Hey there readers! A couple of quick notes before the chapter starts. I've been getting a few questions regarding this story, so I'm just going to answer them right here:
1. Yes, Dipper and Mabel do exist, and the fact that they aren't at the Mystery Shack is a plot point in and of itself (they've already shown up in the story, shhh). They haven't been mentioned yet because those who know about them don't trust the UA students enough to tell them, and the students don't know enough to ask about them. This will change later on.
2. People have been asking why there are episodes from season two so early on in the story, and if the rest of season one is being skipped over. No, season one will still happen. But because our four main characters have much more reason and drive to solve the mysteries of Gravity Falls than Dipper and Mabel, they're discovering things much faster than the twins did. This chapter is based on a season two episode, and the next one won't be based on any episode, but after that we'll be seeing more season one adventures.
3. Speaking of episodes, not every episode from Gravity Falls will show up in this story, simply because Izuku, Ochako, Shouto, and Mina are different than Dipper and Mabel. Double Dipper, for instance, won't be a chapter here, because Candy, Grenda, and Pacifica have already been established, and none of the four students would think of using the copy machine to make clones of themselves, so it would be pointless to write about. Many episodes will still show up though, so don't worry.
4. When it comes to romance, that is the only part of the story I've yet to plan out. The Mystery Crew may end up with each other, or they may end up with someone from the town. I honestly don't know yet. In fact, if people have suggestions, I'd be glad to hear them. Keep in mind, though, that everyone just met each other a few weeks ago, so any romance would be a ways away.
With all that said, sorry for the long intro
The sun rose on another beautiful Gravity Falls morning. Birds sang, flowers bloomed, manotaurs chased a bear with multiple heads around the forest, and four friends gathered in the town's most popular tourist trap.
"Alright gang!" Izuku set the newly fixed laptop down on the kitchen table with a loud thud. It was still cracked and rusted in places, and there was a lot of tape holding it together, but it would hopefully work anyways. "Soos fixed up the laptop! And now we finally get to see what's inside."
"About time," Shouto said, leaning forward. "I'm so ready to get out of this place and go back home."
Ochako gave a small laugh. "Aw, it's not that bad. Not that I don't want to go home too," she added hastily at their friend's expression. "But you have to admit, we had a lot of fun here in Gravity Falls."
"And we still have four days before the puppet show," Mina added. "Even if we do uncover a way to get home, we should finish that first."
"We did promise to help," Izuku agreed, ignoring Shouto's glare. "What kind of heroes would we be if we went back on a promise to help a group of little kids?"
"Heroes that found our way home," Shouto snarked, but left it at that. Izuku shook his head and opened up the laptop. The computer itself was bulky, and it definitely looked like something from a long time ago. A large sticker saying 'Property of F' was stuck across the top of the inside. Was the author named something that started with an 'F'?
Izuku pressed 'ON', and the screen lit up with a green glow, words and numbers appearing and running down the screen itself. Small green boxes lit up, one right after the other until the computer had fully loaded. Lines and spirals appeared, twisting around until they made four small circles on the corners, and a circle inside a triangle in the center. The top of the screen said 'Welcome'.
Ochako bounced around her seat in excitement. "It worked! We really are the Mystery Crew!"
"I say that once, and now apparently it's our catchphrase," Shouto complained. He had a small smile on his face, however, and Izuku knew he was just as excited as the rest of them.
Then the screen flashed red. "Uh! Unauthorized access, password needed!" Mina groaned. "The age old enemy of anyone who wants to snoop in another's stuff."
Shouto glared at the laptop. "Seriously? After all that, we're still not even in the computer yet?"
"It makes sense," Izuku reasoned. "This is the author we're talking about, and you saw how many traps and defense mechanisms he had in the bunker. It isn't that surprising that he'd use a passcode for his computer, where he might've hidden even more stuff."
"You've got a point there." Ochako hummed to herself for a moment, looking at the screen. "It's eight letters, right? What about password? That's eight letters, it could fit!" She turned the laptop towards herself and typed in her guess. Unfortunately nothing came out of it, as a beeping noise informed them that the guess was incorrect.
"Hey, it was a good guess!" Mina encouraged her, stepping on Shouto's foot before he could say anything.
"There's around seven million eight letter words, if I remember correctly," Izuku mused. "That's a lot of material to cover for four people, especially since we can only enter one guess at a time."
Mina looked at him with surprise. "How did you even know that?" Izuku flushed awkwardly.
"I-um, I read a bunch of the cryptology books that were in the library a few days ago. The author writes a lot of his notes in the journal in code, so I was looking up how to decipher them."
"What if the password is a code, and not a word at all?" Shouto said allowed. The four of them looked at each other in silence for a moment.
Ochako gave a helpless shrug. "...We should probably just start by trying words out anyways." The other three quickly agreed. If it is a code, Izuku thought grimly, we may never be able to crack it. There are just too many different options to try, and since all we know about the author is from what they wrote in the journals, the passcode could refer to something we've never even heard of before.
He shook his head. That didn't matter. As much as Izuku enjoyed it here, he needed to get home, to his mom and to All Might, and so that he could become the hero he always wanted to be.
"We should start typing then," Shouto said suddenly, grabbing the laptop and pulling it towards himself. "Let's start by trying out any eight letter words that pertain to the supernatural. The author is more likely to use words that come from his work."
"Smart thinking!" Ochako leaned over his shoulder. "What about…. Wondrous? Conjured? Darkness?"
