« So you want me to believe that in the last thirty years or so, you've never been sick like this before? » Stanford asked Stan's back from the doorframe of their bathroom aboard the Stan O War II while juggling a young four year old toddler that just wanted to be anywhere but in his arms.

His twin had woken up this morning and made a quick dash to the bathroom to empty the content of his stomach. He's been in there for the past hour, retching and dry heaving. He had woken up so fast that he didn't have time to change and was still wearing his tank top and boxers.

Stan took a few shuddering breaths before making an attempt to stand up. His legs just buckled under him and he fell flat on his rear on the ceramic floor. He grunted and stayed there a few moments, not trusting his body to carry him anywhere at the moment. « What ya wanna me ta say? » His voice was more raspy than normal. Stanford couldn't see much from his vantage point, but his brother didn't look good. His head was low between his shoulders and his skin looked sticky. « Being sick never stopped me before. I could always pull through. I… I had to pull through… I couldn't stop… I couldn't... » A new wave of nausea hit him before he could finish his sentence and he went back to the toilet seat.

« Oh Lee... » Ford said sympathetically. How come his brother had sacrificed so much for his sake. His name, his health and up until recently his memories. Stanford felt a wave of guilt wash over him. A cold feeling creeping around his heart that made him shuddered. His twin never took a break, never stopped trying to get him back for the last thirty years. Not to take care of himself, or just to have some semblance of a break. And the first thing Stanford had asked of him was to leave his house. He lowered his head in shame.

Stanford had been the screw up in the family, not Stanley.

Little A squirmed in his arms and smacked him on the head with her tail, dislodging his glasses in the process and bringing him back to reality. She was trying to escape his embrace. Ford was worried that she would try to go to his brother. He was sure Stan wouldn't want a toddler sitting next to him. He sighed and turned on his heels. Giving his brother some privacy to finish his business. He just closed the door behind him.

Stanford went to the living room and deposited Little A on the floor. The little ginger girl just sat there for a moment, it looked like she was processing the fact that she was no longer being held by someone. She looked around the room for a moment before standing up and walking towards the bathroom. She was extending a hand toward the doorknob. « Little one! » Ford called her. She turned around and looked at him with a puzzled look. « Leave Stanley alone. He's not feeling well, leave him be ».

Little A frowned and stuck her hands in the small pockets of her blue overhaul. She took one last glance at the door before heading for their bedroom. She came back a few moments later with her orca plushie, sat back down where Ford had first put her and played with it. Only glancing occasionally at the bathroom door.

Stanford went to the kitchen table, positioned himself so that he still had an eye on the little ginger girl and took his journal out to scribble a few extra notes about her. He had discovered last night that the toddler was color blind. Very uncommon in women, but considering the fact that she had wolf blood in her it might have played a part in her condition.

From what he observed, She could see most of the colors in grayscale, except the yellows and the reds. Those two colors seemed to look the same to her. He had given her a rubik's cube, a small memento Fiddleford had left for him on his sea voyage, to see if she could solve it. Of course she couldn't really solve it, but it did help Ford to see which colors she would and wouldn't be able to discern. The yellows and reds had been the most mixed up colors.

She had also tried to cheat and remove the stickers around in order to solve it. Stan had found it hilarious, but Ford hadn't been to enthusiastics with that behavior. His twin had made the argument that it's probably how she managed to survive this long. The old scientist wondered if this behavior was so increased in her that even with her memories reverted those old habits didn't truly left. Deep down, he could relate.

Ford heard the sound of the bathroom door opening. He turned to see his twin stepping out. His eyes were a bit red and had huge dark bags. He didn't have much color on his face. Before he could say anything, Stan dragged his feet back to their bedroom.

Stanford rose to his feet and followed him, but not before grabbing a few things from their cabinet in the process and a glass of water. As he was crossing the doorway, he picked up the sound of little feet coming rapidly behind him. Just as Little A passed him, he grabbed her by the mid-section in one swift movement and tucked her under his arm like a potato bag. He didn't want her to jump on the bed if Stanley was ill. It was her prefered method to wake them up. The little toddler squirmed a little, but didn't try to escape.

