The brunette had lost track of time. He hadn't a clue how long he'd been lying face up on his bed, and if he was being honest, he didn't exactly care. He felt cold, numb, completely empty... He kept his eyes trained on the ceiling above him, hoping that perhaps if he concentrated hard enough, he'd wake up from this nightmare...

He'd only just gotten someone he lost back. Now Mabel was missing, and it was all his fault...

"Dipper?" A voice called from outside his locked door. "Dipper, it's Pacifica, open the door." The Mystery Twin didn't respond. He heard Pacifica pulling on the handle, huffing slightly in annoyance.

"Alright, look," she began, her voice edge with bitter remorse. "Dipper, it's not your fault. Mabel chose to look for him on her own. I was the last one to talk to her, I knew what she was doing, if it's anyone's fault, it's mine..." Dipper sat up, his tear stained eyes finding their way to the bedroom door. "Just... please, let me in..."

There was another moment of silence, then Pacifica heard the soft click of the door unlocking and the handle was moving beneath her hand. The door opened, revealing the teen on the other side. Pacifica bit her tongue, turning her gaze to her feet. What she'd yelled at the boy downstairs was ringing painfully in her ears and she found herself unable to look into his shattered eyes.

"Thanks..." she muttered. Dipper made a small grunting noise that could have passed as acknowledgement then he turned around, walked back to his bed, and let himself drop onto the mattress. Pacifica walked in awkwardly, shutting the door closed behind her. After a few more moments of tense silence, the blonde cleared her throat, rubbing the back of her neck.

"Dipper, I'm sorry..." she said softly. The only sign that the other had heard her was his tired eyes met her own for a moment before returning to the ceiling. "About everything. I shouldn't have said what I did, I was just...."

"You care about her, don't you..." Pacifica blinked, slightly startled by the sound of Dipper's voice. It was scratchy, strained, lifeless...

"Tell me honestly," she requested, looking down at her hands. "Bill is... he's alive, isn't he..." Dipper's eyes widened slightly and he opened his mouth to speak, hesitating, admittedly caught off guard by the question.

"N-No..." he stuttered. Pacifica huffed in disbeleif and he cringed.

"Look," she continued, looking out the window, her eyes distant, "whatever's going on here, just... be careful. I know I'm not in any place to cast judgement, but these are demons, Dipper... Are you sure you know what you're doing?" Her eyes met the brunettes and her heart sank at the cold reality within them.

"No, I'm not sure. Just when I thought I had figured things out..." he raised his hands helplessly, "everything falls apart again."

The two sat in uncomfortable silence once more, neither quite sure of what to say next. Just as Dipper was about to break the silence, Pacifica sighed, turning to the door.

"Well, I'll let your family know that you didn't...you know..." she shuffled awkwardly, not wanting to finish. Thankfully, Dipper seemed to understand what was left unsaid, and he nodded gravely, getting to his feet.

"Thanks. I'll be down eventually, I just...you know..." This time it was Pacifica's turn to interpret the unspoken, and she smiled sadly, placing a hand on Dipper's shoulder momentarily. Then she turned and left, shutting the door behind her. Dipper watched her go, locking the door again, wondering if the blonde girl really was the same person who had been his sister's bitter rival all those years ago...

A/N: Sorry it's so short and that there's no code for this one, but I'm going to try and get two chapters out tonight. No promises, but I'll try.