#and you wouldn’t really guess it but he’s like terrifyingly smart but so chill about it and authoritative but in a very soothing way????

[notmygrave]

also i think i’m developing the most embarrassing crush on this man and he’s not even pretty and he has such stupid name he’s the type of person i couldn’t introduce to my friends and look them in the eye ever again

[aceofstars16]

Trapped in the Past (Chapter 3)

Third Chapter of my Timetrapped AU inspired by @artsycrapfromsai!

When Mabel and Dipper fight over a time machine, they find themselves sent back thirty years in the past. Now it’s up to the younger versions of their great uncles to get them home.

Chapter 3 - Hide and Seek

Stan gets in over his head, and Ford second guesses Dipper's intentions for the umpteenth time. Meanwhile, Mabel has the scare of a lifetime and Dipper uncovers a secret about the Shack.

1 - 2 - 4 - 5 - 6 - 7

AO3

“So, Pinington, you got my money?”

Rico sat in his chair, looking relaxed with his feet propped up on the desk. But his eyes conveyed his calculating mind. The first time Stan had met him, he hadn’t thought much of the mob boss, but now he knew underestimating him was a big mistake. If he wanted to get out of this, he had to be smart. Luckily, he had learned quite a few tricks in that particular area over the years.

“Yes. And no. I know where to get it, but it’s not something to be rushed.” The lie slipped off of Stan’s tongue easily, though there was a knot in his stomach as he spoke. He could ignore that though, he had to if he wanted this to end well.

“That is not the correct answer.” Rico’s tone had taken on a deadly edge and Stan was glad he had brainstormed some ideas on the way over.

“What if I told you it would give you double what I owe?”

A quirked eyebrow. “I’d say you better not be pulling my leg.”

Holding up his hands, Stan grinned. “Would I lie to you?”

At that, Rico swung his legs off of the table and slammed them on the ground. In an instant he was right in front of Stan and it took all of Stan’s power not to flinch. “You already have, Pinington. I have no reason to trust your word. But maybe with a little persuasion…”

Something about Rico’s tone was different, almost humorous in a terrifyingly cold way.

“What are you getting at-” Then it struck him. Mabel. “If you touch one hair on her body, I will make sure you don’t see one penny of the money.” Stan didn’t even try to hide the growl in his voice. The thought of Rico even looking at Mabel made his blood boil. She was just a kid. A kid who was in danger now because of him. Darnit Stan, really screwed up this time.

A cruel laugh escaped Rico’s mouth and Stan couldn’t stop himself. He decked the mob boss right in his stupid face, only to freeze a second later at the sound of a gun being cocked.

“Oh Pinington, going soft, are we?” Rico stood up from when he had stumbled, a sadistic grin on his face. “Maybe I should take the girl as collateral, just until you get me my money…”

Panic gripped Stan’s chest. No, no, no, no, he could NOT let Rico near Mabel. Because he knew once you were in Rico’s grasp, there was no getting out of it. “I’ll get you your money. But if you even look at her, I will screw you over so hard you will regret it for the rest of your sorry life, got it?” Despite the overwhelming terror racing through his body, the words came out steady. Because he was not going to let anyone hurt Mabel. His mistakes were his own, he might have to pay for them one day, but Mabel deserved nothing of the sort.

A hand grasped Stan by the jaw and pulled him close, so all Stan could do was look at the bruise that was forming on Rico’s cheek. “You do not want to cross me, Pinington. Get me my money in twenty-four hours or else the girl is mine.”

For a moment, Stan just glared at Rico, wanting nothing more than to punch him again, but the pressure on his ribcage held him back. He didn’t exactly want to have a bullet rip through his body, so he resorted to simply glaring daggers at him.

Then he was flung to the ground.

“Get him out of here.”

Stan glared at Rico and didn’t stop until he was dragged away and thrown onto the concrete. Only when the door closed did worry spark in his chest. He really dug himself into a pit, but this time it wasn’t just his life on the line…No, this was not good.

-----

In and out. Each breath echoed around Mabel like a megaphone. Her heart raced in her chest, her arms shook even as she tried to stay still, to not make a single noise.

She had woken up to the realization that Stan wasn’t in the room – a terrifying reality that had sent her calling out for him, carefully opening the door and stepping out into the cool air to see if he was outside. At first there was nothing. And then a laugh that chilled her to the bone. All she saw of the man was a shadow.

“Looks like the little brat came out of hiding…too bad your bumbling friend isn’t here. And my orders said nothing about leaving you alone.”

