#miss cipher

MEET THE SYSTERS (and FIDDLELENE)

SYBIL FILOMENA PINES

Born- 1951, Glass Shard Beach, NJ

Age: 62

Gender: Female

Dr. Sybil Filomena Pines is a paranormal investigator who set up shop in Gravity Falls, Oregon to investigate its strange phenomena. Sybil is a highly intellectual woman with a stern, closed off, and paranoid personality. She has a very commanding, almost regal presence. In spite of this, she is quite socially awkward, eccentric, and becomes like an excited little girl in the presence of supernatural phenomena. She enjoys fantasy-related hobbies like playing DDND and reading fantasy and sci-fi novels. Sybil is highly independent to the point of self-isolation, believing that she doesn’t need any help and relishes the image of being a scientific maverick. She is a perfectionist, believing she can't just be good; she has to be undeniable. She has a hard time trusting others and believes that they can’t be relied upon. She can spiral into paranoia if there is nobody to ground her. She doesn’t like showing any form of weakness or vulnerability and only opens up to a select group of people. Sybil has a tendency to hold onto grudges for years on end and it takes a while for her to get over them. Despite her somewhat distant exterior, Sybil deeply cares about her family and would do anything to keep them safe. More than anything, she’s intent on defeating Mrs. Cipher, containing the interdimensional rift, and preventing Weirdmageddon. If only she would let other people help her with her quest…

BACKSTORY

Sybil and Sylvia Pines were born into a working-class Jewish family in Glass Shard Beach, NJ. Their parents were Caleb and Filomena Pines. Their mother, Filomena, was strict and concerned with assimilating into polite American society above all else. Their father, Caleb was a slick huckster who was more loving but somewhat absent in his girls’ lives. Sybil, shy and studious with six-fingered hands, was often bullied, while her outgoing twin Sylvia was her protector and closest friend. Though their bond was close, Sybil came to resent relying on Sylvia and longed to forge her own identity. Filomena saw Sybil’s hands and strange interests as a curse and often had her wear gloves in public. She thought Sybil’s dreams of becoming a scientist were unrealistic and would only lead to her ruination. She had already decided the girl's future: as no man would want to marry a woman with polydactyly, and surgery was unaffordable, Sybil would be the dutiful daughter who would stay home to take care of things. Filomena even enrolled her little girls into etiquette classes to mold them into proper ladies. It was here where Sybil learned to carry herself with dignity and grace, which would prove invaluable to her in the future. 

In her senior year Sybil won first prize at the New Jersey science fair with her Perpetual Motion Machine project, which promised her a scholarship to West Coast Tech in California. But one night, Sylvia accidentally broke the machine after expressing her frustrations with being left behind and took it back home so Sybil could repair it. Sybil pleaded with their mother to let her attend university. Filomena told Sybil they wouldn't accept 'a little Jewish girl' like her and destroyed the project before her eyes, intending to teach her a lesson.

Sylvia froze in terror and said nothing, leaving Sybil feeling utterly abandoned. She left home, rejecting Sylvia’s plea to come with her. This event would prove to be a defining trauma for Sybil.

Sybil stayed with her older brother, Shermie, in California, where she applied for schools. With West Coast Tech out of the picture and given her precarious financial situation,  her options were limited.

Sybil attended Backupsmore University. A mid tier school, it was chronically underfunded and mostly known for its bug free dorms. But it was also known for its scrappy can-do spirit. Sybil did not have it easy there. She was one of the few women in the physics department and she experienced discrimination as a result. With no Sylvia around to protect her anymore, Sybil had to become indomitable to succeed in this cutthroat environment. She bonded with computer science student and roommate Fiddlelene McGucket over their shared plight. Determined to succeed, Sybil worked herself to the bone, publishing a nationally ranked thesis and earning her doctorate early. Awarded a $100,000 grant, Sybil proposed to the board that she would research anomalies in Gravity Falls, Oregon—a hotspot of the strange. However, trouble arose when they rejected her proposal as being ‘irrational’ and ‘dangerously close to pseudoscience’.

