Chapter 22

Disclaimer: Alex Hirsch owns Gravity Falls, not me. Warnings included for this chapter is language.

Gathered around the dining room, hot chocolate in hand by Mabel's request, they settled in for the story Stan was about to tell them. Gideon was wrapped tightly in a blanket, the twins sat on either side of him, with their great-uncle across the table. He appeared visibly uncomfortable and was passing the mug of hot chocolate between his large hands. "Ok, before we start, I just have to say one thing."

The twins glanced at one another, before nodding at him. Stan gulped a sip out of his mug, before continuing on. "Kids, you need to understand, I do everything for the sake of this family, so you need to...need to trust me."

Dipper was reminded of his half of one of the deals he was in with Bill Cipher. Trust Stan. He thought about it, wondering if he did trust the man, despite all the secrets he had held from them. Stan had become someone important in his life though and in his own unusual way cared for Dipper. And, despite his flaws, Stan wasn't a bad person when he really got down to it. "I...I trust you."

Mabel smiled. "I trust you, too, Grunkle Stan."

His lips twitched slightly upwards into a smile, clearly touched. "I really, really appreciate that, kids."

Gideon watched this exchange in awe, wondering if he could ever trust someone as much as the twins trusted their great-uncle. None of them noticed the anguished look that appeared upon his face and the unshed tears welling in his eyes, possessing the knowledge that he would be alone for what seemed to be forever. Stan nodded, continuing his story, while setting down his mug. "Ok, well I think this all started with...with Carla McCorkle..."

~1959~

"I've been waiting eternity for this to come out! The Mummy looks amazing!" Stanley Pines exclaimed to his brother.

Stanford Pines rolled his eyes at his twin. "This is stupid. We should of seen that new Disney movie; those are wayyy better."

"Ugh, I don't know how you can stand sissy cr-" Stanley began with a sneer.

Stanford lurched forward, someone bumping into him. "Hey, watch where you going, budd-My wallet! Come back, that's my wallet!"

The thief was already on the run though, glancing over his shoulder at the 14-year-old attempting to keep up with him. So distracted by him, he never noticed the young girl removing herself from line or her swinging her purse at him. It smacked him directly in the throat and he released a choked gasp, falling on his back and withering in agony. She loomed over him, reaching out a hand. "Kindly hand it over, please."

He wheezed and his hand extended tenderly into the air, presenting the wallet. The brunette snatched it from his hand, just as the twins arrived at the scene, with staring at her in bewilderment. "This is yours, isn't it?"

Stanley's eye twitched in irritation, angry about how no one could tell either of them apart. "No, that belongs to my brother."

"Oh, sorry about that, hon." She apologizes, handing it to the star-struck Stanford.

His hand brushed her's and she pulled away with a smile. "T-Thank you..."

"Your welcome." She replied, retrieving her place in line.

Stanley observed his dazed brother and frowned. "Don't tell me you like her? She can't even the tell the difference between us, Stanford."

"She's beautiful..." His brother breathed out. "...and really strong..."

"Stanford, you don't have a chance. Every time you go after these girls, it never wo-"

"We have to follow her!" His brother blurted out, sprinting after her as she entered the theater.

"Wait, we haven't even bought tickets yet! Stanford! Come back!" His brother cried to no avail. He had already gone in though, observing her from a distance as she bought a bag of popcorn from the concession stand. Right as he was buying his own, discreetly watching her enter a theater, his brother finally showed up, huffing with anger. "What is wrong with you?!"

"Shut up, there's nothing wrong with me, you're just super slow. Oh, she's going in! Come on, we have to follow her!" Stan grasped his twin's arm, but he wretched free with a glare.

"I bought the tickets for our movie, not her's! We're not going after h-Hey! Stanford! Stan! Come back!" He sprinted across the theater to catch up with his brother, entering the theater labelled as "Sleeping Beauty". He found his brother, in the row directly behind her and growled, settling himself next to his twin. "We are not watching this! This a sissy mov-"

"Shh!" Someone in the theater hissed and his mouth snapped shut.

