The Return to Gravity Falls

by EZB

Mabel and Dipper return to Gravity Falls three years after their life-altering summer vacation spent with their Grunkle Stan, to find that Gravity Falls never stops being, well, weird. As the twins encounter old friends and reconnect with the supernatural inhabitants of Gravity Falls, new dangers lurk just outside of the knowledge of Uncle Stanfords old journals.

32. Duskhope: Part 2

"And then they were like- 'nice to meet you, I'm part of Duskhope', and we were like," Mabel swooned and held the back of her hand to her forehead, "And they were like 'we'd love to chill with you two', and we were like-"

"Mabel, sweety, I think I've memorized this by now. You think they're cool, they tolerated you, and now they want a tour of the town. Go try telling this to Soos," Stan suggested as he passed through the shop, a small checklist in his hand as he scanned the merchandise.

"But he wanted me to give the tour! Me!" Mabel gasped as she felt her life soaring out of control, and turning away from her grand uncle towards the others. Dipper was leaning against the counter with Wendy, who, along with Soos, had all heard the tale at least three times themselves. Candy and Grenda were also present, having been called by Mabel a few minutes earlier, and the two rushed to the shop. They spoke to Soos, who joined them in recalling the bands various feats and histories.

"You really think it's true that they will give a shortened version of whatever song you ask them to sing?" Soos asked the two excitedly.

"What would we ask them?" Candy furthered.

"Anything! Everything!" Grenda told them, "Just get their angelic voices out and into the air so we can melt and die happy!"

Wendy scratched her head, weaving her fingers under the hat. "Mabel," she said with a mild apprehension, "I know you and your friends should be excited, but c'mon. They are still people."

"No way! These are walking gods on the earth!" Grenda had heard and discounted her opinion.

"To give them credit," Dipper played neutral in the discussion, "They are really good. I don't know if they're gods – they certainly didn't seem to have anything weird in their RV that would label them as paranormal."

Wendy nudged his shoulder. "Hey, you never know dude," Wendy told him with a grin.

Mabel spouted, "We met a cherub once! He didn't seem that different," Mabel pointed out to Dipper, "He had plenty of crazy-abilities. What if they're all actually sirens, who just like playing music for attention?"

"Sirens need water," Dipper pointed out.

"Um... harpies?" Mabel suggested, "Oh, wait, no, we know harpies. None of them looked like they were harpies."

Wendy, listening to the twins label the supernatural, postulated, "Or, maybe, just maybe for once, you two met someone with some sort of strength that didn't come from a supernatural force or some strange science? You know, almost normal people?"

Dipper chuckled, and added, "I'm pretty sure they're normal compared to what we deal with,". Wendy laughed with him and shook her head.

Yuki stepped into the shop quietly, passing by the group. He was covered in oil and various other cleaning fluids. His hat was removed, and he scratched and pulled at his scalp as he stepped to Stan. "The second adjustment to your oven has been completed. It should maximize cost-efficiency for the time being, as you asked," Yuki told him, and waved to the twins, "Hello my friends."

"Hi Yuki!" Mabel called.

Stan, focused on his tasks, didn't face Yuki as he said, "Great. You're going to do that to the microwave next, right?"

The alien sighed and shrugged. "I suppose I shall," Yuki nodded, and the noticed there were two new figures: Grenda and Candy.. "Ah... uh, Dipper," Yuki started side-stepping away from sight of Mabel's friends. They, to his fortune, were still investing with Soos, figuring out a game plan for Duskhope when they arrived.

"Yeah? What is it?" Dipper inquired, uncertain why Yuki's movement became so stiff suddenly.

"There are two figures I know not of within the vicinity," Yuki told the twins as he made it next to the counter, and pressed himself against it, trying to minimize his appearance, "They could see my cranial extensions – Dipper, let me use my hat until they leave?" Yuki asked, pressing his dirty hands into his hair, trying to hide away his plant-like parts.

Dipper spotted the concern, but gave Yuki a small nudge. "That's just Grenda and Candy," Dipper told him, "They're on the loop of things around here with us. They even helped up defeat a candy monster once, among other things," Dipper reminisced.

"Besides," Mabel patted the shoulder of the poor alien, "They're more interested in trying to figure out how they can get as much physical evidence off of the band without appearing creepy."

"I know I heard them considering pulling off loose hairs from their shoulders," Wendy added with a worried look, "And I think Soos loved the idea."

"So... my secret is not in danger?" Yuki asked to the twins, who both shrugged. "Ah... well... I will return to my duties."

"Aw, but Pacifica might show up," Mabel told him as he turned.

"Huh?" Dipper and Yuki turned to Mabel. Dipper seemed confused, but Yuki was pleased with this news.

She looked around. "What? I thought she'd like meeting someone who might be able to actually talk about money stuff with her. That way we'd have friends who are friends with each other!" she explained.

Only overhearing Mabel a little, Grenda barked with a laugh. "Ha! She'd probably just ask if she could buy of them for an evening or something," Grenda suggested.

"Could we do that?" Candy asked.

"I doubt it. Not unless we suddenly got richer," Soos pointed out to the two of them. "Or... we donated a lot of blood, skin, or hair to science and get some quick cash?"

"Then we'd have to miss meeting them," Candy reminded them as she slumped, crestfallen.

"Well, either way," Mabel turned back to Yuki, "Her servant never answered the phone, so I don't know what's going on. Maybe they're busy again."

"She made it quite clear during the carnival that it would be rare for her to acquire time on her own. I would not expect her to show, Mabel," Yuki told her.

"Ah phooey," Mabel sighed.

"Phooey indeed," Yuki nodded solemnly, and retreated away, leaving the faint scents of motor oil, cleaning fluid, and possibly charred remains of food in the air.

"When are they supposed to be here again?" Grenda called to Mabel and Dipper.

"Soon," Dipper told them, "But their RV is huge, so we'll hear them coming long before they have a chance to get out of their ride, so don't worry about missing them. Those guys are a loud bunch. No way they could get the sneak on us."

The door of the gift shop opened. An attractive, well-groomed, blond man with green eyes and all the spirit of good-natured reckless abandonment poked himself inside. "Hi," he called to Grunkle Stan, the closest to the door, "Mystery Manor, right?"

Stan didn't look to the voice's source. "Yeah. First tip is free, the rest are a dollar each," Grunkle Stan said aside, "So choose your next questions carefully. Or just keep asking me dumb questions – either way you'll end up paying me."

Zander Maximillion, lead singer of Duskhope, beamed. "Oh, thanks!" He then spotted Dipper and Mabel standing aghast. He stepped fully inside, his international rock-star fame glowing from him like an aura, "I found who I was looking for."

Dipper put a hand to his face. "One of these days, life is going to let me have a statement. Just one day."

Mabel gasped, "Zander?!"

Soos, Grenda, and Candy all acted like they have just been dropped into freezing water. The three by the corner froze and all slowly turned, like statues possessed, to the source of commotion. Their gaze fell upon their idol of worship; come to flesh, and animate. Zander approached the counter and quickly patted the shoulders of both twins as he approached.

Those eyes of Zander's peered eagerly at the merchandise. "Oh, looky at this," he said as he lifted a small snowglobe of Gravity Falls, and then the Mystery Manor, and began to compare them, "These are cool. How much are these?" he asked to Wendy.

Stan heard the concept of a purchase. When he turned, and noticed who he was finally talking to, he gasped. "Two grand a piece!" Stan yelled, and ran to the counter, putting himself next to Wendy.

"They're thirty dollars each," Wendy glared at her employer.

Zander nodded, studying the glass hemi-spheres. "Hm. I'll have to get one later for some friends," Zander told her as he lowered both back to the shelf before him, "You know, for holidays and stuff."

Stan knew he smelt money on this guy. He pointed at the shelves. "Their price doubles each month you wait! You know, since they're limited edition!" Stan added, shoving Wendy over as he took her place. He tried hiding his desperation with a coy smile, "C'mon, I bet some lovely lady or whatever would love to have ten of these as a present."

Zander seemed entirely unaware of Stan's grubbing. "They probably would," Zander told him with his trademark boyish grin, "But, I'm not dating now, so I'll pass on it till later," he admitted, "I'm just here for these two."

As Zander rounded on the twins, three high-pitched screams shook the foundations of the building. Grenda, Candy, and Soos all charged at the taller man and tackled him to the floor, pinning him harshly down onto the wooden planks. Dipper yelped as Mabel pulled out of from the stampede just in time. Zander laughed as he struck the floor, face-down, "Wow, that's some affection!"

The door at the front burst open as the one of the other members, they dark skinned keyboardist Bishop. "Hey!" Bishop called as he pulled away Soos and the two girls, "Calm yourselves ladies – and dude," he added as he looked up and down Soos, who was just slightly taller than him.

The three had a new target.

"OH-"

"MY-"

"GOD!"

The three then turned onto Bishop, who was knocked out the door as they pummeled him off the outdoor porch and into the dirt. The keyboardist was far less excited with the attention, and went down about as gracefully as anyone would when tackled with the combined weight of a professional linebacker. As the twins chased the three outside, Wendy groaned and put a hand to her face.

"Guys, this is really embarrassing," Wendy grumbled.

Stan, who seemed as sympathetic as usual, yelled out, "Yeah, remind the band they can't sue if we didn't do it!" The twins made it outside, followed by Zander. Outside was their RV, just out by the winding dirt road. The other members of the band had just jumped at the sight of Bishop collapsing into the earth.

"We've got three ferals!" Bishop called as he struggled to stand from the three writhing, excited figures as they pinned him to the ground. With a quick reply, the other three members ran over and pulled away those assaulting Bishop. This in turn only caused Grenda to turn onto Marcus, Candy onto Kane, and Soos turned and found Robbie.

Robbie made to flinch, clearly prepared for a tackle-slam. Soos instead noted Robbie and extended a handshake. "Oh, hey dude," Soos said pleasantly. Robbie made the mistake of slowly offering him the same gesture, only to be pulled into a bone-crushing hug, similar to what Grenda was giving to Marcus.

"She's like a gorilla!" Marucs coughed as he felt the life being squeezed from him. "Let up, please!"

