#I wanted to write some Emily and Emmett with Dip and Mabs and I got a bit out of hand

[thelastspeecher]

Superhero/villain AU - Cousins

Originally, I was just going to post the part of this that had Emmett in it.  But then I decided to title it “Cousins”, and I figured I had to include the part I wrote with Emily, since she is also a cousin.  As a reminder, this is a modern AU, so Shermie is Dipper and Mabel’s dad, making Stan their uncle, rather than great-uncle.  Anyways, enjoy the far too much stuff I wrote, featuring emo Emmett and ray of sunshine Emily.

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              “Emily, what powers do you have?” Dipper asked.  Emily looked up from what she was working on, some sort of homemade illicit firework.  She and Dipper were relaxing in the backyard while Mabel ran errands with Angie.  

              “Aerokinesis.  Why?”

              “I’m just curious, that’s all.”  Dipper frowned.  “I don’t think that runs in the Pines family.”

              “You’d be right ‘bout that,” Emily said, turning her attention back to the gunpowder in front of her.  “It’s from my ma’s side.  Actually, she’s an aero too.  And so is her mom.  It’s kinda cool.  Like a family tradition.”  Emily looked up, thinking.  “Daisy got Dad’s powers, Danny’s are from Ma’s side – apparently our great-grandma had the same power as her – and Emmett’s are new.”

              “New?”  Dipper cocked his head curiously.  “What do you mean?”  He closed his book and put it to the side, then took out a notepad and pen from his vest. Emily chortled.

              “You makin’ a family tree or somethin’, cuz?”

              “How powers get inherited is just…really cool.”

              “Yeah.  It is. That’s why Uncle Ford researches it.” Emily sighed.  “Anyways, Emmett’s power is sorta a combination of Grandma Pines’ and…”  Emily trailed off.  She frowned. “One of Grandma Gucket’s sister’s, I think.  Grandma Gucket is estranged from her family, so I’ve never met whoever it is Emmett got part of his power from.”

              “What is his power?” Dipper asked.  Emily shook her head.

              “Sorry, kid.  My sisters, I’m fine tellin’ you, but Emmett’s power is, ah, sensitive.  He doesn’t like people knowing about it.  If you wanna know, ask him.”

              “Maybe…”  Dipper chewed on his pen thoughtfully.  He hadn’t seen much of Stan and Angie’s only son, even over a month into the summer. Emmett was very antisocial, or to use the word Mabel had immediately identified him as, emo.

              “Hey bro-bro, hey Emily!”  Mabel’s shout shocked Dipper from his reverie.  He looked over.  Mabel bounded through the back door and over to them.  “Auntie Angie got me some new yarn!”

              “It weren’t no problem,” Angie replied, strolling outside.  She smiled fondly at Mabel.  “Got to encourage creativity in young folk.”

              “Aunt Angie, Emily was telling me you had powers?” Dipper asked her.  Angie froze.  She frowned at Emily.

              “Wait, what?” Mabel gasped.  “I thought you didn’t!  I thought that was why Dad told us not to ask you what power you have!”

              “I-”  Angie’s expression was conflicted.  She took a breath.  “The reason yer dad said not to ask was prob’ly because it’s a bit rude to ask.  The two of ya could use some work on yer manners, after all.”

              “What power do you have?” Mabel asked.

              “Emily said aerokinesis,” Dipper said.  Mabel’s eyes widened.

              “Whoa, isn’t that like, what Uncle Stan’s archnemesis has?” she asked. Angie glared at Emily.

              “…Yes.”

              “Oh my gosh, that’s so romantic,” Mabel gushed.  “I mean, you two fell in love even though you have the same power as the person he hates most!”

              “I think the person Dad hates most is the IRS,” Emily said.  Her cheerful tone sounded a bit forced.  “Then again, that’s an organization, not a person.”

              “Mm-hmm.”  Angie cleared her throat.  “Emily?”

