"Ok, so I've checked underneath every branch, and I think the only thing I've found so far is poison oak- Ah! Mabel!"
Dipper had just returned to the forest clearing when he was accosted by a half-sister, half-wriggling moth swarm. He immediately fell back as the beast advanced.
While the creature attempted to growl at Dipper, it couldn't help but laugh. "They're smooching me!" Mabel giggled underneath the layer of fluffy moths on her face.
"I heard Dipper's yell! What happened-!" The twins' Great Uncle Ford burst out of the trees. He slid to a stop before the two, paused to take a breath of relief, then pulled out his journal. A cheap grey book with a traced outline in permanent marker of Stanford's six-fingered hand. "Genius Mabel! I have never seen so many different species in one place. How did you get them to attach to you?" Stanford said as he scribbled in his book.
"Oh, it's just my animal magnetism," Mabel said with a flick of her foot. That flick was only for cuteness and absolutely not to hide the broken moth trap she didn't try drinking the sugar water out of.
Dipper stood up and dusted himself off. He couldn't help but chuckle as he watched his sister pose for Stanford while he excitedly drew. The setting sun gave this moment in the forest a beautiful orange glow like it was from an old family photo—the picture of summer break. Dipper's laughter then turned into a sigh. It was nice hanging out with his estranged great-uncle and sister like this. But this tiny instance had been, by far, the most excitement he had this summer.
The twins had been sent here from their California home for fresh air and adventure. They only got that on the bus ride. Despite being some renowned scientist, their great-uncle turned out to be one of the blandest men on the planet. He spent all day cooped up in his lab downstairs, never let the two go into town, and refused to let them into the woods surrounding his house.
The last week had been spent entirely inside, with very little but old sci-fi pulp novels and insect books to occupy their time. Despite this, the two tried to remain optimistic. Their uncle had done his best to entertain them with his research (with volumes of his lepidopterology journals), movies (they were allowed to stay up as long as they wanted), and well-crafted games of Dungeons, Dungeons, and More Dungeons (he even managed to get Mabel into it, something Dipper had consistently failed at). But after a week of this, the twins went stir-crazy. Mabel took it worse than Dipper as she was going through an intense boy-crazy phase. Every moment was wasted when not spent pursuing the perfect man. Dipper was pretty sure she would've started eating the walls if she didn't see a hunk soon.
It was only after a failed attempt at building a catapult out of branches and strange metal pieces the two found (the only thing it catapulted was Dipper's lucky hat) that Stanford suggested they go out together. Of course, it was just to collect samples. But a hike was a hike. Even then, Stanford ensured the twins only checked traps in open, well-pathed areas.
"He's probably just trying to protect us. You've seen the eye patch he wears. He probably had a bad accident out here and doesn't want the same thing to happen to us." Dipper had said back when Mabel had been venting about their lack of summer fun.
"An eye patch would do me some good, maybe make the boys think I'm mysterious and deep." Mabel had muttered as she set up another moth trap.
If even Mabel was losing her positivity, Dipper knew things had to change. He had to find a way to get Great Uncle Ford to trust them. So Dipper planned to be the best assistant on this hike. Maybe that would mean they'd go out more, and maybe one of those trips would be by town, and just maybe, they'd actually get to see another living person this summer.
Dipper was pulled out of his thoughts by a thump in the bushes behind them. He jumped and turned to see the movement stop, but there was no sign of what made the sound.
"The forest around my house is filled with all sorts of dangerous things, such as coyotes, black widows, and snakes. I do not want you two galavanting off without supervision. The nearest hospital is too far away for my liking."
Great Uncle Ford's words rang through Dipper's head. He glanced back to see his sister and uncle hadn't noticed the noise, too busy laughing over a few of the moths flying onto Stanford's journal and crawling between his fingers. Dipper then inspected the now silent bush. He took a deep breath, puffed up his chest, and strode to the spot. What better way to prove their trustworthiness than safely identifying a threat in the forest?
