S01EP02: Into the Woods
Episode Summary:Our mystery trio make good on their promise to help Steve find his way home! However, during their journey Ford gets kidnapped by Gnomes! Can his friends save him before it's too late?
Author's Note: The idea for this episode originated from the Gnome page of Journal#3 where Ford talks about how Gnomes tried to kidnap him one night and offer him to their queen. Other ideas explored in this episode include Ford's own mysterious mosquito bite message telling him to 'BATCH OUT FOR WILL'.
Reference Point #1: In Journal 3, Stanford says: "Several tried to kidnap me as an offering to the queen as I was sleeping, but I just drop-kicked them out the window when I awoke. Unsettling."
Reference Point #2: In Journal 3, Stanford writes: Their bites spell out dire messages for your future. Except they are frequently misspelled. I was told to "BATCH OUT FOR WILL" Which as far as I can tell is total nonsense.
Fun Fact:I know some people like to change up the monsters in other versions of the Relativity Falls AU, but I wanted to use this AU to explain things that are only discussed in journal number 3 or just briefly mentioned in the series, as well as further examine things you may have looked over in the series.
For example, how did Bill get inside the time traveler Blendin? What deal did they make? And did you ever notice that in Stan's and Ford's flashback of their childhood that the words "Blendin was here." It was located where the Stan 'O War was first discovered! Or how in Mable's scrap book episodes Dipper and Mable somehow won a snow sledding race against a space lizard in JULY!
Not to mention the monsters, and objects that are mentioned in journal number 3 that are never shown in the show, like cursed doors, wild Kill Billies, and living facial hair. And these are only a few things I wanted to explore. My hope is to further expand on our overall knowledge of the series without giving you a total copy and paste version of the script.
Anyway, thank you for reading and please review!
Yours Truly, RoxieDivine
(Somewhere In a Forgotten, And Destroyed Dimension…)
Time…
For as long as he could remember time was the enemy.
The beast with one eye growled deep in his throat as he waited for time to be on his side, but alas it would appear that time was just as unreliable as ever. 'This is pointless.' The beast thought. 'No one will summon me, no one has summoned me in almost 30 years!' Oh, how he wish he could go about his plans without needing the help of the enemy, but sadly as a demon the beast with one eye was bound by the laws of time and space.
And the laws of time and space had separated his world from the human realm, cutting the humans off from him entirely. Luckily though there was one way he could cross over, if someone summoned him, he would be pulled out of his forgotten realm, and into the mindscape. Once there he would be free to cause some mischief of his own.
However, he could do nothing until the initial summoning!
Nothing, but wait until some idiot decided that they needed his expertise.
He hated this part of his schemes, the part that had him twiddling his thumbs in inpatient anticipation. Yes, this was not the first time he had tried to pull off his current scheme. No, in fact the beast with one eye had tried many times to escape this realm, but every time he tried the same symbols got in his way! 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! Sure, the faces and names that represented those symbols changed over time; after all mortals could only live so long.
But their deaths did nothing to ensure his victory, no fate would simply replace them with another, leaving the wheel intact! The beast hated the wheel that those symbols represented, for it held the power to destroy all his efforts forcing him to start all over again.
But he would not allow it to happen this time!
No, not when he had come so far! The beast's one eye narrowed at the thought. He had never come this close to the final stage of his plan before, and he'd be darned if he had to start over…AGAIN!
"No not this time." The beast hissed. "This time I will prevail," He swore as his eyes fell on the symbol of the dreaded Pine Tree resting upon his wheel. "And nothing will stand in my way!" he vowed as he pulled out his all-seeing orb, a small round ball of energy that allowed him to peer into the real world and spy on his enemies.
His sights focus in on the boy that represented the six-finger hand. He is standing in a tree house in the woods with his twin, the crescent, and their two friends: the stitched heart, and the spectacles.
All four Symbols had their noses in some book.
However, the beast soon noticed that it wasn't just some book, but a familiar looking journal with a Pine Tree on its worn leather cover.
The beast smiled.
Maybe he wouldn't be waiting much longer after all.
However, if the enemy had written his fellow symbols any warnings in that journal of his, then the beast may lose his chance to trick them.
'I must watch them closely; I can't have them learning of me before I want them to.'He decided.
His one eye narrowed on the six-finger hand; the boy instantly reminded him of that enemy.
A foe who could match him step for step…
A foe that somehow always managed to stay just out of reach, so close yet so far away.
"Well Pine Tree." He mused. "Let's see how well these kids fair against me. Shall we?"
(Back with Ford…)
Brains…
Ford had always thought that he had plenty, however the Journal in his hands had put those beliefs to the test.
How?
Because every page was coded, with hidden warnings and advice meant to guide the reader safely, and as smart as Ford was, he had to admit he was struggling to decode the page about the tree people. The many jumbles of letters and symbols seemed out of place, and Stan was sure it was just some scribbles of a mad man who was obviously paranoid about something trying to kill him.
Ford knew his brother might have a point, after all the Author did seem worried about a certain HIM, but who was this HIM? He wasn't sure. What he was sure of was that the letters, and symbols meant something, so he worked at it. From the moment that he met Steve, and learned about the tree people Ford studied the page, running every code he could find in the public library.
It was hard going, but in the end his hunch had been right!
