#cheapskate alert

[jesuistrestriste]

Art and Patrick’s dorm fridge at Stanford 😭😭

STOPPP LMFAO

yeah they have nothin in there ! they get 90% of their food from the dining halls and mooching off of other students/friends .

like everyone knows you two have enough money to buy groceries .. stop asking people for their granola bars……

[ai-art-thieves]

twinkiedreamyouth we've got a case of art theft (also they post "their" art onto the small artists community and people are falling for it)

i prob shouldnt be surprised considering this is the piss on the poor website but come on

Yeah we got ourselves another attention grifter. And some of the pieces are algorithm generated, so that makes them more of a grifter.

I'll alert any artists with tumblr accounts that had their work stolen by this cheapskate... as well as double it as an artist showcase.

@akiiame-blog

patpixels_ on instagram

screenshot of @motocross-arts's gif

if you know of any artists that got robbed by twinkiedreamyouth or any other account, do let me know

[larissa-the-scribe]

Tell Me About This Time Loop, Again?

And so it begins... @inklings-challenge

Day 12

In Zo's mind, it never felt like the day was properly begun until Lyn woke up, looked around at the room they'd been staying in, frowned, and said—

Day 13

"Where are we? And why does it feel so... familiar?"

"Well you see," Zo replied, as he always did, peeking at the underside of the egg he was frying, "we're stuck in a time loop."

Day 14

"A time loop?" Lyn swung her feet over the side of the bed, seeming to realize for the first time that she was in one.

"Don't worry, it's clean." After confirming they were, indeed, in a time loop, one of the first things he had suggested was finding a comfortable place to set up camp. Somehow it had worked, and they had ended up there every time things reset. "And there doesn't seem to be anyone around, so I don't think we're stealing or trespassing." 

Lyn raised an eyebrow. 

Day 15

"Well, we might be, but no one minds. It's a ghost town. Everyone seems to have disappeared." And since it was a time loop, they never ran out of cooking gas. Or food supplies. That, at least, was convenient. 

"Disappeared?" Lyn stood up, adjusting her shirt from how it had gotten scrunched up in the night. Despite her attempts to look bright-eyed and alert, he could see the sleepiness that still hung from her eyes. 

Day 16

"Our best guess so far is that it's connected to the time loop." Zo flipped the eggs. If this all persisted, he could open up a fried-egg restaurant once they got out; he was getting an absurd amount of practice flipping eggs.

"That makes sense." Lyn padded over to the window, still barefoot, and pushed the shutters open. "Do we have any evidence, or is that just, well, a guess?" 

Her gaze swept the view, which he knew without looking was nothing more than the empty lines of blocky, one-story buildings and the too-smooth black-top of the streets. The neighborhood was pressed together as if sheltering from the plains beyond the town, with such a veneer of newness covering it all that each house might have been churned out of a factory yesterday. They hadn't been, though, considering the subtle signs of wear and tear inside the houses. 

"Eh, a bit of both. Something weird is clearly going on with the area, and we know time is affected, too, so it's a logical guess that the two are connected. Whether that means some psycho wiped the town out before setting up their experiment, or just that their timey-wimey dealybob messed up physics in general is still up for debate. Do you want toast?"

"Yes, please."

Day 17

"Good. We have to finish the bread before it goes stale." Zo left the 'in case we get to the next day' implicit.

"I'm surprised we still have butter. I thought it would have gone bad in your pack."

"It smells a bit odd, but so far we haven't been affected by it."

Day 18

"Okay, but how do you know we're in a time loop?" Lyn asked, setting the table. 

They were in a ground-level studio apartment, so the dining room, kitchen, and bed were all in the same space. No couch, which Zo took to mean that the owner was either poor or a cheapskate. Either way, it was disappointing. Still, the carpet wasn't bad. He'd slept on worse.

"Because you've asked me that so many times I've lost track of the number," Zo said, "and you seem thoughtful every time, like you're not as surprised as you thought you'd be." 

She nodded and set a fork down carefully, wearing the expression she always did just then, brows squeezing down over far-away eyes.

"In all fairness, though," Zo clarified, "I mostly lost track because I wasn't really counting, and then it seemed pointless to start. It's been over two weeks, though, I'm fairly certain."

Day 19

She smiled, and the tension in her brows eased a bit. "This all does feels familiar. Like, I don't remember the other days, but all of this feels like I should, somehow, know what happens next. But I don't."

"I do know," Zo replied, "and it's getting a bit tiresome."

"Fair."

Zo nodded, slotting toast into the toaster. "Very. Whoever owned this place pretty much only had eggs in their fridge. I'm not sure how many more days in a row I can eat those without losing my mind."

Lyn looked up sharply.

Day 20

"Relax," he said, waving his spatula, "they respawn every day, so I don't think it's even technically stealing. If it is, we can pay them back later. There's a fully-stocked but unmanned convenience store down the road, one which we have very nobly not taken anything from, every single day."

"Good," Lyn sighed. "After all, if we get out today, we wouldn't want to be rewarded by jail for petty theft." She tacked on a fierce look at the end of the sentence.

Zo shrugged, and let Lyn interpret the gesture as she would. "Eggs are almost done."

Day 21

"Good. I'm weirdly hungry. Also, thank you for breakfast."

"Don't mention it," Zo smiled. "It's nothing I haven't done many times before."

[burningembers91]

Stakeout - Oh Kyeong-Tae x Fem!Reader (NSFW)

Follow up piece to:

Take a Chance Stolen Glances

Synopsis: Holed up in a hotel room on a stakeout, temperatures and desires begin to rise, and Oh Kyeong-Tae shows a side of himself you never knew existed.

The hotel room was stifling, the air musty and stale. You’d tried and failed to get the ancient aircon to work when you’d first arrived, but it groaned loudly and then packed in all together. You didn’t dare turn the ceiling fan on, not entirely sure what was keeping the decrepit cooling system in place. It looked dangerously close to falling from the ceiling altogether. You’d been slowly stripping off layers over the last five hours, first removing your leather jacket, then your white blouse, before finally resorting to sitting in your thin camisole top and jeans. Oh Kyeong-Tae sat next to you, fanning himself with the hotel brochure as he stared aimlessly out of the window.

You’d been sent here to capture intel on a possible lead, some big players who were rumoured to have ties to the drugs gang you’d been hunting. They’d arrived at their luxury Airbnb across the road from your shitty hideout a few hours ago, but so far hadn’t done anything remotely illegal. They’d ordered takeout, crashed on the sofa and had been watching Netflix while you sweated away in some seedy hotel room. You weren’t able to open a window, weren’t allowed to turn on any lights in case your targets were alerted to your position. You and Kyeong-Tae had sat in almost complete silence since your arrival, making the odd little bit of small talk here and there.

You wondered if he felt the tension between you, whether he noticed the way the air felt heavy with the desire you could no longer deny. Leaning backwards onto the hard mattress, you propped yourself up on your elbows. Your back and neck were killing you, a result of too many hours spent hunched over your desk with the posture of a croissant. You could feel beads of sweat trickle down your chest, pooling between your cleavage. Absentmindedly, you wiped it away, cursing the cheapskates at head office for refusing to splash out on the nicer hotel next door. You were forced to sit in the dark, with nothing but the streetlights outside illuminating the dank space, as the criminals opposite lounged in luxury. This place was hell’s waiting room.

You didn’t notice Kyeong-Tae watching you, didn’t hear the sharp intake of breath he took as you dipped your index finger between the curves of your breasts. You looked so perfect, spread out on the bed, your cotton camisole clinging to you. As you tipped your head back, he followed the soft contours of your shoulders and neck, watched the rise and fall of your chest and you took deep breaths. He could see you were uncomfortable, could tell something was hurting you by the way you screwed up your eyes. Kyeong-Tae could read you like a book, and something wasn’t right.

“Is everything ok?” he asked you, all too aware of the fact that if he simply moved a few inches to his right, he’d be almost on top of you. “Yeah,” you smiled, “just got a trapped nerve, I think. I just need to stretch out a bit.” Sitting up, you arched your back, extending your arms above your head as you stretched out your aching muscles. Kyeong-Tae watched the way your back curved, pushing your breasts out so perfectly. The sigh of relief that left you was heavenly, and he stiffened at the sound. He was finding it harder to resist you, harder to ignore how beautiful you were. You drove Kyeong-Tae crazy, and he wasn’t sure how much more he could take.

Your sigh of pleasure was quickly overtaken by a gasp of pain. Something caught in your shoulder blade, a sharp pain spasming your back as the fatigued muscle was stretched too far. “Ow, fuck!” you hissed, reaching your arm back to try and release the burning cramp. But it was in the awkward place on your back where neither one of your hands could seem to reach. The pain was blinding, the cramp extending down the right side of your body. “Are you ok?” Kyeong-Tae shot up, startled by the pain evident on your face. “Muscle cramp,” you groaned through gritted teeth, wincing as another wave of pain rolled through your shoulder.

“Can I help?” Kyeong-Tae had taken a course on massage therapy and reflexology, and he knew he’d be able to help ease your pain. He also knew it would be an excuse to touch you, to feel your skin against his. You nodded, desperate for the pain to subside, not realising that his hands against your skin would present an entirely new pain.

As he fingers deftly worked your aching muscle, your body responded. The ache between your thighs was heavenly, but quickly bordered on painful as your imagination ran away with itself. His hands were like magic, melting the pain away in a matter of minutes, and you wondered how they’d feel elsewhere on your body. His touch was so confident, so sure and you couldn’t help but imagine how his fingers would feel inside of you, how it would feel to have his thumb press delicious circles around your clit.

A moan escaped you, half at the relief from the pain in your shoulder, and half at the image of Kyeong-Tae between your legs. It took you a second to realise that sound had come from you, and you clapped a hand over your mouth. “Sorry,” you smiled sheepishly, “that feels a lot better.”

Your moan had Kyeong-Tae standing to attention, his erection pressing uncomfortably against his jeans. The sound was heavenly, coupled with the feel of your skin against his hands. You were perfection, an angel sent straight from heaven, and you were driving him crazy in the best possible way.

The tension in the room was palpable, Kyeong-Tae’s hands still working the muscle of your shoulder. It didn’t hurt anymore, but you didn’t want him to stop. “Shall I keep going?” he whispered. “Yes,” you nodded, “please don’t stop.”

His hands moved a little further down your back, eliciting another soft moan as he melted away months of tension. Kyeong-Tae bit his lip to stifle his own moan, his stiffening cock aching for you. You snuck a glance over at the Airbnb, your targets still slumped in front of Singles Inferno. The bug you’d installed in their apartment picked up nothing but the sounds of them snoring, along with the flirtatious giggles of the contestants on the TV. You were finding it so hard to resist his touch, leaning back into his chest as his hands made their way around your waist and across your stomach. You knew this was wrong, knew you’d get fired if your bosses found out, but you just couldn’t help yourself. Your desire was overwhelming, the ache between your legs unbearable.

Your head came to rest on his shoulder, your gaze meeting. A shuddering breath escaped you as you realised there was no going back. You’d both made it obvious that you wanted each other; now it was just a case of who made the first move.

“Kiss me,” you whispered, your hand reaching up to entangle in his thick, dark hair. Now it was Kyeong-Tae’s turn to moan, months’ worth of dreams coming true in an instant. He wanted to get this right, wanted to make the moment perfect. Taking you gently in his arms, he lowered you down against the mattress. It squeaked with the pressure from your bodies, the rusted old springs straining against you. Neither of you seemed to notice though, so completely wrapped up in each other.

Kyeong-Tae looked down at you, your skin flushed with desire, your chest heaving with anticipation. He wanted to commit this moment to memory, wanted to make sure the look on your face was etched into his brain forevermore. He pressed his body down on top yours, his lips meeting yours in the softest of kisses. You swallowed each other’s moans, every cell of your body craving his touch. His tongue grazed your lower lip, his hand caressing your cheek as he pushed his body against yours. You could feel his erection against your hip, could feel how badly he wanted you.