As Dipper nervously separated the leaves, he prepared himself for anything to jump out. Nothing did. Instead, a golden speck reflected from the bottom of the brush. He reached down and felt leather under the leaves and branches. Up came a worn journal with a golden, six-fingered hand print on the cover. The number three written on the handprint stopped Dipper. He peeked back at his great uncle's field journal. Though not as ornate, the book Stanford was holding also had his six-fingered hand print with a 39 written in the same place. Had his uncle dropped this?
Dipper opened the massive journal, unable to control his curiosity. This was nothing like Dipper had ever seen! It was filled with monsters, myths, and spells, all cataloged as if under scientific study. Dipper couldn't keep his head out as he flipped through the pages. This writing couldn't be from his uncle, right? Stanford had been the biggest skeptic of Dipper's fantastical theories this summer. Even when he had bug bites that spelled out BEWARE on his arm (well, they spelled BEWARB), all Stanford gave him was anti-itch cream and told him to stop scratching it. But in this journal, everything was laid out in precise detail. There was more in these woods than coyotes.
The final page before the study suddenly stopped was ripped and nearly unreadable. But Dipper could make out one sentence in dark ink, underlined and bolded.
In Gravity Falls,
TRUST NO ONE!
"Hey Dipper, is something the matter?" Stanford's voice made Dipper jump twice as high as his last startle. For a few seconds, the journal was fumbled in his hand as he tried to think what to do. But when he saw Mabel and Stanford starting towards him, Dipper made up his mind. He hid the journal in his inside vest pocket. It was the perfect hiding place, as everyone always underestimated how much his vest could hold.
"Ah, nothing! I thought I saw some moths in these bushes." Dipper stuttered.
Stanford raised an eyebrow (somehow, the eyepatch made him look more suspicious) when they were all distracted by movement on the other side of the clearing. Out of the deeper woods came a group of lumberjacks, weary from their day's work.
"People!" Mabel cried as she ran to the red-haired, burly one in front. "Hi, I'm Mabel! And that's my brother Dipper and Great Uncle Stanford. We're very friendly and have so much to talk about. We can chat about anything. Please just talk to me!"
"Mabel, dear," Stanford came forward with Dipper and gently pushed Mabel aside. "Sorry about that…" his eyes narrowed as he looked at the logger. "I'm afraid I can't quite remember your name. Have we met before?"
"Manly Dan!" Dan seemed only to yell, making Mabel's outburst seem like a whisper. "And we have met before! I was the one who built your house and then remodeled it 25 years ago!"
"Oh yes, you must forgive this old man; faces tend to slip," Stanford said with a weary smile as he started to herd the children away from the woodcutters. The two were about to object when one of the other loggers spoke up.
"Careful out there. The woods have been more active these last few nights. It's why we're taking this path out instead of the roads."
"Active?" Dipper asked.
"He just means the local small wildlife. Probably because of the Goth Moths ending their migration, giving an ample food source-"
"We ain't just talking about frogs and spiders!" Manley Dan yelled. "There's big things back there. Big, big things! Searching things!"
"Big?" Mabel asked.
"Searching?" Dipper gulped.
"Yeah! Which is why we're ditching work for ice cream." Another lumberjack added.
"Ice cream!" Mabel squeaked as she looked up pleadingly at Stanford.
"Come now, kids," Stanford said as he more forcefully pushed the twins away from the lumberjacks. Once the two groups had gone their separate ways, Stanford leaned down. "You two are smart enough not to believe those men. There's nothing 'big' or 'searching' in these woods. They do this with every out-of-towner. You should have seen the pranks they played on me when I first moved here."
"I don't know. They seemed pretty freaked out," Dipper said as he glanced at the retreating backs of the men.
"And we know something is living out in these woods," Mabel added as she gestured around.
"Wha-what do you mean?" Stanford asked, his voice rising in a slight panic.
"Because you always come back hurt from your early morning sample collection," Mabel answered as she lifted his arm and pointed to his gloved hands. He had been using those gloves to hide the cuts and broken nails he had recently acquired.
Stanford pulled his hand away and rubbed it. "I told you that it was from sleepwalking. I sometimes bump into things, which is why I lock my room every night."
