Summary:
After Pearl begins teaching Dipper and Connie sword fighting, Steven and Mabel start to worry that their lessons are taking a dangerous turn.
It was a picture-perfect sort of summer night; skies aglow from the radiant moon and the shining stars as the distant roar of the glistening waterfall filled the warm air. From his spot on the edge of the nearby cliff, Dipper smiled as he took it all in. And that smile only widened as he glanced over at the Gem sitting beside him.
"Hey, uh, Lapis?" She didn't look away from the starry skies, but he could tell she was listening to him all the same. She always did. "I just… I wanted to let you know how good it feels to finally have you back."
He waited for her to say something, but instead, her smile only deepened. Almost as if she was expecting him to go on–something that Dipper was more than happy to do. "To be honest, I didn't think we'd ever be back here again. When you were gone, everything just felt so wrong. I had no idea how to help you, a-and I'm still not really sure how I did. But that doesn't matter anymore."
He laughed in spite of himself, wiping away the joyful tears that were threatening to fall when he looked up at Lapis again. Lapis, who was safe, free, and by his side again. "All that matters now is that you're ok. And now that you are, maybe things will finally be better for both of us, just like I said before."
For the first time all evening, Lapis finally spoke. "Aw, that's cute," she cooed, grinning. At the same time, Dipper's smile slowly fell as he noticed something strange. Despite the light of the moon shining down upon them both, the shadows gathered on Lapis' face were strangely thick and dark. He couldn't see her eyes no matter how hard he tried. "But Dipper?"
A sudden shiver slid down Dipper's spine, despite the balmy evening air. He had no idea where it came from or the reason behind it. Or why his heart suddenly picked up a beat when he hesitantly asked, "Uh, yeah?"
"If you're so worried about saving me," Lapis's smile went wide–too wide. "Then who's going to save YOU?!"
Dipper froze stiff, raw fear sweeping through him when "Lapis's" voice starkly shifted into one he hoped to never hear again. Only now could he finally see her eyes, blazing bright gold as their narrow black slits stared straight down to his soul. He'd seen those exact same eyes before–
On his own body right after he'd been torn out of it by Bill Cipher.
"N-no," Dipper barely managed to choke the word out. He scrambled to his feet, backing away from both Bill and the Gem he'd somehow gotten his clutches on. A Gem who didn't deserve to go through anything close to what he'd been through at the demon's hands. "No, not her! Please-"
"What's the matter, Pine Tree?" Bill taunted. His twisted grin looked so out of place on Lapis' familiar face that it nearly made Dipper sick. "Don't tell me you actually thought you saved Water Wings here? Give me a break! Your chances of doing anything for her are about as slim as you figuring out that password are–if that dumb old laptop was still in one piece, anyway!"
Dipper barely stifled a terrified cry when Bill took a step closer to him. Absently, he covered his shoulder with his hand, if only to protect it from any knives the demon might somehow have on him. "Y-you're not–Why are you still-" He cut himself off, struggling to speak, to stand, to even think against his rising panic and pressing tears. "Why won't you just leave me alone already!? You already got what you wanted, so just… just let her go and go away!"
"No can do, kid," Bill shrugged, unsympathetic. "See, I realized neither one of us really lived up to their end of the deal. So I decided to go ahead and dredge Water Wings up from the bottom of the lake and bring her all the way here, just for you! Pretty thoughtful of me, don't ya think?"
"W-what?" Dipper asked, every bit as disturbed as he was confused. "No! This isn't what I-"
"Now, now, Pine Tree, there'll be plenty of time to thank me later," Bill continued pressing forward, all while Dipper continued to nervously back away. "For now, it looks like I'm one puppet short. Think you can help me out with that?"
Dipper tried to protest, but when he opened his mouth, nothing came out. His voice was stolen from him, just like it had been that awful day he'd spent stuck in the mindscape. And if that wasn't bad enough, that wasn't the only thing he was losing either. His heart was still pounding away in his chest, fueled by terror, by grief, by anguish, until, all at once–
It stopped.
He stumbled forward, suddenly unable to breathe and somehow surviving despite that, but just barely. He clawed at his chest for answers, but instead of skimming cloth and skin, his hands hit hard, solid wood. A glance down revealed the horrific truth–this spell, or curse, or whatever it was, it was spreading, and fast. He could only watch in panic-stricken silence as his arms stiffened, his shoulders and elbows turning into nothing more than hinges. At the same time, his fingers fused together, every bit as immobile as both of his limbs were as they swung back down to his sides. And of course, all the while, Bill stood by, still wearing Lapis' face as he simply laughed at his 'puppet's' suffering.
"Relax, kid! I just thought I'd help you look the part," he merely smirked when Dipper looked up at him, unable to beg, yell, scream, anything. "Just be lucky I didn't decide to go the sock route instead–that would have really been ugly. Besides, I think wood is a much better look for a Pine Tree like you anyway!"
