Renaissance Faire
"Do I seriously have to where this thing?" Dipper whined from the bathroom.
"Of course you do Bro-Bro?! It's a Renaissance Faire after all! I'm pretty sure it's illegal to show up and not be in costume!"
"It should be illegal to be forced to dress like this," Dipper mumbled, as he walked out of the bathroom wearing garb the girls had insisted was period appropriate. Whoever thought blue and purple was a good color scheme should definitely be imprisoned… Or at least locked in the stockade. If anybody dared make a comment about the pointy shoes, one of them might wind up lodged in somebody's rectum. "I feel ridiculous."
"I think you look rather fetching," giggled a shy sounding voice. Dipper blushed as he regarded his girlfriend, smiling wryly as she pushed a few strands of her short blonde hair away from her ear. There was a hint of amusement in those brown eyes that told Dipper she was humoring him more than anything.
"Thanks Terra… At least that'll make one less person whose laughing at me."
"Don't sweat it Bro! Every guy at the Faire is going to be dressed like this! This is just what men wore during the Renaissance."
"So the only type of job a man could get in the 15th century was Court Jester?" Dipper grumbled, growing even more perturbed as the girls stared giggling. "Yeah, laugh it up! At least you guys don't have to embarrass yourselves. Your outfits actually complement you two."
Dipper wasn't lying either. While me may have looked like the King's Fool, the girls looked more like princesses straight out of a Disney movie… Terra in a period-appropriate evergreen dress and a halo of fake blonde braids sitting atop her head… Her hair just wasn't quite long enough to get the same effect naturally. Mabel was wearing a similar blue dress but perhaps took the outfit a bit too far with the cone-shaped fairy godmother style hat that she bedazzled and drowned in glitter herself. Hey, it wouldn't be Mabel if she didn't go a little bit over the top.
"Why thank you Sir Dipping Sauce! Now, there's just one more thing you need to make your outfit complete!" One of those felt triangular shaped, medieval style hats seemed to magically appear in her hands. Dipper recoiled violently as she tried to place it on his head. "Oh hell no! I already told you no hat!"
"Oh, come on Dipper! The outfit isn't complete without it!" Mabel begged as she chased her brother down the stairs, Terra following behind giggling softly.
"I'd rather walk around the Faire in my underwear than wear that damn thing! Which I'm basically already doing! Can we just get going already? We told Wendy we'd be there by… Noon…" Dipper grimaced upon realizing his irritation at his sister just caused him to make a huge mistake.
"Wendy's going to be there?" his girlfriend asked, appearing next to him frowning.
"Of course she'll be there!" Mabel unhelpfully answered for her brother. "The Faire is being held at the college she's attending after all. She's even in charge of one of the events! It's the main reason we're even going… And how we got free tickets!"
"Is that so Dipper?" Terra's eyes never left the boy as he scratched at this neck nervously. "I thought you invited me to the Faire because you thought it would be a fun activity for the two of us to do together?"
"I did! And I still do… I guess Wendy being involved just kind of slipped my mind?"
Terra growled angrily before storming out of the Pines residence. Dipper watched indignantly through the widow as his girlfriend marched towards Mabel's car, climbed in the passenger's seat, and slammed the door shut. Dipper pressed his head against the glass and sighed.
"Well, she's mad already… Way to get the day off to a rousing start."
"Sorry Bro, I didn't mean to get you in trouble…But you really should've told her Wendy was going to be involved with the Faire."
"You know how she gets when it comes to Wendy," Dipper sighed. "What was I supposed to do?"
"Well… You could've not told Terra about the Faire at all. It's not like she's all that excited about going… And we both know Wendy isn't going to miss her."
"How could I avoid telling her when she asked me what I was doing this weekend? What was I supposed to do? Lie to my girlfriend? A girl that's actually dating me willingly?"
"You didn't have any problem lying to her about Wendy…" Mabel deadpanned, watching as her brother grimaced.
"I don't get what her problem is! She knows Wendy and I are just friends, so what's the big deal? She's still friends with one of her exes for God's sake, and I don't make a big deal about it!"
Mabel hesitated. She wasn't sure she wanted to drop this kind of truth bomb on her brother with such an important event looming for their mutual friend. This was brother though. They never had been ones to hold back when it came to what was best for their sibling. "Terra is… Kind of possessive Dip… And difficult to please. Have your ever considered that maybe this relationship isn't worth all the trouble to keep it together?"
Dipper spared his sister a frown. "Where is this coming from? I thought you liked Terra?
