting on a flower to collect nectar. She was also as ferocious and relentless as a summer storm when she needed to be—particularly if those she loved were in danger.
Dipper had been Fenris's first friend, but Mabel made him feel whole, and like he was enough—worthy of love.
"Do you remember when we met?" he asked, his breath ruffling the stray hairs on Mabel's forehead.
Mabel answered without looking up, her lips tickling Fenris's bare chest, giving him goosebumps. "It was the day Dipper and Wendy came back from the Green Realm and had their handfasting." She giggled softly. "I thought you were just a really smart puppy."
"That night, after Dipper and Wendy left their party, I noticed you crying. Even before I really knew you, seeing you sad broke my heart." He paused and took a deep breath. "Mabel, I didn't realize what love was then, because I'd never felt it before… but I fell in love with you that night. And every day I've spent with you since then, I've only come to love you more. Now I'm in human form and we can have a physical relationship (which is great, don't get me wrong), but that pure, innocent feeling of love I discovered in puppy form that first night with you is still there, in my heart, a bright white light, were there was once only darkness. Despite Dipper being along to help me, I think that is what is really going to make a difference, and protect me during this Ragnarok cycle. I love you, and I'm loved in return. You've given me something to fight for. I will come back to you, Mabel. Your light will guide me home."
Fenris felt warm, wet tears splash onto his chest, as Mabel wept silently, her face still pressed against him. He wrapped his arms around her more tightly and stroked her hair. His expression reflected the grim determination he felt. He and Mabel belonged together. He would do anything to make it back into her arms.
/
Wendy and Dipper meandered hand-in-hand, slowly making their way past the treeline and into the Gravnemeta just as Fenris blipped himself and Mabel there. The couples met in the center of the clearing, under the canopy of the giant oak. None of them looked pleased to be there.
Mabel, her face pale, and her eyes red-rimmed, spoke first. "So… what happens now?" she asked, her voice quavering.
Dipper shrugged, his expression carefully neutral. "This is Fen's show, now."
Fenris licked his lips, hesitating. "I… I hadn't really thought about it. I suppose we should blip to Hel's place first. She'll probably have an idea of what Loki has planned for us."
"Remind me again why y'all can't just kill Loki and be done with it?" asked Wendy, folding her arms over her chest.
"We need Ragnarok to happen, because it will reset the nexus point between realms to the Green Realm, so the Gravnemeta will not be so easy for unfriendly gods and beasts from other realms to access," said Fenris. "But don't worry, once we're sure the shift has happened, I plan to kill my father myself." He said the last bit while staring Mabel in the eye, and squeezed her hand for emphasis.
"Please just be careful," Mabel murmured. "Both of you."
The group stood in silence for a few moments, nobody wanting to say goodbye. Finally, Fenris spoke.
"We should go now. The sooner we leave, the sooner we may return."
Dipper nodded. "Okay, I guess this is it, then. Wendy—" He was cut off by Wendy's mouth suddenly forcefully pressed against his own. She hugged him so tightly that his back cracked.
Fenris looked away, his cheeks red. Mabel put her arms around him, and looked up into his face. Her eyes were wet.
"Fen," she whispered, so only he could hear her, "you are everything. You said I'm your light? Well, you're the air I breathe. I won't be able to breathe properly again, until you're back safe with me." Her eyes finally overflowed, as she said thickly, "I already can't breathe. It hurts so much."
Fenris lowered his head and pressed his lips to the tears dripping down both Mabel's cheeks, before bringing his mouth to hers, kissing her with a gentle passion.
"I promise you," he whispered against her lips. "I promise I will come back to you."
The couples reluctantly separated, and Fenris and Wendy clasped hands, while Mabel hugged her brother.
"Please keep Fen safe," Mabel said, her voice low. "And take care of yourself. If you die I'll never forgive you."
Dipper chuckled wetly, and nodded. He let go of Mabel, and she stepped back to grasp Fenris's hand one last time. Dipper reached out and squeezed Wendy's hand.
"You two look out for each other, as well," said Dipper. "You're the most bad-ass women I know—you got this."
Fenris pulled his hand from Mabel's, sighing as he did. "It is time for us to depart."
Dipper nodded. He and Fenris turned to face the girls, and Dipper slung an arm around Fen's shoulders.
Fenris took a deep breath, looked into Mabel's eyes one last time, then closed his eyes in concentration. Dipper never took his eyes from Wendy's face.
There was a soft pop, and suddenly Mabel and Wendy were the only two souls in the clearing. They stood in contemplative silence for a few moments, tears leaving wet trails down their cheeks.
Mabel took a shuddering breath, then wiped her eyes with the back of her hand, before turning to face Wendy.
"So, you wanna spar?"
The corner's of Wendy's lips twitched slightly. "Hell yes."
/
/
/
This is the last chapter of Worlds Collide. I hope you're enjoying the story! Please leave a review and let me know what you think!
Next up, Gravity Falls: Worlds End.
