Thanks to everyone who reviewed the last chapter. Some of you noticed that Willow wasn't creepy. I did not forget to add her creepiness; it was intentional and will be explained this chapter. Now, onto the shout outs.
Gamelover41592- Thanks for the review and all your complements.
Saul'keth- Willow's lack of creepiness will be explained this chapter, and I'm glad you liked her being the one to get revenge. You're right about the new Zodiac, and the gray thing is… What do you think it's supposed to be? And thank you for the advice about fitting Willex into the chapter. I was able to figure it out, but it is really confusing, even for me. And I read your Stronger Than You story; BEST BILL RETURNS STORY EVER!
yutchmathes- Thanks for the review and complements. I hope you enjoy this chapter.
Disclaimer: I only own Alex, Willow and her creepy comments. Gravity Falls belongs to Alex Hirsch.
Mabel's POV (June 26th (10:00 AM)
"There she is Mabel," Grunkle Stan said, showing me around. He had rented out a fair and was getting it set up in the field by the Shack. There wasn't anything special about it- Ferris wheel, food stands, game booths; standard fair stuff- but according to him, Gravity Falls hadn't had a fair come to town in at least ten years, so it was supposed to be a big thing. "The cheapest fair money can rent. I spared every expense," he continued. Suddenly, there was the sound of breaking metal.
"AAAAAAHHHHHH!" Dipper screamed. I looked up and saw a tram car coming down towards us. Grunkle Stan and I backed up and the car landed a few feet in front of us, Dipper frozen in shock. "I think the sky tram is broken. Also, most of my bones," he whispered, still not moving.
"Grunkle Stan!" Willow yelled, coming up to us. "Booths are all set up, but the safety inspector already came by. I saw at least 10 negative certificates."
"Kids, this ain't my first rodeo," Grunkle Stan said, pulling some papers out of his jacket. He split them up between the three of us. "I printed up a bunch of fake safety inspection certificates. Go slap one on anything that looks like a lawsuit."
"Grunkle Stan, is that legal?" I asked.
"When there's no cops around, anything's legal!" He said, smiling. Then he turned to Soos, who was setting up the dunk tank. "Soos, how's that dunk tank coming?"
"Almost ready Mr. Pines," Soos said, turning off the blowtorch he was using. Since Grunkle Stan was going to be the one people were trying to dunk, he had wanted it to be impossible to win. He started pushing the target and it didn't move more than an inch.
"Ha, you've got it rigged from here to Timbuktu! There's nothing on Earth that could knock me down!"
"Except for, like, a futuristic laser arm cannon," Soos said, putting the blowtorch away.
"Yeah, sure. You haven't seen my red screwdriver, have ya? Damn thing went missing," Grunkle Stan said, looking through a toolbox.
"Maybe some supernatural creature or paranormal thing-um took it," Soos offered.
"Oi! You've been spending too much time with those kids."
"HEY!" The three of us said. Grunkle Stan just kept looking for his screwdriver, the three of us hanging up the flyers, thinking Soos was just being crazy.
Dipper's POV (12:00 Noon)
"It's 12 o'clock! The dunk tank is now open!" Stan said through a megaphone. Wendy and I were getting pretzels shaped like question marks.
"How do they get them into this shape? It's unnatural," I said, holding up my pretzel.
"But Dipper, they're so… delicious?" Wendy offered, both of us laughing. Then a drop of mustard fell off her pretzel and landed on her sleeve. "Boo! I'll be right back," she said, walking away.
"I'll be right here!" I called after her, then I whispered to myself "I love you!"
"Look at you two! Getting all romantic at the fair!" Mabel said, walking up to us, two cotton candies in her hand, Willow following with one of her own.
"It's no big deal," I said, trying to play it cool.
"Yeah it is!" Willow said, looking at me like I was stupid.
"Okay, you're right, it is! I just dove in! I said, 'Hey! You wanna hang out at the fair?' And you know what she said?" I asked, but continued before they could answer. "'Yeah I guess so!' It totally worked! All your guys' advice about just going for it is finally paying off!"
"When are you going to learn Dipper? I'm always right about everything!" Mabel said, eating some cotton candy.
"What about the time you… Do you guys smell a gallon of body spray?" Willow asked, a disgusted look on her face. Now that she said it, I definitely smelled something weird. I turned around and saw Robbie walking up to us, the smell getting stronger.
"Hey, any of you dorks seen Wendy around?" he asked, taking some of Mabel's cotton candy. "I got some new super tight jeans. Thought she might want to check 'em out," he continued.
"You know; I think I saw her in the Bottomless Pit. You should really go jump in there," I said, pointing in the direction of the pit.
"Maybe I will, smart guy," Robbie said, bumping me as he walked away.
"He is such a jerk," Mabel said, glaring in the direction he went.
"I'm just glad he stopped flirting with me," Willow added.
"So am I, but now he's all in on Wendy. Even though he's a jerk, he's a jerk with super tight pants and a guitar. I have to keep him away from Wendy at all costs," I said.
"I'll be right there with you brother. Whatever happens, I'll be right here supporting you every step of the- OH MY GOSH A PIG!" Mabel yelled, dropping the cotton candy and running in the direction of the pig pen.