"Guys!" Dipper called out, trying to pry off Grenda. "Let go of them!"

"It'll take more than that!" Grenda growled to Dipper as she clutched on. Mabel was about to call aloud, exasperated with her friends love.

A loud bang around them stunned the air. It had been about the same kind of percussion and volume as a shot from a heavier handgun. All eyes turned to the porch-line by the rooms. A woman stoodd in the shadows, a trail of smoke passing around from her fingers. At her feet, a small oink called to Mabel. Waddles had brought the local enforcer.

Arline told them, "Okay you three, relax," as she dusted her hands of remaining ashes from whatever loud fire-ability she had just used. She eyed the fans carefully, "They're just people. People, who I'm sure, really like personal space sometimes."

"You could say that," Marcus admitted as he wriggled himself out of Grenda.

"Good job Waddles," Mabel told the pig. He walked over to her, squealing happily with his contribution to establishing peace. Mabel looked up and addressed her friends, "Maybe you guys should give them something to sign and then we can go?"

"I like that plan," Arline answered for them, "After all, they got as humanly close as they could."

Zander clapped his hands together eagerly. "Thank you," Zander congratulated Arline and grinned, "Always appreciate a bit of good from time to time," he told her. The golden-haired woman blinked. She leaned out into the sunlight and stared at him. She acted as if she hadn't heard correctly. Zander, unphased but concerned, asked, "Uh, are you okay ma'am?"

Arline shook herself slightly. "You sound very familiar," she told him.

Zander laughed. "Well, my voice is on the radio," Zander said. He then signed Grenda's shoes and Candy's spare glasses. He looked to the three pleasingly, "Thanks for the support and love you three!" Soos fainted, and fell onto Grenda's shoulders. Grenda then also fainted, and then, with Soos, fell to Candy. While Candy did not nearly faint, she struggled to keep up her friend and Soos, her knees buckling dangerously as she wobbled back and forth.

Robbie focused on Arline. "You're that woman who can throw fire?" he asked. Arline frowned and considered her response. As far as the twins had noticed, it was not something she had, thus far, enjoyed being addressed as. Robbie added, "Thanks again for the help," pointedly to the woman.

She smiled, relaxing a little. "No problem. Did I hear that Mabel and Dipper plan on taking you five on a little hike?" she asked, slowly turning to look at Mabel. There was a warning in that look to Mabel. Regardless of bravery when before Zander, the piercing stare from Arline caused Mabel to gulp.

Zander stretched to his tallest, eyes squeezed shut with his ear-to-ear grin. "Yup!" Zander answered, "Going to see if what they say about these woods is true."

Arline immediately answered, "It is." The band looked like a cool breeze had just blown through, as most of them shivered. "Trust me," Arline warned them, all pretenses of pleasantries gone, "There are monsters and madmen in those woods; sometimes they're the same thing," she added. "Maybe you guys should stick to the Mystery Manor instead. Aside from a... rude welcome, it's cute and safe," she told them. Warming up a tiny bit, she looked to the twins again. "I'll be in my room if you two need me."

"O-Okay?" Dipper added.

Arline turned and started walking back inside, only glancing once back at the troupe of musicians to stare at Zander. He noticed this time, and recoiled from her gaze. Eying him, she frowned. Without another word to him, she walked into her room. In the tense silence form the band and the twins, they heard Soos try to pull himself up, Grenda try to pull herself up as well, and then both Soos and Grenda trying to help Candy breath from carrying both of them.

"Well," Kane finally broke the silence, "That was stupidly ominous."

The artist had spoken what Dipper was thinking. "Yeah, one second," Dipper smiled to the band while he grabbed his sister, and then pulled her aside. A dozen feet away, he urged her and said, "Mabel, I know I said this was a bad idea," he spoke to her in a hushed voice, "But now your own master is telling us this is a bad idea too!"

"But she didn't say no," Mabel put a finger up as to label the point. Dipper growled and shook his head. Mabel pleaded, "C'mon dude."

"Mabel, you were a werewolf less than a week ago. You want one of them becoming one next?" Dipper demanded quietly.

Mabel frowned and bit her lips. Dipper wasn't entirely wrong. She looked past him to the band, where Robbie and Zander were both eyeing the twins with concern. Her eyes briefly met with Zander's, and she lacked the strength to pull away her gaze. Her fate was sealed when he gave her the gentlest of smiles.

"We'll be fine, Dipper," Mabel told him. "Even if something happens, we're together. I've been working with my master closely. We can handle whatever," she told her brother.

He sighed and shrugged. "Okay, fine. We'll go for a walk with them. Just so you know," Dipper looked forcefully to Mabel, "When this does go crazy bad, I told you so," Dipper added as he spun back to the band.

"Okay, Dipper and I are ready to give the tour," Mabel told them happily as they walked back.

"Awesome," Zander rubbed his hands together and then wrapped his arms around the closest two necks with an excited hug, "Guys, just imagine: we can sing about things that actually exist!"

"Dude, chill," Kane told him with a sigh and looked to the twins, "I think we're ready."

"Yup. Sorry you three," Zander told the worshippers of the band closer to the building, "This is where we part ways."

"Don't stalk us, please," Bishop pleaded as he looked to Grenda and Candy.

"Be careful in there!" Soos called to them as Mabel started leading the way to the forest edge. Zander nodded to them and saluted, and then adjusted his scarf.

"Dude, it's summer," Robbie told him, "You can take off the scarf."

Zander stuck out his tongue. "Nah. Mine. Stays on," Zander retorted.

Mabel stared into the woods. There was a certain dread to her task at hand. Granted, the last time she and Dipper ventured through the trees, they came back on young mastodon who was very friendly. Now, as she thought back, the woods were both a salvation and a damnation. Monsters and beasts lurked about as much as blessings and benevolent forces awaited to be discovered.

So, with a heavy sigh, Mabel took her first step into the line of trees and started pushing forward. Behind them, the band members quickly began to gasp and point around.

"Whoa, dude, you see mushrooms that big before?" Marcus asked to Zander who shook his head while smiling.

"Or how about that one crazy tree?" Kane added as he pulled out an impaled leaf on his spiky hair.

Robbie was less impressed. "Yeah, yeah, it's nice and pretty," Robbie told them, his hands deep in his pants pockets. The group eyed him as he glanced around, a strange look of heaviness and longing in his gaze. His stares had a heaviness that only forlorn memories could provide.

Zander, ahead of the group by a few steps, eyed over his shoulder. "Nothing quite like home, huh Robbie?" Zander asked him as he pushed slightly ahead of his band members as he looked around.

"I, uh, guess not," he shrugged. Zander gave him a gentle smile, and continued ahead. Quieter this time, Robbie added, "Just a lot of memories here." To that, Dipper snorted loudly, which was not unnoticed by Robbie. "What?" he snapped at Dipper.

"Yeah, I'm sure you have a lot of memories here," Dipper rolled his eyes.

"You got something to say, huh Dipper?" Robbie glared to him, "Sounds like you wanted to say something, you know, if you weren't such a wimp about that sort of thing."

Of all the things to get Dipper riled up, wimp hadn't been among the expected insults. Still, coming from Robbie's mouth, it might as well have been an insult on his mother's grave. "W-what?!" Dipper spun around to face Robbie's pleased grin. "Tough talk coming from you, mister hypnotizer!"

"That was once! Better than you, relationship-ruiner!" Robbie retorted.

"Relationship-what!?"

"Going around crossing anyone else? Like Pacifica?"

"Shut up, you son of a-"

"Breath," Zander's voice cut in, "Oo-kaaay, and we're done with that," Zander quickly appeared between the two of them. Dipper and Robbie found themselves within inches of one another, staring at one another heatedly. Zander glanced to Dipper, and then to Robbie. "So, you two done?" he asked. The angered two exchanged a glance and turned from one another, arms crossed and scowling.

"Dude, what was that about?" Marcus asked Robbie worriedly.

"Nothing," the guitarist replied quietly.

Zander laughed to Dipper, and slithered an arm around Robbie's neck. "Right," he chuckled, and then strode ahead, dragging Robbie with him. "I know you're new to PR, but dang Robbie," Zander said quietly as he walked away from Dipper with his bandmate, "That's not how we keep a strong following with fans. Rule number one – they're right as long as they're not nasty."

Robbie clearly wasn't here for a lesson in public relations. "Well, for one," Robbie spun around and jabbed a finger towards Dipper's, "He's being a jerk, and two, he's no fan of mine!"

"Got that second part right," Dipper remarked. Robbie made a sudden movement as to rush at Dipper, but the band acted quickly.

"Okay, okay," Marcus stepped up as well, "Let's just chill then," he added, and Robbie grunted and looked away. "So, uh, we keep them apart?" he asked the lead singer, who sighed.

"Dipper, you take lead?" Zander asked the hatted boy.

Dipper scowled, but then saw Mabel. Her eyes shimmered. She wanted this to work, so badly. Finally, Dipper nodded. "Sure," He gloomily said as he turned and started heading deeper into the woods.

As Dipper passed by her, Mabel was torn between grasping his shoulder and demanding an explanation and consoling him. Her deep understanding of his mind gave her an insight to his feelings, which were a tad more fragile after that little spat between him and Robbie.

"What's eating them?"

Mabel jumped as a voice asked her from just behind. Zander had appeared next to her, waiting for her to continue. Her shoulders tightened, feeling the short distance between him and her. Man, was he tall and really handsome up close. With a quick and silent reminder to herself that she could speak to him without throwing up, she stepped onward and spoke.

"They're not fond of one another. Never really have been," Mabel tried telling him in her steadiest voice. It buckled a few times from her excitement and dread, but the nuances were not caught by the singer as he nodded.

He nodded along. "Could tell that, alright. But why?" he asked her and she sighed.

"It's a long story. Dipper and Robbie both liked the same girl," she explained quietly, her voice no louder than the steps she took, "And they didn't like each other to begin with."

"Same girl?" Zander asked, leaning down to hear Mabel's words. His clean, warm breath passed by her ear and Mabel could have sworn her heart split into two pieces, and those pieces started dancing.

