Let's have some fun.

Chapter 3 All for a boy

Mabel couldn't wait one day after the end of their grounding to suggest something, dare she say it, nefarious (Dipper word). She was fantastic at it. And she could usually get her brother along for the ride.

"Let's break into the pool."

"What? Again?"He groaned, looking up from one of his own journals, which he'd started as soon as he got home. he'd written a lot, what he'd learned in Gravity Falls, what Uncle Ford told him when they talked, and everything else he'd noticed, which, in Piedmont, was not much.

"Yeah! I wanna find another cute merman." She grinned. She'd been knitting a lot, so her brother's Christmas present was done in November.

"You think you'll find a merman at the public pool?"

"Sure, every merman I've found has been at a public pool."

"You've only found one merman."

"That's beside the point. Maybe we'll find you a cute mermaid."

"I'm not really in the market for cute mermaids." Mabel would have teased him about who he really liked, but her sense of urgency (kind of a Dipper word) was too great. She hadn't liked a boy since Gravity Falls. How could she be boy crazy without the boy part? There was definitely enough crazy to go around, so why wasn't she falling for anyone? She needed a crazy heartbreak- and soon.

"Let's go." She begged.

"Fine." He was doing it for her, which she loved. She'd have to make it up to him. He closed his journal and jumped off the bed, grabbing the floppy hat Wendy had given him. He didn't wear it often, only when he was particularly homesick for Gravity Falls. She completely understood.

"If we're going to do this we have to be nonchalant about it." She gave him a look to remind him not to use Dipper words. She wasn't stupid, but he had a nice way of making her feel like she was.

"Sorry. We have to act casual. Which means no grappling hook, no Waddles, and no stupid disguises." At that she put down the grappling hook and fake mustache.

"Deal." She skipped ahead, tripping. Dipper suppressed a laugh before following, not skipping.

"Mom we're going out!"

"Okay have fun don't get arrested!" Outside of the Pines family, that would have been a very odd statement. But considering the twins were on a hunt for a merman, odd was kind of their thing.

There were no mermen in the public pool. There wasn't even water at the public pool. So now all they had to show for their escapade was one broken lock and Mabel's disappointment.

"Look, I'm going to go down to the bottom of the pool to see if I can find anything."

"Mabel, don't, there's just trash down there, come on... Let's go." Dipper was obviously getting a little antsy, as he tugged at the ear flaps of his hat, pulling it down closer over his face. She decided not to listen, sliding down into the empty pool. He crouched at the edge, watching her with growing anxiety. That was when the cop car pulled up.

"Hey! Kid, you're not supposed to be here." Mabel's ears perked and she scrambled to climb out.

"Wait!" Dipper face palmed. He had been willing to spare his sister another lock up by not drawing any attention to her.

"It was my idea, you should let him go."

"He's the one holding the broken lock."

"So? I'm the criminal master mind." The police officer snorted.

"Sure, whatever. Both of you in the back of the car." They glared at each other as they sat in the back of the uncomfortable police car.

"You didn't have to take the fall." Dipper hissed in a whisper.

"Me? You were going to let me go free for something that was my fault?"

"well yeah."

"no way do you get to have all the fun." The police officer who had caught them sent them a look that made them shut up.

Warden Joseph had actually believed that the Pines twins would stay out of trouble. Despite, he wasn't surprised to see the familiar sweater wearing brunette in a holding cell again. This time with her brother.

"Why?"

"Breaking and entering sir." She answered.

"Where?"

"The local pool."

"It's November, it's closed."

"That's obviously why we had to break in."

"No, it's not obvious. I take it the boy pounding his head against the wall is your brother-" Warden Joseph paused, recalling that Mason wasn't what he was supposed to say.

"Dipper."

"Yeah, it is."

"Unwilling accomplice?"

"Yep."

"Must be nice having someone like that." Someone sauntered in, talking a mile per minute,

"-Dad can I borrow the wait never mind who is she?" Mabel stood up, her eyes wide.

"Mabel Pines, and you are?"

"Ethan Joseph. Why's my dad got you locked up?"

"Breaking and entering."

"Sounds fun. Dad let them go. This your boyfriend in the cage next to you?"

"Ew he's my brother."

"Dad let the pretty girl and her brother go."

"Ethan they broke the law."

"Yeah but like an itty bitty one. I'm sure they're sorry. You're sorry right?"

"Yeah, of course." He was stunning, she couldn't look away. With light blond hair and beautiful hazel eyes, and they met hers. Dipper had stood up too.

"I'm very sorry as well can we go?" Ethan glanced at him.

"Yeah of course dude. I'll let you out myself." The thin, muscular teen grabbed the ring of keys off of his father's desk and headed toward the cell.

"Ethan. Don't. I'll ground you."

"You don't have to-" Mabel said.

"Yeah but I have a feeling that if this gets back to your parents that you'll be twice as grounded as I will be. Two kids, two parents, quadruple grounded."

"He has a point." Dipper whispered, wanting to get home, tugging at his ear flaps again.

"See? Your brother is smart."

"Yeah I knew that already. But he can be a real idiot at times-"

"Whoa, ease up beautiful. I'm letting you go. But you can come back to see me any time. He unlocked the door.

"I'll give you my number."

"Good luck calling him though, since he's grounded from his phone for a week." Dipper whistled, and not out of sympathy. Ethan had been right, he really did get 1/4 of the grounding. And you'd think his father would be good at sentencing.

Dipper and Mabel fled the scene and came home, not mentioning their brief visit to jail.

"We didn't find your merman." Dipper teased, feeling a lot more at ease now that he wasn't in what Mabel's new crush had called "the cage".

"No..." She sighed dreamily.

"You don't sound upset."

"No..." She sighed again, dropping down onto her bed and hugging Waddles. Dipper hung his hat on his bed post and smiling.

Hard to feel homesick if his sister never left his side.