Chapter Text
" word"- someone speaking
Word- emphasis on a word
Word- Dippers input
'Word'- Dick's thoughts
'Word'- Dipper's thoughts
'word'-Mable's thoughts
(word)- voices on the television.
"Word"- Xyler (the blond)
"Word"- Craz (the other one)
[ word ] - ???
{ word}- memories
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Rain pounded on the roof of the shack as lightning lit up the sky. Dick sat on the skull as Stan sat on the yellow armchair. The TV was playing 'Baby Brawl', a show about babies fighting. Dick had no idea how that show ever got approved, but he wasn't going to question it. The show announced a commercial break and the first image that they saw made Stan pause the TV. The older man let out a loud laugh then yelled.
"Kids! Come quick!"
A door proceeded to open and shut before loud thumps were heard coming down the stairs. The twins turned into the den area just as Stan began to finish another laughing fit.Dick remained on the skull with his phone in one of his hands. The noirette had been checking in with the team and looking at some of the case reports, so he hadn't been paying attention to what was on the TV.
Once the older man was sure he had all of their attention he picked up the remote and gestured to the television. "I need you to laugh at this with me!" Stan pressed the play button and all eyes became glued to the screen.
(Who's cute as a button, and always your friend? Li'l G-i-d to the e-o-n! Wink! Lil Gideon.) Dipper's nose scrunched up as he sent a glare at the screen, "Ugh, Gideon." Mabel looked away from the TV.
" Remember when I wouldn't date him, and he tried to destroy us?" Stan moved to gesture his arms, nearly hitting Dick in the face, and growled" He's always trying to trick me into losing the Mystery Shack!"
" One time, I caught him stealing my moisturizer." The group startled when Wendy spoke, 'when had she gotten there?'
" What a bastard." The seventeen year old scoffed. Soos chose that moment to walk in.
"And yet, our mutual hatred for him bonds us together." The man draped an arm over the red head's shoulder and placed his other hand on Dick's head.
(Hahahaha!) The six turned to the screen when the high pitched laugh began to play (Come on down to Li'l Gideon's tent of Telepathy. Opening soon at this location.) The groups', minus Stan's, eyes widened, each in various stages of shock.
' I'm pretty sure it's not legal to do that, but nothing is going to be done about it since the law enforcement in this town is almost as useless as the GCPD.'
" Uh, should we be worried about that?" The old man looked at his great nephew and waved his hand,
" Please. The only way Gideon's taking over this shack is by breaking in and stealing my deed."
Kssshhhk!
" You mean like right now?" Everyone jumped to their feet and ran towards the noise. The group of six sprinted through the halls of the Mystery Shack, occasionally bumping into or knocking things over.
Wendy pulled up next to Dick. " What are we supposed to do if Gideon did break in?!"
The noirette glanced at her for a second before looking around the halls. "I'm pretty sure I saw Stan grab a broom and Soos holding a spray bottle," Dick's eyes widened as he spotted something. "But just in case..." The raven-haired teen leaned down and snatched the baseball bat from its resting place against the wall.
Wendy looked at him worriedly.
" So your plan is to beat up a ten year old with a baseball bat?! Really Dick?!"
The teen sent her a humorous glance. "Really? You're telling me that you wouldn't pummel Gideon if you were given the chance?" Wendy would have answered if they hadn't gotten to the part of the house that Stan kept his safe in.
The six stood outside of the closed door, they could hear Gideon mumbling from inside the room. Stan walked towards the door and swung it open.
"Gideon!" The boy stopped what he was doing and turned towards them.
" Well, well, Stanford! My arch Nemesis. We seem to have entered a dangerous game of cat and mouse." Gideon pointed a finger at the ceiling, "But the question remains, who is the cat, and who is the..."
Stan had decided that enough was enough and stomped towards the ten year old with the broom tightly gripped in his hands. "Oh, no, not the broom!" The older man took a swing at Gideon, who hissed at him before running out of the shack and into the rain. "You mark my words, Stanford! One day I'm gonna get that combination! And once I steal that deed you'll never see the Mystery Shack again!"
Stan just smirked and began to close the door.
" Good luck, bucko!"
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Everyone, minus Soos, made their way back to the living room. The TV was playing some weird western type show, which wasn't too entertaining based on everyone's reaction. Wendy and Dipper had gotten into a half-assed nerf gun fight, though calling it that was even a bit of a stretch. Wendy sat slumped against Dick's leg while Dipper was laying down on top of a spare cushion. Dick had returned to his perch on the dinosaur skull, texting his girlfriend and occasionally getting hit by poorly aimed foam darts. Mabel was in a nearly identical position to her twin, her cheek squished against her loosely fisted hand as her eyes blinked sleepily. Stan was back on the armchair and was the only one paying attention to the show, though he wasn't as relaxed as he had been before. He sat close to the edge of the chair with both feet firmly planted on the carpet, his shoulders were tense and if not for his bad posture his back would have been straight as a pole.
( I'm tired during the day.)
" I can relate to this."
Mabel looked up at her Grunkle with semi tired eyes, " Grunkle Stan, why can't we watch a movie that we'll all enjoy?"
Stan raised a bushy brow, " And what movie would that be?" His gruff voice laced with suspicion. The brunette's eyes sparkled.
" Dream Boy High," she picked up a DVD case that was next to her, displaying it to the others, " Where love is on your permanent record."
" Boo"
" You'll learn to like it."
Clang! Clang! Crash!
Every head in the room turned towards the noise, Dick tense and ready to spring into action should it be another of Gideon's attempted thefts. Soos stumbled into the doorway, mild panic gracing his face.
" Dudes! There's a bat in the kitchen! It tried to touch me with its weird little bat fingers." Soos shivered.
Stan's hand shot up, finger pointing at the doorway, " Don't worry, I've got this under control." His hand grasped the lever on the side of the chair and pulled it back, reclining himself as he put his arms behind his head. "Dipper, Take care of it."
Mabel giggled as her twin began to protest, "What? Why can't Mabel do it?"
" 'Cause life ain't fair." Stan pointed his thumb towards the kitchen, " Now go fight a bat so we can watch TV." Dipper got up and made it so he was blocking the TV.
" No way Grunkle Stan. You always make me do dumb chores. I'm putting my foot down this time." The brunet made a show of lifting his foot and stomping it onto the ground. Stan pushed the footrest down and braced his arms on the armrest to push himself to his feet.
" I said, do it, kid! Now!" His voice was gravely and harsh. The pre-teen stared at his great uncle, brows furrowing as a frustrated growl escaped his throat. Dick shot up from his perch, gracefully slipping between the two Pines. His hands were raised in a calming motion.
" Stow it, you two." The Pines glanced at him before turning their matching glares back to each other. "Alright, why don't I go and take care of the bat while the two of you have some alone time to calm yourselves, how does that sound?" Stan stared at the teenager, gray-brown eyes flickering towards his nephew for a second. The older man's shoulders sagged as he grunted, letting himself fall back into the chair. The older boy twisted his body to look at Dipper. The young boy's whole body was tense, his fists clenched at his side so hard that his knuckles were white. Dick placed his hand on the boy's shoulder, feeling some of the tension drain from his shoulders. The teen gave Stan one last look before guiding the pre-teen into the kitchen.
They could hear Mabel shout," Remember, bats are more afraid of you than you are of them!" As they made their way through the door.
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The two stood just outside of the kitchen, backs flat against the wall of the doorway. Dipper peered into the kitchen, his eyes flickered around the room. "So... What are we going to do about the bat? Should I grab a flyswatter?" He looked to the seventeen year old, hoping for a plan, instead he only got snickers. 'Why is he laughing?'
