Your Beast, My Beauty

Chapter 1

(Dipper pov)

I pull on my shoes before exiting my room sliding down the railing to the first floor. I search the living room for my book, not able to remember where I left it. "Dad? Have you seen my-"

"It's on the table in the dining room." He says from the kitchen.

Going to the dining room I pick up my book. "And my-"

"Your hat is in the closet. And before you ask so is your messenger bag and jacket."

I open the closet, having to jump up to reach it. Once it's on my head I pull on my jacket and messenger bag, putting the book in my bag before opening the door. "I'll be back later."

"Don't read and ride your bike at the same time again. I don't want to have to take you to the hospital simply because you couldn't put a book down to see where you were going."

"No promises." I head out of the house shutting the door behind me and go over to where my bike is leaning on the side of the house. Getting on it I ride down the hill our house lives on and into town. I weave around people before I park my bike at the library putting down the kickstand and getting off the bike.

It always struck me as really weird that everyone in this town hates reading and knowledge yet they have a library full of books.

I head into the library where Mr. Smith is cataloging books. "Back already, Dipper?"

"Yeah, sorry I just couldn't put it down." I take the book out of my messenger book handing it back to him. He is like a hundred years old but he's a kind old man and he doesn't make me feel like my constant reading is a bad thing.

"Well look around and find one you like."

I go to the bookshelves, climbing on a ladder grabbing my favorite book. I hop off the ladder bringing it back over to Mr. Smith. "This one."

He looks at the book that I picked. "The Rot and Ruin again? You've already borrowed it 6 times at least."

"I can't help it, it's my favorite book. The action, the characters, the story, it's all just so amazing."

"Then you can keep it. Consder it my gift to you."

"Really? Are you sure?"

"Trust me, no one else is going to come looking for that book anytime soon."

I smile as I head out, getting on my bike riding through town. I steer the bike with one hand while using my other to hold my book as I read it. I know my dad said not to do this but this book is just too good to not read right now.

I look up just in time to see I'm about to ride into a little girl. She screams and I barely manage to turn the bike to avoid hitting her. Instead my bike hits the fountain and I fall into it, head over heels landing in the water with a big splash getting instantly soaked. I manage to catch my book right before it falls in the water though. I let out a sigh of relief that the book didn't get wet.

"Mister." I look at the little girl who points to my bike. "I think there's something wrong with it."

I look at it and the whole front tire of it is bent. "Son of a bitch." I mumble to myself, forgetting to censor in front of the little girl.

"You should really watch where you're going."

"I know I know. I just was busy reading and-"

"What's so great about reading?"

".....do you know how to read?"

"No."

"Don't they teach it in school?"

"Mommy doesn't let me go to school. She says a good girl needs to stay home and learn how to be a proper wife. Only boys go to school."

"How old are you?"

"7."

"Well that is a good age to learn to read in my opinion."

"But mommy said-"

"This can be our little secret, okay?" She gives a small nod of her head. Sitting on the side of the fountain making sure not to ruin the book I open it and help her slowly sound out and read a passage of it.

"'Closure isn't c-closure until someone's r-ready t-to close the d-door.' What is closure?"

"Closure is.....it's when someone is able to continue on with their life without being weighed down by a loss of something. So when in this story, it means that you can't force someone to have closure until they themselves are ready for it."

"What the hell do you think you're doing!" I look up as a woman comes over grabbing the little girl's arm.

"I-I was just-" She smacks the book out of my hands and steps on it.

"It is already bad enough to have you live here. Do not taint the children the same way your father ruined you."

She walks away pulling the little girl with her. I stand up in anger, fists clenched by my sides. "My father did not ruin me! He did nothing wrong you horrible witch!"

I pick my book up off the ground, dusting the dirt off of it before putting it in my messenger bag again. I grab my bike and start pushing it back home.

"Hey, Dipper." Gideon comes up beside me. "Why are you all wet."

"I fell in the fountain."

"Well why would you do something so stupid like that?"

"It wasn't like I wanted to."

"So, I was thinking-"

"That's a first."

"-that we are both really decent looking people. Well me more then you of course and-"

"No. Now goodbye."

I set my bike against my house before going back inside. My dad looks up from the table where he had been working. "What happened to you?"

"Little accident with my bike."

"I'll fix it after the science fair tomorrow."

"....dad, do you think I'm weird?"

"Why would you think that?"

"Just....I don't know...."

He finally finishes the small clock he was making. Whenever it strikes an hour, instead of normal sounds it plays a song that my mom wrote before I was born.

".....mom would have liked it."

"Dipper....."

"What? "

"I know what you're doing. Stop."

"Why? You never talk about her or Mabel. If I didn't hear it from people in town, then I wouldn't have ever known that I was born in Paris or that you brought me here after they died. I wouldn't have even ever known that I actually had a sister at all."

"That is enough, Dipper." He says sternly as he stands up. "I'm going to pack up to leave tonight. I should be back the day after tomorrow. Anything you want?"

"A blue rose."

"You know that those are nearly impossible to find."

"And you also know that it's the only thing I ever ask for."

He sighs before patting my shoulder. "I will see what I can do." He says before heading upstairs to pack up for his trip.