Things were quiet for the Pines Family over the next few days, relatively speaking at least. There was no sign of Molten Freddy, but that didn't stop Mike from faithfully keeping an eye out through the cameras (especially once it hit midnight). The others, while they didn't forget the threat the killer animatronic posed, did become more relaxed and complacent about it. They felt safe enough that Ford and Dipper were heading out to do something in the woods (Mike thinks they mentioned something about saving the world?) while Soos was helping Mabel make arrangements for her and Dipper's 13th birthday party. This meant Mike and Stan were alone in the shack and as it was pretty slow tourist-wise, they left the shack closed to guests.

"I can't believe summer's nearly over already," Stan commented sadly as he taught Mike some tricks to cheating at cards. "So much went on, mostly because of those little trouble makers, but it still feels like it flew by too fast. I'm going to miss them, even if they cause nothing but chaos some days."

"I'm sure they'll be missing you too," Mike replied sympathetically. "But I'm pretty sure they'll be happy to visit again next summer and they're only going to be a phone call away in the meantime."

"I know, doesn't make it any easier to say goodbye though," Stan sighed, before focusing on Mike. "What about you kid? What are you going to do once the summer's over?"

"I can't leave Gravity Falls until Molten Freddy is taken care of," Mike said, glancing at his tablet that was on the table even though it was currently turned off. "It's my fault it's here and even if it wasn't, it's my mission to destroy those things. I'm not sure what I'll do after that, but there are still other animatronics I'll have to hunt down eventually."

"Well you won't have to face those things on your own," Stan said, taking a swig of his drink. "I'll happily lend a hand in turning those things to scrape metal and if we can pull Ford away from his nerd research, I'm sure he'd be happy to lend a hand as well."

"It still isn't your fight…" Mike couldn't help his token protest, already knowing nothing he'd say would be able to change Stan's mind.

"You're a part of the Pines family now kid and that means we've got your back," Stan said easily, those words still mind-boggling to Mike no matter how many times the others told him the same thing. "That pile of rusted metal spaghetti won't stand a chance against us."

"I don't deserve your kindness…" Mike couldn't help but mumble.

"Kid…" Stan said kindly, but seriously. "I know what's going through your head because I've dealt with those same thoughts for years and still struggle with it most days. Now… I'm not going to tell you that you deserve kindness because I wouldn't believe it either if someone told me. What I am going to say is that whether or not we deserve it, those kids love us. They love us and there's nothing we can say that'll convince them otherwise, so all we can do is make sure we don't waste what they've given us so freely. I care about you too, of course, kid, but because I'm just as messed up as you are, I don't think it means as much coming from me as them."

"It does mean a lot to me, Stan," Mike replied softly. "I… I haven't had a whole lot of positive adult role models in my life… so all you've done for me means a lot more than you realize…"

"If I'm the best role model you've got then I need to beat the snot of those you knew before," Stan replied, only slightly joking. "But if that's what you need from me kid, I'll do my best to fill it. But I'm here for you kid, whether it's just someone to help you fight the monsters you hunt or to help you face the demons of your past, I'll be there to watch your back."

"Thanks, Stan," Mike said sincerely.

"You've got it, kid," Stan patted Mike on his back before getting more relaxed. "Of course, if you ever tell anyone we had a gushy heart-to-heart, I'll deny it."

"I'll keep this quiet," Mike laughed. The mood got lighter as they focused on their game.

When Soos dropped off Mabel, Stan and Mike were worried when instead of telling them about what happened she headed straight for the attic. Soos told them how Mabel had a rough day and apologized a lot that he hadn't been able to cheer her up. Stan assured Soos was fine and sent the handyman off to pick up pizza for everyone to be comfort food.

"How is she?" Mike asked as Stan came down from talking with Mabel.

"Better as I think I was able to cheer her up a little," Stan with a sigh. "But I'm sure she could use some advice from you as well."

"Alright," Mike agreed, heading up the stairs and knocking on the door. "Hey, Mabes… can I come in?"

