Pacifica slowly crept up on her pasty cousin. He was in the attic reading his journal, oblivious to everything around him. She memorized where the creaks in the floorboards were and stealthily moved around them. She hovered over her prey like a jaguar on a branch, ready to pounce on an unsuspecting chimpanzee.

"RAWR" She screamed and tickled Gideon.

"AH!" he screamed and erupted in giggles as her fingers snaked their way to all his documented tickle spots. His normally pale complexion turned bright red as he couldn't breathe. He gasped for air, and she let up allowing him to retrieve his inhaler.

"You… can kill me… that way!" he said trying to catch his breath.

"Oh don't be such a baby… I'm bored." She said. "You figure out any cool magic spells in that thing?"

"No!" Gideon stammered. "Well, there's some magic, but not what you're thinking. It's a journal. The author wrote his thoughts and observations for things. It's like a field guide that just shows where to find things and what their properties are. The problem is that there's not much in way of actually using the stuff. You're supposed to know the basics already…. For example, this fire flower. If you pick it, you can use it for a salve that makes you flame retardant. You can swim in lava with it! But, it doesn't say how to make the potion, just the ingredient has that properties. I suspect if I ever find the first or second journal, it will explain some of this more."

"Nerd." Pacifica said and booped his nose.

"Hey!" Gideon said indignantly. "This stuff is not easy!"

"So… get some help?" She said with a smile.

"From who? Who else can I go to with questions about…." Gideon said. He seemed to read her face like the journal. "No… no no no. NO!"

"He's into freaky deaky weird things… besides, I think a little collaboration might be just what we…er, you need."

"I will NOT be a party to your twisted crush with the most psychotic boy in town!" Gideon stammered.

"Oh, you're just afraid of his sister… she's harmless and really likes you." Pacifica grinned. "Gideon and Mabel sitting in a tree."

" G..." Gideon finished. "Because that's what she'll do to me!"

"You're no fun! I want to learn all about magic and stuff, The Pines seems to know about it and you have a book that you can only understand half of… I don't see the problem here!" Pacifica threw herself on the bed and sighed.

"When we were at the tent… she said something about a birthday party?" Pacifica rolled over to eyeball her cousin who was hiding further in his book. "What was that all about?"

"The problem is the Pines are not to be trusted. If they knew about this book, who knows what torturous things might happen to me… err, us." Gideon said.

"What happened at the party Gideon?" Pacifica said in her serious tone.

"N… nothing!" Gideon protested.

"Fine… I'll just ask her." Pacifica flipped on her back and played with her phone.

"Stop! No! How… how do you even have their number?" Gideon said in horror. She really didn't have their number, but Gideon didn't need to know that.

"Spill it!" Pacifica said with a grin.

"Fine…" Gideon said and sat forward. "It was when they turned 14, it's a big deal when the Pines have a party, so everyone was invited…

OoOoO

Gideon nervously walked up the porch to the Pines Manor. He's heard rumors about the mansion that overlooked gravity falls, about the hauntings and disappearances. No one seemed to be able to say one way or another what really happens inside, but when they open the gates, the town always comes. Some say it's for curiosity… others out of fear.

"Come on Gid!" Buddy said and patted his back and nudged his son forward. Gideon held an oversized box that measured almost six feet with a tag that read Mabel. A smaller box in Buddy's hand was marked for her brother, but he hoped she'd be impressed with what he got her.

"You nervous? You've been talking about her since the start of school." Buddy chuckled and elbowed his son's ribs.

"N..n…no I'm fine." Gideon said and set the boxes next to the huge pile of presents. He was pleased with himself that his was indeed the biggest one. She's sure to notice him.

"Welcome to Pines manor." said a dry and bored Dipper next to the present table. "We appreciate your patronage."

Gideon looked up at Dipper and smiled. He looked back at him and raised an eyebrow. Gideon took the hint and moved on.

"Look son! A cider fountain!" Buddy said and rushed over to fill his cup. Gideon sat on a chair at an empty table. He surveyed the room, and took in the guests. Everyone was laughing and carrying on.

"Hey there…" cooed a voice behind him. Velvet gloves covered his eyes. A sultry voice whispered in his ear. "Guess who."

"I… if I'm not mistaken… you're Mabel." Gideon said with a chuckle.

"Might have to get you involved with our show… Mr. Mind-Reader." Mabel chuckled and sat next to him.

