"Hey. Gids!" I said, shaking his shoulders.

"Mabel, calm down. And don't shake him so much, you might hurt him." When I'd first met Gideon, I never imagined that one day he'd be unconscious and shirtless laying on the couch. I tried to ignore the latter though and just focused on the unconscious part.

"What's wrong with him? Is he going to be okay?" Ford shook his head.

"I can't tell. He has a bad fever." He glanced over at me. "Get that washcloth damp and put it on his forehead." I did as he said.

"What do you think Pacifica did to him?" I asked.

"Mabel, in my personal experience, I do not believe this to be the work of Pacifica Pleasure."

"Then what is it?" Ford froze.

"It's nothing. You shouldn't worry about that." I crossed my arms.

"Stanford Filbrick Pines, you promised  me you'd tell me everything." Ford shuddered.

"Please, never do that again. You sounded like my mother." I smirked, and he sighed. "But, a promise is a promise." He sat down on the floor. I sat across from him.

"Storytime!" I said playfully.

"The year was 1977. After graduating from college three years ahead of schedule, I came to Gravity Falls Oregon to study the paranormal. I spent six years studying it. But by then, I had realized that there was something more going on. Magic. Demons. Interdimensional beings!" He cleared his throat. "By then I wanted to learn all that I could. And by the time I had, it was already too late."

"What does this have to do with Gideon?" I asked.

"Mabel, I've experienced things that most humans could never dream of being possible. I've boarded an alien spacecraft. I've time traveled. I've left this dimension. And I've gotten hurt. Badly." He sighed and looked at Gideon. "And that's what I believe has happened to your friend. He's witnessed the power of an all-powerful being. I'd hate to see what's left of Pacifica." Before I could ask what he meant, he stood up. "I'm going to go make a pot of coffee. You stay here." I sat on the couch next to Gideon, worried. I sighed.

"I just don't know what else Ford can do for you, Gids." I lamented, looking at my friend. "I just hope you're okay." I sat there in silence for a moment. Suddenly, I heard the sound of glass breaking in the kitchen. "Ford? Are you okay?" I called. My uncle came rushing in a moment later.

"No time to clean! Hand me that bag, now!" Ford cleared a place on the table he'd pulled out of a closet and started arranging different containers. I handed him the bag and he took it quickly, grabbing ingredients from it as he needed them. "A glass of water, now!" I ran into the kitchen and avoided the broken pieces of the coffee pot on the ground to get to the sink. 

"You know, Melody's going to be really mad when she sees this mess tomorrow," I commented, coming back with the water.

"Less worrying about Melody, more worrying about saving his life!" Ford kept miking different things and muttering something that definitely was not English under his breath. In the end, he held up the glass I'd given him, which was now filled with a misting white liquid.

"What's that?" I asked.

"Something that was given to me long ago. Open his mouth." I did, and Ford poured the mystery liquid down Gideon's throat.

"What if he chokes?"

"Trust me, he won't." Ford stood up. "I'm going into town to pick up some pain relievers."

"For Gideon?" I asked. Ford looked at me like I was crazy.

"Are you kidding? We can't give him any medication! This is for the headache I'm bound to get. You stay here and look after him if he wakes up." I nodded, and Ford left. I watched over Gideon carefully, waiting for any sign of change.

That change came when he started coughing. Hard. He sat up and leaned over the bowl on the ground beside him(Ford had insisted and I was glad) and threw up. It sounds disgusting, but I noticed his vomit was black, contrary to the white liquid he drank.

"Gideon!" I exclaimed when he finished, hugging him tightly. He hugged me back.

"Mabel, what happened? All I can remember is a flash of light, then me trying to get back to you. I was so worried..." He trailed off, deep in thought. "Of course! Pacifica made a deal with the demon Bill Cipher to get more power. She ended up with my Journal, and I was so worried that she'd send Cipher after yours!" I blinked.

"Wow. That story was wild from start to finish." He grinned sheepishly. "I'm glad you're safe. I was so worried." I squeezed his hand, and he looked away.

"Thank you."

"Why do you do that?" I asked. Gideon looked back at me.

"Do what?"

"You do this thing where we'll be talking, and then I'll tease you or say something sincere and you'll look away. Why do you do that." Gideon blushed and looked down.

"Oh. I guess I hadn't realized I did that."

"That's it!"  He looked back up at me.

"That's what?"

"You're blushing! You get embarrassed!" He blushed even harder.

"I do not! The very notion is absurd!" I smirked.

"You know, you're almost cute when you get flustered. Almost." By now Gideon looked like a tomato.

"Can't we please change the subject?" I decided to give Gideon a break so he could have blood in places other than his face, so I brought the subject back to Pacifica.

"Why did she summon Bill Cipher? What happened?"

"What else? She wanted more power. And he promised to get her that power in exchange for information." He explained. His mind was still dazed from the flash, so the sentence was dragged out.

"Information on what?" I asked, gripping the couch.

"I can't remember... He kept talking about stars, and being alone, and... trees." He stopped, staring at me. "Has your shirt always had that Pine Tree on it?" He asked, his tone urgent.

"Yeah, why?"

"Pine tree. He wanted information on a Pine Tree. He wanted information on you, Mabel!" I sat still, shocked.

"Are you sure we're not just jumping to conclusions here? Maybe he just likes trees?" Gideon shook his head.

"Cipher spoke in a sort of code. He called Pacifica something..." He thought for a moment. "Moon. Crescent Moon." I thought for a second.

"Oh! Like on the Tent Of Telepathy!" Gideon gasped.

"You're right! Mabel, you genius! Cipher said he was watching several people, maybe these symbols that are iconic to them are all a big key!" Gideon smiled and high-fived me.

"That means we can just start finding symbols that could represent people, and be on the lookout!" Gideon thought for a minute.

"Cipher... He's a floating triangle with one eye. I've seen that symbol many places, it terrified me when I saw it in the journal. Could all of these symbols be how he's watching us?" I refrained from making a comment about his appearance to consider what Gideon said.

"You know what? You're right. I've never seen the symbol before this winter, but now I see it everywhere!" Gideon and I shuddered. The thought of that was terrifying. "We'll have to tell Ford when he get's back from the store." Gideon nodded.

"This is important. He needs to know."

***

Preston Northwest sat in his office. Nobody wanted to make Mr. Northwest upset, least of all his only child and heir to the Northwest company Gideon. However, it had lately appeared that his son was the only person upsetting him.

"It's been days. Where is my son?" Everyone in the room remained silent. Not even his wife, Priscilla, dared to make a sound. "If no one can tell me, I will cut all of your paychecks in half, and keep half for a missing child reward!" He threatened, raising his voice. Everyone quivered with fear. There was a small knock on the door. A large security guard opened the door to reveal a young intern.

"I'm sorry for interrupting you Mr. Northwest, but I thought you might want to see this!" She said timidly, handing a newspaper to the guard and leaving quickly.

"What is it, another stock market crash? Give it to me!" He commanded. He was slightly surprised, one might even say amused, when he saw that the paper he held in his hand was not The New York Times. Not The Washington Post. None of the major newspapers he typically read. It was the town paper of the hick town In the middle of nowhere where his ancestors had built Northwest manor. 

He chuckled aloud, but stopped when he read the headline. Northwest-Pines does it again. He grimaced. So this is where his son had been. Playing detective with commoners.

"Everybody get out!" He shouted, clearing the room almost instantaneously. He was going to get his son back, and there would be consequences.

"If he wants to play detective, I'll let him play detective. And I'll show him where meddling will get him."

(A/N) 1500 words you guys!!!