" First, we're not gonna use a fly swatter. And second, you don't have to go in there if you don't want to. Not everyone is a fan of bats, no one would judge you for that." His face was soft as an amused smile pulled at his lips. Dipper looked at the teen for a second before stepping away from the wall and shoving his hands in the pockets of his shorts.
" Okay, then how are you going to get the bat out?" The pre-teen tilted his head and raised an eyebrow. His question was ignored as Dick turned, silently padding into the room. The brunet pressed himself against the wall and watched as the teen stood in the center of the room. "Dick! What are you... It might bite you! Bats are rabies carriers!" Dipper hissed.
Dick chuckled at the boy's concern, "I'll be fine, kid, don't worry." He stood as still as possible, pressing his lips together and making a high pitched clicking noise. He made a series of clicks with a few chips scattered in between, it wasn't long before the noirette started receiving clicks in return. The chitters echoed around the room accompanied by quiet wing beats. Dick slowly lifted his arm, fingers closing until he was left with a two finger salute. The clicks and chirps continued until the detective felt small claws dig into his fingers. Hanging off his digits was a small but very fluffy bat. It was a hoary bat, a species that occupied many forest regions in North America. He lifted his other hand, taking two fingers and gently petting the small creature's head. He made a few more clicks before lifting the bat up to his eye level. "Hey little guy, I'm gonna have to take you back outside, alright." The bat made a few chirps in response, almost like it could understand him. Dick echoed the chips as he walked toward the window, using his free hand to carefully slide it open. "Alright buddy, time to go." The teen made one last click, and the bat flew off into the woods. He watched the creature fly off as memories of damp, dark caves resurfaced, filled with high pitched clicks and the fluttering of wings. He stared out the window until he could no longer see the bat, shutting the window and turning back towards the entrance of the kitchen. He was met by a pair of wide brown eyes and a slack mouth.
" Wh-What? How did you do that?! You- You just tamed a freaking bat!" Dick chuckled and shook his head, lifting the younger boy's hat up and ruffling the dark brown locks as he walked past him.
" A magician never reveals his secrets, kid." His hazel eyes filled with mirth.
" YOU'RE NOT EVEN CLOSE TO BEING A MAGICIAN!!" The pre-teen's indignant shout was nearly drowned out by an eerie but joyful cackle.
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It had been a few hours since the bat situation and for some reason looking at Stan made him want to start punching the walls. Dipper tried to act as normal as possible after their argument, but spending less then even ten minutes in the same room as Stan had him practically tearing his hair out. The pre-teen had to force himself out of the living room in an effort to avoid getting into a screaming match with the con man. Now Dipper sat outside on the creaky wooden steps of the Mystery Shack, staring out at the trees as a small breeze tousled his brown locks. He was too wrapped up in his mind to hear the rusted hinges of the door shriek or the sturdy footsteps behind him.
" Geez, you might give Dickie-boy a run for his money in the brooding competition this year."
Dipper was torn from his thoughts, back straightening as he turned towards the voice.
" W-Wendy! Hey! What's up?!"
The redhead sat down beside him, crossing her muddied boots as she leaned back on her arms. "Eh, Not much, just about to head home for the day. I should really be the one asking that question though." Her jade colored eyes softened as she looked at him with a kind smile on her lips. The sun's yellow rays made her hair look like fire and the light dusting of freckles on her face stand out. The brunette felt his face begin to burn as his brain tried to juggle and collect his thoughts.
" O- Oh, mE?" he winced at the minor voice crack, "I- I'm all good, y'know. Just the- the same as always!" 'What was that!? Oh No! She's going to think that I'm some weird loser!' his mental berating was cut off by a heavy sigh. He focused on the girl, who was almost a woman really, next to him.
" You don't have to try and hide it, Dipper." Said boy opened his mouth, "And if you're about to ask me what I'm talking about, I will put green hair dye in your shampoo." His mouth snapped shut with a click. " There's obviously something going on between you and Stan. And hey," she said, making small gestures with her hands. " For all I know it could be nothing, just a small disagreement with family. Which, trust me, I get it; family can be a real pain in the ass sometimes." She lifted her hand, dragging it down her face. " What I'm trying to say is that you can talk to us; Dick, Soos, and I are always willing to lend an open ear." Jade met brown as the 16 year old looked him in the eye, "So, What's up?"
He let his eyes fall to his beaten up converses as his shoulders slumped. " I... Grunkle Stan, he's always picking on me for something and I... I just... I don't understand why! I think he gets a kick out of seeing me do the most difficult or painful chores that he can think of! It's obvious that Mabel's his favorite; he never makes her do anything she doesn't want to do, he doesn't make fun of her, or push her around! Why can't he just pick on someone else for once!" The back of his throat burned from yelling, he hadn't even realized that he stood up and started pacing. He didn't feel better, he still wanted to scream until his voice was hoarse.
" I get it."
The brunet shifted his gaze to the teen.
" It's pretty obvious from the hair alone, but my dad is 'Manly Dan.'" She said while making air quotes. " I'm the only girl out of four kids as well as the oldest. it would be fair to think that I'd get special treatment 'cause of that, but..." She let out a bitter huff,
" I'm always the first one my dad looks to when someone needs to get their hands dirty, even if someone else could do it. As much as I get mad at him for it, I know he was trying to help me." Wendy closed her eyes and took a shaky breath. " My mom died when I was seven, a few months after Gus was born. I was a complete wreck, so he started signing me up for all these camps and started giving me things to do around the house to help keep my mind busy with something other than her." Wendy lifted her head, glassy eyes returning to look at him.
Before he could even think about it, he had his arms wrapped around the redhead's torso. He felt as she mirrored the action and tugged him closer.
" Thank you," he whispered into her shoulder, " for telling me and lending an ear." He felt his vest dampen slightly and held the teen tighter.
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Mabel had convinced Soos to come with her into the woods, the promise of some fun and exploring seemed to work well enough.
" Dude, I promise, it's 100% impossible to lick your elbow."
Mabel smirked, "Well, Soos, I do have a way of making the impossible possible. Let's make a deal, if I..." The brunette trailed off, tilting her head a bit to the right.
" Um, Dude, Are you good?" The repair man said, voice laced with worry.
" Shhhh! I think I hear someone. Come on, this way!" Mabel whispered as she took off in the direction of the voice, leaving Soos to scramble after her. Soos knew that he wasn't in the best shape, he'd never been the definition of 'physically fit' even as a kid, but trying to keep up with the feminine half of the Mystery Twins was a very different ballpark compared to the games he played in gym class. A much more difficult one. Maybe it was because of his size, he wasn't able to bob and weave through the trees as easily. Eventually, the young girl came to a stop, turning her head to look over her shoulder and raising a single finger in front of her lips. The two silently walked closer, before crouching behind a bush.
Mabel almost let out a groan or a shout of frustration when she saw who was making all that noise. Of course it had to be him. The little twerp was standing in the middle of a small clearing surrounded by birch trees, a picture frame sat on the ground in the center of a circle of small lit candles. Gideon was bent over with his arms wrapped around his stomach while grunting.
That's when things started to get weird.
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Stan had given Dipper another task, this time it was sweeping the kitchen while Stan took a nap in front of the TV. Of course he was given another chore while Stan got to sit down and do nothing. He didn't really mind sweeping, it was easy to do and allowed him to slip into his head to think. No, what bothered him was Stan's tendency to push others around and demand that they do all the dirty work. Huffing before glancing at the only other person in the shack. Dick sat on the kitchen table, his left leg was propped up on the table as the other dangled. His forearm rested on his bent knee as he fiddled with his phone, nursing a can of Pit-Cola in his other hand. The older teen looked as if he could be one of the 'Bad Boy' characters straight out of Mabel's cheesy shows.