"I do!" She then whispered under her breath. "Just not necessarily as your girlfriend." She really did feel that way. She actually did like Terra as an acquaintance, but as her brother's significant other? Well, let's just say the blonde wasn't who Mabel had envisioned for her Bro-Bro. Mabel always pictured that Dipper's future girlfriend would be somebody that would immediately become her new best-friend, but aside from her more self-interested agenda, she just didn't think Dipper and Terra were a good fit. Dipper was too eager to please, to conform to the image of what he thought girls would want to see him as… Terra was unfortunately the type of person who'd more than happily take advantage of that tendency in him to try to mold Dipper into the kind of boyfriend she wanted. Dipper needed someone who liked him for him and was willing to accept him despite his weird eccentricities. Not expect him to change for her. The fact that the primary reason Dipper was dating Terra was because she was the first girl to show legitimate interest in him was telling in itself.
Dipper overheard what Mabel had whispered but chose to ignore it. He knew Mabel only semi-tolerated Terra for his sake… And he sure as hell knew that Wendy and Terra couldn't stand one another. Things would be so much easier for him if he could only get the women in his life to get along.
When Wendy Corduroy graduated High School, let's just say that her lackluster study habits made her prospects for college… Limited to say the least. When she got accepted to Central California Tech, she jumped at the opportunity. She had no idea at the time that the campus was only a twenty-minute drive to the home of her favorite twin dorks. Sure, her laid back personality made her plenty of friends at school, but it was still nice to know she had a couple of true friends nearby, so she didn't feel quite so isolated. And better yet, two friends she hadn't gotten to spend as much time with over the years as she would've liked.
Now normally, Wendy would've been the type of girl making fun of all the dorks who invaded the Renaissance Faire dressed like lords, ladies, and minstrels, rather than participating… Today was a special case though, considering she was getting course credit for participating in the Faire… And once she heard which event she'd be in charge of, all of the sudden the Renaissance Faire seemed a little lest dorky.
Speaking of dorks, it would appear the pair she'd been expecting had finally arrived. What kind of friend would she be if she didn't try to mess with them a little bit?
"Well, there's the library, so that means Wendy's booth should be right about here…"
"Oh, look Dipper, horses!" Mabel pointed and squealed at a pair of… What were obviously plastic covered mechanical, and clearly not living breathing horses. They didn't even have legs.
"Mabel, that's just a carnival game for… Is that a jousting simulator? I've never seen one of those before."
"Halt knaves!" A faux masculine voice echoed from behind them. The trio turned around to see an actor decked out in black armor pointing a plastic broadsword in their direction. "Thou shall not trespass on the domain of the Black Knight and live to tell the tale!"
Whether she thought she was fooling anyone or not was debatable, but she wasn't. Dipper least of all. "Wendy? Is that you?"
A light chuckle came from within the armor before the knight removed her helmet to reveal a face full of freckles and a mane of red hair. "Sup dudes."
"Holy crap Wendy! You're playing the Black Knight?! That's so cool!"
"Well, I'm not exactly the damsel in distress type Dip, so what did you expect?" Wendy laughed as she posed proudly.
"It's not that big a deal," Terra muttered under breath. "It's not even real armor, it's just plastic…"
Wendy scowled momentarily before converting her expression to a mischievous grin. "You mean kind of like your hair isn't really blonde?"
"Hey, I do not dye my hair! I'm a natural blonde thank you very much!"
"Oh, so you dye your roots brown then?"
Terra's face contorted in a soundless shriek. Having heard enough, Dipper decided to step in. "That's enough guys, there's no reason to be taking shots at each other."
"You know, it wouldn't kill you to defend me once in a while would it?" Terra pouted.
"I'll be happy to defend you when you're not the one who starts it!" Dipper growled, causing the now alleged blonde to snort and turn her back to him.
"That's fine with me dude. So whaddya say Dip? Want to go toe-to-toe with the Black Night?"
"Umm…" Dipper took a look over at the little jousting game. The horses were mechanical, and there was a large cushy crash pad beneath to catch anyone that fell off but still… "That's gona be a hard pass for me. It's already embarrassing enough having to wear these clothes, so I don't think my pride can oversee getting knocked on my ass too…"
"Dude, I was kind of wonderin' why you were dressed like something that came out of a tube of toothpaste."
Dipper hung his head while his traitorous sister busted out laughing. Terra looked like she wanted to be anywhere but there at that moment. "I told you this outfit looked awful!" At least he could always rely on Wendy to be bluntly honest with him.
"I'd be more than happy to take the Black Knight on," spoke a deep voice originating from behind Wendy. She turned to see an attractive dark-haired student walk up to her, and let's just say he caught her attention.
"You sure about that hotshot? If you want to try me, its five bucks for one go. If you win, you get to pick a prize from the booth over there."
"Oh really? Your number wouldn't be hanging up there somewhere would it?"
"Getting a little ahead of ourselves now aren't we?" Wendy flirted right back. "You've gotta knock me off the horse first… Um, your name would happen to be?"
"Marc."
"Alright then Marc… Let's get you suited up and see whatcha got!"