              “Comin’,” Emily said, getting to her feet.  She followed Angie inside.

              “I didn’t know that would get Emily in trouble,” Dipper said quietly to Mabel.  “I feel kinda bad.”

              “Pfft, you’re probably reading into things,” Mabel said.  “Auntie Angie probably isn’t mad at her.  I mean, she didn’t do anything wrong.”

              “Yeah, but…”  Dipper sighed.  “Never mind. Did you have any luck with Aunt Angie?”

              “Nope.”  Mabel flopped onto the grass next to him.  “She said she doesn’t know anything about Uncle Stan’s job.”

              “Great.  So we’re no closer to figuring out who Sirocco is.”  Dipper resuming chewing on his pen.  “Maybe we could ask Emily if she knows any aeros other than her and Aunt Angie. It’s not a very common power.”

              “Maybe.”  Mabel picked at the grass.  “Dipper, are you sure you wanna keep at this?  It’s kinda boring.  I mean, if Uncle Stan couldn’t figure out Sirocco’s true identity, do we stand a chance at it? Wouldn’t you rather go do touristy things and look at all the stuff in the city?  Auntie Angie said Emily is planning on taking us to some superhero-themed place tomorrow.”

              “We can do both, Mabel.  And yes, I wanna figure it out.  I don’t have the kind of power that’s gonna make me a natural superhero, so I need to make sure I’ve got the detective part down.  This is good practice.”

              “I guess,” Mabel sighed.

              “By the way, I think Emmett has some sort of telepathic power.”

              “Really?  Why?”

              “Emily said his power is actually combined from Grandma Pines’ and someone in Aunt Angie’s family.  Grandma Pines is telepathic.  And it’d make sense for someone to avoid people if they’re telepathic.  Being able to hear thoughts all the time has to be difficult,” Dipper said.  Mabel nodded. “But Emily wouldn’t tell me outright what his power is.  She said it’s ‘sensitive’.  Whatever that means.”

              “We should ask him.”

              “Maybe.”  Dipper rubbed the back of his neck.  “But I get the feeling if it’s sensitive enough Emily won’t tell us, Emmett won’t, either.”

              “That’s quitter talk.  You’re never gonna be a detective if you won’t ask our own cousin a question,” Mabel said, shoving him playfully.  Dipper shoved her back, laughing.

              “Kids!”  Dipper and Mabel looked over at the back door.  It was Angie. “Emily’s grounded fer a couple days, so Emmett’s goin’ to take ya to the café tomorrow.  Sound good?”

              “Sounds great, Auntie Angie!” Mabel shouted.  Angie smiled.  She closed the back door.  Mabel turned to Dipper.  “Huh. I guess you were right.  Emily’s in trouble.”

              “Yeah.  But why? Why would telling someone about Aunt Angie’s power get her grounded?” Dipper wondered out loud.  Mabel grinned at him.

              “Maybe you should work on that, detective.”

----- 

              “So, uh, here’s the coffeeshop or whatever,” Emmett mumbled, nodding at the store they were standing in front of.  He stuffed his hands into his hoodie pocket.  “They’ve got good hot chocolate.”

              “What about espresso?” Mabel asked.  Emmett glanced at her with the eye not covered by his dyed black hair.

              “…If I let you have coffee, Dad’ll be so mad, he might sign me up fer boxing again.”  Emmett looked back at the storefront.  “But that bein’ said, they have a decent espresso.”  Emmett let out a long sigh.  “Let’s just get this over with.”  He pushed open the door, making the bell above jingle.

              “By the way, Emmett,” Mabel said, following him into the coffeeshop, “I’ve been meaning to ask.  What brand eyeliner do you use?”  Emmett eyed her again.  “It just looks so nice!”

              “Uh, thanks,” Emmett said.  He looked away.  “It’s part of the Angst Outside line from g.n.o.m.e.”

