"You!" Jeff roared, glaring at the redhead.

"Me," Wendy smirked, twirling her axe expertly. "And what did I tell you creeps about forcing people to marry you?"

"It's our free will, and we'll do as we please!" One gnome in the row shouted.

Mabel proceeded to kick him aside. "That's for being stupid!"

Bill tugged at his bindings, and shouted over his head. "Red, get us out of here!"

Wendy nodded, and went into a fighting pose, with Dipper pulling out his own weapon. Jeff's beard bristled like a threatened feline, and he spread his arms defensively by his sides.

"Oh no, you don't!" He hissed. "I refuse to be bested by you circus freaks in sparkly getup!"

Dipper stepped forward with a glare. "Step aside, little man."

"You have no idea what you're dealing with," Jeff growled. "We gnomes are a powerful force, do not--!"

Then, Mabel kicked him.

"I never felt so alive!" She beamed.

Wendy rushed towards the Cipher twins, and tore off their bindings. Will released a little squeak, when he was hurled off the ground, along with Bill, right after the blond managed to grab the book.

"You don't need to carry us!" Bill yelled.

Wendy shook her head. "Sorry, but we need to move quickly!."

Then she made a dash to the exit while carrying them, followed by the Pine twins. They burst into the air of the forest, hearing a shout behind them.

"They're getting away with our queen!" Jeff screeched. "After them!"

"We won't be able to outrun them!" Dipper yelled.

"What are you talking about, Pine Tree?" Bill remarked. "Have you seen their little legs, the suckers are tiny--"

Stomp!

Stomp!

Stomp!

The ground shook beneath their feet, and they halted in place, before turning around. A few miles away, was a giant, entirely made from the gnomes.

Will's eyes widened in recognition. "Bill, isn't that the thing that attacked us in the bus?"

Bill groaned. "Can't we get a break!?"

Then, Mabel tugged at their arms urgently. "Quickly! Over here!"

The brothers watched as she quickly pushed nearby bushes aside, to reveal a golf cart.

"Uh, where did you get that?" Will asked.

Mabel grinned. "We definitely didn't steal it. Wink, wink."

A thunderous roar shook the trees, and scared nearby animals. The Cipher brothers stared in horror, as the giant stomped forward, already nearing them.

"Get in!" Dipper commanded.

Will and Bill obeyed, and climbed into the front seats, while the Guardians climbed into the back. Dipper had a look of distraught, when he noticed Bill was in the driver's seat.

"We're letting him drive!?"

Wendy turned to him. "Don't worry, I'm sure he knows what he's doing--"

"Road safety laws, prepare to be ignored!" Bill yelled, slamming his foot on the gas pedal.

There was a massive jolt that almost tossed the young adults out, as the vehicle sped unevenly through the dusty path. Meanwhile, the gnome monster roared with fury, and started pursuing them. Bill swerved the cart in all directions, while Will clutched onto his seat for dear life. The giant swung out his arm at them, shooting a couple of gnomes onto the roof of the cart. The twins stared up, as the creatures tore holes with their sharp teeth. Quickly, Wendy climbed up on the roof, and kicked them off. One gnome managed to crawl onto Will's back, and he screamed. While holding the steering wheel with one hand, Bill used the other to pull the gnome off his brother, and smash it against the dashboard.

"Shembuloc..." It groaned, before Bill tossed it out of the cart.

The giant started uprooting trees, and tossing them at the escaping vehicle. Bill felt a surge of panic, when one of the trees hurtled towards them, then Dipper unsheathed his sword. The blond watched in amazement, as the young man split the tree in half with his weapon, before it could crush them. That was pretty cool, but Bill would never admit it out loud.

The path suddenly became familiar to him, and he veered the cart, just in time to enter a clearing where the shack was. Bill couldn't press the break in time, they ended up crashing into the side of the building. Fortunately, no one was injured, only dazed. However, now wasn't the time to be relieved.

The ground shook again, an indication that the gnomes were nearing. Bill noticed this, and quickly crawled out of the cart. As he did, the journal fell out of his jacket. Not knowing what else to do, he desperately flipped through it's pages, hoping to find a solution to this mess. To his dismay, he found nothing of importance, until he reached a certain page filled with rune markings, then an idea started developing.

