Summary
12-year-old twins Stanley & Stanford Pines leave their hometown, Glass Shard Beach, to spend the summer at Gravity Falls with their Grauntie Mabel, a sweet old lady who runs a tourist trap, bakes glitter into cookies, and lives in a knitted paradise. The Twins explore the boring sleepy town in hopes of finding buried treasure, girls, and aliens! But they don't find anything promising, until one fateful day…
Author's Notes: So, I know some of my old readers may be confused because there was 78 chapters here and now there is only one. I decided to re-edit and post the chapters, so each episode is one chapter instead of some being span across three. I know it may seem annoying, but this series has been neglected for a while, and I want to give it some TLC while I'm planning the newer parts of the story.
Thank you for reading and please review.
Disclaimers:
I do not own Gravity Falls and was not the original creator of this AU. There are several other stories across Archive of Our Own, and but none of them have been finished, with their last updates being as long ago as when the show ended. I plan to finish the AU from the beginning to the very end!
Foreword: Just so you know this first episode will sound very similar to other first day Relativity Falls AU's. That's because all of these stories, and comics start off with Stan and Ford on the bus, where they get off and meet Mabel for the first time. I also decided to follow this tradition, and used this idea. Now while I did use some of these stories to help myself better describe the character's appearances, and their roles in this AU I did add my own little twist here and there so it wouldn't be the same old thing. But I will warn you, it's basically another spin-off of the beginning of this AU with similar situations you've probably already read. I also used their ideas for some of the Tourist attractions around the shack, as well as Mable's strange cooking habits, because I wanted to follow this traditions.
With that said all the credit for these ideas go to their original creators! (Whoever that maybe, sense it's hard to tell which of these people had these ideas first? And no, I don't mean who published first, because I guarantee you that someone wrote this idea on paper first so publishing dates mean nothing to me.)
-Yours Truly, RoxieDivine
Season 1 Episode 1
S01EP01: Things Aren't What They Seem
Episode Summary: Twins Stan and Ford arrive at Gravity Falls in hopes of finding buried treasure, and monsters, but all they got was one big mystery that just maybe too big to solve!
(Somewhere In a Forgotten, and Destroyed Dimension…)
Darkness…
The beast with one eye knew it well.
Depravity, Chaos…
The monster fed off of it, grew stronger from it!
Creatures all over the multiverse trembled at the very mention of his name! His geometric isosceles figure haunted every nightmare that any of his enemies dared to dream. And yet even in all his greatness ten symbols dared to stand in his way! The beast with one eye looked through the various symbols etched on his wheel in deep thought. The pine tree, the question mark, the axe, the shooting star, the six fingered hand, the spectacles, the star of the all-seeing eye, the llama, the crescent, and the stitched heart! Each symbol represented a mortal that would one day dare to challenge his right to power!
Heck, one had already done so!
The Beast narrowed his one silted eye at the pine tree symbol, and growled deeply. Slashing out at it with his claws, engraving a deep impression over the symbol that had dared to defy him! He then took in the remaining nine, with disdain for he knew they too would try to stop him.
'Let them try.' The beast thought. 'It's not like it will make a difference, Pine Tree failed, and the rest will too!'
Still, it didn't hurt to keep an eye on his remaining foes. The Beast with the one eye pulled out his all-seeing orb, only to chuckle wickedly at what it showed him.
"So, all my enemies are finally coming together?" He asked himself out loud. "The time that has been prophesied for over one trillion years has finally come?" He laughed. Yes, his time to take his rightful place as king of the Multiverse was quickly approaching.
Still ten stood in his way.
"Well since they're all coming together why don't I use them to better my chances." He suggested out loud, then with a wicked cackle he added. "Yes, make my enemies do the work for me, and then squash them the moment I get my physical form!"
It was the perfect plan…
"You better watch out Earth Realm." The Beast mused. "Because your world is about to get weird!"
(On A Bus Headed to Gravity Falls, Oregon…)
Adventure…
That was all they ever wanted.
A since of escape…
A way to get away from it all! No more bullies calling you a freak! No more unimpressed looks from their father! No more complaints about their mother and her compulsive lying problems! Nothing but freedom where they could broaden their horizons in their search of cute girls, untold riches, and mysterious creatures!
For so long they had wanted this, and now after what felt like ages, they were finally getting it!
12-year-old Stanford Filbrick Pines watched outside the bus window as a forests of pine trees shuttered and waved in the summer's breeze. They covered the land around him as far as the eye could see, and their waving motions made Ford think the plants could possibly be waving hello to the newcomers.
"Ford you thinking what I'm thinking?"
Stanford (Ford) looked over to his right to see his twin brother Stanley with his face against the glass of the opposite window seat.
"There's got to be some buried treasure out there, right?" Stanley, who was commonly referred to as Stan asked, not waiting for his brother to answer his first question.
"Who knows?" Ford answered, as he turned his attention back to the mystery novel that was currently resting open in his lap. His wayfarer glasses stuck to his nose and, despite the angle his head leaned, the glasses never fell down the bridge of his schnozzle. His six fingered hands curled around the edges of the book and his muscles tensed as excitement swelled through him. He was just about to get to the good part, any minute now the book would reveal the butler as the murderer! 'It just has to be the butler.' He thought. 'It's always the butler!'
Stan smiled as his dark brown eyes searched the trees through the glass eagerly. Though the gargantuan pines made it impossible to see anything, that didn't stop the boy from searching. "I can't believe Ma, and Pa let us come here!"
"Yeah." Ford agreed, keeping his eyes on his book. "They never let us leave town much less the whole state!" he laughed. "They must think really highly of Great Aunt Mabel if their trusting us with her for the whole summer."
"I wonder what she's like." Stan said.
"Well, we'll find out soon enough." Ford said.
Suddenly the bus stops, and the doors open.
Ford stops, and looks up confused. "Hey bro why are we stopping?"
Stan looks over his shoulder at him puzzled. "There's some people on the side of the road." He answered. "Some lady and a kid, I think their asking for a ride."
Suddenly a kid in a green shirt, and tan shorts with round glasses on his face boarded the bus.
"Thank you so much for understanding." The boy's mom said to the bus driver.
The bus driver nodded, before closing the bus doors and setting off again.
Stan watched the mother get back in her car and drive away in the opposite direction.
"Can I sit next to you?" The boy asked Ford.
Ford smiled and moved his bag out of the way so the kid could sit beside him. "Hi I'm Stanford, Stanford Pines!" He said. "But most people just call me Ford."
"My names Fiddleford." The kid said.
