Dani's POV
I was rushing over to the Mystery Shack by the twins and Soos saying that our new favorite TV show released a new episode. The show was about a tiger with a fist. Yes... it does sound ridiculous, and that's why we love it. I rode faster on my biker, driving past Mr. Pines who was giving a group a tour, and of course, scamming them out of their money. The tourists didn't realize that everything he was showing them was fake. That's probably why his business is so good.
Once I made it to the Shack's entrance, I hopped off my bike and stepped inside, not even bothering to knock this time out of excitement. I walked into the living room and saw Dipper and Mabel sitting in front of the yellow chair where Soos sat. They took notice of me and all smiled. "Dani!" they cheered.
"Come sit," Dipper said, patting the spot on the floor between him and Mabel. "It's about to start!"
I smiled back and took the seat. We turned to the TV to see that the theme song started playing. "...The tiger was badly injured in the explosion, but we repaired him with a fist..." the narrator finished. The twins, Soos, and I all cheered for the tiger in excitement as it punched itself in the face with its fist. "Tiger Fist! ...will return after these messages."
The screen cut to a commercial that started with a hand releasing a bunch of doves. "Hey, look," Soos said, pointing to the TV. "It's that commercial I was telling you guys about."
It then cut to a man in what I assumed to be his bedroom, crying on his bad. "Are you completely miserable?" the narrator asked.
"YES!" the crying man replied through sobs.
"Then you need to meet..." the narrator's voice trailed off and a group of women whispered, "...Gideon..."
"Gideon?" I questioned, raising a brow.
"What makes him so special?" Mabel added.
"He's a psychic," the narrator answered as if he heard the question Mabel asked. She tilted her head in confusion in response to his answer.
"So don't waste your time with other so-called 'man of mystery,'" the narrator said, showing a clip of Mr. Pines stepping out an outhouse, shaking a piece of toilet paper off his foot. Then a hand came up on the screen and stamped the scene with the word 'FRAUD'. "Learn about tomorrow tonight at Gideon's Tent of Telepathy!" he then started speed through the subtitles. "Voidwhereprohibited,noC.O.D.'saccepted.CarlaI'vealwayslovedyoubutneverhadthegutstosayit."
Mabel gasped in amazement. "Wow, I'm getting all curiousy inside!" she chirped.
"Well, don't get too curiousy," Mr. Pines said as he walked into the room, hanging his coat on a coathook. "Ever since that monster Gideon rolled into town, I've had nothin' but trouble."
"Well, is he really psychic?" Mabel asked.
"I think we should go and find out," Dipper said as three of us stood up.
"Never!" Mr. Pines exclaimed. "You're forbidden from patronizing the competition. No one that lives under my roof is allowed under that Gideon's roof!" He then pointed to me. "That goes for you too, missy. Do not go under his roof if you ever wanna come back to this shack."
I smirked, tryin' to get my sass on. "Do tents have roofs?" I asked, snarkily.
"I think we just found our loophole... literally!" Mabel said and pulled out a piece of string that was looped. "Womp womp!" I chuckled at her joke.
"So come down soon, folks," the TV narrator said. "Gideon is expecting you..." The last part sounded ominous and gave me an uneasy feeling. Maybe... this is a bad idea.
---
Later that night, Dipper had convinced me to go to the Tent of Telepathy after I started having second thoughts. I've never been to these kinds of shows before so I guess it would be interesting to see what Gideon has in store. As the twins, Soos, and I walked up to the entrance, we saw a man out front with a bag in his hand. It was sort of similar to Mr. Pines' 'Sack of Mystery'. "Step right up there, folks. Put your money in Gideon's psychic sack," the man said to people as they walked in. Some people and some didn't. Soos and the twins casually walked by, knowing it was a scam. But for me, I was feeling generous. I walked up to the man and smiled. "Why hello there, darlin'!" he greeted me with a southern accent. "Name's Bud. Bud Gleeful. Proud owner and even prouder father to Gideon himself!"
"Oh, I'm Dani!" I said. "I think it's sweet that you're helping your son do this whole... charade, y' know?"
He chuckled, looking taken aback. "Excuse me?" he asked.
"Sorry, it's just, I mean I'm not much of a physic believer myself and if I know my friend's uncle well enough, and the sort of 'business' he runs, I'm pretty sure I can sense a fake when I see one," I told him. "Apologies if that sounded a little harsh..."
He stared at me with a slight glare, but then broke out in laughter. "Oh, no need!" he said. "Not everyone's a believer, but I'm sure this show will change your life forever."
I laughed nervously. "Oh, I'm sure it will!" I said with a hint of sarcasm. I reach into my satchel and pulled out a five, putting it in the sack he was holding. "There, at least I'll chip in."
He grinned widely but it seemed forced. "Oh my, thank you, sweetheart!" he said, tipping his straw his hat to me. "That's quite generous of you." I smiled back and gave him a nod before walking inside. But as I made my way in, I couldn't help feel that his eyes were burning in the back of my head. So I decided to check. I turned my head around to see his eyes glaring into my soul. I yelped and rushed over to the bench where the twins and Soos were sitting, taking a seat in between Soos and Dipper.
"What took you so long?" he asked me with a chuckle. I didn't respond. Dipper seemed to sense my nervousness and paranoia. "Woah, hey Dani, you alright?"
"Hm?" I looked up at him and put on a smile for him. "Oh, yeah, I'm fine. Just... tired. It is late after all." He hesitated for a second before nodding in agreement. I scooted closer to him.