              “I’ll have to look into that,” Mabel chirped.  She sniffed the air.  “Mm.  I love the coffee smell!  Don’t you, Dipper?”

              “Yeah, I like it,” Dipper agreed.  He looked around.  The coffeeshop was quaint and cute, like most local cafés.  There was a back wall apparently reserved for fliers promoting various events, tchotchkes on every surface, and some sort of folksy music playing. What set apart the coffeeshop from other ones he’d been to was the theme of the décor.  Superheroes.  The tchotchkes were superhero figurines and the artsy posters on the walls renditions of local heroes.  Dipper picked up a ceramic sculpture of someone he thought was called Manly Man. Ignoring his cousins’ fascination with the décor, Emmett trudged over to the counter.

              “Well, like I said, I’m not getting either of you guys coffee.  Or anything with caffeine, really.”  He let out a long sigh.  “I guess I can get you a cookie to share or somethin’.”

              “Ooh, yes!”  Mabel bounded over to the display case by the counter, pressing her face against the glass. “Dipper, look!  They’ve got a cookie named after Un- Flamethrower!”

              “Wait, really?”  Dipper joined his twin at the display case.  Mabel pointed at a gingersnap cookie that had a honey-chili frosting on top in the shape of the logo on Stan’s superhero suit.  “Cool.”

              “This place is themed after superheroes,” Emmett grunted.  He shrugged.  “I like the supervillain one more, but Dad wanted you to come here, so…”

              “I like the supervillain one more, too,” a teenaged boy said, coming out from a door behind the counter.  He grinned at Emmett.  “Most Sycamore Grove kids do.”  Emmett beamed.  Dipper elbowed Mabel.

              “Mabel, look!”  Mabel tore herself away from the sweets.  She gaped.

              “I don’t think I’ve seen Emmett smile once this summer,” she whispered. Emmett leaned on the counter.

              “I didn’t know ya worked here, Carter,” he said, his voice just as cheerful as Emily’s usually was.  Carter chuckled.

              “Well, don’t tell Ruby or Derek.  They might kick me outta the group.”

              “Please,” Emmett said, waving a hand clad in a fingerless glove.  “You were there when my dad got home from work that day.  You didn’t kick me out, and neither did Ruby or Derek when they found out.  Workin’ here ain’t nearly as big a deal as my dad’s job.”

              “Yeah, but you didn’t choose your dad’s job.  I chose to work here,” Carter said playfully.  Emmett laughed.  “So, lemme guess, these kids are your cousins?”  Emmett paled.

              “You didn’t-”

              “No!  I know better than to outside of school.  They look a lot like your dad, that’s all.”

              “Oh.  Right.” Emmett looked at Dipper and Mabel. “Yeah.  They do.”  He cleared his throat.  “So, uh, go ahead and order, okay?”  

              “I think we’re going to need a minute to decide,” Dipper said, scanning the extensive menu behind Carter.  Mabel had returned to ogling the desserts.  Emmett smiled weakly.

          ��   “Take yer time,” he said.  He turned back to Carter.  “Have ya heard from Leif lately?”

----- 

              Emmett and Carter chatted the entire time Carter was working on their drinks, animatedly discussing mutual friends and teachers.  By the time they finally left the coffeeshop, Dipper and Mabel had heard at least twice as many words from Emmett as they’d heard since they arrived.

              “I know a shortcut,” Emmett said, jerking his head in the direction of a nearby alleyway.

              “Are you sure?” Dipper asked.  He wrapped his fingers tightly around his to-go iced hot chocolate.  “It looks a bit shady.”

              “It’s fine.”  Emmett walked away at a fast pace, making Dipper and Mabel jog briefly to catch up. The further they got from the coffeehouse, the more withdrawn he became, his posture slumped and eyes downcast.

              “Who was that?” Mabel asked.

              “Carter?  He’s m’ best friend.”

              “What’s Sycamore Grove?” Dipper asked.  Emmett hunched his shoulders.

              “The high school I go to.”

