Weirder Things

by Cowboy Alchemist

Patrick Pines and his cousins, twin siblings Dipper and Mabel, are sent to spend the summer with their Great-Uncle Stan in Gravity Falls, Oregon. A town that was anything but normal. Follow Patrick and the twins as they investigate the mysteries of Gravity Falls, a place where paranormal forces, supernatural creatures, and the unexplained have called home.

24. Sock Opera

AN:

Before we get started, I just wanted to inform you all that I've just made a Ko-Fi account!

I've recently found out about this from a friend, who's also a fanfic writer. It's this kind of donation page where you can leave a tip for users. Since I'm finally done with college, I decided to give it a shot. So, if you like my fanfics and art, please feel free to consider donating a tip to me. I'd really appreciate the support. Now, I just want to make this clear. You DO NOT have to tip me if you don't want to! I know that there are people that are against the idea of gaining money for doing anything fan-related.

If you are interested, just go over to Ko-Fi and look for me. No worries if you can't donate or don't want to. I still love you all. :D

---

Veronica was not having a good start to the day.

Last night, she had just dealt with the Marra coven that resided in Gravity Falls and explained that they would have to play by her rules if they wanted to remain in the town. Then she killed the Marra that was picking on her grandson and his cousins. She didn't like killing, but made an exception when it came to her family. Veronica's lost one grandson in the form of Shawn, and she would be damned if she'd let anything else take her other one away. There were many ways to kill a Marra, and a dreamcatcher was arguably the most painful for a dream-lurker.

And now she was called back to the office and was standing in front of four screens. Four screens that each had a person standing in front of it. Their faces and bodies were hidden in blackness. Keeping their identities a carefully guarded secret.

"So, I see that everyone's doing quite well today," Veronica said with her arms behind her back. "Hector, you look nice. Have you lost weight? How can OPI help you today, ladies and gentlemen?"

"Agent Pines, understand that you're being questioned. I think it'd be best if you took this more seriously."

"I'll take it as seriously as I can when it comes to talking to four people who think that talking to someone on big-ass TV screens, with voice modifiers and their bodies covered up, makes them intimidating," Veronica said with a firm tone. In no mood to bend a knee in the slightest.

"Director, we're here because it has come to our attention that there's been an increase in the number of anomalous and paranormal activities in the Pacific Northwest region of the states. In a little town that you may be familiar with."

"I'm well aware of the increase in activities, and I'm working to discover what it is," she lied. She knew what it was that was causing these strange activities. The machine she and Stan were working on. However, causing them was also the youngest members of her family. Ever since they've found the Journal, more and more weird things have been popping up on their radar.

"And what about the energy spikes that have been recorded on the morning of July 20?"

"As far as I'm concerned, they're nothing more than a meteor shower," she lied again. It was the machine. But out of pure luck, the energy readings that her organization picks up are similar to meteor showers.

"Interesting. And what about your grandson, grandniece, and grandnephew?"

Veronica's eyes widened when she heard this. Did they believe they were connected to the phenomenons? No, it had to be something else. "What do they have to do with anything?" She said, her tone having a hint of anger to it.

"From what we could tell, a lot. The three kids just so happened to arrive at the beginning of summer. At the same time that the paranormal activities in Gravity Falls started to increase. While that may have been a coincidence, there's also the matter of their involvement in the freeing of the eight-and-a-half president. Then there was the discovery of the dinosaur cave and the rampaging robot that was trying to kill them."

"Gideon was a family matter," Veronica responded quickly.

"And there's the events of the night of July 21st."

Veronica's eyes widened.

"Not only did your organization detect the anomalous readings, but your grandson and nephew contacted your field operatives and showed them a book. A journal that was said to have many strange things written in it. The agents wrote it off as fake."

Veronica looked down with a scowl. It had to have been Powers and Trigger. They must have left that detail in their report. Then again, she didn't order them not to have it in their report, and they were during their job. But she couldn't weasel her way out of this.

"But then your nephew read from that book. Summoning a horde of zombies. Can you attest to this?"

"..Yes."

"And then you told the agents that you were going to do nothing, just as you told them not to interact with your family. Is this correct?"

"Powers and Trigger were pulled out of a ditch after a traumatic event-" Veronica was cut off.

"Is. This. Correct, Agent Pines?"

Veronica took a deep breath and let out a firm, "Yes."

"Why would you order your men not to do anything?"

"Because the threat was eliminated."

"And your family?"

"Interacting with them would have undoubtedly blown my cover," Veronica quickly said. It was true. "After all, I am the director of a branch of the government that people don't know about, and if they did hear about it, they would laugh."

"What of the journal?"

"I've already done an extensive analysis of the journal," she said, telling half the truth. She did analyze it, but not for her government. "It's nothing more than something that could've come from the wet dreams of a conspiracy theorist."

"Let's maintain professionalism here. Where is it right now?"

"I destroyed it."

"You were not permitted to carry out that action!"

"The Office of Paranormal Investigations is my agency," Veronica said, running out of patients and reaching her limit of the amount of bureaucratic bullshit she could take. It was time to put these suits back in their place. "I've been given the freedom to carry out my operations as I please. For the past three decades, I made sure that the things that go bump in the night...stay under the bed. Whether or not they like it. And I will continue to do things my way, so do me a favor and stay out of my way."

No one said anything else.

"So, is there anything else that you want to talk about?"

"Yes-"

"Good." Veronica pressed the button that ended the call. When all the screens went black, she stayed in the room for a moment to sigh out of exhaustion.

She was getting too old for this, and time was running out. The machine was about to come online, and when it did, there was no doubt they'd come to Gravity Falls in full force. And it's been a long time since she lashed out at the people on those screens.

Out of all the directors that work for the CIA, Veronica Pines was a maverick. Someone that was considered a loose cannon. The CIA allowed OPI to run its own operations back in the day because it was nothing more than a dumping ground for government workers that still believed in things like aliens and Santa Clause. They were the lowest of the low when it came to the government hierarchy.

When Veronica took over, she made sure that she used that freedom OPI had over other organizations to her advantage. But now, everything that she and Stan were working toward was about to come to an end. All she had to do was make sure that the machine was stable when it went off and that no one learns the truth too soon.

"Soon, it'll all be over."

---

{Play Stranger Things theme by Kyle Dixon Michael Stein}

The intro begins by fading in a scene of the road sign that said: "Welcome to Gravity Falls, Oregon."

We then see a view of the town of Gravity Falls, with the strangely shaped canyons in the background and the sun going down between the two land formations. As the sun was setting, the day turns to a blue night. However, a sinister red light comes from over the horizon. Shining between the canyon.

The next scene is of a large dinosaur footprint in the ground. It then changed to show the forest trees at night and a pair of glowing eyes staring at the viewer, before the camera switched to a wider shot and showed many more eyes staring at the viewer. The next scene was a far back show of two men dumping a body into the lake, and as that body sank down, it was swallowed by a massive creature.

PATRICK

The teenage Pines is shown in a freeze shot of him walking in the woods with a lantern and his crowbar in hand. Behind him, Bill's eye in the sky looked down at him.

DIPPER

The male twin is looking down at the journal with a flashlight. Not noticing that a Pteranodon was staring down at him, ready to eat him.

MABEL

The female twin is the final one to be seen, and it showed her wearing a sweater that lit up because it was plugged into an outlet. But in another, farther away shot show Gideon's hand controlling her like she was a marionette.

The finale of the intro shows the Mystery Shack as the sun goes down behind it and the trees of the forest. When the sun goes down and the night came, and just like the beginning, the red light appeared, but then a blue light shined from inside the Mystery Shack.

Then the screen went black, and the title of the story appeared in a flash of light.

WEIRDER THINGS

It then disappeared, before the chapter title appeared.

Chapter: Twenty-Four

Sock Opera

---

"Alright, I gotta go… Bye, mom and dad…" Patrick ended the call and sat down on his bed.

When Patrick first woke up the next day, the first thing he did was call his parents on his phone. After working up the courage to finally hit the call button, he spent the next few minutes just talking to them. Sure, he's called them a few times during his time in Gravity Falls, but this was more heart to heart than before. He talked about how he's been having dreams about Shawn and how he's been having trouble coming to terms with his parents having another kid. His parents understood his feelings, apologizing to their son for not talking to him about wanting to have another kid. Coming to realize that Shawn's death still stung Patrick's heart. But they were happy to hear that their son had finally come to terms with their loss and was really for his new sibling.

After ending the call, he sighed and leaned his head back. He felt tears welling up in his eyes before he took a deep breath and mashed his lips together. After finally letting out his emotions to his parents, he felt lighter.

A knock at his door brought him out of his thoughts. "It's open."

The door opened, and to his pleasant surprise, it was Wendy. "Hey, Patrick," she said, sounding sadder than usual with a forced smile.

"Hey! What's going on? Do you all need help?" He asked, standing up and grabbing his hat.

"No, it's just...Dipper and Mabel explained what happened," Wendy said, walking over to her boyfriend and sitting down on the bed. "And they, you know…."

Patrick's eyes widened for a moment, realizing what she was talking about. "They told you about Shawn," he asked, sitting down on the bed with her.

"Yeah…" Wendy sighed sadly. She turned to him and kissed him on the lips. Patrick kissed her back and held the kiss for a moment. When she pulled away, the redhead looked a little sheepish before asking, "Can I see him?"

"Sure," he said with a smile and pulled out his phone. Opening his photos app, he showed his girlfriend the pictures of his little brother. Patrick smiled at them as he scrolled through the images. "You would have loved to have met him."

Wendy smiled too. She really would have, and it pained her knowing that she wouldn't be able to. Losing any of her brothers was something that she never wanted to know. "B-But...well, are you, uh...you know, okay?" She asked.

Patrick paused for a moment and let out a sigh. "Not gonna lie, it still hurts, and my parents trying again with another kid is going to be a lot to deal with...But, for the first time in a long time, I think I've finally come to terms with Shawn."

There was a moment of silence as Wendy looked at her boyfriend with wide eyes before she formed a smile on her face. Her usually casual manner shaken somewhat. "Well, uh...You know, if you ever want to talk to someone about the whole…'family member dying' thing...you can always talk to me. I know what it feels like," she said, grabbing his hand with hers.

Patrick nodded with a warm smile. "What was your mother like?"

Wendy wistfully sighed and looked up at the ceiling. Her mother passed away so long ago, yet she was still about to remember so much about her or just from how her dad talked about her. "She was really nice, fun-loving, and didn't take crap from anyone. She's everything I aspire to be. Well, even if I do fall short when it comes to staying out of trouble."

"Well, I think she'd be proud of the young woman you've become, Wendy," Patrick whispered to her, leaning her and kissing her. "I know that I'm lucky to have met something like you."

Wendy smiled and began to shed tears of joy before lunging at Patrick's mouth. Kissing him deeply as they held their arms around one another and gently caressed each other's bodies. Patrick laid down on the bed as she laid on top of him. They broke the kiss and stared at one another. After a moment of losing themselves in each other's eyes, they were about to make out again. This time more intensely, with Wendy moaning in the kiss and their tongues clashed against one another.

Patrick pulled away and smiled lovingly at Wendy. "I love you, Wendy," he whispered.

"I love you too," Wendy said happily. They were just getting into another kiss when Stan's voice spoke out from upstairs.

"Wendy, where are you!? I'm not paying you to suck faces with my nephew!"

The two teenagers sighed before Wendy asked, "To be continued, Pattycake?"

"You know it...baconator," Patrick said with a smirk.

Getting the joke, Wendy playfully slapped his shoulder. "Shut up, man," she said with a smile before hopping off her boyfriend. They both exited the room together to start their day. For Wendy, it meant another day working behind the cash register. And for Patrick, it meant trying to unlock the secret of the town.

---

And the one place to go to was the library. After helping the Librarian, who was now back in his human form, and the Guardians of Obsolete Formats defeat VHS, the place was back to how it looked previously. When Patrick and the Twins told the Librarian about their troubles and how they needed some information about eight-letter words, he was more than happy to help the Discs Masters on their quest for the truth. He printed out a large list of books and their numbers before handing them over to the kids.

With the list, they walked over to a table near the window. Dipper set up the laptop, and Patrick set down the list for them to find the books.

"Alright, guys, today is the big day," Dipper said with firm resolve. "Are you all ready?"

"Oh, I'm ready, baby," Mabel said with playful seriousness before sliding out a book from a shield. Flipping through the pages of the pop-up book with a drawing of an infant. "Ma-ma."

"Today begins our search for the password," Patrick said with a look of determination. "If we can crack the code, we could learn the identity of The Author and unravel the greatest mysteries of Gravity Falls."

"Oh! Oh!" Mabel shouted, raising her hand and jumping on her heels. When the two boys turned to her, she said, "What if the password is...password!?"

There was a beat of stilted silence passed as Dipper and Patrick frowned at her. Remembering that was what she asked in their shared nightmares. "Mabel, there's no way someone as brilliant as the Author is going to have a password like that," Dipper said, using the exact same sentence from his dream.

"And it didn't work in our dream, remember?" Patrick pointed out.

"...Well, maybe it works in the real world?" The young girl pointed out blithely.

Patrick sighed, opened the laptop, and typed in PASSWORD. Might as well give it a try. And just like in the dream, the screen flashed red with a buzzer.

"What about...codeword?!" Mabel exclaimed.

"Stop it," Patrick said dryly.

Pulling out the journal, Dipper set it down on the table and began looking through it. "For all we know, the password might not even be a work at all. Most people would make passwords using a combination of letters, numbers, and symbols! I don't even know where to start!" the smart twin exclaimed, throwing his hands in the air.

"Don't you worry, bro-bro," Mabel reassured her brother with a broad gin as she placed a supportive hand on her brother's shoulder. "With your brains, Patrick's leadership, and my laser focus, there is literally nothing that can distract us from... Did you hear that?"

Patrick's attention was turned towards what she was looking at. From that direction was that sound of light music being on a piano. The source of the melody came from a puppet show musical that was entertaining a group of young children. The one running the show was a handsome young boy with blond hair worn in a ponytail, with light blue eyes, a pointed nose, and a slightly protruding chin. He wore an all-black outfit with black and white shoes and a headset. He had a book puppet on his right hand, and on his left, he had a bee puppet.