By now, Dipper could feel his legs hollowing out and hardening, just as his arms had before them. Without warning, they gave out beneath him, and he fell–backwards over the edge of the cliff behind him.
He couldn't do anything to stop his fall, any more than he could stop the wood from reaching his face. His mouth spread wide, freezing into a permanent smile as his jaw swung open from its new hinge. Strangely, he could still see when his eyes became painted, eternally-open, and even stranger yet, they could still produce tears. Plenty fell down his unfeeling face as he continued to fall into an unending void–until something suddenly yanked him right back up. Dipper couldn't move his now fully-wooden body, couldn't even try, but he could still feel the string attaching to his arms and legs. At first, he simply jostled as he hung limply from the crossbar they were connected to–until his cruel "puppeteer" took control.
"Not so fast, Pine Tree!" Bill was back in his usual triangular form–whatever he'd done with Lapis, Dipper had no idea. Not that it mattered anyway. Just like Bill had said–how could he ever hope to help her if he couldn't do a single thing to help himself? "You never got to finish your performance! It'd be such a shame if you didn't get to have an ENCORE!"
Bill's laughter, unhinged and insane, was all that echoed through the void as he made his puppet 'dance'. Dipper could do nothing to stop his limbs from frantically flailing under the crossbar's control. He could do nothing to stop the bright blue flames spreading straight from Bill's hand, down the strings keeping him bound. He could do nothing to stop that same sickening feeling he'd felt before–of his soul being savagely ripped straight out a body that barely even felt like it was his anymore.
He could do nothing to stop this, any of this. It would just keep going, over and over again, in an awful cycle that would never end. He'd never escape this, never be free from it, unless he–
He opened his eyes. And instead of Bill hanging high above him, only the dark attic ceiling did instead.
Still, he bolted upright in bed, unable to bite back a pained yelp when his side and shoulder painfully protested. That alone was enough of a sign that he was back to being flesh and blood, but he skimmed his chest and face to make sure. Sure enough, his heart was there and it was racing with terror he couldn't shake even as he tightly wrapped his arms around his aching torso.
"Dipper…?" Mabel groggily sat up soon after him. She frowned as she wiped the sleep from her eyes and looked over at him, barely managing to keep it together. "Oh my gosh, Dipper!" she bolted out of bed as soon as she noticed him hugging himself, his face tightly twisted with untold agony. "A-are you ok?! Should I wake up Grunkle Stan? Or call Steven? O-or–"
"N-no," Dipper cut her off as he forced air back into his lungs. "I… I'm fine…"
"You sure don't look like you're fine…" Mabel noted, worried.
"Well, I am," Dipper insisted as he let out a deep breath. It was enough to calm him down–at least on the surface. Still, he had a feeling that the shadow of such a horrendous nightmare wouldn't leave him that easily. "I was just a little sore, is all. It's really no big deal, Mabel."
"I wish you'd stop saying that. You almost died the other day, Dipper. That's a pretty big deal to me."
"S-so what?" Dipper tried his best to offer her a reassuring smile. Even if smiling was just about the last thing he felt like doing right now. "We almost die every other day. It's not like mortal danger is anything new around here."
"Yeah, but this is different," Mabel rubbed her arm, still refusing to look him in the eye. She hadn't been able to for a while now, not since– "Dipper, I… there was… I found-" She cut herself off. Now wasn't the time for this, clearly. If she was perfectly honest with herself, she wasn't sure if there'd ever be a time for it at all. "N-nevermind," she retreated back to her bed. "Just try to get some sleep, o-ok?"
"Yeah… sleep…" Dipper sighed as he lay back down. He turned away from Mabel, absently rubbing his bandaged hand as he readied himself for another lonely night up. Whatever it took to keep himself out of those awful nightmares. Whatever it took to keep himself out of Bill's reach.
Whatever it took to keep him from feeling even more helpless than he already did.
"The sun is bright, our shirts are clean, we're sitting up above the scene–"
"Come on and share this jam with me!"
Steven's voice rang out, bright and clear, through the morning air. He'd chosen a peculiar perch for today's picnic–atop one of the temple statue's high up hands. Still, his friends joined him for the bird's eye view and a welcome change of pace from the past few days–a jam session, in more ways than one.
Connie grinned down at their meal of biscuits and jam as she picked up the tune on her violin. "Peach or plum or strawberry, any kind is fine with me–"
"Come on and share this jam with me!"
"I'll do my best to give this jam the sweetness it deserves–"
"And I'll keep it fresh! I'm jamming on these tasty preserves!" Steven jumped back in before they both brought it all together.
"Ingredients in harmony, we mix together perfectly-"
"Come on and share this jam with me!"
With one final note on both instruments, the song came to an end as Steven let out a warm laugh. "Woo! Jam buds!'
"Nice jam session," Connie chuckled as she put her violin away.
Despite their high spirits, Mabel hadn't even smiled once during their song, Instead, she could only watch, her heart sinking as they playfully 'toasted' their jam-covered biscuits with an equally playful wink. It was only when Steven handed one over to her that she managed to snap herself out of it. "T-thanks," she said, blushing as she took a bite. "Um… you guys sounded great, by the way. Don't you think so, Dipper?'
