"We can't go in there," squeaked Thompson. "Why don't we just call the cops?"
"Because the cops aren't going to be able stop the animatronics," said Dipper. "Look, this kind of thing is the whole reason me and Wendy are out here."
"Yeah Tom," said Wendy. "Ten minutes ago you were all gung-ho about trying to stop monsters and stuff.
"Yeah, but…" Thompson shook his head. "It's different now that it's real, you know?" Dipper and Wendy exchanged a look of understanding.
"We do know," said Dipper. "You don't have to do this if you don't want to." Thompson gulped, and stomped his foot.
"Let's just get this over with," he said. The three tiptoed up to the front of Freddy Fazbear's Playpen, and peered through the glass door. The main room of the arcade was barren. A couple of the games flashed blinking lights, and the emptily jovial sounds that came from them were barely audible. At the very back was a wooden staircase that led to a sort of stage. Three figures stood atop it, draped in shadows.
"So what's the layout of this place?" asked Dipper.
"This is the playroom," said Thompson. "Each side of this room branches off into a hallway. The left hallway leads to a bathroom, a maintenance room, and a security room. The left side leads to a private room, they mostly use that for birthdays I think, and a room that's been closed down pretty much since the place opened."
"Gotcha," said Dipper. "Well, my guess is that these things are possessed by high-level evil spirits. If that's the case, I'm going to have to do an exorcism."
"Well that should be easy enough," said Thompson. "We just get in there, exercise, and get out."
"It's not that simple," sighed Dipper.
"Of course it isn't," said Wendy.
"The kind of mass exorcism I need to do takes time to prepare," said Dipper. "What's more, I need to be in proximity of the ghosts so I can read their energy."
"How long are we talking?" asked Wendy.
"Six hours," said Dipper.
"Six hours!?" roared Thompson. "We, we have to survive against those things for six hours?"
"We could just torch the place," said Wendy. Dipper shook his head.
"That might destroy their physical bodies, but their spirits will still remain," he said.
"I don't think it's a good idea for us to be in there for six hours," said Wendy. "I don't see how we can outrun them for that long, especially if you have to do this exorcism thing."
"Actually… actually, I think I have an idea," said Thompson. "My friend used to work here. He said that the doors in the security room are electronically locked."
"Really?" asked Dipper.
"This place makes a lot of money," said Thompson, "and they keep the safe in the security room. That's why they take extra precautions. If we could get in there, we could lock ourselves in, and just coast for six hours."
"But what if the room is already locked?" asked Wendy.
"Well, there was obviously a security guard on duty," said Dipper, "and he might still be in there. If he's not, he might have left the door unlocked."
"But what if he's not there, and the door is locked?" asked Wendy.
"Then we run like bats out of hell and come up with another idea," said Dipper.
"I don't like this," said Wendy.
"I don't either," said Dipper. "But I'm not sure we have much of a choice." He reached out his hand, and slowly opened the door to the Playpen. The three walked in. The noises got louder as they entered the center of the room, eyes locked on the stage. It was illuminated only by the soft, electronic light that poured out from the machines. There were three animatronics- a blue bunny, a yellow duck, and a brown bear. They leered at the three humans, but didn't move. "If they start moving, then we bolt," said Dipper. The three began to move towards the left hallway, their eyes never leaving the three animatronic figures. The figures still refused to move, but Dipper could feel their eyes following him. When they reached the threshold of the hallway, Dipper motioned for the group to stop.
"The security room is the first door on the right," said Thompson.
"I'll go check it out," said Dipper. "Don't be afraid to leave me, if you have to."
"Okay," said Thompson.
"Not a chance," said Wendy. Dipper went into the hallway, breaking eye contact with the animatronics. He sprinted down the hall and reached the security door. It was open. He looked in the room and gasped. He covered his mouth to suppress a gag. The security guard was in there, but he wasn't alive anymore. His body was tucked into a corner of the room. It was covered in blood; there was a large chunk gone from his neck. In his hand he held an electronic key card, which Dipper guessed was for locking the room. He looked around, and sure enough, there was a slot next to the door that the card would fit into.
"Get in here!" Dipper shouted. He heard the sound of footsteps approaching, and he gingerly took the keycard from the security guard's hand. Thompson and Wendy entered the room. Wendy shrieked, and Thompson moaned at the sight of the body. Dipper jogged over to the key card slot, and ran the card through it. The door closed with a loud boom, and Dipper heard it lock. There was a loud buzz, and a console that Dipper had failed to notice came to life. The group walked over to it. It showed a live security feed of each room in the Playpen.
