The morning came too quickly. One moment, I was staring at the ceiling, my mind racing with possibilities, and the next, Mabel was shaking me awake, a wide grin on her face.
"Rise and shine, Dipper! Gravity Falls, here we come!" she chirped, practically bouncing with excitement.
Her enthusiasm was contagious, and despite my lingering unease, I couldn't help but smile as I dragged myself out of bed. By the time we were packed and ready to go, I had managed to do a little research, specifically with my powers, to see how they worked I decided to flip through a couple channels on cable and one caught my eye.
A master of some kind was demonstrating a complex martial arts technique, I instantly analyzed everything with my eyes, glowing on his every movement, engraining in my mind and when i was done I immediately got up to repeat is actions. Taking the stance which was further than shoulder width apart I adjusted my palms and wrist to match watch I'd seen and began going through the movements. Tiger, Monkey, Snake , Crane and finally dragon. I ended my little performance now huffing. Although my movement where a bit stiff I had emulated each fine motor body part perfectly, the faults in my moves where clear to me, with a simple sift through my mind it wasn't hard to find and even easier to fix.
But with that I ended my test.
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The sun was just starting to rise, casting a golden glow over the quiet neighborhood. Stan loaded our suitcases into the trunk while Susan handed us sandwiches for the road.
The drive was long, but Mabel kept us entertained with her endless chatter and jokes. She talked about everything from what she wanted to do in Gravity Falls to how she planned to make a new sweater for every day of the summer. I nodded along, my thoughts elsewhere.
I kept replaying everything I knew about Gravity Falls in my mind. The town, the mysteries, the dangers. It all felt so real now, like a puzzle waiting for me to solve. And with my newfound ability to memorize everything I saw, I felt more prepared than ever.
By the time we reached the outskirts of the town, the sun was high in the sky, and the familiar, rugged beauty of Gravity Falls stretched out before us. The dense forests, the winding roads, the distant mountains—it was all just as I'd imagined, yet somehow even more vibrant and alive.
Mabel leaned out the window, her hair whipping in the wind. "We're here!" she exclaimed, her voice full of wonder.
Stan pulled the car to a stop in front of a large, wooden shack—the Mystery Shack. My heart skipped a beat as I took it all in. The sign, the quirky decorations, the sense of mystery that seemed to radiate from the place. This was it. The heart of Gravity Falls.
As we stepped out of the car, the front door swung open, and there he was: Grunkle Stan. He adjusted his red cap and suit as he smiled at us. "Welcome, kids. It's good to see you both."
I swallowed the knot in my throat prepared for the adventures that was awaiting the three of us.
'This is gonna be a good summer'
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The morning sunlight streamed through the curtains, spilling golden rays onto the floor of our room. I barely had time to adjust to the idea of waking up before Mabel's enthusiastic voice rang out.
"Rise and shine, Dipper! It's summer, and we're finally in Gravity Falls!"
She was practically bouncing on her bed, her arms wide open like she was about to dive into a pool of adventures. Her grin was so wide that it almost hurt to look at.
"Alright, alright," I muttered, rubbing my eyes and forcing myself upright. "First day of summer—let's make it count."
The smell of breakfast drifted up from downstairs: pancakes, syrup, and something faintly burnt. This could only mean one thing—Grunkle Stan.
Downstairs, the familiar figure of Stan Pines stood at the stove, wearing his signature fez and a slightly tattered apron. His gruff voice greeted us as we entered the kitchen.
"Morning, kiddos. First day of summer, huh? Better make it count before the tourists overrun the place. Pancakes are on the table, but if you want 'em fluffy, lower your expectations."
Mabel bounded into the room, grabbing a plate and piling it with enough pancakes to feed a small army. "Grunkle Stan, these pancakes are as beautiful as they are lopsided."
"Flattery gets you a second helping," Stan quipped, smirking.
As we ate, Stan laid out the day's plan. "I'm putting you two to work. The Mystery Shack doesn't run itself, and customers don't scam themselves, either."
"Work?" Mabel asked, her voice rising in mock protest. "But Grunkle Stan, it's our first day of summer vacation!"
Stan raised an eyebrow. "And you're spending it in the tourist-trap capital of the Northwest. Consider this a family bonding experience."
After breakfast, Stan ushered us outside, handing me a mop and Mabel a stack of flyers advertising the Mystery Shack. I sighed but took the mop, glancing at Mabel, who was already skipping off to hang the flyers in the most random places imaginable.
As I worked, the fresh forest air and the faint hum of the wilderness around us began to calm my nerves. The tall pines swayed in the breeze, their shadows dancing on the ground. Gravity Falls was everything I'd imagined—except the child labor part.
By midday, the first batch of tourists started trickling in. Mabel handled them with ease, charming them into buying overpriced trinkets, while I stuck to tidying up and observing the quirky flow of the day.
feeling the summers heat and the flood of bodily warmth from the customers I quickly put down the mop I'd been holding to open up the window. The breeze flowed into my face as I cracked open both sides of the wooden panels.
I was once more at ease my eyes closed to feel the comfort of it all but I got over it quickly decidedly ready to head back to work only to be stopped by what appeared in the forest. There was a ominous sense lurking within, the stretched back of the forest was completely black surrounded by eyes from unknown creatures that filled its abyss.
I was left stunned, my arms where still on the windows glass but my eyes where searching every inch of the forests contents only to be stared right back at, the eyes that once crowded the forest dissipated and scattered as fast as I saw it and I was left with a feeling of dread.
I shook off the unease and focused on the tasks at hand. But as the sun dipped below the treetops, I couldn't help but glance back toward the woods. The eyes were gone, leaving behind an unsettling sense that, as expected, this summer would be anything but ordinary.