Chapter 28: When an Oak Tree Falls

His head was pounding painfully, almost like someone was hitting him over the head with a hammer, and he squints his eyes against the light, his vision blurred from his lack of glasses.

He sits up, putting a hand to his head, the blanket that was around him falling revealing that he wasn't wearing his sweater. A small sound of confusion escapes him, when did that happen? His hand hits something to his right and he finds his glasses, and once he put them back on his vision was restored. Now he was able to see his scenery a lot more clearly.

Still, he was confused why his sweater was off. He runs a hand through his messy brown hair, his breathing starting to become panicked. There was then a soft moan from next to him, making his heart pound painfully in his chest. His brown eyes dart down to his left to see that Layla was curled up at his side, her black hair was a complete mess, and her bare shoulders were shown from not being completely covered by the blanket.

Ford's heart falls into the pit of his stomach.

Wait a minute… that didn't happen… did it!?

He barely remembered what happened the previous night. Ford remembered drinking a lot, and so was she. He had told her about how he and Stanley had fought. Then… things were starting to get blurry, but he could recall kissing her and saying she had the prettiest blue eyes, which wasn't a lie in the slightest.

Another soft moan from next to him, he looks down to see her turn to her side, her back to him. The blanket falls slightly and her bare back was revealed, a few deep scars that looked suspiciously like lashes from something, but that was slightly ignored as he saw a lot of bare skin. A deep blush warms Ford's face to the point where he had to rub his face to try to get rid of the tingling sensation.

Some of Layla's black hair had fallen away from her face and neck, and a deep white line was accented because of her extremely pale skin. Ford furrows a brow and leans toward her neck, moving her head slightly to see that the line went straight across her throat. Gently, he touched it, the scar feeling thick underneath his fingertips. A pair of electric blue eyes opened and when they saw them hey widened.

Layla gasps loudly and sits up abruptly, the blanket falling down revealing her complete bare form, a few bruises on her waist that suspiciously looked like a six-fingered hand.

"Um… Layla…" Ford had covered his eyes with a hand and with his free one gestured toward her general direction. In a way it felt odd doing that, given the circumstances.

He hears her groan loudly and the sound of ruffling fabric, him hoping that she was covering herself. Ford could feel her eyes looking at him.

"Why are you covering your eyes?" she asks, her voice thick with amusement, as if she was trying not to laugh.

"I… I don't want to be rude…" Ford mumbles.

Layla laughs, a sound that Ford really did enjoy. "Ford… do you even know what happened last night?" she then giggled at him.

Ford feels his face heat up. "I-I h-h-have my suspicions," he stammered. He then feels his hand being pried from his face, the pair of blue eyes he loved looking at so much gazing at him. The blue eyes weren't filled with anger, or hate, or even regret, they were filled with love. And they were for him.

Layla's black hair was still a mess, but it still looked like soft feathers, a cowlick sticking up from the top of her head. She had one of the black blankets that they had brought with their travels wrapped around her torso, her cleavage clearly showing. Parts of her shoulder had thick scars from her past, and her left hand would subconsciously rub at them, her three fully formed fingers tracing the lines.

"How did you get the scar on your neck?" Ford suddenly asks. Without the turtleneck of her sweater he could clearly see the scar on her neck.

"That… I rather not say." Layla glances her eyes away.

Ford gives her a glare as he adjusts his glasses. "You basically got me damned drunk to find out why my brother and I fought, the least you can do is say how you got that scar."

Layla flinches at his statement. "I guess…" she sighs. She then sits up a little straighter, the scar sticking out like a sore thumb, being an off white to her pale skin. "I got it, because I slit my own throat," she finally said.

"WHAT!?" Ford demands as he jumped from the bed. He then realizes that he wasn't clothed and climbed back in to put the blanket over him, his face red. He then gives a little cough. "Um… WHAT!?" he says again.

Layla gives him a sad smile. "I did it… because Magum made me. He wanted to see my blood stain my body… and I was nineteen at the time and really didn't have a choice…" she tells him, her head hanging down in shame.

"It could've killed you!" Ford screeches.

"It nearly did…" Layla admits sadly. "But he had promised that he would heal me. What I didn't know is that it would leave this scar… that's why I wear the turtleneck."

Ford then pulls Layla to him, holding her close to him in an embrace. He puts a hand in her hair and runs his fingers through it, trying to comfort her.

"You're okay now… he won't hurt you again," he whispered to her softly. He felt her slender arms wrap around him. It jogged a fuzzy memory from the night before of her doing something similar. He groans slightly, his head still aching from being hungover.

"Are you okay, Ford?" Layla says to him, pulling away from him. Her blue eyes were wide with worry.

"Eh… it's nothing. I still got a headache…" Ford tells her, but his tone hinted at something else.

