A/N So I've finally watched "A Tale of Two Stans" and in light of that, while I'm not changing any of my original plan for their backstory ("Mabel's Choice" goes a bit more into detail about Stan's backstory than this one does so far) after much debate with myself, I am altering two things because of the episode. One, I'm including the identity switch because we're not talking plot here, but the actual identity of the characters and two, I've added Grandpa Shermy because if Stan stole his brother's identity, and the Author was the grandfather, it wouldn't make much sense unless Grunkle Stan was referred to as Grandpa all this time. But other than that, their backstory will be different than the show, this is an AU after all. Anyway, I've edited previous chapters to reflect that, but there are no major changes otherwise.

Thanks to everyone who follows and favorited this, and a special thanks as always to my reviewers.

TMNTGFKittySidekick01: Looks like I decided to update this one first. Mostly it's because of the edits I have to make. This one was tedious, "Mabel's Choice" will take a lot longer to edit in the identity swap, I'm fixing that up before I update that one now. Thanks as always for the reviews, they mean a lot. I'm really happy that you like my stories!

tumblrgirl13D: I'm super happy you like both this and "Mabel's Choice". It's fun writing from two different perspectives, and I love writing Dipper and Mabel so much and when there's conflict...well there's two sides to every story so I like that I'm telling both, especially since they both take off in different directions plotwise. I'd say that I'm sorry to make you cry but, that's also what I'm going for so I guess I'm not sorry at all. In fact I'm glad I made you cry! Muahaha! Seriously, thanks for the wonderful compliments!

shootingstar34: Honestly, that part with Stan turning himself in, it's one of the biggest reasons why I wanted to write this. When I was writing "Mabel's Choice" and she goes into the new timeline, I had the other timeline played out in my head already and felt it needed to be told because I really wanted to play with the possible consequences that could arise when Mabel let the portal open as well as play with the idea of "What if she did shut it down?". I like the idea of how one decision can affect everything but I didn't want to interrupt the flow of Mabel's POV, that's why this story exists, so we can still see the other timeline and the scene with Stan, it had been playing in my head as I wrote it for months now. It was nice to finally get it written down even if it didn't quite turn out the way I wanted it to, as it usually happens. Thanks for being a faithful reviewer as always. Means a lot to me!

Guest: Well, I'm glad you like this but I really did NOT appreciate the spoiler. No, it did NOT need to be said. If it was bothering you, you could've either left it alone or stop reading. You didn't ruin the episode for me, but that was something I really would've liked to have discovered while watching the episode. That's why I specifically asked that no one spoil the episode for me. I went to many lengths to avoid spoilers which included avoiding the promo, and depriving myself of "Gravity Falls" related stuff online. I managed to go for months without a single spoiler aside from the episode title and a few screenshots then you spoiled it literally a day before I got the chance to watch. It wasn't a major spoiler, but a spoiler nonetheless, stemming from a theory that I heard a long time ago that I didn't want to be true which made me lose my enthusiasm for watching the episode. Now that I saw it, I'm OK with it, but yeah... It's OK, I forgive you and again, the episode wasn't ruined because of it-that would be silly because it was awesome, but PLEASE, next time someone asks not to be spoiled for something, anything, PLEASE don't do it. Aside from that, thanks for the review. Now that I got that off my chest, we're good, I don't hold grudges. :-)

Effervescent Dreamer: Making things sad is my specialty I think. Seems to be the trend... anyway, yeah, what Mabel said to Dipper is something he's going to have to figure out on his own despite her best efforts to warn him. As for the Author, (who I still want to call Stanley...) you're right about what happened to him. He stormed off after acting like a jerk, and disappeared with the journals prior to the collapse of the Mystery Shack. But you'll find out what happened to him and what he was up to eventually. Thanks for the reviews! I'm glad you like this!

Kayleigh1789: Thanks for understanding and your patience. I can get in over my head sometimes. Thanks for the reviews! I'm happy you like my stories!

Well, here it is, the next chapter! Enjoy!

The Waiting Room

Mabel looked out the window and grinned happily, humming to herself as she watched the redwoods whizz by. "I think this is going to be the greatest most awesomest summer ever, don't you?" she asked, turning to Dipper who sat in the aisle seat next to her.

"I still don't understand why mom and dad decided it would be a good idea to exile us to some dumb town with some great uncle we never met," Dipper frowned, sulking a little. "It's going to be so boring. I bet he doesn't even have internet access or cable."

