#zigreth answers

Now that Ford was back in Gravity Falls and everything had finally settled, he went out to explore the forests again. Stan had just chuckled and told him to better stay in one piece and be back for dinner.

Ford made sure to walk a straight line pointing away from his house. If he followed it for long enough he would eventually reach a part of the forest he had never before seen. So he did.

It took him about five and a half hours to reach that point. Out here, the forest looked... greener. He wanted to say lighter but that's not true. The sun shone the same way it did anywhere else. But the colors of the trees and plants looked more vibrant somehow.

As he walked he made sure to note down anything he hadn't seen before. While Ford was examining a plant he didn’t know a butterfly landed on it. Ford smiled and pulled out his journal, trying to get a quick sketch of the little guy in his notes.

The insect had other plans though and soon flew onward. Ford followed it with his eyes for a second before his legs decided to follow the creature until it settled again. It had such a pretty pattern on its wings, he really wanted to draw it.

His plans worked out and he got a nice drawing of the butterfly. As Ford stood and looked around for the path he'd been on, he noticed that he had strayed off of it quite a bit. Making the best of a bad situation he decided to just explore this part of the forest instead.

After a few minutes roaming aimlessly, he came upon a clearing. In the middle of that stood a little wooden house, tinier than his own, in parts overgrown with moss and vines. It wasn't abandoned though. There was smoke coming out of the chimney.

His curious nature getting the better of him, Ford decided to approach the house. As he got closer he saw some creatures scurrying around the house and away from him. They seemed very fluffy, it must have been beard cubs, he decided.

Ford carefully walked around the house, trying to see where the animals had run off to. Behind the house he found a little garden where someone had planted vegetables, as well as a little pond that buzzed with dragonflies, bees and all kinds of other insects. The sounds were rounded off with some croaks from frogs he couldn't quite locate.

It was truly idyllic. But it was also a long way from all other people. As far as Ford could tell, he was their closest neighbour. He turned back towards the house and walked back around to its front door.

Ford knocked on the door. It took a few seconds and then the door swung open, revealing a way younger-looking person than he had anticipated. For some reason Ford had assumed that he’d be greeted by some sort of witch that was way older than he was.

The person who had opened the door looked truly surprised. They hadn't been expecting any visitors today.

After a few moments of stunned silence on both ends, you realized who this man in front of you must be. "Oh, goodness! You must be the new neighbour! I am so sorry I never got around to welcoming you properly."

This caused Ford even more confusion. You smiled at him and tapped your forehead as you realized why he was irritated. "Oh, I see. Sorry about that. Why don't you come inside for a cup of tea and I will explain what's going on here?"

Ford just nodded and let you lead him inside. As Ford looked around you introduced yourself and he did the same. He found the house even more charming on the inside. It was decorated with lots of plants and a surprising amount of candles. The rooms were way better lit than he would have assumed from the outside.

It was comfortably warm and a faint smell of lavender hung in the air. While Ford was sitting down at your kitchen table you prepared some tea for the both of you. "So tell me, Ford, how did you find me?"

"I was out in the woods, exploring a part of it that I had never been to. I lost the path I was on because I was... sort of... blindly following a butterfly." He rubbed his neck sheepishly. While he spoke, he looked around your house, really taking in all the little decorations you had scattered around every surface.

You chuckled at his words. "Yes. It happens to the best of us." A few moments later you had finished the tea and brought it over to the table, sitting down in front of Ford, who looked at you with pure curiosity sparkling in his eyes. It was adorable.

"So who are you? Why did you call me your new neighbour? And what did you mean by welcome me? Aren't you a little young to remember me moving to Gravity Falls?" You smiled at him and hummed. His questions were more than justified.

"Yes. Well, actually I assume I am around the same age as you are. I inherited this little cottage from my mother about two years before the reclusive scientist moved into the forest."

You watched Ford's eyes widen as he came to understand that you were telling the truth. "I really wanted to visit you and welcome you into the neighbourhood, but I didn’t get around to it for a couple of weeks. Then, the gnomes started telling me about some mean man capturing creatures."

Ford furrowed his brows, a hint of shame bubbling up inside him. "As you can imagine, I wasn't particularly thrilled to hear that. I went out to confront you about it, but the creatures stopped me, they were worried you'd capture me as well. So instead, I just helped them from here however I could."

Ford shook his head. "I never meant to harm any of them! I only came here to study." You sighed and nodded. "Yes. I know and I believe you." He looked back up at you with an apologetic look. Then it changed into an inquisitive one. "Why would I have tried to capture you?"

You chuckled at the question. "Because I am a witch, silly!" Ford's mouth fell open. How could he not have realized this? "Did you really think I would still look this good if there wasn't at least little magic involved?" You winked at him and he blushed slightly.

You took a sip of your tea as Ford tried to sort his thoughts. Before he could get a new one out a frog jumped into his cup splashing him with liquid. You huffed. "George! You know you're not supposed to do that!" The frog just croaked at you and you countered with a stern look.

You stood and took the cup with the frog back to the sink. "I'm so sorry about him. I'll get you a new cup." Ford thanked you as he tried to wipe at the wet stains on his turtleneck. When you turned back around to him and set the new cup down, you frowned at his clothes.

"So sorry about that as well. Here, let me help you." You chanted a short spell and soon enough Ford's clothes were dry again, no stains left behind. You smiled. "Perfect. Like it never happened."

Ford was speechless as he sat back down. Nearly speechless. "So does he do that often?" You chuckled a little embarrassed. "More often than he should, definitely." Ford joined you with a chuckle.

"So does... George... live with you in this house?" You hummed in thought as you looked over at the frog relaxing in the now almost empty cup. "I always say that my doors are open to any woodland creature that wants to be here. There's only two that really take me up on that though. George over there," you pointed at the frog, "and Theresa."

Before Ford could ask who that was you moved your arm in an apparently very specific way. Ford watched as a little rose-colored snake slithered out of your sleeve and onto the table. He smiled. It was an adorable snake.

You two continued chatting for a while and when you had finished the pot of tea that stood between you, Ford remembered that Stanley had told him to be back by dinner. "You could take my bicycle. As long as you promise to bring it back."

With a smirk from you Ford blushed again. Yes, you'd be happy to see him again.

Ford took your offer and promised to bring it back tomorrow. You were in no rush to get anywhere but you didn’t tell him that. You just smiled at him as he left your house.

It had been a whole week since Ford found you crying on the roof. After the moment had ended, both of you had climbed back downstairs and you went home for the day. You two haven't talked about the whole situation since.

But, at the very least, your mood had lifted a little. You still brought Ford a plate of food every day and you were meeting his eyes again. Seeing him smile so genuinely at you every day made all the stress you felt pale a little. Like maybe those things weren't as bad as they seemed right now.

It took Ford a week to build up his courage to bring it up again, going against the part of his brain that told him to not make you sad again by bringing it up. He needed some time convincing himself that talking about it and maybe finding a solution for one of the things would be better than not doing anything.

He came up into the gift shop and found you sitting at the register as per usual. The tourists that Stan was still guiding around the house wouldn't be here for another couple of minutes. Ford walked up to your counter and watched you raise your head from your phone to him.

He decided to try a more casual approach. "What are you looking at on there?" He pointed to your phone. Without changing your expression in the slightest you sighed lightly. Most people would have assumed you were annoyed at the question. Ford knew that wasn't the case. But he didn’t quite understand that you were sighing in exhaustion either.