“I want you,” Kyeong-Tae groaned, thrusting his hips against yours, desperate to feel your body against his. “I’m yours,” you breathed, “I’m all yours.” This was so wrong, so highly unprofessional and frankly dangerous, but you were so caught up in your carnal desires you no longer cared. You craved his touch, needed to feel his fingers, mouth and tongue on your body. You’d deal with the consequences later; right now, you just needed to quench that insatiable ache inside of you.

Kyeong-Tae didn’t need telling twice. He knew you probably didn’t have long, and he refused to waste time playing games. He unbuttoned your jeans, pulling them down around your ankles. Even in the dim light of the hotel room, he could see how wet you were, could see your arousal seeping through your underwear. Hooking his index fingers into the waistband of the delicate fabric, he pulled them down your body.

Your arousal glistened in the orange glow of the streetlamp outside, dripping down onto the bedsheets below. He wanted to touch you, wanted to taste you and he had no idea where to start. “Use your fingers,” you pleaded, “I want them inside me.”

Kyeong-Tae loved it when you ordered him around. After all, you were technically his boss, and he always aimed to please you. He slid one finger inside of you, swiftly followed by another. You were so tight, your walls clenching around his digits. The moan you released was guttural, and Kyeong-Tae clapped his other hand over your mouth to keep you quiet. You couldn’t risk getting caught; not when there were so many things he wanted to do you.

Keeping his hand clamped firmly over your lips, he continued to explore you. His fingers traced delicate patterns through your slick folds before he pushed them back into your tight core. He heard you moan against the palm of his hand, your hips arching into his touch. “More.” Your voice was muffled, but Kyeong-Tae knew what you wanted. He added a third finger, stretching out your tight core as you thrust your hips up, fucking yourself on his thick digits. He could see you had so much pent-up stress, so much tension he wanted to relieve you of.

“Do you need me to make you feel good?” he whispered, picking up the pace as your eyes rolled back into your head. You nodded, whining into his hand. You were usually so calm, so collected, but Kyeong-Tae had reduced you to a whimpering mess. “Do you want me to make you cum?” he asked, enjoying being in control for once. He wanted to see you relax, wanted to see you come undone and unburden yourself from the weight you constantly carried. He heard your muffled whines, saw the desperation in your eyes as you worked your hips against him. “You’re so tight,” he murmured, “so perfect. Let go for me. I want to see how you look when you cum for me.”

His words were your undoing, and Kyeong-Tae moved his hand away from your mouth as you came. You managed to hold in your moans, your body writing with pleasure as your walls clenched around his fingers. Your lips were puffy, your eyes bright as you held his gaze, your legs shaking as you lost control. “Fuck,” was all you could say, pulling him down on top of you. You needed more, needed to repay the favour, needed to feel him inside of you.

Just as you started to unzip his jeans, the speaker next to you crackled to life as your target’s phone began to ring. You both paused, frozen in your embrace as you listened to the conversation. “The buyer will be here in five minutes.” The disjointed voice on the speaker what was you’d been waiting for; it was your que to move.

As fast as lightning, you both dressed, trying to suppress the arousal neither of you had quite managed to satisfy. As you ran out of the hotel and to the Airbnb opposite, you knew what you’d done was wrong, and yet you didn’t feel an ounce of regret. You were a senior detective, someone who was supposed to command the respect of your junior colleagues.

But Kyeong-Tae had shown a new side of himself tonight. You’d been putty in his hands, allowing him to take control. He knew exactly what you wanted, and he hadn’t been afraid to take the lead.

You’d spent so long feeling like you always needed to control every situation, and giving yourself to him had felt so good. You wanted to see what else he could do, wanted to feel the pleasure he’d given you again and again.

Yes, it would probably end badly, but you were hooked on Kyeong-Tae in a way you’d never been with anyone else before.

[kylejsugarman]

ive wanted ivy ever since she debuted in 2008. julie was my only historical doll as a kid so i of course wanted her to have her best friend, but there was no way i was getting another doll. im a cheapskate so its taken a long time for me to chance upon an ivy that im willing to pay for, but this one had tight limbs and beautiful hair (her bangs aren’t cut, they just got pulled back a bit by her headband), just a bit of silver staining on her eyelids that u of course can’t see when her eyes are open!! she came with this ag dog, so im assuming this is her service dog. ivy’s a mega athlete (u know, the one who is always dressed in athletic wear in case a track practice breaks out unexpectedly) and her service dog dash is there to alert her when her blood sugar drops unexpectedly and make sure she takes her insulin. she’s happy to join the fam!!

[peep-is-writing]

Preview of my self-indulgent Pikmin Fanfic otherwise known as: Mel, Louie, and the Apocalypse

Warnings: will eventually become nsfw. Maybe quick. There will be swearing because swearing is fun. Idk what’s gonna happen but to be safe MINORS GO AWAY THIS IS NOT FOR ANYONE YOUNGER THAN 18.

You have been warned.

Also: please leave a like if you read this. Reblogs aren’t necessary, I’m cool with having a small crowd. However: I would very much like to know if people have seen this. Hi people!

Chapter 0

Louie D. Goodienough lay flat on his back in the dirt, watching captain Olimar Tinkerman fuck off back home in the only working spaceship on this weird ass planet.

Because of course this happened.

Of course his cheapskate boss didn’t make sure the passenger compartment was secure.

Or maybe his cheapskate boss found out about that very expensive cargo he ate, and told the bitchy AI to toss him as soon as the job was done.

Louie let out a deep sigh, closed his eyes, and relaxed into the dirt. He savored the memory of those golden Pikpik carrots. They ended up being pretty expensive even with his five finger discount. Four finger? No yeah five, still five. For sure.

Sure like Olimar! Olimar was a good captain and a good coworker and a good friend. He would come back as soon as he realized Louie was missing for sure. The ship would surely have some kind of alert or warn….

Louie’s eyes shot open.

The ship’s AI would be in charge of the alerts. And if it did throw him out on purpose there’s no way it would let Olimar know!

That BITCH.

Louie took a minute to indulge of fantasies of trashing that stupid speaker system.

Plus, the minute Olimar gets back home he’ll be out of there before anyone can say a damn thing to him. Louie saw a picture of Olimar’s wife, Tarrey. Damn. I mean damn. (As the narrator, damn. Good job @ultraspicyspray thank you for your service.) Louie would be running too.

Louie let out a low, long suffering groan. As he glared at the chemtrail left behind by his only way back to Hocotate he knew that no one was going to come for him for a long time, if at all. He knew the president wouldn’t come for him even if he didn’t know about Louie’s lie. It was honestly a sarcastic whatever answer and the guy totally accepted it. Louie had honestly been hoping for the company to go under just to screw over the president, cuz honestly fuck’em. Well he felt that way until he got to know Olimar. Who knew he was such a decent guy? Well fuck’im too anyways. Lucky bastard.

He knew he would need to get up eventually. Probably sometime soon. The sun was already starting to set and he needed to find shelter and a way to breathe on this stupid planet and Goddammit he needed to eat SOMETHING good for this day to be worthwhile.

Louie was still glaring at the fading smoke when he heard something; quiet at first. The rumble of an engine. It was odd though, it didn’t sound like a ship. It sounded like his truck from back home, but then it got louder, closer. Turning his head he saw a vehicle in the distance. He’d seen some of those around, sure, but not up close. Weren’t those like really big though?

And at the very moment Louie finished that thought, something, no, someone opened the door and stepped out.

Louie’s head was spinning, probably because this was the first time he moved his head since falling and he fell from quite a height. Such things have consequences, after all. How else could he explain how it kept coming closer and closer without seeming to close any distance. It has to be a hallucination or something. It just has to be. Too cute to be a native of any planet this freaky.

But then the thing put its hands to its mouth and bellowed:

Helllooooooo???

“WHAT THE HELL HOW CAN ANYONE BE THAT LOUD.” Louie thought. They must have had some kind of amplifier. The sound was so loud that it made his ears ring and his already throbbing head more…throbby. It’s hard to think when your head hurts. It was a miracle that his translator was able to make out the hollered greeting, something like Giyan? Louie didn’t know. But he knew that if he had a choice between trying to survive the night alone on the surface with whatever injuries he had or hitching a ride with some native cutie he had to admit the second was a more appealing option.

Without much thought, he blew his whistle to let them know where he was.

And it was at this moment Louie knew he fucked up.

Because when the stranger perked up and started to run towards him he could feel those footsteps in his bones, he could see her grow to tower over everything around him but the tall trees, and he realized quite a few things about the natives of this freaky planet. Most importantly?

They were fucking HUGE.

What. the FUCK. Is THAT????

Thank you for reading my first piece of fanfiction! I was looking through the pikmin tag sometime after I played pikmin 4 and found @ultraspicyspray ‘s art and developed feelings for the little blue weirdo who had already charmed me by being a little weirdo who likes to eat. This au is basically “but what if I found him and was nice to him???” Anyways I hope you enjoyed! I’m looking forward to writing more!

[authorspirit]

New simblr alert!

Hi everyone, I'm Mira, I also go by Joy. I'm from France, ethnically Malagasy, English is only my second language but that's my game language setting (it's a choice). I'm a fairly new player to the Sims franchise ('cause mini me would only play games at other people's house). I'm a cheapskate so I waited for TS4 basegame to go free... And went a little bit ham on the packs. I don't have all of them, I don't intend to. I use a lot of cc, maxis mix but more maxis match than alpha. I'll be as wcif friendly as possible. I'll post gameplay, builds and whatever I feel like at the moment, but mainly screenies of my sims. I aspire to post a story based on a Malagasy family... Or not. I don't know. I'll see.

This blog is a secondary blog, I like and follow from @blueyjoy. Don't hesitate to interact! :D I'm shy but if you're shy, let's be shy together.

ps: those two sims are my current most played sims at the moment. You'll see a lot of them here.

[feminist-space]

First image is of a number of ballpoint pens with words written or carved on them. The caption says Confiscated pens containing cheat notes intricately carved by a student at the University of Malaga, Spain (2022).

Second image is of a pair of socks and the caption says socks used to cheat on civil service exams, Qing Dynasty China.

Here's a link to an article titled Cheating in Examinations for Cheapskates?–A Centuries-Old Tip from the Chinese Collection of the Cotsen Children’s Library by Minjie Chen, published 2019:

Confiscated pens containing cheat notes intricately carved by a student at the University of Malaga, Spain. (2022)

[budgetboundless]

Wanderlust on a Wallet: How to Travel Like a Pro Without Selling a Kidney 🌍✈️

You’re Not Broke, You’re Resourceful ✨

Let’s face it: Adulting is expensive. Between rent, avocado toast, and that Netflix subscription you forgot about, funding your wanderlust feels like trying to solve a Rubik’s Cube blindfolded. But what if you could globetrot without draining your life savings? (Spoiler: You totally can. Let’s spill the tea.)

Budget Travel Pain Points—Solved!

1️⃣ “Flights Cost More Than My Ex’s Apology Texts” → Hack It: Use price-tracking tools (👀 cough Trip.com’s fare alerts cough) to snag deals when fares drop faster than your motivation on a Monday. Pro tip: Mid-week flights are cheat codes for savings.

2️⃣ “Accommodations = Soul-Crushing Math” → Hack It: Filter searches by “budget-friendly” and “free cancellation” to avoid commitment issues. Hostels? Boutique stays? Trip.com’s got filters for that—no PhD in spreadsheets required.

3️⃣ “I Missed Out on Cool Stuff Because $$$” → Hack It: Free walking tours, street food adventures, and public transport like a local > overpriced tourist traps. Psst: Some sites even bundle activities + hotels (wink).

4️⃣ “Planning Feels Like Herding Cats” → Hack It: Apps that do the heavy lifting. Imagine a single platform comparing flights, hotels, and trains. It exists. (No, this isn’t a dystopian novel.)

Why Your Inner Cheapskate Will Love This

No Hidden Fees: Because surprises are for birthdays, not checkout pages.

Rewards That Don’t Suck: Earn points for every booking—trade them for future trips (or a fancy coffee. No judgment).

24/7 Support: For when your hostel turns out to be a “vibey” shed.

