(EDITED: 10/11/21)
At first when they start walking, she thinks they're going to one of the people in the town, but when they walk past it she wonders how far the pals he has live from the rest of the town. She hasn't gone around Gravity Falls all that much aside from her brief visits in town to show off the Northwest's money, go to the mall or the occasional visit to the Mystery Shack and Tent of Telepathy, so she's basically lost and has no idea where she is which is why she stays as close to the old man as she can to make sure that she won't get lost.
"We're almost there, don't you worry," McGucket assures.
She had been glancing at the angle of the sun for the past ten minutes or so to keep track of the time. It's been a while is all she knows.
About twenty minutes later the two enter a clearing where a large building with a sign that says "The Mystery Shack" with the "S" in "Shack" resting on the roof. She sees a familiar red 1965 El Diablo and immediately comes to the realization that McGucket has set her up with the Pines family. The family that not only houses her greatest frenemy, but also the very family that led to her making friends outside of the clique her parents decided for her. The ones that ultimately led to her running away. Sure, the twins aren't there anymore, but their great-uncle is and he's not known to be the most forgiving type.
She stutters to a stop and McGucket is halfway to through the clearing before he notices that she isn't beside him anymore.
"C'mon, P'cifica," he urges.
"D-does he know it's me that he's taking in?"
"Whaddoya mean?"
"I mean... I treated them all just as terribly as I did you and they kinda... hate me, ya know?"
He sighs. "Just give 'em a chance. They're willing to give you one."
She shifts through all the bad things that she's done to these people and then looks at him. His eyes will her to at least try and if he has that much faith in them than she supposes that she can give living with this family a try.
"Okay," she murmurs and walks over to him.
He puts a protective and reassuring hand on her shoulder and leads her to the door. He knocks on the door a few times then waits a few moments before frowning and knocking again, murmuring something along the lines of "lazy boned old men" as he does so.
"Alright, I'm coming! Gimme a sec!" A rough voice calls. The door opens to reveal Stanford Pines in his casual attire which consists of a wife beater and his boxers. He looks down at the girl first and then to McGucket. "Pacifica?"
Pacifica shoots McGucket a confused glance, but says nothing as he explains.
"Pacifica here got disowned last week and needs a home—a good one," McGucket says, looking up at the taller man with pleading eyes. "Please, Stan? She's got nowhere else to go an' ah can't take care of her the right way living in a junkyard."
"I thought she was shipped off to boarding school," Stanford says.
Pacifica's eyebrows come together. "They said that?"
"Yeah. It was in the paper and everything," Stanford answers.
Of course they'd do something like this to keep their reputation, she thinks as she glares down at the ground, but keeps herself composed. If there's one lesson she can thank her parents for, it's knowing how to keep her reactions minimal.
McGucket casts her a concerned look before looking up at Stanford. "Please? Take her in."
After a moment of looking at the pleading man's face he sighs. "Alright. C'mon in, kid... you comin' in, too, Fidds?"
"If ya don't mind," he says, following the girl inside.
She glances around and is impressed. It's a downgrade from the mansion, but after living in the junkyard for a week, it's a major upgrade. She notices the couch and blinks, impressed with how large it is compared to the one that she's been sleeping on and the armchair is quite large as well. She stays silent and merely looks around in awe at how… homey it feels. It's a lot warmer than the mansion ever was.
"Thank you, Mr. Pines," she stutters, slightly overwhelmed at the kindness of this man.
"No problem, kid... I'm gonna go make dinner, make yourself comfy. If ya see anyone that looks like me that's my brother," he says before ducking into the kitchen.
He has a brother? Living here? Since when?
Pacifica sits on the couch and places her backpack on the ground near her feet. She's used to McGucket—they've gotten used to each other if only a little in the week she's lived with him—but the Pines are a mystery to her. Especially his brother Stanford mentioned.
"You alright?" McGucket asks, kneeling down to be eye level with her.
She gives him a small smile. "I'll be fine."
A man looking almost exactly like Stanford walks in and sits in the recliner, ignoring her—or at least at first looking like it as he pulls out a newspaper. "Good evening."
He goes look a lot like Stanford, but there are enough differences that it's easy to tell them apart. His hair is a dark shade of gray with a silver streak around his head, he has a dimpled chin and looks more physically fit, but is generally smaller. The largest difference is the demeanor. While Stanford's always feigned indifference, he's always invested in some way and he's confident in a cocky sort of way. This man is a lot more reserved and has a confusing mixture of overt, but composed dangerous tone to his very being.
"Uh—good morning..."
"Heard you were in boarding school," he states as he frowns at his paper. "Though there have been rare sightings of you—almost like you're Big Foot around here."
Big Foot?
She doesn't realized she said that aloud until he replies, "Almost. It's harder to catch an image of you because every time they manage to get one it's blurred so no one really believes it."
Couldn't they tell the truth for once and tell them that they disowned me? Did they think I'd skip town or something?
"Pacifica, darlin', loosen up," McGucket advises, looking at her warily.
Her fists are grabbing the couch as best they can in a tight grip. When she releases them there's a little pain from the release of pressure, but otherwise she's just left with red hands.
She reassures McGucket that she's fine despite how her blood boils.