Suited up meant Marc got fitted with a plastic chest plate of his own, and a blunted plastic lance. One of the girls assisting Wendy helped to situate the young man onto his mechanical steed. Wendy didn't even bother to put her helmet back on for appearances, smirking confidently as the two combatants prepared for the mini joust. Several seconds later and well… Marc was bouncing off a crash-pad and looking up at the sky.
"Well, the kid had the right idea… This is embarrassing…" He continued to lay there until Wendy walked over and helped him up. "Guess this means I don't get those digits after all?"
"We'll see about that… For now, how about you settle for taking me out tonight after the Faire?"
Dipper was starting to get squeamish. "Well, I've seen enough… Let's go guys, there's a lot more of the Faire to see."
"What's the matter Dipper?" Terra prodded coldly. "Your 'friend' is just getting picked up for a date tonight. Why does that seem to bother you?"
"It doesn't bother me… It's just that I've already see this show a couple dozen times before…"
"It's true… She does do this a lot," Mabel agreed before suddenly calling out to Wendy. "Hey Wen! We're gona go check out what else the Faire has to offer! Good luck with your booth! Try not to run anybody through!"
"No promises! Thanks for stoppin' by though, I'll catch you guys later."
"You know those kids?" Marc asked, despite the fact it was clearly obvious that she did.
"Friends of mine… Well the twins are, the two that look alike… The little blonde twerp can go suck a rotten egg for all I care."
"Dang…" the young man laughed. "What did she do to get your goat?"
"She's my friend's girlfriend… He lets her walk all over him, and I don't appreciate how often she takes advantage of it… Doesn't like me either and I'm perfectly fine with it."
"Whoa… Maybe you should try getting her up on that horse to joust with you."
"Hey, that's not a bad idea! Can't promise this lance wouldn't end up smack between her eyes though, if not somewhere worse."
The young man had a laugh at the imagery. "So, what time exactly are you off the clock?" Wendy looked over at Marc and smirked.
"So, are you content to stay mad at me all day over nothing or?..." Dipper asked his girlfriend, who huffed and refused to make eye contact with him.
Mabel, beginning to feel like a fifth wheel on a car careening out of control, was looking for any excuse to escape this potentially toxic situation. Both for her own sanity's sake and hoping that some alone time for them might ease their wounds. "Hey guys! Some of my friends just arrived and want me to meet up with them for a bit. Are you two okay with exploring the Faire by yourselves?"
"Sure, I guess…" Dipper said with an underlying sense of uncertainty. Terra appeared to be thinking over something.
"Sweet! You kids have fun!"
To Dipper's mild displeasure, he was now alone with his moody girlfriend. Seeing how she still didn't look happy, Dipper felt the sudden need to fix that anyway he could.
"Look Terra, I know you don't really want to be here… We can go ahead and leave if you really don't want to stay…"
Terra huffed as she took a look around at some of their fellow Faire goers as they moved all around the couple. She was honestly quite surprised by how many people actually came to this type of thing and dressed for the part to boot. "Well, we're both already here dressed in these goofy outfits… Might as well see what the rest of this freakshow has to offer…" Terra wrapped her arms around Dippers passively. "Just as long as your attention is focused on me and only me, understood?"
"That sounds fair," Dipper smiled… Too inexperienced with relationships to realize that this wasn't really fair at all.
"And if you treat me to dinner afterwards to make up for being a jerk today."
Dipper wasn't exactly sure what he'd done to qualify him as a jerk, but he was eager to please at the moment. "Fine with me… Just as long as we get to change clothes first. I don't want to be seen walking around town dressed like a mascot from a mattress store."
"Agreed."
As it turned out, an hour was about all the couple needed to experience what little they did care to see. Dipper had no issues with anyone who enjoyed the medieval cosplay thing, he just wasn't one of them. Now, if this had been a horror or comic convention, security might've had to drag him away kicking and screaming, but not this scene. Terra, on the other hand, had the tendency to turn her nose up to anything that wasn't considered socially normal… And as you could probably imagine that attitude could make Dipper a little wary of discussing certain interests of his around her, so he didn't do it often.
Thankfully, Mabel had made arrangements for one of her girlfriends to give her a ride home, freeing up the car for Dipper to give himself and Terra a ride to his house for a change of clothes. The couple hung out at the house for a bit before the time for Dipper to take Terra out to dinner rolled around. Of course she picked one of those expensive places he didn't really like, but at least it didn't have a dress-code. The restaurant did have a long ass wait however, which Terra didn't seem to mind at all until they sat down, and she immediately started to complain. It was during this wait that Dipper received a peculiar call on his cellphone. "Ashley Freeman?"