The boy sang to the children with a smoothing yet passionate voice. "All my life, I've been dreamin' of a love that's right for me. And now I finally know her name, and it's…" He stopped for a moment to talk to the kids. "Sing it with me, kids."

"Literacy!" The crowd of children chimed in happily as the boy continued the show. The boy then started talking with the puppets.

"I finally understand what all the buzz is about," the bee puppet quipped. "Reading!

"Boo! You suck!" Patrick jeered in the background.

"Give me some of that, honey!" The book puppet said before the boy made them kiss each other, which was just smashing their open mouths against each other. The blonde boy laughed warmly.

Patrick, on the other hand, didn't find the odd display all that warming. "I don't know whether to call that cute or really disturbing," he commented, somewhat disturbed.

"Who cares?" Dipper rolled his eyes, already tired of the show distracting them from what was really important. "We have more important things to do, right, Mabel? Mabel?"

Upon hearing no response from the female twin, the two boys looked away from the laptop and over to her. Only to find that she was staring at the young girl was staring at the young puppeteer with figurative hearts in her eyes.

"Mabel," Patrick started with a groan, already knowing exactly where this was going, "please tell me you're not…."

And his speculation of Mabel becoming completely lovestruck was confirmed when she opened up the baby book again. Only this time flapping the page of a pop-up of a large romantic heart. "Ba bump. Ba bump," she made a heart beating sound.

"Goddamnit…" Patrick and Dipper sighed simultaneously.

"Don't even think about it, Mabel," said the teenager.

"But I already am," Mabel said dramatically, holding her hands to her cheeks in wonder. "Just when I was getting over Mermando, of course, another dreamy dreamboat showed up at my doorstep."

"Oh yeah, I forgot about Mermando," Patrick said as he looked through some books. Haven't heard Mabel talk about her mermaid boyfriend since she helped him get back home. Dipper was drowning out the conversation as he retrieved a book of codes from a shelf nearby. "Weren't you still in a long-distance relationship with him or something?"

"We broke up," she said, looking down sadly.

"Oh!" Patrick looked at her with wide eyes. Surprised by her statement.

"And now there's a new pretty boy right in front of me," she said, sighing contentedly as she continued to stare at the boy as he continued his puppet show. "I've got to go where my heart takes me, Patrick."

"A man would be fortunate to have you, Mabel," Patrick said, deadpanning.

"I know.

"Guys, focus," Dipper said, frowning as he came back with an open book. "Okay, this cryptology book says that there are 7.2 million 8-letter words. I'll do the typing. Patrick, you make a list and keep track of the words we've tried. Mabel, you read us the words. Okay, Mabel? Mabel?"

The two boys looked at where Mabel was sitting, or rather, where she had been sitting. She was gone, with the stool spinning around. They looked over to see the girl rushing over to the other side of the library towards her newest crush. Knocking over everything and anyone in her way while leaving Patrick and Dipper alone to continue the mission.

"In hindsight, we really should have seen that coming," Patrick said. She did the same thing with Mermando, after all. And so, Patrick and Dipper continue their original objective, with Patrick reading off the list and Dipper inputting the words into the computer. Dipper was going pretty fast, as he wanted to get the code right as fast as possible. Two pages into the search, Patrick looked at the next word.

"Okay, the next word is…" he paused for a moment to see if he was looking at it right. "Codeword?"

"Really?" Dipper asked as he looked at the list himself. Seeing that it was 'codeword,' he shrugged. "Worth a shot, I guess." He typed it into the computer and again was met with the same rejection beep. The same beeping that was made every time they tried thus far.

"Damn." Patrick sighed and started looking at the next word. But before he called out the next word, he noticed Mabel returning to their side. "Oh, look who finally decided to join us," he said sarcastically. "Also, try basement."

"So, how'd it go?" Dipper asked his sister dully, not really paying attention to anything but the laptop. He typed in the word 'basement,' and again, it was wrong.

"Try fuzzball," Patrick said, then turned back to Mabel. "Manage to get your boyfriend for the week?"

"Dipper, Patrick…" Mabel began anxiously as she prepared to tell them everything she had going on. "How hard do you think it'd be to write and compose a sock puppet rock opera with lights, original music, and live pyrotechnics by...Friday?"

Dipper and Patrick froze upon hearing that, as the computer buzzed with another failed password guess. They then whirled around and stared at Mabel in shock. "What?!"

"Mabel, have you gone completely insane? Why would you agree to that?!" Patrick exclaimed.

"I DON'T KNOW WHAT HAPPENED!" Mabel yelled, grabbing their shirts and pulling them to her. She flinched when others in the library started shushing her. "I got lost in his eyes and his ponytails, and I'm gonna be so embarrassed on Friday if I don't have ANYTHING."

"You let your romantic fantasies get the better of you again is what happened," Patrick whispered angrily, pushing her hand away from him. "Why couldn't you just let it go?"

"I couldn't help it," she said, freaking out more and more as she went along. "That's why I need both of you guy's help."

"Mabel, I'm not getting involved in another one of your summer crush schemes. Besides, what about cracking this password?" Dipper asked with his arms cross, and Patrick nodded in agreement.

To their surprise, Mabel dropped down on her knees with her hands together. "Please, guys, you have to help me! If we work together with Wendy, Soos, and my friends, I'm more than certain that we'll be able to make this work. If you help me with this for JUST a couple of days, I promise I'll help with the password! Please, pretty please!" She begged the boys.

She then brought out her puppy eyes and whispered, "It's for love."

Patrick frowned at her, but looked away as he thought about it. He knew that this entire thing was a waste of time, as it'll likely end with Mabel not getting a new boyfriend. Just like with Mermando. But as he looked back at her pleading, almost desperate expression, Patrick found it harder to say no to her. Besides, he knew what she was going through. He's in love with Wendy, and whether it was true or not, Mabel did help him get together with his crush. He owed her for helping him.

With a sigh of defeat, he said, "The things I do for love. Fine!" Mabel rushed over and hugged him tightly.

"YES! THANK YOU!" She shouted, so happy Patrick agreed to help her.

"What?! You're actually agreeing to this?" Dipper asked incredulously. "We were supposed to be cracking the code to the laptop."

"Dipper, it's okay. It's not going anywhere, and it'll only be for a couple of days," Patrick said.

Dipper thought about it for a moment before he relented. "All right, okay-"

Mabel let go of Patrick and jumped on her brother. Hugging him tightly before he even had a chance to finish. "THAT'S MY BROTHER! THESE GUYS! THEY'RE NUMBER ONE!" She shouted to the rest of the library while

"Okay, okay, okay, shhhh…" Patrick quickly cut in, embarrassed over how everyone was staring at them with glares. Mabel giggled helplessly as Patrick grabbed the laptop and closed it. He was about to follow after Dipper and Mabel towards the exit when he suddenly felt a strange feeling. Like someone else was with them.

Looking around, he saw no one.

"Hey, Patrick! Let's go!" Dipper called out. Shaking the feeling from his head, Patrick started walking with his cousins with the machine under his arm. "I can't wait to get to the bottom of this laptop. We're close to something big here; I can feel it…."

However, little did they know at the time was that they were being followed. Trailing behind them was an ominous, triangular shadow that moved slowly and silently drifted along the wall right behind them.

---

The rest of the day went on, and during that time, the Pines were able to grab everything that they would need to make the puppets for the play. After buying a box of used socks and making sure to wash them, they grabbed Mabel's arts and crafts supplies and set to work on creating the puppets.

It took most of the day to wash the socks and Mabel to come up with a screenplay. When night came, everyone retired to their beds.

During the night, Patrick walked up the stairs to the first floor and entered the kitchen. He grabbed another bottle of water and started making his way back to his room. However, as he passed by the stairs, he stopped when he heard a faint sound. Looking up at the top, Patrick listened again and heard something buzzing.

"What the heck?" He asked himself, walking up the stairs.

When he heard the buzzing again, he knew what it was and walked towards the Twins room. Opening the door and turning on the lights, Patrick saw Dipper and yelled, "Busted!"

With the laptop open in front of him on his bed, Dipper yelled in shock as Mabel shot up and yelled too. "What are you doing here?!" Dipper exclaimed, quickly closing the laptop.

"What are you doing here?" Patrick asked back, closing the door behind him as Mabel rubbed her tired eyes.

"I...just wanted to figure out the password to the laptop," Dipper said, knowing that his cousin caught him.

"Dipper, I thought you were going to wait until after the play," Mabel said.

"Well, I can't wait for that long!" Dipper threw his arms up in frustration before opening the laptop and stared into the screen. "We've been waiting for weeks to solve the mystery of the journal and the author, and this laptop can finally provide all of us with some answers."

"Well, you can't stay up and keep working on the laptop," Patrick said, crossing his arms. Dipper pouted at this. But it was at that moment that he got an idea.

"Wait, what if you work on finding the password at night? Then tomorrow, I'll continue where you left off!" Dipper proposed.

"No way, Dipper," Patrick said.

"Please, Patrick. I'm begging you. I promise this will only be until Mabel's play is over, and she and I'll take over," Dipper pleaded with his cousin.

This really put Patrick between a rock and a hard place, as it was clear that Dipper's obsession wasn't going to let him just wait until Mabel's play. If it went too far, it could lead to another situation like the zombie outbreak. He would have just told Dipper to let it go and just be a little more patient, but then he remembered what the Marra said to them. Someone didn't want them to see what was inside that laptop, as it would have ruined their big plans. Whatever it was. Finding out what was inside that laptop could be the key to understanding what was going on and who was after them.

With a sigh, he asked, "If I do this, will you go to sleep?"

"Yes! Definitely!" Dipper exclaimed with excitement, closing the laptop and holding it out to him.

"But what about helping me with my play?" Mabel asked.

"I'll still be able to help you. I'll stay up at night with the laptop, and then during the day, I'll help Mabel while you, Dipper, work on the laptop," he said to the kids with a smile.

---

It was Thursday, and there was one word to describe what Patrick was exhausted. He was no stranger to pulling all-nighters. It was something he did for a school project and during some of their adventures in Gravity Falls. Like when Wendy turned into a werewolf. But never has he gone without sleep for several nights without getting any rest. Splitting his time between helping Mabel and Dipper. During the day, he'd help his fun-loving cousin put her play together while Dipper struggled to figure out the code. Then at night, Dipper would pass the laptop onto him, and Patrick would spend the night trying to figure out the code. But while the play was coming together great, the same couldn't be said for the password.

Was it coming along great? Patrick couldn't tell. He was so tired that it was getting hard to focus on what was going on around him. He didn't even notice that he had a puppet glued to his left cheek. It wasn't until Waddles walked by him, having sock puppets on his ears and tail. The teenager was snapped back into reality when the pig squealed. Jolting a bit, Patrick looked around the room.

His girlfriend was sitting on the T-Rex skull, driving some of the socks with a blow dryer, while Soos was sitting on the recliner, painting a prop piece for the show. Mabel was sitting next to him with two puppets on her hands with Soos's keyboard. Dipper was sitting at the table, still trying to break the code.

"Alright. This is gonna be called Glove Story: A Sock Opera!" Mabel announced to everyone in the room with excitement. "Just to warn you, people's eyes will get wet. Cause they'll be crying. From laughter! From how tragic it is."

"Yeah, that...that sounds great," Patrick said, trying to rip off the sock puppet that was glued to his face.

"Come on, dude, you gotta roll with Mabel's craziness," Wendy encouraged with a broad smirk. "It's what makes life worth living."

To prove her point, Mabel was doing a cheerful rendition of one of her many songs for the show. With a puppet on the one hand, she played on a keyboard. "Puppet boy, Puppet boy, you're the boy I-"

"Loooooovvvvveeee!" Everyone but Dipper sang together with her, knowing the lyrics of the song. In the midst of their rehearsal, Stan and Veronica passed by the living room. They stopped short in front of the haphazard mess in the room before them.

"Do you know what's going on?" Veronica asked.

"I've got no idea, and I'm not even gonna ask," Stan remarked dryly. The two cousins moved on, leaving the kids to their puppet-making.

As Patrick was putting the eyes on another puppet, he flinched when he heard the computer buzzing. That damn buzzing sound! Just hearing that sound spiked bad headaches. He turned from his work towards his male cousin, who was getting frustrated too. "Oh, come on!" Dipper yelled, slamming his fists on the table.

As he started tying again, Patrick was starting to reach a limit. But he didn't want to blow up at his cousin immediately, so he took a deep breath. "Hey, Dipper, can you please stop working on that thing and come help us?" He asked in a calm tone. Trying not to lose his temper.

"Huh? But I think I'm close," Dipper protested and hit the enter button. When it made that error sound again, Patrick flinched and clenched his fists.

"No, you're not," he stated. "Now, please, come and help us. Or really anything besides what you're doing."

"But why? Aren't you-"

"BECAUSE I'M TIRED OF LISTENING TO THAT DAMN THING!" Patrick suddenly yelled with furious anger, tearing the sock puppet he was working on a part.

Everyone in the living room stared at the teenager with wide eyes. "Whoa," Soos said.

"I'm going to grab more glue. When I get back, I better see you helping your sister!" Patrick yelled, getting up. Almost losing his balance.

Wendy watched as her boyfriend walked/stumbled over the puppets on the ground and went around the corner, going into the kitchen. When Dipper came over to help with the play, she handed him the hanger and hairdryer.

"I'll be back," she said, getting off the skull and following Patrick. When she entered the kitchen, she saw Patrick opening the refrigerator. He was on his knees while rummaging through the contents of the fridge. "Dude, we need to talk," she said, walking over to him.

"Uh, about what? We've still got puppets to make," Patrick said, trying to smile a tired grin in a vain effort to make it seem like he was doing okay. He stopped to think for a moment. "Wait, is that an eight-letter word?"

"What?" Wendy raised an eyebrow, confused by his question.

"Wait, no, it isn't. But I've got the glue," Patrick said, grabbing the mustard from the refrigerator.

"That's mustard."

Patrick blinked and looked at the mustard. "Oh right."

"Patrick, just stop for a moment. You look like you can barely stand up anymore," Wendy said, placing a hand on his shoulder. Having him stand up, she guided him over to the table. Pulled out a chair, she had him sit down before stepping back and crossing her arms. "I'm really worried about you, Patrick. So, please tell me what's wrong."

