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Reverse Falls

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The crowd cheered as Dipper and Mabel walked onstage. It was a typical Friday night show at the Mystery Manor, the auditorium packed with tourists and townies. Mabel beamed brighter than the stage lights as the performer's high took her. A practiced showman's grin replaced Dipper's typically neutral expression.

The pair began with a musical number, then wowed the audience with illusions and stage magic. Throughout the performance, Mabel's eyes kept darting to the leftmost section of seats. Oh no. Dipper recognized that look, his sister had a new crush in her sights.

When the part of the act came for the twins to move amongst the audience and give readings, Mabel made a beeline for the current man of her dreams. Her brother was surprised when it turned out to be a chubby-cheeked boy a few years younger than them (though he had to admit, he did have outstanding hair).

While his twin listed off trivial facts about the boy, Dipper realized he'd zoned out and was ignoring the audience. Looking down, he saw a blonde girl staring at him with wide eyes. She looked familiar. A local, but not someone important enough for him to know. Allowing a small surge of power to flow through his body, the magician thought, Why not? And probed her outermost thoughts.

Leaning towards the blonde's ear, Dipper whispered, "The number you're thinking of... is negative eight."

Eyes growing to the size of dinner plates, the girl's mouth dropped open. Dipper gave her his best rakish grin, and stepped away.

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The performance ended as it always did: With the twins coffer full, and the townspeople loving them. Retreating backstage, the pair unwound in their dressing room. Mabel commandeered the vanity, removing her makeup and brushing her hair in front of the mirror. Dipper changed out of his stage clothes, exchanging a simple black suit for the powder blue one he wore for shows.

"So, what's your new paramour's name?" The boy asked.

"I don't know." Mabel said, not looking away from her reflection. "I'll find out later."

"I must admit, I never thought of someone like that as your type."

The girl turned to face her brother. "I'll have you know, I happen to like cute fluffy things."

"I thought you outgrew fluffy when you decapitated all your stuffed animals."

Mabel gave a noncommittal shrug, then asked, "What were you doing with that girl? I thought you said we shouldn't use our powers during shows. 'Mentalism and slight-of-hand are all we need to impress these rubes.' Or something like that."

"I said we shouldn't rely on our powers for these shows." The boy explained, knowing she remembered. "A well placed pinch of real magic is fine. As long as it's not enough to expose ourselves."

"You didn't answer my question."

Dipper rolled his eyes, "I told her what she was thinking. She struck me as someone nobody would listen to, but would tell her story anyway. A way for word to spread. It pays to keep our mythos alive."

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The next morning, Mabel awoke late and walked downstairs to see that Jesus had already laid out breakfast. Nodding to the portly manservant, the girl sat across from her brother who was reading the paper.

"Are you planning to visit your new target today?" Dipper asked, referring to the towheaded boy from last night.

Mabel was never quite sure when her twin was making fun of her, or when he was just making conversation. In these situations, she found it best to give simple replies until she had an idea of his mood. "Maybe."

"What did you learn about him last night?"

Ah. That's what he's playing at. Dipper was the one who taught his sister how to observe the minutia of a person, then offer seemingly complex descriptions of the mark. Just as she'd taught him how to sing and act. This was a test to see how well she was doing.

"Well," She began. "He's an out-of-towner, obviously, but not a tourist."

"What makes you so sure he's not a local?"

The girl rolled her eyes. "Because I've never seen him before, duh. Plus, his accent is a dead giveaway."

She took her brother's silence as indication to continue.

"He was rested and bathed, meaning he's already been here at least a few days. He's from somewhere in the south, but didn't have parents with him. That's a long way to travel alone, so he must be here visiting family (probably that girl you were hitting on) so, i.e.: not a tourist. That also means he's probably here for a long time, maybe even the whole summer."

Dipper nodded slowly. "Not bad. But you missed some details."

The girl scowled and crossed her arms. "Like?"

"You're right, he is here visiting family." Her brother said. "He's from just outside of Dallas, he lives there with his mother who is divorced. He's staying with his father for the summer, the girl he was with is his cousin. He's been here for approximately a week-and-a-half. He's nine years old, and his name starts with a 'G'."

Gaping, Mabel asked, "How did you figure all that out? I know you didn't read his mind."

Dipper tossed her the newspaper he'd been browsing. It was actually three back-issues of the Gravity Falls Gossiper. The headlines read: Wax Bud Murdered!, City Kid Wastes Everyone's Time., and City Kid Finds Wax Bud's Head!

"He's already made a name for himself." The boy said. "Apparently he accused Shandra Jimenez of waxicide."

"You cheated." Mabel huffed, sticking her tongue out.

"No." Her twin answered. "I did research. I wanted to make sure you wouldn't get into any trouble. Be careful with him. Out-of-towners make things complicated. They're harder to deal with if things… go wrong. We don't want to put our reputations at stake."

The pair sat in silence until Mabel remembered something, causing her to smirk. "You're right dear brother. We don't want to lose our reputation." She started examining her nails. "It's just too bad that any publicity isn't actually good publicity."

Knowing he was being baited, Dipper asked, "What are you talking about?"

"Oh, just something I read earlier." The girl shuffled through the papers until she found what she wanted, sliding it forward.

Dipper read:

Mystery of the Mystery Twins
Dipper Pines: What does he do all day?

"It looks like you've been drawing attention to yourself." Mabel said nonchalantly.

Glowering, the boy answered, "What's your point?"

Knowing she'd gotten under his skin, Mabel explained, "The point is that we're celebrities. People expect to see us around town. Socializing. Dating."

Dipper scoffed. "You know I don't have time for that sort of thing."

"Oh, I know. I know." His twin sympathized. "And so does everyone else, apparently. They just don't understand why."

Should have expected that. Neither twin let the other poke fun without retaliation. Coming up with a defense, the boy said, "We're twelve. Romance shouldn't be an issue. All we should be interested in is Toaster Tarts and Monstermon."

"I agree, I agree!" Mabel smirked. "It's just that, without a social life, people might try to investigate who you really are."

"And what do you suggest?" Dipper growled.

"Well, for starters." The girl's smile grew even wider. "You could ask out that little blonde of yours."

The boy said nothing, while his sister scanned her encyclopedic knowledge of the town's residences.

"Northwest." She said, her grin returning. "That's who she is: Pacifica Northwest, the descendant of the town's first village idiot!" She could hardly contain her laughter. "That's perfect! It'll prove you're not just some stuck-up celebrity, and are willing to date a nobody!"

"I'm not dating anybody!" Dipper snapped, finally losing his cool. "Let the gossip columns say what they want!"

"I'm just trying to help." Mabel gave an exaggerated pout.

"Let's just agree to do our own thing." The boy grumbled. "You help maintain our public image, and I'll help clean up any problems you run into."

Mabel's grin turned genuine for the first time that morning. "Agreed!" She kissed her brother's cheek and ran out the door, intending to formally meet her newest soulmate.

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