It was Mabel who triggered Ford's memory about June.

They were at the breakfast table, eating Melody's delicious pancakes and sausage. Ford had been talking about their plans for the day: take Melody's list of questions, pack some lunches and the Journals and whatever else they needed, and leave for Juniper's tree. They'd get whatever answers from June that they could, and they'd ask her to take them to anyone else that could help them, including the minotaurs if there was time. And, if there was time, Gideon could also go look for the Northwest's Relief.

Mabel was glad to know the plan, but something felt wrong. "I can't help but worry that Bill will use this information against us somehow," she said. Then she sighed. "Why can he see into our heads? It's not fair."

Ford dropped his fork.

Mabel and Dipper jumped. "What is it?" asked Gideon.

"See into our heads," Ford repeated with wide eyes. "He can see into our heads."

"But not yours," Dipper said. "You have that metal plate."

Ford's eyes widened further. "That — that's it."

"What do you mean?" Mabel's pulse quickened. She knew what this was: Ford was remembering something. Was it the thing he was trying to remember last night?

"My metal plate," Ford said. "June was the one who told me about the metal plates! She took me someplace with other nymphs, and they put the metal plate in my head."

Gideon leaned forward on his elbows. "It was her idea?"

"Yes. And she was the one who told me about Bill's true nature. But. . ." He frowned. "I still don't remember much of what she said."

"Stanford," said Gideon, "is there a chance that I could block Bill from my mind, too?"

Ford blinked. "We can certainly ask. In fact, we should just ask for all of you. I don't know if they'll be able to do it on children, but we might be able to work something out."

"I dunno if I want a metal plate in my head," Dipper said. "Although it would make some pretty cool drumming noises."

"Let's not perform surgery on children, Ford," said Melody from her position at the pancake griddle.

Ford put his hands up. "We'll just ask what our options are. Besides, I don't think it was surgery."

"They got it inside of you somehow," Melody said as she brought a new plate of pancakes to the table (from which Dipper promptly stole half the contents). "Magical surgery is still surgery in my book."

"We'll just ask about our options," Ford repeated.

Mabel's stomach flip-flopped nervously. Could she get a metal plate in her head, just like Ford? Would she be willing to get one? It would mean blocking out Bill, but was there any other option?

Calm down, Mabel, she told herself. They would find out their options later. No one was getting a metal plate until they were sure that it was the best plan.

It took Mabel, Dipper, Gideon, and Ford a few hours to prepare to leave; then, they said goodbye to Melody, donned their winter gear, and left for the forest. They went out Ford's lab door so that nobody would see them from the road — not that it would do anything to stop Bill from seeing them, Mabel thought. But there was nothing she could do about that at the moment.

The day — January seventh — was beautiful. It was hard to believe that it was only January seventh, but Mabel suspected that the time bubble would be messing with her mind for weeks, if not months. Their clocks weren't even correct; she had to mentally add three and a half hours whenever she looked at the time. Grunkle Lee had said that he would try to get the correct time to spread through town, but it had yet to reach the Mystery Museum. For now, Mabel would have to deal with the jolt of confusion she got whenever she looked at a clock or thought about what day it was.

The twins, Ford, and Gideon chatted as they walked through the snow. Or, Dipper chatted, and the others answered him in the appropriate breaks. Mabel wanted to start her own conversation with Gideon, but it was hard to think about any topics except the depressing and anxiety-inducing topics surrounding the Cipher Wheel or Bill's punishment for Gideon. Mabel wanted to ask questions about Everly Grace, Gideon's older sister, but he had clearly told her not to mention that name or ask any questions. Mabel's curiosity on that subject was only growing, but Gideon was unlikely to budge anytime soon.

After a while, Gideon fell back by Mabel. "Are you feeling okay?" he asked.

Mabel looked up at him in surprise. "Y-yeah, I'm fine."

"You've been pretty quiet."

"So have you," she pointed out.

"Yeah, but that's just how I am. I thought you'd be talking more with Dipper and Ford."

"Well, I. . ." She forcibly told herself not to blush, but the warm feeling in her face told her that she'd failed. "I was trying to figure out how to talk to you."

"About what?"

"That's the problem," she said. "All I can think of to talk about is too depressing."

Gideon gave a short, quiet laugh. "I'm the same way," he said, "which is why I usually don't say anything."

