(A/N: Prepare for a pretty long chapter...)
"Hey, Pine Tree! Come on, wake up!"
Dipper eyes slowly opened, but then jolted open when he came face to face with Bill who was kneeled next to his bed. He immediately sat up, making Bill laugh.
"Ugh, why'd you do that?" Dipper mumbled as he watched Bill stand up. He was surprised to see that he was already fully dressed.
"Shooting Star let you sleep in late because of yesterday," Bill began to explain. "She let me wake you up! If it makes you feel any better, I didn't mean to scare you that bad, kid."
Dipper rolled his eyes and crawled out of bed, stretching as he stood up. He reached one of his hands up to carefully touch the cut on his forehead. It still kind of hurt, but it was healing pretty well for it barely being a day since the incident.
"C'mon, kid," Bill exclaimed and started to walk over to the door. "She wants you downstairs. We already made breakfast!"
"We?" Dipper repeated, but followed Bill out of the room, yawning.
"Yeah! We! Your sister was nice enough to let me help out with cooking," Bill explained, sounding extremely happy with the chance to help out with breakfast. "She said I did good for my first time with cooking!"
"You didn't burn anything, did you? Or poison?" Dipper asked as they walked down the stairs and into the foyer.
Bill laughed as they entered the kitchen, "You have little faith in me, kid!"
"Dip-dop, you're awake!" Mabel greeted as she saw her brother enter the room with Bill. "I hope the wake up call wasn't too bad."
Dipper yawned, shook his head. He noticed that his sister was dressed a bit nicer than usual. She wore a light purple tank top and one of her expensive violet skirts that she had added glitter onto. Her hair was down but had a bobby pin in it that had a little, hot pink, bow on it.
Dipper then sat at the table with her while Bill stood behind Mabel. Dipper looked at the waffles in front of him and began eating.
"How are you feeling? Is your cut okay?" Mabel asked as she watched him eat.
Dipper gave a shrug and then finished his bite to reply, "Yeah. It still hurts a bit, but it was probably because I was sleeping on it."
"Great, because I have really good news!" Mabel exclaimed, enthusiasm filling her tone. "Grunkle Stan's letting me throw my own party tonight in the ballroom!"
"Oh, wow, really?" Dipper said, his eyes widening. "I'm surprised Stan let you."
"Yeah! I had been talking to him about it for a while and this morning he woke me up to say that he was going on a mini road trip and he'd be back tomorrow morning. He said that I could throw the party as long as I kept it in the ballroom and I cleaned up after myself!" Mabel explained. "You two are going to help me set up for tonight!"
Dipper looked at Bill who was nodding in agreement.
"You really think just the three of us can set up a party in just one day?" Dipper then hesitantly asked.
"Pft, no way!" Mabel laughed. "Soos and Wendy are going to help out instead of working for today and they should be here at any moment! I already called up the girls as well and Wendy said that she'd get her friends in on it too! Soos also said Melody's back in town for the week and that she'd come over to help out."
"Wow, Mabel, that's a lot of people," Dipper chuckled. "We'll get this party set up in no time, then."
"Yep! Soos, Wendy, and the girls could be here at any minute. You should probably go get dressed," Mabel then pointed out, gesturing towards Dipper's pajamas.
Dipper finished his late bite of waffles and then stood up, only to be shooed off by Mabel. He quickly scurried up the stairs and could hear his sister yell, "And dress a little nicer than you normally do! This is a party, bro bro!"
Once Dipper reached the attic, he closed the door behind him and picked out some clothes to wear. He chose a red, low-cut, t-shirt, a blue, plaid, flannel shirt, and silver, cropped, jeans. Dipper had only put on his pants and was mid-way through putting on his t-shirt when the door to the attic opened and a certain blonde walked in.
"Bill!" Dipper snapped and quickly pulled down his t-shirt. "What did I say about knocking before you walked into the attic? I could've been naked!"
"Hey, we're both guys, aren't we?" Bill chuckled before collapsing onto his bed, throwing his arms above his head as he watched Dipper put on his flannel shirt, leaving it unbuttoned.
"I could care less. I still want my privacy," Dipper muttered and went to sit on his own bed. "What are you doing up here, anyways? Or did you just come to see if you could catch me dressing?"
Bill laughed and then exclaimed, "No, of course not, Pine Tree! Your sister sent me up here to change into something more 'nice'. She said I could borrow something from you but I had something different in mind."
Dipper raised an eyebrow at Bill and questioned, "Like what?"
"Mmm, something like this," Bill chirped, and then snapped his fingers.
Dipper flinched a bit as Bill's outfit was engulfed in blue flames for a split second before revealing a new outfit. Bill sat up and looked over himself, seeming to be impressed with his work.
The demon was now wearing a white dress shirt with rolled up sleeves and a yellow vest over it. He also wore a black bowtie and black pants. His black tennis shoes, beanie, and gold, triangle, earrings remained, though.