Mabel copied Stanford's earlier expression almost perfectly as she raised her eyebrow. "But you get hurt, like, nearly every day."
"That is the foolishness of a silly old man," Stanford muttered as he stood up. "Don't we still have some traps to collect?"
"Uh, yeah," Dipper said, thinking about the journal in his pocket and all the "big" things it talked about. "Hey, Mabel. How about you help me get the traps on the open path over there."
"Sure?"
Dipper pulled his sister to the other side of the clearing as Stanford nodded to them and went into the forest to collect the remaining traps.
"What's up?" Mabel asked.
"This," Dipper said as he pulled out the book. "I think I found an old journal of Stanford's, but it's not about bugs."
Dipper began showing pages of the cryptids supposedly haunting Gravity Falls.
"Whaaaat? This isn't another one of your crackpot conspiracy books, right?"
"No!" Dipper's voice cracked. "I mean, no. I just found this here, in those bushes. And who else do we know who writes journals and has six fingers?" He pointed to the cover with the gold embossed handprint.
"True, does it have his name inside the cover like his others?"
"Ah… No, it's ripped there. But just look at this information! This talks about all the weird, unexplainable stuff in this area. And if Great Uncle Ford studied this once, why is he saying there's nothing strange in these woods now?"
"He found it all bunk and moved on to real bugs?" Mabel shrugged.
"You said it yourself: he's getting hurt by something in these woods. Facts just don't add up, Mabel. He's hiding something."
"I don't know. Reading someone else's diary feels weird. Even if it's old."
"Here it talks about hot undead and unicorns."
"Give me that book!"
Mabel pulled one half of the journal towards her as the two scanned the pages. They had just gotten to gnomes when the ground below them began to shake. The tremors nearly made Dipper fall over before Mabel caught him. A spine-chilling roar made their blood freeze. They both looked above them to see something higher than the treeline looming over them. The setting sun was at the perfect angle to blind them, so they could only tell it was big and sharp. Frozen blood soon melted as the two screamed.
A high-pitched sound shot through the woods, scattering birds. The colossal shape groaned and shrunk under the redwoods.
"Go find her somewhere else!"
Dipper could have sworn he heard Stanford's voice but couldn't quite make it out. At the moment, he was too busy running in the opposite direction with Mabel.
The two flew through the clearing onto the hiking path that led back to the shack. As the twins ran, Dipper wanted to flip through the journal to see if he could identify the monster, but Mabel held his hand too tightly for him to pull away. Dipper hid the journal in his vest as the two broke through the trees. They only stopped running when they were safely in the shadow of the Science Shack.
While on the smaller side, Stanford's house was covered in massive devices pointing at the sky, ground, and even the approaching twins. The additions made the old building look like it would collapse under its own weight.
It was relieving being back in the bizarre shadow of the shack. The two caught their breath as they nervously looked behind them. Nothing monstrous was following them—that is, except for their Great Uncle Ford, who dashed into the yard. He was breathing much harder than the two and had to rest with his hands on his knees.
"What was that?!" Mabel panted.
"Wh-what was what?" Stanford asked.
"That! That… monster!" Dipper yelled as he pointed toward the trees.
"Monster? Oh, you mean the harvester heading for the road. It was just a piece of equipment the lumberjacks use." Stanford said as he caught his breath and stood. "I was talking with the remaining loggers when the device blew a fuse. They have it under control."
"What? Did you even see that thing?!" Dipper gasped. "That was too big for something as simple as equipment. Why were you even running with us if it was just a machine?"
"I was not running with you. I was running after you. With how… surprised you two got, I was worried one of you would hurt yourselves." Stanford said as he straightened his turtleneck collar. He then walked over to the two with a frown. "Come now, Dipper. You're a man of science like me. We both know there's nothing like that out in these woods. Just frogs and moths."
Dipper couldn't meet Stanford's eyes as he kicked the ground. He really considered bringing out the journal, but the red in his cheeks stopped him.
"I'm with Dipper on this, Great Uncle Ford. We both saw something out there." Mabel cut in with no issue staring Uncle Ford down.
Stanford rubbed the bridge of his nose as he thought. He then laughed as he looked down at the twins.
