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Just when he was about to make it to the second floor and into his and Mabel's room, he heard steps near him. Dipper froze and turned his head to see Bill standing at the bottom of the stairs like some boogey man out of his worst nightmares. The golden glow was gone and the runes and markings on his skin were now glowing red, making him look like a real demon.
Dipper climbed the last few steps as quickly as he could, making it into his and Mabel's room without much trouble. The boy's body almost relaxed when he saw that beyond that triangle shaped window lied his own world with healthy forest, clear night sky with couple of passing clouds and bright silvery moon that looked so comforting. Home awaited him.
For few fleeting seconds, Dipper just stood there watching the sight yet, he knew he didn't have time to lose. All he had to do is rush to the end of the long room and get through the window.
“Quickly now Dipper!” Ford commanded him, and just when Dipper was about to step forward, he heard Bill chuckling. It was clear that the demon was not in hurry...
“Oh, it isn't that easy...” Cipher cackled softly, his voice filled with malice and mockery. “You really are an idiot.”
Dipper with what strength he had left from his weak body starting running to the other side of the room and shouted out, “It’s over Bill! I’m going home!” And to his immense relief a portal started to appear before him until he felt something grabbing his right ankle and looked down to see a shadow hand controlled by Bill! For a brief moment he saw the malicious grin on the demon’s three eyed face before struggling to get away and desperately reached his hand out to the portal. He grunted out the words, “I’m… almost… there!”
His family shouted out encouragement on the radio with Mabel and Ford begging for Dipper to make it through.
Another shadow hand reached for his ankle and made Dipper trip headfirst to the floor and the shadow hands slowly pulled him toward the demon making the boy shriek, “NO! No-no-no-no-no-no-no!” his hand clasped to the floor but it was not enough and was force to throw the radio into the portal so he can use his other hand to keep from moving to the demon.
“Face it, Pine Tree I’m never going to let you escape! You were meant to be mine!”
“Why?!” Dipper demanded before coughing, reminding him of the climbing fever in his body. “Why do you think I’m supposed to be yours?!”
“Simple. Out all the humans in Gravity Falls, you fascinate me the most. But more than that, you’re Sixer’s great nephew but you have shown more potential than he ever did! He was a pawn in my plans and while it was true I had you for a puppet you still managed to best me by gaining your sister’s help. I thought long and hard on what went wrong there since your sister was too stupid to figure out that something strange was going on with you. I am impressed of how you managed to contact her and let’s not forget the first time we met. You figured out the secret to the mindscape and it still wows me!”
“Well sorry to disappoint you but that was mostly just luck! So you see I’m not as special as you think I am!”
“Yeah right! Need I remind you of your strange birthmark on your forehead? No one else has that in any other realm! Even Stanford’s six fingers is something that happens on occasion, that’s not unique! But… you are…”
Dipper dared to look back at seeing the demon’s face that was moony. The boy hated seeing that look and it made him even more determined to crawl toward the portal. Dipper grunted as he kept moving with Cipher tightening his shadowy grip on the boy
Bill continued with a dangerous smirk, “In fact, just remembering why I like you so much, makes me almost forget those stunts you pulled when trying to resist me. So here’s what I’m going to do, I will let you say your pathetic goodbyes to your family as long as you come with me willing. I will give you unlimited knowledge to the universe and even let you rule by my side! You can’t do better than that, kid!”
Dipper just ignored him and kept going to the portal. He was so close yet so far.
Bill frowned at the lack of response, “Pine Tree, think of all that you’d be losing!”
“I am!” and with that Dipper leapt at the portal where to his joy his hands went through and started pulling him in.
Bill saw this and began to turn red once more with his eyes glaring in fury and just like Dipper a moment ago, he shouted, “NO! No-no-no! I won’t let you go!” he tried to pull the boy back.
Dipper feared that Bill would succeed and put his head into the portal where he saw his real world room at the Mystery Shack, and yelled at the top of his lungs, “Mabel! Ford! Stan! Help!”
His family heard his call and they rushed into the room with worry and delight as Dipper said, “Hurry! Bill’s trying to pull me back in!” he reached his hands out and Mabel grabbed them, while Ford got behind her and held on with Stan doing the same with his brother.
Mabel exclaimed, “Hang on, Dipper!” she told their Grunkles, “Now pull!”
Ford and Stan moved back as Mabel held on to Dipper’s hands and much to her brother’s joy he could feel himself being pulled in back to the real world. He proclaimed, “It’s working! Keep going!”
