I was a little surprised, not really, actually, at the fact Stan managed to drive to the bus drop off, pick up the twins, and drive home in almost no time at all. Once Stan stepped inside, I voiced my growing concern.
"Stan, I have a couple of questions. First, I thought you said the kids would arrive at twelve." I glanced at the clock in the corner of the gift shop. "It's barely 11:50."
Stan just shrugged and replied, "Beats me, kid. I guess they were a little early. They were waiting when I arrived." I heard Wendy give a very noticeable facepalm.
"And secondly, how many laws did you break driving there and back!?" I practically screamed.
"I don't know, but it was certainly way too many," a small voice said in the doorway behind Stan, prompting the old, reckless man to turn and face it. And there they were. My eyes bulged slightly at the sight of the twins. They were actually standing in front of me. I know they were made short in the show to symbolize how young they were, but they were taller than I thought they would be. Both of their heads were just up to my elbows. Placing her bag beside her with great excitement, Mabel was wearing her iconic shooting star sweater, and her pink headband was in her hair. She had a massive smile, showing her braces, and I could swear that I saw some twinkles in her wild eyes. Her brown hair was the same color as her brother's, and he stood behind her with both hands on his backpack straps. Although Dipper hid it well, I could see in his eyes that he was a little nervous to be here. He was wearing his brown star cap that he would soon lose later and had his orange t-shirt with his navy vest covering it.
Stan looked back at his extended family and then at me, Wendy, and Soos and gave a small clap. "Okay, introduction time." Everyone in the room looked at him. "These two are my grand niece and nephew, M-"
Mabel cut her uncle off with a boom of excitement, "Hi! My name is Mabel Pines! I am twelve years old, thirteen by the end of this summer!" She stepped back slightly behind her brother and placed both hands on his shoulders, saying, "And this is my twin brother Dipper." Dipper gave a timid wave to the group before him, and Mabel stepped forward again, her impossible smile growing, and asked, "Well, who are you guys?"
Wendy chuckled and pointed to Mabel, "She is full of energy. I like her." Wendy retracted her finger and gestured to Soos and me. "The big guy is Matt, and the even bigger guy is Soos." Both of us smiled at the twins, Soos did it because of his kind nature, but I did it to try and ease Dipper.
Soos tipped his cap for the twins while I reached out for a fist bump for Mabel. She gladly reciprocated my action, maybe a little too enthusiastically. My knuckles stung after her fist hit mine. Next was Dipper. I reached out just like I had done a few seconds ago with his sister, and he looked at my fist and then at the uncovered, very notable bruise on my hand. I had forgotten entirely that was even there, but I hid my slight panic, and he fist-bumped me very reluctantly.
Wendy then gestured to herself, "My name's Wendy, and no, me and Matt are not siblings." Huh, I never really thought about that. We certainly look similar. Same hair color, skin tone. Then again, all gingers have that.
Mabel's face fell slightly, but she remained as excited as ever. "Aw, I thought we were going to twin it up here." Wendy and I looked at each other and then at Dipper, and he just shrugged. "Ah, whatever," Mabel continued. "We can still be friends!" I sure hope so!
Stan spoke up after a few seconds, needing confirmation that his grand-niece was done talking before he did so himself. "Wendy is the Mystery Shack's cashier, and Soos is our handyman." Stan then looked at me momentarily, trying to create a title for me. It was wise not to tell the twins I had "memory loss." Imagine what it would be like then having to tell the two of them that I would not only be looking after them but bunking with them as well. That most definitely would not go over well. "And Matt here is new, so the three of us will show him the ropes until he gets the hang of it. But until then, he will be looking after you guys." He then muttered something under his breath.
Dipper and Mabel looked at each other. They had heard their grunkle speak but couldn't make it out. I then leaned over to Stan and motioned him closer so I could whisper in his ear. "Don't worry, I'll tell them. You've already been sketchy enough in front of them." We pulled away from each other, and Stan gave me a quick nod that showed his understanding and gratitude. If the twins knew that their uncle had authorized a teenager four years older than they are to sleep in the same room as them, it would most likely plant the seeds of disapproval in their minds for their great uncle. Stan is truly amazing, even if he doesn't seem like it.
"Okay," I said after a few seconds of silence, and I'm pretty sure I scared Soos with my sudden announcement. "Stan, how about I show Dipper and Mabel to their room, and you guys can take care of things down here."
Stan flipped his eye patch over his glasses and gave me a thumbs up, "You got it, kid." I'd say I was starting to grow on him if I didn't know any better. "Wendy, Soos, you two know what you guys have to do."
Wendy nodded, walked behind the counter, and took her seat, and Soos tightened his toolbelt that I didn't even notice he had on. "Sure thing Mr. Pines," Soos replied and left the room.
Stan turned to the twins and me, "Once the work day gets going, all three of you will help out around here, but for now, Matt is going to show you around. I'll see ya later." Stan then walked out the front door, and the second the door was closed, Wendy pulled out a magazine from underneath the register.
I couldn't help but laugh at that. "Nice," I commented with a thumbs up, gesturing for the twins to follow me. Mabel picked up the bag she had placed down earlier, and they both followed me out of the gift shop.
Once we reached the bottom of the stairs, I decided it was a good idea to break the ice with both of them. "So what brings you guys to Gravity Falls anyway?" I had to start simple for them to get comfortable with me.
To my surprise, Dipper was the one that answered my question, "Well, our parents decided that we could use some fresh air, so they sent us from our hometown in California up to here. We should be staying in town for the rest of the summer." Dipper let out a sigh after he was finished talking. I knew that Dipper didn't want to come here at first, but I know for a fact that he did not regret being here after summer ended. It will just take some time.
We were about to enter the bedroom, and I turned to face them. "I know it might suck, being pulled from your element and all, but trust me. This summer is going to be great." I noticed Mabel grew excited at my comment, but Dipper showed no signs of his mood lightening up.
Mabel touched her brother's shoulder, "He's right, bro-bro. We can do so much this summer that we could have never done back in Piedmont."
A small smile grew on my face, "Yeah, think about it, no parents and no boundaries! Plus, I get to look after you guys; I know that both of you are twelve and that you don't want any parental guidance, but I'm not going to act like an overbearing parent needing to know what you're doing every second of the day." I could see Dipper start to give a little smile at my reassurance. "I want you guys to have fun this summer and have the time of your lives." I turned back around to face the door. Turning the knob and pushing the entrance to the room open, I let them walk in first and watched Mabel run straight over to her bed and pull out some posters she must have gotten from home. She wasted no time putting them up on the wall beside her sleeping spot.
When Mabel was finished, she faced Dipper and me, "This attic is amazing!" She shook her hands out in front of her in excitement. "Check out all my splinters!" Mabel quickly plucked them out of her hands and hopped off her bed.
"And there's a goat on my bed." I turned to see Dipper standing defensively and staring at the animal that had just bleated at him.
I walked forward, "How did Gompers get up here and through the door without anyone knowing?" I tried to get him to move, but it was no use.
Mabel made her way across the room and over my bed. Well, mattress. "Aww, he has a name!" Dipper and I exchanged glances as Mabel began to pet the goat. "Hey, friend!" Soon after, Gompers started to chew on Mabel's sweater. "Oh, yes, you can keep chewing on my sweater." She gave a small laugh, either realizing that what she said was crazy or she thought a goat biting her clothing was funny. Either way, she didn't stop him, so I intervened.
I picked up the goat, and he bleated in protest, but I held my grip. "C'mon, Gompers, let's get you outta here." I turned, faced the twins, and saw they started unpacking their things. "Once you guys are done settling, meet me outside, okay?"
Mabel saluted in response and yelled, "Yes, sir, summer caretaker, sir!" I laughed and descended the stairs and thought I should exit through the gift shop since that was how the twins walked into the shack. They probably didn't know another exit, so that's the way I went. I pushed the employee-only door open using my shoulder and walked into the gift shop.
To my surprise, Wendy had responsibly put down her magazine since now there were tourists in the room. She looked at me as soon as I walked through the door and looked confused when she realized I was carrying a goat. She was about to say something, but I cut her off, "Don't ask. I hardly know myself." That was all she needed, and she went back to doing her job as a customer walked up to the counter.
"Hey, excuse me?" I stopped and turned to see a tourist holding her son's hand. "Can I take a picture of your goat with my son? It's his favorite animal." I looked down at the boy, and he was delighted to see the animal. I couldn't break his little heart. The mother looked like she was in her mid-forties, and her son was wearing a question mark t-shirt, which I assume was just bought, and had a mix of blonde and brown hair. His head barely reached his mother's waist.
