Morning in southern Washington state was a cool, wet thing. Mist and fog regularly blanketed the land, making forests spooky and meadows eerie. Those used to the cooler temperatures were aware of the brief life-span of this fog. Once the summer sun grew high enough, the heat would wash away the grey dew that permeated the air. However, it was this mist that covered the ground in the day of august the first.
To the early morning of a small town, a cluster of teenagers walked quietly up the side of a slope- heading into the forested mountains. Clad in jackets and boots, the six kids, all of approximately the same age, trudged along the forest, using the upright trunks of thick trees to push them forward. Fit for high school, they moved together on the first Saturday of the month
Among them were three girls and three boys. Two pairs were clearly in a relationship, moving together, hand in hand. The last two, and by looks alone, the youngest, nervously watched around them, eager to look anywhere but at each other.
"How far is it from here?" the youngest boy asked, his strait brown hair held under by a small cap.
The group stalled, looking back to him and the blond next to him. The leader of the group, a tall boy with wide shoulders and sun-touched golden hair, grinned.
"We're getting closer. It's totally worth the hike," he noted to the two below, his eyes twinkling. He turned about and the group continued.
"You said it'd be only a few minutes," the young boy groaned. His bright blue eyes tried desperately to part the thick mist around him. The girl next to him readied her steps behind him fearfully.
"Reggie," an older girl with similarly long brown hair said, looking behind herself. Her voice, while wining, did not match her kind face, "C'mon! You said you wanted to check this out. So did Christina," she nodded to the girl behind the youngest male, "So c'mon. Stop complaining now that you're here."
"Well, well I'm not complaining," The boy, Reggie, defended himself, "I'm just, uh, worried about the fact that we're away from town, and heading to a place no one has lived in a long time! Sounds kind of, uh-"
"Dangerous?" the girl, Christina, clarified.
Struggle and uncertainty boggled inside the mind of the boy. As the girl came next to him, intent on keeping up with the group, he paused, watching her go. "Well," he cleared his throat, "I mean, dangerous, maybe, but clearly," he eyed her up and down, "Not enough to stop me! Hah! Yeah."
"Shh!" the lead boy some twenty feet ahead called out, just behind a cluster of thick vegetation. The group froze, and then he waved them all closer. One by one they made it to the large bush, and leaned next to him. The last person there, nervously stepping up to the bush, was Reggie. "It's right around the bush," the leader nodded, excitement limitlessly bounding in his eyes.
"How long has it been here for?" the other boy, about the same age as the leader asked, taller and skinnier than either other boy. His red hair was coated in mist and dew, and he rubbed a hand through it, trying to rub away the water.
"Years," the leader explained, "Someone once said that it belonged to a family who once lived here. Then a curse fell onto them, having them all die: one at a time. Painfully, horribly," he said with a grin to each of them. The three near his age chuckled, and the girl he walked with nudged his arm, wiping her short blond hair out of her face.
"Cut it out," she poked his shoulder, "You'll scare Reggie."
"I'm not scared," Reggie stated, his face pale.
"My brother, ladies and gentlemen," The girl with brown hair blew a tuft of hair out of her face.
"So," the leader leaned in closer to them, "Let's go check it out. Could be bodies in there or something cool."
"B-Bodies?" Reggie choked on the word.
The leader slowly pushed aside a large branch of the bush and revealed a hill distantly ahead. Nearly two hundred feet away and on a nice perch against a small cliff, the building was, to their shock... maintained.
"Wait, what?" the leader gasped, stepping out of the bush.
"That's supposed to abandoned?" the blond asked, her eyebrows bent in disbelief. "Al, really? I think I can even see lights."
"No, no!" the leader, Al, stood in plain view, "I'm telling you! I saw this place a week ago, and it looked crazy!" he turned, eyeing the home in the distance.
The rest of the six came out and stood with Al as he pulled at his hair angrily. The house to the eyes was... fine. It had a white picket fence that stretched the perimeter, nice, recently painted walls of brown and white, and a polished and wax red-wood finish for a building probably older than any of the kids present. The windows, large and luxurious, were all closed, but lights flickered out from underneath the curtains.
"Are you sure we didn't end up in the nice neighborhood?" the other boy asked, putting his hands in his pockets, pouting.
"That's not so bad," Reggie argued, rubbing his hands together as the mist grew thicker.
"This can't be right dude," Al turned to the others, a desperate plea in his eyes, "I remember this place! That's totally the house I saw," he declared, pointing behind him proudly, "Just it was rotten and stuff!"
"Maybe we should knock and ask what's going on?" the youngest girl, Christina, asked.
The five others turned and eyed her. After a moment, Reggie gulped and nodded. "I'll do it. I'll knock on the door."
"And let you see what kind of crazy people moved into that house?" the other boy chuckled, "Forget it. I'm going too."
"I saw we all go," the blond suggested. "In horror movies, people get killed when you are split up."
"Hah!" Al laughed. "That's why I'm dating you. So smart."
"Okay, so we all go," the red-headed boy agreed. He took a step forward, still hand in hand with the girl with dark brown hair, only to realize the mist had gathered. "Uh... can you guys see the house?"
The group paused, staring ahead. The mist had seemed to, as they all spoke, closed in around them. Now so thick that ten feet ahead was a blur, they looked about, trying to pin point the location of the house.
Then there was a footfall. And another. Another. They all looked about, trying to find the source, much like the vanished home. Yet the sounds echoed around them.
"Who's running?" Al asked, turning to the group. His eyes quickly fell onto shorter Reggie, who had come closer with Christina, looking out into the mist. "You're both still... then who-"
As the group began to hone their senses, a voice spoke out.
"Grouped or not," a deep voice with dark intent spoke to them, "it won't save you."
The six spun to a clearing of trees, where the footfalls suddenly became clear. A shadowed figure with long, dragging clothing walked closer to them. As they stared ahead, their mouths dropped out.
The figure, grinning with fangs too large to be a human, snarled. "Start running, my prey!"
The group all simultaneously nodded. Concepts of courage and valor were tossed out the window as all six spun around and made to run.
Furry, seven feet tall, and with a snarly maw of sharp teeth; a figure blocked their escape. The wolven creature opened its gaping maw and snarled.
With the greatest wisdom of the group, Reggie shouted as he dived down the hill and begun tumbling, "NOPE!"
Echoing through the forests, a loud inhuman and unnatural howl broke the mists and caused birds to fly.
