A/n: So it's been a while... sorry guys! I can't really promise how often new chapters will be put out but I will finish A Summer in Gravity Falls... eventually. Anyways, I hope you're enjoying the story so far, here's "Not What He Seems"!
Dipper's POV:
This has been the weirdest and best summer of my life. And I swear, it only gets crazier the longer I stay in Gravity Falls. Just last week, me, Y/n, and Mabel were kidnapped by Blendin Blandin, a time traveller we had angered earlier this summer, and fought against him in this epic, futuristic battle. We ended up resolving things with him in the end though.
Even weirder than that, I found out that Pacifica Northwest isn't the cold-hearted person I once thought she was. A couple days ago, she had requested mine and Y/n's help in getting rid of the ghost that was haunting her family's mansion and we agreed to do it so she would let Mabel, Candy, and Grenda go to her family's famous dinner party. The ghost was far more hate filled and vengeful than we were expecting, and things took a scary turn. Y/n exposed herself in front of Pacifica and began using her powers to fight the ghost. I though she had him beat; she delivered some pretty devastating blows, but the stronger she fought, the more it took a toll on her. Her nose started bleeding as she used her powers, but she didn't stop. That is, until she passed out. I ran over to try and protect her, but then the ghost got us both, turning us both to wood. Then, Pacifica did something completely unexpected. She opened the gates to the townsfolk, despite the wrath and fear that her parents inflicted on her, so she could bring the ghost to peace. Pacifica thanked us for our help and swore she would never tell anyone about Y/n's powers.
Y/n doesn't use her powers unless she has to, but from the little bit I've seen, I can tell her powers are getting stronger and more uncontrollable. I've offered to try and help her, but she always turns me down because she says she's afraid to hurt me. Y/n is this amazing girl and I think what she can do is incredible, but her new abilities have really driven a wedge in our feeling for each other. We still talk like we used to, but she always stays just far enough away from me so that we don't touch. I really wish I could help her with all this.
Oh and get this: she told me Bill offered to "help" her once again in a dream a little while back. I hate that guy SO MUCH. I don't know what he's planning but I'll do anything to keep Y/n safe from him. Not that Y/n isn't capable of defending herself... but her judgement isn't the best when it comes to Bill. I got the feeling something else happened in her dream with Bill, but Y/n insisted it was nothing. Y/n and I have never kept anything from each other before and I don't like it.
She hasn't heard anything from Bill since then though, so I suppose that's good news. Now maybe we can get back to focussing on the author; I feel like if anyone can explain what's happened to her, it'll be the author.
For right now though, we can just enjoy this summer day. Me, Stan, Y/n, and Mabel started off the morning with some fireworks. Now, Stan was laying back on the sofa on the porch with a pit cola in hand watching Y/n and Mabel attack me with water balloons.
Stan took a sip of his drink and smiled. "Ah. This is what Saturdays are for. Doing dumb things forever."
"To Grunkle Stan!" Mabel shouted, raising up he icy pop. "Not just a great uncle..."
"But the greatest uncle!" Y/n and I jumped in before the 3 of up picked up some water balloons and took aim at Stan.
Stan, who was now pretty soaked, chuckled. "Alright, alright. I tell you it's unnatural for siblings to get along as well as you do."
Mabel shook her head and waved her arm dismissively. "Ha-ha! Don't worry. We've still got plenty of summer left to drive each other crazy! And Y/n too, she basically my sister!"
Stan suddenly seemed a bit sad, like something was bothering him. "Yeah, plenty of summer left." He rubbed the back of his neck and sighed. Me, Y/n, and Mabel came closer to him. "Kids, there's something I, uh, something I should tell you. It's um... well it's complicated. I..." he had his mouth open to speak, but then thought better of it and instead said, "I'm gonna go refresh my soda." He stood up and left to get another drink.
"That was weird," I said, "What do you think that was about?"
"I'm not totally sure," Y/n admitted with a thoughtful look in her eyes. "Stan is definitely anxious about something; I have a weird feeling about it."
I was starting to wonder if Y/n had some sort of mind reading ability, or is able to feel other people's emotions or something. I get she knows me super well, but lately she's known what I'm going to say before I say it far too often for it to be a coincidence.
All of a sudden, the sound of helicopters filled the air and men wearing all black descended on hanging ladders! Agents surrounded me, Y/n and Mabel and one reached to his belt and grabbed his radio.
