Mabel had planned on going out again that day, but when her alarm went off at eight o'clock that morning, exhaustion gripped her, and she found herself hitting snooze and rolling back over. She felt dreadful. Was this because of the magic? Had she pushed herself too far? She hoped not... how was she supposed to find Bill for her brother if she couldn't use magic?

After hitting snooze another few times, Mabel finally managed to get herself to roll out of bed. She swayed slightly as she stood up, using the headboard to steady herself. Dipper's bed was empty, and she heard the shower running, so she decided to go grab some breakfast before getting ready. She made her way downstairs, noticing that her movements were shaky, as if her body wanted nothing more than to just lay back down. She frowned, heading to the kitchen, hoping that she wasn't getting sick. She smiled a greeting to her Great Uncle Ford, then poured herself some coffee, hoping it would help wake her up.

As she poured the coffee, Gruncle Stan entered the room, adding the last few bits to their kits for the fishing escapade planned for the day.

"Hey there, pumpkin," he greeted Mabel as the teen sat down at the table with a yawn, coffee mug in hand. "Your brother up?" Mabel shrugged.

"I assume so. His bed was empty and the shower was running when I woke up," she reported. Stan nodded, sighing slightly.

"A day off is exactly what that kid needs. When he isn't studying or working, he's thinking about...you know who. He needs to let loose before he falls apart," Stan expressed. Ford nodded grimly in agreement, and Mabel simply stared at her coffee for a moment before taking a sip.

Soon he won't have to worry about it anymore, she thought to herself happily. Then a slightly darker thought occurred to her. So long as you really are just tired, and this isn't something to do with the magic...

Before anyone could say anything else, footfalls could be heard on the stairs. A few heartbeats later, Dipper appeared in the doorway, his hair still damp. He was rolling up the sleeves of his corduroy shirt when he noticed the solemn air in the room. The teen frowned slightly as he grabbed a granola bar from the counter and sat down.

"Who died?" he questioned with a halfhearted laugh. "You all look like you're going to a funeral." When there wasn't an immediate response, Dipper grew worried for a moment.

"Is everything alright?" he asked, the worry beginning to show on his face. As if shaken from a trance, the Pines family immediately returned to normal, Mabel sending a smile her brother's way, Ford taking a sip of his coffee, and Stan finishing up with the tackle box.

"Yeah, Dip Dop, everything's fine. We're just tired, is all," Mabel explained to him, a yawn escaping her lips as if to prove her point. Dipper shrugged off the uncomfortable feeling he'd gotten upon entering the room and bit into his granola bar. Mabel finished off her coffee and got up with a stretch.

"Well, since your done, I'm gonna go shower and get ready," she announced as she made her way out of the room. Dipper furrowed his brow slightly when he noticed her footing was unsure for a few steps, her hand grabbing onto the doorframe to steady herself.

Mabel had been asleep when Dipper went to bed last night, and she'd woken up after him, so unless she'd gotten up in the middle of the night, she'd gotten a good amount of sleep. She had always been a morning person, getting up early with just as much energy as the rest of the day. Even through high school, she'd retained her ability to wake up and be active, even if coffee was needed to help her along.

So... why was she so tired now? Things weren't adding up in Dipper's mind, but two strange occurrences within twenty-four hours of each other weren't usually just coincidences. The teen pursed his lips. If a third arose, it was definitely something to look into. Until then, he wanted to enjoy the time with his family.

"Don't take too long, sweetie! I want to get on the lake before the crowds!" Stanley called to his niece as she ascended the stairs.

"Alright, Gruncle Stan!" she shouted back before shutting the door behind her. Dipper sighed and finished up his breakfast, throwing away the trash on his way out of the room.

"Where ya headed, kiddo?" Stan wondered as sat at the table, leaning back with his coffee. Dipper leaned against the doorframe.

"I was going to check up on the shop, make sure everything's locked up for the day," he told them. He hesitated a moment, then spoke again. "And check something downstairs, if that's alright." The original Pines twins shrugged and nodded.