"Do you… not remember anything from last night?" Layla asks him, her face twisted with worry.

"Bits and pieces… but not much," he admits.

Layla then gives him a sly smile and gives him a kiss. "Do you want me to give you a recap of last night?" her voice taking on a sultry tone.

"Heh…!?" Ford barely squeaks. Was she really going to tell him the details of what she remembered last night?

She then kisses him deeply, making his heart race. He then kisses her back, putting his hand on her waist naturally and tightly, causing her to hiss in pain slightly. He then remembered the bruises she had there and that in fact they were from him. He lessens his grip on her waist and she continued kissing him, putting her hands in his hair and gripping it tightly.

Layla breaks away from the kiss, the two to catch their breath. She was panting, and Ford took that as an opportunity to kiss along the scar on her neck, causing her to gasp in surprise. When he had finished she kisses him once again.

"Are you ready for that recap?" she whispers to him, her voice heavy.

Ford then takes off his glasses and sets them to the side. "Yeah…"


The two humans were walking out of the building that they had used as shelter for the night, them both fully clothed and wearing their trench coats with their packs on their backs.

Ford's head still ached painfully, but that was highly ignored because of a different kind of feeling. He had never made love to someone before, and for the first time in his life he wondered why he had gone so long without something like that in his life.

His friend and old college roommate, the man that became his partner to build the portal in Gravity Falls, Fiddleford McGucket, had even gotten married and had a kid. For the first time Ford felt guilty, ripping that man away from his family because of his selfish ambitions. And because of all the things that he had put Fiddleford through, who knows if that man would ever be the same again.

"Ford, you okay?" Layla's voice interrupted his thoughts.

He glances at her and gives her a small smile. "Still got a slight headache, but I'll manage," he tells her.

Layla gives him a worried glance, but gives a small shrug as she takes his right hand into her left. They had to leave their room pretty quickly because the person that Layla had bribed was pounding on the door demanding for them to leave since he was getting in trouble. Although Ford would have rather just stayed in the bed with her curled up his side they couldn't as life was sometimes not fair.

The city they were in was filled to the brim with patrons walking down the streets, all of them the same type or reptilian being as the concierge from the place they were staying. A few of them gave Ford and Layla glances, as if they were trying to pinpoint if they have seen them before. No doubt their wanted posters were in this dimension too, but the two humans were avoided like the plague.

"I wonder what that is about..." Ford murmurs mostly to himself.

Finally they reached an alleyway but Layla trips over something. She would've fallen to the ground if Ford hadn't caught her. What she had tripped on was a leg sticking out of a box, and inside that box was Rick.

"RICK!" Layla shouts at him.

"H-h-h-heh!?" Rick yelps from his box, him scrambling trying to get out. He stands up, but was wobbly, as if he woke up drunk still. Rick glares at Layla and Ford, but then the glare slightly softens in recognition. "O-o-o-oh, hey there Sci-Fi and L-l-l-l-Layla." He greeted drunkenly.

"Where the hell did you even go yesterday?" Ford demands, him gesturing to the drunk man.

"Eh? I-I-I-I thought I'd f-f-f-find my n-n-nuclear reactor faster by-" Rick began but then belched midsentence. He then continues like it never happened, "-myself. A-a-a-a-and I did!" Rick then goes into his lab coat pocket and takes out his portal gun, now newly fixed. "I-I got a stronger one… s-s-s-so maybe I can get home and a-a-a-adjust it more. It's a-a-a-a one way ticket though, a-a-a-a-and it's enough energy to s-s-s-send one p-p-person through without r-r-r-ripping their molecules apart."

Ford looked at the man curiously. In a way it was like Rick was hinting that he is going to leave and couldn't take Ford and Layla back to Earth's dimension. Ford didn't feel angry at this or feel betrayed. He knew the man was married and had a young daughter, Rick had to get home. With one look to Layla, her giving a slight nod, Ford looks back to Rick and hands out a hand for a handshake. Rick looked surprised at this, but he then extends his hand and gives Ford a handshake.

"Good luck getting home, friend." Ford tells Rick.

"Y-you too, Sci-Fi… I m-m-mean, Ford." Rick says back. He then waves to Layla. "Good l-l-l-luck to you too, Layla. M-m-m-m-make sure Sci-Fi doesn't get into too much trouble."

Layla gives him a small wave. "Good luck, Rick. And tell your wife to kick your ass for me," she says to him.

Rick then uses his portal gun and points it to the wall next him. A bright green portal then swirls around in a circular motion. "I suggest you guys find a way out of this dimension… M-M-M-Magum will probably jump at this e-e-e-energy signature." He then gives a final wave before disappearing through his portal.


Layla manages to find a natural portal that had opened, the two humans going through quickly before Magum could pinpoint the energy signature from Rick's portal gun.

