Chapter 17

Disclaimer: Alex Hirsch owns Gravity Falls, not me.

Stanley cursed himself for all the times he had told his brother to cease his nagging about them only involving themselves with the supernatural. At first glance, most would assume it would be Stan that got the pair in trouble, but nope, it had always been Stanley, who typically delved himself too deep with what he shouldn't, and having his brother facing the consequences for their actions. In more ways than one, his brother was brighter than he was, knowing full well when to keep his head down or not to poke at what shouldn't be. That was the largest reason he cursed himself at the moment; his brother was becoming reckless, in the desperate need to save him and Stanley couldn't stomp out the guilt it caused. That was part of the reason though. The other reason he cursed himself, was that he had thought himself acute enough to escape them. No, in all hindsight, he should of realized it would be only a matter of time before they became interested in his scent and decided to kill him.

At one point, when he had first arrived in this realm, the very sight of them horrified him to no end, despite the fact they didn't even find him worthy enough give him a second glance. He had hidden in his bedroom's closet for god knew how long, since time didn't appear to exist here, before realizing they seemed to have no interest, otherwise he would be dead quite awhile ago. Stanley made his mistake though, when he thought they would never take interest of him, unless he was directly involving himself. Yes, that was his mistake, for they now constantly circled the reverse Shack, coming closer as he waited for them. And there was his granddaughter, never answering his urgent calls. Or perhaps, some force was preventing them from contact. Either way, the brunet didn't like the direction this was going, or that he was reduced to confiding himself to the attic, fear of them returning full force.

He clung to his father's combat shotgun, from his time in World War I, quaking at the idea of his strong father not being quite enough to protect him against what he feared this time. Stanley was not one to be fearful of much, especially at the age of 30-was he still 30? Was he much older? Does he age mentally?- but here he was, on the verge of tears, wishing his brother would hear him. "D-Damn it, S-Stanford!"

There was a crack as the front door was blown in and Stanley squeezed his eyes shut in anticipation.

~!-?-!~

When Mabel and Dipper went to visit Gideon the following day, they had decided to push the idea of Stanley possibly being eaten alive to their back of their minds, realizing they weren't any closer to rescuing him than before. In the fore-mind, the twins knew Gideon's father had already been in court for three days, and though none of the doctors had said anything to the 10-year-old, he knew that he couldn't stay in the hospital much longer. There were more pressing matters than that present in his mind though. "T-They won't t-tell me about my M-Ma..."

Mabel gulped, feeling somewhat ill as an image of red and a stressed face blew through her mind. That image kept popping up since that night and she felt thankful that she never entered the room where Mrs. Gleeful had been. All she knew, from what Dipper said he heard one night in his mind, was that the hospital announced her comatose and she had been in surgery for an unknown reason. Dipper then muttered about that screams echoed within his head, and Mabel hugged him, telling him about the red covering her face. They both agreed that not telling Gideon would be best for his emotions. "S-She's ok...I just know it."

Gideon looked up at her with large, trusting eyes, and Mabel felt guilty that she had lied to her innocent friend. Mrs. Gleeful wasn't alright and Mabel feared that maybe she never would be. Dipper shifted the conversation though, clearly uncomfortable with the topic. "How long are you going to say in the hospital?"

Gideon may of been young, but not ignorant by any means. He knew that since he was physically uninjured, he would have to leave soon. He shrugged uncomfortably at this notion. Then, he wetted his lips with his tongue, before whispering. "That p-psychologist wants t-to take m-me to another h-hospital f-for people t-that need h-help with...s-stuff in t-their heads..."

Dipper found himself releasing a choked noise that had Mabel giving him an alarmed look. "Dipper?"

Gideon couldn't. He just couldn't. The mental hospital had helped him, but he hadn't enjoyed it, especially when he revealed his darkest secret, and they told him he had imagined it, due to his anxiety. Called it a hallucination due to "the stress on his mind". Dipper had finally agreed, only to appease them, but had felt so distorted about what was real or not. Imagine what they would say about the supernatural events Gideon would eventually tell them. He reached forward in his seat, taking Gideon by surprise, as he snatched one of his hands into his own. "I won't let them."

Mabel bit her lip. "...Dipper, we can't do anything."

Dipper gave her a startled look, surprised since she was usually the positive one. "Wh-"

"We're only 13 and Gideon has had been through something really bad. They're gonna want to help him and...we can't do anything to stop them."

"But, Mabe-"

"I know how to stop them though." Mabel cut him off, appearing somber.

"H-How?" Dipper asked, unsure about her tone of voice. Gideon seemed to be as well, for he tensely squeezed Dipper's hand.

"Gideon makes a deal with Bill."

Gideon jerked his hand from the brunet, as though he had been burned, and nearly fell off the bed as he pushed away. "N-NO!"