It turned out that the Author was not using just one type of code but actually a combination of the A1Z26, Atbash, and Caesar ciphers. With this knowledge Ford was able to decipher the page about the tree people with ease, and just as he feared the page warned them of all the things, they needed to avoid to have a safe journey to the home of the tree people.
Warnings about Forest oddities, such as the moth man, portal potties, and cursed doors. Thankfully, all these warnings seemed to have their own pages in the journal allowing Ford to read what he could for the journey. To his relief most of the threats could be avoided if you stayed on the marked path that the journal displayed.
However, there was one threat that had him worried.
"Listen to this." He said. "Kill Billies, these feral and fanged hill men are known as Kill Billies, and are known to drink the blood and steal the overalls of any who wander into their territory of the forest. They may be responsible for the cursed outhouses. They communicate through a language of grunts and ham-boning. When you hear blue grass music run for the nearest convenience store…"
"Please tell me we won't be running into any of those on this trip." Fids asked hopefully.
Ford traced the pathway from the Shack to the clearing where the Tree people were located, deep in the Gravity falls woods. "There's two path that veers off the trail." He informed his friends. "If we go right, it will safely lead us around the Kill Billies territory."
"That's great." Heather said.
"Yeah, let's do that one Ford." Stan seemed to agree.
"There's a catch." Ford warned. "If we go right our travel time doubles." He explained.
"Meaning it will take us well after night fall to get Steve home." Heather realized.
"It also means we'll be spending a night in the woods." Ford said the obvious.
"So, we either stay the night in the woods, or risk cutting across a territory of blood thirsty Kill Billies?" Fids asked fearfully.
"But how are we going to even do it?" Stan asked. "Grauntie Mable will never let us stay in the woods overnight."
"We can ask Danny to cover for us." Heather mentioned.
"Really?" Ford asked.
"Yeah, who do you think I go to when I need someone to cover for me when my nosey brother tries to butt into my life?" Heather pointed out.
"Sounds good to me." Stan said.
"Ford nodded. "Okay if we head over to the shack and talk to Danny, and then leave right away we should make it to the Tree people by nightfall." He informed them.
"Excellent!" Heather said. "Let's do this!"
"Yeah!" Stan and Ford exclaimed together, Fids on the other hand looked unsure.
"Hey, we'll be right beside you." Ford assured his friend, giving him a reassuring smile.
Fids found a smile slipping onto his own face with ease. "Yeah, you're right, we can do this."
"That's the spirit!" Ford said encouragingly. "Now come on we've got to find Danny and come up with an excuse to be out pass bedtime!"
The one-eyed beast couldn't help but chuckle as the children bounded off towards the Mystery Shack. "You Pines just can't keep well enough alone, can you?" He muttered. "Oh well guess they'll have to learn the hard way too hu, Pine Tree?
Ford bit his lip, as he continued to run, he couldn't explain it, but he had the strangest feeling that he was being watched. He chanced a glance over his shoulders as he continued to run.
Nothing, was he imagining it?
Suddenly a shot of pain hit his right arm. "Stupid mosquitoes." He whispered slapping the pests away.
Moments later the gang arrived at the Mystery Shack, and thankfully Danny was still there, and even more thankfully Grauntie Mable was no were in sight.
"Quick Danny can you cover for us tonight?" Heather exclaimed.
"What for?" Danny asked.
"We need to use the golf cart so we can journey into the woods and help our giant tree friend get home." Stan answered honestly.
There's an awkward silence…
Finally, Danny cracks a smile, and pulls out the keys to the golf cart . "Just drive safe, and look out for pedestrians."
"Really?" Ford asked.
"Yeah, it's cool, I've got Heather's cell in case you don't show by tomorrow afternoon." Danny assured them. "Oh, and take this." He pulled out a big duffle bag from under the front counter.
"What is it?" Ford asked.
"It's my survival kit, Food, first aid, you name it." Danny explained. "I never leave anywhere without it."
"Wow thanks Danny." Heather said. "I was just going to make sandwiches, but this is great."
"So, I guess we're good to go." Fids said.
"But what about Grauntie Mable?" Stan asked.
"What about me?" Mable asked as she popped out of nowhere making everyone scream.
"Nothing much." Danny said, being the only one to keep his cool. "My friends and I are having a camp out in my back yard tonight, and I wanted to invite your nephews and their friends."
"You aren't planning on running into those woods, are you?" Mabel prompted.
Danny shook his head. With as much poise as someone who was telling the sworn truth, he said, "No my mom Wendy is crazy strict about us going anywhere near that place."
"Well than its fine by me." Mable said. "I'll let Tate and Heather's parents know that way you can focus on finishing the inventory count before you leave."
"And we'll go to Danny's and help set up." Heather said. "Right guys."
"Sure, if that's okay with you." Ford said to his Great Aunt.
"Sure, I'll even let you guys use the golf cart ." She said pointing to the keys in Stan's hands. "Just don't scratch it because if you do…well it's coming out of your pay."
"Thanks, Grauntie Mabel!" Stan yelled as the gang ran outside, and jumped into the golf cart .
"Well make good time with this." Ford assured them, as he made sure they had a full tank of gas, and a full gas canister, just in case they needed to refuel.
"Okay gang we're ready to go!" Ford announced.
"Finally!" Stan exclaimed starting the engine, and just like that, they were off.