"You two have been cooped up for too long. Making up stories like that. Well, let us rectify this. You want to go into town and get some ice cream?"
"Wait, really?" Dipper asked.
"Ice cream? Town?! On a Friday night! Who knows how many cool people we'd meet! Oh yes, yes, yes!" Mabel practically hopped her way to the car.
"Good, good, but set your expectations a little lower. Remember, Gravity Falls is a relatively small place. We'll be going to the local gift shop with an ice cream freezer." Stanford chuckled as he walked to the car and unlocked it with the keys in his pocket.
"That's fine…" Dipper trailed off as he looked back at the woods. When nothing came charging out, he ran after the others—one hand in the pocket with the journal.
…
Dipper and Mabel had only seen the town of Gravity Falls in passing. They saw an overlook from the mountains from the bus that transported them here. Now, on ground level, Dipper found it just as underwhelming.
Gravity Falls was a little town with nothing more than a water tower to mark it as just a collection of buildings. Unlike her brother, Mabel had only seen opportunity, as her eyes seemed to gain stars as she stared at the civilization. Stanford, though… if Dipper thought he was nervous before, he seemed downright paranoid in the town boundaries. His driving, while slow, ended up being the most dangerous on the road. He skipped, peaked, and skidded around every turn and stop. During the entire trip, he kept turning around in his seat as if the kids would disappear if he took his eye off them.
Despite his apparent best effort, Stanford eventually parked on Main Street. Beside them was a gift and novelty shop called "Polly Joe's Knickknacks and Snacks." Dipper thought it had business only because the more prominent roadside attractions were miles down the highway.
Mabel rocketed from the car and ran into the shop, her long sweater sleeves flapping in the air.
"Stay in sight of me!" Stanford called after her. Mabel didn't even pause as she disappeared into the store.
The sugary smell of candy and trinkets hit the two boys as soon as they opened the doors. Mabel was already making her presence known to everyone in the colorful store. While a surprise to the sleepy townsfolk, Mabel's usual charm was in full force, and no one seemed to mind too much about the new addition to their shopping. Most happily chatted with her and laughed at her antics.
Stanford and Dipper could only shrug at Mabel's fantastic ability to make quick friends, a skill that was a mystery to both. The two walked to the ice cream freezer by the register and picked out their treats. Mabel only stopped momentarily to pick the most vibrant character pop, show it to the red-haired teen running the register, and then ran off to simultaneously eat and socialize.
"She needed this," Stanford said as he sat at a table along the wall with Dipper.
"Yeah, she needs people to talk to other than me. If we didn't do this, I think more catapults would've been built."
Stanford chuckled good-humoredly. "Is that a threat now?" He ruffled Dipper's hair and looked back at Mabel."She really is enjoying herself…" Stanford put his journal and pen on the table. He seemed about to write in it but then stopped. Instead, he repeatedly clicked his pen as he thought.
"Something wrong?" Dipper asked between bites of his ice cream sandwich.
"I… I sometimes forget not everyone enjoys solitude as much as I… You two should have all the socialization you want, but I-" Stanford's eye glanced nervously from corner to corner. "This town can be very… weird, Dipper—the townspeople, I mean. You met Manly Dan, and he's one of the more normal people. I don't want you two getting wrapped up in something I can't pull you out of."
"Uncle Ford, you can trust us. We're teenagers- almost. We know how to handle ourselves."
"And that is what worries me," Stanford said less to Dipper and more to himself as he clicked his pen.
Mabel ran up to Stanford and pulled on his coat sleeve. "I need paper, now!" She gasped.
Stanford scratched his head but complied with Mabel's demand. When he ripped out a blank page from his journal, Mabel immediately took it along with the pen in his hand. She began furiously writing, tongue sticking out, until she lifted the paper for the others to see. The page was covered in little hearts and said,
Do you like me?
Yes
Definitely
Absolutely!
"I rigged it." Mabel declared as she folded the page and ran at an unexpecting boy on the other side of the shop.
"Wow," Stanford spoke.
"Yeah. Wow."
"That boy has no chance, does he?" Stanford laughed.