Shouto typed all of them in, but each time, the laptop beeped. "We should probably go to the library. They're sure to have some books that could help us."
"Speaking of going places." Mina checked her watch. It was a cheap model, as the four had used some of their money from the photo contest to buy themselves things like watches, and had picked out the most affordable ones they could find. "It's almost nine, we need to head down to the beach to help with the puppet show."
"Ochako jumped out of her chair. "That's right! We need to go!"
"We literally just started working on the laptop." Shouto reminded them, exasperation filling his voice.
But Mina already had a counter argument lined up. "And like Izuku said, there are literally millions of different eight letter words. A couple of days working on a project that will make some kids happy is nothing."
"Don't worry," Izuku tried to assure his friend. "Once the play is over, we'll get straight to work on the laptop, I promise! All of us want to go home, but if we panic over it, it won't lead us anywhere." He hoped that would convince Shouto.
Shouto hesitated for a few moments more, looking back and forth between them and the laptop. After a few tense seconds, he sighed and got to his feet, closing and picking up the laptop as he did so. He tucked the device under his arm. "Fine, I'll help. But I'm working on this every chance I get, even if I have to do it alone."
"It's a deal!" Izuku smiled, relieved. "Just don't push yourself too hard, okay? Like I said, we'll help you when the puppet show is all over."
"Hmm." Shouto pushed past him and walked out the door. Izuku winced as the other boy went. If only there was something he could say to convince Shouto that they all meant well! But when it came to the red-and-white haired boy, he came up empty on good ideas. He just didn't know enough about Shouto to have a real heart to heart with the other teen.
"Welp, you heard him. Let's go!" Mina jogged out the door and quickly caught up to Shouto, engaging him in a conversation about the two's most recent adventure. Izuku could see Shouto respond with a softness the other boy rarely showed.
Izuku and Ochako followed them. "It's nice that those two are getting along a lot better," Ochako commented. "I was kind of worried there for a while."
"Yeah, me too." Now if only Izuku could talk to him like that!
"Double time, everyone!" Miss Miller called out, walking between the different tables of teenagers and preteens working on puppets and sets. "We have four days left, so we have to make them count!"
Ochako outfitted her current puppet with its tiny jacket, which had been carefully made by Izuku. "Is it just me, or are there a lot less people here today than the days before?" She had noticed that when they first walked up to the group, how many tables where empty, especially when it came to those working on the sets.
"Oh, they're still helping!" Candy assured her. "They're just moving some of the set pieces over to where the show will take place. No big deal."
Izuku smiled. "That's a relief. I was worried people dropped out right before the show began, but I guess we're all good."
"Yeah. And if they had, a certain someone might have to actually work on the puppet show." Grenda looked pointedly over at the other end of the table. "I mean you, Shouto." Shouto didn't even dignify her words with a response, continuing to type. Grenda frowned, looking a little hurt. "At least stop with the beeping noise! It's getting on my nerves!"
"Please?" Izuku begged him. "You can work on it afterwards, just help us for now!"
Shouto looked as though he wanted to argue, but must've realized that they were all going to continue bugging him to help, because he said: "Fine. Just for now." The other two girls cheered, and Ochako couldn't help but laugh and cheer along with them.
She also couldn't help but notice how frazzled Shouto was looking. The sudden observation caught her by surprise, and she took a closer look at her friend. Sure enough, there were bags underneath his eyes, and his clothes were rumpled in ways they hadn't been before. Ochako felt a twinge of guilt; Shouto was obviously taking everything harder than the rest of them. How had she not noticed before?
Once this puppet show is over, we'll all help as much as we can with the laptop, she decided. But for now, she grabbed a puppet and tossed it to Shouto. "Here, can you put googly eyes on this one?"
"Yes," Shouto said flatly. "I can in fact put googly eyes on a sock puppet."
"Good! Then let's get this done!"
"Look, I appreciate the dedication to figuring out the password, I really do," Mina yawned from in her bed. "But none of us can get to sleep with that beeping noise." It was nighttime, and the only light in the room came from the full moon outside, and from the green screen of the laptop, which flashed red every few seconds as Shouto tried another eight letter passcode. Izuku buried himself in his sleeping bag, pressing the sides against his ears as he tried to sleep.
"Sorry about that." Shouto pulled on a sweatshirt jacket, picked up the laptop, as well as scraps of paper with different ideas for the password on them, and made his way out of the attic. "I'll work downstairs."
"You should get some sleep," Izuku suggested. "You stayed up all of the last three nights as well. That's not really good for you." After a moment, he added, "You can always work on the laptop more in the morning."
"Not when you three are making me work on puppets all day." Bitterness seemed to seep into Shouto's voice. "I said I'd work on this by myself if I needed to, and I will. Go back to sleep, I'm going downstairs."
Izuku watched him go. Should he say something? Convince him to stay somehow? But the door closed shut behind Shouto, and Izuku had said nothing that could change his friend's mind. He balled up the sleeping bag in his fists in frustration. Why was there nothing he could say or do to help Shouto? Was he really that useless?"
"Deku, I can hear you thinking from here," Ochako murmured, head half buried in her pillow. "Please go to sleep."
"Oh, s-sorry." Izuku rolled over and closed his eyes, but the lack of both beeping noises and Shouto shifting around next to him was deafening in and of itself.
