I do not own Gravity Falls.

Prompt: Kris Kringle

Believing Is Seeing

Seated in the armchair, Mabel perused her letter, tapping her glitter pen against her chin as she thought. She added one more line before doing her signature. "There!"

"Did you put down all the presents you wanted?" asked Dipper, leaning over the back of the chair to peer at what his sister had written.

"The ones I want from Santa," she confirmed, glancing over her shoulder towards the door leading to the gift shop. "Is Grunkle Ford still in the lab?"

"That's where I left him," replied Dipper. "I have some laundry to do, so I figure I better get on that before I run out of clothes to wear." He tilted his head to the side and examined his sister, who looked relieved that Ford was currently holed up with work. "Why are you worried about where Ford is?"

"I don't really want him to know that I believe in Santa Claus," she admitted reluctantly, tracing the edge of her letter. "He's going to think I'm stupid."

Dipper rested a hand on her shoulder. "He is not," he said firmly. "How can he? He lives in Gravity Falls, and spent most of his life floating through dimensions. How can he say that Santa isn't real, after all the impossible stuff he's seen?"

"But that's science and paranormal and anomalies," countered Mabel. "Sure, there's gnomes and unicorns, but for the most part Grunkle Ford doesn't hold much stock in magic." She held the letter against her chest and sighed softly. "I just don't want him to think less of me."

"You don't have to worry about that," said Dipper certainly. He squeezed her shoulder before retracting his hand. "If you need stamps, there's some in the kitchen, I think. Grunkle Stan keeps them in one of the supply drawers."

Mabel brightened. "Alright, thanks!"

Dipper nodded and headed off. Mabel neatly folded up her letter and set it on the armchair. She hurried into the kitchen and started pulling open random drawers. Nothing was organized, which drove Ford crazy, and it took a bit to find what was needed.

"Last drawer is always the right drawer," she optimistically, pulling open the final one. Buried underneath some loose papers and envelopes was a sheet of stamps. She pulled it out along with an envelope and slammed the drawer shut. She hurried back to the living room and promptly froze in the doorway.

Ford was standing beside the armchair, eyes pouring over her letter. Gripping the stamps and envelope tightly, she felt suddenly sick to her stomach at the tiny frown that he wore.

It took almost half a year to get him to like me as much as Dipper, she thought in dismay. Now he's going to think I'm an idiot and want nothing to do with me.

When Ford came out of the portal, he almost immediately grew attached to Dipper. She could understand that, as they were both extremely intelligent and shared many interests. Before they left to go back to Piedmont, she and Ford had a decent relationship, and it was after constant phone calls and video chatting did they reach the close relationship they were at now.

He noticed her then and lowered the letter. "Oh, Mabel. I was-"

"I believe in Santa Claus," blurted Mabel defensively, feeling her face heat up. "I always have! I write letters to him and put out cookies for him and everything!"

"Mabel-"

"And I know you think it's stupid and probably think I'm stupid-"

"Sit."

Startled by his sharp tone, she quickly went and sat down in the armchair. Ford knelt down in front of her and held her gaze. "First of all, I've never thought you were stupid, and I don't now."

"Oh," she muttered, staring at her hands.

Ford lifted her chin with two fingers, forcing her to look at him. "You didn't want me to see this, did you?"

"No…"

"Because you thought I would think less of you?"

"Yes," she admitted softly. "When you first came here, you and Dipper were super close. It took us a bit to reach that level in our relationship. I didn't want that to change and I thought…"

"You thought I'd scoff at you for believing in Saint Nicholas," finished Ford, kicking himself mentally. He abruptly stood and lifted the girl up so he could sit down. He set Mabel in his lap and said, "Mabel, who am I to claim that there's no such thing as Santa Claus? I've seen so many impossible things here in Gravity Falls that I'd be a fool to."

Mabel looked up at him and bit down on her bottom lip. "I thought you didn't hold much stock in magic."

Ford thought his words over carefully. "Perhaps not as much as science, but I suppose that's because science has proven more to me than actual magical beings. But I've discovered unicorns, and that opened my mind to other possibilities. But Mabel, I'm not going to think less of you because of your opinions or your beliefs."

"That's what Dipper said." Mabel suddenly felt very sheepish. "I'm sorry."

"No, I'm sorry." Ford shifted Mabel around so that they were looking at each other. "I know wasn't very fair over my treatment between you and Dipper. I can admit I let my past with Stan reflect onto you two. That wasn't right." He looked at her closely. "But I've always liked you, Mabel. Always."

Beaming, she wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him. "Thanks, Grunkle Ford."

"You know, it's probably better to mail this sooner than later." Ford stuck the letter into the envelope. "So what do you say?"

"Definitely," cheered Mabel. She peeled a stamp off of the sheet and stuck it onto the back of the envelope. She used her great-uncle's pen to write her address and Santa's address and she stood up. "Ready!"

"Then let's go."

Linking hands, the two walked to the front hall, intent on mailing a letter to good old Kris Kringle.