I'm trying to get one request done per night because there's a growing list to be done. So expect a few each week, depending on how fast I can type.

From Alphawulf: "I love these stories, and I'd be so up for reading a longer fic from you! Also this most recent chapter got me thinking...there are a lot of 'overprotective Dipper' stories, and that's completely fine, they're adorable and I love siblings lookin out for each other, but what about the reverse? Overprotective Mabel, lookin after her bro. He's embarrassed, but grateful, etc. Dunno, might be fun to write :p"

I don't see much of this, and I definitely love this idea. This one-shot is set during The Hand that Rocks the Mabel. I hope you enjoy it!

Being the Backbone

She hadn't come to save her brother from her ex-boyfriend (whom she hadn't really wanted to go out with in the first place). She had come to try and talk to the latter, to break up with him herself instead of hiding behind Dipper's words. Maybe, she'd thought, Gideon will appreciate my honesty firsthand. Maybe I can try and show him I don't need Dipper to look out for me all the time.

Mabel appreciated that her twin wanted to help her and would do such an awkward thing for her. She really did. It was just... well, the more she thought about the break-up, the queasier she got. Did Gideon think she was just too scared to say it to his face? Why didn't she just tell him herself and save her brother the trouble? She wasn't some delicate flower who needed to be protected, after all.

And so, she had set out for Gideon's family's warehouse intending to apologize and officially break up with the boy.

There was no way she could have prepared herself to look through the window and see Gideon - using some weird telepathy magic?! - about to cut out her brother's tongue.

"M-Mabel! My marshmella. What are you doing here?" Gideon's obvious attempt at hiding his nervousness made her want to scream, but she forced herself not to look at her brother (who was still floating up in the air because of that weird magic) and focused on her former friend.

"I'm sorry, Gideon, but I can't be your marshmallow. I needed to be honest and tell you that myself."

Mabel spotted a brief look of surprise flit across her twin's face out of the corner of her eye and Gideon tightened his grip on that green bolo tie. He looked distressed, as if he had never been told 'no' before. Come to think of it, maybe he hadn't.

"I-I don't understand..."

A choking sound caused her to glance at Dipper who, to her internal horror, was being strangled by that magic glow around him. She quickly made the connection as she looked back at Gideon, ignoring her twin brother's feeble warning. It must be that bolo tie. He's controlling stuff with that magic brooch. Anger boiled inside of the brunette but she again held her tongue. She could reason with the kid, right? Surely he wasn't totally crazy like those gnomes...?

"Hey, but we can still be makeover buddies, right? Wouldn't you like that?" She grabbed his hands and he looked at her in shock.

"Really?" Mabel's hope to possibly mend whatever was left of their friendship died the moment she saw the look in his blue eyes. It wasn't a look that told of happiness over not losing a friend; it was a look of someone who got everything they wanted, who had just regained their favorite toy. Whatever twisted version of affection Gideon felt for her, it wasn't something she wanted. He was only manipulating her.

Wow. That was both depressing and infuriating.

"No, not really!" she exclaimed, snatching the tie off his neck and holding it far away from the boy. The satisfying sound of her brother falling to the floor alive and mostly unharmed made her want to sigh in relief. "You were, like, attacking my brother! What the heck?!"

Panic flashed on Gideon's face and he scrambled to grab the tie back. "My tie! Give it back!"

She tossed it to Dipper after he picked himself up off the floor and breathed a small sigh of relief. They just had to get rid of the bolo tie and get out of here, and everything would be okay.

Of course, fate had entirely different plans.

"Ha! Not so powerful without this, are you?" Her brother held up the tie with a smug look on his face and any self-restraint in the psychic boy disappeared. He gave a yell and charged Dipper, who dropped the magical object in surprise. The both of them crashed through the window as Gideon tackled Dipper and they fell off the cliff.

Mabel's heart nearly stopped altogether in that one moment.

"DIPPER!"

Mabel felt her chest tighten and she ran towards the broken window, snatching up the tie as fast as she could because oh my god, her brother was going to die, she had to save him, he was falling so fast, HE WAS GOING TO DIE. She imagined herself floating over the edge of the cliff side and didn't bat an eye once her wish was granted. She spotted the two boys tumbling to their deaths and imagined them freezing in place right where they were. The preteen girl floated down beside them, looking Gideon right in the eye as he stared at her in shock.

They could've been friends. They could've been makeover buddies for the rest of the summer - and yet he had to kill her twin brother just because he wanted to help her break up with the kid. There was no way that was okay by her.

"Listen, Gideon, it's over. I will never, ever date you."

"Yeah!" Dipper chimed in right before she released the magic holding them all up off the ground. With one swift motion, Mabel smashed the bolo tie on the ground and watched as it went up in green smoke.

Gideon looked horrified and she took the time during his brief distraction to stand by her brother, whom she noticed upon close proximity was a lot more beat-up than she had thought. Gosh, what did that kid do to him?

"MY POWERS! Oh, this isn't over. This isn't the last you'll see of wittle...ole'...me..."

As the blond spoke, he walked backwards into the dark forest, a threatening gleam in his eyes. Dipper glanced at his sister, slight embarrassment on his face.

"Sorry about Gideon..."

She snorted, surprising her twin not for the first time that night. "I'm fine. I guess I just didn't think he'd try and kill my own brother. There goes another summer romance fail."

Dipper laughed at that and rubbed the back of his neck. "I don't think we're going to have a chance at a normal relationship with somebody in a town like this, Mabel. No offense."

"True." Mabel hugged him and after a moment of hesitation, Dipper returned the gesture.

"No awkward sibling hug?"

"Not this time."

He got quiet once the words left her mouth and Mabel tried hard not to think about the fact that because of her fear of rejecting some dumb guy, her brother had nearly died. It didn't work too well.

"I'm sorry you got dragged into all this, Dipper. You were right all along. I should've just told Gideon I didn't want to date him at the start."

He pulled back, smiling warmly at her. "It's okay. Gideon just didn't know when to back off, I suppose. He's also a little creepy..."

Mabel gave a weak chuckle. "Yeah... Wanna go back to the Shack? We've gotta fix you up anyway."

Dipper studied her for a minute before smiling wider. "Yeah. Let's go."

And if the older twin held onto his hand for the whole way there, her shoulders tense and a rare serious expression written on her face, neither of them ever mentioned it.

I have this headcanon that Mabel has the best poker face and is actually really good at keeping her emotions bottled up under pressure, which is why she didn't react when Gideon started choking her brother. Also, she's badass and I love her to death.