Shouto crept downstairs to the kitchen, only to find Stan snoring in one of the chairs, his head face first down on the kitchen table. Shouto grimaced, knowing he'd never be able to concentrate with that amount of noise going on, even if he went to the living room. But it wasn't like he could go back upstairs, he'd just get told off by the other students again.
The rooftop. He hadn't been up there since that day with Wendy and the ghosts, but it was as good of a spot as any to work uninterrupted. Shouto went into the gift shop and pulled down the ladder. Tucking the papers and laptop under his arm, he climbed up to the roof and over the side, to where Wendy's icebox, chair, and umbrella were situated. He debated on sitting in the chair, but in the end decided to just sit on the edge of the roof, dangling his legs over the edge.
Academic….Abstract….Bulletin….Equation….Nothing. Absolutely nothing. Shouto groaned and ran a hand through his hair. Just another useless guess, like all the rest of them. He put another word in and got the same beeping noise he had with all the others. Shouto was starting to despise that noise.
He shouldn't be doing this alone. The other three students should be helping him. He wouldn't have to stay up all night long for a bunch of nights in a row if the others would just forget their stupid puppet project and help him! Here Shouto was, spending night after night worrying about getting home, and then working on the laptop that could send them there, while the other three people he was trapped with here making fools of themselves.
And yet I've gotten nowhere. I really am useless without my quirk. Shouto tried to shake the thought away and failed. He buried his head in his hands. Why could he never do anything right in this place?
He missed Fuyumi. How was she doing at the moment, all alone with their father in that damn house? It had been, what, two or so weeks since they first came to Gravity Falls? Shouto had been counting at the beginning, but with all the sleepless nights he had gone through, at some point he had lost track. Whatever the number was, it didn't change the fact that the only family member who had stuck with him through thick and thin was now at the mercy of their father, and it was all his fault. If she hadn't felt the need to stay for him, if he hadn't been careless and been caught by that portal villain, she wouldn't be in the position she was undoubtedly in now.
He had to get back to her, had to make sure she was okay. Shouto wanted his sister back, wanted his quirk back, wanted his life back.
And he still couldn't figure out the damn password. Shouto unsuccessfully tried to stifle a yawn. "There has to be some sort of shortcut or clue," he muttered out loud. "But who would know about the author's secret codes?" Izuku? He would have said something at this point. But Shouto couldn't think of anyone else-
The breeze suddenly picked up, slamming the laptop shut and spinning the weather vane on top of the shack around and around. Shouto pulled the ends of his jacket closer together at the sudden chill, wishing he had thought to zipper up. He stood up to go on inside when something about the night sky changed, and Shouto's back was lit up with light.
He turned around to see a thin back line rolling over the side of the moon, before focusing directly on him. A chill ran through Shouto as the wind picked up speed, whipping his hair in the opposite direction of the strange moon.
Things got even stranger. Blue blocks of different sizes appeared from out of thin air, forming around the moon, which now looked much more like a strange slitted eye, into the shape of a triangle. A flash of light, and everything around Shouto lost its color as the triangle gained legs, arms, and a top hat, and went from light blue to bright yellow, as though it had sucked all the color from the world.
Then the voice. Scratchy and somewhat high pitched, with a distinctly alien feel to it.
"I think I know a guy!" The triangle pointed at itself. "Well well well, you're pretty persistent, aren't you, Pine Tree?" Shouto blinked. Didn't Trembly say something similar about pine trees?
"Who are you?" He managed to get out. "What do you want?"
"Who am I? Oh, that's right!" The being almost seemed to laugh. "This is the first time we've met in this world!" The being glided closer, and Shouto found himself inching away before he could stop it. "The name's Bill Cipher. It's good to finally meet you, kiddo!"
"Right, Shouto deadpanned, trying to hide the fact that Cipher sent all of his nerves tingling at once, in all the wrong ways. "It's nice to meet you too, I guess. Is there a reason why you wanted to talk to me?"
"Straight to the point, I like that! You deserve a prize! Here, have a head that's always screaming." Cipher clapped his hands, and a blue tinged bodiless-head fell onto the roof, screeching at the top of its lungs. A startled yelp tore from Shouto's throat, as he instinctively moved away. He quickly regained his composure.
"I'm just messing with you kiddo," Cipher laughed. "Let's get rid of this thing." The head began to peel itself away, layer by layer, until all that was left was bone, and even that dissolved. Shouto stared at the place it had just been, thoroughly unnerved.
He looked back up at Cipher. "What are you exactly?" He demanded of the triangle (and wasn't that a strange sentence?)
"Oh, just your friendly interdimensional being, hoping to finally chat with another lost soul." Cipher's voice dipped at the 'fellow lost soul' part, as if implying something Shouto was just beginning to grasp. "All the beings I've ever been able to contact before were from this dimension, which is boring! But you, you're special like me! I've been waiting for a chance to talk!"
"You…." Shouto gaped, the full reality of Cipher's sentences hitting him all at once. "You're not from this world either."
"Got it in one! Just What I expect from you!" Cipher leaned closer. "It seems to me we've got opposite problems. For starters, I know everything there is to know about everything. Omnipotence is a blast! But I can't leave the mindverse, or interact with almost anything in the real world, so I'm separated from all my friends. And you, you're in the real world! You could go home, if you knew how! But you don't, so your just as stuck as me."
"Looks like we've both got our issues then," Shouto agreed. It was so strange, meeting something from yet another world. Cipher was unlike anything he'd ever encountered before. That did make sense, after all, there must be worlds that were nothing like earth. But still… something about Cipher made Shouto uneasy.
