Betrayal

Chapter 7

~Dipper's POV~

I woke up on the forest floor. Me head was pounding. Mabel!

I shot up into a sitting position. Where was I? Was the cave nearby?

Oh, Mabel what have I done!?

I came out into a clearing and found the Mystery Shack. Stanford was sitting outside on the porch. I ran up to him. "Stanford!"

He looked up from the gun he was working on. "Dipper? Where's your sister? Where's the journal?"

"Bill has them."

"Bill? You gave up your sister for freedom?"

"No!" I said. "S-she gave herself up to save me."

"And you let her? Any man wouldn't allow his sister to give themselves up for them!"

"I-I could barely keep my eyes open! It's not like I was just sitting there and walked out on her!"

"Come on. We have to tell Stan. And you need to take us to the cave."

"Me? But I have no idea where it is," I said.

"How do you have no idea where it is?"

"Well, Bill didn't exactly want me to know."

"Typical Cipher," Stanford muttered.

I followed him into the house to where Stan was. He looked like he hadn't slept well, if not at all, last night.

"Stanley. I found Dipper."

Stan's head shot up. "Dipper? W-what happened? Are you hurt? Where's your sister?"

I swallowed. "Bill has her."

"What?" Stan grabbed my shoulder and shook me. "How'd he get her?"

"She saved me," I said, tears forming in the corners of my eyes. "She traded herself for me."

"Why would you let her do that?" Stan asked.

"I didn't! I was half conscious when she found me! If Bill hadn't tried to change my mind about working with him, I could've stopped her!"

"Well where is she?"

I sighed. "I don't know."

~

I told Grunkle Stan and Stanford what happened. Everything.

After I finished, I stood up. "I'm going to go and try to find her." I ran up to my room and grabbed a backpack and filled it with things I might need.

As I was walking out the door, Stan grabbed me. "Wait! You're not going alone."

"I think I'll be able to find Bill easier if I went alone. He wants me, doesn't he?" I didn't look Stan in the eye.

"Well," I reached in his pocket and brought out a flip phone. "If you need help, my number's in here. Its Soos' old phone. He thought it would help you two."

I nodded. "Thanks, Grunkle Stan."

I gripped the straps of my backpack and walked into the woods.

~

"Bill!" I called. "Give my sister back! I surrender!"

There was a flash of yellow light and Bill was floating there, holding Mabel. She was limp as a doll. She didn't look too good either. She was pale and her sweater was ripped up. "Mabel! Leave her alone!"

"First explain this surrender to me."

"You leave Mabel and take me. You'll be unable to touch her and I won't be able to escape unless you break the rules."

"You're getting good at this, Pine Tree," Bill said. "Not as good as me, but still good."

"Do we have a deal?" I asked.

"Hold it," Bill said. "What about the rest of your family?"

"Them too," I said. "And you can't kill me."

"Of course not," Bill said. "Who'd wanna kill an annoying kid like you?"

I rolled my eyes at him.

"We've got a deal?"

"Deal."

I shook on it.

Bill laughed and I instantly knew I made a dumb mistake.

Bill shot a fireball at me and dropped Mabel's limp body. "Well played Pine Tree. But I think you forgot one teeny, tiny thing in our deal."

"What's that?" I asked, my voice shaking slightly.

"You never said anything about keeping her safe after I'm done with you."

"What?" I said. "You can't do that!"

"Sure I can," Bill said. He grabbed the front of my shirt and he pulled me into the mindscape.

~Mabel's POV~

I pushed myself harder against the cave wall. Bill was coming near me again. I wished that the wall would just fall and let me escape. Tears formed I my eyes. "Leave me alone you monster!"

"Don't forget our little deal," Bill said. "You have to do whatever I want you to do."

"No! I won't work with you and lure Dipper and Stan into a trap!"

"Why are you risking so much? You really think those two care about you? Didn't your uncle just abandon you when you went looking for Pine Tree? Pine Tree doesn't trust you. Why would you even fight for them?"

"Because they're family!" I said.

Bill froze. "Aha," he said. If he had a mouth, he'd probably be smiling. "Looks like Pine Tree already gives in. Night night, Shooting Star."

Everything went black.

~

I woke up on the ground. Well, of course I was on the ground!

I sat up to find Dipper's hat, backpack and a phone. I picked up the phone and went to the contacts. There was Stan! I quickly called him.

"Dipper?" Was the answer. "Did you find her?"

"G-grunkle Stan. Its Mabel."

"Mabel? Are you okay? Where's your brother?"

I picked up his hat with a sniff. "I don't know."