The beast with the one eye chuckled. "Wow Shooting Star, you would think with all the lies that you tell; you'd be able to know a lie when you hear one."
Ford grimaced as he gets that unsettling feeling once more, and even though he knows it's nothing; he looks over his shoulder anyways.
Nothing, just as he thought.
So where was this feeling coming from?
His thoughts are interrupted by another series of grudging mosquito bites. Man, why were these things biting him so much?
He tried his best to ignore them as the group pressed on.
Moments later, they reentered the woods behind Heather's house where Steve was waiting.
"Okay Steve, it's time to go home!" She told him.
Steve claps his hands happily causing the group of friends to cover their ears, because well those claps of his sounded like thunder.
"Okay Steve we're going to drive so follow the cart, okay?" Heather ordered him once his happy clapping had died down.
Steve nodded happily, and soon with a little help from Ford's ingenious sense of direction (More like a lot of help.) Stan soon found their desired path, and just like that the friends were off; starting their journey into the woods.
As they drove along the bumpy trail (Which was bumpier due to the fact that Steve's footsteps would cause the cart to jump into the air) the group of friends watched in awe as the forest came alive around them.
"Wow what is that?" Stan asked pointing at a plaid-colored creature that looked like a mix between a beaver and a duck.
Ford flipped through the journal and found the creature in question. "That's the Plaidypus." Ford answered. "It's basically a Platypus with a plaid fur pattern, who strongly smells of maple syrup and bacon." He said skimming the page.
"The lumber jacks in town talk about them all the time." Heather said. "Danny swears he caught one once."
"Cool." The Boys said in awe.
Many more creatures appear, from Barf Fairies, Woodpecker-pecker, and Leprecorns. Ford kind of wished they had brought an umbrella for the Barf Fairies, but luckily the roof of the golf cart spared them from the worse of it.
"We're gonna have to wash this at Danny's before we get home Sixer." Stan whispered to his brother.
"Agreed." Ford said with a grimace.
"Well let's hope that's the only damage it gets." Stan said. "Cause I don't want to waste my pay on fixing this thing up."
Ford couldn't help but smile. Just yesterday Grauntie Mable had handed them each an envelope full of money as their weekly pay. Ford would never forget the way Stan's eyes lit up at the sight of those bills nestled inside his envelope.
Of course, his money loving brother would flip out, he already had a long list of things he wanted to buy. Things like hard candy, and cool CDs with music that was supposed to drive girls crazy for you.
Ford on the other hand saved his money, so that one day he could go to his dream college; West Coast Tech. Sure he was only 12 now, and college seemed like a long time from now, but Ford knew that every penny counted. Sure, he could get a scholarship, or make some promising invention that would make him millions, but if something went wrong, he needed a backup plan.
So, Ford stored his money in a little jar under a loose floorboard in the attic, because to Ford his future meant everything. He always had to have a plan, Stan on the other hand enjoyed flying by the seat of his pants; and allowed fate to take him wherever it wanted his life to go.
Yes, the two twins may look alike, but they couldn't be more different; and the one-eyed beast planned to use that against them.
Ford hissed as more mosquitos bit his already sore arm. He examined the bites, and froze, the small bumps seemed to spell out a sentence on his arm.
'BATCH OUT FOR WILL'
"What?" Ford shook his head and decided to consult the journal; it didn't take him long to find something that fit his situation.
A page read.
Soothsquitos (A breed of mosquito) - Their bites spell out dire messages for your future. Except they are frequently misspelled. "Yesterday my mosquitos bite spelled out 'BEWARB' and I can only assume the creatures are trying to warn me to BEWARE something, but what? I do not know."
Ford shivered.
Where these pesky insects trying to warn him about something, or maybe someone?
'BATCH OUT FOR WILL'
Was it possible that the message was WATCH OUT FOR WILL?
Who was Will?
Ford wasn't sure, but he was sure of one thing. It was all very unsettling to say the least.
The beast with one eye chuckled at fate's efforts to warn his enemies. "Foolish fate, humans are too stupid to know a sign when they see one."
The going got rougher the longer they traveled down the beaten path that was marked in the journal. However, the group was determined to stay on the marked path.
And the reason why; soon greeted them.
Stan stopped at the fork in the road that Ford had spoken of earlier in the tree house. The right path led to safety, and the left path, well it led to some unsettling creatures.
Fids looked left, and instantly regretted it. "Uh guys." He pointed to the tree line straight across from them.
Everyone followed his finger, and froze in fear as a dark outline of a bearded scrawny man with blood red eyes could be seen standing there.
"Is that?" Stan managed to ask.
Suddenly the creature flashed a crooked toothy grin, it stepped forward and blue grass music began to play.
"Stanley drive!" Ford ordered.
Stan didn't hesitate, he hit the gas petal hard, and the four friends went speeding down the right sided path, with Steve racing behind.
Ford dared to turn around, and was relieved to see that the Kill Billy was not pursuing them. He wondered why it didn't risk straying too far from its own territory. 'Maybe they stay where it's safe, because there are things out here that not even, they want to mess with.' He thought.
He knew the reasoning made sense, but it gave him little comfort. After all, if a blood sucking Hillbilly was scared to be on this side of the path, then shouldn't they be too?
Ford opened the journal again, hoping he didn't skip over some majorly dangerous creature. But the only territory that was between them and the Tree people was the Gnome territory.