How did he do it? How could he stand being ordered around all day? Dipper wanted to ask the older boy so many questions. In the short amount of time they were here, Dick had shown that he was a leader. He took charge in dangerous situations, delivered orders almost as easily as he breathed, and thought up solutions and plans in the blink of an eye. He was practically everything Dipper wanted to be; Smart, strong, cool, and respected. But he still listened- No, followed Stan's orders. The brunet sighed heavily. He didn't get it. He turned to the teen, the person he looked up to as a hero, and opened his mouth to ask Dick all of his questions. Just as the words were about to leave his lips, a loud crash echoed through the house.
Mabel and Soos burst through the front door of the shack, slamming the door behind them. Mabel skid down the hall, scrunching up the rug as she ran toward the kitchen.
"Dipper! Dick!" the boy's heads turned towards her, the girl leaned against the doorway, hands resting on her knees panting heavily in an attempt to catch her breath.
Dipper put down the broom and walked over to his twin, confusion flooding his eyes. "Mabel, what's going on? Was it Jeff again?" Soos, who was somehow more out of breath than the younger girl, entered the kitchen, stumbling slightly as he walked down the step.
" Dudes, we've got, like, a serious problem!"
Dick slid off his perch on the table, landing silently on his feet before gliding toward the group. "Was something chasing you two?"
Mabel shook her head, causing a few strands of chocolate brown hair to fall in her face. "It's Gideon, we..."
Her twin's eyes widened, " Was Gideon chasing you? Why can he just-"
" He wasn't chasing us!" Mable's fists were clenched at her side, her whole body was tense and shaking. "We saw him in the woods! He drew something in the dirt and started talking all gibberishy, then BAM! A dorito with one eye and a top hat poofed into existence! And... and Gideon plans on sending it into Stan's mind!'' The boys froze in place, eyes wide with shock and surprise.
" A-a... Dorito thing?"
" What in the actual..."
" It was crazy dudes, it had a bowtie and a cane. it pulled the teeth out of a deer's mouth and then put them back in. Absolutely wild." Dick's eyes narrowed, hazel orbs becoming dark with caution and something dangerous. His gaze shifted towards Mabel.
" Did Gideon or that... whatever it was, see you?" His tone calm and soothing.
The brunette shook her head, " No, but we have to hurry, they're going after Stan! Gideon's trying to get the safe code so he can get the deed to the shack!"
" Shit!" he raised a fist in front of his mouth, glaring at the floor as he began pacing. "Dipper?"
" Yes?"
" Can you look through the journal for anything about getting into someone's head?" The preteen nodded, reaching into his vest pocket and pulling out the journal, quickly flipping through the pages and skimming through the entries.
Mabel could almost feel when a pair of hazel eyes shifted to focus on her. In the month that she knew him, she could say that she'd never seen him like this before. The teen was serious and calm, which was normal, but he had this confidence to him. It didn't feel the same as when he jumped over the fence at the Dusk 2 Dawn, neither was it the same confidence that he held when he'd get into a play fight with Wendy or when he made bets with Stan. No, this confidence hung heavily in the air like it was a burden. There was none of that light hearted cockiness or casual showing off, it was dark and dangerous like the calm before a storm. She might not be as logical, or serious, or as book smart as her brother. But unlike her twin, she knew people. She knew what the dark confidence that flowed off of Dick meant. It was a warning.
" Mabel, do you know what the thing's name was?"
" Umm... Bob, no, Will maybe... " She stumbled through the names, snapping her fingers as she searched for the right one. "Bill! His name was Bill!"
Her twin finally stopped flipping through the pages, doe-like eyes frantically scanning the page he was on, "Guys, I think I found the page!" The group of three surrounded him, looking over his shoulder at the opened journal. "Beware of Bill. The most powerful and dangerous creature I've ever encountered. Whatever you do, never let him into your mind."
A cold feeling washed over Dick as he analyzed the parchment, the first page alone was enough for the young detective to start understanding what they were truly up against. The original neat black script had sung praises of this creature, now scribbled out with warnings frantically scrawled across the pages. Strange symbols decorated the blank parts of the pages along with the red splatters that had sunk into the paper. There was no doubt that it was blood. The reddish brown stains were much too dark for it to be anything else. This Bill Cipher was dangerous, maybe even Trigon level dangerous. A series of pained grunts and groans tore the detective's attention away from the journal and towards the sleeping con-artist. The older man shifted and kicked, almost as if he were having a nightmare. Mabel's chocolate eyes widened,
" Grunkle Stan!" Her voice was filled with panic and concern as she reached her arms out towards her great uncle. A large shadow formed on the wall of the den, taking the shape of a triangle with arms on the sides and legs dangling from the base and a top hat floating above its vortex. The shadow slid down the wall until it made its way behind Stan. An arctic blue light filled the room as Stan's eyelids peeled back to reveal fully white glowing eyes. The older man started twitching and jerking as pained grunts escaped from his throat.
Mabel snatched the journal out of Dipper's hands, frantically searching the page for anything that could help her Grunkle. Her eyes shone with fear, her voice panicked and hoarse. " It is possible to follow the demon into a person's mind and prevent his chaos. One must simply recite this incantation." The girl's eyebrows furrowed, shoulders squaring, her hands no longer shaking. Mabel's brown eyes hardened as she stared at the book.
Dipper let out a sigh, "This is just great." He turned his back towards his sister and crossed his boney arms, his doe-like eyes becoming harsh. " I spend all day doing all of Stan's dirty work, and now I have to save him from some crazy brain demon?" Mabel's brows shot up at her twin's words.
" This isn't the time to hold grudges." The group jumped at the noiret's growl, three pairs of eyes shifted to focus on him. "Gideon made a deal with what seems to be an extremely dangerous demon just to try and get the deed from Stan. We know next to nothing about what this thing is like or what it's capable of." The teen's piercing gaze turned towards Dipper, the brunet could practically feel the hazel orbs burning through his skin. "So right now, it doesn't matter if you're angry at him or not. There's a demon on the loose in his brain and we're stopping it." Dipper answered with a small nod. Dick shifted, holding his hand out as he looked at the other twin. Mabel placed the open book in his hands and watched as he scanned the pages. "In order to save Stan, we're going to have to follow the dream demon into his mind. Soos, the book says we'll need to make a circle of candles around the victim, can you and Mabel go find enough candles to do that?"
" Yes sir, let's go dudette!"
Dick's eyes were on Dipper now, "I need you to go find a lighter, I don't exactly trust Soos and your sister to not burn the house down." The pre-teen nodded before rushing off to the kitchen. A full body sigh left the Teen Wonder's mouth the moment he was alone.
" Holy shit... why'd it have to be interdimensional demons?" A wave of exhaustion hit him as he lifted a nimble hand to massage his temples. it was the type of fatigue that settled into your bones, the type that makes you waspish and unpleasant to be around, the type that makes the most asinine ideas come to life. The type of fatigue that can get you or someone else killed. By Rao, the last time he felt this tired was when they were dealing with Trigon and a half revived Slade. 'I knew lying about where I was going would come back and bite me in the ass! I could have called Raven for help, but No! Getting help will just force me to explain why I'm in Bumfuck, Oregon and not on the other side of the country!' The noirette took a deep breath and unclenched his fist. ' Calm down, Dick. Good news, this isn't your first rodeo; you have at least a bit of experience when it comes to extremely powerful demons. You've got this.' He opened his eyes, and looked at Stan.
