Disclaimer: I don't own Gravity Falls.

Chapter One: Ten Souls

It had started as a surprisingly normal day at the Mystery Shack. In fact, up to that point the last couple of days had been pretty quiet aside from Dipper and Mable going 'monster hunting' in the woods out of boredom, and returning with a pegasus foal. Having to fend off a pair of angry pegasus parents was a sight to behold, but aside from that, nothing of interest.

"Perpetrator!" Old man McGucket bellowed as if the word were some kind of battle cry, moving protectively in front of Dipper and Mable. The memory had struck his mind with force the instant he saw that man's face. Those Pines kids had done so much for him, they were his friends, and now he was keen to keep them safe.

From Ford.

"Perpetrator o' the end ti-i-imes!" he bellow madly, suddenly seeming every bit as insane as the twins had thought him during their first meeting. It was...unsettling.

For his part, Ford was stunned into silence. He had no idea of the extent the portal had driven him. Smart, sensible Fiddleford was reduced to some old, crazy-talking hobo? Was this what that infernal machine had done to him?

"Fiddleford?" he at last asked in a shocked whisper, the sheer guilt of everything crushing him in a wave as a horrible thought struck him; he caused his.

"Ya ain't getting ta my little buddies!" McGucket spoke with finality. When he began slapping, Ford casually moved out of the way so that McGucket was having a fight with a coat-rack. Seeing this odd little spectacle, Stan went over the one of the shack's main counters and pulled out a pair of glasses – the same pair he'd found in that strange spare room a while ago.

"Try this, old man." Stan said awkwardly, managing to slip the glasses on McGucket's face. He stopped slapping as his vision cleared up, clearer than it had been in years, but seeing Ford, he again stood protectively in front of the younger Pines twins.

"Stay back, kids! This man's dangerous!" McGucket growled.

"That's what I've been sayin'." Stan said.

"McGucket, wait." Mable finally spoke up and yanked his casted arm to get his attention. "He's our uncle."

"Eh?" McGucket asked, turning to them and looking confused. Dipper cleared his throat and stepped between them.

"Old Man McGucket? Gruncle Ford. Gruncle Ford, Old Man McGucket."

"They let that guy in here?" Robbie asked as Wendy rang up a small shirt with a question mark. Robbie was here to get a cheap gift for some out-of-state cousin of his who's birthday was coming up. Ss far as he knew, the kid was an even bigger nerd than Dipper, but his parents always insisted on this sort of thing. "And who's the new old guy?"

"McGucket?" Wendy asked. "He's no so bad. And as for Ford, Soos knows more than me about that."

"Dude, you want me to explain in detail?" Soos asked, pausing in his sweeping.

"Uh...I'm good." Robbie said shortly, feeling uncomfortable talking to the guy. Frankly, how Wendy could get along with such a weirdo was well beyond him.

"Your loss." Soos shrugged and went back to sweeping. "It's a very engaging story that explains so much."

Before anyone could process the sound of footsteps coming up the steps or the door knob turning, the door was yanked open and slammed shut in the span of two seconds. It was Pacifica – and she was looking frazzled. Her eyes were wide, she was panting and her back was pressed against the door as if she was desperately trying to keep something out.

"Pacifica!" Dipper and Mable gasped and ran over to her. They hadn't seen each other since the party; even with their fairly new friendship, she never stopped by the shack, so this little bit of strangeness caught their attention.

"Dipper! Mable." she huffed for breath, starting to calm down.

"Soos!" Soos chirped, earning himself looks from the other adults. When Pacifica was calm enough to speak clearly, she turned to Dipper.

"Dipper, that book of yours..." she said, still breathing a bit hard, "Is there anything in there about...a triangle with an eye?"

Nice start here? Remember, this isn't the full story, just snippets of scenes I envision; mostly character-based stuff. Review.