Dipper was a bit stunned at the change, overlooking Bill's new outfit with interest. Bill then noticed and interrupted his staring, "Like what you see?"
Dipper's eyes shot up to meet Bill's aqua gaze, his cheeks getting a faint rosy tint to them, but replied, "... Uh, you look good. I just didn't know your powers were strong enough to do that yet."
"Clothes are easy magic, kid," Bill explained, almost sounding unimpressed with the other's knowledge of magic. "But either way, my powers are a bit stronger now. I'm still recovering though, so if you need me for anything big spells, count me out."
Dipper chuckled and then stood up, walking towards the door, "Come on, let's go see if the others are here yet."
Bill then jumped up, following Dipper out of the attic and into the foyer where Mabel was waiting for them. Her eyes lit up as she saw the two and let out a small squeal in excitement.
"You two look great!" she exclaimed, seeming to take more interest in Bill, though. "Where'd you find that? I know Dipper does not have anything nice like that."
Dipper frowned a bit but then watched as Bill lifted one of his hands up to light the tips of his fingers on fire and replied, "I made them."
"Cool!" Mabel chirped, and watched as the fire on Bill's hand that faded as he his hand fall back to the side of his body. "Come on, the others are waiting in the ballroom!"
Dipper and Bill followed Mabel down the winding hallway into the empty ballroom, where Soos, Wendy, Melody, Pacifica, Grenda, and Candy were waiting. They all looked at the three in excitement.
Dipper and Mabel quickly rushed up to Melody, who they had only saw over the computer for the entire summer, and tugged her into a group hug.
"Hey, Dipper, Mabel!" Melody exclaimed, and then pulled away from the two. "It's been so long since I've seen you two in person! You're so grown up now!"
Dipper laughed, "We're only sixteen, so we still have some growing up to do... Though, I don't think Mabel will ever mentally grow up."
Mabel nodded in agreement, making Melody laugh.
"Hey, so what's the plan, dudes?" Soos then interrupted and wrapped an arm around Melody.
"Right, plan!" Mabel exclaimed, clearing her throat. "Okay, so, before I assign everyone jobs... Wendy, is the gang coming?"
"Yup!" Wendy said, nodding. "They're going to be a bit late, but don't worry, they'll be here to help out."
"Great! Okay, so, I'll be the supervisor and moral support!" Mabel began, smiling and pointing at herself.
She then surveyed over the others and pointed at Grenda and Candy, "You two will be in charge of food and drinks! You can steal some stuff out of the kitchen, but you'll most likely have to go into town and get some things."
The two girls nodded and gave each other excited looks.
"Soos, Melody," Mabel pointed at the couple. "You'll both be the DJ's! Since Soos already has experience with being a DJ, I'm sure he'll be able to teach you some things."
"You got it, Mabel! I'll teach Melody all I know about how to be the perfect DJ," Soos exclaimed, making Melody laugh.
"Pacifica, and... Wendy!" Mabel spoke up again, pointing at them. "You'll be in charge of decorations and lights! Make this place pretty!"
Mable then turned to face Bill and Dipper, "And you two can get party supplies! I think Grunkle Stan has some in the storage room, if not, we'll go out and get some!"
Bill smiled and nodded, then looked at Dipper who only gave a small smile in return.
"Oh, man, this is gonna be great!" Wendy exclaimed. "We haven't had a party at the shack since you guys were twelve!"
"And that was when we met you, Mabel!" Candy pointed out.
"I could never forget that night!" Mabel squealed.
"Neither could I," Dipper mumbled to himself.
"The cloning incident, right?" Bill quietly commented, smirking at the brunette.
Dipper's eyes shot up to look at Bill with shock. He was about to ask Bill how he knew about that, but then realized who he was talking to and chose not to say anything.
"Alright, people, let's move it!" Mabel then shouted, clapping her hands. "The party's at six! Let's get moving!"
Everyone quickly started moving around the room, beginning their tasks that had been assigned to them.
Bill grabbed Dipper by his arm and dragged him out into the hall and down to the storage room. Dipper had remembered this had been the same place where the wax figures were stored. Fortunately, he wouldn't have to fight them this time since they were gone.
Bill flicked on the lightswitch to reveal that the room was now crowded with boxes and old merchandise that Stan didn't sell anymore. It was a bit dusty, but then again Stan didn't keep the Mystery Shack all that clean in general.
Dipper walked in and looked over the boxes until he saw with 'PARTY SUPPLIES' written on the front of it in black ink. He kneeled down to pull the box towards himself.
"Good thing Grunkle Stan keeps these boxes labeled or we might've been in here all day," Dipper chuckled as he brushes dust off the top of the cardboard box and opened it.
Bill stood behind Dipper and looked into the box. It was full of bags of confetti, party hats, cans of Silly String, and other party favors and supplies.