The others looked to him with thin, hopeful smiles, but Dipper didn't return any of them. Instead, he simply let out a soft, solemn sigh as he kept his sights set on the view beyond them. Mabel exchanged a worried glance with Steven and Connie when he did. A few days had already passed since that disastrous puppet show, and yet, it felt like nothing had really changed since. Dipper was still hurt, still refusing healing, still barely smiling or speaking or showing any signs that he was getting any better.
And as for Mabel, Steven, and Connie? They still had no idea how to even begin to help him.
Steven bit his lip as he eyed the bandages peeking out from under Dipper's sleeve. He was half tempted to make another attempt at changing his mind, at convincing him to let him heal those lingering wounds. But in the end, he found he still couldn't say anything close to what he knew he needed to as he let out a halfhearted laugh instead. His picnic plan was failing fast–he had to salvage it somehow. "Um, I think we're all forgetting the best part," he slathered strawberry jam on another biscuit as he held it high. "To all of us jam buds!"
"To jam buds!" Mabel and Connie cheered. Steven barely stifled an excited gasp when he noticed Dipper slowly start to share their smiles, though it was all too short lived. Out of nowhere, a shrill screech pierced the peaceful air as a pack of crows descended upon the group. The second one of them snatched Steven's biscuit clean out of his hands, Connie was on her feet. She swung her violin bow wide and fast, brazenly shouting at the bothersome birds to drive them away.
"Go back to your masters! Tell them we're not afraid of your kind!"
"Heh, thanks for saving my jam snack," Steven grinned, just shy of eating it whole. "Unfortunately, it's not safe from me."
"Whoa, Connie, that was so awesome!" Mabel exclaimed. She didn't even notice that she was blushing again as she stared at Connie, stars in her eyes. "You were all like 'swish!' 'swash!' 'swoosh!' It was like you turned into some kind of super cool sword fighter for a second there!"
"Really?" Connie glanced down at her bow. "I was just swinging this thing around. I don't really know what I'm doing, but I'd love to learn how to use a real sword someday!"
"What, you mean like fencing or something?" Dipper spoke up, suddenly intrigued.
"No, I mean real sword fighting. N-not that I'd actually ever be able to learn or anything…"
"Oh!" Steven abruptly hopped to his feet. He wasted no time beckoning the others along as he made a beeline for the nearby warp pad. "Steven has an idea!"
"You want me to do what?!" Pearl asked, surprised by Steven's sudden request.
"You should teach Connie how to sword fight!" Steven enthusiastically exclaimed. The twins stood alongside him, and so did Connie, flustered to the point that she couldn't even meet Pearl's questioning gaze. "You know everything there is to know about swords, Pearl, and Connie's already so good-"
"Steven!" she cut in, embarrassed.
"But you are! You did great when we fought off those light monsters earlier this summer!"
"Yeah! And those mean crows just now!" Mabel eagerly added.
"Hm…" Pearl mulled the idea over. "You're awfully young for something like this… But then again, I suppose I was only a few thousand years old when I began fighting alongside Rose Quartz myself…" She stopped short when she noticed Connie politely raising her hand to chime in. "Oh, yes, Connie?"
"Please, I want to learn! I don't know what'll happen in the future, but if something dangerous comes along, I don't wanna be a burden, I wanna help! I-I feel like I've been taking a backseat in so many huge things that have happened so far this summer, but I don't want to just watch on the sidelines anymore! I want to be there for Steven–" She caught herself, blushing as she quickly added, "F-for all you guys, to fight by your side! The Earth is my home too. Can't I help protect it?"
Before Connie was even finished, tears were already starting to well up in Pearl's eyes. Connie's resolve wasn't just admirable–it was almost identical to the very same vow Pearl had taken up herself centuries ago. And with that vow in mind, Pearl knew exactly what she needed to do. "Oh, ok," she whispered warmly, proudly. She wiped her eyes dry as she began to lead the way to the warp pad. "If that's how you feel, then by all means, let's get started!"
"Wait… now?" Connie asked, caught off guard.
"Well, of course! Since you'll basically be starting from square one, we'll have a lot of ground to cover. But you're a quick learner, Connie. I'm confident that you'll be able to pick the essentials up in no time. Now, come along–we've much to do!"
"Oh… uh… y-yes, ma'am!" Connie agreed as she bounded after her.
"Whoo-hoo!" Steven cheered as he followed along.
"This is gonna be so cool!" Mabel said, beaming. She barely noticed that Dipper hung back for a beat until he suddenly spoke up to stop them all in their tracks.
"W-wait!" He hesitated, flushing when everyone turned to face him. Still, he decided to say it anyway, to let himself chase this impulsive idea. It was bound to end up better than his last impulsive decision had, anyway. "Pearl, I… I want to learn sword fighting too!"
