Haha oops
"An apple and orange?"
"Hmm..nah...ketchup and mustard?"
"I think we already did that…"
"Riigghhttt…"
13 year olds Dipper and Mabel were sitting at the kitchen table, writing up ideas for their costumes for this years Summerween. Their gruncles and Soos talked in the next room and Dipper found himself occasionally eavesdropping only to hear them talk about business and the art of conning, nothing about their sea tales.
"Maybe we could get inspiration from Stan and Fords adventure?"
"You mean something like sirens! Or...a giant squid!"
"Those sound better suited for a sushi party…"
"It was your idea dork" Mabel poked Dipper with the marker in her hand, causing the boy to wrinkle his nose.
"Well soorryyy." He used his sleeve to try and wipe away the ink dot. "We really need to stop planning these last minute.."
Mabel shrugged and doodled down 'pen and pencil' on the list. It was a bad habit they all had, putting these things off in order to do one thing or another, and now they were paying the price. Rushed decorations for the rushed summerween party that would have invitations rushed out to the townsfolk. Fun stuff.
The bright side was the fact it would be the first time Soos would host a summerween party, and Stan was eager to show him the tricks that helped make as much money as possible. Another plus was the fact this would be the year they actually attended!
"Maybe we should just shop for one?" He paused "And you could add your own creative twist to it?"
Mabel paused, tapping her chin with the end of the marker. "Hmmm…I suppose...But we're using your money."
Dipper facepalmed with a groan.
"Fine...fine...but...no bedazzling my costume."
"Glitter is fair game."
"Finnneee"
"Great! Love ya brobro!"
He rolled his eyes with a smile before pulling out his wallet and counting his change.
"We can't go crazy expensive...I still want to get the newest set of Ghost-Cards."
"You still collect those?" Mabel didn't even bother to hide her laughter, leaving a red faced Dipper.
"They're gonna have great resale value as time goes on! I'll make a fortune!"
"You sure that's the reason you collect them?"
"That's my story and I'm sticking to it!" He crossed his arms and huffed.
"Well Dipper, I just hope you being cheap doesn't make us a pair of garbage bags."
"Thats not a ba-"
"No"
And thats how they found themselves at the annual summerween superstore, walking up and down the picked over costume isle. All the costumes were either bad or had half their stuff taken. A werewolf with only a tail and no mask, a vampire with no cape, a faerie costume with only glittery wings, and even a cat with no paw gloves.
Dipper let out a sneeze and went to keep digging but Mabel grabbed his arm.
'Thats it Dipper!"
"...whats it?" She pointed to the cat costume.
'We can be a witch and a cat! It's amazing! It's perfect! It's amazect"
" First of all, amazect isn't a real word… and secondly... Its because I sneezed isn't it?"
"It is now annnddd…..Yep!"
"I do NOT have a kitten sneeze and I am NOT being a cat."
"Oh commmeee on Dipper!"
"No means no Mabel!"
"I'll never ask you for anything ever again! For as long as I live I swear!" Dipper raised his eyebrow.
"I highly doubt that."
"You're right….Maybe for like a week at best." Dipper paused before gaining a smug look and putting his hands on his hips.
"... You have to do my chores for a month."
"Whhatt? Booooo!"
"It's that or nothing!" She paused.
"A week and you get the washroom in the morning." Oh he was sold.
"...Hmm…. I suppooosseeee…. But the cat costume doesn't get a collar or anything unless it's something cool….. With spikes."
"You dork!" She punched his shoulder with a giggle.
"I'm only agreeing to this because you take forever in the washroom."
"Do not!"
"Do to! It's like your hair's a jungle that you need to explore and cut down every day."
"It's a magical jungle that needs care and glitter!"
Dipper gave a sigh and grabbed the costume...if it could even be called that. All it was was a pair of black cat ears on a headband plus a tail that clipped onto a belt. No shirt, gloves, pants or anything…. He guess he could be thankful, say he was actually a panther. A panther was cool. He was cool! Not the Dippy-Fresh type of cool, that guy was the worst.
Meanwhile Mabel had dug around in the discount bin and pulled out a torn witch hat, placing it on her head.
"I'm gonna be a glitter witch! This things so getting bedazzled!"
"If you say so…"
That should have been the end of it. They had their costumes and just had to go home and patch them up….but Dipper couldn't stop himself from letting his feet drag on the way home. Something was bothering him and he had no idea what it was! Maybe it was the fact he was going as an adorable little kitty cat? Eh…
"Something on your mind Dipdop?"
"Do you ever get the feeling something bads gonna happen? I just…." He stopped and gestured to a small building stuck between two other shops. "Has that always been there? I could have sworn that used to be an alleyway…" He found himself taking small steps towards the structure.
"I don't know Dipper… that place is giving me major bad vibes." She hesitated before following after him.
"What if it's some new type of supernatural thing! Like the cursed door! We're onto something Mabel. I can feel it in my toes!"
"If you say so…"
Dipper gave a determined nod as he paused beside the door, leaning against the wall as if he were a cop ready to burst in. Mabel rolled her eyes and walked in, a bell rang out above her head.
"Ohh it smells like old people and old books in here! Thats double the old!"
Dipper walked in and looked around. It looked like any other antique store he's been in but that wasn't gonna stop him from getting to the bottom of this mystery! Mabel was right about the smell, everything had a layer of dust on it! And there was an uneasy silence as if he and Mabel were the only people in existence.
He walked up to a nearby shelf that was filled with old cups and plates and rubbed his chin, squinting his eyes to try and see if there was anything odd about them. Mabel on the other hand, was digging around and rushing by everything in order to see as many things as possible.
"Dipper! Come check this out!" Dipper followed his twins voice to the back of the story where things got a lot more….weird. The wall had all sorts of masks covering it. They varied from foxes, deer, snakes to dragons, devils, and a griffon. They weren't cheap plastic ones either, they appeared to be made of porcelain and painted with the utmost of care. The shelves beside them lacked any protective glass, allowing their contents to be touched by the outside air.
While Mabel gushed over the masks Dipper found himself examining the contents of the shelf. A few figures made of glass or porcelain. There was one of a forest scene. A fawn was drinking from a painted meadow while ducks swam in it, one of some foxes playing together, another of a dragon breathing fire at a knight charging on horseback. Each figurine seemed to have a matching mask on the wall. His favourite of all of the statues was a snake with wings and feathers. The pose itself seemed to be confident, posed not to strike but to observe. He looked to see if there was any price tag and gave a small frustrated snort when one failed to make its appearance. He supposed he could turn back now but... the statue seemed to be calling to him….
"Helloooo? Shopkeeper guy?" He looked around, tapping his foot as he got no response.
"Ohh I thought you were saving your money for Ghost-Cards!"
"I-I am! Its just… this looks rare and valuable and resellable!"
Dipper grabbed the snake statue carefully and walked to the counter, placing it down and ringing the counter bell. He waited a minute….. Two minutes…. Five minutes….
'Bro I don't think anyones coming…"
"There's no price on this thing." He looked at his watch. "Man I hope we don't get in trouble for being out late."
"Maybe we should hurry… its getting dark out and the party is in three hours! We still need to finish our costumes!"
"I know I know! It's just…" He rang the bell again before digging into his wallet with frustration, slapping some money on the counter. "There…. And if it's not enough the owner can come to the shack and demand more in person."
"Dipper isn't this sorta… stealing?"
"I mean.. I'm paying for it aren't I? Now come on! You just said we have a party to get ready for." He used one hand to carefully carry his new purchase and the other to open the door as he and Mabel stumbled out, unaware that as they walked out the door. A pair of eyes watched them leave.