"Y-yeah, yeah," she said, desperately trying to stabilize the beating in her chest, "They both liked the same girl. Her name is Wendy. She's really cool," Mabel told him, focusing on anything but the proximity of the man next to her, "And Robbie did get a chance with Wendy, but I guess they never stopped competing even though Robbie dated and Dipper didn't."

Zander's nods turned solemn. "Yeah, sounds like poor Robbie all right." Mabel frowned and turned to look at him. 'Poor Robbie' wasn't a phrase she had expected from the leader. He grinned at her confusion, and she felt heat on her cheeks as she flushed. How dare his smile do that to her? He said, "Robbie's had it rough for a while."

"Huh?"

"Well," Zander glanced back to the troupe, who were all idly talking to one another, and trying to cheer up the now gloomy looking Robbie as well, "When our last guitarist left, we had tryouts. We had a lot, and I mean a lot, of competition. Some of them started to duel using their guitars. So many people trying their hardest to be... well, something they weren't."

"What does that mean?" Mabel asked.

"It means they swung their guitars at each other, and-"

"Not that," she snickered, "You said-"

"Trying to be something they weren't?" he asked for her clarity. When she nodded, Zander gave his word a thought.

"When someone performs, Mabel," Zander told her as the woods grew darker, and the air heavier, "People can tell when it's natural. You need to be comfortable, and friendly, and fun, and energetic. A lot of people can't do all of that at the same time. Hardly anyone could get three of them done, but all four? And still perform? We couldn't find anyone who fit. And then we found Robbie, the dumb kid," Zander added with a chuckle. He continued, "This poor dude walks into the audition, dead in his eyes and looks exhausted. He was late, and our manager wouldn't let him into the audition until everyone else had gone first. It was one in the morning and this guy just stumbled onto stage like a zombie."

Mabel snickered. "I've heard that description for him before."

Zander nodded eagerly. "Right?" he agreed, and Mabel could have just died right there and then as he leaned to her. "Anyway," Zander chuckled and furthered his story, "The poor guy still had it. He was talented enough; sure, he needed work, he loved the spotlight, and was full of energy, but he wasn't having fun. He was miserable."

"Then why did he get in?" Mabel asked as she pushed herself around a tree, keeping her eyes on the man next to her, "He didn't meet your coolio requirements."

"No, he didn't," Zander told her and he glanced back once more, but then smiled, "but what he brought something new to the group that our gang needed," and her turned back to look at Mabel, "hope."

"Hope?" she gaped, "Robbie brought hope? You sure we're talking about the same guy?"

Zander tilted his head side-to-side. "He was a run-away, had little to no cash, and had nowhere to go after this. Sure, he was rough around the edges, but he had waited, after being told to go home a few times, and stood before us, waiting to be judged. So, I told him to perform his favorite song for us, his real favorite song. He had done one of ours... not so well," Zander admitted, "But when he played his song, his cherished song… well, then we found our guitarist."

"What was the song?" Mabel asked, forgetting the distance between the two of them, and only coming the realize she was only a few inches from him. As she gasped and felt the fears of the closeness, he smiled and shook his head. He didn't seem to notice their proximity.

"That's personal, Mabel," Zander told her and bent back up, "It was something close to him, and it was his willingness to show us that which got him the spot."

"And he's had it rough?" Mabel checked in with the performer again.

"Well, being forced to our standards by the manager, and taking lessons from me personally every day until a week ago has been tough. I'm not a hard teacher, but I do press 'em to be better and better each time. I guess that's the pressures of being considered a master of your craft," Zander confided in her, scratching his back.

While watching him with a mild embarrassment, Mabel glanced behind herself, better to check to see if anyone noticed her. Yet, for the first time, she realized that both Robbie and Bishop still had their primary instruments, and that Marcus and Kane had a backpack, which she realized had shapes which would strike her as holding a keyboard and spare set of drums.

"You guys aren't dropping those off anywhere?" Mabel asked the musicians.

"Nope. They stay with us," Kane told her, patting his backpack.

"Duskhope rule – you don't leave your instrument behind," Zander told Mabel, "So no-one loses anything and nothing gets stolen."

"Hardcore, dude," Mabel told him.

"Hardest for Zander," Robbie commented with a teasing venom, "Lead singer only needs to carry our ego."

Zander laughed. He wove a hand at Robbie, clearly pleased with the teasing comment. Zander, wiping a tear from his face, stalled. He wiped his eyes clear and he gasped. "Whoa."

"Huh?" Mabel turned and found herself almost run into Dipper. "Whoa, Dip, what's... up... oh."

The entire group stopped at a large patch of the forest which was, for lack of a better term, dark blue. The space in the woods around them was vacant; trees were thin and springy, winding upwards like gnawed hands and arms reaching for the canopy, all devoid of leafs. Nearly three hundred feet away was a large, ancient wooden home, built into the side of a cliff-face. It was made of clay and log, and had suffered from extensive burns. Half the roof caved in, and the rotten remains of the door held itself aloft on rusted hinges. What few remaining undestroyed glass windows were covered in vines and filth.

"Dipper?" Mabel asked as she stepped next to him, eying the structure.

He was rummaging through his book. Spanning through his notes, he muttered, "Wood cabin... wood house... wooden man? Wood... nothing." Dipper looked to Mabel, "Nothing. I've got nothing on this place," he told her worriedly.

If the atmosphere of this place wasn't warning signs enough, the journal had nothing on it either. That wasn't entirely beyond strange, as Dipper hadn't completely transferred all of Stanfords notes over. Mabel stepped closer, eying the dark windows for signs of movement. She knew that the journal had rarely let them down from things that prowled in the woods. This wasn't even moving- it just sat there, rotting away. Could Stanford have missed this place? Sure, it was about as dark here as it was with the pine forest with the werewolves, but this just stuck out. Mabel could even smell some of the remains of ashes and burning wood linger in the air. Rot and decay took up the most of the scent, and she gulped. This could be a dangerous place.

"Let's go check it out," Zander quickly stepped past the twins with his usual excited smile.

"Hold up," Dipper walked in front of him as the group followed, "Maybe we should take this slow. This journal can help us discern if there's bad stuff waiting inside. It'll take time, but we can stay safe," Dipper reminded him.

"I hate to side with him, but he's right," Robbie added, stepping around from the group and standing next to Zander, "This stuff can be bad mojo, man."

Dipper grumpily glared at Robbie. "I don't need you backing me on this."

"And I don't need to have a selfish reason to tell someone something important, unlike you," Robbie retorted. Dipper's mouth dropped and his eyes widened as he turned to face the man. Robbie had grown a few inches to be sure, but Dipper had caught up considerably with the older boy. Instead of a few feet separating the two, Dipper was only a few inches shorter than the guitarist.

Zander had placed a hand at his chin. He weighed their words. "Your concerns are noted, thank you. Now, to go see a real haunted house," Zander stated as he pushed past the two of them and walked with Mabel.

"Mabel, c'mon, back me up here," Dipper asked her.

She turned, looked to Zander, and could only shrug.

"Just let Zander do it, man," Bishop told the two of them as he, Kane, and Marcus followed, "he just sort of does things. Usually works out in the end."

"Usually?" Dipper asked.

Kane sighed. "Excepting the one time we all almost got kidnapped and held for ransom, yeah," Kane told Dipper as he walked past, "usually it's okay."

Dipper and Robbie both gulped. With a distrustful glance to one another, the both followed towards the building. Ruined was certainly a good word for it, as the wooden walls festered with dirt and rot. This place had been here for a considerable time. It had two floors, as Mabel noted while approaching. Then she and Zander made it to the front door. He glanced back once, counting the members of the party. When he figured out the number of attending people was correct, he nodded to himself, grinned at Mabel, and slowly pushed open the door.

With a loud snap it fell off the hinges and crashed onto the floor. All the faces of those outside went white, and the awaited some horrible reply from inside; A scattering of feet, scampering of claws, skittering of tendrils... but nothing sounded from inside.

With a nervous chuckle, Zander whimpered, "Whoops."

"Nice one, dude," Bishop patted Zander's shoulder, "Touch one bit of ancient history, and you ruin it."

"Shut up," Zander laughed as he pushed inside.

Mabel following beside him, they stepped inside the building. Pieces of old furniture were strewn around the floor of the large, strangely open-concept main room of the first floor. An easily identified broken fireplace caught their attention to the right, but the darker respite of the building called from across the large floor. There was dirt everywhere, and Mabel heard her feet echoing against the wooden planks of the floor. It echoed loudly, too loudly for her to think normal for a building resting on solid ground. As she looked down, Dipper gasped and pulled her and Zander back.

"Watch out!" he declared, and pointed to the floor. "It's hollowed out there."

True to his word, there was distance between the planks of wood they could spy through. It was either a cave in or some sort of hole. The ground underneath the planks contained a devouring darkness that seemed to want to swallow Mabel's sight as she tried peering into it. Dipper looked to her once, and she nodded, holding his arm as he crept forward. He firmly pressed his foot against a panel, and loud creaks replied from his effort.

"That sounds like unsafe wood," Dipper told them.

Mabel snorted. After the biggest 'Oh, come on' look from her brother, she cleared her throat and added, "The worst kind of wood. With exception of flesh-eating wood. That stuff is bonkers-crazy."

"That doesn't actually exist, does it?" Marcus inquired as he approached with the other four. Mabel nodded, and the man let out a long, low whistle. "I hate the woods now. Let's sing about cities and the stupid people."

"Never!" Zander defied his wish and began to creep around the selected area of wood.

"Just don't do a cute little jig on this area," Mabel told the others, following in the path Zander laid out. "Like, anywhere else is good, but this one. Do a river dance on that table," she pointed to a rickety old, and well rotten table across the room.

"Just what kind of people lived here you think?" Marcus asked to the group at large.

Robbie shook his head while looking around. "I dunno, man. Maybe, like, colonial people?" he guessed.

Dipper, feeling clever, was ready to answer. "No way–"

"Anyone with this kind of furnishing would be from the late eighteenth century. Maybe eighteen ninety," Zander stated easily, tracing his fingers over a dark wooden cabinet. Dipper eyed the musician.