TL;DR: Traveling on a budget doesn’t mean eating instant noodles in a hostel basement. It means smart hacks, sneaky tools, and zero guilt. Your next adventure is a few clicks (and saved dollars) away.

 Sneaky tips to travel cheap + stress-free. Find flights, stays, and hacks to save $$$ without the spammy vibes. Wander smarter, not harder. 🌟

Ready to outsmart wanderlust taxes? Go stalk some flight deals—your future self (and bank account) will high-five you. 🛫

[gravityfallsrewritten]

Chapter 17: Escaping Dreams

It was surprising to see rain in the middle of summer– a thunderstorm nonetheless, but that wouldn't stop the twins from going and finding some entertainment. The moment the rain began though, because Stan was a major cheapskate and wouldn't dare spend a penny on fixing the Shack properly, the roof had gotten frail and weak, causing water to leak.

The family went and gathered as many containers as they could, ranging from cups, pots, and pans and began putting them under each leak.

While they were searching for more bowls, Mabel found a random Conflict Boatboard game lying around the attic and invited Dipper to play. Dipper, being competitive he is, immediately accepted the offer with an intent to win while Mabel had no idea how to play this particular game.

The rain continued pouring, and Y/n thought that this was a good excuse for coffee– although every hour is coffee hour for her– and proceeded to enjoy watching the rain fall down the window of the kitchen while sipping on the flavorful bitterness. Meanwhile Stan loitered by the TV as usual, boringly flipping through channels. Wendy and Soos were forced to stay inside the Shack because the heavy rain came unexpectedly and they didn't have anything against the weather.

Dipper inquisitively placed a hand on his chin. "I'm gonna say... B5,"

Mabel grinned excitedly. "Miss!" She proceeded to put a peg on her board. "Whop!" Her pegs were arranged like a cat's face.

"I don't think you're playing this right." Dipper glared.

All of a sudden, Stan's booming voice resonated through the house, louder than the rain. "Kids! Come quick!"

The twins sprinted down the stairs in unison, finding Stan cackling in mock laughter. Y/n sat on the huge dinosaur fossil beside the yellow couch as she continued sipping her hot beverage. "I need you to laugh at this with me!" Stan exclaimed, motioning to the TV where Gideon's commercial played. The boy held a mini guitar and the background were clouds passing by.

"Who's cute as a button, and always your friend? Lil' G-I-D to the E-O-N! Wink!"

"Li'l Gideon!" Bud announced after.

The twins had the urge to grimace. Y/n thought the jingle was fairly catchy, but it was also hilarious seeing Gideon try this hard. "Ugh, Gideon," Dipper stared weirdly.

"Remember when I wouldn't date him and he tried to destroy us?" Mabel voiced aloud.

Stan frowned deeply. "He's always trying to trick me into losing the Mystery Shack!"

"He's annoying."

Wendy walked in the room. "One time I caught him stealing my moisturizer."

"He's so weird."

Soos followed with a smile. "And yet, our mutual hatred for him bonds us together."

The commercial continued, and now Gideon was laughing with doves flying out from behind him. "Come on down to Li'l Gideon's Tent of Telepathy, opening soon at this location." The TV shows a pseudo-Mystery Shack getting crushed by the Tent of Telepathy.

"Uh," Dipper stuttered. "Should we be worried about that?"

"Please," Stan waved a dismissive hand, smirking, "the only way Gideon's taking over this shack is by breaking in and stealing my deed."

A crash was heard from the upstairs, alerting everyone. Y/n sat up. "You mean, right now?"

Inside Stan's office, was Gideon attempting to open Stan's huge safe. He mumbled possible significant numbers as codes, but nothing worked. "38? 41? Oh, heavens to Betsy!" He whispered harshly.

The door opened and there stood Stan with an angry expression. "Gideon!"

"Well, well, Stanford!" – Y/n visibly cringed upon hearing the incorrect name– "my arch nemesis. We seem to have entered a dangerous game of cat and mouse. But the question remains, who is the cat, and who is the-"

"Soos, broom." Stan deadpanned.

Conveniently, Soos was holding a broom when the old man asked for it. He began treading closer to the younger boy. "Oh no, not the broom!" Gideon ran around the room as Stan chased him.

Gideon hissed, but those fitful fell on almost deaf ears as he was repeatedly hit by the broom until he chased him outside in the rain. The people left in the office began cleaning up the mess that was the break-in attempt.

"You mark my words, Stanford, one day I'm gonna get that combination. And once I steal that deed, you'll never see the Mystery Shack again!" Gideon screamed against the rain accompanied by thunder.

"Good luck, bucko!" Stan replied with a smirk before closing the door.

Stan went back to his office, opening the vault with the combination before opening it. The deed was still there, tucked safely. He closed the vault shut again, pressing the lock button. He laughed mockingly. "The combo to this safe in the one place he'll never find it: my brain." He said aloud to himself, not knowing there was a pair of eyes peering at him through the window.

Gideon thought that he's had enough of playing games. He brought out his greatest weapon out of his little suit. A book; a dark, leather-bound cover adorned with an insignia– a six-fingered hand and a huge number 2 in blank ink. Inside were pages filled with intricate drawings and cryptic messages, and memories written by someone who had a lot on their mind. It was supposed to be a biography, a series of findings, but it had fallen in the wrong hands. It had fallen in the hands of one Gideon Gleeful.

He flipped to a certain page, his eyes shining a mischievous, evil glint as he stared at the book that gazed back.

***

It was still raining heavily. The five being Mabel, Dipper, Y/n, Wendy, and Stan were watching TV. Stan sat on the yellow throne, Mabel laid on her stomach, Dipper and Wendy were playing with toy guns– one couldn't be sure if they were enjoying it so much. Stan was the only one interested with the Grandpa the Kid showing on TV.

But while they looked like they were almost bored to death, Y/n was enjoying a tub of ice cream as she sat between Dipper and Mabel. Despite the cold rain, Y/n likes to eat dessert. It doesn't give her any brain freeze, nor does it make her tummy hurt no matter how much she ate.

Dipper glared at her playfully, aiming the Nyarf gun at her. "I admire your capacity to consume cold food in chilly conditions."

Y/n smirked at that from the rim of her ice cream tub. "You just couldn't handle it."

With that, Dipper fired, the plastic bullet hitting her straight on the forehead, but she didn't even flinch.

Mabel groaned, turning behind her. "Grunkle Stan, why can't we watch a movie that we'll all enjoy?" She brought out a video cassette. "Dream Boy High! 'Where love is on your permanent record~'."

A chorus of "Boo's" resounded while Y/n chuckled at Mabel's suggestion. "You'll learn to like it," Mabel said.

A sudden crash was heard from the kitchen, followed by Soos' screams as he ran out and into the living room. "Dudes! There's a bat in the kitchen! It tried to touch me with its weird little bat fingers!" His face scrunched worriedly.

"I got it," Y/n immediately stood up, wanting to help– but Stan pushed her back, her butt landing on the carpet with an 'oof'. "What the-"

"Don't worry, I got this under control," Stan reassured her, but she didn't believe a word he said. He simply leaned further back in his armchair and placed his hands on the nape of his neck in faux relaxation. "Dipper, take care of it."

"What?" Y/n and Dipper voiced in unison. "But why can't Y/n do it?" Dipper asked.

"'Cause life ain't fair," Stan answered without missing a beat. "Are you really making someone like Y/n sort it out?"

Y/n raised an eyebrow in offense. "What does that supposed to mean-?"

"Now go fight a bat so we can watch TV," Stan said to Dipper, completely ignoring her.

Dipper stood up and faced the older man. "No way, Grunkle Stan! You always make me do dumb chores." He clenched his fists. "I'm putting my foot down this time!" He said, stomping his shoe on the ground.

"I said do it, kid! Now!"

The room went quiet, except for Stan and Dipper seeming to have a stare-off, growling at each other.

"Grr-!"

"Okay! I'll do it." Dipper surrendered, sighing in defeat. He exchanged glances with Y/n before retreating back into the kitchen. Y/n and Mabel followed behind him. "Stupid chores..." he picked up a saucepan and spoon off the floor.

"Don't worry, I can help you, Dipper," Y/n tried to assure.

"Oh, that reminds me!" Stan shouted from the other room. "Y/n, go throw out the rainwater from the pots upstairs!"

She turned behind her and gave the voice a glare that could kill. Dipper tried to smile positively. "It's alright, Y/n. You can go."

"But-"

"I can handle it," he said, "Besides, Mabel is here for support."

"Okay..." Y/n said slowly before quickly sprinting across the living room and upstairs to take care of the leaks to get to the twins as soon as possible.

That left Dipper, who looked quite determined in getting the bat out, and Mabel, who had her back on the wall, about to say some inspiring words. "Remember, bats are more afraid of you than you are of them."

He nodded briefly before treading forwards to face the creature with nothing but kitchen supplies.

"Maybe I'm thinking of ducklings."

Loud screams from Dipper resounded as things crashed around the kitchen. The boy fought for his life when the bat extended its claws and aimed to scratch him. He managed to dodge its attacks, but the hits caused his Dipper to fly off. He screamed some more when the bat attempted to grab his vest and bring him away somewhere.

"Go get it, Dipper!" Mabel cheered from the side.

"I'm trying!"

"Do you need help?" Y/n asked, standing beside Mabel as she had already finished her task.

"It's fine!" He smiled shakily, trying to appear calm. The bat screeched, revealing its sharp fangs, rearing for Dipper. "A-actually, I might need a little- help! Eek!" He dodged the rabid animal's grasp.

Y/n frantically stepped in, arms reaching for the bat. It was a big bat, but it wasn't anything she hadn't seen before. The creature saw the gal coming towards it, so on instinct, it pushed Dipper off so hard that his head fell on the floor with a thud.

The bat squealed some more and tried to scare Y/n off, but there wasn't an inch of fear on her body. With her right arm, she stretched for the bat trapped in the corner. It jumped onto her and bit her hand, but of course, it didn't hurt. Now with her vacant hand, she caressed its furry head. The bat tensed up, surprised from the sudden act of affection. Its teeth let go of her fingers and began sniffing as if familiarizing itself.

Y/n walked herself and the bat near the fridge and opened it, finding a half-bitten apple. "Want it?"

She brought the fruit closer to the creature clinging onto her arm. It seemed to have understood her, leaning closer to catch a scent. It took it with its little hands, bringing it to its mouth and taking a bite. Y/n looked outside the kitchen window and the rain stopped. She deduced that the bat probably just wanted food and shelter. But this Shack wasn't the right place to look for those two things.

"You gotta go, little fella," she spoke to the bat. "You've caused quite the ruckus."

The twins watched with looks of wonder. It was amazing to see her so caring and gentle albeit seeing her literally act like that every single day. But this was the first time– and maybe last time, that she managed to calm down a raging bat.

Mabel, being the enthusiastic and optimistic one out of the two, stepped closer. "Can I pet it?"

Y/n glanced down at the creature and gestured something. "What do you say?"

The bat clung tightly, but its expressions were blank. Y/n nodded to signal Mabel that it was okay so the girl reached over and gently patted the bat's head and neck. Immediately, the creature nuzzled closer, closing its eyes in comfort. Y/n had the urge to smirk slyly. The bat does like pets, but wouldn't want to admit it.

Eventually, the bat had to be set free, seeing that there wasn't any rain anymore. Dipper didn't want to pet it for obvious reasons and because he needed medical attention. So Soos went to the bathroom and got the medkit.

Dipper was situated in a chair placed in the middle of the kitchen as the supplies were placed on the dining table. Bandages and disinfectant were brought out, and Mabel began applying bandages to Dipper's head. Y/n sat in front of him after washing her hands. She brought out the hydrogen peroxide and cotton balls, and began cleaning the wounds he got from the bat fight.

"This might hurt..." she mumbled, reaching for his arm.

"Ow, ow!" Dipper clenched his hand tightly.

She stopped momentarily, opting to glance at his face and see if the pain stopped before continuing. He gritted his teeth as he squeezed his eyes shut.

Dipper sighed. "Why does Grunkle Stan always pick on me? Think about it! The more painful or difficult the chore is, the more likely it is I'll have to do it. Why doesn't he pick on you guys?" His question seemed to be directed at Y/n since she felt his eyes on her.

