The falls

chapter 7

Jessica and Neomi return to the mystery shack buzzing from their earlier adventure with the Society of the Blind Eye. As they step into the front yard, they pause, hearing voices coming from inside the house. The conversation is between Dipper and Dr. Mathis, and though the two girls weren't planning on eavesdropping, their curiosity gets the better of them.

"You sure about all of this?" Dipper's voice is calm but slightly skeptical. "You asked for Jessica to come all the way to Gravity Falls to be your apprentice, but it seems like you're just letting her run off with Neomi all the time. She's only nine, man."

Dr. Mathis's voice is thoughtful, as if he'd been waiting for this question. "That's because the real purpose of having her here isn't just sitting in a lab with me. Jessica is brilliant, no doubt, but exploring Gravity Falls is crucial. My research isn't just about studying anomalies in a controlled environment. The entire point is to understand why Gravity Falls is such a weak point between dimensions and why so much weirdness leaks into this place. The only way to understand that is through experience."

There's a pause before Dr. Mathis continues. "Think about it. Bill chose this place to break into our dimension and start Weirdmageddon because of how unstable things are here. He found his way in through people's nightmares long before that. There's something deeper, something about this location that makes it the center of dimensional instability."

Dipper sighs. "Yeah, I get that. Letting her explore the town makes sense, and Jessica needs to understand what she's dealing with if she's going to help with your research. But why not accompany her? You're just letting her wander around without supervision. That seems... I don't know, risky."

Dr. Mathis lets out a soft chuckle. "Dipper, you more than anyone understand what it's like to try and grow up too fast. When you were her age, you were fighting off all kinds of madness in this town. Jessica needs time to figure things out in her own way. She's already had a pretty complicated life so far, and throwing her headfirst into all of this isn't the way to handle it. She needs to approach these anomalies with the curiosity and innocence that only a kid can bring."

Neomi looks at Jessica, raising an eyebrow, but Jessica gestures for her to stay quiet as they keep listening.

Dr. Mathis continues, "I'm giving her the space to discover things at her own pace because it might actually benefit our understanding of this town's anomalies overall. Kids like her and Neomi see things differently, things we adults might overlook because we're too busy trying to figure it out logically. There's something pure about how they approach it, and that might be exactly what we need. I mean, look at you and Mabel. You two didn't figure out the mysteries of this town by doing things the conventional way. You figured it out by living it, experiencing it."

Dipper chuckles now. "Yeah, I guess that's true. We were just kids when we saved Gravity Falls."

"Exactly," Dr. Mathis agrees. "And you had to find your own way, just like Jessica and Neomi will. So, let them run around the woods, stumble onto mysteries, and maybe get into a bit of trouble. It's part of the process."

Outside, Neomi nudges Jessica and whispers, "See? Told you they wouldn't care we're always sneaking off."

Jessica, still processing what she heard, doesn't respond immediately. The idea that Dr. Mathis believes in her curiosity, her innocence, as something valuable—rather than just her intelligence—catches her off guard.

"I guess..." Jessica whispers back, smiling a little. "I just didn't think they'd actually be okay with it."

Neomi shrugs, grinning. "My dad knows better than anyone that weird stuff happens here all the time. We've got to be prepared for it."

The two girls exchange a glance, the weight of the conversation sinking in. Gravity Falls had always been strange, but now it felt like the adventure they were on was more important than they'd realized.