Three engines all turned off simultaneously. At a gas station just past the south border of Washington state, four figures stepped out together, one climbing off a motorcycle while three stepped out of their cars. Removing her sunglasses and pink helmet, the brunette girl moved to the single pump in the station, and gave a loud, large yawn.
"Uuuuagh!" Mabel Pines proclaimed, stretching her hands past her head. "Ohh, ow," she grumbled, giving her elbows a quick rub, "Still stiff."
"Better than broken," Dipper pointed out as he lifted the nozzle of the gas and handed it to her, "Here, load up."
"Can we get snacks too?" Mabel asked as she snatched it and placed it inside her precious, now somewhat scarred, pink motorcycle. "I really, really want some snacks after all that driving."
"Lemme see," Dipper said as Wendy leaned next to him against his car and Soos stepped up, eating out a small pouch of chips. Holding out his phone, he checked for signal, and found two out of three bars. "That's enough. We're calling him first."
"But, but snacks," Mabel protested as Dipper punched the phone.
"We're calling Zander," Dipper affirmed.
"I would also like to point out that snacks aren't a bad idea," Soos stated, "As you can see," he turned the bag over and spilled meager crumbs, "My Dooditos are empty."
"I'm good," Wendy shrugged.
"I'm not saying no to snacks," Dipper told them, "Let's just... see if he's going to tell us what we're supposed to be actually doing." Dipper dialed quickly, making sure to press the number he had burned into memory.
"We already know what we're doing," Mabel answered eagerly, "Saving the world?"
"How does going to Washington do that?" Dipper grumbled, and held the phone in front of him as he pressed the speakers button. From behind Soos, popping his head against the window in curiosity from The El Diablo dragster was a pink pig, Waddles, who oinked in interest at the group. Before a single beep could issue out of the ringing call, a voice fluttered back to them.
"Guys," Zander's phone voice called out, "You made it to Washington?"
"Oh, I really, really hope you meant the state," Soos gulped, "Because I've got bad news if you meant the city."
"We're just past the border," Dipper said. He reached inside his pocket and began to play with a new foreign object recently handed to him, running his fingers along the strong, thin edges of plastic. It was a simple looking credit card, of sorts.
"Good," Zander's voice sighed, and he continued, "I'm sorry I couldn't tag along, but I have to do some teacher-homework."
"Whatever," Dipper scoffed.
"Dipper," Mabel scolded him and snatched the phone from his hand, "So! Zander," Mabel said, twirling an imaginary phone cord around her finger as she spoke, "Ah, what do you need me – us – to do?"
Zander explained, "The best way to get the Stone of Conservation back is to make a similar effect and bring it back ourselves," Zander explained, "Which means we need similar conditions. I know of a few ways to create an anti-reality explosion, but one as potent and controlled as that, only Starkissed stone will do. You'll begin collecting stones of Starkissed."
"Why not just one?" Wendy asked, crossing her arms as she listened, "Looked like just one stone of Starkissed did the job fine at destroying mine and Soos's homes," she added, her voice constraining with bitterness.
"I prefer to think they've been cut and pasted," Soos pointed out.
"You'll understand soon," Zander's voice calmly replied, "That the size you all saw was a rarity in of itself. The average Starkissed stone is the size and shape of a marble."
Mabel peaked up, her cheeks red. "Huh? What? What I do?"
"Marble, not Mabel," Dipper corrected.
"Oh. Sorry, got kind of," she quietly added to Dipper, "Distracted," and chuckled and grinned sheepishly, her cheeks blushing.
Dipper grumbled and spoke again to the phone. "Just why exactly can't we have you on this thing?"
"Well, for one," Zander cleared his throat, "I'm going to be a tad busier than you guys," he stated.
"Mind telling us what?" Wendy asked.
"Sure," Zander said, "But not now. I'm pulling a huge risk right now by assuming that they won't be able to hack your phones or anything."
"Who?" Dipper gasped. "Who's hacking my phone?!"
"Enemies," Zander said bluntly, "But to answer the first question," Zander continued, "I need to get in touch with people, begin my own little science project, and then I'll be getting stones from around the world myself. This quest I'm sending you off on is a chance to keep you all moving from place to place; in case the bad guys come looking for you."
"If Graupner comes looking for us," Dipper stretched his neck, "We'll be ready for him."
"I hope so," Zander said quietly on the phone. "Well, my equipment says that the nearest town to the spot we're detecting with Starkissed signatures is a town called 'Spoons'."
"...Spoons?" Dipper repeated. Mabel burst out laughing, Soos chuckled, and Wendy shook her head, smiling.
Wendy suggested, "Better than 'Boring'."
"Maybe the two should combine!" Mabel suggested. "Boring Spoons!"
"Spooned Boring?" Soos tried.
Mabel's eyes widened and she nodded. "As a united states senator, I proclaim that this town will be made," she decided.
"Guys," the voice from the phone spoke up, "A few more things. The card I gave you will work for everything except withdrawing cash. Just remember that anyone seeing you make purchases over, say, a thousand or so, is really suspicious. Try to be subtle about using it."
"Right," Dipper lifted the simple, symbol-less black credit card from his pocket out, "Hacked infinite money card, check."
"Explains how Arline was able to deal with Stan charging her the way he did," Wendy hummed.
"And lastly," Zander's voice echoed out, "Starkissed stones, by nature, emanate small traces of magic around them. Things of magic source or type will be attracted to this emanation. Wendy, you'll be able to see it too if you have any line of sight on 'em," Zander explained, "But so will everything else. Not everything out there is going to be willing to part with these stones. You may have to find out ways to get it yourself. While I'm not happy about saying this, the fate of the world is worth more than someone losing a piece of jewelry or something."
"Noted, boss!" Mabel cheered and saluted, "Steal, rob, and pillage our ways to happiness are a go!"
"Shuddup," Dipper chuckled, and looked back to the phone. "We'll call after we get this one thing. I guess you gotta always tell us where it is."
"Until you can sense these things as well as me, that's the plan," Zander said. "Well, good luck guys. Be safe."
The phone clicked as the connected ceased. Dipper clutched his cellphone back into his grasp and, gripping it tightly, shoved it away. "Figure's he'd leave us in the dark even longer."
"Huh?" Mabel glanced at him, "What do you mean? He just told us a bajillion more things. Helpful things! Like how to use cat-hair for linen!"
"He's not telling us everything though," Dipper grumbled. The gas pump clicked, pulling attention away from the topic. "Whatever. If this works, this quest thing or whatever," Dipper grumbled as he turned and removed the gas nozzle, and inserted it into his own car, "Then I can let it slide... for now."