"Yeah, that's right," Dipper nodded.

"Oh. Right. You know, cus that's common knowledge," Robbie rolled his eyes and scoffed. Zander chuckled as he pressed on, giving the cabinet a small slap. The contents inside rattled like glass bottles, and the man spun, in one wide step, perfectly around and stared at it.

"What's hiding behind curtain number one?" Zander murmured as he reached out to pull open the door.

"Hold on," Dipper approached the door before him, holding his hand back. "It could just make the sounds like glass. Let me check," he turned away from Zander, and rapped his hands against the wood hard in five loud knocks. "Knock-knock," Dipper called. After a brief pause, he shrugged. "Okay. No mimic in there."

"Wait, mimic?" Bishop called. "Like a mime?"

Mabel walked up to her brother's side. "Nah, these are jerks who pretend to be things like doorways and cabinets, and then when you open them, they eat you," Mabel answered for Dipper, "We found one three summers ago – they hate knock-knock jokes."

"Oddly... specific," Kane mentioned as he moved to the table. As the lead singer opened the cabinet slowly with Dipper by his side, Kane spotted something by Mabel while she walked across the other side. "Hey," he said aloud, and pulled out from the heavy dust and rotting leaves a decayed book. "Whoa, this thing is seven different ways of freaky."

"Like Dipper!" Mabel snorted.

"Mabel, shut up," Dipper growled at her as she and Robbie snickered. Zander turned from his revealed shelves of strange potion-like objects, and turned to the table. "What's that?" Dipper asked as Kane slowly wiped away the filth crusting the pages and cover of the book. Finally, the man lowered the book for all to see, and they gasped and 'awed' in their sights: sigils and runes coated the pages, with various scribbled instructions to create them. Dipper's eyes widened and he looked to Mabel. "I've seen this stuff before; when I was looking up the stuff that Warlock stole from the library. These are magic spells."

"Legit magic?" Bishop asked, a worried look around. There was a broken staircase along the side of the room that lead to a half-floor above, which was held by the walls at the front of the building. "You don't think there could be, like, magical stuff going on now?"

"Hard to say," Dipper answered, "Sometimes magic is really obvious, sometimes it's subtle."

Robbie spied around the room. "Great. So, we really have no idea as to know if we're standing on some sort of enchantment or not," Robbie pointed out, "Great."

"Calm down," Dipper remarked, "If anyone else here would know about enchantments, it would be you," he said as he looked to the walls by the cabinet.

"What was that!?" Robbie demanded.

Mabel looked into the book further, ignoring her brother's heated reply. Instead, she turned the page, and found a new spell. "This one looks like it's about protection or something," Mabel announced to those still listening. Kane had his eyes stuck on Dipper and Robbie, who were now facing one another angrily, glaring at each other as they swapped insults.

"Well, at least I can move past something!" Robbie called.

"Coming from a guy who literally threw himself into a grave? Hah!" Dipper replied.

"Yeah? You want a trip to one?" Robbie advanced a step, but Dipper didn't back down.

"Oh? What, are you going to throw me into a grave and ask me to grovel? Unlike you-"

Mabel glanced to them, and instead raised her voice loudly, trying to pull them into the discovery. "It says here that someone can put themselves into a permanent stasis if they mediate hard enough, and simply become a statue in time," Mabel said around the table, and turned the page. "Oh, not as pretty," she said, and flipped again, leaving behind the ritual for reviving the dead as servants. "And this one is about growing plants faster!" She called over the loudest words yet, and turned to glare at them, away from the table, "Guys!"

"What?!" they both demanded.

Zander, at their side now, lost his smile. "Would you two chill?" Zander demanded of them, arms crossed. He rounded on his band-mate. "Robbie, what the heck dude? You can't act like this with people."

"Dipper's being a freaking ass!" Robbie yelled.

Dipper laughed bitterly. "Maybe you just needed a chance to hear what you sounded like three years ago!" Dipper told him furiously.

"Better than whatever you had to say! If Wendy was still here, I'd ask her how her eye was doing!" Robbie taunted Dipper. The teenager's hands balled up and his eyes sharpened. Mabel knew that may be the second to last time Robbie would get to say something like that before Dipper made a move. She pushed herself away from the table, moving between them.

"You don't get to talk about Wendy that way!" Dipper shouted at him, "You ruined any chances you had with her! You just wanted to be around her, not wanted her!"

Scarlet grew in Robbie's face. "Yeah? You think I'm that bad, huh? What do you know what I've done?!" Robbie demanded as Mabel stood between them, pushing Dipper aside as Kane walked behind Robbie and tried pulling him aside. Robbie tried freeing himself. "Don't touch me man! This kid thinks he's so smart with that book of his, and getting to be a snide little spitball who- who just-" Robbie turned and kicked at the table next to him, which slid away with his power and slammed through the wall. As Robbie cooled off, his breathing slowing, the group slowly realized that the kicked table had impaled the wall. There was an open space behind the wall: something of a new space. As Zander looked around the side of the wall, there was no door.

"Did... did he just find a hidden room by kicking a table through a wall?" Bishop asked with a small grin, "Nice work, Jackie Chan." Robbie stewed slightly less after the compliment.

Zander approached the hole. "Now, what do we have inside curtain number two?" Zander asked as he pulled himself through the thin wall, stepping over the remains of the shattered table. Mabel had just let go of Dipper. The previously fired up twin had broken his fury in tide of curiosity. There was more to discover now.

The second room was not scorched. While still suffered from the element of time, it remained decaying, but organized. Two large bookshelves sat on the wall next to the broken wall, and the large inside of the room was carved into rock. In the center of the room, which was surrounded by ornate wooden tables, was a large stone pedestal with Celtic carvings all along its surface.

Standing in a pose of penance with both hands placed before her, a stone statue stood across from them, situated before the pedestal. The woman, as best they could see it, was decorated to be described as 'a witch'. She wore a very wide pointed hat, and had baggy clothing.

"That is so freakin' cool," Zander breathed as he stalled, and looked right to the statue.

"Sort of story-book, huh?" Bishop asked as he also stepped in, followed by the twins.

Dipper whistled and Mabel found her eyes drawn to the statue. "Man, this is definitely cool," Dipper admitted as he walked to one of the tables, where a mortar and pestle sat unused and forgotten. "You know, I don't usually like calling out things before I have evidence, but I think we just discovered a witch's hut."

"Nice work, Detective Obvious," Robbie scowled at him, walking around the statue to feel the rock. Dipper glared at him, but said nothing, instead looking at the materials on the table.

"So, if there was a witch here, "Marcus asked, "What happened to 'em?"

"Well, there was some burnt wood, wasn't there?" Mabel pointed out, crossing her arms together, "What if people found out about her and then, you know, burnt this place to the ground?" she added sadly, "And maybe the place is haunted at night."

"Can we not talk about ghosts?" Robbie snapped, turning to her sharply. Mabel looked to him, slightly taken aback at his sudden volume. She gave him a very sorry frown, and he looked apologetic. He waved his hand and looked away, trying to convey his own apology non-verbally.

Dipper was less forgiving at his outburst. "Why, what's wrong Robbie? Bad memories about ghosts?" Dipper asked him. Robbie clenched his jaw tightly and swallowed his hateful words, instead choosing to examine the slightly wet walls of natural rock before him.

Mabel stomped to Dipper. "Stop it," Mabel shot at her brother. He turned away and continued to look through items.

"Ah! Here we go," Zander announced, having paced around the circle of tables to find a single outlaying book. "Wiccan spells," he announced loudly.

"Wiccan?" Mabel gasped and walked over, "Turn someone into a frog! With lots of warts!"

"What the heck is wiccan?" Marcus asked to the group.

"It's like the new pagan," Zander told him, "Like how you have old cars and new cars? Well, you have pagan and wiccan."

"But Wiccans are new stuff," Dipper told the group as he too approached Zander's table, briefly eyeing the strange statue, "That was made only in the past hundred years or so I thought."

"Maybe. Or maybe we have a little trend-setter here," Zander pointed to the spell book, "Doesn't seem like horrible stuff. Increase luck, give beauty, make healthy, spell of protection; good vibe stuff."

"Can you put that stuff down, man?" Robbie asked, worriedly watching the book, "Magic is bad stuff, dude."

Dipper, intentionally looking elsewhere, muttered, "Makes it sound like you've dealt with magic before, Robbie," in a deliberately off-handed way.

"Seriously?" Robbie turned and glared at him, "Still going at me, huh? If you hate me so much, why don't you just do something about it?" Dipper turned and stared at him with simmering eyes, but made no movement. "Didn't think so. You always were more talk than act."

Dipper's face went pink. "Says you! Who actually fought McSkirmish?"

"Who summoned him to fight for him to begin with!?" Robbie pointed out.

"At least you got the chance to remember!" Dipper told him angrily.

"Oh, thanks! You scarred people in town so much they wanted a chance to forget a part of their lives, and you let us all remember? How can we ever thank you," Robbie snidely retorted.

"Maybe we should just finish what we started then?!" Dipper suggested, and tried snatching the book to put it aside, better for him to go at Robbie. However, the book escaped his fingers clutches, and it flew straight for the stone pedestal.

The book, upon landing on the stone flipped up and began to hover, turning slowly to face the witch statue.

"Uh-oh," Mabel muttered.

Pages began to flip as wind picked up in the room. Wooden panels bent and snapped as the billowing air blasted around them, throwing up shattered tables, chairs, alchemic pieces, and ingredients. As the hurricane contained in a single room grew louder and more catastrophic, chunks of the statue were torn away. The stone was not solid. As the pieces of the hair were torn away, living, fresh hair billowed in the air underneath the statue. Soon fabric, skin, and even fingers were exposed as the wind tore it all away from the would-be-statue.

Mabel repeated, "The other books said something about a spell that turns you into a statue-like state."

The statue was shredded and left a woman, floating in place, at the center of the tornado. As the witch's hair fell past her face and the wind fell away, her eyes darted open, and bright, shimmering blue eyes met theirs.

