It was past midnight in mid-May, and the last big storm of the season was roaring through Gravity Falls, making the evergreens toss and sway on the mountains and creating miniature waterfalls on the sheer cliffs on the road up to the Northwest Mansion.

Not that it had stopped the procession of cars hauling dozens of kids from the senior prom to Pacifica's after-party. She hadn't done much to the outside of the house, but the great hall was pounding with music and flashing with lasers as they'd entered. Teams of servants circulated with trays of canapes, miniature desserts and drinks, while ushers quietly removed those who were too rowdy or drunk to properly participate. It was all a smashing success, and part of Pacifica had grinned inwardly with satisfaction at her plans coming together, even as another part of her ran around with her boyfriend and best friend, giddy with joy in just being alive.

Of course, simply throwing the most epic party in the history of Gravity Falls had been the easy part of the evening. The really tricky part was yet to come.

She moved through the hall, which was nearly empty except for a few couples slow-dancing to low, soft music. The lights were nearly off, leaving only the glow from the fireplace to shine off of Pacifica's hair and floor-length red satin gown. Nobody noticed as she climbed the staircase up to the off-limits areas of the house where her family actually lived.

Mother and Father weren't at home, naturally - they would have never tolerated being in the same building as the riff-raff from the local high school. It had been a titanic struggle for the past five years just to get them to allow her to go to public school, and they'd nearly shipped her off to a private Swiss boarding school - or disowned her entirely - more than once.

Part of her had been relieved, even eager, at the thought of being completely free of her parents. Every new adventure she'd been on with Dipper and Mabel had given her a little more self-confidence, and after she'd survived the town's final, titanic battle with Bill, she knew nothing on Earth could stand in her way. Even if she had to start at the very bottom, waitressing at the diner or working as a cashier at the Mystery Shack, she knew it wouldn't be long before she'd be on top again...

...and Dipper and Mabel would be at her side.

But another part of her had dug in her heels. The Northwest legacy was tarnished and corrupt, but it was rightfully hers and she knew she could do good with it. So however cunning Father had been, she'd been just a bit more cunning, digging deep into her family's rotten past and corrupt present to cajole, bribe and blackmail her father to get her own way. And the part of her that was good at planning and plotting and scheming was satisfied, even pleased, to claim her life and her heritage for herself, even as the other part was heartbroken at her fraying relationship with her parents, crying into the phone during long midnight calls with Mabel and Dipper in Piedmont.

Now Mother and Father's rooms were dark and empty as she walked past them, stopping briefly to watch the rain running down windows on the far wall. At this point there was just a dull ache when she thought of her parents at all - her real family was the Pines now, and they were always there for her, even if they weren't always in Gravity Falls.

Not that they wouldn't be here, tonight of all nights. As Dipper's energy faded throughout the evening, she'd steered her date up to the mansion library, telling him she'd join him as soon as she was done with her hostess duties. And here he was, surrounded by a pile of dusty leather books on the myth and lore of the area, recharged as ever by the mysteries of the unknown.

She smiled. He'd need his energy for the next bit.

"Is there anything weirder in those books than what we've already been through?"

Dipper looked up, startled at her entrance, and then stood up from the arm chair, smoothing his hair and straightening his tuxedo jacket. At just eighteen, he was as tall as his Grunkle Stan, if not as broad-shouldered. Still, it was the way he smiled at her, and the light in his eyes, that made her heart skip a beat.

"Not really, just... oh." He stopped speaking as she took his hand and pulled him out of the room without saying a word, down the hall to her room, and her bed.

She seated him down next to her, and kissed him, hands caressing his face. Dipper was a shy boy who'd become a gentle, considerate man - when they made out, or cuddled, she could feel him trembling with desire for her, but he'd never once pushed her to go further than she felt comfortable with.

Which is why it was up to her to move things forward tonight, removing his jacket and unbuttoning his shirt, then pushing him back on the bed and starting to work on his belt and pants.

"Pacifica... is... are you sure this is what you want?" She could hear the catch in his breath as she finished stripping him bare, leaving him long and lean on her bedspread. Part of her was nervous, heart pounding, almost trembling. She'd never seen him this way before. But it was the other part of her that took a moment to enjoy the view, and nodded without hesitation.

"Just like we planned, sweetie," she said, removing her long gloves and reaching behind her back to undo the zipper on the gown, which fell to the floor in one smooth motion. Now it was Dipper's turn to enjoy the view, and she was pleased and thrilled at the expression on his face as he took in the lingerie she'd bought just for tonight.

Knowing Dipper and Mabel over the years had drained Pacifica of most of her youthful pride and arrogance; the more times she'd seen the serious little dweeb and his obnoxious sister with the godawful sweaters save the town, the more she realized how empty her family's wealth truly was, and how meaningless her fake reputation. What Pacifica had left was her smarts and brutal honesty, and she knew that she wasn't flattering herself when she looked in the mirror and saw the face and body of a supermodel. And part of her, when planning and pondering tonight, had wondered whether Dipper knew how lucky he was... but the other part of her knew that she'd never, ever find a man who loved her as much as Dipper did, loved her for reasons she couldn't understand or couldn't believe when he tried to tell her.

She loved him. She wanted to be with him with all her heart. She'd planned this for months, if not years, at some level, and they both climbed under the covers and, for the first time, did things they'd only thought about...

...well, it was the 21st century, of course. For all she knew, Dipper might have watched just as much internet porn as every other man his age, although she would have bet not, given how hard he blushed and how nervous he got when their conversation got anywhere near the topic of sex. As for Pacifica, she'd been watching HBO shows and stealing her mother's trashy romance paperbacks before she'd ever even met Dipper. So the broad outlines of what they should do - where he should touch and kiss, where she should do the same - were familiar, and part of her tried to guide him, tried to steer things in the cold, clinical ways she'd seen on tv.

But it didn't work that way. It was the giggly, frightened part of her that ended up talking them both through what was happening, laughing and encouraging and smiling through the awkward, painful bits of two virgins trying this new thing for the first time.

And for their efforts, there was a short time at the end - no more than a minute, if that - where it all came together and instinct took over and she felt the sensations and feelings that books and movies and tv utterly failed to do justice to. She looked up at him as they came together, and brushed the tears from his face, and brushed the tears from hers, and nodded, unable to speak, when he said "I love you", and held him close beside her and listed to the rain outside and her pounding heartbeat inside while he fell asleep in her arms.