She couldn't answer. Lucky for her, Soos came into the kitchen, having overheard the conversation. "Dipper, Stan's personality is one of life's great mysteries. Like whether or not it's possible to lick your own elbow." Good enough answer.

"I bet you can't!" Mabel challenged.

"I bet I can!" Soos began attempting to licking his own elbow, his feet leading him away from the kitchen. Mabel followed, chanting support.

It was just the two of them. Y/n was absentmindedly wrapping a new gauze on his wrist, not knowing what to say at the moment. Dipper exhaled tiredly. "Sometimes I feel like Stan hates me."

"He doesn't hate you." He looked up to see Y/n avoiding his gaze. It was a surprise to hear a reply after that statement. "He doesn't hate you," she repeated, softly this time.

Dipper remained quiet. Although thoughts were still brewing in his head– particularly memories of Stan bossing him around– he couldn't say anything. He watched as Y/n finished bandaging his hands and began clearing the table of the first aid supplies. Dipper stood up and helped her. Silence loomed over them. The only noise surrounding them were the random droplets of water coming from the sink and the deafening sound of a radiator. Their hands briefly touched when they reached for the gauze. Dipper flinched away while Y/n didn't bat an eye. It was just quiet.

"Thank you," Dipper decided to end the muteness between the two of them.

"You're welcome," she replied. So she wasn't mad at him. That was good. "You know that I'm always here for you." That was great. "I know that sometimes you try and prove to everybody that you can do it, but you don't have to do it alone." That was better. "We're a team. You and me." That was best.

He couldn't help but smile at that. "I know I can rely on you," he said. "I trust you."

Y/n's heart was racing, but she couldn't tell whether it was good or bad. Trust is a big word with even bigger implications. Her palms were clammy at his confession. He trusts her. Trust. That meant he trusts that she would never stab him in the back or she would catch him if he falls. He feels safe around her. He knows that he will never be hurt in her presence.

"I trust you too," she couldn't stop her mouth.

"You do?" Dipper dared to ask.

"Of course. We're friends, aren't we?"

The corner of his lips dropped slightly. It took him ten seconds to reply. "Yeah. That's... that's good to hear."

***

The day went on normally. The rain stopped in the afternoon, but it was still cloudy until sunset. Come evening was dinner, until Mabel proposed to have a movie night. Maybe this was her way of making Dipper relaxed and rested after that embarrassing bat fight, but a movie does sound nice.

"So, what are we watching?"

"Whatever comes in the almighty Gravity Falls TV!" Mabel answered happily, picking up the remote and switching the appliance on. Immediately, the announcer listed off the following movies the local theater production had to offer. Most of the items in the catalog were done with almost no effort at all, but it was still good entertainment– laughing at the mistakes and errors that they could notice.

"You're watching theGravity Falls Bargain Movie Showcase!" The voice from the TV took the trio's attention. "Coming up next: Kewl Vampirez! Classic Romantic Teenage Movie! Ducktective: The Duck That Went Quack! And Attack of the Killer Gnomes!"

"Hmm," Mabel thought aloud.

"I already know what you're thinking, Mabel," Dipper deadpanned.

"You don't know what I'm about to choose." The girl rolled her eyes.

The boy crossed his arms. "Let me guess, is it 'Classic Romantic Teenage Movie'?"

"Nope!" Mabel looked proud. "I actually want to watch Attack of the Killer Gnomes and see if they captured the gnomes' stinky attitude perfectly! But what about you, Y/n?"

The twins faced her as she entered the living room with a bowl of freshly cooked popcorn, the smell wafting in the air. "I'm fine with anything," she said, casually sitting next to Dipper on the big, yellow couch. Dipper immediately reached over and got himself a handful of the tasty snack.

"Well, for once I actually agree with Mabel's pick," Dipper said with his mouth still full, resulting in his speech to sound so muffled. He swallowed. "Come on, let's watch it."

Mabel played the movie anyway, the logos of the productions rolling up. She stood up and switched off the lights, the soft glow of the TV providing their only light. Mabel situated herself on the ground, in between Y/n and Dipper's feet, munching on her own bowl of popcorn– and with Waddles already fast asleep beside her, she used him as a pillow.

The movie was pretty decent– featuring a trio of friends going on an adventure when they encountered innocent-looking gnomes. They thought they were safe until they found out that they were about to be eaten, like a plot straight up from Hansel and Gretel. The three kids battle with the gnomes, reminding the three other people of their own encounters.

It was a funny moment when the microphone was being visible in some scenes, and the teen actors weren't doing their best acting scared. Well, who would get scared when the "gnomes" weren't actual, moving creatures. They were moved by hand, only plastered with eyebrows and sharp teeth to appear angry.

The credits soon rolled. The popcorn already ran out, and they were stretching in their seats. They opted to share their insights about the film they just watched, mostly recalling the moment when they pointed out the mistakes and laughing about it.

Mabel picked up the remote and switched through the channels, pausing when a duck in a detective outfit waddled around the street with a magnifying glass in one of its wings. "Ooh, which episode is this?"

"I think it's a rerun of the first season while we're waiting for the second," Y/n answered, her eyes glued to the TV. "I haven't watched this particular one, though."

"Oh okay. Let's watch it." Mabel grinned.

"Should I get more popcorn?"

The twins shook their heads. "Nuh-uh. I'm full."

"Me too."

"Okay then." Y/n stayed in the chair, even going as far as sliding down slightly. Dipper had his left arm placed on the arm of the couch as his head laid on his palm comfortably. Mabel remained seated, her back sliding further down Waddles' stomach. Her eyes were half-lidded as she burped out. A duck with a gun was the last thing she saw before sleep completely took over.

Dipper wasn't doing very well as well, he fought to keep his eyes open as the episode was nearing its end. He adjusted his seat and laid his back against the cushion, blinking his eyes. Y/n was beside him, attention solely on the television, eating what was left of the popcorn bowl.

He glanced to his right and watched as Y/n's eyes sparkled with the animation dancing in her sclera. Her mouth slightly opened when Ducktective stabbed the suspect repeatedly and fake blood gushed out.

Y/n saw something move in the corner of her eyes. Facing to her left slightly and sliding her gaze, Dipper was immersed with the TV, drumming his fingers against the arm of the couch. He suppressed a yawn with his right fist, tears forming in the corner of his eyes as it closed. When he opened those charming brown eyes again, Y/n already had her stare back towards the TV.

They sat equally, shoulder to shoulder, with hands not knowing where to put. Dipper's hands were on his stomach, while Y/n's were caged around her body. The episode reached its conclusion before the credits quickly appeared. A commercial for a new vacuum played and boredom commenced.

The two people left awake were too tired to start a conversation. All the noise left were voices from enthusiastic business people as they try to sell their invention, and the occasional whistle coming from Mabel as she laid fast asleep with her pet pig.

Y/n slowly blinked, afraid that sleep just might take her captive– but she didn't want to move and had to wake up the twins. She couldn't disrupt Mabel's slight laughs as she's clearly having the best dream ever.

But before Y/n could do further adjustments in her, she felt something heavy lay on her left shoulder, making her tense up. She could feel thick curls tickling her neck and cheek. And her arm felt warmth as skin made contact. Her whole left side felt warm as Dipper placed his entire weight on her.

Yet instead of moving, she stayed still, eyes fixated on the show. She hadn't watched this particular episode either, but her mind couldn't seem to concentrate. Her skin seemed to tingle when she felt Dipper nuzzle unconsciously deeper in her collar. Does he feel comfortable? Is she moving too much? Is she warm?

Is Waddles a pig?

They all have the same answers.

She let out a breath she didn't know she was holding. Her shoulders slumped after realizing that she was still tense. Y/n sighed a bit, calming her ferocious-beating heart, turning her gaze to the TV. She didn't know where to put her hands again, opting to intertwine it and place it on top of her stomach.

Dipper was sound asleep, and she was envious. But the universe reassured her and practically told her that she shouldn't worry any longer and soon enough, her eyelids felt heavy. Ducktective was hanging on a cliff and as much as Y/n wanted to see what happened, unfortunately, sleep came first.

△▼△

Dipper woke up to a bright flash, shielding his eyes until the light died. He looked around and saw that he was inside the Mystery Shack, but it was void of objects. It was an empty room, nothing else.

Except there was a blue portal that resembled a black hole, violent winds sweeping the boy off his feet as he tried to keep his feet on the ground. He stared at the swirl of dark colors, emitting a whooshing sound as if something was about to come out. He waited in participation. What could it be? A monster? His greatest fear? Death?

But nothing could have prepared him when a yellow triangle-shaped creature with arms and legs– its prominent features were a bowtie and tall hat– tumbled out of the portal.

"Hey there. buddy!" The triangle spoke, levitating in the air like it was a bubble. He snapped his fingers and a cane appeared in his hands. He floated down in front of the dumbstruck boy and began dancing, singing a tune.

Dipper, still bewildered, pointed at the being. "Who are you?"

The triangle's eye remained blank. "Name's Bill, nice to meet ya." He tipped his hat but doing so caused the room to flip and Dipper tumbled in his steps. He toppled around while Bill plopped his tall hat back to his pointy head.

Bill? That name sounded too familiar. And the isosceles form he took couldn't be a simple coincidence.

"Nice subconscious you got here, Dipper!"

Dipper tried to balance himself, recovering from the room flipping around. "Wha? H-how did you know my name?" His face scrunched into a look of anxiety, confusion, and fear.

"Oh, I know lots of things!" Bill raised his arms before landing on the floor. He pointed a finger-gun at him as he listed things that he knew about the boy. "You're scared to death of uncertainty.

Another copy of Bill came out from behind him, "Your real name isn't Dipper,"

And another duplicate appeared to the left. "And..." the copy chortled to himself. "Oh, this is interesting..." The three sets of Bills stared at him. "You spend a lot of time thinking about... Daisy?" The end came out more as a question rather than a statement. "Daisy? And I thought she's dumb."

Dipper raised an eyebrow. "Daisy? Who is that?"

If Bill had a mouth, he would be smirking. The other Bill leaned towards the last Bill. "Gimme details!" The three little triangles huddled together as whispers erupted. "Oh ho, that is scandalous!" The other one commented.

Dipper was getting red in the face, anxiety creeping in as he thought of what Bill might say. The triangle still had to explain who Daisy was supposed to be, but he may have a guess because she's the only one running through his mind. "Dude! What do you want from me?" Dipper said, exasperated.

"Oh, right!" Bill exclaimed before snapping his finger and before he knew, he became one again. He walked up to the boy. "So get this," his singular transformed into a mini-projector, emitting blue light. A photo of Stan's head appeared on the screen. "This fat little baby man Gideon hires me to, uh, I don't know-" the projection occurred,, depicting Bill's plan like he was doing a business proposal, prepared with a powerpoint presentation, "uh, hop into your uncle's mind and steal a combination to his safe or whatever?"

Dipper stared at the projector, his eyes furrowed.

BIll continued, "So the kid, can, I don't know, steal a deed and destroy your house or something?" He nonchalantly showed a graphic of Gideom's large hand smashing the Mystery Shack completely. "Pretty serious stuff," the show was over, and he turned off the projector that was his eye.

It was silent for a brief moment until Bill caught something lying on the ground. "Hey, what's this?" He picked it up, it was a paddleball. Bill began playing with it. "Paddle, paddle, paddle, paddle, paddle," he mumbled.

Dipper was still reeling from the information he just received from possibly one of the most powerful beings. "You're gonna get Grunkle Stan's code by entering his dreams?"

Bill continued paddling with a casual stance. "Sure, just like I entered your dreams. And thanks for the compliment! I am pretty powerful. Hey, what's that?" He snapped his fingers and before Dipper could have the chance to think and process what just happened, he realized that his feet weren't touching the ground anymore.

Gravity pulled him down as Dipper tried to cling to any leverage, screaming for help. He was falling through the sky, groups of clouds flying past him. Meanwhile, Bill's pose looked relaxed with his triangle head laying on his hand. "I bet you're wondering if there's a way to stop me." Dipper couldn't answer as he was still screaming. "Well, I don't wanna give you any hints, but I bet there's a way for you to follow me into his brain!"

