In which our heroes manage to get themselves into trouble within the first few hours of their trip.
(Alternatively: "In which Bill saves Dipper's life and Mabel finds a damsel in distress.")
Dipper watched their bags slowly descend from the tower window, Mabel's hair steadily lowering them to the ground below. Bill was already down there to grab them, having reluctantly used the same mode of transportation. Mabel had refused to let him climb back down, wrapping the ends of her hair around his waist with a quick whip and shoving him out of the window.
She released the bags with a flick into Bill's arms before reeling the long brown waves back up. Dipper flipped back to the last page of Journal 2, reading the one line of text that had him puzzled until a few moments ago: "Continued in Journal 3." He'd considered it a gag, knowing that Gideon didn't possess any other books of the sort. Now, not only did he know that there was a predecessor, but he also knew that the journals had tracking properties. The prospect of another one had him excited – perhaps he could convince Bill to help him find it.
He was thrown from his musings by a lash from Mabel's hair, the brunette staring at him expectantly.
"Right, sorry!" he apologized, snapping the book shut and allowing her to harness him up.
The realness of their impending adventure was beginning to sink in as he climbed over the bay window bench and perched himself on the ledge. Mabel sat beside him, locking her fingers with his.
"This is really happening," she stated, a reasonable mix of excitement and anxiety in her words.
"Yeah," Dipper nodded, swallowing the lump in his throat. All of their lives, he'd never realized how high up they'd made their home – or the fact that he may have a slight aversion to heights.
Mabel sensed his hesitation, squeezing his hand reassuringly. "I'll go slowly for you."
Dipper gave her a small grin, tucking the book into one of the large sleeves that Mabel had sewn into his vest. While he trusted his sister with his life, he couldn't shake the fear that gripped him.
Bill seemed to pick up on his uneasiness as well, placing the bags onto the floor. "Don't worry, Pine Tree! I'll catch you!" he called up seriously, illustrating his point by holding his arms out toward him.
Dipper tried to conceal his blush from Mabel, but he still heard her knowing giggle. He couldn't deny that the demon's offer provided him a great deal of relief, though.
He turned to Mabel, giving her a nod. That was all the warning the girl received before her brother pushed himself off of the edge.
There was a second of weightlessness before Mabel caught him. Dipper opened eyes he didn't remember closing, gazing at his surroundings curiously.
Mabel stuck to her word, lowering him slowly. He was surprised at how different his new vantage point made the world around him look. He'd never been able to see the various shades of green in the grass and trees and bushes from the tower window. A creek ran around their tower like one of the moats in Mabel's fairytales. The flowers were all different shapes and styles and colors. He didn't even know that there were flowers around their tower; everything lower than the pine trees was a haze of green or blue. The tower itself was a dull grey, the stone rough and unwelcoming. He could already see Mabel's disappointed pout – Gideon had promised her long ago that their tower was gorgeous and welcoming, coated in a rainbow of colors and built only from the nicest material.
Suddenly, he was falling! The weightless feeling returned, his surroundings blurring in a stream of incomprehensible colors. It was too fast for clear thought, only a few echoing loudly through his terror: This would hurt. The impact of this fall would shatter some bones. This was it. This was the punishment that he deserved for trying to escape. Dipper felt his stomach reach his throat and he shut his eyes, bracing for the presumably rough landing…
That didn't come.
Through the haze of panic that had overtaken him, Dipper felt two strong arms supporting his curled-in body. He latched onto them like a lifeline, afraid that he'd continue to fall if he didn't. He warily opened his eyes, meeting a pair of concerned gold ones.
"Shit, I didn't realize I'd actually have to catch you," the blond half-joked, his grip tightening slightly. The demon's voice wavered as his eyes scanned the figure in his arms for injuries. "Are you okay, kid?"
Dipper nodded slowly, the reality of his fall hitting him like a load of bricks. Mabel must have lost her grip, causing him to plummet however many feet into Bill's thankfully open and waiting arms.
Frantic emotions suddenly flooded his mind, as well as images of his drop from a different viewpoint. He watched himself steadily descend before plunging rapidly to the ground, a huge bulk sinking into his chest. The perspective shifted to meet him, arms raised above it to intercept his body. As he was caught, the weight in his chest lifted but the terror remained.