"Yeah, sure," Stan allowed as Ford gave Dipper a small smile. Then the teen left the room.

He sighed as he checked the locks on the door and that the windows were closed, the money put away safely. He'd told himself he wasn't going to wait for a third thing to happen before he investigated anything, but... waiting didn't exactly bode well for him. He'd been doing a lot of waiting, lately, and it was starting to get annoying. Upon finishing his security check of the shop, Dipper approached the vending machine on the wall and punched in the code, glancing over his shoulder just to insure he was alone.

The door swung open and he quickly slipped inside, closing the door behind him. He stepped into the elevator and input the second floor. He ran a hand through his hair as he waited to reach his destination, the slight chill of the underground making his damp hair quite uncomfortable against his head.

He entered the messy office room and made his way to the desk, keeping his eyes off of the objects scattered across the floor, lest he find something reminiscent of the one-eyed demon. He opened up the drawer of the desk, the one that was supposed to contain the copy of the third journal. No one had any uses for the journals anymore, except for him, and he had all of them. There was no reason for the copy to missing.

Yet... the drawer was empty. Dipper frowned, pondering the possibilities. Ford was here, so it was entirely possible he wanted to look through it for something, and didn't want to bother Dipper to ask for the real ones. Or Stan could have been looking for something and moved the copy. There were many possible options as to why the copy of Journal 3 was missing. Then again...

The visit from the strange woman in pink, the dreams being worse since he got back to Gravity Falls, Mabel's strange behavior yesterday, her uncharacteristic exhaustion, the journal copy missing from the drawer... they had to add up. They needed to add up. He couldn't take it anymore... there had to be a lead! No more of this wandering helplessly, staring at that stupid note, just hoping and praying that some answer would come to him... He'd had enough of waiting. Magic or no magic, he was going to find a way to figure this all out.

Dipper flung the drawer closed and ran for the elevator, a vigorous determination burning inside him. He tapped his foot as the elevator slowly rose to it's destination, then ran out into the shop. He paused, making himself calm down. He didn't have anything to hide, but that didn't necessarily mean he wanted to explain anything to his family. He closed the vending machine, making sure it was locked, then calmly walked back into the kitchen. Mabel was back downstairs, wearing her usual shorts and sweatshirt, her hair pulled back in a ponytail this time. She was wearing a bedazzled jean ball cap, the exhaustion on her face hidden under a thin layer of makeup. She gave her brother a smile as she grabbed her tackle box to take it out to the car.

"Gruncle Stan and Gruncle Ford are loading up the car. They suggest you take a backpack with some snacks and anything else you might want to take. Oh! And a hat. It's supposed to be really sunny today," she told him as she walked out the open front door. Dipper nodded and ran upstairs.

He snatched an empty backpack from his closet and shoved his camera, the book he was reading, some sunscreen, and a notebook with a pen into the bag. Hat, hat, hat... he thought to himself as he scanned the room. Where did I put my hat...?

It wasn't long before his eyes fell upon the item in question. Dipper's stomach churned uncomfortably, his throat tightening slightly. He hadn't even looked at it since that day... Surely he had another one that would work? He didn't need to wear it again...right? Dipper took a deep breath, shaking the feeling off. He was being stupid. It was a hat, and he needed a hat. Simple as that. Still, though... he couldn't help the fact that his hand trembled slightly as he lifted the old hat from its home in the back of the closet shelf. Without looking at it, he pulled it onto his head. Surprisingly, it still fit. Its presence was...comforting, yet also had an air of dejectedness to it. Dipper decided to focus on the comforting aspect.

There was just one more thing he wanted to check before he went downstairs to grab the snacks then go to the car. He crouched down next to his bedside table and reached for the journals. He located Journal 3 and pulled it out, setting it on the bed. He tossed it open, scanning the pages briefly as he flipped to the last few pages. His heart skipped a beat as he reached the conclusion he'd been looking for. This wasn't Journal 3. It was the copy.