The entire group took one large step back, clutching onto one another carefully. The woman looked around, her mouth growing wide and less stable. The sight of the ruined building and rotting setting upsetting her. She then glanced down to the book still levitating before her, and placing a hand above it, it began to rise into her grasp. Once it felt the embrace of her hands, she, and the book, retained gravity, and landed. Her feet firmly onto the ground, she turned, those burning blue eyes glaring at the crowd before her.

"Who are you?" she demanded.

Ever the eager diplomat, Mabel stepped forward. "Hi! I'm Mabel, this is Dipper, Zander, Kane, Robbie, Bishop, and Marcus," Mabel exclaimed quickly.

The woman looked to her, and with a whip of her hand, a flash of bright light blinded the group to the world. As they all gasped and turned away, the woman continued to shout. "That means nothing! What are you doing in my home! What have you done to my family home!?" she yelled as the light reduced. When they all looked back, there was what appeared to be a massive blue outline of a bear before her. Easily five feet tall and transparent, the bear growled at them with echoing, ethereal grunts that sounded as ghostly as the creature looked.

"Did you just summon a bear!?" Zander gasped excitedly.

The woman threateningly held her finger to them. "Answer me now," she told them.

"We're just exploring dude!" Marcus told her, "Just wandering around the woods and we stumbled upon this hou – your home!"

The answer he provided did not go well with her. She closed her eyes as her lips curled and her nose wrinkled. She looked disgusted at first, but then her face softened, and she began to sing. The bear grew brighter and larger, and from the air itself, two more figures emerged, similar is color and property, but a cougar and wolf. The witch was summoning these spectral creatures through her voice alone. They began to snarl and bark at the group as her singing grew louder and more pronounced, as haunting and beautiful as the spectral creatures she summoned.

The witch pointed out, and the gang roared with terror as the bear made it's charge. They dodged to the exit as the bear pummeled through the tables easily, leaving a wake of destruction in it's path. As the last of the group leapt from the hole in the wall, the bear slammed through the bookshelves and into the main room, giving chase.

"Out! Let's go!" Zander told them moving to the exit. Dipper and Mabel, in lead, gasped as their feet were met with loud snaps and creaks. They had just stepped onto the worn and broken floors with the darkness below. With a loud scream as the twins tried to halt the others, the entire floor collapsed.

Mabel, a practiced quickdraw, withdrew something under her sweater. "Grappling Hook!" she shouted, and fired her device. She quickly grabbed her brother. He, in turn, grabbed Zander. Mabel felt a little weight there. Zander grabbed Robbie, who grabbed Kane, who grabbed Marcus, who grabbed Bishop. All that weight made Mabel's eyes pop out.

"Gaaah," Mabel whined, feeling her fingers burning with her arms as she became the lynch pin of a seven-person chain, "Heavy." The wood the hook had snagged onto was buckling. Mabel grimaced, and looked down, "Guys! Lose some weight now!"

Bishop, at the bottom, wrapped both his hands around Marcus. "What? Toss our instruments!"

Mabel felt the internal mechanisms of the grappling hook starting to give. "If you wouldn't mind," she said through clenched teeth.

Marcus cried up, "But that's against rule–"

"Really?" Kane snapped, "We're getting attached to band-rules now?"

Robbie, scowling, quietly added, "You know, I was emo. I got famous. I can die. This is fine."

"Robbie!" Mabel snapped, "No time for dramatics!"

"Fine, fine," he grumbled, and did not let go.

Above them, the wood buckled. The witch, at the edge of the hole, glared down upon them. She was opposite to the hook, but her gaze could easily burn away at the wooden strength of the floor Mabel had snagged.

As Dipper gulped at the coming fall, Zander grumbled, "I knew we should have been an a cappella group."

The wood by the grappling hook snapped. All seven screamed as the fell. Down a long, spiraling tunnel into darkness they descended. Echoed with their screams and the bellows of a large bear, the gang spun, fell, and bounced off rock and dirt as they plummeted down into darkness. After what could have been a solid minute, the seven all fell out from whatever tunnel they had been in and came to a sliding stop, slamming into one another.

"...Ow," Zander groaned as his muffled voice announced he was at the bottom of the pile of bodies. "Not as exciting as the kiddy slides in playgrounds make you think." Mabel laughed loudly at the comment, and she could have swore she heard him smile as he said, "What? What? It's true!"

"One second," Dipper stated as he stood, his footsteps echoing around. With a reach in his pocket and a flick of his wrist, he opened the cellphone, and let the illuminating light of the screen give them partial break from the darkness. Dipper looked around, and found the pile of recovering musicians and his laughing sister. The cave they were in was more of an etched out tunnel. No natural formations informed Dipper of the age of this place, but considering the amount of distance they fell, it could have been deep into the earth.

"I gotcha covered too," Bishop added, and lifted up a lighter, and filled the space with a spare orange glow.

"Great. So now we're deep in the earth, with two directions to go, with one crazy wiccan witch trying to kill us for some stupid reason," Robbie growled as he pushed himself up. "I swear, I thought things would change around Gravity Falls once in a while! But noooo," he continued to whine as Zander stood up next to him, dusting his shoulders off, "Still a life and death situation whenever you step into the woods with these two brats!"

"Hey!" Mabel snapped, vocally upset with his accusations.

"Okay, fine. Mabel, sorry," Robbie rolled his eyes, and then stared to Dipper, "But you? Forget it. You're the epitome of trouble."

Before Dipper could retort, Zander stepped in-between them. "Stop it," Zander told them. That twinkle in his eyes had vanished, and his gaze was anything but friendly. He commanded the space now, and his voice would not be dis-obeyed. "We need to get out of here without a spirit bear mauling us. Yell at one another after we leave, got it?" he said, eying them. Dipper nodded, and Robbie scoffed. Zander approved of their responses. "Good. Now... uh... Mabel?" Zander turned to Mabel, who shrunk back from the orange outline of the man before her as he looked pleadingly down to her. "You or Dipper know the way out of here, right?"

"Oh. Oh! Yeah!" Mabel nodded, and gave a long, outstanding sniff of the air. She gasped and turned towards the group. "That way!" she pointed.

"Any particular reason?" Kane asked her.

"Smells less earthy. And if you're underground, anything less earthy means a way out," Mabel snickered as she informed him.

"Hope you're right," Marcus told her, "Lead the way, bloodhound."

"I will sniff us to safety!" Mabel told them, and lead the march, heading into the darkness, provided only the light of the cell phone and the small lighter held above by Bishop.

"Why'd she attack us, anyway?" Robbie asked angrily. "It wasn't like we did anything to her. Heck – looks like we freed her from some sort of spell!"

"In our experience," Mabel stated for herself and Dipper, "People who use magic tend to be less of mind and more of crazy."

"Really?" Zander asked her. When she nodded, he gave a small hum, but said nothing.

"Maybe she thought we burnt that home down," Kane suggested, "If you woke up to your home burned down and a bunch of strangers staring at you, you may be a little upset too."

"Either way, we need to get out of here before she finds us," Dipper told them as he guided the way with Mabel and Bishop.

"Watch out," Bishop snickered as he let the light dimly illuminate his face, "the Wiccan Witch of the Northwest is coming to get you."

"Shut up," Kane told him.

The echoing footsteps of the seven provided Mabel with some clearance as they carefully walked around. "Echolocation is the blind-Mabel's friend," she told Dipper a few times as she could tell when the tunnel was twisted, before her sight informed her as such. The mildly damp walls and floors occasionally would drip freezing water onto their heads. It was chilly in this cave-formation, not that the droplets of water needed to remind them. It was a rude awakening to the stark danger of their situation. Yet, two members were cheery as ever.

"And Mina was really great at playing Frisbee!" Mabel told Zander as they walked together, "And was great with people! Kind of a wonder-mastodon."

He had listened to her story about as intently as humanly possible. "Man, and I thought I felt old. Ten-thousand-year-old mammoth- err- mastodon?" he asked her, the light flickering in his eyes with the same kind of excitement he held when learning something new.

Mabel nodded and continued with vigor. "She would have loved to have stayed, but her calling turned out to be the life of the carnie," Mabel said, and added with a sad sigh, "Waddles wasn't that happy with that."

Zander seemed to understand, his smile grew sympathetic. "Sometimes life leads us in directions we never knew we needed to go," Zander told her, "And it's only looking back that we realize that we needed to simply let life take us there."

"And sometimes you need to punch life in the face to make her let go of you so you can do your own thing!" Mabel added with excitement. Zander's eyebrows raised as he listened to her, and thankfully the darkness covered her shame. "I mean, uh, peacefully shove her away."

"No way, don't be like that," Zander told her with a pat on the back, "If you're going to lead your own path, you have to be ready to throw a few punches," He told her, wisdom beyond her expectations echoing in her brain, "After all, life is going to make sure you take a few punches. Trust me: I would know. One too many cans to face during my early performing years got me prepared for anything."

Their shared laughter was brought to a premature end. The melodic echoes of song bounced through the tunnels now. That was a voice, last they knew, belonging to a very unfriendly witch. As the seven clustered tightly, Dipper flipped open his journal, scanning pages yet again for any help.

"Dipper?" Mabel asked him as he used his phone for lighting.

"I'm working on it. Song based spells... song based spells... charms?" Dipper asked to himself. "No, she summoned them from the air!"

"What if that's, like, how she controls them?" Marcus asked.

"What, like hypnosis?" Dipper spat at Robbie.

"Just figure out how to get us out of this before we all die, smart one!" Robbie snarled back.

Mabel looked back and forth between the darkness. The sounds seemed to come from both directions. Unless that witch was splitting herself into two people, or had some crazy clone spell, there was only one direction she could come from. Or maybe she had some sort of spell that directed sound from somewhere? Mabel didn't know, and guessing wasn't getting her anywhere.

"Mabel?" Zander asked, watching her eyes darted back and forth.

Finally, she looked to him, and saw clear uncertainty in his gaze. He was strong, but just as unnerved as the others. She would not see him disappointed. She had promised him she would keep them safe, and so she would.