"Not against Mabel." Dipper chuckled as he finished his ice cream. "She's really good at making an impression."
Dipper looked around the store at all the people Mabel had made a connection with, good or bad. His smile fell as he thought about his own social abilities. Dipper would have never just walked up to people and made friends. In fact, Stanford talking about solitude made Dipper realize he would have been fine hanging out this summer with just his family. It was only Mabel's sadness that had gotten Dipper determined to go out. What did that mean about him?
Stanford must have noticed Dipper's silence because he tapped him on the shoulder.
"Hey." Stanford's voice made Dipper look up. "I know you lost your lucky hat in that death contraption you two made. I see some fairly, uh, hip hats over there. Why don't you pick one out?" Stanford put some cash on the table with a smile.
Dipper grinned. He took the money and went off to the small rack of hats. All were baseball caps with various stamps and jokes on them. He, though, was drawn to a simple purple and white hat with a pine tree on it. It was the last on the rack. Dipper tried it on. Perfect. He took it back off and brought it to the same red-haired girl running the register. Well, running wasn't the word. It was more like reading her magazine at the same time as flicking cards into the reader, when she could be bothered.
"This, please," Dipper said as he put the hat on the counter.
"Hey! That's the hat I wanted!" A little girl screamed as she pointed at Dipper accusingly.
"Um, sorry?" Dipper backed off from the kid by a few steps.
"That's the hat, princess?" The girl's mother came over and patted her on the shoulder. She then gave the receptionist a pointed glare. "I'm sure there's another in the back."
"Sorry, ma'am. There are no other hats in the back." The cashier said, putting away her magazine.
"Well, aren't you going to check?" The mother spat.
The teen rolled her eyes. "Of course, just let me check him out."
"Don't do that! What if there really aren't any more of that hat? My daughter clearly saw it first. She deserves it."
"Uh, really, it's not that important-" Dipper stuttered as the two women glowered at each other. He then saw Stanford stand up and make his way over. Before Stanford could confront the mother, the manager hurtled out of the back.
"Wendy! What is going on out here?" The manager demanded.
"This lady won't let the kid buy his hat because her spoiled princess wants it," Wendy answered.
"Well, I never!" The mother gasped. "I don't like that tone. I knew we should have never come here!" With that, she took her screaming girl and left the premises.
"Um, no, really. It's not that big of a deal!" Dipper called. "She can have it."
The manager gritted his teeth as he turned to Wendy. "This is the last straw, Wendy! You laze about all day, barely doing anything. Then you make me lose customers! You're fired. Give me that hat, and I'll see if I can get that woman back."
Dipper gasped and looked at Wendy. She didn't look surprised; she was furious but not surprised.
"Well, fine!" She reached into her wallet, pulled out a wad of cash, and shoved it into the register. "The hat is bought already, so she can't have it!" She then picked up the hat and put it on Dipper's head. "You saw it first. It's your hat. Don't lose it." Wendy then marched out of the store.
"Wait!" Dipper's feet were faster than his brain as he followed Wendy out. He glanced back to see Stanford lecturing the manager and Mabel talking to some tall boy in a black hoodie, but no one noticed him as he left the store. "Please wait."
"What?" Wendy turned around, keeping her hands in her pocket as the two stood on the sidewalk.
"Um, thanks for doing that. I'm sorry you lost your job." Dipper said.
"Eh, it's okay. Didn't like it much anyways. At least I get to hang out with my friends tonight instead of closing."
"Yeah, that boss was a jerk. Paying for my hat was really cool of you. I'd like to pay you back." Dipper said as he pulled out the money.
A smile returned to Wendy's face as she pushed the cash away. "Don't mention it." She then held out her other hand. "Wendy."
Dipper couldn't believe his eyes. The sunset colored Wendy in perfect light, and her hair blew in the slight wind. He felt his insides start to turn as he realized he was looking at one of the coolest girls he'd ever met. Before his palms got too sweaty, he took her hand. "Dipper."
They shook, and Wendy looked back into the store. "Woah, wait a minute. Are you Dr. Mystery's kid?"
