Separation

SUMMARY: When Mabel and Dipper once again fight about them sharing their room Stan and Ford decide to finally help the twins get their own rooms.

Another day in the life of the Pines family getting ready for a new day…

With Dipper and Mabel arguing.

"Mabel, I dressed in the closet yesterday!" Dipper complained, him in his navy blue pajama pants and orange t-shirt. In his arms was a bundled pair of jeans and navy blue hoodie, no doubt worn a few days ago, him trying to get ready for the day.

"Well, I need room to do my hair, see how my outfit choice goes, and see what kind of accessories I can collaborate with my headband and sweater-" Mabel began listing, each new thing adding annoyance to her twin brother.

"Well, you can do that after I get dressed in the main room, it'll take two seconds!" Dipper shouted angrily.

"Then you can do it in the closet!" Mabel insisted, her tone equal to his.

"I'll be trapped in there for twenty minutes!"

"Will not!"

"Will so!"

As children they didn't care that they dressed in front of the other, after all they were twins. They were bathed together, countless photos proved that, and they both knew what the difference between girls and boys since a very young age. But, as they gotten older… it got a little more complicated.

Mabel was going through puberty with her period and breast development, something that Dipper didn't even want to think about. Dipper himself was going through his puberty, gaining muscle from his exercise and his… male activity, a thing that would make Mabel grimace and gag for even thinking that her brother would do such a thing. Needless to say, it was starting to get awkward between the male and female twins.

"OKAY, OKAY, THAT'S ENOUGH!" Stan finally had marched into the room and screamed at them. "I'VE HAD IT UP TO 'HERE' WITH THIS ARGUING!" He held up his hand perpendicular to the top of his trademark fez.

Ford was next to him, leaning onto the doorframe. "Wow… and you say I sound like Dad when I'm mad," he chuckled lightly. He received a hard glare from Stan.

"Well, tell Dipper to get dressed in the closet!" Mabel begged.

"What!?" Dipper screeched, his voice going up at least two octaves. "That's not fair! I don't take a million years! Have her do it!"

Ford finally sighs, "You two are fifteen years old. You guys are at that age… we think it is time that you two should be in separate rooms."

Both the younger twins stopped, dead silent. They glanced at each other for a moment then turned away in a huff. In a way it reminded Stan of when the two were twelve and were competing for Ford's room when Soos discovered it. However, at twelve they were still at an okay age… the two were growing up. This time when the kids turned away from each other, it was like they finally realized that they weren't kids anymore, but maturing young adults.

"But… Grunkle Ford…" Dipper said, facing him. "There aren't any rooms…"

"How are we gonna have our own rooms if there are none?" Mable then pointed out.

Ford and Stan glance at each other with sly smiles.

"Well," Ford began. "At first my suggestion was that I move down into the basement as my living quarters so that one of you can take my room."

"But then I pointed out that he would never leave and forget to actually sleep, eat, work, and all that jazz." Stan continued.

"Which I agree full heartedly." Ford added. "So, we decided that this weekend-"

"-we are going to rebuild the whole attic to make extra rooms and a bathroom for you two." Stan finished.

Both Dipper and Mabel stared at their great uncles with large brown eyes, large as the moon themselves. "Really!?" they shouted in unison.

Ford nods. "That way, you two are still by each other, but just in separate rooms," he told them. He noticed that the twins beamed and started chattering excitedly together.

"I can finally paint the walls pink!" Mabel squealed happily.

"Our room back in Piedmont was pink…" Dipper pointed out.

"But it can now be glittery pink!"

Dipper rolled his eyes. "Well, finally I can do my reading in peace!" he then excitedly said, his brown eyes lighting up. "And Pacifica and I can actually be in private."

"Oh, George and I too!"

"NO WAY!" Stan finally shouted, getting between the twins. "When opposite sexes are in your rooms the doors stay open!" He once again glared at Ford who was trying to stifle a laugh. "What? You don't agree?" Ford fully laughs as he nods his head in agreement.

Both Dipper and Mabel glanced at the ground. "Yes, Grunkle Stan…" they both groaned.

"Now, you two get dressed, there is still school." Ford ordered as he left the room, heading downstairs for another cup of coffee.