"Ain't that the truth! But the point is, I like you kid! And I think we could both help each other out. I give you the hint you're looking for the laptop, and you give me a small favor in return. We'll both be on our way to seeing those we like again." Cipher held out his hand, and blue flames sprung out around it. "What'dya say? Do we have a deal?"
Shouto almost put his hand out. He wanted to get home, more than anything. He promised himself he'd find a way to not be useless. Cipher was offering him a way to get both of the things he wanted.
But something about Cipher set him off in all the wrong ways. Maybe it was unfair to Cipher, but Shouto couldn't muster enough trust to make the deal.
The others promised they'd help with the laptop starting right after the play was over. He thought back to the heartfelt conversation he'd had on the train. Mina promised she'd help. I don't need Cipher.
"Thanks, but no thanks," Shouto said. "I can figure this out on my own."
Cipher gave what must be his equivalent of a shrug. "If you say so kid. But if you decide you do need help, just give me a call!"
With a flash, Cipher was gone, and Shouto felt his head shooting upwards from its position on the laptop. Which was strange. Wasn't he standing just now?
He looked around. Color had returned to the skies, which were painted in all the colors of the dawn. The wind was soft and barely moved the weather vane at all, and, most importantly, Cipher was nowhere to be seen.
Shouto sighed, running his hand through his hair. "Just a dream then." Maybe. Didn't Cipher say he could only reach people through the mindverse, whatever that was? Maybe it meant through dreams? And why would it contact him and not any of the other displaced students?
Because you're the only one who's actually trying to go home, the only one who cares enough, a small part of him said. Shouto didn't even try and push the thought away. He was tired, he hadn't slept for more than a couple hours in days, and he wanted to get home.
Maybe Cipher was right. Maybe he had to explore every option available to him.
Mina was sitting in the kitchen with Izuku, Ochako, and Stan when Shouto finally walked in, looking like he hadn't slept a wink yet again. While Mina was glad they were doing the play after all of their hard work, she was also glad today was the performance. Shouto seriously looked like he needed some help.
"Woah, bag check for Shouto's eyes!" Stan snickered, but it faded quickly into what looked almost to be concern. "You alright kid?"
"Fine." Shouto didn't even look at them, just grabbed one of those pit-sodas from the fridge and slumped down in his chair.
"You didn't go to sleep at all, did you?" Izuku demanded, looking extremely worried. "Shouto, you can't do that again, it's not good for you!"
"And you know just why I've been doing it," Shouto countered, glaring at Izuku with tired eyes. "So whose fault is it really?" Izuku flinched and shrunk back in his seat. Ochako looked at Shouto in shock.
"What was that for?" She demanded. "We told you we'd help, and we will! You don't need to be a jerk about it." Shouto ignored her, downing the rest of the cola, spiting out the pit into the trash, and striding out of the house.
"What's up with him?" Stan commented, raising an eyebrow at the angry teen.
"Shouto, wait up!" Mina jumped out of her seat and followed her friend out of the house. "Hang on!" She heard Izuku and Ochako following right behind her.
Shouto was just outside, trying out more eight letter words on the shack's porch. He didn't even turn around to acknowledge them. "Don't you have a puppet show to get to?" He spat his words out like they were venom in his mouth. Mina stopped in her tracks, cringing under the accusation those words held.
Ochako tried again. "Shouto, you haven't been acting like yourself lately. I know you want to get home, we all do! But you've been obsessing over it ever since the bunker, and it's not healthy." Her words were true, Mina realized. Shouto had been so calm when they had first arrived, cool and collected while the rest of them were freaking out over their loss of quirks and separation from their families. But while Mina and the others had adapted and figured out how to keep their cool, Shouto had unraveled more and more.
"We want to help!" Izuku added. "A-and we will! We promise! We want to get home just as much as you do. I miss my mom so much-"
"Really? I wouldn't have guessed. You don't act like it." Izuku looked as though he had been physically struck. For a moment, Shouto looked incredibly guilty. Then it was gone. An odd light shone in Shouto's eyes, one that hadn't been there before last night.
What could Mina do? She wanted to help him, she wanted to shake her friend and find out what was wrong with him. But what could she say? She wasn't the voice of reason in the group, that was Izuku. And she wasn't the nicest, that was Ochako. And Shouto had brushed off both of them.
She was closest to Shouto, she thought. Maybe he'd listen to her. But what if she said the wrong thing, and lost all of his trust?
An idea sprung in her mind, one she quickly latched onto. It could be the only way she could get him to listen. Sorry Candy and Grenda, Miss Miller. Maybe I'm selfish, but I want to help my friend.
She turned to Ochako and Izuku. "Everyone's going to be gathering to put the finishing touches on the puppet show, and move it out to where it's going to be held. You two go on ahead and help, and I'll work with Shouto on the passcode."
All three of them looked at her like she had grown an extra head. "A-are you sure?" Izuku asked cautiously.
Mina tried for a smile. "Yup, I'm positive! Now go on! We'll see you later. The performance is at four, right?"
"Right," Ochako affirmed. "See you then." After another moment's hesitation, she and Izuku started off towards the beach.
Mina turned to Shouto, who was still looking like her like she said the sky was actually purple, and gave evidence for it. And also looking like he had no idea who she was, but Mina figured that was just the sleep deprivation. "Should we go upstairs?"
