Disclaimer: I do not own GF
This was a b-day gift for a friend
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"I can't believe you're doing this. I can't believe we're doing this. I can't believe I'm letting you make me do this," Gideon deadpanned.
Pacifica snorted at her cousin's melodrama, shaking her pretty head hard enough for her ponytail to hit both her shoulders. Her sparkly lips quirked into a grin and she slung an arm around the shorter male, patting his shoulder almost condescendingly.
"Oh, stop being so dramatic! This will be fun. Besides, I thought you liked breaking Bud's rules," Pacifica teased.
Gideon rolled his eyes, but a smile crept onto his face. "I don't enjoy breaking rules it just so happens that they run into my own personal plans and goals."
Pacifica snorted, her grin widening. "Whatever helps you sleep at night."
Gideon chuckled at her antics.
He had to admit Gravity Falls so far hadn't been as horrid as he had previously thought it to be. When he was first told he would have to spend his entire summer in the small town with his bizarre uncle and his adopted daughter, he had been... less than pleased. Who would want to go to a place that didn't even know the meaning of the word "internet" and who's thought of a good time included hunting and fishing?
However, Gideon had to admit that he had been wrong about the town.
The journal resting heavily in his coat printed with a golden handprint and the number 3 proved that fact thricefold.
Still, as much as he had to admit the town in itself was more than it seemed, he didn't understand Pacifica's lack of curiosity in a place she had lived in so long and nor did he understand her love for such obvious fake things. Fake fur, fake leather, fake neon lights…
...and fake shows such as the one they were waiting in line for.
As soon as Pacifica had heard about Bud's rants about those "dreadful, plastic Pines' Twins!" Pacifica had grabbed Gideon's hand and dragged him up to their shared room, practically vibrating from excitement.
Gideon knew what she was going to tell him even before she had shut the door behind him.
"I know what we're going to do Friday night!"
And that had been that.
Gideon peeked out from behind the tubby cop in front of him who seemed to nearly be spazzing out from excitement to the tent before him. Baby blue cloth was draped delicately on the poles, decorated with beaded, glimmering stars placed by a false goddess. The tent was much larger than he had expected- double sided with two toppers on either side- a pine tree and a shooting star.
It was odd to say the least and Gideon tucked the thought away to the back of his mind to ponder about later.
"Gideon! Stop standing there like a doofus and come on!" Pacifica shouted from his side, startling him. Gideon didn't even need to move as Pacifica grabbed the sleeve of his hoodie and dragged him forwards. Gideon stumbled on his toes, nearly face planting into the tubby cop in front of him. He yanked his sleeve from Pacifica, rubbing his wrist and shooting her a look.
"Really?" He asked with little malice.
Pacifica rolled her eyes. "You need to stop zoning out like that. Something bad'll end up happening to you!"
Gideon flinched back from her flippant reply. "W-what?" He said. "What do you mean by-"
"Next!"
Gideon yelped as Pacifica grabbed him none too gently again, dragging him up to the ticket man near the entrance. Gideon cocked a brow at his informal wear- khakis and a blue shirt with a question mark printed in the center.
"Tickets?" He asked politely, holding out his hand.
Pacifica nodded hard enough to almost dislodge the many glow in the dark stars she had wove in her hair for...whatever reason. With a flourish, the blonde dug into her patchy jean jacket, proffering two twin tickets.
"Here ya go!" She chirped, bouncing on the balls of her feet.
The man plucked the tickets from Pacifica, holding them up to the light and inspecting them closely.
Gideon scoffed, rolling his eyes and crossing his arms tight over his chest. As if someone would want to sneak into a smelly tent to see a fake psychic show. Gideon shook his head.
Least it wasn't he to waste money on such a frivolous show. Still, it was wasting his time.
Time that could be spent studying his nifty little journal.
Gideon sighed, his shoulders slumping.
"You two are all good, dudes! Go on in," The man said.
Gideon cocked a brow at how informal he was, but wasn't given any more time to ponder about it as Pacifica grabbed him for the third time would you stop that… and dragged him inside.
The inside was larger than he had expected it to be. Heaters were lining the tent's circumstance- already at work battling the cool Oregon nights. The fake stars glittered just like the ones weaved in Pacifica's hair. A wooden, collapsible stage was set up, taking up the entire northern part of the tent. Starry night curtains cut any and all sight away from the main stage. Collapsible metal chairs were set up in front of the stage, each row hauntingly straight and perfect almost to the point of a fault.
Gideon scoffed and followed Pacifica and the general flow of the crowd to try and find a seat.