With newfound enthusiasm, Mabel ran into the closet as Dipper rushed get dressed as Grunkle Stan left the room, shutting the door behind him. He followed Ford downstairs and poured himself a cup of coffee as well, although not as strong as his twin's.

"Ford… you're gonna die of a heart attack from all the caffeine," Stan joked as he sat at the table with a newspaper.

"Eh… better than what I had in mind…" Ford replied casually, causing Stan to raise a silver eyebrow.

"Um… okay then…"

Suddenly they heard the sound of feet rushing down the stairs, both hearing excited voices. Mabel and Dipper enter the kitchen, Dipper wearing his hoodie and jeans with his pine tree hat on his messy brown hair. Mabel wore a silver headband with a silver looking sweater, the design being the "Long, Live, and Prosper" symbol from "Star Trek" that the character Spock had done, her wearing jeans as well.

"Uh, what's with the nerd sweater, sweetie?" Stan asked, gesturing toward her sweater.

"What? I like it…" Mabel pouted.

"It's from 'Star Trek', Stan," Ford informed his twin.

"Eh… I'm more of a 'Star Wars' fan…" Stan admitted with a shrug.

"Didn't they make prequels?"

"You don't want to watch'em…"

"Why?"

"Trust me."

Ford rolled his eyes as he looked at the time. "Well, come along kids, we got to head to school."

Dipper and Mabel grabbed their backpacks, both giving their respectful animals a pat on their heads. Mabel then ran to give Stan a hug and Dipper went and gave him a high five. They said their goodbyes as the three Pines left for school, leaving Stan at the Shack to carry on his day.

The weekend came quickly, both sets of twins were pretty excited for the new renovations.

"This is going to be so cool!" Mabel cheered with George next to her, him giving her a small smile since he knew she was excited.

At the Shack was Manly Dan with his sons and Wendy, all who had wood and other carpenter tools for the renovations. Soos had his tools, ready to install plumbing and electrical. Even McGucket and his son Tate were there, Ford saying that McGucket was going to add his "touches" to the rooms. Gideon and Melody were there as well to help, ready to hand tools and move things around.

Pacifica was there as well, her dressed in a simple t-shirt and jeans, her long blonde hair pulled in a ponytail. She had stated that because it was for Dipper and Mabel she would help with manual labor, something that her family would never had let her do. Pacifica was ready to help, wearing a little tool belt, which made Dipper smile and give a few chuckles to her.

The entire attic was stripped bare, all of Dipper's and Mabel's items downstairs in the living room. Ford a few times debated whether or not to get rid of the triangular window that faced the front of the house, but he was advised that would be costly and too much work to rework the whole design. Walls were being put up, Ford saying there was going to be three rooms and a bathroom.

The attic was spacious, the room that Dipper and Mabel shared was used as a small storage room before they arrived, so it was easy to divide the large space into four decent rooms. Soos got to work on the electrical and the plumbing, a few accidents here and there but with McGucket's help it went through well.

Ford had decided to divide the room where there was a small hallway that led to the window and its small nook. On the left side was Dipper's room, a small window installed for natural light, the other side with Mabel's room with the same window situation. The bathroom was installed to have only a standup shower, but as a separate nook so that one could shower and dress in private while the other got ready in the main part of the bathroom, which had a long counter and two sinks with a large mirror. When Soos asked about the extra room Ford just replied that it would be good for storage.

Dipper and Ford with McGucket's help designed Dipper's room. The walls were painted a rich pine green, the floor its simple wood with a blue rug. McGucket added touches to the lights that when the lights were off and you flipped a certain switch the entire room was filled with holograms of the galaxy and star constellations. Dipper's bed was a loft bed, his bed being on top while underneath was decked out with computer system and a desk, all of it supported with a dark pine wood and was amazingly sturdy, next to the bed was a solid pine dresser that on top sat a globe and a few stacks of books. Shelves were built into the walls, already filling with the countless books and journals that Dipper owned. Even on the wall by his bed was the painting of the ship that he at first hated when he first came to Gravity Falls but had grown to love it.

Dipper felt ecstatic when he first saw the completed room, it was the first time that he had felt that it was his own space. Growing up with a twin sister was always tricky, their room was pink and so was the carpet, so there was barely anything that was for a boy except for his bed and posters. This room however felt like it was his and only his, and that he didn't have to share with anyone.