Feeling like she was reliving that horrible night all over again, Sybil left to became a scientific maverick. With Fiddlelene’s help, she managed to secure funding from an eccentric multimillionaire couple in Silicon Valley who were fascinated by her work. Shortly thereafter, Sybil began researching supernatural anomalies in Gravity Falls. This small lumber town would prove to be her Eden—a place where she, an anomaly herself, could truly fit in. But in time Gravity Falls’ mysteries would lead her to stranger and more dangerous places. She met and fell under the influence of Miss Cipher, a manipulative dream demon. Miss Cipher exploited Sybil's deepest wounds and convinced her to build a portal, which would become her “life’s work.” Sybil didn't need to be asked twice; in her eyes, the portal would prove her naysayers wrong about her. Most of all, it would make up for that traumatic night back in New Jersey. Fiddlelene helped build it but quit after a terrifying encounter when she was nearly drawn into the portal. When Sybil uncovered Miss Cipher’s true intentions—to merge realities—she shut down the portal and hid her journals. This event would undo her beyond belief.

After a decade of drifting, Sylvia found Sybil holed up in her cabin laboratory, in a state of Cipher-induced psychosis and in danger of losing her funding. Sybil was shocked to see her sister at first. Then she realized that Sylvia could be the best candidate to hide the last journal. This angered Sylvia, as she had been looking for her sister for more than a decade and was not pleased at being sent away. The ensuing argument reignited past wounds. The fight accidentally activated the portal, pulling Sybil in. She spent thirty years hopping between dimensions before returning, determined to save the multiverse from Miss Cipher's evil designs…and still nursing a grudge against Sylvia for perceived betrayal.

FUN FACTS

-Sybil has a beautiful singing voice, in the contralto range, from the chest. She tends to sing to herself while working. She's often told she sounds like Cass Elliot, but a bit smoother.

-Sybil is a name of Greek origin referencing the sibyls, who were female prophets/oracles of Ancient Greece.

SYLVIA FILOMENA PINES, aka 'MADAME MYSTERY'

Born- 1951, Glass Shard Beach, NJ

Age: 62

Gender: Female

Sylvia Filomena Pines is the proprietor of the Mystery Shack, a sleazy tourist trap in Gravity Falls, OR. She goes by the moniker ‘Madame Mystery’ when she’s on the job. Sylvia is a hustler by nature, using her looks, charisma, and fists to get what she wants. She believes in living life with no regrets and zero hesitation. Money is one of her great loves in life, and there’s nothing she won’t do to earn a quick buck. Whether it’s scamming unsuspecting customers out of their money at the Shack, committing tax fraud, or gambling in Vegas, Sylvia always wants to win. She is rather materialistic, loving everything shiny and luxurious, even if they’re well above her financial means. She is also rather vain and places high importance on her looks. When she’s not running the shack, she’s watching her ‘stories’ on tv or gambling with the lotto or scratchcards. Sylvia is rather brusque in her temperament and comes off as rather cynical and even a little childish at times. She can be impulsive and confrontational, which has gotten her and her family into many a pickle. She has very bad commitment issues when it comes to relationships and has broken up with more boyfriends than she can count. However, her personality belies a woman who is deeply loyal to and protective of her family. Sylvia claims that she doesn’t believe in the paranormal aspects of Gravity Falls, only using them to swindle people and sell merchandise. In truth, however, she is deeply connected to the town’s mysteries, having spent the past thirty years repairing an interdimensional portal to rescue her twin sister, Sybil.

BACKSTORY

Sylvia and her twin sister Sybil were born into a strict, working-class Jewish family in Glass Shard Beach, NJ. Their mother, Filomena, had high expectations, especially for Sylvia, who was the favored “golden child” due to her beauty--though Filomena always criticized her appearance and personality in the guise of motherly love. This slowly wore down Sylvia's self-esteem like acid on teeth and is the reason why she is so vain and materialistic to this day. Her father, Caleb, saw her as his “little firecracker” and would teach her his huckster ways when he was around. Compared to her off-beat sister, Sybil, Sylvia was the most marriageable by far and the family investment. She was a feisty, tomboyish girl who matured into a glamorous but sharp-tongued young woman. Even though she was the golden child, Sylvia felt the pressure heavily and would secretly indulge in vices and run cons as a way to rebel. Despite their differences, Sylvia and Sybil were inseparable—Sylvia protected her shy sister from bullies and felt like she was the only person who saw past her looks. They dreamed of exploring the world together. Filomena would enroll her daughters into etiquette classes to shape them into proper ladies. It was there that Sylvia learned how to weaponize her charm to get what she wanted. 

