The Pine Twins Arrive

Dipper and Mabel Pines found themselves suddenly sent to Gravity Falls, Oregon to stay with relatives.

"You'll love the fresh air," their father, Stanley Jr. Pines told them. "I was out there in my early college days and the countryside is beautiful."

"But... our summer plans..." Dipper said.

"This will be better," said their mother, Edith Pines.

"I bet it will be super cool," said Mabel with her customary optimism. "Woop! Woop!"

"Your great-uncle, Grunkle Stan, owns a small home out there," said their father.

"What's he like?" asked Dipper.

"Your Grunkle Stan is a little... odd," said Edith Pines, "But your Grandpa Stanley and Grandmother Ruth are there, too, so everything should be perfectly fine."

(Stan was fairly proficient at imitating voices, especially his brother's, so it was not surprising he had been able to mislead the Pines when they called.)

They were dropped off by the bus at the tour-bus stop right in front of the oddest-looking building they had ever seen. It was a two-story triangular wedge, with another wing off the side. A huge sign with the words "Mystery Hack" was on the roof (the "S" had dropped off). Other tourist-trap signs were scattered everywhere, including many "No Refunds."

There was a puff of smoke and a large gray-haired man with a fez and an eyepath over one side of his glasses jumped out. He waved his cane, which had an eight-ball on it.

"Greetings, tourists!" he shouted. "I'm Mr. Mystery, your guide to the wonders of the Mystery Shack. Prepare to be amazed!"

"Grunkle Stan?" asked Mabel.

"Oh... you're not tourists. You must be Mabel and Dipper, the grand niece and nephew I was expecting. You're right; I'm your Grunkle Stan."

"Hi, Grunkle Stan," said Dipper. "Are our grandparents around?"

Stan said, "Oh, they're away on business. They'll be be back later in the summer. Let me get Soos to show you to your rooms."

Stan was glad he wouldn't have to spend too much time supervising the children. He could put them to work during business hours and let them roam free the rest of the time. After all, robot kids should be able to take care of themselves, right?

When they were unpacking in the attic room, after a quick tour of the place by Soos, Dipper said, "Mabel, you didn't bring that worn-out puppet Bear-O with you, did you?"

Mabel laughed. "Of course I did! And I'm going to get Grunkle Stan to let me do puppet shows with him on the stage down there."

She held up Bear-O and began to sing:

"They're quite a pair, Mabel and Bear-O.
Her unbearlievable beaaaaar!"

"You call him Bear-O the Great. If he's the Great Bear, are you the Little Bear?" Dipper joked.

"I'm the Mama Bear, and he's my Baby Bear," said Mabel.

"And we're both great!" she made Bear-O say.

"You'll scare the kids," Dipper said. "He's old and broken. He's had the stuffing knocked out of him."

"All the more reasons for me to love and protect him," said Mabel. "He has a face only a mother could love."

"I can't beaaar it when you talk about me that way," Mabel made Bear-O say.

Something about this conversation was making Dipper sad. He backed off and let her play with Bear-O as much as she wanted.

Soos came back up the attic stairs with a couple of framed paintings in his arms.

"Yo, dudes, I thought you guys might like these paintings to, like, jazz up your room," Soos said. "Who wants the Mickey Mouse and who wants the ship at sea?"

"No thanks, Soos," said Mabel. "I have my own posters and art."

"I'd like the ship at sea," said Dipper. "I was named for a pirate character, though I prefer my nickname."

"Dude, I was hoping you would say that. I'll keep the Mickey for me," said Soos. He walked away with it, singing, "Who's the leader of the club that's made for you and me? M-I-C-K-E-Y M-U... I forget how to spell the rest."

Soos nodded to himself as he left. He was sure Dipper would take the picture of the ship. The circuits he had built into the frame would be useful someday.

Bill was at the end of his wits. The android twins had arrived and he still didn't have the missing two journals to get the portal ready. He had to keep looking, but he came back to Gravity Falls just long enough to implant a control program into Gompers, a local goat that grazed around the Mystery Shack.

"Your mission will be to gather more symbols for the dream projector ring. Get symbols for the twins, of course. Then people around Stan Pines, or who come to the Mystery Shack often, will be best. Send the channel settings back in time to when I first contacted McGucket, in a batch, once you have a full ring."

The goat bleated, and Bill understood the answer as, "Affirmative."

"And if you see any old books with brass bindings and burgundy covers, please try to get them or at least keep track of who has them. Keep an eye on any person who finds a book and try to protect them until I get back," said Bill.

The goat bleated, "Burgundy."