He then pointed at something from afar. "Ah, there's the old man's head now!"

Dipper stopped screaming momentarily to take a look at a ginormous Stan head laying on the vast expanse of pasture. Bill had the two of them float near towards the target, until he stopped. He flew to where he needed to be; facing Dipper, as the same portal from earlier appeared once more.

"See you in your nightmares, kid!"

His eyes closed then opened. "You can't tell but I'm winking. You know, uh, one eye- okay, later, BYEEE!"

Bill went through the glowing gateway like a flushed toilet. Dipper looked down and realized that he was still falling, about to meet his rough demise. He screamed as the ground was coming near, but before the harsh impact, he woke up.

He was breathless when he opened his eyes. His face was sweaty as he scanned his surroundings. The TV was off, Mabel was on the ground fast asleep, but Y/n was already awake, rubbing her eyes frantically. She heaved a huge sigh, not noticing that the boy beside her was looking at her in concern.

Earlier...

A maniacal laugh echoed around the emptiness. She glanced around her to find the culprit, only to find nothing. She flitted her eyes around again until the laughing stopped.

Piano sounds accompanied a ringing voice as it sang a little jingle, "Daiiisy, Daiiisy~ Give me an answer, dooo~!"

Upon the horizon, a yellow triangle floated down with a singular eye closed. Arms stretched out as if he was a god descending from above. He continued singing despite not having a mouth– but Y/n was sure that the reverberating voice was coming from him, "I'm haaalf crazy! All for the looove of you!"

He hovered around until he was in front of her. Y/n was unimpressed. "Nice song," she remarked sarcastically.

"An 1892 classic, sung just for you!" He bounced around in the air. "I'm sure you missed me just as how I missed playing with you! Do you even remember who I am?"

She stepped back a bit at his close proximity. "Something tells me I met you before..." she said slowly.

"Does your brain need refreshing?" The triangle flew near and plucked a copy of her brain, dipping it in a bucket of water that magically appeared. "Name's Bill Cipher, although it's kinda my doing that you couldn't recall our first meeting."

"What?" She was clueless.

His one eye rolled away. "Oh come on, Daisy, surely that big head of yours can restore memories from 30 years ago!" Bill placed his hands on.... the side of his shape. "It's not that long, is it? You even kept the necklace he gave you!"

Instinctively, she reached for her collar where her necklace laid on. Ford? How does he know Ford?

"Oh my, you are so gullible! And stupid. And dumb." He laughed aloud, placing his hands where his stomach was supposed to be.

Y/n narrowed her eyes in irritation. She didn't want anyone to ever belittle her and her skills. "What do you want from me?"

"And why did the headless chicken cross the road?" The literal chicken without its head crossed between them. "Is for you to not know and keep your nose out of it!" He cackled before flicking her nose. "Okay, okay. I'll give you a hint. I'm not that bad."

Bill snapped his fingers and all of a sudden, Y/n was floating with him. "Wha-"

He swiped his hand to the left, and she felt whiplash from the movement of the room around them. Everything thrusted to the side and now they were in a dark, empty abyss. "Gideon Gleeful. Stan Pines. Mind. Code. Shack. Destroyed. Kaboom. Presentation over."

As a visual aid, pictures appeared around him out of nowhere.. Y/n's gaze wandered around possible hints but the answer was right in front of her all this time. She wasn't the moron Bill assumed she was. Clearly, this being was tasked to break inside Stan's mind to forcibly get the code for Gideon. How is he going to do that?

Her thoughts were cut off when a hand landed on her cheek harshly. She was brought back to reality– the reality being she's still with the triangle guy. She glared at him in offense. The slap didn't hurt of course, but the fact that he got to touch her made her annoyed.

"Boy, you kids sure love to overthink a lot. Here's some advice: clear your head. It would make it easy for me to look around for information I need when I enter your mind."

"As if I'll let you do as you please," Y/n challenged, crossing her arms.

"Why not? It would be so much fun! Look at all the fun me and Fordsy had!"

Hearing the name hit her harder than a smack ever could. Her veins felt like they were on fire, but her muscles were trembling. Fordsy? Ford? When she sought to grasp them, reflections of the past emerged. Ford's voice appeared to come in whispers. "Daisy, Daisy. Sleep tight, Daisy."

Bill groaned, annoyance seeping in. "Are we seriously doing this again? Come on, recover your memories faster. We're on a time limit over here!"

She kept quiet. She's had enough replying to his mockery. She kept her mind clear to avoid him reading her thoughts. She figured someone like Bill could do that. She just wanted Bill to get out of her mind as soon as possible so she could find a way to save Stan.

"You done?" Bill checked, leaning to the side.

Y/n promptly nodded, looking him directly in the eye, her arms remained on her sides. "Are you gonna leave now?"

"Because you said so... I have to leave," the triangle said, feigning sadness– if he could even do that. "Don't miss me that much. You still have to focus on fixing that portal!" He floated away from her, a portal hoving into view behind him. "See you in your nightmares!

"He'll see you soon."

She woke up with a sharp inhale, her eyes snapping open. Her breathing shortened for a bit as she rubbed her sleep away. The sun was already up as the light was seeping in. Noises from the TV entered her hearing and after successfully finding the remote within her reach, she turned it off. She just needed peace after that chaotic meeting with Bill.

Heaving a sigh, she rubbed her temples. "Bill Cipher..." That was the name of the triangle that visited her in her dreams.

"So you got that nightmare, too?" A voice to her left whispered slowly. Dipper looked down. "A triangle guy. I've seen him from the journal."

Dipper reached from behind him and retrieved the leathered book. He flipped through the pages and stopped once he saw a huge drawing. Bill Cipher, written in Ford's elegant writing. There were codes and symbols surrounding the triangle being with one eye. But it was seeing this particular page with drops of red that sent her mind into a frenzy. Was it blood? Was it jam? And why is this coming to light now? What was Ford hiding from her, then?

So many questions yet all of them are left unanswered.

The one thing she despised above all was someone keeping something from her, especially from someone she cared about. She simply did not enjoy being kept in the dark. Ignore the fact that she is literally doing to the twins what she despises right now. She pushed the uncertainty and nervousness down and remained blank. "Read it," she said.

"Beware Bill, the most powerful and dangerous creature I've ever encountered. Whatever you do, never let him into your mind."

An involuntary shiver ran across her spine. That was Ford's warning. He couldn't possibly write this in his journal if he hadn't encountered the being. The last statement seemed to haunt her. Never let him into your mind. More questions arise from that, alarms blaring in her mind.

"We have to stop him," she spoke. "Bill is planning to extract the code to the safe directly from Stan's mind."

A pointed gasp interrupted before Y/n could question Dipper's hesitant expression. Mabel was breathless. "Triangle..." she hyperventilated. "Stan's mind..." She puffed. "Code...!"

"Mabel, calm down." Y/n reached over and patted her hair comfortingly. "We'll stop him."

"You had that dream, too?" The girl exclaimed before standing up, startling her pet pig who ran away in fear. "We have to go now!"

"Dudes!" Soos came into the room in perfect timing, but he was panting out of breath. "You gotta help Stan! He's gone cuckoo bananas and his eyes are turning blue!"

The trio exchanged panic glances before discarding everything in the living room and following Soos into Stan's office. Opening the door, the sight of the old man greeted them. He was writhing in his seat like a wild dog. He grunted like he was having the worst nightmare ever.

In a panic, Mabel snatched the book from Dipper. "It is possible to follow the demon into a person's mind and prevent his chaos. One must simply recite this incantation."

Dipper wasn't feeling up to it, sulking. "Ugh, this is just great. I spend all day cleaning sinks and fighting bats for Stan and now I have to save him from some crazy brain demon?"

"But if we don't do anything Gideon might steal the shack! Or worse!" Mabel took the words out of Y/n's mouth.

Stan's screaming resounded and the four's attention switched to him. "Come on, Dipper," Y/n faced him. "Do this with us."

He sighed in defeat. "Fine."

A few minutes later, after hauling Stan over to the living room, the quartet managed to make the living room look like they were about to summon something– with the lights turned off and lit candles surrounding them. They all placed their hand on Stan's head as Dipper began orating the invocation.

"Videntis omnium. Magister mentium. Magnesium ad hominem. Magnum opus. Habeas corpus! Inceptus Nolanus overratus! Magister mentium! Magister mentium! MAGISTER MENTIUM!"

Eyes opened to a place of black and white. Soos and Mabel made exclamations of awe as they slowly looked at their surroundings. Y/n couldn't believe that it worked, while Dipper was wary of the atmosphere.

They stood in front of what seemed to be a macabre version of the Mystery Shack. "Whoa, this is Stan's mind?" Mabel said to no one in particular.

Soos followed suit, "Huh. Figured there would be a lot more hot old ladies."

Y/n frowned. Now they were going to see what Stan really was. She didn't want that day to come just yet.

"Remember, everyone, we've got to look out for the triangle guy," Mabel warned.

"Yeah, look out for the triangle guy!" A voice arrived, and it was Bill in the shape. He held a cane fit for his size as he twirled it around.

"Look! He's a triangle!" Soos pointed out.

Mabel asserted, "You leave our uncle's brain alone, you isosceles monster!"

"Mabel, wait!" Y/n's warning fell on deaf ears as the girl rushed forward to Bill, but he was one step ahead, using his body as a makeshift portal and Mabel jumped inside. Seconds later, she was out.

"Gotcha!" Mabel exclaimed, but her hands were empty. "Wait, what?"

Bill's eye widened slightly in joy. "Ah, Stan's family, we met at last! Question Mark, Shooting Star, Pinetree," he paused, intertwining his hands together. "And who could forget our dear Daisy!"

Dipper jolted when he heard the nickname. He looked to his right to see Y/n staring right at Bill with an irritated expression. He didn't want to think about Bill's implication earlier in his dream at the moment.

Without another second to think, Bill had shot a hole in Y/n's chest– that Mabel's hand could fit through. Dipper screamed. "Are you okay?" He asked her.

"Never better," she smiled as a joke, when she didn't even feel anything. Ignoring the literal gap in her torso, she glared at Bill. "Get out of Stan's mind, Bill! You're never gonna find the code!"

"Hah! As if you can stop me! I am the master of the mind. I even know what you're thinking right now! "

"That's impossible, no one can guess what I'm thinking!" Mabel objected.

With a snap of his fingers, two tall, brightly-colored men stood in between Mabel. They looked like they were from an 80s film, and looking at them just made Dipper's eyes hurt.

"Whoa!" The first guy spoke in a weird accent. "Where are we, bro?"

"We must be in heaven!" The blue-haired guy in a cool jacket shrugged. "'Cuz I just saw an angel..." he crouched down to Mabel, who was wearing a wide smile.

"I'm never letting go of your leg!"

Bill floated boredly. "You're out of your league, kids. Turn around now before you see something you might regret." He tipped his hat in farewell. "Later, suckers!" Bill crashed through the wall inside the Mystery Shack and he was gone.

"Let's go," Y/n spoke, unimpressed that Bill could easily distract them like that. She began walking as Dipper followed suit after complaining to Mabel about the two other men with them.

Eventually, the main door to the Shack opened, revealing sets of doors. It didn't look like the normal Shack; it was disoriented and messy– like Stan. Eyes roamed around floating wooden boards, monochromatic decorations and such.

As Y/n scouted every possible room they might come across, they followed the descending stairs. There were separate territories for Stan's hopes and fears, but they decided to go to his memories instead, hoping to find the memory of Stan inputting the code before Bill could. That way, they could conceal it or keep it safe from him.

Memories of Stans played as they walked by them. Each opened door showed recollection from this summer. Soos marveled at the sight. "Whoa, look! All of Stan's memories!"

"Great. Sure there's plenty of memories of Stan bossing me around, can't wait to see more of that."

Y/n raised an eyebrow at Dipper's bitterness. His resentment towards the old man can wait. What's important was that they get to the code before Bill finds it.