"C'mon!" Pacifica urged, grabbing his hand for the fourth time you need to clip your cat claws… "Let's sit in the front."
"I don't think there's any room left," Gideon said.
"We'll make room," Pacifica dismissed with a devious glint in her eyes.
Gideon gulped but allowed himself to be manicured roughly through the crowd of sweating, loud, and excitable people. Pacifica didn't seem to mind shoving a few people away or cutting in front of others in a mad dash to get as close to the stage as possible. She ignores the jeers shot her way.
Gideon merely allowed himself to be manhandled. Pacifica would be sure to find them perfect seats.
If he had to sit through a fake show, might as well get good seating.
Gideon stumbled, nearly tripping over his toes as Pacifica halted suddenly.
"Watch me perform my magic, Giddy-Boy!" Pacifica whisper-yelled to Gideon.
"If you're going to be doing magic then why are we even here?" Gideon grouched in response.
If Pacifica heard or even cared about his protests, she didn't note it. She turned, staring hard at two teens that who were probably only a few years older than they were. The two boys at first, didn't seem to notice or even care that Pacifica was, quite literally, staring at them as if they were going to be vaporized any second.
Then, Gideon say a single brown eye flicker.
Gideon's mouth fell open as the second boy shifted awkwardly in his seat.
Pacifica grinned.
Four minutes and thirty eight seconds later, both Pacifica and Gideon were sitting right smack in the middle on the second row.
"I can't believe that worked," Gideon said in utter awe, folding his hands in his pockets.
Pacifica chuckled at Gideon's wide-eyed look. "Told ya I had some magic," She giggled, playfully hitting him on the shoulder.
Gideon shook his head slowly, his own grin working its way on his face. "You did, you did," He amended.
The two cousins waited and watched as the seats surrounding them slowly filled up with more slobbering, lumbering townsfolk, many of whom Gideon wouldn't be surprised to hear that they were inbred. Gideon didn't dwell long on the thought and soon the lights that had been placed around the tent dimmed, a spotlight flashing on the part of the twin curtains where they parted.
Pacifica shot him an excited look, bouncing in her seat a little and smiling broadly.
Gideon shook his head and leaned back in his seat, crossing his ankles and moving his hands from his pockets to instead cross his arms tightly.
Soft, pianissimo piano music started, like the sprinkling of raindrops in an almost cloudless night- each little round mirror reflecting the sorrowful face of the faraway firmament. A soft trill sounded, the timbre manifesting into a haunting melody from its previous soulful heart.
Gideon twitched in his seat, his gut suddenly rolling in pure dread.
The curtains parted.
Gideon's eyes widened in disbelief.
No one was seated at the piano, yet the keys continued their ghostly movement.
Gideon gripped the underside of his seat and glanced around. Pacifica looked completely amazed by the sight and her hands were already twitching towards her pocket for her phone.
The rest of the audience seemed to share her enthusiasm, gasps sounding out, which failed in piercing holes in the crescendoing music.
The piano covering flew open and silvers smoke poured out. The fog condensed around the bottom of the stage and the silver flashed- red, orange, and gold. The shining spotlight disappeared with a click and the spectral fog was the only light source pulsating in the entire tent.
Then, the piano spun in a full circle.
However, unlike before, the seat wasn't empty. A thin, dark shape was seated perfectly in the seat, her thin fingers interrupting the previous melancholic melody with one completely different. The soulful music played in minor switched into major and an erratic, staccato beat demanded Gideon's heart to speed up to march in time with its ruthless demands.
The song swelled and right before the final note was hit, silence descended.
Gideon waited on the edge of his seat to see what were to happen next, but not a single note was given life and any thoughts of completion fell by the wayside. The lithe figure stood up, her sparkling blue tutu catching the rainbows swirling around her feet and with a flamboyant wave, she spun around on her heel.
Mabel Pines' was just as her picture on the billboards made her out to be outdoors. Her face was as pale as the crying face of the moon. Her lips were painted a deep succulent red and were quirked into an odd grin, giving any promise but happiness. She flung her hands out and swept her long chestnut hair off her shoulders. Her cerulean eyes shone behind her smokey eye and Gideon nearly jumped out of the seat as her grinning face was torn from sight.
He hadn't noticed the growing shadow behind her.
A smirking face parted the swirling fog which had been climbing higher and higher, the colors fading into a musky black bejeweled with little stars. Mabel followed the hand that had grabbed her own, spinning alongside the boy, almost floating on the tips of her toes. Dipper Pines caught her on her back however and with a flourish, tipped her over backwards. Her long hair crashed to the ground in a waterfall of silky chocolate.
