Just a shorter chapter before we move on to the next day. I've edited some of the first chapters. If something seems to not add up, go back to read previous chapters. It's not entirely obvious, but I have adjusted things here and there. You'll know what chapters have been edited as I have put them underneath the notes at the top of the page.

Edit: 1/13/19: Just a one word edit- Piedmont. They live in Piedmont, not Portland. Where the hell did I get Portland? I'm a big Gravity Falls nut. How did I screw that up?

The Games Rich People Play

Chapter 10: Meanwhile, Somewhere in the Woods

Contrasting heavily from a tropical island resort off the coast of Mexico, the sleepy town of Gravity Falls was a rainy, muddy miserable mess. The magical creatures of the land had hidden in shelters of all kinds, and the people were just as scarce.

The Mystery Shack found itself as the haven for the Pines, as it always did. Though Wendy and the Ramirez' also found themselves avoiding the elements within the shack. Things inside were quiet. All residents had been busying themselves with various things.

Stan was watching television, in his "evening clothes". He had found an awful 2000s reboot of "The Duchess Approves" that had taken a few artistic liberties (He was riffing it like crazy). Stan and his brother had made it a case to take a break from their boating journey and come back to the Falls whenever the kids visited. He had been hoping to see his grandniece and nephew and have a great time. However, today hadn't gone as he hoped. When Dipper and Mabel arrived, Mabel had acted as expected. But Dipper lifelessly went up to his room and stayed there all day.

Ford was in his lab, which had been re-purposed over the years. He was looking at the latest discovery of his and Stan's adventure, in deep thought of the day's events. He had thought that Dipper would be excited to know of this anomaly. To his shock, the boy barely acknowledged it. It was completely unlike him.

Soos and Melody were finishing up the day's work, taking inventory and counting money. While the spring break had started off pretty good, today had ended on a sour note. Soos wished he could do something to snap Dipper out of… whatever this was, but his buddy wasn't responding to much.

Wendy, like the Stans, had made it a habit of coming back every summer from college, but springs were also in her ballpark. After all, two of the coolest kids she'd ever known would be waiting for her. Unfortunately, Dipper had arrived not talking to anyone. None of her young adult wisdom seemed to get through to him either. For now, she was stuck whittling… something, as she thought about what any of them could do.

Dipper's behavior affected Mabel by extent, as she sat downstairs engorging a big tub of sherbet. At first, she thought the both of them were just disappointed about Pacifica. But the moment Dipper ignored everyone (even Mabel) and shut himself in his room, the twin knew something was wrong. With him not responding to anybody, even her, she could only sulk as he did.

The "man of the hour" was currently on his bed in deep thought. He lay there, sad in a way he hadn't been before. All he could do was wonder why.

Back down with Mabel, her Grunkle decided to check in on her. "Hey, Pumpkin." Stan greeted as he entered the kitchen. "Figuring out what's at the bottom of that tub?"

"Mmhmm." She sullenly said.

"Yeah. Mood's kind of down all around. Probably all originating from Dipper. Like a… like a radiation leak of sadness."

"Yeah…"

"Hrrr… I think it's time we find out what's got him so bothered. Hold on…" He stomped his foot on the ground a few times. "Alright, everyone! Group meeting! That means you too, Ford!"

One by one, everyone shuffled into the room. Once everyone had arrived, Stan started off.

"Okay, so Dipper's been down in dumps all day. So down, that he's become a mute recluse. Won't talk to anyone, and heck, not sure if he can hear anyone. Now I understand the whole shpeal, give the guy some space and maybe he'll come to us, but I think we should start brainstorming to see if find a way to coax it out of him. Cause he's starting to worry me. Now, usually I'd just have this sitcom-style sit-down consisting of some moral or life lesson, but that's unable to be initiated at the moment. And the only other way I know of getting information out of people are ones I learned the various prisons I've been to, which… yeah, definitely not an option."

