The Broken Family

Soos wasn't quite sure what happened, but it looked like things had turned out okay. Things had gotten weird, with one minute he was standing in the circle, then he was trapped in this weird space, and the next he was falling down to the floor, but as he glanced around it seemed like the town was completely normal.

The wasteland was gone and the buildings had returned to their normal state. The only sign that something had gone down is that everyone looked just a bit rough from having to deal with Weirdmaggedon. In fact…

"Abuelita!" Soos grinned at the sight of his grandmother and he quickly went over to give her a hug. He had noticed that somehow she'd gone from being a chair to being part of Bill's throne, but it was still reassuring to have her actually be there in his arms.

"Ah, mi niño." She gladly returned his embrace. Soos sighed as this was truly a sign that this was all over.

Somehow, they had won.

As he pulled back, he noticed Wendy reuniting with her own family and he smiled. The other townspeople were also realizing that things were back to normal and cheers and other sounds of celebration filled the air. Soos watched as other people hugged their loved ones, glad to be back. His eyes continued to wander, but there was no sight of…

"You can go, Soos." Abuelita said, and he turned to her with a quizzical expression. "You go find Mr. Pines, I go vacuum the house."

Soos grimaced a bit, he hadn't thought that he was that obvious, but then he gave his grandma one last hug before heading into the woods. After all, if those four weren't anywhere in town, then it made more sense for them to be at the Shack.

As he cut through familiar shortcuts, he stopped at the sounds of someone, actually it might be more than one someone, crying. Figuring that finding the Pines could wait a bit, he changed his course, because he couldn't just let someone be sad when they had finally won. It was a time to celebrate.

Soos was surprised, however, when he emerged from the bushes and found exactly who he'd been looking for. "Hey, dudes!" He cheerfully called out to them and three of the four people in the glen started at his words.

His smile faded a bit as he got a good look at the scene. Dipper and Mabel had some stray tears still falling down their cheeks, and they were, altogether, clearly upset. Mr. Pines was holding Dr. Pines close and looked like he'd been crying, too, though for some strange reason Dr. Pines was wearing Mr. Pines's fez atop his head.

Upon seeing Soos, Dipper and Mabel's eyes widened and they shared a horrified look. Mr. Pines also looked a bit unnerved, glancing between Soos and Dr. Pines.

Now that Soos thought about it, something seemed off about both Mr. Pines and Dr. Pines.

"So, I've been looking for you guys everywhere." Soos continued, trying to stay upbeat. "Y'know everything in town's been restored. Looks like y'guys somehow did it."

Mabel's lips trembled, and she turned away. Dipper seemed to brace himself and took a deep breath. "Soos…" He didn't say anything else though, and things were quickly getting awkward.

"Uh," Soos looked them all over. He couldn't help but feel like he was missing something. He looked back over to Dr. Pines, who was the only one who hadn't reacted to him yet. "Is something wrong with Dr. Pines?"

"It's not…" Soos started a bit as Mr. Pines spoke. His eyes darted over to him, because that wasn't his voice. "This isn't me, Soos. It's Stanley."

Soos blinked. "What?" He came closer, and now that he really looked, he could see the differences between them. That was Dr. Pines wearing Mr. Pines's clothes and vice versa. "What's wrong?" He tried to calm his quickening heart, but it wasn't working.

"He doesn't… He can't remember anything." Dr. Pines choked out, but Soos barely heard him as he came in front of his boss.

At the movement, Mr. Pines looked up at him with a childlike curiosity, but that was it. No comments about how they were all being wishy-washy and should get back to work. No mention that Soos was late and they needed to check that the Shack wasn't damaged. Nothing.

"We… we can fix this, right?" Soos asked, glancing at Dr. Pines and noting the pained expression on his face. "I mean, everything else went back to normal…"

"He erased his mind to save us…" Mabel's watery voice floated over to him, and he turned to see Dipper bending down to hug her closer.

"But…" Soos struggled for a moment, trying to find a way to fix this. After all, he was the handyman here. "Ah, what if he changed back into his clothes?" He offered. If he looked like himself, he'd probably feel more like himself.

"I," Dr. Pines seemed to be fighting something he wanted to say, emotions warring on his face, but then he nodded, "I suppose it wouldn't hurt to try."

He bent down and took Mr. Pines's arm. "Come along." With some effort, Mr. Pines stood and though he wobbled for a second, which made Soos reach out in preparation to grab him if needed, he easily followed his lead.

"Why?" Mr. Pines asked as Dr. Pines lead him away, and Soos nearly flinched at the completely innocent tone.

Mr. Pines normally would've thrown off Dr. Pines's helping hand, insisting he could do it himself until he was flat on the ground. Mr. Pines would've been the one to insist on switching back because he wouldn't want to be caught wearing his brother's clothes.

But this wasn't the normal Mr. Pines.

"Because… I say so." Soos heard Dr. Pines reply, and his heart clenched because Mr. Pines would normally never accept that as an answer. He would probably take them as fighting words and do the exact opposite of what was asked of him.

Soos's heart clenched in panic, but he tried to calm it. Things would turn out okay. They always did.

He looked over at Dipper and Mabel. They too were watching where their grunkles had disappeared. They appeared as lost as Soos felt, so he swallowed what he felt down and gave them a smile. "Hey, little dudes. It'll be okay."

They glanced up at him simultaneously, and while Mabel nodded her agreement, Dipper just stared at him. Soos found himself being the first to turn away.

In what felt like no time at all, the elder Pines twins emerged from the bushes. Soos's heart lifted a bit, because even though the fez was still crooked atop his head, his tie was lying limply around his collar, and Dr. Pines was holding the jacket tightly in his hands, Mr. Pines looked more like himself.

Both he and the twins hopefully gazed at him, but there was still no spark of recognition.

Soos decided not to be too discouraged. "We're not far from the Shack," he said, looking around. "Maybe that'll jog something?" He put a smile on his face, trying to lighten the mood.

The somber looks didn't disappear, but Dr. Pines absently nodded. It's not like they had much else to do anyway.

As Mabel took Mr. Pines's hand, Dr. Pines slipped the jacket on Stan. Dipper lead the way, as he had also learned these paths during the summer, and Soos decided to bring up the rear. After all, if Mr. Pines needed some help, he would be right there to support him.

Soos knew that if they got to the Shack, things would be alright. The Shack had been Mr. Pines's home for 30 years! Of course, he'd have to remember it! It was one of Soos's favorite places and it was always there. No matter the damage the Shack would surely be fine and things would be fine and –

Up ahead, Dipper stopped, causing those who followed him to stop as well. Together, the five of them took in the sight before them, and Soos's heart sunk low.

The Mystery Shack was broken. Walls sagged, holes were poked in the sides and roof, plants grew in and around it; the whole place looked like no one had lived there for years. Robot parts and merchandise were scatter all over the yard.

The Shack was as broken as (his dad's) Mr. Pines's mind.

And as they walked up the steps towards the door, Soos's heart sunk because this was one thing that he didn't know how to fix.

AN: Anyone else ever thought about what it was like when Soos found them in the woods? Because it clearly happened before they made their way to the Shack. Have a bowl of heartbroken Soos.

Next time, the last time: Mabel never gave up hope.