Mabel blew a raspberry, "Aw cheer up Mr. Grumpy Face, it won't be boring unless you make it boring. You know what's boring?"

"What?"

"Boring!" she giggled, "Check it out, Boring Oregon, next exit." She pointed to the road sign as it flew by.

"Creative," Dipper quipped sullenly, "how much you wanna bet that Gravity Falls will be just as boring as Boring?"

Mabel started laughing, "Boring, boring, boring…say it often enough it starts to sound kinda funny!" she stifled a giggle, "Mmmph, boooorrringgg! Boring, boring, boring!"

She said the word drastically differently each time she said it and finally Dipper couldn't help himself and he laughed, "Oh man, Mabel you are such a dork! I am so embarrassed to have you as a sister right now!"

"Right now? How do you think I feel like, all the time having you as a brother, broseph?"

"I swear we are not related!" Dipper chuckled, announcing to the practically empty bus. One of the few passengers on the bus turned around and gave them a dirty look and they crouched low in their seats and giggled.

"This summer is going to be fun," Mabel decided, "I mean, think about it. We're free of Mom and Dad for the summer, which means I'm free to pursue the greatest epic summer romance since the dawn of summers without having to worry about Mom and Dad getting in the way and being super embarrassing and stuff."

Dipper scoffed with amusement, "Really Mabel? 'Epic summer romance'?"

Mabel shrugged, "Why not?"

"I wonder what Great Uncle Stanford will be like?" Dipper wondered with a sigh.

"Grunkle."

"What?"

"Grunkle. You know, Great Uncle shortened. Sounds better."

"You're so weird," Dipper rolled his eyes with a grin.

"You know it bro-bro!"

"Dad said he runs a small tourist business," Dipper said, "I guess that could be interesting, but what kind of tourist attraction would you find in the Middle of Nowhere, Oregon?"

Mabel shrugged, "I have no idea but I think Grunkle Stanford will be nice."

"I hope so," Dipper frowned, glancing past Mabel and out the window, swallowing with apprehension. Truth was, he was scared. They'd never been away from home for so long, and certainly not without their parents. What if Great Uncle—Grunkle Stanford was some nasty and mean guy? What would they do in the middle of nowhere if something went wrong? He was old, right? What if he like, had a heart attack or something? What if one of them got sick? What if there was nothing to do there? What if? What if? What if? There were so many ways that things could to horribly wrong, so many ways that summer could be ruined completely…

"Hey," Mabel said softly, nudging him with her shoulder, "if it makes you feel any better, I'm kinda nervous too."

"Really?"

"Yeah," Mabel exclaimed, "of course I am! We're spending the entire summer with some guy we never even met! That's like, super crazy! So yeah, I'm nervous. Excited, but nervous. I just tell myself that Mom and Dad wouldn't send us here if he was like, bad or whatever, so he's probably some lonely old guy who will be thrilled to have the company and who knows, he could be really fun."

"I hope so," he sighed, unable to shake his nervousness. "He can just as easily be this cranky old jerk who's really mean and will lock us in his attic and put us to work all summer without giving us a break and beat us or something if we screw up."

Mabel frowned before she grinned and playfully punched him in the shoulder, "Well, no matter what happens, at least we have each other, right?"

Dipper grinned, "Yeah."

"You know what this means!" Mabel declared, turning to face him and holding out her hands.

"Beep, bop, bibbledy-boop, TWIIINNSS!" they said in unison, doing their secret handshake, finishing off with a big raspberry which sent them into a fit of giggles.

The same passengers as before turned around and shot them another dirty look and Dipper whispered, "Sorry!" before they both ducked down low in their seats and Mabel rolled her eyes, flashing him a wide braces filled smile. Dipper returned the smile and together they finished the last leg of their journey into the unknown.

Sure, Dipper had no idea what to expect, but Mabel was right. At least they had each other.

/o\

"Grunkle Stan, I don't even know if you're my Grunkle! I want to believe you but…"

"Then listen to me, remember this morning when I said I wanted to tell you something? I wanted to say that you're going to hear some bad things about me and some of them are true. But trust me, everything I've worked for, everything I care about, it's all for this family!"

"Mabel, what if he's lying? This thing can destroy the universe! Listen to your head!"

"Look into my eyes Mabel! Do you really think I'm a bad guy?"

"He's lying! Shut it down NOW!"

"Mabel please!"

"Grunkle Stan…I trust you."

"Mabel are you crazy? We're all gonna—!

/o\

"Wha—? Who's that?"

"The Author of the Journals, my brother."

