Summer, 2016
Mystery Shack was filled with joyful exuberance. The Pines family were happily socializing among themselves inside the cabin. Stan and Ford settled at the table in the living room as they prattled on about interesting anecdotes. On the other side of the room, four young people sat in a circle near the old television set. Dipper Pines, Mabel Pines, Wendy Corduroy and Soos Ramirez in the midst of a friendly game of Truth or Dare or Don't.
"Did you have any crushes on fictional characters?" Mabel asked Soos with a sly smile.
The young man stroked his chin as he thought about the question at hand. "Well, I did have a crush on one of the Muses from Hercules."
"Oh?" Wendy gasped.
"Which one?" Dipper asked.
"The short plump one for sure." Soos answered with a nod. "She had a sense of humor and her singing voice was astonishing."
"Well I can't argue with that." Wendy remarked.
"Soos, now it's your turn to ask Truth or Dare or Don't!" Mabel exclaimed.
The portly man looked over at the small group and immediately decided who he was going to ask. "Dipper, truth or dare or don't?"
The young teen raised his head as he heard his name. He adjusted his trapper hat as he meditated over the question. "I am feeling a bit risky this evening, so...I'm gonna go with dare!"
"So Mabel told me that you are actually a very good singer and that you also like Broadway musicals." Soos asserted.
"Oh, did she now?" Dipper drawled sarcastically as he glanced at his sister, who gave him a guilty smile.
"The world needs to know of your hidden talents!" Mabel defended.
"So I dare you to sing your favorite musical number!" Soos commanded.
"Seriously?" Dipper huffed.
"You should totally sing one of the songs from Hamilton bro-bro!" Mabel squealed with excitement.
"I wanna hear you sing man." Wendy encouraged.
"What? No way," Dipper playfully dismissed the suggestion with the wave of his hand. "I'm pretty sure Grunkle Stan will burn his ears off after he hears my singing voice."
"Who's singin' now?" Stan loudly interrupted from the other side of the room.
Mabel gleefully smiled at her Grunkles. "Dipper's gonna sing a song from Hamilton for you two!"
"Well, I've been dared to sing, but I guess there's no turning back now." Dipper groaned.
Ford looked at his nephew with great intrigue. "You never told Stan and I that you could sing."
"I wanna hear you sing dude." Soos encouraged.
"Let's hear it, buddy boy!" Stan added.
Dipper observed the wave of enthusiasm and excitement exuding from his family. "Alright, alright." The teen surrendered. "But only one song, okay?"
Mabel and Soos cheered, raising their fists in the air.
"I can find the karaoke version if it helps." Wendy suggested. She walked over to the table and grabbed the laptop from her backpack. Upon opening up the computer, the redhead began her search.
"Yeah, that sounds good." Dipper replied. The boy sat next to the redhead and the two friends searched through YouTube to find the perfect tune from the soundtrack. After a few minutes, Dipper found the most suitable Hamilton song he could easily perform in front of his friends and family.
As Dipper and Wendy scoured through the internet for the appropriate video, Stan grabbed his chair from the poker table and migrated near the couch. Mabel and Soos shared the plaid armchair, while Ford took his spot on the nearby dinosaur skull.
Dipper soon looked up to see his small audience clumped together as they eagerly awaited for their song of the hour. The teen locked his eyes back on the computer screen, and decided on the song he wanted to perform.
Within seconds the teen stood up and cleared his throat, alerting his family and friends. All eyes were on him.
"Okay, I'll sing You'll be Back, cause it's an easy one and I'm a little nervous." Dipper announced. "...and here we go." He nodded at Wendy, giving her the cue to press the play button on the computer.
Upbeat piano chords began to play from the laptop's built-in speakers as Dipper mentally prepared himself for the song number.
"You got this dude!" Soos whispered enthusiastically.
As Dipper glanced back at his audience, his nerves were starting to get the better of him. "Wait a second,"
"You're gonna nail this one out of the park broseph." Mabel cheered.
"You got this, my boy." Ford added.