" We'll save you, I promise."
____________________________________________________________________________
Lit candles surrounded the unconscious con man and the group of four. The room was bathed in a soft orange glow, the lighting almost made everything seem calm for a moment. Dipper stood with the journal in his hands and a stone in his stomach.
" Is everyone ready?" The brunet shifted his gaze to the seventeen year old that stood directly in front of his Great Uncle, his face cold and stoic. All Dipper could do was nod and raise his hand to place it on Stan's head along with the others.
The pre-teen looked at the open journal and spoke, " Fidentus omnium. Magis omentium." He could feel the energy of the chant as it materialized and started to take effect. " Magnum opus. Habeas corpus. INSECTUS NOMINUS OVERRATUS." An Electric blue light filled the room as a sudden wind blew out the candles and whipped around them. " MAGIS TREMENSIUM. MAGIS TREMENSIUM. MAGIS TREMENSIUM!"
A bright light blinded the group for what couldn't have been more than a second. When the light disappeared they found themselves sitting outside in front of a colorless Mystery Shack. Dick rolled onto his back with a deep groan before placing his hands on the ground above his shoulders and vaulting to his feet. The twins and Soos pushed themselves off the ground, staring at the building before them in a mixture of shock and awe. A thick fog-like haze wreathed the clearing the Shack resided in, though it wasn't the one he or any of them were familiar with. The building was distorted beyond what was physically and structurally possible. Dick tried to inspect the misshapen tourist trap. a dull ache formed behind his eyes as static rang in rang in his ears. The letters 'PHVWNUB VKDFN' replaced the painted on 'Mystery Shack' that normally sat above the main door. An old and worn down swing set creaked as an ominous wind caused them to sway. 'Something's wrong here...' The teen felt his hackles raise as his friends began walking towards the porch. Images of crumbling cities, seas of magma, and four glowing red eyes flashed through his mind. 'Something is watching us.' He felt like a changed leopard, goosebumps covered his arms as he felt a piercing gaze settle on the back of his neck.
" Whoa, this is Stan's mind?" Mabel wondered aloud, her chocolate brown eyes shimmered with curiosity.
" Huh. Figured there would be a lot more hot old ladies." Soos turned, back now facing the shack as he looked towards the direction they came from.
Dick looked at the spot where they landed, the thick haze shielding anything that could possibly be watching them. The pressure behind his eyes had built up and spread to the rest of his head, most likely signifying the start of a stress induced migraine. He saw a flush of orange and black out of the corner of his eye, disappearing just as quickly as it appeared.
" Remember everyone, we've got to look out for the triangle guy."
" YEAH, LOOK OUT FOR THE TRIANGLE GUY!" Dick whipped around to face the newcomer. Floating in front of the porch and swinging a cane was a glowing yellow triangle with a large singular eye placed in the middle of the shape. A small top hat adorned his vertex and a bow tie was placed under its eye.
" It's him! It's the guy!" Mabel extended her arm and pointed at the triangle, " You leave our Uncle's brain alone, you Isosceles monster!" A war cry echoed through the air as she made a charge for the demon. Dick reached out trying to grab mabel's sweater but only managed to brush against the woolen material. Luckily for all of them, Soos was close enough to scoop the girl up, preventing her from running at an interdimensional being with unknown levels of power.
" AH, STAN'S FAMILY. WE MEET AT LAST." The triangle- Bill, gently descended until his stick-like limbs were touching the wood of the porch. " QUESTION MARK, SHOOTING STAR, PINE TREE, BLUE BIRD." A gleeful look shone in Bill's eye as he spoke, making a finger gun with his hand and pointing it in the group's direction . " I HAD A HUNCH I MIGHT BUMP INTO YOU." The tip of the demon's finger started to glow red. In a matter of seconds a red laser-like beam shot off the appendage and went right through Dipper's stomach, leaving a gaping hole in its wake. The boy looked down at the hole with an ear splitting scream.
Dick rushed over to the boy, placing his hands on the brunets shaking shoulders. The detective inspected the wound, all while calmly whispering to the young Pines. There was no flesh, blood, or bones visible in the hole, the insides looked to be the same color as his vermilion shirt, if anything the kid had been more affected by the shock of having a laser go straight through him than any sort of pain. As soon as Dick was sure Dipper wouldn't go into shock, he stood up and turned towards the geometrical demon. His brow furrowed and his eyes narrowed as he looked into Bill's eye.
" What do you want with Stan's mind?"
" OH, JUST THE CODE TO THE OLD MAN'S SAFE!" He removed the hand that held his cane, which floated beside him instead of dropping, and jabbed his thumb towards the entrance of the shack. " INSIDE THE SHACK IS A MAZE OF A THOUSAND DOORS REPRESENTING STANFORD'S MEMORIES. BEHIND ONE OF THEM IS A MEMORY OF HIM INPUTTING THE CODE." Bill stretched an arm out in front of him and leaned back, looking at the outstretched limb as if he were inspecting his nails. " I JUST NEED TO FIND IT AND GIDEON WILL PAY ME HANDSOMELY!"
" Not if we stop you!" Mabel pointed at the floating triangle, her voice filled with determination.
" HA! FAT CHANCE! I'M THE MASTER OF THE MIND." Bill looked directly at the group and lifted his arms up, causing an electric blue fire to engulf him. " I EVEN KNOW WHAT YOU'RE THINKING RIGHT NOW." Dick opened his mouth to say something but another flash of orange and black danced at the edges of his vision. His attention was brought back to the dream demon when a sickly yellow light flooded his sight. The light disappeared, nothing felt off, there wasn't a giant hole in his stomach. But there were two very tall, brightly colored men standing slightly in front of Mabel. They looked like they were taken straight from the eighties. The one on the right had tanned skin and bright blonde, cheek length hair. He wore a vibrant green cropped tank and very short white and purple shorts. The other was paler and had short bright blue hair that was combed to one side. He wore a full red and white jacket over a neon pink shirt and vibrant teal jeans.
" Whoa! Where are we, bro?"
" We must be in heaven, 'cause I just saw an angel." The one with blue hair said as he crouched down and pointed at a beaming Mabel.
Bill was once again floating above them, cane held horizontally with both hands and a look of casual indifference in his eye, as if he wasn't creating more and more problems by the second. " YOU'RE OUT OF YOUR LEAGUE, KIDS. TURN AROUND NOW, BEFORE YOU SEE SOMETHING YOU MIGHT REGRET. LATER, SUCKER!" The demon tilted his top hat. He sped off backwards to the shack, creating a triangle shaped hole in the wall.
The teen wonder stepped forward, eyes narrowing as he focused on the hole. " We need to find that door." He turned to the others who were just staring at him. " What are you waiting for? Come on, hop to it!"
____________________________________________________________________________
Opening the door of the distorted mystery shack was an odd experience. There were dozens of gravity defying staircases that lead to floating doors. It reminded him of when Cyborg and Beast boy described their adventure in Raven's mind to him and Starfire. He made his way towards the stairs leading to, what he hoped was, the main part of Stan's mind. As the rest of their group quietly chatted behind him, Dick took a minute to rein himself in. He could feel the hair on the back of his neck standing on end as he tried to contain the trembling of his hands. Every small noise sent a chill down his spine. The last time Dick had felt this paranoid was when he inhaled the hallucinogenic dust from Slade's mask.
[ You know that you will never be free of me Robin]
Dick's eyes widened, 'Slade!' The teen wonder felt dread settle in the back of his mind as he looked towards his friends. They were still chattering away. Dick squeezed his eyes shut and tried to calm his shaking breaths.