Dipper recalled scanning over something about empathy links in the latter pages of Journal 2 that described the potential for thoughts, emotions, and images to be shared through it. He realized with a shock that what he'd just witnessed was the incident from Bill's point of view.
He looked up at the blond for confirmation. The half-demon looked just as stunned as he was, and even more fearful of letting go. He must've shared his own experience through their link, because Bill was looking at him as if he was a ghost.
They remained locked in that position, Dipper huddled in Bill's embrace, each holding the other firmly. The brunet was aware of a blush dusting his cheeks at the close proximity, but he couldn't bring himself to let go just yet. Suddenly, laughter broke past the blond's lips, obvious relief intermingled in the merry sound. It was contagious, Dipper easily joining him.
"You almost died!" Bill cackled, setting the boy down carefully. He held him until Dipper was steady on his feet again.
"Yeah, I guess I did!" Dipper snickered, the gravitas of the moment passing with each second.
"Holy shit, Dipper!" a frantic voice screamed down at them. "Dipper are you alive?"
"He's fine, Shooting Star!" Bill shouted back up between giggles. "But what happened?"
Mabel didn't reply, throwing her hair over the ledge and riding down its length a moment later. She landed facing the opposite direction of the pair, leaning over to do something shielded by her hair.
Waddles suddenly broke through the curtain of brown strands, bounding to the creek's banks and diving into the mud gathered there. Mabel turned to face them, throwing her hair over her right shoulder. A contraption that mimicked an open backpack was strapped to the front of her chest, little holes presumably for arms and legs cut into its sides and bottom.
She wasted no more time in throwing herself at her brother, tears pouring onto his shoulder. "I'm so sorry!" she sobbed, clutching at his back desperately. "Waddles rushed at me and knocked me off balance. I lost hold of my hair and – and I – I could feel you fall, Dipper! I felt you drop and I couldn't catch you! I'm so, so sorry! I almost killed you!"
Dipper grabbed his sister's shoulders and peeled her off of him, wiping her stray tears. "Are you kidding? I'm invincible, Mabes! It would've taken way more than that to kill me," he jested, stroking her forearms soothingly.
Bill cleared his throat behind him, reminding him of his role in his survival.
"Yeah, that guy may have had something to do with it, too." Dipper rolled his eyes, nudging his head in the blond's direction.
"If by 'something' you mean 'a dramatic rescue'," the man scoffed lightly.
"Yes, I am forever indebted to you, Cipher."
"Don't say that if you don't mean it, kid. I might just take you up on that offer."
Their antics seemed to calm Mabel, the brunette even giving a light-hearted giggle. She sniffled once, Bill offering his handkerchief for her to dry her tears on. She accepted the token gratefully, dabbing at her eyes before handing it back.
The trio then looked over to the piglet that had nearly ended Dipper's life, (or at least cause him severe injury). Waddles was having the time of his young life, rolling around and squealing joyously.
"I can't believe I'd forgotten about him," Dipper sighed. He supposed tripping Mabel was the piglet's revenge – before recalling that he was referring to a baby pig rolling around in mud and not an evil mastermind.
"Eh, I didn't intend to remind you until we were out here," Mabel admitted sheepishly. "I thought he might jeopardize our planning."
Dipper rolled his eyes, ruffling the top of Mabel's hair playfully. "Please, I would've just left it to you to figure out, which-" he gestured to the makeshift carrier strapped to her chest "-you seem to have covered, anyway."
Mabel nudged his shoulder in retaliation, finger-combing her hair back into place. "Yeah, well I thought it'd be easier and more comfortable for both of us to carry him around like this than on a rope."
"It's a pretty remarkable invention," Bill commented, admiring the brunette's handiwork. "Imagine using it for children."
Mabel beamed at the blond, excitedly agreeing. "That's what I was thinking of, too! Maybe it would give mothers a greater opportunity to work outside of the home!"
"Are you sure it would be safe?" Dipper asked worriedly. He was suddenly very concerned for his future niece or nephew.
"Safer than any child of yours would be," Mabel shot back teasingly, tongue poking through sealed lips.
Dipper held his hands up, knowing when to retreat. "Whatever."
With the conversation dying down, Bill clapped his hands loudly, grabbing a bag from the ground and throwing it over a shoulder. "Well then, how about we get this show on the road? The sooner we get through this, the sooner I get paid!"
