So as many of you know, the incredible show Gravity Falls recently concluded its run. But this incredible marvel of a story has inspired me to write this story. So without further ado, let's get on with it.

Chapter 1

The seven year old girl was sound asleep, leaning on her twin brother's shoulder. Dipper was staring at the back of the bus seat in front of him, wondering how much longer the ride would take. A bump sent his sister's hair flying everywhere, and he brushed it out of his face. Pulling his hat a bit more snugly on his head, he looked out the window, and lost himself in thought.

His parents had shipped him and his sister off for the summer to spend a few months with their Great Uncle Stan. The Pine's children's home in Piedmont had encountered some structural issues, and it wasn't safe for the kids to be around while renovations were being done. And so, with a few suitcases and a kiss on the head, the young twins were shipped off, up north to a small little town called Gravity Falls.

The loud squeaking of the brakes awoke the young girl, and she slowly and groggily raised her head from her brother's shoulder. Dipper looked over at her. "Hey, sleepyhead."

Mabel giggled in response, and looked past her twin and out the window. The woods outside the window were speeding by, slowly slowing until the bus stopped. The twins looked around. All of the other passengers had gotten off at other stops along the way, leaving the young siblings the only passengers of the bus.

The driver called out to the children. "This is it, kids. Here's your stop." The children gathered their belongings, before timidly walking up to the front of the bus. Unsure of what they were exiting the bus into, they walked out to the crisp Oregon air.

Once the young children's eyes adjusted to the brightness of the setting sun, they saw something they had not expected to see. A house (or in all honesty, more of a shack) stood before them, covered with question marks and distracting signs. The visual sight was overwhelming to the little twins, and they became absorbed in trying to look at everything before them, until their eyes rested on a sight they barely recognized.

Their Great Uncle Stan; Mabel didn't totally remember him, but Dipper's memory was a bit sharper. He remembered the conman from some old family get-together. The young Pines boy remembered the old man, having seen him talk to their grandpa Shermy a few years ago. He couldn't recall a time when the old man had ever spoken to the young kids.

The three stood in silence for a few seconds, before Stan , and looked down at Mabel. He surveyed her outfit; it was an explosion of fun and wonder, and then some. He cleared his throat. "Are you, uh, always this colorful?" He asked, unsure of what else to say.

The young twins looked at each other, then began to laugh. The two looked up at their great-uncle, who chuckled as well, before giving each child a pat on the head. He started to lead the two young children towards the shack, making small-talk as he did so. The twins laughter completely distracted them from the sounds of the bus, slowly driving back to where it came from.


The young twins spent the next hour wandering around the shack. Stan called it the Mystery Shack, and he told the young Pines kids many stories of how he'd gotten many people to spend much more money than they had planned at the store. Mabel was a bit frightened by some of the more weird and creepy attractions, but with her brother at her side, her fear quickly faded away into wondrous fascination.

With some help from Stan, the children transferred their clothing and their other belongings up to the attic, which was to be their home for the upcoming few months. The twins gazed upon the two empty beds, and then set about making them their own. Dipper was content with simply putting his favorite sheets on the mattress; a bedspread with constellations and other stars stitched into it. He then set about unpacking all of his clothing, which didn't take long. The young boy preferred to travel light.

His twin sister was another story. Mabel spent the next half hour sticking up posters of unicorns, rainbows, and cats all over her wall, before opening her first suitcase to unpack. This one was completely stuffed with assorted sweaters and skirts. Mabel happily hummed to herself as she unpacked the countless outfits that she had felt were necessary to her summer. The next bag she unpacked had all of her stuffed animals in it. Mabel adored each and every one of her stuffed animals, and would often stack all of them up in bed with her, so none of them would feel left out.

A dinner of pepperoni pizza later, and the twins were brushing their teeth and changing into their pajamas. Dipper wore a pair of flannel pajama bottoms and a plain red t-shirt, while Mabel chose a shirt with a cat on the chest and her favorite pair of pajama pants; a fluffy pair emblazoned with unicorns everywhere. Dipper wasn't sure how she had the energy to be so awake after the long day they'd had, but before he could ask her, she tagged him, and playfully ran to the other side of the room.

Laughing, the young boy got up from his seat and chased after his sister, laughing as he did so. They darted around the room, trying to catch each other, before collapsing exhausted

Stan could hear the little children laughing and playing above him, but he was more preoccupied with another task. He'd told himself that he wouldn't keep looking at it every second of the day, but he couldn't resist himself. Walking over to the cabinet, he opened the bottom drawer, and pushed aside the piles of junk. He opened the hidden bottom hatch, and pulled out a dusty book.

The man sat down in his recliner and sighed. He flipped through the pages of the journal another time, trying to find something he missed, some cipher unsolved or some clue unnoticed. Nothing. He closed the journal and sighed. How the hell was he going to get the damn thing working if he couldn't even figure out how to work it?Stan absentmindedly ran his finger along the number on the front of the book.

"Grunkle Stan!" He heard the young girl call from above him. "Can you come tuck us in?"

He rose from the chair, and set the book back down in it's hiding spot, before walking up to the children's bedroom. They'd made their beds, and were lying down, the room's lamp casting long shadows on the wall. Stan went over to his grandniece, and kissed her on the forehead. "Goodnight, sweetheart." She yawned, and smiled up at him, before turning on her side and shutting her eyes.

The older man walked over to the young boy's bed, and ruffled his hair a bit. He giggled, and pushed his grunkle's hand away. Stan chuckled as well, before giving Dipper a pat on the shoulder. "Night, kiddo. Get some sleep." The young boy nodded, and pulled his blanket up a bit higher. He rolled on his side, and Stan began to rise from his kneeling position next to the boy's bed.

He flicked off the lamp, and stood in silence for a few seconds, hearing the two young children's slow breathing as they fell to sleep. He took a deep breath himself, before walking downstairs. Slowly, he walked out of the room and down the stairs.

The house was silent, as he picked up his journal again and walked over to the vending machine.

He entered the secret code he had programmed in; A1BC3. With a mechanical hiss, the machine swung open and Stan stepped inside. Another sleepless night, he thought to himself, as he shut the secret door behind him.

Stan had spent far too many sleepless nights in his efforts. But this summer, something felt different. Stan felt more hopeful, as if answers were just on the horizon, waiting to be uncovered. He felt like he was on the verge of finally understanding what he had been trying to do for decades.

In the attic, the young twins slept silently, both of them completely unaware of the strange, fantastical turn their lives were about to take.