' Not now! You're not real! You're not real! Leave me alone!'
[ You brought me here, Robin. That sharp mind of yours is once again turning against you.]
He was right. Of course he was. The dust had only been the spark that started the hallucinations, his mind is what continued to cause them. The noirette shook his head, 'I'll deal with you later. We're here.'
They finally made it to the bottom of the staircase. An old film camera floated in the air projecting the word 'Memories' onto a long that was perched above the doorway. From the hallway Dick could hear the voice of 100 Stans overlapping.
" Whoa, look! All of Stan's memories" Soos's wide eyes were filled with awe. Dipper, the poor kid still has a hole in his chest, huffed.
" Great, sure there's plenty of memories of Stan bossing me around. Can't wait to see more of that!" The brunet crossed his arms and rolled his eyes. Mabel glanced at her brother with worried eyes.
" Come on, Dipper. We've got to find the code before Bill does." She puffed up her chest as she made her declaration.
" Mabel is talking!"
" So rad!"
Soos adjusted his hat with a smile, " Let's get searching!" With that the so called 'Mystery gang' ran off into the hall of Stan's memories. A frail smile made its way onto Dick's lips as he watched his friends run off, it disappeared when he saw a singular slate colored eye hiding in the shadows.
____________________________________________________________________________
They must have been searching for around five minutes when he saw it. It was a gray wood paneled door with a glowing white pine tree carved into the top and a painted label. 'DIPPER MEMORIES KEEP OUT!' Dipper stopped in front of the door and pointed at the words.
" Look, guys. Memories about me." The brunet reached out and grabbed the knob, opening the door to peak inside. Soos placed a hand on the twelve year old's shoulder and shook his head,
" That doesn't seem like a good idea." Dipper turned to face Soos.
" I just want to know what the old guy really thinks of me."
" We already know how Stan feels about us, he loves us!" Mabel said cheerfully as she walked past them and moved onto the next set of doors. Soos followed after his sister, waving his arm in a 'Let's go' motion.
" Yeah, let's just keep moving."
Dipper looked towards the noirette as Soos, Mabel, and her Dream Boys walked away. Dick's hands were shoved in his pockets as he stared at a shadowed corner. A chill ran up his spine as he caught a glimpse of the teens eyes. His usually soft, calming hazel eyes were a sharp, blazing amber. It was the same look that he had when Dick found Robbie beating him up in the woods. Dipper forced his body to unfreeze and shuffled towards the teen.
" Dick...?" Dick's head snapped around, amber eyes locking on his own. Dipper watched as the teen's eyes slowly softened, the noirette slowly raised his trembling hand up to massage the bridge of his nose.
" Sorry, Dipper. This whole... thing," The teen made a vague gesture, " is starting to give me a stress induced migraine." He sighed, lowering his hand back to his side. "What did you need?" His hands were not shaking as much anymore, but there was still a slight tremor.
Dipper puffed up his chest and stubbornly looked at the older boy. "I want to look inside this door," he pointed his finger at the door, "So I can see what the old man really thinks about me." Dick sighed and looked at the wooded door.
" It's your choice, Dipper. Though I'd suggest taking a quick peek, we need to find that code before Bill does." A small smirk graced the brunet's face as he spun towards the door and yanked it open. Dipper ran off into the hallway, Dick not too far behind him. The twelve year old stopped in front of a solid wooden door with a diamond shaped window. He opened the door, revealing the porch of The Mystery Shack. Stan had a newspaper in his hand and his back to the door as he gave the memory version of Dipper another chore to do.
{No buts!} Memory Gunkle Stan pointed to a tree stump with an ax buried in it. {Now go chop that firewood already!} The old man demanded, hitting Dipper with the rolled up newspaper.
{Ah!} Memory Dipper rubbed his head with a scowl and trudged off the porch over to the tree stump. Stan sat down on the porch couch next to Soos.
{Dude, Stan, I been meaning to ask you. Why are you so hard on Dipper all the time?}
{Look, Soos, I'm gonna let you in on something. You wanna know what I really think? The kid's a loser. He's weak. He's an utter embarrassment.} Dipper visibly deflated while hearing his Grunkle's words. {I just want to get rid of him.}
Dipper lowered his head towards the ground, the brim of his hat covering his eyes, and slowly shut the door. Dick looked at the brunette with sympathetic eyes.
" Dipper... Stan, while he might not show it very often, cares about you. Listen to what he has to say before you make the final call." Dipper looked at the older boy, his dark brown eyes shining with unshed tears and anger. He turned back to the gray wooden door and huffed.
" Why should I finish listening if I already know what he thinks about me? He's always preferred Mabel. What's the point of even helping if he doesn't want it from me?"
The pre-teen lifted his hand to the brim of his hat and lowered it in front of his eyes, holding back tears of anger and betrayal. Dick reached his hand out to comfort the younger boy before hesitating and lowering it back to his side,
"Kid..."
The brunette turned away from him and stormed off down the hall of Stan's mind. The seventeen year old hung his head, letting his inky black hair fall in front of his eyes. Memories of past arguments and untrue conclusions flashed through his mind. That anger was all too similar to his own, reaching the point that made it hurt to watch. Reminders of his own mistakes echoed in his mind as he looked at the worn wooden floors. He finally let out a tired sigh. It was best not to chase after him right now, Dipper was similar to him when it came to needing space.
This whole situation was going to shit.
'It's all that stupid triangle's fault.' Dick raised his hand and massaged his temples. ' I'm getting real tired of dealing with interdimensional demons.'
[ I wouldn't say that the triangle is completely at fault,] Dick felt a cold metal hand place itself on his shoulder with a squeeze. [ You did let him look inside after all, Robin, he would have remained blissfully unaware if you hadn't.] The hallucination purred. The teen wonder grunted and shrugged the hand off.
" Can it, asshole."
____________________________________________________________________________
" Hello, code to Stan's safe, where are you?" The repair man called out.
" Opening and closing doors is fun."
" I can do it also!"
Soos opened one of the many doors in the hallway, revealing Stan punching Numbers into the vending machine at night.
{if only people knew the truth. That hidden behind this vending machine, I secretly have a-}
" Boring!" Soos exclaimed while slamming the door shut.
Mabel stood with her hands above her head in victory. In front of her was a small wooden trap door mounted on the wall, the words ' Top Secret' were painted above the door.
" All right, guys," The brunette turned and presented the door to them, "I have a good feeling about this door."
She reached out and opened the door. Shirtless Stan stood in front of the four,
{Hey, Mr. Tummy.} He grabbed the sides of his stomach, squeezing it as his voice moved up an octave, { Hey, Mr. Stan!} The conman's voice returned to its normal gruff tone, {Are you hungry?} {Yes.} {Eat your crackers!}
" Ugh!" Soos grimaced at the memory being played in front of him as Xyler and Craz hid behind him, the blond looked shocked while the blue haired 'boy' looked as if he were questioning Stan's life choices. Fortunately for their newly tainted eyes, Mabel slammed the door shut before any more disturbing images were permanently burned into their minds.
" Sweet Sally! I want to bleach my eyes so I never have to see that again."
" Oh, we've been searching forever. What if the Triangle guy finds the memory before we do?"
The brunette's eyebrows furrowed while she bit at her bottom lip and tapped her finger to her chin. 'We can't let that floating dorito get the code to Gideon. He already tried to hurt my family once, he's not going to do it again. Now, where would you hide a very important thing in your brain?' Mabel's eyes widened, a small smile made its way onto her lips. 'Even better idea, what would Stan do?'
