Gravity Falls: No Strings On Me

Chapter Seven & Epilogue

The next few days went by in a blur as everyone at the Mystery Shack was taken in at least twice each for questioning by the local Gravity Falls police, and the slowly forming but unnamed government division of supernatural research/investigation. After it was all said and done, it was time for the twins to head back to Piedmont. This time, Wendy traveled with them.
As the new year rolled in, Mr. & Mrs. Pines finally got to officially meet the woman they'd heard so much about. Wendy and Dipper started officially dating not long after, and soon trips back to Gravity Falls included moving Wendy's stuff to a place two towns over from Piedmont - not too far from the Pines or the Mystery Shack; a place she and Dipper now shared.
One early summer morning, as the Stans were just about to set off on their "final" official retirement at sea, Ford and Dipper stood on a dock on the coast of Oregon as the sunrise was nearly complete.
"Dipper," Ford began, "You and I have both been through more than most. And while you've always had me to rely on, I think it's officially time for you to head out on your own."
He then handed Dipper two journals; one was bound much the same as the original three (which Ford also officially gave to Dipper), though it had a 4 on the front and was completely blank inside, and the other was a two-inch binder filled with photocopies of every page from two other journals each by a different author.
"I'm officially pulling myself out of the weird and supernatural," Ford began as Wendy helped Stan with final touches on the boat behind them, "But someone in the family still needs to keep at it. There's so much more of it outside of Gravity Falls, so much across the country, the globe - heck, even in other dimensions. I'm done chasing after it all, but I know you've still got a hunger for it. Just promise me you'll do your best to be safe."
"Of course, Gruncle Ford." Dipper replied as he looked through the photocopy binder, "One question though; who wrote these journals?"
"Well," Ford started with a smirk, "I can't spoil the journey, now can I?"
Dipper chuckled as he shut the binder, and put both books in his backpack, along with the original journals, before joining the others in getting the boat prepped.
After final goodbyes, Wendy and Dipper being the last on the list with the rest of the family having thrown a party earlier that week, they watched the Stan'O'War 3 steer out into the Pacific and on into a life of fishing and vacation destination ports. During the walk back to Dipper's new-to-him truck - a cherry red 1986 Ford Bronco (a gift passed down each generation starting with Dipper's grandfather), Wendy started looking through the binder.
"You know," She started as she flipped through the pages, "We could do this professionally."
"Do what?" Dipper asked as he stopped and turned to her.
"Chase down the weird," Wendy replied, "Hunt the supernatural."
"Are you serious?" Dipper asked with a hint of excitement in his voice, "You'd wanna do that?"
"Yeah, I mean, look at this." Wendy answered as she held up a rough sketch of what appeared to be a silhouette of an angel surrounded by some sort of trap, "We've faced far crazier than this already."
"Okay, where do you wanna start?" Dipper asked as he opened the passenger door for her.
"Well first we'd sell the house," Wendy started as she got buckled but kept the binder open, "And probably the furniture. But after that, Kansas?"
"Alright," Dipper replied with a smile as he started the truck, "Let's go hunting."
Dipper steered the Bronco onto the main road, and sped off towards California, already making plans on how to renovate the large enclosed trunk bed of the truck to be a small livable space for the open road.
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Epilogue
As the engine of the cherry red 1986 Ford Bronco shuddered off and began to cool, Dipper and Wendy got out, opened a few secret compartments - both inside the cabin and along the outer walls of the truck - and began to gear up as if they were robbing a bank. After quickly double checking each other's choice of weaponry, the truck was closed and locked up, and the pair stepped through the darkened fog into the dim and flickering light of the rickety front porch ahead of them.
Dipper stepped to the front door first, a shotgun loaded with salt rounds held level in his right hand as he opened the door with his left. With a small click, the knob turned and the door swung inward as the porch light stretched into the room. Wendy quickly put up her long, red hair in a ponytail as the duo stepped inside.
"I never thought we'd ever be back here," Wendy whispered as she swept the room with the silver round loaded pistol in her right hand and held a flashlight in the other under the weapon to keep it level, "Not after everything that happened."
"It's not like we had much of a choice," Dipper replied in loud whispers as he flicked on the rail-light on his shotgun, "She was calling out to both of us."
"Still," Wendy replied as both of their lights swept the room, "Why now?"
Dipper didn't answer as he began to carefully step into the room and reach for a light switch. With a click, a slight flicker and a hum, the ceiling lights began to slowly warm up from years of sitting idle. Shelves had been knocked over, some knickknacks still remained, most of the t-shirts still hung on the rack, the register was missing, and the vending machine had been raided while thankfully still covering the hidden entrance, but the Mystery Shack Gift Shop seemed to have survived being looted after abandonment.
"Downstairs maybe?" Dipper asked as both of them shut off their lights and walked further into the room.
"I was thinking upstairs first." Wendy replied as she put the flashlight away and replaced it with a silver knife.
"Why don't you just ask the one that called you here?" A third voice suddenly asked from the porch as dull thunder rumbled above.
The duo whipped towards the door and cocked their weapons as lightning crashed in the sky behind the newcomer and thunder rattled the dilapidated building. The newcomer's silhouette showed long flowing hair, a hand-stitched sweater, a pair of Ugg boots, and a pair of large unfurling wings that disappeared when looking directly at them - almost as if they were made of shadow.
"Hello Dipper. Hello Wendy." The newcomer said in a expressionless & gruff version of a once-familiar voice as she stepped into the light of the gift shop, "We need to talk."
"What the heck have you done with my sister? What the heck are you?" Dipper spat out his questions as both he and Wendy kept their guns trained on the newcomer.
"Mabel is doing just fine," the newcomer said in their appropriation of Mabel's voice, "But to be quite honest, she feels - what's your word for it - betrayed that you did not come back sooner."
"You didn't answer either of his questions." Wendy almost growled as she kept her gun trained on what was once Mabel's face.
"My name is Sarah." The newcomer answered as she walked around the counter that once held the register, "Mabel is buried within the subconscious of her body, but she is such an empathetic human that I feel her emotions as if they were my own. As for what I am, I am an Angel of the Lord."
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CONTINUE THIS EPILOGUE IN Gravity is Natural (A "Gravity Falls" & "Supernatural" CROSSOVER)