Once again- and literally, for the last time- sorry for such a late update. But hey, after this the story will update even later!

And by that I mean never. Because this is the last one. As I said.

Seriously, though, I really can't thank you guys enough. Anyone who left reviews, guests I couldn't send thank-you messages to, anyone who read this story at all- you all rock. I've never written anything even close to this word count before, and I've definitely never written anything that took more than a year to finish.

In fact, it's weirdly sad to bring this to an end. I don't really know how it'll feel to not have Searchlight Sleeping in the back of my head, wondering how to move the next part of the story forward. But I'm really excited to start new projects and stuff. So, if you want, you know, keep an eye out for that. I'm definitely not finished with Gravity Falls.

The point is, thank you. Writing this has been an incredible experience, and through all the ridiculous four-month-long waits, overdramatic flashbacks, and angsty Dipper moments, y'all readers have still kept readin'.

You rock.

[]

...

...

...

Heavy. Slow. Quiet.

...

...

...

Am I dreaming?

...

...

...

This has happened before. Nearly awake, not really conscious of anything, but I can think, and I can try to focus. Wake up.

...

I'm dreaming, right?

...

I'll be in my bed, waking up in the Mystery Shack, because we're here for the summer and we're staying with Grunkle Stan-

Wake up!

Because it's just another morning-

Think!

It all comes back at once: the first day, Robbie, Durland, Gideon, the house, the books, the diner, the attacks, McGucket, the riddles, the Sight, and the triangle and driving off the road and Toby and Robbie disappearing and Gideon again and Robbie again and the books again and the lake and the caves and BILL-

My eyes open before I'm ready.

...

For a while, I don't move. Just... breathing. I'm staring up at the ceiling of our room, waiting for the half-dreams to be replaced with my own thoughts.

Somehow, I'm here.

I close my eyes tight, then open them again. Everything seems the same.

Slowly, I swing my feet off the bed, sitting upright on the edge. It feels real, and I even think I can hear the wind through the open window, but I still can't let my guard down. It could be just another test. More tricks.

One last nightmare to get through.

It's surreal, being back. I move towards the stairway, trying not to notice that everything looks just like it always has. The marks and cracks in the floorboards. The posters and cards above Mabel's bed.

The mirror.

I freeze, staring at my own reflection. On my hands, my face, there's... nothing. No dirt from the tunnels. No scratches or bruises from falling into that hole. I look normal.

I hear something behind the door.

When I open it, I'm not thinking about anything. I don't expect something. It swings away from me and my sister smiles.

...

Mabel.

Not a picture. Not a memory. Not some impossible magic vision invented by a monster as a game.

It's really her. Goofy rainbow sweater, shining bright eyes, wide grin and all.

"Hey, you're finally awake! Awesome!" She leans towards the stairway, calling, "Good morning, world! Dipper Pines is ready for the day! He will probably brush his teeth now or something!"

I'm speechless. She turns back to me with a gasp. "Oh! Look what I found in the gift shop!" She pulls a pair of pink sunglasses from her pocket, then slips them on. Giggling, she flicks a switch on the side that swings the lenses up and down. "Huh? Pretty neat, huh? I'm gonna be a trendsetter."

This can't be real. I want to hug her and laugh and get away from her and fall apart.

Her smile fades. "Somethin' wrong, bro?"

I don't know.

A second passes before I realize I haven't said anything. "I-I..." Mabel's just looking at me, confused, and eventually I shake my head. "No. Still, uh, still tired, I guess."

She claps her hands suddenly. "Okay then! I think Grunkle Stan's makin' some kinda breakfast-y thing, so I'm gonna go do that and you should do that. Let's all do that." With a jump, she's taking the stairs two at a time, still playing with the sunglasses. I follow.

...Again, I'm not thinking. I don't want to puzzle through everything that's happening. I can't keep wondering how, or why, or anything else. Part of me dimly wonders if I imagined talking to my sister.

On the ground floor, I can hear people talking. I'm about to move to the kitchen when Soos careens around the corner. "Yo, Dipper! You'll never believe it, dude!"

He's out of breath, looking like he's about to launch into a story, and I realize something- I should be relieved. Thrilled, even. Instead, it's like I'm frozen in place.