Her eyes tightly closed, and she focused inwardly. Passing out of the sight of the world around her, she felt herself sink into the present. She became a person falling into the meditation she had practiced with Arline for days, and by herself for weeks. There was a chance, just a shimmer of hope that she could tell where it was coming from, if she just would focus better. Yet it wasn't getting anywhere. A certain pair had started up again.

Dipper, incensed with Robbie's attitude, spat back, "Maybe you should just threaten the witch with a few punches and then run away, like you usually do?"

"Yeah? By all means – go ahead and endanger the world, and your family, for the mystery to be solved! I hear your pretty good at that!"

"Yeah?!"

"Yeah!"

Someone other than the bickering two suddenly burst out, "I am so done!"

All members flinched, and the vocal melody suddenly died from far off. Zander Maximillion stood next to the two, breathing heavily. All previous pleasantries were gone, and he looked to them expectantly, his nostrils flaring. That voice he had constantly used to sing and speak with grew deeper and full of fury.

That wasn't all that was changing- the sounds of running animals echoed around the hallways.

"Great. They're coming," Kane added.

"Then we need to run!" Dipper told them worriedly.

As Dipper turned to move, a powerful hand pinned him, and Robbie, in place. They were thrown against one another, and in the blink of an eye, suddenly were tied by a very sturdy, shiny, and silk-like scarf. Zander patted his hands and stepped back, and glared at the two of them.

Though impressed with his speed and precision as he weaponized a scarf, Mabel nervously asked, "Zander?"

"We're not leaving until they solve this like normal human beings," Zander said darkly, his arms crossed in the dimmed light.

"Zander, this isn't the time to be teaching life-lessons," Marcus pointed out, but Zander refused to budge.

"We're all waiting on you two," Zander told Dipper and Robbie, who both were standing, mouth agape as they stared at Zander and to each other.

Robbie clamored, "We can do this later-"

"Mabel," Zander said, less angrily but still firmly, "Find out where the woman is," Zander told Mabel, who nodded and began to meditate again. He glared at the bickering two. "You two," he demanded, "End. This."

Robbie, wincing at his proximity to Dipper, pleaded, "Boss, c'mon-"

"Now," Zander told Robbie, who flinched and sighed.

Suddenly, words spilled from his gut as the sounds of a large spectral bear pounded off the floor in the distance. "You always made me insecure!" Robbie called loudly, not looking at Dipper.

Dipper wasn't entirely sure what to make of the sudden deluge. "What?" he asked.

"You were close to Wendy! You never had to try to be friends with her! You were three years younger than me," Robbie turned around as best he could, glaring at Dipper resentfully, "and you knew it! You wanted her for your own as much as I did, and I... I was annoyed that you could do that! That you made hanging with her look as easy as you did!"

"I, well, you didn't really deserve her!" Dipper shouted angrily.

"Yeah! I know that!" Robbie exploded heatedly. Dipper blinked and looked to him fully. The Robbie that Dipper had once known was no longer present. A somber, saddened man stood there; his head hung in some form of guilt. "I didn't deserve Wendy, and I didn't deserve Tambry. I just lucked out and with a little hope, someone saw pity on me. That's all I am," he sighed, and clutched his forehead with a hand, "A pity party supreme. And I deserve nothing of it."

Dipper looked around. The band members were all watching, their eyes wide in fear, or shock, as they had listened to Robbie's confession.

Dipper sighed himself, and shrugged. "And I was also mean to you too, man. I won't say you didn't deserve it, but yeah, I ruined your relationship with Wendy because I thought you were trying to control her, but... also I wanted her for my own," Dipper shook his head, "And I'd be lying if I didn't say I may have done it again."

"Yeah, sorry for ruining that one for you," Robbie sighed deeply.

Dipper blinked and looked to him. "What do you mean by-"

"There!" Mabel suddenly exclaimed, opening her eyes and pointing ahead. "She's coming from ahead!"

"Well great," Kane said aloud, "Because those ghost animals are here!"

True to his word, Zander unraveled the powerfully tight scarf from the two. They gave each other only a single, studying glance before facing the coming threat. The bear waddled into sight from the dark behind them, having followed them from the cave-in. Yet, as Mabel gasped, the cougar and wolf appeared on the other side. They flanked either side of the approaching witch, who had halted her singing.

"I'm going to ask you one more time who you are," she told them, her smooth and cool voice gripped with intent, "And I shall have my answers."

"Is it answers you want?" Zander asked her, she stared to him and nodded as he laughed, "Because it sounds like you're more interested in just hurting the first people you see."

"What?!" she demanded.

"We're just people!" Mabel told her, "Dipper and I – that's Dipper," Mabel pointed to her brother quickly, "We just wanted to show these five around the woods. Nothing bad! We didn't even know you were here!"

"If you had no intent of traveling to my home, how did you know of my secret room?" she asked them.

Robbie slapped a hand to his face and raised his hand. "My bad. I kicked a table when I got ticked off and broke the wall. I can help fix it if you-"

Robbie's apology was cut off as she shrieked, and the blue shimmering light of the creatures flickered and went red. Dipper gasped, and held his book as he flipped pages quickly.

"I want to know who destroyed my family!" she bellowed; her voice amplified by magic.

Their immediate reaction to her increase of power ticked something off in Dippers brain. "They're familiars," Dipper told them quietly, "She's summoned familiars. Witch's and wizard guardians made of magic and... stuff. Doesn't really specify-"

The woman before them noted Dipper's observations. "You! Boy! Err, Dipper," she pointed to Dipper, who gulped and hid his book. She eyed him, "How do you know of my familiars?"

"Uh... this journal?" he pointed.

The witch let out a long, rattling breath. Somehow, that hadn't been the right answer. "I knew it," she said, "Witch hunters. You've finished my family, and now you wanted to come back and finish me," she growled hatefully.

Zander stepped forward, his hands up. "Now hold on," he told her, "We really just want to leave. We're not witch hunters, I assure you-"

"Liar!" she growled, "You think I'm simple? I can smell your magic." As she said this, the group recoiled, uncertain to her meaning. When no response came about, other than mild concern, the witch snarled. "Someone among you conceals magical properties! I can sense it!" she spat at Zander. He spun around, looking between the members of the group. Eyes fell onto Dipper, who stared at the book.

"Don't look at me! Or this!" he told them worriedly, and then tucked his book back under his arm.

The witch adjusted her hat, and delivered an ultimatum. "Unless you have something to prove your innocence, I believe this will come to an end now," she told them, and closed her eyes and widened her mouth. She began to sing again, swaying her arms back and forth as the beautiful, haunting calls of her voice spurred on the familiars.

Zander let out an exasperated grumble, "C'mon, that's such a lovely voice! Why can't we collab?" he quietly asked.

The other band members were less interested in musical crossover. Marcus demanded to the male twin urgently, "Dipper! We need an answer now!" as the animals slowly closed in on them.

Dipper flipped pages, scanning notes he had found on magical spells and other incantations. "The book only mentions summoning them! Nothing about controlling them at all!" Dipper shouted.

Robbie grunted through his teeth. "Well, if she uses music," Robbie stated, and stepped out, reaching around to his guitar as he stood before the large bear. With the instrument out, he gave his strongest shout and strummed the strings. The guitar howled to life triumphantly. The witch gasped as she lost her pace of her song, while the animals roared and stepped back. "Fight fire," he turned to look at the woman, "with music, baby!" he slammed his fingers against the cords again, and Dipper and Mabel instantly recognized the song from the day before- Gaiatale.

"Fools!" the witch declared, "A witch shan't be beaten with her own magic!" and she began to sing again. The animals around them sparkled and cast-off bursts of energy, like the song itself she sung empowered them. Dipper eyed the two, the singer, and the guitar-man. Had he heard her correctly?

"Mabes," Dipper turned to his sister, "Did you hear her? She said with her own music," he reminded Mabel.

Her eyes shot wide open. Mabel saw his idea and connected the dots quickly. "Robbie!" she said as she left the safety of the group, approaching the witch, "Sing that song, but, like make it about me!" Mabel told him.

"What!?" Robbie demanded.

"Just do it!" Dipper added, "The spell she uses makes the animals stronger, so if you sing the song to her, it should empower her like she's a familiar!" Dipper explained. Robbie was so flustered with the idea he paused. Yet his time was short; the cougar launched itself at Mabel, and she spun to see it, holding her arms to block the attack.

"Robbie!" she shouted.

Robbie whipped the tips of his fingers against the chords. Then, next to him, another band member appeared. "We are the children of the stars and sun!" A new voice added to the darkness, as Zander sung with Robbie, "The youngest seekers of each horizon!" Mabel's arms buckled but held as she felt the full weight of the spectral cat land on her. Looking to her own arms, she saw a red energy streak around her arms, and she felt empowered. The magic was working.

"Yes!" Dipper cheered, and turned to the other animal, "And I'll take bear over here," Dipper told them, "Gimme some of that juice!" Dipper shouted as he charged the bear. It roared, standing on its hind legs.

"With our own hands we can be undone!" The band roared unison. The twins, one red with orange sparks, the other blue with silver streaks darted around the created beings of stardust and arcane power.

Dipper had this in the bag. Compared to his battle with multi-bear, this was a breeze. Not only that, everything he did felt effortless. The power, the actual power of the music enforced by the spell, flowed through him, and made all the techniques Mabel had ever taught him a hundred times easier. Each step he took to dash and felt dream-like. The bear could not keep up, and he danced around it, knocking it side to side; punches filled with a power he should not contain.

"Our ancient mother fear does warn to try-"

Mabel was beyond the abilities of Dipper. She fought two targets constantly. The wolf and cougar constantly exchanged attacks and dives for Mabel, who flipped over one and would strike the other before it attacked. The fierce orange light guided her and lead her to deliver the attacks and forced her to make the dodges and parries she needed to survive. The entire time she knew what was going on behind her, as her brother fought a ghostly bear, and a band of some of the world's most famous musicians sang for them, and them only. In a way, this was a dream come true.

"Change our future till our tears do dry-"

With a mighty toss, Dipper had thrown the bear, a seemingly impossible feat made real with the power of magic, past the band and next to the stunned enchanting Witch, who stared at the twins.