The lights started to dim and the spotlight started to move around the tent. "It's starting! It's starting!" Mabel exclaimed, excitedly.
Dipper rolled his eyes and crossed his arms. "Let's see what this monster looks like," he said. The lights shined on stage and the curtain, forming a tall silhouette. It came closer and closer, growing bigger and then... the curtain opened. There on the stage stood a short, stout kid with a blinding white pompadour bigger than his head. His nose was upturned and had freckles like me. The suit he wore was baby blue with an American flag pin on his chest, and a shimmering cape behind him. In the center of his chest was a jade amulet on a bolo tie. And for some reason, I couldn't stop staring at it...
"Hello America!" the little boy greeted in a southern accent, catching me out of my trance. "My name is Li'l Gideon." He clapped his hands and a group of doves flew out of his hair. The crowd cheered.
"That's Stan's mortal enemy?" Dipper questioned.
"But he's so... wittle!" Mabel cooed.
"Now it makes sense why he has his father running the business portion," I added. Dipper chuckled.
"Ladies and gentlemen, it is such a gift to have you here tonight!" Gideon said. "Such a gift. I have a vision. I predict that you will soon all say, 'aww.'" He faced away from the crowd and when he turned back around, he posed with a disturbingly cute face which caused the audience, except for Dipper and I, to 'awe' in unison. Dipper and I exchanged a confused look.
"It came true," Mabel said in amazement.
"What? I'm not impressed," Dipper stated.
"He's honestly not that convincing," I added.
"Oh come on," Mabel said. "You guys are impressed."
"Hit it, dad!" Gideon ordered, pointing to his dad who was sitting at a piano and started playing. Gideon whipped off his cape and threw it into the crowd, the audience proceeding to fight for it like a pack of wild animals. He then started to sing, "Oh, I can see, what others can't see. It ain't some sideshow trick, it's innate ability. Where others are blind, I am futurely inclined. And you too could see, if you were widdle ol' me!" He giggled to himself. "Come on, everybody, rise!" Gideon said. "I want y'all to keep it going!" He put his hand on his bolo tie and raised his other hand. And just then, the whole, including the twins, Soos, and I, rose, seemingly unintentionally, and everyone started to clap along with the beat.
Dipper was just as freaked out as I was. "Wha—?" Dipper questioned.
"How did he—?" I added.
"Keep it going!" Gideon continued. He then pointed to someone in the crowd. "You wish your son would call you more!"
We looked over and saw he pointed to a lady with an old cat on her lap. "I'm leaving everything to my cats!" she declared and the cat hissed.
"I sense that you've been here before," Gideon sang, gesturing to another person.
It turned out to be Sherrif Blubs wearing a shirt with Gideon's face on it and holding various other Lil' Gideon merchandise. "Oh, what gave it away?" he asked cooingly.
Dipper rolled his eyes at him as I cringed. "Oh come on," he exasperated.
Gideon looked over at the three of us and walked off stage, coming closer. He seemed to be eyeing Mabel. "I'll read your mind if I'm able," he sang to her. "Something tells me you're named... Mabel." He then made his way back on stage.
Mabel just stared in awe. "How'd he do that?" she asked, amazed. I looked across Dipper at Mabel to see her wearing a blue sweater with her name stitched into it. I hummed, displeased as I turned my head back to Gideon.
"So welcome all ye... to the Tent of Telepathy," Gideon sang. "And thanks for visiting... widdle ol' meeeeee!" He did a little dance before finishing with open arms. A bright blue neon sign with his name on came down and fire shot up from each side of the stage. Everyone cheered and hollered at the boy's performance as Dipper and I remained silent.
Mabel, on the other hand, was overjoyed like everyone else. "Woo! Yeah!" she cheered.
I didn't want to stay there any longer, neither did Dipper, but per Soos and Mabel's request, we stayed for the whole show. And might I say, I was quite relieved when it was over. We were walking out of the tent as everyone cleared out as well when Dipper stated, "Man, that kid's an even bigger fraud than Stan! No wonder our uncle's jealous."
"Not to mention, his performance was quite excessive," I remarked.
"Oh, come on," Mael said. "His dance moves were adorable! And did you see his hair? It was like, whoosh!"
"You're too easily impressed," Dipper said as I chuckled.
"Yeah, yeah!" Mabel jabbed and the three of us laughed.
I waved bye to the twins and Soos as they got in his truck and I straddled my bike. I watched them drive away, smiling to myself. But I had the feeling that I was being watched again. I slightly turned around to that Gideon was peering out of the tent, looking right at me. Gasping, I started peddling away, paranoid out of my mind.
The next day, still paranoid over last night, I was over at the Mystery Shack reading the journal with Dipper as he played with my hair. Our reading was then interrupted by Mabel coming up to with bedazzled jewels all over her face, even her eyelids. "Check it out, guys!" she exclaimed, joyfully. "I successfully bedazzled my face! Blink!" as she said this, she blinked and some of the sequins fell off. "Ow..."
"Is that...?" I questioned.
"...Permanent?" Dipper finished.
Mabel sighed. "I'm unappreciated in my time..." she said.
Then, the doorbell rang. "Somebody answer that door!!" Mr. Pines yelled from another room.
"I'll get it!" Mabel replied, wiping the jewels off her face as she ran to the door.
Dipper and I continued to read the journal, but I started to zone out, thinking about last night. Mr. Gleeful and Gideon just really give me the creeps. There's just something about them that doesn't feel right. I could tell Dipper took notice of my nervous demeanor since he stopped playing my hair. "Dani, what's wrong?" he asked me. "You seemed a bit off ever since we went to Gideon's show last night."