So everyone went searching, opening doors and looking through Stan's history. One had Stan in his entrepreneurial days, his moments in jail, and even his times going on dates.

While walking, Dipper discovered a door with a symbol on it; the iconic pinetree on his trucker hat. Write on the door were the words, "DIPPER MEMORIES" with a boarded up sign that said "keep out".

"Look, guys! Memories about me..." Dipper said, stopping in his tracks.

"That doesn't seem like a good idea," Soos suggested.

"I just wanna know what the old guy really thinks of me," He replied, raising an eyebrow.

Mabel walked by, casually smiling, "We already know how Stan feels about us; he loves us! We're great."

Dipper wasn't satisfied with the answer, crossing his arms in contempt.

Y/n looked away, knowing that Dipper would still go inside that section anyway despite their warnings. "Let's just go. We're running out of time." She just hoped that Dipper would soon understand that Stan's actions are vastly different from his intentions.

Dipper took Y/n's cue as a distraction, quietly thankful. He slipped away from the group as a distraction and went back to the already ajar door and tip-toed inside. A hallway full of closed doors greeted him, accompanied by Stan's orders and mocking laughter. "Dipper, my back itches!" "Unclog the toilet, Dipper!" "Dipper, fix the roof in this sweltering heat right now!"

He stopped in front of a random door, twisting the knob open. He remembered this memory. "-No buts! Now go chop that firewood already!" Stan twisted the newspaper in his hand and smacked Dipper's head with it.

"Ah!" Dipper winced, glaring as he turned around and walked towards the stump meters away from the Shack.

Stan sat down on the couch beside Y/n who was sighing in pity. "Stan, why are you so hard on Dipper all the time? You make fun of him 24/7, and you give him chores. And whenever I volunteer to do them, you don't let me."

Stan whispered something to Y/n that Dipper couldn't hear clearly, making him lean more. "The kid's a loser. He's weak! He's an utter embarrassment!

"I just wanna get rid of him..."

Dipper heard enough, closing the door with a deep frown on his face. He went to look for the exit, bile growing in his stomach. He just wanted to get out of this place.

Meanwhile the remaining five went and opened every door that might lead to Stan's code. Y/n had looked everywhere all the while being wary of what the others might discover the longer they were in here. On top of the vexing hole in her chest, it was becoming increasingly frustrating that they hadn't made any headway in cracking the code. She became agitated when she realized that anyone could open a door with her in it and notice that Stan was younger while Y/n remained the same. Fortunately, no one was able to locate one.

Yet.

Soos opened one door, displaying a memory of Stan in front of the vending machine, pressing buttons. The contraption opened and he stepped inside. Imaginary alarms blared in Y/n's ears as Soos let the memory play. "Soos, wait, let me explain-" Y/n whispered harshly.

"Boring," Soos cut off, closing the door abruptly. And at that, Y/n raised an eyebrow at his uninterest. Did... Did Soos just call possibly one of the most dangerous secrets unfolding right in front of his eyes- boring?!

Y/n stood still, while the rest went forth, following Mabel. Said girl found a trapdoor with the words TOP SECRET above it. "Alright, guys, I have a good feeling about this door," Mabel said before opening it.

Everyone watched as a memory of a shirtless Stan played with his belly button, giving it a voice and feeding it. Y/n almost gagged at the sight.

"Sweet sally!" Exclaimed Mabel.

"Oh, we've been searching forever! What if the triangle guy finds the memory before we do?" Soos expressed his uncertainty.

Y/n narrowed her eyes at the handyman. It wasn't like Soos to worry. In fact, he's been taking this situation very lightly– making dumb jokes, laughing at the memories, and smiling with Mabel. Something weird was going on, but she didn't know what.

Mabel placed a finger on her chin. "If we wanna find Stan's memory, we gotta think like Stan. He's always hiding stuff, right?"

Soos smiled, "Yeah! Like how he hides his arrest warrants under that rug in the gift shop?"

Wait, how did he know that?

Y/n felt a shiver running down her spine at the information. Only she knew that because she's the one hiding them under that rug.

"Soos-?"

Her question died in her throat when Mabel found the same exact-looking rug in one of the hallways. "Guys, look!" She pulled off the carpet and lo and behold, there was a random trapdoor. Mabel opened the door, and there Stan was, walking towards his vault with the deed in his hands. He placed it inside before closing the safe. He inputted the code, but Y/n closed the door just as Stan almost finished his sentence.

"Ok, we found it," she said. "Now let's destroy it."

Mabel smiled without a care in the world. "Good idea, Y/n! That way Bill wouldn't be able to get his hands on it."

Yeah, and even if the memory was disintegrated, Y/n knew the code. And even if Bill somehow got a hold of it and gave it to Gideon, she could easily change the code to the safe before Gideon could break in again.

She just didn't want to let him win.

Mabel saw a nearby ax and was about to hand it to Y/n until Soos stepped in between the two. "Wait! Maybe I should do it. My big fat arms are great at destroying stuff!"

Okay, Soos was bothering her now, but she refused to admit it. What happened to the Soos who had put his trust in her to do the job? Oh, it didn't appear to be the real Soos when he lifted the door with psychic power. A blue aura shone through the door.

"Hey, guys! I just saw a memory of Stan roller skating and wearing short-shorts!"

Their attention turned to the other Soos who was unaware of everything that happened. The first Soos laughed– his voice different now. At least he found it funny.

His two eyes become one and his body morphed back to a yellow floating triangle paired with a bowtie and tophat. He was floating again. "I knew it," Y/n seethed under her breath.

"Sure, you 'knew it'," Bill mocked through quotes. "Pretend you're the smartest in the room,"

She glowered more. She didn't like people belittling her intelligence.

"Face it, you won't beat me! You all are simply too gullible for a powerful guy like me." If he had a mouth, he would be smirking. "Later, suckers!" He breezed away before the human eye could blink.

"Come on, we gotta save Stan!" Mabel exclaimed. Y/n was rearing for a fight and was ready to agree with the braces-wearing gal, until-

"What's the point?" A voice sounded from the end of the hall. Dipper descended from the set of stairs. He scowled. "Why should I save him, huh? I work for Stan day and night, and all he does in return is say he wants to get rid of me," the boy fumed.

The group was quiet, until Mabel spoke. "Dipper, I'm sure that's not true," she reasoned, trying to ease his increasing temper. Leave it to Mabel to handle her brother's mood.

"I saw it with my own eyes in one of his memories, Mabel!" Dipper shouted. "He's always picked on me and now I know why. Stan hates me!" Then, his gaze flitted to the person standing behind. His glare only deepened. "Isn't that right, Y/n?"

Soos and the rest gasped at Dipper's accusation.

"What?" Y/n croaked a response. She wondered how she got reeled into the conversation between the twins.

"You were there," he began. "You asked Stan why he picks on me all the time, and you heard his answer."

She couldn't say anything.

"I'm weak, an utter embarrassment and Stan just wants to get rid of me. Does that ring a bell?" Dipper emphasized his phrases, and each time she felt guilt running across her veins. Upon seeing her face shift into one of shame, he grew even more angry.

Mabel stepped in, not wanting to waste any more time. "Dipper, it doesn't matter what you saw. If we don't stop Bill, we'll lose the Shack!"

"No!" He whirled to her. "You know what? Not this time. For once this is one of Stan's problems I'm not gonna fix." He folded his arms and stepped back.

Mabel narrowed her eyes. "Fine. Come on, Y/n, we'll save Stan ourselves."

When she heard her name, Y/n was startled and hesitantly stepped forward. The rest of the group followed Mabel, eventually leaving the two in the hall. Dipper was glaring so hard at the ground, he could practically ignite a fire with his gaze.

Y/n bit her lip in anticipation. "Dipper, I'm not sure what memory you saw in there, but you know Stan will always have an underlying meaning with his words." She had a feeling that what he saw wasn't all there is to it. There must be some way to convince him otherwise, but she didn't have time. "I hope you change your mind in saving him."

She waited, hoping for a shift in his resolve. He didn't move.

She left.

The group ran after the yellow triangle, following the path of destruction he left behind. There was one hall where all the doors of memories were opened so they ventured through. Mabel brought out a nyarf gun that she was hiding in her sweater's pocket the whole time.

Y/n heard a distorted voice in the next hall and urged the others to stay quiet. They followed her steps to the monochromatic corridor to see Bill talking to Gideon. He was on his way to disclose the code to him just as Mabel aimed for the trapdoor before firing. The plastic bullet directly hit the door, smacking it out of Bill's hand and tumbling towards one of Stan's memories of the Bottomless Pit.

Bill chased after the falling door with a scream. "Ah! No, no, no! Wait, no!"

The Stan in the memory watched as the door entered the pit and was plunged into the darkness. "Whoo! Whatever that was, it's gone forever!"

The door closes, leaving Bill petrified. Y/n stood proud of Mabel while the others cheered her on.

"She did it!" The two brightly colored men bellowed and gave each other a high five.

Soos raised his fist. "The Shack is safe!"

"The deal's off!" Gideon hissed.

Bill stuttered, "Wa-wait, no! Wait-!"

"I'm switchin' to plan B!"

The call ended before Bill could reply, and theatrically, his yellow body cracked into pieces and fell to the ground as if he wasn't of use anymore. His triangle form came back, but this time, it was bright red– like a warning sign and the edges of his shape illuminated like lightning.

He turned around and glared fiercely. "You! You can't even imagine what you just cost me! Do you have any idea what I'm like when.. I'm... mad?!" He roared the last part in a low, demonic voice.

Immediately, Y/n pushed Mabel back and shielded them. Bill wasn't playing anymore.

Several foreign characters passed by Bill's singular eye. The letters reflected on them, and Y/n could recognize some of them but she didn't entirely know what it meant.

All of a sudden, they were surrounded by tall fire. Encircling around them as if creating a cage, a trap. With no escape. Bill raised his hands and the fire only grew bigger until it was a wall of hot, scorching fire.

They were lifted off into the boundless panorama of inky blue, pink, and dark purple, littered with stars.

On the other end of the arena, Bill made himself bigger, towering over them like a skyscraper. Instinctively, the group huddled closer. They had nowhere to go. Behind them was the edge of the platform and one misstep might cause their demise. Meanwhile, in front of them was a raging demon who didn't get what he wanted. Y/n wanted to think that this is just a giant baby who's having a tantrum...

...who has the power to eradicate their existence with a snap of his fingers.

"EAT NIGHTMARES" Bill declared, his hands producing electricity, flowing towards them.

"AHHHHH!"

Meanwhile, the boy in a pinetree hat was desperately looking for a way out of here. He was helpless as he opened almost every door that might be the exit, but to no avail. "Ugh, how do I get out of this place?" He spoke to no one else in particular. "Exit? Hello?"

He opened a completely random door, but it turned out it was the same memory of him chopping wood. "Aw, this again?" he grumbled, his anger coming back in less than a second, but he was just exhausted.

However, he didn't close the door. Not yet. It was pathetic of him to listen to it again. Maybe it's just he was hoping it wasn't the same set of words he heard earlier. Maybe he just heard it wrong. Maybe Stan didn't really say those things.

"He's a loser. He's weak. I just want to get rid of him."

Yeah, why did he even bother expecting a different scenario?

Dipper started closing the door, but memory Stan continued. "Hah, yeah. Those are all things people said about me when I was a boy."

"Huh?" He opened the door again to get a closer hearing.

"It was terrible. I was the biggest wimp on the playground!"

A door opened behind Dipper. A memory. A younger Stan– a kid, stood under the rain and received a soccer ball to the face, displacing his square-framed glasses. He sobbed before running away, boisterous laughter followed him.

"So one summer, my pop signs me up for boxing lessons. It was even worse than the school yard!"

A door opened, playing the exact memory. Young Stan was pinned to the ground by a kid twice his size. "Left hook!" He punched his opponent. Someone watching from the shadows– his dad, nodded approvingly.

"Y'know, at the time, I thought my pop was trying to torture me!" Stan's voice continued.

Another door. It was of teenage Stan lining up at the local theater. Grandpa The Kid was showing, and he was outside, waiting in a line.

