Stan stood there awkwardly since Ford seemed to freeze after realizing who was in his doorstep. He'd imagine their reunion plenty of times but it changed many times over the years. In the beginning, when it was still fresh and the pain was almost too much to bear, he imagined Ford groveling for his forgiveness. But that image changed as he got older and experienced some harsh truths. During his deployment and he saw firsthand at what real unfairness was, he could only pray that he would get to see his brother at all period before he went into the ground.

On the way over he really couldn't decide what he wanted. Part of him still expected a punch in the face for ruining that project all those years ago. But maybe they'd settle for a good hearty handshake.

Someone behind his brother elbowed him and that snapped Ford out of whatever daze he was in. That seemed to do the trick and made Ford realize that Stan actually was there.

So he hugged the hell out of him.

Stan froze. Out of all the reactions he expected from Ford, he expected the punch sooner than the hug. After the shock wore off, he hugged Ford back too, hiding his face in his brother's neck because he didn't want to be seen on the verge of tears.

As for Ford...this had been unexpected. He had no intention of seeing his brother today or soon. But unlike any other time in the past, his desire to do so was vast. The danger posed by Bill and his own creation weighed down on him and if anything were to go wrong, he'd never be able to rest in this life or the next without having made amends. So much time wasted on petty jealousy and childish anger...

"I'm so sorry, Lee."

"Hey...hey...it's okay. I'm sorry too."

They hugged awhile longer before Fiddlford cleared his throat. The brothers separated and looked emotionally wrecked but Fiddleford's never seen Ford a calm as he did now.

Ford cleared his own throat and wiped his eyes. "Right, uh...Lee this is my colleague Fiddleford McGucket. Fiddleford, this is my brother Stanley."

Stan extended his hand and when Fiddleford shook it, he knew that Stan really was quite the military man. That handshake was very firm.

"Nice to meet ya," Stan said.

"Pleasure's all mine."

"Stan, what on earth are you doing here?" Ford asked. Their worry of the machine activating on its own was still in his mind, but suddenly with Stan here, he didn't feel as worried.

"Didn't you get my notebook?" Stan asked.

"I did." Ford nodded, then shyly admitted. "I haven't finished it yet."

"Ah. Well, I tried my best but I guess it probably wasn't as interesting as your projects you must be working on." Stanley said a bit self consciously.

"No! No, they're quite fascinating and I actually have some follow up questions from some of your tales." Ford said quickly. He had a new image of Stanley. A stronger, more cunning brother than the one who acted as his sole friend and protector as children. He didn't want to make his brother feel stupid like he might have before. "I just...we've been a bit busy with an experiment and I just haven't finished it. Why?"

"Oh well, at the end I mentioned I was coming back to the country after the last entry. I sent the notebook before me, not sure who'd get here first."

"You coulda called," Fiddleford mentioned.

"I could but uh...I uh...lost my nerve." There was an awkward silence before Stan gestured to both of them, "You two going somewhere?"

"Hm? Oh! Right...uh...we were going to get some...unicorn hair..."

"Unicorn...hair?" Stan asked with a raised eyebrow before he nodded. "Right. Okay. Want me to come along?" He motioned to his duffle before he added, "I'm still packed."

"It's alright! Uh, you've had a long journey. We'll only be gone a few hours. Why don't you come in and make yourself a home. We'll be back before you know it!"

"You sure? I could look for lodging somewhere in town. I...I don't even know how long I'm staying." Stan said, sounding a bit unsure. And he wasn't. It was really up to Ford to say how long he wanted Stan to stay.

"No! Here! Stay...you're staying here. We're...we're family, you knucklehead. You're staying right here." Seeing Stan again, all of the dangers he knew his brother had been in, both with the supernatural and with the Navy, made him worry greatly. He needed to know his brother was safe and sound.

Stan smiled as he adjusted his duffle over his shoulders. "Alright. Uh, then I guess you guys better head out? There are only so many hours left of sunlight."