That’s when she had run. Back to the room and into the first hiding place she had found – a large box which was thankfully empty.

And now she was trapped. Trying to keep her position hidden as she heard the door open and the man calling out in a giddy voice.

“Oh little brat! Come out come out wherever you are! Don’t worry, I won’t hurt you…I just want to have some fun.”

Shutting her eyes tight, Mabel begged anyone, anything, to help her. Something to distract the man, so she could run away, or so he would forget about her altogether. Anything. But there was only silence, more taunting as she heard the sound of boxes being pushed aside. A whimper grew in her chest and she tried her best to hold it back, but it slipped out.

“Oh, there you are.”

Heart racing, Mabel took a deep breath, trying to steel herself to fight, to punch and jab and then run as fast as she could.

One second.

Two seconds.

Another taunt.

A finger curling around the flap above her.

Deep breath.

Thunk.

“Why don’t you pick on someone your own size.”

Stan’s voice growled, and a sob of relief escaped Mabel’s mouth. Her entire body was shaking, her mind only half taking in the grunts and yells coming from outside her box. But then a shout more intense than the others broke through her shocked state, if only for a moment.

“If you ever come back, I’ll kill you!”

The absolute venom in Stan’s voice was jarring, but also reassuring. Because Stan had saved her.

“Mabel? Kiddo, you okay?”

The flap of the box had been lifted up and she caught sight of a bruise on his face and a cut above his eye. As she took it in, she realized if Stan hadn’t gotten out unscathed, then she wouldn’t have lasted a second.

“Grunkle Stan!” Mabel flung herself at him, not even registering that she had slipped up and called him her grunkle, not even thinking about how he barely knew her. All of that seemed miniscule compared to the fact that without him, something terrible would’ve happened.

Arms wrapped around her protectively. “I’m sorry, Mabel, I never should’ve…I-I’m so sorry.”

Mabel couldn’t respond, her throat was too tight, all that came out when she tried was a whimper, which resulted in Stan hugging her tighter. She could feel the tears welling up in her eyes and she buried her head in his jacket, trying to escape the absolute torrent of emotions that were racing through her mind. When she tried to tell herself that she was okay, she could practically hear the man’s voice again and she clung to Stan even tighter.

Then a hand started running through her hair, over and over again. Followed by Stan’s quiet reassurances. “I’ve got you now, you’re safe. I’ve got you.”

Squeezing her eyes even tighter, Mabel tried to listen to Stan, to believe it. But it didn’t feel all right. She wasn’t supposed to be here, she was supposed to be in Gravity Falls, hanging out with Dipper, having a fun summer. Not…not this.

A vibrating shook Mabel out of her shock and a second later she realized that it was coming from Stan’s chest. He was…humming. She couldn’t tell what song it was, - though occasionally an indiscernible word would escape his mouth - but it was something grounding, something for her to focus on. Minutes ticked by and slowly, Mabel found herself relaxing. Her body stopped its violent shaking, tears dried on her cheeks, her heart slowed to a normal speed. And as it all eased, she realized how exhausted she was, as if she had run for miles. Sleeping was the last thing she wanted to do, but with Stan right there maybe…maybe she could close her eyes, just for a second.

-----

The first thing Dipper noticed was how much his body hurt. Not from scratches or bruises though, no it was his muscles that were aching. Groaning, he blinked his eyes open, frowning at the unfamiliar roof above him. It wasn’t the attic. Had he fallen asleep in the parlor or- oh…right. The accident. Meeting the author. Looking for Mabel. It all came back to him and as it did so, despair washed over him. Mabel was still out there somewhere, but…would he ever find her?

With a sigh, Dipper turned his head and looked at the messy room, which was now considerably warmer than it was the first time he had entered it. There was no sign of Ford anywhere, which Dipper found disconcerting, because despite admiring the author, he did seem a little paranoid. Not to mention the fact that having someone else around reminded him that he wasn’t totally alone. But right now, alone is exactly what he felt.

Sitting up, he looked around before calling out. “Ford?”

No answer. Frowning, Dipper forced his muscles to move as he stood up and walked towards the kitchen.

“Ford?” He called out again.

Nothing.

Dipper walked all throughout the downstairs rooms, looking for any sign of Ford, but the house was eerily quiet. Upon reaching the bottom of the stairs, he couldn’t help but notice how they looked so different than he was used to. Sure, the overall appearance was the same, but there was a sheen on the steps, and the wood wasn’t drooping in the middle. That dent that him and Mabel had accidentally created while sliding down the steps on a cardboard strip was absent. And as he made his was up them, there was no familiar creak on the third step from the top.

