A Rift Between Worlds

Chapter One: The Heroes Return

The next day, as the sun began to rise, the Pines twins were up and ready to get a move on. They had booked the earliest bus, determined to get to Gravity Falls before noon. With that in mind, the siblings had tried to get as much sleep as possible the night before... Tried was the key word.

"See, Bro-bro? I told you that you were more excited than me!" Mabel laughed, punching her brother lightly. "At least I managed to sleep."

Sleep-deprived Dipper stumbled, stifling a yawn. "Shut up. I'll sleep on the bus. So long as you promise to wake me up. Because if you leave me on that thing I swear I'll murder you."

"Aw, is Little Dipper grouchy? Does he need a nap?" Mabel teased him as the bus pulled up to the station.

"What? No... I mean... Yes? Both," Dipper answered as they boarded the bus. After they found an empty seat, the twins sat down, putting their bags underneath them.

"So, do you wanna play a bus game, Bro–?" Mabel was cut off as her brother's head plopped on her shoulder. "Uh, Bro-Bro?" She glanced down to see Dipper already asleep. "Geez, I didn't know you knew an insta-sleep trick, Dipstick. That's impressive."

Throughout the bus ride, Mabel tried to read, but it was hard to focus with all of Dipper's twitching. Just what was her brother dreaming about? As curious as she was, Mabel didn't think it would be good for her health to wake her brother and ask him. Instead, she decided to take a nap of her own. After a few minutes of leaning on the window, Mabel fell into a light sleep, filled with pleasant dreams... The complete opposite of her brother's.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Dipper was dashing through a labyrinth, desperately searching for the way out. Something– no– someone, was chasing him. Their voice rumbled through the halls behind him, the echoes distorting it so much that Dipper couldn't even tell if it was a male or a female.

"You can't run forever!"

Watch me, Dipper thought, nearly running into a wall as the tunnel made a sudden turn. After a few more seconds, he reached a spot with torchlight, and Dipper reached inside his jacket for the journal...

Except it wasn't there.

"Now, now, that pathetic thing went up in flames, remember?"

"Only by your magic," Dipper retorted, not knowing how he felt so sure. But the voice laughed in response. Dipper tensed as he realized that it was closer now; maybe only feet away. He spun around to find a feminine figure lurking in the shadows, her face hidden.

"Well, well, it seems we've reached the end of our little chase," the girl laughed, her voice eerily familiar. She stepped into the light, allowing Dipper to see her face... One that, for some reason, he wasn't surprised by. "It's time for the game to end, Gleeful."

As the world faded into nothingness, the last thing that Dipper saw was a flash of blue and the grinning face of Mabel Pines.

~~~~~~~~

Dipper awoke panting, his heart beating a million miles an hour. Just... What was that? That nightmare... Horrified for a second, he glanced at Mabel, half expecting to see glowing blue eyes and an evil grin... But she was asleep, as harmless as a mouse. Same old Mabel.

Dipper sighed, closing his eyes. What was he thinking? It was just a dream... But for some reason, though most dreams faded instantly, this one wouldn't budge. Dipper just couldn't stop thinking about it. He was being chased by Mabel... Who seemed evil. And... Did she call him Gleeful? Like, Gideon Gleeful? Why?

Dipper shook his head, mentally slapping himself. Dreams don't work like that, dumbass. They're not logical. They usually don't make sense. Dipper rolled his eyes, embarrassed that the dream even concerned him. Except...

Why was he out of breath?

Why was he sweaty?

As if he had been frantically running for his life...

Ooh-Kay, enough conspiracies for today, Dipper scolded himself, stopping his train of thought in its tracks. You're going to Gravity Falls. Enjoy it. Don't let a stupid dream catch you off guard.

"Bro-bro...?" Mabel awoke from her daze, blinking groggily. "You're awake... Are we almost there?"

Dipper looked out the window, a smile growing on his face when he saw a familiar mountain with a hole the shape of a UFO. "Oh yeah," he replied, his grin growing wider. "We're almost there, all right."

~~~~~~~~

"Dipper!" The first thing that Dipper saw as he left the bus was the face of Pacifica Northwest as she tackle hugged him. "It's about time you got your ass back here! It's boring without your dumb monster conspiracies!" She eyed him playfully and punched him in the arm.

"Hey, they aren't dumb," Dipper retorted, punching her back. "You enjoy them just as much as I do, doofus."

"Woohoo! Mystery Trio!" Mabel chimed in, shoving the others heartily. Over the years, Pacifica, Mabel, and Dipper had become known as the Mystery Trio, solving odd cases around Gravity Falls and overall just becoming closer as friends. Best friends, in fact... Well, Pacifica and Dipper were best friends. Mabel had Candy and Grenda, after all.

The next person Dipper was greeted by was Wendy, who sported the Pine Tree hat Dipper had traded with her that first summer. "Heyyy, Dipper!" She called, grabbing him in a choke hold. "Guess what? I'm officially an adult now!"

"Yeah, I know. Question is, why are you excited about it?"

"Eh. It's just kind of... Cool, is all. Different." Wendy shot him one of her famous sideways smiles, crossing her arms. "Everyone's so excited that you're back! Stan and Ford are back at the Shack. You wanna go now?"

"Yeah!" Mabel cheered, dashing to Wendy's truck.

Dipper turned to Pacifica. "Are you coming?"

"No," she sighed, her shoulders sagging exasperatedly. "My Mom needs my help. She's planning a party for a bunch of snobby rich guys again." Pacifica put a finger to her throat in a 'gag me' gesture, making Dipper laugh. "But maybe we can have dinner at the Diner later? You know, catch up?"

"Yeah, okay," Dipper agreed. "Bye, Paz!" With that, he turned to join Wendy and Mabel, and they all squeezed themselves in the truck. On the short drive to to the Shack, Dipper found himself staring at everything, taking everything in. The water tower was repainted; it was blue with red letters now. Aside from that, it was still the same old Gravity Falls... The one Dipper had fallen in love with. But something was off...

"Hey, Wendy," Mabel asked, "Why couldn't Grunkle Stan come and meet us at the bus stop? He's always done that."

As Mabel had voiced the question that Dipper himself had wanted to ask, he chimed in, "Yeah, Wendy, what's holding up Grunkle Stan and Grunkle Ford?"

"I really don't know," she replied, shrugging a little. "But it seemed urgent. They locked themselves in the basement and refuse to let anyone else down there."

Dipper and Mabel exchanged a worried glance. "What could be going on?"

"No one knows," Wendy told them. "All I'm saying is, if they seem a little off, it's because of that. Seriously, though, they could at least stop being weird long enough to come greet their family..."

The ride was pretty quiet after that. What could Stan and Ford be so worried about? After Weirdmageddon, all traces of the abnormal vanished, so there was nothing to be scared of...

Right?