#mystery? I guess??

[the-simple-diamond-gall]

—I had a weird dream last night —

It was about me watching YouTube (Markiplier to be exact) and he made this video called “Eating my Christmas tree”

The video started with a POV shot of Mark showing off the tree. There is no commentary, just the camera moving around to show the audience from a few different angles. It was a real wood tree with absolutely NO decorations, NO lights, no nothin’

The room that the tree was in was not decorated for the holidays either… in fact it had no furniture, or windows. There was only an unlit fireplace in the background.

So The video was only showing the small tree in this empty room.

anyway, Markiplier put the camera down and walked into view to stand beside this “Christmas tree”. The tree is about a foot taller than him. There is still no commentary.

—-

At this point in the dream, I’m thinking to myself that this is going to be one of those experimental videos, like his “meow” video, or that time he just admired a banana for ten minutes.

But, no.

—-

Mark just plucks one of the smaller branches off the tree and… well…

It started with a nibble…

Than a tiny nom

Than a bigger nom-nom

And a full on Chomp

The crunch-crunch sounds are quite noisy

It is obvious that he likes the taste of the tree, so he eats more… and more

He rips off one of the lower branches and eats it like corn-on-the-cob. Except it was not corn, and he ate the entire cob.

He shoves the smaller twigs in his mouth, devouring them like Chips and liking the small evergreen needles off his fingers like Cheeto dust

He continues to ravenously consume the tree piece by piece

This continues until the tree is almost bald, with only a couple of green branches left.

And only then, does the tree respond…

The tree is pleased

So while Mark is down on one knee with his head tilted sideways biting the trunk of the tree, trying to chew his way through it, the tree begins to grow a long vine out of its peak. At the end of this vine grows a large fruit that looked like a bushel of grapes that has all fused together into a single lumpy mass.

Mark looks upon the trees gift with reverence in his eyes.

—-

At this point in the dream I’m thinking to myself “since when do evergreen trees have fruit? Or vines? That’s not a pine cone. How unrealistic”

—-

As I watch him open his mouth to eat the fruit, I half expect his jaw to unhinge and swallow it whole. But that doesn’t happen, although he certainly tries to do just that. He only manages to take one large bite, splitting open the flesh of the lumpy fruit causing its purple juice to drip down his chin. He grabs the vine to pull the fruit closer and goes in for another bite and…

The video ends.

—-

Well that was weird…

Anyway, nothing else really happened in that dream, and I woke up not long after.

As someone who doesn’t have dreams very often, or just immediately forgets them within 5 minutes of waking up, I think it’s weird-as-all-heck that I still remember this one well into the afternoon.

Maybe science side of tumblr could explain. lol idk

[pangloss-artee]

pacifica got the "cut hair to show character development" treatment bc i think she deserves it

[tawnysoup]

the fritter (frin critter)

[attleboy]

still in a bit of an art slump take a shitpost for all the people who wanted more buttonblossom with the teeth thing (you'll get something more serious soon i swear...)

based off this

[screwpinecaprice]

Actually cute. Had to do a quick redraw.

Screenshot is from when Jay lit up the Jack-o'-lantern in the living room.

[cowllies]

Farewell

[casualmonsterenjoyer]

So, I have no idea if anyone has already figured this out but I have just spent an unreasonable amount of time translating this part of the Soul Contract...just because

and like...

You are now twenty-one grams lighter

THIS CONTRACT IS LEGAL AND BINDING. WE RESERVE THE RIGHT TO USE YOUR LIKENESS, FACE, VOICE AND SMELL TOWN PLUCK IN WHATEVER NEFARIOUS MANNER IS DEEMED NECESSARY.

SANS SOUL, YOUR SOULMATE WILL NOT RECOGNIZE YOU AND WILL WALK RIGHT PAST YOU ON A COLD AUTUMN DAY. NEVER MAKING EYE CONTACT. NOT EVEN PROCESSING THAT YOU HAVE EYES AT ALL. NO AMOUNT OF INTERACTION WILL MOVE THEM TO A PLACE WHERE THEY CAN REMEMBER, IN FEELING, THE THOUSANDS OF LIFETIMES YOU HAVE ALREADY SPENT TOGETHER. EACH TIME CHOOSING THOUSANDS FORM WOULD KEEP YOU CLOSEST LIKE OTTERS HOLDING HANDS IN A TUMULTUOUS RIVER. YOU WERE BIRDS. YOU WERE TREES WITH ROOTS ENTANGLED, DRINKING IN THE SUNLIGHT TOGETHER.

