Dipper

In my dreams I am walking through the streets of Gravity Falls, the town I saved from certain doom all those years ago. However the otherwise jovial town has become barren and empty, not a single person joined me on the streets of Gravity Falls. Every step I took seemed to echo off the mountain ranges surrounding the town and although I was completely alone I couldn't shake the feeling that there were eyes watching me everywhere I went. Or eye. Shivers ran down my spine as I began to slow down, my movements coming to a stop as if I was walking in jello. The buildings all around me suddenly collapsed, their ruins being pushed far away from me into the darkness of the woods that seemed to swallow them whole. I look up to the moon for a moment, but as soon as I lay my eyes on it the great astrological body begins to crack and from its cracks it bleeds. Dark red blood drips off the moon and assaults the earth in the form of red rain. The otherwise comforting green pine trees became darker, the leaves stained with droplets of blood. I find myself walking through the woods, my boots sinking into the dirt and stepping over the red stained roots, my white and blue hat a deep maroon color. All around me I hear voices murmuring just beyond my sight, like a cacophony of of whispers attacking me from every angle.

"The gnarled roots of the great tree trunks will cover your sullen corpse and keep your bones rotting here forever." A voice, gravelly and deep, cuts through the indiscernible whispers and strikes me to my very core.

I continue to walk through the woods, my eyes darting from tree to tree as I hear a rhythmic thumping in the heart of the woods that I draw ever closer to. With every step the noise grows louder and my heartbeat rises to match it.

"The reaper must be paid his debt. You have eluded him far too long. He come's seeking you, will you have the courage to face him again?"

All paths lead to where I am going. I know the destination deep in my bones and my blood is on fire, I feel as though millions insects and spiders are crawling over my skin, peeling away every layer until I am nothing, for I am nothing. There is nothing left.

"we will reclaim the flesh and blood you wear."

The spirits of the woods rush to consume me. I can't stop this, I can't stop any of this. In the distance the sky explodes, leaving a bleeding, orange and red wound that leaks across the blue expanse almost immediately. Wierdmageddon. I hear a distant ringing in my ears.

"relinquish thy name, for it is means nothing before the shadows cast by the ancient trees."

Dipper Pines. Dipper, that nickname had stuck with me for so long I'm still getting used to being called Mason. The name Dipper inspires a feeling of hope, a desire for adventure and courage, and with it, immaturity. I feel my 12 year old self fester underneath my facade of maturity every time anyone calls his name.

"your bones shall lay in the soil beneath your feet."

I finally reach my destination. My feet carry me to the clearing in which the petrified statue of Bill Cipher lay. The hellish rain ceases and the world is quiet for a moment, as if everyone were holding their breath, waiting for something to occur.

"Remember your roots, Mason. Grab my hand."

And they all let out their breath, the collective sigh seemingly pushing me forward towards the palms of the extra terrestrial demon. His stone palms burst in a flurry of blue light. Cobalt flames flicker across the stone, spreading to the trees around me, enveloping the entire forest in its blue-ish hue, whilst above us, the sky seems to be bleeding and crying out with pain, a huge X shaped crater above us, spewing out hellish demons and nightmares.

I need this. This is necessary. I worked so hard to put him away so I have the right to bring him back, right? I just need answers, nothing more. I'll be smarter this time, I know I will. Mabel and everyone else knows exactly what they want to do with their lives but I don't. I just don't and there's nothing for me except the weirdness, because the weirdness has always been the one thing that accepted me. I just need the answers.

The world is suddenly covered in darkness, shadows arc across the world erasing everything except the statue and I. We stand in complete darkness as I extend my palm, my fingers inching towards the flickering azure blaze. Suddenly, a small concentrated beam of light is directed towards the face of Bill Cipher, the ringing in my ears erupts into roars of demonic laughter coming right from the statue. No. No, this is wrong this is so wrong. The light flickers away, and back, with each return comes with a clicking sound, like some sort of flashlight.

"You really gonna let yourself be the weakest link, smart ass?" A different yet familiar voice murmurs to me, a female one much closer now, as if the speaker is whispering into my ears. I look back down at my wrists and see a snake-like chain slithering across my arm, connecting me to the statue's. To Bill's.