Stan had already crawled back in his bed and raised the blanket all the way up to his head. Only a lock of his silver hair was poking out. Ford sat on the edge of the bed, Stan growled as the weight on the bed shifted a little. Stanford placed the glass of water and the medecin he had on the nightstand. He shifted Little A's position to have her rested on his arm, instead of under it. He realized that she had brought her plushy with her. She shot him an indignant glare, with her ears tucked back for a moment, before looking back at Stan.

Ford stretched his other arm out and gently probed Stan on the shoulder. His twin grunted at the touch and sank deeper into his covers. « I know you need rest, I won't bother you any longer then needed, but you need to take some medicine. You'll feel better. » He kept his voice down and waited patiently for his brother to sit up.

After a few moments, Stan sat up and took the medicine and glass of water. « Since when are you a medical expert? ». He gulped it down in one swing and went right back to rest in his bed.

« Well, I am the one with PhDs... » Ford slid Little A from resting on his arm to his thigh.

Stan chuckled weakly. « The only one with any medical training aboard right now is this little booger. » Stan pointed to Little A resting on Ford's leg. She saw him pointing at something, tried to look at what he was pointing at and gave him a confused look when she couldn't pinpoint it, one ear raised, the other tilting and a little fang poking out of her mouth.

Ford laughed at her confusion. « This might be true, but in the meantime I'll be the one treating you. » He took Stan's empty glass and went out the room. « Get some rest. We won't bother you anymore. I will be bringing you something to eat later. »

Stan grunted in response. Little A squirmed in Stanford's arms and pointed at his brother's silhouette on the bed. « Little one, we won't be disturbing Stan. He needs rest. » He whispered to her as he exited the room.

« Wanna help! » Little A moaned. She tried to pry herself free of his grip to no avail. « Orca 'tay with 'Tan and 'Tan feel better! Won't be 'lone. » Ford sighed and gave way. He went back to his brother's bed and held The toddler atop of it.

Little A stopped squirming as they reached the bed again. She probed him with her tiny hand. Stan turned around toward them, a frown on his face. Ford had said they'll let him rest and were still bothering him. Ford smiled sheepishly. « The little one wanted you to have this. » He raised Little A in his sight.

The little girl raised her plush in his face and said with a bright smile. « Keep Orca ta feel better! » Stan took the plush and looked at it for a moment, before tugging it under the covers with him. Ford heard a mumble of thanks and smiled. Little A wagged her tail, happy to have helped her sick friend.

After returning to the living room, Stanford rested Little A on the sofa and wondered what they should be doing next. He looked at the clock on the wall. It was just a little bit past nine. He wouldn't need to start making lunch until a couple of hours.

He looked down at the toddler who looked at him expectantly. Her tail was wagging, at least she was happy. « What do you want to do, little one? »

She got all thoughtful for a moment, holding her chin with one of her hands. Stanford chuckled, he could almost see the cogs turning in her head. « Mmm… Beachcombing? » She asked him with a bright smile on her face.

Stanford thought for a moment, holding his chin. Little A laughed as he mimicked her. Going to the beach would distract and entertain her. It would also be a good excuse to leave the boat and give his brother more peace. On the other hand, Stan had just gone to rest and was still pretty ill. The old scientist wanted to stay near him for the time being, to make sure everything was alright. « How about we go beachcombing after lunch? » Little A nodded in approval. « In the meantime, is there a game you would like to play aboard the boat? »

Little A stepped down the couch and walked to the small kitchen. She went right up to the fridge, opened the door and searched inside for something. Stanford just sat down on the sofa and let her search, wondering what she was looking for. He rested his elbow on his knees and leaned forward.

« HA! » she then exclaimed after a moment. She closed the door and trotted back toward Stanford, holding something in her hands. She held it up toward his face and smiled brightly. « Hiding Lemon! »

Stanford raised an eyebrow. He had never played the game with Little A, but he had seen Stanley play. They had invented the game, to test out her sense of smell. The game was simple : Stan would hide the lemon somewhere inside the cabin and Little A would have to find it with a blindfold on, using all of her other senses to search for it. Apparently it was too easy if she didn't have one on. The lemon still had to be in plain sight, so not in the oven or in a cupboard. If Ford was smart enough, it would occupy her for most of the morning.

