Dipper's POV

Wendy lead me out onto the roof of the mall. She told me about how she had been scouting from up here to see how the town was doing. She told me every time she came up here, everything was worse than before.

She told me that it was still changing.

Standing on that roof and looking down at the town just close enough made me realize that it was even worse than I imagined.

"Man...this isn't going well..." I sighed. I held a Pit Cola in my hands that Wendy had given to me to drink.

"I know, right? I just can't believe that your Eleanor friend is the cause of all of this." Wendy said as she sat down next to me.

I tightened my grip on the can. "No. She was tricked. That's all."

Wendy seemed to take the hint that it was a touchy subject and then left it alone. "What do you think we can do to stop all of this?"

"First, we've got to save Eleanor and then find a way to un-stone Mabel." I explained. I slipped my free hand in my pocket and held the Mabel statue gently. "We've got to win this...I can't just give up and leave Mabel like this..."

Wendy nodded understandably. "I get it. I miss Mabel too, man. It's weird without her crazy demeanor."

My throat tightened. "Yeah. Me too." I leaned up against Wendy's shoulder. "I hope we can do something about all of this."

Wendy patted my head in a mocking sort of way. "Mhm.."

I finished up my drink and stood up. I looked down and flung it to the ground. The oddest thing happened, when it bounced off of thin air and then landed in the street. "What the?" I leaned over and stared down.

The air suddenly began to static where the can had bounced and a human form began to take shape. It was Blendin again.

"What? Blendin? What are you doing back here?!" I called down.

He gasped and looked up. "I'm trying to fix this, but Bill has stopped all of our forces!"

"What can you do?!" I called down.

"I-I...uh..." Blendin seemed hesitant to answer. "Oh no, my cover's been blown!" He pulled out the tape measure and disappeared into a different time.

"NO!" I angrily crossed my arms. "Well, that certainly was a helpful waste of my time."

Wendy shrugged. "He's no use anyways." Wendy murmured before she took a slow sip of her soda. "How can we get in?" She asked.

"I usually climb up the mountain and enter the bubble that way, but Bill knows where I am. I don't know if he'll take you or-"

"Dude. It's fine. If he...captures me, I know that you'll stop him afterwards." Wendy sighed and threw her soda can down too.

"Should we get going?" I asked reluctantly.

Wendy gave me a curt nod, her eyes stern. "Definitely."

I helped her up and we walked back into the mall and went towards the exit.

"So, what is it even like in there?" She asked.

"It's all black tile, and she's chained to the ground that are, I guess, enchanted. It's weird in there..it's pretty creepy."

Wendy pushed open the door and stepped out after me. "Are you sure you can't take off that bracelet thing?"

"Nope. I've tried as hard as I could. I think only Bill can take it off." I said bluntly.

"Oh...that sucks." Wendy said as she twirled her axe around.

"Yeah, I kinda figured that out already." I huffed. We walked through town, which was pretty much deserted of people, and tried to avoid being turned to stone.

"How are you going to get Mabel back?" Wendy asked after a moment of silence between us.

"I...I don't know..." The doubt was overcrowding my thoughts. Part of me knew that this was permanent and, again, only Bill could undo it. We were coming close to the barren lands, now.

Wendy gave me a sympathetic look. "Dude, look, nothing here is impossible. If Bill can do it, why can't we do it eventually too?" She said encouragingly.

"Because! When he was in Gruncle Stan's mind, we were able to conjure up what ever we needed to help defeat him! But now he has those same powers, but in reality where we can't do anything we want to."

Wendy frowned, deep in thought. "We can think of something, it's not over yet."

I lowered my gaze. I think it already is...

Eleanor's POV

Oh God, Dipper. This couldn't be happening. Bill was going to do something to harm Dipper! I had begged him not to, but Bill simply shook his finger and ranted on about how it was either deal or no deal. He had left me alone to fear for Dipper and his safety.

"Dipper....I'm not accepting the deal for myself and you guys, but I'm also causing more havoc by not accepting it." I shook my head. "I wish I could save you all both ways." I glanced at the entry way Dipper always uses. "If I accept the deal it's going to be the same story from when I was a demon."

I curled up pathetically. Maybe Dipper would just forget about me and just leave me here. I was starting to think that if Dipper just ignored me then he and everyone else would be safe. But I could bet that Dipper was worrying his head off about me, which was cute, but I didn't need it.

I reached out and grabbed the smashed pieces of the walkie-talkie and held them gently. Was it sad that I was hugging broken pieces of a walkie-talkie? Probably. Was it sad that it was the only thing I had to remember Dipper by? Yes. I wanted him here with me so he could comfort me.

No matter how much we upset each other, Dipper would come back up the mountain in a minute for me. And that's all I needed. I pushed away my sorrow.

All I needed was Dipper.

Dipper's POV

Wendy and I finally made our way through town, only one encounter with the eyeball bats had sent us fleeing desperately. I stood at the very edge, staring at the orb and the long stretch of open land.

"You ready for this?" I asked bravely.

Wendy held out her axe. "Of course."

"Ok, now be prepared, this is where we can get spotted." I warned. "Ready... Go!" Wendy and I dashed out of cover and raced onto the dry and cracked ground.

My feet slammed into the ground, sending up puffs of dust. If my luck was well, Bill wouldn't notice or care that I was coming back with someone and no creature would find us.

Guess what.

My luck wasn't well.

We barely made it half way across when the squirrel, now large again, came leaping into our way. I screamed and almost toppled backwards.

"You again!" I growled.

The squirrel pounced at me and I rolled out of the way with Wendy.

"What is that?!" She exclaimed in shock. Wendy held up her axe fearlessly.

"I don't know! But it called Bill out one time, who's saying it won't do it again?!" I stood stiffly beside Wendy as the squirrel chittered and dug it's claw armed paws into the ground.

The creature dashed right at us and Wendy gave a war-scream and flung her axe at it, embedding the blade in its eye.  The giant squirrel howled in pain as it tried to dig out the axe.

"DIPPER! Run! You gotta save your friend!" Wendy ordered.

"No! I can't just leave you here!" I cried. I went to stand up, but the creature hissed and smacked me to the ground painfully. "Wendy!"

She swerved to the right and launched herself into the creature like a ninja. She clambered up its back.

"WENDY! Are you crazy?!" I struggled to my feet, but my entire body was bruised and sore, making it impossible to jump to her.

The creature gave a shriek and shook her off. Wendy gasped and hit the ground with a thud.

"NO!" I went to run up to her, but the squirrel intervened as its body blocked my way and view of Wendy. The squirrel was stumbling around, trying to get the axe out of its eye. I raced around to see her struggling to get to her feet.

A shadow was suddenly cast down and my gaze shot up to see one of the eyeball-bats flying down towards Wendy. I dove away and tried to reach Wendy.

"Wendy! Watch out!" I cried.

The bat flew down and Wendy looked horrified as she tried to get up. She turned to me and reached out. "DIPPER!"

"I'm trying-"

"Go save Eleanor!!!" The bat turned her to stone and lifted her up.

"NO! NO WENDY!" I dropped to my knees in shock and pain as the look of stern realization that it was over, was planted on her face forever. She was lifted to the sky and I was now left alone.

Alone.

"WENDY! I'm sorry!" I began crying and hid my face in my hands. "I'm sorry!" I felt anger begin to build in my chest. "Your risk won't be in vein, Wendy." I growled at the pyramid where she had been taken. "I'll free Eleanor, no matter what it costs. For you."