Age is just a number

Chapter Fourteen: Wrong Idea

Dipper POV

"Oh no! Mabel!" I shout at the top of my lungs. I chase the phantom back into the Northwest manor and watch the chaos inside. People are turning into wood as taxidermy animals run about the mansion halls.

A man slowly crawls towards me, struggling as he turns to wood. "Please, help me!" He begs before taking his final form; his now wooden hand reaching out to grab me.

"Woah," I begin "that is messed up!"

I then look up and see the ghost by the staircase. He begins to say another rhyme as he turns more of his victims to wood.

"There is only one way to escape this fate," he says "a Northwest must open the party gates!"

"A Northwest?" I ask myself "Pacifica!"

I frantically search for the blonde in the room, hoping she wasn't turned to wood. A light in the corner of my eye flickers and catches my attention. I turn my head to see it's source.

The light is coming from the room that Pacifica and I discovered today (behind the painting). I run in it's direction.

"Pacifica!" I say, relieved to find her, "the ghost escaped! He's in the foyer and he started rhyming for some reason. I need your help..." I trail off as I see Pacifica's expression. "Pacifica?"

She was holding a flashlight, and frequently turning it on and off as I spoke. Her eyes were sad, and she wore a frown upon her face.

"You want to know why this room was locked up?" She begins, as if not hearing what I had just explained. "Look at what I found in here. A painted record of every horrible thing my family has ever done. Lying, cheating, stealing... and then there's me. I lied to you just because I was too afraid to talk back to my stupid parents!" Pacifica takes off her diamond earrings and throws them at a nearby painting of her mom and dad. "You were right about me," she continues, "I am just another link in the world's worst chain."

She looks like she's about to cry. I really do regret what I had said before, and want to comfort her. But I have an assumption that she likes me, and I don't want to give her the wrong idea, with Wendy being my girlfriend and all.

"Look, Pacifica," I begin, "I'm sorry about what I said earlier. But just because you're your parents daughter doesn't mean you have to be like them. It's not too late." I put my arm around her, and she does the unexpected. She pulls me in for what I think is another hug, but she kisses me on the cheek.

Crap, I gave her the wrong idea...