"So I decided to come in a little early, y'know, just ta see if Mr. Pines had anything around the Shack needed doin'..."

The plan was, I was going to find them. Save them. I'd bring them back, and everything would be okay.

"An' I'm on my way, right, when suddenly this crazy squirrel jumps out in the middle of the road! I mean, it was..."

All those things happened, so why can't I move? Why can't I say anything to him?

He pauses when Mabel's cheerful voice cuts through from the kitchen. "Soos! Grunkle Stan says there's enough food if you want some but he's gonna eat it if you don't get in here!"

Grinning, he pumps his fist. "Way ahead'a ya, Hambone!" He glances back at me. "Oh, right. Tell ya later, dude."

I'm alone again. Blinking, I rub my eyes, trying to focus on the muffled sounds from the other room. They're quiet, but I can hear them.

This has to be real. I... can't be dreaming. Right?

I barely register that I've moved down the hall. Stepped through the entryway. Walked into the gift shop.

But I see her, and every doubt, every fear and hope and every kind of thought at all just-

Stops.

She's leaning back on a stool by the register, keeping it balanced halfway between the wall and the counter, reading a magazine. Same hat. Same half-closed eyes, same confident smirk, like nothing is wrong.

Because nothing is wrong.

"Already told you guys, I ate at home." She glances up. "Oh, hey! What's up?"

It's like the ground is gone, and I'm falling through the floor.

Wendy's smiling, and it's the most incredible, joyful, amazing thing in the world right now, especially now, but I can't-

I don't-

"Bit of a late start, I guess. You party all night or somethin'?" she chuckles.

I try to respond. Anything.

She frowns. "Uh, Dipper? Everything okay?"

I tell myself, over and over: I found them. They're safe. It's over.

I should be happy.

"Look, dude, you're kinda weirding me out." The phone rings, interrupting her. With a sigh, she picks up and says with fake cheeriness, "Gravity Falls Mystery Shack! We put the 'fun' in-"

A pause. "Huh? Yeah, but- what, you mean Dipper? Sure, he's right here."

She shrugs, then holds out the phone. "I think it's Robbie," she says with a confused look.

I step closer, not knowing what to expect. My heart's pounding when I take the phone. "Hello?"

"Do they remember?"

...The words don't sink in right away. He says it quickly, rushed, like he's worried about the answer, and I can hear in his voice he's just as scared as I am.

It's not until he asks again that I let myself admit it. "Kid, do they remember?"

Wendy's looking back down at the magazine. The others are back in the kitchen, eating breakfast, because there's nothing special about today. Today, or any of the days before.

I look back at her, phone still pressed to my ear. "No," I say quietly, finally finding my voice. "No, they don't."

But at least someone does.

[]

It's not a long walk to Circle Park. By the time I show up, Robbie's already there- he's sitting in a dirt clearing, not far from the clock tower. He's facing away from me, hood pulled up, staring forward while his hand absently moves some twigs on the ground.

He doesn't look up when I get closer. I'm not sure why, but I sit down next to him, then turn so we're back-to-back.

Robbie stirs behind me. "He-" A cough breaks up his words, and he stops. I don't ask anything, simply looking up at the sky, seeing nothing but blank gray clouds. It's colder than usual.

"He's back. My dad." A faint wind stirs the trees around the park. "He's just- he's acting like nothing-" Robbie pauses again, and when he continues, his voice is rough. "I had to get out of the house."

I nod, then remember he can't see it. "Yeah. Same."

I think he's leaning forward, probably resting his arms on his knees. "You know, for a while, I thought... maybe I imagined the whole thing."

There's a beetle crawling through the dirt, scurrying towards my foot. "But you're here, too." Robbie sighs. "I guess I'm just glad-"

He trails off, and I lean so my head's resting against his back. I finish the thought in my head. Glad I'm not alone.

A gust of wind makes me shiver, and I cross my arms to try to get warmer. "I, uh, never thanked you."

He snorts. "For what?"

"Back in the cave. When you pulled me up. I mean, if you hadn't been there..."

"Oh." He's silent, then hits me with his elbow. "Yeah, well, you still owe me a phone."

There isn't a hint of humor in his voice, but I grin anyway. That's what brought us out here in the first place, come to think of it, back when we were planning a fight. It seems like a long time ago.

