A/N: Have some tension, have it all.

Dipper was very confused.

"…the fuck was that all about?" He asked, half to himself as they left the cinema.

He'd just spent the last hour and a half watching Maleficent, at Mabel's behest. Mabel had seemed to enjoy it for the most part, she was better at switching off those parts of the brain that wanted to say "this is stupid, that is stupid" during the film.

"You're so hard to please, Dip." She rolled her eyes, leaning against him.

"I am not!" He objected. "But come on, she was one of the most famous and memorable villains in Disney history and they turned her into frigging Captain Planet!"

"I think I'd pay to see that actually…" Mabel snort-giggled at the mental image. "Besides, you don't get it! It was about love, Dipweed." She gushed, as if it was completely obvious.

"Oh naturally." He agreed, sarcastically. She elbowed him.

"It wasn't about some handsome prince saving the princess after falling in love at first sight," She continued, ignoring him. "It was about more than that, it was about real care and affection, nurtured over time, it was about a different kind of love, it wasn't perfect, it was rough, but it counted when it mattered."

He glanced sideways at her while she talked animatedly, more sure then than ever that he loved her. Anybody who could so passionately defend the merits of such a crappy film in such an endearing way had to be worth a few rocky cinema viewings.

"I certainly see what you're saying…" He began, rubbing his chin in mock-thought, Mabel huffed impatiently, muttering something about the artistic limitations of the academic mind. He grinned, and promptly plucked her hairband off her head, causing the mass of her hair to fall forward over her face.

"Dipweed!" She hollered, making a grab for it.

"Maybe you should get a haircut, sis." He jogged backward, out of reach.

"Never!" She shook a fist in the air. "Release my hairband!"

"Uh-uh!" He held it out of reach and caught her wrist as she made another grab for it. People were looking at them as they jostled and chased one another through the car park, but he didn't care. "The hairband will be freed, unharmed, if certain information is given." He quirked an eyebrow and leaned on his car.

"Blackmail!" She gasped, eyes wide. She looked adorable, he had to fight the urge to give it back there and then.

"Yes!" He grinned. "Nick has been oddly quiet on the particulars of the dance. Zis makes me oddly zuspeeshuss." He said in his best mangled "French villain" voice.

"Jealous?" Mabel teased, getting into the front passenger seat.

"Outrageously." He agreed, getting in too.

"Why'd you want to know anyway?" She asked, buckling in.

"Just curious I suppose." He fumbled with the seatbelt, when Mabel suddenly snatched back the hairband, throwing back her head in a triumphant laugh.

"No big secrets really." She replied, once he'd started the car, trying to sort her hair out again. "Maybe he just doesn't want any more jokes or something."

Dipper nodded, understanding. Truth be told, there were other reasons he'd asked that didn't involve Nick exactly. He'd been thinking a bit lately, running through old memories. As they pulled up to a red light, he could feel his sister peering at him curiously, then realised he'd been silent since they left the cinema.

"You don't have to be jealous, you know." She whispered, turning his cheek to face her.

He was going to say he wasn't, but she pressed her lips to his, silencing him. Out of the corner of his eye he saw a passer-by make a…lewd gesture. If only they'd known the full story, they'd be making some very different gestures, he thought, grim.

He managed a smile, to set Mabel at ease, as they continued the drive home. But the moment had settled something in his mind, something he'd been uncomfortably accepting the inevitability of for a while. He didn't like it, but one of them had to make a move soon. He risked a glance at his sister, she was leant back against the seat, eyes closed. Her face was all soft curves and colours as they drove under the glow of the street lamps. She was beautiful, his mind going back to her words about the film.

Life wasn't a fairytale, though.

…

Sixteen year old Mabel took a break from sketching in her notebook. Back in Gravity Falls again, she mused, idly.

Not that she minded.

For once, it felt like things were going their way. Sophomore year had been a bit of a breeze. Their antics at last year's dance hadn't made them any more popular with the "in" crowd, now at least they simply gave them a wide berth, but more than that it had actually won them a few friends.

Across the way was the lake. It was a beautiful day. Mabel hadn't thought to bring out a swimsuit, but…

She looked around cautiously, and seeing nobody in sight, began to undress.

Almost immediately she heard voices shouting from the trees and before she could react, Dipper and Wendy burst from the treeline running as fast as they could.

"I thought you were kidding!" Wendy yelled.

"Haven't you seen enough of the shit that goes on in this town to know better yet!?" Dipper retorted.

A low, rumbling roar erupted from somewhere behind them.

"Come on though, dude, sasquatch? I thought you were joking!"

"I never joke about sasquatch!" Dipper hollered back.

Mabel was frozen to the spot when Wendy locked eyes with her as they got closer.

"Mabel?!" Wendy blurted, screeching to a halt.

"Wendy!?" Mabel wailed., trying to cover herself.

"Mabel!?" Dipper babbled, crashing into Wendy.

"Dipper!?" Mabel cried.

"YEEAAARRGGHH!" Dipper yelled, covering his eyes.

"AAAAIIEEE!" Mabel shrieked.

This went on several more times while Wendy hurriedly helped Mabel get dressed again.

A roar burst out of the trees again.

"Sasquatch!" Dipper yelled, recovering slightly.

The third roar was all the convincing they needed to turn tail and run, not looking back.

An hour or so later, once Wendy had said goodbye, the two were alone again in their shared room at the Mystery Shack. Mabel fidgeted awkwardly on her bed in silence while Dipper all but buried himself in a book.

"Why're you ignoring me." She accused, eventually.

"I'm not."

"What have I don't wrong?"

"You haven't done-"

"It wasn't my fault, Dipper."

"I didn't say i-"

She jumped to her feet and pulled the book out of his hands.

"Look at me then."

He managed a brief glance before looking down at his bed again. Dipper hoped she couldn't read his mind, that much he was sure about.

"You won't even talk to me." She said, sadly, causing him to wince in guilt.

"I just…wasn't expecting to…see you like…like that." He stuttered, cheeks flushing as the image flooded his brain again.

She looked at him curiously, feeling herself blushing too.

"We've been…naked together before." She said, less sure of herself than she was earlier. Something was different now.

"That was before." Her brother replied, staring fixedly at the floor.

"Before what?" She asked, surprised at herself.

"Before you…um…grew up." He mumbled, quietly. She either really had no idea of the effect she was having, he mused, or…

She crossed her arms over her chest, face as red as his.

"So…um…"

"…yeah…"

Well this was awkward, both of them thought.