Patrick was silent for a moment before he sighed and rubbed his face. He didn't want to lie to her, but he didn't want to lie to her. "I'm sorry I snapped back there, I...I've been staying up for the past three nights trying to break the code to the laptop we found in the bunker."

"What?!" Wendy exclaimed incredulously.

"It was an agreement that I made with the twins," Patrick said, setting the mustard down. "Dipper didn't want to wait until after Mabel's play. So during the day, I'd help Mabel, and he would work on the laptop. And during the night, I'd pick up where he left off until morning. But it's not that bad."

"Not that bad? Dude, you look awful," Wendy said, placing a hand on his cheek and rubbing it. Staring at his bloodshot, tired eyes with dark spots under them. "If you keep this up, your body's gonna quit on you."

"It'll be fine, Wendy," Patrick said, grabbing her hands and caressing them. "Mabel's play is tomorrow, which means it'll be the last night I'll stay up with that laptop. I'll let her and Dipper work on the laptop and get some sleep."

Wendy looked unconvinced, but she sighed and smiled lightly. "Alright, but please don't push yourself," she said firmly.

"Patrick! Where's the glue?" Mabel called from the other room. Patrick sighed as he got up and picked up the mustard. Not noticing what it was, he lumbered out of the kitchen and turned into the living room.

---

After what seemed like hours of countless hours of hard work on Mabel's play, everything was ready. The script was written, the sets were built, the theatre booked, and the puppets were all made. Now all that was left was for the "sock opera" to make its big debut. Patrick knew that Mabel was ready for it, seeing her possible romantic future with Gabe all hinged on it. Patrick was also excited for it to come, but for another reason.

The computer blared that familiar beep again, and Patrick groaned in frustration as he glared down at the screen. It was hell trying to carry all the notes that Dipper and him made. He just dropped it all disorderly on the bed with him as he sat on it with the laptop on his lap. He couldn't hear the beeping, thanks to the headphones he had on his ears.

"Come on! Wrong again! Just like all of them!" Patrick yelled in frustration, glaring at it hatefully as it emitted that red flashing screen for the thousandth time. "Give me a break already, you fucking whore! I. Hate. You. Com. Put. Er!" He growled, punctuating his anger by carelessly pounding his fist against the keyboard. Not caring if he got more and more password errors.

SLAM!

He slammed the laptop shut in frustration. There was a pause as he glared down at the laptop and was about to open it again and continue his work. But then Patrick stopped. He couldn't do this anymore. With a sad sigh, he set it on his nightstand and gathered up all the notes. Moving them onto the couch, he turned and went back to the bed.

Why was he doing this in the first place? He could have just kept the laptop in his room, away from Dipper, and that's it. But the truth is, he also wanted to solve the mysteries of Gravity Falls. However, seeing Wendy so worried about him made him realize that he denied himself important sleep and rest.

"God, what am I doing?" Patrick asked, laying on his back and covering his eyes with his arm. "Wendy's right. I can't keep pushing myself. But there's got to be some kind of shortcut or clue. The Rat King didn't know, so who would know about secret codes?"

He fell asleep. However, outside of the house, the wind started picking up speed. The ominous gale of wind hit the side of the side house, making the weather vane spin wildly. But even more ominously, an invisible hand opened the latch on his closed window and pushed it open. Making the window shutters slam wide open.

"AH!" Patrick shouted, bolting upright with a startled look. Suddenly the notes that he and Dipper had been taking started blowing around the room wildly. Putting up his hands to shield his face, Patrick jumped out of bed and walked to the window. When he reached the couch, the paper stopped flying around and settled down on the ground. Patrick slammed the window closed, then the shuttlers. Letting out a sigh, he stepped down from the couch and looked at the shutters. Wondering just how the window got opened.

But unbeknownst to him, behind him on the floor, the notes were placed in the form of a giant eye with a slit pupil. The notes started glowing blindingly bright, making Patrick turn around to see it. The notes then formed an actual giant eye, making him give a startled cry. The eyes shrank down as it lifted up into the air and turned on its side to look down at him. Neon blue bricks appeared from either side and formed around. Making a familiar finger.

With a flash of blue light, the dream demon Bill Cipher appeared, slightly larger than normal, and Patrick was thrust into the Mindscape. Indicated by the color vanishing from the world.

"I THINK I KNOW A GUY," he proclaimed boldly.

"Bill!?" Patrick yelled, effectively stunned in frozen silence as he stood in the presence of the massive triangular demon.

"Well, well, well. You and Pine Tree are awfully persistent, Crowbar. Hats off to you!" Bill said, taking his hat off and tipped it. Causing the entire world to turn along with it abruptly. Patrick screamed as he fell down to the ceiling and slammed down on his back. The teenager groaned in pain, but then the world turned back around. Patrick fell again to the floor. Groaning in even more pain, Patrick sprung into action and grabbed his shotgun off the floor. He then rushed for the laptop and grabbed it.

"Cut the shit, Bill?!" He exclaimed crossly, holding the laptop tightly as Bill glided to the other side of the room. "What the fuck are you doing here?!"

"Oh, you know. Just checking in," Bill said with a shrug. "Did you miss me? Admit it. You missed me."

"Hardly. I'm not exactly happy to see someone that tried to destroy my uncle's mind and almost killed my friends and family!" Patrick growled.

"Oh, come on! It was just a job, kid! No hard feelings!" Bill said defensively as he floated down from above behind him. "I've been keeping an-" The dream demon suddenly turned red and became much bigger, his voice turning an ominously deeper tone, and his eyes turned pitch black. Peering at Patrick piercingly. "EYE ON YOU." He shrunk back down to normal size. "And your cousins since then, and I must say I'm impressed!"

Patrick raised an eyebrow. "Is that right?" He asked, voice heavy with sarcasm. As if he'd believe anything he said.

"You deserve a prize! Here, have a head that's always screaming!" With a mere clap of his hands, Bill summoned a decapitated head out of thin air. The head started screaming in endless agony as it fell onto the floor in front of Patrick. Patrick gasped in fear and disgust as he flinched away from the head. Bill snapped his fingers again, and the head started peeling itself away layer by layer. From skin, muscles, blood, and finally, the bones before it disappeared entirely.

Biller laughed in sadistic amusement, all the while floating over to sit on the couch. "The point is, I like you kids. How's about you let me give you a hint, huh?" He asked, twisted his arm in unnatural angles, and stretched it over Patrick's head to nudge him closer to the demon. "I only ask for a small…FAVOR...in return." He lit a blue flame in his hand as his eye flashed bright blue, staring at the young man intensely before he relaxed and extinguished the flame.

"How stupid do you think I am to make a deal with you?!" Patrick exclaimed, glaring at Bill. "It'll never happen, Bill. Don't forget who defeated you last time! And we'll do it again!"

Bill morphed from the wall behind him. "Right, you 'defeated me,'" he said, rolling his eye. Air quoting that. "Well, if you ever change your mind," he reached into Patrick's head and pulled out a light blue version of his brain before it vanished. "I'll be here for you and your cousins, ready to make a deal." He then pretended that he was a slot machine, with his tie turning into three slots. He cranked his arm and the slot spinning until they stopped to show a Crowbar, a Pine Tree, and a Rainbow.

"Wait, what?"

"Hey, wanna hear my impression of you in about three seconds?" Bill suddenly started screaming and waving his arms around. "AAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

"AAAAAAAAAAAAH!" Patrick sat up and screamed, doing the exact same arm-waving. When he realized where he was, he looked around the room and saw that the night was over and the sun was rising over the horizon. He quickly jumped out of bed and grabbed the laptop.

He had to warn the twins.

---

Up in the kitchen, Stan was sitting at the table, sipping on a cup of coffee as he read the newspaper. "Hey, I'm puppet Staaaannn!" quipped Mabel as she waved a paper bag puppet she made in her uncle's likeness. Needless to say, her excitement was through the roof, as well as her energy. Her sock opera was this afternoon, and she was more than confident it would be more than enough to make Gabe fall in love with her.

"Still ignoring this." Stan deadpanned. Sitting at the table with him was Veronica, while Dipper was pacing around the room. Impatiently waiting for Patrick to give him the laptop. Needless to say, his obsession was also at high levels. Mabel's stupid play was finally coming, and she'd be able to help them with unlocking the computer with him and Patrick.

"Oh, let the girl be, Stan," Veronica said with a smile. "It's not every day that she goes this far for a boy. He must be something really special."

Just then, Patrick came walking into the kitchen. Dragging his feet with each step as he rubbed his exhausted eyes. Letting out a long, tired yawn, he said, "Hey, guys."

"Woah, bag check for Patrick's eyes!" Stan joked upon noticing how visibly tired his nephew was. He started laughing sardonically, before Veronica slapped him on the back of the head. "Ow! Yeesh. Just trying to lighten the mood."

"Patrick, please tell me you've unlocked the laptop," Dipper asked, not noticing or maybe caring how exhausted Patrick was.

"Dipper, can't you see he's tired from staying up all night!" Mabel said, clearly disappointed in her cousin's lack of care for their cousin's well-being. "Here, wake up with some Mabel Juice." She then held up a blender full of a red liquid with various small objects floating around like toys. "It has plastic dinosaurs in it!"

Veronica looked at the liquid for a moment. "Okay, you're not to go near the blender again," she said.

"Good!" Stan remarked, cringing as he remembered accidentally drinking that cursed juice. "It's as if coffee and nightmares had a baby!"

Rolling his eyes, Patrick grabbed Mabel and Dipper's hands and dragged them out of the room and into the hallway. As soon as they were out of the elder's earshot, Patrick turned to face them, keeping his voice low as he relayed what happened last night. "Guy, listen," he said anxiously. "Last night, Bill appeared in my dream."

"Bill?" Dipper and Mabel asked with surprised gasps. Both of them remembered what their first encounter with the demon was like.

"You mean that triangle guy?" Mabel asked, holding her fingers around her eye to make a triangle.

"Yeah, he tried to make a deal with me for the code to the laptop," Patrick said, pulling out the laptop from his sweater. He then scoffed as he handed it to Dipper. "Like I was going to actually trust Bill."

"Don't worry, guys. Today's the day that the Mystery Crew gets back in action," Mabel said, smiling. "I'll help you crack that code. I've just got to hand off my puppet stuff to my production crew."

"Production crew?" Patrick and Dipper asked, almost afraid to see who it was.

---

As it turned out, the production crew was none other than Candy and Grenda. The two girls had shown up outside the Mystery Shack, both of them bright-eyed and covered in socks. In the background, Patrick could see his girlfriend and Soos attaching the backdrops to the car with roses. Why they were using Stan's car instead of Soos's truck was a mystery itself, as they were stacking the stage sets oddly on top.

"We read the script," Candy said, adjusting her glasses. "Very emotional."

"I cried like eight times," Grenda exclaimed.

"Alright, we're finally done! Let's get this show on the road," Patrick said with a big smile. Happy that this endeavor was finally over with.

"Hey, ladies." Their conversation was cut off when they heard the voice. Turning their heads, they saw Gabe skating up to them on roller skates. He pulled up to the group, both hands still having his puppets from the previous day.

"GABE!" Mabel exclaimed with delight.

"I was just bladin' by. Helps me dry out my ponytail after a shower." Gabe took off his helmet and shook his hair around. "Ah, ah."

"Hubbity-hubbuty," said Grenda, eyeing the puppeteer with amazement.

"Maeibeur'i hante Gaeibeu'eul humchyeohagetda," Candy muttered enviously in Korean, making her affections towards Gabe apparent. Patrick looked at her with a raised eyebrow, wondering what she had said.

Translation: "I must steal him away from Mabel."

"It's so great to see you!" Mabel cheered with a grin as she ran up to him. "I was just working on the world's greatest puppet show. IT HAS PUPPETS!"

"Yeah, that's what a puppet show is," Patrick said dryly.

"Your passion is so refreshing, Mabel," Gabe complimented before his expression soured, "Unlike the girl from last night's puppet show. Single-stitch on one puppet and cross-stitch on the other? I was like, 'Uh-uh!'"

"Cross-huh?" Mabel frowned, not having the slightest idea what he was talking about.

"Naturally, I deleted her off my cell phone contacts list," Gabe continued.

"NATURALLY!" Mabel repeated loudly and then started laughing nervously. Trying to play off her confusion, even though she was starting to worry. Patrick could see this and knew that she was likely regretting whatever lies she told him at the library. Lies that led to them making this puppet show so that she could impress Gabe. No, she feared that it wasn't going to be enough for him, which was an unbearable thought to her.

"I know you won't let me down. Based on what you said the other day, you must be a puppet expert," Gabe said with a smooth smile, pointing at her with the bee puppet's arm. Making Mabel freeze up at that.

"You know, Gabe, you look pretty sweaty. You should really take your shirt off," Grenda said with an eager grin. "Right? Aren't we all thinking that?"

"Down, girl," Patrick said.

"Later, ladies." Gabe snapped his helmet back on before taking off. Kicking up a small cloud of dust as he skated off.

The moment he turned on the dirt road and was out of sight, Mabel turned around in terror. "GWAAA! We gotta up our game, girls! Did you hear that thing he said about the stitches?!" She shouted in absolute panic, realizing just how severe the situation had become.

"Don't worry, Mabel, your crew can handle it!" Grenda assured her, holding up a puppet of herself. Only to accidentally rip its arms off. "Oops."

"How many eyes does a face have again?" Candy asked, holding up a blue sock that was covered in at least ten googly eyes.

"Oh my God." Patrick sighed.

"I got it. I got it…." Patrick's attention turned to the car, and he saw Soos on top of the pile of backstage sets. Trying to keep the mountain of cardboard settings on the car while attempting to tie it down to the car securely. "I got it, I got it, Ah!" Soos suddenly fell off the top of the roof and crashed down onto the ground, along with the props. As the car alarm blared loudly, Soos shouted, "I'm not okay!"

Mabel screamed in terror again, realizing that her time was running out. "Well, you tried your best, Mabel. I'm going to help Soos and then go lay down," Patrick said, about to walk over to his girlfriend and Soos when Mabel suddenly grabbed his sleeve.

"Patrick, no! You have to help me! I'm going back to fabrication, but I need you!" She said before running to grab the box of puppets. "Come on! Grab a lint roller!"

