This was not supposed to happen.
Dipper's hands grasped desperately at the vines that tangled around his body. With every eager tug he felt the vines constrict and strangle against his legs, his stomach, and soon his throat.
No this was certainly not according to plan.
Peering to his left, Dipper managed to catch sight of his sister, equal in her efforts to break free from their imprisonment. Mabel gnawed, hacked, and kicked at the vines that struggled to hold her but with each attempt of escape more vines appeared until she was covered from head to toe with the dark green plant life.
Her screaming shouts still audible but muffled by the vines.
Glancing around for any possible escape, Dipper's hesitated as he realized something was out of place. The vines attack, though startling and strange, remained fresh in his memory. The way they twisted around his ankles, pulling him up into the air shortly followed by his rebelling sister. Yet something was amiss.
She was missing.
Pulling at the vines that enclosed around his neck, Dipper gasped in panic as his gaze flickered chaotically about their environment.
Where could she have gone? She was right behind them wasn't she? Dipper swore he remembered Pacifica running in front of him. Her bright blonde hair swaying with each running step she took, her deep blue eyes masked with terror as she shouted for them to hurry.
He never knew Pacifica was so athletic. Easily out running both Dipper and his sister and even managing to hurdle over the uprooting trees. She had certainly taken him by surprise. It had been the second time she had done so that night.
The first was when she appeared at the Mystery Shack, hair pulled up tightly into a high ponytail, abandoning her usual purple attire for a jacket and athletic shorts. If it wasn't for Mabel's delighted squealing, Dipper would have thought the Northwest Manor had another ghost haunting its halls.
But as it turned out, Mabel had taken it upon herself to invite the Northwest to witness "some cool supernatural who-do's." Much to the disapproval of her twin brother.
It wasn't that Dipper hadn't quelled any ill feelings for the blonde heiress, but inviting an outsider into the mystery twins dynamic without his consent left bitter taste in his mouth.
If Mabel noticed her brother's discontent she did not act upon it. Instead, she eagerly rushed to Pacifica's side, quick to welcome the girl into the group and rapidly began discussing town gossip and drama.
It marked the beginning of what Dipper anticipated to be a long night.
But as they continued into the depths of the forest, Dipper began to realize that the assumptions he had gathered, even after his clarifying experience at the Northwest manor, we're still poorly conceived.
Rather than constantly complaining about the outdoors, Pacifica skillfully maneuvered about the uprooted forest floor with far more grace and ease than either of the Pines twins.
Pacifica even surprised Dipper in conversation. While she did spend most of the night idly discussing the newest trends or latest drama that shook the sleepy town of Gravity Falls, Pacifica made the effort to discuss the supernatural with Dipper.
The twins explained to their best ability the story of their newly discovered Grunkle Ford and the discovery of an interdimensional portal that sat in bottom of their basement. But as Dipper fell silent during Mabel's suggestion to investigate the portal, Pacifica caught on and quickly changed the direction of Mabel's conversation towards a topic Mabel could never resist. Boys.
Grateful for the quick thinking, Dipper gave Pacifica an appreciative smile which she returned with a wink. A display of confirmation that Dipper wasn't expecting, causing a warm bubbling sensation at the pit of his stomach.
They had continued their march into the depths of the forest for quite some time, Dipper focusing on the text of his journals as the girls delved deeper into their boy crazed chat. No one noticed the bending shadows just out of eyesight or the slow movement of the vines as they continued forward.
It wasn't until after Mabel kicked a vine in retaliation of explaining the entire Gideon situation that things began to reveal themselves for the supernatural phenomenon they were.
The situation had changed so rapidly that Dippers mind still couldn't process the details correctly. One moment he was making a comment on Gideon's unhealthy obsession with his family and the next a vine ensnared itself around Mabel's leg, slowly lifting her into the air.
Dipper quickly pulled upon Mabel's arms, tugging against the strength of the vine to free his sister. Pacifica quickly wrapped her arms around Dippers waist, adding her slender body weight to their advantage as Mabel was able to kick herself free from the vine at the expense of her sneaker.
Trembling back, the three watched as the vines swayed. Stepping back, Dipper glanced down as he felt Pacifica's grip relax, releasing her hold on his shirt to check on Mabel's ankle.
Intrigued by the new development, Dipper flipped open his journal in attempt to identify this creature but as a vine quickly snapped at him Dipper found himself being dragged away by the two girls.
Gathering himself, Dipper followed after the girls as they fled the chasing vines. And yet even with all their running and dodging they still managed to find themselves lifted ten feet up in the air by their green captors.