"Of course, he can," I said, squatting down. I let go of Gomper,s and he made his way over to the boy. The child started giggling when the mischievous goat started sniffing his hand and then started to lick it.
Not wanting to pass up the moment, the boy's mother let go of her son's other hand to take a photo. When Gompers saw a camera being pulled out, he changed his interest from the hand to the shirt the boy was wearing. I then heard a click, indicating that a picture was taken, and the mother put her camera away, pulled out a ten-dollar bill, and handed it to me. "Thank you so much. That picture is so precious!" She took her giggling son's hand. "Have a nice day!" They began to walk away, making Gompers bleat. He lost a new friend.
"Wow, look at you," Wendy started when the two were gone. "You're a natural."
I turned and faced her, "You saw that, right?"
She nodded, "All of it. That was very generous of her." I heard footsteps approaching, and I quickly pocketed the money and picked up Gompers, and he started chewing on my sweatshirt.
The goat was a little more relentless this time like he was trying to eat it. "Hey, Gompers! Stop it!" I let go of him with one hand, and with it, I tried to pry his mouth off my chest. Is he hissing at me? I didn't know goats hiss! The twins walked in, and Wendy laughed hysterically at my effort to free my sweatshirt. "C'mon, let go. This is brand new!" The twins started to laugh, too, at the sight before them, and then a loud rip silenced everyone.
I let go of his head and heard him swallow the piece of fabric that he had torn. I held him with both hands again and brought him to eye level. "You are one stupid goat." He just bleated at me in response, making everyone laugh again, including me.
"You know he didn't mean it, right?" Dipper asked after the laughter subsided.
I sighed in response, "Yeah, I know, but it sure feels like he did."
Wendy went back to reading her magazine from earlier, still laughing lightly, and I glanced back down at the goat in my arms. "Okay, mister, time for you to back outside." Mabel ran ahead and held the gift shop door open for me. Dipper followed suit. I noticed he took a book and a pen out of his vest pocket. He might need a little push so he doesn't always isolate himself.
After I descended the steps, I walked a few yards and set Gompers back on his feet. He trotted away, not a care in the world. I looked up to see Mabel on top of a grassy hill and Dipper sitting at the base of a tree near the bottom of said hill. I smiled, knowing what would come next.
Mabel laid herself down and loudly proclaimed as she started rolling, "Yay! Grass!" She sped right past her brother, who now had a woodpecker on top of his hat and was pecking at him while writing in his book. I saw Stan creeping up behind him with his swamp monster mask on, and I wanted to call out, but I was too late. Dipper shrieked and fell over as Stan yelled, "BOO!" When he recovered, Dipper just stared at his great uncle without the slightest sign of amusement on his face. Stan was laughing his head off after he took off the mask that somehow went over his fez. He slapped his knee while still laughing and started coughing up a storm. "Augh, augh, augh, ough, it was worth it." He hit his chest, hoping it was the last of the surprise onslaught.
I made my way over to the two and crossed my arms. "I know he's your grandnephew, but I don't think you should be scaring him like that." Dipper stood up and dusted himself off. "Don't you have a tour to take care of?"
"It just ended, and the mask was a prop that I used," Stan said and then looked at Dipper. "Don't worry, kid. You weren't the only one to get spooked by me today.
I rolled my eyes, and Dipper responded, "Gee, thanks." Mabel then ran up to us, clearly dizzy from rolling down the hill. She could hardly stand up straight. Her brother looked at her with concern, "Mabel, are you okay?"
She clumsily waved a hand, responding, "Yeah, yeah, I'm fine, but you sure got spooked there, huh bro-bro? That was a good one, Grunkle Stan!" She went to give him a high five, but she fell on her face from being unable to control her momentum. Even though she had her face on the ground, she gave us all a thumbs up, "I'm okay!" Her voice was heavily muffled, and we barely heard her. Despite Mabel poking fun at him, Dipper still helped her up to her feet. You gotta admire that.
Stan looked at his wristwatch, "Okay, fun's over, people." When Mabel was back on her feet, she gave a wildly exaggerated 'Aw,' but he ignored it and led us back into the Mystery Shack. As we walked through the door, Stan gave Dipper the broom leaning against the wall, and pointed to a sign that read 'NO REFUNDS.' Dipper took the broom and walked over to the spot his grunkle wanted him to clean. He started sweeping with a notable sigh. Mabel followed him and showed interest in a giant demon eyeball on sale. She went to touch it with her hand, but Stan quickly ran over and hit her hand with his eight-ball cane. "No touching the merchandise." This made Mabel frown, and Stan walked away into the museum.
I forgot how ruthless Stan could be, especially at the beginning of the summer. The twins haven't melted his heart yet. I crossed my arms and shook my head, "He has some nerve." They both looked kind of upset. "Don't worry, he'll warm up to guys eventually, and we'll do whatever you want later."
After I finished speaking, the gift shop bell rang, indicating that a customer walked in. Mabel and I turned to see who it could be while Dipper returned to sweeping the floor. The newcomer was a boy, probably the same age as the twins, and he walked over to the stand of cards that I had knocked over yesterday. Mabel quickly ran over to him.
Dipper rolled his eyes at his sister, "Here we go."
When she approached her unsuspecting interest, he had picked up a card off the stand and read it. Once Mabel was right behind him, she grabbed his attention, "My name's Mabel, but you can call me the girl of your dreams." She batted her eyelashes at the poor kid, and I could tell he was startled. He even looked at me, and I just shrugged. "I'm joking!" Mabel pushed him into the stand of cards and onto the wooden floor. She started laughing maniacally, "Ha Ha Ha HA!"
She ran back to me and Dipper. We just looked in disapproval. Mabel didn't seem to notice, and she proclaimed, "I think he likes me." You don't say?
I shook my head and approached the kid, still sprawled on the ground. I offered him my hand, "I'm sorry about her. Sometimes I don't think that she realizes her destructive tendencies." The boy took my hand, and I pulled him to his feet.
"It's whatever," He said as he dusted himself off. "But if it's all the same to you, I'm gonna go before another attempt on my life is made." I nodded, and he sped out of the door.
Wendy clapped her hands, "Woohoo, nice going, Mabel!" Mabel put her hands on her hips and beamed at the comment.
I picked up the stand and returned the cards to their respective places. "Don't encourage this," I told Wendy, making her laugh slightly.
"Hey, Dipper," Mabel asked, prompting him to look at his sister. "Do you have a piece of paper and a pen?" Dipper nodded as he placed the broom on the wall and reached into his vest. He tossed her his pen from earlier and tore some paper out of the book he was writing in. "Thanks, Dipper!" Mabel wasted no time and began to write something down furiously.
Some time passed, and eventually, the next finished tour group walked into the gift shop and browsed at the Shack's merchandise. Mabel whispered behind a shelf crowded with Mr. Mystery's exclusive bobbleheads as a different boy stepped on a paper she had dropped there a few minutes earlier. He picked it up and began reading what was written out loud, "Uh, Do you like me? Yes. Definitely. Absolutely?" He looked around with confusion.
"I rigged it!" Mabel quietly yelled.
Dipper rolled his eyes once again at his sister's antics. "Mabel," Dipper grabbed her attention. "I know you're going through your whole 'Boy Crazy' phase, but I think you're kind of overdoing it with the 'Crazy' part." Dipper was washing a jar of eyeballs that a kid got his fingerprints all over a few minutes prior with a wet rag.
Mabel turned to face her brother, and I leaned on the wall, wanting to hear their conversation. "What!" Mabel said loudly and then blew a raspberry. "Come on, Dipper! This is our first summer away from home. It's my big chance to have an epic summer romance."
Dipper raised his arms and questioned his sister, "Yeah, but do you have to flirt with every guy you meet?" He put his arms back to his sides and looked at me, "Right after we got off the bus, she saw a kid holding a turtle sitting on a bench and started flirting with him. And don't even get me started when she saw the mattress prince."
I stifled a laugh, and Mabel shook her finger at Dipper, "Mock all you want, brother, but I've got a good feeling about this summer." She gestured behind her with her thumb and stated, "I wouldn't be surprised if the man of my dreams walked through that door right now."
Heavenly music played in my mind as Stan walked through the museum door holding signs under his right arm and a can of Pitt Cola in his right hand, belching very loudly. "Oh. Oh! Not good, ow."
Mabel squinted in disgust, "Oh, why?!" Dipper and I laughed at Mabel's misfortune.
I crossed my arms, "Careful what you wish for, Mabel."