"Whatcha reading bro?" Stan asked.
"Just checking for dangers." Ford answered honestly.
"Dangers?" Fids asked.
"Yeah, that Kill Billy didn't follow us, it must be scared of something. Otherwise, it wouldn't have passed up on such an easy meal." Ford reasoned.
"Okay so what territory are we in?" Heather asked.
"That's just it." Ford said. "The journal says were in the Gnome territory."
"You mean the dwarf creatures with the pointy hats, and white beards?" Fids asked.
"Exactly." Ford said, reading the page.
Stan looked over his shoulder. "They don't look that scary."
And it was true, the Gnomes actually looked cute, and the journal itself said; danger unknown.
Ford began to read the page. "Gnomes, little bearded men of the Gravity Falls Forest. Weaknesses, unknown."
"Maybe it's nothing." Fids said interrupting him.
"Of course, it's nothing." Stan cut in. "Who would be afraid of a bunch of Gnomes?"
"Yeah, besides maybe the Kill Billy was just scared of Steve's large size." Heather pointed out.
"Oh well I didn't think about that." Ford admitted. "You're probably right."
"Of course, we are, now put the book away you're making yourself nerdier by the second." Stan teased.
"You're just jealous because I'm the smart one." Ford teased right back.
"Ha, that's where you're wrong bro." Stan countered. "Who wants to be the smart one when you can be the fun one; like me!"
"I'm beginning to see why he needs you around." Heather joked.
All of the friends laughed, except Stan who gave them a playful glare.
Ford laughed harder, finding himself relaxing for the first time since the trip began. Maybe they were right, maybe there really wasn't anything to worry about.
However, what Ford didn't know that hidden within the brush, behind them was four little men with red pointing hates.
"Children in the forest?" One asked the other.
"This is perfect, just one will be enough." Another said.
"But which one?" the third asked.
"How about the girl?" the fourth asked.
"Are you mad?" The first screamed. "If we bring a girl the queen will think we are trying to replace her."
"Yeah, we do not want to insult our Queen, Mike!" The second Gnome growled.
"What about the tall one?" The third suggested.
"Too scrawny." The fourth, Mike argued.
"The driver?" The first suggested.
"He's too sweaty, and gross." The second countered.
"I guess that leaves his dorky looking twin." Mike said.
"He'll have to do." The first agreed. "Our queen cannot hold out much longer."
"Very well." Mike said. "Let us hurry and tell Jeff we have found our target."
"You three go." The second said. "I will track them so we do not lose their trail."
"Very good then." The first said. "Send us a messenger squirrel when they have set up camp."
"Do you think they will?" the third asked.
"Yes, it will be dark soon." The first said. "Only foolish humans with a death wish travel this forest at night."
All the gnomes seemed to nod their agreements before going their separate ways. The first three ran deeper into the thicket to alert Jeff of the outsiders' arrival. As the second gnome began to waddle down the path that the children had gone.
All four were very excited as they hurried along, and for good reason.
Finally, their queen would soon have the relief she needed.
(Back with Ford…)
It was dusk by the time the friends, and Steve reached the clearing that was said to be the home of the tree people.
"Where are they?" Heather asked as they reached the clearing.
Ford's heart fell as he realized that the clearing was empty. "Maybe they live in a cave, or an underground city." He thought.
Suddenly a tree begins to move towards them.
No one seems to notice, suddenly more trees start to close in…still no one seems to sense anything is up.
"Maybe we missed a turn." Stan suggested.
"We can't miss a turn, Stanley." Ford snapped. "It's a straight path!" he assured him, pouring over the journal.
"Okay so maybe they moved on since the Author documented them." Fids suggested.
Ford knew his friend might have a point, but the sad look on Heather's face made him want to search harder. 'I can't let her down!' he panicked, searching the page for any indication of where they were.
"It's okay Ford." Heather assured him. "You tried."
Ford bit his lip, only one thought registered in his mind. 'I am so going to be stuck in the Friend Zone for this.' Suddenly he noticed it was darker than it was just moments before, almost like they had stepped into the shade.
Or more importantly the shade had stepped over towards them.
"Guys wasn't this clearing bigger?" Heather asked.
"What clearing?" Stan asked.
He had a point; it looked like they had teleported back into the woods.
But they hadn't moved…
Ford gulped as it dawns on him. "Guys I don't think we're alone."
Suddenly a large tree, the largest of them all; lifted its roots out of the ground, and the children gasped as they noticed the roots were feet.
The tree began to transform before their eyes, looking less like a tree, and more like a man made of a tree. It stops only inches from the friends. They all huddled on top of the golf cart in a desperate attempt to feel safe.
It didn't help much.
"I am Bark Heart." The Tree man said. "Chief of the tree people, why have you come here?"
For a moment none of them can find their voices.
"Well?" Bark Heart said in a booming voice.
"Hu we came to return one of your kids…" Heather finally piped up, her voice was barely a squeak.
Suddenly Steve comes bursting onto the scene, where he was before Ford can only imagine.
"Daddy?" Stave asked almost hopefully.
Just then another tree transformed, this one was female, or Ford could only guess so since she had a female-like voice.
"Oh, my little Tree Sap!" She exclaimed running over to Steve, and throwing her arms around him. "Oh, I thought we lost you forever!"
"Mommy." Steve cried, bringing tears to the children's eyes.