Stark silence filled the house, only broken by the sound of Mabel drawing in a sharp breath. Her brow furrowed as she examined her brother, his hands in tight, almost trembling fists at his sides. It took everything in her to not turn such an outlandish down herself. Maybe that was why she let out a sharp, incredulous laugh instead. "Whaaat? You wanna learn how to sword fight, bro-bro? I dunno, that seems like it might be a little too much for those noodle arms of yours, no offense."
"Hey, I can fight!" Dipper protested. "Remember how I took Gideon on inside that giant robot of his and won?"
"Yeah! And how we worked together to beat Peridot's robinoids as Stepper!" Steven chimed in with a supportive smile. "Or when you hunted down that huge Multibear!"
"Huh," Connie perched a hand to her chin. "Come to think of it, Dipper, you do have a good bit of fighting experience."
"Y-yes, I do," Dipper agreed, blushing. He didn't bother mentioning that all of that "experience" was solely from this summer alone. "And I don't see any reason to not want to get better at it, especially after how intense things have been around here lately. It's like Connie said: I want to, um, protect the Earth, o-or something…" He rubbed his arm, trying his best to sound sincere. Even though he knew that was far from the only reason he wanted to do this, not that anyone else needed to know that. "So, uh… would it be ok if I trained with you and Connie, Pearl?"
"I don't know, Dipper…" Pearl frowned as she sized him up. "Normally, I wouldn't mind taking on two pupils at once, and yes, you do certainly seem to have some admirable informal combat experience that could prove to be a useful skill base. But… your injuries from the other day are concerning… Maybe you should just wait until you're all healed up before you start training with us. After all, it is a very rigorous curriculum, and I'm not sure if you should be putting any further strain upon your already damaged body by attempting highly complicated maneuvers and techniques…"
"B-but I'm ok, really!" Dipper quickly covered up his bandaged shoulder. "I already feel so much better than I did the other day! In fact, it… it's almost like I never even got hurt at all!"
It wasn't a total lie; his shoulder only occasionally bled beneath those bandages, his hand only stung most of the time instead of all of the time, and his side only ached when he turned the wrong way. All perfectly manageable, as far as he was concerned. Nothing worth keeping him from what he wanted, what he knew he needed to do.
Still, Mabel's already pensive frown only deepened when she heard that. She'd seen the bloodied bandages in the bathroom trash can, she'd heard his anguished groans whenever he put too much pressure on his side. She knew, better than anyone, that he wasn't as "ok" as he was letting on.
And yet… she also knew she hadn't seen this kind of spark in his eyes in such a long time. Not since Bill had stolen his body, not since Malachite had sunk below the surface of the lake. She'd been missing that spark, more than she even realized. And she desperately didn't want it to go away all over again.
So she stood by in silence, simply watching as her brother continued his earnest appeal. "Anyway, what matters is that I know I can do this, Pearl," Dipper said, resolute. "All I need is a chance–one that I don't want to wait for! If there's one thing I've realized after all of the crazy things that have happened this summer so far, it's that I haven't been prepared for everything that's come our way… B-but I want to be! I want to be able to defend myself and Mabel from any other dangerous thing we might go up against! So please, Pearl. Give me that chance. I won't let you down, I promise."
Pearl was nearly in tears all over again as she looked between her two promising young pupils–and saw so much of herself in them both. "Very well then. I'll teach you both!" she concluded, stepping on the warp pad to whisk them all away. To teach them the sacred, ancient art of the blade. "Now… let's be off!"
Pearl wore a wide smile as the warp light faded, and a chorus of amazed gasps sounded from the kids. The place she'd brought them to floated high above the ground, in a sea of fluffy white clouds. The stairs from the warp pad led up to a vast, open-air arena, weathered by time and exposure to the elements. Still, it was no less mesmerizing for any of the kids as they took it all in.
"Whoa… this place is amazing!" Connie exclaimed, awestruck.
"It certainly is, Connie," Pearl proudly led the way down into the arena floor. "This is an Ancient Sky Arena, where some of the first battles for Earth took place! It was here that I became familiar with the human concept of being a knight, completely dedicated to a person and a cause. Dipper, Connie, that is what you both must become. Entirely devoted and committed not to yourselves, but to those you're willing to give up everything to protect and serve! You… must be knights!"
With that, her gem lit up as she drew not one, but two swords out of it. As impressive as that was, Dipper and Connie were even more taken aback when she handed those swords over to them. They exchanged a stunned glance as they took them, already feeling the full weight of those blades in their hands, in more ways than one. These weren't just toys–they were real, genuine, deadly weapons. Weapons that they were both about to learn how to wield, whether they felt worthy of them or not.
"We begin with a bow," Pearl instructed. "First to me, your teacher." She gracefully demonstrated that bow, which Dipper and Connie did their best to copy. "Now, again to your fellow student."
They turned to each other and bowed again, only to glance up at each other in the middle of it. Connie offered Dipper a small, playful smile as she mouthed, "Are you ready for this?"
