Third POV
The day started pretty normally for our young girl, Dani. She woke, got ready, and made her way over to the Mystery Shack to meet up with her favorite people. But there was something off when she got there. Dipper was nowhere to be seen...
She figured he would be hiding upstairs in his room, so she went up to check. When she opened the door, all she saw was Mabel on her bed, playing with Waddles. Dani rubbed her arm nervously as she made her way up to her friend. "Hey, Mabel..." she greeted awkwardly.
Mabel looked up at Dani and grinned, showing off her braces. "Oh, hey, Dani!" she said. "What's up?"
Dani awkwardly chuckled. "Heh, nothing much. I was just wondering if you've seen you're brother around."
"Oh, yeah!" Mabel said, her eyes lighting up. "He told me to give you this." She reached behind her back and pulled out an envelope with a wax seal that was shaped like a heart.
Dani looked at it questionably before taking it from Mabel. "What's this?" she asked.
"Open it and find out!" Mabel told her with a big goofy smile.
Dani just raised an eyebrow but didn't say anything further. She opened the envelope and pulled out a note, reading it out loud. "'Free Pancakes'?" she read. "What... what does that mean? What's going on?" Mabel just bit her lip and Dani noticed her leg was starting to bounce up and down. "Mabel?" She didn't respond. "Seriously, Mabel, what's going on?"
Mabel groaned loudly, flopping over which caused Waddles to squeal and run out of the room. "Greasy's Diner!" she exclaimed then sighed. "He's at Greasy's Diner and he has something he wants to tell you."
Dani felt nervous. "What does he—?" she was about to ask but Mabel cut her off.
"I'm not even supposed to tell you anything," she said. "So, no more question. Just go, I'll probably see you later to help you out."
"Help me—?"
"Go!"
"Okay, okay!"
---
Dani left the shack and hopped on her bike, making her way over to Greasy's Diner. The entire way, her brain was wracked with all possible things Dipper wanted to say but shook off the one she never thought possible. When she got there, she parked her bike on the rack and walked inside. To her surprise, the place was busy. Several of the townsfolk were in this restaurant. But she couldn't see the one she was looking for. That was until she heard his familiar voice call out her name. "Dani!" Dipper shouted from one of the booths. Dani caught his eye and smiled as he waved for her to come over. She made her way and sat down on the other side of the booth. "Hey, Dani," he greeted. She noticed he looked more nervous than usual.
"Hi, Dipper," she replied. "What's going on?"
Dipper nervously tapped his fingers on the table as he sucked in a deep breath. "I, uh, just wanted to talk for one second, maybe..." he admitted.
Just then, Lazy Susan walked over with a notepad in hand and a pencil in the other. "Hello, is there anything I can get you, dear?" she asked Dani.
Dani was about to respond, but Dipper held up his hand to stop her. "Uh, no!" he interjected. "She's fine. We're just gonna be here for a little bit."
Susan stared at a Dipper for a second, a smile on her face. "Oh... okay," she said and walked off.
Dani raised a brow. "I guess I won't get a cup of tea, then," she said then chuckled.
Dipper looked sheepish. "Sorry..."
"No, you're fine, I'm just pulling your leg," Dani giggled. "So, is there something you wanted to tell me?"
Dipper's face suddenly heated up, a deep red. "I just, uh, wanted to... say and... uh, this is really lame and probably embarrassing for me, but um... I'm gonna say it!" Dani's stomach fluttered with butterflies. "I... um..." he began to sweat, "I really like you..." Dani's face matched the same red as Dipper's. "And... I've been thinking about you since we met. It's just, y—you make me laugh, and you make me feel... good and I just..." Dipper's rambling suddenly stopped when he noticed Dani staring. "Wow..." he breathed then composed himself. "Okay! So, I, um, I just sense that there's this connection... even though, y' know, I..." Dani still didn't look away and he could feel his stomach fill with giddiness. "Whatever, hehe, no, no, despite that, I... um... so, I wanted to give you this." Dipper reached inside his vest and handed her an envelope that looked like the one from earlier, but this time bigger. "And I know that texting is the thing kids do these days, but I think there's something more romantic about... pen and paper! But uh," Dani started to open the letter, but Dipper reached over and stopped her, "Don't... open it now, haha. I'm gonna go..."
"Okay..." Dani finally spoke up.
"And, uh... yeah!" Dipper started to make his way out of the booth. "It was nice to see you! And just... follow the directions!" And with that, Dani watched as the nervous boy stumbled his way out of the Diner.
