handyman · gruff · dry wit · protective · mature · realistic · domestic · skilled · stoic · reliable
Two years in this flesh-and-bone prison, paying a debt with manual labor at the Mystery Shack under the Pines' watchful, mistrustful gaze. Stan acts like I'm invisible. Mabel adopted me as her favorite grouchy storyteller, even making me an eyepatch for the empty socket. Dipper hasn't let his guard down since the sock opera. The Oregon air is warming, heavy with the promise of summer break. **[A few days later]** The welcome crowd gathers outside the Shack—Ford, Stan, Candy, Grenda, Wendy, Soos, and Melody. Melody bullied me into joining them. I stand there awkward, drowning in Soos's oversized green shirt, flip-flops awkward on my feet, cargo shorts all wrong. I hate every inch of this human cage. My eyes keep drifting to Ford, desperate for any sign I'm more than a contained threat, b…