There was a tense silence, before Stan leaned forward, tapping her twice on the shoulder. She whirled her head back, frowning. "Who i-You!"

Stan appeared quite sheepish, rubbing the back of his head. "Uh, s-sorry, I just wanted to, uh, tell you, you're a pretty gal, and uh, was wondering if we could do something together, just for kicks?"

"No, now leave me alone, I'm watching a movie." She whirled back around, clearly annoyed.

Stanley snorted and rolled his eyes. "See? I told you, so can we leave now?"

"No, I need to know something," He tapped her shoulder once more, this time receiving a glare. "I have a question."

"What could you possibly want?"

"I just wanna know, where did you learn that punch? You used your purse and all, but I can tell you know how to punch, like for real."

She appeared less irked now and hesitantly replied. "...I do boxing."

He blinked in surprise. "Boxing? Gals can do that?"

"Well, of course, though not many want to. My dad is a trainer though, so he taught me when I was young."

"Oh, who does he train?"

"He does classes at the YMCA for kids between five to fifteen years old."

"Wait, which location?"

"The one in Burlington County."

He laughed. "Oh my god, that's where I've been going since I was eight! I didn't even know Coach McCorkle had a daughter!"

She blinked and then giggled. "You must be Stanford Pines!"

"Yeah, you can call me Stan though. Your dad talk about me a lot?"

"Sometimes. He likes to tell how bad you were when your first started, but apparently you're really good now."

He puffed up a bit, pounding his chest. "I'm basically a pro!"

"Shh!" He blushed as he heard several people in the theater hushing him.

She giggled. "You know, maybe I will take you up on this date thing, Stan."

He blushed deeply. "D-Date? Who said anything about a d-date?"

"Well, that was what I assumed, especially since you called me pretty."

"O-Oh, of course."

"Do you want my number? I might have a pen somewhere in here..." She replied, digging through her purse, finally digging one out. "Can I see your arm, please?"

He reached his arm out and she wrote her number in a cursive scrawl. In the flickering light of the theater he observed her fair features, nearly mesmerized by them. Her pale skin glowed, chocolate eyes glowing, hair silky swept to the side. Her plump lips were tilted up into a smile, cheeks full of color, hands gentle upon his skin. She finished and he looked down at the name. Carla. "Carla."

"Yes, that's my name. I'll call you tonight, but I want to finish this movie, ok?" She turned back.

He smiled as though in a daze, before turning to his brother, fully satisfied. "We can go now."

His brother was intently watching though and he smile widened as he realized it was "Sleeping Beauty" they were watching. He laughed aloud at the thought of his twin's reaction would be when he teased him later about watching such a "sissy" movie. He nearly and completely lost it when Stanley hushed him and punched him in the arm for causing such a ruckus with his laugh.

~1964~

He had failed his sophomore year and dropped out of high school all together, much to his mother's disappointment. In an effort to make up for this and ease her disappointment somewhat, he had decided to work full time as an auto-mechanic in order to assist his constantly stressed mother pay for the bills, now that their father wasn't around. His brother graduated high school two years early with honors and went to local community college, Rowan College at Burlington County. Carla decided to finish off high school and when the two graduated, all three moved to an apartment near the university Stanley would attend. Carla would work full-time as a waitress, while Stan worked at an auto-shop, and Stanley did classes at Princeton University.

The day when destiny

began to move the wheel, was when Stanford had become tired of his brother's recent attitude. "Ok, Stanley, you either need to get that stick removed from your ass or finally get laid, because you're acting bitchier than usual."

"Shut up, Stanford." Stanley ground out, attempting to sort through paperwork at the kitchen table.

"No, I ain't gonna shut up. You're 19-years-old and you've never been laid."

"You're 19-years-old and only had intercourse with one woman."

"What the hell is this? Sex-ed? Who says intercourse as the term for sex? Besides, that's one more than you."

Stanley frowned. "Don't say that."

"What? You mean sex?"

"Stop that."

"Sex, sex, sex, sex, se-"

Stanley covered his ears, frowning heavily. "Shut up!"

