PART 1:
A week after the Manor Staff Meeting, the twins are training with Arline, alternating between the two of them, the same way they have been doing since word got out. Mabel steps up to take her turn as Dipper takes her spot on the couch next to Stan. As Mabel and Arline practice, Dipper thinks over the past week.
The Warlock had somehow rearranged the wall of his cell, and the police didn't notice until a half hour after he had left, completely loosing him. Dipper had realized just how lucky they had been, all the kids splitting up, none of them aware the Warlock was out. This realization caused everyone to agree that they travel in pairs from now on- no one goes anywhere alone, and they all have to be ready at any time. Yuki had wondered if everything was a big misunderstanding, but everyone else said it wasn't, more books having disappeared from the library.
Dipper says they should go looking for the Warlock, but Stan says he's not going anywhere. Wendy comes out, saying that they will be ready when the fight does come, even though Mabel gets beaten by Arline as she is saying this. Arline tells Mabel she'll be able to beat her in a few years, she and Wendy saying you can't rush stuff. Stan says you can, Arline challenging him to a fight. Yuki and Soos come outside as the two warm up, both completely serious.
Stan's first step shakes the earth, everyone looking around, the fight forgotten. Dipper is the first to see a large plume of dark smoke coming from town. Before Stan can stop them, the twins jump on Mabel's bike and rush into town. Traffic has stopped as people in and out of vehicles try to run away from the source of the smoke. Mabel stops the bike for all of five seconds as Candy and Grenda run up, telling them the gas station near the Bargains Depot exploded.
Mabel takes off again and in under a minute, they arrive at what is left of the buildings. The gas station has completely disappeared, taking half of the store with it, the other half still a flaming mess. Luckily, no bodies are visible. However, they do see a group on gnomes taking plants from the greenhouse attached to the Bargains Depot. Dipper is sure the gnomes helped the Warlock and caused the explosion, but Mabel is less certain, wondering why they would do all that just to steal plants. The two get back on the bike and start heading back to the Manor as police arrive on the scene.
They make it back to the Manor, Stan trying to keep the Manor guests calm as everyone else waits on the porch, Waddles included. Telling the tourists to go visit Portland, Stan comes over as the twins explain what they saw. Waddles oinks at the woods as the people debate why the gnomes stole plants, Mabel saying it doesn't make sense as Waddles oinks at the woods again. Stan says why doesn't matter, it just matters that the gnomes were willing to go in town and are working with the Warlock, so they are willing to go to war with people.
A voice from the woods says it's more complicated than that, Multi-bear lumbering out of the forest. He says he knows about what happened in town and asks Stan to let the twins come into the woods with him. Stan refuses, but Multi-bear recommends Soos and Wendy come as well, and Stan gives permission when they agree. The four of them follow Multi-bear into the forest, tension thick in the air.
Multi-bear leads them over a hill to a large clearing, a table made from a tree in the middle. Around the clearing is gnomes, goblins, werewolves, manotaurs, lilliputtians, fae, vampires and elves, each group keeping their distance from the others, glaring hate at other groups from a distance. As they all look around, across the clearing they see a figure in the shadows, a black hooded cloak preventing any features from being visible. Multi-bear says the figure is the Guardsman, an ancient spirit who's job is to guard the heart of the forest.
Twinkle-Moon clacks two rocks together and begins the second recorded inter-species council meeting, leaders of each group taking places at the table. The twins observe as Jeff accuses Gib and the goblins of kidnapping and ransoming gnomes, although Gib denies everything. Jeff defends the gnomes stealing plants to pay the ransom, which we find out is what sparked the meeting, although there is more than that being discussed. Leaderaur and the manotaurs accuse the werewolves of taking their video games. The Alpha werewolf says they didn't take them, the manotaurs' video games not being made for werewolves, but Leaderaur says they smelled werewolf in the man-cave. Twinkle-Moon tells them to calm down, Franz coming up and accusing the fairies of levitating their friends. Twinkle-Moon and a fae woman behind him deny this, saying none of their tracking spells were alerted before mentioning the lilliputtians civil war. Franz slaps Twinkle-Moon and fighting breaks out around the clearing, Multi-bear, the twins and their friends, and the Guardsman the only ones not involved.
