This is an AU, if you couldn't tell already, set after "The Stanchurian Candidate," with references to "Bottomless Pit." And it's based on a conversation I had with StoryLover149 where I got this idea, so if he/she/whatever reads this, thank you for sort of inspiring me.

Mabel had been holed up in her and Dipper's room in the attic for almost an hour; when asked, she said that she was working on a big project.

In Dipper's book, that was usually a sign that she was planning something crazy. And when he saw that his twin was also holding one of their Great Uncle Ford's journals open on her lap, and had a pile of items next to her on the bed, he was sure that very bad things were about to happen.

"Mabel?" he asked, stepping through the doorway of their room with an apprehensive expression on his face.

"Oh hi Dipper," she said without looking up, as she scribbled something in a notebook with one of her favorite pens (it had a cluster of bright pink feathers on top, including a few super long ones that bent at a weird angle, so it looked a little like a flamingo with a bad hair day), "Don't worry, Great Uncle Ford let me borrow this, or at least he's just been leaving it in the basement unattended so he probably won't mind that I'm using it."

"What are you planning on doing with it?" Dipper decided to focus on what seemed like the more alarming issue at the moment.

Mabel grinned. "I'm going to make our grunkles talk to each other and admit how much they still love each other!"

For a second all Dipper could do was gape at her, before starting to splutter, "How-"

"With this!" She lifted the journal and turned it so her brother could see that it was open to a section titled, 'Evitceles Truth Spell.'

"Mabel!" Dipper squawked. "Do you not remember what happened the last time you tried forcing the truth on Grunkle Stan?! He nearly got arrested again!"

Mabel gave him a wounded look. "Of course I remember! This time is different, silly!" Setting the book back on her lap, she said, "The spell can be focused so it only affects particular people a certain way. I'm going to set it so our grunkles are only forced to tell the truth to each other. That way they won't publicly embarrass anyone or get arrested."

"Unless one of them kills the other because he doesn't like what he hears," Dipper pointed out.

His sister just scoffed, and read through her list again as she scooted off the bed and began drawing a chalk circle on the floor.

"Bit of DNA from the people you want to cast the spell on...check!" She reached for the pile, and produced two hairbrushes with tufts of gray hair stuck between the bristles; she set them at either end of the circle.

"Lapis lazuli stones...check!" She began placing small blue rocks around the edges of the chalk.

"Where did you find-" Dipper began.

"Not important!"

Mabel checked her list again. "Pretty purple candles...check!"

Two tall candles that were, indeed, purple were set next to the hairbrushes, and lit.

"Now I just need to read the incantation, and-"

"Mabel!"

When she looked up, it was to see her twin with his hands on his hips, and an even more disapproving than usual frown on his face.

"This is a terrible idea!" he scolded. "You can't just force people to act the way you want them to-haven't you learned that by now? And besides-" his voice faltered for a second- "what if they really don't care about each other anymore?"

Mabel gasped, before her eyebrows drew together in a fierce glare. "That's a terrible thing to say, Dipper!"

"That doesn't mean it couldn't be true!" he retorted. "You doing this might just make things worse! If they really wanna talk, they'll do it when they're ready-"

"But it seems like they're never gonna be ready!" Mabel wailed.

For a moment the twins froze, her words echoing through the rafters. Then Mabel said, in a softer voice, "I'm worried that they're never gonna talk to each other, because they're both too stubborn about everything that happened to admit that they made mistakes. And it's hurting both of them, I can tell. I just...wanna give them a little push. So they can be family again."

Well, when she put it that way…

Dipper sighed.

"I'm probably gonna regret this."

A few seconds later he was trying unsuccessfully to fend off Mabel's tackle-hug.

Will Mabel's plan work, or is the Pines twins classic's friendship over forever?

And will the grunkles ever get their hairbrushes back?

Tune in next time to find out!