The twins fell silent, looking at him with wide eyes. For the first time, Dipper realized where they were standing, on grass and not marble floors. He kicked one of his sandals off, toes sinking into the soft, green earth. His sister took it a step further, flinging her shoes off and racing across the plain. She unceremoniously dropped to the ground, rolling around until she was tangled in her own hair.
"Oh, Dipper, it's even better than I imagined!" she cried, the widest smile Dipper had ever seen plastered to her face.
She somehow managed to free herself, running to join her piglet at the water's edge. She kneeled down, dipping a hand into the cool waters before jumping into the shallow creek.
"You have to feel this water!" she called, wiggling her toes merrily.
Dipper relented, slipping the other sandal off before jogging through the grass to join her. The water only reached their knees, but it was incredibly refreshing to feel it running over their feet. The two had never felt anything of the like, usually relying on magic to stay clean.
Dipper was incredibly tempted to lie in the water and let it flow over him, but he knew that it would be impractical. Besides, there'd probably be opportunities for them to bathe in another river, or maybe even a lake, over the course of their adventure.
Mabel seemed to come to the same conclusion, shooting him a determined look. Scooping Waddles into her arms and giving him a quick dunk to remove the mud, she placed him back in the carrier and climbed out of the creek to find her sandals. Shaking his head at her, Dipper followed to do the same.
Bill was still standing in place, staring at the two in wonder. Dipper could feel his confusion through their link. He silently pleaded for the blond to keep his curiosity contained as he reached for the other bag beside him. As he stood to put it on, his eyes met Bill's, the gold irises demanding an explanation later. Dipper gave a short nod, the promise appeasing the demon for the time being.
"Come on, slowpokes!" Mabel shouted, already standing near the wall of vines that Gideon always left through. Her hands were on her hips, and though he couldn't read her expression at the distance, he could tell she was smirking. "You can kiss later, right now, adventure!"
The pair jolted away from each other, Mabel's laughter echoing mockingly at them. As he trudged toward her and away from his childhood prison, Dipper couldn't help but wish for someone to tease his sister about.
Mabel skipped merrily ahead, ensuring that she was always in front, but remaining close enough to their guide to keep from getting lost. Every corner revealed something new and incredibly breathtaking. She made sure that she catalogued every sight, already planning wardrobe designs and paintings.
She dutifully ignored the small talk behind her, knowing that her brother would want to strangle her for eavesdropping. He would never actually do it, but the burning glare he'd melt her with was a close enough threat.
Still, she couldn't resist popping in every now and then, trying to follow the path of discussion. Apparently, if one of them lagged too far behind, a shock from their link rippled through them both until they found each other again. The conversation continued to touch on the depths of their link from either party's understanding of it, occasional outbursts of embarrassment or rage welling up from them both. Eventually, they came to a mutual understanding, settling into a companionable flow of discussion. Presently, Dipper was eagerly asking Bill about the different types of flora and fauna around them, pointing to different entries in Journal 2 for reference. She could hear the gears whirring in his head and knew that his fingers were itching to sketch and record the answers in his own notebook. Their acquaintance seemed very amused by his inquiries, answering the questions amidst some light teasing.
She almost felt like one of those 'third wheels' she'd read about in her romance novels – the ones who primarily served to set the protagonists up before falling in love with a minor character themselves. The revelation left a lonesome feeling sitting in the pit of her stomach.
'Where is my minor character?' She wondered, glancing down at the piglet strapped to her chest for an answer. Waddles met her gaze, snuffling in response.
"Yeah, I'm sure they're right around the corner," she mumbled wistfully, giving him a small smile.
Suddenly, a shriek tore through the air, freezing the trio in place. Mabel's head whipped in the direction of the outburst, a similarly frantic one rising from the same location a second later.
"Help!"
Mabel's eyes shot to Dipper's, her twin shaking his head at her desperately. She caught Bill's eyes in her peripheral vision, the demon shooting her a similarly disapproving expression.
Another, different shout broke the tension, this one cutting into a pained wail.
Paying no mind to her brother's warnings, Mabel bolted toward it, holding Waddles securely in place. She faintly heard Bill shout profanities after her, but she didn't care to listen, focused on the victims up ahead. She slowed down when the cries became louder, diving into a bush near a clearing.