"Job offers." Was your simple reply. It didn’t need any more words to give Ford the same tight feeling in his chest he had the first time you told him that you were looking for a new job. "Why do you want to leave the shack?" He tried to keep the panic out of his voice.

Ford knew that there was no real way for him to build a proper relationship with you if you spent most of your days somewhere else. This knowledge made him sick to his stomach. He couldn't bear to not have you around anymore. You, your food and soft mystery, that came with trying to decipher your emotions, were the highlights of his days.

You let out another audible breath. "My rent is too high." You shook your head as you placed your phone on the counter with the screen pointing downwards. "It's either a new job or a new flat." You honestly felt like crying again.

It just felt so futile. You couldn't lose your place, there weren't any other available. If there were, you'd just move. So you had to settle for a new job, except nobody was hiring either or just wouldn't pay enough from the start. Maybe if you worked two jobs?

Ford couldn't see it on your face but it was like he could feel the hopelessness radiating off of you. It made him feel tiny and helpless. "I... Is there something I can do to help?"

Ford watched intently as you tightened your lips a little in thought. "I don't think so." You admitted, shaking your head a little. Ford just nodded, unsure what else to offer.

Your conversation was cut short when Stan guided the tourists right into the gift shop, causing you to spring into work mode, your phone quickly disappearing behind the counter.

Ford watched the people scatter around the room for a moment before he walked over to his brother and pulled him to the side, out of earshot of everyone in the room.

"Give her a raise." Ford told him, his expression serious. Stan laughed in his face. "Listen, Sixer. I know you have a crush on her as well, but I can't just go around giving people raises left and right." Stan patted him on the shoulder and was about to walk away when Ford pulled him back.

"It's either that or I'll offer her to move in with us." Stan chuckled, now a little nervously. "Woah, buddy, aren't you moving a little too fast here?" Ford grunted in frustration. "I know!" He cringed at his own sudden loudness, quickly falling into a quieter tone again. Not that anybody had noticed.

"I just..." Another frustrated groan. "If we don't do something she'll leave the shack." Stan furrowed his brows in confusion. "What? Where did you hear that?" Ford looked at his brother with bewilderment. "Where do you think?" Stan looked over at you for a moment, watching you ring up a customer with that expressionless look on your face.

He looked back at his brother, a little smirk playing at the corner of his lips. "Tell her to move in with us. With you. Maybe that way I'll learn if she's really such a good cook." Ford looked away in annoyance, trying to hide the very obvious blush that was spreading on his cheeks. Stan just laughed again.

After all the tourists had left Ford was on his way back down to the lab. He could hardly go down there while everyone could see the secret entrance.

However, Stan had other plans. He grabbed his brother by the arm and pulled him over to your counter while whispering in his ear. "I know you, Sixer. If you don't ask her now, you never will."

Standing in front of the counter Stan gave you a big grin as he patted Ford on the back encouragingly. Ford on the other hand felt like throwing up. He couldn't ask you this! It was way too forward and completely out of the blue. He swallowed thickly.

As the silence between you three grew longer Stan looked at his brother and gave him another clap to the back. There was no going back now. Ford took a deep breath and then locked eyes with you.

"It's a new flat." You just looked at him as you tried to decode the cryptic message Ford was trying to convey. Even Stan furrowed his brows at Ford. "I mean. Move in with me. Us! with us." Ford's ears turned a soft shade of red in embarrassment at his mistake.

Your eyes widened in shock and your heart skipped a beat as you let his words sink in. Ford, the guy you have been crushing on for the past few months, was asking you to move in with him to help you out. This had to be a dream, right?

Meanwhile, sheer panic took hold of Ford's soul as he watched your wide eyes, that gave no real hint of your emotions other than shock. He was sure you'd be appalled. Surely, Stan had just misinterpreted your care as a crush and you now thought he was a massive creep for offering this.

Ford couldn't do anything but stare and let his thoughts spiral while you were trying to figure out if you were even awake right now. Stan looked between you two and realized with annoyance just how perfect you two were for each other.

"Okay." Your voice was quiet, careful. Your eyes had gone back to their normal size but you were still unsure if he had truly meant it. Now Ford's eyes widened and he could feel his lips curl upwards already. "Really?" You just nodded.

Now Ford couldn't help the smile from spreading on his face. This was a huge development! Not only would you not leave your job, you wouldn’t even have to go home - you'd already be home. With Ford!

"Perfect!" He was so excited that his voice came out a little louder than expected. Barely more collected, he continued. "I'll go get a room ready for you." And with that he was off into the house, looking for a room he could move a spare bed into.

Stan stayed behind, watching his brother leave and then turning to you, smirking. "Nice trick ya pulled there. I bet the whole thing was just a stunt to get him to be closer to you, huh?" You furrowed your brows ever so slightly at him.

That, combined with the wide eyes from before made Stan doubt himself. He had never seen so many expressions from you, and on the same day no less!

You let out a sharp breath, looking away from Stan and back to the hallway Ford had disappeared into. "I wish." Stan's expression softened again. "Oh."

By the time your shift had ended and you were about to prepare the meal for Ford, the realization had really hit you. You agreed to move in with Ford. How were you supposed to keep a cool head about that?

You walked into the kitchen where you found Ford drinking a glass of water. His eyes lit up as he saw you enter. You noticed that he had a bit of dust on his cheeks and a little cobweb in his hair.

As you followed his hand with your eyes while he put the glass down, you also noticed that he had rolled the sleeves of his turtleneck up to his elbows, revealing a few scars, grey hairs and strong looking forearms.

It took every bit of strength from you to not immediately drift off into a daydream featuring his strong arms lifting you like you were made of feathers... You took a conscious breath, trying to regain your composure.

Ford hadn't noticed any change in your expressions. He was, however, very excited to show you the room he had prepared for you. It was the room Stan had mostly used for storage of spare parts and also the wax figures before they turned evil.

He proudly told you how he spent the whole day tidying and cleaning the room up before moving a spare mattress in there. "We'll get a real bed soon of course. And other furniture. Whatever you need, really."

Ford looked at you with a big smile on his face and you wanted to cry tears of joy. Instead you looked around the room with wide eyes, taking the actual reality of it in. He was so kind and generous.

Ford felt a pang of worry when you didn’t say anything for a moment. Was this not enough? He could do more, he'd just need a little more time and- "It's perfect."

You turned to face him again. "Thank you." Ford could see the faintest curl of your lips upwards and his breath hitched as his heart skipped a beat. You were smiling at him! That had never happened before.

Ford could feel a warmth spread through his entire body as well as a tingly feeling in his stomach. Were those the metaphorical butterflies he had heard so much about? He made a mental note to research the topic later.

On the same day, you wrote to your landlord that you'd move out by the end of the month. That left you with two weeks to get all your things to the shack. Stan was kind enough to offer to drive you and your belongings a couple of times.

That way, by the end of the two weeks, you handed the keys to your old flat over to the landlord and felt a relief flood through you that you hadn't felt since you had moved to Gravity Falls in the first place.

On the same night, the kids had planned a welcoming party for you, to celebrate your moving in with their grunkles. And them, at least for the summer.

You put your last bag on a chair by the wardrobe Ford had built for you, before Mabel knocked on your door. "Are you ready? Come on, everyone is waiting for you!" A fondness, as well as a sense of belonging filled your heart as you followed her to the living room.

In there, the twins and the kids had prepared a feast of candies and sodas as well as planned the whole night with board games and movies. It was going to be a long night and you were more than happy to be a part of it.