I sighed. "I guess I am a bit off, aren't I?" I said. "It's just that Gideon kid and his dad. Something about them doesn't feel right, y' know?"
Dipper nodded. "I know exactly how you feel," he admitted.
I looked at him, surprised. "You do?"
"Well, yeah. The whole vibe of that show was just... off," Dipper stated. "I mean, how did we stand up unwillingly?"
"Right?!" I exclaimed. "Geez, I've been racking my brain thinking too much about all this. It's just weird, I guess."
"Yeah..." Dipper paused. "well maybe we shouldn't think too much about it." He then laughed too himself. "That's probably saying a lot considering, well... how we are."
I laughed with him. "All we can do is try," I said with a smile.
"Who's at the door?" Mr. Pines suddenly yelled.
"No one, Grunkle Stan!" Mabel shouted back from the door.
"She's been at that door for a while," I stated. "Do you think she's talking to someone?"
Dipper shrugged. "Maybe. Knowing Mabel she's probably becoming best friends with the mailman." I nodded in agreement.
Just then, Mabel came rushing back into the shack. "Hi, guys!" she greeted Dipper and me before bolting up the steps. A few seconds later, she came running back down, now with a purse. "Bye, guys!" And with that, she left, slamming the door behind her. Dipper and I exchanged a look.
An hour went since Mabel has left. Dipper and I were still examining the journal, but I decided to grab us drinks. But when I walked back into the living room, drinks in hand, I saw that Mabel was back with a complete makeover. Her hair was bigger, she had purple eyeshadow, lots of blush, and pink nails that were super long. "Whoa, where have you been?" Dipper asked, looking at his sister's new look.
"And what's going on with those fingernails?" I asked, walking up to her. "You look like a wolverine."
"I know, right?" she said then roared, pretending to scratch me. I giggled at her. "I was hanging out with my new pal, Gideon. He is one dapper little man."
My smiled faded. "Gideon?" I questioned, slightly scared.
"Mabel, Dani and I don't trust anyone whose hair is bigger than their head," Dipper remarked.
"How much hairspray do you think he uses to keep it up?" I added, teasingly. Dipper and I snickered.
"Oh, leave him alone!" Mabel snapped. "You never want to do girly stuff with me; you and Soos get to do boy stuff all the time! Let alone that Dani's always riding your tailcoat!" I blushed at her comment.
"What do you mean?" Dipper asked.
At that moment, Soos came rushing into the room all excited, a pack of hot dogs in his hand. "Hey, dudes, you ready to blow up these hot dogs in the microwave one by one?" he asked Dipper and me.
"Am I!" Dipper responded then turned to me. "Come on, Dani!" He started running off with Soos, the two of them laughing.
I was hesitant to leave after what Mabel said so I looked to her to decide. She furrowed her brows at me before sighing. "Just go," she said. I was going to say something in return but decided against it. I awkwardly placed the two drinks that were in my hand on the tableside and walked off. But the pit of guilt in my stomach didn't go away. I should make it up to her one day. While I was with Dipper and Soos, I saw Mabel leave out the door again. I shook off my guilty feelings and spent most of the afternoon with Soos and Dipper just goofing off.
The activities we did were so tiring that Dipper and I just decided to play video games. Mabel soon walked through the door and we let her join in. She seemed to have gotten her little spat from before. We were so focused on the game that neither of us said anything. That was until Dipper spoked up. "So, you went to see Gideon again, huh?" he asked Mabel.
"Yup," she responded flatly, her eyes glued to the TV.
"What'd you guys do?" I added.
"He took me up to his family's factory to watch the sunset, we talked about some stuff, and well, he uh... he asked me out on a date," she said.
Dipper and I looked at her in disbelief. "Really?" we questioned.
"It's not a date-date, it's just, you know, I didn't want to hurt his feelings and so I figured I'd throw him a bone," she explained.
"Mabel, guys don't work that way," Dipper stated. "He's gonna fall in love with you."
"Especially with a personality like yours and how nice you've been to him," I said.
Mabel scoffed playfully. "Yeah right. I'm not that lovable," she retorted. She then ended up killing me and Dipper's players in the game. "Kaboom! Yes!" She flopped over on my lap in victory.
I giggled at her as Dipper said, "Okay, we agree on something here."
Just then, the doorbell rang and Mabel hopped up to answer it. Dipper and I continued our game in silence, but soon jumped when we heard Mabel scream. We dropped our controllers and rushed to Mabel, but stopped in our tracks when we saw who was at the door. It was Gideon on top of a white horse in his blue suit with a white hat. "A night of enchantment awaits, m'lady!" he greeted.
Mabel panted in fear. "Oh boy," she muttered then sighed, standing up. "Okay, let's... do this."
Gideon squealed. "Oh, how lucky I am to be spending the night with you," he beamed. "You won't regret it!"
"I hope so..." Mabel said. Gideon outstretched his arm for Mabel and she hesitantly excepted. She climbed on the horse, sitting behind Gideon and turned to Dipper and me. "Alright, I'll see you guys later, I guess." She put on a weak smile.
Dipper waved as I said, with slight unease, "Have fun." Gideon turned the horse around but gave Dipper and me a glare. And with that, they were off. I turned to Dipper. "You noticed that too, right?" I asked him.
He nodded. "Yeah, and like I said before, I don't trust him."
I nodded in agreement. "Yeah... so, what do you wanna do now?" I asked him.