The twins say that everyone's story is similar- everyone has had something taken or were picked on in some way. Dipper admits that he jumped the gun with the gnomes working with the Warlock, but he has no clue what's actually going on, no one thinking anyone lied about what happened, even though the stories contradict. Wendy says that whatever it is is having the same effect on everyone, the twins realizing that that's just it- someone is getting the forest creature riled up and mad at each other, and it's working.
Multi-bear roars and the fighting stops, all attention turning to the twins and their friends. Half of the groups present sneer at them, but everyone pays attention as Wendy confirms that no one has done anything to anyone else recently, although she gets weird looks from some of the groups, not having had met many of them. The twins explain about the Warlock and how they think he is behind all of the problems, but practically no one present believes them, Twinkle-Moon and the fae woman mentioning that without evidence, the groups would more than likely go to war against each other.
Dipper offers to bring the evidence to them, he and Mabel volunteering to go into town and find the culprit. While a number of those present seem enthusiastic, many more are disinterested, Twinkle-Moon and Franz still sniping at each other. Mabel says they can't leave- the groups would go to war without them monitoring the proceedings. Dipper offers to find someone to mediate the meeting, but very few approve, Twinkle-Moon reminding him that it's a meeting for non-human woods inhabitants.
Multi-bear mentions Wendy being undead, and that she has minimal past experience with everyone present, and offers her to be the mediator. Wendy refuses as the groups debate, but is encouraged by the twins, Dipper doing the zipping his lips causing her to agree. Franz is the one to refuse vocally, saying she is too young to know about forest politics, but he is interrupted. The Guardsman has begun to move, walking around the table as everyone present stares in fear. Arriving in front of Wendy, a male voice says, "She will do," a hand with a black glove patting her shoulder before he returns to his guard position.
As everyone recovers, Multi-bear explains that the Guardsman has not been seen for hundreds of years, but disobeying him is more than a death sentence. Dipper says he's glad he's with them, Mabel wondering if he'll like a coloring book as Twinkle-Moon gives Wendy authority over the meeting. Soos offers to stay as well to act as bodyguard, Wendy giving the twins permission to go find the Warlock, or whoever it is that has been causing trouble.
Calling the others as they go into town on Mabel's bike, they update everyone except Zander (who didn't answer) about the coming war. They arrive at what is left of the gas station and Bargains Depot, Candy and Grenda meeting them there. They quickly find a turf of fur, Mabel sniffing it and confirming that it belongs to Folbrow, the hunter-turned-werewolf.
Candy and Grenda think about how to hurt him when they eventually get him, Candy pulling out a spray she made as Dipper leads them somewhere. He says that since Folbrow doesn't have magic and isn't really up-to-date tech-wise, he must be using something old-school and practically untraceable- payphones.
PART 2:
With everyone in town distracted by the fire, no one notices Folbrow as he walks through the crowd. Job done, he steps into a payphone booth to call the Warlock. After several rings, Graupner picks up, the sounds of machinery in the background. Folbrow tells him the gnomes have their friends back and the plants are in place, making Graupner happy that they have werewolf influence on them and he can use them as test subjects for-
Folbrow cuts him off, demanding his cure, saying he's done everything from attack the twins to putting scrolls around town to something about a tracking spell. Graupner tells his him assistance has been less helpful than he thinks, and he still has a long way to go to earn back his cure. The Warlock is about to give Folbrow a new set of instructions but a brick comes crashing through the phone booth, breaking half of the phone.