The sound of another girl's name caused Terra to glare at her boyfriend, which Dipper failed to notice. He didn't really know Ashley personally, just that she was a college friend of Wendy's. He vaguely remembered Wendy asking him if she could give his number to a couple of her school friends in case they ever had trouble reaching her. That thought concerned Dipper enough that he answered the phone immediately.
"Hello?"
"Hi! Is this Dipper?"
"Yeah, it's Dipper… This is Ashley right?"
"Yes, I'm sorry to bother you but… You haven't heard from Wendy recently have you? I've been trying to call her for the past hour and she's not answering her phone."
"Well, if she's not still working at the Faire, she was supposed to go on a date with that Marc guy afterwards. Maybe she's with him?"
"That's… What I'm worried about," Ashley trailed off. "I've heard some rumors about that Marc… He's the type of guy that isn't shy about taking advantage of women when they're vulnerable. I wanted to warn her, but she disappeared on us before I could talk to her."
Dipper actually got a laugh out of that. "For Marc's sake let's hope he's not like that! If he tries anything with Wendy she doesn't approve of, he'll live to regret it real fast!"
"Not if the rumors he drugs girls to keep them cooperative are true… Even Wendy's going to have trouble defending herself if she's not in her right mind."
Now Dipper was concerned. "I'll give her a call and see if she picks up for me. I'll let you know if learn anything." Dipper disconnected the call without waiting for a goodbye or even a confirmation she'd heard what he said. He quickly found Wendy's name in his contacts.
"You're seriously calling her right now!" Terra grumbled in annoyance.
"Her friend hasn't been able to contact her and she's worried… Quite frankly, so am I now."
"Maybe her date's busy showing her a good time," Terra snarked, very much hoping to get under Dipper's skin. He ignored her and focused on the call which proved fruitless as Wendy never picked up. He tried several more times, but no answer from Wendy. Terra could see the frustration and concern on his face, so she decided to take it easy on him this one time. "Relax will you? She probably just has her phone on silent or something… She is on a date you know?"
"Yeah… You're probably right…" Dipper wanted to believe the answer was something benign like that, so that's what he chose to do. If Marc did turn out to be the creep Ashley thought he was, Wendy was more than capable of taking care of herself.
Dipper tried to push the concern from his mind, as he and Terra continued to wait to be seated. Ten minutes passed before his phone started to vibrate again. Assuming it was Ashley again or maybe even Mabel, he was shocked to see Wendy's name and number… Face timing him? Something about that definitely wasn't right.
Dipper accepted the video call, but he wasn't greeted by green-eyes and freckles. It was hard to tell in the dark, but the phone appeared to be laying on the ground, on its side actually, in what appeared to be a field. At first, all Dipper could see was some grass, a couple of road signs, and the backend of a car that appeared to have pulled over to the side of the road. Dipper watched in confusion until a familiar pair of boots and a pair of jeans came into view. While he couldn't see anything above her knee, he had a pretty good idea of who he was looking at. The sound of her voice confirmed it was Wendy, though she was badly slurring her speech, making it impossible for him to tell what she was saying. Wendy paced back and forth across the screen a couple of times before hunching over and vomiting right there in front of the camera. Dipper was far too unnerved to be disgusted and continued to watch as Wendy stumbled forward, presumably falling over once she was off screen. The call picked that moment to suddenly drop, nearly prompting Dipper to bitch slap his phone. Thankfully, the call was recorded, so he watched the video again, paying special attention to the road signs he could make out in the distance… Mile marker 13, and a dangerous curve sign that was slightly tilted to the right from where a vehicle had presumably grazed it years ago. Thank God for those little details. Because of that sign, he knew exactly where Wendy was. And considering it was a well know spot for couples with less than pure intentions to sneak off to, he didn't like where this was headed.
"I'm sorry Terra, but I'm going to have to take a raincheck. Turns out this Marc guy is potentially a creep, and Wendy might be stuck on the side of the road somewhere."
"Then why don't you let one of her other friends handle it? You're busy!"
Dipper's frown was genuine. Terra wasn't accustomed to being on the receiving end of one and it unnerved her a bit. He was typically accommodating to a fault for her, a fault she consciously leaned on frequently. "I'm the only one who knows where she is… I have a car, so it makes sense for me to go."
"Oh please, you just want to run off and play hero for Wendy! It's always about freaking Wendy! For someone that's just a friend, you sure aren't shy about ditching your actual girlfriend every time she bats her eyelashes at you…" Terra paused her rant as she found a phone in her face. In no mood to argue, Dipper allowed the video to do the talking. Terra almost looked remorseful for the briefest of moments, but she was determined not to let that show. "Big deal… So she partied too hard or something…"
Dipper had heard enough. "My friend might in trouble Terra. Feel free to be pissed at me all you want, I'm going!"
"Fine," Terra growled as she stood up. "Just take me home first at least, or did you plan to leave me stranded here?"