He nodded, finally managing the tiniest of smiles himself. As daunting as this was, he was glad to know he wasn't about to do it alone. Connie was every bit as out of her element as he was; still, if they were both starting from the ground up, that meant they'd only get better–and stronger–from here.
"And finally," Pearl nodded over to Steven and Mabel as they watched from the sidelines. "You bow to your lieges."
Steven couldn't help but crack a smile as Connie overdramatically bowed before her, "My lieges," she said, smirking up at him.
"Miss Knight," Steven returned just before they both broke down laughing.
Mabel barely managed to stifle a laugh herself as she watched Dipper bow to her in turn. "'Tis an honor, Sir Dipping Sauce," she giggled as she returned the favor. Dipper, however, was nowhere near as amused.
"Come on, Mabel," he glanced up at her, scowling. "This is serious."
"Indeed it is, Dipper," Pearl sternly agreed. "I'm glad someone here recognizes that…" She shot Steven and Connie a critical look. It was more than enough to get them both to straighten up as Connie held her sword a bit tighter.
"S-sorry, ma'am!" she exclaimed, flustered.
Pearl nodded, satisfied that she was. Her gemstone glowed once again, but this time, only a pair of holographic protections of herself emerged from it. They each wielded actual swords though, brandishing them as they stood emotionlessly alongside the real Pearl. "Now, to begin, these holo-Pearls will be your opponents."
"Level 0, beginner set, dual opponents," the holo-Pearls proclaimed in perfect, robotic unison. "Do you wish to engage in combat?"
"Yes!" Connie readily exclaimed, her eyes aglow with excitement.
"Uh, sure, I guess," Dipper shrugged. He was much more intimidated as he eyed the blades they were about to be up against, trying his best not to think about the much smaller one that had pierced his shoulder or his side. A knife and a sword were two very different things, after all. And if he could learn to defend himself with one, then certainly, he'd never have to worry about being hurt by the other ever again.
"Have fun, you guys!" Steven cheered them both on as he headed for the stands.
"Yeah!" Mabel nodded her agreement, though she stepped forward to place a steady hand on her brother's shoulder. "Seriously though, Dipper," she whispered intently. "Be careful. I know you said you're feeling better, but you probably still shouldn't go super overboard so soon, you know? I'm with you when it comes to all this sword-fighting stuff, but just… just promise me you won't push yourself too far. Please?"
She eased up a little when Dipper smiled–a real, sincere one, for the first time in days. What she didn't notice, however, was the way his grip on his sword tightened when he said, "Don't worry, Mabel. I'm not gonna go overboard. I promise."
"Thanks," Mabel sighed, relieved as she turned to join Steven on the stands. "And hey, you got this, 'Sir Dippin-Dots'! I'll be rooting for you!"
Without any further distractions or delays, Pearl stepped up to begin her first lesson in earnest. "Alright, everything begins with your stance. Remember–" She smiled as she decided to instruct them both the best way she knew how: through song.
"You do it for them–"
"And you would do it again-"
She quickly corrected her pupils' posture, guiding Connie to lower her blade before she helped Dipper fix his footing. Once they were in the right spot, she turned her holo-Pearls loose on them. Their first swings were slow enough to allow the pair to easily block them, much to their surprise as Pearl nodded her approval.
"You do it for her-" She blushed, quickly correcting herself before either of her students could catch her.
"That is to say–you do it for them."
From their spot on the sidelines, Steven and Mabel exchanged bright smiles as they watched Dipper and Connie cross swords with the holo-Pearls once again. It wasn't much yet, but it was exciting to have a front row seat as the pair picked up such an impressive skill, one that they were showing promise with right off the bat. "Woo!" Steven cheered, pumping his fist in the air. "Go Dipper and Connie!"
"Aw, I should have made flags–or better yet, foam fingers with their names on them!" Mabel exclaimed. "I'm getting right on that as soon as we get back–"
"Shh!" Pearl sharply glanced back at them both for interrupting her lesson.
"Oops! Sorry!" Steven whispered with a sheepish grin. Pearl hardly missed a beat as she continued on with more advice.
"Keep your stance wide, keep your body lowered–"
"As you're moving forward, balance is the key."
From there, Pearl stepped into the flow herself. She exchanged gentle, controlled parries with Dipper first while Connie continued on with one of the holo-Pearls. She nodded, satisfied that he was already starting to get the hang of this first, most simple lesson. Both of them were.
"Right foot, left foot, now go even faster–"
"And as you're moving backwards, keep your eyes on me."
Blades only continued clashing for the rest of the day–and the days after it. It was a demanding regiment, one that only continued to get more intense as it went along. Despite the challenge, without fail, Dipper and Connie turned up each day to join Pearl at the sky arena to learn all they could. To become better swordsmen, better knights with each new move and maneuver they mastered along the way.