She glanced down at the envelope then looked back up, the biggest grin plastered on her face. "Maaabbeeellll!!" she shouted as she ran out of the Diner, the smile never leaving her face. She hopped on her bike and rode her way back to the shack, eventually hopping off and bolting up to the twins' bedroom where Mabel was still sitting on her bed. "Mabel!" Dani yelled, slamming the door open which startled Mabel.
"Ah!" Mabel exclaimed then saw the wide smile on Dani's face. "Woah, someone's happy!"
"Oh, I'm more than happy! I'm ecstatic!" Dani cheered, twirling while saying the last part. She stopped herself and walked up to Mabel, grabbing her by the shoulders. "Your brother likes me back! Dipper Pines has a crush on me!"
Mabel gasped excitedly and grabbed Dani, pulling her to the center of the room and spinning her around. "OMG! OMG! OMG! OMG!" she yelled and spotted their spinning. "He actually did it!"
Dani then looked at her in shock. "Wait, you knew?" she asked.
Mabel nervously scratched the back of her neck as she giggled. "Heh, he's been talking about it for the past couple days now..." she admitted which made Dani blush. "He was even up all night last night putting together this little scavenger hunt for you."
Dani's blush slightly faded as she glanced down at the envelope that Dipper had given her. "Scavenger hunt?" she questioned.
Mabel glanced at the envelope as well. "Oh, I see you got the first one," she said. "I don't know about the rest of the clues he put out, I only know this one. But he did say that you might come to me for help so... here I am!"
"Why's Dipper making a scavenger hunt for me?"
"Now you know Dipper doesn't do anything small."
Dani looked back down at the envelope and slowly opened it, pulling out a letter along with the president's key. Mabel and Dani both looked at confusingly. "What the—?" they chorused.
Dani then scanned the letter. "'This is the place we shared our first look, go to where you can find a book,'" she read.
"Shared your first look?" Mabel asked as she tilted her head. "Like, where you guys first met?"
Dani looked quizzically at the rhyme before her eyes widened in realization. "That's exactly what it means!" she exclaimed and gave Mabel a determined look. "And I know exactly where to go..."
---
Dani had explained to Mabel that the first interaction they had was at the library and then headed off. Once they made it to the building, the two of them hopped off Dani's bike and walked inside. The place was completely quiet, as most libraries are, but it was uncomfortably quiet. "Alright," Mabel started but was immediately shushed by the librarian.
"Sorry!" Dani quietly told her. The librarian grumbled and lifted a book to cover her face.
"Alright," Mabel said again, but this time quieter, "now where should we start?"
Dani tapped her chin in thought. "Hmm," she hummed. Her eyes then lit up. "Oh!" She didn't say anything else but instead walked over to a corner of the library with Mabel following where it was much darker due to the broken light above. On the floor, in the very corner where the shelves connected resting a sunflower on top of a stool. Dani picked it up and lightly stroked one of the petals. "Mabel, look!" she said.
Mabel walked up behind Dani and poked her head over her shoulder, looking down at the flower. "Aww!" she cooed. "It's so pretty! Wait, there's something attached to it." She came out from behind and lifted a tag that was wrapped around the bottom of the stem which read 'From Dipper ♡'. Mabel cooed even more as Dani blushed. "AWW!"
"Sunflowers are my favorite..." Dani breathed and smiled longingly at the delicate herb.
"AHH!" Mabel squealed loudly and was quickly hushed by the librarian. "Ahh!" she squealed again quietly.
Dani then looked over the letter and read out loud the next riddle. "'When the day went dark and we had a long day, go to the place where we watched the stars play,'" she read. "I think he means the roof of the shack. We went up there to be alone after the Mystery Fair. It was... amazing..."
"Okay, I seriously don't think I can squeal anymore because it'll be way too loud and I don't wanna get us kicked out," Mabel said. "So let's just leave calmly and quietly to the next location, okay?" Dani nodded in agreement and the two of them started making their way out the building. But Mabel was making small squealing noises the entire way out. Dani just playfully rolled her eyes.
---
The rest of the afternoon the two girls spent it together following Dipper's scavenger hunt, finding a sunflower from him at every location they went to. All the locations had ties to every interaction Dani and Dipper had together. All were very meaningful for the two. The entirety of the hunt, Mabel was squealing and Dani was blushing. And as they were on their way to the last riddle, Dani already had nine sunflowers in her hand. They trudged through the woods, trying to find the last piece but to no avail.
Dani groaned as Mabel held the letter in her hand, looking over the last riddle. "'There's a flame that ignites your pure heart, meet me where the town and woods part,'" Dani repeated. "'There, you'll find the door with no known key, unlock it and there I'll be.' What does that even mean?!"