Folbrow hangs up and turns to see the twins, Candy and Grenda staring at him, Grenda with a second brick in her hands, Mabel having been able to smell him out, an after-effect of her being a werewolf. She summons him to the second recorded Inter-Species Council Meeting as he steps out of the phone booth, snarling at them.
He tells them to leave, blaming Dipper for turning him into a werewolf. Dipper admits that that's technically kind-of true, but says he got what he deserved for trying to kill him and Jess, Mabel reminding him that he's used up his three strikes. Folbrow tells them to leave and that they are outmatched without Arline and Mabel no longer being a werewolf. Dipper tells him he and Mabel have been training all week, Grenda is on the wrestling team, and what Candy has planned is even worse. They've all gotten better, Folbrow hasn't.
Realizing this, Folbrow starts to run, the kids following him. Candy says they won't be able to catch up- biology means Folbrow will always be able to outrun them. Mabel says they need some traps, Dipper pulling out the Journal and flipping to a page that had a plant with purple flowers on it. Mabel asks where they're going to get wolfsbane, Dipper saying they won't- backup will. He pulls out his phone and calls the Manor, Yuki picking up. Dipper tells Yuki to get to town and help them with a plan he has, and to get hold of Zander.
Wendy's patience is wearing thin as Jeff and Gib stand across from each other on the table, having a shouting match. Jeff attacks first, the two of them beginning to wrestle as their friends attack each other, the other groups eventually joining in the fighting. Twinkle-Moon tries to calm everyone down, to no avail, and Wendy screams at everyone to shut up, ordering the leaders back to their seats.
She asks everyone for a real suggestion, Jeff mentioning alliances. He accuses the Goblins and Fairies, and Multi-bear, of making deals with humans, specifically the twins. The fae woman denies this, but the vampires and almost everyone else present agree with Jeff, to Wendy's horror. The elves are the only ones not taking sides, and Wendy tries to find an ally in them. However, it turns out the elves snuck into the meeting, and elves are not native to Gravity Falls, so the manotaurs kick them out.
The Fae woman and the Alpha werewolf realize that humans have been causing a lot of problems recently, taking their land, making them take each other's land, and preventing them from hunting effectively. Wendy tells them they can't go to war with humans, the Fae woman telling her to stay neutral or she will no longer be mediator. Wendy tries to call a recess, but the Fae woman, who turns out to be the Fae Queen Tysanae tells her she has no authority over her.
A black glove touches her shoulder, the Guardsman telling her to calm down. Wendy orders a recess as the Guardsman returns to his guard position, everyone glancing at him in concern as the groups begin talking to their friends. Wendy wonders why the Guardsman only stepped in then, when she was being messed with, as opposed to before when the groups were threatening war with humans. Multi-bear says that, while he doesn't exactly know what his job is, the Guardsman's job is more important than anything else, even protecting those in town or preventing war.
Wendy stares at the mythical figure, her wraith senses, the same ones that allowed her to pick up on Shapeshifter Dipper and tell the Starkissed Stone was powerful, are picking up nothing on the Guardsman. Wondering what he is that allows him to blend in to the shadows so completely, Wendy walks closer to the motionless figure. She asks if he wants to say anything, but he shakes him head slightly, saying he does not get involved in the matters of the other residents of the woods. Wendy asks if he's above them or something, making him snort with laughter and say that he's not, but what he guards is.
Wendy focuses on something behind him- a clearing with sparkling gemstones littering the ground, mossy rocks in a circle in the middle. Around the circle of rocks is the four golems who attacked them when the twins took the Starkissed Stone. Wendy asks the Guardsman if he knows the golems, telling him about their attack when he says he does. He says that he and the golems have the same task- he is the one who ordered them to protect the Heart of the Forest.
Wendy goes back to her seat, putting two and two together- the Starkissed and the Heart of the Forest are the same thing, and the twins had accidentally taken it almost two months ago. Realizing that the Stone is more special than she realized, she sits back down, Soos telling her that while she was talking to the Guardsman, members of each group started talking to each other. Wendy looks around to see the groups inter-mingling, not fighting for once, appearing to compare notes before going to a different group. And many of them occasionally glance at her and Soos.
