Chapter Text
"William, what did you just say?" Mason asked sharply, interrupting the demon from whatever he was talking about. He was half listening until he heard something that piqued his interest.
"Oh," William paused for a moment as he refilled Mason's cup of tea. "That in a universe similar to ours the journals are but human?"
"And why has it never occurred to you before to tell me that?"
"Well other than being human, they're still the journals. I didn't think the thought of it would benefit you, Master."
"Well you were wrong," Mason stood up from his chair and placed his cup on its saucer on a nearby end table. "The thought will benefit me, besides them just being human copies of the books, they'll also have memories, thoughts. Things my damned uncle never would've told us even if he was alive." He cracked his knuckles. "Fetch Mabel, William, we have research to do and a portal to restart." He straighten his polo tie and started to walk away.
"Sir- just what to you plan to do?" William asked as he followed behind Mason. He grabbed the young human's shoulder and stopped him.
Mason turned around, a smile on his face. "Why steal them away of course. It wouldn't be the first time we've taken those books from a family of buffoons." He then walked off, William's hand falling from his shoulder. "Now, follow your orders."
William held his hand in the place where it had just rested on Mason's shoulder for a moment longer, then he closed his fist and bowed. "Yes, sir, right away, sir." He said quietly, but Mason had already gone.
***
"I'm so excited, they're finally coming back!" Drei, one of the human journals, the third and final journal to be exact said as he grabbed onto his eldest brother Eins' arm and shook it roughly. "We haven't seen them in forever!"
Besides them, Zwei, the second journal laughed and tussled Drei's hair. "It's only been a year man, get a grip."
"Hey! A year's a long time you know!" Drei stuck his tongue out at his brother.
Eins sighed, a smile spreading across his face as he pushed up his glasses. "A year is pretty long.." He shrugged softly.
"You always take his side," Zwei mumbled with a grin as a dirty Greyhound bus pulled up to the dust stop.
The bus hissed and the doors opened, in burst of quick scrambling Dipper and Mabel rushed off the steps with suitcases in hand. It was their fourth year returning to Gravity Falls, they would be turning seventeen in just three months.
"They're here!" Drei screamed and ran over to them, the bus pulled away back onto the road and started to drive off. His brothers followed behind him.
Mabel let out an excited squeal and started running to meet them as well, Dipper followed her with a laugh and they met in the middle of the Mystery Shack parking lot with a great hug.
"Gosh it feels so good to be back!" Dipper grinned. Everyone was hugging him in some way or another, but he was only hugging one person: Drei. Drei had hit him full force like a train and wrapped his arms around his waist, Dipper couldn't just not hug him back with all he had. Quickly so that no one would see, he kissed the top of the book's head.
Nearly everything was the same, the twins and the books, but there was one- or actually two things missing. Stanford and Stanley. It was hard for them all to say it, but five months ago they stopped calling and their transmit signal from their vessel, The Stan 'O War had gone off the map. They had been lost at sea.
But no one wanted to think about that, it wasn't the time to think about it. There was nothing the bunch of them, a group of teenagers, could do.
"It's great to have you guys back!" Zwei said while releasing Mabel from a hug. "The place has been so quiet lately, so noise and adventure is bound to be nice."
Mabel laughed and then lunged onto Drei and Eins with a death grip of a hug. "Just as long as the gnomes don't kidnap me again ."
They all laughed at that. It was nice to laugh. Ever since the news of the Stans.. It had been a while since they had laughed. But now they were back together, they were a family once more. And there was nothing in the universe that could ever possibly change that, or at least, not without one hell of a fight.