Chapter Text
Chapter 1
Return to Gravity Falls
Dipper allowed himself a smile as he hopped off the bus. It felt weird, being back. A good kind of weird. Annnd a little bad weird. Their last summer in Gravity Falls may have ended well, with plenty of good memories, but with the good comes the bad to balance it out… he still had nightmares about their encounter with a certain chaos demon. Geez, it had been a long time.
The plan had been to return summers ago, but their parents had… other plans. After the unexpected announcement of their divorce, Dipper and Mable had been moving back and forth, spending their summers with their dad on the other side of the country. Then the time came to choose colleges, and with it the inevitable reality that the twins would finally have to live apart from each other. To stand on their own.
Mable had chosen to take up art—not really a shocker—she now had access to however much glitter she wanted. He laughed under his breath at the thought. He had missed her silliness, more than he would ever admit to her face. He hadn’t seen her much since they had moved out. Only for the holidays and the occasional weekend off in-between.
He walked the dirt path to the Mystery Shack, thinking back on that last summer of childhood. So much had changed since then. Dipper had grown much taller, for starters! Try making fun of me now, sis! He’d even gotten over his childhood crush, Wendy, and been out on his first proper date. Mable would be so proud to hear it. Granted, it hadn’t worked out, but it had to count for something, right? Apparently, he just couldn’t figure out how to act around girls no matter how much he aged. Maybe he was cursed, or something.
The Mystery Shack had changed too. No major changes, just less holes and crooked boards. Grunkle Stan sat on the porch, cracking open a can of soda.
“Hey, kid,” he grumbled. “Running away from college bullies, are you?”
“Grunkle Stan? What are you doing here? I thought you were on some world-wide exploration tour with Ford.”
“Well… that was seven years ago. There’s only so much world you can see.”
“You and Ford had a falling out, didn’t you?” Dipper said, putting his hands on his hips.
Grunkle Stan muttered something incoherent and sipped on his soda.
“Where’s Soos?”
“I gave him some time off to be with his grandma. She’s sick.”
“Oh.”
“Yeah, well—that’s what happens when you mistake soap for dressing.”
Dipper frowned. “So, you’re filling in while he’s gone?”
“Kinda. I’m in charge again. So don’t go getting any ideas about better working conditions!”
“Dipper?” came a voice from the yard.
Dipper turned away from Grunkle Stan to face his sister, who had paused from pushing around a wheelbarrow full of leaves.
He gave a small wave. “Hi, sis!”
She dropped the wheelbarrow and came running towards him. “Dipper!” she exclaimed, pulling him into a bone-crushing sibling hug. “You’re finally here!”
“Yeah… hey, could you… I think I’m gonna pass out.”
Mable laughed, stepping back to punch him in the arm. “Oh, bro-bro—you really haven’t changed, have you? Still the same old Dipper! I mean, look at those noodle arms.”
She looked different. She’d cut her hair to a bob. It suited her—she looked more mature. There was still that touch of Mable, though, with a bright pink streak and a shooting star clip to hold it in place.
“I work out,” he retorted. “I lift books. That’s something. And look—I’m taller than you now.”
She tilted her head to the side. “Barely.”
“How have you been, Mable?”
“Oh, you know—painting, daydreaming about boys, the usual! I have a boyfriend now! And not like you’re assuming! Like, an actual boyfriend. No more fleeting paranormal romances for me, oh no siree.”
“Wow, congratulations. How long?”
“Two months,” she shrugged. “We’re still getting to know each other.”
“And he doesn’t mind you spending the summer break here?”
“Well, he doesn’t really have a say—nothing’s gonna keep me from a summer hunting down mysteries with my brother! It’s been ages!”
“Yeah," Dipper said, a smile tugging at his lips. "I missed you.”
“And that’s my cue,” Grunkle Stan said suddenly, standing up. “All this sibling sappiness is giving me rashes.”
“Aw, come on, Grunkle Stan,” said Mable, “Aren’t you happy to have us back?”
“Sure—as long as you help out around the shack.” He walked back inside.
“Don’t mind him," Mable said. "He’s just grumpy because Soos forgot to record his favourite shows while he was away.”
“I don’t think that’s why,” Dipper said, but Mable was already skipping away. Her attention span hadn’t changed a bit. The only time she was properly focused was either connected to boys or cute animals.
He headed upstairs to their shared room, smiling as he saw that Mable had already made herself at home. Her bed was littered with cutesy drawings and stuffed animals.
It’s good to be back, he thought, dropping his bags down on his bed. He unpacked the necessities, then put his bags on the floor. He glanced to the window, the view of a clear sky obscured by the slightly tinted glass. How many times had they replaced that window? The sunlight highlighted a bright triangle shape on the wooden floor, and Dipper froze.
He stared at it for a long time, half-expecting it to come to life. For reality to fall away into grey-scale and white noise. He waited with bated breath to hear that voice sing out through the void, for laughter to bounce off the walls as multiple clones of that shape surrounded him. But nothing happened: the shape remained static, the room warm and colourful. He snapped out of it, reminding himself that it was over.