Despite knowing that the likelihood of Ford being in the attic was low, Dipper couldn’t stop himself from stepping up to the door. For a moment he just looked at the handle, then he turned it.

Boxes. It was all he saw. That and papers, so many papers. Along with a lot of inventions that seemed to be discarded for one reason or another. Making his way through the mess, Dipper wondered where all of this had gone. Maybe Ford had left and taken it all with him? Or maybe Stan had stored it somewhere?

Stopping in the middle of the hoard, Dipper sat down and closed his eyes. Trying to imagine he wasn’t stuck in 1980 something, that instead, he was sitting on the floor while Mabel worked on her sticker collection. For a moment, it worked. The smell of the wood was almost the same, and the lack of splinters was different, but that one was a welcome difference. But then the winter wind blew against the window and a shiver ran up his spine. Once again, he was faced with the reality of his situation.

With a sigh, Dipper opened his eyes and looked around again. Part of him wanted to explore everything about this place. Who knew what kind of things he could find in this mess? But the other part of him was worried how Ford might react if he found him up here. And then his stomach growled.

Man, when was the last time he ate?

“I can always come back later…” Dipper said to himself, before scrambling to his feet and making his way back down the stairs.

“Ford?”

Still nothing, despite it being a good thirty minutes since he had woken up. Dipper frowned. Maybe Ford was outside?

“Nope.” As soon as he opened the door, Dipper was met with a chilly wind. And in the brief glimpse he saw of outside, all he could see was snow - it was obscuring every inch of the landscape. As he closed the door, he sighed. It might not be a terrible blizzard but no one would willingly go out in that.

Shaking his head, Dipper walked around the house again, not sure what he was supposed to do, especially when he didn’t see any sign of food in the kitchen – at least not in any of the places Stan normally kept food. Maybe he’d just have to wait it out. Ford had to show up at some point, right?

Then he saw it. Something that wasn’t quite right. Where the vending machine in the Mystery Shack had been was a bookshelf, but it wasn’t flat up against the wall. There was a crack behind it and it looked like there was something behind it?

Grabbing the bookshelf and pulling back as hard as he could, the crack grew bigger until it was large enough for him see that there was an entire room hidden behind it. Slipping through the gap, Dipper walked through the small hallway, down a set of stairs and was met with, an elevator?

“W…what?!?” Dipper stared at it, and the hallway. Had this been in the Shack the entire time? How in the world…? For a moment, he just tried to accept the fact that this must have been here the entire time he had been in Gravity Falls. But then another question grew in his mind. Where did it go?

Stepping inside, Dipper looked at the buttons, there were three. He tried the second one. For a moment, there was nothing, then the doors closed and it started descending, only to stop and open up to a door. A door with a keyhole in the middle. Reaching out, Dipper tried the handle, but it was locked.

“So much for that…” Despite the confusion that was racing through his mind, Dipper couldn’t help but also feel a hint of anticipation. Maybe he’d find some answers about Gravity Falls down here, or why Stan had a brother he never told him about.

Looking back at the buttons, Dipper pressed the bottom one. The door closed and as it lowered, excitement grew in his chest, but it was met with a hint of fear. There was no telling what was down here.

With a clatter, the elevator hit the bottom and the door opened, revealing a room of sorts. It almost looked like a lab. There were levers and machines taking up the entire space.

In awe, Dipper stepped forward, trying to take it all in. What in the word was all this stuff? Then he saw a window, and through it a large cavern. And in the middle was a…triangle? A huge triangle type structure with a circle in the middle. And as he looked at it, Dipper could swear something about it looked familiar…

“What are you doing down here?!?”

Ford’s voice echoed around the room and it was only then that Dipper saw the author, who had been half in shadows, sitting at a desk in the corner of the room. But now he was stalking forward, his eyes narrowed to slits.

“I-I, I was looking for you and I-I saw the bookshelf and there was a door behind it? And I-“

“You expect me to believe that?” Ford hissed, and Dipper found himself stumbling backward. He didn’t know Ford very well, but he thought maybe his hero wasn’t as bad as he first seemed. Now he wasn’t so sure.

“I-It’s the truth, I just, I didn’t know about the room and I just wanted to see what it was and-“ Dipper couldn’t get his thoughts out coherently, mostly because he was still trying to process it all and he wasn’t entirely sure what he thought of this hidden basement either.