/o\

""I have so many questions…journal #3 has been like, my bible since I found it! You have no idea how long I…"

"Then you are a fool for putting so much stock into something that is mostly meaningless drivel written long ago by a young, ignorant and paranoid man! And the rest… was either a lie or should have never been seen by children or anyone for that matter."

"But…that's not true. It's saved our lives many times... it…"

"You shouldn't have done this, Stanley. You knew better than to rebuild this, you know how dangerous turning this on was!"

"I got you back, didn't I? Isn't that worth anything?"

"Not if it means killing us all! Because that's exactly what you've done!"

/o\

"Ugh after everything that's happened I can't believe you're still taking his side!"

"I'm not taking sides!"

"Yes you are! You should've just hit the damn button Mabel, then none of this would've happened!"

"What if it was me, Dipper? What if I was the one lost, trapped who knows where? Tell me honestly that you wouldn't risk everything to get me back?"

No fair, no fair, why'd you have to ask me that?

"Tell me you wouldn't have done the same thing for me!"

0-0-0

"Dipper, hey, hey dude, wake up," Soos nudges him gently and Dipper startles slightly before he blinks blearily awake and reality slams into him like a freight train as he looks around at the busy waiting room in the crippled hospital.

Mabel…

The anomalies had done a lot of damage, and the hospital is no exception. Even without the crowd the place is in chaos, with staff everywhere trying to clean up small floods and random power outages, the ER waiting room littered with broken chairs, desks and equipment. It wasn't hit as bad as other parts of town, and apparently, according to one of the medics on the chopper, the anomalies were random enough that not even the entire building was affected. But considering the influx of people needing to be treated, it's bad enough.

Dipper looks around at the crowd and fortunately it looks like most of the injuries are broken bones or cuts that need stitches, but really, he has no idea how many of the townsfolk could be seriously hurt or worse.

Besides Mabel…Oh man, Mabel...

He can't remember falling asleep. He remembers the helicopter landing and chasing the medics into the ER as they passed Mabel to the doctors in a scene that reminded him of those over the top hospital dramas on TV. He remembers them crowding around her, shouting orders to each other, working furiously to save her life. He remembers the panic that festered within him coming to a head and the desperate sensation of the kind of pressure one might feel in their chest when they're on the verge of hyperventilating. He remembers them ignoring him, pushing him aside and catching the most frightening words come out of one of the doctors mouths.

"BP's dropping, we're losing her!"

He remembers crying and screaming and begging her to hold on and not die as she vanished through a set of double doors and Soos's strong arms wrapping around him and then he couldn't breathe. Well, he could but he was breathing too quickly, each breath not enough to fill his lungs and then the room got blurry and voices became distant and tinny and then…nothing.

"Wait uh…what's going on? How did we…?" he's confused as he realizes that he's lying across two chairs, there's a thin white blanket draped over him and apparently he had been using Soos as a pillow.

"You passed out, dude," Soos explains grimly, "after they took Mabel away. They gave you a mild sedative to help you relax, do you remember that?" Dipper shakes his head and Soos continues, "You've been out for a couple of hours but were starting to get a little restless, you OK?"

Dipper shrugs the question off-of course I'm not OK-as he gingerly sits up and rubs at a kink in his neck, "What about Mabel? Any news? Is she…?"

"No word yet," Soos replies, "but hey, no news is good news, right?"

"Maybe," he frowns, feeling an empty pit in his stomach. "I hope so…" he whimpers.

"Well uh…I don't know about you but I'm getting a little hungry. I saw a vending machine nearby, want anything?" Soos asks, clearly out of his element.

Dipper shakes his head numbly, "I'm good."

He's vaguely aware of Soos saying something about getting him something anyway to save for later if he wants but Dipper doesn't really respond, he just gives a non-committal shrug and closes his eyes, sighing heavily as he scratches lightly at the corner of his eyes to clear away tears that had dried and crusted while he slept.

You should've hit the damn button, Mabel, then none of this would've happened!

What if it was me?

Tell me honestly that you wouldn't risk everything to get me back!

No fair, why'd you have to ask me that, Mabel?

Dipper shudders, fighting back an onslaught of tears that threaten to escape and he sniffs, closing his eyes and all he can see is Mabel. Why'd I have to lash out at you so harshly? You only wanted to do what's right and I acted like a jerk, but…I was just so mad! But oh man, what if…what if that was the last thing we'll ever really say to each other?

"No, don't think like that," Dipper says out loud, "she's strong, she's going to be fine."