              “I thought Emily said she went to…what was it called?  Franklin?”

              “Yeah,” Emmett mumbled.  “We go to dif’rent high schools.”

              “But you guys are twins!” Mabel said.  Emmett’s pace slowed.

              “Yeah,” he repeated.  “But I had to go to Sycamore Grove fer…reasons.”  Emmett kicked at a rock.  It hit a nearby dumpster with a ringing sound.  “Emily doesn’t need to go there, though, so she goes to Franklin.”

              “Is Sycamore Grove the high school for troubled teens?” Dipper asked. His eyes widened.

              Oh no, I shouldn’t have said that!  Emmett might think I’m insulting him!  To his surprise, Emmett let out a soft chuckle.

              “I mean, yer not completely wrong.”

              “What do you mean?” Mabel asked.  Emmett sighed.

              “It’s complicated.  I don’t wanna-”  Emmett came to a sudden stop.  He held his arm out, blocking Dipper and Mabel from going past him.  “I see you,” Emmett said in a clear, carrying voice.  “Stop hidin’ and come out here in the open.” Dipper winced.  Something about Emmett’s voice was almost painful to hear. A shadowy figure dropped from above, landing in front of them.

              “Who’s-” Mabel started.  Emmett put a hand on her head.

              “Shh, cuz.  Lemme handle this.”  Emmett straightened his back.  He looked directly at the stranger in front of them.  “Go home.”  Dipper winced again.

              Why does it hurt when he talks like that?  It’s like he’s shouting, but he’s not.   Or like he’s saying more than one thing at once.  The stranger turned around and began to walk away.

              “Drop everything dangerous yer carrying,” Emmett said quickly.  Despite the pain it caused, Dipper listened intently to his cousin’s voice, trying to figure out what was going on.  The stranger slowly removed items from their pockets, dropping them onto the ground.  “When you get home, forget you saw us.”  Dipper clasped his hands over his ears.  His drink fell to the ground.

              Okay, trying to listen harder was a bad decision.  Emmett crouched down in front of him.

              “Dipper?” Emmett asked quietly.  “You all right?”  Emmett’s eyes, for once neither of them hidden by his bangs, were full of concern. Up close, Dipper could see they were a rich brown, like his and Mabel’s.

              “Yeah, I just- your voice hurt a bit, that’s all.”

              “It hurt?” Emmett said.  He seemed taken aback.  “That’s- how would that-”  He furrowed his brow.  “What power do you have?”

              “Um, Dad says it’s called omnilingualism.”

              “Omni-  Oh. You understand languages and codes?”

              “Y-yeah.”

              “How powerful are you?”

              “Um, I dunno.”

              “Can you figure out people’s intentions by readin’ body language, if you focus hard enough?”

              “Yeah.”

              “Oh dear.”  Emmett grimaced.  “I bet you got a bit of Grandma Pines’ telepathy.  I’m sorry, Dipper.  If I’d known, I wouldn’t have gone so strong.”

              “Whattaya mean?” Mabel asked.  “How did your voice hurt Dipper?  I’m fine!”

              “People with communication-based abilities like omnilingualism get affected more by my power,” Emmett said.  He looked over Dipper with a careful gaze similar to Angie’s.  “And folks with telepathy can tell when I use it, but they’re usually able to block it out.  I’m guessin’ those two things made ya get hurt even though I wasn’t directing anything at you, Dipper.  Again, I’m sorry.  If I ever have to do it again ‘round you, I’ll be more careful.”

              “I’m fine, I just- wait, what about that bad guy?” Dipper asked. Emmett didn’t even bother to look over his shoulder.

              “He’s headin’ home and won’t remember what we look like, don’t worry.”