He thought for a moment before his eyes lit up with an idea. "Teach me how to play piano," he said.
I chuckled. "What?"
"I remember you've told me you know how to play a bunch of instruments, one being piano, and I figured it'd be cool if you taught a few things."
I scratched the back of my neck, debating the idea. "Well, I've never taught anyone anything and I'm not the best at explaining things..."
"Pleeasse...?" Dipper looked at me, puppy dog eyes and all. "Pwetty pwease...?"
I groaned. "Oh! Again with the eyes?" I exclaimed. He continued to make the face and I let myself give in. "Grr... fine."
"Yay," Dipper said, nonchalantly. "And I think Soos has a keyboard that we can ask to borrow."
"Then let's go do that," I declared. As we walked to find Soos, I added, "I also know how to do ballet. Would you like me to teach you that as well?"
"Would I be required to wear a tutu?" Dipper asked playfully.
"Of course," I stated.
Dipper paused for a second. "I'll think about it," he said with a smirk and I giggled.
After asking Soos, we set up the keyboard in the gift shop counter as Wendy and Soos watched. I started teaching him a few notes and rhythms and he picked it up pretty fast. Wendy, Soos, and I all watched him play a simple melody I taught him, but he jumped and hit a wrong note when we heard the sound of Mr. Pines' yelling. "Hey, hey!" he hollered, walking into the gift shop in just his underwear and undershirt. "What the jackal is Mabel doing in the paper next to that crazy pickpocket Gideon?" He held up a newspaper article that showed a picture of Mabel and Gideon walking down the street together, but Mabel looked displeased.
"Oh, yeah, it's like a big deal," Wendy explained and pulled out her phone, showing Mr. Pines a trending page. "Everybody's talking about Gideon and Mabel's big date tonight."
"WHAT?!" Mr. Pines shouted. "That little shyster is dating my great-niece?!"
"I wonder what the new name will be for the power couple," Soos said. "Mabideon? Gideabel?" He gasped. "Magidbeleon!" Mr. Pines crumbled up the newspaper and threw it on the ground, storming out of the room.
"I didn't know!" Dipper shouted after his uncle, clearly lying. "I didn't hear about it plus, I told her not to." I gave him a look of confusion. "I didn't wanna get in trouble for knowing," he whispered to me.
"Well, you'd get into even more trouble if he found out you're lying," I whispered back. Dipper gulped.
Mr. Pines walked back into the room, now wearing his black business suit. "This ends tonight," he angrily stated. "I'm going right down to that little skunk's house; this is gonna stop RIGHT now!" He then walked out the door, slamming it hard behind him. We all kept silent.
"Dude, wouldn't it be funny if that was a closet, and he had to come back out again and go out the rear door?" Soos asked, breaking the silence. We just stared at him, blankly. He made his way to the door, opening it. "Nope. Real door."
"Okay..." Dipper said. "Let's take this to the living room." I nodded in agreement. We pack up the keyboard and brought it to the next room. I began Dipper's lesson again just as Mabel walked through the door. But she looked sad, and she was carrying a lobster. Hmm. "Hey," Dipper greeted his sister. "How'd it go?"
"I don't know..." she sadly remarked, placing the lobster in a nearby fish tank. "I have a lobster now..."
Dipper looked at me and kept silent. "Well," I said to Mabel, "at least it's over and you'll never have to go out with him again."
Mabel didn't respond, but instead just blatantly tapped on the fish tank. "Mabel?" Dipper spoke up. No response. "It's over, right? Mabel?"
"BLAARRGG!" Mabel exclaimed as she turned to face us, flailing her arms in the air. "He asked me out again and I didn't know how to say no."
"Like this: no," Dipper explained, pointing to his mouth.
"It's not that easy, Dipper," I said to him. "Especially for someone as nice as her."
"Thank you, Dani," she told me, pulling up a seat at the table we were at. "And I do like Gideon, as a friend slash little sister, so I didn't want to hurt his feelings! I just need to get things back to where they used to be. You know, friends." She turned to me. "Hey, Dani, can I talk to you for a sec about Gideon?"
I blinked. "Me?" I questioned. "Uh, yeah, sure." Mabel and I hopped out of our seats and made our way towards the stairs. She led me up to the attic and sat me down on her bed. "So, what did Gideon say or do?" I asked her.
"Nothing," she stated flatly.
"What?"
"Well, I mean, Gideon did say and do some things, but I don't wanna talk about it."
"Then why did you—" She cut me off.
"I wanna talk about you and Dipper," she said.
I blushed at her comment, avoiding her gaze. "Uh, what—? What do you—? I don't know—" She cut me off again.
"Oh, please, Dani," she retorted with a chuckle. "You think I didn't notice?"
"Uh..." I stumbled with my words.
"You're giving Dipper piano lessons," she said with a smile. My blush slightly faded as I continued to stare at her. "I appreciate it. Gives him a chance to take his paranoid mind off of things."
I then burst into awkward laughter. "Yeah! Yes, that is what is up with me and Dipper! I, Dani Perkins am giving Dipper Pines piano lesson to distract himself! And nothing is going on with how I feel about him and... and..." I trailed off, taking notice of Mabel's smirk on her face. "I—I'm, uh, I'm just gonna go, um... downstairs," I stammered. I stood up and stumbled my way towards the door, bumping into the doorframe on my way out.
When I got downstairs, I walked into the living room to see that Dipper was still playing the piano. I stood there, watching him. As the notes hit my ears I was transfixed on the beauty of his fingers dancing on the ivory keys. His dark wispy hair from his beautiful face moving with an unnatural wind.