"Okay, she's doing that. Do you want back up or not?" Willow asked, picking up the cotton candy.
"I'm good. Go have fun," I said, us walking away from each other.
Mabel's POV (12:05 PM)
"OH MY GOSH A PIG!" I yelled, dropping my cotton candy and running towards the pig pen.
"If'n you can guess the critter's weight; you can take the critter home!" The farmer said as I ran up. I started examining the pigs. All four of them were adorable, but there was one that was practically talking to me, seeming as if we were meant for each other. That pig oinked twice.
"He said Mabel! Either that or doorbell. Did you say Mabel or doorbell?" I asked him. He oinked twice again, and I knew it was perfect.
"Oh look, Mabel found her real sibling," Someone said from behind me. I turned around and saw Pacifica and her friends laughing at me.
"Sir, I must have that pig!" I said to the farmer. He picked up the pig and cleaned it off.
"Ah, of course, old 15-poundy! So how much you guessin' he weighs?" He asked me. I looked at him, pretending he didn't just give me the answer.
"Umm, 15 pounds?" I said slowly. He glared at me.
"Are you some kind of witch?" He asked. I shook my head and he gave me the pig, the crowd clapping for me. "And you'll be needin' these," He said, giving me a fork and knife. I glared at him. "Nope? Suit yourself."
I hugged my pig, who I decided to name Waddles, then whispered "Everything is different now."
Willow's POV (12:05 PM)
"I'm good. Go have fun," Dipper said, us walking away from each other. I went over to the archery area. Apparently, archery is a big thing in this town (not complaining) so Stan had set up a target in the woods. 30 feet away, each person got three shots using the crossbow, and the closer you were to getting a bullseye, the better your prize. When I got there, there was a pretty good turn out, but most of them were little kids who were terrible shots. The best was probably all three bolts in ring 8.
"Who's next?" the booth manager said. I went up to him and handed him my ticket, then got the first bolt loaded. I grabbed my necklace (the silver oak leaf Stan had given me) kissed it (for good luck) and took my first shot. Bullseye, slightly above dead center. Second shot, dead center. Third shot, right between the two. They were so close that a thumb could have covered all of them at once.
"Hey Bullseye," Someone said from behind me.
"Thanks," I said, giving my prize (a two-foot-tall stuffed horse) to a little girl in a wheel chair.
"That wasn't a complement," the person said. I rolled my eyes and turned around.
"Alex, you have got to stop showing up without telling me," I said, going over to him, kissing each other.
"That was sweet, what you did," He said, pointing to the little girl and her parents.
"She might not know what it is, but I don't need it."
"Cool."
"When did you get here?"
"Ten or fifteen minutes ago. Told you I would stop by on the way back to Piedmont."
"I know, but it's only been two days. I would have thought you would be gone longer."
"So did I," he whispered, a familiar look on his face.
"Wait, what do you mean?" I asked him, leading him towards the main part of the fair. He stopped and pulled me into the woods, away from eyesight.
"WillowIamsosorryWethoughtwehadafewweeksbuteverythingisdifferentnowIdon'tknowhowithappensbutitdidandwecan't…"
"Whoa Alex, slow down and breathe. Now, as much as I wish I could, I can't read minds and I can't understand you when you talk that fast. So I need you to calmly, slowly explain what's going on."
"Okay, yeah, sorry. I don't know what exactly happened, but something changed and we have to be in Seattle in two weeks instead of six. All of our other plans are down the drain too. Fourth of July here, Piedmont for Labor day, it's all gone. I'm so sorry Will."
"I… it's okay," I said, not really meaning, but what else could you say? It's not like what I wanted could change anything.
"You're lying."
"Of course I am! I mean, two days ago I was okay because I knew I would see you again. Of course it affected me, but there was always hope! Now, I don't know when we will see each other, but it's not like either of us wanted it to happen or we can do anything about it! I just-"
"Will, calm down!"
"NO! Don't tell me to calm down Alexander! I can't…" I trailed off when I noticed the look on his face. The last time I called him Alexander was when we broke up because he was worried about our future, and even then I never yelled at him like this. I totally forgot he had never seen my grieving process before. "Oh my God, Alex, I am so sorry. I wasn't yelling at you. I was… that was just part of my grieving process. I'm not creepy for a bit, then the smallest things make me yell like crazy. But I'm not mad at you. I just miss you already." I said, sitting on a log that was on the ground, my head in my hands. Alex sat down next to me and out his arm on my shoulder.
"I miss you to, and I don't want to move, but like you said, it's not like we can do anything. The good news is we're staying here for a few hours. The old bridge that's being replaced about an hour down the road broke and my parents would rather hang out here than sit in a backup until they get a ferry set up."
"Really?" I asked, sitting up. He nodded and we stood up. "Okay, good. In that case, let's get out of here." The two of us walked out of the woods, arms around each other, me waiting for the last part of my grieving process: the crash.
