It was over...

The mere shock of that realization took an agonizing five minutes to set in. They sat there, in the worst of the field singed and spotted with blood, just breathing, lying down, resting their eyes. Greg lazily wiped the blood from his face to wipe it into the grass. All of a sudden, Gideon burst into a fit of giggles. The others looked at him as though he were insane, except for Greg who smiled knowingly and kept his eyes shut.

"Bill's gone, for good," Gideon started crying, his laughter turning into fits of wild sobs, using his arm to cover his eyes as he kept choking on his tears. "I'm finally free."

Norman reached out a hand and touched his shoulder, not saying anything, but the gentle squeeze he gave the other teen's shoulder offered plenty of reassurance. Norman would never be free of his "ghosts", but he was glad for it, it felt so integral to his sense of self he would honestly be lost without it. He could only imagine the relief for Gideon though, as well as the twins, a permanent sepulcher in their minds for this beast could be closed off for good.

Coraline and Wybie, laid shoulder to shoulder, reserved themselves to their quiet thoughts. They both had the same idea to return immediately to Wybie's grandmother and tell her the good news. They were happy to be safe again. They couldn't flee the memory of this one, not this time, but at least they had every assurance it was not ever going to be a problem again. The crystal ball in Coraline's pocket felt like lead every time her thoughts turned to it. Wybie's face stung and his knuckles bled, he wondered if it would scar.

Mabel and Dipper looked at each other like they were strangers- as if only meeting for the first time. Bill...Xolotl, Tezzy, Quetz, the archaic god- the mother... the lot of them were gone, for good it seemed. A relief, one they never really expected to get. Could this be peace? Normalcy? The start of a new chapter in their lives, safe from immediate and life-threatening danger? Maybe, maybe not, but it was a start.

After a few moments of peace, Greg was the first to stand, a little wobbly and blood half-dried in spots on his face, his voice was back to that of a little boy's, his own voice, "We should probably tell Wirt."

Norman exhaled a sigh that nearly spelled out Wirt is going to mount my head on the wall for this, to which he nodded, using his own knee to hoist himself to his feet. He wanted this conversation done over the phone- it was less likely to lead to further injury that way. Norman did not have to say this wish aloud, because Greg threw a look over his shoulder that said he knew Wirt's future reaction well enough.

"I'll call him in a few minutes. I'll warm him up for you, Normie," Greg assured, smiling cheekily.

Now that was the cousin he knew. Norman smiled in a wobbly sort of way, he was lucky he didn't lose Greg (or Wirt, for that matter). He was extremely lucky they all made it out relatively unscathed. Now, all that was left was to see about Wendy. For his cousins' sake, for Dipper's sake too, he hoped Wendy was only just a little hurt. He followed behind Greg as he made his way towards the inn.

Coraline stood first, not really looking at anyone, before announcing flatly, "Wybie and I are going home. We'll keep in touch. I never got to properly settle in before all of this- I need-"

"Say no more," Mabel smiled weakly, bordering on a frown, "We'll see you around."

Coraline went off on her own to the inn, obviously with the intention of retrieving their things. Wybie stood slower, stretching muscles that were probably ill-used before the fight. Wybie was far from the ideal candidate for athleticism. Wybie stretched, grunting in pain as the twins sat up to look at him. His gangly, slouched form looked a little wispy, worn from the fight he couldn't even remember. Only knowing the stinging in his face, muscles, and hands the only parting memory of what happened within the fray. His eyes looked a little dull, his voice was raspy as he cleared it before speaking.

"She's not mad," Wybie explained, shifting his weight from foot to foot. Clearly, he was not used to speaking on Coraline's behalf, perhaps she did more of that for the both of them. His hands held small gestures as he spoke, contained almost entirely to the hands and wrists which showcased his busted knuckles. "She bottles things up, you know? This has been a lot for her. With everything going on before this, she has some things she needs to sort through... in herself, you know... Anyway, it was great meeting you, although admittedly the circumstances could have been better. We will be in touch, before summer's end, we just... need our space, okay?"

"Understandable," Dipper answered. He felt a comradery with them from the shared experience, but he did not share the look of quiet betrayal that his sister had.

"Just, don't forget about us," Mabel whispered. She spoke in plural, but really she only worried about only she, herself, being forgotten.