"...Yeah." Shouto lead the way back inside, and Mina followed him. Stan looked just as confused when they entered as he had when they had all left.
"You guys figure everything out?" He inquired. Shouto gave a short nod, and Mina flashed him an apologetic smile, as the two of them made their way up to one of the few empty rooms in the house.
Shouto popped open the laptop and stared at it blankly, the bags under his eyes more noticeable than ever before. Mina looked down at him for a moment, then sat down on the window seat next to him, picking up the sheet of words and leaning over to look at the screen.
"Hey, you want to get started on this thing?" She asked. He didn't respond, not even a twitch. "Or not, we don't have to. You want to take a nap or something instead?"
"I'm sorry," he whispered, voice barely loud enough to hear.
Mina leaned back in surprise. "O-oh! Don't worry about it, I'm sure Izuku knows you didn't actually mean it. If you just apologize at the puppet show, I'm sure he'll forgive you immediately, no sweat." Her mind flashed to that Bakugou guy, who had spent the first few days of UA screaming obscenities at the green haired boy, and how passively Izuku had taken it, even defending the guy. And Shouto didn't even mean it, so Mina was sure it would all be fine.
"Not just that," Shouto refuted, and Mina snapped back to attention. "Everything's been so tiring and stressful, and I don't know what to-" He paused, made a nasty face, and swallowed. "I don't know what to do. I don't know how to fix things. I'm useless."
"Hey, that's not true!" Mina grabbed Shouto's shoulders and turned him towards her. Inside she was shaken, was that really how he thought? "You're not useless! No way!"
"I can't do anything without my quirk!" Shouto snapped back. "I haven't been any help in any of our adventures. I appreciate you trying to make me feel better, but that doesn't change the facts."
"You're wrong!" Mina shook her head. It was true that Shouto hadn't been much help in the more serious of their adventures, but… "You helped figure out the first clue to finding Trembly, remember? I was going to burn the map." She let out a laugh. "And besides that, you've been the one to keep everyone in check, especially me, remember? Who knows how we'd have ended up without your caution."
"I-" Shouto broke off, voice cracking, looking at her through wide and tired eyes. "I don't know. I don't know what to do." He looked away. "Especially after what happened last night."
"Last night?" Mina asked. Shouto didn't answer, staring off into space again. "Shouto? What happened last night?" He finally looked back up at her.
"I-" He broke off, staring out the window. Mina followed his gaze to see Candy and Grenda out on the lawn, calling out what Mina was pretty sure was her name. She looked to Shouto, who motioned to the other girls. "You should probably go see what that's about."
"Are you sure?" Mina asked. Shouto hesitated, then nodded. Mina slowly stood up, looking back at her friend, who nodded as if to say he would be fine. And so Mina walked out the door.
Shouto watched Mina leave. A part of him wanted to call out and ask her to come back, to work on the laptop, to sort out the things that had been going on in his head almost from the day they came to Gravity Falls. He still couldn't believe he had actually admitted his thoughts to someone in the first place, it wasn't like him at all.
But he didn't. Mina had cared enough to actually try and help him out, to finally put the puppet show down for a bit and help him find a way to open the laptop, not just yell at him about needing to get more sleep, or whatever. (And the part of him that felt incredibly guilty about what he had yelled back could just go away, thank you very much.) The least he could do was not hold her back from going and talking to her friends.
Sighing, Shouto turned back to the list of passwords, ready to start typing in more words, and hopefully find the right one. Every attempt led to another one of the beeps he had grown so accustomed to over the past few days. In spite of himself, Shouto yawned.
Something blared, louder than the regular beeping noise, and the screen flash continually red. Shouto blinked the sleep out of his eyes and stared at it, doing a double take once he was aware enough to actually read the print on the screen.
"To many failed entries, data erase in five minutes? No no nonononono…." Shouto looked at the laptop in surprise and frustration, unsure of what to do, know knowing how to quench his slowly rising panic. The screen read that he had one try for the password left, and he had no idea where to start. "One more try, and I lose everything?"
Just as he said it, there was a familiar flash, and everything around him went grey. Cipher appeared in mid-air, holding out his palms, two flames adorning them. "Well well well. You're in quite the predicament, aren't you Pine Tree?"
"Cipher," Shouto breathed, unsure if he was more relieved or apprehensive than before. "Why'd you come back? I told you I could figure this thing out on my own."
"Clearly," Cipher said sarcastically. "Don't forget, I have a stake in this too. I want to see my friends from my home dimension just like you. So how about I crack open that laptop for you, give you a peak of what's inside?"
Shouto looked from Cipher to the laptop screen, which was already down a minute. He looked outside, to where Mina was chatting with Candy and Grenda. Was it just him, or was she stealing glances upstairs?
Slowly, he looked back to Cipher. "You said last night that you wanted a small favor in return, one that could help you get back to your own world. What is it that you want?"
"Oh nothing big. Just a puppet." Cipher scanned the room, and his slitted eye flickered towards the window. "From what I've seen, you guys have plenty to spare."
"Not really," Shouto denied. "They're not ours there for a show that's going to be put on for a bunch of kids. We can't actually trade them away. Besides, everyone worked really hard on those things." He looked back to Cipher. "And how does that help you get home?"