"Dr. Mystery?"
"Yeah, the old dude in there beefing it with Polly Joe. The scientist guy."
"Uh, that's my great uncle Stanford. My sister and I are visiting him for the summer."
"Really? Sweet. We've all heard of him and the crazy experiments he supposedly does in his house in the woods. He's lived here for what, 30 years? Yet he never comes into town. And when he does, he's all jumpy. Once, I heard he ran out of Greasy's Diner yelling about demons. Soo, what does he actually do?"
"He… he is a lepidopterist. He just looks at moths all day." Dipper automatically said, but even as it left his lips, he couldn't help but think of the journal in his pocket.
"Really? That's it?"
"As far as I know. But his house is filled with all kinds of weird technology. Maybe he did something else… once."
"Hmm, I'd like to check out that house sometime. Would you mind giving a tour?"
Dipper's smile came back in full. "I'd love to! When do you-"
Loud car honking took Dipper and Wendy's attention. A herd of golf carts passed the two, going very slowly. These vehicles took up half of Main Street, each hooked to the other. The honking of the angry traffic behind them didn't seem to sway the solo driver as the herd continued at its own pace.
"Hey, Soos! What're you doing?!" Wendy called as she ran to catch up with the front cart. Dipper followed, laughing at the traffic piling up.
Leading the charge was a large man wearing a Santa's Village shirt.
"What's up Wendy, and new friend? I'm just taking the golf carts for their nightly run. You know what the boss says. These vehicles must be treated like the mystic creatures they are to be in top condition."
"That old woman's crazy," Wendy said as she and Dipper trotted beside him. "You're the handyman. You know they don't need to do this."
"It's what the lady wants. And Soos is here to provide enrichment to the carts. She says they've been acting extra jumpy lately, so she wants them to rest in the new moon light." Soos said.
"What, but the new moon has no light. That's why it's a new moon!" Dipper said.
"I was just thinking that," Wendy added. "And is she actually paying you for the overtime this time?"
Soos gave a guilty shrug. "I just like being helpful."
Wendy groaned and slapped her head. It looked like she was about to say more when they heard Stanford call over.
Dipper turned to see his great-uncle run up and hold Wendy's money out to her.
"I managed to convince Polly to give back your money. I'm afraid I couldn't do much more." He said, out of breath.
Wendy took back her money with wide eyes, then smiled at Stanford. "Thank you."
"Woah, Dr. Mystery!" Soos turned around in his golf cart to get a better look. "It's nice to finally meet you. Look, dude, I got to know. Is the eye patch just for show, or is it real? Because I've gotten oil in my eyes a few times. I've been fine, but I'd like to know my future options."
"I, um, I—" Stanford looked around nervously and backed away from the two. "Come, Dipper, let's get your sister." He turned and nearly jumped back into Dipper as he came face to face with Mabel and the black-hooded boy she had been talking to earlier.
"Hi guys, I want you to meet my new boyfriend!" Mabel said as she hung off the taller boy's arm.
"Boyfriend? But you only had ten minutes to-, never mind." Dipper groaned. He held out his hand for the next boy in Mabel's ever-increasing line of crushes. "How do you do…?"
"Nor-mal… Man!" The kid grunted.
"He means Norman." Mabel grinned.
Dipper couldn't get over how wrong the kid looked. His sullen eyes, weirdly sharp teeth, and… was that jam dripping off his chin?
"That is certainly enough socializing tonight," Stanford said as he strode past the boy without even looking at him and unlocked his car. Both twins broke out their best whines, but their pleas fell on deaf ears as Stanford gestured forcefully for the kids to get in the car.
Mabel whispered something to Norman that he nervously nodded to.
"Can I see you guys later?" Dipper asked Wendy and Soos as he walked to the car. Wendy gave a surprisingly determined nod and waved the family off. Her smile was that of a veteran trouble-causer, and Dipper didn't know how to interpret it.
Both twins got in the back of the car with a sigh. As they drove away, Dipper perked up. He had just walked up to a stranger and made a friend. Well, more like an acquaintance, but still! He just about forgot the journal in his pocket until he got to his room.
