#gobblewonker

S1E2: The Legend of the Gobblewonker

The day had passed in the blink of an eye. Wincing as Stan felt the pressure of their eyes on him, watching to see his next moves. He knew that after the night before, they were expecting something from him. A heartfelt promise to carry her torch with him through the rest of the games, perhaps. Or maybe just a break from the regular jokes and light teasing he’d fallen into.

It was all too peaceful, too quiet. Monotonous. Stan could almost hear the rolling thunder that was brewing overhead as they puzzled over their next moves. As he’d fished and counted his stock, messing with finished nets. Despite it all, he couldn’t find it in himself to play the part, settling in as the sun set once more.

That should have been his first clue, there was no such thing as a quiet day in the arena.

Unbeknownst to Stan, the game-masters scrambled to rewrite the public’s perceptions of Darlene’s death. They needed something to draw their gaze, take power away from the skeptical whispers dominating the capital. They needed action.

Stan woke to the lap of water brushing against his face, shooting up from his sleep as the water inched closer. Fuck. He should have known, he’d gotten too comfortable, throwing himself into action as he quickly assembled his meagre supplies, half paddling out of the cave's entrance minutes before the water rose once more, sweeping into the space he’d been lying moments before.

The area surrounding wasn’t much better, the edges of the lake now lapping at the tree line that had been maybe 4 feet from where it had originally stopped. Flooding the area as it rose at a rapid pace.

Stan cursed, kicking his feet and swimming for the woods, swallowing the rising fear before he allowed himself to get swept away. The water was his territory, and he’d be damned before he let the ones in power forget it. He wasn’t just going to lie down and take his eventual demise, no matter how certain it was.

It was that thought that propelled him forward, fighting against the push and pull of the waves until he clambered to the edge of the rising lake, almost barreling straight into the woods before a gurgling rumble ripped through the air.

In a split second he threw himself to the floor, watching as a scaly tail whipped through the air slicing at the spot he’d stood moments before, carving thick notches into the pines as Stan could only stare, wide eyed at the monstrous form towering over the lake.

Using the near-miss’ opening, Stan pushed himself to his feet, jumping behind the closest tree as that sharp, whip-like appendage came sailing down once more, cracking against the bark as a deafening roar echoed across the arena.

Moses, what is that thing? Couldn’t they give him a break?!? Hell he’d take a fucking bear at this point. Stan cried out as he lunged away from the monster’s tail once more, feeling the sharpened scales graze past his cheek, slicing through it like butter.

The creature's beady eyes glowed a fierce yellow that clashed starkly with the blackened night. Honing in on Stan as he stumbled from tree to tree, hoping to lose the beast’s focus through the foliage, unable to gain even the slightest distance back as it stopped his retreat further into the woods, pushing its massive body up towards the land.

IT CAN WALK?!?

Whatever this thing was, it was intelligent enough to keep him cornered, cowering behind the nearest tree as it continued its assault, snapping some of the smaller trees from the ground as its ugly maw inched closer to its prize.

Heaving as a tree flew past inches from his hiding spot, Stan gulped in air, gasping as the creature churred a deep warbling noise that seemed to shake the very ground. Moving its head to scan the area, searching.

Stan thanked whatever god was out there that he’d managed to lose it for the time being, mind racing as he tried to catch his breath.

How in the hell was anyone meant to survive that thing? What was he going to do??

The cracking branches to his left sounded closer, as he hooked himself around the tree, hiding from the bright gaze sweeping the forest floor.

Shit! Come on Stan, there’s got to be something, they wouldn’t just throw in an impossible hurdle, they needed entertainment, odds. It wasn’t a gamble if it was set in stone. Come on! Come on! Just think! What would Ford do?

All at once, it dawned on him, memories of their time reading through books as kids all tumbling back, Ford’s voice recounting various facts about the deep sea. One in particular came to mind as the glowing yellow of the creature's eyes sparked one particular idea, the anglerfish’s eyes were extremely sensitive to light.

Stan swore as another tree crumbled under the weight the monster, fumbling for something in his backpack as he banked on the hope. Within moments, he felt his hand grasp onto the canteen he’d discovered when he’d first searched through the bag, one filled with oil.

His hands shook as he grabbed the largest net he could, dousing the ropes in the oil, his heart thundering in his chest all the while. One chance, one fleeting hope he could pull this off as the beast’s head closed in, pushing past the tree line.

Mumbling pleas to whoever was listening as he fumbled with his lighter, sparking it up and holding it against the slick rope, the thunderous roar that boomed overhead did little to break his concentration as the flame finally caught, quickly spreading along the lengths of the rope.

He wasted no time, angling the flaming net as it sailed forwards, weighted anchors wrapping around the beasts jaws as Stan yelled out a desperate sound of his own, crashing into a tree as a clawed hand swiped past. The beast coiling back in pained shock, twisting its body and flailing against the rope as it howled.