"Let's get this back to the others," Dipper then said as he closed the box and picked it up. "I'm sure they'll love this stuff!"
Bill gave Dipper a small smile but it quickly faded as Bill's eyes darted to stare at the dirty floor. Dipper raised an eyebrow at Bill, asking, "Hey, are you alright, Bill?"
"Uh," Bill seemed to be reluctant to speak, but then sighed. "Let me know if you start to get headaches or feel sick or anything, okay, Pine Tree? ...Or if you start to loose your memory or feel weak."
Dipper tilted his head a bit but then realized that Bill was making sure Dipper was experiencing that same symptoms he had whenever he had been attacked.
"I'm okay, Bill," Dipper reassured him. "But I'll let you know if any of that that starts to happen."
Dipper then started to walk out of the room, but then stopped and turned around. He smirked and looked Bill, "Mmm, how sweet, Cipher! ...Getting all worried about me."
Bill gave him a puzzled look but then realized what Dipper had said and snapped, "H-hey! You're making fun of me!"
Dipper laughed and ran out of the room with Bill chasing after him.
----
The party managed to get together pretty quickly. Things also went much quicker when Robbie, Tambry, Nate, Lee, and Thompson showed up and helped lend a hand.
Six rolled around and Dipper was quite surprised to see how many people were beginning to show up. Wendy told him that Tambry had her ways to spread the word about a party around pretty quickly.
A little after the party was getting started, Mabel had pulled her brother into the hallway to talk to him. Dipper was a bit worried about why Mabel suddenly wanted to talk to him at such a time.
"Mabel, what's up? Don't you want to be out there, I dunno, dancing or something?" Dipper asked with a polite smile.
"Yeah, but I need to let you know something," his sister replied, sounding serious, which surprised Dipper.
He gave her a smile small, "You can tell me anything, Mabel."
Mabel smiled back, but then sighed, and went on, "Okay... So, um, I've kinda had this huge crush on Pacifica for a while..."
Dipper's eyes widened, but he kept smiling, "That's sweet! Have you told her yet? Not that you have to tell her, but I'm just wondering."
"That's what I'm going to do tonight!" Mabel then exclaimed. "I know she likes girls, but I'm worried that she won't like me back and won't want to be friends anymore..."
"Mabel, come on, who wouldn't like you?" Dipper then said with a little laugh.
"Lots of people don't like me, Dipper! Not everyone likes my enthusiasm...," Mabel protested, sounding a bit sad.
"Hey, I know Pacifica likes it. You'll be okay, Mabes. You got this," Dipper told her.
Mabel smiled at her brother and then tackled her brother with a hug. He laughed and then pulled away, walking back to the ballroom with her. Dipper gave her a thumbs up as she rushed over to Pacifica.
"Someone's in a good mood," a voice behind Dipper chirped.
Dipper turned around to see Bill leaning on the doorway, playing with his Rubik's Cube. He rolled his eyes at the blonde and replied, "It looks like Mabel may be getting a new girlfriend."
"Mmm, that's nice for her. Now someone else besides us will have to deal with her nonsense," Bill snickered.
"No, I'm pretty sure we'll still have to deal with it... Just a little less," Dipper smiled. "Hey, when are you going to give me my Rubik's Cube back? I bought that with my own money, you know."
"You'll get it back the day I decide to stop messing with you," Bill chuckled.
"Which means never?" Dipper sighed, but there was still humour in his tone.
Bill just laughed and nodded his head.
"Are you just going to stand here with that cube for the entire party?" Dipper then asked, gesturing at the cube when he did.
"Probably," the blonde replied with a shrug, not looking up.
"No, dude. Not on my watch," Dipper then exclaimed, surprising Bill. "Come on, let's go do something fun, Cipher! You still like fun, don't you?"
"Of course I do, kid," Bill smirked, but then shook his head. "But, don't waste your time on me. Go hang out with Red or... someone else."
Dipper frowned a bit, "How about you'll be my 'someone else'? If you're not going to go do something with me, I'll stay here and do nothing with you instead."
Bill's eyes lit up and he smiled, letting out a flustered laugh, "Pine Tree, you don't have to be so nice to me all the time. I don't deserve it, kid."
Dipper leaned against the wall next to Bill and elbowed him in the gut, "Dude, you just saved my life yesterday. I think that's one reason for you to deserve for someone to be nice to you."
Bill just smiled and wrapped one of his arms around Dipper's shoulders and pulled him close.
"Pine Tree, you're going to kill me with all this kindness."
(A/N: We needed a light-hearted chapter because the next couple chapters are bad, bad, bad. Also, in case anyone was interested, Pacifica is a lesbian and Mabel is an open pansexual. If Pacifica decided to go out with Mabel or not will be answered in a couple of chapters.
Also, the idea for a party was suggested by ej_is_awesome on Instagram! c:
And like I said before, things go bad in the next chapter...)