"But wouldn't you know it? The old man was doin' me a favor all along!"

A suspicious-looking man came up behind a woman while Stan was up front. "Give me that bag!"

"Help! My purse! Help!" The woman screamed.

"LEFT HOOK!" Teenage Stan bravely turned around and punched the guy in the face, knocking him out.

The people around him began cheering for him. The lady gave him a kiss on the cheek.

"So that's why I'm hard on Dipper," Stan told Y/n in the memory. "To toughen him up. So when the world fights he fights back. Look, it's working."

They watched as Dipper successfully chopped the wood in half. "I... I did it!" Memory Dipper was ecstatic. "Haha, yes!"

Memory Y/n couldn't help but smile.

"He's really comin' along!" Stan said with a smile. "When push comes to shove, I'm actually proud of him... just- don't ever tell him that. His head's big enough as it is."

She smirked at that, shaking her head.

Dipper from outside the door, grinned and placed a hand on the memory. But the memory hadn't installed some kind of invisible wall. Dipper accidentally fell into the memory, facing Stan and Y/n.

The two glanced at the other Dipper still very much chopping wood before reverting back to the Dipper who had just evaded their conversation. "Whoa, kid, what are you doin' here? Want a soda?" Stan flamboyantly flipped a hand and the can appeared in his hold.

"Wha- what the- how did you do that?" Dipper stuttered in wonder.

Y/n leaned on Stan's side, facing Dipper. "Word to the wise, Dip. We're in the mind! You could do whatever you can imagine here!" She demonstrated, generating two cans before outstretching her hand towards him, but he didn't take it. "What's wrong?" She tilted her head.

"I... I'm sorry,"

She hummed in intrigue.

"You were right," Dipper said. "Stan does have an underlying meaning with his words. He doesn't hate me. I didn't mean to be mad at you."

A short laugh resounded. Y/n smiled widely, "Dude, I have no idea what you're talking about. I'm a memory. Although, judging from your apology, it seemed that you didn't see the entire picture until now. So if it was up to me, I forgive you."

Dipper smiled gently.

"But you should probably be saying that to the real me. I'm sure she's still thinking of how to make it up to you. Just explain and I'm sure she'd forgive you too."

He eventually took the Pitt Cola in her hand and opened it. But before he could take a sip, he heard sounds; Bill's maniacal laughter, Mabel's screams, Soos' shouts, and Y/n's yells.

"Oh my gosh, what am I doing? I gotta stop Bill!" Dipper blurted out, leaving the can of soda behind.

Stan watched his great nephew go. "Huh. Fighting back."

Meanwhile, the gang was still being tormented by the giant, red Bill Cipher. "One nightmare, coming up!"

"Nightmare?" Soos asked anticipatingly. "Hope he doesn't mean that British dog man I'm always dreaming about."

A bright red laser zapped a spot beside Soos and indeed, a British dog man appeared in front of him. Mabel was hit by the red beam too, and her nightmare came true. Her skin changed into a sickly green hue and her braces were unbelievably bigger. Her voice changed low and slow. "What did you do to my cuteness!"

Bill didn't spare Xyler and Craz as well, getting knocked out by Bill's ray of light. They burned and vanished into space. "My dream boys!" Mabel cried out

"Don't think I forgot about you, Daisy!" Bill rubbed his hands together as he prepared a bigger laser. He pointed his black finger at her as she prepared for his attack. What are her nightmares consisted of? Sure, she is plagued with a constant state of anxiety but fear is a trivial thing to her. She began listing off things she's afraid of, and things she wasn't. Monsters don't scare her, poison is the least of her worries, bugs and creepy crawlers fascinate her...

"Hey, Bill!"

Dipper swooped into the scene like a superhero, flying around with a bright blue glow surrounding him.

Bill stopped in his movements, his eye widening at the sight of Pinetree. "WHAT?!" He was stunned. Who told Dipper that everything is possible in the mind?

"Nice bow tie!" The boy made a hole in Bill with lasers from his eyes, causing him to scream in a panic.

"Dipper!" Mabel exclaimed in joy.

Dipper grinned back. "Guys! I just learned that you can conjure whatever you can conceive in Grunkle Stan's mindscape!"

Well how about that. Y/n looked excited, while Soos and Mabel remained confused. "Huh?"

"You can do whatever you can imagine!" She looked down at the gaping hole in her chest and when she lifted a finger, she was whole again.

"Woah!" The two gasped. Soos stretched a palm and the British dog man disappeared. "Ha, ha. He's dead now."

"What?!" Bill shouted, "Who told you that?! Don't listen to him!"

"We can do anything?" Mabel asked, a sense of exhilaration coursing through her. She made herself go back to normal. "Like have kittens for fists?" Immediately, her small knuckles turned into precious pink furballs. She began shooting them towards Bill, kitten heads firing from her sleeves.

Bill screamed, either from fear or annoyance- no one could tell- as the kitties bunched up and covered the large triangle area.

"Anything, huh? Soos loves stomach beam stare!!!" Those were all words.

Colorful question marks blasted from Soos' tummy and aimed directly at Bill's face. The being tumbled away.

Y/n bounced into the air freely, before doing a twirl and summoning a large sledgehammer and gracefully slamming it down his eye.

"AHH! Oh, my eye! AH!" Bill writhed in pain, kneeling down.

Mabel lifted her arms. "Rise, Xyler! Rise, Craz!" The two radiant boys emerged behind her back with musical instruments. Xyler played a key-tar while Craz handled the electric drum kit.

"No! Synthesized music! It hurts!"

This powerful being had some weird weaknesses.

"And now to imagine your worst nightmare," Dipper pointed at the triangle. "A portal out of Stan's mind!"

Mabel sang, "Out of Stan's mi-ind~!"

The gang closed their eyes tightly as a portal materialized under Bill's feet, planning to swallow him down. "No, no, no!" Bill wailed before he made everything white. Everyone was floating in nothingness. He became yellow again as he dusted his top hat. "You know, I'm impressed with you guy. You're a lot more clever than you look. Especially the fat one."

Soos leaned down and elbowed Mabel slightly, dropping his voice into a whisper. "He's talking about you!"

Bill spoke again, placing his hands on his side. "So I'm gonna let you kids off the hook. You might come in handy later. BUT KNOW THIS: A darkness approaches. A day will come in the future when everything you care about will change!" A six-fingered hand appeared on top of Bill- like a symbol. A sign. A forewarning.

"Until then I'll be watching you!" He tipped his hat in farewell. "I'll be watching you...!"

A wheel with eleven distinct symbols hovered around Bill, illuminating a bright blue. Y/n wasn't sure if she's seen this exact image before. And if she did, she must've forgotten. Before she knew it, Bill disappeared, his voice echoing. He'll be watching.

Eventually, their bodies began flickering rapidly. "Stan must be waking up."

"Will I ever see you guys again?" Mabel asked the two boys.

"In your dreams."

The group woke up on the living room floor, shouting in surprise. "We did it!" Mabel cheered after a moment of silence.

"What? Did what?" Stan voiced out, scratching his head. "What are you all doing here? And why was I dreaming of two brightly colored and radical young men?"

"Grunkle Stan, you 're okay!" Dipper expressed glee as he went to hug Stan. The older man was frozen in his seat, exchanging glances with Y/n who feigned the same expression.

"What is this, a hug?"

"Nope!" Dipper remained cheerful. "It's a choke hold." He went behind Stan and proceeded to wrap his arms around his neck tightly, making him squirm in his seat. Mabel, Soos, and Y/n laughed at that.

Dipper eventually let go as Stan chuckled. "Not bad, kid. Not bad." They shared a content look.

"I'm just glad Gideon didn't get into the safe. I really love this old shack."

"GROUP HUG!" Soos declared out of nowhere. No one batted an eye. He paused. "No?" He frowned. "I never know the right time!"

"I'll hug you, Soos," Y/n said, enclosing her arms around Soos' stomach. He gladly returned the embrace.

Dipper pouted. "Hey, I want a h-" The Shack began to shake, cutting Dipper off. "Hey, do you guys feel...?"

An explosion blew up and burst through the living room. It came from the office, launching everyone off. The quintet watched Gideon walk out of the destroyed wall. The vault was torn open, the furniture were wrecked, and the deed was in his hand.

"Oh, I'm sorry, Pines family. Did I wake you?" He asked in feign pity.

"But... we defeated Bill...!" Dipper was confused.

Gideon retaliated, "Bill failed me! So I switched to plan B: dynamite!"

"What? Bill? Who?" Stan was left puzzled. "What are you guys talking about?"

"Spoiler alert, Stanford! I've got the deed! The Mystery Shack belongs to me! So get off my property!" Gideon then brought out a handheld transceiver, striding back. "Daddy? Bring it around the front."

"Don't worry, guys! It's just part of the dream!" Dipper tried to assure, but he wasn't even certain himself. "We're gonna wake up any second now! Right?"

Right?

***

CONTINUES IN CHAPTER 18!

kimmiepines originally published: may 22, 2023 words: 11,003 words

LW ZDV QLFH VHHLQJ BRX DJDLQ

[the-cinnamontography-is-amazing]

To expand on Wheelers and Dealers...

We all know that BJ has been conditioned to think that the 'white picket fence' was the norm. Spoiler alert, it wasn't even back then. Of course, what I love about that episode is Margaret's speech, indirectly telling him women have always worked and will continue to work. (Ignoring the continuity, at that point Peg already had her Real Estate license but maybe she hadn't gotten a job in that field yet, which BJ supported.)

However, I think what gets me more about that episode is not his issue with Peg working, but how economically out of touch he is. Which Margaret also calls him out on. Again, not his fault necessarily, the promise American exceptionalism in the post-ww2 boom, etc, etc. Sure, the cost of living was a lot more manageable back then, but two houses??? Nah... Even if he was home and not on an army salary. If Beej had been a private practice surgeon for 20+ years, one income maybe could pay for two houses, but dude is fresh out of residency with a kid. Yes, I'm sure he doesn't have loans as his father was a doctor, and/or he mentioned that 'Peg put him through medical school', (I'm not an expert on the medical system of the '50 and the cost of it) but it's not like they are Charles level rich.

I really think at that point in their lives, the Hunnicutt's were a bit in over their heads. Or at the very least BJ is...I think Peg knows what it takes to have the lifestyle they both want.

I mean look at Frank. He lives in Indiana, considerably lower cost of living than California, invests, and doesn't even have two houses. I know he is a cheapskate, but having that amount of wealth to afford kids, two houses, is a rarity back then and now.

Anyway, I don't hate Beej because of it, I do love a character who is wrong and plays the martyr, but he learns from it.

After Margaret yelled at BJ in Wheelers and Dealers about how it was insane to get mad over a woman working, Charles should have come in and broke BJ's idealized 1950's American Dream even further, noting as an upper middle class man himself, it is still impossible to have two mortgages on one income.

[bluelitmoons]

Initiative 2.1

still working everyday so still taking a writing break over lunch when i can.

since i hadnt planned on a part 2 initially its gone in a cozier direction (with no jack)

~~~

“Rose, you still listening?”

“Yeah, yeah, I am.” Rose tried to sit up a little higher, blinking open her eyes rapidly as she tried to look more alert.

“You haven’t reacted at the last three jokes,” the Doctor pointed out.

“Guess I am a bit lost in my thoughts,” she admitted, with a guilty glance up to his indulgent blue eyes.

He inclined his head towards her, lowering the book. “Penny for ‘em?”

Rose gave him a tongue touched smile out of habit. “Think they’re worth a bit more than that.”

The Doctor chuckled. “You know what a cheapskate I am.”

~~~

unposted word count: 2,495

[lizardkingeliot]

Your incursion into the throne room put that cheapskate on red alert.

[egretta-random-writes]

In the Quiet of 3:30 am - Fridge Raid

Note: This setting is an AU that everyone lives, Giorno is now Don and pays everyone well for their services (unlike some *cheapskate* pink-haired ex-mafia boss). I saw this headcanon of La Squadra as housemates and I fell in love with it. The headcanon of Risotto stealing everyone else’s food is absolutely funny to me. Nephila is my OC. 