Throughout the night, while handing each other something, you had managed to brush Ford's hand once or twice. Each time causing him to blush a soft red. It was absolutely adorable. The second time Mabel noticed it as well and immediately began gushing about it to Stan and Dipper.

Stan just whispered back: "Yeah. Why do you think she's moving in with us?" At that Mabel's eyes lit up. She had a new mission: Make sure her grunkle and you ended up together.

She turned to Dipper with excitement. "Oh my god. Would that make her our Grauntie?" Dipper laughed at that. "Mabel! Gross!" But even he couldn't deny that the two of you made a cute couple.

As the night dragged on the kids started to get tired and all of you banded together to clean up before Stan brought the kids upstairs.

Ford escorted you to your new room. It even had its own little bathroom now. Ford had put so much effort into making the place nice for you and all you wanted to do was fall around his neck and kiss him about it. But you didn’t dare.

Ford stood in the door frame as you looked around the room once more, taking a deep breath. He rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly.

"I really hope we didn’t scare you off tonight. I know the kids and Stan... and honestly me as well - I know we can be a bit overwhelming at times."

You turned around to look at him. He wasn't serious, right? But he looked honestly apologetic as his eyes landed on you. Then you felt it.

A laugh bubbled up inside you. You put one hand on your belly and the other went up to cover your mouth. The laugh was loud and joyous, letting out all the stress you had held onto for the last couple of months.

Ford looked at you like he had found the most precious diamond in the universe. He didn’t dare breathe in your direction for fear of ruining this magical moment. If it were possible he'd want to live in this moment forever.

After you had settled down again you looked at Ford. He already mourned the absence of the sound. A big genuine smile was left on your face as the remnant of your laughter though and Ford made sure to commit it to his memory.

"I have never felt so much like I belonged as I did today. And it's all thanks to you, Ford." Ford nodded and after a moment, cleared his throat, trying to find his voice. "Anything for you."

A moment of comfortable silence passed between you two as neither wanted the moment to end just yet. Eventually, when Ford heard his brother come back downstairs again, he spoke up.

You had moved to Gravity Falls early this year and needed a job quickly to get your footing. Something that would get you enough money to pass the time until you found the job you wanted. The Mystery Shack, owned and run by Stanford Pines, or Stanley Pines as you later learned, was the perfect place for you.

You were a good worker in Stan's eyes: always on time, never stole anything and did the work he asked of you. However, he was a little puzzled by you. You weren't the most outgoing person. The only times you talked to him instead of the other way around was when you needed something from him. Be it a new task, some clarification on a task or something else entirely.

He also noted that he never even saw you smile. Stan tried to tell you that it would look better for the customers when you greeted them with a smile at the cash register, but he never actually saw you do it.

However, being the massive flirt he is, he tried to get a rise out of you one way or another whenever he had the chance to. You always kept your cool. Unfazed by the old man and his weird but charming persona.

At least that's the way it looked to him. To you, he was slowly becoming your friend. You liked working for him and just generally having him around. So much so that you subconsciously started to put off looking for a different job.

Summer rolled around and you found yourself in the midst of the Pines' family drama. You didn’t mind that much, they had quickly all become very dear to you.

Then, Stan finished the portal and got his brother back. You didn’t know about the portal, of course. So, when you came to work the next day and saw a man who looked like Stan eyeing the souvenirs in the gift shop suspiciously, you didn’t even bat an eye.

At least not until Stan entered the room as well and you had to do a double take. "Ah, perfect. I see you've already met my brother, Ford." Stan's hand came down on his brother's shoulder who looked at him and then to you. "Oh, hello. I didn’t even hear you enter."

Stan laughed loudly. "Yeah, she does that. Not very talkative. But she gets things done and that's what counts." Ford raised an eyebrow at you, scanning you from head to toe. You didn’t flinch under his gaze, quite enjoying his eyes on you.

As much as Stan was charming and good looking when he wanted to be, his brother was something else. They shared the same good looks, of course, but Ford carried himself better. It made him appear taller, more put together. You liked him.

Stan and Ford quickly came to an agreement that Ford would stay in the basement and keep all his science and research down there, for the kids' sake. What that really meant was that Ford barely saw daylight at all. It quickly started to worry you.

The gift shop was slow one day, so you asked Stan about his brother. "Has Ford eaten today?" Your question was short, but Stan was surprised you asked it at all. "Not that I know of. Why, you wanna bring him something?"

"Yes." Stan wished he could read your expression. Were you just concerned about Ford's health? Did you see something in him? Either way, there had to be a reason and he decided to keep a closer eye on you.

After you got an 'okay' from Stan you made your way to the kitchen and prepared a simple meal. You took the plate back into the gift shop where Stan opened the Vending Machine Door for you.

You knocked on the door to his lab and the door swung open on its own. Quietly, you stepped inside, looking around the new room until you reached Ford, sitting at his desk with his back turned to you.

He was too focused on his work to notice you. Without a word you moved next to his desk, moved a few pieces of paper out of the way and placed the plate onto the wooden table.

Moving his papers was what made Ford look up at you with a raised eyebrow. He eyed the plate you set on the desk. "Did Stan put you up to this?" You found his eyes. Gorgeous big brown eyes. "No." You turned around and left again, leaving Ford looking at the door and the plate in bewilderment.

This became a daily routine. At the end of your shift you would prepare a simple warm meal for Ford and bring it to him without saying much or anything at all. You understood how important his work was and you didn’t want to bother him. Just wanted to make sure that he stays healthy.

A few days into this, Ford came up the stairs suddenly and started looking around the shop frantically. "Whoa, whoa, Sixer slow down. What's gotten into you?" Stan held his hands up as he stepped closer to his brother, calming him down.

"I lost... a creature got loose. It must be in the shack somewhere. It-It looks like a little orange fairy." Stan calmed him down further and asked if the fairy would be dangerous. Ford explained that it was entirely harmless, which seemed to ease Stan's worries. He was always so worried for Dipper and Mabel, it was very sweet.

After they both looked around the shack for a while and came up empty-handed Ford went back down with a sigh and Stan went back to his office. You sat at the register, reading a book. Stan didn’t mind you reading a book at work as long as you did all the things you needed to do.

After a few minutes something caught your eye. At first you thought it was a bee, zooming around the shop but as you looked more closely, you realized that it looked like a little person. This was the perfect opportunity to help Ford with his research.

You grabbed an empty jar from behind your counter and quietly made your way over to the shirt that the fairy was looking at. In one swift movement you put the jar over the fairy, using the shirt as a lid until you quickly put the actual lid on the jar.

You were careful not to shake the jar too much as you made your way to Ford's lab. Down there, Ford was scribbling away in his journal again. Without a word you carefully placed the jar on his desk. He looked up at you with wide eyes. "Thank you!"

You just nodded and headed back upstairs. God, the look on his face was everything to you. You wanted to see his face light up like that again. The rest of your shift you spent daydreaming about Ford and his big brown eyes. Surely, you would see them in your dreams that night.

When your shift was coming to an end you once again prepared something for Ford to eat and brought it to him. "You know you don't actually have to bring me food every day, right?" You looked at Ford. "I know." He furrowed his brows. "Then why do you do it?"

You thought for a moment, not quite brave enough to tell him just how much you care for him. "It makes me happy." Ford's expression softened and he chuckled lightly. "Well, you could have fooled me. I was worried you saw this as just another chore."

"I don't." Ford smiled at you and you felt like you were about to melt on the spot. "Well, in that case, thank you very much for looking out for me." You nodded and left the lab again.