In the crossroad realm Bill could feel the shift much to his anger and shock.
That Pines family is really starting to get on my nerves… was all he could think of before he tried to once more pull Dipper back in with full force.
Dipper felt like his family and Bill were playing tug-o-war with him and he panicked when Bill started to pull him back and he pleaded to his family.
“Please! Don’t let him take me! I don’t want to be with him for the rest of my life!”
“Don’t worry, Bro-bro, I won’t let that happen!” Mabel pulled harder for her brother to come through the portal.
Stan declared, “We all won’t!” he struggled to move back and grunted, “Man, that triangle is stronger than I thought!”
Ford struggled as well and mentioned, “Cipher was always full of surprises!”
Mabel proclaimed, “Come on! We’re stronger then that creep! And no one messes with the Pines family!”
Stan yelled, “You got that right!” and with a mighty yell he managed to move back further making Dipper come through almost all the way.
Bill’s shadow hands couldn’t get closer to the portal and was forced to let go of the boy’s legs. As he saw Dipper disappearing through the wormhole, Bill scowled darkly and spoke in a dangerous low tone.
“Well played Stanford Pines… well played… Clearly I have underestimated your family bonds… but I can assure you I won’t make that same mistake again… just you wait… As for you, Dipper Pines… You only managed to delay your fate with me… One way or another… You… Will… Be…” He flames up, “MINE!”
Dipper heard the echo of Bill’s words just as he slipped out of the portal and a shiver went down his spine but he quickly dismissed that feeling as he landed on top of his family. The portal shortly closed afterwards. The boy couldn’t believe it, he did it! He was back home where he belonged! Tears of relief came to his eyes.
“Dipper!” Mabel screeched and hugged her brother so tight that he almost choked. “I’m so happy you’re home!”
“Me too, Mabel… me too…” he uttered out before the fatigue, hunger, and illness came crashing down on him and he fainted into her lap.
His sister saw this and fret, “Dipper!”
Ford quickly reassured her, “It’s okay. He’s just been through a lot in that other realm.”
Mabel felt her twin’s forehead, “He’s burning up!”
Stan told them while running out of the room, “I’ll call 911!”
Dipper was sound asleep in a hospital bed while Mabel was sitting next to him. It had been a week since he went missing and still he didn’t wake up. There were get well baskets from the townsfolk at the foot of his bed and on the night stands. Soos, Mabel, and Wendy had even made a giant get well card for everyone to sign. Thankfully the doctors have been tending to him and his fever broke so that was good news but he still needed rest to fully recover.
Mabel softly said, “Bill really did a number on you, didn’t he, Bro…?”
Of course Dipper didn’t respond but that was okay, she just wanted her brother to be healthy again.
By then Wendy came into the room with a bouquet of wildflowers and inquired, “Any progress?”
Mabel stated, “His fever broke luckily but he still needs to wear the IV to keep himself hydrated and he hasn’t woke up since he passed out.” she sighed, “My poor brother… the pain he had to endure in that other world… I wish I could have been there to help him…” tears started to form in her eyes.
Wendy set the flowers in a vase before comforting the Pines girl.
“Hey, hey… There’s no way you could have known he would be taken… Besides from what you’ve told me about this Bill Cipher he can trick anyone even if they were really smart. Like your brother when you had that puppet show. And from what I understand from his kidnapping Bill played it cool until he had the chance to strike. So see? There really wasn’t anything you could do.”
“Yeah… I guess you’re right… why, if Dipper hadn’t brought his radio we never would have been able to contact him in the first place!”
“Yeah, that was a stroke of luck there. Come to think of it, you guys are always pretty lucky whenever something big happens.”
“But in Dipper’s case, his luck almost ran out… He was that close to being Cipher’s slave forever.”
“What did the triangle guy want with Dipper anyway?”
“Oh Wendy… the things he said to Dipper when we heard on the walkie-talkie… they were disgusting.”
“Disgusting?”
“Hm-mm. I thought Dipper was being creepy when he was crushing on you but no, Bill really took the cake in this case. He totally wanted my brother to be his.”
Wendy was confused, “Like… a boyfriend?”
“Something like that.”
“Oh man… Poor Dipper.” the red head looked at the sleeping boy in sympathy.
Meanwhile, outside Dipper’s hospital room, both Stanley and Stanford were having a serious discussion about what to do with this recent event.