"You. . . you're okay, too, right?" she asked. Gideon hadn't woken Mabel up with his screaming last night; his plan to sleep on the couch had worked. At breakfast, he'd claimed he was fine after last night's round of nightmares — and he'd clammed up when Melody had tried to ask him any more questions. Now, he seemed to be at least somewhat happy as he walked through the beautiful winter forest. But Mabel knew he was good at hiding his true feelings.

"Yeah, I'm okay," he said. Then he reconsidered. "Well. . . I'm scared, to tell you the truth."

"About what June will tell us?" Mabel was scared, too. What if June couldn't do anything to help Lee or Fiddleford or any of them? Also, it would be nice to block out Bill with a metal plate or something similar, but Mabel couldn't bring herself to hope for it.

"It's more the Northwest's Relief," Gideon said. "I'm not expecting to find it today, but. . . what if I can?"

Mabel wasn't sure what was scary about that. If Gideon had any injuries from when he'd run away from home, he could heal them. In fact, Mabel still had some cuts from when Pacifica had kidnapped her. They were already half healed, but it'd be nice to use the gel to get rid of them.

When Gideon saw her confused expression, he looked away. "Never mind," he said.

"No, I. . . I want to understand," Mabel said.

He glanced back at her. "It's fine," he said. "Let's just focus on finding June." And he wouldn't say anything more about it.

The trip had some stops and starts as Ford consulted the map in his journals (grumbling about how he had written the directions in the summer, and the forest was almost a completely different place in the winter) and redirected their course. They had left late in the morning, so they soon stopped and ate their lunch on some boulders that were nicely shielded from snow by tall trees. Then they walked some more. Finally, Ford stopped. "I think this is it."

"Where are the leprecorns?" Dipper asked, frowning at the bare clearing in front of them.

"They're hibernating," said an unfamiliar female voice. A nearby tree shimmered, and a woman with auburn hair and a dress of snow-covered pine needles stepped out.

"June," said Ford, sounding relieved.

June smiled at him. The smile was tainted with some sadness, but it was mostly a happy smile. "It's so good to see you, Ford. It's been a long time, even for me." She stepped forward and ran a hand through his grey hair. "You're so different."

"I've aged, that's all," Ford said. "I'm sorry it's been so long. I forgot—"

"Andrew the minotaur told me," Juniper said. "He and I are friends. I've been waiting for you to visit since you showed up and asked the minotaurs for help."

"You know Andrew?" said Dipper, his eyes lighting up. "How's he doing?"

"He seems to be doing fine, at least for the circumstances," June said. "He passed through here a little while ago, actually. His village needs some extensive repairs after those gravitational anomalies. He's going to get help from the brownies."

"We missed him?"

"You did," June said with a sympathetic frown. "He should pass through here again when he comes back, though." Her frown turned to a smile. "You must be Dipper. Andrew has told me about you. He likes you."

Dipper beamed. "I like him, too."

"And who are these two?" June asked, looking at Mabel and Gideon.

Mabel was way too nervous to talk to such a beautiful woman, so Gideon spoke for her. "I'm Gideon Northwest. This is Mabel Pines, Dipper's sister and Stanford's niece."

"Northwest?" said June. "Where's your amulet?"

Gideon scowled. "Currently unavailable," he said.

June put up her hands. "I guess that's a touchy subject, sorry," she said.

"June," said Ford, "we need your help. With — well, with a lot of things. I'm not sure where to start."

"Start with the portal," June said. "What happened when the portal opened?"

Ford scowled until he looked similar to Gideon. "Andrew probably told you that Stanley was on the other side of it. Well, he wasn't. Fiddleford McGucket was."

"Fiddleford? Your research partner?"

"Yes. I had no idea where he was. Turns out he was the one on the other side of the portal. And Stanley. . ." Ford closed his eyes. "Stanley has been at the Order. Fiddleford erased his memory entirely, and now Stan leads Cipher's cult."

June's eyes went wide. "What?" she whispered.

"He doesn't remember me," Ford said. Mabel could tell that the words were hard for him to say. They were hard for her to hear. "He said that. . . that it felt right to him that we were brothers, but. . . but he doesn't have any real memory of me."

"Oh, Ford," June said softly. "I'm so sorry."

"There's more," Ford said. "He made a deal with Bill years ago that Bill could possess him whenever he wanted. Lee can get pushed out of his body at any time, and there's nothing he can do about it. But, June, Lee is on the Cipher Wheel. We can't form the Wheel without him, but Bill would never let him join us."

June steepled her long fingers in front of her mouth. "Andrew said you were trying to form the Wheel."