She'll be fine. I won't accept any other outcome. She'll be OK, she has to be…

Soos soon returns with a package of toffee peanuts and hands them to Dipper who looks at them dumbly.

"Sorry, there's not much selection dude," Soos says apologetically, "I know they're not your favourite, but I figure it might be a while before we can get real food and out of what little was left, this seemed to be the most filling."

All Dipper can think about though is that they're Stan's favorite snack. Stan, who caused all this chaos, who sacrificed everything to save his brother, the Author who's identity he had stolen, who turned out to be a jerk. Stan, who lied to them. Stan, who sacrificed his freedom to save Mabel who might not even… "I don't want them," he snaps, shoving them back into Soos's hands rudely before he realizes how he sounds, "Sorry I uh…oh man, I'm sorry I just…"

"Hey, it's OK dude," Soos sighs with a small smile, "you got a lot goin' on, it's cool."

"Maybe later," Dipper ducks his head, "I'm not really hungry right now."

Soos looks at his selection almost opens it but stops at the last minute, "You know what? I'm not very hungry either," he chuckles humourlessly, "Go figure."

They sit in silence for a long time, sitting side by side. Dipper watches the crowd in the ER slowly dissipate, someone fixes the TV in the waiting room and turns the volume up to show a live press conference, reporting on the 'Anti-Gravity Phenomenon' that occurred earlier that day. There he learns that residents whose homes had been affected can report to a make-shift emergency shelter set up at Gravity Falls High School, it also tells people where to check for missing loved ones, and so far, while the damage to the town had been bad, it wasn't nearly as bad as originally feared. Homes and businesses were lost, but so far no fatalities reported though some had sustained serious injuries and at least one critical. Dipper knows immediately that that one critical patient is Mabel and he's suddenly scared that he'll learn of her fate over the news when he's right there, waiting for word on her condition.

Have they forgotten about me? Are they ignoring me because I'm a kid? I'm her brother, I need to know what's going on!

Dipper stands up and groans, massages a kink in his neck and winces when the bruises he got down in the Portal room suddenly seem to come to life and throb without mercy. "Dude, where are you going?" Soos asks.

"To see if there's any word on Mabel," he replies, "it's been hours Soos, hours. I'm tired of waiting, I need to know if she's OK." I need to know if she's going to make it…or if she's already gone… His breath hitches at the thought. He'd like to think that as her twin, he'd somehow know if she was gone, but there's no way to know for sure unless he finds out for himself.

"She's probably still in surgery," Soos says quietly, his own anxiousness showing just beneath his calm exterior, "I'm sure when they have an update to give they'll let us know."

"But it's been hours!" he protests as he begins to pace.

"And sometimes surgeries take hours," Soos points out, "take that as a good sign, dude. If they're still working, she's still with us."

"But what if they forgot about us? They're so busy and to them I'm just some kid, maybe they'll only talk to a grown-up family member. What if they…what if she…" he sniffs, feeling a ton of emotions slam into him at once, he feels a tear escape his watery eyes and he quickly wipes it away, "I was such a jerk to her, Soos." he mutters guiltily, biting his lip to keep from crying, "she was under so much pressure down there and I was a jerk! She only wanted to do what was right and I…I punished her for it! What if…what if I never even get the chance to tell her how sorry I am, Soos?"

Soos frowns, clearly not sure what to say but he rises to his feet and pulls Dipper into a comforting hug, "She knows Dipper, she knows. Don't beat yourself up over this, dude. There was so much going on and we were all acting a little crazy."

Dipper pushes away from him, "But you weren't. Mabel wasn't. I lashed out at her like a jerk when she only wanted to do what was right!"

"But so did you," Soos says, "and me too. We all wanted to do what was right, it's just you two had different ideas about what was the right thing to do. You lashed out because your whole world had been turned upside-down, it all happened so fast, I mean, how do you react when someone you thought you knew turned out not to be the person you thought he was? And the stakes had never been higher! Based on what we knew, we were all acting on what we believed to be right. And to be honest dude, looking back, I'm still not sure what the right thing to do was."

Dipper glances up at his friend, taken slightly aback by his wisdom. Sometimes Soos can be somewhat of an idiot, but sometimes, when it matters most, he can be a lot smarter than he lets on. "But the decision fell on Mabel's shoulders. I knew the kind of pressure she was under and she was right: for me the choice was an easy one, just shut it down. For her, it wasn't so easy and she only had seconds… I knew she would listen to her heart because she always does…but look how that turned out…" He sniffs, bitter and hurt, his eyes drifting to the set of doors Mabel had disappeared through hours before. Please don't die, Mabel, please…

"What if there is no right choice? Maybe there was no way this could've ended well. At least…at least we know Mr. Pines never intended for any of this to happen, that he didn't lie to us all this time because of some evil plot right out of a comic book. He only wanted to save his brother…" Soos murmurs, "He was also trying to do what he thought was right..."