Stan smiled and joined in on the encouragement. "Okay Dipper, you're up. Make Grunkle Stan proud."
Unfortunately, the positive comments distracted Dipper and he missed the opening lyrics. "Oh wait, I missed the- I missed it. I missed my introduction." He stammered.
"You missed your cue?" Stan groaned dramatically. Ford elbowed his brother's side in response to the rude comment.
"It's alright Dipper, just ignore whatever my brother says." Ford reassured.
"It's good, let's try it again man." Wendy addressed to Dipper. The redhead played the track from the beginning, prompting Dipper to become more focused. "Okay, here we go." Dipper told himself clapped his hands together, determined to hit his mark.
"Your family and friends are here to see you sing, Dipper." Stan called out. Ford gave his twin another sharp jab to the side, causing him to quiet down.
Dipper refused to be deterred by his Grunkle's comments. Even if he ended up making a fool of himself, he was going to do so in style dang it! The teen looked up at his supportive audience as he started to sing.
You say
The price of my love's not a price that you're willing to pay
You cry
In your tea which you hurl in the sea when you see me go by
As Dipper sang, he decided to put some extra flair into his performance by adding dramatic hand gestures and waltzing around the living room.
Why so sad?
Remember we made an arrangement when you went away
Now you're making me mad
Remember, despite our estrangement, I'm your man
Dipper smiled slyly at his audience before starting the chorus.
You'll be back, soon you'll see
You'll remember you belong to me
You'll be back, time will tell
You'll remember that I served you well
The teen continued to gesticulate as he sang.
Oceans rise, empires fall
We have seen each other through it all
And when push comes to shove
I will send a fully armed battalion to remind you of my love!
Da da da dat da dat da da da da ya da
Da da dat dat da ya da!
Stan found himself enjoying his nephew's performance, so much so that he decided to add his own back-up vocals into the song.
Da da da dat da dat da da da da ya da (Dee-da dooo do-do)
Da da dat dat da… (Beep-bop baa, doobity-doo, da-do da-do-da)
Dipper jumped near the armchair he began the second verse, posing in dramatic fashion.
You say our love is draining and you can't go oooooon
His audience was stunned with how long he held the last note.
"Look Soos, my brother did that!" Mabel gushed.
"Woah" Soos awed.
The positive reaction fueled Dipper's determination as he dramatically pointed at his Grunkles.
You'll be the one complaining when I am gone…
"My stars! The kid can sing!" Stan praised, awestruck of his nephew's musical talent. Ford quietly grinned at the teen. Dipper flashed his teeth as he cornered Stan.
And no, don't change the subject
Cuz you're my favorite subject
"No, you are." Stan bantered, causing an aww from Mabel and Soos.
My sweet, submissive subject
"Uh, this got weird." Stan muttered. Wendy cackled from across the room.
My loyal, royal subject
Forever and ever and ever and ever and ever…
Dipper knelt down before his audience and looked up to them with solemnity.
You'll be back like before
I will fight the fight and win the war
For your love, for your praise
And I'll love you till my dying days
Dipper slowly stood up and proceeded to walk towards the others.
When you're gone, I'll go mad
So don't throw away this thing we had
Cuz when push comes to shove
I will kill your friends and family-
A shocked Ford nervously stared at Dipper for singing such dark lyrics. Stan, on the other hand, had a difficult time containing his laughter. Dipper smiled and continued to sing.
-to remind you of my love
Da da da dat da dat da da da da ya da
Da da dat dat da ya da! (dibbity-do-da-doo-da-doo-da-doo)
Da da da dat da dat da da da da ya da
Da da dat—
Everybody!
"Everybody!" Stan shouted as he sang, rushing over towards Dipper's side to sing with him. Soon everyone in the room began to follow along in singing the chorus. Mabel and Soos stood up from their seats as they joined in on the fun. She grabbed Ford from his seat and started to dance with him. Surprised by his niece's spontaneity, Ford did his best to copy Mabel's dance moves and he found himself smiling along the way. From her seat, Wendy began to clap in time with the music.