Mabel ran back towards the house but was stopped when Dipper quickly grabbed her shoulders. Pulling her back and knocking the puppets out of her hands. Patrick walked over and picked them up as Dipper argued with Mabel. "Whoa, whoa! Hey, you just said you were going to help me!"

"DIPPER! This sock crisis just bumped up to code argyle!" Mabel protested hotly.

"Do you even know what that means?" Patrick asked tiredly.

"That doesn't matter!" Mabel yelled, kneeling down next to him to pick up the puppets. "The laptop can wait!"

"What?" Dipper cried. "But you said you were going to help me today! You heard her, right, Patrick?"

"Look, Dipper, we'll just have to wait a little more before we get to the laptop," Patrick said, trying to deescalate the situation. "Both the laptop and the show are important, but we could-"

"Are you kidding me, Patrick!?" Dipper cut him off, glaring at him with obsessed anger. "This play isn't important! The laptop is! Uncovering the mysteries of this town is more important than this puppet show! She's only doing this because she's obsessed!"

"Oh, I'm obsessed!" Mabel countered adamantly. "Said the guy that caused a zombie apocalypse! You've been obsessed with that laptop all week! So much so that you've made Patrick stay up for days! And now look at him! You look like a vampire! And not the hot kind!"

"I'm not obsessed! And this isn't like that time!" Dipper argued fiercely. "Also, you knew that Patrick needed sleep, then why did you have him keep working on the play?"

"Because it's important!"

"No, it's not! Patrick, back me up here!"

"Both of you, stop fighting right now!" Patrick stood up and yelled at the two. Silencing the two and getting the attention of the others in the parking lot. "Look, Dipper. We've been failing with finding the right password so many times that if we don't stop, the machine's going to lock us out for who knows how long. As much as it pains me to say it, Mabel's right. A few hours is not going to kill you."

Dipper looked hurt by this, but he started to glare. Just like that night, his obsession clouded his judgment. "Fine! I'll do it without you!" Dipper yelled, pointing at Patrick and Mabel, shocking the two. "I don't need you two! I don't need anyone!"

He then turned and marched back towards the Mystery Shack with the laptop still in his possession.

"Dipper, wait!" Patrick called out, but Dipper didn't stop and headed inside the shack. "Ah, man…"

"Is everything okay?" Wendy asked, walking over.

"Everything's fine," Mabel said with a frown as she picked up the box of puppets and walked towards the shack. "Come on! We've got work to do."

"I'm gonna go talk to him. You think you can help out Mabel?" Patrick asked Wendy. She looked a little worried at first but smiled and kissed him on the lips.

"I've got this. Just promise me that you'll get some rest tonight," Wendy said.

"I will. I promise," Patrick said, kissing his girlfriend before heading back into the shack. Hoping he could find a way to fix this situation.

---

With a bitter scowl, Dipper continued typing away at the laptop while sitting up in the attic. "Passwords...Passwords…" Dipper muttered, monotoned. Seething with annoyance with each new failed entry and the buzzer. "Mabel. Is. Useless." He paused for a moment to let out a very long, exhausted sigh as he pinched the bridge of his nose. While he did feel slightly guilty for blowing up like that to his friends and family, he couldn't stop now. He had to get into the laptop.

Suddenly, the laptop changed its screen and started talking.

["Too many failed entries. Initiate data erase in…Five minutes."]

The screen then switched to a steadily ticking countdown, and the seconds began ticking down.

"No! Nononono!" Dipper exclaimed in newfound panic. He grabbed the sides of the laptop desperately, pulling it closer to him. "I'm gonna lose everything?! I only have one more try?!"

Suddenly, everything in the room turned black and white, devoid of color, except for himself. And of course, Bill, who appeared above him. Dipper jumped away from the window, abandoning the machine, as he stared at the demon with wide eyes. Bill had his eye closed, his legs crossed in a meditation pose, with balls of blue flames in each hand.

"Well, well, well. Someone's looking desperate," he said, extinguishing the flames.

"You!" Dipper yelled angrily.

"Good to see you again, Pine Tree." Bill moved away from the window, arms behind his back as he gave the young boy a sly look out of the corner of his eye.

"Back off, Bill," Dipper exclaimed crossly, pointing at him as he glared. "Patrick already told me that you tried to make a deal with him!"

"That's right. I did," Bill said, summoning his cane and resting his arms on it as he turned to Dipper. "But now I'm here to extend that same offer to you. I can help you crack the code, kid. You just need to hear out my demands."

Flinching at this, Dipper looked from the computer to Bill. He couldn't deny that Bill had him exactly where he wanted him. He was distressed, clueless, and out of other options. He wanted to tell the demon where to shove his offer, but with the countdown at 4 minutes now, Dipper knew that he had to make a decision. "Uh, what crazy thing do you want anyway?" Dipper asked, keeping his guard up. "To eat my soul? To rip out my teeth? Are you gonna replace my eyes with baby heads or something?"

"Yeesh, kid, relax," Bill remarked with a hint of amusement in his tone. "All I want is a puppet!"

"A puppet?" Dipper repeated with a confused frown. "What are you playing at?"

"Everyone loves puppets. And it looks to me that you've got a surplus," Bill said, pointing over to the massive pile of sock puppets Mabel had created over the past several days.

Dipper raised an eyebrow, still not understanding the strange demon's request. "But what will you do with a-"

"Dipper? You in there?" The conversation was suddenly abruptly interrupted by Patrick suddenly knocking on the attic door.

"P-Patrick!" Dipper gasped in surprise. "Uh...Y-Yeah, I'm here! Give me just a second!"

"Alright, I just wanted to talk to you, man," Patrick said on the other side of the door, frowning as he tried to keep his exhausted eyes open. He yawned before continuing. "I know that you're upset about what happened earlier…."

"Uh-huh, yeah, sure," Dipper replied absently. Frantically looking at the laptop again. The timer only showed he had over three minutes before the data was erased. "I'll be out in just a second!"

"And only seconds to decide," Bill said after readjusting his bowtie. He was annoyed that Patrick had interrupted their conversation but remained calm. "What's it gonna be, Pine Tree? Hand over a puppet while I give you the code to the laptop? Or will you lose everything you've wanted to know in the span of 3 minutes? Time's a-wastin!"

"I-I don't know, man... Mabel worked really hard on these," Dipper said hesitantly, taking a brief anxious glance towards the door. Hoping that his cousin wouldn't overhear any of this.

"Seems to me one little puppet is a small price to pay to learn all the secrets of the universe."

"Dipper, are you okay in there?" Patrick knocked on the door again, growing a little concerned about how long Dipper was taking.

"Yeah, Patrick! Everything's fine!" Dipper called back, growing annoyed by his cousin's persistence. Still, he didn't open the door. Not with the laptop nearly out of top and Bill giving him an ultimatum like this.

"Besides," Bill continued, "what's your sister done for you, lately? How many times have you and Crowbar sacrificed for her, huh? And when has she ever returned the favor?" Bill moved down to Dipper's level and showed the young boy several flashbacks of the many times he and Patrick had made such sacrifices for her.

Dipper looked at Mabel playing outside with her friends. He then glanced at the computer, which was now at 1 minute on the clock.

As much as Dipper hated to admit it, Bill was right. All their lives, he's been the one that gave up what he wanted for Mabel's sake, and she's never done anything to return the favor. Mabel always got what she wanted, and Dipper rarely ever did. For the longest time, that's just how it worked. But with the stakes higher than ever before, Dipper was starting to see just how unfair that was. What made her puppet show more important than the laptop? Why should she get to impress her crush while his answers to the mysteries of Gravity Falls get erased? Why should she get what she wanted and he shouldn't?

"Dipper, is someone else in the room? I thought I heard another voice!" Patrick exclaimed, his worry growing. He grabbed the door handle and tried to turn it.

Dipper looked at the door again, but it didn't open. He saw the doorknob jiggling, but it didn't open. Did he lock the door? Looking at the clock again, he saw that he had 30 minutes left.

"Tick tock, kid!" Bill's eye turned into a timer as he reached out his hand to him. Lighting it on fire.

"Dipper! Why's the door lock!? Come on, open the door!" Patrick pounded on the door before ramming his body against the door.

With the laptop only seconds away from erasing all of its data, Dipper had come to his decision.

"Uh, just one puppet?" He asked, taking a deep breath. "Fine! It's a deal!"

He reached out his hand up and grabbed Bill's hand. But the very instant their hands joined in the blue flames, Patrick crashed down the door and fell on the ground. He groaned in pain before rushing up the stairs and rushed into the attic. Then he gasped in horror at what he saw. Never would he ever imagine seeing Dipper shaking hands with Biller Cipher. He looked at their hands and saw both of them inside the blue flame. Remembering the same thing that happened when Gideon made his deal, Patrick's eyes grew wider in horror.

"Dipper…" Patrick said in a low, horrified voice as he stepped towards his cousin. "What did you do?"

"Patrick! I-I can explain!" Dipper tried to rationalize but was interrupted.

"Glad you can join us, Crowbar!" Billy gleefully cut him off as he let go of Dipper's hand. Patrick pulled out his crowbar weapon as the demon floated over to him. "You're just in time to see me pick out the puppet your cousin promised me! And there's just one puppet that I want."

His eyes suddenly turned an angry red."YOU!"

"Wha?" Patrick was cut off when Bill suddenly rushed at him, seemingly shove him violently back. Patrick screamed in absolute pain as the agonizing push rippled through his entire body. He could take a push, but this was something else entirely. Almost as if Bill was trying to punch through his body.

But when he opened his eyes, he felt himself becoming...lighter, and the suffering lessened.

"Patrick!" Dipper cried in absolute terror as he watched Patrick's body fall flat on his back. Looking to have been knocked unconscious. He rushed over to his cousin. "Patrick?! Are you okay?!"

Patrick reopened his eyes, and gasped in horror. Laying in front of him was his own body. "What the!?" He exclaimed and reached out for it, only to gasp in horror again. His arms and hands were transparent. All of him was transparent with a light glow surrounding him, with his legs almost non-existent. He put his hand through his chest and yelped when it passed harmlessly through him. "The hell is this!? What did you do to my body?!"

But Bill was nowhere to be found.

Suddenly, Patrick's hand grabbed onto Dipper's neck and choked him. Patrick looked in horror as his cousin tried to pull his arm off his neck. Helpless to do anything, Patrick watched his own body then stood up. Picking his cousin off the ground. His eyes opened, and to the increasing horror of both Dipper and Patrick, they saw they were glowing bright, almost yellow in color with long black slits.

The yellow cat-like eyes stared at Dipper, before his lips and gums pulled back into a horrifying, toothy grin. "Sorry, kid, but your cousin's MY puppet, now! AAHAHAHA!" Bill said through Patrick.

Dipper gasped in horror at what had just happened before Bill suddenly threw him towards the wall. Dipper cried out in pain when his back slammed against the wall. His eyes rolled over and closed as he fell to the ground, unconscious.

"Dipper!" Patrick exclaimed and floated over to his cousin. He tried to place his hands on him to see if he's okay, but his hands went right through him. "Oh my God, this can't be happening. This can't be happening!"

"Oh, Crowbar!" Bill got his attention. Looking back at Bill, Patrick gasped when he saw Bill holding the laptop over his head. The demon in his body threw the computer to the floor. Raising his foot, he stomped down on the laptop. Patrick felt his heart skink to his feet when he saw the machine get crushed into pieces.

"No!" He cried out.

He floated above Bill as the demon stumbled across the floor, arms swinging loosely. Nearly tripping over his new legs as he cackled. He moved towards the front of a mirror while a horrified Patrick turned his head to glare at him. The only physical changes were the eyes, but he was sure no one would notice. "Man, it has been so long since I've inhabited a body," Bill said, still grinning. He then slapped himself across the face. "Woo!" With his grin stretching even further, he slapped the other cheek. "Woo! Haha! Pain is hilarious! And two eyes?" He put his hand between his eyes and examined. Letting one blink after another. He then grabbed Patrick's eyelids and lips to pry them open to see inside of them. "This thing's deluxe!"

"What did you do to me, you son of a bitch!" Patrick exclaimed furiously, drawing Bill's attention away from the mirror.

"I just told your soul to take a hike because it's Bill's turn to have a go!" Bill exclaimed, getting a proper footing, and looked around his arms. Feeling his new skin. "What do you think? I was hoping to get these new digs last night, but I've still got what I wanted."

"Wait, you planned to take over my body? Why? And how were you able to do it?" Patrick asked, still glaring at the demon.

"Well, let's just say your cousin and I just struck up the deal of a lifetime!" Bill shouted, throwing his arms up like he was a showman.

"Why would Dipper ever make a deal with you?! What did you do to him?" Patrick demanded to know, pointing an accusing finger at Bill.

"Nothing, really. It was actually quite simple. Dipper was about to lose all his answers, so I just told him that if he gave me a puppet, I'd solve his little laptop problem for him." Bill nodded and pointed his thumb at the destroyed laptop on the ground.

Patrick looked from the computer to his cousin on the ground. He couldn't believe it. But at the same time, he could. He told him about Bill, and they knew the demon couldn't be trusted with anything. He was sure that Dipper was smarter than to just make a deal with Bill. However, Bill said he was about to lose all his answers. Meaning that they finally reached the limit for entering the correct password. That had to be the only explanation.

"It was the least I could do since that bitch of a Marra couldn't scare you enough to stop looking for answers. I decided that it was time to take matters into my own hands," Bill explained further. Patrick was confused when he mentioned the Marra, but then he remembered what she said that night.

"You see, someone, somewhere, out who-cares where, has big plans for the future that he's excited about. The only problem is you, losers. You found something that could put a wrench in that plan. Now, if it were up to me, I'd take it and break it. But my employer would rather take a different approach. All he wants from me is to make sure you stop looking for answers."

"It was you!" Patrick gasped at this revelation before his expression turned back to a look of rage. "You sent that Marra to haunt!"

"Ding! Ding! Ding! That's correct, Crowbar!" Bill exclaimed with a giant grin. His smile then twisted around into a frown. "Now, originally, I'd have possessed Pine Tree, but after watching your family, I've realized that you were the greatest threat to my plans. So I picked you," Bill explained.

"But why?" Patrick demanded with a hateful glare aimed at the demon, who simply smirked up at him with smug satisfaction. "Why the Marra? Why do all this to get to the laptop?! What could you possibly gain from destroying it?!"