Peering through the foliage, she spotted a blonde woman dressed in extravagant clothing, the diamond earrings framing her face glinting at Mabel in the dim sunlight. She looked to be fairly young, though the amount of makeup packed onto her face aged her more than anything else. Her hair was mostly straight, save for a few frizzy waves along the edges due to the humidity. Bangs were cropped closely to her dark eyebrows, somewhat slicked down by sweat. A pearl necklace hung around her neck, complementing the seafoam green gown that ran to her toes. A pair of gloves in a similar shade were bunched in one hand, likely discarded due to the heat. The other hand was clutching her right arm, the wince on her face the likely explanation.
"How dare you lay a hand on me!" she chided, nose upturned despite the gravity of the situation that she was in.
Five dead bodies were scattered around her, various wounds littering the men's frames. Their apparent killers were now closing in on the blonde, who now stood silent as the nearest one pointed his blade at her throat. They almost seemed like clones, all relatively the same build and wearing dark, grungy clothes.
"Shut the fuck up, you insufferable brat!" the man growled. "I swear, if you weren't worth so much you'd be lying in the dirt with the rest of your hunting party."
The blonde crossed her arms, spitting in the man's face. "If anyone's insufferable, it's you creeps. I mean, I probably would've killed the guy myself, but why did you murder my guards? And what the hell do I have to do with any of this?"
"Man, not a lot of brains in this one, huh?" one of the other men commented with a chuckle.
The apparent leader scoffed at the joke, digging his blade deep enough to make the woman cry out in pain. A bit of blood beaded at the opening wound.
"St-Stop!" she cried, gasping when the knife pressed further along her porcelain neck.
"I may not be able to kill you, but I can hurt you," the man sneered, gesturing to the blood on her arm that was slowly seeping past her fingers.
Mabel had seen enough. She reached into a small pocket along the side of Waddles's carrier, drawing a knife of her own. It wouldn't be much against a few swords, but she felt better going into battle with a weapon.
"Ready Waddles?" she murmured to the pig, hearing a quiet snort in response.
Securing the bulk of her hair around her waist and tucking it into her belt, Mabel leaped out of the bush. She must have made quite the sight – wrapped in hair with a piglet strapped to her chest and a kitchen knife in her hand. The bandits stood in stunned silence, staring at her with wide eyes.
"Let her go!" Mabel demanded, brandishing her weapon in what she hoped was a threatening manner. "If you release her now, I might just let you leave alive."
'Way to go, Mabel. There's no way they'd believe an empty threat like that,' the young woman chided internally.
The gang gave her indistinguishable expressions before bursting into laughter. The leader released his hold on the knife at the woman's throat, letting it fall to the ground before shoving her beside it. He drew the sword at his side from its sheath, waving it in a display of his control before directing the blade at Mabel.
The brunette gave an audible gulp, taking a small step back as he approached her. "Well, what do we have here? Where's your husband, little lady?"
Mabel's cheeks lit up furiously. She momentarily forgot the grave danger that she'd placed herself in and put her hands on her hips, a sour look crossing her features. "Ex-cuse me?"
The man scoffed, his lackeys joining in. "Look, I'm feeling rather generous today," he quipped, studying the blade of his sword with a bored face, "so why don't you just run on back to your children and forget that you saw us?"
Mabel was certain that her face was red, not from embarrassment, but in complete outrage and disgust. Not thinking, she repositioned her hold on the knife and flung it at the man's head, managing to nick his temple.
She gave a satisfied cheer at the blood running from the head wound, the blonde snickering when she caught sight of it, too. The victory was short-lived, however, when the man turned his gaze on Mabel, eyes flashing dangerously.
"You're gonna regret that, bitch," he growled, wiping the side of his head with his sleeve. A battle cry was all the warning that Mabel received before he charged at her, sword raised to strike.
Mabel shrieked, clutching Waddles and diving out of his path. She narrowly avoided him, but was quickly subdued by another of the bandits, her arms secured in a vice grip behind her back.
She watched with fearful eyes as the man whirled around to face her. Her imaginative mind conjured up smoke pouring out of his ears and nostrils. In spite of the blood still flowing from the gash on his cheek, he had a wicked smirk on his lips, swinging his blade as he approached her. She'd really done it now.
"I'm going to enjoy killing you, worthless wench," he chuckled darkly.
She frantically searched her brain for something, anything! Maybe a spell that Dipper had practiced in front of her two months ago, or one that she'd glanced at on an open page of one of his books, or even the defensive magic that Gideon had taught them so many years ago. She had never paid as much mind to magic as Dipper, being the weaker twin in that department, but something had to have stuck.
