Soos had made himself a promise. While he was still living, nothing would hurt the kids. Dipper and Mabel meant a lot to him, almost as much as Melody. Maybe more.

He trusted them more than he trusted Stan. Something he never thought would happen.

So when it looked like the kids were in danger, he literally jumped to the rescue.

Stan had started a portal, one that the Author of Dipper's Journal said could destroy the world. Stan could have destroyed the world. Stan, who Soos had always looked up to. Stan wanted to... What did Stan want to do?

Soos saw a man walk through the portal. Along with a... Blue glow. Stan said that the man was his brother. The Author of the Journals. The Man took his mask off, and he had to be what Stan said. He looked almost exactly like Stan.

Then Stan-2 saw the kids. And he had the most peculiar reaction.

He drew a gun out, and pointed it right at Mabel.

"You're here! After all these long..."

Ford had stepped through the portal, taken off his mask, and had looked around the room. His black attire was suddenly pulled back, and he reached a hand into one of his pockets and drew out a weapon. A gun.

Then he aimed for Mabel.

Stan's ears began to ring, he could feel his heart thumping in his chest. Ford was... Mabel... No! He had just gotten one family member back, he couldn't lose another one! Mabel was just a kid! Her eyes were wide, staring into the barrel of the futuristic weapon that was glaring at her like the man holding it.

"Ford! What are you doing?!"

Ford didn't respond for a moment, his eyes narrowed. The look on his face was so cold it made Stan's blood want to freeze. He hadn't seen Ford this angry since...

Why would I want to do anything with the person who sabotaged my entire future!?

Stan knew where Ford's anger for him came from. But Mabel? What on Earth could she have done that would make Ford hate her?

"Quiet Stan." Ford said, his voice was hushed, and there was a venom that permeated it. "Stay behind me."

Stan was filled with confusion and fear. Ford was still glaring at Mabel, who was paralyzed with terror, and Stan didn't blame her. There was a protective gleam in Ford's eyes, and Stan somehow knew that he thought that Mabel was a genuine threat.

Suddenly, Dipper reached forward and grabbed Mabel's limp arm. Ford's eyes snapped from Mabel to the boy, and the gun wavered between the two of them.

For a second that felt like eternity, no one moved. Ford was now holding his free arm halfway behind him, like he was shielding something. He obviously thought that Dipper was a threat as well.

"Ford..." Stan said slowly, "Please point that gun somewhere else."

Dipper slowly moved Mabel's arm towards his chest, and his eyes were trained on the weapon that had gained everybody's attention. If Ford heard Stan, he didn't heed him, he continued to keep his line of fire right between Dipper and Mabel's heads.

Then Soos, who had recovered from the initial shock of... Well, everything that had just happened, thrust his question-marked body in between the kids and Ford, holding his arms out wide.

"Step aside." Ford hissed, and just as Stan was going to respond, a small voice came from behind Ford.

"Um... Ford there's something..."

"Not now Will." Ford snapped, taking his eyes briefly off of Soos and glancing under his outstretched arm. "I need to focus."

Whoever this 'Will' was, he didn't say anything after that. Dipper pulled Mabel close to him, and turned the two of them around, Dipper's back facing Soos. All Stan could think was 'This is exactly the first impression I wanted the kids to have of Ford.'

"Ford." Stan said, taking a tentative step towards his brother. "Calm down, it's just Dipper and Mabel."

Ford laughed slightly. Really it was just a small catch in his throat and a raising of his shoulders, but Stan wanted to think that it was a laugh.

"Just Dipper and Mabel? Just Dipper and Mabel!?" Ford snapped his head over to look at Stan, and he drooped the gun down slightly, now aiming for the dot at the bottom of Soos' shirt.

"Do you know what they've done?" Ford cried, his voice filled his bitterness and slight hysteria. "They have all of Gravity Falls wrapped around their little bloodstained fingers!"

Stan couldn't help but widen his eyes. If Ford was talking about Dipper and Mabel... They couldn't be the ones he was thinking of... If Ford pulled that trigger...

"Ford, listen. Dipper and Mabel aren't..."

"Ford? I need to tell you something."

Ford glanced behind him again, back at the 'Will:, and nodded once, not moving his hands.

"They're not the ones you saved me from."

Ford froze, his eyes widening just like Stan's. He pointed the pistol at the floor, and asked quietly, "They're not? How do you know?" .

A faint blue light appeared on Ford's right side, and Stan could just make out a tiny sliver of a form standing behind Ford. There was an odd familiarity in the blue, like Stan had seen it in a dream...

"I just do. I can feel it. Can't you?" The tiniest edge of an eye peaked out from between Ford and the portal, and Stan could almost make out the creature's shape...

Ford scowled, and slid his weapon back into it's holster, but didn't take his hand off of it. "No I can't." Ford told Will, "Ever since Dimension {Jπ}0 I've been rather disoriented..."

The blue creature nodded shyly, and seemed to notice Stan staring at it. It shrank a bit, and ducked entirely behind Ford. "Plus," he added, placing a glowing hand on his arm. "Look at Stanley. He's not mine."

Ford nodded, and squinted his eyes at Stan, like he was trying to remember who Stan was. "I didn't think of that..." He whispered.

He suddenly pulled the gun back out. Soos gasped and took half a step back, covering the entirety of the kids. Stan raised his arms, and was about going to shout something, but Ford's next action cut him off before he began.

Ford threw his gun to Stan's feet. And held his hands up, widening his fingers.

He was surrendering.

