The Things We Leave Behind (Gravity Falls Fic)

Chapter 21: Reminisce

Asha's POV:

        "Asha, wake up," I heard someone say. I grumbled and rolled over.

        "Asha, seriously, wake up. Or do you not want breakfast?" I recognized the voice. It was Saige.

        "Ijustwannasleep..." I mumbled into my pillow.

        "It's your favorite," Saige says, "A breakfast fit for a queen that doesn't want to get out of bed."

        My head pops up off the pillow, "I'LL BE DOWN IN FIVE MINUTES."

        Saige smiles, pats me on the head, throws on her hoodie, and leaves me to get dressed. I pull on some jeans and a light, long-sleeve brown t-shirt. Tying my hair into a messy bun, I head out of the room and down the stairs to the dining room, where Saige's other guests are sitting at the table. There was a time when I wouldn't remember any of their names, but not anymore. Angel and Marcy sat next to each other, enjoying their breakfasts. I noticed that Angel had eggs in a basket. Saige makes the best eggs in a basket. She calls it The Queen for several reasons, but the main one is because it's her favorite dish to cook.

        There are two more empty chairs, and in front of one sat another plate with a steaming hot piece of buttery toast and an egg on top. Next to it was a post-it note that said "You're welcome Asha." I sat down and dug in. It was gone in seconds, and I look up to see Angel and Marceline staring at me.

        Confused, I swallow my last mouthful, "What? It's delicious."

        Sitting there, content and full, I realized that the seat next to me was still vacant.

        "Where's Saige at?" I ask the people across from me.

        Marcy sips her glass of cranberry juice, "Beats me. She practically threw the food at us and then ran out, saying something about an urgent call from Mabel."

        "Huh," I say, absentmindedly. I leaned back in my chair, bored.

        Angel and Marcy exchange a glance and then both begin to smile, slyly.

        This worried me.

        Angel turns back to me, "Say, Asha... how long have you known our gracious host?"

        I blinked, "Since second grade... why?"

        Marceline taps her glass gently, "...Would you say you were close to her?"

        "Um..." I squirmed, "Well... aside from her family, I would probably be her oldest friend..."

        "What was she like?" Angel says, "You know, as a kid."

        "Not much different. I mean, maybe more..." Human. I try again, "Maybe more, you know, immature. She really grew up after the car crash."

        Angel's eyes widened, as if this was the first time he'd heard, "Car crash?"

        "Yeah," I say, wondering why Saige hadn't yet told them, "The one that took her right arm. You know, her prosthetic?"

        "Saige has a prosthetic arm?" Both of them say at once.

        I blink, uncomfortable, "You mean she told you about her job at Higher Flight but she didn't tell you she had a prosthetic arm? Now that just doesn't make sense."

        "Well, I guess we know now," Marcy says, matter-of-factly. I nod in agreement.

        The room is quiet, then Angel says, "So... why is Saige in Higher Flight? It sounds like something you'd have to be pretty dang special to be a part of."

        "It is... I just don't know if I'm at liberty to tell you what it was about Saige that caught the bosses' attentions."

        Marceline takes another swig of the cranberry juice, "So what about you? What's so different about you?"        

        "Oh, that's easy," I say, "I'm a demigod."

        Marceline spits the juice everywhere, "What?!"

        "Yeah. Hades is kinda my father. But he's a bully, so I don't like to talk about it," I shrug.

        Marcy grins at me, "I can totally relate! My dad's a demon. He's pretty cool though, so the bully thing doesn't apply, but wow! A daughter of Hades! That's awesome!"

        I shake my head, "Not really. I like my adopted dad better. He was there for me."

        Marcy nods, understanding. The room suddenly seemed too small. It was okay at first, but now I feel awkward talking about my biological father. At least I can be at peace knowing that Hades sent me and mother away to keep us safe. And it was lucky I landed in Saige's birth universe, out of all the ones he could have dropped us in. She was always like the older sister I never had. I stood up, picking up my plate, "I'm gonna go put this in the sink."

        I walked into the kitchen and set down the dish before walking out the back door for some fresh air.

---

Bill's POV:

        This Asha person had an interesting history. I could look into her brain and see practically every thing that the Operator had ever done, not to mention that Asha herself had done. Looks like my little Unknown is not quite as much of a mystery, nor was she as innocent as she seemed. 

        I'm going to have lots of fun with this.