Dipper and Mabel immediately jolted up from their seats, one of them grabbing pudgy arm, the other his leg, pulling him back onto it, before he could completely fall off. Gideon buried his face in his hands, and they released his limps, observing as he rolled over onto his side. "P-Please, n-no!"

Dipper whirled his head to his sister, before exclaiming. "Mabel, are you out of your mind?!"

She frantically shook her head. "No! If he asks Bill to make it so they won't take him to that hospital, then he won't have to go at all!"

"Mabel! You can't just-! Augh! Look at him!" Dipper cried, pointing at the trembling form of a sobbing Gideon. "He won't be able to do it! Who knows what Bill will ask in return!"

Mabel's lips trembling, observing him. "But...but...!"

Dipper stonily gazed away from his despaired sister, squeezing his eyes shut. He made up his mind within moments and opened his eyes. "...I'll do it."

His twin appeared surprised. "But, Dipper, you're alread-"

"I know."

"But, y-"

"I know! I'm not letting them make him believe that what can hurt him was part of his imagination! I'm not letting them do what they did to ME!" Dipper finished, panting.

Mabel froze. "...y-you said they helped you?"

Dipper ripped off his hat and grasped at his bangs. "T-They did, b-but...augh...they made me a-also..."

The 13-year-old didn't feel right, nearly distorted as he was nearly a year ago. They fixed him, made him whole and shattered, yet...yet...it was like gluing together a broken teacup, then...the glue that would melt under the constant heat and pressure...and...and simply returning to it's broken state. What occurred next was what had been slowly building up since arriving in Gravity Falls. Dipper hissed out a very non-Dipper word in his frustration. "SHIT!"

Gideon reached his face out of his hands and craned his neck over to view the gasping Dipper, gaping as he pulled his hair hard enough for a few strands to come out. Mabel reached forward and pulled his hands away, in an effort to prevent him from this action. "D-Dipper? A-Are you ok?"

Dipper snarled at her. "Do I look ok?!"

Mabel released her hands in fright and Dipper paled immediately, demeanor returning to normal. "O-Oh my god...I...I...n-need to leave."

Neither of them halted him as he bolted from the room, both feeling quite shaken about his change in behavior.

~!-?-!~

"S-She's going to h-hate me forever and s-she'll never look at me a-again and I won't ever be h-happy again and I'll d-die all alone!" Dipper cried out to himself, completely breaking down as his anxiety consumed him, and sobbed nearly hysterically inside a closet in the Mystery Shack. He wiped his nose, feeling it ooze onto the palm of his hand, yet completely uncaring as of that moment. He grasped at his hair once more and pulled painfully at it. A keening noise was released as he began to rock back and forth. "I-I'm only causing t-trouble to everyone a-around me...I need...I need...to j-just...d-"

"Well, Pine Tree, that's just what you do; cause trouble for everyone around you."

Dipper glanced up, scowled at the glowing triangle, then buried his face into his knees, feeling his anxiety release, though feeling angry now. "L-Leave me alone..."

"You and Shooting Star say the same thing wayyyy too much," Dipper didn't reply, yet Bill seemed unaffected by this. "And you meat sacks seems to assume I'll leave, just because they tell me to."

"P-Please...I k-know I r-ruin everything...just...p-please go a-away!" Dipper sobbed, feeling less angry and more saddened. He couldn't seem to control his emotions and was beginning to become exhausted from how rapidly his mood was altered.

"Poor little sapling...feel all alone, don't you? Well, I remember someone else like you."

Dipper stilled and gazed up, tears rolling down his cheeks. "...W-Who?"

"Me," Dipper scoffed and buried his face back into his knees. "Oh come on, you don't think I wasn't like you once?"

"I'm n-not like y-you."

Bill chuckled. "I know, I know, just messing with you."

"...j-jerk..."

Bill chuckled louder, then calmed after a few moments. "No, no, I was more like that sister of your's."

His forehead was rested upon his knees, mouth gaped open, tongue burning with the beginnings of questions within him, buzzing at the possibility of secrets. As his mouth began to form the sentences though, his jaw snapped shut, realizing the answer would ruin him, burn the trust of sister full out of him. And, with this thought, Dipper realized somewhere along the way, he had began to trust Bill Cipher. He trembled, as he realized it and nearly began to burst out into tears once more. Instead, he looked up, meeting the eye of the dream demon. "I want to make another deal."

He seemed nearly greedy at the prospect of Dipper making another deal and couldn't help the disgust from visibly appearing on his face. Bill wasn't paying attention to that though, nearly consumed with what he spoke. "Oh?"

"Don't let them take Gideon there."

Obviously, the dream demon knew exactly what he spoke of. "And? What do I get?"

"What do you want?"

Bill seemed to genuinely be pondering this, causing Dipper to begin to think this was a mistake. "Hmmm...don't kill yourself."