"It's alright everyone." The Chief, Bark Heart said. "They are friends."
Suddenly all the trees around them transformed and came to life.
Many rushed over to Steve, or Tree Sap as they called him, welcoming him home.
"Sorry for the scare." Chief Bark Heart said. "Can't be too careful with lumber jacks and all. You understand of course."
The children nodded, fearing what would happen if they didn't agree.
Chief Bark Heart laughed full-heartedly. "You humans remind me of a young fellow I met once." He mused. "He was human too."
"Really?" Stan asked. "Did he carry an old Journal around like this?" he asked pulling out the journal from Ford's shirt pocket.
"Yes, that's the one." Steve's mother said, joining them. "He was always in these woods that man."
"Smashed his car once." Chief Bark Heart admitted, "Completely by accident of course." He assured them.
"Did you ever get his name?" Ford asked hopefully.
"Afraid not." Steve's mother said. "He tried to communicate with us once, and well Green Leaf threw a deer at him, and that was the end of that."
Ford sighed he had hoped they could have learned more about the Author here.
Stan gave him an encouraging punch on the arm. "Don't worry bro, maybe other creatures have talked to him while he was studying them."
"Yeah, your right." Ford agreed.
"Well, we should go find a place to set up camp." Heather advised.
"You are welcomed to stay in our clearing." Chief Bark Heart offered.
"Thanks, we would love to." Ford said, accepting their offer.
"We'll be leaving pretty early though." Heather said mostly to Steve. "So, I guess we should say good bye now."
Steve scooped her up and hugged her gently
Heather hugged him back. "I'll miss you too buddy."
Ford watched as he held her a little longer before placing her back down.
"Goodnight." Heather said to him, before the four friends left to set up camp on the further side of the clearing. In no time at all they had a tent set up, one that had been thankfully nestled within the survival gear that Danny had provided. Once settled in the four dug into some of the food provided by the lumber jack teen.
Fids shivered. "I'm freezing." He whispered.
"We can't build a fire." Heather whispered back. "It might insult Steve and his family."
"Then what do we do?" Stan asked. "I'm freezing my butt off here."
Ford pulled out the journal. "Maybe there's a creature that can help." He flipped through the pages until he found what he was looking for. "Perfect, this will work." He then pulled out a bag of marshmallows, and opened them.
"Bro how are marshmallows gonna keep us warm?" Stan snapped, obviously annoyed.
"Just watch." He said, throwing the marshmallow a few feet away from them.
For a moment nothing happened, and then suddenly a living campfire jumped out of the shrubs and scarfed down the marshmallow.
Ford shook the bag of marshmallows and upon seeing them the creature rushes over, walking like some sort of campfire like spider. Ford threw it some more marshmallows and the fire like beast sat down beside them, making the group instantly warmer.
For a moment his brother and friends didn't know what to say, finally Heather got the nerve to ask. "What is this thing?"
"A Scampfire." Ford answered. "Their spiderlike beasts posing as campfires all over this forest, the journal says they like marshmallows."
"That is the coolest thing I ever saw." Fids admitted.
"Yeah, me too." Stan agreed. "And I once saw a dead rat floating in a bucket."
Ford gave him a look of disgust. "Ewe what is wrong with you?" He gave his brother a playful shove.
Stan simply laughs as his brother and his friends make faces of disgust. He is obviously thrilled that he was able to gross them all out.
The kids stayed up for a while after that, swopping stories, and taking turns feeding the Scampfire. Finally, they all shared a yawn and curled up on a blanket that they found in Danny's bag.
Seconds later they were fast asleep.
"Finally." The second Gnome from earlier whispered as he emerged from the bushes. He creeps over to his target and jumps onto his stomach.
Ford groans as he feels a small weight on his belly. He slowly opens his eyes to see a little man in a pointy hat. "Hey you're one of those Gnomes." He whispered.
Suddenly more Gnomes emerged from the forest and closed in around him.
"Is there something I can help you with?" He asked.
"Yeah, kid you can." A younger looking Gnome with a brown beard said. "I'm Jeff, and here we have Carson, Steve, and Jason." He pointed to each Gnome as he introduced them. "And... I'm sorry, I always forget your name." He said pointing to a much older looking Gnome that stood beside him.
"Schmebulock" The Gnome reminded him.
Jeff snaps his fingers. "Schmebulock! Yes!"
"Well, I'm Stanford." Ford said. "But my friends call me Ford."
"Nice to meet yah kid." Jeff said.
"Okay hu, Can I help you with something?" Ford asked. He couldn't explain it, but he had a strange feeling about them being here.
"Well since you asked." Jeff said. "Long story short, we gnomes have a problem."
"Really?" Ford asked sitting up.
"Yes, you see our queen is very sick." Jeff said.
"How awful." Ford whispered. "What happened?"
"Well, you see our queen is human like you." Jeff explained. "Unfortunately, you humans don't live as long as we Gnomes do so, we use magic to keep her young and pretty."
"Pretty, very pretty." The Gnomes chattered around them.
"Unfortunately, the magic had a horrible side effect." Jeff laughed uneasily.
"I'm sorry, but I can't help you." Ford said. "I'm just a kid, you need some kind of sorcerer, or a doctor or something."
It's okay. We understand. We'll never forget you, Ford." Jeff said sadly.
Ford smiles.
