Tales Of The Flame & The Ax: A Shooting Star Falls Story

Part Forty-Three: Preparing For The Inevitable

"Ugh... Too early..." Pacifica Pines groaned as she rolled over and shut off her alarm. Normally, the fifteen year old girl would have slept in far later, but today was registration day for Gravity Falls High School. After taking a moment to collect herself, she gathered her clothes for the day and made her way to the bathroom to start her morning routine. Mabel, who had woken up earlier than her sibling, had already showered and gotten dressed. She looked into her full length mirror and made the final adjustments to her outfit, which consisted of a grey t-shirt dress with white hoops, a red flannel shirt tied around her waist and a denim jacket; a pair of white sneakers completing her ensemble. "Girls, food's ready!" Dipper shouted from downstairs; having woken up early to make breakfast for the girls. He figured that it was the best he could do to help ease his daughters back into a hopefully more mundane routine. Pacifica opened the bathroom door and began her journey downstairs. Her outfit consisted of a grey cotton skirt, an orange t-shirt and a blue denim hooded vest; a pair of tall striped socks and black canvas high-tops finishing her look. It was a departure from what she had worn in the past, but the brunette saw this as the perfect opportunity to introduce a different side of herself. "Liking the new look, sis!" Mabel said to her sibling as the pair walked down the wooden stairs. "A-Are you sure? I mean, it's a little bit of a different style for me. I can't even remember the last time I willingly wore a skirt or dress" Pacifica replied in an unsure tone. "Totally! You should wear them more often. Not to brag or anything, but we got Mom's long legs, so we might as well show them off every once in a while" Mabel encouraged her twin.

Dipper turned away from the stove to see his daughters approaching the kitchen. "Ready to get back to school?" he inquired while plating the pancakes he had made. "Surprisingly, yes. I can't wait for things to just be normal after the summer we had" Mabel replied. After breakfast, the trio headed off for Gravity Falls High School. As the drive went on, apprehension began to build inside of Pacifica Pines. She hoped that her arm wouldn't draw attention, but anticipated fielding questions about it. "Hey Dad?" the brunette asked over the roar of the classic muscle car. "Yeah?" he responded. "I was just thinking... What if someone asks me about my arm? I mean, it's kinda hard to explain how I suddenly have a regular one like everyone else after years of being known by most of them as the girl with the weird mechanical arm" the teenager pointed out. "Yeah... I could see how that might be an issue. Um... How about you just say that it's a transplant?" her father suggested in an unsure tone. "With no scars?" Mabel questioned the thirty-three year old man. "Let me think for a second... Hmm... I've got it! You were selected for an experimental procedure where they transplanted a lab grown arm onto you. Yeah! It was an outpatient operation and the reason you don't have scars is because they were able to use advanced technology to fuse it to your existing arm! Yeah! That sounds believable, right?" he said to the girls as he pulled up to the curb outside the school. "Yeah, sure..." Pacifica replied in a sarcastic tone as she exited the classic muscle car. "I thought it did..." Mabel kindly said to her father before joining her sister outside the black vehicle.

The Pines twins walked the halls of Gravity Falls High, which was crowded with other teens who hoped to get into the classes they wanted. An arm reached out and grabbed Pacifica by the shoulder before slamming her into the metal lockers that lined the corridor. "Bold of you to show your face around these parts, freak..." Hannah, the resident bully, remarked; her face mostly recovered from her brief fight with Courtney. "Why wouldn't I? It's registration day..." Pacifica calmly responded. "Well, thanks to you, Shaun and his family had to leave town. Word on the street is that you accused him of date-raping you. Like you wouldn't have just spread for him if he even began to give a slut like you the time of day. Thanks to you, we just lost our best player! I'm not gonna tell you when it's coming, but you are gonna get beat down like the bitch you ar-" the blonde said before being cut off by Mabel, who slammed her fist into the locker beside Hannah's head; making a dent in the light yellow metal. "You or your mindless hoes even think of hurting her, it'll be the worst mistake of your life. Got it?" the redhead said while glaring at the bully. "Whatever! I don't have time for this! I've gotta go register for class. Later, losers..." Hannah said with frustration before walking away. "Mabes! That was amazing! I've never seen someone shut her down like that before..." Pacifica gushed as she wrapped her sister up in a tight hug. "I think I made her piss herself a little..." Mabel said with a chuckle as she returned the embrace. "To be fair, that was absolutely out of character for you. I'd piss myself too if you stared directly into my soul like that..." her sister remarked. "Well, let's just say that this summer I learned when to fight for those I love..." the hazel eyed girl explained as they resumed their walk.

