[HIATUS] The Day the Campers Came | GRAVITY FALLS/CAMP CAMP AU

03

A week passes, and the two are still no closer to getting home then when they first got there. The four kids sit on the overlook of the woods on the roof of the shack, Mabel and Dipper chucking pinecones at the totem pole (and failing miserably, but neither Harrison nor Neil would admit it).

Harrison laughs as he watches the twins hurl pinecones. "What're you laughing at, tough guy?" Mabel asks comedically.

"Let me show you how it's done." Harrison attempts to stand, but feels Neil tug on his arm.

Neil whispers, "if you use your magic, don't overdo it." Neil lets Harrison's arm go.

"Don't worry, doll," Harrison whispers back, causing Neil to fluster. "Since when do I overdo myself?" Neil sends Harrison a frustrated expression, as if counting the times he's overdone it. "Don't answer that." The two shares smiles before Harrison walks confidently over to the twins.

"Watch and learn." Using his magic, Harrison lifts a pinecone. It's nothing special. A baby could do this trick with their eyes closed. He hears the Pines twins gasp.

He aims before he tosses the pinecone (still using his magic). It hits directly on the center of the paper target on the totem pole before evolving into small fireworks, mildly shocking Harrison. He didn't mean to do that.

"Nice shot," Neil said. "Fireworks were a bit much, though." Neil's legs dangled over the edge.

"Wha- what did you just do?" Dipper asked, his voice straining. "How.. can you do that?"

Harrison's eyes met the twins shocked ones. A strange sense of Déjà Vu hits Harrison when he does.

"What are you?" Mabel whimpers.

"I'm a person, just like you!" Harrison says, panicking. Neil notices this and stands up, taking Harrison's side.

"He was born with it." Neil says calmly. "He's only dangerous if he wants to be. And he's pretty chill." Neil places a hand on Harrison's shoulder.

"Are you sure he's not ..evil?" Mabel asks. "We've had issues with demon possession that give people powers–"

"I've known him for years. Couldn't hurt a fly. As much pacifist as David." Neil and Harrison chuckle, knowing the inside joke.

"Please tell me David is really, really nice.." Mabel smiles hopefully.

"He is. I think he'd rather die then kill a spider." Harrison brings his hand to his mouth and chuckles.

"So, Harrison, what else can you do?" Dipper asked, crossing his hands quizzically. His eyes narrowed at the aforementioned.

"Uhhh," Harrison scratches the back of his neck, glances at Neil, realizes he can't help and finally states; "A lot. What you just saw, and err- I stopped an apocalypse once."

"Excuse me?" Neil says.

"Long story, I'll tell you later." Harrison makes a small hair flip for whatever reason and continues. "I can make things... disappear, and can make them reappear- most of the time.. I can make fire.., and probably some more things. I'm not sure."

"Enough chat about the magic, for now at least. I have presents for you two!" Mabel smiles and grabs the campers by the shoulders before they rush down the ladder and inside.

"Wait here." Mabel rushes up the stairs towards the twins' room. They three boys hear cluttering until mabel runs back downstairs, holding something purple and something a pleasing yellow-green color in her hands.

Mabel hands the the items to Neil and Harrison. They were hand-knitted sweaters. "I made you sweaters! Don't be shy, try 'em on!"

Harrison put the sweater on. It was purple and had a traditional magician's wand on it, there was also some little knitted-it yellow sparkles.

Neil got stuck. Harrison had to help him. Neil's was the yellow-green one that had a test tube on it, filled with a bubbling ominous turqoise liquid.

"I love it!" Harrison smiled, holding the hem so he could look at the entire sweater. "Thank you."

"Me, too. Thanks, Mabel." Neil smiled at her uncharacteristically. The same boy felt an ache in the back of his mind. Probably not the first that day. "I'm sorry, do you have any painkillers? My head had been killing me all day, I swear to god."

"Yeah, sure. I'll go grab them. If they're not expired, that is." Dipper chuckles before he leaves to grab said medicine.

Mabel turns towards Harrison. "So, uh, Harrison. You've had those powers your... whole ...life?" She asks, picking at her sleeve.

"Uhm, yeah. My whole life." Harrison chuckles. "The look on my siblings' faces when they saw me preform magic for the first time."

Neil huffs. "How many siblings to you have, exactly?"

"Oh! Five. Well, ah, four." Harrison scratches the back of his neck nervously. "Two brothers and two sisters."

"Why'd you say five first?" Mabel asked, her interest piqued. Harrison shook his head.

"I don't want to talk about it, sorry." Mabel and Neils' eyes widen momentarily.

"It's cool." Neil replied as Dipper re-entered the room with two painkillers and a water bottle in hand.

"Thank goodness the medicine wasn't expired," Dipper chuckled and handed Neil the medicine and water. "Here you go. I grabbed two just in case."

"Thanks, man." Neil took the medicine. Harrison made a small gasp.

"Can we watch Ducktective..?" Harrison asked, his voice still small. He was smiling.

"Sure. I don't see why not." Dipper, Harrison, and Mabel left the room, leaving Neil behind.

Neil couldn't shake the feeling that something bad was going to happen. He still remembered every second he spent in his own mind with that... god? Demon? Whatever Bill was.

He followed them into the living room soon after, as Harrison and Dipper were sitting in front of the recliner. Mabel, however, was in the kitchen not too far away, making popcorn.

"I can't even begin to tell you how many times my buddy Preston tried to get me into this show.." Harrison chuckles sadly. "Man, I miss the others."

Neil sits down next to Harrison, who has Dipper at his right. "I miss them, too," Neil sympathizes. "It's odd not having my younger sister, Nikki, practically bouncing at the thought of violence. Same goes for Max scoffing at the said acts of violence."

Dipper listens in, not disrupting either of the two. "Remember that time that me and Nerris were too tired to keep our heads up at breakfast? Preston was up aaaaalllll night singing karaoke."

The Ducktective theme song began to play as Mabel brought the born of popcorn back to the seating arrangement.

A few hours later, sometime after midnight, all but Neil fell asleep. All Neil could think about was this Bill Cipher guy. It just.. didn't sit right with him. He wouldn't rest. He didn't think he could.

But when he looked at the other sleeping three, he felt his eyelids droop. The credits to a Ducktective episode were rolling, so Neil just looked at them until he felt too tired.

The television glitched oddly before Neil decided that was enough. He clicked it off.

Slowly, he fell asleep, slumped against Harrison. He thought his sleep could very well be torture. But, strangely enough (and welcome enough), it was regular. He didn't dream that night, but it wasn't a nightmare.