"Edalb Part!" she cried frantically as the sword arced down at her, closing her eyes fearfully.
There was a sharp crackle akin to lightning as the blade met an invisible barrier. Astonished gasps rose up from the group, encouraging the brunette to open her eyes. She released one of her own upon finding the blade impaled in the transparent wall, inches from her face.
"Sh-She's one of those magic users!" one of the bandits yelped, the entire circle of men backing away warily. The man gripping her arms released her in a panic, scrambling to join his comrades.
"What are you morons doing?!" their leader bellowed as he struggled to dislodge his weapon. "She's not even armed!"
"Cirtcele Kcohs!" Mabel shouted suddenly, recalling an offensive spell. Sparks flew from her fingertips, frying two men along the outer circle. They immediately dropped, smoking and writhing like fish out of water.
She tried to contain her surprise, choking down the laughter that tried to bubble up. With a newfound air of confidence, Mabel stretched her hands out threateningly. "On the contrary, I'm rather dangerous. Now, I'll give you one more chance: let the woman go."
The leader growled at her in response, backtracking to the nearest gang member and snatching his sword. "I doubt I'll miss the second time."
Without further warning, he rushed at her again, digging his blade into the earth and flinging a cloud of dirt into the air, blinding them both.
Unable to see, Mabel was caught completely off guard. She screamed as the blade managed to catch her left side, a searing pain tearing through her body. She staggered backward before collapsing and curling in on herself, holding her wound gingerly. The combined pain from the cut and the effort of using magic for the first time in forever began to take its toll, draining her.
A triumphant smirk crossed the man's scarred face as he towered over the injured brunette, sword raised for the kill. Mabel opted to look at her damsel in distress instead of the horrid villain. The blonde was staring at her with fearful eyes, hands clenching at her sides anxiously before catching the discarded knife in the grass to her right.
Everything moved in slow motion. She saw the blade begin to fall in her peripheral vision, turning to face her death head-on. Suddenly, a glowing yellow tendril curled around the blade, halting its motion mid-arc. The sword was unceremoniously yanked out of the man's grasp, flying out of view. With the man disarmed, the blonde woman leaped onto his back and stabbed at him with the knife, riding his body until it fell to the ground with a thud.
Sounds of battle waged in the background. In her haze, Mabel heard a familiar voice calling out to her, demanding that she stay awake. Waddles seemed to recognize the voice, too, squealing and squirming to escape the carrier he was trapped in.
The blonde was suddenly back in her field of vision, frantically trying to keep her conscious. The woman patted her cheeks with blood-stained hands and raised her eyelids whenever they drooped. She scooped Waddles out of his confines and set him next to her face, the piglet lapping at her cheek worriedly.
Finally, the background noise died down. The clarity allowed Mabel to recognize Dipper's voice shouting for her to be okay. Not a second later, he was sliding to his knees beside her, dropping the frying pan that he'd no doubt been using to fight and swatting the hands from her injury to examine it.
"You used magic, didn't you?"
"What gave it away – the fatigue or the crispy guys over there?" Mabel weakly joked, nodding toward the men that she'd fried.
Dipper managed a smile, the expression a great comfort. If Dipper was able to smile, she would be fine. She felt his cold hands press to her wound, hissing when he applied too much pressure.
"Shit, sorry!" he quickly apologized, adjusting his hold.
He began reciting the alternative spell that Gideon had taught them when they were young and began to act more recklessly.
"You have another spell for us to learn?" Dipper inquired excitedly, practically bouncing on his heels.
"Yes, my flower," Gideon smiled, ruffling the boy's hair. "It's like that other one that I taught you a while ago, but this one is for if you get hurt." His eyes locked with Mabel's, whom he'd just healed of a sprained wrist. There was no denying that she was the more adventurous of the two, and also more likely to need the spell.
"I'm listening," Mabel giggled, setting the stuffed unicorn that Gideon had brought for her down.
"Okay, let's say Mabel hurt her ankle. Dipper, you would place your hands on her ankle and say the spell. Mabel, if you were healing yourself, you'd have to touch your hair to the spot – that's where most of your power is concentrated. Do you understand?"
The question was directed at both twins, and was answered with a pair of synchronized nods. Gideon beamed at them, continuing the lesson.
"Now, I believe that the best way of teaching is through example. Who would like to try first?"