For a while, I just watch the park- it's weird to see it so empty, with no one here. One of the tire swings moves back and forth with the wind, barely tapping against a metal pole with a quiet ringing sound. The bench under the giant clock is covered in leaves and dirt. The rest of the equipment, like the slides and monkey bars, look like they haven't been used in years.

"You should tell them," Robbie says suddenly. When I don't say anything, he continues, "I mean, if you didn't try yet."

I hadn't even been thinking about it. I stare at the dirt in front of me, trying to imagine what the conversation might sound like. "They'll think I'm crazy," I finally say.

"Hm." He waits for a few seconds. "You won't be the only one, though."

I smile slightly. "Besides," he says with a lighter tone, "They'll probably believe you. They seem more... open to this kinda stuff."

More open. I wonder if he already tried to explain it to his dad. For some reason, I don't want to ask.

It's close to noon, I think. They're probably annoyed that I've been gone so long. Even so, I keep looking out at the park around me, not ready to go back. Don't know why.

"Hey." Robbie coughs. "Did you- was there a reason it happened? Did you find out why?"

With a start, I remember the moment we were separated. He didn't see Bill. He didn't hear anything about the town's past, or J, or... me. "Yeah. Yeah, I did."

I wait for him to ask. I don't think I have it in me to explain everything, but I'll-

"Did it help?"

It's so unexpected that I barely register what he said. "What?"

He leans his head back. "You always, like, try to find an explanation for stuff. But this was different, you know?" There's something unusual in his voice, like he's not just talking to me. Like he's trying to understand something himself. "When things... I don't know, go wrong... does it help if you know why?"

I don't know what to say.

After a while, he sighs again. "Sorry. I shouldn't have- that was crossing the line."

"It's fine." I rub my eyes, feeling strangely tired. The dust from the dirt ground is starting to sting.

Robbie's ringtone sounds out, and he shifts to get it from his pocket. After a few seconds, he laughs. "My dad's wondering where I am."

A few seconds go by before I realize why it's funny. "You should text back, 'look who's talking'."

"Yeah," he says, still chuckling. "He wouldn't get it, though." But he doesn't move to leave. Instead, he leans back again, and I think he's looking up at the clouds. "So... what do we do now?"

"I'm not sure." Still trying to get the dirt out of my eyes, I shrug. "Things go back to normal, I guess."

"Huh. Normal."

I blink a few times. "Are you gonna try to date Wendy again?"

"...Are you?"

For some reason, it makes me laugh, and pretty soon Robbie joins in. It doesn't make sense, but the more I think about it- what else should I do? Why not laugh? Heck, maybe it's my own messed-up way of dealing with the last few days.

But I'm not ready to go back. Not yet.

There's one person I need to talk to, before I can leave this all behind.

[]

I expect a self-assured 'What do we have here?' or 'Well, well, well'. Instead, he doesn't say a word. Gideon just stares at me, hand on the doorpost, with a blank expression.

I shuffle my feet. "Hey."

He turns, glancing inside his luxurious house, then looks back at me. The porch I'm standing on spreads out into a beautiful lawn, full of carefully trimmed hedges and even fountains on either side of a stone path.

"What do you want?" he asks in a low voice.

Looking the same direction he did, I can see some kind of parlor full of elaborate furniture and paintings. His parents aren't around, I guess. "It, uh, doesn't look like anyone remembers being gone."

Gideon raises an eyebrow, as if to say, Really. I hadn't noticed.

"I was thinking... this whole thing was really bad. Just- it was tough." I try not to worry about how dumb I'm making this sound. "And me and Robbie, we'll be around. You know, if anything... if you need to... we'll be around."

He blinks slowly, like he doesn't understand. Heck, I'm not sure I understand what I just said. But I keep thinking of that first day, when I was completely alone, and had no one to help me. Not even to talk to.

And then, suddenly, I did. Robbie offered his help, and things were different. Maybe I can do the same thing.

"...Oh, Dipper." Gideon's smile is back, but this time, I can't tell if it's sincere or not. "You are somethin' else."

He shakes his head, moving to close the door.

"Wait."

A pause. I fold my arms, hoping that I sound authoritative. "Why'd you lie?"

