Ford listened to the deadline for a minute, trying to process the idea that Stanley was coming, accidentally under the false impression that Ford had apparently started a family and was rushing to make a formal introduction. He meant to call him back immediately and try to explain that there was no reason to drop everything and travel for three days, but as he hung up with a push of a button and started to re-dial, Mabel came skipping into the thinking parlor.

"Okay, Fordsie, are you ready for your new sweater?" She asked happily, her hands behind her back as she rocked back and forth.

The scientist was distracted from his small dilemma and smiled at her. "Of course!"

Mabel held out the freshly knitted sweater for him and waited for his reaction. "Do you like it?" It was a red sweater with a golden six-fingered hand on the front. She still wanted to do something a bit more complicated and fun, like a green sweater with pinetrees around the waist and wrists, or a blue one with stars all over it, but she had been so excited to knit a sweater that she decided to do something a bit simple just so she would feel less anxious. Skipping knitting for a day will do that to a girl.

Ford grinned and got on one knee to be eye level. "I love it! Thank you, Mabel! Thank you!" He gladly accepted the gift and waited no time switching sweaters, puffing out his chest and admiring the new article of clothing. "Holy Moses, this is so well knitted! It looks better than a professional. This is most certainly my new favorite sweater! Thank you." And he sealed his thanks with a soft ruffle of her hair and she grinned and skipped back to the living room to knit herself a new sweater.

Ford wished there was a way to communicate with Stanley while he was traveling, but it wasn't like they each had a cellular device and could send messages and calls through electrical towers. That's prosperous. It's not like Stanley had a tiny phone in his pocket. So Ford was forced to have to explain the situation to his brother when he arrived. Although he would need a place to sleep to recuperate. And Mabel couldn't sleep on the couch forever.

The next day Ford told Mabel he needed to update some entries in his journal and that today he would be working on that, and she was more than fine with entertaining herself, swearing she would only go and play outside when Ford was aware of her going outside. She was twelve, she didn't necessarily have to be babysat, after all.

Truth be told, however, Ford made a few phone calls and was lucky enough to have a few connections in town, granting him two twin bed frames from Boyish Dan and his father Manly Dave, two twin mattresses and some pillows for a good price, and two sets of sheets and two quilts from Mrs. Ramirez that she sold on the side. Manly Dave and Boyish Dan delivered the bed-things via truck over the snow, and by beautiful timing they pulled up to the cabin when Mabel was in the process of building a snowman.

She raised an eyebrow at the visitors and beds, and was a bit more confused when Ford emerged from the house in boots and trenchcoat and called, "Thank you, gentlemen. I'm afraid they have to go upstairs…"

"That's mighty fine, Dr. Pines, s'long as you keep your end of the deal…"

"Of course, Mr. Corduroy. Two hot mugs of Irish Hot Chocolate."

"Fordsie, can I have some Irish Hot Chocolate?" Mabel asked.

"When you turn twenty-one, sure."

"What're they doing?" Mabel questioned as she lifted the second ball of snow on top of the larger one.

"Just delivering some beds I purchased."

Mabel's brown eyes sparkled and shined up at the man who had already done so much for her and her mouth was the shape of a tiny o. "Wh-Why?"

Ford shrugged nonchalantly and smiled casually. "Just in case. I really should have made sure my house had more than one bed for guests a long time ago. Plus, it really isn't good for you to sleep on a couch, you know? I know you're young, but let's not ruin your back sooner than necessary. I know nothing is set and stone, but I would rather you stay here and anywhere else, and my house is fine for children, but it does require a few small changes. Which reminds me, if there's anything you would like that would make you happy…"

The big nerd was cut off from his rambling as Mabel hugged him around the middle tightly and buried her face in his belly. Ford smiled down at her, knowing her well enough to know she wasn't upset, so when he heard sniffling and felt a wet spot forming on his clothes he knew, he ruffled her hair and hugged her back, rubbing her shoulders.

When Mabel lightly rested her chin on Ford's gut and looked up at him with wet eyes, she was smiling. "Thanks."

"You're welcome."