" If we wanna find Stan's memory, we gotta think like Stan." The pre-teen placed her hands on her hips and scanned the room, " He's always hiding stuff, right?"
" Yeah, like how he hides his arrest warrants under that rug in the gift shop?" Mabel threw her hands up with a beaming smile,
" Soos, that's it! Look!" She pointed to a rug that was placed in a hallway connecting to the room. Mabel walked to the rug, crouching down and pulling the rug out of the way to reveal a small trapped door. Mabel opened the door and the four peered into it.
{There ya go} Stan said as he placed the deed inside the safe. {And now to input the code. Thirteen, forty-four, and finally...} Soos shut the door before Stan could finish.
" Dude, we found it!" He said with a fist pump.
" We should destroy the door, that way Bill can't find it." Mabel jogged over to a medieval suit of armor and pried the ax out of its hands. With a lot of effort, the small girl lifted the ax above her head and prepared to strike.
" Wait! Maybe I should do it!" Soos flexed his arm. " My big fat arms are great at destroying stuff." Mabel, whose arms were shaking from the weight of the ax, looked to the repair man with a thankful expression.
" Oh, okay." She huffed, holding the ax out for Soos to take. The repair man only stretched his arm out above the door, his hand shaking with exertion, and made a face that made him look constipated. Mabel lowered the ax, tilting her head. 'What is he doing?' Suddenly the trapped door began to shake, an eerie blue aura surrounded the door as it floated off the ground. The brunette's eyes widened, 'Either Soos just developed superpowers or this is-'
" Hey, guys!" Another Soos ran up to them, "I just saw a memory of Stan roller skating and wearing short-shorts!" Mabel backed away from the fake 'Soos', her chocolate brown eyes wide with shock. "Didn't look... Didn't look half bad." Soos finally noticed the other him that was floating a trap door. "Hey, something weird is going on here."
The fake Soos let out a demonic cackle as his body shifted back into its triangle form.
" BOY, YOU KIDS SURE ARE GULLIBLE! I KNEW YOU'D LEAD ME STRAIGHT TO THE CODE!" The Dream demon cackled, " IT'S FUNNY HOW DUMB YOU ARE" He held the door in his hands, looking at it as if it were a piece of art. " THE COMBINATION TO STAN'S SAFE! BOY, THAT WAS EVEN EASIER THAN I THOUGHT."
" Oh, yeah?" Mabel pointed at the floating triangle with a furious expression. "Well, you're a... a piece of shit!" The brunette said it with so much conviction and anger that Bill's eye actually widened a bit, 'SHE'S GOT A BIT MORE BITE TO HER THAN SHE SHOULD.'
" Cursing isn't awesome, Mabel!"
" Don't treat me like a child, Xyler."
" LATER, SUCKERS!" The demon yelled before zooming off for the exit.
" Come on, we've got to save Stan!" The brunette looked serious, the normally happy and naive girl was replaced by someone filled with worry and anger.
" What's the point?" Mabel whipped around to see her brother's brooding face as he trudged down the stairs Bill just went up. " Why should I save him, huh?" Mabel's eyes darkened at her twin's words.
" Because he's our Great Uncle. Why shouldn't you save him?"
" I work for Stan day and night, and all he does in return is say he wants to get rid of me." The boy snapped back, his arms folding across his chest.
Mabel's expression softened, " Dipper, I'm sure that's not true." She walked towards her twin, looking to comfort him, when he tensed up and pointed to himself.
" I saw it with my own eyes in one of his memories, Mabel! You can even ask Dick, he was there too! He's always picked on me and now I know why! Stan hates me!" Dipper shouted, brown eyes burning with anger and betrayal.
" Dipper, It doesn't matter what you saw. If we don't stop Bill, we'll lose the shack!" Mabel yelled back. She understood where her brother was coming from, really she did, but now wasn't the time for him to hold a grudge. Dipper opened his mouth to retort when-
" What's with all the yelling!" The group spun around to see Dick standing in the center of the start of a hallway. Mabel's eyes raked over the teen, he was in a general state of dishevelment. He looked paler than usual making the dark circles under his eyes much more prominent. His hands were trembling and his shoulders were tense. But it was his eyes that really caught her attention; they were so tired but still glowed with anger and spite.
Soos was the first one to speak up, "That triangle dude made himself look like me and got the door." The noirette's brows furrowed as his left eye twitched.
" Then what are you guys standing around for?! Let's go-"
" No, not this time!" Dipper snapped, " For once, this is one of Stan's problems I'm not going to fix!" The brunet shoved his hands in the pockets of his vest, turning to walk away when he bumped into something. The young Pines looked up to see what was in his way.
It was Dick.
Dick was glaring at him with those terrifying amber eyes. Dipper tried to step around the teen but was stopped by a strong, but still trembling, hand grabbing his shoulder and holding him in place. Dipper looked up at the teen, 'Geez, I forgot how unsettling his eyes can be...'
" Come on, Dick! You were there, you heard what he said! Why should I help-"
" Yes, Dipper, I was there and I heard what he said!" The teen snapped back, voice already becoming hoarse. "I understand that you're angry! That you feel betrayed! But guess what?" Dick's cold, calculating eyes bore into his soul. "Now isn't the time to hold onto a stupid fucking grudge! You need to get over yourself, Dipper. So either go and watch the complete memory or suck it up until we stop Bill!" All eyes were on Dick. No one had ever really seen him get angry at the twins, let alone yell at them. And if Mabel were to be honest; It was scary. Dipper had shrunk back and was looking at the teen with shining wide eyes. The seventeen year old took a deep, ragged breath and let go of Dipper's shoulder. The second he was free the brunet took off up the stairs. Dick hung his head, inky black hair covered his eyes.
[ My, my, Robin, you and I really are more alike than it would seem.]
____________________________________________________________________________
Dick wasn't given the chance to brood about what just happened. In a matter of seconds the five of them were sprinting up the stairs and after Bill. The chase would have been so much easier if he had his utility belt, unfortunately that was still in his bike's storage compartment. Mabel found a knock off Nerf Gun somewhere in Stan's mind, don't ask him how or where she found it, he has no idea. They were nearly at the top of the stairs where a soft yellow glow illuminated the doorway. Dick slowed down to a stop and held his hand out to the group, signaling them to stop as well.
" RELAX, SHORTSTACK, I GOT IT RIGHT HERE."
Dick silently padded up the steps. Behind him, Mabel loaded the toy gun. When Bill started to read the code out loud Mable struck. The brunette aimed the 'Nyrf' gun at the trap door and fired. The suction dart flew through the air, forcing the door out of the demon's hands once it made contact. The force from the dart sent the trap door careening into Stan's memory of the bottomless pit.
" AH! NO, NO, WAIT! NO!" The dream demon shouted as he scrambled after the door.
The door, along with the code, entered the memory and fell into the bottomless pit. The corner of Dick's mouth twitched up into a smirk.
{ None more bottomless than the bottomless pit. Which, as you can see here, is bottomless.} Memory Stan leaned over and peered into the pit, watching the trap door's descent. { Whoo! Whatever that was, It's gone forever.} The door to the memory slammed shut.
Mable pointed the gun towards the ceiling, a triumphant smile lit up her face as she laughed.
"Ha ha! Boom!" The two brightly colored fictional.... Teens? Dick wasn't actually sure how old they were, high fived each other and praised Mable.
" The Shack is safe!" Soos cheered with a fist pump.
Bill turned towards them, a screen like project took the place of his bow tie. The white haired psycho sneered and looked up towards Bill's eye. "The deal's off!" The boy's shrill voice rang throughout the room.