Da da da dat da dat da da da da ya da
Da da dat dat da ya da!
"Tourists would be throwin' money at ya right now!" Stan complimented.
Da da da dat da dat da da da da ya da da da da
Dat dat da yaa daaaaa!
When the song ended, Stan wrapped his arm around his nephew. "You'll be Back, by Dipper." He announced smilingly as he gave the teen an affectionate noogie. "You know what's funny Wendy, Dipper was picturin' you the whole time while he was singin'!" He teased.
Dipper laughed off his uncle's joke with a playful shove. Wendy, however, took the pillow she sat on and threw it at Stan, hitting him square in the face. Everyone in the room applauded Dipper's performance.
"That was wonderful!" Ford praised. Dipper couldn't help but smile at his Grunkle. "So what musical is this from again?" The researcher asked.
"It's from Hamilton, Grunkle Ford." Mabel answered, tugging on his sleeve. "It's a musical about the guy on the ten-dollar bill and one of my former crushes!"
Stan pulled Dipper close in a gentle side hug. "Well, I have a confession to make kiddo. You're a better singer than your old Grunkle Stan, that's for sure."
"Thanks." Dipper humbly replied.
"Did you have some short-lived career in the music industry?" Wendy asked.
"As a matter of fact, I did!" Stan responded. Dipper and Wendy exchanged intrigued looks before turning back at Stanley. Ford also curious about this sudden revelation.
"Were you a pop star?" Mabel asked.
"Or a traveling folk artist with nothing but a six-string on your back and a song in your heart?" Soos piped.
"No, no." Stan answered with a laugh. "Back when I was lookin' for a stable job, I was a background singer-slash-dancer in the first edition that Cats musical. However, I was kicked out after opening night because I was completely terrible. That and I tried to pickpocket a few people during the cast-audience interactions."
Dipper, Mabel and Wendy looked at each other upon hearing Stan's bizarre anecdote. While Soos stared at his father-figure with starry eyes, Ford was not surprised at Stan's criminal actions.
"What were the other cast members like?" Wendy inquired.
"Most of 'em were your typical Broadway primadonnas who took theater way too seriously. But some of the background dancers held a deep prejudice against streetwise Jerseyites such as myself."
"Do you still remember any of the songs?" Dipper asked.
"Of course!" Stan exclaimed. He cleared his threat before the oncoming ear torture that was his gravelly singing voice. "Jellicle Cats! We are so jellicle- what's a jellicle? Do you kids know what the heck a jellicle is?"
"I have no clue." Dipper answered with a chuckle.
"Jellicle? I always thought they were saying 'magical', but they somehow forgot the first part of the word." Mabel remarked.
"Either way, because of my failed endeavors in the musical world, I firmly believe that all music is bad." Stan confirmed.
Everyone chuckled at the old man's proclamation.
"Alright, come on you crazy kids, I think that's enough singin' for one summer." Stan said as he playfully pushed the four youngsters out from the living room. He instinctively grabbed Ford as they exited the room. "How about we go out to eat tonight?"
Everyone agreed with Stan's suggestion, and started to leave the Shack. As they were walking towards the car, Dipper reached into his vest pocket and retrieved a CD case.
"Would anyone want to listen to some Hamilton on the way there?" Dipper asked.
"Yes!" Mabel gushed. "Grunkle Ford, this is the best way to introduce you to the musical."
Dipper gave the CD to Ford, who inspected the object with great fascination. Once everyone got inside the red El Diablo, Ford opened up the CD and took it out of the case. Stan put the keys into the ignition and started up the car. The researcher carefully placed the disc into the CD player.
Everyone in the car heard the thunderous sounds of violins emerging from the speakers, signaling the start of a wonderful car ride.
I've had this fic in my folder for a while, but I loved the idea of this story that I decided to fix it up before posting it online.
Here are the titles of the videos that this fic is based off of so you could watch and enjoy.
You'll Be Dip
Dipper Gets Burned
Please Read and Review! Thank you!