Mabel's room was of course designed by her, with a few tips from Melody and Gideon. The walls were of course the glittery pink that she had wanted, her room installed with a lush purple carpet that was soft on her feet. She had one of those "princess" beds, a solid white wood frame with tall posts that held a dark purple canopy, at the end of the bed was a solid white dresser with her clothes, plus she had a closet that had plenty of space for her sweater designs. Her wall had a built in sound system so that she could listen to her music, but with McGucket's special touch he made it so that the music would only stay in the room and not travel outside, that way the men of the house wouldn't be annoyed with the pop music. She had a few shelves as well, they had a few books that she enjoyed, but not as many as Dipper. Underneath the small window was an L-shaped desk, it having a computer on one part and a sewing machine on the other part, the sewing machine a special one where it can connect to the computer for custom embroidery.

Mabel squealed in happiness with such a high frequency that everyone in the Shack was flinching and covering their ears. She had ran into the room and flopped on the bed, her laughing and seeing all her new things, happy to see there was still a basket for her knitting. Even Waddles had a small bed that was for him as well, but everyone knew he would still be sleeping with Mabel.

"So, how do you kids like your rooms?" Ford asked after the excitement settled.

"My room is amazing!" Mable shouted with delight.

"Yeah, my room is pretty sweet! I love the idea of a loft bed!" Dipper stated, him adjusting his glasses.

Ford gives a smile. "I'm glad you two like your new rooms," he told them as he gave each a hug. He was proud of all the work everyone did, and he was truly happy to see the kids smile largely as they each had their own space.

On Sunday evening when everything was complete everyone that had worked on the renovations sat in the living room watching "Ducktective" while eating delivered Chinese food. They laughed when Mabel put chopsticks in her mouth to say that she was a walrus, Stan joining in and both of them making funny noises.

"Time for bed kids, ya two got school in the morning!" Stan called to the kids from the kitchen, him trying to take the trash out from the extra food boxes from the restaurant. He was glad that all the renovations were done, he had to cancel tours for the weekend because of it. But, he was happy to see that his grandniece and nephew were smiling about their new rooms.

Both Dipper and Mabel said their goodnights, both holding their animal of choice, and started heading upstairs. Seeing the new renovated space had them hesitate for a moment, them looking at the foreign landscape. They went into their rooms, saying goodnight to each other as they shut the doors. The twins got ready for bed and they lied down in their respective beds, both staring at their own ceilings.

"Goodnight, Mabel…" Dipper quietly said, him feeling a sudden loneliness in his chest. He was used the squeaking of the old springs of a mattress being bounced on, or the snorting of Waddles. He flipped the switch to see his holographic galaxy thinking that it may help his loneliness, but when the images appeared it was nothing but shooting stars soaring across the room. He smiles to himself, feeling at peace. "Goodnight, Mabel."

Mabel was in her bed, enjoying the new space. She laid her head on her pillow once she was ready to sleep, but she felt as if something was missing. "Goodnight, Dipper…" she sadly whispered, her feeling that room was too quiet without him clicking a pen or snoring. As she stared up into the fabrics of the canopy, she noticed a pattern within. Mabel looked around and found a small switch by her bed and she flipped it. The fabric of the canopy made a soft glow and she was looking into a pine tree forest, hearing the sounds of a familiar clicking. A warm smile spreads across her features. "Goodnight, Dipper."

The two twins still had each other, despite being in different rooms, and one day when they are in separate homes with their own families, they know they'll still have each other in some way. After all, they were twins forever, even when separated.

A/N: Hello everyone, I'm back with another short story! Because of the events of this week, I threw in a "Star Wars" reference for Carrie Fisher, saying that Stan preferred that over "Star Trek", which if we know Stan's personality he would probably love Princess Leia. But, out of respect for Carrie Fisher I didn't have Stan mention it at all as she did not want to be seen as a sex symbol, so it was left that he preferred "Star Wars".

I was actually reading another fanfiction that I enjoy on this site called "Gravity Falls: Return to the Falls" by Lucario51794 where there was a chapter in regards to Dipper and Mabel getting their own rooms, so it heavily influenced this chapter. Give that fic a read, I enjoy it a lot!

Thanks for reading as always!

~SkyeHendersen~