" WAIT. NO! WAIT!"
" I'm switching to plan B!" With that, the screen turned to static. Cracks formed on the demon's body, the pieces fell to the ground and shattered like glass, leaving only his eyes and arms. In an instant a new bright red body formed. The sclera of his eye turned black while his arms and tie became a blinding white. The demon's gaze shifted towards the group, and Dick was able to feel the fury that rolled off of him in waves.
" YOU! YOU CAN'T EVEN IMAGINE WHAT YOU JUST COST ME!" Bill turned to fully face them, balls of fire formed in both of his hands. "DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA WHAT I'M LIKE..." His voice became deeper and distorted. "WHEN I'M MAD?" Symbols flashed in his eye.
Dick stepped in front of the brunette, placing an arm in front of her. 'This isn't going to end well.'
A ring of fire formed around them, the tall flames danced as the room began to heat up. Bill thrusted his arms high into the air, turning the flames into a blazing inferno. The ground beneath them trembled and began to rise into the air, bursting through the Shack's roof. The dream demon stared them down as he slowly began to grow. Dick took a step back, craning his neck up to look at the vivid dream demon. He heard Mable's fearful gasp and wished there was a way to comfort her. Bill once again raised his arms towards the sky, electricity formed along his arms with a crackle.
" EAT NIGHTMARES!"
____________________________________________________________________________
The demon glared down at them with a single hand raised, his finger pointing to the sky as an orange android aura surrounded it.
"ONE NIGHTMARE, COMING UP!" Bill's voice, while no longer distorted, made the hair on Dick's neck stand on end. The demon was downright cheerful. Almost like...
The train of thought was cut off as Bill pointed his finger in the direction of the group, sending a glowing beam of power towards them. The red beam made contact with the ground, nearly hitting Soos. The glowing red energy formed into a blob though it didn't take long for it to start shaping itself, the blinding glow making only the silhouette visible. When the glow finally faded away, what was left was a bipedal bulldog that wore a green bowler hat and jacket, a monocle, and held a cane with one of its paws. The dog spoke with a thick British accent.
" 'Ello, 'ello, 'ello! Who's cricket for a shdig in the pudding?" The dog started wacking at Soos's stomach with the cane. The repair man let out a frightened scream.
"Ah! It's everything I ever feared!"
"YOU!"
Another beam of energy shot out from Bill's finger. The red energy hit Mable dead on. Her body began to shift and change; she grew taller, braces disappearing, the baby fat on her face disappeared leaving her with a heart shaped face. When the changes were finished the brunette looked as if she were around twenty-five to thirty instead of twelve. Mabel looked down at herself in horror.
" Nonononono! I can't be a grown up, I- I just can't be!" The girl's voice was filled with panic. Dick started to run over too her,
" Mabel!" He shouted out her name, trying to draw her attention away from her changed body. The brunette looked up at him with shining eyes and tears running down her cheeks. He was ten feet away from the girl when-
" AND FINALLY, YOU!" It felt as if his whole body had fallen asleep, the sensation of pins and needles danced across his skin.
" Dick!" Mabel's worried voice echoed throughout the mindscape. The beam hit the seventeen year old, surrounding him with a red glow. Unlike her own 'transformation', it seemed as if only Dick's clothes were affected. His dark gray flannel disappeared, his shirt and pants were replaced with a black skin tight suit. The black material crept down his arms until it was a little less than halfway down his forearm, the color shifting to gunmetal gray, forming a pair of ragged gloves. A cape dropped down from his shoulders, the bottom of the fabric was frayed and torn. A gray belt, a shade darker than the gloves, wrapped around his waist. The black fabric crept up Dick's neck and head, creating something similar to a ski mask. A white, simplified skull appeared in front of his face, the spot where the noirette's eyes were was covered with a white lens. Finally two identical red x's formed on his chest and the skull. The red aura disappeared.
The white lenses in the mask narrowed into a glare as Dick snapped his head in the demon's direction.
"ẁ̷̠h̴̦̓a̴͕̽t̸̞͘ ̴̳̌d̷̹̚i̴̥͛ď̶̩-̵̖̐'' The teen's voice came out distorted, almost sounding robotic. The white lenses of the mask widened as Dick nearly flinched at the sound of his voice. He looked down at his hands for a second before looking back up at Bill with a glare. Dick growled, the voice distorter making it sound much more demonic and intimidating. He was back in the Red-X suit. The very same suit that he betrayed his friends in. The suit that he willingly worked for Slade in. The same suit that he wore when his plan crashed and burned, allowing Slade to get away with the disc.
[ It has been quite some time since you've dawned this suit, hasn't it?]
Dick tensed when he heard that voice. 'Speak of the devil and he shall appear...' The detective took a deep breath, 'He's not real Dick, you know that. Focus on the demonic dorito' Dick did his best to block out Slade's voice and ran over to Mabel and Soos.
" AND NOW TO FINISH YOU OFF, FOR ONCE AND FOR ALL!' Bill pointed his finger at all three of them, orange electricity crackled and sparked.
" Dude, No!"
Dipper, surrounded by a blue aura floated above them. The brunet glared at the dream demon. "Hey, Bill!"
" WHAT!" The electricity around his finger fizzled out as he stretched himself back. Dipper smirked.
" Nice bowtie!" Red laser beams shot out of his eyes, leaving a hole in Bill's midsection similar to the one Bill had inflicted on Dipper earlier.
" AHHH!"
Mabel ran towards her brother, Dick and Soos not far behind. "Dipper!"
The brunet floated over to them with a large smile. "Guys," He said excitedly, "I just learned that you can conjure whatever you can conceive in Grunkle Stan's Mindscape!" Mabel and Soos looked at Dipper as if he were speaking another language. Dick sighed.
H̸̺̋e̶͉͌ ̷̣̋m̶͂ͅe̶͈͆a̴̪͘n̶͇̊s̸̱̾ ̷͍̓t̶̮̏h̸͚͗a̶̞͋ẗ̶̙́ ̵̱̑y̸̗̿ȍ̸̠ú̵̫ ̸̳̊c̵͉̒a̸͍͝n̵̛͚ ̶͉͗m̸͈̈́ā̵̬ḵ̴͝e̶̦͐ ̷̳̿w̸̺̔h̸̺͋ă̴̹t̴̀͜e̵̯̔v̶̭̑e̸̫̎r̷̨̋ ̴̪́y̷̰̆o̸̱͊ù̶̻ ̵̛̥t̵̻̃h̶͍̋i̶͕̐n̵͚̏k̵̤̽ ̵̙͠ô̵̧f̶̖̃ ̴̱͐h̴̗͘á̷̲p̷̣̀ṗ̵̯e̸̜͝n̵̼͒"
"Exactly! Like this." Dipper turned to the British Bulldog and shot it with his eye lasers. The dog disappeared with a zap, leaving its green bowler hat to flutter to the ground. Soos chuckled and pointed at the hat,
" He's dead now"
" WHAT?" Bill screeched, "WHO TOLD YOU THAT? DON'T LISTEN TO HIM!" The demon waved his arms in an X like formation.
" We can do anything?" With a single shout the brunette returned to her normal age. Mabel's eyes shined with mischief as a smirk formed on her lips. " Like have kittens for fists?" The second the girl spoke, two hot pink kittens took the place of her fist. She held her hands out infront of her, aiming the fist in Bill's direction she made a punching motion. The cat's head shot off her hand and hurtled towards the demon. "Pow, pow! Pow, pow, pow! Pow!" Around fifty of the cat heads piled on top of bill, who let out a shrill scream.