Ford looked at the door for a moment after you were gone. He could not read you at all. It drove him a little wild. He seriously thought you hated having to come down here every day until mere moments ago.

He continued his work for a little while after he had eaten your food. Then, as he brought the empty plate back upstairs and found Stan in the kitchen as well, he decided to talk to him about you. But Stan was quicker.

"So. How's the food?" He smirked at his brother as he watched Ford clean the plate. "It's really good. But you know that already." Stan raised an eyebrow. "What's that supposed to mean?"

Ford looked at Stan as he clarified. "I mean, you know her food is great because you ate it, too?" Stan scoffed. "No, smart guy. She only makes it for you." This took Ford by surprise.

To think that you only brought him food? Made it only for him? Why would you do that? Ford looked at his brother for help in organizing his thoughts. Stan chuckled at Ford's confused expression.

"Well, if I didn’t know any better, I'd think she has a crush on you." Ford stilled. Could that be? "But you know better?" Stan laughed, shaking his head. "Can't say I do."

Ford went back to his lab, trying to clear his head with science. But now, all he could think about was you.

Life continued the same as before. You came to work, did it quietly and efficiently. At the end of your shift you prepare some food for Ford and bring it to him. And, over the course of a few days, you watched his expressions change.

He had started out barely acknowledging you and the plate at all but now, every day he smiled a little smile at you. It made your heart flutter while also feeling appreciated for the work you were doing.

Today was another slow day in the shop when Dipper and Mabel stormed into the room. Dipper was holding something and looked to be running away from his sister. It was her glue gun.

Dipper had backed himself into a wall as Mabel tried to reach for the object. "Mabel! Grunkle Ford's Journal doesn't need to look cute! It's serious scientific research!" Mabel stood on her tiptoes, reaching upwards. "Science can be cute, too!"

A gentle smile graced your lips as you watched them. You put your book down and walked over to them. Being taller than both of them, you plucked the glue gun from Dipper's hand, turning both of their attentions to you.

"Mabel, I know you mean well. But maybe ask your Grunkle if he wants a cute journal?" She looked at you with big puppy eyes. "But... what if he says no?" You smiled at her. "Then I will let you turn my journal cute."

Mabel's eyes widened and a big grin appeared on her face before she hugged you. She quickly made her way down to the lab. Dipper looked at you suspiciously. "You write a journal?" You hummed. "Not a big scientific one. But I like to keep track of my life."

Dipper nodded in approval and then walked back to whichever part of the house he came from. You walked back to the register and placed the glue gun in one of the shelves behind it.

You didn’t know it at the time, but Stan watched every bit of this interaction between you and the kids through the security camera. He couldn't believe his eyes when he saw you smile at them. And you talked so much!

He took the tape and made his way to Ford as inconspicuous as possible to show his brother this new side of you. When Ford saw it, it warmed his heart. The men only knew you as this cold exterior, but to see some of the warmth underneath it? He wanted to see more of it.

Ford asked Stan for some more of the security camera footage of you. Stan raised a brow at him but obliged anyway. Ford had to look through the videos, surely, this hadn't been the first time you had some reaction to something?

On a tape from two days ago he found something. You were reading a book like you so often do when not much needs to be done. And there he saw it, the slighted crease between your eyebrows and the tiniest tilt of your lips downward. You were frowning at your book!

Ford felt like a child at Christmas, giddy from seeing you express any emotion at all. He now had a new mission. A new experiment if you want. He wanted to hear your laugh.

A few more days passed and somehow, Ford felt like you were even more distant. And he hadn't even started on his new mission. But you weren't even meeting his eyes anymore when you brought him food. Said even less.

He made his way upstairs, feeling it necessary to ask you about it. But when he got to the gift shop, you weren't there. Ford looked around the house but didn’t find you. Eventually, he decided to climb to the roof. An elevated position would surely help locate you if you were outside.

But he didn’t need to look anymore, because you were sitting on the little balcony, quietly sobbing. He felt his heart shatter.

Carefully, he moved to sit next to you and as he did you silently jumped, not having noticed him join you. "Hey, it's alright. I didn’t mean to startle you." You sniffled, wiping the tears from your face and trying to keep it together.

"What happened ...if I may ask?" He was careful, he didn’t want to scare you off with being too forward. But he also wanted nothing more than to hug you tightly and tell you that everything would be alright.

"Too much..." You shook your head, sorting your thoughts before continuing. "Job search is not going well." Ford felt something in his chest tighten. You wanted to leave the shack? "My landlord is about to throw me out. And my family wants me to-" Your voice broke off, unable to finish.

Ford looked at you. "Would a hug help?" You looked at him as well, meeting his eyes, your tear stained cheeks reflecting the sunlight in a bittersweet picture. You nodded.

Ford's expression softened as he moved closer to you, wrapping his arms around your shoulders. After a moment you let your arms snake around his waist, pulling him closer, as you took the warmth radiating off of him in. It helped to ground you, remind you that not everything is terrible.

Letting his own affection for you overwhelm him, Ford pressed a gentle kiss into your hair. The moment lingered for a little bit. Then, you took a deep breath, steadying yourself. You pulled away from him, feeling better. "Thank you."

Ford nodded, offering a smile. You two sat next to each other for a while, just enjoying the view and each other.

Even though he hadn't reached his goal of hearing you laugh yet, Ford felt like he was slowly getting through to you. Slowly understanding you. He felt pride in being the one to help you feel better today.

Bill Cipher. You had heard of him back in the day. The disabled triangle. Blind they called him. Little did they know how wrong they were. Little did they know of all the things out there, just outside their vision.

Now, to be fair, way back when you had first heard of him, you hadn't actually met him. Had someone told you back then that he could see the stars as well then you would have made an effort to find him.

Nobody did, though. And you hadn't exactly been willing to give up your life the way you had built it, just on the irrational hope that you could find someone who was like you. Someone who could see the stars.

Unlike Bill, you were lucky enough to be blessed with many eyes. Too many, perhaps, because some of them hadn't settled on your sides the way they were supposed to. Instead, they were strewn all over your body.

Which meant that you could see your home world, two dimensional, the way you were supposed to. But any time you opened the rest of your eyes, you could see beyond that. You could see into the third dimension.

You quickly learnt that this was not a normal gift to have and stopped talking about it early on. Your parents had soon forgotten that you ever talked about it, thinking it was just your childhood imagination. It was for the better.

Then, it was worse. Out of nowhere your whole world shifted, lifted from the ground only you could perceive. You watched your friends and family quite literally fall apart, physically incapable of existing in three dimensions.

Unmoving, you waited for the same to happen to you. It never did.

It took you a very long time to find your bearings. You had to learn how to stand, walk and then taught yourself how to float, finding it easier than walking. You tried to find someone, anyone still alive but you found no one.

After what would have been at least a millenia by this world's calculations, you gave up. You accepted your fate of being the only survivor of this world and sought out a new one.

Somehow, after many centuries of trying to, you managed to jump into a different dimension. There, you found three dimensional creatures of all shapes and sizes. You made it your new home.

It took the creatures of this world many millennia to evolve into humans. Fascinating creatures. They were able to have complex thoughts and eventually, they were able to communicate with you. You helped them build their civilization and they, in turn, worshiped you.

They believed you were a being sent by the gods to guide them. Angel, they called you. You gladly took the new name, anything to rid you of the memories of your old world.

You were able to perform what the humans called 'magic'. You would have been able to explain your abilities to them, but they were not yet ready to understand. It was unclear if they ever would be able to understand.