"Suit yourself," Wendy scowled, leaning on his car as she looked out into the woods, "Only a million and one questions we have for him, and he's answered, like, five."
Soos suggested to the rest of them, "At least he's hiding secrets from us in a seemingly constructive and supportive way, just like Mister Pines did," Soos suggested.
Mabel beamed at Soos as Wendy and Dipper glared at him. Dipper grumbled, "Let's just fuel up and get moving."
"Shotgun," Wendy chimed.
"I've got the pig!" Soos exclaimed.
Fueling the cars was a quick process. Not quick enough for Mabel; as she snagged the card from Dipper and bought the gang an estimated worth of a hundred dollars' worth of salty, sweet, savory snacks and treats, with varying drinks of pastel and neon colors. Ten minutes later and nearly a hundred dollars' worth of gas on an infinite credit card later, the three vehicles spluttered back onto the road, heading northwest. They had a strange named town to visit.
Half an hour later, while listening to a strange collection of varied music, Dipper and Wendy had found little else to talk about, aside from mentioning noted side-attractions. At the wheel, Dipper slowly felt his mind slip into the driver's thoughts. He could focus on the road ahead while thinking; especially on an empty morning like the current. He shifted in his seat occasionally, trying to shake off the annoying feeling of being used by someone else. His lips would form words he'd love to use on Zander, should the situation arise.
"Dude," Wendy suddenly piped up.
"Yeah?" Dipper blinked and turned to her.
"You're muttering to yourself," she told him, leaning on the passenger window, no seatbelt used. He groaned, putting his head to the edge of the wheel and leaning forward. "Just chill man. You got this," she encouraged.
"He was able to fool me the entire time," Dipper explained, "The entire time we spent with him, an entire month," Dipper reminded her, "He was able to trick us into thinking he was just a normal person."
Wendy had a second opinion to Dipper's self-criticism. "If you can count a multi-million duller rock-star normal."
Dipper glumly asked aloud, "How did I miss that one?" He glanced into the mirror. His pride in those sharp brown eyes of his had waned, and he glared at himself now. "Have I lost my touch?"
"You can't be this hard on yourself," Wendy said, sitting upright.
"I need to be," Dipper argued.
"Why?"
"Because," Dipper chortled, "Because... I need to be better!"
"Dude, you didn't do anything wrong," Wendy shrugged.
"Even Arline figured out something weird was going on with him," Dipper stated, his crestfallen gaze turning back to the road as he sank in his seat, "The martial artists got it before I could. And I'm supposed to be good at picking up on things like that. And I couldn't even figure out what you were until-"
"Stop beating yourself up man," Wendy grumbled, folding her arms across her chest, "It's getting on my nerves."
"I- oh-" Dipper stumbled, and fumbled the wheel gently, the car gently swerving side to side. "Sorry, I'll stop."
Wendy sighed, adjusting in her mildly adjusted pose. "C'mon man, you're fine at what you do. I mean, it was you who tricked Bill Cipher in that game of Strongholds and Serpents," Wendy reminded him, "And who cured his sister of lycanthropy?"
"Who couldn't figure out that you were undead all this time?" Dipper reminded her, his sullen face at its worst.
Wendy groaned. "I had two years to perfect my act before you came back. It wasn't just you I fooled-"
"Who promised to help you find a cure, and still hasn't a clue?" Dipper asked, his trembling voice fragile.
Wendy stared at him, her own gaze faltering. Yet it was not of loss of word that brought her to a sympathetic stare. Wendy smiled gently and shook her head, asking Dipper, "Who was able to bring me back to the shack?"
The teenage boy turned and stared. Her green eyes twinkled so brightly in the light of the rising sun, even through the mist around them. She was close enough for him to count freckles, to see the crevices in her lips. Dipper's face shot red-hot, and he very deliberately checked his rear-view mirror and side. Something about seeing those soft lips made his throat close up and his heart flutter.
He made to talk, but only ended up coughing.
Wendy chuckled. "Dude, don't sweat it," she said, and grasped the level under her chair, and flopped back. "We're in this together."
Positively drenched in sweat from her words and stare, Dipper slowly turned back and nodded. "Right," he said, forcing himself to calm as fast as he could. "And not to mention," he nodded to the backseat, where several bags laid about, "We still have the journals."
"Yeah man," Wendy reached over and lifted one, randomly procuring from the knapsack the first journal, and flipped through pages quickly, "For all we know, we just need to cross-reference and check a fact or something. Then boom-" Wendy gently tossed the journal behind her onto the soft seat, "I can enjoy being alive again."
Dipper smiled. "Yeah," he nodded, "We can do this." Wendy grinned at him. Her great white teeth flashed as he smiled back. Those butterflies in his stomach did their dance, and he wished he could have eyes in the side of his head, better to watch her while driving. Instead, he turned back, and let his mind rest again.
Yet it would not. There was an opportunity here. Alone with... her. He could speak without interruption. He checked the windows ahead, spotting Mabel, who was driving casually- without her graceful swerves for fun. He glanced behind, seeing Wendy and her hat; casually sitting on her face.
Courage was needed now. He swallowed painfully.
"Wendy, uh," Dipper scratched his hands, which instantly became itchy, "Uh, look... do you think that, uh, after we solve this thing, we could uh..."
"Wait," Wendy peered at him, adjusting her hat to better view him, "Which thing? Saving the world or saving me?"
"Either. Both. Same?" Dipper asked himself, and then shook his head. "I... I was wondering if... well," he struggled as his brain sparred his fearful tongue, begging to remain in control of his own words. "Well, since we're kind of the same... age, uh," Dipper's internal temperature soared to new heights as he realized that anyone with half a brain could surmise what he was trying to talk about, and so his words spilled out like a tidal wave, "Iwashopingthatafterallofthiswecouldjuststartdatingsince-"
"Whoa, dude," Wendy pushed the cap off her face and stared. "What?"
Dipper stared ahead, nearly glued to the wheel. "Date." he blurted out.
Wendy, who had come up to sit up and watch him, jolted. "Us?" she asked, waving a finger between them. Dipper, from the side glance he dared to give her, noticed the particularly blank face she had suddenly adopted. His spine stiffened, so he resorted to bowing gently back and forth to nod. "Ah," Wendy leaned quickly back, "Oh."
"I-I-I mean if you don't wanna, you know," Dipper laughed, "You already made that clear! Hahaha! So, you can just say no!" Dipper laughed, "Even though I've brought this up like three times now! Hah!" Dipper's teeth clenched together and he hissed, barely audibly, "I'm such a-"
"It's okay," Wendy's quiet voice reached his ears. "Chill."