The dimension they ended up in was much more industrial, with tall metal buildings a dull gray. The skies was a dark gray as well, a storm brewing overhead, the clouds swirling from the harsh winds. Quickly, they pull up their hoods as droplets of rain start to fall, the thunder bellowing over them.

They managed to find what looked to be an empty building, Ford prying the boards off the windows so they could go in. Once inside Ford tried to put the boards back up to try to hide the two within. It didn't look very pleasing, but it was enough to give the two cover from the outside world.

Layla lowers her hood, a few dents within the fabric as holes were forming. It seemed that the rain was acidic to their clothing and would most definitely hurt their skin.

"Looks like we need to stay out of the rain," Layla mutters as she took off her trench coat.

Ford takes his off as well, seeing how holes were starting to develop. "Damn it… I just got this too…" he muttered as he held out his coat.

Layla had started a small fire, taking some kindling from her pack and a match. The room illuminated in a dull fiery glow, the shadows dancing around them. It seemed they were in an old factory, like an assembly line. Assembly for what, the two could not tell.

They slept in shifts, not feeling safe in the building they were hiding in. Ford took the first watch, his gun in hand as he sat by the fire. Layla was curled up in her blankets close to Ford, her snoring gently as her black hair covered her face. Despite the danger and that Ford needed to keep watch, he couldn't help but stare at her, feeling at peace that she was still with him.

His face feels hot as he remembered their little "recap", him wanting to do it again, but he knew it probably wouldn't be possible for a little while. Probably when they're in a safer dimension.

A sudden clang snapped Ford's attention. Slowly, he stands up and moves forward, his gun in hand, ready to fire. He glares around, trying to find the source of the sound. His gun had a flashlight attachment on it and he clicks it on, a narrow white beam now in front of him. At this point he had approached a corner, and with a deep breath he whips around with his gun raised in case something was there.

Black emptiness.

"What?" Ford barely whispered as he felt a sudden heaviness to his body.

"Did you miss me, Stanford?"

That chilling, blood-curdling voice. It was so slippery like a snake, and Ford knew it well.

"Magum…"

"Heh… did you really think that I was following that drunk's portal energy signature?"

Ford tried to move his body, but he couldn't. Magum was part of the telekinetic race of demons. But now with the new information regarding his long-term possession of his host and how Magum had been friends with Bill Cipher at one point, Ford was practically crippled with fear.

"You were friends with Bill…" Ford stated. "You two started anarchy… killed demons and even your kind… Why?"

"Order is the true anarchy. Why should rules dictate my fun? As for Bill… his own kind didn't even like him from the very beginning."

"What do you mean…?"

"I don't have to answer that."

Ford then remembers from his first meeting with Magum, how they had made a deal. It was all a test… and this still was. Magum had even mentioned that he had made a deal with Bill, but was that the truth or a lie?

"Oh… you still haven't figured it out yet have you?" Magum's chilling voice echoed in Ford's mind, making shivers go up his spine. "I am a demon after all, a master of manipulation and lies… all I have to do is say a few words along the puppet strings and the puppets do what I want."

Ford's body chilled when he heard the word "puppet". He hated puppets, ever since Bill had used him as one. Bill had used his body more times than Ford would like to admit, the man often finding odd bruises and marks on him, as if Bill was testing out his body's durability.

"I wanted Rick Sanchez to make his portal gun. I wanted you and Layla to get close. I wanted you to know about my past. I wanted you to think you were trying to run from me… but I am always one step ahead." A chilling laughter fills what seemed like the whole world, making Ford shake and crumple to the floor, his heart pounding with fear.

Ford finally chokes out, "Why…?"

Another chilling laugh. "Because, Stanford, how about we make a deal? You want to destroy Bill Cipher just as much as I do… and we both have a common attraction to little Miss Layla Bartek."

Ford already knew where the demon was going. His brown eyes widened as his heart fell to the pit of his stomach as he heard Magum's next words.

"Become my new puppet, my new host, Stanford Pines, and together we can destroy Bill Cipher… together we can rule the multiverse."

"No…" Ford's voice was small and hoarse, he barely heard himself. His mind raced at an alarming speed. Was that why possibly Dr. Bartek was around so long before Layla killed him? Had Magum or even Bill wanted Dr. Bartek as a master puppet? Rick was probably on the potential list as well, but it seemed that Ford had been chosen. "Why… me…?"

"You and I aren't so different, Stanford. You want knowledge… and knowledge is power. Power is what makes the multiverse go round, and it needs a ruler. Sure… I could've used Dr. Bartek… or I could've used Rick… but you Stanford, I see myself in you."

"I'm nothing like you!" Ford growls.