So like... Mabel had been in a lot of death defying adventures before (case and point: Gideon-bot), but she wasn't expecting to go through another one today.

Then the Author of the Journals came through the portal, and pointed a Sci-fi Lazer in her face. Not cool.

Then Soos (bless his heart), had jumped to save her and Dipper again, shielding them with his own body.

Now Mabel really needed to make him a Thank You sweater, and maybe some dinosaur-shaped cookies.

After a few minutes, which felt like forever, Soos took a step back, and the sound of a loud Clang! filled the room.

Soos seemed to relax slightly, and suddenly Stan was there. He put his strong arms around Dipper and Mabel and pulled them into a hug, whispering "It's okay, it's okay..."

Mabel wanted to believe him. But... Could it be?

She heard the voice of the Author, he was explaining something, but Mabel couldn't really tell what he was saying.

Then Stan let go of them, and turned to place a hand on Soos' shoulder.

Soos stepped warily to the side, and Stan grabbed one of Dipper and Mabel's hands, bringing forward to stand on either side of him.

"Ford," he said quietly, and Mabel got her first good look at the man, who, just a few moments before, was ready to kill her.

He looked almost exactly like Grunkle Stan. He was in a dark coat that came down past his knees. He had a glint in his eyes, the same one Stan had gotten when he was protecting the kids from the zombies.

The Author, 'Ford', was scanning Mabel and her brother, with a slight touch of sadness. "You're right." He mumbled, glancing a bit to his left.. "They're not your's."

A blue glow appeared on his left side, first a tiny tip, then more blue, then an eye became visible, then floating in the air,. right next to Ford's waist, was a blue triangle. But not just any triangle...

Bill Cipher.

Dipper gasped, and Mabel didn't blame him. After the sock incident...

Ford placed a hand on Bill's side, and the triangle pushed itself towards him, reaching small black hands around Ford's larger than average ones.

"I'm sorry." Mabel blinked, Ford, who had come with a second Bill Cipher, the crazy triangle, and had been ready to kill her, was aplogizing to her.

"I thought you were someone else." Ford said, looking between the two younger Pines. "What I almost did was unacceptable, and I apologise."

Stan pulled his arms forward, bringing Dipper and Mabel a bit closer to Ford. The two of them shared a look, Dipper's eyes were angry, but Mabel's... She sort of believed Ford.

She looked back at Ford, and despite what logic told her, she said, "I forgive you."

Dipper jerked his head towards her again and hissed, "Mabel!"

Ford sighed, and slowly stepped towards the three other Pines. He held a hand out to Mabel, who released Stan's and walked up to Ford. She grabbed his fingers and shook his hand firmly.

"Wow! A six fingered handshake. That's a full finger friendlier than normal!" Ford smiled shyly at her comment, and continued to hold her hand long after the shake was done. "I'm just glad you don't have an evil magical amulet." He told her, and she raised her eyebrows.

"Magic amulet? Like the one Gideon had?" Mabel asked, glancing a little at Bill, who had gasped.

"Gideon?" Ford asked, dropping her hand. "Gideon Gleeful?"

"You know him?" Mabel asked, Bill had closed his eye tightly, showing off an awful red scar that crossed the entirety of his eyelid. Mabel had the suddenly urge to hug the triangle, but instead focused on Ford.

"Not personally." Ford answered, glancing back at Bill. "But Will did, sort of."

Mabel nodded slowly, "Did he go to jail there?" Ford looked at Mabel like she'd gone crazy, then his shoulders relaxed and he asked quietly, "Did he hurt you?"

Mabel shrugged, "Not too badly, I mean, I sometimes have nightmares that I'm still dating him. But his robot didn't hurt me too badly." .

Ford nodded, "And Pacifica?"

Mabel began to explain the relationship between the Pines and the rest of the town, the entire time Will was growing smaller and glancing nervously between the occupants of the room.

Stan and Ford had finished explaining everything that had just happened, Mabel and Soos had found Stan's story to be very sad. Dipper's reaction to Ford's was breathless amazement. The very idea of alternate universes opened up so many questions and ideas.

"So there's a universe where Mabel and I are evil?" Dipper asked, glancing at Will, who was practically burying himself into Ford's coat. The triangle was obviously uncomfortable with the situation.

"Yes," Ford said, placing a comforting hand on Will. "That's where I rescued Will from."

Stan nodded, and tried to flash Will a smile, but he only succeeded in freaking the triangle out. Will ducked almost completely into Ford's jacket, only his top hat was visible..

"Poor Will." Mabel said, and that made Ford's coat start to shake. Ford looked like he was having a hard time not laughing, and he pressed a hand over the space Will was hiding in. "I'd suggest not saying things like that." Ford said, "The other Mabel..."

Mabel gasped. "I'm sooo sorry Will." She said quickly, "I didn't mean to scare you."

This would take some getting used to.

Here's the continuation of chapter 21. Hope it meets your expectations!

So chapter 21 happened a few months before this. I believe that the Reverse twins would get the portal started quicker than normal, with Will as their slave. Will told Ford his story, so that's why he was so on edge.

Now, without Bill, everything should be okay. Will can re-readjust, Ford will bond with his actual family, and everything will hopefully be okay! Yay!

TFD, I'm so sorry for making you feel stupid. You're not (as I tell my friends, God doesn't make stupid people, only ignorant ones), I was referencing the Blacklight edition of the Journal (I watched a YouTube video on it).

Thanks for all the reviews! You guys make my day!

-BrilliantLight