"Break the chain, Dipper. You know the words."

I finally find my voice, the one that had seemingly deserted me throughout this entire dream. "Wait! Wait, thank you, seriously thank you. Who..Who are you? You seem so….familiar?" I find myself breathless suddenly, sprinting to catch up with the voice that is snatched back into the darkness of the woods, one of the whispers that had wandered too close and dissipated back into the shadows of my mind.

"Figure it out already! Thought that was your job." The voice calls out, more distant than ever, and I find myself alone in the woods. There are no more voices, just me and the trees standing in silence.

I awake in the early moments of the morning, breathing heavily as the wide expanse of all that I don't know hits me like a truck. I had been having that same nightmare for so long now, but every time it ended with me about to reach out to the hand of my greatest enemy. It's not that cold but my teeth are chattering in the stuffy dim light of the room. I lift myself out of bed and splash some water on my face. "What the hell, Dipper." I ask myself, staring into my own eyes. I stare hungrily at every facet of my face, just staring at myself. I take a deep breath and close my eyes, wincing at the dull headache that was coming along. I opened my eyes and faced myself again, squinting to get my eyes readjusted to the darkness and for a moment, for a split second, I swear I see two bright yellow eyes with slit like pupils staring right back at me.

I yell out and skid backwards, pressing my back against the cold bathroom wall. The dim light above me flickering as my reflection comes back into focus, my familiar face sporting two very normal brown eyes. I rest my hand on my torso, feeling it heave and my heart pumping frantically, as if it was trying to break open my rib cage and escape out of my chest. I wait out my heart beat, resting my head on the wall. We may have left Gravity Falls as its savior, the people who bested Bill Cipher, the truth was never that simple. Bill had done a number on me, and ever since we had left Gravity Falls I was never able to shake the feeling of being watched, the invasive and horrific feeling of having someone else inhabit your body, becoming privy to your thoughts. It was the most violating experience I had ever gone through.

Over the years, the pleasant memories of Gravity Falls had bled away, only to leave the memories that would much rather be forgotten. All the pain and suffering I went through as a kid, the violence and death I was exposed to as a literal child. I can still see my own face staring back at me, laughing a hideous laugh that seemed to echo through my mind. I never went to a therapist, they'd never understand. They'd think I was hallucinating or I just had an overactive imagination.

God, I can't believe I was about to say this but sometimes I wish I was more like Mabel, so readily able to brush off all her problems and stay cheerful. I never imagined life would get so difficult, I kind of always expected things to stay bright and cheery after Wierdmageddon. The mental drawbacks to fighting through the literal apocalypse, seeing my friends and loved ones die in front of my eyes and killing a chaos god didn't occur to a 13 year old. I always was an over thinker.

I collapse back onto my bed and flick open my journal.

Great, Dipper. Now you're using escapism. Did I really just say 'escapism'? I really did spend too much time around those therapists.

The black leather bound journal, smaller than Ford's ones, contained all of my theories and notes that I've compiled over the years. This was something that I had poured my blood, sweat, tears and swiftly diminishing mental state into. My behavior could hypothetically be referred to as "obsessive" but I'd prefer to call it dedicated. Besides, I could never get Grunkle Ford's word's out of my head, that I could be something special. That I was something special.

Suddenly, I hear a toilet flushing outside my door and a gruff voice mumbling something to himself. I slink towards the door and press my ear against the old wood.

"God, damn it Lee would it have killed you to at least install a fully functional toilet?"

I grab my journal off my dresser and my hat, just so I'm not totally in my pajamas's, and with that I throw open the door abruptly and greet my great uncle in my socks.

"Ford, great timing. I've been thinking, right? And now that we finally have some time I've been meaning to run some by you-"

Ford immediately jumps and shoves me back against the wall, his palm resting on the gun on his belt and his eyes flashing dangerously, pupils narrowed like the ones of a cornered animal. He squints for a moment and breathes a sigh of relief.

"Dipper, my boy, don't sneak up on me like that. Sorry about all this." He says, with his arm still pinning me against the wall.

"Ah yep, sorry about that Ford…Think you could consider letting me up now?" I say awkwardly.