"It's a lot of complicated steps, getting back to my dimension. A puppet is just one of the requirements. It may not matter much to you, but it'll help me greatly." Cipher said. "Speaking of unimportance, we both know this show doesn't matter all that much. What's one silly show compared to you finding a way home? Just borrow one of Sparks' or Sunshine's. They've already gone to the show after all. It won't hurt them too much."
Shouto assumed he meant Izuku and Ochako. "I can't do that, we're classmates. We're in this together."
"Oh really? Then why have they deserted you at every possible opportunity this week? They say they'll help soon, but let's face it, kiddo. They'll just find something else to entertain them, and you'll all be back to square one."
Shouto looked at the timer. Forty-five seconds, and the information on the laptop was lost forever. After all this time, he had worried while they had gone on adventures. He had spent many sleepless nights scared for his sister's safety, while they had slept easy, even though they had more parents and friends who cared about them and missed them than he did. Why should you care about their stupid puppet show? That was right, he shouldn't. He shouldn't (He should, what was he doing?)
Shouto stole one last glance down at Mina. He wanted to ask her what he should do, tell her about Cipher, but there was ten seconds left on the clock, and he was out of time.
Shouto held out his hand. "It's a deal. You open up the laptop, and I'll give you a puppet. Just do it quick."
Cipher grabbed his hand, lighting their handshake up with flames. "Now we're talking Pine Tree! Don't worry, it'll be fast." The room dimmed, and Cipher's voice dropped about four octaves, sending shivers down Shouto's spine. A feeling of being pulled forwards started in his hand, and spread throughout his body, like he was being yanked by some force, even though he wasn't moving. His eyesight blurred and faded. Then it was back, and he was somehow….outside of his own body?
And yet, his body moved all on its own, crazed laughter filling through the room. His body looked up at him, and instead of a blue eye and a gray eye, they were both yellow, and his pupils were slitted.
"Thanks for agreeing to be my puppet, kiddo!" Cipher crowed. "Like I said, I'll make it quick." And with that, Cipher picked up the laptop and smashed it to the ground, cackling all the while.
"That….what just-" Shouto stared open mouthed and almost uncomprehending at the scene before him. He looked down at himself, to find that he was completely transparent, almost like a ghost. And the laptop… "Cipher! You said you'd help me!"
"I told you I'd crack that laptop open, and boy did I keep my promise!" Cipher grinned, and it looked so wrong on his face (oh god that was his face, something else was using his body) that it made Shouto's non-existent insides turn over. Cipher walked around the room, strolling over to the mirror to examine his prize. "It's been so long since I inhabited a human body, I almost forgot what it felt like." He slapped his face, over and over again. "Hah! Pain is hilarious! And two eyes? This thing is deluxe!" Shouto cringed.
"What are you doing?" He snapped at the Cipher. "Why are you hurting the body you're in? It doesn't make any sense!"
"I told you, it's hilarious! Geeze Pine Tree, I thought you were smarter than that." Cipher snarked. "I already told you, I need to be in the real world to kickstart my plans. And if I need to put some helpless, useless kid in the mindscape, where no one can see, hear, or touch him, than it's really no big loss." Cipher grinned. "Destroying that laptop was a cinch. Now to destroy that journal. Race you to the bottom of the stairs!" And with that, Cipher positioned Shouto's body at the edge of the stairs and fell backwards, hitting almost every step on the way down. Shouto flinched at each thump and dove downwards, slipping through the ceiling.
Cipher had gone into the kitchen, and was rummaging through the drawers. "So where did Sparks keep that journal, hmm?" He pulled out his arm, and to Shouto's horror, there were forks digging into his skin. "Oh, that's right! He's gone to the puppet show with it! Naturally, kid never leaves it anywhere. Looks like I'm off then!"
"H-hey, wait-" But Cipher was hurrying to pull out all of the forks, and slipping on Shouto's sweatshirt jacket, so that they wouldn't be visible. Then he headed outside to where Mina was. Filled with desperation, horror, and guilt, Shouto followed him.
Mina winced as she tried to figure out a way to get out of the situation she had found herself in. "Listen guys, I want to help, I really do! But I've got something really important I need to get back to at the moment. Otherwise I would totally help."
"Mina, please!" Candy begged. "We need all hands on deck, the show won't work otherwise! We're almost done, we just need your help to finish in time."
"I know, but…." Mina thought over what Grenda and Candy had just described. Should she help her new friends with something they'd worked so hard on, or help Shouto with the laptop? She knew her answer, she had already promised Shouto, after all, but she felt horrible saying no.
Before she could decline, the porch door swung open, and Shouto walked out, wearing his sweatshirt jacket. Mina perked up and ran over to him.
"Shouto, I'm sorry for the wait! I promise I'll help, I just-"
"Don't worry about it!" Mina stopped cold in her tracks, and looked at Shouto's wide smile. Something in the back of her mind told her to run as far as possible, but she shook it away. She wondered just how much sleep Shouto really needed. "I'm going to come with you."
"Really! Wow, you're a trooper!" Grenda slapped Shouto on the back, who nearly fell forward, before laughing it off. "Guess you really pulled through in the end. "Come on, let's head to the clearing, everything's already there."
Mina walked just behind Candy and Grenda as they chatted, keeping an eye on Shouto as he strolled next to her. There was something….wrong about it, something that made all her hair stand up on end.
She nudged him softly. "Hey Shouto, you good?"
"I'm excellent, thank you for asking!" He beamed back at her, the shadows under his eyes darker than ever.
"Right. Sure." She frowned. What was going on? "You said something happened last night. What was it?"