Ford pondered. "I've already tried suggesting a game of Dungeons, Dungeons and more Dungeons to make him more comfortable, but he brushed it off, saying he wasn't in the mood. That on top of being disinterested in what Stan and I recently discovered… well, I don't really know how else I could connect to him."

"You said you think it had something to do with Pacifica, right?" Wendy asked.

Mabel nodded. "Yeah. He's been like this ever since she called us. Except it doesn't explain… this. Sure, we never like how her dad treats her. And like Dipper said himself, she shouldn't have to put up with his crap. But we have to trust that she'll make it through being alone with her parents, and it's not like we'll never see her again."

"Maybe he's just angry that he wasn't able to help. Y'know, feeling bad cause he feels useless?" Wendy suggested.

"Maybe. But again, I felt that too, and there were a few times we couldn't help her in the last few years. He was never like this after those times."

Soos had a different idea. "Maybe it's something supernatural. Like a ghost of bus stops possessed him."

"That's silly, Soos." Mabel handwaved. "Dipper already exorcised all of the bus stop ghosts, remember?"

"Oh yeah."

"Maybe it was something he ate?" Melody asked. Everyone looked at her. "Uh, sorry… y'all took all the good ones."

Soos shook his head. "No, no. Your suggestion was odd for our standards, but probable nonetheless."

Wendy agreed. "Yeah. I mean, all the weird stuff here and a regular stomachache is what caused this? It's one heck of a shake-up."

"Maybe it was a combination of the supernatural and sickness. And other terrifying S-words!" Soos trembled. "Gasp! What if my names attracted this affliction because of its two S's? I've doomed Dipper!"

"Okay, easy there, big guy. That's a little much." Wendy said while Melody rubbed his shoulder.

Stan stroked his chin. "Well, it's gotta be something. Keep thinking, people."

While the group continued to converse, brainstorming for possible answers, Dipper had been dwelling on his thoughts.

Last Summer…

"So… is it like, dead?" Pacifica asked, peering out from a nearby rock. Dipper looked at the gooey creature, its odd crab legs folded.

"No. It's just asleep. Ford told me these things are smarter than they look, but they still have a soft spot for food. A few drugs in some bait, an voila. It won't be down for long… but it's long enough to move it into a suitable habitat, away from the town. There's a nearby nest that will take it in."

"What? We're not killing it?"

"These things only eat plants and would rather leave people alone than go out attacking humans. It was probably captured for the monster market beneath the town. After it escaped, it must've been terrified. In a place full of strange creatures and noises, not sure where to go, nothing it could call for help on…"

"Well… if that's the case, wouldn't it be cautious enough not to eat random food it finds?"

"Oh come on, why would it turn down food? It's probably starving-" As Dipper approached the creature, the thing suddenly flipped over, lunging at Dipper. Before he could react, it had him pinned against the wall.

"DIPPER!" Pacifica shouted. The creature hissed at the boy, before running off. Pacifica ran over to the fallen boy, helping him up. "Are you okay?"

"Well… my ego's been bruised, but I'm okay otherwise." He looked in the direction the creature escaped to. He sighed. "Looks like I'm an idiot. Of course, it would still be cautious. Sure, it has a soft spot for food, but not in an unfamiliar environment when it feels like it's in imminent danger. I'm lucky it didn't take off my head…" He kicked a nearby can in frustration.

"Hey, we haven't failed yet. Er, not entirely, anyway. We can still get that thing back home."

"But I'm out of ideas. I've tried everything Ford told me, and it keeps getting away."

"Have you tried talking to it?"

"Huh?"

"Y'know, talking to it. You said they were like, super smart, right? What if we let it know we're trying to help? Maybe it'll calm down."

"You really think that'll work?"