Dipper sighs, "Yeah, I guess…" his breath hitches and he fights to keep from crying or screaming because he's so overwhelmed, it's all he wants to do, "Stan… oh man I couldn't even bother to listen to him when he was trying to explain himself and apologize... I was just…so angry, I still am, even after what he did to help Mabel. I hate him for lying to us and endangering us but…I know he didn't want this to happen…and I don't hate him, not really, and yet I do and I just…I don't know what to do…"

Soos gives him a calming pat on the back, "I know, it's OK..."

"Am I a terrible person for feeling this way?"

"No," Soos shakes his head, then chuckles humourlessly, "unless we're both terrible people."

"Why do you say that?"

"I uh…I quit today," Soos admits, looking a little shocked by the idea, "I guess it doesn't make a difference now, with no Mystery Shack and all but… I worked for him for ten years, I looked up to him and always did as he asked without question but today… today he went too far. I never would've believed that he would keep a secret this big from me. I thought he trusted me… It was…it was kind of a sucker punch to know he couldn't trust me with something like that, you know? I had never in my life given him a reason not to. I mean, maybe if he said something…maybe things would've turned out OK. I'm kind of regretting it now…I know he put us all in danger, but he was only trying to protect us."

"A lot of good that did…" Dipper frowns bitterly as he ponders Soos's words, realizing that he's not the only one who feels betrayed by Stan's actions. He doesn't remember this, but then he figures it must've happened when he had gone upstairs to sulk.

"What do you think they'll do to him?" Dipper asks, thinking about how the Government agents beat up Stan when he had surrendered peacefully—To save Mabel…he thinks, which only reminds him that Stan's the reason they're in the ER waiting room, waiting for news of her fate. He closes his eyes and he can see Mabel choking on her blood, gasping what he fears will be her last words. Don't think like that, she'll be OK, she has to be…

"I don't know, dude," Soos sighs.

"So what happens now?" he asks, his voice small and vulnerable, breaking with emotion.

"I don't know," he replies softly, "but…no matter what happens, I'm right here by your side, dude."

"Thanks," Dipper whispers and then suddenly he just can't hold it in anymore. He's so overwhelmed. It's just all too much for him. Too much that has happened, too much that is still unknown, and way too much at stake and Dipper feels completely helpless. He's so terrified that Mabel won't make it, and he doesn't know how to handle the conflicting feelings of love and hate, anger and forgiveness towards Stan that fight for dominance within him. He can hardly breathe and it takes everything he has not to lose it completely.

Soos reaches out to comfort him, looking a little uncomfortable and out of his element because he really doesn't know what to do in this kind of situation, but that's OK because neither does Dipper. They're both drifting without an anchor, both a little lost. Soos rests his hand on Dipper's shoulder but Dipper pulls away.

"Sorry I…I um….I'll be right back OK, Soos?" he manages to get out before he runs off, not sure of what he needs but he can suddenly feel eyes watching him, total strangers who have taken notice to his turmoil, or if they haven't yet will soon notice him and stare if he has a breakdown in the middle of the ER waiting room... He just needs a minute, needs a moment of privacy as he tries to figure things out because it's so overwhelming and he just doesn't know anymore…

He finds a bathroom and ducks inside, locking the door behind him before he leans heavily against it and sinks down until he's in a crouching position, burying his face in his hands. All he can see behind his closed eyelids is images of Mabel, smiling, cheerful, goofy Mabel. He can hear her laughter, he can hear her crying out, I want to believe you but… and he can see her falling, falling, falling, blood spilling from her mouth.

"Oh man, please be OK, Mabel, please be OK…" he whispers unsteadily, trying to shake the horrific image from his mind. After she had fallen, she looked like she was dead, and even though as far as he knows she's still alive and fighting, premature grief strikes his heart. I don't know what I'd do if anything happened to you…

He thinks of Stan, the person responsible for everything that had happened. And he still can't shake the image of the government agents beating him after he surrendered peacefully to save Mabel's life. While watching Stan getting beaten to the ground felt wrong and completely unjustified, a part of him, somewhere in the dark regions of his mind, Dipper found grim satisfaction at the sight because if it weren't for him, Mabel wouldn't have needed saving in the first place. It's the one truth that he simply can't let go of.