              “How do you know he-” Dipper started.  He paused.  “Unless your power is…”

              “…Yeah.”  Emmett stood to his full height again and looked away.  “I can control people.”  He stuffed his hands into his hoodie pocket.  “Grandma Gucket’s sister could do it by singin’ at folks.  Called it a siren call.  Grandma Pines can by usin’ her telepathy if she tries hard enough.  I got a bit of both.  Verbal commands work best, but if I so much as think ‘bout somethin’ I want someone to do, it usually happens.”

              “How did you figure it out?” Mabel asked.  Emmett scuffed the toe of his shoe against the ground.

              “When my sister actually left my room when I told her to, I knew somethin’ was afoot.”  He sighed. “I’ve gotten good enough that controlling people is on purpose most of the time.  But I still slip up sometimes.  So Ma and Dad shipped me off to Sycamore Grove.”  Emmett shook his head.  “Enough ‘bout my power.  Dipper, if ya want, we can get you a new drink.”

              “It’s fine, I think I wanna go back to your house,” Dipper said quietly.

              “Fair enough.”  Emmett set off.  He kept glancing at Dipper as they walked, visibly worried.

              “I’m fine, Emmett, don’t worry.”

              “Yeah, I just…”  Emmett looked away.  “…Never mind.”

              “Seriously though, what sort of school is Sycamore Grove?” Dipper asked. “I mean, Carter said people from there don’t like the superhero café or Uncle Stan’s job, you said it was sort of for troubled teens, Aunt Angie and Uncle Stan sent you there because of your power-”  Dipper cut himself off.  He exchanged a look with Mabel.  Mabel’s eyes were wide, indicating she had figured it out, too.

              “Yep,” Emmett said glumly.  “It’s the school villains send their kids to.”

              “Whoa,” Dipper and Mabel said together.  Emmett nodded.

              “Sure, anyone can attend, but no one would send their kid there if they didn’t have to.  Unfortunately, they’re the only people who can handle my powers, which means I’m one of the kids who has to go there.”

              “I’m guessing Uncle Stan didn’t like that,” Dipper said.  Emmett grinned, surprising Dipper.

              “You’d be right.  Ma won’t even let him pick me up from school, she’s so worried ‘bout someone recognizing him as the hero, Flamethrower.  I actually kinda like how uncomfortable it makes Dad.”  He glanced at Dipper and Mabel.  “Now that I’ve gotten used to goin’ to school with a bunch of kids whose parents regularly beat up mine.”

              “Doesn’t it make Aunt Angie uncomfortable, too, sending you there?” Dipper asked.  “You only mentioned Uncle Stan.”  Emmett’s eyes widened.  He looked away hurriedly.

              “Uh, yeah, it- it does, it’s just that since Dad’s actually a hero, his discomfort is more entertaining.”  Emmett took a left turn and they exited the alleyway.  Stan and Angie’s house stood before them.

              “We’re back already?” Mabel asked, surprised.  Emmett nodded.

              “Yep.”

              “That was some shortcut.  I need tips from you,” Mabel said cheerfully.

              “…Maybe some other time.  I’m gonna…go…” Emmett said.  By the end of his sentence, he had resumed the soft mumbling they usually heard from him. He headed for the house.  Dipper grabbed Mabel before she could follow.

              “What is it, bro-bro?” Mabel asked him.

              “Emmett lied,” Dipper whispered to her.  “Once he said he went to a villain school, I decided to pay extra attention to see if he was lying at all.”

              “And he was?  When?”

              “When he said that Aunt Angie was uncomfortable with sending him to the villain high school.”

              “So Auntie Angie thinks that’s fine?  She married a superhero!”

              “I know.”  Dipper looked over at the house.  Angie was weeding in the front garden.  She caught sight of them and waved.  “I think we need to go back to the drawing board, Mabel.  We’ve got some clues to connect.”  Mabel groaned.

              “You’re not gonna use my red yarn again, are you?”

              “What else would I use on my evidence board?”

              “Fine,” Mabel mumbled.  She poked him.  “I had a really cute sweater planned, so this better be worth it.”

              “Don’t worry.  It will be.”