"I mean… I would want a friend if I was alone and scared. Which I was, remember? When my family lost money, I was stuck in a very unforgiving town. The kids at school were vicious, the townspeople ignored me since I wasn't all that popular anymore… it was awful. I felt scared. Lost. Alone. Until you guys came the next summer. But I never came to you for help. I just showed my bad side, cause I felt too afraid to open up. Because even though I was too scared to reach out… I needed a friend regardless. When you two kept hanging out with me despite my bad attitude, I eventually got the memo. I relaxed." Dipper's eyes widened. Pacifica smiled at him in conformation as he finally connected the pieces. "If we really show it that we don't want to hurt it, it'll open up to us eventually."

Dipper rubbed his head. "Still, it's gonna be hard to prove to it that we wanna help. Especially after all the tricks I pulled on it."

"Then that gives us all the more reason to start now, right?"

Dipper smiled at her and nodded determinedly.

It took till the end of summer, but the two had finally managed to get through to the creature. Every day after that incident, they would find it and tried their best to warm up to it. At first, they left food and would leave soon after. When they noticed the creature would come out to watch them as they left food, they kept their distance but stayed in the open where it could see them. The creature would hurriedly take the food and rush back to its spot. Eventually, it started to relax around them, not being so quick. One day, the creature approached them slowly. It allowed Pacifica to feed it, but still hissed at Dipper, remembering him. It was another week before it would actually eat from the boy's hands. At that point, the creature started eating on the spot, even resting close to them. Dipper and Pacifica started spending longer periods of time near it, allowing it to become used to their presence. When it finally trusted Pacifica, it allowed her to scratch the top of its head. Dipper was once again delayed for a few days, but it eventually dropped its grudge and let him scratch it too. By the time the end of the summer had come, they were able to coax it into getting in a car, driving it into the outskirts of the town.

Which is where they found themselves now, watching Crabby (as they came to call him) scuttle into his new hive. He was accepted almost instantly, finally closing the book on this adventure.

"You know, even though he was slimy and ruined three of my outfits, I'm going to kind of miss him." Pacifica said.

"Oh, come on, you loved him. I just wish we hadn't named him. Now I feel sad to see him go." Dipper said, some tears in his eyes.

"The name thing was your idea. No one to blame but yourself there." However, her eyes were watery as well.

"But he's not the only one who's going to be leaving." Dipper noted. Pacifica frowned. The two made their way back up the path, leading into town. "It's just a few days before I head back home. I don't know what it is about this time, but… I'm even less ready to leave than usual."

"Hey, don't feel so down. You'll always be back for the summer, right?"

"Of course. This place might as well be my home. If Mabel and I could convince Mom and Dad to move here, we would."

"Then I'll be able to see you then, right? No need to worry. Plus, we can always talk on the phone." Well, Mabel's phone, anyway. They had to have a serious talk about phones at some point.

"I know, I just… it doesn't make the wait any less agonizing. But also… I'm worried about you. With your dad making more money all of the sudden and cracking down on security… if it weren't for all of Ford's gadgets and all the Falls weirdness we own, you'd never be able to come and spend time with us, much less help Crabby. And now we're leaving you behind with him."

"Your Grunkles and Wendy will be here every now and then. And Soos, Wendy, Candy, and Grenda will be here all the time. I'll be fine. I can handle him and his crap."

"I know. It's just… he really doesn't understand how great you are. He only sees you as a thing to show off, even though you're so much more than that. You're…"

"Smart, creative and confident?" Pacifica said, repeating a phrase he had once said to her in a burlap sack.

Dipper gave a weak chuckle. "Yeah. And you… you deserve so much more than to be treated like a trophy."

Pacifica smiled at him, before suddenly embracing. "Then it's a good thing I have someone who sees the best things in me." Dipper returned the embrace. Neither moved, standing there for a while before they noticed how long they'd been hugging. They pushed apart, flustered.

"I, uh… suppose this is where you pay me to pretend that didn't happen?" Dipper joked.

Pacifica blushed. "Heh…" Suddenly, her face lightened, as if she got an idea. "Say… what if you and Mabel came during the spring?"

"The spring?"