Dipper's head nearly snapped off his body as he whipped around like a bullet. She had resumed her position, a cap over her eyes and face, with her arms up above her long hair. Her body was totally at ease. He couldn't see a line on her face, nor a fist balled up in her two hands.
"Wendy, I'm sorry," Dipper grumbled, "I'm just nervous."
"Hah," Wendy laughed, "Don't lie. Just nervous?"
Sickly red fever flooded his cheeks. "Okay... yeah. Sorry," Dipper turned back to the drive.
The rest of the car drive was empty and devoid of all talk. Wendy had become silent as Dipper, and Dipper's jaw was glued shut in a permanent attempt to prevent himself from saying anything else stupid. His self-directed disappointment shifted from not knowing how to do mysteries anymore to not knowing how to talk to girls. His world was misery.
Maybe sixty feet ahead and behind, Mabel and Soos' worlds were wonderful.
Mabel sung to herself in her helmet.
"It's a killlaaaa," Mabel hummed, "Beeee! Sunflower, pollen-treat! Honeycomb with a million flees! Guaranteed to defend the hive! Anytime!"
In the car behind Dipper's, Soos and Waddles sang, quite by chance, the same song as Mabel. "Frightening up close in the eye, cute and cuddly on the fly, buzzing bye!"
Nearly finishing with the song, Mabel was first to excitedly pull into the borders of none other than Spoons, Washington. A polite wood-crafted sign up front read 'Welcome to Spoons: Your Utensil dream-spot. Leave the puns to us, please'. Mabel was bouncing with excitement on her motorcycle as she pulled into the main part of town, coming to a halt on a particularly large parking area, mostly unused.
"Ohhhh, this place is soo cool already!" Mabel giggled, having jumped off the bike in a hurry, stamping her feet in place with excitement. "It feels just like Gravity Falls! Just less Gravity and Fally!"
"Yeah," Soos called at her, walking with waddles, who got out on his hoofs and proudly stretched, "Sort of like Gravity Falls lost half its hicks and crazy people and traded them for crazy surfers."
"I can handle that," Wendy admitted as she stepped out, grinning at a trio of boys in surf gear, walking past them.
Dipper stepped out and joined them, glaring at the surfer men. It was barely eight, and they dared to strut around with their top's half open. "Whatever," Dipper mumbled.
Mabel instead spun around, taking in the sights. The center of town was a collection of small buildings of self-owned and operated family businesses. Brick was a widely used material, and it gave the entire area a low and slow vibe. The streets were mostly empty, save for early shoppers and passersby, who would throw the infrequent glance to the four, and their pig. Following a street towards the west, Mabel realized how closer they were to the coast. The great Pacific Ocean stood at the edge of the mist, gently caressing the shore with it's grand waves.
"So," Mabel spun around to her friends and brother and pig, rubbing her hands together, "What do, compadres?"
"Well," Dipper took in a long breath of the mist-saturated air, "We don't have a lot to start with. If we're looking for something magical, we probably should begin by investigating the surrounding areas. Interviewing people about strange things that have happened recently."
Wendy grimaced. "We're going to interview them?" she asked. Soos had turned away, staring across the street, examining the various shops carefully.
Dipper reiterated, "Just ask them questions. You know, paranormal investigator stuff – strange lights, vanishing people, or things, etcetera. If we're lucky, someone may be hiding something that they just need someone to believe in, and then boom!" Dipper slapped his hands together, "We got a liable start."
"Great," Mabel said, scratching the pig's ears as she listened to Dipper while sitting on the sidewalk. "So where do we begin?" Soos leaned away, scratching his chin as he studied something.
Dipper hummed. "I think the best cause of action is splitting up and taking notes on various parts of town," Dipper explained, looking around in a circle, "There seems to be some houses up on the hill. Wendy, you should look there."
Wendy nodded, "Okay dude."
"Mabel, you're going to comb the center streets here. Start with anyone you think could have a good eye for this sort of thing," he told his sister. Mabel, now scrubbing the belly of Waddles with both arms, nodded back to him, her tongue sticking out. Dipper declared, "I'll head towards the beachfront and ask around. Soos, you'll... Soos. Soos!"
"Sorry dawg," Soos blinked and looked back, "Was just super interested in this one person who was carrying a cute little pug."
Dipper rolled his eyes. He tried to start again, "Anyway-"
Soos chortled, "Also was a little weirded out by with how much sun lotion they felt like putting on. Also, I don't know if I mentioned this before, they were carrying a pug."
"Wait, sun lotion?" Dipper repeated.
The three glanced around Soos while the chubby man turned and pointed. "There, see?" he stated.
True to his word, there was indeed a figure applying a frightening amount of sun-lotion onto their face. The individual was well dressed- more so than anyone else here could have hoped to have been. The silken clothes were finely made and color-coordinated to create a crimson and black outfit. A wide-brimmed hat covered with red and black flowers flopped atop the figure's head. Indeed, the person held a small pug on the leash, which as Dipper noticed, was also clad in the same kind of clothes- suited for the size of a dog: hat and all. It too had sun lotion covering its fur.
Dipper squinted. "Okay... what?" Dipper gasped, watching the woman and the dog start towards the mountains.
Wendy cleared her throat. "As the palest of us four," Wendy grunted, "I get to say that 'that was too much dang sunscreen for anything'. She looked like someone dumped yogurt on her face."
"Maybe it was yogurt!" Mabel said, standing from the floor.
"No," Dipper gulped, stepping forward, watching the two pass by other members of Spoons, Washington. "The clothing she wore was meant for more colder climates, and she wears gloves. It's not cold out at all. Why would she need that much sun-tan-lotion? She's wearing a hat, on a day where the mist blocks out the sun, and put more lotion on herself and on the dog than I think I ever had on myself in my entire life. She wasn't just covering up from the elements; she was completely covering up!"
Wendy smirked. "Sounds like you already got an idea," Wendy patted his shoulder.
The blush, just a mild pink that flared in his cheeks gave the boy a moment of solace. "I do," Dipper nodded, but looked across the street to the left once more, "But they came out of that shop. I say we check in first and ask before I jump to any conclusions."
"C'mon Waddles," Mabel asked of the pig as the four made it across the street. Waddles followed suit, closely staying behind Mabel.
Before them as they made it to the opposite sidewalk was a simple general store. 'General Spoons' read proudly on a large wooden sign above the door. The two glass doors before them held a pair of signs. One read 'Welcome to the proud General stores that goes above and beyond – we sell more than just spoons!' and the second read 'Please let us make the spoon jokes. We've heard them all'. As Dipper pushed the door aside, he gave Mabel a quick glare.
