Little Dipper

Fresh Start

They gathered together in the Room of the Forgotten and Gideon put in the tube before turning on the machine. "Alright...let's watch."

A image came on the screen, a young and frazzled-looking man with Day 1 in the corner of the screen. "My name is Fiddleford Hadron McGucket, and I wish to unsee what I have seen."

"That's F." Bill sighed. "No doubt about it."

"That's me?" McGucket stepped closer to it.

"For the past year, I have been working as an assistant for a visiting researcher." The screen continued. Bill noticed a familiar diagram on the wall behind him. "He has been cataloging his findings about Gravity Falls in a series of Journals."

Dipper pulled out the Journal and looked at it as the screen continued. "I helped him build a machine which HE believed had the potential to benefit all mankind! But, something went wrong!"

"He stuck his head in at an awkward moment." Bill mumbled.

"I decided to quit the project, but I lie awake at night haunted by the thoughts of what I've done!" The screen continued. "I believe I have invented a machine that can permanently erase these memories from my mind." The on-screen McGucket picked up the gun that Gideon was currently carrying. "Test subject 1: Fiddleford."

He pulled the trigger and then static covered the screen before it came back on, this time saying Day 5. "It worked! I can't recall a thing!" Static again, and then it said Day 22. "...I call it the Society of the Blind Eye." He said as he drew the symbol on a notebook. "We will help those that want to forget by erasing their bad memories!"

"Oh man..." Stan cringed.

Day 74, he came on looking injured. "Today I came across a colony of little men, very disturbing. I would like to forget seein' this." He zapped himself again.

"Yikes." Mabel breathed.

Day 189, he was even MORE injured, and looked like he'd lost hair. "I accidentally hit another car in town today! I feel terribible—t-terrible! I've been forgettin' words lately. I wonder if there are any negative side effec--" The static covered the screen again and he came back on looking more like the McGucket they knew, with Day 273 in the corner. "I SAW SOMETHIN' IN THE LAKE! SOMETHIN' BIG!" He pulled out more hair and then there was static once more.

Day 618, and McGucket came onscreen again. "My hair's been fallin' out, so I got this hat from a scarecrow! Hey, are my pants on backwards?" Static greeted them again and then Day ??? greeted them in the corner as McGucket came onscreen screaming gibberish and then did a triangle around his eye before it finally went black.

They were silent after that, taking it all in. Bill was pursing his lips tightly before he ran a hand through his hair. "...Wow. He messed his head up, but he could remember the little bit of demonic he learned."

"What'd he say?" Dipper asked.

"Just my name and shape." Bill shrugged. "Still, it's quite the achievement to retain that when he wiped so much."

"Is THAT what I said?" McGucket looked at him. "Huh. Well...I guess now I know who I was. I mean, I knew my name, but now I know that I apparently helped build a machine?"

"A portal." Bill clarified. "It's broken now, after The Author, your partner, went missing."

"Oh." He rubbed his head. "Well...I can't remember that password right now, but I'll let you know when I do remember it, okay? I'm sure that laptop has a lot of important stuff!"

Bill nodded. "Thanks."

"So...you didn't make sure there weren't negative side-effects before using it on other people?" Wendy asked.