"Yeah. Sure, you guys always come during the summer. And your parents want you at home during the winter, for Christmas. But would they mind you coming in spring?" She asked, then looked into his eyes.

Dipper slowly smiled. "Did I ever tell you that you have the greatest ideas?"

Pacifica smirked. "You could stand to say it more."

It was a wonder she was ever related to Preston, considering all the bad ideas the man had. Especially when he decided to ruin the spring break for everyone by taking Pacifica away.

But that wasn't true, was it? He realized that everyone else had been ready to move on with their week. Sure, no one was fine with it. Preston was an idiot, but he was an idiot with an emotional trigger. Pacifica had learned how to handle that kind of trauma, but it wasn't guaranteed she would always be prepared for it. However, there wasn't much they could do. The Falls' weirdness could help them with a prison break within the town, but Pacifica was on an island around sixteen hundred miles away. At this point, they could only really trust that Pacifica could take care of herself.

But for some reason, Dipper just felt pain. A pain in his chest like he hadn't before. A churning in his stomach that bothered him every second. It baffled and distressed him. He didn't know how to process this feeling. Sure, he was extremely excited to see her this week, but it couldn't have been that disappointing, right?

It had reached a point where he was sick of it. He didn't want to talk about it or even think about it. He just wanted to make that feeling go away. He was too young to drink, so eating away his troubles seemed like the next best thing.

Shuffling downstairs, he could hear his friends and family talking in the kitchen, likely about him. They all quieted pretty quickly when he entered.

Dipper paused for a moment and the group stared at him awkwardly. Saying nothing, he shuffled past them. He didn't see Wendy reach for him in concern, only for Mabel to stop her. The girl started pushing them out, whispering that she wanted to make one final effort herself. She turned to her brother. One more chance to talk it out before she pulled out the nuclear option.

"Dipper, we need to talk."

"No, we don't." He rejected, searching the pantry.

"You're upset. And both of us promised to talk to each other about what was upsetting us. Always."

"I won't be upset in a little bit, so it doesn't matter."

"That'll only be for a little bit."

"Not if I do this right."

"You could break the law and go through Stan's secret drink cabinet. You still wouldn't be doing it right."

"Mabel, I don't need you to nag me on this. Drop it."

Mabel hesitated, considering what she was about to do. What she was about to do was sacrilege, all things considered.

"Bro-bro?" Five year old Mabel approached her twin, who had hidden in the playground. None of the teachers could get him to come down, so Mabel had brought it upon herself to come for him, sneaking past into the playground. He was sobbing so much he didn't even notice his sister. "Mason?"

"Go 'way." He blurted out.

"But if I go, you'd still be sad. Mabey's here to make ya happy again."

"You just want to laugh at me too!"

"What? Why in the sparkly unicorn world would I laugh at you?"

He looked up from his knees, a strange shape on his forehead. *sniff* "Iz this stupid thingie on my head. Mommy and Daddy said it would go 'way soon, but it's been stuck there for a week. The big kids won' stop calling me names… "There goes little dipper! His face is a connect the dots game!" and stupid stuff like that. I'm not coming out till it goes 'way."

"But you can't hide here! Just because those big meanies don't get how special you are!"

"Specially weird…"

"No! You're specially amazing!" She knelt down beside him. "Those stupidheads didn't even get it right. Mommy already told us it was the Big Dipper! Not the little one!"

"So?"

"So, that means you're a big star! A big star that shines brighter than any of those dumb jerks! They don't even have the lights on in their head!"

"The Big Dipper is a group of stars, Mabel." Mason said.

"Even better! You've got several stars of power!"

Mason's eyes began to dry. "You really think so?"

"I know so! And if the other kid can't see that, they don't deserve to be your friend!"

Mason wiped the last tears from his eyes. "Thanks, Mabey."

"No problem, bro-bro! Now let's get out of this playground!"

Things didn't get much better. Eventually the other kids his age had joined in on the name calling. By the end of the year, Dipper would always seclude himself from the other kids, reading or playing a Gameboy. His sister was the only one who could get him out of his shell, but even then, he didn't reconnect with other kids.