“It’s not safe for him here!” Stan told his brother.
“He’s not safe anywhere, Stanley!” Ford countered, “I know Bill Cipher better than anyone else! He won’t rest until he has Dipper as his! For the life of me I don’t understand why that is, I thought for sure him taking Dipper was his way of getting revenge on me but the things he said to Dipper… it’s very disturbing.”
“Ford, it’s the 21st century now, a lot of things that were considered bad are good now. You better get used to that; also it doesn’t surprise me that a weirdo like Cipher could be attracted to a boy like Dipper. Plus it happens on the news.”
“That is very upsetting to know that. Now I am glad we got Dipper out of that horrible situation.”
Stan hung his head, “I never would have forgiven myself if the kid never came back.”
Ford placed a hand on his twin’s shoulder, “You’ve done a good job taking care of those kids, in fact it wouldn’t surprise me at all that the only reason Dipper survived as long as he did in that world was because you made him strong.”
Stan was stunned by his brother’s words, “You… you really think so?”
Ford nodded, “His vital signs showed that he should have died from the overexertion including the stress that he had to endure to get away from Bill. You made him into a fighter, Stanley.”
Stan looked like he was going to cry and immediately hugged his brother. Ford returned the hug and patted his twin’s back.
It was late in the evening as the Pines family slept in Dipper’s room with Mabel’s sleepy head resting on her brother’s blanket covered legs. Stan was sleeping on another hospital bed and Ford was resting in a comfy chair. Dipper started to stir making Mabel wake up and saw her brother opening his eyes.
“Dipper!” she cried out in joy making the older Pines twins startle out of their sleep especially Stan who fell off the bed.
Dipper still looked tired but he gave his sister a weary smile, “Hey, Mabel…”
“You’re finally awake!” she exclaimed happily.
Her twin groaned as he slowly sat up and asked, “How long was I out?”
Ford replied, “One week.”
“That long? Aw, man…”
Stan stated, “There’s no use in complaining, kid. It’s just one of those things.”
Ford took over, “The important thing is for you to recover from your unfortunate adventure.”
Dipper saw the gift baskets and inquired, “Whoa, are those all for me?”
Mabel grinned, “They sure are Bro-bro!” she grabbed a few of them and opened them up, releasing the goodies inside.
Stan pointed, “Heck, half the town sent you a get well gift!”
“They… they did?” Dipper was astounded that the citizens of Gravity Falls had taken such a liking toward him and were kind enough to wish him well on his recovery.
Mabel teased, “Wendy even brought you those flowers.”
Dipper flushed, “She… she did?”
“She sure did!”
“Wow…” Dipper could feel his heart beating faster.
Then Mabel showed off the large card, “I made this with Soos and Wendy and see almost everyone in Gravity Falls signed it! I say almost everyone because you know the Northwests wouldn’t nor would the Gleefuls but you know why that is.”
Dipper just smiled, “Yeah, I getcha.”
Stan commented, “It’s great to have you back, kid.”
“Thanks Grunkle Stan, it’s good to be back. All the time that I was there, all I kept wishing was to go back home and to see you guys again, especially Mabel.”
His sister wrapped her arms around him, “Me too, Bro. All I wanted was for you to come home…”
Stan nodded, “That’s what happens when you have a twin, you can’t live without the other. I should know…” glancing at his own twin.
Ford hung his head, “I have to agree…” then he slowly said, “Dipper, I know this isn’t the right time to tell you this, but I think it would be best if you stay in Gravity Falls until I find a way to make sure Bill can’t do anymore tricks to kidnap you.”
Mabel and Dipper were shocked by that making Mabel declare, “If Dipper is staying, I’m staying too!”
Stan countered, “No, if one of you has to stay the other has to go back to your parents.”
Dipper gapped at this and angrily said, “You mean I have to be separated from Mabel again?!”
“I don’t want be separated from Dipper again!” Mabel clung onto her brother as he clung onto her.
“Kids, I’m sorry, but my brother is right, it’s not safe for Dipper to return home if that demon finds another way to get him. At least by him staying we have a better chance of protecting him.”
Mabel narrowed her eyes, “Grunkle Stan, I am surprised at you, you know better than anyone what it’s like to lose a twin and how miserable it was to not have them around…”
“Look I don’t like this anymore than you do. But it’s bad enough that we have to tell your parents what happen to Dipper that I can’t stand to keep their only other child away from them.”