Bill began talking more casually. "Let's just say that you've been getting way too close to figuring out some major answers lately. I've got big plans comin', and I don't need you getting in my way. Destroying that laptop was a cinch. Now I just need to destroy your journal."

"Journal #3? Patrick asked, confused. He shook his head and glared determinedly again. "You're not getting your hands on it, Bill! I'll stop you!"

"Ha! Try it, punk!" Bill gloated, amused by Patrick's futile heroics. "Without a vessel to possess, you're basically a ghost! Race ya to the bottom of the stairs!"

Bill straightened his body and, without another word, tipped back and allowed gravity to take him falling down the attic stairs. Headfirst while still grinning. Patrick gasped in alarm as he heard the demon thump loudly. The ghostly teenager decided to test out his ghost form and dove right through the floor, passing through it before stopping himself in the living room. Steadying himself in the air, he flew through the wall into the hall and went into the kitchen just in time to see Bill taking a can of Pitt cola from the fridge.

"Human soda! I'm gonna drink it like a person!" Bill exclaimed and cracked open the can. He poured it into his mouth, quickly overflowing it and spilling it on the floor. He then moved the can over his face, laughing at the pain he felt from the drink going into his eyes.

"Seriously, man?!" Patrick complained.

"So, where do you keep that journal anyway?" Bill walked over to the corner and opened a drawer. Shoving his hand into it, which was where all the utensils were kept, the cruel demon started brutally slamming the drawer on his arm repeatedly. "It's gotta be around here somewhere," said Bill, continuing with slamming the drawer on Patrick's arm while occasionally wincing from the pain. "Boy, these arms are durable."

"I don't know. Dipper usually keeps it with him, and he's hidden it!" Patrick said, floating over to Bill. The demon pulled his arm out, with forks sticking out of it.

Bill stroked his chin thoughtfully before snapping his fingers. "I've got it! Why don't we go ask him?" Bill grinned an evil grin at that suggestion.

"You keep your hands on him, or so help me, God!" Patrick growled.

"Hey, Patrick!" Mabel's cheery call cut through the tense conversation. The two turned to see Mabel sticking her head out from the doorway, looking really excited. "We're ready to go! So, don't tell Dipper this, but I'm borrowing the journal to use as a prop in the show. I hope you don't mind. I'm gonna go before you process this sentence, okay, BYE!" She waved bye and ran back outside.

Patrick and Bill looked at one another, with the demon's face splitting into a grin. "Sure, sounds great, cuz! I'll see you at the show! But I think Dipper's gonna stay here."

"Wait! No, Mabel, don't listen to him! That's not me!" Patrick protested, zooming out of the kitchen and after the demon. Flying through the front door, Patrick saw Mabel jumping into Stan's car, which had all the sets for the play. "Mabel, you're gotta listen to me!"

But Mabel didn't stop. She didn't even seem to hear him as she closed the door to the car. Patrick quickly flew in front of the car and tried to get them to stop. "No, no! Wait! Stop!" He yelled before the car started driving towards him. Patrick braced himself with the impact, but his body simply passed through it as well. When he came out the other side, he turned around and watched the car drive away.

"Heh! Welcome to the mindscape, kid!" Bill said to Patrick with a smug smile. "Like I said, you're a ghost to the real world."

"Oh, hey Patrick! There you are!" said a familiar handyman. The two looked back towards the Shack to see Wendy and Soos coming out the front door.

"What up, babe?" Wendy smirked as she walked up to her boyfriend.

Patrick and Bill exchanged glances again, before the demon smirked mischievously. Right as Wendy walked up to him and was about to give him a kiss, thinking he was the real Patrick, Bill suddenly grabbed her and started making out with her.

Floating off to the side, Patrick started in horror as he watched Bill kiss his soulmate. Sticking his tongue into her mouth and moving it around as Wendy kissed him back. At that moment, Patrick felt nothing but unimaginable rage. Not towards Wendy, but towards the demon that had taken his identity. Bill has not only hired the Marra to give him nightmares of his dead brother, but now he's tricked his cousin, abused and injured his body, threatened Dipper's life, but now he was kissing his GIRLFRIEND!

When they stopped kissing, there was a stream of saliva coming from both of their mouths. Wendy pulled away from his lips with wide eyes and a big blush on her face. "Wow! You're happy to see me!" She exclaimed with a big smile.

"Wendy! It's not me!" Patrick pleaded to his girlfriend and tried to push her away from Bill. Just like before with the walls, floor, and car, he couldn't touch his girlfriend. Just pass right through her. "Get away from my girl, you 2D cyclops!"

But despite his yelling, no one heard him. "We're heading to the theater," Soos asked Bill, who had his arm around Wendy. "Need a ride, Patrick?"

"Oho, anything for you, Red!" Bill said, opening the door to the truck for her. Wendy looked a little confused by the nickname, but figured it was Patrick's own nickname for her.

As he watched the three get into the car, Patrick's hands clenched into tight, furious fists as his despair was replaced with raw, unrestrained fury yet again. This time, it was worse. This demon has crossed far too many lines in the time that he's known Bill. Patrick may be helpless, but he wasn't going to let this continue.

"I'm gonna stop you, Bill!" Patrick lividly shouted as Bill sat next to Wendy in the back seat. "I'm gonna find that journal before you do, and I'm gonna stop you!"

"But how can you stop me?" Bill asked as Wendy leaned on his shoulder. He then slowly turned his head to face the invisible teenager. "If you don't exist?"

The psychotic demon started laughing maniacally as the window rolled up. Patrick stared at the window as it reflected his face. Showing his expression turning from a glare to a look of horror. Those cruel, taunting words hit harder for him when he tried to punch the window, but his hand passed right through it.

The car drove off, and Patrick was left staring after it. As much as he hated the idea of admitting it, Bill was right. What could he do? He couldn't be seen or heard, and Bill was in his body. Who knows what that sick, twisted fiend was doing with his body. More than ever, Patrick felt cold and lonely. He couldn't imagine a fate worse than this. Not even death. The thought of Bill taking over his life and ruining the lives of everyone else he loved and cared for angered him. And he still had the resolve to do something about it. But what? He didn't know. All he knew was that he had to try.

---

Meanwhile, in the attic, Dipper was starting to regain consciousness after being knocked out. As he sat up and rubbed the back of his head, Dipper started to remember what happened before everything went black. He gasped in terror when he remembered the deal he made, Patrick coming in and seeing him make the deal, and finally, Bill possessing his own cousin.

"Oh my God! Oh my God! What am I gonna do!" Dipper grabbed the sides of his head as he started to freak out. He looked around the room, and that's when his eyes landed on the smashed remains of the laptop.

"The laptop!" He rushed over to the laptop and picked it up. He was devastated. After a whole week of trying to unlock it, the thing he thought would be his saving grace, the one thing that would give him all he ever wanted, was destroyed. Dipper's despair turned to anger as he threw it back onto the ground.

"I can't believe it! Billy totally tricked me! How could I have been so stupid!" He yelled in anger as he paced around. Comprehending what had just happened. "Now the laptop's destroyed and Bill's in…."

Dipper gasped in horror. "Patrick!"

---

As the sun was starting to set over the horizon, Patrick continued searching for Bill. Flying from building to building for hours, he tried finding his body. It was taking hours, and he didn't know where his family and friend went off to.

Flying out of another building, Patrick stopped in the air and looked around. "Bill? Bill!" He called out for the demon. "I gotta get my body back before he does something crazy with it." Looking around the sheet, he noticed the theater sign.

Glove Story: A Sock Opera by Mabel Pines

"That's it!" Patrick exclaimed, remembering that Mabel was using the journal for the play and that Bill was going with them.

He quickly flew towards the theater and flew through the front door. Passing through the concession stand, snack bar, Patrick entered the main theater and was shocked to see that turnout. Mabel spread the word about her sock opera far and wide throughout town, and it looked as though everyone in Gravity Falls had come to see the play. Now they were at their seats, waiting for the play to start.

"I'll be right back. I've got to use the can," said the voice of Grandma Veronica. Turning towards the direction, Patrick saw his grandma getting up and walking towards the exit.

Though he couldn't be touched, Patrick moved out of the way as she passed by and left the theater. Turning back, Patrick floated towards the area where Veronica left and saw Bill. He was sitting between Wendy and Soos, with an arm around both of them.

"Hey Soos, wanna hear the exact time and date of your death?" Bill asked the lovable man-child.

"Heheh, okay!" Soos replied. Patrick floated behind Bill's seat.

As she watched him talk with Soos, Wendy looked at Patrick with a frown. She was sure she was looking at her boyfriend, but there was something off about him. She had started to pick up on some rather odd things about Patrick all the way back at the shack. When he went in to check on Dipper, he was the same caring guy she knew and loved. The first thing that tipped her off was the kiss. Sure, it was rough and wild, and it felt good, but there was no love or passion. After that, she started seeing other strange things about him. He was bizarrely cheerful and was making strange comments. Something about him felt...wrong. Like he wasn't Patrick at all.

"Aw, nothing like the theater, huh toots?" Bill reached down and grabbed Wendy's ass. She yelped and jumped off her seat when he gave it a tight squeeze. Standing up, she glared down at who she assumed to be Patrick. Her Patrick didn't act like this, and he wouldn't have done that!

"Alright, that's it! You and I are having a talk!" She grabbed his arm and pulled him off his seat.

"No, no, no, no!" Patrick yelled as Wendy pulled Bill towards the exit. He quickly followed them out of the theater and over to where the bathrooms were. Out of sight from the lobby

Wendy let go of Bill's arm and turned around to look at him with an upset frown, and crossed her arms. "Okay, dude, what's going on with you?" She questioned with a firm tone. Patrick floated over to them, watching from the side.

"What're you talking about, Red?" Bill asked with a nonchalant smirk and shrug.

"I mean, you're acting really weird," Wendy said, starting to dislike that nickname. "Ever since we left the shack, you've been acting out of character.

"I don't know what you mean," Bill said, before his smirk grew smugly. "Toots?"

For Patrick, it was hard to watch Bill use his body to treat Wendy like that. "That! That's right there! You've never called me that, and frankly, I don't like it. Especially when you grab my ass like that! Why are you acting like such a jerk!?" Wendy yelled, jabbing her finger into his chest angrily. She couldn't believe that Patrick was acting like this. Like so many of her bad boyfriends.

"Ah, why don't you chill out, Ice Bag?"

That gave Wendy a moment of pause. "Ice Bag?

Patrick looked at Wendy, wondering what she was thinking. Bill just continued to smirk at her.

Where had she heard that nickname before? Looking into her boyfriend's eyes, Wendy quickly noticed something different. His eyes weren't normal. They were like looking at the eyes of a snake. They weren't kind. They were malevolent. There was nothing good in them. Just pure evil.

As quick as a viper, Wendy grabbed Bill by the shoulders and slammed him into the wall. Bill grinned from the pain as Wendy glared at him with the fury of an amazon. "You're not Patrick!" She yelled. "Who are you, and what have you done with Patrick's body?!"

"Yes! Go, Wendy!" Patrick cheered, happy to see his girlfriend throwing Bill's act.

However, at that moment, Dipper came running into the theater building. When he heard Wendy's voice, he rushed over to the bathroom hall and gasped when he saw Wendy holding Bill against the wall.

"Wendy, get away from Bill!" Dipper exclaimed, gaining the attention of the two teenagers.

"Dipper!" Patrick exclaimed, happy to see his cousin was okay.

"Bill?" Wendy asked, shocked by this revelation. "You mean..."

"That triangle guy?" Bill suddenly brought his leg up and kicked Wendy away. Wendy slammed against the wall on the other side, crying out in pain.

"Wendy!" Patrick and Dipper shouted in alarm and rushed over to her. Patrick floated down and tried his best to hold her head. Dipper kneeled down on the other side and helped her stand up again. The three then turned towards Bill.

"Persistent as always, kid," Bill said with a smirk. Wiping off his shoulders with his hands.

"You son of a bitch!" Wendy proclaimed, raising her fists. "Get out of my boyfriend's body!"

Bill's grin faded into a frown as he narrowed his eyes. "So you think you can make me give up this body? Alright then…" Bill coyly pulled out the shotgun and aimed it at her. Making the three gasp.

"NO!" Patrick exclaimed fearfully, rushing forward in a sudden, absolute panic. Bill easily countered him by smoothly stepping out of the way. Unable to stop himself, Patrick phased through the wall behind the demon. Bill then stepped back to his original spot.

However, an idea popped into Bill's mind. An idea that made him grin a toothy, evil grin. "You can try and stop me," he said. Bill lowered the arm holding the gun, and aimed it up. "If you're quick enough…."

Then he proceeded to press the two barrels up against his chin.

A horrified gasp burst from her lips as Wendy froze up, her eyes huge with shock and distress as she watched the demon hold the shotgun to her boyfriend's head. The redhead covered her mouth as her green pupils dilated as small as they could, while her heart was beating like crazy. Wendy's fear and anxiety for Patrick's safety shot - no, rocketed through the atmosphere as she stared at Bill, holding a gun under Patrick's head. She couldn't move or speak. All she could do was glance between the trigger, the barrel pressing against Patrick's chin, and Bill's sadistic smile.

Dipper stared in shock too, while Bill simply laughed sadistically, seeing the brave girl and boy brought to a complete halt all because he threatened to shoot Patrick's head. Patrick phrased back into the hallway and gasped when he saw what Bill was doing.

"Please, don't," Wendy begged.

"Oh, but why not?" Bill asked with a playful sway of his head. "It's not like there are hundreds of other boys you could date."

"No…" Wendy, stepping forward, but Bill flicked the safety off, and the gun charged. She gasped in fear again and stepped back against the wall.

"The deal's off, Bill!" Dipper shouted, pointing at Bill with a glare. But he was still hesitant to stand up against the demon. "Get out of my cousin's body and leave us alone, now!"

"Aw, it's just so adorable that you think that's how this works, Pine Tree! But nah, I think I'm going to stick around in this meatsack for a while longer. Just until I get that journal of yours," Bill said with a smug grin, moving the gun away from his chin to point back at the two. "After that...It really depends on how I'm feeling."

"Dipper, what's going on?" Wendy asked, turning towards Dipper. The young boy flinched when seeing her scowl. "What deal?"

