Phantom Falls

1: The Fentons

The above artwork does not belong to me.

A/N (4/7/15)
No cursing in the comments, please! Don't feel bad if you didn't know. I probably should have told you guys when I started this book.

Dipper Pines tapped his foot against the stool he sat on as he read. Even after having found the author, he still seemed to be discovering new things from the journals every time he opened them. Right then he was sifting through number one, the pages soft between his fingers from being turned so often.

He leaned against the counter, gnawing on a pen. Grunkle Stan had told Dipper to help the customers in the Mystery Shack's shop, but currently he and Wendy were the only occupants. It was Soos's day off, and Mabel was out with Grenda and Candy.

At the moment, Dipper was reading a section about ghosts. Journal number three had offered a bit of insight on the creatures, but the first one had four whole pages crammed with information. He liked to chase monsters, but they just seemed . . . predictable. Ghosts, however, were newer to him and more difficult to understand.

Dipper traced a finger over a sketch of a ghost. It looked like a large dog, and there was a scribbled image of a puppy next to it. The words "shifts into small pup; ghost of lost dog??" were scrawled beneath it. Facts upon facts were crammed side-by-side.

"Green energy" was written in large letters and circled. Bullet points were listed beneath it. He was very interested in the parts about what forms the energy took. "Defies all laws of physics," the author had concluded. "Need specimen to form valid hypothesis."

The Pines twin looked up from his book when he heard someone pulling into the parking lot. Wendy, however, didn't take her eyes off of her phone.

Whoever was outside was arguing loudly. "Jazz," someone was saying, "You can't pin this on me! Some things are more important than your weird research papers, you know."

"Yeah, well, this isn't," a young woman snapped. "And I can blame you for this; it was your idea!"

The first voice, which sounded like a teenage boy's, muttered something too quiet for Dipper to hear. "Come on kids, cheer up!" a man boomed. "I've heard this place is haunted. We can go catch ghosts!"

Dipper's breath hitched in excitement. "Now, Jack," a woman's voice chastised. "We're here to spend time together, not to hunt ghosts. Besides, you should be grateful that Danny has taken an interest in this trip." Her tone was a bit on the warning side.

Wendy finally tore her gaze from her screen. "I think you should take this one, Dip," she suggested. She zoned out again before he could reply.

Fine by him. These people sounded interesting, and he was curious about them being ghost hunters.

A slim, raven-haired boy pushed the door open, followed by a taller redhead girl. They glared at each other as they walked in. They just looked like normal teenagers, but Dipper was a little taken aback when their parents entered the room. A thin woman with a cyan jumpsuit led a hugely bulky man in orange into the shop.

For a second the four just looked around, and Dipper was about to break the awkward silence when Grunkle Stan materialized behind him.

"Hello, tourists!" he grinned. "Welcome to the Mystery Shack, where the horrifying wonders of Gravity Falls are put on display for your enjoyment." He swept an arm around the room. "I'll give you all a tour for twenty bucks."

The boy sighed. "Why did we even stop here, mom? Why don't we just go to the house already?"

The man gave him a rough pat on the back. "They aren't expecting us to get there until dinner."