WHEREVER WE GO NEXT, WHATEVER YOU CHOOSE, I WILL ALWAYS BE RIGHT THERE WITH YOU…THATS DONE, BUDDY. CONGRATULATIONS! YOU HAVE CHOSEN BILL INSTEAD!

MCDONALDS RESERVES THE RIGHT TO PUT A GIANT YELLOW M ON YOUR TORSO AND FOREHEAD AND SEND YOU WALKING THROUGH A CROWDED TIMES SQUARE WHILE YOU SCREAM "THE FRIES! THE FRIES! THEY DON´T DEGRADE IN NATURE!!! IT´S AN IMMORTAL FOOD!!! THEY WILL BE IN THE LANDFILLS LONG PAST OUR DEATHS!" GOOD GOD! THE THINGS S I´VE SEEN!

ME? WHO AM I? OH I´M BILL´S PREVIOUS LAWYER! HE PUT MY SOUL INTO A QUILL PEN SO I CAN WRITE HIM LEGAL DOCUMENTS UNTIL THE SUN SNUFFS OUT LIKE A CANDLE IN THIS SICK UNIVERSE! I USED TO BE SO HOT! I WAS SO FINE! NOW I´M FINE PRINT!

SPEAKING OF WHICH, BILL RESERVES THE RIGHT TO PUT YOUR SOUL INTO AN INANIMATE OBJECT, A STRANGE CREATURE, A CONCEPT, A SENTENCE, A TASTEFUL BUT RUSTIC MASON JAR WITH WILDFLOWERS IN IT.

IF AT ANY POINT YOU WANT TO HAVE VISITATION RIGHTS WITH YOUR SOUL, YOU WILL BE SWIFTLY DENIED. UNLESS YOU HAD A COOL DAY PLANNED FOR THE BOTH OF YOU, THEN BILL MIGHT WANT TO COME ALONG.

BY SIGNING THIS DOCUMENT YOU FORFEIT ANY RIGHT TO EATING SOUL FOOD. IT WILL TURN TO ASH IN YOUR MOUTH, A FITTING PUNISHMENT FOR A FOOL WHO SQUANDERED THE ONLY TRUE GIFT LIFE OWES YOU.

BILL RESERVES THE RIGHT TO DRESS YOUR SOUL HOWEVER HE DEEMS NECESSARY, ESPECIALLY IF YOUR SOUL WAS A NERD BEFORE ACQUISTION. SOULMAKOVERRR!

YOUR SOUL MAY BECOME FRACTURED AND PLACED INTO DIFFERENT OBJECTS. THIS HAS NO PURPOSE AND WILL NOT RESURRECT YOU IF YOU DIE.

SIGNEE HAS FORFEITED ALL RIGHTS TO ANY AFTERLIFE. INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO: HEAVEN, HELL, PURGATORY, BIG CORNER, FLOW STATE, THE DREAM HOUSE, THE REINCARNATION PROCESSING CENTER, AXOLOTL´S TANK AND CONSEQUENCES HOLE.

SIGNEE CAN NO LONGER BOARD THE SOUL TRAIN AND IS ADVISED TO DISCARD ALL BELLBOTTOMS.

SIGNEE CAN NO LONGER HAVE A PUPPY AS A BEST FRIEND, THEY CAN SENSE WHAT IS GONE. BATS ARE INDIFFERENT.

SIGNEE MAY EXPERIENCE OCCASIONAL DEMON POSSESSIONS FROM HORCULUS THE RED, PLABOS THE MERCILESS, MORBUS SON OF MORTEM, PLAGA THE OOAING AND OTHER SUCH COMMON DEMONS ROAMING EARTH SEARCHING FOR WEAKENED, EMPTY VESSELS!

TIPS FOR RIPPING YOUR SOUL OUT AT HOME: WATCHING YOUTUBE COMMENTARY CHANNELS, ATTENDING AN EXTENDED FAMILY EVENT WITH AN OPEN BAR, USING GENERATIVE AI AND ASSERTING THAT YOU ARE CREATIVE, TURNING A BLIND EYE TO HUMAN SUFFERING, AMASSING MORE WEALTH THAN NEEDED, PURCHASING A BLUE CHECKMARK...

I had fun with this and yeah...rip to anyone who signed (me included, I would have loved to visit axolotl´s tank...)

