Hey guys! I finally got around to continuing with this story! I got a little sidetracked with a few of my other stories, but I'm glad I updated this one finally. I hope that it's as good as the first chapter. I'm still relatively new to the Gravity Falls fandom, so I hope that I kept everyone in character.
I apologize for any grammatical errors. (I think I fixed all of them!)
Enjoy!
Ford entered the kitchen to find Stan reading the newspaper while watching Mabel mix together a brightly-colored concoction, trying hard not to let his amusement show. Stan shook his head. "I don't understand how you can drink that, Mabel."
Ford cleared his throat to grab their attention. "Oh hey Grunkle Ford!" Mabel exclaimed brightly. She stopped blending the suspicious looking drink and held it up. "Would you like some Mabel Juice? It's been certified with awesomeness!"
Stan scoffed. "That's about as real as the safety certifications I had on those rides at the carnival."
Ford smiled and laughed nervously. "Not now sweetie. I'm kind of busy at the moment," he said, which was partially true. But more than anything it was an attempt to dodge his niece's replies to drink whatever was in that blender. Were those...plastic dinosaurs floating around in it? Ford shuddered. Definitely not drinking that, he concluded to himself.
"You don't look too busy to me," Stan said with a slight hint of hostility in his voice. The two still weren't getting along so well. Ever since Stan had rescued Ford from the portal, the two still held resentment and bitterness towards the other.
"I am busy, for your information," Ford retorted, rolling his eyes, "I just came down here to tell you all that I have something important to show you."
"Well if it's in that stupid lab of yours it can't be too important."
Mabel could sense the unwanted tension in the air and decided to break it before the twins could get into another argument. The last time the two had argued, it resulted in both saying things they didn't mean and them both blatantly ignoring each other. "I wanna see it!" She said happily, her eyes lighting up. "What is it? Is it a surprise?" She was practically bouncing in her seat by now.
"You could say that," Ford said hesitantly. He didn't want her to get her hopes up. Knowing Mabel, she was probably envisioning a puppy.
"Let's go see it then! The suspense is killing me!" She hopped down from the chair and grabbed Ford's hand. "Are you coming, Grunkle Stan?"
"Nah. I'm perfectly content reading the comic section." He chuckled. "It's probably more entertaining than whatever that nerd is planning on showing you."
Silence fell upon the room and the twins shared a chilly glare. Mabel broke the animosity by dragging Ford towards the basement. "Well, we wouldn't want to keep that surprise waiting, would we Grunkle Ford?"
The two walked into the basement, Mabel clutching Ford's hand the whole time. She normally didn't scare easily, but every time she walked into the basement, chills ran up her spine. It was always so dark, and it felt like an almost ominous presence hovered above them. It was almost like you could feel that this was a bad room, that you could tell that unfortunate things had happened here. And every time she set foot in here, she remembered that fateful day when she first learned of the basement, when she had learned that her Grunkle Stan wasn't who he said he was. She had been scared of what it all meant, of what it all would mean. But most of all, she remembered when the portal first opened, and how she thought they all were doomed.
When Ford saw her visibly shaking, he let go of her hand to place a hand on her shoulder. "Are you alright, Mabel?"
When she snapped out of her unpleasant memories, she looked up at him and gave him a big grin. She didn't want him to worry about her. "Of course I am!"
Ford knew she wasn't fond of the basement and of his lab and that she was just hiding her true feelings, but he ignored it for the time being. He could feel his anxiety and excitement welling up inside of him. He couldn't wait to show her what had become of Bill. She was going to love it.
"I don't see what the big surprise is Grunkle Ford," she admitted, looking around. "It all looks the same to me."
He laughed. "That's because you're not looking hard enough my dear. Come with me." He lead her to a desk in the far corner of the room that lay only inches away from the portal. He picked up the bottle that worked as a prison for Bill and held it up. "Look at this."
She leaned in close to inspect the bottle and gasped. "Is that a fairy Grunkle Ford?" Her voice had gone up several octaves due to her excitement and her eyes were now sparkling.
"Yes it is. But it's not just any fairy." He sighed and a serious look came over his features. He knew she probably would have a hard time believing him; after all, he had a hard time believing it himself. It was hard to wrap his mind around the fact that one of his biggest enemies, who was one of the most powerful beings in the entire universe, had been turned into a tiny fairy by a measly spell. The mere idea seemed preposterous. "As crazy as this sounds Mabel, I want you to hear me out and believe me, all right?" When she nodded her approval, he continued. "It's Bill Cipher."
To his surprise, she burst into a fit of laughter. "What? Bill Cipher? No way!" She doubled over and continued to laugh until tears sprang from her eyes.
"I can prove it to you!" Ford gave the bottle a good shake, causing Bill to tumble around inside, waking him from his slumber.
"What's the big idea, Sixer? Can't a triangle sleep in peace?"
When Ford saw the look of shock on Mabel's face, he said, "Sound familiar?"
She nodded. "Y-yeah! But...how? How could Bill be turned into a fairy! I thought he was like, super powerful and all that junk!"
"Hey may be super powerful, but he wasn't clever enough to stop me this time, not with what I had planned. You see, during my years of research for the journals, I came across many things, and part of that was spells. When you stick around the supernatural for so long, you start to learn their secrets. I've recorded countless spells with the hopes that they might come in handy some day. Sure enough, it all payed off."
"So you're telling me you cast a fairy spell on Bill?" Mabel asked, eyeing Ford questioningly.
"Exactly. I don't know how long it will last, seeing as I've never felt the need to cast it before today. But nevertheless, it stopped Bill and his plans to bring about Weirdmageddon for now."
Mabel grabbed the glass bottle from Ford and held it gently, as if it would break at any moment. She brought it up to her face so she could peer at Bill more closely. "What're you looking at, Shooting Star?" Bill asked, trying to sound menacing but failing miserably.
She smiled and looked at him adoringly. "Aww, you're so cute when you're mad!"
Bill's face turned a dark shade of crimson. "Me? Cute? I am an all powerful being that could kill you if I wanted to!" He vigorously beat against the glass. "When I get out of here, you are so dead!"
"Be careful there buddy, wouldn't want to hurt your cute little fairy hands," Mabel cooed, rubbing the bottle against her cheek. "You're so adorable like this! Grunkle Ford, you should have turned him into a fairy a long time ago!"
"Yes well, this was sort of a last resort that I had to use at the time." Even so, it's the perfect way to detain Cipher, not to mention a hilarious punishment, he thought smugly.
He watched as Mabel shook the bottle, causing Bill to tumble in every direction. She didn't show any signs of stopping anytime soon, and Ford didn't feel the need to stop her. "Have mercy on me, Sixer!" Bill pleaded, reaching out a hand in Ford's direction. Ford turned the other way and acted as if he hadn't heard him.
Yes, this was definitely the perfect punishment.
Thanks for sticking with me and for all of the kind reviews on the first chapter! Honestly, that's why I decided to continue with this crazy fanfic.
As always, please don't be scared to let me know what you think! Feedback is greatly appreciated.
