The room behind the curtain was much dimmer than the gift shop. Walls and tables proudly displayed evidence of the supernatural found by Stan and Ford, and Mabel cocked her head as she inspected a mermaid— although it didn't look like any of the mermaids she and Dipper had learned about in Avem school. In fact, it looked suspiciously like a monkey attached to a fish tail, but Mabel was willing to give it the benefit of the doubt.
"So were you finding stuff to go in here when I ran into you the other day?" she asked, trying to make conversation with Dipper.
He hesitated. "Well... not really? Most of the things we find in the forest aren't actually displayed here. Stan and Ford realized that people liked the fake stuff—" Dipper clapped a hand over his mouth. "Oh shoot, I'm not supposed to tell you that they're fake." He sighed. "First time giving the tour and I already messed up. Please don't tell Stan?"
Mabel laughed, some of the tension in her body releasing. Maybe he didn't remember her, but her brother was still the same person. "Don't worry, Dip, your secret is safe with me."
Dipper gave her strange look. "What did you just call me?"
Oh drat. "Uh— nothing! Nothing at all." Mabel pretended to be very interested in the nearest exhibit, a half-rotted squash that claimed to have a human face and emotions. "Wow, this is pretty cool!" she said with forced enthusiasm.
Dipper frowned at it and wrinkled his nose. "I think it's rotting. Anyways, it sounded like you called me 'Dip.'"
"Um, well, yeah. I called you that because of—" c'mon, think, Mabel, think! "—'cuz of your birthmark."
Dipper's hand flew up to his forehead, smoothing down his hair. "My birthmark? How do you know about that?"
Mabel wanted to smack herself for being such an idiot. To him, she was basically a stranger. There was no way she would know about the secret birthmark on his forehead. "I, uh, saw it. In the woods. It's really cool, though!" she added anxiously.
"T—thanks." Dipper fidgeted with his hair. "But why 'Dip,' though?"
"Because it looks like the Big Dipper constellation. I won't call you that if you don't want me too, though!" Mabel said, her gaze sliding away from him. "Sorry. Just— just forget about it."
The irony of her words struck home a beat after she said them. Forget about it. That was exactly what he had done— about everything.
Mabel decided a quick topic change was in order. "So, uh, have you visited Stan and Ford before this?" Of course he hadn't really been in Gravity Falls before, but maybe Lilith had given him false memories.
Fortunately, Dipper seemed willing to let her slip of the tongue pass. "No, this is my first time. My parents thought it would be good for me to meet them." Dipper shrugged. "I'm just here for the summer."
Mabel felt like she was falling down a long, long cliff. My parents. In this world, Dipper thought he had parents, when in reality... they had been gone for years. Dipper and Mabel's parents had been killed in the war against Bill when the twins were only eight, and the loss of them was one of the main factors in Dipper deciding to become a spy for the Avem and pretend to be Bill's apprentice.
And now— Lilith had given him false memories that his parents were still alive. What, Mabel wondered, had Lilith planned to happen after summer ended? Dipper would leave Gravity Falls to go to— where? He had no home here; his home was with Mabel, in the Avem dimension.
That was definitely something Bill's hench-demon would have done— and found it hilarious all the while. Mabel took a deep breath, relaxing her fists that had clenched up in anger.
Dipper was still talking, and with some effort she pushed the anger from her mind and focused on his words. "I have to work here, but other than that, everything's been really cool. Grunkle Stan and Ford are really nice— Ford even gave me one of his old Journals, and I get to help with research. Soos is fun, and Wendy—" A faint blush bloomed in his cheeks. "—she's awesome."
Mabel gasped, her eyes lighting up as realization struck her. "You like her!"
"Shhhhh!" Dipper viciously hissed, despite the fact that there was no one else in the Hall of Mysteries. He fidgeted with his glasses. "No! I mean, she's just— really cool, and— and nice—" Dipper sighed, probably recognizing Mabel's unconvinced expression. "Okay, maybe I do like her. And I know she's older, but it's only by two years, and—"
Mabel couldn't contain her wide grin. While she had a tendency to get crushes maybe a bit too often, Dipper had always mostly been immune to the more... romantic side of life. There had been the incident with Lisa Jansson in the first grade, but— that didn't really count. And once they were old enough to begin helping in the war against Bill and his demons, time for crushes had all but disappeared.
"You know..." Mabel began, wiggling her eyebrows, "I'm a highly qualified matchmaker." That wasn't technically true, but there was no way she'd get better at matchmaking if she didn't practice, right?
Dipper fervently shook his head, and Mabel was reminded of his reaction when she made the same suggestion with Lisa. "No! I— no thanks, I don't need a matchmaker."
The immediate rejection stung, but then Mabel mentally smacked herself. What was she doing? It didn't matter that Dipper had a crush on a random girl; what mattered was getting his memories back and getting them home.
But, Mabel realized, talking to him again hadn't given her any ideas for doing either of those things.