She stuck out her tongue, "Bleh, yup, lesson learned."
Once most tourists had filed out, Stan declared, "Alright, alright, look alive, people! I need someone to go hammer up these signs in the spooky part of the forest."
"Not it!" The three of us yelled.
Soos, who was now installing a shelf into the wall with a power drill, said, "Uh, also not it!"
Stan's voice quieted, "Nobody asked you, Soos."
"I know, and I'm comfortable with that," he stated, pulling half of a chocolate bar out of his pocket and eating it.
Stan turned to the other side of the room, where Wendy lazily read her magazine and shouted, "Wendy! I need you to put up this sign!"
She attempted to grab it from the other side of the room, "I would, but I-uhh-can't-uhh- reach it-uhh."
Stan blatantly said, "I'd fire all of you if I could." He turned and faced us, "Alright, let's make it eeny-meeny-miney-you." Stan pointed his finger at Dipper.
He looked surprised. He should have seen it coming. "Oh, what? Grunkle Stan, when I was near those woods, I felt like I was being watched."
Stan rolled his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose, "Ah, this again. I've heard so many people coming through here saying that they have seen some weird stuff in the woods."
"I'm telling you, something feels weird about this town. In my short time here, my mosquito bites spell out 'BEWARE.'
Dipper extended his arm to show his uncle. "That says 'BEWARB,'" Stan said in response, causing Dipper to scratch the bites in embarrassment. "Look, kid," Stan made air quotes with his free hand. "The whole 'Monsters In The Forest' thing is just local legend." He then gestured to himself, "It's drummed up by guys like me to sell merch to guys like that." He pointed to a sweaty bald guy laughing idiotically at a Mr. Mystery bobblehead. Stan tossed the signs under his right arm into Dipper's hands. "So quit being so paranoid!"
Dipper only sighed in response. I put a hand on his shoulder, "I'll come with you." Stan handed me a hammer and some nails, and I led Dipper over to the door and held it open for him. Once we descended the porch steps, Dipper sighed again, "Ugh, nobody believes anything I say." He then pointed to the trees on the edge of the clearing that the shack was located in. "Like, all those branches up there are snapped for no reason, and right underneath them, there is a small indent in the ground indicating that something fell there." I just awkwardly looked to the side and kept walking forward. "If that's not weird, I don't know what is."
After a few seconds of silence, I spoke up, "I don't think you're wrong, Dipper. This town does have a bizarre vibe to it." He didn't reply, and we went to the trees near the dirt road leading to what I assumed to be a main town road. "Why would he want us to hang signs in the forest anyway? It's not like people are going to see them."
Dipper shrugged, "Beats me, but let's just get this over with." Both of us walked off the road and into the woods. When I found a tree that resembled the fake one, I told him to come over. If he wants to get it over with, so be it. He handed me a sign, and I hit a nail into the tree, making a clanging sound. "Wait, what?" I tried to sound as confused as I could. I didn't want to seem suspicious, even though the first tree I hit was metal. I could have thought that through more.
Dipper touched the trunk and ran it along the metallic bark. Dust was all over it. I stepped back as Dipper saw a small seam in the side of the trunk. He was going to pry it open. The hatch groaned in protest and revealed a console with two switches on top of it. He reached out and flipped one of the switches, "What is all of this?"
"I have no idea, but I knew something was weird about this place!" I said with a big smile on my face. Now this is one of the most incredible things I've ever seen. I have a first-hand experience of Dipper discovering the journal. He flipped the second switch, and we heard a machine whir behind us, revealing a dug-out hole in the ground that Gompers just so happened to be grazing at. This scared the goat, and he ran away with a loud bleat.
We both turned around to see the cobwebbed mechanical hole in the ground. I then realized Dipper was looking at me suspiciously, so I squinted at the spot, "Is that a book?" This question piqued Dipper's interest even more, making him walk over and peer into the hole for himself. He stared wide-eyed at the dusty old journal before him. Not even the bugs that crawled out of the item's chamber could shake Dipper's curiosity. He reached in with both hands and lifted the journal out of the ground, tearing the cobwebs from its front and back cover in the process.
Once it was eye level with him, Dipper gave a mighty blow which cleared off most of the dust from the book revealing a golden six-fingered hand with a number three written in the middle of it. He placed it on the ground and got on all fours, prompting me to sit beside him since my knees still hurt.
Dipper opened the book cover and inspected the monocle attached to the journal. He then turned the page and read aloud, "'It's hard to believe it's been six years since I began studying the strange and wondrous secrets of Gravity Falls, Oregon.'" Dipper turned the old crinkled page, and we both stared, awestruck, at the book's contents. It revealed floating eyeballs, giant vampire bats, gnomes, and even cursed objects.
He kept flipping until he noticed that the pages went blank. Flipping back to the previous page, I read its contents. "'Unfortunately, my suspicions have been confirmed. I'm being watched. I must hide this book before he finds it. Remember, in Gravity Falls, there is no one you can trust.'"
We both looked at one another and then back to the book, and Dipper echoed, "No one you can trust…." We both stood up, and he closed the book. He was looking at me, unsure of what to say next.
"HELLO!" Mabel shouted behind us, making both of us scream. "Watcha reading some nerd thing?"
Dipper quickly stuffed the journal behind his back and stuttered, "Uh-uh-it's nothing!"
Mabel imitated her brother, "Uh-uh-it's nothing!" She laughed at herself and then asked light-heartedly, "What? Are you actually not going to show me?"
Dipper looked to me for confirmation, but I was too busy fending off Gompers, who was trying to chew on my pant leg. He then looked back to his sister and said, "Let's go somewhere more private."
Now walking back on the road leading to the Mystery Shack, I took off my ruined sweatshirt and slung it over my shoulder, and I was now proudly showing off my own question mark t-shirt. The cuts and bruises on my arms were now completely visible, but I didn't care. I sighed, "I shouldn't have picked up that stupid goat again. I should've known he would chew on me and make an even bigger hole."
Mabel stifled a giggle, "He really doesn't like you, but not to worry!" I looked at her with a slightly raised eyebrow. "You just so happen to be in the presence of an arts and crafts master."
I smiled, and Dipper rolled his eyes, "You don't even have a sewing machine with you that you can fix it with, and I highly doubt Stan has one lying around."
That point discouraged Mabel a little bit, but not for long. A few seconds later, she perked up, "We can go get one!"
Dipper shrugged, realizing he had lost, making me laugh, "I have some money, so after we show your sister what we found, how about we head into town?" They both nodded, and it was settled. Once we reached the shack, instead of going through the gift shop, I showed them the house entrance on the other side of the building, and we entered the shack. All three of us quickly went upstairs to the attic, and once we were all inside, I turned and locked the door. I threw my sweatshirt on my mattress.
With the room now secured, Dipper pulled out the old journal and walked to his sister, seated on her bed excitedly, "It's amazing! Grunkle Stan thought I was being paranoid, but according to this, Gravity Falls has this secret dark side."
Dipper showed Mabel some book pages, prompting him to hit it in disbelief, "Woah, shut up!"
Dipper's smile grew, "And get this: After a certain point, the pages just stop, like the guy who was writing it mysteriously disappeared."
I walked over to my backpack, bent down, and zipped open a zipper for my wallet. I'm going to need more than ten dollars for the cost of a sewing machine. Just then, I realized that almost all of the contents of my bag were school supplies, so I noted to hide them somewhere at one point. I stood and faced them, "That book has some seriously wacky stuff in it. I wonder how much of it is actually real?"
Dipper looked at me with hope in his eyes, "Maybe all of it is real, and the fact that there are most likely two other journals- since this one has a number three on its cover- is insane!"
Dipper started flipping through the pages once again, and Mabel's gaze drifted to the mattress in the middle of the room. Oh boy. "Matt, why is there an extra bed in here anyway?" Mabel asked, swinging her legs innocently on the bed.
I had to think fast, "I actually slept up here last night, Stan was showing me everything around here until it was very late, so I just bunked here." That's somewhat believable. "I knew that you guys were coming in the morning, so I didn't sleep on your beds because I would get them all dirty or mess up the sheets." That's the best I'm going to get.
Dipper looked up from the journal and waved a hand through the air, "It would have been fine, man. Also, why didn't you sleep on that couch in the T.V. room?"
Mabel laughed at my blank face, and eventually, I smiled too. "Yeah, that would have been smart, wouldn't it?" I said. "Ah, well, the past is in the past. Come on, you two, let's get a move on." I walked over to the door, unlocked it, and stepped out with the twins following suit.
