It took quite a bit of convincing.
Every year the Northwest's would throw a grand New Year's Eve party. It was the talk of the town – the type of event only the most elite were invited to.
And, apparently, being close friends with Pacifica earned both Dipper and Mabel a spot.
Now, Dipper wasn't one for fancy parties, or parties in general really. Especially considering the last one he went to resulted in him discovering and confessing his feelings to a murderous sociopath.
And thinking his sister had been kidnapped.
And just generally making a fool of himself.
Needless to say, Dipper didn't have a good track record with formal events.
So despite Mabel's urging and Pacifica's apathetic statements of "this is a once in a lifetime chance, Dipper Pines. I don't give these invitations away to just anyone." He still refused to go.
That is, until Bill joined in.
"You are going to be my date." The blonde said simply one late December evening, eyes flitting up from some paperwork he had been working on to meet a curious amber gaze.
"Wait, what?" Dipper had merely been expressing his discontent with his sister's increasingly obnoxious pestering as January grew closer. Still, Dipper remained as stubborn and steadfast as ever, and he was hoping Bill, who was as antisocial and negative as they come, would agree...
"You have to go to the party. They are throwing it here. I have to go. You have to come with me as my date." Bill responded, blue eyes flickering mischievously.
"When did you decide this?" Dipper asked.
"Just now." Bill tilted his head, a sly smile playing on his lips. Dipper sighed.
"...You are only doing this because I don't want to go, aren't you?"
Bill chuckled lowly, going back to his work.
"Why, Dipper, why on earth would you think that?"
It took quite a bit of persuading, but with both his sister and his boyfriend against him, even Dipper's resolute guard was bound to crumble.
Which is how the dissatisfied brunette found himself once again dressed in a tux standing with a contrastingly ecstatic Mabel at his side. This time, however, Bill had insisted on buying Dipper a proper tux, which somehow had the opposite effect of making him even more embarrassed than when he had been wearing his Grunkle Ford's hand-me-downs back in October.
Reaching up Dipper nervously tugged at his tie, glancing over at his twin.
"De-ja-vu." He stated, voice dripping with sarcasm. Mabel snorted, playfully punching him in the side.
"Stop being such a baby, Dip-Dops, This'll be fun!"
Just as she finished she took her brother's hand and dragged him into the club.
Immediately he was overwhelmed by the sheer number of people. The floor was packed, and unlike every other day of the year each individual carried an aura of wealth and power that spoke of a deeply engrained sense of prestige that Dipper just couldn't understand. His twin's grip around his hand tightened as she pulled him towards the bar and up to a pretty blonde wearing an elegant lavender dress.
"Pacifica!" Mabel greeted, and the blonde turned, face immediately brightening at the sight of the other girl. They clasped one another's hands endearingly, and Pacifica leaned forward to whisper something into the brunette's ear that had his sister giggeling. From there they became utterly absorbed in one another, and Dipper began to wonder if he and Bill acted the same way when around one another.
He promptly shoved that thought away because he most certainly did not want to think about how he acted with Bill.
Or Bill in general. Because if he got thinking about Bill he'd start thinking about his soft golden hair, that ridiculously comic smile of his that just set Dipper's heart aflutter whenever he saw it, those playful cerulean eyes, pupils dilated, face inching closer...
"Yo dude, what's up?" Dipper jolted at the familiar voice of Soos, his face flushing in embarrassment at what he had just been thinking.
"Oh, hey Soos. Bill making you work the holiday again?" He asked casually, though his voice cracked slightly towards the end. Soos smiled, shaking his head.
"Nah man, I volunteered. These wealthy types tip real well. Plus, Melody is spending New Years with her sister."
"Oh, really? I didn't know Melody had a sister?" Dipper asked, glad for the conversation. His sister had abandoned him in favor of walking out onto the dance floor with Pacifica.
A part of him angrily wondered why she had even wanted him to come.
An even bigger part reluctantly admitted that it really didn't matter because Bill would have roped him into it with or without his twins help.
Dipper released a long sigh. Between his sister and his boyfriend he often felt he was losing control of his life.
Not that he minded, really. He'd accepted his fate the same day he'd accepted his feelings for Bill.
"Yeah, and get this dude, she just gave birth to twins! Small world right? Of course, they were both girls, but you get my meaning..." Soos trailed, and Dipper nodded, smiling reassuringly.
"Yeah, that's really cool Soos. Tell Melody's sister congratulations for me." He said honestly, and the larger man nodded.