That summer, the Pines family had ended up moving across state to Piedmont. During the middle of the trip, Mason decided to bring up something that was on his mind.

"Daddy? Mommy? Mabel?"

Mabel turned to him, while their dad glanced back in the rearview mirror for a moment. His mother answered him. "What is it, sweetie?"

"From now on… can you call me "Dipper"?" Mabel tilted her head. His mother turned and gawked at him. His father nearly jerked the steering wheel.

"Darling, I thought you hated that nickname. Why would you want us to call you that?" She asked in concern.

"None of the kids back at our old home even called me by my real name after this mark showed up. And it still hasn't gone away. I don't wanna tell kids my name if they're just gonna stop saying it and laugh at me. If they make fun of me for a dumb nickname, then I can't trust em with my mark. If I can't trust em with my mark, then I can't trust them with my real name."

"Now hold on a minute, sport." His dad said. "I know things have been tough, and that beauty mark has yet to disappear, but are you sure you want to do this? I don't want you to think so poorly of your real name."

"I don't. It's really important to me. That's why I don't wanna tell other kids. Not until I can trust them with it."

Mabel looked at her brother in sadness. This past year had really affected him. He still somewhat thought the mark on his forehead was some symbol of shame that people had to look past. She wouldn't have it.

"Now, son…"

"I think we should do it!" Mabel gleefully said.

Her mother looked at her. "Now Acorn, I know you like to support your brother…"

"But Dipper needs to see that his mark is special!" Her mother and brother looked at her in surprise. "Dipper's an awesome name named after a really cool thing! Something you can be proud of, bro-bro! I say we do it, but only if Dipper wears that name with honor." She took a sheriff badge off one of her stuffed animals. "Cause that's what it is! A badge of honor!"

Mom's face contorted. "I don't know…"

Dad was starting to see the picture. "Maybe Acorn's on to something. If this mark really doesn't go away… then it shouldn't be something our boy is ashamed of."

Mom thought about this. "That's right. That Big Dipper is a part of you, sweetie. And every part of you is something you never have condemn, Dipper."

Mabel raised a wand she had. "Well then! Per his request, Mason Pines will now be known as "Dipper" Pines, until he says otherwise."

Dipper smiled, feeling warm inside. He could always count on his sister in the end. While his mom and dad did have a little trouble adjusting to the name change, his sister made it a point to only say his nickname. And if he could trust her with his biggest secret, he could trust her with any secret.

Which is why Mabel had to remind him of that now before he forgot again.

"Mason Aleksander Pines."

Dipper jolted and turned to her. He stared at her in surprise.

"I've kept that name under lock and key for almost eleven years. No matter how mad I was, no matter how distant I felt from you, I've always held true to keeping that secret. I even made the others leave the room, even though they all know your real name by now. That one secret has been a symbol of our relationship ever since we were five. It shows we can trust each other with our biggest secrets and be there to lift each other back up."

Dipper's face softened, looking at her somberly.

"Four years ago, we started to forget that. Our first summer here… we were almost teenagers. We stopped talking about what was making us upset. I wanted to never grow up. You couldn't grow up fast enough. I was jealous of your intelligence. You were jealous of my socialness. I selfishly tried to fulfill my childish "true love" fantasies and stay young. You selfishly tried to impress Wendy and make yourself look older and cooler. Both of us varied on using Gravity Falls weirdness to help us, and neither of us thought about the consequences. You started to trust me less and less. I tried to pretend nothing was wrong. Oh sure, we talked about our issues sometimes after a traumatic monster attack or something. But that only ever relieved the tension temporarily. There may have been a tear in reality, but we risked hitting a rift regardless of Weirdmageddon. We almost drifted apart." She walked up to him. "When everything was over and we got back home, we agreed that we should never let things go that far again. And ever since then, I've repeated that name in my head to remind myself that I need to be someone you can trust. No matter what."