"Well, Fiddleford what was up with your mom?" Stan asked, scaring the daylights out of the kid.
"There's two of you!" Fiddleford exclaimed.
"Oh, that's just my twin brother Stanley." Ford answered.
"Yeah, but most just call me Stan." Stan said.
"Wow I've never met twins before." Fiddleford gasped.
"Anyway, what was up with your mom, man?" Stan asked again.
"Stan!" Ford warned. "That's not polite."
"No, it's okay." Fiddleford assured him. "My mom and dad are going through a divorce right now, and my mom isn't really looking forward to seeing my dad. So, she saw the bus and asked the driver to drive me into town so she wouldn't have to deal with him."
"So, you've never been here either?" Ford asked.
"Nope." Fiddleford answered. "My dad was raised here, and came back after the divorce; but I've never been."
"How long are you in for?" Stan asked.
"The whole summer!" Fiddleford told him.
"Really us too!" Stan said.
"Maybe we can hang out together." Fiddleford exclaimed.
"Really?" Ford, and Stan asked together in shock.
Fiddleford frowned. "Well, if you guys don't want to…"
"No, it's not like that man!" Stan assured him. "It's just…" he paused, looking for the right words.
"We're not use to people wanting to hang out with us." Ford finished for him.
Fiddleford smiled. "Me either." He admitted.
"Well, then we'd love to hang out with you this summer." Ford answered. "Wouldn't we Stan!"
"Great another genius to make me look bad." Stan joked.
Ford, and Fiddleford laughed.
"So, you said, you've never been here before?" Stan asked once the laughter had died down.
"Yeah, but my dad used to tell me stories about his adventures here when I was a kid." Fiddleford told them.
"What kind of adventures?" The Pines Twins asked in unison.
"He'd to tell me stories, about treasure, and mystical creatures that lurked in the woods." Fiddleford exclaimed.
"Treasure?!" Stan asked.
"And mythical creatures." Ford added.
Both twins looked starry eyed by his words.
"Yeah. But my mom said they were just made-up stories." Fiddleford explained.
"Oh…" The twins said, looking down at their feet in defeat.
"But my dad was convinced they were real!" Fiddleford went on. "He came back here every year and was gone for weeks. He's always come back one night with some "Proof" that it was all true, but mom never bought it. It's one of the reasons why they split up." He said sadly.
"Wow that's pretty messed up man." Stan said.
"Everyone back home thinks my dad's a crazy old loon." Fiddleford whined. "I just wish I could prove them wrong!"
"And you will!" Ford exclaimed. "Because we are going to help you!"
"We are?" Stan asked.
"Yes." Ford answered, giving his brother his famous warning look. A look the mostly involved him staring his brother down over the brim of his glasses.
"Really?" Fiddleford asked, amazed.
"Yep, you're stuck with us now!" Stan said getting with the program, after all he knew better than to say no when his brother gave him that look. "And since we're on the subject I get 90 percent of any treasure we find!"
"And how is that fair?" Fiddleford asked.
"Because I'm the oldest!" Stan exclaimed.
"Actually, I'm thirteen" Fiddleford told him.
"What! No way!" Stan said out raged.
Ford laughed, and offered Fiddleford a high-five "Now that deserves a high six."
Fiddleford froze as he actually realized the kid had six fingers. "Wow you have an extra finger!"
Ford's cheeks turned red with embarrassment, as he hid his hands behind his back.
Stan's eyes narrowed, and he looks ready to punch the guy. Back at home the local bullies always picked on Ford because of his extra fingers. And he had promised he wouldn't let that happen here!
"That is so cool!" Fiddleford said, his green eyes full of wonder.
"Really?" Ford asked looking shocked by his reaction to the news.
"Sure, it's a whole extra finger to do stuff with, I mean lots of animals can't pick stuff up because they have no thumbs. I believe humans with extra fingers can do things that normal people can only imagine." Fiddleford went on. "I did a science project on them at the Science Fair last year, but I never thought I'd actually meet someone with six fingers." He stopped as he noticed something. "Why are you hiding your hands?" He asked. "Oh no did I do something wrong?"
"No." Ford said, taking his hands out from behind his back and looking at them, as if in a new light. "It's just…most people make fun of my hands. They call me a freak, and stuff like that. No one outside of my family has ever said something nice about them before."
"Well, I think they're cool!" Fiddleford told him. "Besides who wants to be ordinary anyways?"
"Thanks, Fiddleford." Ford said, and reoffered him that high six.
Fiddleford obliged and the two laughed the whole awkward moment off.
Stan smiled, and relaxed as he realizes there's nothing to worry about. Fiddleford is a nice guy, and was already proving to be the perfect friend. There was just one snag that he needed to fix. "Look don't take this the wrong way, but saying Fiddleford all the time is going to get exhausting."
"Stanley!" Ford practically growled.
"It's fine." Fiddleford assured him. "I know my name can be a mouthful, shortening it wouldn't hurt." He looks thoughtful. "Got any ideas?"
Stan thinks for a moment than says, "How about Fids?"
"Fids?" Fiddleford repeats in a questioning tone. "Short and to the point, I like it."
Stan embraces the two in a sideward hug. "Stan, Ford and Fids, we're like the three musketeers!"
"Ladies and Gentlemen." The bus driver announced over the intercom. "Welcome to Gravity Falls."
Stan looked back out the window and gasped. "Bro we're here! Look!"
Ford and Fids looked out the window and inhaled a sharp breath. The trees had thinned and broke to reveal a small, active town. People and cars alike moved through the streets. The buildings, mostly square but some round or cylindrical, seemed to sparkle under the late afternoon summer sun.
"Yes!" Stan cheered as the bus slowed down. "Finally! Ugh, we've been sitting here forever!"
"It was only a few hours," Ford scolded, putting his book away.
"A few too many!" Stan countered as the bus rolled to a stop.
"Do you guys always have the opposite opinion about everything?" Fids asked.
"Yep!" The Stan twins say in unison.
Fids laughed as the new friends stepped off the bus with their luggage in tow.
"Wow even the air smells funny here." Stan mentioned.
"Oh, that's good old country air." Fids explained. "Ain't, no dirty city air here!"
"Ain't that the truth?" Ford agreed.
"Do you think Great Aunt Mabel is here, yet?" Stan asked.
"I don't know." Ford answered. "I don't see her." He said looking around as the bus pulled away.
"Me either." Stan admitted, as he too looked around. "How about you Fids do you see Great Aunt Mabel?" He asked his new friend as if he's supposed to know what his estranged Great Aunt is supposed to look like.