Stan sunk the ground, cradling his burnt hands against his chest as he wheezed, already feeling the bruises marring his chest even as he watched the creature retreat, slamming its body into the water with a final shriek. Letting out a disbelieving chuckle as he sat propped against the tree, relief flooded through him.

Outside, the capital had exploded in cheers, watching as Stan pushed himself up and descended into the woods to find a place to lick his wounds. A collective buzz was soaking up the staunch mood of the previous night.

Further beyond, Ford collapsed back into his chair as Fiddleford hooked an arm around his shoulder, bearing the sobs that croaked out of the man’s throat.

“Oh, oh, Moses, F, that was too close, he-he almost.” Fidds shot him a pitying look, clutching the man’s heaving shoulders as he folded in to himself, dragging a hand to mask the tears slipping from his eyes.

“I know… but it’s like ya said, Ford, he’s a fighter, I reckon it’s gonna take a few more licks than that to bring him down.” Fidds squeezed Ford’s shoulder in a move he hoped was comforting, wiping a hand across his own tired eyes as they gazed at the screen, having been startled awake by Ford’s yell as they watched Stan battle the gobblewonker.

“We need to work faster, F, the longer we wait…” Another sob broke through, covering the words that went unsaid as they both felt the weight of the task ahead.

“We’re gonna get 'em back. Or die tryin.” It was the only thing he could think of, resolve tightening as Ford collected himself, looking up at him with the same fire burning through him.

“I’m scared,” Dipper said quietly. Dib grinned.

“Let’s jump together, then!”

Before Dipper could respond, Dib hoisted Dipper up into his arms, princess style.

“W-what the hell?!”

“Here we go!” Dib turned towards the cliff. Dipper could distantly hear Wendy and his sister cheering for them to jump.

“Wh—! No, no, no! DIB!”

🌲For the @strangesummerzine !!

So, the one we see in the episode is obviously the robot and the robot looks relatively "young" whereas the real one looks much older, much closer to the actual "legend" status it has acquired. And I imagine that the real Gobblewonker is actually reaching it's elderly years, much like Stanley.

So, the idea is as follows:

* 30 Year old Stanley stumbles upon an adolescent Gobblewonker tangled in fishing net along the shore far away from the beach and other people activity. An adult Gobblewonker is in the lake, unable to get to her child due to her size. She's rightfully freaking out. Stan, who is no stranger to untangling marine animals from nets due to living on the shore, cuts off the net and pushes the child back into the water, saving her life.

* Stan is aware that this is not a normal animal but has enough wits about him that this would not be a good business venture even if he was that type of con man to use real animals.

* Time passes and Stan realizes its going to take much longer to get Ford back, so he does what he does best when he's stressed. He goes out and fishes. And while out in his little boat in the middle of the lake, away from other patrons, a little head pokes out of the water. Its the child Gobblewonker, coming to say hello. The adult is yards away, watching the interaction between the human and her child. Stan knows enough that it's ALWAYS a bad idea to pet marine animals (he's seen enough hands and fingers bitten off my seals and would like to keep his). So he throws the kid a fish and the kid is ecstatic. Swimming around the ship, chirping, peering into the ship with its long neck for more fish. The pair eventually leave Stan and Stan goes home.

* This becomes a regular occurrence when Stan goes out. The kids approaches, the adult stays far away, Stan feeds her and watches her play. Stan loves it. He loves knowing that he's not alone out on his boat, he loves having this little secret with these creatures, he loves how he's being trusted.

* A few years go by with this routine until one day, the kid is alone. The adult is no where to be seen and the kid is obviously stricken. Stan realizes that the adult has died and the child is now alone. This is the first time he touches the Gobblewonker. He comforts her and comes daily with fish to feed her and comfort her. He plays with her as best he can and talks to her.

* One day, the kid flips his boat and Stan goes tumbling in. Stan is freaking out that this has been the plan all along and he's going to be killed but the kid keeps her distance. She brings him to the surface and swims away then back to him. He realizes she just wants someone to swim with. So he obliges and it becomes part of their routine. As time goes by, the child heals and grows into an adult.

* Decades pass. Stan visits the Gobblewonker regularly. They're both older now, the child becoming an adult. Stan will visit at night because of how large she has grown and swim with her for a while to keep each other company. Sometimes, they lay on the rocks near the shore and moon bathe. Stan talks and comforts her and she does the same for him.

* Post-Weirdmaggedon, most of Stan's memories are back but there's still moments that are missing. But the muscle memory is still there. So one night, when Stan can't sleep, he follows a familiar path down to the lake. Ford and the kids realize Stan is missing and send out a search party looking for him. They eventually find him down by the lake, sitting at the end of the dock, the Gobblewonker's head resting in his lap and Stan petting her.

A Giant Woman vs a Giant Lake Monster! Who will come out on top?

Protect Trans Youth.

Protect Trans Kids.

Protect Trans childhoods.

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