Bill was gone. For good.
They’d made sure of that.
So, why did he feel so uneasy?
Why did he feel like they might have missed something?
Bill was resourceful. More than that, he was old. Ridiculously old. Like, eons or something. He was smart, always playing at some hidden agenda—knowing just how to spin things around to his advantage. Such a powerful being had to have had some back-up plan, right? Just in case.
That’s what Dipper would have done. The way it had ended didn't sit right with him.
Bill was smarter than that. Smarter than Dipper. Of course he would’ve thought of something, some loophole in case all else failed.
Dipper swallowed, a chill snaking down his back.
What if, maybe, just maybe he was—
No. Stop, he reprimanded himself. It’s over, Dipper. You know this. He’s gone.
“He’s gone,” he repeated out loud. We won. There’s even proof.
If it’s still there.
What was he thinking? Of course it was. Stone didn’t just walk off and disappear.
One way to find out, he supposed, the thought stirring nervous bubbles in his stomach.
He cast one last glance at the triangle shape on the floor and then headed back downstairs.
Grunkle Stan was slouching in the armchair, watching re-runs of some reality show. He quickly switched channels as Dipper walked past, pretending to be absorbed in a documentary about penguins.
Mable was in the kitchen, cooking up pasta. He could ask her to come with him. It would feel safer to have someone by his side, but then… she’d think he was being paranoid. They all would, and why wouldn’t they? They’d moved on, while Dipper was still stuck on that same summer, going over the details over and over again until the smallest things seemed like crucial clues that he’d somehow missed.
He sighed, deciding to face his fears alone. He was just going out there to confirm what he already knew—that Bill was permanently out of their lives. Easy peasy, lemon squeezy.
He found the statue where they’d left it. Parts of it was covered in moss, and the years of being exposed to the elements had left small cracks in the façade. It felt weird, standing at the grave of an ancient demon. Seeing the statue like this, illuminated by the golden sunlight, its shape seemed far less imposing than he would have expected. It still gave him shivers though.
He especially didn’t like the way Bill’s eye was open, staring at him.
“Well, you’re still here…so. Guess I am being a bit paranoid. Okay, uh, great. Now I know, so… I guess I’m gonna go. Leave you to it.”
“Who are you talking to?” Mabel’s voice cut in.
Dipper flinched. “Mabel! What are you doing?”
“Duh. Following you. You’ve been acting a little coco, bro. As a sister, it’s my job to find out what you’re up to.” Her attention turned to Bill. “Huh. Would you look at that—the years haven’t been kind, have they? You’re looking a little green. Green of envy!” She laughed. “Because you’re a statue and we’re not!”
Dipper envied how easily life had gone back to normal for her. She didn’t spend her nights twisting and turning, reliving the horrors of Bill’s evil plans. Coming back here, to Gravity Falls, had been hard. It was definitely worth it, but just the thought of coming back to where it all had happened had made his stomach turn over with dread. But he was here now, and he was still safe. They were all safe.
“You okay, Dipper?”
“Uh, yeah. I’m, I’m fine.”
“Come on, Dipper. Tell me what’s wrong.”
“It’s just… It’s gonna sound stupid.”
Mable gave him a reassuring smile, shaking her head. “You’re never stupid, Dipper. You’re the smartest guy I know.”
Dipper rubbed his arm, then sighed. “Fine, just try not to laugh too hard, okay?”
She made a show of zipping her mouth shut.
He took a moment, thinking of how to describe it. “I…I have nightmares. About what happened last time. The whole end-of-the-world thing. I don’t know, lately I’ve started thinking a lot and I can’t wrap my mind around a few things. I came out here to put my worries to rest.”
“You… have nightmares? Still? Why didn’t you tell me? It's been seven years, Dipper.”
“I wanted to, I mean, I should have. I just thought that—“
“I’d make fun of you? Dipper. I’d never make fun of you for that! We went through something traumatic—it’s not weird that you’d feel scared coming back here. It’s not.” She patted him on the shoulder. “It’s going to be fine, bro. You just need time to manage. I hear these things can take a lot of time—and you kinda have to let it run its course. It’ll sort itself out eventually."
“I guess,” Dipper sighed. “Sorry, you know, for not telling you earlier.”
“No worries. It’s not like I didn’t know. I just figured you needed some space to deal with it by yourself. That was… probably not what I should’ve done.”
“Nah, you were right, Mabel. Had you approached me before I would probably have denied it anyway. I’m glad I told you. You’re acting so mature about this—what happened to you?”
She shrugged. “I grew up, we both did. Doesn’t mean I’m not gonna make fun of you when you lose though!”
“Lose what?”
“Last back to the shed has to wear the other’s underwear!”
Off she went, laughing as she ran the way she'd come, and Dipper couldn’t help but laugh with her. He felt better, getting all of those thoughts off his chest. For the first time, he actually dared hope that all of these horrible feelings would go away. That he’d be all right.
Thanks, Mabel.
He glanced at Bill's statue.
We're safe now. There is no way Bill's coming back from that.
With nenewed reassurance, he set off after his sister.
He should have known better than to jinx it.