Northwests are terrible and—to be honest—she's glad she's not one of them anymore… even if she's going to miss being filthy rich and having people wait on her hand and foot and—
No, she's glad she isn't one anymore. There were too many restraints and lies. She had to lie about herself and make herself out as the perfect daughter, lie about her parents and tell everyone that they're the best of the best and loved her and cared for her and never did anything to hurt her, she had to lie about how the Northwests were good and honest people who treated everyone with decency. She had become the best actress and she even fooled herself a few times into thinking the Northwests were the best, but that was shot down immediately as she walked into the door of the mansion and was faced with her father's scrutiny.
Probably could've got an award, she thinks bitterly, but shoves those thoughts away to keep from worrying McGucket.
"I take it that you're the one that Stan's adopting. You'll have about a week of school to make up, but I'm sure you'll be fine," the man whose name she has yet to receive grunts as he flips the page of the newspaper.
Wait, what? "E-excuse me? A week? School? Who said I was going to school?"
He glances up at her. "Well, you can't exactly stay here without going to school and it's not advisable for you to stay with McGucket- I mean you're a bit skinnier than you should be at—how old are you, eleven, twelve? —but not unhealthily so. So do my brother this favor so he's less likely to go to jail and let him enroll you at the school here."
The only word that she can find that even closely defines this man is indifferent and she's not sure if she's going to get along with him all that well.
"Fine," she sighs and leans back against the couch only to find herself getting eaten by it.
It's not like she has a choice. She's only staying with them because she can't stay with McGucket and she definitely can't go back to the mansion. She doesn't know what she'd hoped for—no school at all or homeschooling—but to be forced into public school was definitely not it.
"Dinner's ready!" Stanford calls.
The twin—because she's pretty sure that's what he is at this point—closes the paper and folds it under his arm. "Fantastic."
Pacifica follows into the kitchen/dining room and sits in one of the spares seats across from McGucket and between the twins.
"I see you've meet Stanford," Mr. Mystery says.
Pacifica blinks and looks between them for a heartbeat before finding her voice. "Wait, I thought you were Stanford!"
"My name's actually Stanley," he informs while putting the food on the plates. "I took his identity for thirty years until I got him back."
It takes several seconds for her to wrap her mind around it but she nods slowly. "O-okay, I think I got it... I think."
It's not like she should be surprised at the man stealing anyone's identity, let alone his twin's, but to learn his name isn't his name is… well, it's not exactly the most easily digestible thing, she can tell you that.
Her mind stutters to a stop from that line of thinking when a plate of breakfast is placed in front of her. Breakfast for dinner?
"Eat up," McGucket says when she fails to pick up her fork.
"Oh, right," she murmurs as she picks up her fork.
At the first bite of food, she realizes just how hungry she is. She doesn't take any bigger bites than normal, but she definitely eats a lot quicker than she would have two weeks ago—trying to eat quickly enough a raccoon doesn't steal one's food does that to a person.
"You fed her, didn't you?" Stanford- no Stanley- mutters as he watches her eat.
"Of course I did," McGucket gruffs as he takes a bite of eggs.
When she finishes her food, she notices she's the first and that McGucket is only two-thirds through his own meal. The Stans (that's got a ring to it) are staring at her. Stanley is staring at her with morbid fascination and Stanford has what she can only describe as a scrutinizing look on his face.
"Thank you for the food, Mr. Pines," she says when the silence becomes oppressive.
"No problem..." He hesitates a moment and then adds, "Want anymore?"
"No, thanks, I'm pretty full now," she replies and gets up to wash her dishes just to have something to do other than be stared at by identical pairs of eyes that have varying degrees of scrutiny.
Stanford leans back so that he's balancing on two legs of his chair and grabs the dishes from her. "I'll take that."
"Hey!"
"You can barely reach the sink without the step stool, I've got this," he says as he places the plate next to his own.
"Just because I'm short doesn't mean I can't wash some dishes. The counter isn't even that tall," she snaps before glancing at McGucket for backup.
"She's got—" he starts, but is cut off from Stanf-ley— Stanley laughing.
"This girl's got some spunk! I like her."
Pacifica blinks in surprise. She's pretty sure up until this point Stanley's hated her most of her life or at the very least thought she was a brat. She never thought he'd say something like that after the trouble she's caused him and his niece and nephew.
"That's not the point," McGucket sighs while rubbing his temples.
"What do you expect me to do? Not laugh when the kid says something funny?" Stanley defends himself… kind of poorly, but it must make sense in his mind.
McGucket scowls at him. "That's not the point either. The point is, that she has one."
Pacifica uses their argument as a distraction to grab her plate and go to the sink to prove a point. Gonna tell me I can't do something because I'm short? I'll show— wait... that bast—
When she whirls around Stanford is smirking with satisfaction as he sips his coffee and reads his newspaper.
"You tricked me!"
He looks over at her with amused brown eyes. "Oh, really? How?"
She's taken aback by this and stunned into silence. She had fully expected him to deny that he had tricked her but not to ask her how he did it.
"Erm... well... you used reverse psychology," she answers once she finds her voice.
He raises a skeptical eyebrow. "Do you even know what reverse psychology means?"
She crosses her arms with a huff. "Yes! It means you pretended not to want me to do something so that I'd do what you want. You pretended that you didn't want me to do the dishes, but that made me want to do them even more so now I'm not gonna do it."
He smiles approvingly as he stands and grabs the dirty dishes. "Good job, but you missed something."
"What?" She demands, having thought she had figured it out.
"You were going to do your dishes anyway. I just didn't want you to do the dishes," he answers as he starts washing the dishes himself.
Her jaw goes slack for a moment before she manages to regain her ability to voice her thoughts. "That's not fair!"
"Life's not fair."
"Welcome to the family," Stanley chuckles.