The girls looked around the gymnasium to see where the activities they wanted to join were located. A woman in a tan flat brimmed hat immediately caught their attention. "Really?..." Pacifica remarked as they approached the table. "Hey guys! Wanna join the Oregon State Parks' Junior Rangers program?" Wendy asked before letting out a laugh. "What the heck are you doing here, Mom?!" Mabel said with surprise. "It was a last-minute thing. I haven't even had time to call your father yet. I'm filling in for a ranger that was supposed to be here, but ended up having a family emergency. I've had my fair share of them this summer, so I decided to help her out. I mean, who better to recruit future rangers than the Chief herself?" the auburn haired woman replied. "Yeah... Well, good luck with all that..." Pacifica remarked while heading off towards the cross-country table. "Hey, Mabes... What's up with her?" Wendy asked her daughter. "I think she's just kinda nervous about a few things. I mean, I know she was worried about explaining her new arm and... Well... She's already catching grief over the whole Shaun incident..." Mabel admitted. "Who was it? I can have a talk with the principal if you wan-" the uniform clad woman began before being cut off. "Mom... We took care of it. I'm sure she'd appreciate it, but we can handle it right now. I mean, we fought a literal demon not that long ago. Dealing with a bully is small potatoes these days. If it keeps up, we'll let someone know, but give us a chance to take care of things. Okay?" the auburn haired teen said to her mother. "Alright..." Wendy relented before watching Mabel walk away. "Excuse me? Is this where I can sign up for the Junior Rangers program?" a blonde girl asked, which shook the thirty-six year old woman from her thoughts. "Yes! Yes it is" she said in an excited tone as the two walked towards her table.

After the girls had signed up for their electives and extracurricular activities, they met up with their friends to compare class schedules. For the first time, Mabel and Pacifica wouldn't share every class together, as their literature and history classes had been flip-flopped with one another. "Welp, that's gonna take some getting used to..." Pacifica remarked as she held the schedules side by side. "I know, right? Who are you gonna cheat off of in history class now?" Mabel said before laughing. "Just for that, don't expect any help with math homework when you don't understand it, bitch..." her twin shot back in a playful manner. "So, I heard you had a little run-in with Hannah..." Courtney remarked. "Yeah, I did... But Mabes put that bitch in her place" Pacifica replied. "You'd think she'd learn not to screw with any of us by now. I mean, I broke my damn hand on her uggo ass face at that damn party..." Courtney said before glancing down at her black cast clad hand. "You and Grendy look like you were at MMA camp all summer..." Mateo commented. "Can it, dumbass!" she shot back at her husky friend. "Just sayin'..." he grumbled to himself. Grendy placed her hand on her girlfriend's shoulder and Courtney immediately knew what she had to do. "Sorry, Mateo... Just kinda a sore subject for me. Literally" the ginger teen apologized. "It was a shitty joke to make, all things considered..." he replied.

Wendy had talked to Dipper and explained her situation, so she would take the girls home on her lunch. "So, did you dudes get all signed up for the sports and extras you wanted?" Wendy asked from the front seat of her work truck. "Yup. Registered for cross-country and photography..." Pacifica said while looking down at her phone, which she was programming her schedule into. "How about you, Mabes?" she asked her other daughter. "I have to actually make the team, but I signed up for soccer" the fifteen year old replied. "You know, I played soccer for a little bit in high school..." Wendy said before looking up into the rear-view mirror. "Why am I not shocked by that? Let me guess, you were good at it too?" Pacifica remarked. "Nah. Actually, I sucked. Couldn't kick a goal to save my life. I quit the team after a month" she answered. It came as a bit of a shock to the girls, as their mother seemed to succeed at most everything she attempted. "Really?" the fifteen year old girls asked in unison. "Yup. Just didn't click for me. Believe it or not, there are things I'm not very good at. Like, a lot of things..." their mother replied; her tone noticeably off compared to usual. "Well, you're a really good Mom. I feel like you don't hear that nearly enough" Pacifica said in a sincere voice. "Yeah. You're always there for us. You're the best, Mom..." Mabel agreed. Wendy's emerald eyes filled with tears as she tried to focus on the road. "Thanks guys... I kinda really needed that today..." she said while glancing back at her twin daughters. For reasons she couldn't quite explain, she had woken feeling down and it had continued throughout the day. If it persisted, she planned on consulting Claire, but for the time being she thought she could weather it.