"Right! Uh...we'll be back. There's not much in the fridge but the keys to my car are on the counter. Feel free to use it."

"Don't you need your car?"

"Not where we're going. Come on Fiddleford, Stan's right."

"Right behind ya Ford. Later Stanley. Good finally meeting ya!" Fiddleford waved as he and Ford headed to the woods.

It was a weird feeling, and Stan would need a few moments to process all that just happened. But he wouldn't have those moments. Not long after Ford and Fiddleford disappeared from view, Stan heard some weird noises coming from the basement. As he went to explore what could be causing them, he didn't see the doorknob turn to let in a stranger possessed by Bill.

Ford and Fiddleford didn't make it deep enough to find any unicorns. A lot of weird, anti-gravity anomalies began to happen that only happened when the portal was being activated. Fearing for his brother's safety, the pair ran back t the house.

When they arrived, Ford who was already imagining the worse, noticed how the door was opened. It wasn't something old Stanley would do, much less Navy SEAL Stanley. They barged through the door and rushed towards the elevator that would take them to the basement.

"STANLEY!" Ford cried out just as he saw a stranger with wild eyes kick Stanley against the side of the controls. One of the sigils burned into Stan's back causing him to scream in pain.

"Stanley! Get away from my brother!" Ford yelled as he grabbed the closest blunt object he could and attacked the Bill possessed being.

"YOU CAN'T STOP THIS FORDSIE!" Bill's voice came out, as unsettling as ever, but even more so out of a human mouth.

Despite knowing he'll have little effect, Ford tried to fight off Bill. For his brother and his friend. That was more dangerous than just taking on a demon from another dimension with limited power in that form. The portal was sparking up and activating since Ford hadn't done too much to shut it down permanently. The stuff he did do could easily be undone by someone as crafty as Bill.

In stepping too close, Ford got caught in the gravitational pull of the portal's power.

Fiddleford and Stan were both trying to fight Bill at this point, not noticing Ford in danger. As Ford watched Fiddleford fly back and hit his head hard enough to pass out, and Stanley continue to fight despite being seriously injured from fighting who knows how long, Ford realized how much his pride was costing him. He should have taken the portal down the moment he realized Bill's true intentions. His work be damned, he couldn't let Bill destroy the world his family lives in.

"FORD!" Stanley cried out as he noticed the situation. He hadn't wanted to use violence to an extreme, but Ford was in danger. Even though he knew it might be an innocent person who was just at the wrong place at the wrong time, like with Calypso he knew that between something else and his brother...he'll always choose Ford. Stanley jumped towards his duffel and pulled out a gun, shooting the poor vessel between the eyes.

He didn't stop to think or feel sorry for the life he just took and ran towards Ford to help. Stanley easily got caught in the gravitational pull, but he used the momentum he gained to kick Ford out of it. Back in gravity's grasp, Ford fell to the ground. While he came to his epiphany, Stan had, without thinking, settled into his resolve.

Every time he had to make a choice...he'd always choose Ford. Even if the other option was his life.

"STANLEY!" Ford cried as he realized too slowly what was happening. The machine was reaching a critical point. There wasn't any rope at hand to throw to Stan and with just the two of them, they couldn't effectively get to safety. Ford scrambled to shut the machine off manually when the sparks and whirling just got louder and louder. Tears of near defeat and misery ran down Ford's face. He looked over to his brother. His brother who was bruised, branded, and here because of him. "I'm so sorry. I can fix this! Just hang on!"

"It's okay Ford...high si-?"

The portal flashed a blinding light as Stanley was sucked in. A powerful energy blast erupted which crashed and broke the machinery around. When the blast subsided, the portal itself also broke under the pressure.

And Stanley?

Stanley was gone.

To be continued...

Am I really going to end it here? With Stan through the portal leaving an emotional unstable Ford behind with a destroyed portal, no idea how to get his hands back on the first journal, an unconscious Fiddleford, AND a dead body?

Yup.

Hope to see you in the next installment. Whenever that is.