A/N:
DISCLAIMER: I do not own Gravity Falls!
However, I DO own the plot as well as the OCs (Major and Minor).
If I reference other people's works I will gain permission first and also give credit in the Author's Note.
WARNINGS:
This fanfic will potentially contain blood, gory details, swearing, mentions of suicide, torture, mentions of other things, etc.
OTHER:
It will also revolve around a character I created a long time ago but always hit writers' block with. She completely of my own creation, and so is her backstory. (And quite a few other characters involving her).
Please enjoy, please review!
KEY:
"Italic text within speech marks" = Usually Cophie/Entity in someone's mind/telepathic conversation
Italic text = Past event/memory/flashback
text = Conversation happening in future/present
? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? Another ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?
She woke to the sound of harsh whispering.
Instantly awake, she shot to her feet.
It was the guard.
"Get up, six-fingers! It's your time."
She growled, slinking through the shadows to just left of the guard.
She knew what someone's 'time' was in this place.
No-one ever came back quite the same.
"Dimension-hopper!"
She filed away that tidbit of information for later, pushing it to the back of her mind as she closed in on her victim.
She grabbed the guard's shirt collar, slamming his face into the bars.
"Listen," She hissed, "This guy's been through a lot in the past year. I'm not sure what, but I know it's big. So do me a favour and LAY OFF."
She threw him hard, and he flew down the corridor, landing in a frightened heap.
He sprinted away, throwing back looks at the guardian with the turquoise flames dancing in her eyes.
She stood like that for a while, fists clenched, teeth gritted, feet shoulder-width apart…
But then she retreated to her bed, bubbling fury, cold pleasure, careful calculations, and thoughts of revenge flitting through her mind before she slipped into the dark embrace of sleep...
Her L
It was mid-morning before I finally awoke, aroused by shouting, clanging of bells, pained screams, and a slight snoring.
"For the love of fudge…" I muttered, slowly easing myself out from the bottom bunk, head bowed to avoid hitting it on the bunk above.
I shambled over to the mirror, every muscle in my body aching, and groaned.
"That's the worse case of bed hair we've had the bad luck to be disgraced with in 5,000 years!" Cophie commented.
I rolled my eyes, and retrieved a hairbrush from my bag.
Tentatively dragging the brush through the tangles, I gritted my teeth and tried not to wince.
After what seemed like hours, I grew a bit more of a spine and dragged it through more forcefully.
"Still not working! I propose a haircut!" Cophie sang, skipping off to grab her laptop.
"Are you kidding me? I'm not cutting my hair just because it's a bit tangled!" I replied, attacking my hair with vigour.
"I've been waiting for an excuse to give you a makeover for years! Besides, think of all the benefits! Attackers won't be able to grab you by the hair so easily, it won't take forever to dry, it won't blow into your eyes…"
"Just how MUCH hair are you planning to cut off?!"
"How much hair am I planning for YOU to cut off. You can't manifest me, remember? You're low on magic."
I groaned.
That meant I'd have to actually cut my hair myself, magic-free.
A spark wouldn't be enough to shear anything off…
However, after an actual hour of brushing and Cophie's persuading, I gave to Cophie's pestering- just a little bit.
"Fine. What were you thinking?"
This just happened to be the moment when Stanford woke up.
"Oh, heya Stanford!" I sighed, tossing the brush so it landed on my bed.
"Heya…?"
"Right, 60s. Sorry."
"No, that's perfectly alright, it's hard to shake habits."
I raised an eyebrow- this guy was a pretty eloquent speaker… Perhaps I'd picked up the mannerisms from him.
"Anyway…"
"Uh, yes. Did you sleep well?"
I paused.
I'd been dreaming… Dreaming of something… A memory…
I grabbed at the fleeting moments, tried to drag them back, but they were there and they were gone.
"Yeah, good. You?"
Stanford chuckled wryly.
"You could say that."
He sighed.
"No nightmares."
I cocked my head, curious, but I could tell he wasn't going to say anything more on the matter.
"Well that's good."
I abandoned the pointless brushing in favour of pulling up a chair.
Reaching down into my magical core, I extracted a tendril of magic and twisted it into matter.
I sat back in the chair as if this was perfectly normal, but in fact was buzzing internally.
My magic was returning, more and more each day.
I couldn't quite keep the grin off my face as Ford stared at me, dumbstruck.
"I don't think I've seen THAT kind of magic before."
I smiled.
"It's a certain little trick of mine."
I repeated the action, shaping a chair for him too.
I was cool, calm, and collected on the outside, but inside I was throwing a fiesta-
Cophie was yelling hallelujah, and dancing around… We were both simply ecstatic; this was uncanny, unheard of, ridiculous! But it was happening. My magic was finally returning.
Finally something to smile about.