Dipper argued, “Then don’t! I want to see my parents again! When I was in that other realm I kept thinking about them too.” Desperation build in his voice with him shaking, “All I wanted was go back home! To my family!” the tears started to well in his eyes, “Don’t make me leave my parents and sister!” he covered his face and sobbed.
His family was shocked to see how Dipper broke down so quickly.
Then Mabel glared at the older twins, “Now look what you did!” she patted her brother’s back to try to calm him down, “It’s okay, bro… No one’s going to make you leave your family…” she glared back at the Grunkles, “Right…?”
Ford and Stanley glanced at each other not sure how to respond. They still wanted to protect Dipper but at the same time they didn’t want him damaged any further. Separating him from his sister and parents would leave him in utter devastation. The more Ford thought about it, the more he realized that’s what Bill wanted. By taking Dipper in the first place he was able to slowly break Dipper from the pain of possibly losing his family forever making it easier to take him into the nightmare realm.
Ford suggested, “How about this then. You’ll both stay until the end of summer, giving me enough time to figure out a proper solution. If I don’t have something by then, we’ll just have to convince your parents to let you stay longer and have them come visit you. Does that sound okay?”
Dipper stopped crying and stared at his great-uncle and idol and made a small smile, “Better than okay.”
Mabel smiled too, “Ditto. Because that means we get to spend more time with our favorite Grunkles!”
They laughed at that, count on Mabel to look at the positive of this arrangement.
The day finally came for Dipper to be released from the hospital with him being rolled out in a wheel chair that was pushed by Soos, with Mabel walking beside them. Ford and Stan were right behind them as they headed for the car. It took awhile for Soos to fold up the chair with some comedic moments but soon enough they were heading back home to the Mystery Shack.
Once there they spend the entire day relaxing and enjoying each other’s company. But when it was time to go to bed, Dipper found he didn’t want to go to sleep for fear if he did he could run into Bill in his dreams. At least at the hospital he was given strong medication to let him sleep in a dreamless state but now that he was home chances are Bill will try to contact him in his mind.
Mabel saw this from her side of room and quietly asked, “Dipper? Everything okay?”
He sighed, “Well… no, not really. I’m scared to go to sleep. What if he’s there?”
Mabel crossed over and held her brother in a tight embrace, “Want me to sleep you tonight?”
Dipper slightly smiled, “That would be great.” he scooted over so she could climb into the bed with him. She pulled the covers over them as they started to relax. Once they were comfortable enough, he confessed, “You were the reason I was able to get home.”
“Really?”
“Yeah, just thinking about you kept me going. Sure I wanted to see our parents and Grunkles again, but you were the one I kept thinking about the most. Like how sad you would have been without me or if our positions had been reversed I knew you wouldn’t want to give up so quickly. There were moments where I almost gave in but just thinking how you would have fared helped me get through the scary parts. I also know that if you had been there with me you would have encouraged me to try to find a way back home.”
“I sure would have. And you’re right about me being sad without you. The whole time you were missing, I just wanted to find you no matter what. I refused to give up the search while everyone around me told me to take it easy.”
He took his twin’s hand and grasped it, “Thank you for that by the way. I know it was hopeless given I was in a different world all that time but still you were willing to look…”
“You’re my brother, Dipper and my twin. How could I not look for you?”
“Fair enough. In fact, I would have done the same.”
“Much like how Stan spent half a lifetime trying to get Ford back?”
“Exactly.”
They stood quiet for a moment till Mabel voiced out, “Dipper?”
“Yeah?”
“I know you probably don’t want to talk about this, but… what would have happen if Bill did succeed?”
Dipper felt a chill down his spine, remembering every single creepy and sickening word the demon said and told his twin, “I really don’t want to think about it.”
“Yeah, I thought as much. So from now on let’s forget about that creep and focus on having fun like we used before Bill pulled you into that world.”
“I would like nothing better, Mabel, I just hope it can be that way.”
She assured him, “It will be, you’ll see.”
By then Dipper released a yawn, “I actually feel better about going to sleep now.”
“See? That’s what I’m here for. To help you forget your problems.”
“So you do, Mabel… so you do…” he slowly shut his eyes and fell fast asleep.
Mabel smiled at her brother’s peaceful form and whispered, “Don’t worry, Bro-bro, I will always protect you.” she looked up and made a determined face, “You got that Cipher? I’ll always protect him from your evil hands. You’ll never get him as long as I live.” on that note she snuggled closer to her brother and fell asleep as well.