Phantom Falls

3: Ice Cream

The above artwork does not belong to me.

Dipper's dream that night was terrifying.

The beginning of it was normal. He was walking through town with the third journal, taking notes. Mabel was with him. They were investigating some weird occurrence, when Mabel suddenly ran into the woods.

"Hey!" dream Dipper called. He followed her.

Mabel was too fast. Whenever he got close enough to see her, she would sprint off again, leading him deeper into the forest. But that wasn't even the most unnerving part. She was laughing as she lured Dipper through the trees, as if this were a game.

"Mabel!" he yelled frantically, wanting to keep her safe. She giggled hysterically and bolted off.

Finally, she stopped. They were in a small clearing surrounded by outcroppings of grey rock. One of them had a large hole that led deep underground, an ancient cave that smelled of earth. Something powerful was down there, something malevolent.

Dipper hesitantly tiptoed up to Mabel, whose back was to him as she stared at the cave. "Mabel?" he whispered, laying a gentle hand on her shoulder.

Without warning, the world turned black and white. Mabel whipped around to face him. Her eyes were yellow, and she had vertical pupils. Bill Cipher's eyes.

Dipper backed away. "M-Mabel?" he stuttered. "No, you can't be . . ."

Mabel laughed in Bill's voice. "Yes, little Pine Tree, I can." The last word was in the deeper, slower voice that Bill sometimes used.

"Get out of her!" Dipper hissed.

"Wow, Pine Tree thinks he's a big boy!" Bill, still possessing Mabel, leaned in closer. "Tell you what, Dipper, this is just a dream. Your sister is sound asleep, dreaming about rainbows and boy bands. But soon, this could all be real!"

Dipper balled his fists. "What do you want, Bill?" he shouted.

Bill laughed again. "Oh, you'll see. I may want to strike a deal with you later." Mabel suddenly went limp as Bill's true form appeared above them. "Let's just say there are three dimensions I'm going to rule!"

Dipper caught Mabel before she fell, hugging her tightly. "Ta-ta, Pine Tree!" Bill said. He disappeared in a flash of light.

When he woke, Dipper was drenched in sweat, gasping for breath. "Bill," he whispered. He couldn't sleep for the rest of the night.

*  *  *

Mabel pulled on a sky-blue sweater with a smiling sun on it and ran downstairs. "Good morning everyone!" she smiled brightly. Stan and Ford returned the greeting, and Waddles trotted over to her and nuzzled her hands.

Although she was surprised to see Grunkle Ford up in the kitchen, she was even more surprised that Dipper barely looked up from his bowl of cereal when she walked in. He had bags under his eyes, and he looked worried.

She plopped down next to her twin, drinking half his glass of OJ. "What's the matter, Dipper?" she asked teasingly, trying to cheer him up. "Do you have the Wendy blues?"

He smiled up at her, but his eyes weren't in it. "Nah, I just . . . I don't know, what if Bill comes back?"

Mabel wondered what had brought this on. "What? Why would you think about that? He's gone, isn't he?"

"I-I guess." He rested his head on his folded arms.

His sister put her fists on her hips. "Well, Dipper, we are going to hang out in town today, whether you like it or not!" she declared. Then she grabbed some cereal and started munching.