Tentatively, Stanford prodded the chair.
I bit back a laugh.
He narrowed his eyes at me, suspicious.
Eventually he lowered himself onto the chair, unconsciously holding his breath as if expecting it to pop out of existence at any given moment.
Finally he exhaled, a relieved smile gracing his features.
I broke into laughter at the look on his face, unable to hold it back any longer.
He scowled, but soon cracked a smile.
"So," He paused, looking for the right words, "What's up with this whole 'Villain' thing? Is it just a... Rather well-organised gang?"
I sighed, and leaned back on my chair.
"Ok, how much do you know about parallel universes?"
Stanford pursed his lips in thought.
"Quite a bit. I got involved with a demon... Bill." His eyes flicked to me, but I gave no reaction.
He swallowed and continued. He seemed unable to prevent the words tumbling from his lips, as if mentioning such a simple name had been the final straw, the act of removing the stopper on the bottle and now... Now the repressed words, the terror and... Almost... INSANITY in his eyes... It was all pouring forth, as unstoppable as the tide.
"And he helped me build a transdimensional portal... I thought he was my friend, but he wasn't. He betrayed me."
In his eyes I could see raw fear, absolute terror. I wished that I didn't know how could something as simple as a name reduce a man to a quivering wreck, that I didn't understand. But I could, all too well.
His eyes flitted from one spot to another, mad, unnerving, desperately afraid. I bit my lip, but said nothing.
He swallowed and shook his head, clearing the madness plaguing his mind.
"He introduced himself as 'a muse'. My muse."
F Him F
I stopped short as a strange look crossed Lilly's face once more.
"Lilly?" I questioned, worry lacing my tone.
For a brief moment, the tide stopped and the madness in his eyes faded.
"Lilly?"
"He introduced himself as 'your muse'?" She said, her voice slightly strangled.
I leaned forwards.
"How do you know him?"
Lilly leaned back, shaking her head, muttering under her breath.
"How do you know Bill?" I pressed, staring her square in the eyes, keeping my voice steady and calm as I could.
"I-I don't know." She faltered. "I can barely remember anything past when I escaped my old cell, only the briefest snatches of memories or information… And feelings." She shuddered.
"How do you feel when you hear the name Bill Cipher?" I asked.
She ignored the question, biting her bottom lip and furrowing her brows...
Sighing, she looked down and said,
"Before yesterday, I hadn't heard that name in 45,000 years."
I spluttered in surprise.
"45,000 years?!"
"I'm a good few hundred thousand years old or so, y'know. My birthday was last month."
I tried not to let my jaw drop, but it was a bit late for that.
"Right."
I cleared my throat.
"So, 45,000 years?"
"Yes. It's almost like those memories were forcibly removed. There's not even the slightest trace of them… I'll get Cophie on it…" She murmured absent-mindedly.
"Cophie?"
She waved a hand dismissively.
"Later."
"Bu- Okay…"
"There's no memories, but yesterday, when I passed out, I felt something."
"Which would be?"
She shot him a look.
"You're dreadfully pushy."
I sighed in frustration.
"I apologise profusely. Now, back to the feelings."
She rolled her eyes.
"It would be easier to show you."
And before I could even protest, she grabbed my hand, and my words stuck in my throat. I felt every hair on my body stand on end, as if I'd touched a live wire... My vision clouded and I was left in the darkness, briefly lit here and there by a spark of crackling light... A scream echoed through the darkness, through my head.
As I blacked out, I came to the realisation that the scream was my own.
I came to, groaning.
Rubbing his head, I asked, "Where are we?" I frowned and looked at her warily.
"And what the HECK was that?!"
I rose to his feet to see her standing there, tapping her foot impatiently.
"My Mindscape… Of sorts. Come on!"
I stumbled over, tripping over non-existent objects skirting around my ankles.
"Right."
She paused and sighed. "I'm sorry about that. I've never known a human system to react to my magic so violently... If I had known that would happen..." She looked for words, scrunching up her nose and pulling various faces that reminded me of... That made her, for a brief second, think of... I quickly put an end to such thoughts. Many people did such things when thinking. It was not a behaviour unique to... To...
My thoughts were scattered by her quiet voice.
"Stanford..."
An impatient sigh.
"Stanford..."
We travelled along a long, crumbly pink object that looked suspiciously like it was made of pink sherbet... A pink sherbert bridge leading to tall, ominous walls that eclipsed the sun with their incredible height and mass.
It was impossible to tear my eyes from my surroundings... Floating islands dotted the skies like specks of paint on a canvas as the artist prepares his piece. Each was vastly different from the last- they varied in size, shape, flora, fauna, and season. One had grass the colour of fresh lavender, the other of a blazing sunset. Red, gold, and blue leaves fell from the skies above, green blossoms blew from the east, onyx flames flickered in the south-west.