"Well…" Fids said looking around. "In less your Great Aunt likes to wear colorful sweaters in the summer then no."
"Wait colorful sweaters!?" the Stan twins turned in the direction he was looking to see a sweet old lady running towards them. "Great Aunt Mabel!" They exclaimed and started running towards her.
The lady, who was perhaps in her sixties, (though due to her young appearance that almost seemed to be a bit of a stretch) held her arms stretched out towards them. Her sweater, pink and flashy, bore the words "Great Aunt Pines" in hot pink glitter. Upon her head was a flashy pink Fez hat, bearing a shooting star symbol. "Hey! There you two are!"
Stan and Ford froze as Great Aunt Mabel embraced them in a great big bear hug!
"Wow the last time I saw you kids you were still in diapers!" She spoke. "Now look at you!"
"I didn't know you've seen us before." Stan said.
"Yep." Great Aunt Mabel said. "I'm your Great Aunt Mabel, but you can call me Grauntie Mabel."
"Why 'Grauntie'?" Ford asked.
"Because it's shorter, so it saves time saying it," Mabel explained. "And time is money after all! So, let's see… which one of you is Stanford, and which one is Stanley?"
"I'm Stanford," Ford replied and pointed to his brother, "He's Stanley."
"But you can call us Stan and Ford!" Stan said with a smile.
Grauntie Mabel nodded, "Thanks, kiddo! Easier for me to remember." She laughed. "Oh, who is this?" She suddenly asked as she noticed Fids for the first time.
"Fiddleford McGucket Ma'am." Fids told her, as he offered her his hand.
"No Way!" Grauntie Mabel exclaimed. "You're Tate McGucket's boy!" She said pulling him into a hug.
"Yeah." Fids answered. "Wait how did you know that?" He asked surprised.
"Well didn't your Ma tell you?" Grauntie Mabel asked pulling away. "You'll be helping me out at the Mystery Shack during the week." She exclaimed.
"Wait?" Fids said. "You're the owner of the Mystery Shack!"
"Yep, that's me!" Grauntie Mabel said. "Misses Mystery!"
"My dad told me all about that place in his stories! This is perfect!" Fids said. "Your shop is bound to have some proof about the strange things my dad has seen in this town!"
"The Mystery Shack?" Ford asked.
"Yes, I turned my home into a tourist trap full of the weird and unexplained." Grauntie Mabel explained. "And three members of my staff just took off for the summer without giving me a heads up, and I'm going to need you three to help make up for the slack."
"Are you paying us?" Stan asked.
Grauntie Mabel nodded. "Five bucks an hour boys." She assured them. "That's 25 dollars a day, and I'll pay you at the end of every Friday!"
"Sweet!" Stan said. "When do we start?"
Grauntie Mabel laughed. "Why don't we drop Fids here on home first, and then get you boys unpacked." She suggested. "Then Tate, Fids, and Danny can join us for breakfast tomorrow where we'll all discuss your working schedule."
"Who's Danny?" Stan asked.
"Oh, he's the only staff member I have right now." Grauntie Mabel explained. "You'll meet him at the Shack, he's there now. Nice boy." She assured them. "Anyway, we best get a move on, Tate has no idea your Ma isn't dropping you off, and he'll start to get worried soon." She said to Fids.
The three boys nodded, and followed Grauntie Mabel who started leading them to her car.
Mabel's car was parked just a few feet away. Shiny blue and decorated with little flowers, the old convertible hid under the shadow of an old pine tree. When Ford struggled to pull his suitcase into the trunk, Stan helped him. When they got in the car, Stan, of course, called shotgun, leaving Ford, and Fids in the back seat.
"Seatbelts, everyone!" Mabel called as she started the old car. Ford didn't hesitate to follow the order. Even the seat belts were different! Still, modern cars were much more comfortable, and safer and more environmentally friendly, being in an extinct vehicle was a comfort and curiosity of its own.
"How was your trip? What did your dad say about me? He didn't spoil anything did he?" she asked.
Ford shook his head. "Nope! All Pa said was that we're gonna spend the summer here."
Stan piped up, "Ma said you're going to spoil us and that we should probably watch out for that."
Mabel chuckled. "Ah you're a funny guy" She laughed. "So! Who wants peanut butter sandwiches and cookies?"
"Yeah!" the twins piped up at the same time.
Mabel smiled, and moments later they stopped by the docks in front of a large wooden cabin.
Fids jumped out at the sight of his dad sitting on the porch. "DAD!" he exclaimed.
"Fiddleford?" Tate looks confused. "Why are you in Ms. Pines' Car? Where is your mother?"
"Sorry about this Tate." Mabel said, as she and the twins got out to greet him as well. "I found him at the bus stop with my great nephews here."
"The nerve of that woman!" Tate snapped. "Well, I'm just glad your boys were there to look out for him."
"No problem Mr. McGucket." Ford said.
"Yeah, it's cool." Stan agreed.
Tate smiled, he was a thin stalky man who appeared to be in his early thirties; he also wore a camo hat, and had a thick southern drawl.
"Tate, this here is Ford, and Stan." Mabel said, introducing her nephews. "And they're gonna be helping at the shack this summer."
"Well good." Tate said. "It's never too early to learn how to earn good money. I hope you boys won't mind keeping my son company after hours as well. I'm afraid the docks get really busy this time of year."
"We already plan to." Ford assured him.
Fids smiled; it was great to finally know what having friends felt like.
"Well, we best be off." Mabel said. "I want the boys to see Danny before he takes off for the day." She explained. "By the way I was thinking we could all have breakfast at the Diner so we can discuss the job arrangement for the boys."
"How's 8 sound?" Tate asked.
"Perfect." Mabel told him.
"Alright we'll see you then Ms. Pines." Tate assured her.
"Bye Fids." Ford said.
"See you tomorrow man." Stan added.
"Bye guys." Fids waved goodbye as he and his father watched them go.
"Such nice boys." Tate said to his son. "I'm glad their here."
"Me too." Fids agreed. "Maybe this summer won't be so bad after all."
(Following Ford and Stan)
The drive from the docks to the Mystery Shack wasn't as long as Ford had imagined it would be. "We could walk to Fids' house from here." He realized out loud.
Mabel nodded as she put the car in park. "Just as long as it isn't too dark." She warned as she got out and waved her hand to the shabby, triangle roofed building they stood before. "Welcome to the Mystery Shack!" she announced.
"MYSTERY SHACK" stood in bold, wooden letters on the roof, one word on top of the other. Although one of the letters, the S; had recently fallen to the ground below.
