Phantom Falls

2: Northwest

The above artwork does not belong to me.

Danny hadn't expected anything like this.

The Fenton Assault Vehicle rounded a corner, and there it was: the Northwest mansion. The actual living space was situated behind a spacious front yard, the grass so green it was painful to look at. Bright flowers and sparkling fountains were perfectly spaced out among impeccably trimmed trees.

Compared to the rest of the run-down town, this place was a glowing green island in a sea of pine needles and dirt. It was so obvious to Danny; the Northwests were flaunting their wealth.

Jack Fenton drove down the long driveway, grinning like crazy. He and his wife didn't seem affected by the obvious prestige of the family they would be staying with, but Danny and Jazz were already uncomfortable. They were sure that their parents would do something weird and embarrass them in front of the Northwests.

The four piled out of the car, shuffling to the large front door. "Ooh, I can't wait to see Priscilla! I've heard she's doing well," Maddie smiled, clasping her hands close to her chest in excitement.

Jack banged on the door. "Open up!" he shouted jubilantly. Danny and his sister cringed.

Promptly, a wrinkled butler allowed them in. The front room was huge, and the crown molding was ornately carved. What does anyone need a room this big for? Danny thought.

"Hello there!" Priscilla Northwest greeted, strolling in. "You're a bit early, Maddie."

The cousins hugged. "It's been forever!" Danny's mother exclaimed. "And how are you doing, Preston?" she asked Priscilla's husband.

"Oh, quite well," he sniffed through a fake smile. Neither parent seemed to notice.

Suddenly Danny noticed a young blond girl, about Dipper and Mabel's age, wearing all purple. She strutted up to Jazz and Danny. "Hey," she said, tossing her hair. As if she was impressive. "I'm Pacifica, but I'm sure you already guessed that."

Danny raised a brow, his sister sharing the look. "I'm Jazz, and this is Danny," she told Pacifica.

"Yeah," the younger girl said, rolling her eyes as if they were stupid, "I know."

The siblings were taken aback, but before they could reply, Preston's forced laugh rang across the room. "Well, Jack, dinner is in an hour. I'll have Smith show you to your rooms. I'm sure the children can get to know one another before we eat."

Danny didn't like the sound of that at all, but he followed the butler upstairs anyway. His room was huge, with a queen-sized bed and its own bathroom. Jazz's room was on the right, and Pacifica's was down the hall.

"Come on, let's go to the game room," Pacifica demanded. She walked down the hall without a glance back, expecting them to follow.

"What about our bags?" Danny called.

Pacifica kept walking. "Smith's got it."

With a shrug, Jazz followed, and after a few moments, so did Danny. Maybe his second cousin wasn't as bad as he thought.

*  *  *

Dinner was tense between the three kids. Pacifica had acted superior to her cousins from the minute she met them, even though she wasn't. Jazz told Danny that he shouldn't let the younger girl's attitude get to him, but he wasn't sure he could brush it off for an entire month.

Danny got enough of this kind of treatment at school, and when he was fighting ghosts, for that matter. He had been told over and over again how he was weak, how he was stupid. Although Pacifica never said these things outright, she radiated contempt. That bothered him, to say the least.

His parents were smiling broadly as they spoke with the other adults. "Oh, Maddie, you are such a riot!" Priscilla was laughing, fanning her face daintily. Preston smiled tightly. It was obvious, to Danny at least, that the man did not like Jack at all.

After dinner, the family settled in for the night. As Danny started to fall asleep, he thought about the trip there.

Several weeks prior, his parents had announced that they were going on a trip during the summer. Danny had made every excuse to avoid it, but eventually he realized that it was happening whether he liked it or not. So, he'd decided that maybe he could at least have a say in where they went.

His mother had said it was a choice between visiting a great aunt in Texas, or her cousin's family in a little Oregon town called Gravity Falls. Although he sort of liked the Texas city, his great aunt had always thought of Jazz as her favorite and held a certain disdain for Danny. He'd done some research on both places, and found a little article on the strange occurrences in Gravity Falls. Opting for the more interesting vacation spot, he'd suggested that they go there.

Only, it didn't seem that Pacifica liked him any more than his great aunt did. The girl was overly cocky, and he didn't like it. Maybe he could spend his days in Oregon with the kids from the Mystery Shack.

Danny rolled onto his back and sighed. He'd have to socialize with the Northwest family at least a little, and he had a bad feeling about it.