Gravity Falls: If I Can See You Smile
A Gravity Falls/Owl House Shared Universe Story
Universe: Post-canon Gravity Falls, Swooning Over Stans, pre-time skip Owl House series finale
Inspirations: Swooning Over Stans Dating Sim, Sailor Moon, Attack of the Clones, the ballets of Tchaikovsky, The Owl House and Gravity Falls, Gaelic and Greek mythology and folklore
Pairings: Ford Pines/Elizabeth Connor (OC), Dipper/Pacifica, Eda/Raine, others TBD
Rating M: implied peril, "boy's club" mentality in government positions, snogging, childbirth, trauma, and SEX!
Chapter 13: Retro-Con, Part 3
(Lothlorien- Enya)
It was midnight when Ritz woke up, agitated. Looking up from the foot of the bed, he noticed Liz and Ford snuggled sweetly together under the sheets. She was safe, so why was the plaid-a-pus palisman awake? Ritz waddled to the balcony, and tapped his beak on the window, who was the shade silhouetted in the glass? Angrily, Ritz attacked the woman's reflection, claws bared and scratching wildly.
The white clad woman scooped him up, only confusing Ritz even more. Jhesselbrum chuckled kindly, "You're a curious palisman now, aren't you?" Ritz gazed at her in confusion, who was she? The otherworldly woman smiled gently as she materialized inside the quiet bedroom. Her seven eyes beheld the slumbering couple, "I'm glad they found each other." Ritz looked up, confused. Jhesselbrum stroked his fur, "Ford came to me for help in defeating Bill Cipher some decades ago, and as for your mistress, her people saw Cipher as a weapon to be used against Phillip Wittebane, Emperor Belos. She was just a child when her world ended. She'll learn the truth, but it cannot be from me. I already intervened the night they danced together for the first time, giving them both hope for the future." She gently placed Ritz back on the bed and glanced over her shoulder one last time. "Take care of each other, your faith and love will be your greatest strength. You will not find all your answers in Gravity Falls."
The last words lingered in the air for a few minutes, as Ritz nestled down again, and Ford woke up with a start. Adjusting his glasses, he looked around just knowing Jhesselbrum had been there. He jotted down her cryptic message on a notepad before falling back asleep. What had she meant by that? He would have to tell Liz in the morning.
Morning arrived, and Liz noticed Ford puzzling over a note with the words 'not all answers lay in Gravity Falls'. Ritz was snoozing, and Liz sat up. "Morning, sleepyhead. Whatcha working on?" She kissed his cheek, breaking Ford out of his concentration. He grinned, giving her a smooch. "We had a visitor last night from an old friend of mine, an oracle." Liz felt her eyes widen, an actual Oracle!
"Like the Oracle of Apollo at Delphi?"
"Not exactly like that, but close. Jhesselbrum is an interdimensional Oracle, and was once an acquaintance of Bill Cipher's, but they grew apart. She's closer to Tolkien's Galadrièl more than anything else. Distant emotionally, but a kind heart and a loyal ally to anyone who seeks her advice. She's actually the one who put the metal plate in my head when I was still dimension jumping."
"Dimension jumping?"
Ford kissed Liz with a sudden hunger, lowering her into the mattress, hands and arms pining hers above her head. Liz swooned as Ford covered her lips, cheeks and neck in hot kisses, hips aggressively rocking against hers. She moaned, feeling herself turn to putty under his scrutinizing gaze. Ford's control over her, his fierce protectiveness triggered something primal within her soul. This wasn't being restrained at Saint Elizabeth's under heavy sedation, she was with someone who loved her. Ford took a break from kissing her and asked Liz if she was okay with this. Liz grabbed his shirt collar, and kissed him, "Shut up and kiss me." "As my lady wishes." Ford lowered his mouth to her neck, leaving small nips as his left hand starting pawing at her breasts, his right arm moving behind her back.
They lay entangled with each other for the better part of an hour, when there was a sudden knock at the door. "Housekeeping," was the cheerful reply. Liz and Ford bolted upright, yikes!