"They still haven't moved," said Wendy. Thompson's eyes returned to the security guard.
"There's nothing we can do for him," said Dipper. He sat down on the floor, and took out the Three journal. "I'm going to need to enter a trancelike state. I'm not going to be able to move, see, hear, or speak. You two are going to have to be my eyes and ears."
"Understood," said Wendy.
"We should be fine," said Dipper. "I don't see how they can get through the door, unless they find a welding torch or something." He sighed, and opened his journal. He flipped to the appropriate page, and looked up at his two companions. "But stay frosty just in case. If something goes wrong, we're dead."
"But other than that, things are going swell," said Wendy. "Who knows, maybe the owner will give us some free coupons for getting rid of the spirits haunting his shop." The two boys stared at her, neither smiling. "Sorry, just trying to lighten the mood."
"All right, here I go," said Dipper. He closed his eyes, and began chanting under his breath. The Three journal began to glow an unearthly green. The green spread up his arms, over his chest, and through his whole body. Thompson's jaw dropped.
"That is the craziest thing I have ever seen," said Thompson.
"Well you ain't seen nothin' yet," said Wendy.
/
Mabel sat in the back of the Uber car, her fingers working madly on her phone. She just didn't know what had gone wrong. One minute she and Robbie were having the time of their lives, the next he had bolted like a scared rabbit. Mabel had texted him ten times over the last twenty minutes. She wasn't trying to be annoying, but she just had to know what went wrong. She had to know if he was okay.
"We're here," said the driver. Mabel looked up, and sure enough, they were at the Shack. Mabel thanked the driver and exited the vehicle. She slowly walked up the the front door. She sighed as she opened it. She walked in, and flopped onto the couch. The only source of light was a small, dimly lit lamp on a nightstand. She could hear the snuffling and growling that Soos was doing a few rooms over. "What did I do?" she asked herself. "I don't understand." She looked at her reflection in the television. The red dress had a large stain on it; she had slipped getting into the Uber and fallen in a puddle. She bit her lower lip, desperately holding back tears.
Something caught her eye. There was someone in the corner of the room. Mabel felt her blood run ice cold. A single tear ran down her cheek. She slowly turned around. The figure in the corner was covered in shadow. She could see his jeans though… and his hands. One held a knife. She stood to run, but he was too fast. She screamed, and threw her hands out in front of her. She felt his presence, heard his roar of fury… she felt arms enveloping her. Sobbing. She was crying, but she wasn't sobbing. It was the man.
"I'm so sorry," cried Robbie. "I'm so sorry. I messed up so bad, Mabel. I need help."
"R… Robbie?" Mabel stared at the boy. She had never seen him like this. His slick, cool exterior had completely faded away. He was sobbing so hard that he was shaking. Mabel shook with him, as she was completely wrapped in his arms. "What's going on?"
"I don't know if I can explain," he said. He slowly let her go. "If I do, I'll be in terrible danger. It might be a good idea for me to just leave town."
"Me and Dipper can protect you," said Mabel. "We have ways."
"I know," whispered Robbie.
"You… you do?" asked Mabel. Robbie nodded.
"I know all about you and Dipper. About what you're trying to do, about who you're trying to stop. I know everything."
"How?" asked Mabel. Fear was creeping into her stomach. Her eyes flicked down to his hands. He was still clutching the knife in his left hand.
"I helped." Robbie's voice seemed to be coming from a faraway place. "I'm so sorry Mabel. Some of this is my fault. I don't know everything, but… but I helped."
"Helped who?" The fear was growing in Mabel. She took a step back from the crying boy. "Robbie, what the hell are you talking about? And would you please get rid of that knife?" Robbie raised the knife to eye level. He looked at it, and turned it in his hand. Then he looked at Mabel. He raised the knife, and tossed it away. Mabel saw it land a couple feet away, bouncing dully on the carpet.
"I'll tell you everything," he said. He sat down on the couch, and ran a hand through his hair. "It's a long story. You might want to sit down."
"I'm fine standing, thanks," said Mabel. Robbie nodded.
"I wouldn't trust me either," he said. "I've hated you for so long…"
"What!?" Mabel didn't know how to feel anymore. Her heart was pounding in her chest, and a hundred different emotions were coursing through her. Robbie hated her? "
You really don't remember?" asked Robbie. "Pacifica must have done a hell of a job."
"Remember what?" cried Mabel.
"What you did to me," said Robbie slowly. He raised a finger to his face. "What you made me look like."