With each slight nod of his head, his spirit became almost an aura. I simply couldn't look away. With me being too amitted in his music, I didn't even realize he was done playing. "Oh, hey, Dani," he greeted, catching me off guard. I shook my head and blushed. He looked me up and down with a raised eyebrow. He chuckled. "What are you doing?"
I tried to think of something quick. "I... um, I'm going... home!" I responded nervously, the blush on my cheeks turning redder. "Yep! That is what I am doing. Going... home."
"Um, okay," Dipper said with slight confusion. "I'll see you tomorrow, then?"
I laughed nervously. "Of course! Yep, yep. I will be here tomorrow... with you. Haha, us, together... ha." Dipper just looked at me, saying nothing. I gulped and didn't say another word, rushing out the door. I pressed my back against the door, slightly sliding down it as I facepalmed. "What is wrong with me?"
---
It was eventually Thursday. I was too nervous to face Dipper again after my awkward interaction with him. But I was finally able to build up the courage. I made my way to the Mystery Shack, prepared for a whole apology. Once I got there, I sucked in a breath and walked in. "Okay, I know I wasn't here yesterday, I just had to think things through and—" I stopped talking once I saw that Mabel was the only one in the living room, pacing back and forth. "Mabel?"
"AHH!" she exclaimed as she faced me, flailing her arms.
"AH!" I yelled back from her sudden scream.
"Sorry," she quickly said after.
"It's okay..." I told her. "What's... what's going on, Mabel?" I took a seat on the yellow chair as she continued her pacing.
"Gideon!" she shouted. "I mean, he's so nice, but... I can't keep doing this. But I can't break his heart." She yelled again. "I have no way out!" I hopped off my seat and rushed to her side, rubbing her arm comfortingly.
Just then Dipper walked in. "Dani!" he beamed when saw me, but his smile faded when he saw his sister in distress. "Woah, what's wrong?"
"Gideon..." I answered.
"What?" Dipper inquired. "What in the heck happened on that date?"
"I don't know!" Mabel yelled, causing me to let go and jump back. "I was in the friend zone, and then before I knew what was happening, he pulled me into the romance zone. It was like quicksand! Chubby quicksand!"
"Mabel, come on. It's not like you're gonna have to marry Gideon," I told her. Dipper nodded in agreement.
As if on cue, Mr. Pines walked in, a grin on his face and a shirt that read 'Team Gideon'. "Great news, Mabel. You have to marry Gideon!" he informed.
Me and Dipper's eyes widened as Mabel cried, "WHAT?!"
"It's all part of my long term deal with Buddy Gleeful," Mr. Pines explained. "There's a lot of cash tied up in this thing. Plus I got this shirt." He looked down at his stomach and frowned. "Ugh, I am fat." Mabel ended up screaming and running out of the room. "Bodies change, honey!" Mr. Pines called after her. "Bodies change..."
Dipper and I exchanged a look and we knew we had to go after her. We looked around the shack for and eventually found her in the attic, rocking back and forth in the fetal position as she hid in her sweater. Dipper gave her a sad look as we walked up to her. " Oh no. Mabel..." he said sadly.
"Mabel's not here. She's in sweater town..." she responded, her voice low.
I took a seat next to her as Dipper knelt. "Are you gonna come out of the sweater town?" I asked her.
She whined and shook her head. Dipper growled. "Alright, enough is enough!" he declared. "If you can't break up with Gideon, then... we'll do it for you." I smiled at him.
Mabel peeked her head out of her sweater, hoping in her eyes. "You will?" she asked us. Dipper and I nodded with a smile.
She squealed excitedly and pulled us into a hug, laughing. I laughed with her as Dipper chuckled, "Alright, alright." From behind Mabel's back, he and I smiled at each other.
---
Dipper and I made our way into a restaurant, which Mabel was supposed to meet Gideon at. We looked around for him, but it wasn't as hard since we could see his hair from the entrance. We walked up to his table as I nervously played with my hair. Dipper cleared his throat to gain his attention and Gideon put his menu down, giving us a wide smile with big eyes. "Oh. Dipper Pines and Daniella Perkins, how are you?" he greeted. "You look good, you look good..."
"Thanks, you uh..." I said and looked at Dipper for help.
"Look, Gideon. We've got to talk," Dipper said. "Mabel isn't joining you tonight, she uh, she doesn't want to see you anymore." Dipper laughed nervously and so did I.
"She's uh. She's kinda weirded out by you, no offense," I carefully told him.
I noticed his eye twitch. "So what you're sayin' is... you two have... come between us," he said through gritted teeth. I moved closer towards Dipper.
"You're not gonna like, freak out or anything, are ya?" Dipper asked, nervously.
Gideon gave us a straight glare before falling into a more calm manner. "Of course not!" he reassured. "These things happen. Bygones, you know."
My eyes widened at his response but I was relieved. "So... okay. Cool!" I said.
"Then again, sorry man, but uh, hey, thumbs up," Dipper added. "Huh?" He put his hands on my shoulder and started urgently pushing me out the door. I looked back at Gideon to see him mouth something, but I couldn't make out what it was.
When we made our way out, Mabel was standing outside, waiting for us. When she saw us, her eyes lit up. "How'd it go? Was he mad? Did he try to read your mind with his psychic powers?" she frantically asked us.
I put a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry, Mabel," I told her.
"Yeah," Dipper added, "he's just a kid. He doesn't have any powers."