With such dedication, it wasn't long before they progressed to the intermediate set. The holo-Pearls turned a touch more aggressive, something Connie realized as she took them on first. Dipper stood alongside Pearl, waiting for his turn. He was barely able to hide the awe on his face as he watched Connie skillfully meet the hologram's first swing, all while echoing all that Pearl had taught them so far.
"Keep my stance wide-"
"Good," Pearl grinned as Connie deftly dodged an incoming thrust.
"Keep my body lowered-"
"Right!"
"As I'm moving forward-"
"Concentrate!" Pearl urged the second she noticed the smallest misstep. "Don't you want them to live?!"
As invested as they were in the action, Steven and Mabel exchanged a confused glance from their spot in the stands when they heard this. They didn't have time to think much more of it as one of the holo-Pearls leapt right at Connie. She rolled out of the path of its blade, swinging wide to cut it down in the process.
"Wow…" Dipper whispered, eyes wide with wonder. For as good as he was getting, he knew Connie was even better in almost every way. Not that he saw it as a competition–if anything, she only inspired him to push himself even harder, to rise to the occasion just as much as she already had.
"Right foot, left foot-" Connie cut herself off as the other holo-Pearl's sword grazed her arm. Still, she didn't dare stop; instead, she got even by meeting its next strike head-on.
"Put your whole body into it!" Pearl admonished, snapping her fingers. Dipper didn't see it, but Steven and Mabel certainly did–an entirely new holo-Pearl, silently creeping toward him from behind. They nearly shouted out a warning to him when it raised its blade for a deadly strike–
Only for Dipper to spin around and squarely block it just in the nick of time. The holo-Pearl didn't back down, but neither did he as he put all his strength into pushing it back. His injured shoulder painfully protested against the strain he was putting on it, but he ignored it. Just like he'd been doing ever since they started; he had to, just like he had to see this through, no matter how much it might hurt. No matter what.
It wasn't long before he finally managed to break the tension to cut the holo-Pearl clean in half. Connie did much of the same with a brutal thrust straight through her own opponent's chest. Mabel and Steven gasped, stars in their eyes, as they won another battle. "Yes!" Pearl commended them. Still though, she knew this small victory was just one in many more yet to come.
"Everything you have, everything you are, you've got to give!"
That night, Pearl sat all four of the kids down for a different sort of lesson entirely. With the stars hanging high above them, she showed them her own memory of an ancient battle, projected from her gem in vivid detail for all of them to see.
"On the battlefield, when everything is chaos-"
Fire raged and swords clashed as Pearl sprinted through that battlefield, blade in hand, in desperate search of something. Or someone.
"And you have nothing but the way you feel, your strategy, and a sword-"
She skidded to a stop, gasping as she took in what was right ahead of her. A towering warrior of a Gem stood tall over Rose Quartz, her own blade and shield at the ready to face them.
"You just think about the life you'll have together after the war-"
Tears were in Pearl's eyes at the very thought of seeing Rose in such grave danger. And at that moment, just as the larger Gem brought her axe down, Pearl didn't hesitate. She leapt straight into the fray to defend Rose with all she had.
"And then you do it for her–"
"That's how you know you can win!"
The kids didn't get to see how that memory ended as it flashed into nothing more than pale light in the evening air. Pearl only briefly took note of the awe on all four of the kids' faces as she summoned a holo-Pearl for another demonstration. One that taught skill and grace and resolve in the heat of any battle they might face.
Just like she had shown all those years ago.
"You do it for her–that is to say, you'll do it for them!"
Connie hissed through her teeth as she took in the calluses covering her hands. She was quickly realizing learning sword fighting wasn't without its fair share of pain–from those calluses, to the countless cuts and bruises she'd sustained over the past several days. Even so, her minor injuries were nothing when she glanced up to see what Dipper was dealing with.
She gasped, startled, when she watched him swing his blade wide to take down another holo-Pearl. The sudden motion was enough to loosen the bandages on his shoulder, to the point that they slipped clean off. And they weren't the only things sliding freely down his arm either.
"Oh my gosh, Dipper!" Connie hurried over. She cringed at the sight of the fresh blood leaking from his reopened wound. "That looked like it really hurt. Are you ok?"
"Uh, y-yeah," he winced when he covered the cut to staunch the bleeding as best he could. He was glad Steven and Mabel hadn't shown up yet to see this; Connie's look of mounting concern was already bad enough as it was. "I guess I got a little careless. B-but I barely felt it at all. Really, I'm fine."
Connie raised an eyebrow, far from convinced. However, before she could say anything else, Pearl suddenly stepped in. "Dipper, Connie, why did you both stop?" she asked. Though as she took a glance over at Dipper–or more specifically, his shoulder, she quickly got an answer. "Oh my…"
"I-I'm sorry, Pearl!" he exclaimed, anxious. "I wasn't paying attention, a-and I let my guard down even though you told me not to and I just-"
Pearl put up a hand to stop him. At first, she didn't say anything; instead, she held her hands near her gem to summon something else from it–a fresh roll of gauze. "Fortunately, I always come prepared," she smiled as she knelt down to wrap it around Dipper's shoulder. "And… there." She proclaimed as she finished cleaning and dressing the wound. "Like it never happened. Now," she stepped back as two more holo-Pearls appeared. "You can continue right where you left off-"
"Um, Pearl?" Connie spoke up, frowning. "Are you sure Dipper should keep going after, um… that?"