"Nothing of importance," he assured her, and Mina knew there was something terribly wrong.
Izuku looked up from where he was helping push some of the set walls back up after they had fallen, and spotted Mina and Shouto making their way through the different sets. He shared a surprised look with Ochako.
"I didn't think she'd get him to come," he said quietly. Ochako shrugged.
"Guess they got closer than we thought. "I'm gonna go over and talk to them." Izuku looked back at the set he was propping up and nodded so that she knew he had heard her. He should probably go too. But would Shouto want to talk to him? Everything Izuku did around him just seemed to make their relationship worse.
Ochako returned sometime later, looking somewhat stunned. "Not only did he come of his own volition," she told Izuku, "But he agreed to be the reverend in the marriage scene!"
"Seriously?" Izuku asked. "Are we sure that's really Shouto?"
"I mean, the shapeshifter is safely locked away, so I don't see who else it could be." Ochako sat back down next to him, looking just as stunned as Izuku felt over that news. What had happened that would change Shouto's mind so drastically?
Izuku had a really bad feeling about it.
All to soon, four o'clock came along. Everyone was buzzing around, with Miss Miller directing everyone to their places as the little kids came strolling in. Mina took her place beneath the stage and held up her puppet, singing along with everyone else.
Inside though, her mind was far from the play. Something had happened to Shouto, something that had to do with the night before. Something that drastically changed the way he acted, the way he talked, made it seem almost as though he wasn't really Shouto….
Mina shook her head. The shapeshifter was locked away, and besides, she had only been gone for, like, five minutes! What could've snatched the real Shouto away during that time? Was she just overthinking things?
The children laughed and clapped along to the performance, and soon intermission was called. Relieved, Mina slipped out from under the stage and headed towards the trees, where she saw Izuku and Ochako standing.
"Hey Mina!" Ochako smiled at her, and Izuku gave her a little wave. "What happened earlier today?"
"What do you mean?" Mina asked, perplexed.
"With Shouto," Ochako elaborated. "You went to go help him with the laptop, and now he's acting all strange and cheery."
"Not I'm not!" Shouto snapped. Wait, hang on. What?" The three of them spun around, not to see Shouto, but to see one of the puppets floating in the air.
Izuku gaped at it. "Did you just talk? With Shouto's voice?"
"I am Shouto!" The puppet hissed back. He turned towards Mina. "That was what I was trying to tell you, about last night. This triangle thing named Cipher, who's from another dimension. When Mina was gone, he tricked me and stole my body."
"That's why you were acting so strange," Mina realized. "It wasn't you." It made sense, hadn't she just been thinking about how it was almost like it wasn't really Shouto? She had been more on the mark than she knew.
"You said he's from another dimension?" Izuku clarified, still looking wide-eyed.
"At first I thought he wanted to go home, just like us," Shouto said softly. "But now I'm starting to- starting to think I was wrong. I don't know what he wants. I don't know-" Shouto's voice cracked and broke off.
Maybe another time Mina might have joked about how funny he looked as a puppet. She might have pointed out that they had told Shouto not to stay up so late all the time, told him not to obsess over going home, and the fact that he had done so anyways had been a contributing factor to the situation he was in now. But after seeing Shouto act so broken earlier, seeing him now in this sorry state, Mina couldn't bring herself to say a word.
Besides, for all that Shouto's accusations that morning were due to him being so sleep deprived he could barely think straight, there was more than a grain of truth to them. If Mina hadn't been so obsessed with finishing the puppet show, if she hadn't brushed off all of Shouto's concerns, they wouldn't have been in this mess now.
So Mina gave Shouto an encouraging smile. "Don't worry, we'll help you out. Is there something this Cipher guy is looking for? If there's something or somewhere he's trying to get to, we can stop him."
"That's right," Ochako agreed. "We've got your back."
"Cipher won't know what hit him," Izuku promised.
Shouto stared at them for a long time, and without being able to see his facial expressions, Mina could only guess what he was thinking. Finally, he said "Cipher's after the journal, the one Izuku has. He destroyed the laptop, and now he wants to destroy that as well."
Izuku hugged the jacket that contained the journal closer to his chest, wide-eyed and worried. "We can't let him do that! It could be our only way home!" He paused, looking deep in thought. "Okay, okay. Cipher knows that I have it, right? So what if Mina takes the journal and runs somewhere else with it? Cipher will probably come over to me and ask if he can borrow the journal, and Ochako and I can confront him then."
Mina smiled. "Sounds like a plan. Don't worry, he won't get his hands on it." Izuku handed her the journal, and she tucked it under her arm. Now, where to go?
The cliff above the clearing, maybe? That way she could see what was going on, and go back down and help if she needed to. With that decided, Mina ran up the path that led to the top of the cliff. She wondered if Shouto was following her.
Bursting out of the trees, Mina took a moment to catch her breath, and make sure the journal was still okay. It was a pretty amazing view from up there, showing off the beauty of the entire valley. Mina walked to the edge and peered down. The puppet show looked so tiny from where she was standing.
She decided to look through the journal. "There has to be something in here that can help Shouto get his body back," she muttered.
Then she felt something shove into her back. For one terrifying moment, she was dangling over the edge of the cliff, looking straight down at the valley below. Then Mina was over the edge, stomach jumping into her throat as she lost her balance-
And stopped, looking straight downwards, foot just touching the edge of the cliff. A bright blue glow surrounded her. Mina felt relief flood through her body as she felt herself being turned around, ready to thank Ochako.