Dipper shuddered and began to pull at his hair once more, strands falling out. "...I...I can't promise that..."

"Nothing will come of it, no sweet release, Pine Tree."

"How do you know?"

"Because, I've done it," Dipper's chocolate eyes gazed into the single black one, gazing into the truth of statement. "Your inner demons, cause you to become a demon, but only the most twisted will make it to where I am."

"...Why? W-Why don't you want me to k-kill myself?"

"I need to use you."

"Oh...Oh...you don't...you don't care."

"How could I care, Pine Tree? You're simply a human, a human that was born from Jill's mistakes and vengeance, once not necessary, but thrust into the spotlight where I can use you," Dipper trusted him, he had grown to trust the dream demon, and had made a mistake. Bill Cipher didn't care, simply needed him now that there was a threat to himself. Despite that though...despite that...Dipper knew he had a purpose now. With that positive thought in mind, his hand reached upwards, head lowering back down to his knee, grasping for the hand of the triangle. There was a burning sensation as a flamed hand clenched onto his and an echoed chuckle. "Knew you would come around to your senses, Pine Tree."

Though he had purpose, he sunk deeper, into the darkness.

~!-?-!~

Stan muttered under his breath at the findings of the day, discovering them to lower than ever before. He banged his fist onto the desk, causing a coffee cup full of chewed up pens to fall over, spilling it's contents onto the floor. On top of everything else happening lately, he had also been finding it difficult to earn enough money for three people and for his employees. If he didn't earn more on a daily business, he would have to shut down the Mystery Shack and send his grand-niece and grand-nephew back to California. Speaking of them, he hadn't thought up a escape from their contracts yet. "Damn kids getting involved with fucking demons..."

It was at that moment that Soos entered and he composed himself immediately, not wanting to scare the man with his frustration. "Soos? I thought you and Corduroy left already?"

"Uh, Wendy already left, I just need to talk to you, Mr. Pines." Soos commented, appearing unusually serious.

Stan raised an eyebrow, hoping this wouldn't be about his pay. "About?"

"Having some time off."

"Time off? What do you need to do that for?" Stan asked, surprised, considering Soos had never asked for time off before.

Soos removed his hat and bit his lip, appearing uncertain. Stan felt as though he would regret this, but he told him to sit in the seat in front of the desk. He complied and stared at his lap. The elder man was about to kick him out, finding this whole thing to be too awkward, but Soos spoke before he could do anything. "My mami...she's in the hospital...I... I need some time off, Mr. Pines..."

Stan frowned and leaned forward. "Hold on, your mom is in the hospital?"

Soos nodded once and the elder man gulped. The only time he had heard anything about Soos's mother was a bit after he started working here and Stan had asked why he lived with his grandmother, instead of his folks. He was then told about how his father traveled the U.S. for his job, though not much else. He didn't say anything about his mother though and when Stan questioned about her, Soos's reply had made him wonder about his upbringing up until the point where he moved in with his grandmother at the age of seven. "Mami gets money from guys when she helps them."

Stan has had multiple conclusions as to what that could mean, most were illegal, and he had decided in the end that he would rather never find out. Until now. "Okkkk, why is she in the hospital?"

Soos's hands were squeezed into fists and he seemed to grimace before replying. "Cancer."

Stan pulled his glasses off and rubbed his eyes. "Shit...uh...I'm, uh...sorry to hear that..."

Soos shrugged in reply, before shocking Stan with his answer. "Abuelita calls it karma."

The elder man froze, put his glasses back on, and eyed him. "And...do you think it is?"

"I guess when you help people do bad things, then bad things happen to you." He mumbled, slouching in the chair.

"Look, Soos, I don't wanna pry or anything, but do you mind telling me what she's done to warrant...your feelings to her?"

Soos seemed to become shifty eyed, as though he suspected someone was watching. "I-I can't."

"And why not?"

"I'm, uh, not allowed to, Mr. Pines."

Stan was becoming suspicious. "Soos, why you so secretive about her?"

"Because...of P-Papa."

"What?"

"Mr. Pines...I'm not supposed to...I... P-Papa left my M-Mami, b-because she wouldn't...was o-obsessed with something she wasn't supposed to be."

"What was she 'obsessed' wi-?"

"Mr. Pines, please, I can't tell you anything else."

Stan observed the nervous young adult and finally sighed. "Alright, how many days?"

"Five."

"Four."

"Ok."

"Now, get outta my office; I have work to do."

Chapter 17 End

This will possibly be the most I'll delve into Soos for this story, since this isn't about him. You'll soon get a few more peeks at the others on the wheel, but they're going to get the same amount attention as Soos will. This is the story about the Pines and Gideon, so the attention will mainly be focused on them. Next chapter will feature insight on Wendy, so be prepared for that. Reviews, favorites, and follows are appreciated as always!