The Pines women arrived home to find Dipper typing away at his laptop like a man possessed. "Afternoon, Dip..." Wendy said as she walked to the kitchen for a quick glass of water before heading back to work. She was met by silence as the keys on his computer continued to clack away. "What the fuck is so damn important that he can't even say hi to me?" the uniform clad woman thought to herself as she walked over to the sofa with her drink in hand. She had half a mind to pour it over his head, but thought better of it. "I want you to rip this uniform off of me right now and take me this instant, Mason..." she leaned in and whispered to her husband in a salacious tone. "Whoa!" Dipper replied as he turned to see his wife less than six inches from him. "Figured that'd get your attention..." she said with a chuckle before taking a sip of her water. "Sorry... I just got this email from a network that was interested in picking up 'Dipper's Guide To The Unexplained' and I was writing them back. You weren't serious about what you just said, were you?" he said. "That's great news! I'm so happy for you!" she said while wrapping her lover up in a hug from behind the sofa. "And no, I wasn't. First of all, these uniforms aren't exactly cheap and the come out of my paycheck. Second of all, I have to get back to work. Maybe tonight we can celebrate your good news though..." she said with a wink before heading towards the front door. "I'm gonna hold you to that!" he shouted in a playful manner from the living room.

Pacifica and Mabel had retreated to their bedrooms and took a moment to unpack their eventful mornings. Pacifica glanced at her arm as she was a little surprised that nobody outside of their friend group had asked about it. Much to her surprise, her father's explanation worked, so she felt a little more confident that if someone did broach the subject, that she would be able expound it that way. She was about to take a short nap when her phone buzzed. Instead of it being from one of her friends, the sender of the text came as a bit of a surprise. "Hey, I saw you at school today and wanted to talk to you, but got caught up in something" the message from Trey read. She thought for a moment, and then began to type a reply. "It's cool. Today was kinda crazy for all of us. So, what did you wanna talk about?" Pacifica's message read. "Well, first of all, I wanted to see if you were still doing okay" Trey typed. "Yeah. Had a wicked headache for most of that week, but I went to the doctor and they said I'm not any more messed up than I was before, lol!" she messaged back. "Why did I put that 'lol'?! He probably thinks I got brain damage or some shit..." the brunette teen girl cursed to herself as she waited for a response. "Well, that's reassuring ;p" he texted back with a playful tease. "Whatever. I'm not sure if I ever thanked you for what you did that night. I was pretty messed up. If I didn't, thank you for taking such good care of me. You could have been a total creep, but from what I remember, you were nothing but a gentleman" she replied. "You did. A lot. Like at least 20 times. But you're welcome again. I was just doing the right thing. So, I'm not sure if you remember or not, but I think we agreed to go to Greasy's for a date. You still interested?" Trey typed; hoping that the girl on the other end of the exchange was still interested in him.

Mabel Pines had been watching a Bolivian telenovela on her laptop when she heard a squeal from across the hall. "Oh my God! Paz!" she exclaimed while getting up from her chair and rushing towards her sibling's room. "PAZ! WHAT'S THE MATTER?! ARE YOU HURT?!" Mabel asked as she opened the door. Much to her surprise, she saw her sister dancing around her room with a large smile on her face. "Oh! Sorry, Mabes! Didn't mean to scare you. I was just texting with Trey and he asked me out on a date!" she said in an excited tone. "I thought he already did that at the party?" Mabel asked in a confused voice. "Well, yeah... But I wasn't sure if he was just being nice to a girl who was drunk off her ass and concussed. TURNS OUT THAT HE REALLY WANTED TO!" the brunette said while wrapping Pacifica up in a tight hug before lifting her up and spinning her around the room. "Paz... Th-That's great, but can you put me down?" her freckled twin remarked. "Oh! Yeah! Sorry! I'm just so excited..." Pacifica said. "Really? I couldn't tell..." Mabel replied in a sarcastic tone. "What do I say?! Do I play it cool? Be a bit flirty with him? What would you do?" she asked her sister. "Just be yourself" Mabel replied before opening the door and leaving the room. "Yeah. Does tonight work for you?" she messaged her crush back on a late August afternoon in Gravity Falls, Oregon.

Author's Note: Summer is almost over in Gravity Falls and the Pines twins are getting ready to resume their school lives. Will their confrontation with Hannah be a sign of future problems or did they send a clear message that they weren't to be messed with? Will Dipper's show actually happen? How will Trey and Pacifica's date go? Can Dipper and Wendy manage to squeeze one last adventure into their summer? Answers to all these questions and more in the next installment of Tales Of The Flame & The Ax: A Shooting Falls Story. - iKLOT

Playlist:

AFI – "Leaving Song Part II"

The Audition - "Warm Me Up"

Fall Out Boy - "Saturday"

Goalkeeper - "Graveyard"

Seether - "Wasteland"

Avatar - "Going Hunting"

Arrested Youth / Mark Hoppus - "Find My Own Way"

The Used - "I Caught Fire" (Made me think of Pacifica talking to Trey)

Nothing More - "Jenny"

Motionless In White - "Timebomb"

Dead Sara - "Heroes" (Made me think of Wendy for some reason)

Ghost - "Dance Macabre"

Sum 41 - "Pieces"

Seether - "Fine Again"