I’m such a sucker for fluff.

-----

Out of the corner of her eye, Nephila saw something invisible was moving things around the kitchen when she got downstairs.  Suddenly alert and thinking it was some intruder, she tensed, ready to unleash her stand, Red Fraction. Then realizing quickly who it likely was, she relaxed and wandered in to start making her tea. 

“Capo, that bresaola is better with some bread, it cuts down some of the salt.”

The giant figure of La Squadra’s capo shimmered into existence as Metallica’s invisibility was turned off. Risotto quietly shut the fridge door and turned to his new recruit. Nephila gave him a small smile in greeting, “Good morning.” 

“How do you know that?” he asked. The red eyes of her capo seemed to stare straight into her soul, setting her instincts to flee on high alert. She huffed, forcing herself to relax as she focused on filling the kettle instead. 

“I was lucky enough that Proscuitto shared part of a slice with me one day. Though to be honest, I find it too salty just by itself. Don’t know how he stands it.” Nephila replied, setting the kettle on the stove. She then sat down on one of the nearby stools to wait “So you’re the one taking his bresaola, he was complaining that it was getting smaller so quickly.” she looked at Risotto with a wry grin. The thought of her capo raiding the fridge and stealing food at night like a raccoon was just absolutely hilarious. 

He raised a brow, quietly challenging her, “What are you going to do about it.”

She laughed quietly and shook her head. 

“You’re secret is safe with me. I have some bread, cheese and honey if you’d like.” she offered.

Risotto took the bread and cheese then started cutting into the bresaola.

“It’s 3:30. What are you doing up so early?” He asked, curious as to what she was doing all dressed and ready to leave before the sun was even out.

“It’s my day off so I’m going to the research station. I’ll be back by late afternoon and have my phone and mirror in case you need to reach me though.”

“This early?”

“Yes. Ringing operations start at dawn so I will need to get there earlier to help set up.” Nephila explained with a relaxed smile as the conversation turned to a topic that she was more comfortable in. Risotto hummed casually in acknowledgment as he chewed on his midnight snack. That explained why she went to sleep so early, even declining to having dinner with Ghiaccio and Illuso after their mission together. 

“What is ringing?” He remembered that her previous profession was a scientist of some sort, though she never went into specific detail. 

Nephila quickly took the kettle off the stove before it started to whistle, “Bird ringing is mainly catching birds and putting a ring around their legs.” she explained as she poured the hot water into her cup, “Each ring has their series of numbers and or letters to keep track of that specific bird, which helps to identify them when someone finds or recaptures them.”

The strong smell of mint wafted into the air as she joined her capo at the table. Risotto glanced at her, “What information do you gather from them? Is that what you did previously?” 

His recruit stared thoughtfully into her cup, “Well, a lot actually. When birds are captured, we determine species, age, and sex. Measurements are taken so we can find out species sizes. If birds are recaptured, the numbers and letters on their ring are recorded. From a database, we can find out where they were previously captured, at what age, who ringed them; essentially allowing us to track the travels of that individual bird.” 

She smiled wistfully, “That was one of things I did in my profession, before everything happened. So now, I volunteer my time and skills instead. I’d like to continue doing this at least, until I couldn’t or not allowed to anymore.”  If there was one thing he noticed about his recruit, it was that she smiled a lot. Not the fake kind of smile, but just a reaction that seemed to came naturally to her. Happy smiles, sad smiles, content smiles, and nervous smiles; he’s seen them all. 

“As long as it does not compromise the team, I don’t care what you do.” He replied. 

Nephila looked up at him. There it was, that easy bright smile again. “Thanks. They are open to the public if you’d ever like to visit. If you have time and are curious, I’d be happy to take you. It’s usually rather quiet and peaceful, not many people around.” 

Her capo nodded. “I’ll think about it.” 

“Offer’s available any time.” 

“Hm.”

They settled into a comfortable silence afterwards, each assassin paying attention to the food and beverage in front of them instead. 

A small sandwich on a plate was suddenly pushed in front of her. Nephila looked up from her tea to her capo in question. 

“You skipped dinner last night, bring it with you.” 

“You won’t tell Proscuitto?” she grinned.

Risotto smirked back, “Your secret is my secret.”

[metalbatandzenko]

Help, People Think My Bodyguard Is Hot!AU

So I posted earlier about the fact that my dumbass gremlin brain managed to mix a Bodyguard AU, Fake Dating AU, Unrequited Love, Childhood Friends, and Mutual Pining into one AU...this is that AU. It’s Mumensai and Flashysonic endgame.

Main Plot:

So Flashy Flash is an idol and Mumen’s his personal assistant. The two have been working together for a few years, and Flash has come to trust Mumen’s judgement, even though he thinks Mumen can be a bit high-strung/get’s anxious easily. 

The night before a major event, Flash’s security detail fell through.

Mumen panics, and asks his best friend Saitama, who works as a security contractor/bodyguard at a company he and Genos own.

Previously, Mumen hadn’t asked him to because Mumen was worried it would come off as biased, and Saitama thought that was fair. Plus he wasn’t exactly sold on the idea of working for Flashy Flash in the first place, so no hard feelings.

This time around was an emergency though, so Saitama agrees to fill in, and brings a few of his coworkers (it is supposed to be a detail after all. He’s pretty sure that means more than one guy. He’s not sure to be honest, Genos handles the logistics most of the time.)

There ends up being a scuffle at Flash’s show and long story short Saitama takes down like 6 guys.

Flash is suitably impressed and offers him a position as his personal bodyguard Saitama being the cheapskate he is, and hearing the paycheck associated with it accepts on the spot.

Everything’s going smoothly for a few days, but then someone on twitter tweets a picture of Saitama helping Flash out of his limo with the caption “Wait is it just me or is Flashy Flash’s bodyguard hot? 😳”

Saitama becomes an overnight sensation (remember Kylie Jenner’s bodyguard? Yeah that) and people start following him on socials, except—you know—he’s Saitama so his ig account isn’t curated pictures but is just stupid pics of things in his house and him goofing off with Genos (who is also his roommate) and King.

He gets even more popular when someone posts a video of Saitama taking down the guys at Flashy’s show.

Flash is pretty amused by this, and thinks Saitama’s floundering in the new spotlight is really funny. 

He gives Saitama a few tips and tricks on how to keep a clean feed for ig (which Saitama only follows sometimes), and has Mumen create a twitter account for him under the username baldandbeautiful and get it verified. 

Saitama does not think this is funny, and begins tweeting absolute nonsense to try to spite Flash. This does not work. He keeps gaining followers. What the fuck. His tweet that was just “do you think birds know we love them” got 81k retweets. What is twitter.

So Flash, Saitama and Mumen continue on like this for a few months, and things are going swimmingly.

Then it comes out that Amai Mask (Flashy’s ex who he had a really messy public breakup with) began dating his personal bodyguard (Sonic).

Now Amai seeing someone new would be fine by itself, but it turns out Sonic is Flash’s childhood friend, and ex. 

So Flash vents to Saitama about how his exes are dating just to spite him and how he needs to figure out his next public appearance because all eyes are going to be on him.

Spoiler alert: he ends up going and partying at a club and getting wasted. This isn’t especially out of the ordinary for him, but what is out of the ordinary is him climbing on Sai’s lap in the middle of the lounge, and leaning in to kiss him. (The paparazzi lose their minds)

Saitama pulls back and asks him what he’s doing and Flash (who it turns out is actually completely sober) explains the publicity behind him dating his famous hot bodyguard would be great for both of them and he’ll double how much he’s paying him.

Saitama hesitates for a moment because he’s been in love with Mumen since they were in high school, but he relents, because honestly, money is tight, and Mumen doesn’t like him back so there’s no reason to hold out. And Flash is attractive, so there are worse people to pretend to date.

Flash and Saitama’s “steamy makeout sesh” is all over the rag magazines the next day and they’re getting tons of good publicity from it. 

Mumen starts acting a bit weird around Saitama which he gets—Mumen’s always been a romantic so him pretending to date someone wouldn’t sit well with the guy.

The two continue to fake date for a while. Flash ends up genuinely falling for Saitama, but also confesses to him while drunk one night that he’s still in love with Sonic. 

Saitama in turn confides in him that he’s been in love with someone for years, but is scared of ruining what they have by telling them.

He doesn’t tell Flash who it is, but Flash puts two and two together and just has to watch Mumen and Saitama pine for each other like idiots. He eventually ends up “firing” him as a boyfriend but keeping him on as his security guard.

But anyways it ends up with Flashysonic, Mumensai and Amai x Tons of money from the breakup album he puts out ajrbvttv

Other characters:

Sonic is a private contractor. His backstory is actually fairly similar to canon in terms of having taken jobs as a hitman, bodyguard and/or thief. He and Flash grew up together, and “dated” up until fairly recently. When Flash got discovered, it drove a wedge between the two of them and they split on bad terms. He ended up hired as extra security for an event Amai was holding. Despite being told he could enjoy himself as he was mostly there for show bc Amai could handle himself, he ended up taking down a guy who tried to attack Amai Mask, and made quick work of him. When Amai mentioned he could handle himself, Sonic told him to shut up, because he’d hired him for a job, and damn if he wasn’t going to do it. Amai, surprisingly, found this hilarious it helps he that found Sonic attractive and ends up offering him a job. He still sees Saitama as his rival because Saitama once caught him trying to steal from his client and knocked him out. He ended up wiggling out of a felony charge because his client at the time was incredibly wealthy and got him a good lawyer.

Amai Mask is still a famous actor, singer and model. He and Flash dated briefly (originally for publicity but they both got attached). It ended because he realized Flash was still in love Sonic.

Genos is Saitama’s roommate and coworker. He handles more of the business/logistical end of their security work, but he’s no pushover, and occasionally contracts out himself. Saitama usually benches him though because he has a tendency to get in fights.

King is one of the bodyguards but he’s mostly there to add numbers to the security details bc he can’t fight for shit, he just looks big and scary enough that people back down. He actually does better with the tech elements, and he and Genos work on that together.

Fubuki is Flash’s current agent. She’s constantly trying to help him raise his status, and by extension her own. She poaches a few of Saitama’s employees/coworkers to come work for her, or sign a contract for her. (What? You’ve managed to surround yourself with very attractive bodyguards. They could make it as models, Saitama.)

Tatsumaki is Amai Mask’s agent, and Fubuki’s older sister. She discovered Amai Mask, and turned him into a worldwide phenomenon. 

Badd and Garou probably won’t make a major appearance in this AU but if they do, it’ll be as Saitama and Genos’ coworkers that Fubuki successfully convinces to go into modelling...but not under her.

[olivcrstone]

STARTER FOR: @reinathane​ LOCATION: PTA Information and Donation Booth. SETTING AND TIME: Summer Festival, Afternoon.

Despite being surrounded by upbeat festivities and bright, neon lights, Oliver can’t shake the sensation of worry running through his body. There’s a sense of fear being paired with his nervousness too, the man obviously on edge. Ever since Eli’s accident while out on the run for the club, he can’t help but be on high alert. There were fellow club members here whom he was fully aware would protect him and his family if anything were to go downhill but the nervousness was there regardless. 

“Two bucks? Cheapskate,” Oliver mumbles under his breath before putting on the brightest, sweetest smile, “Thank you so much! Have fun, guys!” The social worker says to the passing patrons, his tone morphing into something more chipper and oozing joy. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist that Oliver has an underlying distaste for most fellow PTA parents, aside from Reina, Andy, Rowan, and a few others. You couldn’t exactly blame him. Most of them talk shit about anyone affiliated with the club, citing their dangerous lifestyle and corrupt nature. 

Oliver fans himself with a paper as he sits back down, surveying his surroundings anxiously once more before settling into his spot. Blue eyes look to Reina, “I heard about Jason. I’m sorry..” His lips purse for a moment before he continues, “We don’t have to talk about it, I just thought I’d rip the bandage off.” Like clockwork, the most notorious PTA parent, Janet, starts approaching them. Oliver groans, “Janet. On your right. You want me to handle her?”