For the millionth time, we walked into the gift shop and over to Wendy's cashier desk. Wendy heard us come in and put down her magazine, "There you guys are! I was wondering where you went."
I scratched my head, "Yeah, sorry about that. I showed them around, and now they want to go into town for a while. Do you know where the keys to the golf cart are?" Without saying a word, Wendy opened a drawer and tossed the keys to me. I smiled, "Thanks Wendy, you're the best."
She smirked, "Anytime." Her focus switched to the twins. "How do you guys like it here so far?"
Dipper patted his vest pocket that contained the journal, "It is certainly growing on us."
Wendy looked slightly surprised, "Well, that's nice to hear. You guys have fun."
We waved goodbye and walked outside and into the parking lot.
Mabel started sprinting over to the cart and yelled, "Shotgun!" She quickly jumped into the cart, buckled her seatbelt, and began tapping her foot furiously. Mabel's tempo grew faster and faster the closer Dipper and I got.
"She must really want that sewing machine, huh?" I asked Dipper.
"She loves her arts and crafts. The sweater she is wearing right now is one she made herself," Dipper said with apparent pride in his sister.
Once we reached the cart, I sat in the driver's seat, inserted the key into the ignition, and started the engine. After I ensured they both had seatbelts on, I backed out of the parking lot and drove onto the road away from the shack. "We've got a little bit of a ride ahead of us, so if you have any questions about me, go ahead and shoot." I know pretty much everything about them. It's only fair for them to get to know me too.
The twins exchanged glances, and Dipper asked, "I didn't want to be rude earlier, but now since the door to ask questions is open, we were wondering why you're all jacked up."
Mabel chimed in, "Yeah, what's with all the small cuts on your face and bruises on your arms? You didn't get in a fight, did you?"
I smiled, "No, Mabel, I didn't get into a fight. For starters, the bruises only look as bad as they do because of my pale skin. They don't hurt all that much." That's a big lie. All day my arms and legs have been in great pain. I've just been masking it surprisingly well. Walking up and down the attic stairs has been quite annoying, but good thing no running has been involved yet. "I got both cuts and bruises from running in the woods, running from something. I don't know what it was, but I didn't want to stick around to find out. Branches hit me in the face, hence all the scratches, and I tripped a few times which resulted in all the bruises." Wow, I don't like how easy this lying thing is getting.
Dipper was quiet momentarily, "Do you think whatever chased you was paranormal?"
"I wouldn't be surprised," I said, deciding to fuel his imagination and excitement. "It sounded like nothing I've heard before." I took my eyes off the road for a second and looked at Dipper, his face twisted in a big goofy smile, and I found myself smiling as well as I looked back at the road. We were now coming up to the main road, and I wasn't sure which way was the correct way into town, but I went with my gut that said to go right. It was the correct call. After another minute of driving, I spotted the Tent of Telepathy and the Gleeful family's car dealership. I couldn't help but feel like the tent's star symbol was staring at me, so I sped up.
"Wow, look at the size of that mall!" Mabel exclaimed. While I was busy looking at our future enemy's residence, the twins were looking all the way down the street, at least a mile, and saw the Gravity Falls Mall.
Dipper put his hand to his chin, "Why does such a small town need such a big mall?"
I shrugged, "It beats me, kid, but it is very convenient for the little quest that we're on. There has got to be an arts and crafts store in there somewhere."
We reached the mall and parked the vehicle, and I took the keys out of the ignition so that no one would commit grand theft cart. Once we were inside the mall, it took us a few minutes of searching to find the store we needed, and once we did, Mabel pointed at it and sprinted right on in, with Dipper and I following suit. When we walked in we saw Mabel scouring the shelves for a sewing machine that she liked. She eventually stopped at one, finally giving us a chance to get over to her.
"Mabel, calm down. These machines aren't going anywhere," Dipper said, slightly out of breath.
She lifted the sewing machine off of the shelf and into my hands, when I found the price tag I almost dropped it, thank god I didn't. "Mabel," I started and she looked at me excitedly. "This machine is well over four hundred dollars. I can't get this for you." Mabel's face fell, but then, very quickly, it lightened up. She went over to another shelf, grabbed a different sewing machine, and handed it to me. I honestly expected this one to cost even more than the first one, but when I looked at the price tag, it was only, "Huh, fifty dollars." I looked up at Mabel, and her smile broadened as I returned it to her. "Let's go ring it up," I said to her with a smile.
The three of us then made our way over to the register and I bought the item with no problem. When we exited the art store, I saw Dipper looking into another store's window that suited him. Inside on the shelves, I could see there were comics, video games, trading cards, and even some paranormal stuff that was totally his style.
"Hey, Mabel," I caught her attention and saw-+ that her earlier smile never left her face. "Why don't you go back out to the golf cart and wait for us? We gotta check something out."
"Okay," Mabel said happily as she started running through the mall to the exit, just barely being able to look over the box in her arms.
Dipper looked at me with a raised eyebrow, "Are you sure that's a good idea? She can hardly see anything when she's carrying that." As if on cue, we heard Mabel yell 'Sorry!' to a random person she must've bumped into.
I waved a hand through the air, "She'll be fine. Besides, I saw you eyeing up the store behind us. Wanna go check it out?" There's no way my sending Mabel out on her own can backfire! Wait, actually…
A grin grew on Dipper's face, "Really?" His response cut off my thoughts.
I put a hand on his shoulder, "Of course! Your sister got something she wanted. It only makes sense that you do too." I led him into the store, and just like his sister, he ran up and down the shelves looking for something that interested him. After a few minutes of searching, Dipper returned to me holding a CD with one word on it, 'BABBA.' He handed it to me, and I made a huge smile, and his face fell. I bet he thought I would laugh at him, but I wouldn't dream of it. "Now, this is a stupendous choice, my friend!" Dipper's face lit up again, and I brought it over to the cash register.
I pulled the ten dollars from my pocket and handed it to the man behind the counter. The cashier looked at me with a confused look, to which I responded, "Is there a problem here, sir?" The man quickly shook his head and handed the CD back to me, and I took my change.
As soon as we left the store, I tossed the music case to Dipper, who fumbled it for a moment but eventually secured it in his grasp. "Thank you," Dipper said quietly, prompting me to look at him.
"You're welcome."
We walked in a comfortable silence until we saw Mabel sitting in the golf cart in very high spirits, gazing off at the cemetery. I nudged Dipper with my elbow, "Hey, is it just me, or does your sister look even happier than when she got the sewing machine?"
Dipper squinted to get a better look at his sister. "Huh, you're right." Once we got closer, Dipper grabbed Mabel's attention. "Hey, Mabel, what are you so stoked about? You look more energized than usual."
Her attention snapped to us, indicating that she had no idea we were there. "Oh, hey guys," Mabel said with a slight wave.
Once I got in the driver's seat, I put a hand on her shoulder and asked, "Are you okay? You seem pretty distant like you're looking forward to something."
She looked back and forth quickly, "I'm fine. I-I just kind of got lost in my imagination waiting for you two to come back," Dipper and I just shrugged at one another, and I started the cart's engine and drove us off back to the Mystery Shack.
Once we arrived, Mabel glanced around, looking for something, maybe even someone. It got to a point where she was standing still, surveying her surroundings with a smile. I had to call out to her so she would come back inside.
I led the twins back into the gift shop with Mabel's new sewing machine under my left arm so that I could return the keys to Wendy. She looked up from her magazine when she heard the bell ring, "Throw 'em here." I took the keys out of my pocket and tossed them to her now open hand. She made quite an impressive one-handed grab and catch for them, making Mabel clap. "Huh, I didn't take you for a sewer, Matt," Wendy said as she put the keys away.
"Actually, I just got this for Mabel. I know you saw the goat bite a hole in my sweatshirt, so Mabel is going to fix it up for me!" I gave her a high five, and the sound was highly satisfying. Ow! Yeah, she high-fives hard.
Wendy smiled, "That's really sweet. Good to see that you guys are hitting it off. You can go on inside. I can handle myself out here."
Dipper stepped forward, "Are you sure? We haven't been around to help for the past hour."
Wendy gave us a thumbs up, "Yes, I'm sure." She then made a shoo motion with her hand, and just like that, we were out of the room. Mabel found herself sitting on the arm of the couch, and Dipper was already nose deep in the journal.
Suddenly the doorbell rang. Dipper looked up from the journal, "Who's that?"
