Whoo! First oneshot within this collection! Please enjoy!

This is a companion to my Walk the Line fic, so please, if you are clicking into this story for the first time, read that first or none of this will make sense!

Also, if you have read Walk the Line, I am currently in the process of changing Stanley to Grunkle Stan, and Stanford to Author Stan, so these AU's and Oneshots will all refer to Author Stan as Stanford.

Chapters will usually vary from 1,000 - 2,000 words.

Setting: The chapter the scene takes place within.

Characters: Major characters within the chapter.

P.O.V?: Who's point of view the chapter is in.

AU?: Is the story compliant with the Walk the Line universe?

Chapter Type: What type of chapter is it? (e.g. Angst, Hurt/Comfort etc.)

Disclaimer: I don't own Gravity Falls.

Setting: Chapter 26

Characters: Wendy and Mabel

P.O.V?: Wendy

AU?: No. Set firmly within the context of the WtL universe.

Chapter Type: Hurt/Comfort

"I just worry about him, you know?"

Mabel shrugged her shoulders a little, her voice uncharacteristically quiet. She and Wendy were sitting outside on the steps at the front of the shop, Mabel looking out into the woods with a pinched expression, and Wendy watching Mabel with worry on her face.

She knew this must be really digging at her.

Wendy threw an arm across Mabel's shoulders. "C'mon, man, cheer up! I mean, I know he's been acting kinda weird lately, but he's a boy, and boy's go through these weird stages where they-"

"Get all awkward and sweaty and stuff?" Mabel interrupted, fiddling with her sweater. "Yeah. I know. But this is different. Dipper doesn't act like this. It's not...he doesn't act like such a...such a poophead - have you heard him, lately? All he does is spit and curse and argh! It drives me insane!" She lay backwards, sighing.

Wendy said nothing, because she knew. She knew where Mabel was coming from. It wasn't even the swearing, because that was just a teenager thing.

It was in the way he looked at people, the way he acted and walked and just his whole demeanor. He was way way different from how he used to be - hell, even Soos was noticing.

Sometimes when Dipper was working in the shop, and he didn't think anyone was looking, his whole everything would totally change. Little things at first, that only really fuzzed the edges of the 'something's goin' on here' part of her brain, such as how he'd start to get really fidgety towards the end of the day, constantly watching the clock as they shut up shop, as if there was something he was better off doing.

Then, things started to get more...obvious. More outright.

When customers took too long in the gift shop, she could barely stand next to him. He'd tick back and forth on his feet, always shuffling and fidgeting, with this quiet anger bubbling underneath this stern, almost hateful expression on his face. He'd glare at the customers as if he could burn a hole through their head, as his hands curled into fists so tight his knuckles turned white.

The first time she'd actually taken notice, she'd been kinda surprised (okay, totally surprised. She'd been super shocked to see how much rage her little friend contained in that scrawny awkwardness). Before she could say anything, however, he'd brushed past her and up to the customer, the hatred on his face twisting into a sneaky smirk that would have been a pleasant and welcoming smile to anyone who hadn't seen how he'd looked beforehand. Even the way he walked seemed to change - like he'd suddenly just exploded into confidence.

It just hadn't screamed 'Dipper' to her. She didn't know where the kid who could barely say two words to get had gone, but he sure as hell hadn't been in the a Mystery Shack.

But somehow, amazingly, he'd managed to sweet talk the customer into buying so much Mystery Shack crap, that Stan had literally been rolling in money. He made more from the one customer than he made in the whole rest of the week.

And then of course, there was the time they'd walked back to the Shack from the swimming hole together.

It had actually been kinda terrifying, how vicious he'd gotten.

...but she didn't really like thinking about that, because no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't put any of it down to testosterone.

So...yeah.

She understood.

Wendy pulled her feet up closer to her chest, wriggling her toes in her boots as she closed her eyes.

Scuffing feet made them shoot open again as Mabel stood up beside her abruptly, taking off away from the Shack.

Wendy shot up after her, confusion writing itself across her face.

"Mabel? Mabel!"

The girl ignored her, racing off towards the town.

Swearing, she ran over to her bike, jumping onto it and cycling after her younger friend

"Mabel, what the hell?"

"I know...where Dipper...might be!" She said breathlessly.

"What...? How-"

"Twin...stinct!"

Well. Wendy couldn't argue with that logic.

They'd found a lot of crap at the junkyard, but there hadn't been a single thing to tell them Dipper had been there. Mabel had been devastated - she'd really thought she'd be onto something.

"Maybe I just don't know him as well as I used too," Mabel said as she flopped down onto her bed, pulling a brown teddy bear into her arms from amongst her pile of stuffed toys.

"Aw, c'mon, Mabel, don't say that. You and Dipper are like, inseparable. It's like I said - he's probably just going through teenaged boy stuff. You know; testosterone and angst. He could probably write his own Shakespeare tragedy, man. I mean - we'll be calling him Robbie soon if we aren't careful."

Mabel let out a light laugh, voice muffled by the bear pressed against her face.

"Ew."

Wendy felt a bit better, hearing her normally exuberant friend laugh. It was weird when Mabel was upset. It was just a thing that didn't happen.

A quick rap of knuckles on the door made the pair of them look up. Stanford pushed his way into the room, clearing his throat. "Wendy; Stan wants you down to work the shop. Mabel - why don't you come work down in the basement with me? Get your mind off things."

Wendy felt her shoulders sag with relief. Stanford always knew how to get Mabel's mind off things. She didn't know him all that well, but she trusted him.

Mabel pulled herself up and hugged Wendy tight. She sniffed into the older girl's neck.

"Thank you," she said, before pulling away to smile at her great uncle.

Wendy stood and smiled slightly at Stanford, then made her way downstairs quickly.

Things'd sort themselves out, just like they always did.

That was the thing with the Pines family; they had the rottenness luck in the world, but when push came to shove, they always seemed to come out unscathed.

They were lucky in the unluckiest way, that was for sure.

And she really didn't envy them.

Thank you for reading - feel free to send a request for a chapter, and I'll make sure to write it!