"Kids are secure," he declared. "Roof team! Go!"
"What the heck is happening?" I shouted over the sounds of the helicopters.
The agents ignored me.
I heard one of the radios buzz, "Pig secure! We have secured a pig!"
"Waddles!" Mabel cried out.
Several police cars with their sirens blaring sped onto the property, leaving grooves in the dirt where they applied the breaks. More agents stormed out of the cars, wrapping the Mystery Shack with yellow police tape.
Then, Stan appeared from around the corner of the shack, resisting the pull of the agents. Stan was in hand cuffs.
"Ugh! Hey, hands off, you stooge!" Stan whined, as the agents brought him towards the government vehicle. "I don't understand! What did I do that warrants this much arresting?"
That's when the two government agents, Powers and Trigger, approached.
"The government guys?" I questioned. "I thought you got eaten by zombies!"
They paid little attention to me. Agent Powers held up a tablet for us to see, showing security footage of a government waste facility. "At o'four hundred hours last night someone robbed three hundred gallons of dangerous waste," Powers Narrated as a person in a yellow radiation suit stole barrels of toxic waste from the facility.
"What? You think that's me?" Stan questioned, his eyes wide.
"Don't play dumb with us, Pines," Powers retorted, rolling his eyes as he shoved the tablet away.
"But I actually am dumb!" Stan insisted as one of the agents led him to the government vehicle. "Last night I was stocking the gift shop. I swear!"
"Wait! Grunkle Stan! You've got the wrong guy! Our Grunkle Stan might shoplift the occasional tangerine, but he's not some evil super villain!" Mabel declared defensively.
Powers leaned down towards us. "Listen, kid. We've been watching your family all summer and we've seen some disturbing things. But nothing as dangerous as what your uncle is hiding. Somewhere hidden in this shack is a doomsday device!" He stood back up straight and turned to his partner. "Trigger, you take the children. I'll talk to the old man." He looked back down at us with fake pity. "Sorry to break it to you kids but you don't know your uncle at all." He turned around abruptly and made his way to the government vehicle.
A few of the agents started shoving me, Y/n and Mabel towards one of the other government vehicles. We were shoved into the back seat of the black jeep and the door was slammed shut behind us.
We looked out the window to see Stan in the other jeep. He tapped his cuffs on the glass to get our attention and yelled, "Kids, you gotta believe me! For once I'm actually innocent!" The jeep started to drive away. "Kids!"
Me, Y/n, and Mabel exchanged worried glances as we left the Mystery Shack as the jeep pulled away.
We sat in silence for a while, watching the trees go by as we drove out of Gravity Falls. Eventually, the silence ended when a small screen showing Agent Powers dropped down from the ceiling.
"We've got Mr. Pines in custody. Our men are searching the shack for the device. You take care of those kids," he bellowed, no emotion on his face.
Mabel gasped as her jaw fell open. "What're you gonna do to us?"
Trigger briefly looked back in the rear-view mirror at us. "We'll be taking you to child services."
"Boo!" Mabel whined. She crossed her arms and rolled her eyes.
"Dipper, this is crazy. There's no way Stan was stealing hazardous waste! We gotta clear his name!" Mabel announced.
"Hmm...wait a minute, the security tapes! Didn't Stan say he was restocking the gift shop last night? If we could get the Mystery Shack surveillance tapes, we could prove he's innocent!" I said excitedly, sitting up from my slouched position.
"But how do we get back to the shack?" Y/n inquired quietly, glancing towards Trigger to make sure he wasn't paying attention.
I rubbed the back of my neck looked over at her. "Well... I was hoping you could do something about that. Blow a tire or something, just get us off the road."
"Dipper..." she hesitated, "I don't think I can. I can't control it enough to do something so precise... I'll end up blowing up the whole car."
I reached out and slowly took Y/n's hands in each of mine and she didn't pull away this time. "Y/n, we don't have a choice. You can do this, you just need to focus. I trust you."
She gave me a small nod an sat up straight in her seat. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath.
I started hearing weird sounds from under the jeep. Trigger looked uneasy in the driver's seat. The sound started to get louder
"What the heck is that?" Trigger yelled.
The sounds stopped, then, all of a sudden, BANG. The left side of the vehicle lifted off the ground and we were thrown off the road. The world was a spinning blur. I was being thrown in every direction, but my seatbelt kept me in place. Then, we jolted to a stop while we were all upside down.