The Corduroy men moved the two twin beds up to the recent cleaned-out attic. Okay, so maybe some boxes were stacked against the back wall, but there was a small closet now and an old end table beneath the large window between the two beds. Ford gave Mabel some boxes to slide under her bed for storage, at least until he invested in a dresser for her, but Mabel couldn't care less. She had other things on her mind.

It took many painful hours of lying on her back for Mabel to fall asleep in the vast, empty, attic bedroom. And of course she was awoken by a nightmare.

Mabel held her knees and stared ahead of nothing, forcing her eyes not to look at the empty bed across the room.

Dipper was gone. He was gone, and he wasn't coming back for her. She might as well get used to it. How long would it be until Ford got sick of her? How long would it be until the police or someone in town decided Mabel didn't belong and sent her away? Would Ford care? Would he even miss her? Dipper probably didn't, and he was her twin. What does that say about her? Mabel wanted to believe Ford liked her and wanted her around, especially after he spent so much money on clothes and a bed for her, but what if he decided she wasn't worth the trouble?

Water. She needed water. Maybe that would help her sleep.

Mabel ventured down through the odd house, the closest thing she had to a home that still was only half-recognizable. It was a little chilly in the over-sized shirt she wore for bed, so she swiped a blanket from the couch on the living room and wrapped it around her shoulders, creating a make-shift cloak of warmth.

It was really weighing heavy on Mabel how alone and stranded she was.

It was 1978. Her parents were only kids. She wasn't born yet. She didn't have a family here. She had no idea where Grunkle Stan was at this time, and he honestly probably wouldn't want anything to do with her. He probably only liked her because she was family, but she wasn't family right now. She was alone and no one wanted her around. Except maybe Ford. But that would probably change once he found out the truth.

That really hurt Mabel. So much so she nearly choked on her water, her eyes stinging.

She really liked Ford. A lot. He was a good friend. He took her in when he didn't have to and seemed to actually care about what she had to say. He was smart, funny, nice, and a great dancer despite his insistence that he wasn't.

Mabel felt like a young child after a nightmare. Swallowed by darkness and loneliness. She didn't want to bother Ford, but thinking about him made her feel better. Maybe if she just checked on him, peeked at him, she would feel better enough to sleep well. Yeah, that was a good plan.

The young time traveler set her glass in the sink and voyaged through the house quiet as a mouse. She had never been to Ford's bedroom, but remembered his directions for if she needed him. Mabel was willing to admit she needed him a little bit, but not enough to bother him. He was already bad about not sleeping and Mabel had to scold him when he let slip that he was bad about falling asleep at three in the morning and waking up at seven. Ford didn't need some stupid girl waking him up because of a stupid nightmare. Stupid.

Mabel heard faint snoring through the cracked, gorgeous door by the stairs. She smiled to herself and peeked, refusing to touch the door in case it moved and creaked. She could see a dark figure of a bed with a sleeping man on it, curled under the blankets and breathing heavily, with fluffy hair to crown the black shadow. Mabel smiled, feeling a little better at the rhythmic snoring, and she sat by the door, against the wall, and held herself in the blanket. Maybe if she just sat here and listened, she would feel even better.

Ford emerged from his small bathroom with washed hands, ready to go back to bed. Maybe he could try to get some work done, but if Mabel found out he would receive a Ma-like scolding. Which made him smile, but still. Maybe a few more hours of sleep wouldn't hurt.

But then he heard faint snoring. Ford didn't think it could carry all the way from the attic's bedroom, and now that he focused he swore someone was present. The man opened the door a little wider and smiled down at the curled-up girl sitting on the floor, leaning against the wall, asleep.

He was tempted to wake her up and ask what was wrong or why she didn't wake him, but Ford decided against it. That left only three options: leave her there (it was too cold to leave her there!), carry her back to her bed (but she must have come down to him for a reason, right?), or let her sleep in his bed. It was big enough for two people, right? Well, he was about to find out.

Ford gently scooped up the sleeping girl and laid himself and her down, making sure Mabel was by the edge, not trapped between him and the wall his bed was against. Rather than lying her under his covers, he tucked her in her blanket, lying her on top of his covers, and gave her a second blanket, just in case.

In her sleep, Mabel smiled peacefully, and Ford was assured he was doing the right thing and providing her with what she needed.