Stanford took the lemon from her hands and looked around the room. He just needed to found something to use as a blindfold. His eyes landed on the tablecloth hanging on the door of the oven. He stood up and walked to it. Little A was hot on his heels, all bushy tail and smile.

Ford smiled at the toddler and crouched down, setting the blindfold on. Little A danced on one feet and the other, excited to start the game. She didn't move too much as he tied it securely on her head. « Now can you see anything? » He asked her. She shook her head side to side.

Stanford stood up and explored the room, rolling the lemon in his hand, looking for a good hiding place for the first round. « Now where should I put it? » He mused to himself. « On the book shelf? Near the TV perhaps…? How about under the sofa? »

Little A giggled from the kitchen. « Sisser not ' 'appose ta say where lemon is hiding! » She scolded playfully.

« I know, I know little one. I'm just trying to… mess with you. To distract you from… HA! There!» Ford announced triumphantly. « Now try to find the lemon Little A » The old scientist turned to the toddler and put his hands behind his back, keeping them open. He stood there and observed how Little A would fare. He had only seen glimpse and piece of the game.

The toddler quickly went to work. She walked where she last heard Stanford, barely avoiding the furniture in the process. Her ears grazed the dining table, but she didn't mind. She came next to him and sniffed the air, trying to get a scent on the lemon. Stanford squeezed his hands for a moment. She circled him a couple of times before retracing her steps.

She explored the cabin thoroughly for a couple of minutes, her hands standing in front of her to avoid any obstacles. Stanford observed that her ears were more active with the blindfold on. They would move around and twitch at every little noise. He doubted she had some sort of echolocation skills, she would be making little clicking noises if she had. It probably helped her track down her position in the cabin. If she could hear the fridge on her left or right, she would know where she is.

The old scientist was elaborating different hypotheses, when Little A turned around and sniffed the air, raising her nose as high as she could. She lowered her head down and thought for a moment. She wasn't trying to find it anymore, she was thinking on what to do next and where she had smelled the elusive lemon the most.

Stanford chuckled at her antics. He understood now what his brother meant when he said he could hear him thinking. Little A's ear twitched in his direction. For a moment she stopped moving. Ford could see her brow knitting together under the blindfold and it made his shoulder shake a little more. He choked out a laugh when her full body turned toward him. Her ears flipped backwards.

Little A ran back toward him, nearly avoiding one of the table's legs and bumped into him. She walked around him and moved her hand all over him. She was looking for something on him. Ford chuckled louder. She seemed to take it as a sign that she was on the right path and moved to his back. She caught one of his wrists and pulled with all her weight to get him down. Ford took the hint and lowered down, kneeling on the ground. Little A ran her hands up and down his forearms, looking for his hands. When she found them, she made a little grunting noise and picked the lemon from his hands before shoving Stanford.

Ford fell forward and laughed. He slowed his fall by raising his now lemon free hand and rolled on his back. He came face to face with an angry looking toddler holding a lemon in her hands. She had removed the blindfold. « Sisser cheated! » She accused him and tossed the lemon at his face.

Ford caught the citrus fruit and laughed. « I did not! » he said, faking an indignant tone.

« Yes ya did! Sisser kept lemon in hand! Hand not a hiding place! » Little A crossed her arms over her chest and glared at him.

« Now, the rules said the lemon has to be in plain sight Little one and I never closed my hands » Ford smirked at the toddler. Little A's face turned red and she lunged herself onto his stomach.

Stanford wheezed for a few moments, trying to catch his breath between the toddler landing on his belly and his laughing fit. He tried not to make too much noise, as to not disturb his brother's rest. He stretched his head back, trying to get a look at their bedroom door. When he heard nothing he turned his attention back to Little A.

The toddler was sitting on his belly and still looking at him angrily. Her tail swishing back and forth like an angry cat and her ears were tucked behind her head. « Sisser cheated! Sisser apowogize! » She demanded frowning.

Stanford took a deep breath and pulled himself upward. Sitting up right and resting the toddler on his legs. « No, I won't. I played fair and square. Beside you still found the lemon in the end. » He tried to give her back the lemon but she refused to take it, turning away from him and sulking.

Ford laughed harder at the toddler's antics which made her sulk and pout more. Stanford deposited the lemon on the table to have both hands free. He had seen her act like that with Stan and had a pretty good idea on what to do to get her spirit back up.

