Work Text:
Dipper continued to wave farewell to his dear friend long after she was led into the portal that would lead her into a hopefully peaceful afterlife. The quivering he was vaguely aware of increased in intensity, until more emotions overwhelmed him and he bowed into the floor. So many thoughts were racing through his mind that they were clashing with one another and draining what little reserves of emotional fortitude he had left.
He was so close to killing himself. Wendy had saved him. She forgave him. She gave him the game changer he prayed for. Then she was taken away to an eternal afterlife, never to grace the earth again.
He was beside himself in fresh hopes and grief. It was like watching her die all over again. It wasn't nearly as traumatic, but its suddenness yielded the same horrible feeling of loss, mitigated only by the simple fact that, this time, he was able to say his goodbyes.
"Dipper!?"
He shot up, tears leaking out of his eyes, and turned his neck to the trunk of the tree, where his heavily breathing sister had scrambled on up, sweat glistening in the lantern's light.
"Dipper, I found you! Oh my God," She gasped in more ragged breaths. "What on Earth are you doing here?"
Mabel's quick glance around the hideout yielded all the answers she needed: The summoning board and supplies, Wendy's hat affixed to her brother's head, and a lone, castaway gun. It was that last object that sent Mabel into the tightest, most protective sibling hug in her life.
"Oh my God, Dipper! Why would you think of ever doing that?!" Now it was Mabel's turn to cry. "You know we all love you, Dipper! Why would you?!"
"M-Mabel," Dipper came out of his shock and reciprocated the hug. "Mabel, I just wanted to forget. I-it made sens-"
"What? Made sense?!" Dipper winced as Mabel yelled right into his ear and tightened her hold of him even further. "I could have lost you! We could have all lost you!"
"I-I know, Mabel. I'm really sorry."
"Dipper, please..." Mabel slackened and sobbed deeply into Dipper's shoulder. "I don't think I can put up with much more of all this! I'm so tired. I just want you to be happy again!"
"Mabel," Dipper pulled in his sister and rubbed tired circles into her back. "It'll be fine now. I... I talked to Wendy."
Mabel jumped out of the hug instantly, and her disposition did a near 180. "What? You did?!"
Dipper nodded. "Yeah, I did."
"Oh my God, Dipper. Yes! Yes! You did it!" She gave another tight hug. "You- I'm s- what did she say?"
"She said..." Dipper involuntarily made a simper. "That it wasn't my fault. She forgave me!" Now it was his turn to cry into a shoulder. "You can't imagine how happy that made me!"
"Oh my goodness, that's great, Dipper! That's really, really great! Where is she now? Where's Wendy? I have to thank her!"
Dipper lifted himself off of his sister and scrubbed at his eyes. He went very quiet, and pursed his lips. This strange downturn tempered Mabel's eagerness significantly, and she stayed quiet so Dipper could speak.
"She's gone."
"What? Gone?" Mabel was confused. "What do you mean, gone?"
Dipper swallowed a painful lump in his throat. "A monster of some kind went and took her away. Like, her soul's now somewhere else." He looked down and away. "Forever."
"Well, can't we just summon her back?"
He shook his head. "I don't think it's going to work that way."
"Oh..."
"Yeah."
Brother and sister sat there quietly in the tree house, in the middle of the forest, in the middle of the night, with the failing lantern being their only source of wobbly light.
"I hope it took her somewhere happy." Dipper finally broke the silence. "She saved my life. She turned the safety on before I could pull the trigger. She let me know she was there and wanted to speak to me. And she genuinely wasn't mad at me in the slightest over her death. Wendy needed to have been sent to a good place after all of that. She deserves it."
Mabel placed a hand on Dipper's back. "She really does, bro-bro."
"If she waited any sooner in flipping that switch for me, I would have..." Dipper turned white. "And you would have... oh Jesus." He anchored himself onto Mabel. "I think I'm gonna hurl."
Mabel let Dipper latch onto her in that fearful desperation upon having truly realized, for the first time, the immediate consequence his violent suicide would have made. He managed to keep his stomach content down, but when he was finished riding that latest wave of nausea Dipper slumped trembling into Mabel's arms.
"Mabel, I didn't realize I'd be doing that to you. I... oh my God." Before his sister could make any sort of stuttering rebuttal, Dipper added, "I want to go home now. Can we do that?"
Mabel nodded. "Sure thing, broseph."
The twins reached the Mystery Shack as the very first tinges of daylight made themselves known beyond the trees. There was a familiar car that, once identified, made Dipper's legs stiffen. He still made himself to walk forward with Mabel, but was internally panicking at seeing their father's car out front. Stan must had told him what had happened and Dad must have checked out of some motel to speed all the way over here. Stan must have figured out what he had stolen. The door opened well before the twins reached the porch, and Stan lumbered out, fully clothed and bleary eyed.
"Kid, you're back!" He shouted. "Good work, Mabel! I was this close to folding and calling the cops and organizing a search party! Would've tried searching harder, but I nearly cracked my hip tripping into some kinda pit. I'm not that young anymore!" Stan, after clapping a hand on Mabel's shoulder, turned to Dipper. "Now I know what you took, Dipper. I told your Dad, but, uh, didn't tell him about the condition of the lock on the cabinet. Namely that there is no lock. Hopefully the way I said it should have cleared both of us of that much, but anyway, just give me back my gun before your Dad shows his face out here."
Dipper swung his backpack around and pulled its only content out picked out the bullet from his pocket, then gave them both to Stan, who then hid both in an inside coat pocket. Stan rubbed a hand into Dipper's hair.
"Good to see you're still all in one piece, Dipper. Woulda been... woulda been pretty sad without you."
"It... it would've. Not going to lie about that."
The door to the Shack opened and a man stepped outside. Mr. Pines. He had eyes that were even more tired-looking than Stan's, though nowhere near the look of exhaustion Dipper's contained. He looked at Dipper, and silently walked towards his son. Dipper unknowingly tensed his muscles as though his father would be coming up to him to smack him across the face, or scream at him for pulling this latest stunt. However, wordlessly, Mr. Pines opened his arms wide and latched onto Dipper into an embrace.
"Dipper. Son. I'm so glad you're okay." He breathed. "Don't do that ever again, you hear me?"
"Yeah, Dad."
"I know I've been tough on you. I was scared you'd do something stupid and, well, wanted to protect you. I just want to see you get through this whole mess alive and well."
"Don't worry. I'm gonna get better from here."
"You promise, Dipper?"
"Yeah."