"Did you two happen to have a special moment where you found a door with no key?" Mabel asked.
Dani shook her head and sighed. "No, I think I'd remember a door with..." she trailed off as she had realized something, "...no key... That's it! I know where he is!"
"Then let's go!" Mabel said. Dani bolted off into the woods, trying not to drop the flowers in her hands as Mabel followed. They ran until Dani suddenly stopped in her tracks. Mabel looked around confused as Dani stared up at a stone wall. "I don't get it," Mabel said. "I don't see a door."
"That's because it's not exactly door-shaped," Dani informed. She stepped closer to the stone wall and pulled back some vines to reveal a small keyhole. Mabel and Dani exchanged a look before Dani reached inside her satchel to retrieve the President's key. "You think this will work?"
Mabel shrugged. "Well, Trembley did say it can unlock any lock in America and last time I checked, Oregon is in America," she explained.
Dani looked wearily down at the golden opener in her hand before slowing sticking it inside the keyhole, turning it. The two were surprised when they heard the click of it being unlocked. Slowly but surely, they pushed the wall open and gasped at what they saw. The interior was surrounded by white birch trees with their spotted patterns replaced with glowing lights of fire, almost like small candles were growing inside them. At the base of each tree grew red and white mushrooms but they were in the shape of hearts. The branches barely even let the sunset shine through as it slowly became nightfall, making the trees glow brighter. And at the very center of it all, was an open area where Dipper stood. He was wearing his normal attire but had a black bowtie on and the last sunflower they had to find was in his hand.
Dipper sucked in a deep breath as the sound of smooth silent jazz began. "Daniella Ann Perkins," he started, "will you do me the honor... of being my girlfriend?"
Mabel was about to squeal but Dani covered her mouth as she looked sternly at the boy before her. Mabel looked at her in shock as she slowly marched up to Dipper. "You made me run around town, following all these rhyming riddles, and collecting all these sunflowers just so you ask me to be your girlfriend when you could've asked me while we were at Greasy's Diner..." she stated, placing her hands on her hips.
Dipper just stared down at her, starting to sweat nervously as he gripped tightly on the sunflower still in his hand. "Uh... I—I, um..." he stammered.
Dani grazed his hand as she took the sunflower from him then smiled sweetly. "And it was the dorkiest, most adorable, and sweetest thing anyone has ever done for me," she admitted. She then took his head, moving his bangs aside and kissed his birthmark before placing his hat on her own head. "I would love to be your girlfriend..." Dipper blushed a deep red and smiled wide. Dani blushed and smiled back.
"AAHHH!" they heard someone yell and turned their heads to see Mabel charging towards them. She scooped the two up in a big hug and squealed excitedly as she hopped up and down with them still in her arms. "OH MY GOSH! YES! FINALLY! I'M SO HAPPY!" She placed them back down on the ground but still hopped excitedly. "I'm gonna plan your wedding, name your babies; of course one of them would have to be named 'Mabel' and—"
"Woah, woah, Mabel!" Dipper said, cutting her off.
"No need to rush things right now," Dani added with a chuckle.
Mabel nervously backed away and blushed, embarrassed. "Sorry, I'm just really excited for you two, heh," she said.
Dani and Dipper chuckled together but then Dani looked confusingly at Dipper. "Wait, I'm sorry to ruin the moment but I have questions," she said. "First of all, where's the jazz music coming from?"
Dipper beamed. "Oh! That's just Soos," he explained, gesturing over to a bush.
Suddenly, Soos popped his head up from behind the bush with a boombox on his shoulder as Mr. Pines and Wendy peeked their heads out from behind trees. "Hey, dudes," Soos greeted. "Don't forget Wendy and Mr. Pines!"
"Hey..." Wendy and Mr. Pines chorused awkwardly.
Dani chuckled at them before turning back to Dipper. "Okay, second question," she said. "How were you able to get in here? You gave me the President's key so we could unlock the door, but there was no other entrance from what I saw."
Dipper nervously scratched the back of his neck. "Um, Stan kinda... made us an entrance," he admitted.
"Pardon?" Dani asked. Dipper pointed behind him and there was a hole that looked as though it was dugout. Dani blinked. "Alrighty then. And last question, how did you even know the president's key would work?"
"It can unlock any lock in America," Dipper stated. "And that lock is in America."
"Told you!" Mabel spoke up.
Dani just playfully stuck her tongue out at her then giggled, Dipper then giggling with her. She looked back up at him and smiled.
Finally...