"Robbie, I don't-" and then it hit Mabel like a ton of bricks.
/
It was five years previous, near the end of the first war with The Master.
"Robbie, stop!" roared Mabel. Robbie was standing above Dipper, leering over his fallen body. Dipper was bleeding badly now, his hair more red than brown. Robbie slowly raised his head, and locked eyes with Mabel.
"The Master is going to give me everything back," said Robbie. His voice was unhinged. His head twitched involuntarily, and his mouth leaked foam. "I'll have Wendy and Tambry both. I'll have any woman I want. All the friends I want. No one will make fun of me anymore, call me pathetic or stupid." He was crying now too. "All I have to do is, is…"
"You can't!" shouted Mabel. She was shaking violently. She had one of the journal's clutched in her hands; she had forgotten which one. "Please Robbie, don't kill him!"
"Shut up!" Robbie roared. He stared back down at Dipper. He slowly raised the knife he had been holding. The strange runes that had been inscribed on it glittered in the moonlight. Mabel opened the journal, and turned to a random page. It was a spell. She mustered all her courage, all her hope, and did her best to dispel her fear. She spoke the incantation aloud, and pointed a finger at Robbie's face. A beam of light coursed off her finger as Robbie brought the knife down on her brother's prone form. It hit the teen full on in the face. He dropped the knife and clutched at his face. He was screaming, clearly in unbearable pain. "What did you do to me!?" He cried.
Mabel looked down at the spell. She had cast it without fully reading it. The spell read, 'Revealing The True Face.' She looked at Robbie. He slowly took his hands away from his face. Mabel dropped the journal and screamed. "What did you do!?" He screamed. "What did you do!?"
/
Mabel stared at Robbie as if she had never seen him before. He was handsome now, rugged. But she knew it was not his true face. She had revealed his true face, and it had been awful.
"You were going to kill him," Mabel whispered.
"I had lost everything." Robbie was still quiet. "Tambry broke up with me after she found out I was still trying to get with Wendy. All of my, 'friends,' thought I was a scumbag and stopped hanging out with me. And then He came."
"The Master," said Mabel. Robbie nodded.
"Yes," he said. "He promised me everything I've ever wanted. Fame, money, women, power. And all I had to do was…"
"Kill somebody." Mabel was horrified.
"No," said Robbie. "Not just anybody. The kid who had wrecked my life in the first place." Robbie crinkled his nose. "So of course I agreed to do it."
"You're a monster," said Mabel. Robbie chuckled.
"Not then I wasn't," he said. "Misguided, yes. Confused, angry… torn up inside. I wasn't myself. So I waited for my moment. I followed you two while you were battling The Master. When He blew up the water main line, and Dipper took the brunt of the hit, I saw my chance. I was going to do it." He gulped. "And then you cast that spell. That's when I became a monster."
"You were a monster before that," Mabel said. "That spell didn't warp your face. It just showed who you were really are." Robbie ignored her comment.
"I spent years looking like that. I told my parents I had got caught in the blast. They offered to give me plastic surgery, but I knew somehow that it wouldn't work. I… I can't tell you how bad life got. I had to drop out of high school." He shivered. "And my parents abandoned me. I was alone, homeless. I wanted to… I mean, I tried to..." he couldn't bring himself to finish. "But then Pacifica found me. She said The Master was coming back, and that she needed my help."
"Wait, Pacifica is involved in this?" asked Mabel. Robbie nodded. "She's the reason you can't remember anything," he said. "After Dipper left and broke her heart, she found a secret library in the back of the mansion. She began learning spells, and she got in contact with The Master. I'm sure He promised her all the same things He promised me." He cleared his throat. "Anyway, she said she needed my help. She said if I did what she told me, I'd get my face back. And that…" he sighed. "And that I'd get to kill you." There was silence. "And you said yes," said Mabel. Robbie nodded. "I did," he said. "Pacifica gave me a temporary face. Helped me get a job at the shack. And all I had to do was make sure you didn't get in the way."
"Of what?" Mabel asked.
"Of her and The Master's plan."
"And what plan is that?"
"They're going to kill Dipper." Mabel gasped. She'd known, of course she'd known, but somehow hearing it was horrifying. She took another few steps back.
"And what?" she whispered. "You, you just magically had a change of heart? You spend a little time with me, and now all of the sudden your homicidal urges are cured?"
"I don't want to hurt anyone," he said. "I don't know how I feel about you Mabel. But I do know that you're a nice girl. You've been nicer to me than anyone has in years. You don't deserve what I was going to do to you."