But it wasn't Ochako that had stopped her fall. There, in the reverend outfit, was Cipher, smiling with Shouto's face, smirking down at her with Shouto's eyes, which were now slitted and yellow. How had she not noticed that before? His hand was wreathed in a blue glow, the same glow that was keeping her from falling.
So this was Cipher? That smile on Shouto's face and look in his eyes was off-putting, and Mina felt a shiver run down her spine.
"You look to be in a pretty bad position there, don't 'cha?" Cipher laughed, the grin across Shouto's face looking more out of place by the second, more and more like a smile a villain would wear. "How about I help you out there? You give me the journal, and I won't let you fall to your death! Sounds fair to me!"
Mina hovered over the edge, unsure of what to do. She had no doubt Cipher would make good on his promise and drop her if she didn't give him the journal. She also knew if she gave him the journal, not only would they lose their only lead on getting home, but Shouto might never get his body back, and Cipher might just try to kill them again later.
When you put it that way, there's really no other option, is there? A hasty plan formed in her mind. Tentatively, she held the journal out in front of her.
"Now that's more like it!" Cipher said. "After all, who would risk their life for some dumb stranger?"
His hands gripped the other end of the journal, and Mina smiled. "A hero would. And that's what I am!" She reached into her pocket and pulled out the flare she had been keeping on her since the bunker. Then she tugged as hard as she could, pushing her feet off the edge of the cliff. Cipher, startled, lost his hold on the magic keeping Mina floating, and they tumbled off the edge of the cliff together.
Shouto could only watch in horror as Mina fell, quickly flying towards the ground. He dove down after her, watching her fight to keep the journal away from Cipher on the way down, but there was nothing he could do to help.
She was in this position because of him. The only person he could consider calling a friend was in grave danger because of his stupid actions. The realization made him want to puke, if he had still been in his body. This was all his fault, and now Mina was going to die because of him-
Just before they hit the ground near the stage, a light blue glow surrounded Cipher and Mina, softer than the kind Cipher had used. Shouto looked over to see Ochako clutching her amulet in one of her hands, looking panicked. So that must've been why Mina fired the flare, to get their attention. Shouto let out a sigh of relief.
Mina wasted no time in tackling Cipher. "Get out of my friend's body, you dumb triangle!" The two rolled across the forest ground. Shouto might've been bothered by the fact that she was now punching his body right in the face, if not for her words.
She really thought of him as a friend? After how he had acted the whole time they had been stuck in this town?
Cipher lashed out with blue flames, causing Mina to jump back. He ran towards her, determined to take the journal, but was intercepted by Izuku, who tackled him from the side. "That's right!" Izuku said, pinning Cipher down. "We won't let you hurt our friend any longer!"
Cipher snarled, throwing Izuku off and reaching for the journal with his powers, blue flames covering Shout's hand. But before it could take effect, Ochako snatched the journal away with her own blue magic. The brown haired girl glared at Cipher.
"You're not getting this thing. Not now, not ever!" Cipher lunged towards her, but she sent the journal flying towards Izuku, who caught it and passed it to Mina. "And if you were looking for a good body to steal, you might've picked one that wasn't running on now sleep and little food."
Sure enough, Cipher was slowing down, looking more and more haggard. "No!" He protested, falling to his knees. "No no no! I'm a being of pure energy with no weaknesses!"
"Not in a human body, you aren't," Mina snarked, running over and slamming Cipher to the ground.
That seemed to be as much as the triangle could take. Everything lost its color again, and Cipher went flying out of Shouto's body with a panicked shout. Not wasting any time, Shouto dove right in.
For a moment, everything seemed perfect. He was finally back in his body, and Cipher was gone. Then all of the days injuries, as well as the exasution from night after night with no sleep, all caught up to him. Everything in his body screamed in pain at once, and he could barely open his eyes.
He could hear the other students (his friends?) gathering around him. "Shouto!" Izuku called out. "A-are you okay? Is it you in there?"
Shouto let out a groan and opened his eyes, letting the others see that they were his and not Ciphers. Gasps surrounded him, and he found himself hauled to his feet by gentle hands.
Everything felt wrong, as though he shouldn't be in his body at all, as though it wasn't even his anymore. He had to remember to breath.
Then he was crushed by a hug. "You're back!" Mina called out joyously, nearly breaking his bones all over again. Shouto's body moaned in pain.
"Mina, please…." he managed to get out. Mina quickly let go with an embarrassed smile.
"Sorry about that," she said. Shouto tried for a smile, and even though it felt awkward as hell, Mina looked relieved.
Izuku glanced towards the stage, where the play was still going on. No one seemed to have noticed them yet. "We should, um. Tell them they'll need to find a new reverend." Shouto grimaced.
"Maybe one of you could-" Ochako cut him off.
"No way Shouto. We're taking you home, getting you cleaned up." She and Izuku supported both sides of him as they walked back to the shack, Mina in front of him smiling and trying the keep his spirits up the whole way back. Something warm pricked behind Shouto's eyes, but no tears fell.
After what seemed like forever, they finally reached the shack. Shouto felt like he could collapse on the spot, from both soreness and possibly blood loss from all the stab wounds on his arms. Despite his best efforts, is eyes started to close.
"Don't worry," he heard Izuku say. "Just rest easy. We've got you."
Shouto let his friends led him back into the shack.