Dipper's POV (12:05 PM)
Willow and I walked away from each other, me catching up with Wendy. "Whoa, check it out!" Wendy said, pointing at a stuffed animal on top of the ball toss booth. "I don't know if it's a duck or a panda, but I want one!"
"Stan taught me the secret to these games," I said, us walking up to the booth. "You aim for the carnie's head and take the prize when he's unconscious." Wendy laughed and I handed the carnie my ticket. "One ball please."
"You only get one shot," he said, handing me the ball. I looked at Wendy, who gave me a thumbs up.
"And-a-one and a-two and a -three!" I said, throwing the ball. It missed, but that wasn't the problem. The problem was it bounced back at us and hit Wendy in the eye.
"MY EYE!" she yelled, throwing her hands to her face.
"Oh my gosh, oh my gosh! Wendy, I'm so sorry! Are you okay?" I asked, giving the carnie the ball back.
"I think so. Does it look swollen?" She asked, taking her hands down. Shit, her eye was already black.
"Everything's gonna be fine! Don't worry! I'll-I'll go get some ice!" I said, running onto the Shack porch. I opened the ice box and grabbed the whole bag, then closed it and ran back through the crowd. As soon as Wendy came into view, I ran into someone, both of us falling, ice going everywhere. "Watch where you're going man!" I said, scooping the ice back into the bag. He grabbed a tape measure and ran off. I got all the ice in the bag and stood up, then stopped.
"Just ease your eyeball into that snow cone," Robbie said, holding a snow cone up to Wendy's eye.
"Thanks Robbie. That's really sweet. The gesture, and the flavored syrup," Wendy said, smiling. Robbie had to be arrogant about it.
"Yeah, I was just here at the right place at the right time. Y'know, I've been meaning to ask you…" No, oh no, please no I thought. "We've been spending a lot of time together and I was wondering if, maybe, you want to go out with me?"
Wendy, please say no! I pleaded silently. She thought about it for a second, then answered. "Yeah, I guess so."
"Sweet!" I heard a pop from behind me, and felt all the ice fall out of the bag, but didn't move.
"Look Dipper! I won my pet pig!" Mabel said from behind me. I still didn't move. "His name is Waddles. I call him that because he waddles! Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaa-dddddllllleeeeeessssssss!"
"Everything is different now," I whispered, still staring at Wendy and Robbie.
"What are you looking at?" Willow said, Alex beside her. I pointed and Robbie and Wendy, who were getting on the tunnel of love ride. "Oh…"
GFF (5:50 PM)
"Uh, are you gonna move?" Someone asked me. It was starting to get dark, but I had been moping all day. Right now, I was lying on the ski-ball lane.
"Uhhhhhhh…" I said, not moving. The guy walked away disappointed. Out of my peripherals I saw Mabel hold up Waddles.
"Paging Dr. Waddles, we got a boy here with a broken heart. Really, nothing. Come on, these are the jokes," She said, putting Waddles in her lap.
"Mabel, do you ever wish you could go back and undo just one mistake?" I asked. Mabel had been with me most of the time, Willow and Alex hanging out together. They had wanted to stay, but I told them to go have fun.
"Nope! I do everything right the first time!" She said, messing with Waddles.
"You okay Brainiac?" Alex said, he and Willow walking up to me. I started talking to myself instead of to them.
"I mean, Wendy only went out with Robbie because he was there with the ice, and she only needed ice because of the baseball, and I would have had the ice if it wasn't for… THAT GUY!" I sat up and saw the guy I bumped into working on something. "HEY TOOLBELT! You ruined my life!" I yelled, the four of us walking up to him.
"Huh?" He said, turning around. That only made me angrier.
"Don't huh me! I've seen you before! What's your deal? Are you following us around?"
"And why are you bald? What's that about?" Mabel added. He started messing with his watch, muttering to himself.
"My position has been compromised! Assuming stealth mode!" The gray suit he was wearing started changing designs, like an amped up chameleon. The guy grabbed a screwdriver from his tool belt and started messing with his watch, changing his suit back to gray.
"Did that just happen?" Alex asked, a confused look on his face. We had gotten used to the towns weirdness, but this was the first time Alex experienced it first-hand.
"That's amazing! Are you from the future?" Mabel asked. The guy started freaking out.
"NO! Who told you that? MEMORY WIPE!" he said, throwing a wipe onto Mabel's face.
"Uh, dude, that's a baby wipe," Willow said, looking at it. The guy sat down, resigned.
"All right, you've cornered me. I'm a time traveler." He said. Then it hit me.
"So, if you're from the future, do you have a time machine or something?" I asked, my hopes going up.
"That's… kinda how it works," he said, nodding. I looked above him and saw Robbie and Wendy riding the Ferris wheel together.
"Can I borrow it?" I asked. If he was nervous before, he was freaking out big time now.
"NO! Definitely not! Not gonna happen!" He said, grabbing something from his tool belt.
"Come on, can I use your time machine just once?"
"Out of the question! You know, this is sensitive, extremely complicated time equipment," He said, showing me the tape measure he picked up when we bumped into each other.
"Dude, that's a tape measure," Willow said, on the same page as me.
"Okay, I am like, so lost right now. Is any of this making sense to any of you?" Alex asked, a lot more confused than us.