The original Journal had the Alternating Helix Cipher in it. This one did not. Despite the predicament, Dipper couldn't help but smirk. He finally had something to work off of. The journals, Mabel's strange outing yesterday, her exhaustion today, it was all adding up to something Dipper had been expecting to happen sooner or later.

Mabel was trying to use magic. She was trying to get Bill back.

While her intentions warmed Dipper's heart, the consequences of her actions would undoubtedly begin to take affect. After all, exhaustion is only the first side effect of magic at a younger age. Dipper had experienced them first hand, and wasn't about to let his sister suffer like that just for him. He needed to find a way to get the journal back before she got herself seriously hurt, and he needed to do it without letting her know that he'd figured out what she was doing.

Dipper put the Journal copy back, slinging his backpack onto his shoulder and running down the stairs, pulling his phone out of his pocket and mashing in a number. The phone rang as he shoved a few packs of crackers and some dried fruit into his bag.

"Hey, Dipper, what's up?" the person answered the phone. Dipper held the phone in one hand, zipping his bag up with the other.

"Hey, Wendy. I have a favor to ask of you," he told her, swinging the bag onto his back again and scanning the room for his tackle box.

"Sure, what is it?"

"Are you doing anything tomorrow?" There was a brief moment of silence as the redhead thought about it.

"Not that I know of, why?"

"I need you to come over tomorrow and do something for me." Dipper grabbed the box and started walking towards the door.

"Oh, well... yeah, okay. I don't see why not," Wendy agreed and Dipper smiled.

"Thanks! I've got to go, but I'll see you then!" Wendy told him goodbye and he hung up the phone, slipping it back into his pocket before leaving the Shack, locking the door behind him before throwing his stuff into the trunk. He slid into the backseat with Mabel, giving everyone a small smile.

"Sorry about making you wait," he apologized. Mabel rolled her eyes, nudging him with her shoulder.

"Come on, Dipping Sauce, you know it's not a big deal," she laughed, her eyes drifting to his hat for a moment before she turned back to look forwards. Dipper suppressed a sigh, propping his arm against the car door, gazing out the window as Stan pulled out and headed towards the lake. The others were chatting happily, but Dipper wasn't paying attention. He couldn't take his eyes off the reflection of his hat in the window. Conflicted emotions pulled at his heart, and he wasn't quite sure how he was supposed to feel anymore. He closed his eyes for a moment, but the symbol on his hat seemed to be engraved in his mind, burning bright against the dark backdrop of his eyelids.

Take care of those butterflies, Pine Tree...

Bill was alive... he had to be! But then...

Why hadn't he come back?

QY BDN GIAG

A/N: I was listening to Faded while writing this... I wanted to cry XD Anyway... thank you so much for being patient! It means a lot to me that all of you are so supportive, and aren't just screaming at me to update. A lot of you are very understanding of the fact that I am just a high school girl, and I do have a lot going in life. It's hard to find time to sit down and write a chapter for a book that means so much to me and so much to a lot of you. I can't just spit out these chapters like I do with a lot of other books. I really want to try my best for you guys! That being said...

I do read your comments, so please don't feel like you aren't being heard. I love seeing that you guys are enjoying the book and want more, but sometimes it's a bit overwhelming. If you believe that I am neglecting a book, it is much more effective to either private message me or post a message on my message board with your concerns, or politely asking me to update. Don't get me wrong! I adore all of the comments you guys leave and I try to read them all, even if their old! Just know that if you want a more immediate response, message me! I'm more likely to respond to a direct message asking me to update a book, and a lot of times, I just don't realize that it's actually been that long.

If you have any questions or concerns about anything, please! Leave a comment or message me! Don't be afraid to communicate! I smile a little wider with every comment and vote I see! You all really do mean a lot to me, and I'm sorry that I can't update every single day. I will be trying to come up with a schedule for things. If you have any suggestions, let me know! Anyway... that was a really long author's note XD Sorry guys!

I'll howl to you later!