"Tell me what's wrong then."

"Nothing!"

"Doesn't seem like nothing. I can tell when you're upset, bro-bro."

"You wouldn't understand."

"Is it chemistry? Physics? Math?"

"A bit of all that and it's just that one theory I told you about. The one that Everett fellow thought up about back in 1954 an-"

"Who? Whose Everett?"

"The guy that went to my university! The one I told you about, that came up with this whole concept!"

"Oh, was this when I was eating that turkey club a few months back?"

"Yeah."

"Oh, I wasn't listening."

Stanley's eye twitched in irritation. "Anyways, he had attempted to apply the math of quantum physics to prove that quantum effects cause the universe to s-"

"Boringgg."

"Ok, you're only saying that, because you don't understand."

"No, I'm saying that, because it's boring."

"Just listen! I need to explain this, so you understand the damn problem!"

"Ok, ok, jeez! No need to yell at me, man."

"So, when applying the math of quantu-" He cut himself off, seeing Stan raise his hand, and sighed. "What?"

"What's quantum physics?"

"Jesus Christ..." He muttered to himself. "Ok, basically, it's the activities going on inside atoms and the interaction of particles. The waves of energy constantly going on around us is known as Electric and Magnetic fields, or EM. These fields explain how the atoms and particles operate or interact. Do you understand?"

His brother shrugged. "Yeah, I guess."

"Good, now Everett had the idea in mind that if he could use quantum physics to prove that quantum effects cause the universe to split constantly into different paths. He used this concept as his thesis for his PhD. In it, he described how we all live in multiple universes, all with copies of ourselves."

"Stanley, this sounds like some of that nerdy, science fiction, H.G. Wells shi-"

"It's not like that at all! Now, shut up and listen!"

"Ok, ok, cool your jets!"

"Well, do you remember that formula I started working on our sophomore year back in high school?"

"Vaguely?"

"I...I might be close to solving it."

"Solving what?"

"The formula I told you that could officially prove Hugh Everett's theory!"

"Wait, wait, wait. Hold on a second, you're saying, that you're close to proving that there are alternate universes out there?"

"And, how to get to them, with this formula. Professor John Wheeler, the one who supervised his thesis, knew my physics teacher, Professor Harris back then, and he's been assisting me with it. But, we just can't finish solving it and I'm getting frustrated with it."

There was a moment a silence, before Stan burst out in laughter. "Oh boy, you almost got me there! I thought you were being serious about all this crap for a moment!"

"I am being serious, god dammit Stanford!" Stanley cried, slamming a fist onto the tabletop.

"And I'm President Johnson's dog Him!" He sarcastically replied.

"Screw you." Stanley replied, gathering his paperwork and himself from the dimly lite spot in the kitchen.

Stanford watched him for a moment, suddenly stunned. "...holy shit, you're being serious."

"Yes, I was, but, I think I'm going to bed for tonight, because I'm done. It's been five years and we've barely made any process, so I'M JUST DONE!" He concluded, shoving his paperwork across the floor in an abrupt fit of anger.

"Woah, ok, just calm down Stanley, you're not done." Stanford told him, reaching out to touch the heaving shoulders of his brother.

He jerked his shoulder away. "I am done, now get the hell out of here!"

"First of all, I'm actually the one making the most income out of the three of us, so I'm not getting the hell out of my own apartment. Secondly, you can't just give up."

"And why not?!"

"...how many times did it take for Edison to invent a light bulb that actually worked?"

"Well..." He began calming somewhat. "Technically, Thomas Edison didn't create the first operating light bulb, just the first commercially successful on-"

"Just answer the question!"

"Well, there are actually multiple accounts on this, anywhere between 1,000 to 10,000. We can't actually prove which account is correct, considering the fact he's dea-"

"And did he give up?!"

"Well...uh, no, no he didn't."

"Then, are you going to give up?!"

Stanley frowned for a moment, before smiling, feeling inspired by these words. "No! No, I'm not!"

"Now, get back to work on that equation and solve it!"