The next morning Ford was awoken by a knock on the door. It was a little harsh and heavy, but it wasn't urgent enough to be an emergency. Ford blinked his eyes open and found Mabel sitting up, waking to the sound, as well.

"Who's that?" Mabel slurred, rubbing her eye, but then gasped and hugged her knees. "Is it the police?!"

Ford rubbed Mabel's shoulder as he slid past her by the foot of the bed and stood. "Don't worry, Mabel. I'll handle this." And he slipped his thick dark-green robe over his blue plaid pajamas and brown slippers.

The way Mabel responded to the knocking was not reassuring. Has Mabel done something wrong? Was she on the run? Ford would have to try to pride more from her about her background. Not that he would judge her, but so he was better prepared for what they were facing, because whatever Mabel had to face, Ford was stubborn and swore to himself she would face it with him by her side.

The knocking continued right up until Ford reached the door and started to unlock, thankfully whoever was at the door was gracious enough to stop once alerted someone was going to respond. Ford wretched the door open and stared blankly.

Stanley Pines has changed a lot since Ford last saw him six years ago. First off, he had much longer hair that was messy and needed a wash. He also had heavy bags under his eyes, like Ford did if he pulled two all-nighters for research. Stanley had a five o'clock shadow and faintly smelled of cigarettes and broken dreams. He wore old jeans, worn boots, a stained white t-shirt, and maroon hoodie with black mittens and hat.

But he's eyes still sparkled with life, mischief, and charm. He still put his hands in his pockets. He still smiled with confidence and charisma, even if with a hint of apprehensiveness hidden in his features. And he still grunted, "Hey, Sixer," like he did all of Ford's life.

Ford smiled peacefully, feeling a small piece of him snapping back into place, and he said back just as happily, "Hi, Lee."

Stan gagged and laughed, shaking his head. "Don't call me that. No one's called me that since we were five."

Ford chuckled as he stood aside. "Just get inside before you catch frostbite, knucklehead. Moses, how are you here? Did you not sleep?"

"That's not true, I took a short nap in Colorado so I wouldn't crash the Stanmobile." Stan said, jabbing a thumb back to the red car that certainly stood out in the snow.

"Wow, you still have it." Ford said, peeking at it before closing the door.

"Yup, she still works great. Traveled through the entire country with her."

"That's what Ma told me. Where all have you gone?"

"Most states East of the Mississippi River and a handful around Texas. Managed to hop outside the country once or twice, pretty much seen the entire world."

"You've visited half the country and two other countries briefly and that counts as seeing the entire world?" Ford smirked as they stood by the door.

Stan laughed and punched his shoulder playfully. "Pretty much, nerd, yeah. Met loads of people from all walks of life, it's just as good as going to where they're from." Stan looked around the hallway and said, "Wow, real nice place you got here, Brainiac."

"Thank you." Ford said.

"Ma said you got some kinda grant from your school…?"

"Yes, they awarded me a grant to study whatever I want, so I came to this small town because studies have found there is a higher concentration of anomalies than anywhere else."

"Anomalies? What, like, freaky stuff?"

Ford smiled and held up a six-fingered hand, wiggling his fingers. "In simplest terms, yes."

Stan returned the happy facial expression as Ford started to lead the way to the kitchen. "Sounds awesome, Sixer, I'm happy…"

"GRUNKLE STAN!"

"Oof!" Stan was surprised to have some weight thrown at his middle and suddenly hug him tightly around the waist and legs like a squid, but he managed to plant his feet firmly to prevent from falling. He then remembered why he was willing to drive full-speed for two days.

"Hey," He grunted with a smile and looked down at the young girl hugging him very tightly in a shirt that looked like Ford gave him. He had no idea what a "grunkle" was, but she must be so excited to meet him that she misspoke "uncle". Stan's smile disappeared, unfortunately, when he swore she was crying. "Whoa, um…"

Mabel had heard his gruff voice faintly from Ford's bedroom, but she was so sure of who it was. Had he stolen a time machine and come for her? Grunkle Stan didn't believe in the supernatural, but… She ran as fast as she could and then watched from the corner as Ford approached with a man who looked so much more like her Grunkle Stan than Ford did.