There were times when you missed your home and the people but you were always able to busy yourself with new things before the memories got too heavy.

Meanwhile, Bill had conquered the nightmare realm and was looking for a new dimension. Stanford Pines had just summoned him for the first time and they quickly became partners. Or that's what Bill wanted him to think.

One day, Bill wanted to prove to Ford that he was clairvoyant and could see the past, present and future of this world. As he did that, he had... not a vision, but something else. It felt like an instinct, long forgotten and buried deep beneath himself. It called out to him, telling him that there was something in this world. A remnant of his own.

Bill made Ford look for it around the entire globe. When Ford came back empty-handed he almost blew his cover. Bill knew there was something here, he could feel it. But there was nothing he could do.

Eventually, Ford realized something. He showed Bill various religious texts and explained how his own resembled the description most associated with a demon. Oblivious fool that Ford was, he didn’t think about the implications of his own findings.

Further, he explained, he found descriptions that were essentially the same, but claimed the being to be an angel. A being with a diamont body that was covered in eyes.

Bill couldn't explain how, but he knew that this was what... who he was looking for. Another Euclidean.

He made plans to look for them himself as soon as Ford had finished the portal and he could enter this world. There was nothing he longed for more than to find someone from home. Anything, to make him feel like he hadn't destroyed his entire reality.

When Ford inevitably snapped and was sucked into the nightmare realm he was devastated. Bill couldn't believe that he had failed so miserably yet again.

Another thirty years went by before he got another shot at entering this world. Your world. His plans to conquer it were now only a facade he kept up to hide his true goal of finding you.

Eventually, he managed to step over, to cause weirdmageddon. He wanted to use it as a cover to look for you, but he was again struck down as he realized that the entire town of Gravity Falls was covered in a large bubble keeping all the weirdness inside.

Bill cursed to himself and wreaked havoc over the town, letting out all his anger and frustration on its citizens.

It took about two days to reach you, the sound of their prayers. These days, not all humans believed in your existence. But those who did would pray to you regularly. Some of those humans resided in Gravity Falls.

At first, you were hesitant to go. There was always trouble somewhere in this world and you were already busy. But then, one of the prayers begged you to safe them from a demon in the shape of a triangle.

Humans and all the other creatures of this world were round and awfully misshapen, none held the form of a geometric shape. You made your way to this town at once.

When you arrived and floated in front of the barrier you were intrigued. You had been to every part of this planet but nothing like this had ever shown itself to you. You floated through the barrier with ease.

Even though you didn’t know it yet, and maybe would never find out, the barrier was focused on weirdness. You, on the other hand, were classified as divine by the humans. Therefore, it had no effect on you.

In the midst of this town, the center of the barrier, you saw a gigantic pyramid floating above the ground. It was a good first place to look for a triangle.

You floated inside, careful not to be seen, keeping eyes out in every conceivable direction. In the center of a big hall, you found a massive throne made of humans who were turned to stone. Apart from them, the room was empty.

You made quick work of the throne, turning all humans back to their true form and guiding them to a place to hide, urging them to be quiet. They trusted you, even the ones who didn’t believe in you anymore. The trust had been passed down in generations and was now a part of the humans' very DNA.

You floated into the middle of the room where the throne once stood and waited. It didn’t take long for Bill to be back.

His body was still very big, to fit in with his friends. They had just collected Ford. Bill held the human coated in gold in his hand. When he entered the room and saw that the throne was missing, he was about to explode into a fit of rage.

But he didn’t when he saw you. Floating there in that same spot. A rhombus littered with eyes. Your body purple, your limbs white with a halo floating above you. You looked like the exact opposite of him and he fell in love instantly.

Bill was so mesmerized by you that he dropped Ford to the floor and shrunk his own body down to your size as he floated toward you. His maniacs knew better than to question his actions.

He was speechless. Bill had spent millenia looking for other survivors and now he had found one. Floating in his own house. More or less. You also recognized him for what he was but right now you felt a stronger connection to the humans than to him.

You narrowed all of your eyes at him. Your voice was loud and booming. "You dare to hurt these creatures?!" Bill scoffed. "Why do you care?" You floated closer to him, conjuring thunder to boom inside the pyramid. "This world is my home. And these creatures are under my protection!" You conjured a lightning bolt to strike between you two.

Bill stumbled back, his eye wide in shock. He couldn't get on your bad side! The last thing he wanted right now was for the other last Euclidean to despise him personally.

"No! No, no, no. That was never my intention. I just needed a way to get your attention. Here, I'll prove it." Bill floated the golden Ford over to himself, making him stand upright between you two. He turned Ford back to his normal form.

Ford, in turn, immediately turned to Bill, angry. "I'll never help you, Bill. There is nothing you could offer me to give up the entire planet for you to destroy!" Bill's eye widened even more as he scrambled to cover Ford's mouth with his hand. "He didn’t mean that."

You were about to go for another round of intimidation when it hit you. Your frown faded and your posture relaxed. "Did he just call you Bill? You're not Bill Cipher, are you? The blind guy?"

Bill's hand on Ford's face lost its grip and he quickly pushed it away as Bill floated a little closer to you again. "The very same! Although, I haven't been called blind in a while." You suddenly felt sheepish. "I didn’t mean to insult you."

Ford and the henchmaniacs looked around each other quizzically, none of them able to grasp what this meeting meant to either of you. They were also a little weirded out by the obvious flirting that was starting between you both.

"You couldn't possibly. But do tell, who are you exactly? Have we met before?" Bill floated around you, looking at you from every angle. It was cute. You followed his movements with your eyes.

"No, we've never met. The people of this world call me Angel." Bill chuckled. "I can get behind that, you certainly look like an angel to me."

Ford cleared his throat, getting the attention and a glare from Bill. "Don't you two want to have some... privacy?" He tried to word the question as ambiguous as possible. You spoke before Bill had a chance to.

"Yes. You all are free to leave. Bill and I have some catching up to do." He wanted to protest but when he turned back to look at you, all the anger faded from his mind. You shifted your focus back to Bill. "Come with me."

You floated out of the pyramid, Bill following close behind. Both of you leaving the humans and the henchmaniacs behind. Surprisingly, nothing bad happened. During the time you and Bill were away, the humans found a way to get back down to the ground and the others found something else to do.

You both left the pyramid and you led Bill to the cliff, sitting on the edge of it together, looking up at the stars. "I will never get tired of the stars. Did you see them as well? Back home?" You turned some of your eyes to Bill as you voiced the question. The rest remained locked on the night sky.

"Yes." Bill took a deep breath before he continued. "They called me blind because I could only look up at the stars. The only time I saw the faces of my parents was when-" His voice broke off. He didn’t need to finish the sentence.

"That's horrible. I'm so sorry." You reached your hand out to comfort him. Bill flinched when your hand made contact with his side but he quickly relaxed into the touch. "Back then I had heard stories of a blind triangle. If I had known that you were like me..."

Your voice trailed off as Bill turned to look at you. "I'm sorry, too. For not finding you before today." You hummed. "I suppose it was meant to be this way. At least now we finally get to look at the stars together."

Bill turned back towards the sky. "Yeah..." Without thinking about it, he leaned towards you until his side was resting on yours. A sudden panic of overstepping filled his systems and just as he was about to pull away again, you wrapped your arm around him, keeping him at your side.