Patrick could only float near them and watch helplessly as Bill laughed. "That's right, Dipper. What deal did you make with good ol' uncle Bill?" He tauntingly asked, spreading out his arms.

"T-Tha...That doesn't matter now!" Dipper exclaimed, glaring at the demon.

Bill smirked and pointed the gun at Patrick's head again. "Oh, but I think it does."

"Dipper, just tell her," Patrick said, even though he knew his cousin couldn't hear them.

Seeing there was no other opinion, Dipper sighed sadly and confessed what he did. "I made a deal," Dipper said to the shock of Wendy. "I had run out of tries to crack the code to the laptop we found in a secret bunker. It was going to erase all of the data if I didn't give it the right password! When Bill came to me, he said he'd give me the code if I gave him something."

"And so you let him have Patrick's body!?" Wendy yelled in anger. "Why the fuck would you agree to that?!"

"I didn't! He said all he wanted was a puppet! I had no other choice!" Dipper tried to rationalize his decision. He stopped when Bill chuckled.

"And I did just want a puppet," Bill said with a smirk. Still holding the gun to Patrick's head. His voice became strangely soft and subdued for a change. "A deal's a deal, Pine Tree. I could have any puppet I wanted. And that means I can do whatever I want to my puppet."

He slowly started pulling the trigger.

"No...No, please, don't." A tight sob finally escaped Wendy at this. Tears filled her eyes at the thought of losing the one boy she loved. Dipper felt more helpless than ever. Even when robot Gideon almost dropped him from the bridge. For Patrick, he was going into a complete panic attack as he simply watched his own preoccupied body being controlled by a sadistic maniac. Threatening to kill himself in front of two people he cared for and loved.

"Patrick! Wendy!" Mabel suddenly called from the corner of the bathroom hallway. Bill quickly turned and hid the gun behind his back just as Mabel walked over to see them. "Hey, guys! You all made it! You too, Dipper!"

Patrick let out a sigh of relief.

"Are you kidding me? I would never miss it for the world," Bill said. He then looked out of the corner of his eyes to look at Wendy and Dipper. Both still had horrified looks in their eyes, with Wendy having tears running down her cheeks. Because the lobby's light didn't reach where they were standing, Mabel couldn't see their expression very well. "Isn't that right, guys?"

Seeing Bill jiggling the shotgun in his hand, Wendy quickly wiped her eyes and tried to force a smile on her face. "Y-Yeah! Of course," she said with a tense, shaking smile.

"Yeah, I...I would want to support my sister," Dipper said with a forced, anxious smile too.

"I'm happy to hear you say that, Dipper," Mabel said with her usual cheerful grin.

"By the way, Mabel, where'd you put Dipper's journal again? He's been missing it," Bill said, rolling his cat pupils around to look down at Dipper with a smirk.

"I used it as a prop for the big wedding scene!" Mabel told him, not noticing the strange behavior Patrick had shown all day. "I still need a reverend, though,"

"Hey, what if I play the reverend?" Bill suggested. Wendy and Dipper looked at him with wide eyes. "I mean, someone's gotta hold that journal, right?"

"Wait-" Wendy tried to object.

"Right! Let's go!" Mabel exclaimed and ran off, with Bill walking behind her calmly.

"No, Mabel!" Patrick called out to her, but she couldn't hear him and ran around the corner.

Bill stopped and looked back at Wendy, Dipper, and Patrick with a subdued smile. "Just remember, I wouldn't die," he said, before his smile turned and twisted into the evilest grin that Patrick's face could make. "But he will."

And with that, Bill walked off. Leaving the two kids and one spirit alone. Wendy's back leaned against the wall, and she slid down to the floor. "I almost lost him. I almost lost Patrick..." she whispered in horror as a slight sob escaped her throat. Seeing her curled up in a ball as she cried. Patrick floated down and tried to hug her but couldn't even touch her. It made him all the more miserable that he couldn't even tell her it was going to be okay.

"What are we gonna do? Bill's possessed Patrick and is going to destroy the journal," Dipper said, kneeling down next to her.

At that moment, Wendy's eyes light up with a sudden realization. Quickly rubbing her eyes, she got on her knees and said, "Wait, say that again!"

"What?"

"The part about Patrick being possessed. What if this is just like Summerween?" Wendy gasped before a big smile spread across her face. "We could do the same exorcism!"

"That's right!" Patrick exclaimed with a big smile.

Suddenly the door to the women's restroom and Veronica stepped out. "I'm afraid it's not going to be that simple," she said with a serious expression wiping her hands on her sweater.

"Graunt Veronica!" Dipper exclaimed, relieved to see her.

"Wait, what do you mean?" Wendy asked, standing up.

"I noticed the way his eyes were earlier and knew that it had to be some kind of demonic possession," Veronica said, cupping her chin with her hand in a thoughtful manner. "But it looks as though Patrick's soul has been pushed out of his body. Meaning he's the one soul in the body."

Dipper raised an eyebrow. "Wait, how do you…."

"I know everything, dear."

"Whoa," said Patrick, Dipper, and Wendy.

"Nay, I'm just yanking ya," Veronica chuckled. "I was on the can when I heard you guys."

"Ew…"

"That, and Patrick's right behind you two," Veronica said, pointing at the spirit of her grandson.

Patrick gasped when she pointed at him, while Wendy and Dipper quickly turned around. Wendy smiled at the thought of seeing Patrick and knowing he's okay. But to her disappointment, there was nothing there.

"Where?" She asked.

"I don't see him," Dipper said.

"Just because you can't see or hear something doesn't mean it doesn't exist," Veronica said, walking over to the ghostly teenager.

"Grandma? You can see me?" Patrick grinned, seeing a chance to be heard and seen finally. He had no clue as to how she saw him, but he didn't care.

"That's right, baby, I can see you. And I can also hear you." Veronica smiled as she looked at him.

"But how?" Dipper asked.

"Let's just say that I've had to meet spirits in my line of work. A lot of items in the museum have some kind of curse. So I've learned how to see the unseen and hear the unheard," she explained to the kids. But it was another lie. Her training with OPI and special contact lenses allowed her to see ghosts and specters. Seeing her grandson as a ghost when she went to the restroom told her everything that was going on.

"This is amazing! What do I have to do to talk to the others?" Patrick asked, wanting desperately to talk to them.

"Simple, you've got to find a puppet of your own," Veronica said with a serious tone. Turning to the others, she explained her plan. "Mabel should have them in the backroom. Wait for intermission and go find your sister. Bill might have Patrick's body, but he's not its original owner. Meaning we need to get the book and weaken this demon enough to perform the exorcism." She started walking off, much to the confusion of the others.

"What're you going?" Dipper asked.

"I'm going to get something that'll give Patrick a fighting chance against Bill," she said, walking towards the exit to get to her car. "Hopefully, I've still got in. But it'll take time to get ready. Now go!"

Wendy and Dipper exchanged nods and started running back to the theater, with Patrick following behind. Dipper and Wendy ran into the theater and got to their seats while Patrick flew towards the stage. Phasing through the curtain.

At the same time, Mabel peeks out from behind the curtain. She looked around the audience until her eyes spotted the boy of the hour. Gabe walked into the theater and took a seat in the middle of the audience, puppets still on both hands. This is it. This what all week has been leading up to. She was going to put on a fantastic play that will make Gabe fall in love with her. As far as she could see, nothing could go wrong, and she'd have a happy ending.

The lights started flickering. "The show is about to begin! Please turn off your cell phones! Unless you're texting me, cuties!" Grenda shouted over a megaphone backstage.

With that, the house lights dimmed, and the crowd applauded as the curtain opened. Revealing an elaborate, glittery, and colorful replica of the Mystery Shack. Colorful stage lights illuminated the stage as a light illuminated Candy, standing at a keyboard, dressed as David Bowie.

She began the opening narration while playing on the keyboard. "Gather round, and let us sing about a girl who had almost everything."

Candy was rolled off the stage as the show began. Mabel got to work, operating all of the sock puppets by herself. As the upbeat music started, she had a Dipper puppet on one hand pop out of a window. "Look, it's Mabel!" She sang in her best impression of her brother.

"Hi, there!" Puppet Mabel said brightly, jumping up with confetti flying.

"Did you say stable?" Puppet Soos asked, popping out of another window.

"No, he said Mabel!" Puppet Stan said, joining the others.

"She needs no labels!" Puppet Wendy said, coolly.

"Because no one's more able!" Puppet Patrick announced.

"Okay, hit it, boys!" Puppet Mabel exclaimed, as the song began in earnest. The puppets formed a line around her and started singing with her.

"Who's that girl with the pig and the braces? She puts smiles on everyone's faces! When she's around, you're never bored!"

A mayor-looking puppet pumped up, holding a small trophy. "I am a mayor, and here's an award!"

"Thank you, mayor," Mabel sang through her puppet warmly, having a fun time bringing her play to life. "It's true I'm great. But the perfect girl needs the perfect maaaate…."

"Hey, what's up? I'm Gabe," the puppet of the puppeteer revealed himself.

"Bwaaaa?!" Puppet Mabel gasped, as heart glasses were layered over her eyes.

"Oh my God." Patrick sighed exasperatedly. He was floating behind the background sets and peeking his head out. He was about to continue looking for the journal when he spotted Bill, dressed in vicarage clothing, walking up behind Grenda, who was standing backstage. Patrick quickly flew over to them, but stayed hidden from the demon.

"So, hey, Grendo!" He greeted the large girl. "Where's that book prop I'm using for the wedding scene?"

"It's up in the wedding cake," Grenda said, pointing up at a giant wooden cake that was hanging high above the stage in the rafters. "But that doesn't come down until Act 3. So hold your horses!

"Oh, I'll hold my horses," Bill said ominously as he backed away from her and went into the shadows. "I'll hold them... you monster."

As he walked off, Patrick floated past Grenda and looked around for puppets to use as a vessel. He was starting to give up hope when he saw a plentiful pile of sock puppets lying just to the side of the stage.

---

"Finally, we're together." Puppet Mabel proclaimed as she and Puppet Gabe embraced, building the romantic tension of the opera.

But then Gabe pulled away and spoke melodramatically. "I'm sorry, Mabel, but I have to go fight. In the war!" At this, a helmet lands on his head, with his body changing into a buff, muscular body with a gun. He yelled and ran off into a ravaged, flaming background. With a roar, a gigantic many-tentacled monster appeared. Lasers flash, fog rolls in, and gunshots are heard while Gabe went off to fight as Mabel watched.

"I'll wait for you, Gabe!" Gabe cried tearfully. "I'll wait for you!" With that, happy music played, and the curtain closed on the scene. The audience cheered before the lights turned back on.

"Our intermission has begun! Mill about!" Grenda announced over the intercom. The people in the audience proceeded to do just that. Most pleasantly surprised by the quality of the show. Mabel walked off the stage and headed for the dressing room.

Entering the room, Mabel looked tired after that last act. "Whew, okay, you can do this, Mabel," she said to herself, walking over to the water fountain and splashed some water on her face. "Only 36 more musical numbers."

A knock at her door brought her attention to the door. Opening it, she was pleasantly surprised to see Dipper and Wendy.

"Hey, guys! What're you doing here?" Mabel greeted them as they rushed into the room.

"Mabel, we need your help! Something bad happened, and we need your help!" Dipper said urgently.

"Really? What could be so bad after how great everything's going?" Mabel asked with a cheerful smile as she walked over to the fountain and started drinking from it.

At the same time, Puppet Patrick slowly rose up on her left side. "Pst, Mabel," Patrick said.

When everyone heard Patrick's voice coming from the puppet, they were outright shocked, to say the least. Especially when they saw that Puppet Patrick was hovering in midair. Dipper and Wendy gasped while Mabel spat out her water and screamed in fear at the sentient puppet. "Aah! It's come to life!" She screamed, getting behind Wendy's leg. "The puppet books didn't warn me about this!" Mabel grabbed a fork off the ground and threw it at Puppet Patrick, getting it stuck in his eye.

"Mabel, calm down. It's me, Patrick!" Patrick said, using the puppet to talk. "You need to help me!"

"Wait, what, Patrick?!" Mabel asked, taken aback with confusion.

"Patrick?" Wendy asked, stepping forward towards the floating sock puppet. "Is that really you in there?"

Patrick sighed in relief to finally be heard and talk to his girlfriend. "Hey, Wendy. It's good to talk to you again."

"Patrick!" Unable to hold back her joy, Wendy rushed forward and grabbed Puppet Patrick in a happy embrace. Shedding tears of joy and overwhelming relief as she let out small laughs. "You're okay! I was so worried about you! I didn't know where you were, or if you were still trapped inside your body with Bill."

"Augh! It's okay, Wendy," Patrick said as she clung to his tiny form. Pulling himself out of her arms, he floated up and cupped her cheeks with his tiny arms. "Wendy, I'm fine. I'm so sorry that Bill put you and Dipper through that." In his best attempt to kiss her, Patrick pressed his sock mouth to hers, making her giggle while still sobbing. "But I'm here now. And I'm not going anywhere."

"Uh, can someone tell me what the heck is going on here?!" Mabel interjected, still bewildered in the face of the couple's reunion. "Guys, what's all this about Bill and Patrick? Why are you... so much more of a sock than usual!"

"Mabel, you have to listen carefully," Dipper said. "Bill tricked me! He said he would help me with the laptop, so I made a deal with him. Instead, he stole Patrick's body, and now he's after the journal!"

"We have to find the journal before Bill destroys it," Wendy added. "It's the only hope to get Patrick back into his body!"

"B-But what about the show?" Mabel asked, torn between wanting to assist her family and completing her complex play. "My cue's coming up any minute!"

Patrick, Dipper, and Wendy were all about to argue against her reasoning, but before they could, there was a knock on the door. Gabe opened the door and entered with a flower bouquet in hand.

"Hey, Mabel, do you have a moment?" He asked.

"GABE!" Mabel gasped, hastily grabbing the Puppet Patrick floating beside her and tucked it behind her back, laughing nervously. Patrick tried to free his hand from her grip as Wendy and Dipper watched from behind.

With both of his puppets raised in the air, Gabe said, "Mabel, it's clear to me now that you really love puppets. I mean, you went the whole hog. And if you stick the ending, well...maybe later you could join me for a biscotti?"

Mabel gasped. "You drive a biscotti?" She asked in amazement.