"That won't be a problem, your house is actually on the way."
Dipper dropped Terra off a few minutes later. The girl didn't bother to say a single word to him, not even a goodnight, as she stormed out of the car and headed towards her house. Dipper couldn't have cared less at that moment. For once, he was more pissed off at Terra than she was at him.
Five minutes later, Dipper turned on to Old Horn Cave Road, and it wasn't long before he noticed a car pulled over on the side of the road. Dipper parked a few feet behind it and got out. His first instinct was to search the field, but that plan changed when he noticed a figure moving around in the car in front of him. With hope in his heart, Dipper raced to the passenger side door, and threw it open. "Wendy! Is that you in…"
Rather than finding the redhead, a groggy looking Marc wobbled back and forth in the driver's seat. He was sporting a newly minted black eye, a fat upper lip, and there was even some blood trickling down, what was likely, his now broken nose. Dipper regarded the man with narrowed eyes. "Well, your hands obviously wandered somewhere they weren't wanted didn't they?" The temptation to throw a cheap shot of his own was strong, but he knew Wendy wouldn't be happy with him if he did… Plus, she'd clearly done a phenomenal job of paying him back on her own. Dipper slammed the door shut and continued his search for his friend.
Thinking back to the facetime video, he found Wendy's phone almost exactly where he expected it to be. He picked it up and quickly noted how the phone was teetering back and forth between one and zero bars… Which likely explained the dropped call from earlier and could also be the reason why she failed to answer so many calls. The big question now, where was she?
"Wendy! Wendy, are you still around here somewhere? Wendy!"
As he started to wonder if Wendy had decided to walk back towards town, he heard a female voice groaning from the wooded area adjacent to the road. "D…Dipper? Is that you?"
Unable to internalize just how relieved he felt, Dipper rushed towards the sound of the moaning. He found his favorite redhead seated against a tree holding her head and part of her face in her hand. Dipper dropped to his knees right next her. "Oh thank God! I was worried you'd wandered off somewhere, and I wouldn't be able to find you… Are you okay?"
"I don't feel so good dude." Wendy gagged as if to emphasis her point. "My brain feels like it's drownin' in the ocean. I tried to walk, but my legs don't want to cooperate… I only had two beers… I shouldn't feel this messed up already!"
"It's because Marc put something in your drink to lower your guard… According to your friend Ashley, he's gotta reputation for it…"
"That disgusting creep!" Wendy growled despite the protest of a dull ache at her forehead. "Help me up so I can go kick his ass!"
"That won't be necessary… You kind of already did."
"I did?" she murmured her memory fuzzy. "I got 'em good right?"
"He won't be forgetting you anytime soon," Dipper laughed. "Do you need help standing up?"
"Please… I don't trust my legs to hold me up at the moment..."
Dipper complied and hoisted the redhead up, the girl wrapping her arm around his shoulders tightly to hold herself upright. Gingerly, Dipper walked his woozy friend over to his car and helped her into the passenger's seat.
"How did you know where to find me?" Wendy gurgled as Dipper buckled himself in.
"Butt dial maybe? I don't know how, but your phone facetimed mine after it hit the ground. I'm thankful for it, I'm not sure anyone would've found you without that ghost call."
"Remind me to thank my phone later… And thank you Dipper… For bein' there for me."
"Of course Wendy… I always will be."
Wendy rewarded him a drunken smirk, before almost immediately falling asleep. This both relieved and infuriated Dipper. What exactly had Marc planned to do to her? Maybe he should march back over to the creep's car and make sure his nose was actually broken. No, getting Wendy the hell out of there was what was important. He made quick calls to both Mabel and Ashley to update them on the situation. Needless to say, the cops were probably on their way after the call to Mabel.
Dipper drove Wendy directly to her off-campus apartment. He had to stir her awake and help her back to her feet as she was still quite groggy. It was a good thing Dipper was almost as tall as her now, otherwise this whole arrangement might not have worked. To Dipper's surprise though, while she was obviously still jelly-legged, Wendy seemed less out-of-it now and more… Giggly might've been the appropriate description. He blushed a little when Wendy buried her nose into his neck, giggling softly as she did so. "You smell good dude… You wearin' cologne or somethin'?"
"No, this is how I normally smell… You might be picking up a hint of old spice…"
"Well, I like," she chuckled as they came to a stop in front of the door to Wendy's apartment.
"Umm… Can you get to your keys Wendy?"
"In my pocket dude…" Wendy lifted her head up and whispered into his ear. "I'm probably gona fall over if I tried it, so you might have to fish 'em out for me."
Dipper blushed furiously, both from the feel of Wendy's breath in his ear, and the idea of his hand anywhere near Wendy's pants. "Um… How about I hold you steady while you grab them?"