He relaxed into your touch. Finally, he had found someone who felt a little bit like home...

p.s.: little doodle of what I imagine reader to look like in this

You stood at the cash register in the gift shop, ringing up the last customer for the day. As soon as they walked through the door you felt Stan's hands on your hip as he pressed himself against you from behind, resting his head on your shoulder.

"How did I ever land a hot babe like you?" He mumbled next to your ear. His eyes were closed as he enjoyed holding you like this. You chuckled lightly. "What are you talking about?" Stan hummed, letting his hands move up to your sides, tracing them up and down. You sighed, leaning back into him and enjoying his hands on you.

"Well, I watched you work and it took all my strength not to jump you on the spot. The way you move your body when you stock the shelves? The bit of belly poking out from under your shirt when you reach up? Oh, or your butt when you picked something up from the ground?"

He hummed and moved one of his hands from your side to his mouth to give your butt a chef's kiss. You laughed at him and then suddenly turned red as his words sank in. "Wait, you can see my belly when I reach for the higher shelves?" You subconsciously moved your arms to cover your stomach, insecurity over your weight gnawing at you.

Stan moved his hands on top of yours, intertwining your fingers. "Are you kidding me? That was the highlight of my day! There is nothing hotter than you showing off what's mine." He nuzzled his face into your neck and earned a chuckle from you, lifting some of your worries off your shoulders.

"Sorry, Stan. I guess I'm just not used to being seen as hot." You admitted to him. He knew how insecure you were about your weight and he absolutely loved telling you how much he loved your body. "I'll gladly help convince you otherwise." He purred into your ear, making you laugh again.

Stan let one of his hands wander from your stomach to under your shirt, the sudden contact making you gasp. "Stan!" You could basically hear the smirk in his voice. "What? I thought you wanted me to convince you."

He let his hand wander over your skin, tracing over every inch of skin, roll or fold he could reach without exposing you too much. You hummed, content and enjoying every second of his undivided attention.

Stan grabbed onto your stomach roll, squeezing it a little. You gasped again, frowning now. "Don't make fun of me." He let go of your belly. "I haven't said anything. And I would never." You shook your head, your past experiences getting the better of you. "Just don't."

Stan removed his hand from under your shirt and made you turn around and face him. You saw concern in his eyes as he saw your frown. "Why would you think I'd make fun of your belly? I love your belly!" He took your hands in his, unsure how to comfort you.

You looked to the side, unable to look him in the eyes. "Because-" You couldn't even say it, now realizing how illogical and unfair it was to think so badly of him. "I'm sorry. I don't know why I-" He cut you off with a hug.

"Just don't say stuff like that, doll. I love every bit of ya. And I mean it." You wrapped your arms around him as well. "Thank you, Stan." He held you like that for a few more moments before he let go.

Stan x Reader

words: 721

tags: sfw, fluff

Stan loves to spoil you. This is an undisputed fact that everyone in Gravity Falls knows. He loves to give you gifts any day of the week and he will always get you something you'll like.

The simple fact behind this is that Stan is a very good listener. Even though he pretends he isn't, he will remember every time you offhandedly mention wanting some new necklace, tea or anything really.

Usually, you don't even have to say anything. When you two are out window shopping then everyone in town knows that whatever catches your eye will be in your possession within a matter of days.

Stan even makes an effort to buy these things for you, after you had explained to him that you don't like the idea of him getting in trouble for you. However, if the item you were eyeing is small enough and he isn't paying enough attention to his own hands then he'll just swipe something without even realizing.

He'd find it in his pocket later, giving it to you anyway. Sometimes, if you feel bad about it because it's very expensive, you'll make him bring it back. But even then, it always makes your heart swell with affection.

Just knowing that wanting to give you things to make you happy is so ingrained in his subconscious that he doesn't even have to be thinking about stealing it for you. It does something to you. It's a real ego booster.

For your birthday though? Stan gives you gifts anytime he can, so just giving you one and calling it a day won't be even close to enough for him.

Expect this man to be all over you for the full 24 hours of your special day. He will not leave your side for more than a few seconds. This is your special day and he will spend every minute of it with you.

He'll start the day off gently waking you with breakfast in bed. Making sure you're well rested and fed for the big day. He'd shower you in kisses. And then maybe kiss you in the shower. Unless you don't want that, of course.

You know how I said that he pays attention to everything you say you want? This also applies to activities. He's not big on going on crazy dates usually. On a normal day he might take you out to dinner or to the movies.

But if you ever even so much as hinted at wanting to do something a little more outside of his comfort zone? He is going to try to fit as much of it into your birthday as he can.

You mentioned wanting to learn pottery with him? He'll get you both into a class for the day. Mentioned going Ice-Skating with him? Get your jacket, he's got your shoes and off you go.

Stan will do his darn best to make this the best and most memorable day of the year. And he will succeed.

Stan is also the type of man to play the long game. He would totally sign you both up for couples dancing class as a normal date night months in advance. It works as a normal date night.

But his actual goal would be to make sure that you both knew how to dance together to every song and genre imaginable.

That way, when he leads you into the shack on your birthday and the whole town is there for your surprise party, he could lead you onto the dance floor. He'd make a list of all your favorite songs to dance to and make sure Soos would play them.

He'd dance with you, making sure that you are the Star of the Night and that everyone in town knows it. Stan would show off the moves you both learned and when you'd get exhausted he'd hand you a drink before you were even done thinking about it.

At the end of the day you'd fall into your bed exhausted from the day but having loved every second of it. You'd have to pull him close and thank him. Really tell him how much his efforts mean to you.

This man has so much love to give and on your birthday he will give it all to you and only you.<3

a/n: Hi again! Just stopping by (because I feel like something needs to go here, aesthetically, but also) to say that the Stan version popped into my head fully formed almost instantly. Ford feels a little more tricky though, so I hope I do him justice ^^'

Ford x Reader

words: 484

tags: sfw, fluff

Ford is a little less grandiose about your birthday than his brother would be. He is in his own head a lot, tinkering away down in the basement. On most days he'll ask you to be down in the lab with him. Even if you don't like or understand the things he does, he just likes to spend time with you, even without doing anything together.

He would make sure you have your very own comfy chair in the lab where you can read, do arts and crafts or go about some other hobby of yours. As long as you're around him, he feels safe and grounded. That way he is less worried about losing himself in his work again.

But, anytime you can't be there with him, you'll still be on his mind. Have you ever heard of the phrase "loving someone to the point of invention"? Yeah, that's Ford.

If you are not with him in the lab then he will think about you. And if he remembers something you were struggling with then those are the moments where he starts inventing things.

Imagine him seeing you struggle with a hot-glue gun, it burning your fingers or the glue covering your creation in little lines like a spider's web. He will find a way to improve the thing. Imagine him seeing you try to read in the dim light he has down there. He'd start on an idea about self-illuminating books.

Now, not all of his ideas are good or even feasible. He keeps a locked drawer in his lab for all his rejected invention ideas and failed prototypes. If you ever found out about this he would turn such a deep shade of red and deny it all, finding a way to rationalize every one of those inventions.

For your birthday though? Ford would pick one thing, or maybe multiple if he can manage, and follow through on his inventions. Things that actually make your life easier in one way or another.

He would also take the day off of his research to spend it with you, but instead of taking you to big social gatherings, he would take you to a private place. A nice clearing in the forest, maybe on top of the UFO that's buried under the town.

Ford would have a picnic prepared and stay with you there until deep into the night. You two would watch the night sky together and he would encourage you to make a wish on any shooting star you see.