"Mabel that…" Patrick tried to say, but sighed and gave up. "Nevermind." The lights flickered on and off, signaling that the second act was just about to begin.

"I'll be waiting," Gabe said, leaving the room.

After the door closed, Mabel let go of Puppet Patrick and twirled around to face the others. "Did you hear that?! He loves it!" She exclaimed with a big grin. More determined than ever to see this play completed. "This play has to be flawless."

"But what about stopping Bill?" Wendy asked, surprised that Mabel forgot all about her cousin. "What about Patrick?!"

"But, can't we wait until after the show?"

"NO!" The three shouted, startling Mabel.

"Mabel, are you fucking serious right now?!" Patrick exclaimed harshly with his little arms flailing around in frustration. "Do you want me to be a sock puppet forever!"

"But what about Gabe? I worked so hard for this play!" Mabel protested.

"That's what you're worried about?!" Dipper shouted, finally reaching a limit with his sister. "You're still obsessing over some guy when Bill is still controlling Patrick's body, and it's all your fault!?"

Mabel gasped with an offended look on her face as she yelled back at him. "My fault!? You're the one that made that deal with Bill! You're the one that caused Patrick to lose his body in the first place because you couldn't wait until after the play. It's your fault that Patrick lost his body!"

"Guys, stop it!" Patrick shouted, floating between them, but they paid no attention to him.

"Well, I wouldn't have made that deal if you had just helped us as you promised! But no. You just had to go and do this stupid play. All for a guy you'll be into for a week or two before getting bored of him and more onto someone else. We were supposed to be finding the mysteries of this town! Not this sock puppet show that doesn't matter!"

"It matters to me, Dipper! Why can't you understand that?!"

"STOP TALKING!" Wendy suddenly screamed, catching everyone off guard. They stared at her with wide eyes. "It's both your faults! Mabel, I much as I love your craziness, Dipper is right! You're talking about completely abandoning your cousin for some boy you have a crush on?" Mabel flinched as Wendy made her point.

"Yeah!" Dipper added before Wendy turned her wrath onto him.

"Oh, you're just as guilty, Dipper," Wendy said, pointing at him. "You could have waited for Mabel to be done with her play. It was only going to take a few days. But no. You just had to get the answers. And in the end, it was you who made that deal with Bill! It's because of your impatience that Bill has Patrick's body and is going to take the journal for whatever evil plan he has. We have to stop him."

Mabel and Dipper flinched and glanced at one another, knowing she was right. They both wanted what they desired so badly that it led to this. And Patrick was just the unwanted victim of their actions. Now they had to fix it.

"Alright…" Mabel said, taking in a deep breath of newfound determination. "But I'll need someone to take over for me until I get back with the book."

"Wendy and I will take care of the play," Patrick said. "You two get up there and get that book."

---

Patrick and Wendy made it on stage, script in their hands. He played Puppet Gabe, and Wendy played Puppet Mabel. "Looks like the next scene is a...kissing scene?" Patrick said, looking at the script with a raised eyebrow as he and Wendy got into position. Kneeling together on the floor and waiting for the play to start again.

"Too bad we can't make the scene more believable. I miss your lips on mine," Wendy whispered back with a seductive tone, making Patrick blush.

"Didn't you kiss me before coming to the theater," Patrick asked.

"No, it was when you went inside to check on Dipper," Wendy corrected.

"But what about when…."

"That wasn't you, Patrick. That was Bill," Wendy said with a look of shame. She averted her eyes as Patrick looked at her worriedly.

"Wendy, what's wrong?" Patrick asked.

"I kissed Bill, Patrick!" Wendy whispered. "I know now it wasn't you, but...I feel like I cheated on you."

Patrick's eyes widened. "No! No, Wendy, you didn't cheat on me!"

"Yes, I did!"

Patrick moved close to Wendy and tried to kiss her. Moving just enough to kiss her on the lips while holding her left cheek with his puppet hand. Wendy's eyes widened as she felt his cold lips on her, like a cloud. Wendy pretended to kiss him back and held puppet Gabe to her cheek. Pretending that she was feeling Patrick's hand. "Wendy, it's okay," Patrick said, holding up Puppet Patrick to talk to her. "You did nothing wrong. I know you, and I know you'd never cheat on me."

Wendy stared at the puppet before chuckling again from his silliness. "I love you, Patrick."

"And I love you."

A moment later, the curtains opened, and the audience clapped. Nodding to one another, Patrick and Wendy got to work. Doing their best with the messy script, even if most of the lines were either awkward or halfhearted at best.

"Gabe! You're back from the war!" Puppet Mabel cried happily as Puppet Gabe popped up. Now in a wheelchair from fighting in the war.

"Yes, I am!" Puppet Gabe proclaimed. "Wanna kiss and sing at the same time?"

"Okay!" The couple started making kissing sounds as they made the puppets kiss each other.

Patrick sighed in annoyance. "Seriously?" He whispered, as Wendy giggled.

The audience applauded over the tender romantic moment, not noticing that the twins were climbing up to the catwalk above the stage. Dipper and Mabel ran over to where the giant cake was hanging. They were both relieved to see the journal sitting inside. Right where she left it.

"Yes! It's still there!" Mabel exclaimed.

"Let's hurry up and grab it while we still can." Dipper urged. The two climbed over the edge and stood on the edge before reaching out for the journal. Unfortunately for them, the cake was too far out of their reach, even as they stretched as far as they could.

However, the railing wasn't made to handle the two kids' weight and snapped clean in half. Dipper and Mabel fell into the cake, causing the rope tied to the railing to come undone, and the cake plummeted down towards the stage. The twins screamed fearfully, but just before they hit the stage, the cake miraculously stopped its descent. And then it started to be pulled back up towards the rafters. Much to the shared relief of the twins.

"Oh man, that was a close one," sighed Dipper, catching his breath from the harrowing experience.

"Yeah," Mabel remarked, grabbing the journal and began flipping through the pages. "Come on, come on now, where's the page for the exorcism?"

"I don't know. I rarely ever go to that page!" Dipper exclaimed.

"Oho, but why would you want to do that?"

A cold chill went up to their spines when they heard the demon's voice. They gasped as they glanced up to see that it was Bill pulling the cake up. The theater lights shining behind his inhumanly grinning face, giving him an even more sinister appearance. He grinned happily, but his yellow, slitted eyes were filled with unimaginable malicious intent that struck fear into the kids' hearts.

"Bill Patrick!" Mabel exclaimed, before glaring up at the demon currently wearing her cousin's skin. "Bilrick!"

"Shh!" Bill hushed her, still smirking manically. "You wouldn't want to ruin the show…" He pointed over his shoulder to the crowd below, who were completely unaware of what was going on above the stage. More specifically, Bill was pointing at Gabe, who was still happily watching the puppet show.

"It's over, Bill! We've got the journal!" Dipper exclaimed brazenly. "We're going to exercise you out of Patrick's body."

"Right, sure. And how are you going to do that? With the same exorcism that only works with someone wearing a flowing garment? And the last I checked, none of you do," Bill said, further amused with making their plan fall apart and Dipper losing confidence. "There's only one way I'm getting out of this body. Either after destroying that book or destroying your dear cousin's body. I think this height will do the job."

"None of those things are going to happen!" Mabel protested, beyond livid that the demon would make such a horrific threat against her cousin.

"You sure about that, Shooting Star? Whoops!" Bill suddenly released his grip on the rope. The cake fell briefly before catching it once much. "It's slipping! How about you hand that book over?"

"No way! This is Dipper's! I'd never give it away!" Mabel harshly refused, holding the journal closer as Dipper helped cover it.

"Hmm, you didn't seem to have a problem taking the book for your own play or ditching your brother and cousin when they needed you," Bill said knowingly, glancing at Dipper too. "As a matter of fact, you two didn't seem to have a problem taking advantage of your cousin's kindness most of the time. So come to your senses. Give me the book, or your play is ruined."

"No way, Bill!" Dipper staunchly refused. "You're never getting your hands on this journal! Right, Mabel?" But when she didn't answer, he looked at her. "Mabel?"

Mabel was silent as her mind was conflicted. She glanced down at the journal in her hands before looking down at the audience below. Or, more specifically, at Gabe. She had put so much time and effort into making sure everything about her puppet show was as perfect as possible. All so she could impress him. Mabel had poured her heart and soul into this play. How could she possibly stand by and watch it all go to waste?

With a heavy heart, she slowly held out the journal to Bill.

"Mabel, are you serious right now!" Dipper gasped, appalled by her decision, and tried to grab it from her. But Mabel pushed him back. "You can't give him the journal!"

"You have only yourself to blame, Pine Tree," Bill said, grinning as he grabbed onto the other end of the journal. "There it is. I mean, who would sacrifice everything they've worked for just for their dumb family?"

At that moment, Mabel gasped softly. Her eyes widened as she froze, and a heavy wave of realization slammed into her. That's right, who would sacrifice everything they wanted, everything they dreamed of, just for the sake of assisting and appeasing the whims of their family? Who would have been there to protect her and her twin against whatever evil they stood against? Who's heart was so big, he'd help out anyone that asked for assistance? No matter what it was. Who would have wanted to cheer her up, despite he himself was suffering inside? Who would have sacrificed his job for her to help a boy, who she had a crush on, return to his home? Who gave up his chance to be with the girl he loved all so she could have a pet pig, even though he knew it would hurt him to see Wendy in the arms of a total jerk? Who would have stayed up for many days and nights to help his cousins? Disregarding his own sleep. Who thought so rarely of himself and so often of others, to the point that he was willing to die for his family and loved ones? To go to hell and back for his family?

All these questions held the exact same answer. Mabel knew the answer beyond a shadow of a doubt.

"Patrick would," Mabel finally answered boldly.

"Huh?" Without warning, Mabel yanked back hard, pulling him into the cake. The sudden action caught him by surprise, and he let go of the rope holding the cake. Causing the large prop with all three of them falling to the stage.

At the same time, the play had reached the wedding scene. Patrick was playing as both Puppet Gabe and Puppet Stan, with Puppet Mabel now wearing a dress. "I'm giving you away. You are a woman now. Waddles, the rings!" Patrick said in his best Stan voice. Right on cue, Waddles walked over with a squeal, holding two rings in his jaws.

"Nice Stan voice," Wendy praised.

"Thanks." Patrick smiled. However, before they could go any further into the script, the two heard something above their heads. "Wait, what?" Patrick looked up to see the falling cake coming towards them. "Oh shit. Wendy, run!"

"Huh?" Wendy looked up and freaked out when she saw the cake. "Oh God!" She yelled, jumping out of the way, with Waddles running away, just in time to escape the cake crashing to the floor. Destroying the wedding scene and setting off the laser lights and fog machine around them.

Dipper, Mabel, and Bill tumbled out of the cake. Dipper laid on the ground in pain, while Mabel jumped on Bill's chest and grabbed the journal. "Get out of my cousin's body, you evil triangle!" Mabel yelled, struggling to take the book back from Bill, surprising the audience and making them question what was going on.

Seeing that his new body was still stronger than the younger girl's, Bill grinned maniacally as he punched Mabel in the face. It held nothing back, and Mabel was dazed by it. Nearly losing consciousness before Bill kicked her off him. Mabel landed neck to Dipper, who was getting up from the fall. When he saw his sister, he turned to Bill and rushed towards him. Bill got up as Dipper tried punching him multiple times, but the demon blocked them all.

"Whoa! Children fighting!" Stan exclaimed down in the audience, pulling out his camera, and started recording, "I can sell this."

Kicking open the door to the theater, Veronica rushed in wearing her pink nightgown with a duffle bag over her shoulder. Looking towards the stage, she saw the fighting. "I gotta hurry!" She said, running as fast as her legs could carry her for her age.

Dipper tried punching Bill again but was blocked. Bill then kneed her in the face. Dipper stumbled back. Seeing this, Wendy growled and ran over to Bill.

"Get out of my boyfriend's body!" She ordered, taking a swing at Bill. Landing a hit to the face. Bill cried out in pain, but when she tried to punch him again, he thrusted a palm into her chest. Knocking her back before Wendy recovered. Bill came at her with a barrage of punches, which she barely blocked, before one sent her to the ground.

Mabel ran at him and went for a few jabs, which Bill easily blocked, before hitting her with a powerful punch to her back, which sent her onto the ground.

As he watched his cousins and girlfriend fight against Bill, Patrick growled in frustration. "I've gotta be in there!"

"Then what're you waiting for, sweetie?" Hearing his grandma's voice, Patrick turned and saw her behind the curtains. Panting from the running she had to do, she tossed the duffle bag onto the ground and unzipped it. Revealing a wooden hand inside. "You're gonna need this."

Dipper and Mabel joined together to fight Bill. They attacked with punches and kicks that the demon blocked. Their attempts were futile, with Bill kicking them all back. Wendy, being the only one that could stand up against him, jumped into the fray. Both opponents were evenly matched, with Wendy landing several punches and kicks. However, Bill was able to get the upper hand when he grabbed her fist. With a grin, he pulled her towards him and knocked her back again.

Wendy slid on the wooden floor until her body joined Dipper and Mabel. All three of them were bruised from fighting Bill in their cousin's body. With his back facing the crowd, the demon approached them. Glaring at the three with livid hatred. His body was the most bruised up after the fall and fighting the Corduroy girl.

"That's it!" Bill yelled, as he pulled out the laser shotgun and pointed at them. "I'm through playing around! Say goodby to your journal and your COUSIN!" He grinned maniacally as he raised the journal up to the left side of the head and pressed the gun to the right side. Ensuring that the shot destroyed Patrick's head and the journal.

"NO!" Wendy screamed.

The shotgun fired, but the shout fired up towards the ceiling. The audience gasped in total shock, with Gabe looking even more so. The same could be said for Wendy, Mabel, and Dipper. However, they also felt a sense of overwhelming relief. Bill looked to his left and gasped at what had ruined his bad finale.

Holding the laser shotgun and had forced it to shoot up was a human-size wooden marionette puppet of a jester.

"What?!" Bill shouted before the marionette punched him in the face. Knocking him back and making him release his grip on the shotgun. The marionette dropped the gun and kicked it back to Veronica, who stopped it with her foot.

The marionette approached Bill, who wiped the blood from his mouth.