"Dang that S just won't stop fallen." Mabel sighed.
Ford took in his surroundings there was a weird totem pole decoration in the front yard, an old pig, who was a good hundred and twenty pounds, lounged on the porch.
"Watch out for Waddles." Mabel warned. "He's nice, but he likes to jump on people."
The twins nodded and followed their great aunt into the old house where they were greeted by a small gift shop.
"Hey, Danny!" Mabel called with a wave to the boy at the counter.
The boy, who was dressed like a lumber jack, waved back from the front counter. "Afternoon, Ms. Pines."
"Danny these are my nephews Ford, and Stan, they'll be helping us along with Tate's son for the summer." Mabel explained. "Boys this is Danny Corduroy; he's been helping me in this shack since he was your age."
"Ah sweet!" Danny said offering them high fives. "You two are life savers man!"
Ford and Stan gave each of his hands a high five.
"Dude six fingered hand, awesome!" Danny told Ford honestly.
Ford smiled, that was now two people who wasn't family that complimented his bizarre birth defect. He was beginning to like this place more and more. And so was Stan, it was nice to see his brother so relaxed for a change; it made him feel relaxed too.
"Any way I know the Shack is closed tomorrow, but I've invited everyone to breakfast in the morning at Greasy's Diner so we can discuss everyone's roll, and pay." Mabel explained. "I'd like you to come to, now that the other three are gone you're the senior employee. They will be looking up to you to show the best example. It will also give you a chance to meet Tate's boy."
"No sweat." Danny told her. "I don't mind getting up early for breakfast." He spoke. "What time?"
"8:00." Mabel answered.
"All right I'll see you then Ms. Pines." He said placing on a bike helmet.
"Alright you have a good rest of your day now Danny." She said.
"Will do." He answered making his way out the door. "Later little dudes!"
"You were right." Stan said. "He is a nice guy."
"Didn't I tell you?" Mabel asked. " Okay now, let's start with a tour of the attractions, shall we?"
Mabel showed them through the tourist attractions, where she explained all the exhibits.
"Grauntie Mabel?" Stan asked, looking at a fake duck with a second head sewed on it. "Are these things really real?"
"That's what we tell the tourists, sweetie," she said, walking up to an exhibit covered with a white blanket. "Here's the Mystery Shack's latest attraction!" She pulled off the blanket. "A CENTAUR-TAUR!" It was a strange centaur that had the body of a horse and a head of a horse's body. It fell over after the blanket was removed, but Mabel pretended not to notice.
Ford looked very confused, "Um… Grauntie Mabel? Do you have any REAL exhibits? Like of Bigfoot? Or A werewolf maybe?" He asked hoping he'd be able to give Fids some good news tomorrow.
"Ford, sweetie, I really love your suggestions, but you got to learn that tourists are bored of seeing the same-old, same-old," she explained, "which is why I come up with original tourist attractions."
"Oh!" Stan nodded. "That makes sense!"
"But there are real monsters in the town though…right?" Ford asked hopefully.
"Yeah, Fids says his dad use to tell him stories about the weird things of this town." Stan added.
"Oh, that's just rumors." Mabel assured them. "Lots of people claim to see all kinds of strange things here, but I can never find any for my shop." She explained. "So, I have to get creative."
"Oh." The boys said in unison, looking a bit disappointed, but Mabel didn't seem to notice. "Now let me show you the rest of the house, and where you'll be staying at," She said leading them to the 'Employees Only' door. On the other side was a living room with furniture and a small television set. She showed them the bathroom, the kitchen, the hallway, and her room (Which was overstuffed with sweaters!).
"Finally, Maria prepared your room before you arrived, it's up these stairs here."
Before the twins could ask who, Maria was, a Latina woman in her early twenties came out of one of the rooms in the hallway, "Hi there, chicos," she greeted. "My name is Maria Alzamirano. You can call me Ria if you want."
"Maria is my handy/cleaning lady she doesn't actually work around the tourist, or in the gift shop." Mabel explained. "But she will be coming by every Tuesday, and Thursday to clean up the Shack, and fix anything that breaks around here."
"You fix things?" Stan asked Ria.
Mabel answered for her. "She fixes things better than any man I've ever seen, and I make sure she's paid well. Ria is like a daughter to me, so be respectful to her. Ria, these are Stan and Ford."
"Thanks Ms. Pines. It's nice to meet both of you." Ria said, blushing slightly. "By the way I replaced the light bulb in the boys' room for you."
"Good now they can actually see!" Mabel said. "Speaking of let's get you boys settled in."
The boys nodded and followed her up the stairs, and into…
"An attic?" Ford asked.
"We're sharing an Attic?" Stan asked a little more rudely.
"Stanley!" Ford warned.
"Sorry boys, but this old shacks only got one bedroom, and one bathroom, this here attic is the only other empty room I have." Mabel explained.
"It's okay Grauntie Mabel." Ford said. "We don't mind. Do we, Stan?!" he asked his brother giving him his famous warning look for the second time that day.
"No, it's fine." Stan admitted. "I was just not expecting it is all!"
"Good!" Mabel said looking relieved. "Now you boys start unpacking and I'll call you down when the sandwiches and cookies are ready."
"Okay." The Stan twins said as one.
Mabel nodded, and walked back downstairs.
"Seriously Stan you've got to learn to be more sensitive sometimes." Ford warned.
"Sorry." Stan said as he pulled out some of his video game posters from one of his bags, and began taping them to the wall. "Sometimes my mouth runs ahead of my brain."
"Sometimes?" Ford asked as he unpacked some books, and placed them on a dusty old, and rotting bookshelf. "More like all the time."
"Hey Ford, check it out!" Stan said showing off his hands. "Splinters!"
Ford took in his twin's splintered filled hands and shook his head; it would appear his brother would never learn.
It took them about an hour to unpack completely, and about another thirty minutes after that for Mabel to call them down for dinner. The boys race down the stairs and took their seats at the table, as Mabel set down their food. Each plate had two halves of a sandwich, and two cookies.
The cookies, Ford noticed, glinted a rainbow of colors in the light. Some cookies sparkled blue while others sparkled pink or red or purple. A few glinted green and another was silver. The cookies themselves were plain; however, the sparkles did not look like sprinkles.
And the bread of the sandwiches were oddly enough tie-dyed!
Stan doesn't seem to notice this and takes a big bite out of a cookie, only to nearly spit it back out in disgust. Thankfully for a rare moment Stan remembers his manners and forces himself to swallow.
"Uh, Grauntie Mabel?" Ford prompted.
"Yeah, Ford?" Mabel sat down between him and Stan.