Dipper shot her a frustrated glance. He knew Connie's concerns came from a place of caring–but that kind of care wasn't what he needed right now. He needed to keep going, keep learning, keep fighting, without any sort of limits put upon him from his own body–or anyone else for that matter.
And to his surprise, Pearl seemed to agree. "I don't see why he can't. Your wound is sufficiently bandaged, isn't it, Dipper?" He eagerly nodded, making a point of reclaiming his fallen sword for good measure. "Good. Then you can keep going. Also, may I just say, I'm quite impressed by your tenacity."
"Wait, really?" Dipper asked, caught off guard.
Pearl nodded as her smile turned a touch prouder. "I'll admit, I was worried about those mysterious injuries of yours, but you seem to be doing just alright despite them. Not just alright–you're thriving! Both of you are! I couldn't be more pleased by your progress. You two remind me so much of me when I was first learning all of this thousands of years ago…"
She turned to Connie next to help her wrap her hands to prevent further harm. She sang again as she did, just as Steven and Mabel warped into the sky arena with smiles on their faces and plenty of snacks in tow.
"Deep down, you know you weren't built for fighting–"
"But that doesn't mean you're not prepared to try!"
She noticed Steven and Mabel's approach, and swiftly put a stop to it, lest they distract her pupils from their lesson. They exchanged a frown that only deepened when they heard what she had to sing next. When they heard just how troubling this lesson truly was.
"What they don't know is your real advantage-"
"When you live for someone, you're prepared to die!"
"...Die?" Mabel mouthed to Steven, her eyes wide with alarm. Steven could only shrug; he had no idea where that could have come from, why Pearl would even imply such a thing. This wasn't that serious–Dipper and Connie were only learning sword fighting to better defend themselves in the future. Dying shouldn't have had anything to do with any of this. And certainly, it wouldn't. Pearl must have been over-exaggerating, all to inspire her pair of pupils to perform their very best. There wasn't anything more to it than that…
Right?
In just a little over a week, Pearl moved her pupils onto the advanced set. It was hardly that surprising; Dipper and Connie were both fast learners, eager to please and even more eager to succeed. That testament that rang loud and clear in their latest lesson, as they both brandished their blades and proudly echoed everything their teacher had told them so far.
"Deep down, we know," Connie was up first, beating back a rapid round of strikes from one of the holo-Pearls. She didn't miss a beat, not even letting any of their blades even get close to breaking through her solid defenses. "That we're only human."
"True," Pearl agreed. Still, she smiled as she watched Connie soundly deflect another heavy blow.
"But we know that we can draw our swords and fight!"
Dipper didn't consider himself much of a singer, but as caught up in the spirit of it all as he was, he couldn't help but join in as he charged into a fray of his own.
"With our short existence, we can make a difference."
"Yes, excellent!" Pearl proclaimed as Dipper slid straight under the path of a holo-Pearl's blade
Connie joined him to tag-team against the last hologram standing. She went high with an impressive leap to bring her sword down on the holo-Pearl's head. Meanwhile, Dipper undercut it, kicking its feet out to allow him a wide opening for a finishing blow to the chest. From the stands, Steven and Mabel stared, awestruck, as they took such a steadfast foe down, all while singing–and swinging–in perfect harmony with each other.
"We can be there for them–we can be their knights!"
Pearl clasped her hands together in delight as her pupils crossed their blades to celebrate their victory.
"We can do it for them."
"You do it for her," Pearl harmonized along with them as she added her own sword to theirs. The moment only lasted for a moment though; quickly enough, Pearl called upon two more holo-Pearls to replace the ones they'd just defeated. "Ok, now do that again."
"Yes, ma'am!" both of her students gladly complied. It caught Steven and Mabel off guard, just how ready Dipper and Connie were to throw themselves into a fight, into danger. It certainly seemed as though they could handle that danger just fine as they teamed up to tackle the holo-Pearls together. Still, Mabel and Steven couldn't help but worry as they watched the pair only narrowly manage to stay out of harm's way. One wrong move, one mistimed maneuver, and–
They didn't even want to think about what might happen.
"You do it for her and now you say–"
Pearl only made them feel all the more uneasy as she bowed low before them both. Dipper and Connie joined her on either side, hands resting on their hearts as they showcased their solemn, selfless vow. A vow neither Steven or Mabel had ever asked for, one they never really even wanted in the first place.
But here Dipper and Connie were, swearing their very lives over to them, all the same.
"We'll do it for them."
"I still can't believe the way you snuck up on that holo-Pearl yesterday," Dipper told Connie on their way up to the temple the next day. Steven and Mabel trailed after them in pensive silence, not that either of them noticed, as caught up in sword-talk as they were. "You've got to show me how you did that. They always notice me before I can even get close."