---
The next day, I was riding over to the Mystery Shack but made an abrupt stop when I saw what the twins and Soos were doing. Soos put a pillow under his shirt and the twins looked like they were getting ready to run full speed at him. I hopped off my bike and asked with a chuckle, "Uh, what's going on, guys?"
They noticed my presence and all smiled. "Dani!" Dipper chirped.
"We're seeing if having a pillow for armor works," Mabel informed.
I chuckled, tilting my head in confusion. "Why?"
"For science!" Soos shouted. I looked at Dipper for clarity and he simply shrugged. I decided to join the twins and got ready to run at Soos. Soos patted his pillow-padded stomach. "Hit me, dudes!" he said. The three of us charged at him and lunged, bouncing off his stomach. We fell and started laughing. "Feels good," Soos stated.
"I'm so glad everything's back to normal!" Mabel said as her laughter died down. Just then, the phone rang from inside the shack. "Your turn," Mabel said to Dipper.
"Your turn," Dipper said about a second later after Mabel. "Aw, man..." he whined. I laughed at his loss as he stood up to answer the phone. He turned back to me and playfully stuck his tongue out. I playfully stuck mine out back at him before he walked into shack.
I smiled to myself, slight dust of pink forming on my cheeks. I then realized Mabel was smirking at me and my blush darkened. "What?" I asked her.
She giggled and looked away, snarkily. "Nothing..." she teased. I looked down and started playing with my hair. I hope she doesn't know...
"Dani!" I heard a familiar voice shout. I looked up and saw Dipper rushing towards me. "Dani, Dani, Dani, DANI!" he exclaimed excitedly.
I giggled at him. "Yes, Dipper?" I asked.
"Okay, get this," he started. "Toby Determined called and asked us to me up with him so he can interview us about the secrets of Gravity Falls!"
"Really?" I asked, slightly confused.
"Yeah! Isn't that awesome?"
"I mean, I guess, and it's great that someone finally noticed us, but... don't you think it's a bit odd that the same guy we convicted of murder wants to meet us in a remote location to ask about stuff that no one else notices?" I questioned.
Dipper blinked. "Well, if that's how you feel, you don't have to go..."
"Oh, I'm going," I firmly stated. Dipper beamed.
---
Around 7 o'clock, Dipper and I arrived at the location he told me about. It turned out to be an old, rundown factory that overlooked the whole town. Something about this didn't feel right. I looked at Dipper to see he was having second thoughts as well, but he sucked in a breath and started walking. I soon followed. We eventually made it up the hill and walked inside the factory, taking in our surroundings. It was dark inside but I could barely make out outlines of what looked like a multitude of Gideon merchandise and a swivel chair in the back. "Hello?" Dipper's voice called out, having it echo back. There was no response. He put his head down, disappointed as I wrapped my arms around his arm in comfort. We turned to leave the factory, only to have the door slam shut on us. I tried opening it to no use. So Dipper started banging on it, hoping to break out.
Suddenly, the lights turned on, spooking us and causing us to whip our heads around. I held on to Dipper's arm and hid behind him for protection. The lights continued to turn on until the stopped on the swivel chair. It turned around to reveal... Gideon? "Hello, friends..." he greeted ominously.
Dipper groaned as my eyes widened. "Ughh, Gideon," he complained, rolling his eyes. My grip on his arm tightened.
"Daniella Perkins," Gideon stated, "you've been living here for a long time, but Dipper Pines, how long have been livin' in this town? A week, two? You like it here? Enjoy the scenery?"
"What do you want from us, man?" Dipper asked, irritated.
"Listen carefully, you two. This town has secrets you couldn't begin to comprehend!" Gideon warned.
"Is this about Mabel?" Dipper questioned. "We told you, she's not into you!"
"LIAR!" Gideon yelled. "YOU TWO turned her against me!" He hopped off his chair and started advancing towards us. "She was my peach dumplin'!" I took notice that he grabbed his bolo tie and a green light started emulating from it. I pulled Dipper back slightly.
"Uh, you okay, man?" Dipper asked Gideon, nervously. Before I could pull Dipper back any further, Gideon raised his other arm and a green light surrounded the both of us. We levitated in the air and we were soon thrown across the room, landing on boxes of Gideon merchandise.
A doll of Gideon landed on my head and I picked it up. "Howdy!" it greeted. I yelped and dropped it.
"Readin' minds isn't all I can do..." Gideon said as he made his way towards us.
"But—but you're a fake," I whimpered. Dipper put a protective arm out in front of me.
"Oh tell me, Daniella: is this fake?" Gideon asked, raising his hand again. All of the merchandise in the factory was surrounded by the same green aura and levitated in the air. Dipper grabbed my hand and pulled me out of the way just as Gideon started throwing the commodities at us. Dipper dragging me all over the factory room, dodging Gideon merch left and right. We heard Gideon laugh evilly and the green aura covered a cabinet and Dipper pulled me out of the way before it fell on us.
I stumbled, which caused us to fall and roll, hitting our heads against a wall. I recovered myself and growled at Gideon. "Mr. Pines was right about you, you ARE a monster!" I yelled at him.
"Your sister will be mine!" Gideon declared and evilly laughed again. He picked up a Gideon doll, pulling the string on it and it laughed evilly as well. Dipper nudged me and gestured to two bats laying on the floor. I nodded determinedly and he handed me one, taking one for himself and we stood up. "Who's a cute little guy? You are!" Gideon said to the doll he was still holding.
"No, you are!" the doll responded. Dipper and I charged at Gideon, wailing a battle cry.