"Oh right, yes, apologies." He says, blinking rapidly and moving his hand to his face as if to readjust his glasses but his fingers merely brushed against air. "Oh that explains it, I left my glasses back in Lee's room. Now, what did you want to talk to me about?"

I clear my throat and flip open my book, flicking through the pages until I reach a double page with a miniature version of a bloated map of the world, with notes and lines in red scrawled over, sometimes converging on a single point and sometimes crossing over each other.

"Right, so. What do you know about ley lines?" I ask, turning the journal around and thrusting it towards him.

"Enough to be familiar with the concept. I vaguely touched on it during my research, mostly due to the fact that Gravity Falls is a point on the world with the most ley lines converging through it, which would partially explain all the supernatural occurrences-" He leans back slightly, scratching his chin and directing his gaze towards the ceiling, as if reminiscing, "-But most of my research was inconclusive. I figured out that gravity falls was a strange place but I could never truly explain why, just that these ley lines may have had something to do with it. Maybe."

I hesitated for a moment, I didn't expect Stanford to know about them. That kind of derails the rest of my explanation, hopefully he doesn't know anymore than I do on the subject matter. My arms dip, they were starting to get sore from holding up my book so far.

"Okay, hear me out, okay? Ley lines are all part of something way bigger than just scientifical anomalies. You believe in magic, right? There are a bunch of spells in your journals." I say hurriedly, trying to get all the words out before I can convince myself otherwise.

"Hmm, well I have seen certain aspects of magical anomalies within this town but nothing to prove anything substantial." Ford mumbles, I could almost see the gears turning in his head.

"Have you managed to find anything else? Any kind of proof?" My voice shocks him out of his thoughtful stupor.

"Nope, when you get to my age you got to realise that there are some mysteries you will never crack." He chuckles halfheartedly.

"Wha- But that's stupid," Ford raises his eyebrows at me, "No I'm not calling you stupid I'm saying that's dumb. You're the AUTHOR for goodness sakes you can't just sit out the mystery solving." Before I can stop myself I find myself pacing, flicking through the pages of my journal. Ford grabs my shoulders and makes me face him.

"Dipper. At a certain point you just have to leave it to the new generation. Besides, I'm not the author of anything anymore…for now." His eyes retained that intellectual sparkle. He wasn't out just yet. This wasn't a concession or a surrender, it was a retirement. "Now, what about those theories my boy? I've got a bunker to fix up."

I pull my journal towards me and squint, cursing my lack of glasses right now.

"Okay okay, so, ley lines are, according to my research, veins of magic, like some sort of net or something, that help spread magic across the globe. Magic in of itself is some sort natural force like gravity or friction and-and to magic is next to impossible to use by someone unpracticed-" I feel myself start to reel, my rationality taking a back seat as I get into the zone of just explaining something. A tangent, one that I knew off by heart with all the time's I've recited it to Mabel.

"Dipper, Dipper, listen to me. This is…" He reaches out and gingerly lifts my arms up, examining all my maps and research closer. "…Inconclusive. You have theories, I can see that. But don't you think they may be a little…far-fetched perhaps?" Ford's eyes were avoiding my own and he looked uncomfortable.

"But I-I….I have all this research." I say pathetically, despising how my voice seems to die in my throat. After 2 years, I'm still a meek little boy. Ford winces at my words and places his rough hands on my shoulders reassuringly.

"Dipper, I won't deny your research or your theories. If there's one thing I've learned from the multiverse it's that there's always something else we don't know. It's just….I don't really see this being all that feasible."

I hang my head in defeat, my hands lying aimlessly to my side, barely holding my grip on my book. Journal. I meant journal. Ford's eyes glance down to my hands, then to my face. He make's a pained expression and takes in a deep breath.

"Listen, my boy. Just because I don't believe you yet doesn't mean I never will. Go ahead, prove me wrong. I would expect nothing less from my would be apprentice." And against my better judgment I feel a spark of hope ignite in my mind, already spreading, my obsession beginning to take hold.

"I'll do my best, Grunkle Ford." I say, leveling my gaze with his own.

"Atta boy, Dipper." And he pulls me in for a quick, slightly awkward hug, before chuckling to himself and walking out, giving me one last wave before shutting the door behind him and trudging off into the forest.