"We know who all the Symbols are," Ford said. "We have six people who can and will do it with us, including the four of us here. Three more that we have to convince. And then there's Lee. Please, June, is there anything you know of that we can use to help him?"

Mabel didn't like the look on June's face, because it didn't give an immediate, "Yes, I do know of something that you can use to help him." Instead, June had a hesitant expression that looked out of place on her smooth face. "I. . . I don't know, Ford," she said. "Cipher's deals are very hard to break. Do you know the exact nature of the deal?"

"I don't know exactly what was said," Ford answered, "but Cipher can pull Lee out of his body at any time and replace him. He doesn't have a limit on how long he can stay, either. He threatened that he would stay inside Lee's body forever the last time I saw him."

June frowned. "You've seen Cipher?"

Ford nodded. "While he was possessing Lee. It was the first time I'd seen him in thirty years. The metal plate works — he told me so himself."

"Well, that's good, at least," June said.

"Speaking of which," Gideon said, "if we could change topics for a moment, I have a question about the metal plates. Do you think we could get them? Or something like them?" He gestured to Mabel, Dipper, and himself.

"You want metal plates in your heads, too?"

"We want some way to block Bill out," Mabel clarified. "What are our options for that?"

June gave Mabel another hesitant look. "I don't know," she answered. "You're children, aren't you? Your brains are still growing?"

"Our brains are still developing, yes," Gideon said. "Does that mean we can't get metal plates?"

June shook her head. "It would stunt your growth. There would be nowhere for your brain to grow."

"Is there any other way to block Bill out, then?" Mabel asked. She hadn't really expected the metal plates to work out, but surely there was another option.

"Not that we know of," June said sadly. "I'm sorry, kids."

Gideon looked frustrated, but he didn't looked surprised. "Okay. I figured we couldn't do it. It was worth a shot, though."

"What about Lee?" said Ford. "Would it help to give him a metal plate like mine? Wouldn't it block out Bill entirely?"

June considered this. "It would probably keep Bill from accessing Lee's mind. But if Cipher can separate Lee's spirit from his body at any time, then the metal plate wouldn't do anything to stop that."

"It still sounds like an advantage," Gideon said. "Cipher wouldn't be able to get into his thoughts. That's an advantage for anyone." He still seemed disgruntled that he couldn't have that advantage, but he didn't say as much.

"That's true," June said. "We could certainly try it. But I don't think it'll do anything to fix the possession problem; the deal would be too strong. The only way I can think of to break it is to have Cipher himself nullify it."

"That would never happen," Gideon said.

"No, it wouldn't," June agreed. "I'm sorry, Ford. I'll keep looking for solutions, though. I'll try to find anything I can."

"Thank you," Ford whispered. He looked crushed.

Mabel couldn't help but feel the same way: They came all the way out here, and they immediately got a "no" for the metal plates and a "probably not" for Grunkle Lee? She had hoped for a little more than that. "Then how can Stanley join us in the Cipher Wheel?" she said. "There has to be a way."

"I. . . I don't know of any off the top of my head," June said. "The Cipher Wheel needs ten souls — spirits plus bodies — to work. If Cipher can take Stanley's body out of the equation, then. . . then I don't know." She actually looked scared.

It was terrifying to Mabel to see a magical hamadryad look scared. No. No, that couldn't be it. They couldn't be stopped by Bill's stupid deal with Lee. Mabel had to get home. She had to see her parents again!

"Is there anything else you wanted to ask me?" June asked quietly.

Ford didn't answer for a moment. Then, "Yes," he said. "Fiddleford, another Symbol, is lying sick at my house. Or injured. Or something. We don't know what. He came out of the portal and just collapsed. He woke up yesterday for a moment, drank some water, and had a short conversation with my nurse, Melody, but then he fell back to sleep. We have no idea what he went through in that other dimension or how to help him." Ford took a folded piece of paper out of his pocket. "Melody gave me this to give to you. It's a list of questions."

June took the paper, opened it, and scanned its contents. "I should be able to help him," she said after a moment. "I'd have to come to your house."

"That's fine," Ford said. Mabel found it strange to think of June coming into a human building: The hamadryad belonged outside, in nature.

"Should we go now?" June said. "Or was there something else?"

"I wanted to see Andrew," Dipper said, "but I guess it'll have to be later." Mabel glanced to Gideon, but he didn't say anything about the Northwest's Relief. Later, then.