"Do those cookies have glitter in them?" He asked picking one up to look at it more closely.
Mabel gave him a teasing smile. "Yep, I add a little bit of art to all my food?" she said. "Now who wants milk?" before they could answer she got up from the table to go get it.
"Ford is glitter edible?" Stan asked fearfully.
"No." Ford answered. "And neither is any other art supplies."
"Well, I still got a bag of chips in my bag." Stan said. "What do you got?"
"I still got some peppermints from the bus stop back in Jersey." Ford answered.
"Think we can make that last all summer?" Stan asked hopefully.
"Not a chance." Ford answered.
"Maybe we should start eating at Fids' place then." Stan replied. "I mean at least fish, and possums are actual food."
Just then Mabel returned with the milk, which thankfully looked normal.
"Well dig in kids!" Mabel encouraged them.
Out of politeness, and hunger, the twins ate the food provided. Stan, being the braver of the two twins, took a third cookie after his first two. This one had green-sparkles. Although his enthusiasm toward the cookie changed after he got a dry throat and coughed up half a handful of glitter.
Not good.
At least the milk was normal, the boys used it to wash down the cookies, and the sandwiches, which the boys hoped had been colored with food coloring, and not actual dye!
Thankfully, they were excused to their room afterwards for bed. Both boys were extremely tired after the long bus ride.
San flopped on his bed, and yawn loudly.
Ford went to copy this action himself when he noticed that in his absence the pig had invaded his space for himself. It oinked at his approach. His snout twitched his shirt as he sniffed him. "And there's a pig on my bed," Ford stated in disbelieve.
Stan snickered.
Ford nudged the pig off his bed, and the old swine complied, allowing Ford to flop down on his mattress.
"Man, what are we going to tell Fids tomorrow?" Stan asked out loud. "He was so looking forward to this Shack being his proof that his dad isn't completely nutty."
"Just because Grauntie Mabel hasn't seen anything doesn't mean we won't find proof." Ford assured him. "She said lots of people have seen things, not just Mr. McGucket." He explained. "If we look hard enough, we're bound to run into something!"
"I hope so." Stan admitted.
Otherwise, the only exciting thing we'll get out of this vacation is getting our stomach pumped from eating all this weird food."
"Tell me about it." Ford agreed.
"Well good night bro." Stan said rolling over.
"Night." Ford said as he looked out the attic window. 'We'll find you proof.' He vowed to himself.
And with that final promise Ford fell into a deep sleep.
(The Next Morning…)
Morning…
For some reason Ford thought waking up in a new place would be different.
He couldn't have been more wrong!
"Ford!"
Ford jumps awake in his sleep, almost ten feet into the air. "What did you see one? Did you see a monster?" He exclaimed.
"No, I just got bored of you sleeping." Stan laughed.
Ford's face grew red with anger and embarrassment. "Stanley, you do this to me all the time at home!" He yelled. "Can't you give me a break here?"
"Nope." Stan laughed. "Besides if you'd go to sleep at a reasonable time, you'd wake up early like me, but no you stay up all night reading!"
"At least I read!" Ford argued as he moved to get dress. "Honestly you know how grumpy I am in the morning."
"You'd think it would stop scaring you senselessly by now." Stan laughed, as he pulled on his shoes. He of course was already wide awake and ready to go have breakfast with Danny and Fids.
Speaking of Fids.
"What are we gonna tell him Stanley?" Ford asked. "He'll be crushed."
"Maybe, but it doesn't mean there's nothing out there." Stan assured him. "It just means we'll actually have to do the work ourselves. But hey, on the bright side we're bound to find something in the woods."
Ford smiled. "Okay, but we're not looking for treasure so don't even bother bringing a shovel." He warned.
"Oh, come on!" Stan argued. "All those woods there's bound to be some treasure!"
"We are not looking for treasure, we're looking for monsters." Ford corrected him as he finished getting dressed and pulled on his own shoes.
"And what if the monster has a treasure chest in its mouth." Stan challenged.
"Well, if you're brave enough to pry it away from him then you deserve it." Ford told him.
"Yes!" Stan exclaimed pumping his fist in the air.
"Boys are you up and ready yet?" Mabel asked as she stepped in the room.
"Yep!" Stan said.
"Good then let's get a move on. I'm sure Tate and the others are already there." Mabel said ushering them down the stairs.
The boys raced outside to the car where Mabel soon drove them to a place called Greasy's Diner.
It was a small place with a classic diner theme, with records on the wall.
"Hey there they are!" Danny said pointing their way.
Mabel smiled as the approached the table.
"It's about time Ms. Pines." Danny said. "I had to send Crazy Chiu away twice now."
Who's Crazy Chiu?" Stan asked as they sat down.
Suddenly he got his answer.
"Hello, welcome to Greasy's Diner." An elderly Japanese woman appeared out of nowhere.
"AH!" Stan screamed; she was practically inches from his face.
"I Am Candy Chiu Are you ready to order now?" the woman asked.
"Just make us a large stack of pancakes." Mabel told her.
The woman nodded, and in a blink of an eye she was gone!
"That is Crazy Chiu." Danny said. "She's like a creepy ninja lady."
"Danny." Mabel warned. "Mrs. Chiu is not crazy, she's just confused. We old people do get things mixed up every now and then."
"Wait what is she confused about?" Fids asked.
"Oh well Ms. Chiu thinks some one-eyed beast is coming to take over the world someday." Tate said all scary like.
"Really?" Stan asked.
"Yeah, she's always going on about it!" Danny said.
Suddenly Crazy Chiu reappears with a stack of pancakes in her hands and says. "When gravity falls, and earth becomes sky; fear the beast with just one eye."
Stan screams again at her sudden appearance. "Geesh lady are you trying to scare me to death!" He yelled.
"Sorry love." Crazy Chiu bowed. "Your pancakes."
Ford took the plate, still trembling at her words. "Have you seen this beast?" He asked.
Crazy Chiu nodded. "He has opened my eyes to our fate. He wants to destroy all we hold dear."
More chills ran down his spine.
And suddenly with another blink of their eyes she is gone again!
"How does she do that?" Stan asked.
"No one knows." Danny answered. "Anyways Ms. Pines how will we be running the shop?" He asked, desperately trying to change the subject.
"Well, you're staying on cash register duty." Mabel said. "Ford you and Stanley will be in charge of keeping the shelves tidy and well stocked."
"What about me Ms. Pines." Fids asked.
"You'll be helping Ria lessen her load." Mabel answered. "Your father tells me you're quite the handy man."