I blow my hair out of my eyes and walk into my room, glancing at my phone screen. The time read 7 AM. Guess it wasn't as early as I had expected. I take a quick shower and pull on some clothes, walking into the living room where Soos and Melody are eating. Soos is munching loudly on some Overly Sensitive Owl's, one of those weird cereal brands you can only find in towns like these. Melody is laughing at the faces he makes while shoveling the milk and chocolate into his mouth.

"Hey Soos, Mabel up yet?" I say, pulling down a bowl and some milk for myself.

"Oh, I think she's still unpacking upstairs." Melody says, pointing upwards with her pinky. As if on cue we hear a bang from upstairs and Mabel grunting. "I'm fine!" Her muffled voice calls down through the floorboards.

"So, dude, what are you gonna do for today?" Soos says, licking his lips and pushing his bowl away from him.

"Well, I was thinking me and Mabel would go register for the high school today."

"Woah ho, someone's excited. I've never seen anyone so quick to sign up for school." Soos says, his eyebrows raised, "Anyone in particular you're looking forward to meeting?"

I laugh along with him, silently wondering the same thing. Absentmindedly, my mind wanders back to my nightmare, the voice that came from the woods, that pulled me away from Bill's statue. The familiar sensation of their comforting words in the darkness.

Who was that?

Delete Created with Sketch.

Pacifica

I am Pacifica Elise Northwest and I've got pretty much everything, everything except what I really want out of life. Ever since Wierdmageddon, 2 years ago, my family and I have been experiencing how it feels to be middle class, upper middle class according to father, and tensions have been growing with us and the other families. Father and Mother are still trying to scramble back to our original stature, building up our fortune piece by piece but until we can buy back our mansion we're stuck in his cramped 4 story town house with a backyard that only has enough space for one set of stables, a pool and some grass.

I can't complain that much honestly, I know what it's like to be a spoiled little brat and I would do pretty much anything to avoid becoming that again. I have to be thankful for what I have, I can't end up being one more link on the world's worst chain. Not again. Besides, the only stables we have is home to the best damn horse in the world, Pinecone. He's a beautiful brown mare with these eyes that are so clever that I swear he knows what I'm saying, like he can understand my words every time I'm ranting to him. Yes I speak to my horse what of it? He's a very reassuring presence, you try talking to him. Gah, I've been reduced to talking to a horse, that's how little friend's I've got.

Well, I have friends but they aren't friends friends, you know? They aren't good to me, I mean they fear me and respect me, but they don't know me. They know my name, they know Northwest but I don't think I've ever had anyone that knows Pacifica. I close my eyes and a memory resurfaces suddenly, taking me by surprise. A dark room and a flashlight, flicking on and off. A hand on my shoulder and comforting words, reassurance. Brown hair that curled over his eyes and a crooked smile.

AHA, NO. NO WAY. My cheeks warm as I pull myself out of bed. Nope, I will not be obsessing over this stupid memory again. No way in hell. I did not fall for a dorky 12 year old ghost hunter.

My head hits my fluffed up pillow with a huff. Besides, he's long gone now. Him and his equally lame sister. A twinge of guilt blooms in my chest, which surprises me because I didn't think I had enough shame to have any guilt at all. Okay, I guess Mabel wasn't that lame. The sweater's were fine, I guess but I could totally pull it off better than her. It's been a while since my mind strayed far enough to think about the Mystery Twins. I try not to think about them too much, usually because the summer they were here was one of the best summer's I've ever had, if we ignore the chaos god apocalypse and our family's financial demise.

I get up and slip on the watch my father made me wear, he got it for me shortly after we lost the mansion and told me to wear it to school to, "make the other kid's jealous and remind them who's in charge." The time read 7 AM. I get out of bed and hop in the shower, enjoying the warm water and nearly dozing off against the polished tiles of the walls. I grab my electric tooth brush, tilting my head and examining my face, washing it in the mirror once, twice, thrice. Each time I apply a different face wash, lathered onto my hands. As I'm leaving I apply some face lotion from the bottle on my one of many dressers, before throwing open my walk in closet. I tuck my hair behind my ears as I rifle through my clothes viciously, tossing all the lame outfits or overly bright tops over my shoulder.