Now you could get all cheesy with him and after the third one tell him: "Actually, I don't need another shooting star. My wish has already been granted." While looking at him with heart-eyes and scooting closer to him on the blanket. He'd blush adorably and you'd take his hand and give it a kiss, thanking him for the lovely night.

"I want to come with you this year."

That's what you declared one morning at breakfast a week before the twins were set to go on another trip sailing around the globe.

Stan had looked at you and then Ford with wide eyes, knowing it was not really his place to make the decision. He also felt by the tone of your voice that this could escalate very quickly and he didn’t want to be in the middle of you two when that happened.

Ford didn’t even look up from his cereal. "No." His tone was firm, leaving no room for discussion. You furrowed your brows at him, contorting your whole face into a frown. "What do you mean 'no'?" Your voice was laced with venom.

Ford and Stan had been back from their last trip for about four months now and now they wanted to leave again already.

You were sick of it. Sick of waiting for your husband to come home to you. You had been waiting for him the last thirty years. Before that you had waited for him to make some time for you between his research.

You were sick of waiting. You just wanted to spend time with your husband. No rush, no monsters, no nothing. Just you and Ford. Finally together.

But no, he insisted on going away again and he didn’t want you along. Again.

"It's too dangerous." Again he left no room to counter him, but you didn’t care. "It's dangerous in Gravity Falls as well." He finally looked up at you, his face expressionless and cold. "But we seek out the dangerous things. That's different." He went back to his cereal.

You were seething in your seat, barely keeping your composure. "You say that like I didn’t almost get killed by basically every creature around here in the last thirty years."

Ford looked up at you again. Underneath the expressionless nothing you saw a hint of something else on his face. He looked... tired? What an ass. He had no right to be annoyed with this.

"In fact, how dare you. You are the reason I moved to Gravity Falls and when you found out how dangerous it is, did you care about my safety then? No!" You could feel tears prick at the corners of your eyes and you stood up to have more room to gesticulate wildly with your arms.

"And then you were fucking gone for thirty years! And-and now you push me away again?!" Hot tears of rage were now flowing freely from your eyes as you tried your best to frown at the man. "I'm starting to think you don't even want to be married to me!"

Ford was silent for a moment and then simply said: "Don't be ridiculous." A sharp breath of irritation left your open mouth. You shook your head as you fumbled to rip the ring off of your finger and put it on the table with a loud 'cling'.

Your vision blurry with tears and your movements shaky with anger, you muttered to yourself as you grabbed your essentials and headed towards the door. "I can't believe I wasted over thirty years of my life waiting for you to care for me."

And with that you were gone. Leaving behind Ford, who still didn’t understand why you made such a fuss about their sailing trip but was now at least visibly upset that you had left your ring behind. And Stan, who didn’t dare to move or breathe in fear of turning your anger toward him.

Ford turned to his brother. "What just happened?" Stan furrowed his brows at him. It was unclear to him how Ford couldn't understand your pain and anger. But Stan had been with you those thirty years, he knew how much that time had affected you. Ford didn’t.

Stan shook his head. "When was the last time you two went on a date?" Ford looked at him in confusion. "I don't understand what that has to do with-" "Just answer the question." Ford thought for a moment. "Well, there was last Thursday where the two of us and the kids-" "Wrong. It's not a date if there's other people with you."

Ford clenched his jaw as he thought again and swallowed thickly as he came to a conclusion. "I don't... It must have been before..." He shook his head, finally starting to understand what you were talking about.

"But... we were..." He looked at his brother again for help. "We've been together again ever since I came back." Stan shook his head, his expression softening. "But you didn’t spend time together. You were just both here. And there was always me or the kids... I mean I know they like us but... it's just not the same."

Ford stood up from his chair and walked around the table. He gently picked up your ring and looked at it, feeling the weight of it and everything it represents in his palm. He looked back up at Stan, tears now welling up in his own eyes. "How do I make this right?"

When you left the shack in your thin summer jacket you hadn't looked outside. After less than two minutes you were fully drenched as the rain poured from the sky, mocking you.

It was fine though, because it meant that you didn’t have to worry about someone seeing you crying. Not that that was something that mattered as you feet carried you into the forest on their own. You had no plans on where to go - your life was in the Mystery Shack. But you needed to leave.

You just walked and walked and eventually you managed to open your eyes and try to see past your tears and the rain and found yourself in the middle of the clearing on top of the ufo. The place Ford had taken you to for many dates.

Another wave of tears and loud sobs left you as you realized where you had ended up. You fell to your knees, then sat down and pulled your knees closer to your face as you continued to cry.

When Ford was ready to set out to look for you he had no idea where to start. You could be literally anywhere in Gravity Falls. How was he supposed to know where you'd want to be right now when he hadn't even known how upset you were in the first place.

Ford was starting to doubt whether he still knew you at all and it brought a new set of tears to his eyes. He shook them off and stepped out the door, deciding to stop overthinking. It had never done him any good anyways.

He walked aimlessly through the woods for a while. He wasn't sure why, but he just felt like you wouldn’t have gone into town. If you were still anything like the person he had married thirty-seven years ago then you wouldn’t have gone there. He hoped that he was right with every fiber of his being.

It took him a while to remember the place he loved to take you to for picnics or stargazing. If someone had asked him he would have told them that you had no reason to go there now that you were angry at him. And yet, his heart told him to go there anyways. And he did.

Once he cleared the treeline he could make out a figure sitting on the ground with their head buried in their knees. He approached the person and was flooded with a painful mix of relief, guilt and fear at seeing you like this. Your whole body moved along with your sobs.

For the first time throughout his search it occurred to Ford that you might not want him back. That maybe, you realized he really wasn't worth your love and you just wanted to get rid of him. He stopped in his tracks as the thought echoed through his mind.

Ford clenched his jaw and eyes shut and shook his head, shaking off the thought and fear of losing you. The latter didn’t budge though. He took a deep breath and continued towards you.

You heard Ford approach, his footsteps loud on the wet grass. You frowned at him. Your throat was sore from crying and your voice breaking as you spoke. "What do you want?" Your tone was harsh still and Ford looked at you with pleading eyes. "To apologize."

He moved to kneel in front of you on the wet grass and took your ring out of his coat pocket. It was darker than usual and sounded heavier as he moved it because it was drenched with rain.

"I'm sorry I left you alone for thirty years. I'm sorry I wasn't a very good husband even before then. And I am so, so terribly sorry that I made you feel like I don't care for you." Ford held the ring out to you but you didn’t move. He swallowed thickly, panic rising up in his chest.

"I am begging you to give me another chance. I love you more than I have ever loved anybody. I thought about you every day I was trapped out there and being able to hold you in my arms again was the only thing that kept me going." His eyes were pleading and a few tears had escaped him, flowing down his cheeks and mixing with the rain.

You scoffed, a bitter sound, and turned your face away from him. "Why haven't you done it then?" Ford's hand that held the ring sank to the ground as he processed your question. You turned back to look at him when he didn’t answer, anger flaring up in you again.

"You have been back for over a year now and you've hugged me like once, for two seconds. We haven't cuddled at all. Hell, we don't even sleep in the same bed anymore!" Your voice broke as you were struggling to get the words out.

You shook your head, staring at your knees again as more tears fell from your eyes. "I just want things back the way they were. I just want you back, Ford." You sniffled, wiping at your tears with your wet sleeve.

"But you're just... you barely look at me and when you do you just look so tired... And then you left for half a year and I was alone again. I just can't-" You voice fully broke and another sob took its place.