A second passes, and he chuckles. "Ah. That... that was rather tricky, wasn't it? I assume you're referrin' to the 'summon' business?"

"Yeah." I scowl. "Bill told me what happened. You had nothing to do with it, right? So why'd you say it was your fault?"

Gideon sighs, then takes a few steps past me, out into the yard. "First of all," he says without facing me, "I never truly lied about anythin'. I jes' let you keep thinkin' the way you were."

He stares up into the sky. "An' that's what you do, isn't it? You think, an' think, an' keep tryin'a figure it all out, but if you can't grab every answer, you start to guess. An' that's where you go wrong, friend, because you can't always keep track of what's real an' what's nothin' but spec-u-la-tion." The word is divided into short clips, like he's pronouncing it for a child to understand. "Guesses go a hair too far, an' then the facts don't add up, so you stretch your little theories till they snap, an' you realize you were jes' wrong."

Just from his voice, I can tell he's back to himself, at least a little. Arrogant. Completely certain of everything he's saying. "You don't know me," I say. "You're making this up." I completely ignore the idea that he might be right.

"Am I?" Gideon looks back at me with a smirk. "Let's walk through this, Dipper. I wake up one mornin' t'find my dear parents have simply... evanesced from this earth. Somewhat foolishly, I'll admit, I assume you had a part to play in that disappearance. But as you know, that notion is quickly forgotten."

He steps back onto the path. "An' then I learn somethin' in-neresting," he says slowly. "See, Dipper Pines is also lookin' for a few lost souls, an' what's more, he may actually find them. Providin' he has some help, of course."

That smile. Made-for-TV, plastic, shining, somehow completely unreadable. It's like he's lying in everything but his words. "So I whip up a lil' ol' plan of my own. See, I know I can't find the old man an' lady by myself. But maybe the boy with his nose in a book of mysteries... maybe he can."

It's starting to make sense. "Then you- you did want me to save them. This whole time, you-" I press my hands against my head. "No. No, you tried to stop me! Every time something happened, you were telling me to give up!"

Gideon shakes his head, amused. "You really are just a foolish child, huh? Think, boy. I never wanted you to stop tryin'."

Memories jump to life in my mind. Gideon, condescending and smug and proud, telling me over and over how I couldn't possibly succeed. Making me furious.

And... more determined than ever to prove him wrong...

"There's no way." I drop my hands to my sides, staring at him. "You couldn't have-"

"I could. I did. An' it worked." He grins and straightens the edges of his suit. "I played you, Dipper. Musta been a half-dozen times you nearly gave int'all that nasty self-doubt an' other such nonsense. F'I may play the philosopher for a spell, I do believe you needed someone to push you so you could learn to push back. In short, you needed an enemy."

I can't keep looking at him. I let my gaze fall to the ground. "No," I mutter, but it's weak and halfhearted. "You couldn't fake that."

"Fake? But that's the beauty of it. Y'see, I didn't need to fake anythin'."

If it wasn't for what he's saying, he'd sound... happy. Like any other kid. When I look back up, he's facing his house. "You know how much I despise the name of Pines," he says quietly. "An' you in particular have been a most irritatin' burr on my coat."

His expression hardens. "That was no act."

The venom in his voice startles me. "But I could not deny the simple truth. You had'ta bring 'em all back, an' I had'ta help you. In my own way, of course." The beginning of a smile makes him look happier again. "Now, I don't mean to toot my own horn, but the journal was a stroke of genius, if I do say so myself."

...The second book. My mind races as I try to put it all together. "You changed it? Or- you wrote the entry yourself?"

He shrugs. "Part of it. At first, I was jes' keepin' the journal from you because I didn't want all my cards on the table, y'could say. But you kept gettin' more and more paranoid, an' I figured, what would be the biggest, most shockin' secret to make you so full of righteous fury that you couldn't possibly fail? Why, the revelation that Gideon Gleeful summoned The Eye an' caused this whole catastrophe."

He closes his eyes with a sigh. "When you didn't say anythin', though, I was a bit worried. You jes' walked out, an' I'll confess, I wasn't sure if you'd make it or not. But I shouldn't have doubted you. Or myself, I s'pose- I only had'ta write a few sentences, an' you went an' saved a town. I almost feel proud."

