The One He Protected///Gravity Falls Fanfic///TW in desc.

There Was Once Another

Ida was given the east wing of the Cipher mansion to stay in.

'It's just for the night.' She thought to herself. Just a night and then she'd be alone. Again.

Still, she tried not to feel so miserable. Bill seemed delighted to see her again, scooping her up and running his fingers through her dark hair (it was something he'd always done when she was alive. It comforted Ida, especially when she was upset- right now she really needed it).

Before she knew it though, all the Ciphers were heading to bed. Ida was never really tired. She knew how many nights she could go without sleeping. She tested every limit she could in her self-assigned quest to wait for Bill. Now her quest was over, and she'd be without Bill forever, it had slowly started dawning on Ida that her new "life" would now have no meaning.

She was now just a Judge. She'd have to go back to them. God, she didn't want to go back to them. But she couldn't move on to the afterlife. Maybe she could come up with a lie or two so she could stay for a bit. Not that it would last that long.

She couldn't bear lying to Bill, even if he'd leave her alone.

Laying all that aside, she left the bedroom - it was plain, a sure sign this wasn't permanent - and walked down the steps of the wing. Ida absentmindedly ran her fingers along the grooves of the walls. For just a moment, she felt like royalty. She felt regal, a way she'd never felt before. Being from a rinky-dinky town like Gravity Falls, Ida could never really imagine herself as anything other- well, her. To quote her old classmates and bullies, she was just, "that weird, dirty, freak," and that was excluding the slurs and curses.

But even here, in a place she knew she'd never truly be let into, it seemed like she belonged. For once. It just hurt a bit that this feeling never happened when she was alive - well, unless she was with Bill, or her dad and stepmom.

Soon, she was in the kitchen, which looked a bit more modern than the rest of the mansion (Not that Ida could really tell with this century's standards). She crawled onto one of the stools next to the island and looked around on the countertop. She spotted a basket of fruit and hummed, reaching for an apple.

She grabbed it and smiled, trying to remember what many things tasted like. Peanut butter & jelly sandwiches were practically all she had for so many years, with few exceptions for lunch meats and chips. Fruit, besides the rare bushes she could find around Bill's statue, was something that she missed. She was about to take a bite, but then...

"Hey there," the oldest of the Cipher brothers greeted.

Ida jumped in surprise, looking at the demon. "Oh- um- hi?" She muttered, turning back to the fruit.

Zace smiled in a friendly manner, walking over and sitting across from her. "Can't sleep?" Ida shook her head. "Me neither. I get nightmares a lot." He added. The Judge looked at him curiously. "What happens in them?" She asked.

He muttered something about burning.

Knowing what had happened in the Dream Dimension, Ida nodded in understanding. "I get nightmares a lot, too." She admitted, dragging her nail across the apple skin. Sticky juice leaked on her finger - this was much juicer than other fruits she'd seen.

"Really? What are yours about?" He asked. Ida made a frowny face on the apple with her nail. "You know that movie, Carrie? From 1976? I keep imagining myself as her. I guess it makes sense. When that movie came out, everyone called me Carrie." She laughed a bit. "Jokes on them, I loved that."

Zace smiled a bit. "I have no idea what that is, but good for you." He said, still smiling blissfully. He sighed, looking over to the counter. He lifted his hand, and a tin of cocoa powder and a mug floated over to him. Ida watched curiously. Zace grabbed the tin and poured some into the mug.

"Closest thing I have to telekinesis is pyroki-" She stopped herself. "Manifestation. I-I can manifest weapons." She recovered. Zace tilted his head. "Then why do you always have that knife on you?" He asked. Ida plucked said knife from her scabbard.

"A memento. My favorite." She explained, running her finger along the blade absentmindedly. Zace observed the slash across the ghost. The way her hands could phase through it, and the way it seemed more-or-less to be separate from her. He reasoned that the slash was more a representation of what killed her, rather than an actual wound on her form.

"Memento?" He hummed. Ida clicked her tongue to move on from the subject as she carefully placed her weapon back in the scabbard.

Zace snapped his fingers, causing the mug to fill with hot water. "You could've just made it fill up with the hot chocolate." Ida said, raising an eyebrow. The demon shrugged. "Just never tastes the same that way." He responded.

After a moment or two of silence, Ida spoke up again. "You're different from your brother. Your aura is quite peculiar." She said, leaning forward. Zace shifted nervously. "Not as chaotic or bold. Definitely not as destructive."

Zace tried to decide if Ida was trying to insult or compliment him. "I guess I just..." He paused for a moment. "I wasn't meant for this whole 'oldest child's role." He admitted. Ida leaned forward, beckoning for him to say more.

"Literally, I wasn't. I-I had a brother- half-brother." He sighed a bit, pausing. "He- I was three. He... y'know..." He gestured vaguely to the side. Ida furrowed her eyebrows. "Maybe he could've made it out of the fi-" Zace cut her off. "No, no. The fire happened when I was ten."

Ida looked down, suddenly very interested in the indentations her nails had made on the apple.

"I guess you could say that it affected a lot of the things I did when I was little; doesn't excuse them though. I kinda just fixed how I was acting when I thought my other siblings were lost. I'm really trying to be better." Zace said, running a finger along the rim of the mug, his other fingers tapping their painted nails on the handle.

Ida paused for a moment, taking a bite of her apple- finally. "I had a brother, too." She murmured. Zace listened carefully. "He was..." Panic shuddered through her body, making her dig her fingers into the apple. Her fear turned to strength, making the apple break in her grasp. She made an odd gurgling noise in her throat.

Zace suddenly grabbed the girl's hands. "Focus on your breathing, describe what you see." He said, his voice calm. Ida, her eyes clouded over, muttered something about hurting, or about darkness. With each careful guide, Zace gave to calm her down, Ida began to relax. She sighed, leaning forward. "Thank you..."

The demon nodded, smiling gently. "I-I respect what you're trying to do- being a better brother. I really wish you and your family the best after I leave." Ida said. Zace tilted his head, opening his mouth to say something. However, the mansion suddenly shook, making Ida tumble right off her stool. Zace flew up, hovering a few feet in the air.

"What in the actual-" A laugh so bloodcurdling it made a demon and a ghost freeze like their hearts failed rang out through the halls. The lights flickered into a gold-like color. Zace's pupil contracted in horror. It seemed to click for him. His father had spoken to him about this before. Being the oldest son, he'd deal with this someday.

"The curse!" He whisper-yelled.