"Of course not," Wybie smiled, bending down to the ground to hug the two of them around the shoulders, "Like I said, we'll be around. We live in Gravity Falls, after all. You'll be the ones leaving, come autumn."

Wybie let go, gave them one last departing smile, and went towards the inn to meet Coraline on the porch for their walk home. She stood there, like a bitter vagrant, bags clutched in her hands as though her only lifelines. Wybie left with her, but they did not speak, they did not hold hands- they just began the walk back home.

"I haven't made friends in a long time," Mabel admitted quietly, conscious that Gideon was still in earshot- although he seemed lost in his own thoughts.

Dipper began to correct her but she shook her head.

"I hang out with some people, Dipper, but they aren't there for me. They wouldn't do what Coraline and Wybie did for us, all of us. We go to the mall or the movies, but this made me realize how important real friends are." She sighed, "Maybe they resent being dragged into this. I get that. I thought we all made a good team..." She spared a glance at Gideon and added, "Present company excluded."

Gideon either did not hear or chose to ignore the half-baked jibe.

"We were a good team," Dipper agreed. "But everyone needs their space, even you and I need our space from each other sometimes, and we were womb-mates."

Mabel chuckled, "That's fair. You're right, Dipper, you usually are."

"Oh my god," Dipper held his chest in mock surprise, "Am I dying? Is it my birthday?"

"It would be both of our birthdays, then, stupid." Mabel rolled her eyes, sighing in relief at the change in mood.

"Not for another couple minutes." Dipper stood up, grunting at the stiffness in his legs. "If I feel this old, I can't imagine how you feel, you're practically an old hag."

"All joking aside," Mabel exhaled, crossing her arms. "I hate to change the subject, but we should probably go see what Gruncle Stan and Ford are doing... Tell them everything is okay."

"Yeah," Dipper wiped his face with his hands in dismay, "I get the very strong impression this will not be a short conversation. We barely kept them in the loop, they're bound to be upset."

"We can only hope it will just be upset," Mabel stood, dusting the dirt off her clothes, "They knew Bill was involved somehow, not an Aztec-Mayan smorgasbord of gods all fighting in our friends' bodies."

"Oh, just wait until we tell them about Wendy," Dipper sighed shakily, nervously, "We need to see if Greg and Norman got any updates."

"Soos probably wants to know we're okay too," Mabel muttered, reluctant. "We can probably still stay with him, that was the original plan."

"We'll talk to him, but we can stay at the Gruncles' house," Dipper admitted, "I think Soos outgrew us... I never thought I would see the day, but having a kid coming changed some things."

"That's not quite-" Mabel started, walking with her brother towards the inn.

"I know, but we needed him, and he kind of made his choice. He chose his family, we can't fault him for it... but I'm not sure we can go back to how things were. We were already strained as it is. Am I wrong?" Dipper asked, walking with her to the porch, Coraline and Wybie long out of eyeshot.

Mabel's silence was enough of an answer, they regrouped with Norman and Greg inside the inn.

Gideon lay there, still sprawled on the lawn, looking up at the cloudless sky, and for the first time in a week felt like he could breathe. The slight breeze on the wind carried distant sounds of road traffic. He missed his hut, however, he was excited for this new sense of purpose he felt. He left while the others were inside and did not say goodbye, he looked back, waved to no one, and proceeded back into the main part of town on foot. He finally felt like he had somewhere to be.

Norman offered that the twins continue their stay there, but they politely grabbed their things and declined. They agreed to a ride at the very least since Norman and Greg were already on the way to the hospital to pick up Wendy and Wirt. Norman insisted that he could easily drop them off nearby the Gruncles' house since it was on the way. The ride in the van was quiet, but not unpleasant.

On the phone call earlier, Wirt was shaken up about Wendy and the secondhand news about all that happened while he was away. Wendy, on the other hand, had a fairly decent concussion, but was in no danger and was okay for release. In fact, she was in quite good spirits considering the circumstances and kept joking about a splitting headache (Could it be a skull fracture? she kept whispering dramatically). This news was relayed to the twins on the way, not long before their arrival.

"We're here," Norman announced, "I'll see you tomorrow, maybe?"

"Maybe, but you have my phone number; if I don't reply within two hours, send a search party." Dipper deadpanned.