"Mayday! Mayday! Agent down!" Trigger yelled frantically in the front seat. He fiddled with his seat belt, but it had become stuck when we were rolling.
Y/n undid her seat belt, falling to the roof of the car. She quickly helped me and Mabel out of ours, asking if we were okay.
After assuring her that we were fine, we swung open the door and climbed out of the vehicle. I looked back at the jeep. All of the tires were blown, and the rims were incredibly mishappen.
"I mean, one tire would have been fine," I laughed lightly.
"Yeah, yeah." She rolled her eyes and crossed her arms. "But I got us off the road, didn't I?"
"Come on, guys. We're gonna go clear our uncle's name." Mabel announced.
"Oh, you poor kids," Trigger sighed earnestly. "You really think your uncle's innocent? I've seen it all before. False names, double lives, one minute they're playing with water balloons, the next they're building doomsday devices. Your uncle scammed the whole world. You gonna let him scam you, too?"
I didn't mean for it to happen, but Trigger's words got in my head.
"You... you don't know what you're talking about," I replied.
We turned and walked back up the hill to the road.
Y/n's POV:
Dipper, Mabel and I had hopped on one of the jeeps going to the Shack and were now crouched in the bushes deciding how we should get passed all the government agents swarming the building.
"Alright, here's the plan," Mabel began. "I'll take out those two guard guys, Dipper, you karate chop the other dude in the neck and then Y/n will use her super power magic to blast through the front door!"
"Mabel, aren't you forgetting the simpler solution?" Dipper laughed and gestured to Mabel's Hoodie, which she kept her grappling hook in.
"Oh right," she giggled.
We climbed up one of the nearby trees, careful to avoid snapping any branches or climb in any open areas without tree coverage so the agents wouldn't come after us. Once we got to the top, Mabel fired her grappling hook into the triangular shaped window of our bedroom, which had already been shattered by the agents earlier. Together, we slid along the rope and made it to our bedroom.
"Nice work guys." I smiled. "Now we just have to get into Stan's office and get that security tape!"
They nodded and we all crept down the stairs, carefully avoiding the creaky spots we had become familiar with over the summer. We made it into Stan's office and closed the door quietly and locked it for extra security.
"Alright. If I were Stan, where would I keep those security tapes?" Dipper asked, rubbing the back of his neck as he looked around the room.
"The jackalope!" I gasped, pointing towards the mounted Jackrabbit on the wall with antlers hot glued to its head, one of which was bent down like a switch.
Mabel reached up and bent the antler back in place. We heard a low clicking noise, then all of a sudden the bookshelf spun around revealing an old video player and a TV.
Mabel examined the tape that was sticking out of the player. "It's this week! This is it!" She pushed the tape in and the screen came to life.
We were met with a video of Stan stocking the shelves, just like he said.
"Perfect!" Dipper beamed. "This proves he's innocent."
But something did not feel right to me. I grabbed the dial and wound the video forward until I reached 7pm. Stan glanced around the shop suspiciously and left. I kept scrolling through, hoping Stan would return, but he didn't. Until the time was 5am. The door was pushed open and a man who was clearly Stan was wearing a yellow biohazard suit and pushing toxic waste entered. My heart sank. I looked at Dipper and Mabel uneasily.
"Okay, okay, so maybe Grunkle Stan stole some toxic waste. That doesn't mean he's leading a nefarious double life!" Mabel reassured, clearly trying to convince herself more than us.
That's when Dipper pulled out a cardboard box from the shelf. "Mabel, I'm not so sure about that..."
Dipper began emptying the box, throwing fake IDs and passports with Stan's face on them all over the floor.
Dipper read off some of the names from the IDs and shook his head in disbelief. "These are fake IDs, Mabel! You wouldn't need these unless you were trying to hide your real identity!"
Mabel's voice was shaky, she was on the verge of tears. "But why would Stan do that?"
Mabel reached into the box and pulled out a newspaper article. Her mouth dropped and I watched the colour drain out of her face. I leaned over and read the article title. "STAN PINES DEAD."
"Foul play suspected in Pines' death." Fiery car crash, brakes cut...by who?!" Mabel read aloud.
Dipper picked up another article with Stan's face on it. "Unnamed grifter at large? Why would they call him unnamed? Unless Stan...isn't...Stan..."