When Sybil’s chance at a college scholarship hinged on her Perpetual Motion Machine, Sylvia supported her, but privately grieved at the thought of being left behind while her sister would go on to do great things. Becoming a boring housewife struck fear into her. During a moment of frustration, Sylvia accidentally broke her sister’s project. She took it back home so Sybil could repair it, telling her a little white lie about what had happened (she just found it broken). Then the worst came to worst.

That night, their mother destroyed the project, and Sylvia froze in terror instead of intervening. Feeling betrayed, Sybil left home and rejected Sylvia’s plea to join her. This event haunted Sylvia for the rest of her life. She vowed never to fail her sister again.

Two years later, Sylvia married her high school sweetheart, Carl McCorkle, but left after discovering his infidelity with a hippie woman named Thistle Downe. She made an ill-advised decision of crashing his mistress’ van into a ravine and was forced to leave New Jersey to escape the cops. Now on the road, Sylvia decided to search for Sybil, spending ten years drifting through dead ends and surviving through odd jobs and questionable means (she became pretty familiar with prison life, to put it lightly). She became hardened and weary but never gave up hope. She took on many identities to protect herself and came to know America like the back of her hand. She even had a few stints in foreign countries like Colombia and Britain. Eventually, Sylvia found Sybil in Gravity Falls, isolated and working on a portal. Sybil gave Sylvia a journal to hide away in a remote location--which hurt Sylvia, since she had been searching for her sister for so long. Their reunion turned bitter when Sylvia tried to burn the journal, triggering a fight that accidentally activated the portal and drew Sybil away.

Determined to bring her sister back, Sylvia converted Sybil’s lab into the Mystery Shack to fund her repairing of the portal, vowing never to falter again. She took her sister’s identity to keep ownership of the Shack. Though she had finally found stability in her life, Sylvia’s heart was still broken over her lost sister. Everything changed, however, when Shermie’s grandkids, Dipper and Maxwell, came down to visit for the summer. With the young twins’ help, Sylvia was able to get her sister back from the portal. However, their wounds were far from healed, with Sybil still nursing a grudge against Sylvia for her perceived failure all those years ago… 

FUN FACTS

-Sylvia is skilled at fighting. Her style of fighting is scrappy and dirty, learned on the streets of New Jersey as well as during her years on the road. She'll use her fists along with whatever else she can get her hands on to inflict the most damage.

-Sylvia is a name of Latin origin meaning the woods or forest.

FIDDLELENE DIXON-MCGUCKET, or OLD LADY MCGUCKET

Born- 1940s/50s, Tennessee

Age: 60s

Gender: Female

Old Lady McGucket is the local town kook. You can usually find her playing the fiddle to an audience of raccoons, yelling at pedestrians and passing cars about beasts with one eye, and trying to play ball with her estranged daughter Tatum, who rents out boats at the local lake. And yet Old Lady McGucket is something of a witch. Instead of brewing potions, however, she’s a highly skilled engineer, building bizarre inventions in her hut in the junkyard. It’s a confounding contrast--how is a madwoman like her so astoundingly brilliant?

BACKSTORY

As it turns out, there is a reason. Before Old Lady McGucket became the town’s local kook/inventor, she was Fiddlelene Hadron Dixon-McGucket, an aspiring inventor from Palo Alto, California. She hailed from a big, poor family in rural Tennessee. It was a loving but chaotic household, with Fiddlelene having to be a caretaker to her many siblings from a young age. Fiddlelene was the first of the clan to go to college. She ran an up and coming personal computer business while balancing motherhood, raising her daughter Tatum along with her husband, Earl Ray. Fiddlelene was sweet as sweet tea, empathetic, and rather religious. She also had a persistent problem with anxiety, often resorting to pills to calm her nerves--she’d call them ‘her little helpers’. 

While Tatum and Earl Ray were the greatest loves of her life, there was another one, and that was Sybil Pines, her best friend from her Backupsmore days.

From the moment she met Sybil, Fiddlelene was enchanted by her intelligence, ambition, and beauty. She longed to have her friend’s confidence. The pair bonded over being outsiders in their respective fields. But as Fiddlelene got to know Sybil more, she realized that beneath it all was a lonely, broken bird of a woman, scarred by her past. Her devotion to Sybil only grew stronger. 