"I would, but you need sleep too. Anyway, stop stalling. I will see both of you tomorrow. I want to keep checking on everyone as best I can. If I get too annoying, I can see if a wandering spirit has some free time on their hands so you don't see me being a Nervous Nelly." Norman answered with a smile, reaching back in the seat to pat Dipper on the knee and smile at both of them.

"Thanks, for everything," Mabel replied, grabbing her things and stepping out of the van. "See you later."

Once the van door shut, Mabel stood off to the side to give them privacy.

"I'll talk to you tonight," Dipper replied, putting his hand over Norman's.

"Or tomorrow, I'm not clingy." Norman smiled faintly, "Get going, rip off the band-aid, Dipper."

No more words were exchanged, Dipper got his things and stepped out of the car. Norman waited until they had been let inside the house to drive off. Greg, as patient as ever, found it funny how he keeps seeing these things between people around him, with others forgetting he is even there. He humored the idea of being a ghost this whole time, like a movie he had seen once, but the thought made him a little sad, so he turned his mind to the excitement of seeing his half-brother and possible future-sister-in-law safe.

One could only describe the countenance of the Pines twins as dogs with their tails between their legs. Ford was the one who let them in, Stan stayed silent in the kitchen drinking coffee and looking anywhere else.

It was clear who had been designated the whole ordeal's lecturer. Not that the two really minded, Ford was definitely the more well-spoken of the two- however, eloquence when being lectured at was not quite something that made the one-sided talk any less painful. The two of them detailed what had happened, all of it, and waited for the other shoe to drop.

"We are leaving town again soon," Ford clenched his teeth, pacing while the twins sat on the couch. "Although, that plan will likely change, seeing as we can no longer trust the two of you to your own devices." There was no sense of getting any word in edgewise, so they kept their mouths shut and their eyes to his, ready to hear what he had to say.

"Stan and I had initially decided after Soos announced the two of you would stay with him, that if we made it back in time the two of you could stay alone in our home after we left again. Clearly, this option is no longer on the table after the irresponsibility the two of you showed during this... event." Ford spat the word like a curse. He pinched the bridge of his nose, taking his glasses off a moment as a rare semblance of wet, angry frustration permeated his expression.

"Why did you kids have such a stupid investment in this in the first place? This had nothing to do with you to begin with- any of you! You got in the way of one sibling's struggle for power. You were the footnote in someone else's story." His voice had raised high, but he cleared his voice to return from a yelling volume to stern conversation.

"Welcome to the real world, kids, where there are real consequences- ones that could have been your lives, or the lives of everyone around you; Hell, even people you have never even met before. Wanna know something else? Consider yourself lucky the only horse you really had in this race was saving your own skin- because the stakes could have been much, much bigger. You likely would have had the luxury of oblivion, even if Bill did win. You could have doomed us all.

"Your only real contribution in this was getting them on the same side- that is commendable but meager- it was simply dissolving a pest before it got to be an infestation. Getting something antiquated to take itself out behind the barn? You can claim no glory for that either. So, just be happy you're alive. That's the end of it. Period. This was much bigger than you, it's human ignorance to assume everything has to do with you." Ford seemed to be winding down now, having said most of what he wanted to say already. His face was red with emotional restraint.

"Why couldn't you have just come to us- to me? I know Bill, every version of him, this antique version of himself was just a previous edition of the same beast- I could have been genuine use to you, I am not just a scholar who read a couple of books, I lived this. My journals detail only a fraction of it. Why couldn't you have just asked for help?" Ford seemed to plead, his worry over his relatives finally showing fully through. Ford paused, looking into the kitchen as if he sensed Stan was going to say something.

This proved to be correct as Stan cleared his throat, clearly uncomfortable, but said it just loud enough for them to hear, "I know that your parents aren't always there for you. I know I wasn't always there for you either, even when I was physically there, but you kids are important to me- to us- we don't want you to ever go into harm's way. I can't believe you couldn't trust us enough with this."

Mabel crossed her arms tightly across her chest, sinking deeper into the back of the couch. Dipper bit the inside of his cheek, trying his best to swallow the shame he felt making him sick. They were right, something told them only their little covenant could be trusted- but what good did that really do? It would have sorted itself out eventually, surely? It would be hubris to assume they somehow managed to prevent more deaths in the long run. Some died already, even as they were trying to stop it. How much did they actually change? Did they really even help at all or just speed up the inevitable? Moreso, they further traumatized everyone involved, and for what?