I was enchanted, intimidated, and astounded in one fell swoop.
With no lack of will I tore my gaze from the wonders around me to stare at the mere slip of a girl walking before me. How could one appearing so young have eyes so old, have a mind so vast?
Then again, I should've known better than to judge by appearance. I had been fooled before.
I swallowed, then finally spoke.
"So…"
"Be patient." She reprimanded, shooting me a look that was enough to keep me quiet albeit indignant.
Without warning, the wind was knocked from my lungs as I was tackled to the floor by what appeared to be a supersonic pink... Thing.
"Aaaargh!"
"Don't worry, that's just Cophie."
The world stopped spinning for long enough for me to see that the 'pink thing' was humanoid.
"Hello…?"
"OMG, it's YOU!"
"Errr… Yes. It's... Uh... Me…?"
She was the spitting image of Lilly, except she had ombre bubblegum-pink to white hair and dancing blue eyes, rather than a honey brown.
Her taste in clothing was very different too, yet I had an inkling that she had a lot to do with Lilly's outfit choices.
She wore a purple headband with strange circular boxes on the sides of her head, and a long-sleeved grey top with black and grey stripes on the sleeves. "Ain't no Angel' was printed on it, underlined with a curved, diamante-studded feather.
She had a pair of bootcut jeans, then chunky steampunk boots.
Her earrings were shaped like three cogs, the largest bronze, second-largest sliver, the smallest was gold.
"What's the purple contraption on her head?" I whispered to Lilly.
She smirked.
"Headphones, Stanford, Headphones."
Her L
When his look of confusion didn't subside, I sighed and explained, "Like tiny speakers on a headband that cover your ears, so you can privately play music that no-one else can hear."
"Huh."
"Yeah, 21st Century thing."
I turned to Cophie.
"Can you take us to yesterday's memories?"
Cophie gave me a devious grin, but agreed.
Ford was subjected to hours of perky questioning from Cophie while I blissfully tuned it all out, butting in here and there to interrupt Cophie before she says something she shouldn't…
I should really have cancelled Cophie's Netflix subscription, she was always too loose with spoilers... Especially if they concerned me.
Eventually, we approached the large, yellowish control panel with two sunk-in handprints- one with five fingers, one with six.
Its mottled surface was rough with scratches and deep gashes which Stanford curiously ran his fingertips over.
"Just put your hands in the handprints."
I rolled my eyes- I'd done this a thousand times before, and complied.
After a moment's hesitation, Stanford did too.
Our hands fit perfectly and he couldn't help but shiver.
My eyes met Cophie's for the briefest of seconds, expressing a thousand words in only a moment.
She subtly flicked one of the switches, before turning with a broad, ever-so-slightly faked smile to Stanford.
"Have fun. Or not."
She slammed her hand down on a large orange button and we were sucked into the memory.
A stab of shock.
Almost like a cat's eye...
Fear.
An enemy of our kind...
Curiosity. We hesitantly crept forwards...
Pity.
Terrified.
Respect.
"You're a no-good DEMON!"
A tinge of shyness.
"Friends?"
"For sure!"
Sparks of joy. She smiled, but I could tell she didn't believe us.
Excitement.
I finally knew.
Shock.
Then I looked across the room and my heart stopped. She was powerful, she was dangerous...
She would have to hide it or be destroyed.
Sorrow, tugging at the heartstrings.
"You're just jealous, why else would you tell me not to tell anyone?"
Gratitude.
"She'll forgive you... Eventually."
Mortification.
"Did you honestly think I'd want to go to the dance with YOU?"
Thankfulness.
"Just leave me alone."
"Not until you tell me what's wrong."
Curiosity.
"I wanted to show you something, but if you'd rather go home..."
Surprise.
"Just wait."
Shyness.
His hands flew over the ivory keys, coaxing a beautiful melody from the old piano.
And then he opened his mouth and began to sing.
A blazing streak of courage.
"Care to dance?"
Love.
Secret kisses exchanged behind trees, whispered words, fluttering feelings…
The feelings got light and fluttery, as if my stomach was suddenly filled with a kaleidoscope of butterflies…
And then happiness, brief snatches of laughter on the wind, a joyous, golden feeling bubbling up inside until I thought I could just burst with happiness.
Streaks of gold, rosy pink hues, splashes of teal, gentle pinks and oranges, specks of sunshine yellow…
Forgiveness.
Knocking in the middle of the night.
"Talk." I said, looking her square in the eyes.
This was my fault…
It's going to take some time…
Happiness.
He laughed and said, "I'll be fine."
What's the worst that could happen?
Loss.
Gone.
I stared blankly into the sky, the sky where she disappeared.
She saved me. I couldn't save her.
Then a pang.