"Or page that written bodes not well-"

They approached in unison was a beautiful and terrible convergence of their energy. Red mixed with blue like fire and silver crossed with orange like embers. They stood before the witch, a martial wall of opposition for her to cross if she wanted to hurt the band.

"Of our future we shall say farewell!"

The woman stopped her song, her mouth falling shut. With tears in her eyes, she clapped her hands, and the three familiars vanished like wisps of smoke, leaving a faint shimmering trail behind. As they faded into nothingness, the band fell silent. Everyone fell truly quiet. As she watched the twins and the band, they all stared back. The magical aura from Dipper and Mabel had faded away, leaving behind only their sweat and heaving breaths. Perhaps a little tired herself, either from singing, or from magic itself, the Witch took laborious breath.

With a trembling voice, she said to them, "You… knew how to use my song," as she started wiping away at the tear stains on her face. "You're no fool – I am. You're one of my kind," she told them.

At this revelation, Dipper had to ask, "What?"

Now worried she had insulted them, she held out her hand and hurriedly approached, "Only another witch could possibly know how to use the familiar bolstering spell like that! And I used it against another witch! I... I tried to hurt you all, and you really weren't trying to hurt me the entire time," She said, and stumbled to the twins, grasping their hands and falling to her knees, "By my spirits, please forgive my foolishness!"

Dipper flinched as she grasped his hand, "Whoa! Easy on the squeezing!"

Mabel gave her a small smile. "See? We told you we weren't trying to hurt you," Mabel told her as she patted her arm. The witch looked to her, fearful for the answer. Mabel rolled her eye and chuckled, "Oh stoppit! I forgive you. It's not like this is the first time we've dealt with angry magic users."

"Thank you!" the witch declared as she scooped up Mabel and Dipper in her hug, and let off a shaky sigh. Only a moment passed before she stood and approached the band, looking to Robbie and Zander. "My apologies extend to you as well," she told them, and specifically looked to Robbie, "I'm so glad you understood the nature of my spell before I made a terrible mistake."

The band turned to Robbie. He had, after all, come up with the idea. Zander smiled at him, his eyes twinkling. Marcus and Kane each said a small 'well done', and Bishop patted Robbie's back. Robbie, rubbing the back of his head as the compliments flew in, blushed. "Oh... well, I can't say this is my first time dealing with this sort of thing," he admitted with a grin. She rushed forward as well, and wrapped her arms around Robbie. What had been a small blush before went full rose-colored as his face erupted in color.

Letting go and turning to the entire group, the witch still held a sadness in her voice. "I must admit," she told them, "I've never heard of such a song type before. It's... strong? Powerful?" she stated to them.

Zander laughed. "If I was from your time," Zander told her, approaching her and gently lowering a hand on her shoulder, "I would have been a shocked, horrified, and disturbed while listening to that stuff. But I'm glad you enjoyed it. Guys," he turned to his bandmates, "Today, we made another fan!" declared with a cheer.

"Fan? Hah! more like competition," Marcus stated, "You're great at singing! Your vocal range and diaphragm control was nuts," he told her warmly.

The witch looked a little flustered with the compliments. "Nuts? Hah, Thank you. It was my mother's favorite thing to do with me. Sing?" she explained, looking around. "At least... before she and my father..." she trailed off, lost in the, now, distant past. "I had no idea how long it has been. I – I am really alone, aren't I?"

Mabel and Dipper glanced to one another as the band all exchanged looks. There was a general pitying of the witch before them, stressed only more by the fact that she was not only alone in her lifestyle, but alone in her family. Dipper doubted she would be even able to find any distant relatives of her family's line. The twins had a few dim ideas as to what to do to help, but nothing was particularly solid. Zander loudly snapped his fingers above his head, catching their attention. He turned to his bandmates, speaking quietly, "This, this could be the solution for everything."

"Huh?" Robbie asked him, and Zander sighed, pulling him and the band into a clustered huddle. The three watched him; from the witch worriedly picking at the hem of her robes to Mabel and Dipper trying to eavesdrop of their conversation. Finally, they re-emerged, a satisfied Zander and a strangely somber band behind him facing the witch.

"Ma'am," Zander approached her, "Could I know your name?" he asked her.

She nodded. "Midian," she told him.

Zander heard the name, nodding. "Midian. Appropriate," Zander added to the side, and then looked back to her, a clever smile and twinkle in his gaze, "We would like to offer you a proposition."

---

"Bright case of wishes, peirce through the world

Laiden of all our prayers now and forever more!"

It had been half a day since they had calmed down Midian in the caves. From backstage, Dipper and Mabel cheered, easily drowned out by the collective power of the audience before the band. As the shouts, cheers, and hollers died and Zander stepped closer to the stage, he gripped the microphone again, looking around. Standing next to him, in a quickly designed modern take of a witch, with a hand-made leather robe and her hat, was Midian. The woman had been given a crash-course in all their songs, and to their pleasure, she was a prodigy. She made everyone else in the band, save perhaps Zander himself, look like a nobody in skill. She had sung along with the music, having been able to not only catch onto the themes and beats of the music in a single day, but thoroughly enjoyed every moment of it.

Zander, his voice slow as he drank in the attention of the crowds, said, "Well, we know what this means, don't we?" he asked. The reactions in the crowd were disappointed and saddened; some people even were booing. The show was about to end. Zander held his hand up, and silently asked to let to speak. Finally, the audience quieted. "It's not all that's going on guys," he told them with a sigh, "Yeah. It's been a while. A long, long while being part of Duskhope," he told the members before him, and then he glanced back and nodded for Midian to approach the edge of the stage. She did so, fiddling with her leather robes. Zander wrapped and arm around her shoulder. He turned back to the audience, saying, "But it's time we formally introduce this beautiful and talented woman. Please, welcome the newest member of Duskhope: Midian!" Zander roared to the crowd.

The applause was huge, and Zander punched the air excitedly. Midian gasped and held a hand to her mouth. Mabel was pretty sure she could hear the woman mouth to Zander that this was too much to handle, but Zander shook his head. He still wasn't done with the news.

"Yeah, pretty cool huh?" Zander admitted excitedly, "Duskhope has been wondering forever when we were going to get a girl in on this, and I'm so proud to announce that the first lady to join our ranks is going to be the lead singer," he told the masses before him.

Dipper gasped and Mabel did a double take. The entire audience, along with the band members followed suit, staring at the man at the edge of the stage. Zander turned his gaze to the backstage curtains, and eyed the twins. He gave them a single wink, and looked away. Apparently, the confusion he caused was long enough.

"Duskhope only needs five members," Zander told the world before him, "And, look everyone, I've been here since the beginning. The ride was wild, and the people were awesome. But... this is the new Duskhope," he stepped aside, holding a hand to the band and Midian. She stared back with wide, fearful eyes. As if everything was going just his way, Zander explained, "Everyone, I'm here for one last show, here, and now, because this is it for me. This was my last performance as the lead singer of Duskhope."

The gasp and murmur of the crowds were peppered by cries and shrieks of fans of Zander.

"Truth be told," Zander looked to Robbie, "After finding out mister Valetino came from this town, I wanted to find the next big member from this town as well. Seemed only right. And did we ever find the perfect replacement," Zander told Midian. She looked so nervous. What could she do, then and there, on the stage? Zander, his own smile a tad trembly, said calmly to the witch and vocalist, as he opened his arms to her, "Good luck, Midian. Keep my boys in order."

Midian took the offer and ran to hug him, slamming herself into him. Zander laughed loudly on the stage, as he waved a free hand to the crowds. Soon the entire audience was clapping and cheering for Midian, who lined up with the new faces of Duskhope, and they all bowed before them. Zander, for the first time in his career, clapped for them instead of alongside them.

He roared into his microphone, "Remember – There's always another day! I'm retiring! So long, suckers!" Zander shouted as he then ran off stage, passing Mabel and Dipper.

The twins watched him go. With only one look to one another, they also burst out laughing. The guy was whacky. He was nuts, and driven to do whatever he wanted. Absolute maniac.

"He's sort of like you," Dipper managed to cough out as they calmed down. Mabel smirked and her eyes trailed the direction Zander had run off. He was no longer in sight, but she could imagine him somewhere there, figuring out where he, and his immaculate pile of money. would be going to next.

Following the show, Dipper and Mabel stepped outside, and quickly began to step towards their friends. Soos, Candy and Grenda waited for them just at the entrance, and they quickly exchanged their thoughts and feelings of the entire ordeal. Of course, the three had heard first hand from Dipper and Mabel what had happened in the woods, and even glanced from the door of the shack her appearance.

"He literally just said that he wanted her to join the band, and that they would be more than willing to get her up to date," Dipper told them, "He never mentioned anything about finding a replacement."

"That's like, the biggest news since one of the Beatles died," Grenda told them, "Zander Maximillion leaves Duskhope!?"

"My own brain needs a reboot after witnessing that," Candy told her. She looked to Mabel and sighed, "Oh Mabel, what was it like? Walking alongside a legend like that?" she asked.

Mabel gave it some thought, remembering the seemingly endless qualities that drove her to enjoy the man known as Zander Maximillion. "Pretty cool. Not going to lie about it," she told them with a snicker. Dipper sighed and shook his head, turning away from them as he walked around the building.

Soos noticed his departure. "Dipper? Dawg?" Soos asked, "What'cha up to?"

Looking back to them as he walked on, Dipper told them, "I wanted to say something before they packed up and went. Something I need to tell Robbie," He added to Mabel as he turned and marched off in a hurry.

Dipper heard the collective gasp and excited exchange of ideas to his meaning behind him. Surely, they thought he was going to start some drama, and throw some hands, or toss some mean words. He had no intention to start anything. It meant nothing to him. The only thing that mattered was getting the clean answers from Robbie, and being truthful with him. He had the chance to really be level with him now, for the first time in his strange history with Robbie Valentino.