[rosieleej]

It’s crazy that the twins are turning 25 today because at this moment probably Dipper has already finished his degree in engineering and is doing a masters and maybe a PHD, Mabel having finished hers in art. At this rate they’re old enough to drink, and drive, and vote and reflect on what-the-f happened to them as kids. Right now they’re probably celebrating their birthday in a small private party in the shack. Now the grunkles are 80 yrs and too old to sail at sea. Maybe now Greta is about to marry that duke; she’s as confident and beautiful as she’s ever been. Maybe Candy has some interesting stuff going on. Soos has a child with Melody, and the grandma has passed away, Waddles as well. Wendy is probably not working at the Mystery Shack ( she still cuts wood in her free time). The Weirdmagedon was so much time ago that all of Gravity Falls now can laugh about it. No one really talks about Bill, or the monsters, or the destruction, death and fear that came with them. For more than a decade the town has been at peace. For more than a decade Ford hasn’t feel like a freak. For more than a decade Stan has had what he had wanted for the most part of his life. For more than a decade the Pines twins, both sets, have been loved.

Mabel is now longer afraid of growing up. She already has, and she’s thriving. Dipper doesn’t fears he’s not good enough. Maybe their parents divorced, maybe they didn’t, but each year instead of going home in summer break from college they go to the same small town that opened their arms to them so so many years ago, and they feel like children again.

They. The children that taught me that growing up maybe is not so bad.

Happy Birthday indeed Mabel and Dipper Pines

[aquanutart]

[sgt-dignam]

aren't there 12 notes in a scale? what'd you say? music. my mom was a piano teacher. she used to say that music is the universal language.

FROM | 3.10 - Revelations: Chapter Two

[remynisce]

Norman and some gals for your consideration ☺️

Mabel glassless ver below cut (plus bonus doodle)

[barbaricjester]

What if the Mystery Shack was alive. Almost like that movie Monster House, but... Gentler.

It's made from lumber that was grown and chopped down in Gravity Falls, and the entire valley itself has a weirdness to it, which is why weird things are attracted to and tend to stay there. It's not a far stretch to assume that the valley itself, the trees and rocks, are all semi conscious, almost, in an Eldritch sense.

Put under a read more because this got rambly.

What if the Mystery Shack was built, and at first it's angry. Gravity Falls doesn't mind its trees being used for shelter, used to expand the town and protect it, but Stanford wasn't part of the town. He was a stranger.

After he moved in, the cabin itself was hostile to him. It could rearrange his furniture, hide his keys, attract monsters to his door- all of which Ford is oblivious to, for a while. For long enough that the cabin gets to know him, in a sense.

Ford isn't here to hurt the valley's weird things, it realizes in whatever consciousness it has. He's here to learn. To study. To treasure. Slowly, it warms up to him. Things stop going missing. Now monsters show up on the porch, passive and willing to be studied. Now Ford's keys always seem to be right where he thought he put them last.

When Fiddleford joins, the cabin takes a while to warm up to him, too. But it likes the banjo music, and Fiddleford even comments that the house seems calm, almost sleepy, when he plays.

Then of course, things with Bill happens. The cabin isn't strong enough to protect its caretaker, to keep Bill out, but it tries. When Ford wakes with bloody knuckles, a first aid kit is at his bedside table. When he's frantically gulping coffee, the pot always seems full and fresh. When he stumbles inside from the blistering cold, there's a fire roaring in the hearth, a blanket on the couch, to comfort him.

When Bill is possessing Ford's body, the cabin does everything it can to keep him inside, doubling down on Ford's own security to keep Bill away from the portal in its basement.

When Stan arrives, the cabin is as relieved as it can be- there's help, now, Ford will be okay-!

And then Ford is gone, and the cabin is powerless to stop it.

It grieves. It mourns. The shabby cabin sinks in on itself. Its walls peel, its floors crack, melted snow drips thought the roof like tears. It knows the new resident is mourning, too. The new resident doesn't take care of himself, and he doesn't take care of the cabin. When he cries, the groaning logs almost seem to wail with him.

But the new resident is trying. Trying to get Ford back. The portal makes it hard for the cabin to reach down into the basement, but it tries. It watches, anxious and hopeful that its old master will be saved.

As the years go by, the cabin is transformed into the Murder Hut, and later, the Mystery Shack. The night of the grand opening, Stanley pauses and puts his hand on the wall with an anxious sigh. The cabin feels it, and groans as it tries to stand up a little straighter, tries to mend the cracks in its flooring and clear the dust from its own windows. When Stan wanders into the kitchen, he finds a cigar and a drink, waiting for him. It's going to be okay.

Years go by. Stan is aware the cabin has some kind of sentience, but he never outright acknowledges it, other than in quiet moments, when he thanks it, puts a hand on the wall and stands there for a moment.