"Because we're gonna kidnap you" he added.
"Wait…what?" Ford asked.
Jeff yells and jumps at him, and Ford screams as the Gnomes grab him by his feet, dragging him into the woods.
"Stanley!"
Stan wakes up just in time to see his brother being dragged off into the woods. "Ford!"
"What's going on?" Heather asked jumping to her feet.
"Something took Ford!" Stan exclaimed as Fids jumped to his own feet. "It dragged him into the woods."
"Did you see what it was?" He asked.
"Who cares what it was we've got to save Ford!" Stan said, pulling out a flash light.
"But we have no idea what it is." Heather pointed out the obvious.
"It's probably a zombie." Stan said casually as he began to lead the way into the woods. "After my brother's abnormally large brain."
"A…Z…zombie?" Fids stuttered.
Heather shook her head. "Are you sure you saw him get dragged away?"
"Yeah, maybe you just dreamed it, and he's using the bathroom or something." Fids said hopefully.
Suddenly Ford's scream echoed around them.
"Does that sound like a dream to you?" Stan snapped running towards the scream.
"Stan, wait!" Heather called, but it was too late he was gone.
"I have to save my brother!" He called.
"Yeah, but what about a plan!" Heather called after him.
Nothing!
Heather groaned, throwing Fids the keys to the golf cart . "Fids bring the golf cart, I'm going after them on foot."
"Okay!" Fids answered, barley managing to catch the keys, before running back towards the golf cart . He packed up camp in a hurry, and Heather left him to it as she raced into the woods.
Another scream from Ford filled the night air causing her to run faster.
"We're coming Ford." She called, hoping to whoever was listening that they weren't already too late to save him.
(Following Ford…)
Ford screamed once more as he tried to free himself from the strong clutches of his small captors.
"Stop squirming kid, you're making this way worse than it has to be." Jeff said.
"Please why are you doing this to me!" He cried.
"I told you the magic we used on the queen went wrong." Jeff said. "Now in order for the magic to stay in effect our queen must eat a human sacrifice once a year."
"Sacrifice?!" Ford screamed. "You're going to feed me to your queen!"
"In a word yes." Jason answered as they continued to pull him along.
Ford clawed at the ground desperately, trying to escape, but their hold was like a tight vice. He's helpless, and in an instant, he knows it. 'Stan, Stan can save me.'He realized. "Stan! Stanley!" He screamed.
"I'm coming Ford!" He heard his brother scream. "I'll save you from that zombie!"
"Zombie?" Ford asked in disbelief.
"You stole all the brains didn't you kid?" Jeff joked.
How he could joke at this moment was beyond Ford's limit of understanding. "Help!" He screamed.
"Hold on!" Stan shouted.
Suddenly Heather, and Fids drove up in the golf cart beside him.
"Get in!" Heather ordered.
Stan wasted no time; he jumped in and they raced off.
"Can't this thing go any faster?" Stan asked hopefully.
"I've got the gas pedal all the way down." Fids yelled.
"Stan help me!" Ford's scream sounded much closer now.
"Over there!" Stan pointed left, and they drove towards the sounds, finding Ford and the Gnomes in at the mouth of a cave.
Jeff was standing off to the side, supervising, while the rest of the Gnomes wrestled with Ford. "The more you struggle, the more awkward this is gonna be for everyone!" Jeff said. "Just- o-ok, just get his arm there, Alex."
"Let go of me!" Ford yelled, punching Alex off of his arm. The Gnome bounced to the side, leaning against a tree as he puked a rainbow.
"What the heck is going on here?!" Stan cried, catching everyone's attention.
"Stanley! Quickly these gnomes are trying to feed me to their queen!" Ford yelled, punching a few more of the Gnomes. "And they're not cute and harmless like the journal makes them out to be! Gah!" He choked as a Gnome grabbed him by the back of his shirt collar. "Neck, neck!"
"Gnomes?" Stan questioned "Oh, I was way off." He admitted sheepishly.
"Hey! Leave my friend alone!" Heather yelled at the leader.
"Look kids we wish things could be different?" Jeff admitted. "But if our Queen doesn't feed on human flesh by dawn she'll die."
"That's not our problem." Stan yelled. "Now let him go!"
"And if we don't?" Jeff Challenged.
Fids found a shovel in the golf cart and handed it to Stan.
Stan took the shovel and held it as if he was holding a bat. "Let him go, or else!" he threatened.
"You think you can stop us, kid?" Jeff asked. "You have no idea what we're capable of. The Gnomes are a powerful race! Do not trifle with the-"
Stan cut him off by sticking the shovel underneath his feet and flinging him into a nearby bush. He then uses the shovel to slap the gnomes off his brother.
"Yay!" his friends cheered as Stan helped Ford to his feet.
"Thanks bro." Ford said as he drop-kicked the last Gnome off of him before they climbed onto the golf cart .
"Step on it!" Heather screamed.
Fids didn't need to be told twice.
"He's getting away!" Alex cried, as they drove off. "No, no, no!"
"You've messed with the wrong magical creatures, boy," Jeff growled. "Gnomes of the forest, unite!"
The Gnomes grouped together, locking arms, and standing on top of each other until they formed a giant Gnome beast.
"Hurry! Before they come after us!" Ford yelled, looking behind them fearing that he would see an army of Gnomes coming after them.