A small twinge amongst the awful pain…
But somehow it's worse.
A small, involuntary gasp is stolen from my throat.
Lost.
I lost something.
And some part of me broke away.
I ran, ran through the woods screaming his name.
Everything was gone... They'd never existed.
Then there was a breaking sensation, a tearing, twisting in my chest. My heart felt as if it had been ripped from my chest, thrown to the floor and shattered into a thousand pieces.
And the happy, beautiful colours were lost.
Lost under streaks of slate grey, black-blues, and dark purples almost like bruises. Dark splotches of burgundy, then black.
Lost.
And I feel grief, the terrible kind that doesn't fade with time, but grows stronger.
And then all I know is the blackness…
But then there is a light.
Something fills the place where the shard broke off.
A tattoo of an outline of an orange triangle amidst falling cyan feathers...
My life was painted in the greyscale.
Only, white doesn't quite make it in.
Not anywhere.
After what feels like an eternity of darkness, a shining candle could be seen in the shadows.
Then another joined it.
Then one more.
Slowly, amongst the streaks of grey was hope.
Desperation.
"PLEASE, just… Tell. Me. Where. You. Are!"
Betrayal.
The flames licked at my heels as I fled.
His mocking words disappeared with him, gone into the shadowy darkness of night.
A silvery mist slowly infiltrated the grey, numbing the pain, washing away the grey…
But just when the colours began to peek through once more, the mist stole them from me too.
One candle was snuffed out…
And I was left with the remaining two…
But I was dead inside.
And I couldn't remember a thing.
Not his name, nor hers.
Then the world shattered, the fragments falling around me…
With a gasp, I was flung back into reality.
Same as last time, but just as awful.
F Him F
I woke with a gasp, hands flying to my chest, feeling my heartbeat as if to assure myself it's still there.
After a moment I calmed, my heartbeat returning to a normal rate, and I looked around for Lilly.
I finally saw her sitting on the ground, being handed a tangerine by Cophie.
"What was that?!" I croaked, accepting a tangerine from Cophie.
"The flashback I had yesterday." She mumbled between segments of tangerine.
"Right..." We sat in silence for a while as I mused.
That was awful... No, awful was hardly a strong enough word for what I had just experienced... Depressing? Appalling? They just didn't quite express the cold, gut-wrenching fear I had just been doused in.
"Anyway, now you've got all the answers I can give you. Let's head back."
"How are you so… Okay… So quickly? We just felt…" I struggle to find words for the horror we had just endured.
"Eat the tangerine. It helps. It's like dementors and chocolate; citrus fruits combat leftover feelings from memory exposure."
"Dementors?"
"Just eat it."
I gave in and peeled the tangerine, reluctantly biting down on a segment.
My eyes widened as the flavours exploded on my tongue.
"Since when did tangerines taste so good?!" I exclaimed, gorging himself on the sweet fruit.
Lilly chuckled.
"Good, hmm? It's partly because you've been living off prison slop for six months, partly because that fruit is free from pollutants, weed-killers, and all sorts of horrible things you humans put on plants to stop them being eaten by wildlife, and partly because I don't think you've ever had a Time-Orange before."
She holds out her hand.
"Ready to go?"
"Do we… Do we have to?" I asked, staring forlornly at the last segment in my palm.
"We can return anytime, but I don't want my luck to run out and for us to be stuck in here for 24 hours while my magic regenerates."
I sighed, and savoured the final bite of orange, before grabbing Lilly's hand.
"Let's go."
The world faded to black, and then a brilliant white...
I blinked and we were back.
"That was a lot less painful than last time..." I sighed thankfully, leaning back in my chair.
I furrowed my forehead. "And did you say- You humans...?! 45,000 years old?!"
Lilly smiled uneasily, "Uhhh... Slip of the tongue?"
A/N:
O-kay, that's that chapter just about wrapped up! Sorry for the random and unfrequent updates, I WILL try to create some kind of... Schedule...
Anyway, I hope you enjoyed it!
To answer a few quick questions you may now have...
Q: Who are these 'villain' people? Is that basically you being too lazy to come up with a proper name for them?
A: Yes and no. It will (hopefully!) be fully explained next chapter, as this one accidentally got devoted to giving you readers an insight on who on earth Cophie is, and a quick glance at to what Lilly's past with Bill may be...
Q: What's Ford in jail for? Surely he can't have gotten into trouble so quickly! Only 3ish months on the other side of the portal and he's in a super-crazy jail?
A: Let's just say that the 'Villains' know Bill and Ford is being kept as leverage/a way of getting information. What kind of evil organisation wouldn't want all the secrets of the universe to play with?
Alsoooo...
If anyone would like to Beta-Read for this story, that would be amazingly helpful! Thank you for reading, please review! XD