Horror set in on Mabel and Dipper's faces. Dipper kept rambling, trying to comprehend what we had just discovered. I had so many thoughts running through my mind, but I couldn't materialize them into sentences. Stan wasn't a bad guy... I KNOW that. I can feel it. But I couldn't deny what was in front of me. It seemed clear that the man we've been living with all summer was not who he seemed.
Mabel was rapidly rummaging through the contents of the box, looking for something that would make everything make sense. "Ugh, there's gotta be some kind of explanation in here somewhere. What the... secret code to hideout?" she held up a single piece of paper with letters and squares drawn on it.
"Let me see that," Dipper said, grabbing the paper from her hands. He furrowed his eyebrows. ""A1, B, C3"... I've never seen a code like this."
Mabel's eyes suddenly went wide, light a lightbulb had gone off in her mind. "Wait! I have! Guys, it's the vending machine!"
We unlocked the door to Stan's office and I looked out and peered around the corner. I was met with silence. The agent's must have left. I pulled open the door and ran to the vending machine in the gift shop with Dipper and Mabel following close behind me.
When we got there, we saw Soos, talking to himself in front of the vending machine, positioned like a guard to the snacks. Geez, this guy really loves his snacks.
"Soos?" I said.
"Ahh! Oh, kids! Where've you been?" He said with his goofy, concerned grin.
"What are you doing here?" Dipper jumped in.
"Stan gave me a mission to protect this machine!" He proclaimed proudly, his hands resting on his hips. "Ha! And I thought I loved snacks."
"Soos, listen. Something huge is going on here. If Stan is hiding some dangerous secret, we need to find out what it is!" Dipper's expression turned grim. "I need you to step aside."
"Yeah, just let us through so we can prove this is all just a big misunderstanding," Mabel smiled uneasily, still trying to put her trust in Stan.
"Guys, I know this seems crazy, but I promised Stan I would guard this with my life." Soos wrung his hands nervously.
I looked over at Mabel as she reached into her sweater pocket. "I'm sorry, Soos," she sighed earnestly. She pulled out her hand, opened her clenched fist and blew a pile of glitter directly into Soos's face.
"Aah! Attack glitter! It's pretty, but it hurts!" Soos cried out, rubbing his eyes.
Mabel and I both looked at each and exchanged a nod, knowing what had to be done. We jumped on Soos and began our attack, hoping to give Dipper a window to type in the code on the vending machine.
"Aww, c'mon, I don't wanna fight you guys!" Soos begged. "This hurts me more than it hurts you!"
And that's when we heard a woosh of air as the vending machine spun open, revealing a hidden entrance. Soos stopped trying to block us and we all stared in aw at the open door.
Dipper and I exchanged a look of uneasiness. Dipper reached out his hand for me to hold. I hesitated, but with everything going on, I just wanted some sense of normality, like holding hands with the boy I liked. I didn't know if I could trust Stan anymore, but I trusted Dipper more than anyone else in the world, and I needed to learn to trust myself to control my new powers. I slipped his hand in his and gripped it tightly. He smiled.
We made our way down the staircase behind the vending machine doors, with Soos and Mabel following behind us. Dim lights on the wall created a sense of ominousness.
"It's like something from a video game," Soos said quietly.
"Or a dream," Mabel stated.
Dipper glanced around. "Or a nightmare."
The stairs came to an end, bringing us to an elevator. I reached out and pressed the button and the doors slid open. We got into the elevator and I pressed the down button.
My stomach was in knots as I tried to imagine what Stan could possibly be hiding. And then the elevator doors separated, revealing walls covered in scientific looking machines and wires and tubes running along the ceiling. It was like some sort of underground laboratory. We cautiously stepped into the room.
"This can't be real..." Dipper trailed off. He glanced around the room, confusion in his eyes. "It's just like that bunker in the woods..."
"But what is it doing underneath the Mystery Shack?" Soos asked while he wrung his hands.
"Okay, okay, so he's got a huge gigantic lab. That doesn't mean anything bad! Everyone's got secrets!" Mabel's voice was shaky. She went over to the desk at the far end of the room and picked up a photo of Dipper, Mabel, and I. "It's still Stan, and he loves us. And we love him. Right?"
Dippers face turned angry. "It can't be... it's impossible." I turned to the bookshelf sitting on the desk and realized what Dipper was talking about. I swear I almost felt my stomach drop. On the shelf sat two worn, burgundy books with a golden six-fingered hand on the front. "The other two journals? All this time... all this time, Stan had them?! I can't believe it! Was anything he said to us real?!"
