Merry Christmas everyone! Enjoy this Christmas themed fic starring the young Pines twins!
Dipper pulled the collar of his jacket higher, trying to keep the cold December air out as he walked around the corner to the dollar store. It almost never got below freezing in Piedmont, but this Christmas season, it had been colder than he'd ever experienced, even snowing a little earlier that week.
Before walking through the sliding doors into the store, Dipper checked his pocket for the change he had been saving all month. Any discarded quarter, any leftover lunch money, went straight into his savings. He felt the cold mound of coins and smiled, quickly adjusting the blue knit hat his mother had made him before going in.
Dipper wove through the bustling crowd of frantic shoppers trying to get last-minute Christmas gifts, searching for his perfect gift. He already knew what he had to get, just hoped this dinky little dollar store would have it. There it was- the craft section!
Ever since his mom had made him his hat, Mabel had been trying to learn how to knit. She made her first piece last month, a simple pink and blue coaster, but had been getting so much better at it the past couple weeks. So since then, Dipper had known the perfect thing to get her, and would accept nothing less.
And-aha!- there it was! Dipper reached out a mitten-covered hand to pick up the ball of yarn. It was thick and soft and this pretty blue that faded into white, then back to blue every few inches. Mabel was going to love it.
Pleased with his finding, Dipper marched over to the counter to buy it. The cashier, who had been preoccupied with helping a co-worker with an unhappy costumer, rushed over to her register and began the spiel before noticing who was at her station.
"Thank for shopping with- oh my, are you alright?" She looked concerned at the seemingly abandoned seven year old. "Are you lost? Are your parents here?"
"No, I'm okay! I just want to buy this," Dipper said, setting the yarn ball on the counter. "I have money! See?" He proudly pulled out his change. "There's four dollars and ten cents there!"
The cashier laughed at the young boy's enthusiasm, sliding the yarn over the price scanner. "Oh yeah? And why do want this old ball of yarn?"
"It's for my sister! She loves to knit, and there's this sweater she's been trying to finish for a while. So, I'm gonna help her!"
"That's so nice of you," the cashier said. "Alright, your total is..." She stopped mid-sentence. The screen read $4.28. The cashier bit her lip; she was new to this job, and knew she shouldn't, but seeing the euphoria on the young customer's face, she smiled and said, "$4.09. Do you, um, do want that gift wrapped?"
Dipper beamed with glee. "Yeah! Thank you so much!" He giddily took his penny and the bright red and green box holding his sister's present. In all his excitement, though, he forgot to make sure his hat was secure. When he ran out of the store, a large gust of wind blew his hat off his head, and before he could stop it, it landed on the road, getting run over.
He started running towards it before common sense kicked in and he stopped himself from stepping into traffic. "My hat!" He cried as several more cars rolled over it. Once the traffic died down, Dipper wistfully stepped into the street to retrieve it. "Oh no," he moaned as he studied the torn, muddied item that had helped him through brutal bullying earlier that year.
He wiped his eyes before any tears could spill over and pushed the crumpled hat into his jacket pocket. He had to forget about it; it was Christmas Eve, and he needed to be happy when he gave his present to Mabel. Despite the sobs that threatened to escape, Dipper took a shaky breath and began walking back home.
When he walked back into the house, his sadness was forgotten when he heard his sister's cheerful greeting.
"Dipper! You're just in time! Mom and Dad are finishing cooking." She was wearing a sweater she'd made over the past week in anticipation of the holiday. It was striped like a candy cane, and though it didn't look too great (the sleeves weren't quite the same length and the knitting was overly loose), she'd been so proud of her creation it was hard not to love it. "Hurry up, you're gon- wait... what's that?"
Dipper held out the box to his sister. "It's a present. For you! Merry Christmas, Mabel."
"Oh, good, you're home, Dipper," Mrs. Pines said as she walked out of the kitchen. "What have you got there?"
"My present for Mabel!" Dipper told her before turning back to his twin. But, to his surprise, she wasn't smiling. She was looking at him with concerned eyes; that certainly wasn't the reaction he was hoping for. "W-what's wrong?" Dipper asked, the glee gone from his voice.
"Dipper... your hat. Where is it?" Mabel asked.
Dipper looked down, his hand instinctively touching his pocket, stuttering, "I, um-"
"Wait." Before he could stop her, Mabel snatched the ruined piece from his jacket. "Dipper..."
"It's nothing," Dipper told her, running his hand through his hair. "It doesn't matter, Mabel. Here." He pushed his gift into her hands. "Please. Open it."
Although she was still upset over her brother's hat, Mabel did what he asked and opened the box. "Aw, Dipper, it's beautiful!" She said as she pulled the yarn out, turning it over in her hands. She had been in need of some more yarn to finish her latest sweater, but... looking at the colors, she knew what she needed to do with it. "I have to go!" She said before bolting upstairs.
Once Mabel disappeared, Mrs. Pines walked over to her son. "I'm sorry about the hat, Dipper," she said, picking up the tattered mess.
"It's... it's okay. As long as Mabel's happy..." Dipper trailed off.
"Honey, I know how much it meant to you. It's okay if it's not okay, you know?" Mrs. Pines pulled Dipper into a hug and had been holding him for a minute when they heard footsteps pounding down the stairs.
Mabel ran over to them with her hands behind her back. "Ahem... Dipper, close your eyes."
"Wh-"
"Just do it!"
Dipper obliged, and felt Mabel place something on his head. "Okay, you can look!" Mabel exclaimed.
Dipper pulled the thing she'd placed on him off, and his breath caught in his throat. "M-Mabel. I-" He stuttered, looking at the item in his hands. A hat, made of the yarn he'd just gotten for her today. "But... what about your sweater?"
"I guess I found a better use for it." Mabel smiled at him. "Dipper, you're more important to me than any old sweater."
Dipper couldn't help but smile back. He engulfed his sister in a hug. "It's perfect."
"Merry Christmas, Dipper."
"Merry Christmas, Mabel."
Thanks for reading, and once again, have a great holiday!