"You won't." That made you face him again. "I won't leave. Stan and I won't sail away this year. We did that last year and it helped us a lot. And... I now realize how much I've been neglecting you. Stan and I agreed that you and I need to spend some time together." Ford bit his lower lip, his eyes darting around aimlessly for a moment.

"I will stay here with you in Gravity Falls. That is..." He raised his hand into your field of vision again, presenting you your own ring once more. "...if you'll have me." Your eyes moved from the ring to his eyes. They were red and swollen like your own must have been as well.

Your eyes went wide and then softer as you made a noise that was somewhere between a sob and a laugh. "Really?" Ford just nodded vigorously, not trusting his own voice anymore as he saw your hopeful expression.

In a quick motion you moved to sit on your knees again as well and leaned forward to press your forehead against Ford's. You took the hand that held the ring in your own and held him close by the neck with your other hand.

Relief flooded your system at this promise of a better future. Ford was also filled with relief. The fear of losing you to his own carelessness flowing out of him along with his tears as he was overtaken by heavy sobs.

Ford managed to wrap his free hand around your waist and onto your back, pulling you a little closer. You held your husband like this for a while until both of you had calmed down just enough.

You pulled away slightly to look at his face and smiled as you moved the hand from his neck to his cheek to wipe at his tears. Not that it mattered with the rain. You looked down at your other hand and Ford's gaze followed yours.

He finally put your ring back in its place on your finger and he sobbed once more. You locked eyes with him again and lightly pulled his face closer to yours with the hand that was resting on his cheek.

You were Ford's assistant, working with him and Fiddleford on the interdimensional portal. Even after the incident occurred and Fiddleford left the project, you and Ford pressed on.

Although, you weren't really in it for the portal or the science or whatever. You were way more interested in this muse of his. Bill Cipher. A triangle shaped entity, who had the ability to enter someone's mind if they agreed to it. Who could also haunt your dreams if you didn’t.

He didn’t have to haunt your dreams though, he was already a part of them. Even though seeing Ford with yellow eyes and no self-preservation instincts was a little scary, you couldn't help but imagine how nice it must feel to have Bill in your mind.

Just for once you wanted to lean back and let someone else do the work for you. The work being moving your body from room to room and so on.

One day, when he was in control of Ford's body, you breached the subject to him. "Ford doesn't like you running around in his body, you know that, right?" Bill just laughed in a garbled version of Ford's voice.

"Of course I know! That's part of the fun." You hummed. "But wouldn't it be more fun to actually share a body? With someone who won't resist? And if it's tormenting Ford you're after, think of what it would do to him to see someone else under your control."

Bill narrowed Ford's eyes at you, stepping closer. He was intrigued. "What are you suggesting?" You smirked at him. "A deal. You get to take my body for a spin... whenever. The only condition is that I don't want you to break my bones or leave me with an open wound or something."

He turned Ford's head, suspicion on their face. "And what exactly are you getting out of this?" You smiled and sighed dramatically. "To relax! I get to take some time off from having to work this meat prison." Bill laughed loudly.

"You're either crazy or the sanest human I've ever met. Either way, you got yourself a deal." Bill held Ford's hand out to you, a small blue flame surrounding it. You gladly took it and suddenly felt like you were falling, even though you didn’t move from your spot on the ground at all.

You were still holding Ford's hand as he sank in on himself, raising his other hand to his head. Meanwhile, you felt something change. A new presence in your own mind. "Let's see if I can make you regret this."

Ford's eyes raised up to your hands and then up to your face, terror spreading on his face. "Bill. What have you-" You interrupted him. "He hasn't done anything yet. So don't worry about it. Let's get back to work."

Ford eyed you suspiciously. It was your voice, your eyes weren't yellow... there was no sign of Bill being in control of your body. But he was gone from his own mind and that unsettled Ford greatly.

While Ford and you continued to work away at the portal, Bill was making himself comfortable in your mind, snooping around your memories and getting a picture of who you are as a person.

When he came across the section of your mind that held your dreams and he found himself in there, making you laugh or holding your hand gently... well, if he was human then he surely would have blushed at that. But he wasn't. And he certainly didn’t care about human emotions. Gross.

Eventually, you and Ford decided that you were done for the day (it was long past midnight) and started to pack up. Bill pulled you from the steering wheel, taking over your body. "Sixer." Ford looked up at him in horror.

"So you are inside them!" Bill waved him off. "Yeahyeahyeah, big surprise. Whatever. Where did you find this person? Their mind is... so clean and orderly. But their dreams..." His/Your voice trailed off, not actually wanting to tell Ford about your dreams. "We went to university together. Same as with Fiddleford." Bill nodded absentmindedly.

While Bill was hanging out with Ford, you laid back, enjoying your break. You quickly tuned their conversation out and instead took a stroll through your mind. It was a funny way of perceiving your own thoughts. Basically being able to walk in on them like they were little rooms scattered around your mind.

You got lost in your own mind but eventually were pulled back into reality as Bill took a step back. You found yourself in your bed, in your pyjamas. You didn’t even feel hungry.

The only thing that was a little off was the dull pain in your shoulder and knee. It felt like you had fallen down a flight of stairs. Bill had probably decided it was faster than to walk them. You ignored the pain and went to sleep.

The following days were much of the same: Working on the portal with Ford, occasionally letting Bill take charge to correct Ford on some equations or whatever. On your way out of the lab Bill would usually take over, taking your body for a spin.

Usually, you watched him do it, just see what he was up to. You saw him fling your body off of whatever ledge he could find that wouldn't harm your body too seriously. The deal you made clearly stated that he wasn't allowed to break your bones.

But it didn’t forbid him to get you a tattoo. It was simple enough. A heart with an arrow through it that just read "Bill", effectively claiming you as his. You didn’t mind though. Something about this triangle made you want his attention.

The fact that he went out of his way to brand you as his made you feel kind of special. Who else could say that about themselves? Well, Ford could, but you didn’t know that and Ford had no intention of telling you about it.

After a couple weeks of this, Bill got a little irritated with you. Inside your head, he sparked up a conversation. "Why doesn't this bother you? I actively harm you, your relationship with Ford and everyone around you. I branded you. What more will it take to get you upset?"

You laughed at him. "Shouldn’t you know? I thought you could read minds - what's stopping you?" Bill frowned, throwing his hands up in defeat. "Nothing! I looked! As far as I can tell you have never thought one single bad thing about me. That's nuts!"

You waved at him dismissively. "It's not. If you truly knew what it was like to be human you'd get it." Bill shook his head and floated closer to you, locking eyes. "Nuh-uh. Ford doesn't get it either. He's human, too!" You clicked your tongue. "Yeah, but he's also a giant baby."

Bill stared at you, not believing what he's hearing. He sighed and rubbed his eyebrow. Or his equivalent to an eyebrow anyway.

"There is something interesting I did find in your mind though." You just raised an eyebrow at him. "Why are you dreaming about you and me doing... coupley things together? From what Ford explained to me about human relationships, that's just gross."

You blushed at being called out like that but stood your ground. "Don't knock it 'til you've tried it." A beat of silence passed. Then Bill floated closer to you, his stare intense. "Kiss me then." You stared at him, shock written all over your face.

The problem was, you hadn't quite figured that part out yet. What, with him having no mouth and all. However, as he said that, something happened. Without your doing, a few doors to different thoughts flew open and things that looked like pieces of film tape floated out of them, surrounding you both.

They showed different ways you had fantasized about kissing that stupid triangle. As you realized what you saw you blushed even more, hiding your face in your hands.