"What?" Mabel asked.
"They don't want spoon jokes," he warned her, "Don't start trouble."
"Awww, fine," Mabel said, letting her brother get ahead. She grinned as he turned though, glancing at her fingers to her left, both index and middle crossed over one another.
Dipper made a quick walk inside. The interior of the store was a basic general store with the added bonus of having a single row dedicated to types of spoons in all types of shapes, designs, sizes and colors. The large desk was occupied by a man of college age and bored looking as he skimmed a magazine called 'Passive-Aggressive Stances and More; But We're Fine, Don't Bother Asking'. The currant article: 'Top 10 ways to Ignore stressors until you explode anyway'.
Wendy nodded at him. "That's not a bad article," she said, catching the eye of the employee, who grunted and nodded.
"Excuse me," Dipper made to the counter, "I was wondering if I could ask some questions about town."
The man grumbled and pointed his hand to his right, further into the building, "Talk to the guy in the back."
"Thanks," Dipper glanced at Wendy, and the two headed further in.
Mabel and Soos, however, made a bolt straight for the aisle of spoons. Grinning at their faces all warped and distorted, they laughed.
Soos chuckled, "It's like a mini-funhouse that you could eat all the cereal in the world with!"
"Exactly!" Mabel nodded to him, "This is clearly the best thing this town could possibly have!" A clink of metal below her, and Mabel turned down to Waddles, who was nibbling on a smaller spoon near the bottom of the aisle. "Awww, he likes this one," Mabel patted the back of the pig.
"Hey!"
Soos and Mabel spun about, seeing the attendant behind the counter. He glared at them, tapping on the counter. "The pig's paying for that one, right?"
"Of course we are," Mabel chuckled, patting Waddles on the head, "He just wants to grow up to be a ferocious Cereal Killer!" Mabel laughed with Soos, and they high-fived one another. "Yeah!" Mabel roared.
"Totally rocking it!" Soos agreed.
"Ugh," the man at the counter clutched his head, hitting his forehead into the wood. "This is almost as bad as the idea for a cut-out of Brian Gooseling."
Mabel gasped. "So people could try to make him eat his cereal!?" she fell to the floor laughing, "That's perfect! HAHAHA!"
"Dawg, that's a wicked idea," Soos commended him, wiping a small tear away from his eyes.
Yet the man on the counter had a small spasm and gritted his teeth. "I hate these stupid puns," he grumbled, "They'll be the death of me. Look, just bring that spoon here and buy it already, okay?"
"Sure, I'll be over spoon," Mabel said as her grin spread ear to ear.
The man clutched his head and groaned. "Just... buy your crud and leave," he begged.
"Okay, okay, keep your pants on," Mabel said, climbing up from the floor, taking waddles with her as Soos tagged along.
"And for the love of all your hold dear," he glared at the two of them, "No more spoon jokes. I'm tired sick of all these puns. Going to have an aneurism from this stupid-"
"Sure, sure," Mabel shrugged and handed the new credit card.
Without turning his gaze away from the two, daring them to speak up again, he had them pay for the spoon, and handed them back the card with a receipt. "Thanks for stopping by General Spoons. Thanks, and we hope to-"
"See you spoon?" Soos suggested. "Oh, Spoops! My bad," Soos continued on a combo-spree. "Haha! Yeah!"
"Pow!" Mabel cheered, punching out at the air, "Zinger! Right on, amigo!" he slapped out and gave Soos yet another high-five. "Now that's how you end on a high note."
"Yeah dude," Soos stretched his neck, "Got to get one in there after letting you get all the good ones."
They laughed together loudly until there was a muffled gurgling across from them. As the two, still smiling looked over, they saw the register boy standing rigid, his eyes unfocused and slowly rolling up. Foam was spluttering from his mouth. Slowly, his eyes went white as they rolled into the back of his head and he fell started swaying in place.
"I think he's just acting," Mabel suggested, her smile now slightly more forced. He then fell back with a loud crash onto the ground. "He'll be fine," Mabel suggested.
"Yeah," Soos nodded.
Waddles oinked loudly.
"Nothing for you to see," Mabel told him, pushing him away from the counter. "Let's go find Dipper and Wendy," Mabel suggested.
"Totally a good idea," Soos agreed. They turned together and casually strolled away from the man twitching on the ground.
Dipper and Wendy had found the person in question- an old man leaning on a mop as he wove it about. Wearing a pair of white earbuds, he swiped the dirty water across the floor with lax effort. Eyes glazed over in repetitious action, he barely noticed their coming until they stood before him, eying his slow progress.
"Sir?" Dipper asked.
"What you want?" the old man asked, rubbing his pale nose with a finger.
"We're wondering if we could ask some questions about the town?" Dipper asked, pulling out from his pocket a note-pad, "We're doing a school research project."
"Aint it summer?" the man asked.
Dipper stalled, yet clicked open a pen and placed it onto the page. "I like an early start," he said not a shred of lie in his voice.
The old janitor grumbled. Pushing on the end of the mop, he shrugged. "What're you asking?"
"There was a woman who stepped out of this shop," Dipper quickly asked, "Wearing heavy, expensive cloves and applying a whole ton of sun-tan lotion. Do you know her?" The old man's crooked back twitched, and he turned to stare Wendy and Dipper.
"You do?" Wendy asked. Dipper began to write notes hastily.
"I know people in town. We don't have fancier types 'round here. Lots of loggers. Lots of fishers. Hikers. Kids. I never known anyone who needs twenty bottles of sun-tan lotion."
"She came in and bought twenty bottles?" Dipper repeated, not looking up from his notes. He grunted and nodded.
Wendy whispered, "Weird," to Dipper, who nodded as well. She then looked to the old man, "She say any reason why?"
"Something 'bout her family needin' them," the janitor shrugged.
"A family," Dipper nodded, "Do you know where they live?" The janitor stared at Dipper. After a long silence, he glanced up, noticing the somewhat incriminating thing he had asked. "Uh, I'd just like to ask them myself, you know. Nothing weird or anything."
"I never seen her before. But she started up the street," he nodded to the front of the shop, "And that's towards 'em mountains."
"Right. Well," Dipper gave a tiny nod to the man, "Thank you for your help," he said and snapped the notepad closed and stuffed it away.
"Sure," the janitor grumbled.
The two spun around and met immediately with Soos and Mabel.
"We got some clues," Wendy told them.
