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

The Game Has Changed

(This is how many words the fic is at as of this chapter)

Dipper and Mabel did not have good experiences with the Mindscape. The tunnel looked like a house of mirrors, and neither of them were big fans of those either.

Mabel recalled once when she and Dipper were seven and went to a carnival, and she dragged him into a house of mirrors. He lost her grip as she ran ahead, and got lost. When Mabel realized he was lost, she freaked out and ran around, trying to find her brother again. She'd found him after fifteen minutes. Fifteen minutes, but it felt like years. Their parents were panicked and fussed over them when they stumbled their way out of the house. She didn't care. She was just happy she'd found her brother.

She grabbed her brother's hand. Ida took her knife out and scanned for a clear path. She stepped forward and looked at the twins. "I think-" She slammed into a glass panel. "Nevermind, that's not a path." Mabel almost laughed at Ida's calm tone. She didn't. She couldn't bring herself to laugh at a time like this.

Dipper noticed what seemed like a path, and stepped toward it. He didn't slam into glass, so he took that as a good sign. Well... as good of a sign anything right now could be. "I think the way is here." He said, motioning to the perceived path. The trio headed in that direction, which went on further.

Ida caught a glimpse in one of the mirrors and stopped in her tracks.

She saw herself, but she was younger. Her hair was braided back and her green strands were tucked behind her ears. She was wearing a colorful sweater and red overalls. Her eyepatch covered her right eye and a crucifix charm hung from her neck. The girl in front of her held out her hand. "Come with me." She whispered, her eyes pleading. Ida felt compelled to hold her hand. The girl looked so pitiful. She needed someone. She needed...

Mabel and Dipper grabbed her arms and pulled her back. "Don't-!" Ida yelled, trying to grab at the mirror. If she could just touch the glass, she could be free. It all felt like a blur. Then, Mabel shook her shoulders, and she snapped back to reality. "Do not touch the mirror!" She yelled. Ida choked back a sob, blinking back her stray tears. Mabel pulled away. "I-I felt something really bad..."

Dipper furrowed his eyebrows. "What did you see?" He asked, looking back at the mirror. Ida nearly broke at that moment. Everything was so overwhelming, and she felt... terrified. She hated feeling scared. She wasn't supposed to feel scared. "I'm fine." She said, clearing her throat. The trio nervously continued walking down the clear path.

Finally, the floor cut off and there was a drop for about fifteen feet. Ida squinted and saw a slight glimmer of light. Her heart dropped once more. Water.

"That's water. That means we can jump in." Dipper said. "We don't know if it'll be deep enough." Mabel shook her head. Dipper nodded in agreement. Ida glanced at her knife.

Without a word, she climbed to the edge, grabbing onto the ledge. She tested her knife on the side in front of her. It was softer than rock, but it still took a good strike to get a chuck out. She grabbed onto it, keeping herself steady by sticking her knife into the side. That cycle went on, with her creating small ledges and descending. Hesitantly, Mabel and Dipper followed, holding onto the ledges. Soon, they reached the water. It was so dark, the water looked like ink. Ida stared at the water, her heart racing. She was not a fan of water.

She noticed that the twins were right by her. "Okay... into the water..." And with a nervous gasp - a reflex - she jumped in.

Her halo gave a slight glow, making her vision clearer. She felt fabric graze her wing. She grabbed it. A sweater sleeve. She saw Mabel, who was grabbing Dipper's wrist. Ida was panicking, but she couldn't move too quickly or chicken out now. She saw a cave with a slight glow. Her tail wrapped around a rock near it and pulled the three toward it. Then, the trio stroked through the water and they managed to get to the cave.

The cave was bubbled off from the water, letting the twins breathe. The two fell to the ground, gasping for air. Ida coughed a bit. She didn't need air, but her panic reflexes were strong. Her hands were shaking, and her vision was hazy. 'Do it for Mr. Bill. Do it for him.' She thought. That's all she cared about at that moment.

She looked up. In front of her was a large door. The twins got up, calming down. Mabel stared at the door, shuddering a bit as she took off her sweater. Her t-shirt under it hadn't gotten too wet, since the sweater soaked it all up like a sponge. The water was warm, which she was grateful for. Dipper stepped forward, taking off his ear-flap hat and wringing out the water.

The ghost stepped forward and tried to reach for the door. The cave suddenly started shaking, like someone had pulled a lever. The door swung open, revealing what looked like practically an abyss. Mabel stepped back, a slight whimper escaping her throat.

"That's... I don't think we can go there..." Dipper said, backing away.

Ida looked at them, an expression of betrayal on her face. They were so close. SHE was so close. She couldn't stop now. With a nervous sigh, she took off her eyepatch. Her right eye was a shimmery green, contrasting with her left violet one. She put it in her jacket pocket.

"I know this is scary..." She stood in front of the door, her back to the abyss. She took a deep breath, sensing the evil energy behind her. "But please, I need you to trust m-"

In a split-second, something dark, like a tendril or vine, shot from whatever was behind the door and wrapped around Ida's chest. She screamed as it pulled her into the abyss, everything going dark around her. She heard Mabel cry out in fear, and Dipper yelled her name.

Dark.

Everything felt dark.