It all suddenly made sense! Ford had a twin brother! And that twin was her Grunkle Stan! Her brain was too focused on someone she loved very much being here to think of anything else or make any more connections, even if they were very young and a little different than how she remembered them, but there was no doubt in her mind who she was hugging. And no, she wasn't crying. Her eyes were just sweating from happiness.

"You wanna pull your daughter off my legs, Sixer?" Stan joked as he rubbed Mabel's back, clearly fine with the extra weight.

Ford's cheeks reddened. "She's not my daughter."

"C'mon, you don't have to lie to me, I don't care that you're not married, but she looks just like you…"

"She's twelve, Stanley." Ford said firmly. "She's not mine."

Stan blinked. That would have made the boys twelve when she was born. Yeah, no way in hell was she Ford's kid. "Oh. Sh-oot. Sorry. But wait, if she's not yours, what's she doing here? Babysitting for a friend?"

"No." Ford looked down at Mabel, who was clinging to Stan's legs and looking out into space, a horrified look on her face.

She messed up. She screwed up. Ford was going to hate her.

The scientist was trying to figure this out, but he had to put his thoughts on hold if he was going to help Mabel. He was so close to figuring it out, he could taste it, but this girl could tell him everything they needed to know if he just prided her a little bit more. "Mabel,"

The girl turned her face into Stan's maroon jacket. Ford was a little heartbroken, but he remained calm and soft-spoken. "Mabel, I need you to be honest with me. No more secrets, love. Please, I need to know how you ended up on my doorstep."

But Mabel shook her head, digging her fingers into Stan's jeans as tears streamed down her face.

"Why not?" Ford asked softly, getting on one knee to better talk to her.

Mabel felt like a mouse caught in a corner. She knew she had to come clean, but the fear of what might happen closed in around her throat. But maybe if she just explained why she had to keep secrets then maybe they would leave it alone.

"You'll hate me." She mumbled.

True, that Ford only knew Mabel for three days. True, that their time together had been brief. But Ford had really hoped that in that short amount of time Mabel would be confident in Ford's l-… admiration for her. Ford absolutely adored Mabel and could never in a million years comprehend hating her. Maybe the people in her past made her feel that way, or maybe she made a mistake so bad she believed anyone would hate her once they discovered what they did. Regardless…

"Whoa, hey," Ford was surprised when Stan said that and crouched down, a hand on either shoulder of Mabel, but she refused to not be holding onto him, and settled for hugging him around the neck and clinging to his hoodie. Stan smiled and rubbed her back, and said, "C'mon, that's never gonna happen. Ford's one of the best people I've ever met in my life, and I've met a lot of people, kid. He couldn't hate anybody, trust me. I…"

Stan stopped and looked up at his brother, an easy-to-read expression on his face so they could talk silently. Ford smiled sadly and nodded. "I could never hate you."

"There now, you see? Now c'mon, pumpkin. Let us help you out. How'd you end up at my brother's house?"

Mabel smiled into his t-shirt and sniffed. Stan had no idea why she decided to smile, but was grateful for it, regardless. Little did she know that his choice of nickname was what helped break the dam.

"I… I was at a carnival with my brother." She whimpered, still hugging Stan. "Dipper. He was on a kind-of-date with this girl he liked. Wendy."

"Oh ho, okay." Stan chuckled and swiftly stood with Mabel in his arms.

"I was gonna help him out, cuz Dipper doesn't know how to talk to girls…"

"Sounds like another kid I knew." Stan smirked as Ford led the way to the kitchen, and Ford rolled his eyes.

"… But then I saw that if you guessed a pig's weight you could take it home. One of them was so cute and even oinked my name. Or 'doorbell'. Pretty sure he was saying 'Mabel,' though."

"Hm, so you won some bacon, huh?" Stan asked as he sat at the table with Mabel in his lap and Ford started on some coffee.

"G-Stan!" Mabel scolded. "Waddles was the best pig ever! I wasn't gonna eat him."

"Okay okay, sorry." Stan laughed. "I'm hungry. So anyway, you're at the fair…"

"Uh, huh. And while I'm winning my pig, Dipper is trying to win a prize for Wendy, but the baseball he threw hit the table and hit Wendy's eye."

"Ouch. He should've aimed for the carny's head."