"Uh… occupado, por favor!"
"Huh?"
"My wife and I aren't ready for housekeeping yet."
There was a hurried apology as the housekeeper scurried away. Since it was the second day of Retro-Con, Ford and Liz decided to look at the rest of the booths and see what there was to see, maybe pick up some souvenirs for the twins and Stan. Ford liked this.
They had breakfast at the hotel buffet, before heading over to the convention center. It was cloudy and humid, a great day to stay inside. Fat raindrops had to splatter the sidewalks once Liz and Ford were screened. They had about an hour to wander around, taking photos of random cosplayers. Elizabeth got untold numbers of compliments about the flowers in her hair, and some of the tattoo artists from yesterday caught up to them. Liz's Celtic tats had been a hit, where had she gotten them done? One of the artists, a history major specializing in ancient Celtic lore, had noted the cobalt bore an uncanny resemblance to woad used by the Picts and proto-Anglo Saxon tribes. Elizabeth blushed and said she didn't remember, as it had happened when she was a baby.
(here comes the sun)
This horrified the tattoo artists, who in the right mind tattooed a baby? Liz admitted she wasn't sure why, but she had turned out fine. They parted ways, but not before nudging Ford and congratulating him on finding a sweet wife. Liz grinned, glad to see some people appreciated her body art. Ford moved a protective arm around her, Jhesslbrum's words ringing in his ears, some cryptic clue to unlocking Elizabeth's past, something Bill Cipher had a hand in.
The entry hall line was longer, more families today as it was Saturday. "You really need three days at these, just to take everything in," Ford observed as the lines grew more crowded. Considering it was just the two of them, along with the wagon and Ritz in tow. Ford was standing pressed against her back, arms over hers, chin resting on the top of her head. A passing staff photographer took their picture, kawaii!
Now the lines began to move and soon enough, Ford and Liz found themselves on the exhibition floor, Ritz poking his head up to observe the goings on. "Where should we head to first," Ford asked. Liz suggested Pride Alley, maybe pick up some books there for the Gravity Falls library. Ford nodded in agreement; it would be interesting to see what the next generations of artists were coming up with. "Are people still paring Kirk and Spock," he asked Liz as they made their way to where Pride Alley had been set up. "Oh yeah, still a popular ship, but after the JJ Abrams films came out, Spock/Uhura is the new small talk." Ford scrunched his face, really? Liz nodded and said she had watched clips online. "Not a Trekkie, but they are a cute couple." Ford nodded, while he couldn't see Spock winding up with anyone, it was nice to see the Star Trek fandom embracing new ships.
When they did meander over to Pride Alley, it was awash in fanart and Pride flags. Some of the art was adorable; watercolors of Bilbo Baggins and Thorin Oakenshield going off on quests, Frodo, Sam and Rosie wearing shirts saying "Proud Allies" with a kissing Merry and Pippin with toddler Eleanor wearing a dress that proclaimed, "I Love My Gay Uncles". The artists asked if they wanted to buy the set, and the couple considered it seriously. It was a pair of sweet pieces, and they would look good in Gravity Falls library's dedicated art gallery, but would it offend the town's small conservative minority? She texted Sonia about it and got the reply, "Totally adorbs art set, buy the set! Will attach content warning upon art being displayed when you and hubby get back to town." With that matter settled, the art was bought, to the delight of the artist. A couple of booths down, they got an autographed copy of DC Pride, which included Kevin Conroy's autobiography, and a hardback edition of Walt Whitman's 'Blades of Grass' for McGucket.