Then, the five were silent, as the giant pushed through the trees, and stepped into the clearing, towering over them.

"End of the line!" Jeff yelled from the top. "Hand over the boys, or we'll do something crazy!"

"Back off, Jeff!" Wendy shot back, holding up her axe.

The gnome chuckled. "You can fight us off with those weapons all you want, but there will always be more of us, and we won't stop until those twins are in our grasp!"

"Wait!" Bill shouted, moving to the front of the group.

Will looked at him with wide eyes. "Bill, what are you doing?"

The blond didn't reply. He stepped closer to the giant, feeling the combined breath of many gnomes on his skin, making him fight the urge to shudder.

"Maybe, we can make a deal?" Bill offered.

Jeff's eyes squinted suspiciously. "What kind of deal?"

"You leave us alone," He started. "And in return, you get to marry one of the Guardians of the World Balance: Mabel Pines."

"Wait, what now?" Mabel questioned.

Dipper glared at Bill. "What do you think you're doing?"

Bill turned to him and whispered. "Trust me on this."

"Trust you? Are you mad?"

"I know you hate my guts, but I know what I'm doing," Bill shot back. "You just have to believe me."

Mabel regarded Bill thoughtfully, then sighed. "OK, I trust you."

Dipper gaped at his sister in complete shock. "Mabel?"

The female brunette didn't respond. Instead, she stepped past Bill, and confronted the monster before her. "If you leave these boys alone, then I'll happily be your bride."

Wendy and Will looked in distraught, and Dipper seemed at most horrified, while Bill had an unreadable expression.

"Yes, that's what I'm talking about!" Jeff beamed, then proceeded to climb down his brethren.

The little man approached Mabel, and paused before her. He eagerly held out a ring, and the young woman reluctantly allowed him to slip it onto her finger.

"Finally, now let's get you back to the cave," The gnome said.

"You may now kiss the bride," Bill said, suddenly.

Mabel shot him a glare, while Jeff grinned widely.

"Don't mind if I do." He closed his eyes, and puckered his lips towards Mabel.

The Guardian visibly gagged, but leaned in anyway. That was when Bill struck. He stepped in front of Mabel, and opened the journal, where the rune markings glowed blue. Jeff's eyes sprang open, and he gasped upon seeing the sigils aimed at him.

"Hey! What is this--"

"One important lesson today," Bill sneered. "Never mess with my brother."

"Wait, please!" Jeff begged. "Let's think about this! Will, can you tell your brother to calm down a tad?"

Will glared. "I want a divorce."

Jeff gulped, on the same moment when a huge blast of blue light rocketed into him. The gnome screamed in terror, as he was shot into the sky, hitting the giant and breaking the formation. Hundreds of gnomes toppled to the ground, before Wendy chased them back into the forest while banishing her axe.

"That's right, run you little pests!" She shouted at them.

Afterwards, Wendy turned towards the brothers, and rushed up to give them a bear hug. Both were surprised by this, but returned her embrace. Once she released them, she turned to Will with a smile.

"I found something that belongs to you," She said, before pulling out a blue sweater.

Will's eyes lit up. "Yes, thanks so much!" He was handed the sweater, and he quickly pulled it over his head.

Meanwhile, Bill and Dipper stood facing each other in silence. The male brunette rubbed the back of his neck uncomfortably.

"You didn't trade in Mabel," He noted.

Bill creased his brow. "And you thought I would?"

"Well, yeah," Dipper admitted. "And, you used the journal...to save your brother."

"Of course, he did," Will chimed in. "We've always been there for each other."

"Hmm, doesn't that sound like us, Dipping Sauce?" Mabel pointed out, smiling at her brother.

Dipper frowned. "Yeah, it does..."

Wendy moved forward, and looked at Dipper seriously. "Now, do you see where I'm coming from?"

He nodded slowly. "It seems Bill isn't evil...at least, not yet."

"Does that mean you're not gonna kill me?" Bill asked.