Ford rested a hand on her back, sensing her tensing up at the touch. He carefully moved to her armpits and wiggled his six fingers, tickling her. The toddler's reaction was automatic. She reeled back and tried to escape his grip to no avail. She waved her arms, legs and tail around trying to dislodge herself, but Ford's hold was solid. She was trapped and couldn't escape her tickling doom. « Stap it! Sisser! Stap it! » She begged him.

« Not a chance, little one. » He answered. Little A tried to hold her mouth closed, keeping her lips sealed, but Ford could see that she wasn't gonna hold it for long. She stiffle a laughter before giving way to his torture. After snorting and holding her breath, she let go and burst out laughing. She was still trying to move Ford's hand away from her, but he kept coming back.

He went at it for a couple minutes. Little A was breathing heavily on his lap, trying to catch her breath. She wasn't pouting anymore and had a bright smile on her face. Her cheeks were pink and her eyes were shining. She rubbed them to get free of the mirth.

« Do you wanna play again? » Stanford inquired, raising an eyebrow. He had a smile on his face too.

Little A nodded enthusiastically and got off him to retrieve the blindfold. Before handing it back to him she said in a serious four year old tone « Sisser hides lemon this time! Pwomess no keeping in hands! »

Stanford laughed and took the blindfold from her to set it back on. « I promise, I will hide it this time. »

They kept playing until noon. Stanford had kept his word and didn't hide the lemon on him anymore, placing it all around the cabin instead. Little A managed to find it everytime in under 20 minutes, making the old researcher wonder what her personal record would be. He'd have to time her the next time she plays with his twin. She was picking up quickly where he would and wouldn't place the citrus fruit. Stan was definitely better at this game then he was.

After their little play time was over, Stanford started prepping a little meal for Little A, his ill twin and himself. Little A seated herself in a chair atop a pile of books to be at the table's level and peeled off the shell of some boiled eggs for her and Stanford's lunch. He didn't want to force something too strong on his twin's stomach, so he was prepping some rice and chicken over on the stove. It would help him better than egg sandwiches.

« Done! » Little A exclaimed after a moment. Stanford looked around to see her proudly smiling up at him... with eggshells all over her. Ford felt his shoulder dropped a little, he'd have to clean her up before eating. He peered at the table and was glad that the boiled eggs were in a better state then she was. He also saw that most of the shells were on her and not on the table or on the ground, so that was a plus he guessed.

« Well done, Little one. » Ford said. He walked to the fridge and took out the mayonnaise and a small bowl. « Now, do you think you'd be up to mixing the boiled eggs and the mayonnaise together? » He asked while handing her the bowl and a fork. « Without making a mess » He added looking at her.

She looked at the ingredients and her hands alternatively for a moment, brow furrowed. She looked up at him and said with all the seriousness of a four year old « No pwomesses. » Ford sighed and left her work.

He went back to the stove and served the rice and chicken into a plate for Stan. He heard Little A mumble behind him and smiled. She was singing to herself like Stan would, singing about how she was mixing eggs and mayonnaise to make a sandwich. It was weird how the little one had quickly picked up some of his brother's antics. Maybe it was because they shared history together and she only had known Stanford for a couple of days.

He couldn't help to wonder if Dipper and Mabel were anything like her when they were her age, well her current cursed age. Stan had seen the twins when they were younger, unlike him. Not that he had been a family man to begin with. He had barely spent any time with his nephew, too busy in his research and Bill… Only after his return from the portal did he realize, almost too late, the importance of family. Deep down, he knew that Little A won't replace what he missed out on, but he'll still enjoy it while it lasted. He smiled to himself and took the plate to their bedroom with a glass of water, leaving Little A to herself for a few minutes.

Their bedroom was still dark, so before coming any closer he said softly « Lee… Are you up? » Stan didn't answer but he saw the covers on his bed shifted a little at his name. Stan pulled the covers up and looked at the door. He was still holding Little A's orca plush in his hands. Ford took this as a good sign and walked to the bed, setting the glass of water on the bedside table and showing his twin the small meal he had for him. « I thought you might be hungry, And, hum, even if you aren't, it would still be good for you to have some food. » Stan wiggled out of his bed to take the plate from his brother's hand and ate. The plushie rested between them.