"For the last time, Bill," Patrick's voice said from the marionette's moving mouth. "Give me back my body!"

Patrick punched the bewildered Bill across the face before spinning around and kicking him in the head. Knocking Bill to the ground and making him drop the journal. Patrick rushed over and picked up the book, but Bill grabbed his leg, tripping the marionette over.

"Dipper, get this to grandma!" Patrick ordered, throwing the book to him before Bill could get it back. Dipper caught the journal and rushed towards Veronica.

"Oh no, you don't!" Bill got up and was about to run after him when Patrick grabbed him in a chokehold. Bill tried to fight him off by jabbing his elbows on him but only hurt himself hitting the wooden puppet. When Dipper got the book to Veronica, Patrick released his hold on the demon.

Bill stumbled a bit, trying to catch his breath as the grandmother walked onto the stage. The demon glared at the agent, not willing to go down so easily. "You can't stop me! I'm a being of pure energy with no weakness!" Bill boasted angrily before lunging at her.

Veronica smirked before roundhouse kicked Bill away. The demon cried out in shock and pain from the powerful kick the grandma gave him. Sending him on the ground again. "True, but you're in my grandson's body now, Bill," Veronica pointed out, a confident smirk as she walked over to him. "Not only can you feel pain, but now you have all his weaknesses!"

"Whaddya mean his-" Bill was cut off when Veronica suddenly kneeled down and started tickling him in the side. Causing him to stop and go into fits of laughter. She stopped and threw the journal to Patrick, who caught it. Bill remained on the floor, unable to control his own host body as he cried out in alarm. "Aah! Body spasms! What are these?"

"A fatal flaw in your plan was trying to take over my body when I haven't slept for 24 hours!" Patrick informed the demon, with the journal still in hand. "Meaning you're not my full potential and strength."

Bill rushed towards him, but Patrick used the book as a bat and whacked Bill across the face. Bill twirled around, the world around him becoming dizzy and unfocused in his vision. He tried to regain control, but his face was starting to droop from exhaustion. The pain he reviled in was becoming unbearable, and it felt so awful to be inside Patrick's body.

"Now!" Veronica yelled. Mabel and Dipper ran towards Bill's legs and grabbed onto them. Before the demon could think of countering this, Wendy and Patrick charged and together double punched the demon's face and knocked him to the ground.

With Bill on his back, Dipper and Mabel quickly jumped on his legs and pinned them down. Marionette Patrick and Wendy got on both sides of Bill and pinned his arms down, trapping the exhausted demon. Patrick tossed the journal back to his grandmother, and she caught it with ease.

"Don't think you've won, age-" Veronica cut off Bill.

"Shut up and get out of my grandbaby's body," Veronica said, glaring at the demon that had tormented her family. She then opened the journal to the correct page - her page. "Hullabaloo, howdy doo! Musty prawns and timbuktu! Yeltzy bye, hippity hoo! Kick 'em in the dishpan! Hoo-hoo-hoo!"

Bill screamed in agony as brilliant bright light came from Patrick's eyes and mouths. Bill was ripped from Patrick's body and shot back into the mindscape. "Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa whoa.. hey!" The demon shouted in protest, unable to stop the force that had catapulted him.

Patrick, Wendy, the twins, and Veronica looked at the body cautiously. With his wooden fingers, Patrick reached his left eye and peeled open his own eyelids.

To their relief, they were back to normal.

"Yes, we did it!" Patrick cheered, throwing his marionette arms up in joy as the others stood up, getting off his body. "I got my body back!"

Dipper moaned in disgust. "Are you sure you still want it?" He asked, seeing it was now bruised and bloodied from the fight and the fall, with flies buzzing around it.

Swatting the flies away, Patrick picked up the body. Its arms and head hung limp. "I promise I'll take better care of you," he said sweetly.

Before any of the others could say anything else, an echoing cackle filled the theater. Turning their heads in the direction it was coming from, they saw Puppet Patrick crawling towards them on a box. "This isn't the last you'll hear of me! Big things are coming! You can't stop me!" Bill shouted fiercely, waving one of the puppet's arms around.

Mable glanced at Gabe, who was sitting in the front row. "I'm sorry, Gabe…" she muttered remorsefully before pulling out a c4 detonator that Veronica let her borrow with a label that said "Big Finish" button. She closed her eyes and pulled the trigger.

Bill was about to continue monologuing when he noticed that he was on top of a box inside a bigger box filled with a large pile of pyrotechnics and explosives. The moment Mabel pulled the trigger, everything went off in a large explosion, with fireworks shooting out of it and into the air above the audience. One of them landed in a box of puppets. Blowing them up in a glorious fireball. Puppet Grunkle Stan soared through the air in an arc in the chaos, aflame with an eyeball flying off. Amid the fiery puppets, cotton, yarn, and googly eyes falling all around him, Gabe watched in mournful shock. For some odd reason, "Ave Maria '' could be heard mournfully playing when that happened. The rest of the fireworks went off before one final cacophonous explosion rocked the whole theater. Ironically, Puppet Patrick landed on the stage in front of Patrick, who gleefully stomps on it.

As the smoke cleared from the smoldering set and some of the scaffolding crashed to the floor, the Pines on stage and Wendy turned towards the audience. There was an awkward moment of silence as everyone stared at them.

"Don't worry," Mabel said confidently. "I've seen enough movies to know this is the part where the audience thinks it was all part of the show and loves it. Cue applause!"

The audience stared at her incredulously before getting up and started to boo at the kids from almost dying from the fireworks show. They get up and leave the theater, grumbling angrily.

"Yeah, maybe you shouldn't have said that," Wendy committed.

"Hmph, well, I thought it was the perfect way to end the show," Veronica said with a frown before raising her finger matter-of-factly."In my day, you couldn't go to a puppet show without also getting killed."

One of the last people in the audience was Gabe, who stood up, frowning a cold, disapproving glare.

"Gabe! Stick around for the wrap party? We've got mini-quiches!" Mabel said nervously. Still having hopes of salvaging this somehow.

"Don't speak to me, Mabel. You've made a mockery of my art form," the puppeteer said harshly.

Seeing Mabel's smile fall into a devastating look really upset Patrick. If he could, he'd be glaring at Gabe when he turned towards him. "Hey, asshole!" Patrick yelled at Gabe. "The only reason she did all of this was just to impress you!"

Gabe scoffed and rolled his eyes. "Please. As if I'd ever date a girl that mixes sock puppets with marionettes. Besides, she wasn't even my type," Gabe replied like a total jerk. He then looked at his puppets. "Let's go, my loves." He turned on his heel and started walking away, affectionately kissing the puppets. Leaving all four kids and the old woman equally disturbed.

"Did...Did he just make out with his puppets?" Dipper asked in total bewilderment.

"I might've dodged a bullet there." Mabel agreed, equally disturbed.

"Definitely," Veronica and Wendy said simultaneously. Having had their share of bad boyfriends in the past, they most definitely spoke from experience.

"Gaeibeu'i jamkkan! Kaendi na ajikdo neol saranghae!" Candy suddenly ran past them, shouting for Gabe in Korean, still clearly holding affections for him. With Mabel out of was way, he was all her!

Subtitled: "Wait, Gabe! Candy still loves you!"

Veronica turned to her grandson, who was still in the marionette costume. "Well, what're you waiting for, kid?" She smirked and pointed to his body. "Get in there!"

Patrick turned around to face his battered and bloodied body. Exiting his marionette, the teenager's spirit dived into his body. When he entered it, radiant white light shot out in beautiful rays. The others, including Stan and Soos, gathered around to stare at the awesome sight.

"Glorious," Soos said, shedding a tear from his sparkling eyes.

After a moment, the white light stops. Patrick's eyes rolled forward in his head before he blinked in recognition. He was back in his body once again.

"Patrick?" Wendy leaned over him and placed a hand on his belly. "How do you feel?"

…

…

…

…

…

…

…

…

…

...

"AAAAUUUUUGGGGGHHHHH!"

---

"Hey, guys, I'm really sorry about what happened to the laptop and play," Patrick said, lying on his bed with multiple bandages on his body, all of them from all the times Bill abused his body and from the fight. To say he was in a lot of pain when he got into his body was an understatement. In the room with him were the twins, Wendy, and Veronica. "I know how important they were."

"Patrick, you don't have anything to be sorry about," Dipper said, glancing at Mabel. Seeing him like this just made the guilty they carried unable to be ignored. All week, they've taken their cousin for granted when all he ever wanted to do was help them. For the second time this summer, Patrick's body was taken over by a demon. And once again, his body was broken and battered.

"He's right, Patrick," Mabel said with a sad smile.

"But both of those things meant so much to you," Patrick said.

"You're right, but compared to you, they don't."

"Patrick, I'm so sorry," Dipper said with a guilt-filled sigh as he rubbed his arm. "This whole mess was my fault. I was so obsessed over that dumb laptop that I made that stupid deal. In the end, I got your body possessed by an evil demon, again."

"And I'm sorry too, Patrick." Mabel walked up and placed a hand on her cousin's hand. Tears leaked from her eyes as she wiped them away. "I have been so blind, selfish, and stupid that I spent all week obsessing over a dumb guy. We forced you to give up all your time helping both of us. Taking you for granted when you helped us out and asking for nothing in return. And that makes you the only dumb guy I should have been caring about."

Patrick looked at his cousins with wide eyes before smiling. Touched by their words. "Just promise me that you two wouldn't fight anymore," he said.

Meanwhile, Veronica was examining the remains of the laptop. Secretly, she was trying to find a way to salvage whatever data was on it, but the motherboard was completely crushed. Nothing could have been saved. With a sigh, she turned back to the others. "Well, this thing is busted," she said, walking over to join them around the bed.

"I don't get why Bill wanted to destroy it," Soos said.

"Bill said that we were getting too close to uncovering something big that would ruin his plans," Patrick said with a serious scowl. "There was something on that laptop he didn't want us to see."

"What do you think it was?" Wendy asked, sitting on the bed with her boyfriend and stroking his head.

"Whatever it was, he was willing to go to extreme lengths to make sure we don't ruin it," Dipper said, pacing around the room before coming to a stop. He pulled out the journal and looked at it. "Right now, we're all the way back to square one finding the author."

"And without the laptop, we lost all leads of finding him," Patrick said, looking up at the ceiling with a tired look.

"Well, I think we'll have to worry about that later. But right now," Veronica said, placing the laptop on the couch. "I think it's time Patrick gets a good night's rest."

"Thank's, grandma," Patrick said, yawning. She and almost everyone walked out of the room. The only one that stayed behind was Wendy. Getting off the bed, she turned around and leaned down. Patrick laid there as she reached down and crashed her lips against his in a passionate kiss.

Patrick moaned in her mouth, using his unbandaged arm to place it on the back of her head, returning and deepening the kiss as they wrestled tongues. They continued for a minute before Wendy pulled away and both gasped for air as a long string of saliva connected them before breaking.

"Yeah, you're definitely my Patrick," she said with a loving smile. Wendy then lifted the covers and crawled into bed with Patrick.

"What are you doing?" Patrick asked, laying on his back as Wendy took off her hat

"I told dad I was staying at a friend's house," she said, sitting up to take off her boots and flannel shirt, leaving her in just her pants and white shirt. Wendy blushed as she snuggled up next to her boyfriend. "Plus...I wanted to make sure you actually went to sleep."

Patrick smirked teasingly. "You know if you wanted to sleep in the same bed, you just had to tell me," he said, making Wendy pout.

"You're so lucky you're hurt, and I love you, or else I would have hit you," she said before yawning. Lying her head down on the pillow, she closed her eyes and went to sleep.

Patrick smiled at his girlfriend before yawning and closed his eyes. The nightmare was finally over. Yes, he was concerned about what Bill's big plan was for the future, but right now, all Patrick could do is let sleep take him.

---

AN: After 4 years of hard work, with this last semester being the most difficult, I've finally graduated college, and I couldn't feel better. This is the first chapter that I've completed since then, having started weeks earlier. And I've got to say; it's most definitely the longest and most difficult chapter I've done for this story so far. I knew the ideas I wanted to do for the chapter. It was the execution of making those ideas into the story that was the most difficult. And it was also because it was one of the important episodes of Gravity Falls, so there was no room for error.

Patrick was most definitely stuck between a rock and a hard place when it came to his cousins. He wanted to support Mabel's search for love, but he also wanted to help Dipper find the answers they've been so desperate to find.

One of the parts about "Sock Opera" that stood out to me was that it displayed just how obsessed Dipper and Mabel could be. Sure, people will say that Mabel was the worse of the two, but Dipper wasn't exactly an angel either. After all, it was his obsession with finding answers that caused everything to happen. The laptop wasn't going anywhere. He could have waited until after the play to have his sister's full attention. It was his obsession and impatience that made him run out of attempts to unlock the laptop.

I know that it seems like I'm bashing Dipper, but we have to remember that he is not perfect and can be selfish and obsessive like Mabel.

The biggest change is most definitely Bill possessing Patrick's body. This is something I can see him doing. Patrick is the strongest of the Pine kids and poses a bigger threat than Dipper. And we also see him at his most cruel and evil.

Alongside more romantic moments with Patrick and Wendy, we're also treated to more Veronica. I've wanted to give her a bigger role in the story, and with the machine turning on, she'll be around the shack more and more. Also, I think that for her voice, she'll have the voice of Alice Green from the cartoon Big City Greens.

And before we end things, in case you haven't seen it, I've just posted a one-shot lemon/smut story called "A Passionate Night with A Loving Mother." Set in the "Weirder Things" universe as a kind of sequel/spinoff, it's a crossover between Gravity Falls and Hilda. It follows Thomas Pines, the son of Patrick and Wendy, and how he and Hilda's mother, Johanna, became a couple after a very romantic night. So if you want, go check it out.

Speaking of which, I've also just wanted to tell you all about something I think you'd all like. A friend and fellow fanfic writer, francisthewitcher has agreed to commission a lemon/smut one-shot story featuring our favorite couple, Patrick and Wendy. So, stay toon for that.

Thank you very much for reading. "Weirder Things" will return. Please be sure to Favorite and Follow if you like the story and review it so that I know that I'm doing good and what to improve. If you have any questions or discussions, you'd have for me, then please in a Review or a PM me.

Thank you for reading. May God bless you, and have a wonderful day.