Gideon turned his head and noticed us, quickly engulfing us in the green atmosphere. We ended up dropping our bats in the process. Dipper quickly grabbed my hand to keep me close to him. "No!" I exclaimed, reaching for the bat before it landed on the ground.
"She's never gonna date you, man!" Dipper shouted at Gideon.
"That's a lie," he said back. I noticed him look over at a box of Gideon lamb shears and he smiled maliciously. The green glow appeared around the box and the shear cut through it, slowly coming towards Dipper and I. "And I'm gonna make sure you never lie to me again, friends," Gideon threatened. I went to at least try and reach for my bat, but some invisible force had a hold on Dipper and I. We squirmed around, trying to break free as the shears came even closer. I closed my eyes and my grip on Dipper's hand tightened.
I was ready for impact, but we suddenly heard a familiar shout, "Gideon! We have to talk!"
I opened my eyes to see Mabel standing at the door, angrily staring at Gideon. "M—Mabel!" Gideon exclaimed. "My marshmalla!" The lamb shears lost the green glow and fell to the ground. Dipper and I sighed in relief. "What are you doin' here?" Gideon asked Mabel.
She made her way towards him. "I'm sorry Gideon, but I can't be your marshmallow," she told him. "I needed to be honest and tell you that myself."
"I—I don't understand," Gideon muttered. He squeezed his bolo tie and all of a sudden I could feel a strong force around my neck and all of the air started to escape my body.
"Uh, Mabel?!" I managed to choke out, scratching at my neck.
"This probably isn't the best time to be brutally honest with him!" Dipper added, seeming to lose air as well.
Mabel grabbed a hold of his hands. "Hey, but we can still be makeover buddies, right? Wouldn't you like that?" she asked him politely.
"Really?" Gideon asked excitedly.
I started to see spots and a black vignette formed around my view. I thought all hope was lost until I heard Mabel yell, "No, not really!" My vision became clear again and Dipper and I fell to the floor. I rubbed my neck and coughed, trying to gain back arm. I could feel Dipper rubbing my back reassuringly. I managed to look up and see that Mabel had grabbed the bolo tie off of Gideon's neck. "You were like, attacking my brother and best friend, what the heck?!"
"My tie! Give it back!" Gideon cried, reaching for the tie in Mabel's hand but she kept it far from his reach.
She threw it over him and towards Dipper and I. Dipper jumped up and caught, smirking. "Ha! Not so powerful without this, are you?" he asked Gideon, snarkily. Gideon growled and screamed, charging towards us. I yelped and Dipper pushed me out of the way so only he would be tackled by Gideon. Dipper dropped the bolo tie in the process and he and Gideon both fell through the window behind them.
"Dipper!" Mabel and I shouted as we heard the scream.
I frantically ran up to her. "Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, what do we do?!" I panicked.
"It's okay, don't panic!" she reassured, but I could tell she was also nervous. "We can figure this out!" She looked around and her eyes widened when she looked at Gideon's bolo tie. We exchanged a determined nod and ran towards it, Mabel picking it up. She clenched it in her fist and the aura immersed us and we began levitating. She floated us out the window and held her hand out towards Gideon and Dipper who were screaming as they got closer to the ground. But the green glow captured the two as well and they stopped abruptly an inch off the ground.
Mabel floated her and me down to the ground and the aura disappeared around us. She walked up to Gideon so they were face to face. "Listen, Gideon, it's over," she said harshly. "I will never, ever, date you."
"Yeah!" Dipper and I added. The glow went away from him and Gideon and the two of them fell to the ground. I rushed over to Dipper, helping him up and quickly getting him away from Gideon. I held onto his arm.
Mabel then threw down bolo tie and smashed it against a rock, causing it to break completely and a green mist to escape it. "MY POWERS!" Gideon wailed. He then glared at us. "Oh, this isn't over. This isn't the last you'll see of wittle... ol'... me..." he trailed off as he backed up and disappeared into the woods.
I blinked and sighed. "Well, I'm glad that's all over..." I breathed. I then looked up at Dipper and gasped, now noticing that his face was beaten up and he had a black eye. "Oh my goodness! Dipper, your face! Are you okay?!" I exclaimed, gently placing my hands on his cheeks.
I chuckled and held my hands, tenderly taking them off his face and kept a hold of them. "I'm okay, Dani. Just sore," he said.
I smiled at him. "Regardless, I'm still gonna fix you up when we get back to the shack," I said. He chuckled again.
"We should probably start back now," Mabel said. "It's late and I'm out of it." Dipper and I nodded in agreement. We began making our way towards the shack just as Dipper wrapped his arm over my shoulder, rubbing my arm. I blushed, looking away. He snickered.
---
When we got to the shack, I grabbed the first aid and started tending to Dipper's wounds. We all sat in the living room on the yellow chair, Mabel laying down exhausted. I opened the bottle of peroxide, dabbing a cotton ball in it and placing it on the cut on Dipper's cheek. He hissed in pain and pulled his face back. I gasped. "Sorry!" I exclaimed then looked downcast. "I should've warned you..."
"Hey, it's fine," Dipper told me, lifting my chin to face him. "I should've known..." he smiled at me and I smiled back. I gently placed the cotton ball back on his cheek and he fought through the pain.
At that moment, Mr. Pines walked into the room, carrying a clown painting under his arm. He walked up to a part of the wall and hung it up, sighing. "I coulda had it all..." he muttered. He turned to face us and his eyes widened at how we looked. "What the heck happened to you three?" he asked us.
"Gideon..." I grumbled, focused on Dipper's wounds.