We wanted to save everyone. The twins thought to themselves, Protect everyone, but does it even matter?

"You two will be staying here with us," Stan stated the obvious, taking another sip of coffee. "Of course, your parents won't hear about this one either. You two are under strict guidelines for the rest of the summer, for your own safety. Keep you from trying to save anyone else. Leave the kittens in the trees to the firefighters, okay?"

"You're losing the script a little bit," Ford sighed, holding a hand up for Stan to sit this one out, "but regardless, the point still stands. We won't be keeping you under house arrest forever, but you need to at least understand some depth of what could have happened. Dipper, you've read my journals, you of all people should know better."

The twins nodded in understanding, this would inevitably be another heart-to-heart talk between them later that night. This, of course, was unspoken, but merely felt by the atmosphere around them.

"On a lighter note," Stan intervened, "you're only under house arrest for 48 hours. For right now, at least, you two need to just read some books, help tend to the landscaping, something not involved with all that supernatural garbage."

The 48 hours became a week, the landscaping such an odious undertaking that they just had a strong desire to see it through.

Norman did as promised, and visited every day, even if only for a few minutes while running errands for the book van.

Coraline and Wybie kept in contact by phone but did not stop by. Coraline insisted she, as Wybie had echoed, was not mad but so emotionally and mentally drained that she had barely left bed since getting back to the house. Mabel understood, had she not become so invested in having her mind elsewhere (via landscaping) she may have also bound herself to bed.

Norman and Dipper seemed to orbit each other, their conversations cordial and contained to small talk, there were no sweet words between them of missing, of desire, or of plans to be made.

Despite the chores completed and the house arrest lifted, the twins just found themselves inside the house, tending the new landscaping, or just sitting in the grass with books, music, or dangling conversation for company.

However, on one particular afternoon, after almost three weeks of distance, Coraline and Wybie appeared at the front door with reserved smiles. There was an unspoken countdown between all of them, there was only perhaps another three months to spend together before the return of school and their inevitable parting. They invited them to go visit the inn, they had spoken with Norman and made plans to have a game night. Dipper checked his phone, a message having been left an hour ago stating the same. The twins dressed and left with Coraline and Wybie to the inn, favoring the walk.

The entire atmosphere of Gravity Falls had changed yet again. It seemed like a pretty normal small town again, a month made what had happened something of a fleeting horror. Yes, the fleeing garden gnomes and various eyes in the trees could be seen but they did not feel like prey anymore. No bogeymen in the night to snatch them or their friends away.

Norman met them at the door with a smile for everyone but Dipper, for whom his smile dropped but he shared a tender hug. Dipper seemed to feel like himself again, Norman felt a little bit like he was a cardboard cutout of himself.

As they sat around the dining table for a group game of cards, Norman could feel the little tether that connected him in two directions- the land of the living, and that of the dead- start to tangle. Twenty minutes in, there was a knock at the door. The others wondered among themselves who it was until the guest walked in with Norman. Lo and behold, it was Gideon "Gleeful" Garrett with a plate of various flavors of fudge cubes.

His smile was somewhere between amused and uncomfortable, "I brought a dish, not sure if I was supposed to."

"Bring it on," Coraline smiled cordially, "Pass me a peanut butter one."

And, with that, the awkward mood began to lift somewhat. Mabel even continued the conversation of the group (with minimal jibes at Gideon's expense). So, the night passed quickly and was enjoyable enough for the group to feel normal, like teenagers again.

As the night began to come to a close, Mabel cornered Gideon away from the rest of the group. It seemed to Gideon she was at a loss for words, mulling it over to find the right ones. Eventually, she settled on what was easiest.

"How are things?" Mabel asked, making the decision that she didn't want to overtly mention the last she saw him, sobbing and laughing in relief, feeling his emotions openly for the rest of them to see- knowingly or not.

"Things are okay with my living situation, so far," Gideon admitted. "Decided I'll do some mowing and landscaping to make some money on the side, but," he smiled in a way that said against my own free will, I suppose, "I'll be finishing up school. Shouldn't take long, I may be able to test out if I study hard enough, skip a grade or something."