"We got a spoon!" Soos replied.
"For Waddles!" Mabel clarified.
"Forget clues," Dipper told them, "We know what we're up against. C'mon," he pushed past the two and lead the walk out of the shop.
Passing through the front doors, and the still quaking man behind the counter, they left into the street. Behind them, someone screamed and called for an ambulance. Soos and Mabel glanced to one another, best poker faces they could manage. Waddles glanced to them, and they placed fingers on their lips. The pig got the idea; shh.
"So, what's the plan now?" Mabel asked, clearing her throat as they crossed the street for their cars. Dipper opened his back doors, pulling closer one of his bags. "Or are we just traveling more?"
"Oh no," Dipper chuckled, "We're not traveling. It matches with what Zander told us- magical creatures would be nearby these stones, and he said there's a stone around here. It only makes sense that we'd run into something sooner than later."
"Run into what?" Wendy asked.
Dipper turned, holding up his own blue and silver journal. "What else do we know that needs copious amounts of sun-tan lotion and wears big, gaudy clothing that protects them from sunlight?"
"Albinos!" Mabel shouted.
"Gideon Gleeful!" Soos suggested.
"Gingers?" Wendy pointed to herself, an eyebrow cocked.
Dipper rolled his eyes and held out a pair of pages. "Vampires," he told them. The three leaned in as Dipper read aloud, his own writings he had transcribed from Grunkle Fords own accounts in one of the earlier journals. "Among the most cunning of nocturnal hunters, vampires are humans turned to undeath by means of a curse or spell or disease. They hunger for blood, rest in coffins, and have a penchant for classy clothing. They love to hiss when threatened, even though it does practically nothing for their protection," Dipper said as they all read the passages for themselves.
"Great. Vampires," Wendy crossed her arms. "Now I've got competition for local undead in skinny jeans."
"But we've dealt with vampires before," Mabel reminded her brother, "Stupid Vistile and his bro's could handle us when we were twelve! What makes you think we don't have this now?"
"Because we're in their home turf," Dipper told her, "They have homefield advantage. We can't afford to not be careful. Fortunately," he grinned, and patted the trunk of his car ,"I have a few tricks of our own."
"Oh!" Soos clapped his hands together and then pointed to Dipper, "Brilliant! I didn't know vampires are weak to being run over!"
"What?" Dipper gasped, "No, I–" he groaned and unlocked the trunk. With a removal of a fake bottom, the others gasped. There were four cardboard boxes, each with varying defenses against magical creatures. Sitting in a neat pile were a dozen small glass bottles. Dipper lifted two up. "Anointed water. Just sprinkle a little on the guys, and they'll run off."
"You've had this in your car the entire time?" Mabel asked Dipper, who grinned. "When did you get the chance to do that?"
"When we decided to stay the summer, I decided to stockpile a little. If we needed to travel across town with the car, we would have some backup," he explained.
"So," Soos reached in and pulled out another pair of glasses, "We're just going to go get these dudes with water?"
"Yup," Dipper nodded.
"Cool," Soos nodded. From his clutches, two of the bottles fell and crashed. "Oops. Sorry dude."
With a heavy intake of air, Dipper grumbled, "Make that ten glasses."
Riding into the mountain was no easy trick. The gang had decided that the best course of action was to follow the supposed path that a group of teenagers earlier that day had claimed to have taken- running into monsters in the woods while they had. Parking nearby the local high school, the four gathered up on supplies. Dipper became a grenadier; holding six of the ten bottles on his jacket. Wendy and Soos both had grabbed sturdier sticks and begun to peel ends to sharpen them. Mabel, after reassuring Waddles to stay in Dipper's car for protection, warmed up her neck and arms, cracking knuckles with each other step.
"That can't be healthy for you," Dipper told her after what could have been the twentieth time she cracked her knuckles.
"I'm trying to see if they don't go numb!" Mabel explained, "That way when I punch things, only they are effected!"
"You're going to get arthritis in a day if you keep that up," he scolded her. They were now climbing up the steep slopes of the forested woods. "Okay guys," Dipper cleared his throat, aware of the blanket of mist ahead, "Vampires are expert climbers. They always try getting to advantage points, so our best bet is to pay attention to the trees. They'll no doubt notice us and try to get the jump. If we see them before they do, they lose their advantage."
"Not to mention that they can't hurt me," Wendy added with a nod. "I mean, I'm not even sure vampires would want to suck a wraith's blood."
"Hopefully we won't find out," Dipper cleared his throat. "Okay, into the mist guys. Be careful."
The four entered the blanket forests ahead, letting the colder air wash over their skin and clothing. The woods, previously alive with chatter of birds and fauna fell silent. An eerie presence surrounded them. Even as they made their best stealth attempts, their presence was an obvious one. Only Wendy and Mabel were masterfully quiet. They came to a large bush, and peered past it.
"There," Dipper pointed. One by one the other three poked their heads out from the bushes and spied ahead. A well-maintained house with a white picket fence stood out of place in the woods. "I think we found our first place to look around."
Wendy hummed, eying the home. "Vampires in this town live well," Wendy noted, "Those are some nice windows and stuff."
Mabel, angling her head around, asked the group with a plea, "If they have good interior decorations, can we ask them about their ideas before we melt them with anointed water?"
Soos pointed past them. "Dude, I see a dog house," Soos beckoned to the backyard of the home, where, sure enough, a small doghouse sat in the open.
Dipper frowned. He focused ahead of them, to the task. "Okay. Remember guys," Dipper said, and pointed up to the misty clouds around them, "Eyes open. We could run into anything any-" Dipper took his first step past the bushes.
With a loud whoosh, loud snapping sound, and a girlish cry, Dipper was instantly lifted into the air. The three screamed as Dipper was pulled up high by a large rope trap. He screamed, watching the world below him fly further away from him.
He stopped in mid-air, and a hand reached out and grasped his hair. Pulled to face the person, Dipper saw a darkly figure in black and red clothing grinning at him with long fangs.
"Too bad you weren't looking down," he sneered, long fangs exposed in his smile. "Fool. Your blood is mine now."
"Vampire alert," Dipper yelled, "VAMPIRE ALERT!"
"On it!" Mabel shouted, and spun to Wendy. "Toss me!"
"On it!" Wendy repeated, and with the help of Soos, lifted Mabel up, and heaved her up to the tree.
Up above, the vampire glanced down as Mabel began to leap up from branch to branch. "Predictable," he grinned. As if on cue, Mabel's foot reached on branch and the fake branch fell away. As she fell a rope snagged around her ankle, and she dangled high into the air, suspended fifteen feet up, and ten feet below Dipper.