"You can count on me dude." Soos set a glass filled with ice on the table, pouring a thin amber liquid into it before pushing it towards Dipper. "There you are, Brandy on the rocks."
Dipper took a drink, swirling the glass before taking a sip. The alcohol hit his mouth like gasoline before mellowing into a woody, smoky after taste.
"Thanks." He sighed, taking another swig. He sat there alone for a while as Soos went back to making drinks for the other customers, occasionally pausing to chat with Dipper before setting back to work again. Finally he set down his now empty glass, his mind softly abuzz from the alcohol.
"Hey Soos, have you seen Bill anywhere?" He asked, and his friend shrugged, handing a young woman a mint julep.
"Mr. Cipher said he was going out on business." He wiped his hands off on a rag before tucking it back into his apron. "I guess it's taking a bit longer than usual." Soos shrugged, and Dipper nodded.
"Yeah. Okay. Could I get another round?" Dipper pushed his glass forward, and Soos beamed.
"Of course!"
Dipper watched the pale liquid crash about the ice, slowly filling his glass.
He wasn't disappointed. Really.
Still, he felt his chest ache slightly at the thought of not being able to see the blonde. He'd just seen him the day before, and yet...
"Cheers." Dipper lifted his glass to the empty air before taking a long swig, allowing himself to drown in his halfhearted sorrows for just a little while longer.
"Excuse me, Barkeep? Could I have a Manhattan?" There was movement to Dipper's right as a man moved to ill the empty seat there.
"Sure dude." Soos said, happily setting to work on the order.
"Thanks." Dipper couldn't help but shiver slightly at the sound of the other man's voice. It was...strange. Toneless, almost, emotionless, and Monotone - as if he were only taking in the sound around him and warping it to form his own words.
"Looks like you and I are in the same boat." The voice laughed (which resulted in another round of shivers from Dipper and another drink).
Then there was a long period of silence, in which Dipper became increasingly anxious, before he finally looked up to meet a pair of violet eyes.
"Are...are you talking to me?" He asked in surprise and the other man chuckled, holding out his hand.
"Tad Strange." He said with a smile, and Dipper paused before taking the limb in a handshake.
"Dipper Pines." The man sitting across from him was strange indeed. The oddities didn't stop with his eyes. No, there was a strange, almost formlessness to the man before him, as if Dipper was merely gazing at the smoky outline of a person rather than a living, breathing being. He seemed to fade into the background, disappearing into the surrounding area, and, what's even odder, Dipper couldn't make out any discernable features. His hair was dark, but neither black nor brown, his body was tall and slim, but not particularly so and Dipper couldn't guess the other man's height or weight even if you asked him to. It was as if he were shifting, and the only thing that remained were those brilliant, lilac colored eyes.
"A pleasure to meet you, Dipper Pines."
Eyes that were currently locked to Dipper's own, unwavering, as he held the other's hand for slightly longer than necessary.
"Yeah. Sure." The brunette slowly withdrew his hand, trying to ignore the feeling of discomfort welling in his chest.
"Here's your drink." Soos, swept in, and finally Tad looked away, fixing the barkeep with a white toothed grin.
"Thank you."
Dipper chugged down the last of his drink, preparing to escape into the crowed and avoid any other awkward conversations with Tad. However, before he had a chance he felt something warm press against his back as a pair of arms slunk around his shoulders and pulled him into a hug.
"I should have known. Seriously Dip, without Bill around you are no fun." Mabel pouted, placing her chin atop her twin's head.
"Soos, could you get me two Mary Pickford's?" she asked, earning a nod from the barkeeper.
"Mabel, shouldn't you be off bothering Pacifica?" Dipper huffed, trying to shove his twin off his head. She merely laughed, reaching up to fluff his hair before taking a seat beside him.
"Ah, am I not allowed to bother my favorite baby brother?" she cooed, before nodding towards the stage. "She's getting ready to do a performance. Plus, I wanted to check on you..." she trailed off, doe eyes flickering to something just over Dipper's shoulder.
"Oh, whose that?" she giggled, and Dipper felt his face flush.
"What? Who? It's nothing." He stammered, which only made his sister laugh harder.
"Dipper, you scallywag! Just got Bill and you are already out conquering new hearts!" she snorted.
"Mabel, it's not like that, I..."
His denials fell on deaf ears as Mabel leaned over him and stretched her arm out to the dark haired stranger.
"Hey there! I'm Mabel, this weirdo's twin sister!"
"Mabel!" Dipper cried, though Tad only chortled and took her hand. But rather than shaking it, as both siblings had been expecting, he bent over and pressed it to his lips.