"That's what my uncle said. So, since Wendy's eye hurt, this jerk Robbie got to some ice before Dipper did and helped her with her eye, and then asked if she wanted to go out with him. And Wendy said sure."

Stan winced and bit his lip to keep from laughing. Mabel giggled and sat up in his lap, rubbing her eye with her fist.

"Yeah, Dipper was pretty devastated. Not even dressing Waddles in a doctor's costume helped."

"Shocker."

"Stanley,"

"But then Dipper saw the guy he ran into that made him drop the ice for Wendy. Dipper blamed this weird bald guy in a gray jumpsuit that could change colors, like a freaky science-y lizard. And then without hardly asking, the bald guy said he was a time traveler and used some sort of tape measure to zip back in time and then back again."

"Uh… huh." Stan said, looking at his twin for help, but Ford just shrugged as he got down two mugs for the brewing coffee. "Okay."

"Dipper wanted to borrow it so he could fix his mistake. If he doesn't throw the ball wrong, then Wendy won't get hurt, and she won't need ice, and Robbie won't help her, and they won't go out. Of course the time traveler guy said no, but we stole it anyway."

Stan barked a laugh and slapped a knee that was free of sad little girls. "I like this kid! Okay, so you stole a time machine, huh? Then what happened?"

"I decided to go back in time, too, cuz I wanted to relive the greatest moment of my life: winning Waddles."

"Sure."

"So we went back, but Dipper still hit Wendy. But I still won Waddles, so that was okay. We went back again and again and Dipper always managed to hit Wendy in the eye."

"Maybe he just sucked at throwing baseballs."

"Or maybe it was a time-paradox." Ford added in, giving Stan his coffee black, the way he remembered his brother liking it.

Mabel shrugged. "So, Dipper decided to be an even bigger nerd and calculate how to throw the ball so nothing bad would happen, and he figured it out, but he needed my help. I had to hold a railing of the house in place so the ball would roll right."

"Uh, okay, sure."

"So I did, and Dipper hit the milk bottles and won Wendy's prize. And Robbie didn't ask her out."

"Cool."

"But this mean girl, Pacifica, won Waddles before I could get to him, because I was too busy helping Dipper."

"Not cool."

Mabel sniffed as her eyes watered up again and she wiped her nose with her arm. "She took Waddles…"

"Oh, Mabel, I'm sorry." Ford said sympathetically.

"And Dipper wouldn't go back so we could redo it so I could win Waddles. He did the math and said that in any other timeline Wendy would date Robbie. But I'd lose Waddles."

"Girls leave you the first chance they get. I say go with the pig."

"Stanley!" Ford tried to scold, but he was too busy laughing as he pulled out the eggs, cheese and milk from the fridge.

"What?!"

"So we fought for the time machine and accidentally ended up back in time, during Pioneer times. Then we almost got eaten by a t-rex. Then we were in a neat future where a giant floating baby was shooting lasers at guys with guns. Then we traveled throughout different times in Gravity Falls, and when we were in the winter, the tape measure was getting hot. Really hot. It was hurting my hands. I accidentally threw it to Dipper, and then he disappeared. And he never came back."

"So… are you from the past or future?" Stan asked.

"Future." Mabel said quietly, looking down at her legs. "2013."

"Uh, huh."

Mabel looked up at him, a little sad that he didn't believe her and a little surprised that she didn't expect him not to. Right, Grunkle Stan doesn't believe in weird stuff. "You don't believe me, huh?"

"I believe you." Ford said from the stove as the pan was heating up.

Mabel turned to look at him and he saw that he was holding his cleft chin and thinking hard. Stan raised an eyebrow at him. "Seriously? You believe in time travel and all this stuff?"

"If you lived in Gravity Falls for only a week, you would know that time travel isn't even the weirdest thing this town has to offer." Ford stated plainly.

Mabel stared at Ford, then Stan, then back to Ford again. Her brain had successfully processed a piece of information, and it led to other things clicking into place.

"Okay, but where's the proof?" Stan asked his brother while the genius racked eggs into a bowl, then the conman looked down at the girl in his lap. "You got some futuristic tech on your hands?"

Mabel shook her head. "Mom and Dad say I'm too young for a phone."

