Never Trust Your Demons

60

"What is this new world?" Soos apparently doesn't share my negative, estranged view of the bubble's inside. "Shining, shimmering, splendid!"
"Splendid... is a stretch," I reply, squinting. "But definitely shining. So much it's inducing a migraine."
I move quickly out of the way as a pineapple runs past screaming. The red car that nearly ran over it carries two boys from one of Mabel's favorite movie.
"Welcome to Mabeland!" The one with blue hair cheers.
"And this is worse than the apocalypse," Dipper gripes.
"You said it."
"Dude, this place hurts my eyes." Wendy agrees with us.
"Oh that's normal," The other one says. "Mabeland's rainbows have colors only bees and art students can see. Now who wants to go on the grand tour?"
"Nope."
"Do we have a choice?" Dipper asks. And, since I know Mabel that well, I know the answer is...
"No!"
They get up into the car and begin driving us around-in my case, driving me crazy with their need to "radicalize" everything.
"Mabeland is the ultimate paradise and the only rule: there are no rules!"
"Except for one rule which is very serious," I find that highly confusing. Isn't the one rule that there aren't any? "But since no one would ever break it, it's not worth mentioning."
Aw, I don't like having questions.
But hanging out/being in a relationship with a guy like Bill, you kind of learn to deal with it.
"Yeah!" They speed up.
"As bad as this place is, I sort of like the driving laws," I shrug. At least this time it's on the ground.
But...this time there's weird guys from a bad cartoon instead of chaos demons.
"Listen creepy dream guys, we're not here to party, okay?" Sipper tells them. "We just need to find Mabel and get her out of here. Where is she?"
"Our home girl Mabel lives at our next stop!" I'm jolted forward in my seat as we crash into a building and spin out of control to places unknown.
"No rules!" One of the dream cartoons cheers.
"Or law of physics!" I find myself gripping the car tightly as it refuses to stop spinning or even slow down.

We eventually stop at a beach filled with more of Mabel's fantasies.
"Now, come have rad snacks served by awesome penguins!"
My stomach growls as dressed up penguins walk up with trays full of food and drinks and I realize I never actually had anything beyond a Pitt Cola in the past 3-4 days.
"Oh, score!" Wendy takes a drink from the tray. "I'm so hungry."
"Yeah, I haven't eaten anything except for part of my hat for the last three days!" Soos and I take one as well.
"Man, even the punch tastes like children's dreams," I comment, taking a sip. Soos and Wendy clink cups and Wendy laughs.
"Can you guys just hold on a second?" Dipper stops us. "Do you see what's happening here? Don't forget this world was created by Bill," He slaps Soos' drink away as he is about to drink from it. "That punch is probably blood!" I nearly choke on my drink, which indeed is the color red.
"Dipper, this isn't exactly the right shade to be-"
"And that glitter rain is probably ground up bones, or babies, or something," He points to a cloud that is indeed raining glitter down on us. "Bill's using Mabel's own fantasies as some sick trap," He clenches a fist around a handful of the "bone" glitter. "We need to grab Mabel and get the heck out of here."
"I'm... not sure how much of this is Bill..." I say, taking another sip and not quite thinking about what I'm saying. "He told me this is was sort of her self made utopia. It-"
"Connie, you realize that's Bill we're talking about, right? The one that tricked you into falling in love with him for half the summer?"
I flush sheepishly. "Yeah, but... he's taken over the world now, right? He thinks he's won, so why would he lie? I mean, once the villain gets what they want, they usually reveal the truth of everything. It's part of their classic downfall."
"But this isn't a TV show or movie!" Dipper protests. "And it's BILL we're talking about!"
I suddenly realize arguing and defending Bill's integrity to Dipper may not be the brightest idea, not to mention pointless.
"Yeah, you're right," I drop my drink for an added effect. "Let's go rescue Mabel! Gah!" A cannon goes off behind me, showering us in confetti. "And let's please do it ASAP."
"Oh, Mabel?" We look to the blue-haired guy. "She's at the top of the tallest tower guarded by those big buff waffle guards. There's no way to get past them!"
"Someone hand me some syrup."
In the seriousness that he said that, it's hard for me to not laugh.

"Aaah!" I stifle another laugh as Soos jumps on one of the waffles and starts to eat it. "It's happening! The moment we've trained for!"
"D-don't worry, man! I've got yo-" The other one screams as Wendy punches out his face.
"It's now or never, guys!" She says. Dipper and I run after her and Soos as they punch open the doors.
"This is a rescue!" Dipper shouts to the stuffed animals now starting at us on shock. "Everyone hit the deck!"
Soos throws an animal out of the way. "Hang in there, Mabel!"
We run up the spiral stairs, and find a grand door at the top. We break in and find a dim room. Mabel is asleep on a veiled, comfortable looking bed in the middle of the room.
"There she is! Soos! Grab her! Wendy, Connie barricade the door!" We all do as Dipper instructs.
"S-Soos? Connie? Wendy? Dipper?" I glance back and see Mabel awake and rubbing the sleep from her eyes.
"Mabel!" I smile, but return my attention to the door as something jabs at my arm. The waffle's butterknife swords are poking through.
"The waffles are coming back!" Wendy announces as she and I try to push them back. "We gotta hurry!"
"Don't worry, Mabel, we'll get you out of this!"
"But, Dipper!" She says, followed by an exasperated sigh. She claps twice and everything in front of the door is lifted off the ground, including us! She puts everything down with her mind and seats us all in some chairs as the guards barge in. They also seen to do her whim as she claims her hands and they leave.
"Mabel! What are you doing?" Dipper asks. "We're trying to save you from this prison!"
"This isn't a prison! I made this world!" She claps and the lights come on. "Well, I sort of woke up here. It's complicated."
"What are you saying?"
Mabel goes over to a desk, turning around a plaque announcing her as mayor "I'm saying this is my home now. And I don't want to be saved!"
"Sorry, Mabel," Another one of Mabel's creations bumps into the window.
"No worries, Bubble Bear."