Dipper leaned onto the counter, his eyes drifting to the floor.

"I know whatever's bothering you has to do with Pacifica. And if you let that fester, it's gonna cause problems down the line. I can help you through this. You know I can. But I need you to tell me what exactly about this is getting to you."

Dipper wiped his face as if trying to wipe away any vulnerability. But he couldn't deny that he needed to talk about this. He didn't want to, but he had to. And if he couldn't trust his sister with this info… who could he trust?

"You're right. I'm sorry. This whole thing just… hit me pretty hard." Mabel took his hand and led him to the table, so they could sit down. "I know I can trust you, but… I'm not even sure myself what's got me so upset. I've been mulling it around in my head, but I can't seem to find out what it is. I mean… it's just a week, right? One lousy week. Pacifica will be back in the Falls with friends and we'll get to see her in the summer. I just… Arrggh! Why am I so upset by this?!"

"Easy, Dippingsauce. Let's just walk through it, okay? I thought that it was just that you were excited to see Pacifica again. Then you got sad when you couldn't. Wendy thought that you were mad at yourself for not being able to help Pacifica. Soos thought something supernatural had possessed you. Melody thought it just might be a stomachache. Any of that ringing any bells?"

"All of it is." Mabel raised an eyebrow. "I'm sad that I won't be able to see Pacifica after I had planned to. I'm mad at myself for being useless in helping her. I feel like my chest is being stabbed, but I also feel sick to my stomach at the same time. And it might as well be something supernatural because I'm the only one feeling so intense about this and I DON'T KNOW WHY!" He shouted to the heavens. Mabel pulled him into a hug. It was a firm hug, letting him know she was still there to help him through this. His body relaxed, and he returned the embrace. When they pulled apart, he sighed. "I just… I was so happy to see her again. She's so amazing, and I love spending time with her. I love those little banter sessions we have when we greet each other. I love it when she takes me to the diner to show off the recipes she's learned. I love it when she comes with me on adventures. I love it when we sit around, whether it's with Wendy or just us, riffing on old movies. I love it when she talks to me about all my discoveries and what new things I wrote in my journal. I love going with her to see her favorite symphonies and operas. I love it when she kicks my ass at video games. I love seeing how happy she is every time she gets one over on her dad. She's just so smart, and bold, and beautiful, and…I just…"

"You really couldn't wait to see her again, could you?" Mabel smiled. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were in love with her."

Something in Dipper clicked at that. His mind suddenly raced through all the information in his head. The sadness in not being able to see her. The anger he felt being unable to help. He suddenly realized that he remembered feeling a similar pain in his chest and stomach long ago when a certain lumberjack girl had left him on a log after giving it to him straight. It was tamer then, but it was obvious what it was. Heartbreak. He thought about all the different ways he loved to spend time with her. How he loved her smarts and her personality. How much he wanted to see her happy, how he wanted to give her all the happiness she deserved. He even remembered something he didn't tell Mabel, a time when they were at the pool. When Dipper had to… go back and take a cold shower after he saw Pacifica in her bikini. At the time, he thought it was just his teenage mind picking a hell of a time to mess with him. But when he thought about it more, none of the other girls really had that effect on him.

All of these facts were laid out in front of him. And it finally hit him.

"I… I am."

Mabel's smile faded.

"I'm in love with Pacifica."

Her face shifted into that of silent shock.

The two of them sat there. Both of them realized that the answer had been staring them in the face. He loved all these things about her because he loved her. How had they not seen it before? Was it that he was far more confident around Pacifica, as a sharp contrast to his crush on Wendy? Was it that Mabel didn't want to make assumptions nowadays unless she knew for sure? So that she could prevent herself from acting like when she was younger? Who knows? They had the solution now, at least.

Mabel would usually squeal with glee at news like this. Especially considering she knew how Pacifica felt about Dipper. But she was still in shock. Plus, she'd promised to keep quiet for Pacifica's sake- that wasn't for her tell. Besides, once the shock started passing over, she had a better idea forming in her head.