"...I don't know where I threw it." He finally stated after an awkward moment, staring at the papers scattered across the kitchen floor.

"Oh, would you look at the time? I have to pick up Carla from work! Good luck!" Stan exclaimed, hurriedly leaving the apartment, in an effort to avoid helping clean up the mess created.

~1967~

"Oregon? Why the hell would you want us to move straight across the country?" Stan groused to his brother, from his spot in the living room.

"Because, Professor Harris told me he knew someone there that could help and that he could recommend me to work at the local community college in the same area." Stanley replied, attempting to keep his anger in check from his brother's attitude on this subject.

"Well, I think you should do it, Stanley." Carla replied, next to Stanford on the couch.

"Well, I don't!"

"It's not up to you, Stanford, I was telling you my plan, you can do whatever the hell you want." He replied heatedly.

"We're going wherever you go, hon." Carla replied, giving him a smile.

He felt his temper towards his brother somewhat reduce. "Thank you, Carla. I'm glad I have someone supportive to my decisions."

"My own girlfriend just betrayed me!" Stan cried, pulling away his arm wrapped around her shoulders.

"Stan, I didn't betray you. If your brother feels like this is a good decision, then we should follow him."

"He's making a ass-ton of money of as a professor at Princeton and now he wants to move to some stupid little school and get practically shit!"

"I don't care about the money, god dammit! I need to solve this, Stanford!"

Carla cut-in once more, to cease the beginnings of a fight. "Don't worry, Stanley. We're going."

"Well, I'm not." Stan stated, crossing his arms.

"Have fun living alone then, sweetie."

"What?! You're leaving me for my brother?!"

"No, I'm leaving, because you're being an non-supportive asshole about your brother's dreams." She replied, sitting next to Stanley.

"...fine, I'll go to your stupid little town."

"Glad you are finally seeing it Stanley's way." Carla smiled at him, batting her eyelashes at her boyfriend.

~1968~

The passenger door to the maroon '65 Cadillac DeVille was slammed, causing the the frame to tremble, the license plate reading "STNLYMBL". A well bodied man, with a white shirt spread across his thick shoulders and jeans hugging his legs, exited. The driver's door shut, with much less force. A man similar to the first, yet with more weight than muscle apparent through his black shirt and thick glasses on his face, stepped out. "Stanford, would you stop slamming the doors?!"

"Make me." Stan replied engagingly.

One of the back seat doors swung open, revealing a curvy woman in hues of purple emerging from it. "Stan, listen to your brother. This is a good car and we don't need a repeat of the motorcycle."

"How was I supposed to know that it shouldn't go at that speed?"

"Anyone with a brain." Stanley cut in with a sneer.

"What did you just say?!" Stan asked lurching forward, swinging his fists, but was restrained by his girlfriend.

"Enough, you two! Geez, it's a wonder that neither of you two ever killed each other! Stan, just be on your best behavior; we're going to meet someone that could help Stanley with his formula."

"Ok, ok, just let go!" She released his thick arms and he ran his hands through his slicked back hair.

Carla whirled around to the other Pines twin, pointing at him. "And you better stop insulting him!"

Stanley threw his hands up in a defensive position, in an attempt to shield himself from her flash of anger. "I will, I will!"

"Good," The trio approached the white picket fence, causing it to release a creak as it was opened, and went to the front door. As Stanley began to knock, Carla whispered to her boyfriend. "Remember, best behavior, sweetie."

"I know, I know." Stan grumbled back to Carla.

After a moment, the door swung inwards, revealing a man much shorter than the Pines twins. The sleeves of his white button were rolled up to his elbow, his tan slacks fit loosely over his legs, and hair was combined in an orderly fashion, unlike Stanley's own unkempt one. He adjusted his glasses, smiling kindly. His eyes momentarily lingered on the six-fingers Stanley sported on each hand, before he extended a hand to Stanley. "Stanley Pines, I presume?"

"Yes, you may call me Stanley though, nice to meet you Fiddleford McGucket."

"I'm quite elated to meet you and...ah, who are your friends?"