"Sure Mike," came the response. Mike opened it up and went inside, taking a seat next to Mabel in the middle of the floor.

"Hey, Mabel… want to tell me about what happened…" Mike asked kindly. Mabel nodded and explained about how her friends wouldn't be able to come to her birthday and her fears about growing up.

"I just don't want the summer to end," Mabel mumbled in conclusion.

"Well… I'm not going to lie and say being a teenager is great…" Mike joked. "It can be pretty hard and you're going to embarrass yourself, it's kind of inevitable. But that's just a part of life and all we can do is face it head-on. And to me, the idea of not having the opportunity to grow up at all is far scarier."

"Like you and your siblings can't" Mabel mumbled under her breath in realization. Mike didn't talk about his family a lot, but Mabel and Dipper were able to get a few stories out of him about his siblings once he accidentally brought them up. Though he had never told them what happened, both Mabel and Dipper had been able to figure out that they must have died pretty young.

"What was that?" Mike asked, unable to catch what Mabel had said.

"Just… that I'm glad you're here," Mabel said, refusing to make Mike sad by bringing up his siblings. "And as Stan said, I'll have Dipper by my side as we face growing up together!"

"That's the spirit," Mike smiled. "And not just Dipper, but the rest of your family too. You'll have your parents in California and I know Stan would love to hear all about what's happening if you give him a call. And of course, you can call me too. And if you want me to scare off some boy that's bothering you, I'd be happy to oblige!"

"I'll keep that in mind!" Mabel giggle. "I guess that would be your job as my big bro wouldn't it?"

"Yep, no one gets to date my little sister without going through me first," Mike joked, acting all high and mighty and sending both into fits of laughter.

"Thanks, Mike," Mabel said once she calmed down. "I needed that after today…."

"It's no problem," Mike assured. "And to make sure this is a good day rather than a bad day, I'll make you some special "Afton Family Cookies"."

"You bake!" Mabel gasped. "How could I not know this?"

"I never did it often, even before I lost my ability to eat," Mike replied with a shrug. It had been mostly something he had done when his mother was still around and only a few times with just his siblings. "I can't make anything fancy, but I can handle cookies. Just wait here while I go make them for you okay."

"Okay," Mabel agreed, turning back to her scrapbook. "I can't wait to try them!"

Satisfied that Mabel was cheered up, Mike left the attic, missing the walkie-talkie turning on just as he was closing the door. Mike headed to the kitchen and began throwing together the cookies he promised. He had just finished up the first batch when he heard Ford and Dipper return from their adventure, Ford heading down to the lab while Dipper excitedly headed upstairs. Mike didn't think much about it until someone came running down the stairs a few minutes later.

"Mabel..?" Mike asked in worry as she ran by with tears in her eyes. "What… no! Wait! Stop!"

Mabel didn't listen and ran out of the shack into the woods. Mike only felt terror at realizing the danger Mabel was in, quickly tossing aside the oven mitts and grabbing his flashlight. Dipper came down just as Mike was about to head out.

"What happened?!" Mike demanded with his eyes glowing brightly and metallic echoes seeping into his voice, startling the young boy with his anger.

"F-Ford offered me an apprenticeship and I accepted," Dipper quickly stumbled out. "M-Mabel heard about it and we fought…"

"For being the smartest people I know, you two can be such idiots," Mike groaned into his hand, taking a deep breath to force himself to calm down. "Finish up whatever important science thing you have with Ford and if I'm not back in ten minutes, get Stan as well and come after us. Don't forget your tasers and if we all survive this we're all going to sit down and have a nice long talk."

Dipper paled as he realized the scope of what was happening and took off sprinting for the vending machine, clutching his bag to his chest. Mike ran out of the door and raced in the direction he saw Mabel run off to.

"MABEL!" Mike called as he ran, using his flashlight to help him search in the rapidly darkening forest. "MABEL! PLEASE ANSWER ME! MABEL!"