Back in town, Mabel is leading the chase against Fulbrow, keeping pace but unable to gain ground. Dipper, a few feet behind, tells her that while backup is coming, they need to slow him down. Mabel tells Dipper and her friend to keep chasing Fulbrow, herself diving into an alley and climbing onto the roofs of the buildings. She now has a height advantage. and she is able to watch as her friends continue the chase, Fulbrow unaware she is above him.
Folbrow starts climbing a building across the street from where Mabel is, leaping up fifteen feet in one bound. Mabel backs up as far as possible and sprints towards the road, casting a shadow over her friends as she first leaps to a telephone pole, then to a streetlight. She runs along the light pole before leaping to the one on the side of the street Folbrow is on. She jumps to another phone pole, but it wobbles, and she is forced to jump straight at Folbrow, still clinging to the side of the building.
He is able to hold on during the initial impact, but Mabel quickly kicks off the side of the building, sending both of them plummeting to the ground. A familiar voice calls to Mabel, and she is able to angle herself correctly, Yuki catching her easily and placing her on the ground as Fulbrow hits next to them, still fighting.
The twins attack first, tag-teaming and landing some solid blows before Grenda charges in. She slams a trashcan over his head, pinning his arms as she hits him with a makeshift bat she made from the trash can lid. Folbrow extends his claws, cutting through the trash can and roaring in Grenda's face. Grenda responds in kind, head-butting him and sending him into a nearby power pole. Before he can recover, Candy steps up, spraying him the the face with her homemade mace, causing him to howl loud enough for the entire town to hear.
Covering their ears from the ear-splitting howl, Folbrow destroys the power pole, picking it up to use as a weapon. He lifts it up, wind blowing past the twins as he lowers it, giving them no time to react, the two of them still half-deaf. However, Yuki was able to respond in time, catching the pole and preventing it from hurting anyone. Tossing it aside harmlessly, Folbrow can only stare as Yuki says he is Xabvri and punches him across the face, sending him flying back into a parked car.
Yuki says that, while his species doesn't condone fighting, he can make an exception to those who try to hurt him and his friends. Folbrow, somehow, is still able to run away, Yuki preparing to chase after him when screeching tires distract the five of them. They turn around to see Zander's vehicle behind them, Pacifica walking over with a hunting rifle on her back. She says that Zander wasn't picking up, but she still has keys from when she stayed with him while her parents had kicked her out. Loading the rifle, she aims at the fleeing werewolf. Dipper tells her they need him to talk, Pacifica saying it'll be hard after this, shooting him before anyone can say anything else, Folbrow hits the ground, motionless.
Wendy calls an end to the recess, everyone regathering around the table, the Alpha werewolf staring in the direction of town like he has been doing since everyone heard a howl from that direction. Wendy asks them what they were talking about during the break, Gib saying that they had been looking at their situation from one perspective. This makes Wendy happy, until Twinkle-Moon says that they all have one common enemy- humans.
Wendy tries to stall what she knows is coming, Twinkle-Moon turning to the leaders of each group present, every one of them citing a specific issue they have that has been caused by human influence. Wendy tells them to invite the people to the meeting place and talk to them, promising the people will listen if they handle everything in a civilized manner. Jeff says they won't, the last humans he met having either run away or attack him with a sledgehammer. Twinkle-Moon says that humans take up fifteen percent of the land in the area, which would be enough for all the races to avoid each other and the problems they currently have.
Wendy says they are just blaming the problems on someone else, saying that if they do that, the problems will never be solved. She asks what happened at the first meeting, Twinkle-Moon pulling out the record. The first meeting was held almost 500 years ago, the Guardsman (though he was called Guardian then) overseeing the meeting to promote peace between the races. Wendy asks what they plan on doing, joking about starting a war, everyone giving each other looks that say that was exactly what they were planning, although Franz calls it a 'forced relocation.' Wendy, knowing that the people in town wouldn't leave without a fight, tells them they can't do that, though she doesn't have a solid reason why.