"Are. . ." Ford cleared his throat. "Are you sure you can't help my brother, June?"

June turned sad eyes on him. "Where is he now?"

"Down in the Order headquarters, as far as I know," Ford said. "Cipher allowed him to stay the night with us two nights ago, but then he had to leave again. I have no idea when I'll see him again." His throat constricted at this last part.

"Maybe if I could see him, I could get some ideas," June said, though she sounded doubtful. "For now, I'll send the word out to my sisters. We'll start looking." She took a breath. "Do you want to travel with me back to your house?"

"Is there a tree near the Mystery Museum that you can use?" Ford asked.

"There should be," June said. "We have some trees scattered throughout the forest that aren't connected to a particular hamadryad, but are still part of our network. Technically, if I really tried, I could access any tree in the forest."

"Then yes, we'll come with you," Ford said.

"I'll go into my tree, tell my sisters about Stanley, and plan a path to the Museum. Wait just a moment." June stepped toward her tree and disappeared.

There was a short silence after she left. "They'll find something," Dipper said. "They'll find a way to save Grunkle Lee. They have to."

"What happens if they don't?" Mabel whispered.

Ford, Gideon, and Dipper all looked to her. "I'm not entirely sure," Ford admitted. "But it can't be good." He took a deep breath. "We'll just. . . have to keep looking."

He didn't sound very optimistic about it. Mabel tried not to let her thoughts spiral into despair, but it was hard. Would they be able to save Lee? Would they be able to get out of here? Would Mabel go home? When would Mabel's parents even notice that something was wrong?

Dipper took her gloved hand in his. "It'll be okay," he said. Mabel couldn't tell if he really believed that.

"Will we ever get home?" she asked.

"We will," Dipper promised.

Mabel hadn't even thought about her home since her first week here in Gravity Rises. The time bubble had made her forget what day it was, and she didn't worry about the fact that the Mystery Museum was only supposed to be a short trip. The Museum had felt like her home; in her mind, it had almost replaced her real home.

That was scary. She'd basically forgotten about her parents, and that made this whole thing all the more terrifying. Was she in danger of forgetting them again?

June soon reappeared, which stopped Mabel from getting too far lost in her anxious thoughts. "My sisters will help you," June told Ford. "Every hamadryad in the forest knows about Stanley, and we'll ask anyone we can for help."

"Thank you," Ford said sincerely.

"I found a good route to the Museum, too," June continued. "I should probably take one person at a time, finishing with you, Ford."

"Are you going to teleport us?" asked Gideon.

"Sort of," June replied. "I can travel through our network of trees and come out at different points in the forest. And I can take passengers with me."

"Is that how you talked to Robbie a couple days ago?" said Dipper. "He said he found you somewhere else in the forest."

"Yes, we all saw him, and we decided that I should be the one to appear and talk to him," June said. "I found out that he was a Symbol and told him about it. Will he help you?"

Ford nodded. "Thank you for telling him about it. His parents are Order members, and it would've been harder to convince him if they'd told him some false story before we could get to him."

"Will they try to stop him?"

"I'm not sure what they'll do, but they claimed they wouldn't," Ford said. "We'll have to see."

June nodded. "Well, let's go. Who wants to be first?"

"Ooh, me!" Dipper said.

"Careful," Ford said, "it makes you dizzy."

Dipper stepped forward, and June took his hand. "Ready?" she said. Dipper nodded enthusiastically, and June led him to her tree. The tree shimmered and wavered, and then June and Dipper were gone. The sudden disappearance brought a bit of panic to Mabel's mind, but Mabel pushed it away. It's okay, she told herself. He's okay.

June reappeared. "Mabel?"

Mabel swallowed and stepped forward. "Does it hurt?"

"No," June said with a reassuring smile. "It'll be fine."

Taking Mabel's hand in hers, June stepped into the tree.

Mabel suddenly felt as if she were on a roller coaster that was accelerating, except there was no wind in her face. Dizzying flashes of light passed by. Then, just like that, it was over. Mabel stumbled out of the new tree and into Dipper's arms. "You good, Mabes?" he asked.

"I think so," Mabel said, waiting for the nausea to pass. She looked around and was startled to see the Mystery Museum not too far away. June had taken them to the tree line behind the Museum.

June went back into the tree and soon came back with Gideon, then Ford. "That's so much faster," Ford commented. "Thank you, June."