Gideon, however, was not looking at Mabel's sensual expression. No, his eyes were frozen on the boy holding her, his turquoise eyes gleaming in the near darkness, little will o' the wisps guiding him down a path Gideon knew would be most unwise.
He found himself unable to care and he freely granted his cheeks to bloom in a furious crimson.
Dipper, like his sister, was most pale, soft stars winking at night and his grin was of that as the edge of a glinting knife as it tore his heart to ribbons.
Gideon held tight onto his seat and his knuckles gleamed white.
"Welcome!" Mabel's voice was of bird song poisoned with nightshade. "Welcome one and all! We thank you all so much for coming and we dearly hope that you enjoy our performance." Mabel's teeth were almost too white and straight to be normal.
Gideon shifted a little in his seat.
"We understand that tonight, you came to see real magic," Dipper spoke from the shadows. His voice cracked hard with the hunger of the night swallowing the moon. "And so, real magic is what you will get!" Dipper hand, which had been resting lightly against the base of his neck against his bolo tie snapped forwards and flowers bloomed from the middle of his palm- ivory lilies.
Gideon nearly melted right in his seat as Dipper's eyes slid over to him and with another little smile, he flung the blooms out.
Gideon gasped as he reached up for one seemingly with no control over his own movements, catching one on the pads of his fingers. Besides Gideon, Pacifica stared in shock, her mouth falling open.
Gideon had the worse hand-eye coordination.
Gideon cradled the flower close to his breast, his eyes as wide as saucers turning back to the mystical twins. He stared hard at Dipper's face. The boy wasn't looking at him, instead looking over at the entire crowd and yet, Gideon knew that Dipper had looked at him. He knew it.
Dipper let go of Mabel, the spotlight focused on them again, causing the fog to abscond, and the true show started.
From whiping objects out of seemingly nowhere to levitating the entire piano together, nothing seemed to be too difficult for the magical twins.
Gideon was in love.
Gideon couldn't tear his eyes away from Dipper, every twitch, every time he almost tripped over his too-long black cape, and his gleaming grin. It was almost too much for the chubby boy's poor heart.
"I hope your night has been filled with mysteries and awe!" Mabel boomed. "It is unfortunate that this night must come to an end."
Shouts and whines of protest echoed around the tent. Gideon, unlike Pacifica, did not call out. Instead, he stared at his hands in disappointment. He felt as if he had just sat down!
"However, since you have all been such a wondrous audience-" Dipper spoke up, clearing his throat softly, "-My darling sister and I have decided that for our last trick of the night, we need a volunteer!"
As soon as the V-word slipped past the boy's lips, hands were thrust into the air and the previous whines turned into greedy shouts. The twins chuckled at their crowd's antics.
Gideon drew back in his seat. As much as he wanted to wave his arm wildly in the air like Pacifica was doing, he found himself a bit too tentative to really try. Despite his wandering thoughts drifting over to perfect daydreams of how Dipper's hand might feel on his and the cheering audience behind him, Gideon's primary worries were still casting dark shadows over his mind.
What if he tripped, what if he stuttered, what if he started sweating too much and got sweat stains, what if…?
Gideon jerked as glowing turquoise eyes caught his own baby blue ones. It was oh so brief, and yet, Gideon found his hand being flung up into the air.
Gideon nearly yelped in surprise. What was wrong with his motor functions today?
Mabel's curved smile was absolutely insidious as her eyes slid from her brother and over to Gideon. Her arm snapped up, index finger tipped in a black claw as sharp as a dagger, and her perfect lips spelled out his doom in five words.
"You! In the second row!"
The spotlight shone on him and Gideon found his body locking up as the twins' eyes fell upon him. Besides him, Gideon could hear Pacifica cheering for him over the disappointed leers from the rest of the audience.
"Oh, Gideon! You lucky duck! Get on up there!"
Gideon probably wouldn't have been able to get up himself if it wasn't for Pacifica's deadly cat claws digging into his arm for the fifth bloody time-!And ripping him from his seat and shoving him up to a standing position.
Gideon gulped, sweat pooling on the back of his neck. His knees knocked together with every step as he awkwardly shuffled pass people in the aisle, each and every person giving him an envious look.
Gideon gulped thickly again as he started climbing the stage and sooner rather than later, he was standing before the audience, Pacifica shooting him thumbs up from where she was still sitting, her hair glowing softly from the fake stars.
Gideon smiled softly at the sight.
"So! Who might you be?" Dipper asked with a small flourish of his cape which caused him to almost trip again.
"U-um...G-Gideon. Gideon Gleeful," Gideon stuttered.
Dipper chuckled, his eyes dark. "It's very nice to meet you. Everyone! Give a round of applause for the brave Gideon Gleeful!"