The cabin likes Soos, because he cleans it and takes care of it. It warms up to Wendy, and she always manages to find a cold can of Pitt Cola or a popsicle when she wants one. The cabin is the one to show her the hatch on the roof.

Then the twins come along, and the cabin can sense how anxious, how excited Stanley is. It cleans itself up as much as it can, proud and anticipating these esteemed guests. And oh, it loves them when they arrive.

The cabin is subtle, at first, but it wants to help. It wants the kids to enjoy staying there. It conjures snacks and sweets aplenty for Mabel, and moved the books around so Dipper always finds something new to read.

Of course Dipper catches on first, especially once he finds the journal. It's a mere footnote, really, that the author left about feeling like the house was alive, but it's enough to get Dipper thinking. He talks to the Shack, he tests things out, and in time, it reveals itself. As muggy summer showers fog the windows, Mabel doodles in the condensation, and finds that something else is drawing with her. Flowers and hearts and smiley faces, she plays tic-tac-toe with no one and is excited to show Dipper.

Of course, Stan denies all of it when they try to tell him, and if the Shack could laugh, it would.

When Gideon takes it over, the cabin has never known such fury. It slams its doors, smashes it's own windows, the floorboards wail and walls crack with rage that Gideon dare hurt its Pines family. It torments, as much as it can, but with the second journal in Gideon's possession, there's only so much it can do that he can't circumnavigate.

At the reopening, the Shack presents its best self. Its so relieved that the family is safe, it conjures boxes of cookie mix and makes their beds a little extra soft. It's never been so relieved to have thumbtacks driven into its rafters as Mabel hangs her posters back up.

And then. And then Stan has the journals again. Then he's buckled down and getting to work, and the cabin stirs, an anticipation, a hope, three decades old beginning to grow anew. It takes care of Stan as he works himself to the limit, helps distract the kids.

And finally, finally, finally- even though it nearly tears the Shack apart, its still alive enough to know when its old master returns, stepping back into its basement. Home at last. Safe.

The whole family, in their own ways, apologize to the Shack as it's repaired after that, but it just sighs. Just groans. It's alright. It's just happy to have Ford back. It tries conjuring endless coffee, first aid kits and blankets again for him, and Ford laughs, pats the wall and promises that he's okay, that he missed the Shack, too.

The unicorn spell makes the Shack stronger. It can't speak, it can't move, but it is proud to do what it does best- protect.

Weirdmageddon comes, and the shack doesn't think twice about opening its doors to the cryptids, creatures, and survivors. It's the Shack but it's made of the valley, and the valley's residents need protection. It locks itself down, keeps them all safe inside, dolling out blankets and aid kits until it has utterly exhausted itself and its magic. As anxious as a house can be, it frets for the missing Pines members, and is overjoyed when Mabel and Dipper return.

When they decide to make the Shacktron, Stanley is the only one to think to ask the house if it's okay with that. The Shack doesn't like it, but if it means saving the valley, then... It groans softly to Stan. It's going to be okay.

The Shack nearly dies in the fight. The unicorn spell is the only thing that holds it and its consciousness together. It's collapsed, ruinous, rubble, when the family returns. It's feeble, but it tries. It straightens up Stan's recliner, clears the debris off the seat. The Shack is exhausted. It's mourning. But the family is safe.

It's all but dormant as they do repairs. It can't conjure or rearrange things, and the family frets over it. The day of the kids birthday, though, the Shack rouses itself. It sits up a little straighter, holds their birthday banner aloft with pride.

It's sad, too, though. It knows the Pines are leaving. Soos and his abuelita are welcome to stay- and the Shack is relieved it won't be empty- but it misses the Pines terribly. It slams its shutters and the floorboards creak in protest as the little twins leave. It throws an even bigger tantrum when the older ones go, and only settles when they all promise to be back next summer.

(in the meantime, the Shack has a lot of work to do, helping the new Mr. Mystery manage everything. Soos never quite catches on, but Abuelita does.)

So the Shack stays. It waits. It hopes, and it protects.

And when the next summer rolls around, when its family comes back, it welcomes them in, welcomed them home, with open doors.

[azurityarts]

Team VIP

A cat crew coming to you sometime not Soon™

[mothkisserx]

surely theres some kind of lore behind this right?

[mooni]

callum: sobbing over the ashes of katolis

aaravos: hey guys look at my elfsonas

we're off to a strong start

[screwpinecaprice]

It's been so lonely here. And

climbing up that hill, you must be so tired...

Quick screenshot redraw of the shot before my favorite Witch Sheep frame so far!