“Get out, now!”

“But, what is-“

“NOW!”

Stumbling back into the elevator, Dipper quickly pressed the button, his heart racing as the door closed. The entire ride back to ground level took forever, or at least it seemed like it to him. As soon as the door slid open, he raced back out into what he knew as the gift shop, adrenaline and fear still racing through his body.

He half expected Ford to show up a second later telling him to leave the house all together, but there were no footsteps following him as he quickly made his way back up into the attic. He didn’t care if it was cold, it was the only place he could think of that might offer him some solace. And it would give him some space to think.

Sitting down on the wooden floor, Dipper took a deep breath, trying to calm his nerves and figure out what had just happened. Maybe the basement was supposed to be a secret or something? And maybe Ford didn’t like anyone going down there? That could be why Stan never seemed to mention it. Maybe he didn’t know about it either?

Closing his eyes for a second, Dipper tried to accept that Ford was just…very protective of whatever was down there. And it wasn’t like he knew Dipper that well, so he wouldn’t know what Dipper would think of it. Or what he might do with it. Even though he was more curious than anything.

The reasoning worked. Dipper’s heart slowed, his adrenaline died down, and all he was left with was a nagging feeling that he had seen something like the machine before. Maybe in the…journal!

Pulling the book out of his vest, Dipper quickly thumbed through the pages, not quite sure what he was looking for. Then he saw it. The page that looked like some sort of machine, but only part of it. And there in the corner was the edge of what looked like a triangle with a circle in the middle. It still didn’t answer the question of what it was though. He hadn’t been able to crack the code on the page and some of the pages beforehand were either torn or missing.

Flipping the journal a few more pages, he looked at his own additions to the book. Finding the next blank page and pulling out a pen from his vest, he started writing down everything that had happened. He found that writing things down sometimes helped him process them better than just thinking. Maybe it would help him figure out what the heck he was supposed to do now?

-----

“How could I have been so stupid!” Ford mumbled to himself after the elevator had closed. Bringing in a child that he knew nothing about? And now Dipper knew were the portal was! The kid could easily come back down again. He should’ve just shut the door when Dipper had shown up on his porch. As soon as the thought crossed his mind though, Ford felt a stab of shame in his chest. Leave a kid out in the cold? No…he should’ve called the police or something. Made sure Dipper was taken care of so he could worry about his own problems, not add another one on top of them.

Well, maybe he still could. He could just take Dipper into town. There had to be someone that would look after a kid and- no, that was idiotic. First, Ford didn’t have a car and it was freezing out so walking wasn’t really an option unless he wanted frostbite. Then there was the fact that Dipper claimed to be from a different time. That fell smack dab in the middle of Ford’s expertise. No one else would be able to get the kid home. Then again, in his current state, Ford wasn’t sure he had much of a shot at figuring out time travel but…

“Agh!” Ford yelled, banging the wall. He couldn’t deal with all of this right now. His mind felt like it was being pulled apart and his body had practically no energy. Of course everything just had to crumble when he had no one to turn to. Well, maybe one person. But so far that hadn’t gotten anywhere. Though, with this weather and the distance maybe the postcard hadn’t even made it to Stan yet. Or maybe the address Ma had wasn’t up to date. Or Stan might just ignore his request… There were too many uncertainties. Ford couldn’t lay all of his hopes on Stan showing up. Besides, he doubted Stan would know what to do with Dipper either…though at least then someone could keep an eye on the kid while he tried to figure out what to do.

Running a hand down his face, Ford sighed, trying to figure out what the heck he was supposed to do. With a glance at the room, he saw that everything was still in place. There wasn’t much more he could do down here, plus the voices were always louder near the portal and he was pretty sure they’d drive him crazy if he stayed here any longer.

The ride to ground level was as quiet as it could be, and Ford tried to figure out what he was going to say to Dipper. He wasn’t going to apologize; he hadn’t done anything wrong. It was Dipper who had stuck his nose where it didn’t belong, not him. Then again…the kid had looked quite scared. Maybe he would just warn him never to go down there again and then…

Swish. The door slid open and interrupted his thoughts. Sighing, Ford stepped out and made his way back to the front room, but there was no sign of Dipper. Okay, so maybe he had some more time to brainstorm what to do.

But as he walked around the house, Ford found that instead of thinking about what to say Dipper, he was starting to simply wonder where the kid was.