"I think he's just crazy," Mabel whispered. The guy heard us anyway.
"You guys don't believe me?" He asked, pulling the tape measure and disappearing.
"Did he just…?" Alex asked, staring at the spot where the guy had been. Two second after the guy left, he came back, now dressed in really old, renaissance style clothes.
"Guess where I was?" He asked smugly. "15 years ago, there was a costume shop right here! One second," He said, disappearing and reappearing a second later, his normal clothes on fire. "Aw, heck! Pat! Pat down!"
"So, who are you again?" Mabel asked him. He pulled out his ID card and held it up to us.
"Blendin Blandin, Time Anomaly Removal Crew year twenty snyenety-twelve. My mission is to stop a series of time anomalies that are supposed to happen at this very location. But-but I don't see any anomalies! I don't know if it's some kind of paradox, or if I'm just really tired…" He trailed off and sat down. I got an idea.
"You know, you sound like you could use a break," I said. Willow realized where I was going and backed me up.
"Definitely, definitely. Might we recommend one of the various attractions at the Mystery Fair?" He thought about it for a few minutes, then stood up.
"You know what, I'm worth it! But I'm watching you kids!" he said, walking over to the barrel ride, which Soos was running. We couldn't hear everything, but Blendin had to take his belt off for the ride. As soon as he was on the ride, I went over and took the time machine off the barrel, then ran into the Shack, the others following me. As soon as we got in, Alex started asking questions.
"Okay, what the heck is going on? I get you guys don't know much about the whole time travel thing, but your acting like this kind of thing happens every day," he said, the five of us (counting Waddles) walking into the living room.
"That's because it does," Willow said, sitting on the table. "Dipper, it cool if I show him the journal after we go back?"
"Go ahead. I'm just glad we got this," I said, putting the time machine on the table.
"Let's go get two dodos and force them to make out!" Mabel said excitedly.
"NO! We gotta be smart about this. All of that paradox talk kinda freaked me out. All we're gonna do is go back long enough for me to fix my one mistake. If I don't miss that baseball throw, I won't hit Wendy in the eye, and Robbie won't comfort her, and they won't start going out."
"I'm coming too. I wanna relive the greatest moment in my life: winning Waddles!" Mabel said, kissing his face.
"We're coming. We hung out, but I was worried about you, so it wasn't that fun," Willow said, taking Alex's hand.
"Still lost, but sure," Alex said, kissing Willow. I grabbed the time machine and pulled the tape out to six hours, making sure Alex would still be here when we went back.
"See you later," I said, getting ready to push the button.
"See you earlier!" Mabel said, putting Waddles on the floor.
"Really?" Willow asked. The three of them put their hands on my shoulders and I hit the button, the four of us going back in time.
Willow's POV (12:00)
It only felt like a few seconds, but I knew it was a lot longer than that. It felt like we were being sucked into a vacuum. When the feeling stopped, I opened my eyes. We were all in the same position, but Dipper's hat was on fire. "Ah!" Dipper said, patting out the fire. The four of us smiled at each other and went out onto the porch.
"It's 12 o'clock! The dunk tank is now open!" Stan said again. Dipper and Mabel ran to the main part of the fair, Alex and I walking upstairs.
"Okay, what the hell is going on right now? What did you mean when you said this kind of thing happens every day? And what's this about a journal?" Alex asked, following me into the attic.
"Right now, we're back in time," I replied, taking the journal out from under Dipper's bed. "This is the journal we were talking about. It's awesome." I gave him the journal and we sat down, me watching his face as he looked through it.
"Okay, this is really cool. Where did you find this?"
"In the woods. I can show you later."
"Awesome. But what do you mean about this stuff happening every day?"
"This is the simplest way to explain it. We got here the 12th. Found the journal on the 15th. That same day, Mabel got a zombie gnome boyfriend. The 16th, we went fishing and hunted the Gobblewonker."
"Gobble-what now?"
"Gravity Falls Loch Ness Monster. Anyway, 17-19, evil wax figures. 20th and 21st, creepy child psychic. 22nd, haunted convenience store. 23rd, Dipper met some Minotaur creatures. 24th, you were here, but Dipper made a bunch of clones with a magic copier. Yesterday, we met the eighth-and-a-half president of the US. Today, time travel. So that's basically been my life for the past two weeks."
"Now I know what you meant by supernatural central. I can't believe this stuff is real. It sounds like the kind of creepiness you would make up."
"I know, but it's all real. I thought this summer was going to be really boring but it's actually perfect for me. Let's get out of here. I want to win the horse for the girl, then I can show you where we found the journal."
"Awesome. Let's go. I can't believe you guys deal with this stuff every day."
"Me neither, but it's fun, especially when you're here." The two of us went outside and started going towards the archery area, me still waiting for the crash to hit.
Dipper's POV (12:05)
"Hey Wendy!" I said, catching up to her. Mabel had run off to win Waddles, and Willow was showing Alex the journal.
"There you are! What happened to your hat?" Uh-oh, I forgot about the fire.
"Um, nothing. Hey look! What's that?" I said, pointing to the panda-duck on top of the booth.