Luckily, the twins do- the problems everyone was complaining about at the beginning haven't been coming from the town. Yuki chucks a loopy Folbrow onto the table, the Alpha werewolf Daggard not recognizing him. Mabel tells them how he is, telling them he;s still feeling the effects of the tranquilizer Pacifica used on him, the blonde noticing the Guardsman staring at them. Twinkle-Moon enchants strings, tying them around Folbrow and pinning him to the table.
He casts another spell and interrogates Fulbrow, confirming that he is working for the Warlock an that he was the one who caused all the trouble. The only bit of new information we get is that Graupner has several allies working with him, and he will stop at nothing to make sure he gets the power he wants. Tysanea, the Fae Queen, hurls Folbrow across the table in front of Daggard and the other werewolves, telling them to deal with him.
The Guardsman speaks up again, telling the werewolves to remove Folbrow immediately. Daggard's pack takes Folbrow away, the Guardsman telling everyone to finish the meeting. The leaders quickly agree to a Neutrality Pact- no more fighting among each other without another meeting- and an Omission to Violence- they don't attack anyone in town without sufficient evidence of intentional wrongdoing. Wendy officially concludes the meeting, the groups dispersing.
Yuki says that the new laws are kind of vague, but Multi-bear says that, with the Guardsman present, no one will try to break them. Pacifica says the Guardsman creeps her out, she and Yuki leaving, Candy and Grenda following behind them. Multi-bear complements the twins and Wendy on them helping to prevent a war, but tells them that Folbrow truly believes they are doomed, Twinkle-Moon's spell preventing him from lying. the twins shrug this off, saying they've gotten through things people thought were a death sentence before, and Multi-bear leaves. Mabel walks over to the Guardsman, giving him a coloring book of baby animals and a box of crayons. Dipper wonders if he could get some answers out of the Guardsman, but he guesses not, and they all leave him alone, happy they were able to stop a war.
In a mine running deep underneath town, two men walk in on the Warlock while he is looking over notes. They tell him the Boss was on the line and asked for an update. Graupner tells them to tell the Boss he may have found a potential resource, and the two men leave. The Warlock casts a spell, a blue portal showing a freeze-frame of Yuki about to punch Folbrow. Graupner says he's glad he knows what Yuki is finally, saying that he would be more useful alive than dead. Happy the spell he used to track and record someone for a day worked, and noting to himself to use it again, he changes the image to Folbrow tied up during the meeting. Saying that he heard him mentioned, he rotates the image and focuses it on the Guardsman, though he calls him Guardian. Noting that his appearance at the meeting means someone was right, he pulls out two maps. The very old one shows the landscape of a certain area, the new one one of modern Gravity Falls. Noting that the two are practically identical, Graupner says that they have almost found it.
Cryptograms:
Slqb Tbkav clo Doxsfqv Cxiip Jxvlo 2015! Xka Txaaibp clo Sfzb-Jxvlo!
Vote Wendy for Gravity Falls Mayor 2015! And Waddles for Vice-Mayor!
Cbee bgg srglcy igd tuk berul, ut fnulc wzqn uoxe. Nkwz yba qaegwd af lir nddws fgee, zw ktayr jrvvape. Auq wrwuteq hs a crfs-gbty pirlqcgul, ik'v kmfrzs adlke: fnrme gugyifkm bilfs hbvys kr s ialcuru psz oa zbe suazk bl ubpvk. Keyword
When you search for the heart, it shall then hide. When you wander as for walks sake, it shall preside. Now watched by a long-gone protector, it's safety amiss: false promises bring hopes to a wayward man on the brink of abyss.
Sv olevw gsv xlolirmt yllp. He loved the coloring book.