Dipper sighed again. "Well. I guess that explains a lot. I feel better now that I know, but… not by much. Wait, do you have a phone?"

"Okay, first of all, you really need to get a phone. Especially if you want to date Pacifica of all people. Secondly, her dad probably took her phone anyway. Thirdly, before I thought of that, I tried calling her again and couldn't get a signal. Maybe there's storms blocking reception over there or something."

"Perfect. If you don't mind me, I'm going to continue finding something to pig out on in depression." Mabel sat up with him and grabbed his shoulders.

"No, you aren't. I told you I could help you. And that's what I'm gonna do. We're going to that island!" She shouted triumphantly, pointing out towards the island.

"You're pointing north."

"Huh? Oh, hold on." She pictured a compass in her and turned around, her hand stopping to the left of Dipper. "We're going to that island!"

"Mabel, how are we supposed to do that? They have security measures designed to find superheroes. And if we wanted to get in legitimately, it would be impossible. Rumor is, Wonder Woman could solve world hunger and still not be let in."

"Shame on you for thinking we're gonna do it legitimately. Don't you remember how this family rolls? We're not breaking Pacifica out this time; we're breaking in to see her!"

"I just said the island has-"

"That may be true, but you know what they aren't ready for? A regular human family that took on monsters, giant robots, and the apocalypse! We've got a grunkle that's a national criminal, another who's a dimensional outlaw, an apocalypse trained lumberjack jock, a comedic relief handyman, and a precious ball of optimism that is probably more appropriate than mine! You and me pissed off a demon several times and lived to tell about it! We can totally break into this snobby resort!"

Dipper looked at her, still unsure. "I don't know…"

"And to top it all off, we can be there to support her against her parents. Because darn it, she may be able to handle them by herself… but she shouldn't have to."

Reminding him of what he said in their last video chat, Dipper's resolve steeled, and his confidence blossomed. "Let's do this."

Mabel gave a wide smile, before starting to chant. "Pines, Pines, Pines, Pines, Pines."

Dipper smiled back at her, joining in. "Pines, Pines, Pines, Pines, Pines!"

"How about that!" The twins stopped as Stan emerged from the doorway. The others followed, quickly stumbling in to check on Dipper. "We heard the chanting of two twins instead of just one! Assumed you two had worked things out! You feeling better, kid?"

"A lot better. Cause we're breaking into Horace Whimsley's resort!"

This surprised the group. Ford questioned this. "Are… you sure? That could end badly. It's built like a fortress. Plus, I believe you said we have to trust in Pacifica. What changed your mind?"

Dipper tripped up at this, not sure if he should admit to what he told Mabel. "W-well…"

Luckily, Mabel covered for him. "Cause we wanna go and show that big-headed jerk why we're more of a family to Pacifica than he could ever be!"

"Hell. I'll do a break-in for that." Wendy said, swinging her ax over her shoulder.

Stan shrugged. "I mean, I've broken into several resorts myself back in the day. Maybe this time I won't get caught!"

Ford's mind was already churning. "It'd be simple to downgrade the old portal into a short-range warp. The trick will be designing it so that we aren't detected immediately. You've been studying your nuclear physics, right Dipper?"

Melody piped in. "I can run the store and cover for y'all while you're working!"

"And I'll be the simple but good-natured comedic relief handyman!" Soos chimed in.

"You read my mind, Soos!" Mabel agreed.

"Yes!" Soos shouted as he pumped his fist.

"Yeah! Let's do a break-in!" Stan shouted. He began chanting once more, and everyone immediately joined him as they marched out the door. "PINES, PINES, PINES, PINES, PINES!"

Before they stepped out of the room, Dipper stopped his sister. "Mabel? Thanks. For everything."

"Always."

"Sincere sibling hug?"

"Sincere sibling hug."

And hug they did.