"Whoa, check it out! I don't know if it's a duck or a panda, but I want one!" She said, us walking up to the booth.
"One ball please," I said, giving the carnie my ticket, which had gotten back in my pocket.
"You only get one chance," he said, giving me the ball.
"That's what you think," I whispered. "Okay Dipper, second chance, don't mess this up again." I threw the ball again, and it only went slightly better. I knocked all the cans down, but the ball hit something behind the stand and hit Wendy in the eye, AGAIN! "What?!" I whispered, Wendy covering her eye again.
"Does it look swollen?" She asked, taking her hands down. I turned around and looked at my hands.
"That's so weird…" I whispered.
"Oh hey Robbie," Wendy said from behind me. I turned around and, sure enough, Robbie was there again, snow cone with him.
"So anyway, we've been hanging out a lot, and I've been wondering if, maybe, you would want to go out with me?" He asked. Wendy thought about it for a second, then agreed, AGAIN, the two of them going into the tunnel of love ride.
"Damn it!" I whisper-shouted, walking around the fair. After a few minutes, I saw Mabel feeding Waddles a caramel apple.
"Hey Dip. How'd it go?" She asked me. I started pacing.
"The exact same thing happened twice; it was spooky," I said, trying to figure it out.
"Maybe it's a time curse! Waddles, can you say time curse?" Mabel asked Waddles. He oinked twice and Mabel picked him up, squeezing his face. "Your face is so fat!"
"Is it possible the forces of time naturally conspire to undo any new outcomes? NO, I just have to keep trying. Where are Willow and Alex?"
"Pretty sure they went to the archery booth," Mabel said, standing up. We went to the archery area, but they weren't there. "Where'd they go?" Mabel asked. I started thinking about what they would be doing.
"If she showed him the journal, then they are probably… follow me," I said, leading Mabel into the woods. Sure enough, Willow was showing Alex where we had found the journal.
"…and the ground opened up, like this," Willow said, the tree door open. She flipped a switch and the hole in the ground opened up. "And the journal was in there."
"HALLO!" Mabel yelled, making them both jump. "And I did that, and you reacted exactly the same way."
"Don't do that!" Willow yelled at her, then turned to me. "Did it work?"
"No, but we're going back and I'm trying again. Third time's the charm!" I said, pulling the tape out again. Willow made the compartment close, then closed the tree door and came over to me. The three of them put their hands on my shoulders again, and I sent us back in time.
GFF (11:55)
Come on! How hard can this be?! I swear, I tried everything! Throwing lefty, standing on the other side of Wendy, but nothing worked! The worse was when the ball broke open a bag of them right above Wendy and all of them fell right on her head. I had probably used that thing five or six times, none of them working out for me. Willow and Alex were off winning the horse, which was perfect for me. Mabel was knitting a sweater of Waddles and I was writing, what I hoped was the solution to my problem on the side of a popcorn machine. "… if I adjust the ball for wind speed… factor in cotton candy…"
"Face it Dipper. You're obviously fated to have a bad day at the fair, just like I'm fated to be with Waddles!" Mabel said, holding up her sweater. I drew an equal sing and stood back.
"It's like there's one variable missing…"
"What's a variable?" Mabel asked, her head popping up next to the equal sign. That made everything click into place,
"THAT'S IT! I figured out a way to win the toss, not hit Wendy, and stop her and Robbie from going out!"
"Great! I'm gonna go win Waddles again," Mabel said, starting to walk away. I grabbed her shoulder and pulled her back.
"You can't leave; I need you for my plan!"
"But what about Waddles?"
"It'll just take a few minutes, let's go!" I said, pulling her in the direction of the Shack, hoping everything would work out like I hoped.
GFF (12:05)
Wendy and I were standing by the game, the baseball in my hand. I was looking at the wind speeds and everything, making sure it would-
"Are you gonna go man?" Wendy asked me. I nodded and pulled my arm back, looking at the top of the tent.
"And a-one and a-two and a-uh!" I said, throwing the ball straight into the air.
"Dude, you missed!" Wendy said, watching the ball.
"Did I?" I asked smugly, both of us looking at it. The ball rolled down the side of the tent then flew into the air, heading towards the Shack. We lost sight of it, but then it came back, heading towards the target on the dunk tank. Of course, it didn't do anything. It bounced back, knocked the pizza out of some guy's hand, hit the ice off Robbie's snow cone, and started coming right at us. Wendy and I ducked out of the way and the ball knocked down all the cans, then flew up and out of the tent. Just like I planned I thought excitedly.
"Your stuffed creature of indeterminate species miss," The carnie said, giving Wendy the prize.
"Awesome!" She said, hugging it. Man, she is cute when she's excited. I took my hat off and the ball dropped into it. That part wasn't planned, but it happened, which I was happy for.
"There you are Wendy!" Robbie said from behind us, holding his now empty cone in his hand. "So I was wondering if I… or you a-"
"Look what Dipper got for me!" Wendy interrupted him, holding out the Panda-Duck.
"Whatever. Can't even tell what species it is. Stupid," Robbie said, pulling his hood over his face and walking away from us.