Coming around the side of the massive building, Dipper beheld the sight of the multitude of trucks and trailers in the back. He could already hear Robbie talking with the band. He didn't mind if the other guys overheard this, but this was something he saw going better in private. Talking about them both coming to terms for Wendy's sake had worked in the past, and now he could try it again. Coming to the edge of a small white truck, Dipper waited and listened.

Out of his sight, Dipper heard the voice of Bishop rumble out, "C'mon dude. Zander, man-"

"I made up my mind," Zander told them with resolution, "I'm out. It's up to you five now."

"But-"

"C'mon man," Robbie's voice cut Bishops, "We got this. We had a badass teacher, and now we got each other. And Midian is going to keep up is line, right?"

"With my best efforts," her voice added.

The voice of Marcus, suffering from feelings, said with a trembling voice (probably to Zander), "You're insane, man."

"Psh, only sometimes," Zander Maximillion retorted.

"I believe he knows what he does," Midian said proudly, "He is a man who seems to have a plan, even if it is a strange one."

There was a bit of laughter at her words, and they went silent. Dipper could hear a few footsteps and the tightening of leather. Zander coughed loudly, and let out a small, 'Aww, guys'. Dipper contained a loud sigh of understanding- they were hugging him out of sight.

"Thanks for getting us here, dude."

"Stay safe, my man."

Zander, laughing a little, answered happily, "Only as safe as excitement can be. 'Always another day', guys. Seeya." And there was the footfalls of the ex-lead singer of the band strolling off happily.

The band members chatted for a brief moment. Dipper was about ready to step out and ask Robbie to chat. Now that they had their goodbyes to Zander out of the way, he didn't feel as much of a jerk trying to talk. Marcus' voice blurted out, "Robbie, you chilling here?"

"Just for a bit. I want a second too, you know; see my home sky for a bit before we run off again," Robbie told them. A distant reply met Dipper, but he was now aware that Robbie was alone. The man sighed and leaned against another truck, muttering something softly to himself. Just as Dipper made to push himself off the truck, Robbie gasped and scampered.

"W-Wendy!?"

"Hi Robbie," Wendy's voice replied.

Dipper was rooted to his spot. That... wasn't the usual Wendy voice. She, by all means, sounded like herself if she had two entire days go by without sleep. There was a tone Dipper had heard her use before, but seldom. Was she sad? Dipper was confused; didn't they kind of 'not speak to one another' anymore? Both Wendy and Robbie had mentioned the ruined relationship. What was Wendy doing?

Robbie seemed to have the same ideas as Dipper. "W-what the heck are you doing here?!" Robbie hissed as he spoke to the woman. "I thought you said you couldn't stay around here."

"I tried that," Wendy replied, "I... I just couldn't leave them all behind... not yet."

"But... but if they find out-"

"I know, Robbie. Trust me, I of all people am aware."

"Right. Sorry," his voice trembled. Dipper heard distinct pain in his voice. Robbie, clearly struggling for words, fumbled out, "I, uh, I'm close to it."

"Robbie."

"I swear I am! With Midian, maybe she can help? Find a-"

"We made the promise not to involve anyone else, remember?"

"But, Wendy-"

"No. No one else gets involved," her voice commanded him.

"Wendy... I-I know I screwed up, but you can't just let that-"

"Robbie," Wendy sounded like she moved to him, or further, Dipper couldn't tell, but her words grew quieter, "Don't worry about me. I came here to tell you that I forgive you. You hear me?"

The words sounded like the literally impacted Robbie. He gasped and struggled for air, and sounded like he walked away from her. "How can I let you do that?" he demanded of her.

"The same way you started this," Wendy told him, "By just doing it."

There was a long pause, and Dipper had the distinct impression someone could see him. He slowly looked to his left, and found Mabel sitting next to him, her eyes wide as she stared at him. She had snuck up on him. He resisted the powerful urge to shout at her, but the voices behind the truck continued.

Robbie said, "Dipper and I... got over our differences."

"That's great," she told him, her voice slightly more similar to what Dipper recognized, "I'm glad to hear that. Don't want my boys angry at each other forever."

"Don't call me that," Robbie said, sounding upset, "I lost any right for you to call me that that night."

"Maybe. You know," Wendy continued, "You should stop by the guys and say hi." Robbie scoffed at her suggestion. She asked, "What? You can face crazy magical witches, but not your angry friends?"

"Wait, how did you hear about-"

"Really, Robbie? Where do you think I spend summers, if I'm still around?" at this note, Robbie let out a small gasp.

"They… don't know?" he asked of her, as if what she was implying was beyond belief.

"Don't think so."

"That's… great, actually!" Robbie sounded pleased, perhaps even joyous, at her answer. "You can actually stay around for a bit! That's… good."

"Thanks, man. Go hang out with Tambry and the boys."

"I... don't want to see Tambry hate me anymore," Robbie told her.

Wendy sighed a long, tired breath. "They're mostly angry you ran away," Wendy told him.

"You... you've talked to them?!" Robbie demanded, and Wendy laughed bitterly. "No... sorry, of course not."

"I keep tabs on everyone... Robbie, just do me the one favor, and live your life happily, okay?" Wendy told him. Robbie made a sound to protest, but Wendy continued, "You tried once already to help. Look what that did." A heavy silence fell on those words, and a few hard seconds later, Wendy continued, "Just live happy, as best you can."

"But what about you?"

"Meh. I'll figure something out. Or go crazy. One of the two, right?" Wendy chuckled darkly. "Robbie... take care, okay bud?"

"... Yeah, you two, Wendy," Robbie said. Footsteps indicated that Wendy left, and Robbie remained longer, watching her leave.

Dipper was paralyzed to the ground, sitting next to his sister, who he just continued to stare at. There was no way. The language, the clues, the vagueness, Robbie's reactions to Dipper's heated words; Dipper had thought it weird that Robbie had used certain words when talking about Wendy, but now it was clear. There had been real reason to it all.

Once again, Dipper's suspicions paid off in the end. Then the sound of Robbie walking off stirred Dipper from his sunken thoughts.

"Dipper?" Mabel asked quietly, an arm on his shoulder.

"Mabel... what did we just overhear?" he asked her. Mabel stared back, her eyes trembling as they gazed in the same shade of brown he had. There was no answer either of them had that would answer any questions the two shared in bountiful quantity.

Only one thing was clear.

Dipper mournfully declared, "Wendy has been hiding something big from us."

---

But what? :O

Three now know what's up. If you are one of those three, and I catch you spoiling anything, I will smite you with all the fury I can possibly muster of a vengeful fanfiction writer. But that means, fellow readers, if you go through the cryptograms and the clues I have laiden for you, there is a chance you may know what the heck it is I speak of!

But there you have it. Duskhope. Dipper is officially on Wendy's case, and Zander Maximillion is retiring at the early age of... young. Where? I hear there's a home for purchase in Gravity Falls used by the Gleefuls. Maybe that's still for sale? Hm.

And this was the longest chapter so far, even beating my ridiculously long part two of "A Mabel of Perspective". I hope it was a good read. A lot happened, so don't feel overwhelmed.

So, stay tuned for the cryptograms, and remember: There will always be another day.

(A large and heavy wooden cut-out of a sun slams into EZB from above, burying him instantly.)

---

The travels he endured were often not horrible ones. There were two places he liked sitting in the RV as they traveled across the states: by the TV, or in his own little cabin. This time, for once, Robbie Valentino was more than happy to just sit in the living section, staring out the window.

He was not alone. Kane and Marcus were jabbing at each other on the video game on the television. Bishop and Midian were conversing eagerly, discussing music theory. It was all the kind of atmosphere Robbie had always wanted.

Still, he was miserable. He looked to the glass before him, gently topped off with a dark, brown liquid. He took it, letting it sting his lips and throat as he drank it.

Looking out the window, he was stirred. He had forgotten how beautiful Gravity Falls was during the Evening. The last vestiges of sunlight started to surrender to nights embrace. Dying rays of light cast out like beams from the tips of the mountain ranges. Colors of bright warms and refreshing cools danced around one another as stars became visible. He couldn't help it: his hardened soul loved to see it. He let himself smile a little.

The table he sat at jostled. Sitting across from him was the newest member, Midian. She eyed him. Barely known for a day, and she seemed so sincerely invested in the bandmembers.

"Robbie," she said, having already been corrected in calling him Robert, "Would you like some company?"

Recoiling into himself, Robbie shrugged. "I dunno. Sure, whatever, dude," he told her.

She smiled, and eyed the horizons. "We have quite the adventure ahead of ourselves!" she told him eagerly. Yet her smile also dipped slightly, "Yet, I feel sad. I wonder if you know what I feel," she suggested, eying him carefully.

Midian, much like Zander, spoke in riddles. That didn't bother Robbie as much anymore, as he had come to understand Zander's antics during his teachings. A part of him, deep in his heart, came to understand what she was saying.

"You'll miss Gravity Falls," he restated.

"Yes," she admitted, and reached out, gently taking his hand, "I wonder if you do as well."

His eyes looked back out the window. That was the town he chose to run from. It was the town his parents moved away from afterwards, letting that tall weirdo run the Graveyards. He wanted more, and had found it elsewhere. The town itself meant fairly little to him.

"I miss some people, that's all," he said, shuffling in his seat, eying her hand.

She tightened her grip before letting go. "A special someone?" she asked.

Robbie frowned. "Yeah."

He would stay quiet for much of the ride out. Later, his mood would greatly improve, and he would start becoming more and more what Zander always said he'd be; a promising member of the band. While in that RV ride, and while Gravity Falls was in view, he kept quiet and stared at the home he had left behind.

---

(Vigenere)

Wysb h vteun, hkaqw mw njel, och oino izdwviec tcgi.

Vidfl o gmgxdo, dwhi dhgdosg hds, koly ilh hwha rdsu.

Mzkkcl eqx vybpi, gocel ac wmgy, kol bdx vimvz gdvh.

Qzou rdiv u eizhtvb vwmvat e wlsqlrn eqx s tvigrhs tojcbi d wzyys

(Not Vigenere)

Tev al vlr bsbk tbxo x pzxoc? Fq'p obxiiv txoj lrqpfab. Pboflrpiv. Qxhb fq lcc.