She was wearing a red sequence dress with long black velvet gloves. She had permed her hair and tied to the side with her trademark turquoise hairclip. She must have had a professional do her makeup because she looked radiant. The coy side smile she gave him destroyed any rational thought he hoped to keep around her.

"Well… I can tell whenever you're nearby." Gideon said and fidgeted with his fingers.

"Oh? Why's that?" Mabel said and leaned forward. She rested her elbows on the table and rested her chin on her hands.

"You… always smell of jasmine. It's your perfume or body wash or something." Gideon said and shoved his pine tree hat over his face.

"Are you saying I smell?" Mabel said, her tone more on edge.

"No… yes? It's good. I like it." Gideon said from inside his hat.

"One could say you have a crush on me… you're wearing me all the time." She said and poked his hat. Gideon took it off and looked at the blue pine tree.

"I… I never thought about it like that." Gideon said.

"I don't mind… I'd be remissed if you changed your loyalty." Mabel said with a smile. "I saw you bring in that… monstrosity over there. That's not for me is it?"

"Monstr… oh you mean the size of it?" Gideon chuckled. "I… I just thought you'd like it."

"Any hints?" Mabel asked and took a sip of her cider. Gideon took off his hat and fidgeted with it. He looked up at her, and back down. He shook his head no.

"Then I shall eagerly await the unveiling." Mabel said. Gideon was too nervous to say anything and Mabel fell silent. He wanted to change the subject or start a new one but he couldn't think! Mabel was sitting here and talking to him, he couldn't mess this up!

"How… did you like the lecture on Thursday in biology? You seemed to be taking a lot of notes… I was having some trouble with…" Gideon could have smacked himself for that. Mable's face went from playful to almost bored.

"Please… no school talk here. It's my party. I should be mingling." She said and looked around the room.

"I… I don't want to keep you." Gideon said. Mabel looked at him and rolled her eyes. She got up with a huff and left.

Gideon reached out to stop her, but held back, and she was lost in the crowd.

"That was painful to watch." Dipper said from behind Gideon.

"GAH!" Gideon jumped and spilled his cider on his shirt.

"Jeeze…" Dipper said, stepping back from the puddle on the carpet. "I don't get why she even talks to you."

"I don't get it either." Gideon said, mopping up the mess. "I mean… I don't mind helping her in class and all, but… I dunno, she just keeps talking to me."

Dipper stared down at him and shook his head.

"You are an idiot." He said and spun on his heel, causing his cape to flourish and walked away.

"Yea… I know" Gideon said with a sigh. His dad came back with two plates full of food and sat one in front of him.

"You should check out this spread! They got everything!" he said with a chuckle and tore into a lobster on his plate. Gideon sullenly shoved some potatoes in his mouth and watched as everyone had fun.

When the music died down, Dipper stood in the center of the banquet hall.

"Thank you one and all for attending our fourteenth birthday party. It always brings me joy to share another year on this earth with such a great community! Let's open presents and we'll have some cake afterwards!"

Everyone cheered as Dipper and Mabel sat on lavish high back chairs with red velvet cushions. They opened the various gifts handed to them. Gideon was anxious when Mabel whispered to one of the servants. He handed her every gift but his!

"Dad…" He whispered. "What if she doesn't like it?"

"Well… you kept the receipt right? You saved up for five months to get that for her. If she doesn't like it, you can always take it back and get her something else later."

Gideon nodded. His dad meant well, but he doesn't get it. A girl like Mabel will not ask you to take something back.

Gideon felt like he was going to be sick in his hat when the massive box was moved in front of her. Dipper locked eyes on him and raised an eyebrow. Mabel was grinning ear to ear as she tore off the paper and opened the box.

The town erupted in laughter.

Next to Mabel was a six foot pink stuffed pig with a handmade name tag named "Waddles." The pig was bigger than she was. He looked at her and smiled, but was met with an icy stare. Even her brother was covering his mouth and stifling a laugh.

"Aww… that's so cute!" Buddy said next to him. Gideon wanted to sink under the table and avoided her gaze. She motioned to someone to take it away and politely waved and chuckled back. As the laughter died down, everyone went back to the party.

Gideon stood by the door waiting for his dad to stop talking to some people. He wanted to leave as soon as he could. A strong hand fell on his shoulder. He spun around to see Dipper grinning ear to ear.

"She… want to see you." He said and pointed to the stairs.

"I… I need to go home." Gideon said. "Dad's got a busy day…"

"You're such a coward." Dipper sneered. "You make me sick."