"What's his deal? Looks like I came to the fair with the right guy," Wendy said, both of us walking towards the Tunnel of Love ride. I turned around and saw Mabel walking up to me. I gave her a thumbs up and she smiled back at me.
"Any time broseph," She said, me turning back around. Wendy and I got on the ride and had gone around three times when Wendy noticed the funnel cake sign.
"Funnel cake! Let's go get some Dipper!" She yelled, running off the ride. I was about to follow her when someone started screaming from behind me. I turned around and saw Mabel running up to me, Willow and Alex behind her.
"What's-" I started, but Mabel screamed again and cut me off. "Mabel what's-" She cut me off again. I looked at Willow and Alex, both shaking their heads. "I'll just wait until you're done."
"I'm done," she said, not screaming anymore.
"Okay, what is wrong?"
"We messed up the timeline! Pacifica saw the flyer and won Waddles before I did! She TOOK Waddles Dipper!" Mabel yelled at me, hysterical.
"I'm sorry Mabel."
"It's okay. We just need to go back and do things differently," She said, taking the time machine from me. I grabbed it back from her.
"Mabel, wait. I did the math. In any other timeline, Wendy ends up going out with Robbie. I can't mess this day up again!"
"Fine, then go back and have Willow or Alex help you!"
"No! Then neither will work!"
"Not even if Mabel helps you and one of us win Waddles?" Willow asked.
"Not even then. If we go, nothing will work out right!"
"But if we don't go I'll lose Waddles forever!" Mabel reached over and tried to take the time machine from me. I pulled back and we started wrestling for the machine, Willow and Alex trying to pull us apart. The four of us fell in a pile and the end of the tape got stuck on a car, pulling it out a long way. Willow reached over and got it unhooked, but accidentally hit the reverse button, sending the four of us back in time.
The now familiar vacuum feeling returned, but this time it lasted longer. When it ended, the four of us fell onto a dirt path. We stood up and dusted off, then looked around. It looked like the outskirts of town, but I knew it wasn't. "When are we?"
"The real question is: when are we?" Mabel asked, then realized I had already said that. "Wait, did you… yeah, alright."
"Do you guys hear that?" Alex asked, looking down the path. It sounded like a loud boom of thunder, but there wasn't a cloud in the sky. Suddenly, the ground started shaking like during an earthquake. Willow ran up the hill, then cursed and ran back towards us.
"STAMPEDE! Run for it!" She yelled, running down the path. Mabel grabbed the time machine and took off, Alex and I following them. I looked back and saw a herd of Buffalo running after us, then turned back around and ran even faster. We started running up a hill, then the ground disappeared from under us. We grabbed onto each other and fell through a tarp, landing on bags of flour, scared but alive.
"Forge ahead mighty oxen, for a new life awaits us on this Oregon Trail," someone said, a bullwhip cracking. We stood up and dusted off, realizing we were in and old covered wagon. Well, most of us did.
"Where are we? The 70s?" Mabel asked, looking around. Willow smacked the back of her head.
"We got sent back 150 years' genius. It's pioneer times!"
"By Trembley!" The wagon driver said, facing us. "Fertilia, it seems you've given birth to four more children."
"It appears I have," a woman in the back of the wagon said, a bunch of children around her. "More little hands to render the tallow."
"Tallow? What?" Mabel asked. A boy about our age pointed at Mabel's mouth.
"Her mouth is filled with silver mother!"
"These are called braces," Mabel said, smiling for him.
"Mabel, we can't start messing with the past!" I told her, trying to grab the time machine. She pulled it away from me and took out a calculator.
"This coming from the guy who messed with the past all day and cost me my pig? I'll mess with whatever I want!" She said, handing the calculator to the boy. "Check it out! A magic button machine! Shoes that blink!" She stomped on the floor and made her shoes light up, then ran over to the mother. I took the calculator from the boy, then took the time machine from Mabel.
"I'm gonna set the timeline right!" I said, pulling out the tape. Willow and Alex grabbed my shoulder as Mabel tried to take the machine back from me. I hit the button and we ended up in front of a dinosaur.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" We screamed, grabbing each other. I pulled out the tape and hit the button, not knowing where it was set, but nothing could be worse than here. We landed in the ruins of a future-looking town.
"RUN! IT'S COMING!" Someone yelled, shooting a laser gun at a giant floating baby who was destroying everything in sight with laser vision. (Is it bad that this makes sense?)
"This future seems neat!" Mabel said. I started hitting buttons on the time machine, sending us to the day we went fishing. "I'M COMING WADDLES!" Mabel yelled, running away, time machine in her hand. Willow, Alex and I caught up to her, sending us to the Wax Museum reopening day. I tripped over a wire and lost my shoe, then stood up and sent us to when past us were fighting the gnomes. Mabel pulled out the tape and sent us back in time. The Mystery Shack was in the clearing, but there was snow everywhere. Mabel started throwing the time machine from hand to hand, a blue glow coming from it.
"WHAT DID YOU DO?!" I asked her, the four of us stopping and looking at it.