"He sure is." Tate answered. "My boy made his own laptop by hand."
Fids blushed. "It wasn't so hard." He admitted. "I can also fix cars, and other machines."
"Good take this." Mabel hands him a dark green shirt with a question mark on it, she also handed him a name tag. "It's your work uniform, be sure to wear it every day with your name tag. Customers like to know who they are talking to."
"Do we have to wear uniforms?" Stan asked.
"I make all my employees' uniforms." Mabel said. "Each one is unique and no two are alike."
"This one is mine." Danny said pulling out his phone and showing him a picture of him in his uniform which was just a flannel shirt with an Axe on the front.
Fids looked down at his shirt as if seeing it for the first time. "So, is this the only one of its kind?" He asked.
Mabel nodded. "Yep, because all my employees are one of a kind." She said pulling out two more shirts. "Now Stan this one is yours."
Stan held it up to get a better look, it was a reddish-pink t-shirt with a yellow crescent shaped symbol in the middle. "Cool."
"And finally, Ford sweetie I know you are very sensitive about your hands, but I think they are one of a kind, just like you so…" She handed Ford his shirt.
Ford smiled; it was a gray shirt with a gold six-figured hand in the center.
"Do you like it?" Mabel asked, looking worried.
"I love it." Ford said pulling it on. "Thanks, Grauntie Mabel."
"Yeah, these are great!" Stan said, pulling his on too.
Fids also put his own shirt on and smiled.
"Now that uniforms are done." Mabel went on. "Pay for you three is five bucks an hour." She said to her three new employees. "Now Danny gets a little more because his mother and sisters really depend on his income. So, no complaining!"
"We understand." Stan said, surprising his brother. "After all family is family."
Ford's smile grew, Stan might be a little greedy, but when it came to his family, the gloves were off. It was the most important thing to him.
"Alright does everyone understand their job?" Mabel asked.
Everyone nodded.
"Then let's dig in before the food gets cold!" Mabel declared.
Everyone dug into their pancakes hungrily smacking their lips as they did so, because well she may be crazy, but Chiu was a really good cook.
"So, how's the shack?" Fids asked in a low whisper so his father couldn't hear. "Any good proof?"
Ford bit his lip, but Stan wasn't as conservative. "Nope, Mabel says she has none of the real stuff."
Fids bowed his head.
"But she did say other people around town have seen stuff." Ford added giving his brother his famous look. "I mean look at Crazy Chiu she saw a one-eyed beast."
"Who wants to destroy us all?" Stan added.
"Yeah, let's try not to run into that one." Ford said.
"You mean if he's even real." Stan added.
"I don't know if he is." Ford said. "I just got a creepy feeling about him, whoever he is."
"Me too." Stan admitted.
"So, you really want to help me find proof?" Fids asked.
The twins nodded.
"But what if we don't find anything?" Fids asked really quietly. "What if my mom is right? What if dad and Crazy Chiu are just you know…crazy?"
"They're not crazy." Ford said with more determination than ever before. "And we are going to prove it!"
(Three Days Later…)
Nothing…
That's what the eager trio found.
NOTHING!
Not a speck of evidence to prove that Fids' father wasn't a crazy loon!
No monsters, no treasure, and no adventure anywhere!
After a few days of this grueling routine, Ford figured that they were probably going to be doing this for the rest of the summer. Heck yesterday, he even went so far as to mourn the fantasy he thought was going to be their summer, and poured out a bit of every soda he drunk, while saying. "To the summer we never had."
Ford sighed, shaking away the negative thoughts as he rearranged the objects on one of the shelves so that they were neat, in the front, and very easily seen by anyone passing by.
Stan, as usual, had found a way to slack off. Although the ring of Mystery Shack logo t-shirts needed fluffing up, Stan had somehow found himself hiding in the clothes, knees bent, muscles tense, and eyes straight ahead.
Ford sighed. "I know you're bored, but we have to finish our chores! …if you break anything, she'll have our heads."
Stan waved his hand. "I won't break anything!"
Ford glanced to his brother questioningly. "What are you staring at anyways?"
"Look!" Stan pointed.
Ford looked in the direction of his finger, and his heart seized up.
There in front of him stood the most beautiful girl he had ever seen.
Her hair was as black as the midnight sky, and when the light bounced off of it just right, he noticed waves of blue highlights. She wore matching blue eyeshadow, dark black eyeliner, and mascara, along with some tight black jeans, and a black jacket with a blue stitched heart that she had zipped all the way up.
She was a Goddess!
Stan rolled his eyes knowingly "Seriously do you always have to fall for the bad girls?" He asked.
"What I'm not-" Ford stuttered. "You're the one staring at her."
"I was pointing at the sign above her!" Stan said "Ever notice how the A's got a slit for one eye? Just like that monster Crazy Chiu was talking about."
Ford frowned. He could tell his brother didn't really believe in that monster; he was simply grasping at straws for some kind of proof.
They all were.
"Grauntie Mabel probably added that the moment she heard the story." He said.
"Yeah, you're probably right." Stan said with a sigh. "Oh no!"
"What?" Ford asked.
"She's coming over here!" Stan warned; hiding deeper in the clothes.
Ford tensed as the gothic looking girl comes his way.
"So, are you going to keep staring at me like a weirdo, or are you going to talk to me?" She asked.
"I…I…I." Ford was lost for words that is until Stan's foot stuck out from his hiding spot and kicked him in the rear. "I'm Ford." He finally managed to get out, thanks to Stan's help of course. "Stanford, Stanford Pines."
"You're blowing it man!" Stan whispered harshly.
"Shut up." Ford warned to him before offering the girl a wave. "It's nice to meet you uh…"
"Heather." She said. "Heather Valentino, and the guy in the clothes?"
"Oh, that's my brother." Ford says. "He's avoiding work."
"No, that sign is watching me man!" Stan shouted from the clothes.
Heather smiled. "It's cool I have a brother too." She says. "So, I know all about the stunts they pull to get out of chores."
"Tell me about it." Ford mused.
"Hey, I am right here you know!" Stan shouted, poking his head out of the clothes.
"Dude you're twins." Heather said. "Wicked cool."
"Yeah, well I'm the cool one." Stan said.
Heather erupted into laughter. "Is he always like this?" she asked.
"Yeah." Ford admitted. "He thinks he's a chick magnet."
"I am a chick magnet!" Stan argued, stunned that his charms had no effect on this girl.
"Whoa no way!" Heather suddenly grabbed Ford's hand. "You've got six fingers!"
Ford blushed.
"Six is like my favorite number." She exclaimed.