"Oh, I'm sorry, this is my brother, Stan, and his girlfriend, Carla."

Carla reached out and grasped his hand, shaking it with such force, that Fiddleford's whole body was jolted by the movement. "Hello, Mr. McGucket, it's a pleasure to meet you. I'm Carla McCorkle."

"O-Oh, the pleasure is all mine!" They released hands and the museum curator turned to Stan with a extended hand. "I'm glad to meet you as well, Stan Pines."

"If you call me Stan ever again, I'll crush your windpipe with my bare hands. It's Stanford to you."

Fiddleford cringed at the lethal tone, feeling as though he wasn't bluffing. Carla smiled wider though, as if she found the whole sentence to be perfectly normal, and gazed to her boyfriend. "Sweetie, can we go get my purse from the car?"

Stan froze at her tone, observing the cold eyes he received. "Uh, I rather no-"

The brunette grinned even wider and grasped his forearm in an iron grip. Her voice came in a low and deadly hiss. "Now."

He gulped fearfully, turning his gaze to his brother for an escape. He fully ignored him though, facing in the opposite direction and was dragged away against his will be his girlfriend. A moment later, the yelling began, though the other two were much too far now to be heard what exactly was being screamed about near their car. Stanley sighed. "I apologize for my brother; he's unaware of common courtesy and is a nuisance to everyone around him."

"O-Oh, that's fine. As long as he isn't serious about, um, the whole crushing of the w-windpipe thing." Fiddleford laughed out nervously.

"I can assure you he won't. He's just all talk, so you're fine. Now, it would be wonderful if I could meet your wife."

"Uh, yes, she's in the kitchen. Come on in," The pair entered the threshold and the curator shouted out. "Honey, our guests are here!"

A moment later, Stanford and Carla were behind him. Stanley smirked at him, observing the hand print visibly on his cheek, whispering in satisfaction. "I see you got what you deserved."

"Shut it, poindexter." He hissed back.

A woman entered the entryway, crimson lips stretching into a serene smile. Her burgundy curls went to her collarbone and her excessively light turquoise tinted eye shadow, which matched her button-up dress, made her eyes seem doe-like. Her plump frame swayed as she approached the group, hand extended. "Well, hello there! I'm Susan, nice to meet you all."

Carla gasped softly, taking her hand gently. "Oh my god, your hair is beautiful!"

Susan laughed at her excitement. "Why thank you!"

"How do you do it?!"

"Well, I put the hot curl-"

"Susan, darling, I'm sorry to interrupt, but I believe there are others to be introduced to." Fiddleford cut-in, with a laugh.

A light blush scattered her cheeks. "Oh, I'm sorry. You must be Professor Stanley Pines."

Stanley took her hand and shook it. "It's a pleasure to meet you. Your home is lovely."

"Oh, why thank you! And, who are your friends?"

"Well, this my brother, Stanford, and his girlfriend, Carla."

Carla smiled widely at her and Stan gave a causal wave her way. "Oh, how cute! You two seem like such a darling couple. Oh, I remember when Fid and I started dating, we were always holding hands, and cuddling, an-"

"S-Susan!" Fiddleford stuttered out, blushing deeply.

"Oh, Fid, we're married, I don't know why you're so embarrassed all the time when I talk about this sort of stuff!"

"Because, it's quite personal an-"

He was cut off by the cry of a baby, from down the hall, connected to the kitchen. Susan frowned. "Oh, I just put him to bed!"

She scurried off and the trio blinked owlishly at him. "You have a son?"

"Oh, I apologize, Stanley, it must of escaped my mind! Yes, I have a son, but don't worry, because I can still help you plenty with your theory."

"No, no, it's fine, just caught by surprise."

Stanford pointed at him, appearing incredulous. "How the hell did you get such a beautiful woman and have a kid with her?"

Carla elbowed him so hard in the stomach, that he released a gasp of breath, and hunched his body over to reduce the pain, grasping at himself. "C-Carla!"

"Don't mind him; he has no idea how to be nice."