"It's like Pearl told us–you've got to take it nice and slow when it comes to sneak attacks," Connie pointed out, grinning. "You can't just rush up on an opponent like you usually do."
"Hey!" Dipper chuckled when she lightly elbowed him. "You can't just leave yourself open without getting the jump on them either."
"...We'll agree to disagree."
By now, both of them were laughing as they headed into the house. Mabel started when she heard it, when she noticed just how truly calm and almost happy Dipper seemed to be. He'd been in a better mood in general lately, with his spirits only rising more and more after each sword fighting session. It was good to see him like this, smiling and even laughing again–seemingly without any nightmares to speak of–after just how low he'd been after that fateful puppet show. Almost as if he was finally putting it behind him, finally moving on, and as much as Mabel wanted to see him do exactly that–
She still couldn't shake the feeling that something was still so terribly wrong all the same.
Still, she and Steven dutifully tagged along to support the pair in their latest lesson. Pearl already awaited them in the sky arena, and she wasted no time getting into it as soon as they arrived. "So far, you two have proven that you're more than capable of handling my holo-Pearls," she began, pacing before the pair. "And while they represent a faceless, nameless enemy, you may not always be that lucky in a real battle. There's always a chance, however small, that you might someday find yourself facing your fellow soldiers. And if that day ever comes, then you need to be ready to do what you must to protect them-" she nodded over at Steven and Mabel. "No matter what. Which is why, today, instead of any holo-Pearls, your opponents will be… each other."
"Wait, what?" Dipper asked, surprised.
"You want us to fight?" Connie raised an eyebrow. She exchanged an uncertain glance with Dipper; mere minutes ago, they were joking around with each other. Now Pearl expected them to duel as if they were enemies? How could they possibly manage that?"
Nonetheless, Pearl persisted. "That's what I said, isn't it? Now, don't worry. It'll only be a friendly skirmish. The first one to be pinned down loses. You may begin whenever you both are ready. And remember–don't hold back on each other; your foes certainly won't hold back on you."
Neither Dipper or Connie were sure of what else to say. They couldn't very well go against such direct orders from their respected teacher, not after all she'd done for them. So, they put their reservations aside, briefly crossing blades before the battle began. And as soon as it did, Steven and Mabel reached the same, critical decision. They couldn't sit by and watch this in silence, not for one second longer. Not when their friends were outright fighting right in front of them.
"Dipper, be sure to cover your openings!" Pearl advised as she watched on. "Connie, remember not to ease up your grip! And both of you, please keep moving at all times! A target in motion is a much harder one to hit!"
"Um, Pearl?"
"Yes?" she barely even glanced back at Steven and Mabel. "Make it quick, you two. This duel is an integral step in Dipper and Connie's training and I need to be able to focus on it so I can analyze their progress."
"Uh, yeah… that's kinda the thing…" Mabel began, rubbing her arm. "Are you really sure Dipper and Connie should be out there beating each other up like that?"
"First of all, they're not simply 'beating each other up', Mabel," Pearl corrected. "They're utilizing highly advanced techniques to test their combat abilities against an opponent of similar skill."
"Uh, yeah, we got that…" Steven said, uneasy. "We're just… not so sure if this is exactly… safe…"
"Safe?" Pearl scoffed. "Steven, in an actual battle, 'safety' is not a commodity that either Connie or Dipper will have at their disposal. They have to be prepared to take down whatever foe crosses their path. Need I remind you both that this isn't a game? This is real, serious, tangible training to equip them with the skills necessary to stand on their own in the intense violence of an unforgiving war!"
"War?" Mabel asked, baffled. "What war?"
"Any war!" Pearl returned just as harshly. "We can't just take advantage of the idea that peaceful times like these will last forever! A threat could come upon us at literally any minute, something you both should know full well by now! And the more blades we have at the ready to stand against such threats, the better off we all are!"
"But Pearl," Steven cut in. "This is kinda getting… sort of intense… Are you sure you're not taking all of this sword fighting stuff… a bit too far?"
Pearl stiffened when she heard this, annoyance flashing over her face. Without warning, she clapped her hands, bringing Dipper and Connie's duel to a sudden halt. "That's enough for today," she told them, still scowling down at Steven and Mabel. "Apparently, somebody doesn't approve of my training methods, so we'll just have to call this one a draw."
Connie and Dipper shot the two of them a glance, one confused, the other every bit as aggravated as Pearl was. Mabel and Steven shied back, but they hardly stood down when it came to their palpable concerns. Concerns Pearl hardly seemed to care about as she simply reminded her pupils not to be late the following day. None of them had any intentions of stopping now; they were just going to keep going from here, on dangerous, destructive lessons on both swordsmanship and self-sacrifice. They were going to keep going until they'd gone too far off the deep end to ever come back, or until they finally made good on their promise to fight until the bitter, violent end.
Whichever came first.