"Maybe he's the author." Soos smiled half-heartedly.
Dipper's face turned red and he started talking with his hands in anger. "Or maybe he stole them from the author! Maybe the reason he has all those fake IDs is because he is a master criminal, and this machine is his master plan!"
I could almost see the gears turning in Dipper's mind. He flipped to a page in each of the 3 journals that contained some sort of master instructions for some kind of portal. Dipper hastily took the black light out of his pocket and turned it on. We all gasped.
The blacklight revealed horrific warnings written in invisible ink that Dipper dared to read aloud. "I was wrong the whole time. The machine was meant to create knowledge but it is too powerful. I was deceived, and now it is too late. The device, if fully operational, could tear our universe apart! It must not fall into the wrong hands. If the clock ever reaches zero, our universe is doomed!"
That's when we all noticed the ticking sound in the room and looked up. A giant digital count down with red font was above our heads. How we didn't notice that when we came into the room was beyond me. There was only a minute and 30 seconds left...
Dipper started rapidly flipping through pages till he found the one he was looking for: a way to shut the portal down. He found a manual override safe that involved the simultaneous turning of 3 keys. He scanned the page quickly, then ran through the laboratory door into the room that contained the portal. Mabel, Soos, and I followed closely behind him.
When I stepped into the room, I immediately felt this wave of energy wash over me. It was so strong, it was almost painful. I could feel all the hairs on my arms standing up.
The device stood at the end of the room was an upside-down equilateral triangle and it had to have been at least 30 feet tall. In the center of the triangle was a massive circle radiating energy in every direction. The light around the circle appeared to be spinning so fast that my eyes almost couldn't process it. The circle was bending space to its will. No, it wasn't a circle, it was a window to... somewhere else...
The ground was shaking, like there was a small earthquake. The device was gaining strength.
I watched as Dipper, Mabel, and Soos ran to the manual shutdown and turned the 3 keys. Nothing happened for a couple seconds. Then a cover flipped off a stand connected to the machine through a bunch of thick, jumbled wires, revealing a big red button.
We all ran over to the button, trying to keep our footing the best we could with the shaking ground.
We were set. We could shut down the device and all would return to normal. But something felt wrong. The energy in the air... I don't know. Something bad happened here. Years ago. I could feel it.
Dipper raised his had to hit the button. "This all stops... now!"
Dipper's had swung down. He was inches away from shutting down whatever was going on when we heard a yell. "DON'T TOUCH THAT BUTTON!!"
Standing in the doorway was Stan Pines. He was panting heavily. His clothes were ripped in a few places and he was sweating.
"Dipper, just back away," he pleaded, stepping a little further into the room. But Dipper kept his hand hovering inches above the button. "Please don't press that shutdown button, you gotta trust me."
"And I should trust you why?! After you stole radioactive waste? After you lied to us all summer?! I don't even know who you are!" I had never heard Dipper yell in the tone he was. His face was red; his anger bubbling over.
"Look, I know this all seems nuts, but I need that machine to stay on! If you'd just let me explain—" Stan was interrupted by the beeping of a device on his wrist. Right after, the ground began to shake, hard. "Uh-oh, oh, no! Brace yourselves!"
And then suddenly we were weightless, lifting uncontrollably towards the ceiling.
The device began spinning even faster. The window in the center began opening with blue lightning shooting out in every direction.
I was spinning in circles, but I was moving so fast that it was too blurry to see where. Focus. I needed to focus. I imagined myself coming to a stop, visualizing myself manipulating the air around me to do so. I felt a familiar tug in my stomach. I could feel myself slowing down, but it wasn't easy. The energy from the device was messing with my abilities.
I had just made it to the wall and was holding onto a wooden beam to stay still when I heard a computerized voice say, "T minus thirty-five seconds."
I watched as Dipper spun over to another wood beam, letting out a yell as he hit it. He spun around and held onto the beam.
"Dipper!" Mabel yelled, drawing our attention to the center of the room. Her foot had gotten caught in some of the wires the button was connected to. She could still press it in time.
"Mabel! Hurry! Shut it down!" Dipper screamed; his eyes wild.
Mabel started pulling herself along the wire. She grasped onto the button stand and prepared to hit the button.