Sure enough, not all of the works were as tame as Whitman's poetry and the Lord of the Rings fanart. Tom of Norway's art was explicit, but that was to be accepted. A good amount of the art had canon characters in suggestive poses, coy faces directed at the con goers. More than a few had scantily clad men making out, and this was before hitting the booths dedicated to the furry fandom. Ford wasn't even aware this fandom even existed before now. It wasn't his thing, but if it worked, it worked. There was also art from anime: Harauka/Michiru, Anthy/Utena, and Madoka/Homura. Some of it was racier, some of it was not. However, Ford garnered a lot of attention, he could feel the eyes of some of the vendors watching him and checking him out. Hoo boy! "Do I have that much sex appeal," he finally asked Liz as they exited Pride Alley and wandered towards the Cosplay Station. Liz pinched his backside, "Oh absolutely! I have you to myself." Ford kissed her, "You minx!" Liz laughed as he scooped her into his arms and spun her around. "I love you," they told each other in unison.
The cosplay groups were well represented: the 501st, Mandolorian Mercs, and Rebel Alliance representing Star Wars, Ghostbusters Oregon was standing by, along with three local anime clubs from the area. Neither Ford nor Liz were interested in signing up, but they did wish the groups good luck with recruitment. They wandered to one of the food stalls and took a break to eat lunch. It was pan-Asian cuisine today, teriyaki vegetables, brown rice and Boylen's Orange Cream soda.
Next up on the agenda were the government sponsored booths and attractions. The US Army had a chin up bar, and Ford took up the challenge, nearly beating the record. He had taken off his turtleneck, and Liz nearly melted onto the floor, her husband was toned as hell. Once it was over, Ford put his shirt back on, and Liz pressed against him. "Enjoy the show," he teased, kissing her. Liz blushed, giving him his answer. They had been walking along when a snide, nasal voice called out, "Elizabeth Connor!" Ford felt Liz stiffen in his arms.
At a booth for the US Office of Accountability sat a broad-shouldered woman wearing a cheaply made scarlet blouse with loose stitching around the cuffs. Liz knew who it was, it was Pooja Sidvtharthi, the resident mean girl when Liz had been an analyst. She had held potential pay cuts over her head, routinely got the cleaning staff fired, and she took great joy in playing mind games with Liz. No matter how many times Elizabeth made documented complaints against her, nothing was ever done. Pooja snapped her fingers and demanded, "Look at me, Elizabeth Connor. I am speaking to you."
Liz had worked with people from India before, and they had been perfectly nice, but Pooja was the clear exception to this. Liz turned her back, "No, I will not. I am not a servant." Her voice was calmly cold. Pooja scowled, "How dare you think you are better than me! You ran away and now you are here with your husband. You pathetic little girl!" A cruel smile crossed her face, when Ford slammed both his hands on the table, "How dare you say that to my wife!" Pooja drew back slightly, before putting on her fakest smile. "Why would you marry her? She cries all the time." Ford stared at her in disgust, "You are truly pathetic."
Pooja did not like at all how Ford and Liz were treating her. For she was one of those unfortunate women who spend too much time crafting a false narrative, and when reality cracks, she lashes out and plays the victim, refusing to take responsibility, let alone owning up to any sort of responsibility of any kind. Liz gave Pooja a withering gaze, "Pooja, you're a bitch. You have no power over me." Pooja was left stuttering as Liz and Ford left the area, before wailing they had no right to treat her this way, she would have them arrested.
"No, you will not have them arrested," came Agent Trigger's sharp voice, he was cosplaying as Tony Stark. "Agent Trigger, did you see how I was treated," Pooja demanded. Trigger pinched the bridge of his nose. "Stop spouting your damn lies, Sidvtharthi! The whole reason you lost your top security clearance and got demoted to security receptionist at the Pentagon was because you lorded over the wrong people. Now, unless you want to be fired, shut up and sell working for the government!" Pooja's eyes went wide, she did not want to lose her job. She had been sued to the point of bankruptcy because of her bullying, and her federal job was the only thing keeping her from losing her house in Haymarket.
Liz was still trembling from the unpleasant encounter. It had been nothing short of cathartic to call Pooja out for her tyrannical behavior, but it still bothered her the other woman still felt it was okay to be queen of the world, despite it all. Ford assured her she had been magnificent, and some people were never going to change. He kissed her softly, soothing Liz.