Gideon took a breath and blew it out. He glared at Dipper defiantly and pushed his hand off his shoulder.

"Fine… where is she?" he said. Dipper chuckled and motioned him to follow.

They ascended the stairs to the second floor and Dipper opened the door to a dark room. A large picture window cascaded moonlight into the room, illuminating a grand piano, some benches, and a few cabinets. Gideon stepped in and Dipper closed the door behind him.

"I'll be sure your father finds the remains." Dipper said as the door clicked shut.

Gideon fumbled around in the dark, looking for Mabel.

"M…Mabel?" He stammered, all his bravery melted away.

"What... were you… thinking?" Came a raspy whisper.

Gideon spun around, looking for the source of the voice.

"I… I saw you drawing a pig on your binder… you had a lot of them. I thought they were cute and one was named waddles. He was wearing a sweater… and another was boss pig… and I thought… I wanted to show you I did pay attention… and…" Gideon stammered.

"In front of the town… you give me a six… foot… pig. You made me a laughing stock!" Mabel screamed.

Gideon spun around and Mabel was covered in blue green fire. Her hair clip was glowing brightly and her usual brown eyes were now the same color. She took a step forward and the piano between them scooted to the side, clearing a path from her to him. Gideon trembled from the sight. He held his hat to his chest and looked for somewhere to run.

"I'm going to… make you pay… for this." Mabel growled. Gideon felt his arms lock. Mabel motioned forward and Gideon was lifted in the air and pulled forward. Mabel held a knife to his face and drew the tip down his cheek. He could feel a small trickle of blood run down his face. He closed his eyes and strained against the invisible force, all his willpower focused on his arm.

Slap

Gideon felt the unseen force fall away and he landed on his feet. He stood up and looked at Mabel who was on her knees and holding her cheek. A look of shock and confusion painted on her face.

"I'm sorry I embarrassed you. I did mean well." Gideon said calmly. "I won't bother you again."

He walked to the door and as if on cue, Dipper opened it for him.

"You realize she's not going to let that go, right?" Dipper said.

"I'm sorry about the pig; it was a stupid idea… I should have given it to her privately." Gideon said as he stood next to Dipper. He wanted to look back, but knew he shouldn't. It was taking all he had in him not to lose his composure.

"Oh… she can care less about the pig now." Dipper said looking behind him. He shut the door just as a loud thunk came from the other side. "I think it's best you not attend next year's party unless specifically invited."

OoOoO

Pacifica stared at Gideon open mouthed in shock.

"You… slapped her?" She said.

"She was going to kill me! I had to do something!" Gideon stammered.

"No… you… my cousin… slapped a girl… at her own birthday party?" Pacifica said wide eyed. "I'm sorry, I don't care if she's getting all kinds of stabby, there's a line you don't cross."

"It was life or death!" Gideon protested.

"But you slapped her. You didn't push her away, or shove her, or knock the knife out of her hand…You open palmed slapped her across the cheek." Pacifica said. "No wonder she hates you."

"She never liked me in the first place!" Gideon protested.

"Wow… Dipper was right, you are an idiot. You don't go all covered in blue fire rage because someone you don't like gave you a present that embarrassed you."

"I'm done talking…" Gideon said and rolled over.

"Fine… I'm going out." Pacifica said and threw on a coat.

"Okay…" Gideon said and waved her off.

OoOoO

"Stupid cousin… hogging his little magic book. " Pacifica grumbled as she trudged through the woods. Who cares if there's thing out here that could eat her whole? Gideon doesn't care if she's eaten. All he wants to do is cower away and read his stupid book only to be scared of most of the things out here.

"Shmebulock!" shrieked a voice.

"Stop squirming… Jeff surely had a reason to send you my way…. And I can see why now." Said a familiar voice. Pacifica's heart raced. What was he doing way out here?

"SHMEBULOCK!" screamed another familiar voice. If she sees Jeff, she's going to have a few words for the little poop head.

Pacifica read to the arguing voice and burst out into a clearing. Shmebulock was tied to some sort of stone, and Dipper was holding one of his sister's throwing knives.

"Stop squirming or I'm going to puncture what I need!" Dipper said. Pacifica watched in awe as the stone around his neck glowed blue green and the squirming gnome froze in terror.

"What are you doing to Shmebulock?" Pacifica screamed in horror. Dipper spun around in surprise to see her. He sheepishly tried to hide the dagger behind him.

"Oh, um… what are you doing out here?" He said with a huff.