"Well can you tell us anything about the future?"

"Stanley! She can't risk changing the future by telling us what it is!"

"She might have changed the future by being here, Genius!"

"Not if she was destined to come here. Not if she came back in time in her timeline. Let's just try to refrain from any more damage being done."

"Fine, but I'm still gonna need more than her word that she's from thirty years in the future." Stan said firmly.

Ford whisked the eggs, threw in some salt and pepper, whisked again, then turned to look at Mabel. She looked back at him and could tell he knew something.

"Mabel, dear, you knew Stan before I introduced you." The scientist reminded the room. "Do you know him in the future?"

Mabel nodded.

"Okay, what can you tell us about him? Something there's no way you could have known?"

Mabel shrugged. "I… I don't know him that well."

"See, Poindexter, you probably got saddled with a runaway, that's all…"

"Now, hold on, Stanley, she must know you fairly well considering her reaction to seeing you. I know I'm not the greatest at reading emotions or understanding people, but only an ignoramus could fail to see that she cares about you. Surely she knows you." Ford said as he grated the cheddar cheese into the bowl of whisked eggs.

"I just… You…" Mabel looked up at the conman she truly loved as family, and she bit her lip. "You're different from how I remember you. You changed."

Stan looked off-putted by this, but then shrugged and smiled. "People change. If you're from the future, I'm probably just some old fart."

Mabel shrugged and thought about it. "I mean… I only met you a few weeks ago. Grandpa Shermie would talk about you sometimes, but he always seemed kinda sad…"

Ford dropped his cheese grater and it clattered on the floor. Stan even jumped so badly he gently lifted Mabel off his lap, stood, and took a step back, like he suddenly learned Mabel carried a contagious disease. The little girl looked at them frighteningly and covered her mouth with her hands.

Maybe she shouldn't have told them that part. But she was overjoyed to figure out that Grunkle Stan also had a twin brother. That his twin was Ford. That Mabel's new friend, the Author of the Journals, was actually family. But as happy as she was about this, neither man seemed to smile.

"Shermie?" Stan repeated. "As in Shermie Pines? Married to Daisy Pines? Has a little boy named Alex?"

Mabel nodded and held her hands timidly, looking down as her bangs hid her eyes. "I'm Mabel Pines. Alex is my dad."

The young woman could feel herself shaking, but she did nothing about it. She waited for them to yell, to kick her out, to tell her how badly she messed up. Why was her brain so bad at making her feel like this?

"Mabel," Ford breathed and got on one knee before her, but she did not look up. It wasn't until two fingers were tucked under her chin and softly helped lift her head up that she saw joyous, sparkling brown eyes that mirrored her own. Eyes that she inherited. "Y-Y-You're my niece?"

Mabel smiled nervously and nodded.

Ford looked at her like he was looking at her for the first time. The fingers by her chin went away as he cupped her cheek and felt her hair and looked at her eyes, dimples, her tiny brown tufts. How did Ford not see it? Everything about her screamed Pines.

He smiled tearfully and brought her into a tight hug. "I can't believe it! I have a niece!"

"Sweet Lord! I knew she looked like you, Sixer!" Stan laughed, standing beside his brother and bending down to look at her.

Ford loosened his hold on her to look at her again. "Isn't she beautiful, Stanley?! She looks just like Ma!"

"She's got that Pines spunk, for sure." Stan ruffled her hair.

Ford cupped her cheek again. "Why didn't you tell me? Why didn't you let me know?"

"I couldn't." Mabel sniffed. "I was worried you'd be mad at me for being here, all science-y and stuff…"

"Oh, darling, I'm not mad. I'm glad I met you!"

"Was I smart enough to teach you how to give a left hook?" Stan asked.

"I know how to hook a fish."

"I hate myself. Well, first thing's first is I gotta teach you how to punch boys."

"No, first thing's first is our girl needs breakfast." Ford quickly stood and resumed making breakfast, cheesy omelettes for everyone.

"And I wanna know everything about you, pumpkin." Stan said as they sat in their own chairs at the table. "Don't hold back. First off, what the hell is a… HA! Great-Uncle! Grunkle! I love it!"

"You made it up." Mabel giggled. "You told Dipper and I to call you Grunkle Stan."