"DO YOU THINK!?" she roared. "GEE, THANKS FOR NOT KILLING ME, YOU ASSHOLE! I'M SO GRATEFUL!"
"I'll help however you need me to," said Robbie.
"We don't need your help," spat Mabel.
"Yes you do," Robbie said. "There are things you still don't know. Things I can help protect you from." Mabel was breathing heavily.
"How do I know you want change your mind again?" she asked. "That you won't just snap, and decide that I deserve to… to die again?"
"You don't," said Robbie. "But if I wanted to kill you, I could have. I could have done it just a few minutes ago, and I didn't. I know it's hard to believe, but it's true. Maybe this whole time I just needed someone to be nice to me. To not treat me like garbage."
"You brought it on yourself," said Mabel. "You were awful. Tambry really liked you. People wanted to give you a chance."
"I was bad back then," he said. "But you weren't there Mabel. People have always liked you. You don't know what it's like to be hated for reasons beyond your control. I was always picked on, always. For being too small, for being too smart, for being too effeminate. Every day for years. Every grade. I never made a friend. I tried to change, I really did. I dressed the way I did in high school because I wanted to be cool, but people still laughed in my face." A small smile crossed his face. "And then I met Wendy. Oh, she was so beautiful. And she actually like me! I couldn't believe it at first. It seemed too good to be true. Is it any wonder I got jealous? She was the one thing in my life that was actually good. Of course I wanted to protect her!" He slammed his fist against the couch. "But I held on too tight, and I lost her.
And then I met Tambry, and it was good for a while. But I missed Wendy. I missed the way she laughed. I missed the way her hair blew in the wind. I missed the way she'd punch my arm when I was being silly. So I tried to get her back. I blew it again. I lost Tambry, and the few friends she helped me make. I had nothing." His eyes blazed. "And then I was given a chance to change all that! Don't you see, Mabel?" He was pleading. "I'm not a bad person! I never was! I just… it was other people."
"No one else put the knife in your hand," Mabel said. Her voice was ice cold. "You could have said no."
"No, I couldn't have," said Robbie. "You don't understand."
"I understand perfectly," said Mabel. "You really want to help me and Dipper?"
"Of course!" said Robbie.
"Than leave us the fuck alone," said Mabel. Robbie stared at her, his mouth hanging open in shock.
"Mabel…"
"I don't want to see you anymore," said Mabel. "You don't have to quit your job, but don't talk to me when you see me. And Robbie, God help you if you try to hurt me or Dipper again. If you thought what I did to your face was bad, wait till I show you some of the spells in the back of the Three." Robbie slowly got up, and walked towards the door.
"I'm sorry," said Robbie.
"Get out of here," growled Mabel. Robbie walked out of the cabin, the door swinging shut behind him. Mabel walked over to where he had tossed the knife. She picked it up and stared at her reflection. Her anger began to fade, being replaced by sadness and disappointment. She threw the knife as hard as she could, and fell to her knees. The tears came hard and fast. She rolled up in the fetal position, and rocked back and forth.
/
"This is weird," said Thompson. They were about an hour into it. To Wendy's surprise, none of the animatronics had so much as blinked. The still stood motionless on the stage.
"What?" asked Wendy. Her gaze followed Thomas's outstretched finger. There was a small electronic window on the console with the screens. There was a thin green line that stretched a third of the way across it. At the bottom of the line was a number. It read, '72.'
"What do you think that is?" asked Thomas. As Wendy stared at it, a small portion of the line vanished. The number changed to, '71.' Her eyes grew wide.
"I've seen something like this before," she said. She slowly reached into her pocket. Thomas noticed her hands were shaking. She pulled out her phone, and swiped a finger across it. She pressed a few buttons, and showed the screen to Tom. It was her battery life. A thin green line stretched across the screen, and a dial read, '52%.' All the color left Thompson's face.
"Oh no," he whispered. He looked back at the window on the console. It read '70.' Then something caught his eye. It was the screen that showed the stage. He moaned. Wendy followed his eyes, and gasped.
The bunny animatronic was missing.
/
Author's note: Sorry this chapter took so long, blah blah blah, you know how it goes. Next one is gonna be a doozy. Also, I'm totally freaking out about whether or not Gravity Falls is getting a third season. I'll be absolutely heartbroken if it doesn't, especially after that cliffhanger. Anyway, next chapter: Evil animatronics stalk the innocent, Mabel seriously considers leaving Gravity Falls, and the identity of The Master is… strongly hinted at!