Mabel shifted herself on the couch to face her brother, "Well, time to spill the beans." Then she poked a can of beans nearby so that it fell over. "Boop! Beans." My eyes widened severely. She isn't supposed to say that until she meets- "This girl has got a date, whoop, whoop!" She fell back on the couch, laughing. I put a hand on my forehead and could only look at the floor. This isn't right! I know for a fact that she didn't meet "Norman" until a couple of days after she got here! My hand found itself running down my face, and I closed my eyes. Come to think of it...Dipper wasn't supposed to find the journal on the first day he was here, either! My presence and actions must have sped up the process of the story somehow! My eyes opened, and since I was too shocked to pay attention to my surroundings, I didn't realize that Stan and Norman were now in the room.
"We met at the cemetery. He's really deep," Mabel said as she grabbed his arm. "Ooh! Little muscle there. What-what a surprise."
Dipper squinted his eyes, "So, what's your name?" I glanced over to Grunkle Stan. His face was a little shocked too. I know he knew about all the paranormal stuff during the entire course of the show, so he must be thinking that something is off about him. I am going to have to bring that up later.
Norman's visible eye widened, "Uh...Normal...Man!" He struggled with his words.
"He means Norman," Mabel said, clinging closer to him.
"Are you bleeding, Norman?" Dipper asked, not only with curiosity but growing suspicion as well.
"It's jam."
Mabel hit her new boyfriend in the chest, not affecting him at all, "Oh! I love jam!" She then gestured to herself and Norman simultaneously, "Look at this!"
Norman looked down at Mabel and asked, "So, you wanna go hold hands or...whatever?"
Mabel put a hand over her mouth and giggled, "Oh! Oh, my goodness. Don't wait up!" And with that, she was gone. Norman gave Dipper, Stan, and me a finger gun gesture and followed suit, not after bumping into the wall a few times.
Dipper looked back at me and Stan before grabbing my arm and leading me upstairs. He somehow overlooked Soos on a stepladder fixing a light bulb. Dipper pulled out his journal and sat at the seat in front of the window, "Okay, there is definitely something off about Norman." I sat down next to him, and he opened the book. The first page he opened, conveniently, was the undead page. He began reading, "Known for their pale skin and bad attitudes, these creatures are often mistaken for...Teenagers?! Beware Gravity Falls' nefarious…" He gasped loudly, making me crack a smile, "Zombie!" His voice echoed throughout the house, and I could have sworn I heard Stan state that he was losing his mind.
Dipper and I heard grunting coming from outside, so we quickly turned to look out of it to see Norman walking menacingly toward Mabel. Dipper's eyes widened as he yelled, "Oh no, Mabel! No! No, Mabel! Watch Out!" Norman put his hands on Mabel's shoulders, making Dipper scream. I almost started laughing. Dipper kept pressing his face harder and harder into the window due to his accumulating stress. Norman removed his hands from Mabel's shoulders to reveal that he had made a necklace of daisies for her.
Dipper placed a hand on his chin and stood up, "Is my sister really dating a zombie, or am I just going nuts?"
"It's a dilemma, to be sure," Soos spoke up out of nowhere, making Dipper flinch greatly. "I couldn't help but hear you screaming in Matt's ear in this great big empty room."
Dipper turned to me, "Matt, you saw Mabel's boyfriend. He's got to be a zombie, right?"
Soos stopped what he was doing and squinted his eyes, "Hmm. How many brains did you see the guy eat?"
Dipper rolled his eyes and said disappointedly, "Zero."
"Look, dude, I believe you. I'm always noticing weird stuff in this town. Like the mailman? Pretty sure that dude's a werewolf." Soos pointed to Dipper with his screwdriver, "But you gotta have evidence. Otherwise, people are going to think you are a major league cuckoo clock."
Dipper looked to the floor and nodded, "Yeah, You're right, Soos."
Soos looked into space and stated, "My wisdom is both a blessing and a curse."
Then from downstairs, the three of us heard Stan yell, "Soos! The portable toilets are clogged again!"
Soos dutifully pulled down on his cap and said in a severe tone, "I am needed elsewhere." And with that, he proceeded to backpedal out of the room.
Dipper returned the journal to his vest pocket and walked towards the stairs, "C'mon, let's go get some evidence."
I reached out and grabbed him, "Alright, listen, I would totally come with you, but how do you think people would react if they saw a big sixteen-year-old guy, like myself, secretly watching a preteen girl?"
"What about me?" Dipper asked.
"If someone does ask, which I doubt they will, just say that you are her brother and that you are making a summertime album for her." I looked to the side, "The people in this town will have to believe that."
Dipper sighed, "Okay, I'll go find a camera. What are you going to do?"
"I'll do some more digging. Do you trust me with the book?" I said with a now outstretched hand.
"...Yes," Dipper reached into his vest pocket and handed me the journal, making me smile.
"Don't worry," I said reassuringly, "I'll give it back once we are done with this." He nodded, and he made his way back downstairs. Once I couldn't see him anymore, I walked into the bedroom and hid the journal. I needed to find Stan. It took me a few minutes, but I eventually found him seated in his office doing "taxes" and other stuff that must be illegal. I knocked on the open door, and his gaze met mine. "Can I talk to you for a minute?" I asked.
Stan grabbed the papers on his desk and stuffed them in the top drawer. "Sure, kid, just give me a second here." He was having trouble closing the drawer due to the abundance of papers but eventually shut it with a forceful push and cleared his throat, "What's on your mind," He asked while I closed the door behind me.
I stepped forward and crossed my arms, "What do you think of Mabel's new boyfriend?"
Stan shrugged, "I don't know, I just met the guy."
Okay, this may require a more direct approach. "I think he's a bit weird. It seems to be supernatural for him."
Stan raised an eyebrow, "I'm not sure I follow…" Okay, I agree. That was relatively weak.
I rolled my eyes and covered my face with my hand, "Ugh, you know what? Screw it!" I uncovered my face. "Do you think Norman is a zombie?"
"Oh, so that's what this is about," Stan laughed. "Kid, like I told Dipper, all that stuff isn't real."
I shot my arms in the air, startling Stan a bit, "Oh, come on, Stan! Work with me here! We both know you're not an idiot, so would you stop acting like one?" Stan stared blankly at me, "I know you know the supernatural exists. The only reason why you don't want to admit it is because you want to protect people from it." I crossed my arms again with a solemn expression. "You're an old guy, no offense, and I bet you've been here for a while, so it would only make sense that you've seen at least something. I haven't even been here for a full day, and I've seen some unnatural stuff!"
"I have no idea what you're talking about, none-"
I cut him off, "Yes, you do. I'm not going to tell the twins about this conversation, you can deny it all you want to them, but as their caretaker, I need to be on the same page with you. So, would you please give me an honest answer?"
Stan gave a long, irritated sigh, "Fine...yes...this town is full of unnatural and unholy things. I wouldn't be all that surprised if that Norman kid is a zombie, either. What should we do about that?"
I waved a hand at him, "Dipper and I have it under control. He's out right now with them, gathering evidence."
Stan pinched the bridge of his nose, "So let me get this straight, right now, my grandniece and nephew are in the unsupervised presence of a potential zombie, and the person that I assigned to supervise them is right in front of me telling me about the situation and nowhere near where he should be."
I scoffed, "What?!" No, of course not." Stan looked at me unamused, "They're in public. There's plenty of supervision there. If Norman were really dangerous, he would have eaten her brain the first time they met."
I turned and started walking to the door, but Stan spoke up when my hand reached the door knob. His face was earnest. "Matt, if anything happens to them, I'm holding you responsible. Got it?"
I opened the door and looked back at him, "Don't worry, . I promise that they'll be fine." And with that, I was out of the room. Funny, it took an entire season to get Stan to admit to the supernatural, and I just got him to say it exists in under five minutes.
I returned to the attic bedroom and shut the door behind me. All I needed to do was wait until Dipper came back. I took the journal out of its hiding place, sat on my bed, and began to look through its supernatural content. I have no idea how often Dipper will let me look through this journal, so I need to refresh my memory on what this crazy town has in store for me. I purchased my own copy of journal number three a while back and I remember knowing that it has basically all the information that I need to be aware that the Mystery Shack once belonged to the author. When I decide to, which I know I will at some point, I can probably get Stan to reveal the portal to me. I always used to watch the theory videos of Stan having a twin brother, so I knew where to look for evidence that Stan was hiding something. He will try to deny that he is indeed hiding something, but I am determined that I will get into that lab before Stan gets arrested, one way or another.