"You know you're very cheery for a Goth." Stan said.
"OMG I am not Goth you jerk!" Heather yelled, dropping Ford's hand. "I just like the colors black and blue."
"Oh." Now it was Stan's turn to blush. "Sorry."
"Heather!" A teenage boy wearing baggy jeans and a rock and roll t-shirt suddenly ran over to her. "How many times have I told you not to run off?"
"I was just meeting the new kids." Heather said, pointing to Stan, and Ford. ""You're always telling me to stop pestering you and your friends, and now I don't have to."
Her brother scoffed. "You're going to hang out with these losers?" Her brother asked.
Ford's eyes fell, and Stan turned red with fury.
"Yes, because if you think their losers then they must be cool!" Heather spat at him.
"Fine whatever hang out with your dumb new friends." Her brother says. "It just means I can leave."
Ford, and Stan watched him go stunned.
"Sorry about him." Heather said. "Robert's a jerk."
"You think we're cool?" Stan asked.
"Well, your brother is." Heather said. "But so far you're acting like a paranoid stalker hiding in the clothes like that."
Ford laughed as Stan's face fell into a scowl.
"Very funny." Stan retorted.
"Anyway, when's your shift over?" Heather asked.
"You want to know when I get off." Ford asked dumbly.
"How else are we going to hang out?" Heather asked. "Besides the other kids in this town are either stuck up or really, really annoying snot nose brats." She told them.
"We get off in an hour." Stan answered for his helpless brother. "Please excuse Point Dexter's behavior, a girl has never talked to him for this long before."
Ford punched his brother in the arm.
Heather laughed. "Then I'll be back soon."
"But." Ford began.
"What?" Heather asked.
"We kind of made plans with a friend of ours." Stan said. "You can tag along though if you want."
"Cool where are we going?" Heather asked.
"Monster hunting." Ford said blushing violently.
Heather's eyes widen.
"Oh, great you think we're crazy don't you." Stan asked.
"No, I…I believe you." Heather said.
"You do? Why?" Ford asked.
"I have a friend he's-." Heather whispered.
"You met a monster?" Stan asked cutting her off. "Does he have one eye!" he exclaimed.
"No, he has two and he's not a monster!" Heather yelled, but forced herself to calm down. "He's very nice, just different…."
"Like in a supernatural way?" Ford asked.
"You could say that." Heather answered vaguely.
"Can we meet him?" Ford asked hopefully. "It would mean a lot to my friend if he had some kind of proof that the monsters are real."
Heather thought for a moment, then said. "Promise you won't hurt him?" She asked.
"Promise." The twins said.
"Then I'll be back in an hour." She said, before racing off.
"Who was that?" Fids asked as she walked off.
"That's Heather." Stan said. "And she's going to show us a real monster."
"No not a monster." Ford corrected him. "A supernatural being. She says he's her friend."
"Really?" Fids looks almost hopeful. "And it's the real thing?"
"She sounded sincere." Ford said as he looked at the newly organize shelf, and then the ruffled shirts Stan was still hiding in. Suddenly he noticed a slight shadow falling over the ground behind Stan. Mabel wears an amused face, a playful glint is in her eyes, as she carried a few signs in her arms. "Whatcha doin' kid?"
Stan screamed and spun around. Upon seeing who it was, however, he sighed. "Oh. Hey! I was, uh, organizing these shirts." He lied as he tried to look busy.
Their great aunt looked up in the direction Stan had been facing to see Heather making her leave. "Sure, you were. Now! I need someone to hang up these signs!"
"Not it!" Stan and Ford piped up at the same time.
Mabel looked over at the cashier. Danny is currently sitting at the register, dealing with a customer.
Mabel sighed. "Alright. Well… it looks like I'll have to choose between you three. So…" She looked at the twins and Fids. "How about… you!" She points at Ford. "Ford, please put up these signs in the spooky part of the forest."
Ford yelped and stumbled back as he barely managed to catch the pointed signs given to him. He looked down at the colorful advertisements and then back up at Mabel with round eyes. "But every time I go out there, I feel like something's watching me. Plus, it's really hard to see."
Mabel crossed her arms, though a smirk now played on her features. "Those things called excuses don't work on me. Besides, there's nothing weird going on in those woods. It's just part of the lore, made to sell things like this to people like them!" She waved her hand to a flock of tourists who were looking through some of the items in the gift shop. "Now, quit being so paranoid! Stan! Organize those shirts for me, will you? And Fiddleford I got something for you to fix."
Ford sighed, but made no other effort to disagree as he leaves and everyone else got back to work.
Outside in the woods mist, still unable to evaporate under the broken light of the sun, swirled around the feet of trees. Ford walked up to the nearest of those trees, and knocked a screw into it before hanging up a sign. "Ugh. Why doesn't she ever believe me?" he muttered as he continued making a trail of signs. "There's definitely something going on-" he cut himself off as, when he attempted to pin up another sign, the tree clanged like an empty tube. Ford's eyebrows furrowed. He set his ear to the dusty tree and knocked his hammer against it once more. Again, a clang came in response. He put his hammer down and ran his fingers over the tree trunk, leaving trails through the dust. Eventually, his fingers caught under something, and he pulled back. A portion of the tree opened.
Ford's eyes grew round as orbs as he looked upon a metal cubby with a machine inside. The machine was covered with switches and buttons. Out of sheer curiosity, he played with a few of the switches. Some switches and buttons did nothing at all. One switch, however, caused the ground behind him to shutter. Ford yelped and spun around. A section of the ground had retracted into revealing secret compartment.
When Ford approached the indention, he found that it was covered in cobwebs, millipedes, and a singular, leather-bound book. The boy plucked the book out of the ground and dusted it off. A large blue pine tree silhouette was pasted to the front. A black letter three was written on the tree. After a bit of work, he dusted off the cover completely. Despite its age and wear, a slight glint reflected off the silver paper.
He set it on the ground and knelt beside it. When he opened it, a page that had been stuck to the cover was ripped out. The only part that was left were the words "Property Of" in blue, neat letters. A string with an eyeglass had been curled up and was between the cover and the first page. The first page read "Vol. 3". When he lifted it, he found the string to be glued to the inside of the book and not the paper.
Once he flipped the first paper over, he found it filled with words. "June 18" was at the top. Written in curly blue letters that were a mix of cursive and print was the first entry. "It's hard to believe it's been six years since I began researching the strange and wondrous secrets of Gravity Falls, Oregon." Ford stopped reading and gently began flipping through the old pages. Entries about Floating Eyeballs, Vampire Bats, Gnomes, and Cursed Doors filled the pages, along with hundreds of strange symbols… "What is this?" he muttered to himself. He paused as he came across a particularly frightening page.