"Ha! I wouldn't worry," Stan smiled.
"Yeah, did you see their little legs?" Fids managed to joke.
"They're right Ford." Heather tried to assure him. "You're safe now, there's no way they'd catch up to us."
Suddenly the cart jumps up in the air, as the ground shakes around them.
The cart stopped as the group turned to see a large colossal Gnome, made of the several Gnomes grouped together.
"Dang," Stan said.
"Alright boys, together!" Jeff ordered. "Like we practiced!"
"Move, move, move!" Stan shouted, causing Fids to slam on the gas pedal.
"Come back with our sacrifice!" Jeff screeched.
"They're getting closer!" Stan cried.
The Gnomes worked together to shoot several Gnomes forward like darts. They landed on the cart, using long, sharp nails to tear off the top. Stan punched a Gnome off, while Ford grabbed Schmebulock and slammed him into the dashboard a few times.
"Schmebulock..." the Gnome said, dazed, before Ford threw him off. Another Gnome jumped onto Ford's face, clawing at it.
"I'll save you, Ford!" Stan yelled, punching the Gnome a few times. Once the Gnome flew off, Ford was revealed to have a black eye and several scratches.
"Thanks Stan," he said, dazed.
"Don't mention it," Stan said.
The Gnomes worked together to uproot and lift a giant tree, throwing it at the group of friends.
They screamed as it landed in front of the cart, causing them to swerve out of the way. The cart landed miraculously in front of the Mystery Shack. Stan, Ford, Heather, and Fids crawled out of the cart dazed.
"Man, Grauntie Mable is gonna kill us when she sees this." Stan whispered.
The ground began to shake around them.
"Hu Stan, I think we've got worse problems right now." Heather said.
Stan turned to see the Gnome Giant approaching.
"Stay back!" Ford said, his voice quivering only slightly. He grabbed the shovel from his brother and threw it at them.
The Gnomes caught the shovel and threw it far away.
Leaving them defenseless.
The four children clung to each other, screaming.
"Where's Grauntie Mabel?!" Ford cried.
(Meanwhile inside the Shack…)
Mabel is just waking up, it's just before dawn, and she had a busy day today.
She drags herself out of bed, and turns on her bedroom TV.
BANG!
"What was that?" She asked herself.
Suddenly a man appeared on the TV holding a chained watch. "Behold the world's most distracting object," he said swinging the chain back and forth "Just try to look away. You can't!"
Mable's eyes widen as she becomes entranced by the watch. "I can't even remember what I was talking about," she said.
(Back with Ford…)
"It's the end of the line, kids!" Jeff announced. "Ford surrender to us now before we do something crazy."
"Yeah, like sacrifice all your friends too!" Another Gnome added.
"There's gotta be a way out of this!" Heather panicked.
"But how?" Fids asked. "They're huge."
"Don't worry Ford, I'll protect you." Stan said, stepping in front of him protectively.
Ford frowned, and looks to his brother and their friends.
They were all there, protecting him, and Ford realized that this was how things had always been. He always needed someone to save him. He stepped forward. "I'll go," he said.
Heather's eyes widen. "What?! Are you crazy?!"
"They'll eat you!" Fids reminded him.
Ford ignored them and started walking towards the Gnomes, ready to give his life for his brother, and their friends.
"Stan what are you doing stop him!" Heather cried.
But Stan wasn't listening. His eyes narrowed as he spotted something in a pile of leaves beside them, the leaf blower. Suddenly he had an idea, a plan that could possibly save them all.
But he had to get them closer.
"Wait!" He yelled.
Ford froze.
"Now what!" Jeff asked.
"What if I told you I knew a way to save your queen?" Stan blurted out.
"Stan!" Ford shouted. What was he doing? He couldn't possibly know a way to save her. Didn't he know lying would only make things worse?
"Trust me," Stan said.
The words of the journal echoed in Ford's mind.
TRUST NO ONE!
Ford looked at his brother's face, he was bluffing, he could tell. And Ford knew that his brother's lies always got them into even more trouble sooner or later.
"Ford, just this once. Trust me!" Stan repeated.
Ford is still unsure, but he knows he has no other choice, it was either die, or take a chance with his brother.
He chose Stan.
Ford nodded and ran to the safety of his friends.
"You really know a way to save our queen?" Jeff asked.
"Yep, it's hidden in those leaves." Stan assured him.
"Hot dog!" Jeff exclaims. "Help me down there, Jason!" He says climbing down over his fellow Gnomes as he goes. "Thanks, Andy! All right, left foot, there we go, watch those fingers, Mike."
He approaches Stan eagerly holding out his hands. "Give me, Give me!" He demanded.
Stan reaches into the leaf pile, and pulls out the leaf blower, and turns it on.
"Ah! Hey, hey, wait a minute! Whoa, whoa! WH-what's going' on?!" Jeff shouts as he gets sucked halfway into the leaf-blower.
"That's for chasing us!" He screamed increases the sucking power. "THAT'S for scaring me and my friends."
Jeff slowly getting sucked in further. "Ow! My face!"
"And THIS is for messing with my brother!" He says aiming the leaf blower at the rest of the Gnomes.
The Gnomes stare at them like a deer in the headlights.
"Wanna do the honors?" Stan asked Ford.
Ford smiled and put his hand on the switch. "On three!" He said, and all four friends counted down.