"Hmm? Oh, you're not? You pushed your own family away, not caring if they had lived or died. Sound familiar to me? You have a twin brother yes? Well, so do I, and guess what happened to him? He burned at my hands because of him holding me back. What did you do to your twin brother? Cut him out of your life.

"Family is useless and pointless. You're better off as a puppet, and what Layla doesn't know won't hurt her, right?"

"WRONG YOU ASSHOLE!"

Ford was suddenly broken out of his trance and collapsed fully onto the floor. In front of him Magum had materialized, this time without the skin that Ford was so used to seeing him wear.

Magum was in his true form, his body almost reptilian, but his skin was nothing but a pelt of red flames. His eyes were soulless white, inside fluid whirling as it searched through the minds of its prey. Coming out of his temples were his horns, long and curved upwards in an intricate design, almost like branches.

It was almost like seeing the Devil.

But at that moment, it seemed Magum was distracted. Ford turns his head to see Layla with her gun raised, her now pulling the trigger furiously.

"You are the biggest piece of shit in the multiverse!" Layla screams furiously, her electric blue eyes hard as ice. "You caused a war, you causes your own race and others to die! You killed your own family! You piece of shit…! You manipulated my father, you and Cipher! You two are so deprived of love from yourselves and your families that you just wanted the multiverse to burn! Well, I got news for you asshole, I'm not going to let that happen!"

"Why you-"

Ford took that as an opportunity to shoot at Magum's legs, causing the monstrosity to buckle. Layla had ran up to Ford and helped him up, she grabbed his hand and began to run. The two ran through the corridors, trying to go through whatever doors they could find. There was only one place to go. Up.

"You think you can escape from me!?"

The hall that Ford and Layla were in suddenly felt hot and red flames licked the walls, the boards on the windows burning to a crisp, the glass shattering all around them, causing the two to stop from the sudden heat. It felt as if the oxygen was being pulled from their lungs, causing them to collapse.

"I don't think you understand the situation here…" Magum then materializes in front of Ford and picks him up his neck.

"Stanford!" Layla barely cries out, her face taking on a strange tint of blue.

"I'm giving you one final choice here, Stanford. Become my puppet and you and Layla will live. Decide not and you'll die and she will face a punishment worse than death."

Ford felt like that there was no choice. He had to take the deal. Slowly, the brunette nods his head. A sinister smile crosses Magum's features, making him look more terrifying than the Devil. Ford was then lowered to the ground and the flames subsided, the two humans gasping for air.

Magum raises a hand, it engulfed with red flames.

"Do we have a deal, Stanford Pines?"

Ford went to raise his hand as well, ready to take the deal. He saw Layla's eyes widen, them filling with tears, her body trembling. If sacrificing himself was going to help her, the woman he loved live, he had to.

"Stanford…" Layla chokes out. He looks at her, his hand hovering toward Magum's. "I need you to know that I love you… okay?" she says to him, the tears falling freely.

"Layla…?"

"I need you to get away. I love you, Stanford… and good luck…"

"Wait… WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!"

Layla had gotten up from her position and then tackled Magum away from Ford, the two tripping over the broken window. Layla had taken her gun and was shooting Magum repeated into his skull, his wounds becoming more traumatic as there was barely any time for regeneration. Their two bodies began to fall as Ford rushed to the window to try to grab her hand. But it wasn't there.

Nothing was there.

A loud thud was heard from below, and Ford felt like he was frozen in time. His hand was outstretched to grab a hand he could never reach, his heart felt like it had stopped. The cold wind slapped his face, thunder booming overhead.

"No…" Ford moaned in agony. "No… no… NO…. NO….!"

Although his legs felt like lead and that he felt like he was going to throw up his internal organs he had forced himself to run back to the bottom of the building. His heart clung to the hope that she was still alive… she had to be. His mind on the other hand was saying the bitter truth.

NO I CAN'T BELIEVE THAT!

Ford makes it to the bottom, seeing where the two could've fallen. Laying crumpled in the concrete was the small form of Layla, a pool of her scarlet blood beneath her. Her electric blue eyes were now practically a dull gray, the life drained away. Her usually pale skin took on a sullen tone, blood trickling from the corner of her mouth.

"No…" Ford's voice wavered. "Layla… no… why… why did you do that?!" His voice rang out in despair and agony as the acidic rain began to fall, the drops hissing against the woman's skin, destroying her body. Ford felt the stings on his own skin, but all he could do was stare at Layla's broken form as his sobs ripped through him.

The mighty Oak tree had fallen.


A/N: AND BAM! Feel your feels being torn to shreds! I'm sorry this took longer than I thought... I was honestly having a hard time coming up with the in between of the chapter. And now we go back to "After Cipher's Reign: Short Stories" and watch as Ford relays one of the most painful memories of his life.

Thank you for reading as always!

~Skye Hendersen~