"…Pat. Pat." The two said in unison, before rushing out the kitchen.

Coincidentally enough, at that very moment, the rain finally let up.

Yep! The other Gravity Falls characters aren't quite out of the picture as you think!

Slenderbrine: Does this answer your question?

Delta prime2: As far as the whole Chemical X Ecto energy thing, it's not going to be too important for the time being, but I may explain it when I edit the previous chapters over, if I can find a place it will fit. If not, then "tie-in" stories or a future story may hold the explanation.

Gwen and Hope's relationship is on similar grounds. As far as I've thought of, they're friends, due to events in my own alternate version of Omniverse- I can say that much right now. They'll be mentioned, but never really come into the story itself though, so that's up in the air for the time being.

Jinx: Never thought about that before. I'll keep it in mind. That's all I can say for now.

Gwencaster: To be honest, the sibling thing was just a joke I was making. I get part of my humor from Atop the Fourth Wall, which has a Mystery Science Theater 3000 vibe to it. Snarky and riffy. Truthfully, I don't think it'll work for my story in particular, but the idea is there if someone wants to do it.

As you probably noticed from above, implications of Gwen and Hope being together was not my intention. More so I was suggesting they were the two greatest and most available contacts of magic knowledge Ben and his group knew as of this point. If I'm to be honest again, I'm a bit of a basic bitch when it comes to shipping (you can tell by my choice of shipping that I've already shown in this story, like Yugi and Anzu, or Danny and Sam). I tend to go with what's actually put on our (the audience's) plate in the show itself, especially if I'm not too interested in the character's love life (though I do have my limits if the pairing is just bad writing: unconvincing chemistry, abusive, stuff like that). So for instance, since I didn't ever find myself all that invested in Gwen's romances, I tend to fall back on Gwevin by default. Other characters however, who had their love lives left open, I tend think more creatively on. Like Mabel and Wendy, though I have yet to come to a conclusion on either of them.

That being said- the door is not closed on the two's relationship. I haven't gone into depth since it hasn't been relevant to the story, so that means not everything of Gwen's character is set in stone yet. At the very least, they are close friends in this timeline, but since I didn't specify that last chapter, I can reinterpret that without worry of retcons. I will give it more thought for the time being. I can't promise anything, especially since they may only be mentioned from time to time, but whatever I decide I will put my all into. I've adopted the philosophy to never do things just for brownie points. Lest we end up like Voltron. Never go full Voltron.

Mister Mind is a DC villain. Specifically, he's one of the enemies of DC's Captain Marvel, good ol' "SHAZAM!" yelling Billy Batson. At first glance, he doesn't seem like much, barely coming in at two inches, but he's far more dangerous than you might give him credit for. Mind comes from a race of mind controlling Venusian worms. They sent Mind, perhaps the most intelligent of them all, as an advance to their invasion of Earth. However, the worms were stopped by Captain Marvel, leaving Mind the only survivor. Ever since he has combatted Billy Batson with an intellect that rivals Bruce Wayne's and Lex Luthor's, and the ability to telepathically control people.

However, his worm form is only a larval stage. If his age is advanced by other elements, he has the potential to cocoon and metamorphosize into his species true form: the Hyperfly. Once he achieves this form, he can feed off of Space-Time and is capable of devouring the DC Multiverse. This happened in the series 52, but Booster Gold managed to stop him by getting him stuck in a stable time-loop. He was eventually brought back, returned to his larval stage. Hope that explains it efficiently!

Death'sPurgatori: I'm not sure what you're asking. Not really? You'll have to specify which point she seems to have powers.

Facesitting Jill: Thanks! I have been planning some side stories- one shots that take place in the same universe. Sort of like tie-ins for comics. I have ideas for sequels, but I wanna focus on this one before I think too hard about that.

I'd love to hear more reviews from all of y'all, even if it's just a small note. Feel free to tell me your thoughts on the story, but also anything that might need improvement. I'm all ears!