A thought came to her. What if she couldn't get Dipper's memories back? What if they were stuck here forever? When the end of summer came, he would leave Gravity Falls for a home that didn't exist, and Mabel would do— what?
Mabel quashed the thought. She would find a way home, for both of them! She just had to keep looking, and throwing herself a pity party wouldn't get them any closer. If only there were a way to find the portal that had brought them here...
The stray thought sent a jolt through Mabel. After arriving in Gravity Falls, she had spent her first few days wondering about the portal and if she could use it to get back after finding Dipper. But then, after Lilith had appeared in her dream and told her about Dipper's new life as a human... well, thoughts of the portal had mostly been driven from Mabel's mind.
And as she remembered that, another piece clicked into place. Right before he sent Dipper through the portal, Bill had told him and an invisible Mabel about the scientists from another dimension who built the portal. Now, looking at the discoveries of Stan and Ford, Mabel wondered...
Could they have been those scientists?
And, if they were, did they still remember the portal? Mabel didn't think so— they would have seen her and Dipper come through. When Lilith had modified their memories so they'd think Dipper was their nephew, she'd probably erased their memories of the portal as well.
But what if they do still remember and are just waiting to reveal us? Part of Mabel's mind wouldn't dismiss the idea. She was becoming as paranoid as Dipper. Stan and Ford couldn't remember the portal, and they didn't know who she and Dipper were.
But... what if she could find it? It had to be hidden somewhere, lost now that Stan and Ford didn't remember. Mabel could use it to get them home— she just needed to figure out where it was; she doubted it was just sitting in the gift shop. Still, she was closer than she'd been in a week, and Mabel felt her spirits lifting as she and Dipper re-entered the bright world of the gift shop.
Wendy and Soos had disappeared, but as Mabel walked back out through the curtain, Stan and Ford broke apart from whatever conversation they were having. Dipper stepped out next to her. "So, what did you think?"
Her mind still filled with the excitement of her realization, Mabel grinned. "It was great!"
Stan snorted. "It's fake."
Dipper and Ford both looked at him with shocked expressions, though Ford's had a tinge of resignation to it. "Stan—"
"She might as well know if she's gonna be working here." Stan said it with an easy air as he popped open a can of Pitt Cola and took a long sip, either unaware or unconcerned by the confusion of the others in the room.
"I'm going to be— what?"
"Look, kid, I'm not an idiot. You're not staying with your aunt— or your grandma." Stan raised his eyebrow at her over another sip of soda. "You don't have any money, you were alone in the forest, and your hair looks like it hasn't been washed in a week."
Mabel's brain churned through his words, trying to figure out how to respond. He couldn't know who she was— unless he and Ford knew about the portal, knew she was an Avem. Should she hypnotize him? Try to bluff her way through? Run for it? Distracted by her frantic thoughts, she nearly missed his next words. "You aren't visiting anyone in Gravity Falls— you're a runaway."
She was what?
Silence followed Stan's statement, Ford finally being the one to break it with a long sigh. "You never were much one for tact, were you."
"Nope." Stan let out a belch. "And I'm too old to change now. Look, Sixer, if she were staying with someone in town, would she have been in the forest all alone? All the townspeople are terrified of it— they'd never have let her get within ten feet of the edge."
Mixed feelings of relief and confusion swirled in Mabel. Somehow Stan had come to the conclusion that she had run away from home— which in a way, she had; it just wasn't on purpose. But the thought that rose forefront to her mind was that he didn't know the truth about who she was. Mabel was safe.
Stan's voice softened as he tilted his head to look at her. "Look, I don't know who you are or what your story is, but I'm not gonna let a kid like you be out on their own. There's an extra bed up in the attic, and you'll earn your keep by working in the Emporium."
"Wait, so she's gonna be staying here?" Dipper asked, sounding as confused as Mabel felt.
"Yep. Hope you don't mind having a roommate." Stan burped again, then tossed the empty can into the trash.
Mabel was sure she looked like a fish as she opened and closed her mouth, trying to figure out how to respond. Part of her was still convinced this was a trap— it was almost too good to be true. Less than an hour before, she had been wishing for a safe place to sleep, and now that was exactly what Stan was offering.
She wondered again if there was any way he had found out the truth about her, but as Mabel looked at him, some kind of gut feeling told her that Stan genuinely wanted to help.
"Just so you're aware, I'm not gonna take no for an answer," Stan said, apparently sensing her hesitation even if he didn't know the reason for it. "We're not leaving a kid alone in the woods— are we, Ford?"
Ford rolled his eyes at his brother, then turned to smile at Mabel. "Of course not! You're certainly welcome here."
"I—" Finally Mabel's mouth landed on the right words to say. "Thank you."
Stan shrugged. "No problem, kid. I went ahead and sent Soos and Wendy home for the day— not much of a point in them staying when there's no business— so you'll start work in the morning.
"Welcome to the Emporium."
Aaaand we're back! Sorry for the late update; I was visiting family and didn't have my laptop or time to post. I hope you all had a merry Christmas (and that you enjoyed this chapter)! See you next week :)