It wasn't long before social services arrived at their doorstep.
"Kids, get upstairs. Ford and I gotta talk to this guy alone," said Stan.
The kids felt uneasy but obeyed their uncle and went to their rooms. From their attic room, they attempted to listen in to the conversation downstairs. They couldn't make out much, but keywords like "guardian" and "custody" stood out the most.
Dipper instantly assumed the worst. "Mabel, that guy works for the state. They're deciding what they're gonna do with us."
"I thought we were staying with Stan and Ford? I mean Grunkle Stan's looked after us all summer, why would he stop?"
"Because this isn't just for the summer, Mabel! This is forever!" Dipper said growing more upset and concerned. "Do you have any idea how much money it costs to raise two kids? Food? Clothes? College? There's no way Stan will pay all that just to take care of us!"
"But if they won't take us, who will?" Mabel asked growing concerned as well. "What's gonna happen to us, Dipper?"
"They'll probably put us in foster care," he said defeated.
The idea of going to foster care was scary for Mabel, but she tried to look on the bright side to console her distressed brother. "Well, at least we'll be together."
Dipper looked at her sadly. "Not if two separate families adopt us."
"What? They can't do that! We're twins! We're a package deal! They wouldn't do that…would they?"
"They do it all the time."
Mabel was trying hard not to panic now. She forced a smile on her face. "Hey! What are we even worrying about! Stan and Ford would never send us away…right?"
"They were going to go sailing. It's their dream. They didn't want kids."
"But…but they love us. They love us."
"They love us." Dipper didn't doubt that, but he wasn't sure if that would be enough for them to give up their dream to take care of them.
"They love us," Mabel said in a desperate voice.
The two kids sat on Dipper's bed not speaking a word to each other. They were startled by a knock on the door. They feared it would be the social worker coming to take them away. They held each other's hand tight as they braced themselves for whatever their fates will be.
Stan slowly opened the door, with Ford right behind him.
"Hey, kids, we gotta talk," Stan started. He looked over at the kids' still-full suitcases. "Oh good, you're still packed."
But before he could get another word out, Dipper and Mabel hurled themselves at Stan's feet and clung to his pant legs.
"Please don't send us away, Grunkle Stan!" Mabel pleaded. "We'll be good, we promise!"
"We'll work in the shack to pay for our food!" Dipper offered.
"I can have Grenda rip off my braces, so you won't have to pay for it!"
"You…you can get a lot of tax benefits from having kids!"
"Stop it! Both of you!" Stan commanded.
Dipper and Mabel instantly backed off, not wanting to anger Stan as he laid down their sentence.
Stan gave a reassuring, but also sad, smile. "You two aren't going anywhere."
The kids hurled themselves into Stan's arms, crying and thanking him. Stan felt his heart break. He knew he hadn't been the most affectionate guardian, but it killed him that these kids could think for even a second that he would leave them. "There's no way I'm sending you kids away. We're a family. I know this summer I've been a lousy caregiver, but that's gonna change, I promise."
"But…why did you want us packed?" Dipper asked as tears of relief continued flowing from his eyes.
"Cause we're going back to Piedmont."