Both of them raised their hands eagerly, despite knowing that Gideon would pick Mabel like he always did. Even though it was expected, Mabel still caught Dipper's pout.
"Mabel, how about we try together? Face your brother."
Mabel turned to her twin, their guardian scooting closer to join them. He took Dipper's hand in his own, rubbing it soothingly.
"I'm afraid this is going to hurt just a little bit," he warned before a snap was heard. Dipper immediately cried out in pain, tears pooling in his eyes. Gideon disregarded the display, turning back to his other charge with expectant eyes.
Mabel bit her lip, dutifully wrapping her hair around her brother's hand. She tried her best to avoid his eyes, staring at her handiwork and ensuring that she was being gentle. When she finished, she looked to Gideon, who nodded approvingly.
"Great job, sweetheart, now repeat after me…"
"Laeh tahw sah neeb truh,
Egnahc eht 'Setaf ngised.
Evas tahw sah neeb tsol,
Gnirb kcab tahw ecno saw enim," she heard Dipper recite. Relief flooded her side, the effects of the spell overtaking the pain. She could feel the split skin sealing itself and latched onto Dipper's hand.
"Don't overdo it!" she warned, wincing when the movement tugged at the still-healing injury.
Dipper shushed her, stroking her hair comfortingly. "Don't worry about me. You can rest now."
The wave of drowsiness suddenly hit her again, and without the striking pain or threat of death lingering, she quickly found herself swept into it. Her eyelids were too heavy and she could hardly move her limbs. With a final reassuring nod from Dipper, she fell asleep in his arms.
Dipper flexed his right hand, trying to shake the phantom pain off. He hated that it was always triggered by that spell. The trauma of having his guardian break his hand not once, but twice, (he had to practice, too), had haunted him for the last twelve years. It had been the first time that Gideon had deliberately brought harm to him, and unfortunately wasn't the last.
Bill was giving him a strange look. The blond had taught him how to block his idle thoughts from their link during their walk, so he doubted that the other knew the source of his distress. Even so, he seemed to have picked up that there was something wrong.
"Don't give me that look," Dipper snapped, massaging his hand as the final traces of pain faded. "What happened to our deal? You're supposed to protect us both from harm! And from the blood on Mabel's dress, I'd say you just did a shitty job of it!"
Bill's eyes hardened, his lips drawing into a flat line. "Your sister is the one that ran ahead; it's not my fault that we were a bit late! Besides, I caught the blade in time! I still saved her life!"
"We almost lost her!" Dipper shouted, the revelation causing his heart to skip a beat. "I-I almost lost her."
The demon sighed, approaching the distraught teen cautiously. When he was close enough, he placed a hand on Dipper's cheek, turning his head to his sleeping sister. "Look, Pine Tree, she's right here. She's alive, breathing, and the wound is healed. I understand your pain, but what's done is done. All we can do now is move forward."
Dipper didn't want to look at Mabel. He was upset, and he needed an outlet for his rage. He could never take it out on his twin, and Bill was admittedly justified in not being able to predict his sister's tendency for spontaneity. And their deal had released him from any liability in cases like this.
He whirled around to face the blonde woman, who'd been siting silently at Mabel's side since he and Bill had arrived. "What's your excuse, then?"
The woman's eyes shot up to him in astonishment. "What?"
"If you hadn't gotten yourself in this mess, my sister wouldn't be lying unconscious right now! Care to explain yourself?" He knew that his reasoning was completely unreasonable; hell, he was proud of Mabel for leaping into action and saving someone's life. But currently, emotion outweighed rationality.
"You think I asked to have my guards murdered?" she scoffed, hands flying to her hips. Her glare was hard, but there was a thinly veiled sense of weariness behind the frustration bleeding out. "I wouldn't have even been on this stupid hunting date if my parents hadn't set me up with another one of their fucking suitors!"
Dipper hesitated, studying the blonde. He'd read about social classes and standards that were upheld, including the sacred art of courting. He couldn't imagine being trapped in a relationship that Gideon arranged for him, especially if it was only for the sake of notability. And the fact that her apparent suitor and guards had been slain right before her eyes must have been traumatizing… Maybe he should cut the girl some slack-
"Besides, I didn't ask your sister to step in! If anything, she only made things worse! Honestly, is it too much to ask for some decent help?"
-nope, strike that, she was dead to him.