"I DON'T KNOW!" She replied, the glow getting brighter. We all screamed and grabbed each other, ending up surrounded by darkness, crammed together.
"Where are we?" Mabel asked, moving a bit.
"There's nothing but inky blackness for miles!" I said, seeing nothing.
"What does that mean?"
"It means we've transported to the end of time!" Willow said, the four of us screaming.
"Wait, why does it smell so bad in here?" Alex asked. I felt around and my hand touched something that felt like a handle. I turned it and light spilled in, allowing us to see that we were in a Port-a-Potty, the fair set up around us. "Good, we're back."
"But which back are we in?" I asked, knowing it could easily be anything. Thank God, Wendy had the Panda-Duck. Then I noticed Pacifica with Waddles and so did Mabel.
"Dipper, give me that!" She yelled, chasing me around the Port-a-Potty. I climbed on top of it and looked down at her.
"Mabel, it's over, okay? Give it up! I've worked too hard to lose this!"
"But what about Waddles? He was my soul mate!" She said, almost in tears.
"You said that about a ball of yarn once! Do you really want Wendy to date Robbie?"
"I don't know…" she said, walking over to the totem pole and hitting her head against it repeatedly.
"Mabel, you're not guilt tripping me. Not this time," I said, getting down. I walked over to her, but she continued to hit her head on the pole. I took the time machine out and looked at Willow and Alex, who both shook their heads. "Come on Mabel, I know you. You're gonna forget about this in a day. Watch." I set the time machine for a day and went into the future, alone. "See?"
Instead of her being gone, she was still hitting her head against the pole, Willow sitting on the ground next to her. "Okay, maybe you'll forget in a week," I said, going forward a week. Still nothing.
"I give up," Willow said, walking past me. "She's not gonna get over this."
"A month! She'll be better in a month!" I said, going forward a month. Mabel was still there, vines growing up her legs and snails on her shoulders.
"Waddles… Waddles…" She said, banging her head against the totem pole each time. Soos came up leading a tour group.
"And here you see Miserable Mabel, the girl whose dreams were shattered by some heartless jerk. Hey Dipper!" He added, noticing me. I pulled the tape out to a month and hit the reverse button.
When the vacuum feeling ended, Wendy and I were walking up to the ball toss booth. "I don't know if it's a duck or a panda, but I want one!" Wendy said excitedly. I gave the carnie my ticket and took the ball, then looked at Wendy.
"Wendy, I just wanted to say that people make mistakes, and when they do, you should forgive them. Also, tight pants are overrated." I knew that last bit wouldn't work, but I had to try something.
"Dude, you lost me," Wendy said, a slightly confused look on her face.
"I know," I sighed, uncaringly throwing the ball. It bounced back and hit Wendy in the eye, just like the first time it happened.
"AUUGH! MY EYE!" She said, holding her hands up to her face.
"Hey, are you okay?" Robbie asked her, holding the snow cone up to her eye and leading her away. "You know; this is the perfect time for me to ask you something…"
"It is done," I sighed. I started walking away from the booth, but got tackled in a hug.
"THANKYOUTHANKYOUTHANKYOUTHANKYOU!" Mabel said, lifting me up, Waddles beside her. He oinked happily. "He's saying thank you in Pig! Aren't you Waddles?" He repeated his happy oink three more times.
"I couldn't break your heart Mabel," I said, Willow and Alex coming up next to us.
"Hey, look!" Willow said, pointing at Pacifica who was being pecked by a chicken. The four of us laughed, me feeling a bit better.
"Besides, there's no way Wendy can date Robbie all summer, right?" I asked.
"YOU FOUR!" Someone said from behind us, taking the time machine from me. We turned around and saw Blendin glaring at us, anger clear in his face. "Do you have any idea how many rules you just broke?! I'm asking… I wasn't there with you…it was probably a lot right?" He asked. Two guys materialized next to him, hands on his shoulders.
"Blendin Blandin…" The darker one said, his voice exaggeratedly deep.
"AAAAGH! The Time Paradox Avoidment Enforcement Squadron!" Blendin said, trying to escape.
"That's right!" The lighter one said, his voice just as deep as the first. "Our phones have been ringing off the hook! There are settler's high-fiving in the 1800's and calculators littered through eight centuries!"
"You're under arrest for violation of the Time Traveler's Code of Conduct," The first one said, putting handcuffs on Blendin and leading him away.
"It was those kids! And their leader Waddles!" Blendin yelled, trying to escape again.
"That's a pig Blendin," The second one said, holding Blendin back.
"I'll get you for this! I'll go back in time and make sure your parents never MEET!" Blendin yelled at us, kicking and screaming. We waited a few seconds, but nothing happened.
"We're still here," I said, the four of us going towards the snow cone stand.
"Guess he forgot to go back," Mabel added, paying for all of our snow cones. We walked over to the dunk tank, where Stan was laughing at the crowd.
"Suckers! Your pockets are empty and I'm still sitting high and dry!" He said, the crowd booing him. He pointed into the crowd at the guys who were taking Blendin away. "Hey biceps, haircut! Take your best shot!" The lighter guy pulled out a laser gun and blasted the target, making Stan fall in the water and the crowd to applaud. The guys hit a button on their suits and disappeared, taking Blendin with them.