"No! Mabel, Mabel, wait! Stop!" Stan pleaded, trying to swim through the air towards her. Then suddenly Soos came flying through the air and tackled Stan. "Aah! Soos, what are you doing?! I gave you an order!"
"Sorry, Mr. Pines - if that is your real name - but I have a new mission now! Protecting these kids!" Soos yelled, his arms and legs latched around Stan.
"Soos, you idiot, let me go!" Stan yelled back as they flew across the room.
Dipper pushed off the support beam, colliding with Stan and Soos. "Go! Mabel, press the red button! Shut it down!"
Maybe I should have done the same, but I didn't know what was right. All I could do was watch it unfold.
"No, you can't! You gotta trust me!" Stan yelled.
Water droplets lifted up from Mabel's eyes. It broke my heart to see her cry.
"Grunkle Stan, I don't even know, if you're my grunkle! I wanna believe you, but—" Mabel's voice trailed off, pain laced in her words.
"Then listen to me," Stan begged her. "Remember this morning when I said I wanted to tell you guys something?"
The computer spoke again, "T-minus twenty seconds."
A big flash of light came from the portal, letting out a powerful burst of energy that sent Dipper, Stan and Soos flying back to the wall. They all screamed. Mabel lifted her hand to push the button.
Stan looked up at Mabel. His eyes looked sad, whatever this thing was going to do, he clearly wanted it more than anything. "I wanted to say that you're gonna hear some bad things about me, and some of them are true, but trust me. Everything I've worked for, everything I care about, it's all for this family!" His words were flooded with emotion.
"Mabel, what if he's lying? This thing could destroy the universe! Listen to your head!" Dipper yelled, trying desperately to get through to his sister.
"Look into my eyes, Mabel!" Stan pleaded. "You really think I'm a bad guy?"
"He's lying! Shut it down NOW!"
"Mabel, please!"
The computer started counting down from ten. Mabel looked at me, she was completely distraught, tears welling in her eyes again.
I could feel my eyes getting watery too. "Do what your heart tells you," I said, just loud enough to be heard.
I could feel Dipper's gaze, looking at me like I was crazy. And maybe I was. But I knew Mabel would do the right thing.
Mabel mustered a slight nod and looked away from me. She lowered her hand towards the button. Then she looked up at Stan. "Grunkle Stan..."
The computer was at five...four...
Mabel lifted her hand. "I trust you."
She let go of the button stand and floated gently upward.
"MABEL, ARE YOU CRAZY?! WE'RE ALL GONNA-"
One.
The room erupted with a bright white light. There were screams, some of which were my own. And then everything went dark.
I woke up on the floor of the laboratory. Everything hurt but nothing was broken.
I rolled off my stomach onto my back and propped myself up on my forearms to look at the portal. It had fallen to one side and was no longer spinning. But now the portal looked different, glowing a bright blue and a shadow, a figure began to emerge from it. The light began to warp around the portal and then the figure broke through it.
I stood up. Dipper, Mabel, Soos, and Stan were now standing too, watching the figure with wonder and amazement.
He wore black from head to toe, a rugged hood blocking us from seeing his face. One of the journals was laying on the floor and he walked towards it. He reached out his hand and laid his 6 fingers down across the golden emblem. NO WAY.
"What...?" Dipper gasped. "Who is that?"
"The author of the journals..." Stan responded breathily, astonished that he was actually here. The man then pulled down his hood and off his goggles. His face was a little less clean shaven and a little more scuffed up, but still... it was so clearly the same face as Stan's. "...my brother."
I was shocked, I was frozen in place. Stan had an identical twin??
Stan was overjoyed. "Finally! After all these long years of waiting, you're actually here! Brother!" Stan walked towards his brother with open arms, looking as happy as I've ever seen him.
Then, when they were in reaching distance, Stan's brother threw a left hook and caught Stan in the face.
"Oh! Ow! What the heck was that for?!" Stan's tone was hurt and angry. His hand was holding his jaw.
"This was an insanely risky move: restarting the portal! Didn't you read my warnings?!" His brother responded, his voice hasty but still smoother than Stan's.
Stan crossed his arms defensively and rolled his eyes. "Warnings, schmarnings. How's about maybe a thanks for saving you from what appears to be, I don't know, some kind of sci-fi sideburn dimension?"
His brother stepped into a fighting stance and his voice took a frightening tone. " Thank you? You really think I'm gonna thank you after what you DID THIRTY YEARS AGO?!"