"No," Dipper decided, then added quickly. "But, mark my words, Cipher, Mabel and I will be watching you from now on. As for the journal, until I figure out a reversal spell, you are only to use it for self defense."

"And I'll supervise them to keep them safe," Wendy said, smiling at the brothers.

Dipper looked Bill and Will up and down, he looked like he already regretted his decision. However, he didn't admit it, and sheathed his sword before turning to face the forest.

"There are many secrets to this town," He said. He wasn't facing him, but Bill sworn the man was addressing him. "I pray you never discover them."

Mabel waved goodbye to her friend. "See you later, Wendy!"

Then, she took the spot beside her brother, and the two vanished from thin air, with a few bubbles appearing in their place. Bill watched the bubbles pop one by one, before turning to his brother and the huntress.

"So, we just got attacked by gnomes," Bill started. "What now?"

Wendy crossed her arms over chest, and smirked coolly. "You guys have any snacks?"

Will scratched his chin thoughtfully. "I think I saw a vending machine inside."

"Great," Bill smiled. "I bet I can fit 10 expired marshmallows in my mouth!"

"Please don't," Will told him.

"Yeah, Bill," Wendy said. "Don't be a coward, do 20."

The blond laughed. "Now we're taking, Red!"

Will sighed.

❇❇❇

Later, the Pine twins were standing in a starless landscape. Mabel stood aside, while her brother paced anxiously in front of her.

"Dipper, maybe you should calm down," She suggested.

"How can I?" He remarked. "When I just let the most dangerous being on earth live!"

Mabel shrugged. "Wendy was right. Bill is a kid, now."

"A kid with the journal!"

"At least, he hasn't got all three," Mabel reminded. "Speaking of which, did you ever find the other two?"

Dipper exhaled deeply. He had searched the mortal realm for eons, and still haven't found the two other journals. After a while, he gave up on his search, but of course, Mabel wasn't paying attention.

"I tried to, but all I got was nothing," He said. "And I can't believe Journal Number 3 was in some weird looking shack this whole time!"

Mabel grinned. "Yeah, I guess you went looking through monster invested caves for nothing."

Dipper narrowed his eyes. "Not helping."

Mabel was about to respond, when the void was lit up by a scorching light. The twins turned, and saw a raging fireball hurtling towards them. Yet, neither of them were concerned.

It was just their uncle returning.

The fireball barreled into them, and both Guardians felt an arm hugging their shoulders. The light faded, revealing their Great Grunkle Stan.

"Isn't it my favorite knuckleheads!" He chuckled. "You got any treasures for me?"

"Only this," Mabel said, holding up a broken off side mirror from the golf cart.

Stan took it from her, and examined it. "This is useless...I can definitely sell this!"

He buried it in his pocket, and Dipper tugged at his arm to gain the Day Guardian's attention. "Grunkle Stan, something happened in the mortal realm..."

The Pine twins did their best to explain the situation with the Cipher brothers, while their uncle listened intently.

"So, the boy has the journal?" Grunkle Stan breathed, tiny sparks erupting from his fingers.

Dipper bowed his head. "Unfortunately, it is bound to him. Bill should be the last one to hold something that belongs to..."

He trailed off, and Stan regarded him sorrowfully. "I miss him too, kid..." He started. "So, the destroyer of our worlds, is now a 15 year old in shorts?"

"Not to mention, also his brother," Mabel pointed out. "The innocent one, named Will Cipher."

Stan's lips thinned, and he seemed weary. "Listen, kiddos. I think you should listen to your tree hugging friend on this one."

Dipper blinked. "But, Cipher--"

"Is a completely different person now," The old man said. "Unless he's opposing a real threat, I don't want you attacking him unprovoked."

The brunette looked ready to protest, but he grew silent instead, grumbling under his breath.

Stan frowned. "Besides, he's not the one you should worry about..."

"What do you mean, Grunkle Stan?" Mabel asked.

"There are more Demons out there, waiting to turn Bill back into the monster he once was. Our new plan of action: is to get Bill on our side, before they get him on theirs."

Dipper narrowed his eyes. "What if we can't?"

Stan's eyes darkened behind his glasses. "Then, we'll have a very powerful enemy, and we won't expect to defeat him so easily."

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