Bill's eyes were wide, and he quickly inserted himself between the two. "That probably wasn't the best thing to say…" he murmured to the blonde.
She shrugged, crossing her arms with a huff. "It's the truth."
"Technically, your calls for help were asking her to save you."
"Doesn't matter," the woman brushed off. "The point is, she didn't have to come help me. They weren't going to kill me. She could've just turned and gone in any other direction."
Dipper rolled his sleeves up, brushing past Bill. He didn't like the idea of hitting a female, but he wasn't prepared to let anyone disrespect Mabel, especially not the bitch she'd just risked her life for.
"Dipper stop!"
His hand froze just before touching the woman's cheek. His chocolate brown hues turned toward his sister, who was staring at him with wide, frightful eyes. She sat up to address him, relief flooding him when she showed no signs of continued pain.
"Bro bro, what are you doing?" she asked softly, eyes darting between his raised hand and the woman that it was about to strike.
Dipper reluctantly lowered his hand to rub the back of his neck. He had no idea how to explain himself in a manner that wouldn't end with Mabel being cross with him in some way. The blonde didn't seem very keen on elaborating, either, turning away from them with a huff. Mabel stood and brushed herself off, pouting at her soiled and tattered clothing, before fixing her brother with an expectant glare.
"It turns out that the woman you just rescued is a total bitch," Bill supplied casually, shrugging when all eyes turned to him with varying degrees of surprise, (and in Dipper's case, amusement).
"She claims to be completely blameless in your injury; that she didn't ask for your help," the demon continued.
Mabel furrowed her brows at the two men. "She's right. I chose to jump in and save her. In fact, I probably made things worse by throwing a knife at their leader, so don't blame her for anything."
Dipper stared at his sister in mild horror. "You did what?"
"Actually, I think she might have saved my life." Mabel waved the question off, turning to address the blonde standing stoically in her own tattered and bloodstained dress. She stuck a hand out, a lopsided grin on her face. "We haven't formally met, yet. I'm Mabel."
The other woman looked from the filthy hand to the dirt streaked face that it belonged to. Using her index finger and thumb, she returned the handshake with mild disgust written on her face. "Pacifica Northwest."
"That's a really pretty name," Mabel continued, beaming as she retracted her hand. "The two jerks over there are my brother, Dipper, and his boyfriend, Bill."
Dipper blanched at the introduction, wide eyes trained on his sister. "Mabel!"
"Aww, you're as red as an apple," Bill teased, poking a flaming cheek with great amusement.
"You're not helping," the teen grumbled, puffing his cheeks out in annoyance.
Pacifica only nodded, attentiveness to the new information questionable at best. "Right, well thanks for 'saving me' or whatever, but I should get going." She turned, whipping her frizzed hair over one shoulder regally.
Mabel frowned. "Do you have any idea where you're going?"
The blonde didn't bother to respond, strutting deeper into the woods without so much as a glance in their direction.
"Good riddance," Dipper muttered, rolling his eyes. He looked up at the sky, blue having faded to orange and pink. A chilly breeze tore a shiver from him, arms wrapping around himself instinctively. "We should probably look for somewhere to set up camp for the night."
"Why not here?" Bill asked seriously, gesturing to the clearing still littered with mutilated bodies.
Dipper couldn't start walking away faster, Bill racing to catch up to him before the recoil from their link could do further damage. Mabel trailed behind them with Waddles on her heel, the pair shooting wistful glances in the direction that Pacifica had gone.
A/N: Oh my God, this is soooooo late! A thousand apologies wouldn't even begin to cover how sorry I am for the delay! I've had this chapter pretty much completed for almost a month, but I just couldn't find the time to finish and post it until now, (4:20 AM, Jesus!); I really hope that the length partially makes up for it! I've used this excuse already, but work is seriously kicking my ass right now, and I'm also in the process of trying to graduate with the rest of my class. If that weren't enough, my family is also gearing up to move, so as of right now I really can't promise that the updating schedule will get any better, (at least for the next two months). It's incredibly frustrating for me as a writer to be away from my work for so long, (this is legitimately the first time in the past three weeks that I've gotten to use my laptop for something not work-related), so you can bet that I'll do everything in my power to continue working on this story! Thank you so much for your patience and support!
(Late) Disclaimer: The dialogue is probably (very) inaccurate to the alleged time period and I'm not apologetic for that. ^_^