"What I did? Why, you ungrateful..." Stan lunged at his brother, trying to throw a punch but his brother was faster. He ducked then grabbed him, bringing him down to the ground. "Don't expect me to go easy on you, just because you're... family."
Shock released its grips on Mabel, or at least loosened them enough to allow her to speak. "Hey, hi. Mabel here. Quick question: WHAT THE HECK IS GOING ON HERE?!"
Stan's brother immediately released his grip. "Stan, you didn't tell me there were children down here," he said innocently.
Stan crossed his arms. "They're your family, Poindexter. Shermie's grandkids."
Stan's brother's eyes went wide and then he smiled. I-I have two nieces and nephew?" He went over and shook Mabel's hand. "Greetings. Do kids still say greetings? I haven't been in this dimension for a really long time."
"Oh uh, we're not- I'm not your niece. My parents sent me here to stay for the summer," I corrected.
"Yeah," Stan continued, throwing an uncertain glance at his brother. "Her grandma was a, uh, family friend. Rita?"
Stan's brother looked momentarily shocked but quickly masked it with understanding. "Oh yes, Rita. She was an old friend, she helped me with my research."
He shook my hand earnestly.
"You knew my grandmother?" I asked curiously. "I never knew she did research in Gravity Falls."
"I knew her a long time ago."
He didn't say anything else, but there was clearly a lot more behind this than he was leading on. But I gathered that this was not the time to inquire about it.
It was at that moment that Dipper became unfrozen from his shock. "I-I can't believe it. You're the author of the journals!"
Stan's brother looked surprised, but pleased. "You've read my journals?"
"I haven't just read them; I've lived them!" Dipper was talking fast. His eyes were wide and he began pacing from excitement. "I've been waiting for so long to meet you, I-I don't know what to say I have so many question I-"
"Listen, there'll be time for introductions later." Stan's brother said with a smile on his face, which turned more accusing as he began talking to Stan. "But first, tell me, Stan: are there any security breaches? Does anyone else know about this portal?"
"No, just us," He shrugged casually. "Also maybe the entire U.S. government."
Surprise and anger flooded Stan's brother's voice. " The what?!" Along with a deep breath, he took a moment to analyze the situation at hand and how to proceed before speaking again. "Okay. It's all right. We've got a while before they find this room. We just need to lay low and think of a plan."
"Well, it looks like we're stuck down here for a while. Who wants to tell us their entire mysterious backstory?" Mabel smiled innocently, looking up at the brothers hopefully.
Stan's brother was flipping through one of his journals, but still fully involved in the conversation. "Yes, I have some questions about this myself, Stanley."
"Stanley?" Dipper questioned.
Mabel looked puzzled. "But your name is Stanford."
Stan's brother abruptly looked up from his journal, shocked and angry. "Wait, you took my name?! What have you been doing all these years, you knucklehead?!"
"Yeah, Grunkle Stan, no more lies! You owe us some answers: What's the deal with this portal? Why did you keep this a secret?" Dipper asked, finally breaking out of his state of shock.
"Okay, okay, okay, I have a lot of explaining to do. It all started... a lifetime ago... nineteen sixty something. Glass Shard Beach, New Jersey," Stan began.
He proceeded to tell us the story of him and his brother. Stanley and Stanford were best friends since birth. But after Stanley made a mistake and messed up Stanford's chances at his dream school, he was kicked out by his own dad and Stanford would no longer speak with him. He told us all about his efforts to make something of himself, which often got him into trouble with the law. That explained all the fake IDs I guess.
"But, wait, what about you?" Dipper asked, looking at Stanford. "Did you end up going to your dream school?"
"Not exactly..." Stanford replied.
Instead of his dream school, he went to Backupsmore. But he worked hard and secured a research grant which he used to start his research on the unexplained, the unusual, which led him to Gravity Falls. He told us about some of his findings, including the gnomes, who Dipper, Mabel, and I had had an encounter with earlier this Summer.
He then proceeded to tell us about how he teamed up with his friend from college, Fiddleford McGucket, who apparently used to be a brilliant mechanic. He then told us how he and Fiddleford built the portal together until Fiddleford realized the danger it carried. Now the laptop we had found earlier this summer made sense. And everything that happened with Fiddleford and the society of the blind eye too. The mystery was finally coming together.