"One, two, three!"
Ford flipped the switch to blow out, blasting Jeff towards the gnome monster.
The Gnome Giant explodes into separate gnomes as Jeff continues flying off into the distance. "I'll get you back for this!"
"Who's giving orders? I need orders!" Mike yelled.
"My arms are tired." Alex complained.
"Anyone else want some?" Ford asked boldly as Stan moves the leaf blower back and forth, blowing gnomes away.
The Gnomes ran off on all fours back into the forest.
The Four friends laugh at the sight, only stopping as their sides begin to hurt.
"Man, that was intense." Heather exclaimed.
"Yeah, I think I've had enough adventure for a while." Fids agreed.
"Hey Stan." Ford said, looking at his brother.
"Yeah?" Stan asked.
"Thanks." Ford said truthfully, his head bowed.
Stan frowned. "What's wrong?"
"Yeah, we just stopped them." Heather told him.
"No Stan stopped them." Ford corrected. "It's always you saving me Stanley." He sighed. "From bullies, from wild animals that strangely love chasing me, and now monsters."
Stan forced a smile. "Cheer up bro maybe next time you'll save me from a monster, maybe even two monsters."
Ford found a smile slipping on his face. "You're just saying that." He said.
"High six?" Stan asked, holding up his hand.
"High six," Ford said, giving his brother a high five as the sun began to rise above them.
"Well, I guess their queen is gone now." Heather said.
Ford frowned. "I know they tried to feed me to her and all." He said. "But do you think they'll be okay?"
"Them?" Fids asked. "What about us? You heard him, he said they'd be back."
"Let them try." Stan said, holding up the leaf blower proudly. "They'll be no match for the mystery gang!"
Everyone gave him a weird look.
"What? That's us." He told them. "Because we solve mysteries."
"What are we Scooby Doo now or something?" Heather teased.
Fids, and Ford chuckled.
"You guys laugh now, but you'll see; it'll grow on you." Stan assured them.
"So, what now?" Fids asked.
"Well, I guess I should call Danny and let him know we're back." Heather answered him.
"And you guys?" He asks the Stan twins.
"We can find the Author another day." Ford assured him.
"Yeah, it's like you said; we've had enough adventure for a while." Stan added.
"Well, I'll see you guys." Heather said, before walking down the street on her phone.
"Bye guys." Fids said as he began to walk in the opposite direction towards the docks.
"Bye!" The twins told their friends before heading inside. Where Mabel was counting money.
"Yeesh, you two get hit by a bus or something?" She joked.
The twins ignored her as they went to go upstairs.
"Uh, hey!" She said looking around, trying to think of something fast. "Why don't you guys pick something out from the gift shop? On the house." She said.
"Wow, thanks Grauntie Mabel!" Stan smiled and went to look around.
Ford joined him and noticed a shelf of empty journals. He picked out one with a cool maroon color with a golden trim.
Inside the notebook was a page of gold-colored paper.
"This should do," Ford smiled.
"And I will have," Stan pulled something out of a box, and punched his fist into the air, showing off his choice, "brass knuckles!"
"Ha-ha, works for me!" Mabel laughed.
"Yes!" Stan exclaimed.
"So how was the camp out?" Mabel asked.
"Crazy." Stan admitted, not missing a beat.
"Yeah, I don't think we slept a wink." Ford added.
"Well, it's your summer." Mabel said. "And if you want to spend the weekends staying up all night, and sleeping all day that's fine by me." She told them. "Just remember you got work come Monday morning."
"Thanks, Grauntie Mabel." The boys spoke as one before dragging themselves upstairs, and in their room.
Stan began playing around with his new brass knuckles right away, pretending to punch imaginary monsters. "Take that you Gnomes! Still want some? Well, here it is!"
Ford laughed before plumping down on his bed, and pulled out a pen, and began tracing his hand on the gold paper in his notebook. He then cut out the tracing and glued it to the front of his notebook. He then wrote the number one on it proudly.
"Wow Ford you made your own Journal." Stan noticed.
"Yep." Ford said. "Who knows what's still out there, just waiting to be discovered." He added before he started to write his first entry.
Stan smiled and left him to it, going back to fighting the imaginary Gnomes.
Ford smiled as he wrote:
'The journal I found here told me that there was no one in Gravity Falls I could trust. But when you battle 1000 Gnomes side-by-side with someone, you realize they've probably always got your back.'
"Hey Stan, could you get the light?" Ford asked, as the glare began to bother him.
"I'm on it," Stan said. He punched the lamp out the window, causing him and Ford to laugh.
"Brass knuckles!" Stan exclaimed.
Ford shook his head and scribbled down one last sentence.
'Our aunt told us there was nothing strange in this town. But who knows what other secrets are waiting to be unlocked!'
Meanwhile downstairs in the gift shop…
Mabel was walking to the door to go upstairs, a lantern in her hands. She stops at the foot of the stairs as if to listen.
Silence.
'So, the boys did go off to bed.' She thought to herself. 'Good now I can focus on more important things.'
With that thought fresh on her mind she turns to the vending machine, punches in a code, and the machine opened up, revealing a secret hallway.
Mabel looked around as if to make sure she was truly alone, once she had done so she disappeared behind the snack machine, and closes it.
Leaving no trace that anything out of the norm had just transpired.
Season 1: Episode 2-END