"I live near here… what are you doing with a gnome?"

"Harvesting some materials for an experiment I want to run. I need to get his stomach." Dipper said and moved his knife to a sharpie dotted line across the terrified gnome's exposed belly.

"What would you want with a gnome's belly?" She asked, more out of curiosity than in horror.

"Well, not the stomach itself, but what's inside." He said.

"Oh is that all?" Pacifica said with a grin.

"Yes… now can I cut him open and be done with it?" Dipper said.

"No… cut him loose. I'll get it out of him." She grinned. Dipper looked at her and raised an eyebrow.

"I don't want him to run away…" he said. "Jeff and I have an agreement."

"Oh… he won't be able to run… I just have a better extraction method." Pacifica giggled. The glow around Shmebulock disappeared.

"I'll try it your way, but he'll have one foot tied to the rock." Dipper said.

"Agreed." Pacifica replied. She took a few steps back. "You… have a bucket or some gallon plastic bags?"

Dipper held up a gallon freezer bag.

"Hand it to him please." She said, Dipper did as he was told. Shmebulock looked at Pacifica and all color drained from his face.

"Shmeb… Shmebulock!" He stammered and pointed to the dagger. "Shmebulock!"

"I don't know what you're up to, but it seems like he'd rather me cut out his stomach than what you're about to do… You've piqued my interest girl." Dipper said coyly.

Pacifica took a running sprint and kicked as hard as she could. Dipper winced as her aim was true. Shmebulock was lifted a good foot in the air as her foot landed between his legs. His face turned green and he opened the bag and barfed a gallon of rainbows.

"Yeah… Tell Jeff that I'm gonna do that to every one of your kind if I ever see him again!"

"Shmeb…. bu… lock…" he said and passed out. Dipper made a note in some pad and put it back in his jacket pocket. Even all the way out here, he was still dressed to the nines.

"This way seems much easier… thanks. I may just trap a few and let Mabel have some fun. She's always loved to… nevermind" Dipper said. Pacifica arched an eyebrow quizzically at his last statement.

"So… what do you want a bag of barf rainbows for?"

"I'm experimenting with some things." He said and headed off into the woods. Pacifica followed him

"Oh really? What sort of things?" Pacifica asked.

"My question is how do you know Shmebulock by name?" Dipper said gruffly.

"Well… funny story. That's not the first time I kicked him there… well I caused something to strike that region." She said and wrapped her arm around his. He looked down at her and raised an eyebrow. She looked up at him and grinned. "Can't a distressed damsel be escorted by her knight?"

"I find myself far from being knightly… why did you hit Shmebulock in the nether regions before… and hard enough to find a more optimal way to harvest liquid rainbows?"

"How do the colors not mix?" Pacifica asked, squishing the bag and sloshing it everywhere. "That's just unsettling."

"You're off topic." Dipper said.

"What? Oh, Gnomes? They posed as a zombie and asked me out my second day here. They were so nice and kind… but when I was going to move it to the next level… turns out he wasn't a zombie at all, but a bunch of gnomes standing on each other! They wanted me to marry the WHOLE GNOME KINGDOM and all of them share me as a wife! I think that's illegal even in Utah!" She grimaced.

"You were ready to go steady with a zombie on the second date?" Dipper looked down at her with shock.

"I think someone's off topic." Pacifica giggled. "Besides… I was young and infatuated. I'm not the type to just latch onto the first cute guy I see."

Dipper tried to pull his arm away, but gave up. He let out an annoyed sigh, the one that Pacifica thought was so cute. They continued walking down whatever trail Dipper was following.

"How good are you with a butterfly net?" Dipper asked.

"You have to ask?" She said. She didn't know where he pulled one out from, but he handed her an old looking butterfly net. It was made of wood and somewhat heavy. It felt warm to the touch.

"We're going to a cave over here. I'm going to scare some out and you're going to catch them. I need a pair or two pair at the least."

"What are we getting?" She asked.

"You'll see," Dipper said with a grin.

He sat her outside the cave mouth and wandered in. There were greenish blue sparks and an eerie sound, like the beating of wings.

"What is…?" Pacifica started to say when a flock of eyeballs with batwings swarmed out. She frantically swung back and forth, left and right. When the eyeballs were gone, she looked into her net and had bagged six!

"Woohoo! Six!" She jumped up and down. Dipper pulled out a Mason jar from behind his back and shoved them inside.

"Where are you keeping all of that?" She asked.