"TRUST NO ONE" was written in bold, heavy letters and underlined multiple times under what looked like a plain entry. "Unfortunately, my suspicions have been confirmed. I'm being watched. I must hide this book before HE finds it. Remember: in Gravity Falls, there is no one you can trust." He shut the book. "No one you can trust…"
"Hello!" Stan called as he and Fids appeared out of nowhere.
Ford screamed and whipped around; the book held tight to his chest.
. "Whatcha reading? Some nerd thing?" He asked, he and Fids had finished their task for the day and had come out to find Ford.
Ford glanced down at the book and then up at Stan. "I… let's go somewhere more private."
Stan raised an eyebrow. "We're in the middle of the forest, bro. Besides, what could be so important."
"I think I found it." Ford whispered.
"Found what?" Fids asked.
"Yeah, and why are we whispering?" Stan added.
"Guys I found the proof!" Ford said holding up the book. "At least I think it is."
"Let me see." Stan took the journal and went through it. "It's some kind of diary." He spoke. "With research about weird things."
"Let me see!" Fids exclaimed, and gasped as he looked over Stan's shoulder. "This is it! My Dad told me about these cursed doors, and the eyeball bats! This is it!"
"The weird thing is that the entries just stop almost like the writer suddenly disappeared or something." Ford said thoughtfully.
"Cool." Stan said in awe.
"You think whatever Heather's gonna show us is in this book?" Fids asked.
"Oh my gosh, Heather?" Ford looked down at his watch. "It's been an hour already. She'll be waiting for us!"
The boy's raced back to the Mystery Shack, but when they got there Heather was nowhere in sight.
Ford kicked Grauntie Mabel's car tier in frustration. "Ah man she probably thinks we blew her off!"
"That could have been our big break!" Stan stomped his foot in anger.
"One of us should have stayed." Fids realized.
"No, I shouldn't have taken so long." Ford admitted. "Sorry Fids." He said, bowing his head.
"It's okay, maybe the journal can show us how to find things on our own." Fids said hopefully.
"Yeah." Stan says as the boys began to walk away from the car.
Suddenly the ground rumbles beneath them.
"Whoa." Ford said, trying to regain his balance.
"Was that an Earthquake?" Stan asked.
Another one erupted around them, and then another, and another, almost like…
"Footsteps." Ford said. "Its footsteps, and it's coming from-" The boys turned around just in time to see a giant tree like, mushroom covered hand reach out and take Grauntie Mabel's car!
"Oh my-" Ford's glasses nearly fell off his face in shock. The trio look up just in time to see a giant tree man appearing above the treetops.
The giant goes to take a bite out of the car when.
"Steve put it down!" Heather zoomed up into the driveway on her bike.
"Heather?" Ford looks baffled.
"Sorry I'm late guys." Heather said. "For a giant tree person Steve is hard to find."
"Wait this is the guy you wanted to show us?" Stan asked.
Heather nodded.
"And you thought we were going to be able to hurt him?" Stan scoffed.
Heather ignored him. "Steve we've talked about this." She said to the giant tree man. "Eating people's cars is not nice, we are a nice tree person remember?"
Steve frowns almost like a five-year-old who isn't getting a lolly pop, but he obeys. And soon the car is placed back down where it was, undamaged, surprisingly.
"Sorry he's still a baby." Heather said.
"He's a baby?" Ford asked, stunned.
"Yeah, just a year ago he was a little sprout that could fit in the palm of my hand." Heather said. "I found him all alone in the woods, and I've been trying to take care of him, but he got so big the only place I could hide him is the woods."
Fids was shaking in disbelief. "My dad's not crazy." He said; realizing the truth. "My Dad's not crazy!"
"No, he isn't." Ford said. "And he's living proof." He adds pointing at Steve.
"Thank you!" Fids hugged Heather out of nowhere. He didn't mean to invade her personal space, but he finally had proof. After so many years of people calling his dad crazy, he was starting to believe it was true.
But it wasn't.
"So?" Ford said. "Seen any other out of the ordinary things?"
"Are you kidding I've lived here all my life." Heather said. "With all the stuff I've seen, it would take all summer to show you half of it. And I'd need to have some sort of manual to explain what they are, and how to find them on their own turf."
"You mean like this?" Ford asked holding up the journal.
Heather took the book and flipped through it. "I've seen some of these things." She said. "Oh my gosh, is this real?" She opened a page that revealed a segment about tree people. "Where did you find this?" She asked.
"It was hidden in the ground." Ford said.
"This is amazing." Heather said tears in her eyes. "I can finally help Steve get home."
"Home?" Stan asked.
"I love Steve." Heather said, "But now that he's so big I can't be the mom he needs me to be. If this book is right, then we can help him get home to his real family!"
"We?" Stan asked.
"You will help won't you guys?" Heather asked hopefully.
Ford and Fids smiled.
"Well, that sounds like an adventure." Fids said. "And who knows what we'll run into on the way there."
"Maybe monsters!" Ford said.
"Or treasure!" Stan exclaimed, perking up.
"So, you're in?" Heather asked.
"Definitely!" The trio said in unison.
"Yes!" Heather exclaimed. "You hear that, Steve?" She asked turning to the giant. "You're finally going home!"
The oversized Steve jumps for joy at her words.
"We'll have to wait until this weekend." Stan shouted over his happy jumps.
"Yeah, the location here in the journal looks like it will take at least three hours to get there." Ford said studying the map to the supposed location of the tree people's territory.
"Ok then we'll go this Saturday, deal?" Heather asked.
"Deal!" The boys promised as one.
"Great, now I got to go make sure Steve goes back to his hiding spot." Heather says. "It's a patch of woods behind my house. I have a treehouse there where I keep food for him." She zooms off into the trees on her bike, and Steve walks behind her.
"We'll see you tomorrow." Ford called after her. "So, we can make plans for the trip."
He wasn't sure if she could hear him over Steve's loud stomping, but he hoped so.
"Wow did that just happen?" Stan asked still in disbelief. "I can't believe I just saw that."
"Me either." Fids agreed.
"Well, we did." Ford said, his eyes falling back to the journal in his hands.
"And we're about to see a lot more…"
-To Be Continued
End Notes: Steve is inspired by Ford's story of how he came to Gravity Falls and had his car snatched up by a giant treelike hand. The book: Journal #3 reveals that Ford dubbed him Steve after their encounter.
Thanks for reading and please review.