"Trap alert," Mabel roared, "TRAP ALERT!"
"My alert is more severe!" Dipper shouted, eying the vampire, who grinned back. "Oh!" Dipper remembered his ammunition, and with his free hands, reached to his chest. "Let me go, or I'll-" With the added weight of the six bottles of water, Dipper's vest slipped over his head and fell past him, landing onto Mabel's face. "Oh, c'mon," Dipper groaned.
"Ack! Dipper! Is the vampire stripping you down!?" Mabel gasped, trying to unravel herself from her brother's vest, "Don't let him touch you! No means no!"
"That's the least of my concerns right now, Mabel!" Dipper shouted back. "Wendy?! Soos?!"
Below both twins, Wendy and Soos stared up. Wendy sighed. "Okay bud, this is where we act. Hand me your water, and toss me up. I'll nail that sucker right in the face with one of these," Wendy declared, clutching the glass in her palm. "Throwing one of these thirty feet isn't a problem.
"Okay dude. Mystery friends bombing quest is a go!" he declared, handing Wendy his own bottle. With that, she placed a boot onto his outstretched palms. "One, and a two, and a-"
A howl, louder and more bestial than that either had heard previously echoed around them. Soos, half way through pushing up Wendy stumbled, having her fall out of his grasp. While Soos collapsed backwards, Wendy struggled to juggle the glass bottles, with both shattered against rocks when they fell from her hands.
"Dang it!" she grumbled.
Heavy breathing ahead of her pulled her attention up. From the shattered glass pieces on the ground, Wendy slowly looked up. A large boulder some twenty feet away from her was occupied. A large creature, upright and clad in heavy fur snarled down at Wendy. She instantly could recognize it's features.
"Werewolves too, huh?!" Wendy growled, and instinctively reached for something at her belt. "Oh right," she moaned, remembering the status of her beloved axe. "Okay. I still got this," she clenched her teeth as the werewolf leapt down, and stood at seven feet tall, some ten feet away.
The werewolf made two wide steps for her, when suddenly–
"Hey!"
Landing behind Wendy, the vampire hit the ground, and shoved Wendy aside, approaching the werewolf, who then snorted.
"Go away!" he snarled. "They're mine!"
In the flash of an eye, the form of the werewolf shrunk into a girl. Merely a few inches taller than Mabel with bushy brown hair, the girl still looked up to the vampire, but her bright yellow eyes dared to be defied.
"Yeah? It looked like you had no claim on these two," she pointed behind him to Wendy and Soos, who was only then just starting to stand up, "Not falling into one of your stupid traps."
"My traps aren't stupid!" the vampire hissed. "You're just jealous for not being smart enough to come up with more than one way to get someone – aside from chasing them all day!"
"Yeah?" the wolf-woman snarled, "I'm sure it's just the traps you put a lot of time into. How many hours did it take you to put the mascara and eye-liner on today? One? Two?"
"Thirty-seven minutes, and that's not your concern!" the vampire shouted back. "How many times did you go chasing cars today?"
"Those are natural instincts, and it's low of you to make fun of them!" the werewolf woman roared, her cheeks entering a dark red.
From the distance, a new voice called out. "What on earth is going on here!?"
As the four of the mystery squad watched, the wolf woman transformed into a large canine again, and fled, running into the bushes back from where she came. The vampire gowned and turned as the person the four had seen earlier flew over, drifting next to the ambushing vampire.
"Patty Edwardson!" the woman shouted, removing her hat and looking around to the four, including the two above her head, "What is the meaning of this!?"
"She came over and tried taking them from me," the man, named 'Patty', grumbled.
"I don't care about her," the woman scowled, "What are you doing with these children?"
"Hey, I'm at least a teenager," Dipper retorted, still suspended upside down.
Soos added, "And I'm an undisclosed age."
"They're intruders," the male vampire said, "My traps are being used, finally!"
The woman shook her head urgently, clearly distressed. "They're just kids hiking up the mountain! Show some respect for public property," the woman demanded.
"They came with anointed water!" he pointed to the shattered glass vials on the ground.
"They're hiking," the woman sighed, exasperation controlling her every syllable, "Of course they have water! It's what mortals do! They drink water! Not blood, but water!"
"We're vampires, mother!" the vampire male growled, "Acting like anyone can walk over us is how they lose fear!"
"We shouldn't have them fear us," the mother rolled her eyes, "These aren't the Victorian years anymore, Patty. You need to-"
"Don't call me that!" he shouted, holding a hand to his face as he sobbed and ran off, "My name is Blackwing, the torturous!" With a flash of black smoke, he vanished and became a bat, soaring off into the trees.
Left to herself now, the woman also in crimson and red sighed and watched the bat fly off, a deep disappointment in her eyes. She looked around to the airborne and trapped Dipper and Mabel, and the now standing and silent Wendy and Soos.
"I'm so sorry you had to hear that," the woman apologized quietly, "We've... been having family trouble."
"My dear!"
Another vampire floated down, wearing a perfectly pressed black suit with red tie. Like his wife, but without the hat, he had sleeked and perfectly groomed black hair.
"Elizabeth," he said as he landed, "Did you and Pat have another-"
"Yes, yes," she sighed, and waved her hand above her, "Look at what he was doing to some kids."
The man glanced up and gasped. "Oh no. More traps?"
"Two this time!" she snapped. "And was more than happy to sink to the low of their neighbors girl and try eating them!"
Without another word, the vampire man floated up past Mabel to Dipper, who's eyes widened with fear. "I'm so sorry," he apologized as his fingers grew long claws, and with a quick swipe, he cut the rope. Dipper fell a mere inch and shouted. The man caught him, and lowered himself with Dipper in his hands. The woman followed suit with Mabel, rising up and lowering Mabel from the trap.
The woman patted Mabel clean gently. "I would have wished you could have met us in better circumstances," the woman sighed as she and Mabel met the earth with her male companion and Dipper. "Pat, as you saw, has been having some difficulty accepting the new outlook on vampires."
"New, huh?" Dipper shakily said.
"Yes – oh–" the man rolled his eyes, "My word we're being so rude!" he extended a hand, "I am Peter. Peter Edwardson. This is my wife, Elizabeth Edwardson."
"A pleasure to meet and... help you down," she smiled kindly to the twins. "I hope you are all unhurt."
"Except Dipper's pride?" Soos answered quickly, "We're fine."