"Gideon..." Dipper grumbled.
"Gideon..." Mabel grumbled.
"Gideon..." Mr. Pines grumbled, sitting on the arm of the chair. "Yeah, the little mutant "swore vengeance" on the whole family, along with Dani," Mr. Pines explained. "Ha, I guess he's gonna try to nibble my ankles or somethin'."
I laughed and momentarily stopped tending to Dipper. "Oh, yeah. Yeah, how's he gonna destroy us now, huh?" I teased.
Dipper laughed as well. "Try to guess what number we're thinking of?" he added. He and I laughed.
"He'll never guess what number I'm thinking of," Mabel chimed. "NEGATIVE EIGHT! No one would guess a negative number."
Mr. pines laughed. "Uh oh. He's plannin' on destruction right now!" he chirped. He started leaning back and I jumped out of the way before he flopped down on top of the twins. They all laughed together and I soon joined in as I sat on the floor.
Mr. Pines stifled his laughter and smirked at me. The twins smirked too. I could tell they were all thinking the same thing and I began retorting, "Oh no. No, no, no, no!" The three of them laughed as Mr. Pines pulled me into a group hug and gave me a big noogie, messing my hair up even more than it normally was. Their laughter was contagious and I ended up a giggly mess. My laughter died down and the twins and I smiled.
---
I woke up in a cold sweat, disturbed by another nightmare. I thought they would've been over by now, but I guess I was wrong. Placing a hand on my forehead, sighing and removing my blanket. I sat up and sat in the fetal position, trying to relax and rack my brain. I looked to my right, seeing Dipper sleep peacefully then my left, watching Mabel do the same. They convinced me to stay the night, worried that Gideon might try something while I was by myself. Sighing again, I thought to myself that it would be nice if I could sleep peacefully every night. It hurt my heart knowing that that'll never happen. I continued to sit on my spot on the attic floor and I tried to calm myself down from my horror but to no avail so I decided to head downstairs and grab a drink. I walked into the kitchen and poured myself of cold water, taking a quick sip before making my way back to the stairs.
As I passed the doorway to the living room, I took a glance at the keyboard that was still resting on the table from earlier. I backed up made my way towards. I placed my drink down on the table and began softly running my fingers across the keys, contemplating my next move. But I soon gave in and picked it up. I figured I didn't want to wake anyone up so I took the keyboard outside with me.
The cold summer night air blew through my hair and I shivered, but fought through it and sat down on the shack's porch, turning the keyboard on. I sucked in a deep breath and began playing:
(I changed the lyrics a bit to make it more "Dani Friendly")
"So I heard... you found... somebody else
And at first... I thought... it was a lie
I took all my things... that make sounds
The rest I can do without...
Oh, I don't want your body
But I hate to think about you with somebody else
Our love has gone cold
You're intertwining your soul with somebody else
I'm looking through you
While you're looking through your phone
And then leaving with somebody else
Oh, I don't want your body
But I hate to think about you with somebody else
No, I don't want your body
I don't want your body
I...
No, I don't want your body
I don't want your body...
Oh, c'mon baby, I know
This ain't the last time that you'll see my face
Oh, c'mon baby, I know
I know you'd find someone to take my place...
I just can't believe that you have got it in you
'Cause we are just gonna keep 'doin' it' and every time
I start to believe in anything you're saying
I'm reminded that I should be gettin' over it
I don't want your body
But I hate to think about you with somebody else
Our love has gone cold
You're intertwining your soul with somebody else
I'm looking through you
While you're looking through your phone
And then leaving with somebody else
No, I don't want your body
But I'm picturing your body with somebody else...
No, I don't want your body
I don't want your body
I...
No, I don't want your body
I... don't want...
Got someone you love?
Got someone you need?
If I can't get money
I can't give you my soul, 'cause you're never alone
Got someone you love?
Got someone you need?
If I can't get money
I can't give you my soul, 'cause you're never alone
Got someone you love?
Got someone you need?
If I can't get money
I can't give you my soul, 'cause you're never alone
Got someone you love?
Got someone you need?
If I can't get money
I can't give you my soul, 'cause you're never alone...
...Got someone you love?
Got someone you need?
If I can't get money
I can't give you my soul, 'cause you're never alone
Got someone you love?
Got someone you need...?"
My fingers gently moved off the keys and I sighed. I finally felt calm...
That was until I heard a familiar voice say, "Wow..." I jumped, yelping and whipping my head around to see Dipper standing in the doorway in his pajamas. He gave me an apologetic look. "Sorry! I didn't mean to scare you." I sighed in relief and faced away from, looking at the night sky. I heard his footsteps and felt his presence taking a seat beside me. I then felt a warm piece of fabric over my shoulders and saw that Dipper threw a blanket over me, covering himself as well with the same one. "I liked your singing... it was really beautiful..." he said.
I chuckled and continued to look at the sky. "Thank you..." I replied.
There was a pause and I could feel Dipper's gaze on me. "You alright?" I heard him ask.
I finally faced him, raising a brow. "What do you mean? I'm fine."
"You sure?" he asked. "I'm just getting this sort of... vibe from you, y' know?"
I chuckled again. "I'm okay, I just couldn't sleep."
Dipper shrugged and looked ahead at the sky, smiling. "Anxiety will do that to you," he said. I looked at him, just happy that I found someone who finally understood. I smiled. I then placed my head on his shoulder and felt him scoot closer to me, placing his head on top of mine as I began to softly play a melody, humming along.
And we just sat there, all night, enjoying one another's company until we finally drifted off to sleep...