Applause erupted for the overweight boy.
Gideon blinked as he was spun around by Dipper. He looked up to the other teen, a little surprised by their height difference.
"Now, Gideon. What we are going to do for our last trick of the night is a little think called...hypnotization!" Dipper eyed the expression the boy had at the sound of that. "No worries," He tacked on at the end, "We won't make you do anything too embarrassing."
"Okay. I'm up for it!" Gideon slapped his mouth closed, eyes huge as he stared up at Dipper's wide grin. His heart palpitated madly in his chest and sweat perspired in his palms.
The words had been out of his mouth before he had a chance to fully think them!
Dipper dropped his hand from the base of his neck to squeeze Gideon's shoulder good-naturedly.
Gideon cursed his flaming cheeks.
"I am very glad to hear that. Everyone! Another round of applause!"
From the corner of his eye, Gideon watched as Mabel fixed her headband while applause louder than before erupted.
Gideon swore he heard some people whimpering in pain from how hard their palms were colliding.
"Okay! Now Gideon, all you have to do is look into my eyes, got it?" Dipper said.
Gideon nodded.
"Just focus on my brother." Mabel's silky voice floated from somewhere to his right behind him. "I'll make sure he doesn't pull a fast one on you."
Gideon nodded and blinking hard once, he stared deep into Dipper's eyes.
His heart slammed hard against his ribcage and Gideon swore he was melting where he stood. Dipper's eyes were fog, flashing lights in the distance beckoning him ever closer and closer. A shiny grin, welcoming him to the greatest show on earth, an outstretched hand, fingers waggling at him temptingly. Branches of greed encircled him, pulling him deeper. More fog swirled, pine trees loomed on every side of him and Gideon was falling, falling falling, reaching out for that outstretched hand…
Dipper's hand closed around Gideon's and his eyes glimmered. "Gideon Gleeful, how about you dance with me?"
"I don't know how," Gideon responded. His baby blue eyes were milky as he stepped forwards, taking Dipper's other hand in his own.
"Oh, I think I can teach you!" Dipper flashed a grin to the bewildered audience. Ignoring the small glare Mabel was giving him, her arms crossed, toe stamping in irritation, Dipper pulled Gideon into a clumsy mess of what could possibly resemble a waltz if either party knew how to waltz. His grip on Gideon's hands were tight and the teen hoped beyond all hope that he would not trip over his cape for the seventh time that night.
Sweat pooled on Dipper's forehead and he prayed that his makeup wasn't melting off his face. It wouldn't be the first time Mabel switched his non-run makeup with something that would not stay.
Gideon stumbled after the teen as he lead them in a playful mockery of a dance.
Mabel, glancing over the crowd, reached up to her headband again.
The crowd's growing snickers fell silent.
Dipper smiled down at the boy in his arms, his grin absolutely predatory. Despite the overwhelming smell of baby powder, the kid wasn't too bad. He had soft cheeks dimpled with the lightest touches of freckles, an upturned nose, and white hair he knew that would be silky and beautiful if it was washed.
Dipper shook his head. What was he even thinking?
Yet…
Feeling his own cheeks start to heat up, Dipper shoved Gideon away a little rougher than necessary, snapping his fingers loudly.
Gideon nearly fell as his senses flooded back to him. He rubbed his head, blinking the odd will o' the wisps still teasing the edge of his eyesight…
"Huh?"
Dipper let go of his bolo tie and clapped politely. "Thank you for that wonderful demonstration! As you all can see, Gideon's mind is rightfully restored!"
The sound of clapping filled the tent again.
Gideon glanced towards Dipper, whose entire face scrunched up in an effort to wink at him.
Frowning, Gideon bid the stage goodbye and stumbled back to Pacifica in a daze, the Pines' Twins behind him giving one last farewell before the curtains snapped closed and light washed the tent again.
Pacifica ran to meet Gideon, helping him maneuver him to the side.
"Gideon! You okay? Ya look a little more than dazed," Pacifica asked. She chewed her bottom lip in worry and her nails dug into Gideon's shoulders.
Gideon shook his head, rubbing his temples slowly.
"Y-yeah? I- I think so, at least."
"What happened?"
Gideon dropped his hands and turned to glance back at the stage. Despite the frown marring his features, his pale cheeks were still flushed with a bright scarlet and the lingering touch of warm hands caressing his own was sending shivers up his spine…
"I don't know," Gideon said honestly. "But I think it's time to go back home."
Pacifica stared at him hard, but didn't miss a beat. "Agreed. Let's go home.
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Thanks for reading!