"And Dipper's your brother?" Stan clarified, remembering her story.

Ford gasped loudly and turned with spatula in hand. "STANLEY! THEY'RE TWINS!"

Stan also gasped and rounded on Mabel with a grin. "You are NOT!"

Mabel smiled. "We are…"

"YES! Okay, I'll buy it! You're family! So talk! I wanna know everything about you!"

Throughout breakfast Mabel talked about her interests, her life, Dipper, and occasionally gave small "spoilers" to the future. Like, how robots won't take over the world, but soon most grocery stores will have doors that open for you. Ford and Stan asked questions and made comparisons to themselves, each other, or their family, saying who Mabel most likely inherited traits and habits from, which was really nice for her, because she was learning more about her family.

However, when Stan drained his third cup of coffee, his eyebrows lowered and he did some thinking. "Now, hold up. There's something I don't understand."

"What is it, Stanley?" Ford asked.

"Mabel, you said you knew me, right?"

"Yeah."

"Did you not know Ford?"

Mabel swallowed the last bite of her omelette and looked down at her empty plate. "I… I don't know."

"What do you mean you don't know?" Stan pressed. "Either you knew Ford or you didn't. Did you know him?"

"Stanley, that's enough." Ford said firmly.

"What?! I'm just making sure you're… that you don't…"

The eldest by fifteen minutes shrugged. "I've already thought of that. It's very possible."

"And you're not mad?!"

"No. I'm just glad I get to meet her now, even if I don't get to meet her later."

Mabel was very confused. "I don't…"

"Mabel, how does Ford die?"

"Stanley! Don't you dare!"

"If we can stop it so you can meet your grandkids…"

"I don't care! Don't you dare open that wound for her!"

"No!" Mabel shouted, stopping the argument. "No! That's… That's what I don't understand. I… I didn't even know you existed."

Ford blinked like a confused owl at the girl, but remained calm. "What do you mean?"

Mabel shrugged and held her forehead. "It's just… Dipper and I call him Grunkle Stan, but the uncle we've been staying with this summer… I think his full name is Stanford. I heard a few people call him that."

"Then you know him, not me." Stan reasoned.

"No. I know it's you." Mabel pressed. "I can tell it's you. Plus, Grunkle Stan doesn't have six fingers."

"That's not possible." Stan said firmly. "I'm Stanley. Why the hel-ck would I go by my brother's name?"

"I don't know. I didn't even know you had a brother. I mean, I knew you were Grandpa Shermie's brother, but I didn't know there was another brother. I didn't know you had a twin, too."

The twins exchanged looks, talking without talking, relying on the closest thing they had to Twin-ESP. Why would Stan steal Ford's name? If something bad happened to him, there was no way Stan would be so desperate to keep his brother alive that he would pretend to be him, that was just wrong on so many levels. But the fact that their niece knew so little about the uncle she had been spending the summer with, and how "sad" Shermie was in her time, perhaps things had only gone from bad to worse.

"It doesn't matter." Stan snapped, making Mabel jump a little. He instantly softened. "What matters is that we've got a grandniece stuck thirty-four years in the past. What are we supposed to do about that?" He asked with a cheeky smile.

Ford smiled. "Well, I was hesitant on making anything official or making promises, in case it was incredibly inappropriate to take in a random girl with no background…"

"Sure,"

"… but now I'm certain that having you stay with me is the best thing to do. After all, we're a family." The scientist said with a smile. "I'm sure Dipper will come back in time for you, but until then my offer to stay with me is even more cemented."

"Now, wait, how come Diptholomew or whatever his name is hasn't come back for her?"

"The time machine was getting hot." Mabel remembered. "Maybe he can't… or he doesn't want to…"

"Of course he does." Ford injected, stopping Mabel's thoughts from making her too sad. "Perhaps he went back at a slightly different time. If he doesn't know when you are, he might accidentally come for you a week from now, or a month, or tomorrow. Who knows. But no matter what happens, you're safe with me, darling."

Mabel grinned and took his hand, squeezing it. Her chest felt much lighter and she was immensely grateful she came clean. "Thanks, Grunkle Ford."

The nerd grinned at the new title and knew he would forever wear it like a badge of honor.