"Of course," said June. She started for the Museum, and the Pines and Gideon followed. Mabel realized she hadn't really seen June walk yet, and it was mesmerizing to watch. The hamadryad moved easily through the snow, as if it were weightless. Mabel the others had to stomp through the deep snow behind the Museum, but June seemed to be walking through normal water instead of snowdrifts.

They reached the door to Ford's lab, which he opened with a key. "Forgive the mess," he said. "I'll go tell Melody that you're here."

"Okay," said June, looking around the cluttered lab with an amused smile on her face. Her snowy pine needle dress looked unnatural amidst the computers and assorted gadgets. Mabel wondered if any snow or pine needles would fall off the dress, or if they magically stayed put. Probably the latter, based on how immaculate the dress looked.

Ford soon came back. "Melody's happy that you're here. Fidds is asleep, but she says he woke up again while we were gone."

"That's good," June said. "I'll go talk to her."

"Head down the hall, make a right, and it's the first door on your left," Ford said.

June left the lab, and Mabel, Dipper, and Gideon followed not too long after her. Dipper headed straight for the kitchen to make snacks, and Mabel and Gideon settled onto the couch. "Think Fiddleford will be okay?" asked Mabel.

"June should be able to help him," Gideon said.

"Then why. . ." Mabel's throat closed up. "Then why can't she help Lee?"

Gideon was quiet. "Bill's deals are really strong," he finally said. "I don't know if there's much anyone can do against them."

"But isn't Bill a prisoner? Shouldn't he be weaker than this?"

"I'm pretty sure this is his weakened state," Gideon said.

That was a sobering thought. Bill had successfully terrorized both Mabel and Gideon in that "weakened state." Mabel didn't know what would happen if Bill escaped his prison, but she knew she didn't want to see him with any more power than he already had.

Dipper joined Mabel and Gideon in the living room and shared his snacks with them, though Mabel wasn't all that hungry. It was about half an hour before Ford came into the living room. "June's about to leave," he said. "Do you want to come see her off?"

"How's Fidds?" asked Dipper.

"He's going to be okay," Ford said. "June says he just needs rest and good care. Some kind of magic kept him alive for all those years, even though he told Melody earlier that he hadn't eaten or even moved at all."

Mabel's eyes widened. "He just. . . sat there doing nothing? For thirty years?"

"Something like that. We'll have to ask him when he wakes up next."

Gideon stood up. "What magic kept him alive? Does she know?"

"She thinks it has to do with the Cipher Wheel," Ford said. "The fact that he was a Symbol may have preserved him."

"Wait, does that mean we can't die?" said Dipper with wide eyes.

"I don't know," Ford said.

"Bill needs us alive," Mabel said quietly. "I guess the magic is keeping us alive, too." But for what? What was Bill going to do to them?

"Come on, let's go say goodbye to June," said Ford. So Dipper and Mabel got up, and they went with Gideon and Ford down the hall.

Ford took them to the lab, then opened the door that led outside. June stood in the snow, waiting for them, and she seemed unaffected by the cold. Her face brightened with a smile when she saw them. "Fiddleford is going to be fine," she said. "He's in good hands with Melody."

"Thank you, June," said Ford. "Thank you for your help."

"Of course," June said. "I'll come find you again with any news about Stanley's situation." She put a hand on Ford's shoulder. "We'll find a way," she said.

"Thank you," Ford whispered.

June turned to the twins and Gideon. "It was wonderful to meet you all," she said. "I'll tell Andrew you say hi, Dipper."

"Thanks!"

"Bye, June," said Mabel. "It was nice to meet you."

June waved, then left. Mabel watched her glide through the snow again before she reached the tree line and disappeared inside one of the trees.

"Wow. She's so cool," said Dipper.

"Yeah," said Mabel. She closed the door and locked it.

The group turned to leave. They were halfway out of the lab when there came a sudden knocking on the lab door. It was frantic, and the sound startled Mabel.

"Is she back already?" Ford asked, sounding confused. He moved to the door and pulled it open.

Sure enough, June stood on the other side. "Stanford," she said, "there's a situation."

"What's going on?" he asked. Mabel, Dipper, and Gideon all came to the door. Mabel couldn't think of why June would be back. It had only been a few seconds since she had disappeared into the trees. Had she already found out what they could do to help Stanley? But her face was worried.

"The minotaurs apprehended someone in their village. A human."

"Who?" asked Ford. "Do you know?"

June glanced between the four faces in front of her. Then her eyes found Ford's again. "It's your brother," she said. "Your brother was caught trying to steal something from the minotaurs."