Apprentice {Gravity Falls}

Starwatchers

"Dipper! Dipper, wake up!"

Dipper groaned and sat up in bed, "Grunkle Ford?" He mumbled, rubbing his eyes, "It's still dark out... go back to sleep,"

"You have to get up, my boy. I have a surprise for you,"

"Can't it wait until morning?" He whined. After no answer, Dipper sighed, "Fine, I'll get up," he relented, getting out of bed. A quick glance at the clock made him already start to regret this.

"It's three in the morning, Grunkle Ford! Are you sure it can't wait?"

Ford chuckled, "It'll be worth it, son! I promise."

Dipper shrugged, "Okay, I trust you."

*  * *

"Grunkle Ford, where are we going?" Dipper questioned as Ford got in the driver's seat of his car.

The elder smirked, "You'll see,"

Dipper groaned, rubbing his eyes. He was exhausted and wanted to go back to bed, "I don't wanna see, I want to go back to sleep!"

Ford nudged Dipper, "Hey, come on! I swear this will be worth it! You've just gotta trust me on this," Dipper gave a quick glance at Ford, who was giving him a patient smile. Dipper sighed. Well, he was already up and it didn't look like he was going back to bed at this point. Guess he had to see where this was going.

The ride was mostly silent as Ford drove and Dipper watched the scenery out the window. Gravity Falls looked so different in the early hours morning. But, not in a bad way! The purple sky, bright stars, and crescent moon almost felt comforting. For a moment, Dipper forgot how tired he was and focused on the view.

Well, that was until-

"Two hot chocolates, please," Dipper overhead Ford say. He perked up to realize they were at a 24 hour fast-food restaurant. Did Ford wake him up... just to buy him hot chocolate?

"Grunkle Ford... you didn't wake me up just to buy me hot chocolate did you? Because I'm pretty sure they still sell hot chocolate in the morning," Dipper explained.

"Don't worry, I didn't wake you up just for this," he laughed, "Just thought you might enjoy the drink," he explained, handing a cup to Dipper.

Dipper sipped on the beverage. At first it burnt his tongue, but once it cooled down slightly it wasn't too bad.

"This, is good," Dipper smiled, continuing to sip on the drink. Now that he was a little more awake, he had to ask again.

"Alright, where are we going?" He smirked.

Ford shook his head, "It's a surprise, my boy!"

Dipper sighed, "But I wanna know!" He exclaimed.

"You'll find out!" Ford promised. Dipper watched as the man drove the car to the hill near the boarder of Gravity Falls. It was the same location that he told Ford his real name or when Ford explained to him that the ravine was caused by UFOs, using his keychain to explain.

However, as Ford got out of the car and Dipper followed, nothing seemed to happen.

"Uhhh... the sky is... nice..." Dipper commented, not knowing what else to say. In fact, it was rather pretty. He could see his namesake, a long with a few other constellations he knew such as the Ursa Minor. But, he couldn't help but feel a bit disappointed. Why did they have to leave at three in the morning to stargaze?

"Dipper, look!" Ford exclaimed. Dipper looked back to the sky to see a shooting star. Not just one, however! A group of three or four lit up the sky. Slowly, a smile formed on Dipper's face.

"A meteor shower?"

"Mhm!" Ford hummed, "From three until six," he responded, taking a sip of his drink, "That's why I had to wake you up so early. If I waited, we would've missed the best of it. Besides, we got first pick on spots!"

Dipper was silent as he continued to watch the stars rain down from the sky, "It's amazing!" He exclaimed, "I've never seen a meteor shower before!"

This caught Ford a bit off guard, "Really?"

He nodded, "Yeah, just, never got around to seeing one. But, this is... this is really cool!"

"Worth waking up at three in the morning for?"

Dipper gave a small laugh, "Oh yeah! Definitely!"

Ford and Dipper continued to watch the show in relative silence, occasionally talking and sipping their hot chocolates. The time passed quickly and soon enough the last few stars were making their way across the horizon as the sun started to rise. Ford glanced at Dipper to see if he was ready to leave. He gave a warm smile at the sight of Dipper asleep on his shoulder.

A/n: I know this is kinda short, but I've had this in my drafts for days so here you go! ^_^