november
Pacifica stomped over patches of mud and twigs scattered among the forest floor, muttering under breath. On a rainy afternoon in November, she had taken a trip to drop off another letter for Mabel at the post office, deciding she needed a break after a screaming match with her mother back at the manor. However, the post office was closed, and she ended up having to turn right back around. The girl didn't want to return home yet, though.
Instead of staying on the pathway, she cut between two thick bushes, crossing her arms tight over her chest, the hood of her peach-colored sweatshirt pulled over her head. The Oregon rain had already soaked her clothes, and she doubted she'd find anywhere dry in the woods. Should've brought an umbrella, she thought. She didn't really have much of an idea where she was going, but she didn't care.
Pacifica walked for what felt like an hour, distracting herself by trying to think of happier things and positive thoughts. It was hard to keep her spirits up when she sulking out in the woods after her mother had just called her a "stupid brat who only cares about herself" and other hurtful insults.
The blonde stopped in her tracks. A chill ran down her spine and her hairs stood on end. She felt as if she were standing in molasses and couldn't move to save her life.
She stared straight into the eye of Bill Cipher.
Or at least, a cold stone statue of him. Wedged deep into the mud was a figure of the demon himself, his narrow pupil looking directly at her, one of his hands jabbing out of his side. Pacifica didn't move for several minutes before she finally sunk to her knees in the dirt and grass, tears blurring her vision. How long had the statue been there? Why was it there? Who just left it in the woods like this? She asked herself these questions, knowing she'd likely never find out the answers.
Slowly, she crawled over to the figure, swallowing her fear. She leaned against it, her back pressed against his eye, her knees pulled close to her chest.
"I'm not a stupid brat," she sniffled, "right?"
Bill Cipher did not answer her.
"I told her I didn't want to go to some dinner party next week and she freaked out on me," Pacifica told the stone, rubbing at her eyes. "It all just kind of piled up on each other and we just started screaming at each other." Shivering, she glimpsed over her shoulder, half-expecting the statue to make some sort of response.
The only noises Pacifica heard were those of the rain falling and birds chirping up in the trees.
"I'm not going home," she whimpered. "I don't want to." Pacifica buried her head in her arms as more tears spilled over her cheeks. She let herself cry for once; usually she would tell herself to suck it up and simply deal with it, whatever "it" was. She cried for her parents, who didn't show her the right amount of love she needed or the respect she deserved. She cried for the town, which had been through so much in the past few months and nobody seemed to ever really want to talk about the events that had taken place in August. She cried for herself, partially out of the pity no one else would pay her, partially out of anger and self-hatred towards herself.
"This is all your fault!" She yelled at the stone before shoving all of her weight and strength at it.
Bill Cipher moved slightly, leaning backwards in the mud. There was still no response. After all, she was talking to a statue and not a living, conscious demon.
Pacifica curled up as tight as she could beside Bill, her eyes squeezed shut. She remained like that in the rain, chilled to the bone, until she fell asleep.
"I found her!"
Slowly, Pacifica lifted her head and blinked twice to get the sleep out of her eyes. A flashlight beam shone in her eyes, causing her to turn her head. The sun had gone down while she was out.
"Pacifica, what are you doing out here?" Wendy murmured, a worried expression spread across her freckled face. "Dude, we've been looking for you for like, two hours now." The redhead was joined by McGucket and Soos, the three of them crowding around the small girl.
"I-"
"Let's just worry about gettin' her to the Shack," McGucket interrupted. Wendy and Soos nodded before helping Pacifica to her feet, letting her lean against them for support. She still shook from the cold as they guided her through the underbrush and trees, feeling disoriented and sore from her uncomfortable nap in the rain.
She barely remembered making it to the Mystery Shack with the three, changing into an oversized t-shirt from the gift shop that served her well as a nightshirt, and crashing on the old recliner in the living room.
Pacifica woke up again, confused for a moment as to why she was buried under many comforters and sheets in Stanley's old recliner, until she recalled the events that had occurred the night before. Stretching, she threw the covers aside and wandered out into the kitchen, glimpsing down at the baggy t-shirt she wore. She didn't see a "COOL STUMP AT THE MYSTERY SHACK" even though the clothing advertised so.
Melody and Soos stood near a counter, both dressed in their work uniforms. McGucket sat at a card table chewing away at a stack of pancakes and perked up at the sight of Pacifica.
"Mornin', sleepyhead," the woman greeted her, smiling as she tucked a short ponytail up through her cap.
Groggily, Pacifica slid into a seat across from McGucket. "What happened last night?" She mumbled, rubbing her eyes.
"I couldn't find ya anywhere back home," the old man answered through a bite of his short stack. "'N so I came lookin' for ya back here. But Wendy and Soos didn't know where you were. So we all went out lookin' for ya for a while."
"You went to sleep in the living room and slept all night. You were probably sick, too, dude," Soos added.
Pacifica bit her lip. She still felt warm and a bit dizzy if she were being honest, and whatever appetite she'd had earlier was long gone. Folding her arms tight over her chest, she kept quiet.
"After I finish eatin', we should head to the manor." McGucket looked at Pacifica across the table.
She shifted uncomfortably in her seat. Her home was the last place she wanted to be in that moment. The manor was large, but not nearly large enough for Pacifica to be as far away from her mother as she would have liked. She felt a small pit of dread in her stomach just thinking about going back.
"Something wrong?" Melody frowned as she set a cold glass of water next to Pacifica.
After taking a small sip of the drink, Pacifica sighed. She usually kept quiet about whatever her parents said or did. They were always so nasty and rude, she'd simply grown used to it. "My mom and I got into a fight, that's all," she croaked. The kitchen suddenly felt a little too quiet for her.
Melody bit her lip and plopped into the seat beside the girl. "Pacifica," she murmured worriedly. "Do you want to talk about it?"
"We got into a fight because I didn't want to go to a dinner party and she called me a brat," Pacifica blurt out. "B-but it's not really a big deal. I'll be okay." She hung her head.
Only sighing, Melody set a hand on Pacifica's shoulder. There was another moment of silence before she spoke. The quiet Pacifica usually longed for now felt suffocating. "Now I can't really change your mother and there are some... colorful words I'd like to say to her, I do know that you're always welcome to come over when you need a break from her."
Pacifica nodded, sniffling.
"Okay?"
"Okay."
After McGucket finished his food and the clothes Pacifica had been wearing the night before were washed and dried, the duo left the Shack for the manor, but not after mailing out Mabel's letter and stopping so the girl could buy a coffee from Greasy's Diner.