“Dipper?” Ford called out his name, but there was no response except a quiet laughing that was either in his head or the result of the wind outside.

Wait, outside? Surely Dipper would’ve have… Stumbling towards the door, Ford flung it open, only to be met with a gust of wind and snow.

“Dipper?!?” His voice didn’t carry at all in the storm, and he could barely see anything beyond the porch. There was no sign of footprints but with this wind they would have already blown away.

Oh goodness, if Dipper had run off in that…and all because Ford had yelled at him.

“Idiot.” Ford muttered to himself, while also reminding himself that he still needed to be careful. He couldn’t let his guard down but…that blizzard was in no way safe for anyone to be out in, especially not a kid.

Keep looking inside. That was the only thing that could calm Ford’s worries. Maybe Dipper had explored the house. Yes, that was probably what had happened. Trying to push away the nagging worry and guilt in his chest, Ford shut the door and made his way to the stairs. If the kid had explored the basement, it only seemed fair that he might explore the attic too.

As he opened the door, Ford was met with a mess he had totally forgotten about. Most of the papers had to do with studying Gravity Falls or uncomplete calculations. But a lot of the boxes contained things he didn’t like thinking about. Trinkets Ma sent him, old scrapbooks of when he was a kid, even a few film rolls. Anything that he didn’t want to be reminded of had been banished to the attic. And now he was looking at all of it again.

Trying not to pay attention to any of memorabilia, he stepped around a boxes and unused furniture, only stopping when he saw Dipper sitting on the floor, his head buried in a book. A really old book by the look of it, Ford wondered what it-

All thought died as Dipper readjusted the book and Ford caught sight of a six fingered hand on it.

“Where did you get that?!?”

Dipper jumped at his voice and the pen in his hand fell to the floor. Fumbling with the book, he brought it close to his chest. “I-I found it, in-in the woods.”

“Found it?” Ford felt the pocket in his coat where he had been keeping his remaining journal safe, only to freeze when he felt it. And then he saw the 3 scratched on the book in Dipper’s hand. “I put a secure mechanized lock in that tree. How did you-“

“In the future! It- I guess it malfunctioned or something, but I was hammering up signs for gru-uh…someone and I hit the metal tree and found it. And I uh…started reading it and the author, uh…you seemed to be the only person who actually noticed all of the strange things in Gravity Falls too.”

Dipper spoke so fast that Ford could barely understand what he was saying. Sometimes talking fast was a sign of lying but…not likely, unless someone was trained at it. “Let me see.” Ford held out his hand, knowing full well that if this was his journal from the future then it might be a little more worn. And as he accepted it from Dipper, he realized right away that it did feel different… And it certainly didn’t smell the greatest. It was possible that it had picked up some odd smells in the week it had been hidden, but that seemed unlikely.

Flipping through it, Ford noticed how the pages seemed to be older and more crinkled. And there were more stains in it than he remembered. Then he reached the end of what he had written and it flipped open to reveal a page covered in blue ink and sketches. What the…?

“You wrote it in my journal?” Ford couldn’t keep the annoyance out of his voice. This was his journal and Dipper had just…taken it as his own?!?

“I uh…I wanted to keep track of everything I saw and I thought since the journal already had so many notes in it, I could add my own…”

Ford frowned at the pages, not really happy with someone writing in his journal. But at the same time, he couldn’t help but remember when he was a kid and how he had taken notes all the time. Sometimes using paper that didn’t exactly belong to him.

“Sorry…”

As he looked up, Ford saw Dipper hugging his arms and he felt a small stab of annoyance, though he wasn’t sure if it was at Dipper or himself. At this point rationalizing was becoming harder than it should be. Shaking his head, he sighed.

“It…it’s fine.” Was is really fine? Honestly, Ford wasn’t sure, but right now he didn’t think yelling would help. That and he didn’t really have the energy to yell about it or dwell on it.

Then he heard a rumbling sound and saw Dipper looking at him in embarrassment.

Food. Right. That might be a good idea - for Dipper and himself. It would give him some well needed energy. Though he’d have to be careful to not eat too much or sit still too long. Food had a way of lulling anyone to sleep and he couldn’t let that happen to him. Not now.

“Come on, I think we could both use some sustenance, and maybe…” Ford looked at the book in his hands, before handing it back to Dipper. “We can discuss this a little more.”

“R-really?” The excitement on the kid’s face was slightly amusing and Ford felt the smallest smile trying to sneak its way onto his face.

“Really.”