He told us about how he called his brother to take his journal and hide it and how things didn't go as planned. The brothers got into a big fight and Stanford was accidentally pushed into the portal. Since then, Stan has been doing everything possible to bring his brother back.
Dipper looked down at the ground and frowned. "So, all this time you were just trying to save your brother. Grunkle Stan, I'm so sorry I didn't believe you."
Stan smiled faintly and placed his hand on Dipper's shoulder. "That's okay, kid. I probably wouldn't have believed me either."
That's when we started to hear voices from upstairs. "I heard talking! It was coming from downstairs!" An agent yelled.
Everyone looked around in a panic. It wouldn't be long before the agents came down here and found us. Not that I wanted to use my powers, but it was too bad that I didn't have the power to make them forget about all of this.
Wait. Forget! That's it! I nudged Dipper. "Dipper, the memory gun!"
Dipper's eyes lit up and he frantically rand to his backpack. He unzipped it and pulled out the memory erasing gun and held it out for Stanford.
Ford was surprised, but grabbed the gun. "Of course! I don't know how you got a hold of one of these but, this is perfect! If I can just amplify the signal to a radio headset frequency..." Ford began messing with the wires. "There. Now everyone PLUG YOUR EARS! GET DOWN! NOW!"
Everyone did as they were told. We all crouched down and covered our ears.
After a few moments, Stanford instructed us to uncover our ears and went to deal with the agents upstairs. After the agents were gone, we all ran outside to join him. Well, except Stan who took his sweet time coming upstairs.
"Great uncle Stanford, that was amazing!" Mabel gasped, eyes wide.
Stan made his way outside, with his arms crossed and a scowl on his face. "Let's not go crazy; it was serviceable."
Ford ignored him and looked down at Dipper, Mabel, and I and smiled. "Thank you, kids, but please, call me Ford."
"Sure! Thanks, Great Uncle Ford. So, uh..." Dipper trailed off as he eagerly pulled out a pen and notepad from his vest. "Would you mind if I ask you a couple billion questions about Gravity Falls?"
"Um, well I-uh..." Ford stumbled.
"All right, kids," Stan interrupted, clearly annoyed with the appreciation his brother was getting. "It's been a long day and me and my brother have a lot to talk about. Why don't you hit the hay, huh?"
After some slight bickering between Dipper and Stan, Dipper, Mabel and I made our way upstairs to our bedroom. For a while, we tried to eavesdrop on the conversation between Stan and his brother Ford, but we didn't get much out of it. Eventually, we shut off the lights and got into bed, not that any of us would be able to sleep after what just happened.
I found myself staring at the ceiling for a while. This whole thing was such a mess. I guess its pretty cool that we finally found the author, but at what cost? There was no avoiding it, this is going to change everything.
After a bit, I decided to finally try and sleep. I turned to face the wall and let my eyelids fall closed. That's when I felt a strong hand grab me. I opened my mouth to scream, but I wasn't fast enough. Another hand clamped over my mouth. I started thrashing, trying to pull away and see who had a hold of me. I could feel a pull in my stomach. I could feel my energy coursing through me, radiating off me as my fear and anger built. I could see literal light radiating off my skin as I tried to pull away.
"You don't want to do that," a quiet voice said hastily. "Y/n it's me, Ford." He paused and slowly removed his hand from my mouth. "I need you to come with me."
The pull in my stomach went away and the light stopped. But now I was freaked out. And curious. Why did I need to come with him? What did he want from me? I glanced over at Dipper and Mabel who were peacefully asleep in their beds. I turned back to Ford. I decided to go. I mustered a small nod and he gestured for me to follow him.
He led me down the stairs, through the Mystery Shack, and down through the secret path through the vending machine. Finally, he led me to the room with the fallen portal. He glanced around the room and turned to stare at me.
"I apologize for the, uh, abrupt awakening, Y/n," Ford said sincerely. "I just needed to know... I needed to confirm my suspicions."
I raised my eyebrow. "Your suspicions of what, exactly?"
"Your powers," He said flatly.
I tensed. How did he even know to suspect that? I took a couple of steps back from him and clenched my fists, suddenly feeling very exposed. "How... how did you know about that?"
"It's a long story," Ford said softly. "And I'll tell you all about it when the time is right. But for now, I need to know what you can do. I can imagine how confusing all of this is, but I can help you control your powers and teach you how to use them properly. That is if you'll let me."