Stan looked around and frowned. « Where's the kid? » he asked while taking another spoonful of rice.

« In the kitchen, prepping the eggs for our meal. » Stan quirked an eyebrow at Ford's statement and Ford quickly added, « It's boiled eggs, Stan, she can't really hurt herself much. She wanted to help out, who am I to say no? »

« Fair enough, if you think it's safe for her. » Stan added, chuckling a little. His voice was still pretty raspy. Ford took the time to look Stan all over. His twin was still pretty pale, but at least he was eating something. His bangs were glued to his forehead, but he wasn't sweating anymore, not like he had this morning. He still had some bags under his eyes, but they weren't as black as they had been this morning. Stan had managed to get some sleep at least. Ford was quite happy with the little improvement his twin had made. « What's your prognostic, sixer? »

« Huh…? » Ford blinked at his twin a couple of times.

« I know you're checking up on me, so what's your prognostic? » Stan asked again.

« You still look pretty pale, but you are eating so that's a god sign. » Ford went on. « The rest did you some good, so keep that up and you should be fine. Maybe drink some fluid more, we don't want you to get dehydrated on top of everything. We'll leave you be after you've eaten. »

« Mmm… Yeah, that's a good idea. Hey, what have you been up too with the little pea? You making her play your nerd board? »

« Ahah! I think she's too young for that. No, we played Hiding Lemon all morning. » Ford answered with a found smile on his face, but soon turned serious as he asked. « Hey Stan, were Mabel and Dipper anything like her? You know, when they were kids? »

Stan choked on his last spoonful of rice a little before looking at his twin in bewilderment. « Where is that coming from, sixer?! » He managed to get out, in between his coughing fee.

« I don't know… We've been taking care of a toddler for a few weeks now and it looks like the effect of the pond will last for at least a month… And I couldn't help to wonder what the niblings were as toddlers. » He holds his hands together in front of him, resting his arms on his knees, avoiding Stan's eyes. « What I might've missed out on... »

Stan stayed silent beside him for a moment. After a moment, Stan rested a hand on Ford's shoulder and squeezed it reassuringly. « Hey, don't beat yourself about it. You're here now aren't you? Nobody is holding it against you. Besides, the kids love you. » Ford looked up to him, the shadow of a smile creeping on his lips. « Now to answer your question. No, Little A is nothing like the kids. It might surprise you, but she is mild compared to them. They were a handful and there were two of them. Consider yourself lucky we're only dealing with one at the moment. » They both exchanged a look and smiled.

« She wants to go beachcombing after lunch. » Ford said. « Is that alright with you? »

« Why wouldn't it be? Ya want me ta come with you? I'm in no condition to leave the boat at the moment. Take her, it'll be quieter for me anyway. » Stan was smiling, a little uneven smile.

« Are you sure you don't mind? » Ford asked worrying about the look on Stan's face.

« Well, you know I'm always down for beachcombing, but I won't hold it against you or anything. And like you said I need rest. » Stan handed the plate of rice back to Ford. He had managed to eat almost the whole plate, which was definitely a good sign. Ford took the plate from Stan and smiled back at him. « Enjoy it while it lasts sixer. »

They both turned toward the door when they heard the sound of some things hitting the floor and a little voice saying « Imma OK! » followed by some rustling.

« I think that's your cue poindexter. » Stan just laughed and pushed Stanford off the bed. « Now let me rest in peace ». Stan laid back down on his bed and pulled his covers over him, taking the plushie with him.

Stanford chuckled and left his brotherly his, well he wasn't sure he would call it beauty rest, but still left him to rest in peace. Oh crap, that sounded grim. He shuddered and made that image go away. His brother just needed some peaceful rest to feel better, there that was better.

He closed the door and turned around to come face to face with… a toddler covered in eggshells and mayonnaise now on the kitchen floor trying to build a castle with the books scattered around her. She looked up when he came close to her and smiled at him, little fangs poking out and tail happily wagging around, scattering more toppings around her in the process.

Ford sighed and peered at the table. At least the eggs were well mixed together and mostly remained in the bowl. « All right little one, let's clean you up and make some sandwich eggs before heading for the beach. »

« Yay! » Little A exclaimed, raising her arms in the air.