Return to Falls

Chapter 30

Mabel twisted and turned in her bed, unable to find a comfortable position on top of her thick blankets and fluffy pillows. She heard birds chirping away directly outside her window. Another night went by where she barely spent any time sleeping. Instead, she cursed the annoying sounds of the animals doing their usual routine.

The thing that weighed heaviest on her mind surprisingly wasn't the loss of her brother, but the words smeared onto the wall. At this point in her life, she taught herself not to be shocked by anything anymore, but it was beyond her expectations. And all it was were four measly words that didn't mean anything when out of context. Unfortunately for Mabel, she didn't have the context. Or at least, she assumed she didn't.

She contemplated asking her Grunkle, or McGucket, or even Gideon for help since they were the other three smartest people she knew. However, in the end she talked herself out of it, resorting to beating herself up mentally and emotionally.

"Dipper. . ." Mabel muttered. Her body was growing weaker with each passing day. The lack of nutrition and sunlight started taking a serious toll. A few times the night prior, Mabel was sure she wanted to vomit, but lacked anything in her stomach to do so.

"Hey, sis."

Mabel's eyes shot open. She sat upright in her bed and looked towards the door. She was certain her eyes were playing tricks on her. Was it the lack of food? Sleep? Sanity? Probably all of the above. Mabel forcefully rubbed her eyes and splashed what little water she had left onto her face before looking back at the door.

"Dipper? I've officially lost it. You can't actually be here." Mabel could barely keep herself together.

"Yet, here I am."

"Are you really. . ?"

"Mabel, they need you. You can't stay up here forever." Dipper said, ignoring her question.

Mabel looked away from her brother. She was too ashamed to face him. "I can't. I failed you. If I hadn't been so stupid, you wouldn't have become a slave to Bill."

"No, Mabel. I did what I did. It was my choice. But, we can't win without you."

"We can't win without you. I'm not smart like you, bro. I'd just get in the way. . . I don't have the brain for it." A tear fell from Mabel's eye.

"You have the heart. That's all you need."

The Mystery Twin looked up towards where her brother was standing. Or rather, where he stood. As quickly as he came, he disappeared. At the very least her suspicions were confirmed: Dipper wasn't actually there. She couldn't deny the disappointment she felt with his disappearance again, but at the same time she felt relieved. Whether or not it was him directly, she felt like he was talking to her. Even after everything she said to him and put him through, he still believed in her.

Perhaps he was right. Maybe the heart was all she needed.

Mabel picked up a hair tie, gave herself a ponytail, and let out a sigh. "Let's see if you're right, bro."

The eating area looked like a scene straight out of a murder mystery film. A pin board with several pictures and documents was traced by red string. The science geeks had dark circles under their eyes. Last night's schedule didn't go as planned; instead of getting sleep and eating properly, they stayed up and worked like they usually did. Soos watched in amazement as they went while Wendy sat on the other side of the room, looking out the window.

Stan was in the Shack store talking with a few customers. Once they left, he was left alone, like most of his life. He stood silently at the register. Despite being given tons of gifts and money from the Northwests, he couldn't just sit around and do nothing. Since Stan wasn't as smart as his brother, he felt needed to keep his mind off of things.