But honestly, I don't even know if all of the crazy things the Pines family will encounter this summer will happen. So far, I've already managed to speed up several plot points and dialogue from the show just by my presence. Would it really be so far-fetched to say that other things will change? I'm not sure. I looked back down to the journal lying open in my lap. "One thing at a time," I sighed to myself. The gnomes that we will encounter in a few hours, I have never dealt with anything like that in my life. I always feel like I would be the person to run towards danger to protect those I care about, but I've never been in that kind of situation before. Would I put myself in harm's way to protect others? I'm not sure.
With frustration growing, I ran my hands through my hair and groaned. "Screw my overthinking brain, man. I hate it when I do that," I muttered to myself. I began looking through the book again, Moth Man, scampfires, barf fairies, the abominable bro-man, 'Steve?' The fact that these are now real things completely baffles me, and the fact that I have a chance to see them is even more shocking. I got through half of the journal, mostly skimming over Ford's experiences and thoroughly reviewing the creatures he had documented.
A couple of hours had passed and I was so lost in my reading that I nearly jumped out of my skin when I heard the door creek open. Slightly panicked, I tossed the journal under Mabel's bed and then turned to see who was entering. My expression eased substantially when I realized it was only Dipper and not a certain old man. I pulled the recently discarded journal out from underneath the bed beside me and smiled. "How did it go? Find any proof that Norman is in fact not a normal man?"
Dipper sighed and walked over to his bed with the video camera by his side. "No, I didn't get anything." He looked down to the floor once he sat down. "It seems that Mabel's boyfriend isn't a zombie." I frowned slightly at his response, but he quickly perked up and stated, "But I haven't given up hope. There is something definitely wrong with that guy, but for now, let's just stick with the assumption that he is one."
Our eyes flew to the open door as we saw Mabel, in high spirits, skip into the room with a grand smile on her face. She walked right over to a full-body mirror in the corner of the room, grabbed a brush, and began to groom her hair. Dipper stood up and walked over to his sister, "Mabel, we've got to talk about Norman."
"Isn't he the best?" She replied dreamily. "Check out this giant smooch mark he gave me." Mabel turned her head and showed us a large red mark on her right cheek, making me cringe, and Dipper gave a yelp. That thing kind of does look like a zombie mark. "Ha ha, Gullible! It was just an accident with the leaf blower." When did she even have time to do that? "That was fun," Mabel remmonissed.
Dipper slapped a hand onto his forehead, "No, Mabel, listen! I'm trying to tell you that Norman is not what he seems!"
I revealed the journal to her, getting her attention, "Mabel, I know that you're super stoked about having an 'epic summer romance,' but you have to think about this more."
She gasped lightly, "Do you think he could be a vampire? That would be so awesome!" She pumped her hands forward and shook her fists wildly.
Dipper shook his head, and I tossed the journal to him. Surprisingly, he caught it. "Guess again, sister. Sha-bam!" He opened the book to reveal a gnome to Mabel, making her reel back in disgust. "Oh wait, I'm sorry." Oh, the irony. "Sha-bam!" He flipped the pages to show his sister Ford's sketch of a zombie.
Mabel put her fists on her hips, "A zombie? That is not funny, guys!"
I wanted to get in on this too, so I stood up, prompting them both to look at me. "We're not Joking! It all adds up: The bleeding, the limp…"
I let Dipper cut me off, "He never blinks! Have you noticed that?" Dipper was in full freak-out mode now.
"Maybe he's blinking when you're blinking," Mabel said, trying to calm her brother down.
Dipper only grew more frantic at her response, "Mabel, the book says to trust no one in Gravity Falls!"
"What about me, huh? Why can't you trust me? Beep-bop!" Where did those earrings come from? She's trying to be reasonable, she really is, but Dipper won't back down.
He grabbed both of Mabel's shoulders, "Mabel! He's going to eat your brain!"
Mabel took her brother's hands off her shoulders. The anger on her face was growing. She has had enough of his speculation. "Dipper, listen to me. Norman and I are going on an actual date within the hour," She hit him in the chest. "And I'm gonna be adorable, and he's gonna be dreamy. And I'm not going to let you ruin it with one of your crazy conspiracies!" She had backed Dipper completely out of the room and was about to slam the door on him, but she turned to face me. I didn't need any commands. I grabbed the camera off Dipper's bed and walked out the door. As soon as I was clear, the door was slammed.
Dipper looked to the floor, and I touched his shoulder, "No point staying up here anymore." I let go of him and walked to the staircase. "C'mon, let's go downstairs. I still want to see the footage. Maybe you missed something." Once we reached the T.V. room, I gestured for him to sit on the couch and handed him the camera. I hovered above him, waiting for the oh-so-shocking moment.
Dipper had recorded everything. I'm pretty sure that there was only one really long clip. He's still got a lot to learn. After we were about ten minutes into the footage, the doorbell rang. This feels so unnatural. The plot is progressing too fast. We heard Mabel shout that she was coming to the door. She was now wearing a very sparkly sweater with a large cat face on the front, and when she opened the door, Mabel showed it off proudly.
Dipper and I looked over to see Mabel excitedly talking to her boyfriend. "Hey, Norman! How do I look?" The sparkles of her sweater nearly closed my eyes to the other side of the room.
Norman just shrugged, "Shiny."
"You always know what to say," Mabel said, taking his arm and leading him away from the shack.
Dipper rolled his eyes and groaned in frustration, "This is so stupid! Everything about that guy makes no sense! He and Mabel have been on five dates in the past few hours!" His arms were waving wildly as he was ranting. "That's unnatural!" He returned his arms to his sides and began watching the video again. After a few seconds, he fast-forwarded the clip, "Soos is right." He fast-forwarded again. "I don't have any real evidence." Again, he fast-forwarded. "I don't have any real evidence. I guess I can be kind of paranoid sometimes, and…" There it was, Norman's right hand fell clean off. "Wait! WHAT?!" I took the camera from him and rewound it.
"That's definitely not normal," I said, pressing play to watch the misleading evidence again.
Dipper jumped off the couch in such a rush of energy that he knocked the couch back. He didn't even realize it. I extended my left arm to steady the couch and set it back down without looking away from the camera. "I was right. Oh my gosh!" He yelled.
He was about to run out of the room to chase after them, but my voice made him stop. "Dipper, we need to be smart about this." He calmed down and nodded. "I'll go get the golf cart, and you go warn Stan." Apparently, he had not calmed down one bit. He exited the room quickly, almost running into the wall, yelling his grunkle's name frantically.
Meet me out front!" I called after him. Swiftly, I made my way out of the shack through the gift shop, remembering that Wendy should be returning from whatever she had been doing. To my relief, I was correct, and I ran outside over to her. My rapid approach startled her a bit as she exited the golf cart. "Wendy!" I yelled, practically in her face.
"Dude, calm down. There's no need to yell. I'm literally right in front of you," She said with a slightly worried look.
I completely disregarded her concern. I have been advancing the show's events like crazy this past day. Mabel could be in some serious trouble with those gnomes right now. "I need to borrow the golf cart so that I can save Mabel from a zombie!"
Wendy crossed her arms and gave me a look of amusement, "Try not to hit any pedestrians." She tossed me the keys and walked away. I wasted no time. As soon as I was seated in the cart, I thrust the keys into the ignition and started the engine. I shouldn't be taking risks like this. These characters are people now, if they are in real danger, I'm stepping in from now on.
Making my way around the shack to where Stan was giving a tour, I spotted Dipper in the group trying to get his great uncle's attention. "Dipper!" I yelled, making him turn towards me. "Let's go!" Stan had also heard me, and he locked his eyes with mine. He had to know that something is up. Dipper ran over to the cart, and once he got in, I was about to drive off, but I realized that Soos was right in front of us.
He stepped aside and pulled out a shovel, "This is for the zombies."
"Thanks," Dipper said, taking the weapon from him and setting it down by his feet.
Soos bent down, picked up a wooden bat, and handed it to me, "And this is in case you see a pinata."
Dipper and I exchanged looks. "Thanks," I added reluctantly. Now with the large man clear and out of the way, I floored the gas pedal.
Once I pulled onto a path that led into the woods, Dipper turned and asked me, "Do you have any idea where they are?" Over the roar of the engine, I could barely hear him.
I didn't look at him. My eyes stayed on the windy dirt road ahead, "They didn't close the door when they left. I saw them go this way." The path started to straighten out, allowing me to look at Dipper. "We will find your sister, I promise." Suddenly we heard a high-pitched cry for help. My eyes darted back to the road. "Speaking of which." I turned to the right where we heard Mabel's call. That is a good thing, too. We would have gone right off a cliff if I kept going straight. I kept following the road downhill and into a small grotto. There we saw gnomes jumping all over and around Mabel.