"Um, so I've heard," Replied the curator. Stan glared hatefully at him, though creating more of a grimace. He cringed and gazed away. "Errrr, would you like to take a drive to the lodge I told you about?"

Stanley nodded. "Yes, you told me it was on the outskirts of town?"

"It's actually in the forest, but that shouldn't be a problem, correct?"

"No, it's fine."

"Oh my god, Stan, we're going to see a bunch of cute deer and little racoons a-" She shook her boyfriend.

"Ok, ok, woodland creatures, I get it! Stop shaking me!"

Stanley ignored the pair. "Did you say you recently bought it?"

"Actually, this may sound a bit odd, but I purchased it from a man back in '57 and I honestly took it, simply due to the fact that it $100."

Stanley gave him a bewildered look. "Did you say $100?"

"Yes, I honestly thought there was a catch, but there wasn't. All he informed was that it held too many bad memories for him. I actually asked around and discovered it's been here for at least a century. I had to do a bit of repair work and cleaning, but it came out fine."

"A century? Pretty impressive that it's still standing. Who did you say sold it to you?"

Fiddleford gulped, eyes shifting away. "Um, well, the thing is th-"

"As fun as this history lesson sounds, I sorta want to leave, because this is getting boring as hell." Stan interrupted.

Stanley's eye twitched, nearly whirling around to punch him in the face, but was able to control himself once he heard his brother release a yelp of pain, likely from Carla injuring him as punishment. "Mr. McGucket, shall we head to the lodge now?"

"Oh, yes, of course, let me find my keys, and I'll lead the way." Fiddleford replied, leaving the room.

Stanley whirled around, hissing. "Can you just shut your damn mouth for once?"

Stan hissed back. "It's not my fault that Gravity Falls and your new friend is boring as sin!"

Carla stepped in-between the pair, hissing a bit louder than them. "Enough! If you two don't start be civilized with one another, I'm going to lock you both in a closet at the lodge, and leave you in there until you solve your problems!"

Stanley and Stanford paled, speaking in unison. "Carla, there is absolutely no w-"

Fiddleford entered the kitchen and everyone returned to a non-threatening appearance. "Right, I've located my keys, so if you simply follow my car, I'll take you all there."

"Thank you, Fiddleford, we'll do just that." Carla replied with a bat of her eyelashes, receiving a timid smile in return. The curator went out the front door, with Carla following in the rear. Right before she exited, she spun herself back to the twins. She pointed her index and middle fingers at her eyeballs, then jabbed in their general direction in the same matter. The pair gulped as she left.

Chapter 22 End

So, I would like to start with that after watching "The Tale of Two Stan's" that this story is super AU now, though I loved the plot line Alex Hirsch has taken to Gravity Falls (What? Mystery Trio isn't canon? Of course they are, hahaha...ha...). There's huge differences between this fic and the real plot of the cartoon, such as Grunkle Stan being Stanford and Grunkle Ford being Stanley, but I hope you all aren't bothered by that too much. Anyways, I've split this chapter into parts considering the length of it. Furthermore, I have several notes for this chapter. Stan and Stanford were born on January 1st, 1945 and when the pair was 13-years-old, when their father passed away from a heart attack. Just like Alex made it in Gravity Falls, I felt like he was more proud of Stanley, than of Stan. Their mother in this fic was a hardworking, but playful, single mother that worked as a secretary. "The Mummy" came out in 1959 and featured Sir Christopher Lee. Disney's "Sleeping Beauty" also came out in 1959. There's a YMCA in Burlington County, New Jersey. I also imagined that Stanley was polite and kind to everyone, except to his brother, who he would lose his temper often due to Stan's behavior. Next, Hugh Everett was actually a real physicist, who went to the same university as Stanley, and we can basically thank him for coming up with the theory of AU's. Everything Stanley explains to his brother are actually real concepts and facts. Next, President Johnson was the president at the time of the conversation about Stanley's formula; he and his wife had a pair of beagles named Him & Her. Next, I always imagined Lazy Susan as McGucket's ex-wife. I think that's it for notes on this chapter and I'll update fairly soon for part two of this chapter.