"Awe, you're no fun…" Dipper held up Wendy by the waist as she dug in her pocket for her keys, and that was a good thing too, otherwise Wendy would've fallen on her face if he hadn't. She did eventually manage to locate her keys and after some fumbling, unlocked the door. Locking it behind them, Dipper led her over to her sofa.
"Wheee!" Wendy squealed as she dropped onto the couch, pulling a flustered Dipper down with her. He found himself forced to sit there right next to her as she had yet to remove her arm from her near death-grip on his shoulders.
"Somebody's high as a kite right now…" Dipper mumbled. If Wendy was bothered by the observation, she sure as hell didn't show it.
"At least it's with you and not with creep show," Wendy joshed, as she used her free hand to smush Dipper's cheeks. "You've got the cutest face… It makes me just wana kiss it sometimes!"
Dipper's embarrassed demeanor morphed into a shocked one. Wendy sighed and threw her head back against the couch, finally removing her arm from Dipper's shoulders. "But you're still jailbait for another year so that's a no-no… Why couldn't you be a couple years older Dip? Then I wouldn't have to worry about all these jerkwads I seem to attract."
As much as he might've liked too, Dipper decided not to take Wendy's comments to heart. She wasn't exactly lucid at the moment. "You'll meet someone who'll appreciate you for you one of these days Wendy… Someone who isn't only interested in what they can get from you."
Wendy's head rolled to the side, eyeing Dipper dreamily. "Like you?"
"Yeah… Like me…" Dipper smiled and stood up from the couch before Wendy's… Lack of inhibitions at the moment led to anything they might regret. "Maybe we should get you to bed so you can sleep this off."
"Why Dipper! You tryin' to get me into bed you sly dog?"
"Yes, but you, and only you," Dipper affirmed, as he helped Wendy to her feet again. They hobbled into her bedroom, where Wendy threw herself onto the bed like a child. "I guess you're going to have to settle for sleeping in your clothes tonight…"
"Awe…" Wendy pouted, as Dipper struggled to lower her sheets with Wendy flailed across them in the best possible way to make that task nearly impossible, her arms and legs extended like an X. Good thing Wendy rarely made her bed, so the task was at least feasible. "You're not gona help me get into my jammies?"
"Yeah… I won't be doing that… Sorry…"
"Awe, come on! It won't be that hard Dip." Wendy's eyes thinned mischievously. "I sleep in my undies…"
Dipper's brain stopped working for a full three seconds. As quickly as he could, he pulled the covers over a smirking, hazy-eyed Wendy. "Well… I don't want to leave you alone in this condition… You mind if I crash on your couch just in case you need something during the night?"
"The beds more than big enough for the both of us you know?" Wendy teased. Dipper needed to get the hell out of that room fast before the blood flow to his brain was cut off permanently.
"Goodnight Wendy… I'll leave the door open… Anything you need, just let me know and I'll take care of it..."
"You sure you want to offer me that dude?!" Wendy yelled as Dipper escaped the bedroom. His entire body trembled as he worked his way over to Wendy's sofa. He still needed to call his parents and conjure up a convincing excuse as for why he wouldn't be coming home that night.
Wendy awoke later that evening to a mild stinging sensation in her head. It wasn't a full-on headache thankfully, but sore enough that some aspirin was likely in her immediate future. She sat up in bed, and immediately tried to remember how the heck she got there. The details from the previous day slowly came back to her… The Renaissance Faire, meeting Marc… Marc getting a bit too handsy, and then smashing his face in once it became clear that he couldn't take no for an answer. She remembered storming out of the car, and that's when things got hazy… Almost like she was drunk without the usual work that went in to becoming inebriated at that level. Everything else that happened afterward was kind of blur… How did she get home though?
"Dipper…" Wendy suddenly remembered. She managed to stand up off her bed on her own power. She stumbled a bit, but found she'd regained control over her lower body. She walked into her sitting room, and found her friend laid out on her couch, arm above his head. A smile formed over her face as some of the memories of the previous night's events came back to her… "You know, I should be the one looking out for you dude, not the other way around… I have no idea why you look at me the way you do, but I'm thankful for it..."
Wendy spoke softly, but the noise seemed to be enough to stir Dipper from his slumber. His eyes opened slowly, but he bolted upright when he noticed Wendy standing over him. "Wendy! You're walking around on your own power again… How are you feeling?"
Wendy frowned. "I couldn't walk on my own?"
"Nope… You were stumbling all the over the place. I had to help walk you to my car, and into the apartment. You were only semi-coherent at the time so…"
Wendy looked a touch fretful before she said, "Scoot over dude. I want to know everything that happened to me last night after the world went fuzzy. Whatever I did or didn't do."
Wendy sat down next to Dipper, and the boy ran through the events of that day from his perspective. "Your tellin' me that son of a bitch drugged me?! The bastard! Tell me I kicked his ass real good… I remember smashin' somebody's nose with my elbow."