I drove Dipper and me to a close distance for a quick escape and we both hopped out.
"What the heck is going on here?!" Dipper asked, gripping the shovel for protection. A gnome stopped and hissed at us, startling him. So I decided to do what any rational person would do in that situation. I kicked it into the tree line. The other gnome's attention was only on Mabel, so they were completely unaware of our approach.
Mabel was having trouble fending off the gnomes by herself, "Guys! Norman turned out to be a bunch of gnomes! And they're total jerks!" She began hitting them harder, and one grabbed her brunette locks. "Uhh! Hair! Hair!"
That's it. I know Dipper is about to try and reason with the red and blue little monsters, but that doesn't matter. Now that they were trying to tie her down, I acted impulsively. I ran over to her, which I'm sure hurt because of my bruises, but I couldn't tell because of the amount of adrenaline running through me. Jeff turned around, and I picked him up, making him scream in terror. I threw him to where I kicked the other gnome, which was not my best idea. Actually, scratch that. That was my worst idea. The rest of Jeff's followers heard him scream over their heads. They looked at me with feral eyes. My face fell. "Oh boy."
The group of gnomes all charged at me, but Mabel was now free. "Mabel! Get to the golf cart! I'll be right behind you!" I yelled as I caught a gnome who jumped at my face. I knew she didn't want to leave me alone, but she made her way to her brother unharmed. Me, on the other hand, is a different story. After I caught the first gnome, I threw him at a couple of his comrades, which surprisingly took them out. Another gnome jumped at me, but since my arms were already outstretched, I acted fast and brought both fists down on his head, sending him to the ground with a loud thud.
The other gnomes halted their approach. Realizing that they couldn't take me on alone. I looked back to the twins, Dipper was examining his sister for serious injuries, and Mabel was watching me in awe. I turned back to the threat before me and found that they were still regrouping, this was our chance to retreat to the cart. I slowly backpedaled away from the angered gnomes, and the twins started doing the same once I got closer. "On three we bolt to the cart," I said to them quietly. They nodded in agreement, prompting me to start. "One…" The cart was a few yards away, but any sudden movements would get the gnomes to charge again. "Two…" The gnomes started to notice our withdrawal. "Three!" All three of us turned and sprinted the final stretch to the cart, I could have said that more quietly, but that wouldn't matter anyway. The gnomes were already charging.
The three of us successfully entered the golf cart and I took the wheel. Screw seatbelts! There is going to be a mob of angry gnomes on us in a few seconds! I shifted gears into reverse just as some of the gnomes jumped at us. Gaining momentum, I maneuvered our way out of the grotto backward, and once we reached the dirt path I quickly spun the wheel making us do a one hundred eighty degree turn. I quickly switched gears. "Gun it!" Mabel yelled, she didn't need to tell me twice. Now that we were back on the path and gaining speed, I let out a breath I had no idea I was keeping in.
Dipper noticed that I wasn't slowing down, "Matt, I think we lost them. You can let up on the gas."
I shook my head, "Dipper, while I was trying to learn more about zombies earlier, I found out that gnomes are much more dangerous than they appear." The cart rumbled fiercely, and it wasn't because of uneven terrain. The twins' heads slowly turned to look at the road behind, and I continued speaking, eyes glued to the road ahead, "When the gnomes of the forest are assembled, they can create-" A loud roar of terror cut me off. "...That."
"Dang," Mabel said with her mouth wide open. I didn't need to look back, I knew that a thirty foot creature of unimaginable horror was now hot on our heels. The twins by themselves in the show narrowly avoided being pounded to a pulp, but now with me in the cart and my extra weight, the cart can't reach its maximum speed. Some gnomes were thrown at our golf cart. I heard them land on top of the roof. If they keep landing up there, we'll be going slower and slower. I swerved, and they fell of,f but now we had lost crucial speed. "Looks like my question is about to be answered," I said under my breath.
With my right hand, I let go of the steering wheel with my right hand and picked up the bat by my feet. Dipper sat next to me, his eyes glued to the gaining gnomes behind us. I was about to put my last worst idea to shame. "Dipper!" He's attention snapped to me and his eyes widened even more when he realized that I was holding the bat.
He looked at me like I was insane, "What are you-"
"I need you to take the wheel!" I cut him off, he grabbed the steering wheel, and I started to climb over the seat to get in the back.
I was halfway over, Dipper's foot was slammed on the pedal now and he looked back at me and yelled, "What are you doing?!" Mabel swerved the cart to the right to avoid crashing because her brother was focused on me.
His hazel eyes were filled with fear, and I just smiled at him and said, "Something really stupid." And with that, I pulled the rest of my body into the back of the speeding cart. "Well, this is about the dumbest thing I've ever done. You want these kids?" I stood up straight and hoisted the baseball bat as Jeff unleashed another barrage of gnomes upon us, "Then you're going to have to get through me you giant conehead!" I swung at my attackers, knocking out some of their teeth in the process. However I wasn't able to stop all of them, one got past and landed on the hood of the cart. I heard the gnome screech as it jumped at Dipper, flailing and scratching in random directions. Luckily, Mabel was there to punch the now-latched gnome off of Dipper's face. I saw the gnome with Dipper's hat fly into the woods out of the corner of my eye.
Even after the attack, Dipper had been doing an exceptionally good job at keeping the cart steady for me to knock the airborne gnomes out of the way. Of course, when my confidence was growing, it gets shut down. Jeff stopped and lifted a nearby pine tree clean out of the ground and chucked it like a javelin right at us. My eyes widened as I watched the tree sail, rather majestically, above us and then crashed on the path ahead.
I threw the bat at the giant gnome monster in a last ditch effort to slow it down. It just bounced right off with no effect. I turned, grabbed the cart as hard as I could with both hands, and braced for Dipper's next move. As I predicted, he swerved out of the way and lost all control. The shack was just ahead. We were so close. The cart started to tip over while we were still in motion and, despite my tight grip, I was flung off like a bull rider. Once my body impacted the ground, I involuntarily slid on my face and to a halt. Great, just when I was starting to feel better.
I raised my gaze to see the cart on its side, with Dipper and Mabel slowly crawling away from it. At least they wore seatbelts. When they both got to their feet, they ran over to help me stand, even though the gnome monster was coming closer. Dipper spotted the shovel that Soos had given him earlier, and once I was able to stand, he picked it up and aimed it at the gnomes.
"Stay back, man!" Dipper yelled as he threw the lawn tool at the advancing enemy. The giant monster punched it into the ground with a roar, making Dipper and Mabel scream.
I stepped out in front of them and slightly spread my arms to shield them.
Jeff laughed at my defensive position, "Look at you, bravely protecting these two children. Too bad you actually can't do anything. You're only a dumb human!"
I squinted at the insult, Mabel was now holding onto my arm, and Dipper was furiously searching through the journal for a solution to our predicament. "At least I don't take squirrel baths to clean myself," I sneered, making the gnomes gasp.
"W-What no I don't! Who told you about that?!" Jeff yelled, super flustered. "You know what, that doesn't even matter! Mabel, marry us before we do something crazy!"
Dipper flipped faster and faster through the journal's pages, searching for something we could use. "There's got to be a way out of this."
Mabel stepped forward from behind me and said with a serious tone, "I gotta do it."
Dipper's eyes flew to his sister, and quickly pocketed the journal. "What!? Mabel, don't do this! Are you crazy?" He was now right beside his sister, his voice frantic.
"Trust me," was all that she said in response.
Dipper looked at Mabel incredulously, "What?!"
"Dipper," Mabel said in a whisper. "Just this once...Trust me." Seeing that his sister was sincere, he backed away and stood behind me again. Mabel, once again, stepped forward, "All right Jeff, I'll marry you."
Jeff made the entire monster jump for joy. "Hot dog!" He started to climb down from the top of his colony, "Help me down there, Jason. Thanks. Andy, left foot, there we go, watch those fingers, Mike." The head gnome exited through the monster's foot and brought out a box containing quite a beautiful ring. He excitedly approached Mabel, pointing to the ring's jewel. "Ehh? Ehh?" Mabel knelt down and let Jeff place the ring on her finger. "Bada-bing, bada-bam!" Jeff said while doing a little victory dance. "Now let's get you back into the forest, honey"
He was about to lead the way, but Mabel's voice made him stop in his tracks, "You may now kiss the bride." Dipper displayed a look of horror on his face and was about to intervene, but I held him back.
Jeff turned around and awkwardly said, "Well, uh, don't mind if I do." He closed his eyes, puckered his lips, and Mabel reached into the leaves beside her.