Mike knew he should be careful as he knew Molten Freddy was lurking nearby, but he couldn't risk Mabel getting hurt. He'd either find Mabel himself or let himself be an easy target for the animatronic instead. (He would not lose another sibling to his father's creations. Never again.)

"MIKE!" came Mabel's terrified scream. "MIKE! PLEASE! HELP!"

"I'M COMING MABEL!" Mike called back, fear making him run even faster. His thoughts were spiraling with all the worst-case scenarios and in his panic, he didn't notice the wires until it was too late. They wrapped around his legs and yanked him into the air, making Mike drop his flashlight onto the forest floor. Mike swore and pulled out his taser, pulling himself up in an attempt to get at the wires holding him. More wires wrapped around him before could do so and soon he was completely trapped by wires, like a fly in a spider's web.

"Not good," Mike muttered as he yanked his limbs in a useless attempt to get free.

"P-poor little M-mike," Molten Freddy mocked, his main body lowering from the trees to be more level with Mike. "E-even after a-all you've been through… y-you can still be tricked b-by your concern f-for a sister."

"If you harmed Mabel…" Mike growled threateningly, even though both he and the animatronic knew there was nothing he could do right now.

"S-she's fine… f-for now…" Molten Freddy chuckled. "C-cipher's with her. W-we just need to k-keep you here u-until the time i-is right. Then we'll be o-one big happy f-family."

"What do you..?" Mike began only to hear a familiar laugh echo around them as the sky was torn open.

"N-now we'll get what w-was promised," Molten Freddy said in glee as it looked at the rip in the sky.

Mike didn't even have time to ask before he was filled with blinding pain. It felt like his entire being was torn apart and being slowly put back together into something new. He was sure he would have been screaming, but he didn't think his vocal cords existed at the moment to be able to.

The pain disappeared just as quickly as it had appeared, leaving Mike lying on the forest floor alone, struggling to remain conscious. He briefly wondered where Molten Freddy had disappeared to before he became distracted by a growing ache in his chest. He reflexively gasped and was shocked at how the action brought immediate relief. Did… did he need to breathe again? And was that a functioning heart pounding in his chest?

Mike was so busy trying to comprehend how it seemed like he was alive again that he didn't notice his body moving without his consent. At least, he didn't notice until he felt himself standing up.

"Looks like Cipher kept his deal," Molten Freddy's voice came from Mike's throat, his gaze going from the trees to his hands. One was a healthy human arm while the other was a human-looking animatronic arm with white and purple coloring. "Just how we wanted it too…"

No… no. No! NO! Mike shouted in panic, though his words never left his mouth. Not again… Please not again…

"We're afraid so Mike!" Molten Freddy laughed, making a malicious grin appear on Mike's face. "And this time we won't be forced to leave by you falling apart!"

Mike could only panic and watch in horror as his body turned and began walking through the trees.

"Of course now it's time to keep our end of the bargain," Molten Freddy said, taking pleasure in Mike's helpless state. "We need to get rid of Pine Tree permanently, but that'll be easy. We were created for just such a purpose after all."

Pine Tree..? Mike wondered as he tried to process what Molten Freddy was implying. Mike was filled with terror as he realized the monster meant Dipper only for the fear to be replaced with white-hot anger.

"You will not hurt him!" Mike hissed, using his own voice, and was even able to bring his body to a stumbling halt. Unfortunately, his surprise at briefly taking over control meant that Molten Freddy was able to easily yank back command.

"That's not good…" Molten Freddy commented casually, though Mike could tell they were more shaken than they wanted to admit. "We were just going to let you watch as we did what we wanted, but we can't risk you interfering. Don't worry, we'll wake you up just before we kill Pine Tree."

NO! Mike shouted, trying to get back control, but only found himself being pushed farther back into whatever mental place he resided in. It wasn't long before he couldn't even see anything anymore despite how hard he struggled.

Soon Mike knew nothing at all…