"Well, let's put it this way," Dipper chuckled. "You may want to have your self-defense testimony in order in case the cops show up looking for you."
"I don't think he'd be that stupid… Quite frankly, if whatever this guy is using to take advantage of girls makes them that vulnerable, the asshole needs to be thrown in jail, or at the very least have his little toy taken away! Urgh, I can't believe I bought in to another smooth-talkin' creep! I've gotta have the worst taste in men Dipper…"
"To be fair Wendy, Marc seemed like a perfectly normal guy to me too. I never would've guessed he'd be the type to pull something like that. It wasn't quite the way it was like with Robbie, where he literally had about fifteen red flags sticking out of his butt."
"Ha! Robbie looks like Prince Charming compared to this loser…" When paused, getting a side-eyed view of her friend before breaking into a blush. "Um, Dipper dude… I want you to be completely honest with me okay… I didn't say or do anything weird with you when I was out of it, did I?"
Dipper wasn't sure how to respond to that. He didn't want to embarrass the girl any more than she already was. He decided on downplaying the question. "No, not really… Nothing you should be concerned about anyway."
"So, in other words yes! Please dude, I'm serious! I want the truth, and not the stripped-down truth to protect my feelings!"
"Well…" Dipper smirked, deciding he might as well have some fun with it. "You told me I smelled good, and that I had a cute face you wished you could kiss… Not gona lie, that made me feel kind of good."
"Oh my God… I didn't actually try to kiss you, or anything did I?!"
Now Dipper was back to feeling slightly offended that Wendy would sound so horrified by that idea. "No you didn't… Even as out of it as you were, you decided you couldn't because I was 'jailbait'."
"That's a relief…" Wendy didn't look at all relieved. "What about when you put me to bed? I'm assuming it was you who tucked me under the covers…"
"Yeah, I thought it would be best if you slept the effects of the drug off," Dipper stated simply. He decided the other details of that conversation were better left unspoken. Wendy did not agree, however.
"What did I say when you put me to bed Dipper?! I vaguely remember… Asking you to sleep with me or something to that nature…"
"You told me your bed was big enough for the two of us… But even high, it sounded more like a joke… You also teased me about helping you change into your pajamas…"
"But I don't usually wear…" Wendy's mouth shut, her face turning completely red.
"Yeah, you mentioned that too…"
Wendy groaned and buried her face in her hands. "I feel like such a doofus!"
"Wendy, it's not a big deal… You weren't in your right mind at the time, I knew not to take any of the flirting seriously."
"You know…" Wendy raised her head, smiling softly as she looked over at Dipper. "A lot of guys would've taken advantage of a girl in that situation… Especially if she seemed willing…"
"I… I would never do anything like that! Especially not to you, and especially not knowing what that guy tried to do to you…"
"I know you wouldn't Dip…" she said softly, with an equally gentle smile. "That's why we're friends. Thank you… For being there for me Dipper."
"You already thanked me last night," Dipper playfully reminded her.
"I'll thank you as often as I want Mister…" What Wendy did next completely caught Dipper off guard. She put her head on his chest and just laid there while the heat rising to Dipper's face was hitting critical mass.
"Uh… Wendy…"
"Hush. My head hurts and I need a pillow, so just be quiet for a minute okay?"
Dipper had no qualms complying with the request. He chose to simply enjoy the temporary sensation of bliss, with his long-time crushes head so close to his heart. Problems didn't arise until he heard Wendy gently start to snore, and he realized he was trapped. He ultimately decided this wasn't a problem either and enjoyed the feeling until he drifted off himself.
Wendy awoke several hours later, this time by the morning sun shining into her apartment through the window. She was briefly confused until the sound of gentle breathing reminded her where she was. She looked up at Dipper's sleeping face and smiled affectionately. Unable to help herself, Wendy blew into his ear to wake him, nearly causing him to bounce right off the sofa.
"Morning," she greeted casually, while a blushing Dipper glared at her slightly annoyed.
"Good morning to you too… Holy crap, it is actually morning isn't it?"
"Yup, I'm supposed to work the jousting game at the Faire again today… I should probably get ready."
"Considering the circumstances, I don't think anyone would blame you for taking the day off. I mean, you've skipped out on work in the past for much less…"
"Hey now, I'm tryin' to turn over a new leaf from my lazy teenaged days… Hey, you're not going to get in trouble with your folks for spendin' the night here are ya?"
"Nah, my parents know I'm at a friend's place… They just don't need to know which one. Terra is the person I gotta worry about getting in trouble with. I did kind of run out on a dinner date with her when I found out you might be in trouble."