The four of us started walking around the fair, eating our snow cones. "So I guess we never found out who was causing those time anomalies Blendin was looking for," Mabel said after a minute. Willow stopped walking, realization on her face.
"I think it was us," she said. Alex started rubbing the bridge of his nose.
"I'm gonna have a headache after this," he muttered. I looked over them and saw Robbie feeding Wendy a caramel apple.
"Geez, I gotta deal with this all summer?" The others looked in the same direction as me, and Mabel put Waddles on the ground.
"I'm on it," She said, letting Waddles run after the apple. Robbie got scared and dropped it, backing up into a table. The table had a bucket of hot water on it, which spilled all over his legs.
"My pants! They're shrinking!" He yelled, curling up in the fetal position. Everyone who was within earshot started pointing and laughing at him. I looked down and smiled at Waddles.
"That'll do, pig. That'll do."
Willow's POV (7:00)
Alex and I had spent the rest of the day together, not talking about what we would do, just walking around and having fun together. The light had started to fail about a half hour ago, so the archery booth had shut down. We had been shooting arrows at the target for the past half hour when his phone beeped.
"Hey Will, I gotta go. My parents are coming to pick me up any minute," he said, kissing me.
"Already, but it's only been seven hours!" I complained, knowing we had actually had more time than that. He nodded and we walked onto the driveway, arms around each other. The fair was still open, but most of the food stands were getting packed up.
"I'm gonna miss you Bullseye," Alex said, kissing me again
"I'm gonna miss you to. Come visit as many times as you can."
"Believe me, I will, even if I have to sneak out and hitchhike. Nothing is going to stop me from seeing you again."
"You have got to be the sweetest boy in the world."
"And you are-" He got cut off by a horn honking and a car pulling up, the passenger side window rolled down.
"Alex, you ready?" Mrs. Roberts asked him.
"Not really," He said, wrapping his arms around me and squeezing. "Can I keep her?"
"You've gotta go man," I said, pushing him towards the car. "I'm gonna miss you, I already do, but you're delaying the inevitable. I knew this was coming sooner or later, and I am 99% sure this will not be our last adventure together."
"I love you Bullseye."
"I love you too, but this isn't the end. We're gonna be fine."
"How are you so cool about this?" He asked me. I shook my head and pushed him to the car. He opened the door and blew me a kiss, then got in and shut it, rolling his window down.
"I LOVE YOU!" He yelled, the car pulling out of the driveway, his head popping out the window.
"I LOVE YOU TOO!" I yelled back, us waving at each other. I waved until the car went out of sight. Then the crash came.
It's like when there's a storm directly overhead, and you're just standing there waiting for it to start raining. When it does, it pours and practically drowns you. That's exactly how it was for me. Everything Alex and I used to do together- archery practice, weekend camping trips, cookouts, just being together- all that was gone now. Sure, we would see each other, but it's not going to ever be exactly the same.
When a storm that powerful starts, the only thing for you to do is run for cover, which is exactly what I did. I ran into the Shack and up to the attic, then flopped down on my bed, crying into my pillow. Dipper and Mabel were still out enjoying the fair, which was fine with me. After what was only five minutes, but felt like five hours, I rolled over on my side and noticed the blueprint.
Yesterday I had found a blueprint for an amped up crossbow, which was supposed to make more shots at farther distances. I hadn't done much because of the fair, but I figured now would be the best time to start working on it. I stood up and wrote Crashed. Working on BP in Wax Room on a piece of paper and stuck it on the table. I grabbed the blueprint, went outside and got the crossbow, then went back inside to the Wax Room.
Stan had turned the Wax Room into a storage area/workshop, old exhibits on tables everywhere. There was one table that was mostly empty, so I got set up there. I knew I would be working on this for a while, but I wasn't concerned. I just needed a distraction from, well, you know what. So I didn't think. I just stared working on my project, waiting out the storm until it passes.
So, that ending got really emotional, but I'm proud of it. I don't know if you guys caught it or not, but Willow's lack of creepiness is part of her grieving process; that's why she wasn't creepy last chapter. It showed that no matter what she said, Alex's news did affect her.
Now then, with Willow and Alex being added as a part of the time travel, that might have been confusing for some of you, so I'm going to try to explain it. Willex were at the archery booth when Dipper threw the ball and Mabel won Waddles. The archery booth was away from the main part of the fair. Willex and the booth are what I wrote, not a part of the actual show. That's why it would not work if either helped Dipper. Them being away from the main part of the fair allowed Alex Hirsch's plotline to function the same way it did in the show.
Hopefully that helps clear it up if you were confused. It took me a while to figure it out, but Saul'keth gave me an idea that helped me get it to work. You guys will definitely want to take look at his Stronger Than You story; IT'S THE BEST! FAIR WARNING- BRING TISSUES! Anyway, please review, tell me what you thought, PM me if you are still confused, and I'll see you on June 4th. Oh! And my congrats to all the Seniors who graduated/are graduating! Enjoy your future!