"That's good," Mabel answered half-heartedly, she didn't really know what she meant to say.

"As far as my mental health," Gideon hissed through his teeth, self-deprecating, "Totally different story-"

That's it, Mabel's mind filled in, that's the subject she wanted to touch on but was afraid to.

Gideon stuffed his hands in his pockets as he spoke, a way to keep him from his habit of fiddling with his hair when he spoke too personally, "I killed people, even though it wasn't me... My hands did that. I have nightmares about those bodies, you guys all dead, blood on my hands, that Beast thing tearing me apart... sometimes a combination of them."

Gideon's eyes began to water but he cleared his throat and steadied his hands shaking in his pockets, licking his lips, "I'll be seeing someone about it, soon. I'll have to beat around the bush some... But I think talking will help."

"It wasn't your fault," Mabel found herself saying, putting a hand on his shoulder. "You didn't ask for this. This time was different... you weren't some kid not prepared for the consequences of your actions. Bill stole your will, your memories, your body from you, this had nothing to do with you and everything to do with him furthering his agenda. You know I wouldn't lie about something like this," Mabel half-smiled, punching his arm where she had squeezed it reassuringly. "Not to you, anyway."

Gideon rubbed his arm soothingly and nodded, "Thanks, Mabel. Means a lot coming from you."

"What for? Still holding a torch?" Mabel asked brazenly, fists on her hips.

"No," Gideon rolled his eyes. "You are the person whose forgiveness I needed the most. Don't get me wrong, I did bad things to Dipper before, but I really did terrible things to you, and for that I'm sorry."

"I haven't totally forgiven you or anything," Mabel sighed, "This one, yes, not your fault. What you did before, well, let's just stick with I'm glad you're less of an asshole and not so much forgiveness."

Gideon shrugged, "I'll take it. Think we should head back? Before they think we're-"

"Ew, they wouldn't," Mabel snorted, walking ahead.

Gideon rolled his eyes, whispering exasperated under his breath, "At least let me finish what I was saying, sheesh."

The end of summer came much too quickly. As Coraline, Wybie, Greg, Wirt, Wendy, and Gideon all saw the Pines twins and Norman off there was a bittersweetness of their departure. There were exchanged promises to text, to call, to stay in touch from the group- Gideon, however, stood with his hands in his pockets stoically. Gideon made no such promises, he did not exchange any methods of contact, nor did he make much of a fuss at them leaving. He simply smiled in a lopsided sort of way, sighed, and uttered, "Well, you know where I am."

There was a little smile and polite wave from Norman, Dipper gave a curt nod of understanding, Mabel looked away from him to the group, to avoid direct eye contact as the words felt too coarse to say genuinely, "Take care of yourself."

So there were waves and goodbyes. Greg took to doing a small run behind the bus as it drove off, laughing as he hollered goodbye, waving. As Norman and Dipper sat side by side, holding hands and looking morosely at each other, Norman felt like something was unfinished. Mabel looked out the window with her face leaned against it. She did not want to go back home, she didn't like who she was there.

Mabel was the one to suggest they walk Norman home. It was dark, and none of them had a ride from the bus station. As the three walked together, Norman felt something shift in the air as they stepped off the bus and onto the soil of their town. Something felt off, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it.

Then, as he looked around, it began to slowly dawn on him.

Everyone he used to see in town was gone. It was late, yes- dark, absolutely- but that wasn't the weird thing about not seeing anyone.

He felt his voice shaking before he even realized he was speaking, "G-guys, something's wrong."

"What is it?" Dipper asked, suddenly on high alert, looking around for something to jump out at them in the night as they walked along.

However, that was precisely the problem. Lights in the houses were on, there was nothing particularly abnormal in the movements behind closed window curtains as they walked by. After another moment of silence, Norman was sure of his suspicions. Fear rose like a chill up his spine.

Mabel stopped under a streetlight, turning the group into something of a triangle formation- all eyes on Norman, "What do you see?"

"That's just it," Norman started hyperventilating, "I don't see anything. The ghosts, they're gone. All of them. They're all gone."

Wanna know what happens next?

Check out the upcoming story in the series, Back to the Wall: Bring Out Your Dead.

With love, deathbyinsomnia