"God, why do I never have anything to wear." I say, pursing my lips and taking a step back. My eyes catch a flash of purple and my gaze settles on an unfamiliar purple off the shoulder sweater that had been pushed into the back of my closet with the rest of my unwanted clothes. I feel my lips tug into a small smile, thinking back on how I said I could totally pull it off. I found my outfit for today.

A half hour later and I'm finishing up the last of my breakfast at the family dinner table. Father sits across from me, his nose so deep in the newspaper I was half afraid he'd start eating it, and my mother examining her face in the silverware. I push my chair away from the table and loop the straps of my bag around my shoulders as our single butler appears at the doorway.

"The car is ready, young miss." He says with a British accent that I still think he's faking. I turn back to my parents to see if they even looked up from what they were doing at all. Wrong again, Pacifica.

"Uh, Father, Mother? I-I'm leaving for school now." I say, trying to squash the tiny bit of hope I had. My mother barely glances up and says "Hm? Oh yes dear have a good day now." whilst my father simply flicks to the next page and mumbles darkly to himself. I let out a sigh and walk alongside the butler to our overly swanky car, something we managed to salvage from our mansion. That's all we had left now, just broken pieces of a life that is long gone, scrambling to pick it up and put it all together. If only they could move forward and appreciate the life they had now. Ugh, maybe I shouldn't wear this sweater. I'm starting to sound like Mabel.

I arrive at school, pulling my bag out from the backseat as the butler rolls down his window.

"Erm, young miss?" I glance up to meet his gaze. He had puffy red cheeks and a large nose. An off putting moustache hung off his lips and I could never tell if his eyes were open or closed.

"Yes, Bertrand?"

"Pay no heed to your parents, I am sure you will have a great day at school, young miss. Your parents are simply….erm..indisposed." He seems to stumble over his words, desperately trying to not overstep his boundaries as a butler and as a concerned caretaker. That we pay.

"Bertrand, are you trying to make me feel better?"

"Your feelings and happiness is a butler's top priority young miss."

"Well uh.. you know…I mean that is what we pay you for after all." I say, trying to resist the urge to smile as I flick my head away. Bertrand seems to chuckle at my awkwardness and begins to roll up his window.

"-Just cause you're your parents daughter doesn't mean you have to be like them. It's not too late."

I sigh and tap on the probably expensive window of the car. Bertrand rolls it back down and shoots me a questioning look.

"Yes, young miss?'

"Bertrand?" I grumble, taking a breath.

"Yes?" He , looking me up and down.

"Thank you." I hold his gaze and he smiles at me warmly.

"You're very welcome young miss, now get yourself to school. You'll be late. Oh, and take care, I've heard disturbing rumors of children going missing lately." I nod in response and turn around, sashaying my way up to the steps and walking into the halls of Gravity Falls High School.

First period passes aimlessly and I find myself chatting along with whatever dumb thing my friends are talking about right now. Half the time we spend together is on our phones anyway, other half divided between making fun of other people or making fun of each other behind their backs. I grab my books from my locker, taking my sweet time so I can show up fashionably late to class. Besides, the teacher was Mr. Strange and he almost never gave out detentions. My boots click against the floors, the sound echoing off the empty hallways. I turn the corner and suddenly and walk straight into someone else. I drop the two books I was holding and stumble back, muttering darkly as I get on my knees to pick them up.

"Damnit, can't you watch where you're going?" I hear a gasp to my left, probably someone else watching on.

"Oh. My. God." A female voice. Sounds familiar somehow.

"I-I..Uhh" I hear the voice from right above my head, the guy I apparently had bumped into. I grab my books and notice one more, one that doesn't belong to me. It's black and and the cover's made of leather, kind of rough to the touch. The leather seems to be peeling in places but that's not what catches my attention. What my eyes are hooked onto is the icon in the middle, a silver pine tree.

"No. Way." I breathe, finally looking up.

Above me is Dipper and Mabel Pines and they're looking down at me with shock written all over their faces.

"Uh…Heyyyyyy Pacifica." The brown haired boy says, his voice pitching towards the end.