"Step right up and get the latest 'Good Witch Azura' books while they're hot of the press," Eda Clawthorne's voice cut through the cacophony of the attendees, staff and vendors. Neither Ford nor Liz had heard of this series before, maybe an independent take on the Harry Potter franchise? They made their way over, and it was over they had found their harpy. The woman's skin tone was a near match for Elizabeth's, and Eda's eyes widened when she saw them.
Eda had come to Retro-Con to make money selling unsold copies of the Azura novels for money to buy supplies to rebuild the The Boiling Isles following Belos' defeat a little over a year ago. She had not been expecting to lay eyes on Stan's hotter twin brother and a woman the spitting image of Emira Blight, albeit a decade older, black hair, and flowers sprouting from the crown of her head. The tattoos were worrying, circles of cobalt blue with a rectangular wave design. She knew she had read about these before. What was a Tuatha De Danann doing here in the Human Realm? She would need to ask Raine and Lillith about this, they would know.
Ford had been going to ask Eda about the look she had given Liz, it appeared Eda had seen a ghost! Eda watched the couple closely, but she shook her head and launched into her spiel, "Hey folks, looking for something new to read to the kids? Got a first rate series for ya, right here." Ford and Liz picked up one of the volumes, leafing through the pages and skimming the words. The language was flowery, the plot predictable, but there was an underlying enthusiasm, and chunks of character development. It spoke to Liz, so she decided the series would be a good investment.
"How many volumes are in the series?"
"Four or five volumes, how should I know?"
"Well, aren't you the author?"
"Author? HA! I wish! Either way, that'll be 25 snails."
"Snails? Don't you mean dollars?"
"Nothing gets past you, does it Poindexter?"
Ford asked if the price was per volume or for the whole set, and Eda shrugged. "I dunno. You gonna buy these or not?" Ford rolled his eyes, what was going on here? Eda admitted she wasn't sure of the retail price, and Liz compromised by shelling out $45.50 for the whole set. Eda was grateful, but she watched Liz warily as they walked away. Who are you, little Sidhe?
"I don't like the way she looked at me," Elizabeth remarked while she and Ford continued to explore the areas of the con they hadn't gotten to yet. There were some tables set up for tarot readings for $35. Ford said that Hand Witch gave more accurate readings for free, if you were polite. Blushing, Liz asked good Ford was with his fingers. Ford adjusted his glasses. "I can give you a demonstration later, if you like," he purred into her ear. Liz melted at his words, and felt her nipples harden.
Sure enough, red roses burst into bloom around her head at the thought of Ford's suggestion, and she shifted her legs uncomfortably. Ford noticed the damp spot between her legs, had she gotten wet from his suggestion. This was going to require further study, preferably with him between her legs, Liz moaning his name while clinging to his back.
They were both blushing as they made for their bedroom, sharing open mouthed kisses and tearing off their shirts. Ford kissed her hard, working her shirt off. "So beautiful," he murmured, pressing kisses to her shoulders, while unhooking her bra. His hands cupped her breasts, they were warm and soft. "Oh Ford…fuck! That feels amazing," Liz moaned. Ford pinched her nipples lightly, noticing her blush. "That's my good girl," he praised, Liz moaning slightly. Ford bit the back of her neck, lapping at the blood. She squealed, "Ford!"
Ford smirked, a flush rising to his cheeks, "Lie down." Liz lowered herself onto the bed, her lover lying on his side, duvet pulled up around their hips. Ford positioned himself so one arm was under her chest and another between her legs. He lowered his mouth to her right breast and began to suckle. Liz moaned and wailed, grabbing hold of his hands with hers. He hummed against her breast as he fondled the other one.
His lower hand found her clit and was stroking it deftly. Her hips rocked, and Liz whispered his name like a prayer. Three of his fingers found her wet channel, and found a steady tempo. Liz was drowning in the throes of passion, her beloved Sixer lavishing her with adoration and love. Liz felt herself orgasm some time later, with Ford holding her close and kissing her. Liz snuggled against him, completely happy.
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