"Hammerspace" Dipper said dryly and put the mason jar and the net behind his back. It disappeared. Pacifica looked under his cape and didn't see a thing. He had to be using magic to teleport them somewhere.

"What's Hammerspace?" She asked, poking his back. She hit a spot where he's ticklish and he squirmed out of reach. She looked up quickly to see a stray smile that was quickly snuffed out with an indignant look.

"It's complicated… let's get a move on shall we?" He said. She fell in beside him and grabbed his arm.

"So… where shall we go next on our impromptu date?" Pacifica grinned. Dipper seemed to have tripped on something as he stumbled for a moment but caught himself.

"Our what?" he said dryly.

"Outing?" She corrected herself.

"Oh… I need some deer parts." He said. "You might want to go home for this one."

"As in… parts of a deer?" Pacifica said. "Like…"

"Like the squishy insides of a deer… heart, liver, blood… brains." Dipper said and looked down at her. She felt sick to her stomach.

"And… how…gurk are you going to get these parts?" She said as her pace slowed down.

"How else does one get brains from a deer?" He said. "I thought you were up for this?"

Pacifica fell back as he walked ahead. He stopped and turned to face her.

"What's the matter?" He asked. She looked at him once again. He was serious! There was no remorse or sense of empathy to what he was saying. It was like going to the grocery store and picking up a pack of hamburger to him! The thought of killing and cutting open a deer just seemed unsettling to her. She felt really sick at the idea.

"I… I don't feel so well." She said and sat down. Her hands were trembling. She heard a heavy sigh and footsteps. To her surprise, the steps got closer, not farther away. With a grunt he plopped next to her.

"Are you going to be all right?" He asked. He sounded annoyed, but there was a hint of concern.

"Why are you going to kill a cute deer and get it's…" she gulped. Dipper offered her a bottle of water. She took a few drinks and nodded her head. "Why do you need them?"

"Blood magic requires blood." He said matter-of-factly.

"So you do do magic huh?" Pacifica grinned.

"Yeah…" Dipper said cautiously. "I figured you knew that."

"Well, I never had a full on confession from you… I just suspected. Especially with what Gideon always says. He's a big stinky butt with his book anyway."

"Oh?" Dipper said. "What book is that?"

"Oh he found this old book with stuff in it. He says I can't really use stuff in it to learn simply because it's like a notebook and not a how-to manual."

"So he has an old grimoire?" Dipper asked.

"What's that?" Pacifica asked.

"It's like a journal or diary. The wizards make notes of what they find in it." Dipper said.

"Yeah… he found something like that, but he said there's a lot of information, but not really any instructions on how to use the stuff. It's got the number 3 on it, so he thinks there are more books with better instructions."

"A number 3 huh?" Dipper said, rubbing his chin. "I'd like to take a look at it sometime. Do you think you can steal it away from him? I'm sure I can compensate you."

A chill that ran up her spine when Dipper said that.

"I… no… I won't do that to him. If he agrees to share it with you, that's his choice. I won't go against him like that." Pacifica said. Dipper grinned. "Don't get the wrong idea… I'd do the same for you. You need to be loyal to your friends!"

"I can hear the deer up ahead." Dipper said. "Just stay here till I'm done."

He stood up, but Pacifica grabbed his cape and held it. She knew he could yank out of her grip at any time. He stayed where he was.

"You're quite troublesome." Dipper said with a sigh. She pulled a little harder, looking at her feet. He sat next to her with a huff. She laid her head on his shoulder and closed her eyes.

"Thank you." She whispered. To her surprise, she felt his arm wrap around her. Her head slid from his shoulder to his chest.

"Don't get used to this." Dipper growled. She ignored the stray comment and hugged him. "Is your stomach feeling better?"

"Yeah… is there anything else you need to gather that doesn't involve evisceration?" Pacifica asked.

"No… not really." Dipper said.

"Okay. I don't know how to get home." Pacifica said looking around. Dipper sighed.

"Okay… follow me and don't get lost."

Pacifica followed him back to the Mystery Shack. She watched as he disappeared into the woods, leaving her at the door.

"Where were you?" Gideon asked.

"Just out… hey, does your book say anything about flying eyeballs?" She giggled.

"You found them?" Gideon said excitedly.

"Yeah… I think I can take you back to the cave. Want to go tomorrow?" She asked. Gideon nodded. She may not fully understand what Gideon and Dipper knew, but she's more than happy to help the two of them. Maybe she might be able to pick up a thing or two!