When Sybil first called her to Gravity Falls, Fiddlelene took the opportunity immediately. She told herself it was because it would look great on her resume—but really it was to escape her marriage, which was growing troubled, and the strains of being a mother and running a business at the same time. She felt like she owed Sybil a lot, too, for helping her in her academic career. 

However, Gravity Falls would prove to be beyond Fiddlelene’s wheelhouse. The anomalies she and Sybil encountered there terrified her. Sybil, as close as they were, could be difficult, uncompromising, and reckless. The stress of being in this environment took its toll, and when the Quaaludes wouldn’t cut it anymore, Fiddlelene resorted to inventing a memory gun to wipe out the trauma. Sybil saw this as overdoing it—Fiddlelene just saw it as necessary in order to continue to be a good partner to Sybil. Fiddlelene also founded the Blind Eye Society, a cult dedicated to helping others erase traumatic memories of the supernatural.

Their partnership grew more distant as Sybil started acting more strange, claiming she was gleaning inspiration from her ‘Muse’. Who that muse was, Fiddlelene didn’t know, and whenever she asked her about them Sybil just shut her down.

Things finally shattered when doing a test run of the portal. Fiddlelene was nearly pulled in. What she saw in the portal traumatized her beyond all belief—visions of a beast with one eye, causing the end times. The women soon got into a fight after this, with Fiddlelene pleading to Sybil to shut the portal down. When Sybil wouldn't budge, Fiddlelene left.

Driven mad by what she saw, and devastated by her break up with Sybil, Fiddlelene began to use the memory gun on herself more and more. Her mind rapidly deteriorated as a result and she soon became the town’s local madwoman. She remembers almost nothing of her old life. But in her dreams, she dreams of a woman whose face she can’t remember, whose voice was like the ocean...

OTHER CHARACTERS

MALLORY "DIPPER" PINES- The great niece of Sybil and Sylvia. Dipper is an inquisitive, brave, and socially awkward young girl. She is a tomboy through and through. When she finds Journal 3 in the woods, she makes it her mission to investigate the secrets of Gravity Falls and unearth its author's true identity. She is in a rush to grow up. When she first meets Sybil, she idolizes her and even considers becoming her apprentice. However, Sybil's tough way of mentoring, born from her traumatic experiences in life, end up rubbing Dipper the wrong way. Ultimately, Sybil and Dipper do come to learn from and understand each other not just as family members, but as human beings.

MAXWELL PINES- The great nephew of Sybil and Sylvia. Maxwell is a hyperactive, outgoing, and eccentric young boy. He is a bit more in touch with his feminine side and wears a litany of colorful sweaters. He's on a quest to have an 'epic summer romance' with the girl of his dreams, with Sylvia even calling him 'her little ladykiller'. He wants to cling to his childhood while he still can. He is particularly close with Grauntie Sylvia, since both of them are charming and gregarious. They both like ganging up to tease Dipper.

MISS CIPHER- An interdimensional dream demon whose goal is to merge her Nightmare Dimension with Sybil's own, thus ushering in Weirdmageddon. She is the last being of the dimension known as Euclydia, destroyed through her own doing. There is no difference between her and Bill Cipher's backstories--if anything, the only difference is that she chose to take on a feminine form to exploit Sybil's mommy issues. She speaks like a whimsical Cockney English governess.

FILOMENA PINES- the no-nonsense matriarch of the Pines family, Filomena is not easily impressed by much. She is concerned above all else with assimilating into polite American society and molding her daughters into proper young ladies. Standing out to her is a matter of life and death.

CALEB PINES- a charismatic huckster who runs Pines Pawns, along with several business ventures on the side (which always blow up in his face, but he keeps going anyway). He loves his daughters but mainly sees raising them as Filomena's job. He 'makes up' for his unavailability by buying them nice things with the money he most definitely earned legally. IMPORTANT: to maintain the Pines name, Caleb was the one who passed his name down to his daughters.

SHERMIE PINES- Sybil and Sylvia's older brother, he probably left home when they were middle school age. He enlisted in the Navy and currently lives in California.

RICHARD and LEAH WITTEMORE- An eccentric multimillionaire couple who got rich off the growing tech industry in Silicon Valley. Fiddlelene does contract work for them sometimes. They have an interest in weird science and New Agey stuff and end up funding Sybil's research when the academic establishment rejected her.