I can't think of anything to say. All along, I thought my plan was the only one I had to worry about. But right in front of me, Gideon was running circles around anything I could have imagined.

In fact... that thought makes me blink. "Why, though?" He's turned back towards me. "Why do all this, when you could have just helped me?"

His eyes go wide. "Really? Do- do you truly think you would'a trusted me?" Laughing, Gideon shakes his head again. "No, Dipper, this only worked because we do not trust each other. Face it, we're not meant to be anything but enemies."

This is starting to get to me. I don't care if it's proving his point- I'm getting mad. "Stop it. We're not-"

"How 'bout you give me the journal?"

I stop. "What?"

Gideon grins. "Doesn't seem unreasonable to me. Jes' the second one- y'know, the one I already had? That you stole from me? That one."

Almost instinctively, I take a step back. "Well- no, I'm not gonna-"

"An' why not?"

Because you'll probably use it to do something terrible. Because you're dangerous.

Because I want it.

Maybe he can see my thoughts play out on my face, because he nods. "See? Enemies. It's that simple." Chuckling, he starts back towards his front door. "We really do bring out the best in each other, y'know. We've done incredible things, but only when we're on different sides."

He brushes past me, and I'm thinking, trying to come up with something he's overlooked, some flaw in his argument. I can't think of anything.

"I'm smarter than you, friend," he says over his shoulder. "I always will be. But don't let that stop you from seein' this as a victory. Go... I dunno, spend time with your precious family, even though they'll never know everythin' you did for 'em."

Pausing at the door, he smiles again. "Got to play the hero, didn't you? Savin' the day an' all that. Well, you win, Dipper."

"Which is to say... I win."

Gideon starts inside, quietly singing, "Oh, I can see, what others can't see..."

[]

It's late afternoon by the time I get back. The front door of the Mystery Shack swings open, and I cautiously step through, not sure what I'm going to say. I don't even know who I should talk to first.

"Geez, kid, THERE you are!"

...I guess there's one decision made for me. Stan's behind the counter of the gift shop, with his spotless tuxedo and fez like always, glaring at me behind his glasses. It suddenly hits me that I haven't seen him since-

Oh.

Since the night before everything, when I... told him he didn't care about us.

Just like that, tears are starting to well up in my eyes. It's too much- we had the fight, and then he was gone, and I feel like it's been years, and now suddenly he's back and I have no idea what to tell him or how to make things right-

"...Look, Dipper." He sighs, rubbing his forehead. "I know I haven't been the most-" Just for a second, his voice wavers. "-careful guardian, but... you can't keep running off like this."

I'm trying not to cry. He's actually worried- I can see that now.

"And, uh, you were right." He looks up with a tired expression. "You said I don't know how to take care of you, and sometimes... that's true."

Did I make him think he's the one who should be sorry?

"The truth is, you know- ah, crap, how do I say this-" Stan takes a deep breath. "I care about you two, alright? A lot. An' if somethin' ever happened, I'd-"

I hug him. I can't say anything, and I'm already crying, and everything he's saying makes my heart hurt, so I just hug him.

It must stun him, because he stops talking, and after a few seconds, awkwardly hugs me back. I don't move for a while- I was hoping he wouldn't see me crying, but I don't think I'm fooling anyone.

When I find my voice, I choke out, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry."

"It's- uh, it's alright, kid." He sounds baffled, but he's letting me stay, and he rubs my head, trying to comfort me. "S'alright."

"No." I shake my head, probably getting tears all over his suit. "I shouldn't have said that stuff, Grunkle Stan, I'm really sorry, I didn't mean it-"

"Don't worry about it." He eventually moves me to arm's length, so I can look at him. "Look, if you want, we can- I dunno, talk about it later, I guess. But seriously, don't worry about that right now." He gives me what's probably supposed to be an encouraging smile.

"...Yeah." I nod, wiping my arm across my eyes. "Thanks."

For a while, we just stand there, me still half-crying and sniffing and Grunkle Stan sort of looking around. "I gotta be honest, Dip," he finally says. "That was kinda the last thing I expected you to do just now."

It gets a small smile, and that's enough to make him grin, too. "Might wanna let Mabel know you're back." He points to the stairway. "She was wondering, too."

Oh. I rub my eyes again. "Okay."