"Right… Her…" Wendy regarded Dipper carefully, a slight blush on her face when she asked. "Look, I'm not tryin' to trash your girl or anything Dip, but… What exactly do you see in her? Besides the pretty face I guess. It just seems to me likes she's always mad at you for one stupid reason or another… You always seem to be havin' some kind of trouble with her. Just makes me wonder why you put up with it."
"I dunno… I guess because she's actually dating me purpose?" It was supposed to be a joke… It just happened to be one very firmly rooted in reality.
"One more question… And I want as honest of an answer as you can give me… Do you really care about this girl? Enough to want to make your relationship work despite how difficult she can be at times?"
Dipper thought about that question hard for a moment. The short honest answer was probably no. So of course, Dipper answered. "Yeah, I really do…"
Wendy crossed her arms, looking very much unsure of herself. Dipper was there for her whenever he could be… Whenever she seemed to need him the most. Maybe it was time she returned the favor. "You do realize a big part of her problem seems to be me right? She doesn't like you spendin' equal time with me to her, not to mention her obvious jealously issues."
Dipper's brow furrowed with conviction. "She'll just have to get over it! You're one of my best-friends Wendy… I let her dictate enough of my life, so I'm not going to let her tell me who I can be friends with… It's not fair to make me have to pick between her and you."
"No, it isn't fair…" Wendy admitted sadly. "So, I'm going to make the decision for you… Maybe we need to take a break, and not spend so much time together… At least for a couple of months until miss prissy pants gets over some of her jealously issues."
The almost wounded look on Dipper's face threatened to tare Wendy's heart right out of her chest. "But… After all those summers in Gravity Falls, I never dreamed you'd be living just a few miles away from me… I'm just supposed to pretend I don't…"
Wendy silenced him by putting her hand over his mouth. "Listen to me Dip. Terra's your girlfriend. If you want the relationship to work, you need to put her first. If my presence in your life is what's causin' you two problems… Then I need to be removed from the equation."
Dipper opened his mouth to argue, but they were interrupted by a knock at the door. Thankfully, they were both still dressed in their clothes from the day before. Wendy walked right over to answer the door and wasn't all that surprised to see Mabel on the other side. The other visitor well… She did surprise her.
"Wendy! Oh great, you are alright!"
"I'm feeling pretty good now… Thanks Mabes…" Wendy's eyes narrowed as they focused on the blonde behind her. "Terra… Surprised to see you here. Didn't know you cared."
"Well, I'm assuming my boyfriends in there, so yeah… I'm here…" Dipper picked exactly the wrong moment to walk up beside Wendy, receiving a nasty glare from his girlfriend due to the mistake. "You spent the night here?"
Dipper opened his mouth, but Wendy spoke up on his behalf. "Uh-uh… You're not doing this right now princess! He was here makin' sure my stupid ass didn't drown in my vomit, and I won't be lettin' you give him grief for it!… Actually, Mabel. Would you mind going inside with Dipper for a minute. I need to have a chat with the little lady here."
Terra seemed indifferent, but the Pines Twins were both uneasy. Wendy looked back at Dipper and gave him a reassuring nod that seemed to ask him to trust her. Dipper understood and went into the apartment. Mabel followed after, stealing a glance at the other two girls along the way before Wendy shut the door behind her. To her credit, Terra didn't act the least bit intimidated by Wendy, and perhaps unwisely chose not to show her any real measure of respect at all.
"Look… I don't care what kind of trouble you were in, or what Dipper felt he…"
Terra shrieked as she felt herself get grabbed by the neck of her blouse, spun around, and slammed against the wall of the apartment. She steadied herself only to bear witness to Wendy staring bloody daggers of slow painful murder in her direction. For the first time since they met, Terra understood why so many others feared the Corduroy.
"Listen you little snot! You're gona stand there, shut your mouth, and listen to me for a minute! You don't like me, and I don't give a shit! I can't stand your self-important narcissistic ass! The only reason I've tolerated you 'til this point is because Dipper likes you for some fucked up reason… Since I'm obviously the source of the friction between the two of you most of the time, I've decided to remove myself from the picture… That's right, I'm giving up my best-friend, so he's not constantly havin' to deal with your petty jealously and neediness! I promise you this though Terra…" Wendy pulled out her axe and flung it at a pumpkin that happened to be on display on a neighbor's porch. The gourd splattered into a thousand pieces. "If you ever do anything to hurt my boy, that's going to be your head… We understand each other?!"
Terra nodded her still intact head furiously, scared out of her wits. Wendy released her grip on the blonde and went to retrieve her axe. She smirked on the way back to her apartment at the still frozen with fear Terra. "Oh and Terra… If you feel like venting some frustration out against me, feel free to visit the jousting booth, and we can have a go. Sounds fun don't you think?"
It did not, and Terra had no intention of ever going anywhere near Wendy Corduroy again. She did, however, come dangerously close to needing a clean pair of jeans.
End Chapter 2