Dipper gasped and the vines began to coil around his elbows, constricting his movements even more as he searched desperately for Pacifica. He hadn't seen the vines grabbed her, could she have escaped?
But as his thoughts wondered to the possible fate of the Northwest heiress he caught the sight of Mabel falling free from her prison. Pushing against the vines to get a better view. Dipper watched as a heaving Pacifica dangled herself upside down upon the green cage that had once held Mabel, with nothing more than a sharp nail file in her hands.
Dipper opened his mouth to shout toward the two girls but the words died in his throat. Cringing as the vines pushed hard against his ribcage, Dipper watched in terror as the vines rapidly laced over his face, covering his mouth and eyes and revealing only the dark emptiness of his new cage.
Gasping in panic, Dipper squirmed. His arms pinned to his side allowing for very little movement as he struggled against his captor.
But the darkness was short-lived as Dipper noticed a crack of light breaking through a tear in the vines. A crack that turned into a deep puncture as the sharp end of Pacifica's nail file came only inches before Dipper's nose.
Thankful for her quick thinking and unnecessary need to bring along the most mundane of cosmetic equipment, he continued to squirm as she sliced through the vines. Dipper let out a short yelp as they dropped to the forest floor. Opening his mouth to thank her, Dipper found his mouth quickly covered by her hand.
Dipper arched a brow in surprise at Pacifica who replied with a finger pressed to her lips. Nodding in understanding, Dipper licked his lips as her hand moved away. Pacifica pointed towards the vines, which untangled from their caged form and slowly dangle down towards the forest floor.
But rather than seek out its fallen prey the vines simply lingered, idly waving back and forth as if waiting for something to capture its attention.
Watching the vines intently as they slowly stilled their swaying movement, Dipper watched as Pacifica's pointing hand lowered upon his own. Soft, well-manicured fingers rested upon his dirty and clammy hands. He peered up at Pacifica, awaiting the disgusted expression that would plague her face. But it never came.
Pacifica seemed too distracted in watching the movement of the vines to notice the way Dippers fingers twitched under her own. Both too distracted to notice the movement behind them.
Dipper nearly screamed as Mabel's hand found his shoulder. Snapping his head towards her, Dipper noticed Mabel pointing at a cleared path, an escape from this idle threat. Nodding in agreement, Dipper rose to his feet and followed the two girls down the vine free path and back into the less dense parts of the forest.
Not a word was spared by the three of them until they passed the forests border and stood firmly in the parking lot of the Mystery Shack. The three heaved softly, bent over in attempt to catch their breath from their sprint in the woods. Glancing at each other, a moment of silence passed before they erupted into giddy cheers.
Mabel pulled Pacifica and Dipper close into a tight grasping hug. "Oh my gosh, Pacifica that was so awesome!" Mabel gushed, releasing Dipper from her grasp and placing both her hands on Pacifica's shoulder.
Short laughter left Pacifica's proud smile as she rolled her shoulders, dismissing the complement in her usual fashion. Shrugging off Pacifica's reaction, Mabel continued to gush over the heroic deeds until an exhausting yawn interrupted her.
With a tired stretch, Mabel loudly exclaimed her much needed Waddles exposure. Waving goodbye, Mabel made her way back into the shack. Her voice booming as she called out for her sweater cladded pig.
Amused by Mabel's usual antics, Pacifica let out a small laugh before turning to Dipper. They stood still as the silence slowly shifted from relaxed to awkward. "So…" Pacifica offered, gathering the length of her ponytail in between her fingers as she ran her hands down her hair.
Dipper rocked on his heels uncomfortably as Pacifica tore her eyes off the shack. "I suppose I should call for my ride." She offered, a small smile replacing her usual scowl as she released her hair from her fingers and reached into her pockets for her phone.
Dipper hadn't expected his night to be so full of surprises all of which revolved around the blonde heiress whose gaze he was currently avoiding.
Her appearance tonight certainly took Dipper by surprise to say the least. Pacifica's ability to not only think rationally but quickly not only came as a shock but, for the second time that month had saved the Pine twins life.
Shifting his weight, Dipper raised a hand to rub his neck. "You know, there's a ghost harassers marathon going on if you wanna stay."
And once again Pacifica Northwest surprised Dipper as she lowered her phone and offered him a bright smile and a simple, "I would like that." But the most surprising revelation of the night hadn't come from Pacifica's actions but from Dippers reactions.
His involuntary reactions.
Dipper hesitated behind Pacifica as they made their way to the shack. There was something familiar with the sensation but he couldn't quite put a finger to it. The last time he felt a warm swelling in his stomach it had been at the expense of a friendly lumberjack's daughter-
"Oh no." Dipper froze as the realization hit him.
This was not supposed to happen.