I'm walking out of the room, and I wonder what he's thinking about. Right now, this second, I wish I could tell him how awful it was, not knowing how to find him.

But I don't even know where to start.

This time, I don't try to think of what I'll say. I make my way up the steps, pausing briefly before I open the door.

"Broisthatyou?" The door flies open on its own, and Mabel leaps from the room, landing a solid punch on my shoulder before I have time to stumble backwards in surprise. "What the actual heck, Dipper?! Why would you disappear like that, why would you not tell me where you're adventuring off to, why would you skip breakfast, and most importantly, why didn't you take me with?!"

My mouth is open for a couple seconds, but Mabel must get tired of waiting for me to come up with something, because her eyes light up. "Oh! Wait! Inconsiderate and thoughtless brother saved at the last minute by something awesome and mysterious! C'mon c'mon c'mon I gotta ask you something!" She drags me into the room, pulling me by my arm over to my bed, where-

Where I see all three journals. Open.

"So what's the deal? How'd you even get these, you know? I found 'em on the floor, but you know, there's no way they just showed up there, right? Unless," she gasps, "Ohgosh what if something left them here for you?"

Honestly, I'd almost forgotten I had them all. I flip a couple pages of the first book, thinking through what Mabel said. "Well, it's kind of a long story," I say quietly.

Mabel blows some her bangs away from her face. "Psshaw! Yeah, 'cause I'm totally someone who HATES cool stories about magic stuff that my brother magically has magically."

It's... weird. I almost can't believe I'm really here, and Mabel's making jokes like everything's the same as it's always been. Almost without thinking about it, I go through the first book backwards, until I'm at the first page. "Well, for starters," I say, "I found out who wrote them."

"No way!"

"Yeah." Pausing to get the full effect, I look her in the eye. "And I think she's our grandma."

Mabel gasps, falling backwards onto her own bed. "That is so freaking cool," she whispers. "I'm bringing out the mini-swears, 'cause that's goshdang cool. That's heck-a cool. Yowzers."

I shake my head, smiling, as I start to read the first page. "She had a pretty weird name, too. 'Jericho'. But in some of the entries it just says 'J', and in the other journals she didn't write her name at all..."

My voice trails off as I really pay attention to the words.

To the man or woman, boy or girl who has discovered this journal-

I dedicate this tome, along with my life's work, to uncovering the secrets behind the town of Gravity Falls. My wish is that you, too, will look for new mysteries, legends, and discoveries, however you can.

But I must warn you. If you choose to follow this path, it may be a difficult road to travel. You may find yourself confronted with challenges and trials you never dreamed of. The quiet, inattentive, contented life may seem safer.

You may want to give up. You might believe that, in the end, it isn't worth it.

Yet I ask you to remember. Remember the first time, the first moment you can recall learning something new, and what it was like to discover one of the infinite, incredible ways that this world is woven together. And remember also the joy you have seen in children, and their curious, inquisitive nature. Remember the questions they have asked.

I choose to believe that we were never meant to stop asking these questions.

I may never meet you, but I hope that you always seek out knowledge. I pray that you seek and experience and see and hear and feel and live.

I hope you never stop learning.

"...Uh, Dipper?"

With a start, I look up. "Huh? What?"

Mabel's grinning at me. "Wow, you really zonked out! You were sayin' something about our rad granny, remember?"

I nod. "Oh, right." Looking back down at the page, I blink a few times. "I... wish I could have met her."

"Hm." She reads over my shoulder for a bit, then flops onto my bed, face inches away from the journal. "So what other crazy stuff is goin' on in here? More monsters? Time travel? Time-traveling monsters?"

Mabel rattles off some more ideas, eventually grabbing the book and leafing through it herself. For some reason, this is the moment I really understand.

It's over.

Maybe it was talking to Robbie, or Stan- heck, maybe even Gideon- but for whatever reason, something clicks. I'll have a long story to tell, but they're all back. They don't remember it, but they're back. I can't make them understand what it was like, but they're back.

That's not enough. But... maybe, eventually, it will be.

"Hey, Mabel?"

I'm trying to think of something heartfelt to say, but since she doesn't remember, it's gonna sound completely bizarre.

...Oh, who cares.

"It's really great to see you."