Dick looked down at his gloves. 'Maybe it's time for me to let go and forgive myself...' He felt the inside of the suit slowly heat up and the low thrum as the suit powered up. 'It's time for Red-X to do some good.' He narrowed his eyes as he looked up towards Bill, A crooked grin forming beneath the mask. Dick felt the suit heat up as he zapped over to the other side of the platform. He lifted his arm up as his palm heated up.
"H̵̠̑e̸̲̿ỳ̴̟ ̴̟̎B̶͙̿i̸͙͒l̸̢̽l̸͉̂,̸̛͖" The demon turned towards him.
"C̸̡̒ǎ̴̜t̵͉̄c̴͜͝ĥ̵̦." He fired off an electric X, sending it right at Bill's eye. The dream demon reared back with a scream. Bill blindly lashed out with one arm as he tried to remove the X from his eye with the other. Dick flashed over to the left side of the platform and shot a constrictive - X at Bill. The X wrapped around the triangle like a bola. This time Bill's scream was filled with anger.
As the demon struggled against his bonds, Soos aimed a 'stomach beam stare' at Bill. The beam made contact with Bill's body, the force sent him flying back off of the platform. Bill continued to scream and struggle as Dipper landed before them.
" Guys, if we all work together we might be able to force Bill out of Grunkle Stan's mind!" Dick, who was still in the suit, nodded before looking up at the demon.
" Alright. Count of three?"
" Yep, One portal out of Stan's mind."
"ONE!"
Yellow energy started to form beneath Bill.
"TWO!"
The yellow energy grew, forming a ring on the platform. The portal began to come to life.
"THREE!"
With that, Bill was slowly being forced down into the portal. The demon kicked his feet and flailed his arms about.
" NO, NO, NO! ENOUGH!" Bill swung his arms to his sides, the sky turned white and the platform beneath their feet disappeared. The demon took off his top hat, using his hand to brush off any dirt. His body shifted from red to bright yellow.
" YOU KNOW, I'M IMPRESSED WITH YOU GUYS." He placed the top hat on top of his...point? "YOU'RE A LOT MORE CLEVER THAN YOU LOOK. ESPECIALLY THE FAT ONE." Bill placed his hands on his hips, his slit pupil looked down at them. "SO I'M GONNA LET YOU KIDS OFF THE HOOK. YOU MIGHT COME IN HANDY LATER." He lifted a hand up with a finger pointing to the sky "B̶̯̂Ù̵͈T̷̤̃ ̸̯͂K̵̗̓N̵̼͂O̷͖͗W̷͙͋ ̵̘̿T̵͉͗H̶̤̀I̷͈̎S̵̺̓. A DARKNESS APPROACHES," The symbol on the front of the journal appeared above Bill's head. "WHEN EVERYTHING YOU CARE ABOUT WILL CHANGE." Bill leaned forward, tipping his top hat to the four. His voice went from deathly serious to cheerful. "UNTIL THEN, I'LL BE WATCHING YOU." A strange blue circle formed around the demon, and with a flash he was gone.
Dipper turned toward Mabel, Soos, and Dick. "He's gone, we did it!" Dick looked down at his hands.
The Red-X suit was gone. ' And everything is back to-' He watched as his form flickered, almost like a glitch.
"Looks like our time in Stan's mind is up."
____________________________________________________________________________
The first thing Dick noticed was the scratchy rug rubbing against his skin. He slowly opened his eyes. He found himself lying on the living room floor surrounded by the others. The noirette pushed himself up, using his arms to prop him up. To his left, Mabel thrusted her arms into the air with an excited shout.
" We did it!"
" What? Did what?" Stan's groggy voice rang throughout the room. Dick looked over at the older man; his gray hair was mused, and his glasses layed crooked on his face. "What are you all doing here? And why was I dreaming of two brightly colored and radical young men?"
Dipper ran towards Stan, leaping onto the chair and wrapping his arms around the con man's shoulders. "Grunkle Stan! You're okay!"
" What is this? A hug?"
" Nope, it's a choke hold!"
Dick's gaze shifted to the room around him. Everything seemed fine, nothing was out of pla-
[ Did you really think I'd just go away? How foolish of you.]
'Shit.' The detective closed his eyes, taking deep breaths. ' In and out. In and out. Just calm down.'
[Come now Robin, are you sure everything is over? Look closer.]
Hazel eyes swept across the room, nothing seemed wrong. ' it's just my mind play-' Then he saw it, it was barely visible but the lamp was shaking. Dick looked over to Dipper, Mabel, Soos, and Stan, the four were cheerfully celebrating over their victory against Bill. As much as he dreaded the idea of ruining the moment, every single fiber of his being was screaming at him that something wasn't right.
" Hey, guys-" He barely even had the chance to speak when the entire shack trembled. Dust and debris floated down from the ceiling, leaving a thin veil of gray on the carpet. CRASH! BOOM! Dick was sent flying. Glass shattered as his back made contact with what he assumed was the Tv. The noirette pushed himself up with a wheeze. He felt a warm, but sticky substance slowly start to drip down his back. Slowly, Dick opened his eyes. Gideon stood before him. His back was to the window and his face cast in shadows. The boy stepped forward with a smug smirk. A rolled up piece of paper was clenched in his left hand.
" Oh, I'm sorry, Pines family, did I wake you?"
Dipper moved up to sit on his knees, his hat missing from its usual perch on his head revealing his ruffled and slightly singed hair.
" But we defeated Bill." Dick felt a pang in his heart at the boy's broken voice. Tears welled up in Dipper's fearful eyes. The noirette tore his gaze away from the kid when he heard Gideon take another step forward.
" Bill failed me!" He roared. "So I switched to plan B." A psychotic grin that Dick had seen too many times formed on the white-haired boy's face. "Dynamite."
" What? Bill?" Stan muttered, voice filled with confusion, before turning to Gideon. "Who...wh... What are you guys Talking about?"
" Spoiler alert, Stanford. I've got the deed!" Gideon cackled as he unrolled the paper in his hand, revealing the deed to the shack. "The Mystery Shack belongs to me!" Gideons beady eyes swept over the group, his face morphed into an ugly scowl.
" So, get off of my property!" He pulled a walkie talkie out of his pocket and turned on his heels, walking towards the hole leading outside. "Daddy? Bring it around the front."
Dick and the rest of the Pines slowly shuffled to their feet. Dipper looked around, " Don't worry guys, It's just part of the dream. We're going to wake up any second now. Right?" The brunet's voice was filled with false hope. "Right?" He asked again, the optimism had left his voice.
Dick knew Dipper was hoping someone would reassure him that everything was alright. That none of this was real and that they hadn't lost their home. Dick shook his head, the teens hazel eyes glued to the carpet.
" No," His voice was heavy. "This is real."
Dick gazed up at the others. Tears ran down Mabel's face, washing away the dirt that covered her cheeks. Dipper's eyes were wide in disbelief as his shoulders trembled. Stan's eyes were filled with sorrow as well as anger, mouth agape as he stared after Gideon's shrinking from. It didn't seem like the older man was entirely there. Soos stood stock still, eyes red and wet with tears. Dick was battered and sore. He could feel the shards of glass buried in his skin and the warm, sticky blood sluggishly flow against his skin. He took a raspy breath and straightened his back, holding back a hiss of pain as he felt the glass shift as he moved.
A previously dormant fury began to awaken within him. 'They don't deserve this.' his clenched first hung by his sides. Dick looked at the group before him.
" This isn't over."
[ It's far from over, Robin.]