Dipper knows that Stan never wanted her or anyone to get hurt, and he realizes that Stan only wanted to save his brother, but was it really worth it? Was it worth living a lie and betraying the trust of his friends and family? Was it worth destroying the town? Was it worth putting everyone in danger?

Tell me honestly that you wouldn't risk everything to get me back!

Mabel's voice echoes in his mind and he bangs the back of his head against the door. He would. Dammit he would. "I will if I have to…" he says out loud in response to the memory. Mabel is worth it, always. "But oh man, I don't know what to do…"

He sobs into his hands for a few minutes until there's nothing left. He's drained, empty and numb, at least for now, but his state of mind and soul is so fragile, he recognizes that it won't take much for him to lose it again. But right now, numb is a welcome reprieve.

He climbs to his feet and looks at his reflection in the mirror for the first time since the Portal. He's a complete mess. His hair is in complete disarray, his eyes are red and puffy and the circles under his eyes are darker now, his nose is red and dripping with snot from crying and there's still a small amount of dried blood crusted on his cheeks. Mabel's blood. And there's some on his shirt too. He turns on the tap and scrubs it away, trying to get it out of his shirt as his mind one again takes him back to the image of her lying in his arms, choking on her own blood. There's not a lot of it on him, most of her blood had been left back at the remains of the Mystery Shack staining the ground outside, but what little is there he wants it gone. He doesn't need the physical reminder, the whole scene will undoubtedly haunt his memory for a long, long time anyway, no matter what the outcome.

After some scrubbing he's pretty sure that he's managed to rid his shirt of Mabel's bloodstains, but it's hard to tell, the water darkens the orange of his shirt too much but he hopes that when it dries the evidence of that horrifying memory will have vanished. I'll burn this shirt if I have to, if the stains are still there… he thinks.

He washes his face a second time, scrubbing it dry with a paper towel and looks at his reflection in the mirror again. He's still a mess, but there's not much he can do about that. At least he almost looks more like himself.

Sighing heavily he heads back towards the waiting room to join Soos. He spots his friend sitting exactly where he left him, leaning forward with his elbows on his knees, his face buried in his hands. Dipper starts towards him but two men in black reach Soos first. His heart leaping to his chest Dipper runs up to them just as one of them began to speak.

"Jesus Ramirez?"

"Uh, yeah. It's Soos, actually," he replies, startled as his suddenly panicked eyes dart to Dipper and then at the Agents.

"We need you to come with us," the other Agent tells him, his voice monotone. The two men are all business.

"Wait, what are you doing?" Dipper exclaims, standing between them and his friend, "Leave him alone!"

"Stand aside kid," the first Agent says, gently pushing him out of his way, "Mr. Ramirez, our records show that you've been working for Stanford Pines for ten years now?"

"Uh that's right but…"

"We just need you to come with us, we have a few questions we need to ask you," he continues. Something in his voice tells Dipper that there's more to it than that. They don't think Soos is guilty do they?

"But he doesn't know anything," Dipper protests, "none of us had any idea of what Stan was up to!"

"Dipper, it's OK," Soos smiles nervously at him, swallowing hard. "It's just a few questions, right? And then when we're done I can come back here?"

"If we determine we have no reason to hold you, yes," the first Agent nods.

Soos sighs with relief, "Then it's OK. It'll be OK. I have nothing to hide."

Dipper pushes past the Agents and throws his arms around him and Soos bends over to return the hug, lifting Dipper off his feet, "Don't worry, dude. I'll be fine."

I hope so… "Hurry back," Dipper whispers.

"I will," Soos nods, setting him down and following the two Agents out of the building. He gives Dipper one last look, he looks calm but his eyes betray his panic as he disappears from view.

Suddenly Dipper's acutely aware of how alone he is. His limbs feel like jelly and he sits down on the chair Soos just vacated, shocked by what just happened. Sure, it probably should've been expected, Stan turned himself in so it makes sense that an investigation will follow, but…they already played dirty with Stan, what if they do the same to Soos? And with Mabel's fate still unknown…

Feeling more alone than he has ever been in his life, Dipper wraps his arms around himself with nothing left to do but wait.

A/N So what did you guys think of this chapter? What do you think will happen now? I would love to hear your thoughts and theories! I'm kind of a review junkie and need my fix. ;-P You guys are awesome and keep me motivated!