Dipper glared at Soos heatedly. "If I was paying you, I'd soo deduct a paycheck from you." He turned to the pair before them. "My name is Dipper. This is my Sister-"
Mabel opened her mouth, "Magnanimously Magnif-" Dipper elbowed her side, "Ow."
"Your real name," he warned her.
"I'm Mabel," she sighed and shrugged.
Wendy nodded to the two vampires with uncertainty. "Wendy."
"I'm Soos! You can call me Soos!" Soos extended a hand to the pair, who both shook with him.
The wife nodded to each of them. "Again, we're so sorry about our son's actions. He's been... going through a terrible phase," Elizabeth Edwardson sighed.
"Right... uh," Dipper asked, rubbing his hands together quietly. "I guess then that, uh, you're all vampires?"
"We certainly are," the proud Peter nodded and grinned, his sharp teeth bared.
"Right," Dipper recoiled at the sight of the fangs, "So... uh... you're not going to hurt us?"
"Hurt you?" Elizabeth repeated.
"Yeah, you know," Mabel chuckled, and lifted Dipper's jacket onto her arm and cast her arm over her face, blocking half her face out of sight. She adopted an eastern European accent and hissed. "I vaant to saack your blaaad!" she snarled, and then returned to her normal posture. "None of that?"
The pair guffawed, shaking their heads in a wholesome manner.
"My word young lady," Elizabeth Edwardson chuckled, "Uou must have met some very old-fashioned vampires."
"Uhh," Dipper and Mabel exchanged glances. Of the vampires they had met, they had all been from Gravity Falls. With a tad bit of hindsight, the vampires present had been in town for a very long time, and the town itself was somewhat back-water. "I guess so."
"The vampires of modern society love the new image we've found common mortals see us as," Peter explained, adjusting his crimson tie, "You see, we are now sleek, sophisticated, but sympathetic creatures who enjoy the same things humans do."
"You don't drink blood?" Wendy asked.
"Well, we purchase our share from the hospitals. A blood-bag a day away keeps the blood frenzy away, you see," Elizabeth joked. Peter laughed as well, giving his knee a quick slap.
"Ha-ha!" Soos laughed, "Good one."
"He liked your joke!" Peter smiled. "Say," Peter Edwardson snapped his fingers, turning to his companion, "Why don't we invite them to visit! We haven't had fresh eyes on the home since the neighbors asked for that cup of vanilla."
"Oh! Great idea," Elizabeth snapped her fingers together. The pair turned back to the four. "What'd you say? Come and visit us? We do have food to accommodate mortal guests. It's the most we can do to apologize for our son's actions."
A slowly exchanging of looks befell the four. What could they say? They knew that somewhere in the region there was a magical force they needed to collect, and Zander made it clear that there was a chance it would attract other magical creatures. Vampires, in Dipper's mind, were about as magic as undead could come without being the deep end of dark forces. Still, they would be walking into a hive of monsters, who weather they liked to talk about it or not, enjoyed drinking blood.
Dipper sighed. The other three looked to him, and he back. He could only give them a small shrug. "We'd love to," he said grimly to the pair.
"Excellent!" Peter clapped his hands together.
"Come, follow us," Elizbeth and her companion began to float in the air, gliding away with the four in tow. With that, the four willingly followed a pair of blood-drinkers into their home.
To start with season three, we begin, where else, with a parody of sorts. Kinda of. I'm going to go on a branch and assume that I don't need to explain half these jokes. Unless they're spoon puns- those are hard to comprehend. :p
Anyway, it officially begins! A big thanks to those of you who reviewed for the prologue, and for those of you that voiced interest in helping this series become an auditory one. Some of you have some really, REALLY cool things to offer, and I'm very, very excited to see/hear from you further.
So, officially, this is how I'd like to invite people to audition.
Actors: Please perform 3-5 scenes. I want 2-3 to be in character scenes from my story, 1-2 to be improv of your impersonation of that character giving a monologue about... whatever. You're more than welcome to ask for scenes or script from me, if you'd like. I understand that it is hard to read this story in any format friendly for voice, so feel free to ask me. Anything else you'd like to do I welcome, but try not to make your total material length over 7 minutes. I'd prefer it to be around 4 minutes total. Also actors- here's the list of character's I'd love to hear material from. (Main Characters) Dipper & Mabel Pines, Wendy, Soos, Stan. (Minor characters) Old Man McGucket, Sheriff Blubbs, Deputy Durland, Sibs the Goblins/Goblin voices, Grenda (remember: she had voice training), Candy Chu, Multi-Bear, Jace and Jessandra, Bill Cipher, Uki-Dohth. If you want to do one not listed, by all means do so, just remember- I'm looking for these and similar voices in particular.
Editors: If you feel you are capable in mashing music and sounds together, please send me clips of the approximate total size (any number of clips, as long as they all add up to around 3-4 minutes). Scriptural editors can feel free to take a piece of work I've yet to correct (or a few) and tell me what I missed and why.
Artists: I'm looking for avatars/icons of important characters who commonly speak. If you can give a small sample (something minor, not to crazy... yet) I'd be super-duper crazy thrilled. The idea is to have these avatars appear or fade in when their lines are spoken during the videos. The art style should resemble the original format of Gravity Falls, but feel free to tweak to your own personal sense of artistry. And remember: this is three years after the original. Send me whatever you think is cool, and I'd probably go nuts.
And finally, if you can't help with these, I would love, love, LOVE for you to help me find those who would be interested. I'm only one guy here, but I know each of you know at least one other person in your life. I need a small army of participants to make this happen- especially in the voice acting thing. As of right now, I only have one confrimed female voice actor, and that isn't Mabel. So, even if YOU can't help me, please consider asking people you think may be able to.
Remember, my email for this is now "TheReturntoGravityFalls 'at' Gmail dot com". All things related to the building of the audiobook, please ask, send material, or converse, with me there.
I'm really happy so many of you are already interested. I will be stopping the auditions at the end of December. January 1st is my last day I let people audition, until I post otherwise. Try to get to me as soon as you can with your material, as I'd like to be able to sort through all your beautiful work not rushed. :) Take your time but don't procrastinate. I understand if you're busy and can't, especially since so many of you have exams, but I'd really love for you to get to me sooner telling me when I can expect something from ya. So...
May the odds be ever in your favor.
(EZB is struck by an arrow in the back.) OW! C'mon, I wasn't even done with the authors notes. Dang, that stings.
(From the bushes, Katnis, Legolas and Hawk-Eye all pop up.)
Hawk-Eye: Shall we?
Legolas: I like the practice.
(EZB is promptly hailed with arrows.)