The Phantom Beast of the Forest

4

Rat Tat Tat Ta Rat Tat Tat Ta Rat Tat Tat Ta Rat Tat Tat Ta Rat Tat Tat Ta Rat Tat Tat Ta Rat Tat Tat Ta

The metronomic sound of the sewing machine comforted the man as he stitched a pattern. The fabric his client wanted was cherry red, like the color 1950s pinup girls wore. Beside him on the table was a thick woolen blue cloak, with small brass fastenings. 

He was about done when said client walked in through the door. "Hey Mr. David, you done?" the man asked. He leaned his slim body against the front desk, his warm brown eyes watching as the seamster sewed the last few stitches. 

"One moment Greg. Perfection can't be rushed, amirite?" He grouched, squinting as he threaded the needle. 

"Yes I know." Greg tapped his fingertips in a pattern on the counter top. A pattern that resembled piano playing. "It's just that I have a good feeling for this year. I know he'll come back."

David pushed up his glasses. "Greg, I know you've heard this a million times, but you need to hear it again. Walter died over 33 years ago. You're 41. Greg, someone can't just be revived. You saw his body. I know it hurts, but-"

"No, you don't get it. Wirt- he couldn't have died. He's still trapped in the Unknown, that's all." Greg interrupted.

"Are you still going to those therapy lessons? Greg, we're all worried about you. Look at yourself. You drive a bus every other week, teach piano, give puppet shows to kids, none of which are real jobs. I get it, your parents are well off. But you need a real job man."

Greg rolled his eyes. "You're not my mom, Mr. David. You're Sara's dad. How much?"

David brought the coat and red hat to the counter and rung Greg up. "$37.86." 

Greg brought out his wallet and paid. "Thanks Mr. David! See you later!" He waved and left the store.

David watched as Greg got into his car and drove off. "While he may look like an adult, he's still the same clueless 8 year old from 30 years ago. I'm glad Sara got over it fast." David slipped on his glasses and got back to work, but a tear slid down his wrinkled face and dropped onto his fabric. 

-o0o-

"Woah woah woah. Wait. Are you saying Danny is real?" Mabel shouted from within the closet. Dipper shoved his hands on her mouth. 

"Shush! He'll hear you. Yes Mabel, that's Danny."

Mabel licked Dipper's hand and he released her, disgusted. "This is so cool! He's like a vampire boyfriend...Maybe he'll date me! I'm irresistible!" She laughed as she imitated herself from a year ago. 

"Date who?" Danny opened the closet door and Dipper fell backwards. The ghostly boy stared at the twins. "Were you talking about me?" 

Mabel squished her cheeks. "I'm Mabel Pines, the hottest teen girl in all of Gravity Falls." She fluttered her eyelashes. "And that's Dipper, my little brother."

"By 5 minutes!" He got to his feet and held out his hand to Danny, who was a little shorter than Wendy, but not by very much. "I'm Dipper Pines, junior paranormal investigator."

Danny shook Dipper's sweaty and saliva covered hand. "Danny Fenton, son of Amity Park's resident ghost hunters the Fentons." He wiped his hand on his jeans.

"Your parents are ghost hunters? And they actually can support a family?" Dipper asked.

"Well, mom also is a professor at the nearby university and dad is a mechanic part time." Danny admitted. 

"That's so cool! Hey Danny, want some Mabel Juice? I put extra cookie in it this time!" Mabel asked. 

"Well, let's get you out of the closet first. Then I'l try your Mabel Juice." He laughed good naturedly. "And after that you can tell me where and when I am."

Dipper put on his signature hat. "You don't know what year it is? Or where you are?"

Danny backed away as Mabel "gracefully" came out of the closet, causing several boxes to fall in her wake. "No clue. I was wandering that dream real for quite a while. This place is nowhere near the place is started. It could be 408 BC for all I know!" He chuckled. "Probably isn't though, looking around this room." He sat on Mabel's bed.

Mabel smiled a brace-less grin. "Well, I'm gonna go get the Mabel juice. Dipdop, tell him everything he needs to know." She opened the door out of the room and walked down the stairs. Danny's eyes trailed after her until she disappeared from his sight. His eyes went to Dipper. 

Dipper paced around the room, tugging at his hat. "Let's start simple. The year is 2015. You're in Gravity Falls, Oregon. In the USA." 

Danny nodded. "Sounds good. I'm from Amity Park. It was 2008 when I left."

Dipper stopped paced for a brief moment. "2008? Amity Park?"

Danny nodded. "Uh huh. So not too far into the future."

Dipper went back to pacing. "Right. That's good we're from the same world. That can help us out. You remember your parent's phone number, right?" Dipper dug through his back pocket and pulled out a glittery, sticker-covered flip-phone. "You can use ours. It's a little outdated, but it was cheap and it works and that's all we reall-"

Danny took the phone and opened it. "-This looks like my sister's phone. Just..hers was a bit less accessorized." He interrupted Dipper's rambling.

Dipper shrugged. "Mabel."

Danny nodded at that and typed in a phone number. (248)555-6866. The phone rang and Danny pull it up to his year. Apparently it went through, because Danny started talking.

"Hello? Fenton Works?"

"Hi, my name is...Dan. May I speak to Jasmine Fenton please?"

"No, I'm not a boyfriend. I just have a few questions to ask her. I'm from her school and she won a contest."

"Yes, I understand."

"Jaz? You there?"

"Oh, thank god you're still in Michigan. Look, its me."

"No I'm not pranking you. I'm Danny. Danny Fenton."

"No! Jaz!  Please don't ha-Dammit!"

He ended the call. "She thought I was a prank caller." He looked hurt.

Dipper looked stunned. "Didn't she recognize your voice?"

"Nope." He sounded sad. "I guess it has been 7 years. She probably thought I was kidnapped or something. That probably wasn't the best idea." He laid back on Mabel's bed. "I just hoped there would be someone I could talk to."

Dipper sat on his bed adjective to Mabel's. "Don't you have friends or something you can call?"

Danny shook his head. "Sam and Tucker are off who knows where. Unlike my family, they are bound to have moved somewhere. Probably at some college." He gave the phone back to Dipper. "Guess I'll have to stay here until I can figure out a game plan."

Mabel back in, carrying a tray of Mabel juice. "Here we go!" She handed a glass to both Danny and Dipper. "Enjoy!"

Danny sipped it. 

"Interesting." He commented. He tried not to laugh at Dipper's face of disgust, but he couldn't help it. A healthy laugh welled out of him, and it was infectious. Soon the whole attic was full of laughter. A sound that hadn't been heard there in over a year. 

And from the woods surrounding the Mystery Shack, a shadowed figure watched, its colorful eyes illuminating the darkened woods around it.