Looking over my shoulder to Dipper, I said, "Looks like her 'kissing practice' is about to pay off." Clarity dawned over Dipper's face, and I turned back to face the two.
Mabel flicked on the leaf blower, and to everybody's surprise, except mine, started to suck Jeff into it. "Whoa! Whoa!" He said, frightened. "W-What's going on?"
Despite his best effort, the little gnome could not escape the pull of the leaf blower. "That's for lying to me!" Mabel yelled as Jeff got stuck in the machine. She then turned the leaf blower to full reverse power, squishing Jeff even more, yelling, "That's for breaking my heart!"
"Ow! My face!" He yelled.
Mabel casually walked over to Dipper and me. She held the leaf blower up to me, and I gladly took it while she aimed it toward the rest of the gnomes. "And this for messing with my brother!" She turned her head and looked at Dipper. "Wanna do the honors?"
Dipper set a hand on the power dial and said, "On three."
"One, two, three!" we all said in unison, and Dipper switched the power to forward, sending Jeff flying out of the machine like a cannonball right through the monster's chest. I held them both steady to ensure that we didn't fall back.
Jeff, extremely infuriated, yelled, "I'll get you back for this!" He soared through the air back into the enchanted part of the forest. The gnomes, now scattered and helpless without their leader, looked around, very confused. Mabel then took the leaf blower from my grasp and pushed the remaining gnomes away.
"Anyone else want some?" I said with a cocky smirk and crossed arms. They all bolted like little chipmunks back into the forest, except for one who got stuck in plastic rings and was about to become Gompers' chew toy. The poor little gnome screamed as the goat carried him away in its mouth.
All three of us were a mess. Leaves were bunched up in our hair, we had dirt all over us, and multiple tears in our clothes. Dipper, wanting to go inside and wash up, went through the gift shop entrance but was stopped by his sister. "Hey, Dipper. I, um, I'm sorry for ignoring your advice. You really were just looking out for me."
Dipper waved a hand through the air, "Oh, don't be like that. You saved our butts back there." I smiled at the sincerity of the twins' words.
Mabel plucked a leaf from her hair and threw it away, "I guess I'm just sad that my first boyfriend turned out to be a bunch of gnomes."
"Look on the bright side," Dipper started. "Maybe the next one will be a vampire."
Mabel genuinely laughed at her brother's response and gave him a light punch to the arm, "You're just saying that."
Dipper outstretched his arms. "Awkward sibling hug?" He asked with a small voice crack, almost making me laugh and ruin the sweet moment.
"Awkward sibling hug," Mabel repeated, and they both received each other with open arms.
"Pat, pat," They said in a monotone unison.
I was about to walk past the two of them and into the shack but Mabel stopped me, "Matt, you're not going anywhere!" With surprising strength, Mabel pulled me into the heartfelt exchange, making Dipper laugh. I had no choice but to hug back with a big smile.
When we entered the shack, we saw that Stan was now manning the register. Once the door was closed, we just stared at each other until he spoke up, "Sheesh! You guys get hit by a bus or somethin'?" Stan slammed his hand down on the desk, "Aha!" The twins wore very unamused faces, and I crossed my arms. It sure feels like I did! Dipper and Mabel began to walk away from their great uncle. I softly cleared my throat so that only Stan would hear and gestured to his niece and nephew. "Uh, hey!" He said, grabbing their attention again. He rubbed the back of his head, "W-Wouldn't you know it? Um, I accidentally overstacked some inventory, so, uh, how's about each of you take one item from the gift shop on the house."
Mabel turned and clasped her hands together, "Really?"
Dipper wasn't convinced, "What's the catch?"
Stan, now avoiding eye contact, responded, "The catch is do it before I change my mind. Now take something." He hit the register next to him and started filing cash into it. The twins started browsing, and I smiled at Stan's hidden affection. "That means all of you." Stan said, now looking at me. "Looks like ya did good today, kid, all things considered."
My smile grew, "Wow, thanks, Stan."
"Yup, anything for my grand nephew," Stan said with a serious face and a wink. Wait what.
With wide eyes, Mabel turned to Stan and me, "We're related?"
Stan put a hand on my shoulder, "Yeah, we didn't want to tell you guys earlier. It would have made things awkward if I had told you when you first arrived. Matt here will be staying with us as well. Hope ya don't mind."
The twins looked at me with big smiles, "Looks like we're going to be roommates. Heh, yay." I eyed Stan, and he gave me a smirk. It wasn't a bad plan, telling them that I was another great-nephew, but I feel like they might find out that I'm not at all related to them eventually. "I hope this doesn't change anything between us."
Dipper scoffed, "Dude, are you serious? Of course, it won't, especially after today!" Both twins came over to hug me again, and I looked at Stan and mouthed, 'Thank you.' He gave me a thumbs-up and went back to work.
After a few seconds, they pulled away, and I asked, "Did you see anything you like?" Mabel quickly ran off to scour the shelves again, and Dipper calmly walked over to the blue and white pine tree hats on a nearby shelf. He picked it up and placed it on top of his head. Dipper looked in the mirror next to him, "That oughta to do the trick!" I glanced over to Mabel, who was peering into a box in the corner.
She reached in, "And I will have a…" She extravagantly held the item in the air. "Grappling hook! Yes!"
Stan and Dipper exchanged looks while I just smiled and shook my head. "Wouldn't you rather have a doll or something?" Stan asked.
Mabel displayed a serious face and shot her new obsession into the ceiling, yelling, "Grappling hook!"
"Fair enough!" Stan said in response.
Now it was my turn to search for something. I didn't want anything stupid, like one of those bobbleheads. I want something cool. I soon realized I was in the wrong place for a wish like that.
A little while later, Dipper, Mabel, and I were in the attic bedroom, clean and in a fresh set of clothes. I was wearing clean gym clothes that I was taking home from school, a red T-shirt and black shorts. Dipper wore the same thing he had on today, minus the vest. He had multiple copies of the same outfit that he had brought with him to Gravity Falls. He probably thinks that he's like Einstein or something. Mabel had a sweater with a floppy disc proudly displayed on the front of it.
I was lying on my "bed" with my arms behind my head, looking at the ceiling. It was too early to sleep, so we were trying to think of something to do. My eyes lit up with an idea, not an original idea, but an idea nonetheless. "What if you write about things we encounter in the journal, Dipper? I think that would be pretty cool." Since Dipper had pretty much no alone time so far with the book, he was happy to do it.
"How should I start it?" He asked, grabbing a pen and journal from the nightstand above me. The next few hours were filled with conversation on what to include in the journal, and Dipper had changed his introduction several times, he had changed the story of how we found the journal several times, and he changed his description of himself several times. At first, he wasn't being very honest with what he was writing, but Mabel and I pointed him in the right direction. He wrote about his birthmark, and I was pretty surprised when he willingly decided to tell me about it. He gave a description of Mabel and then me, which was more emotional than I thought it would be. I'm officially becoming a part of this town's history. Next, he went into detail about the whole adventure we had today and even drew a picture of me kicking the gnome into the forest, which was very amusing.
"'This journal told me there was no one in Gravity Falls I could trust. But when you battle a hundred gnomes side by side with your sister and someone you just met, you realize that they've probably always got your back.'" Dipper had been reading aloud what he had included in his writing to both of us. I nodded, indicating my approval.
"Preach it, Dipping-Sauce!" Mabel yelled with excitement making me and Dipper laugh.
"'Grunkle Stan told us there was nothing strange about this town, but who knows what other secrets are waiting to be unlocked?'"
I nodded again, "Solid, Dipper. Solid."
Dipper smiled, closed, and set aside the journal, "I say that's a good place to leave it for now." He turned to his sister, "Hey, Mabel, can you get the light?"
She pulled out her grappling gun and cocked it, "I'm on it." She took aim, fired it at the electric lantern illuminating the room, and pulled the trigger. While it did take out the light, it made a hole in the window behind it, making the three of us laugh. I wonder how many times that glass will break this summer.
I closed my eyes and sighed happily, "Good night, you knuckleheads." Sure these kids might be from a show, but now, they're living, breathing human beings that I am responsible for.
A/N
That was a long chapter! Thanks for sitting through it, it means a lot to me. I'm pretty sure that the other chapters I write won't be as long as this one, because this chapter was mostly used for relationship building and I know that some of the lines and settings don't match up with the show, but I decided to take my creative liberty and make the twins find the journal and begin their journey on the first day in Gravity Falls so that my story can get right into the actual story. I don't actually know where the Mall is on the map so it was made next to the cemetery for convenience. Thanks again for reading!