"What a pleasure to meet such a beautiful lady." He said smoothly, making Mabel turn cherry red. She quickly pulled her hand away, fanning her cheeks.
"Oh, you are quite the charmer, aren't you?" she swooned.
Dipper rolled his eyes, reluctantly turning back to Tad. "Sorry to disappoint, sir, but my sister is already taken." He stated, once again drawing the attention of those magnetic eyes.
"Of course, but I'm afraid my attentions are focused on another person entirely."
Dipper was just going to ignore the implications of that statement.
"There you are Dipper number 2." Soos handed Mabel the two glasses, and she quickly pushed one over to Dipper before turning in her seat to face the stage as the lights dimmed. The brunette eyed the fruity drink before taking a tedious sip.
It tasted like cream and pineapple.
Following Mabel's lead he turned to the stage just as the band began to play. Pacifica stood center stage before the microphone stand, nodding her head from side to side as the first notes lulled the bustling crowed into silence. Her blue eyes flickered in the light as she glanced over the crowed before falling on the twins by the bar. Mabel lifted her hand in a small wave, and Pacifica broke into a breathtaking smile before taking a deep breath and beginning her song.
"Down by the Sally Gardens, my love and I did meet..." He voice wrung out with a new intensity, reverberating through the silence. She sounded far more passionate than ever before, and when he glanced over he saw Mabel beaming at the blonde, her face one of utter love and adoration. The kind of look someone who had finally found someone who they loved completely.
The look of someone who had finally found someone who loved them equally in turn.
It's funny. Only a few months before the pair had set taken their footsteps in New York after nearly ten years away, Back then they had both thought they were broken. Back then they could have never imagined that four months from that very point they would be sitting side by side, complete, happy, and loved.
Seeing his sister, who had had her heart turned away so many times she was beginning to doubt anyone would ever return her feelings looking at someone with so much wonder - and having that look returned...it made Dipper happier than words could ever describe.
And as for his own match, well, Bill Cipher was by no means anyone's ideal. Being with the blonde was just a disaster waiting to happen, Dipper knew, and despite all of Bill's sweet words the brunette still had a feeling the other man didn't quite return his feelings.
Still, Dipper was content. Once again he was on that train, gazing out over the station – over the bright white tiles and the sea of faces and the infinitely bright and clear early autumn light – gazing out into the unknown. As he had learned that faithful day, things could go terribly wrong. He could end up owing his servitude to the most feared leader in all of New York.
He could also find himself falling for that very same man.
On one hand there was the astringent. On another, the saccharine. Both awaited him out there, beyond this quiet moment.
A new year, a whole new set of opportunities.
And Dipper decided that no matter what would happen between him and bill in the future, he would never regret that decision he made at the Halloween party.
That no matter what, he would look back upon these fleeting, honeyed memories and know that, for at least a little time, he was happy.
Truly, completely, and without a doubt.
Dipper pines was happy to be with Bill.
"She bid me take love easy, as the leaves grow on the tree..."
Enraptured, the audience listened to the tune until its end, bursting into applause as the final melancholy notes echoed throughout the silence. Pacifica bowed to the crowed of listeners before making her way towards the bar.
"Hey." She greeted them, smiling as her gaze fell on Mabel. Immediately the brown haired girl grabbed her hands, beaming widely at her partner with innocent pride.
"You were amazing! I mean, you are always amazing, but today was especially special!" she cheered, jumping into the arms of the blonde and giving her a hug.
"Thanks, Mabes. That means a lot coming from you." Pacifica breathed, closing her eyes for a moment before pulling away.
"So..." she trailed, turning her attention to Dipper. "Well, I know I've been keeping Mabel to myself lately, and it's unfair to you..." she trailed, clearing her throat nervously as her eyes flickered to meet the brunette's. "...So I was wondering if maybe you would be interested in joining me in my dressing room for champagne?"
Dipper's eyes widened slightly, before he too broke into a wide smile.
"Of course." He stated. "I would love to."
"Mind if I join?" Tad asked, and suddenly Dipper was reminded of the violet eyed stranger who he had blissfully forgotten up until that point. He opened his mouth to turn the other man away when Mabel cut him off with a boisterous: "Of course! The more the merrier!"
"Mabel." Dipper hissed, and his sister shrugged, leaning down to whisper in her twin's ear.
"You need more friends than just Bill and Soos, Dip. And this one seems like he could fill the position quite nicely!"
Apparently he once again had no say in the matter.
Lovely.