Chapter Text
When Dipper Pines returned to the nostalgic, low lying township of Gravity Falls, Oregon. He hadn’t accounted for two things.
One. That a dashingly handsome dream demon would have managed to piece himself back together after they had thought they had so masterfully defeated him six years ago.
And two. That he would be cradling the limp, lifeless body of his twin sister in his arms.
Several events and at least five really terrible decisions had led to him carrying Mabel’s corpse around like a doll. But it was perhaps his next decision that would change his life forever.
But enough of the skeptics and details. Best try to understand Dipper Pines’ current predicament and what on earth he was even doing back in the town that potentially mentally scarred him forever and set him on his life’s one mission. His “white whale” so to speak.
The odd mysteries and occurrences of Gravity Falls had slowed to a crawl after Dipper and the rest of his extended and close family managed to defeat this all-powerful demon. Yet, that did not stop the young Dipper Pines from pursuing the craft of the paranormal and following in the brilliant-yet-only-slightly-frowned-upon footsteps of his great uncle, Stanford Pines. Much to the eternal chagrin and discomfort of his parents and friends alike.
His parents had been particularly shocked to find out Stanley was alive having assumed him dead, while actually the conman just whittled his ego and stood in Stanford’s place as “that old kook in the woods”. But prattling on about where we’ve come from is futile when we look at where we are. Right now the old, casual banter of the what happened then is vastly overshadowed by the “what the heck is going on now” question I can tell is rattling around your mindscape.
Allow me to further elaborate in time. But for now, we really need to get back to the, quote un-quote, “Mystery Twins”. You have to imagine me holding your shoulder and brushing my hand across the air in order to get the effect of that statement.
Dipper and Mabel Pines of California are an odd pair. One is the brilliant nerd of the class and the resident conspiracy theorist of the household. The other is one of, if not the most, bright and bubbly human being you will ever meet in your feeble existence. But of course. You already knew that.
What you may not know is that Dipper Pines is not one to give up on his dreams, and that by the spritely young age of eighteen, he was already a producer, editor, director and host of a very popular and highly regarded paranormal investigator show, “Dipper’s Guide to the Unexplained”. This being said, the supposedly haunted churches, houses and prisons of the US were more than a little underwhelming in comparison to the great rush and weirdness he encountered six years ago in Gravity Falls.
The ghost-busting missions with silver mirrors and hunts for the Mothman, Bigfoot and other cryptids lacked the certain pizazz he needed and had only obtained between the scraping tips of pine trees in the Gravity Falls woods that circulated the Mystery Shack.
That was why, when he received a grease-stained postcard from an old friend by the name of Soos, requiring assistance he was so overjoyed in returning to that odd old town.
Naturally I hadn’t forgotten about Mabel. Mabel Pines was a little different from her brother and had firmly decided to place all that weird stuff of Gravity Falls behind her and focus on the glittering, sparkly road to university she’d always dreamed of. She was popular and on the verge of a major breakthrough with an acting company. Mabel was one to enjoy the theatrics and larger things of life brought about by her hit roles in multiple feel-good movies and budding acting career, providing voices to some of the most well-loved princesses and unicorn cartoon characters of kids TV shows.
An acclaimed equestrian, musician and artist Mabel Pines was set for the stars, literally. With a brand new space-themed movie in the making.
Needless to say the Pines twins were successful. Very successful. Before even making it out of high school. Ah the beauty of genius running in the family. It seemed like nothing could steer them away from perfect lives of glitz and glamour and fame.
Yet still, that was the magic of Gravity Falls, that no matter how hard you tried to escape, somehow, always, you found yourself on a dusty road, at the back of an old bus. You managed to pass the large rusted water tower on your way in, through the pine trees. If you paid close enough attention, you may see something between them. Something that wasn’t there a second ago.
Who am I you ask? Why are you bothering to narrate this story in such an obnoxious first-person yet slightly third-person way?
I thought you’d never ask! The name is Bill. Bill Cipher. Demon, dream master, psychopath, “creep”, “jackass”, “one-eyed freak”. Call me what you want. I’ve heard them all.
Pleasure to make your acquaintance. But I haven’t got all day to sit here and talk to you. So let’s make this snappy, I have places to be, minds to control, worlds to dominate and people to kill.
Welcome to my story. It’s going to be one hell of a ride.