Little Dipper

Day Two

Day two of the road trip. Ford was woken up by Bill coming in and shaking him awake with a brief "Breakfast" before he walked out. He groaned and got up, stretching and yawning. He made his way out of the room to find Bill, Blendin and Tyrone all in the kitchen. "Gideon's not here today?"

"Today's not a work-day, he's with his family for breakfast." Bill told him. "Sit down, we've got waffles."

"So...you eat?" Ford asked Tyrone as he sat down, trying not to look at Bill in that apron again. Who the hell came up with an apron that says "Kiss the Demon"? They couldn't have it say "Demon Cook" or something like that? And why were his pants so tight? Were they yoga pants? Bill wore yoga pants? He tried to distract himself by drinking his coffee, but he couldn't help but look more anyway.

God, he was sure glad Gideon wasn't here today.

"So, uh...why didn't you invite Tad Strange over for breakfast?" Ford asked.

"He's working on panic kits and preparing bread for people to eat during the apocalypse." Bill said, taking off his apron and grabbing his coat instead. He left his gloves off and sat down to eat. "Time Baby gave him something to keep food from spoiling."

"Why can't he just have Time Cops put in place?" Ford asked.

"Because we're risking things by having ONE Time Cop here. Imagine if someone else got ahold of one of their time machines and altered history?" Bill said, picking up the syrup.

"That wasn't fun at all." Blendin said, sighing.

"What exactly did you do?" Ford asked. "I mean, aside from apparently having me repair your time machine."

"They just went through time. Pine Tree wouldn't let go of the machine, he wanted to see dinosaurs. Guess he got his wish; we found dinosaurs in the present." Bill chuckled.

"Is there where the..." Ford looked towards the paddocks.

"Daisy and Liam? Yep." Bill nodded.

Ford nodded. "I see....so, what do you normally do on days off?"

"Hang out with Pine Tree." Bill shrugged. "I guess I gotta think of something else to do."

Ford nodded. "Well, I still need to finish taking apart that portal."

"Shame we have to." Bill said wistfully. "I still want to see the multiverse."

"You know that we have to. If it ever turned on again..." Ford frowned.

"Yeah, I know." Bill sighed.

Tyrone looked at them. "Are you two going to fight again?"

"No, we're not." Ford assured him. "You didn't go on the trip with them?"

"Nuh-uh. Too risky." Tyrone shook his head. "One drip and I'm a goner."

"We have to do something about that." Bill said, frowning. "Maybe we can invent something..."

"We'll worry about it if we survive the apocalypse." Tyrone shrugged. "Until then, I have rain gear. I just didn't want to go to that foggy place."

"Makes sense. That's alright, you can help us out around the shop." Bill grinned.

"Who's going to be buying from the giftshop at this time?" Ford asked.

"We still have tourists coming and going." Bill shrugged. "Until the world actually ends, the shop stays open."

"Wow, what a policy." Ford chuckled a bit. "Sounds like Stan..."

–

The RV was full of five kids and two adults, though it wasn't meant to be for more than three people at most. Still, they made-do. Stan slept in the driver's seat, the girls all took the bed, and Soos slept on the floor while Mabel took a couch and Dipper slept in a little hammock.

Dipper woke up and climbed off of his little hammock, yawning. "Morning, everyone."

"Good morning, Dipper." Mabel greeted as she prepared breakfast. "Did you sleep well?"

"It wasn't as comfy as Bill." Dipper walked over and looked in a mirror, grinning. 'Good morning, Bill!' He thought.

'Morning, Pine Tree. I see you have bed-hair, better fix that.' Bill greeted cheerfully. 'Be careful today, okay? And mind your sister.'

'I will.' Dipper promised, moving away from the mirror to go get changed out of his PJs.

"Grunkle Stan, breakfast is ready!" Mabel called.

Dipper went to the bedroom and knocked before looking in. "Hey, can I get to my clothes?"

"That's fine, go ahead." Pacifica assured him.

"Really? You guys are okay?" Dipper stepped in. "I don't wanna interrupt."

"We're fine." Candy grinned at him. "Thanks for being so considerate, though."

"Mabel says it's almost time for breakfast." Dipper said, getting out his clothes from his suitcase and changing clothes.

"Mm, breakfast." Grenda set down her phone and got up. "Come on, girls. Let's go get some food!"

They got up and left the room, Dipper following after he finished getting dressed.

"Our first destination is Granny Sweetkins' Yarnball." Stan said as he pulled out a map. "After that is Upside-Down Town, Log Land, Corn Maze, and then Mystery Mountain. We'll drop into Septic Ridge RV Park between Upside-Down Town and Mystery Mountain."

"What's at Mystery Mountain?" Dipper asked.

"It's a mystery. Though, the brochure talks about legends of spider-people. Pretty sure it's about as real as my 'hybrids'." Stan chuckled.

"Yuck, spiders." Dipper made a face.

"Move the map, I gotta set the table." Mabel said, shooing it away.

"Oh, excuse me." Stan moved the map and folded it up again. "Soos, breakfast!"

"Coming!" Soos left the front seats and joined them.

"Thanks for letting us use the bed, Mr. Pines." Pacifica said, watching as Candy and Grenda helped Mabel set the table.

"It's fine, I spent a lot of years sleeping in my car anyway." Stan waved it up, then glanced to the side. "Uh, well...y'know, tough times growing up..."

"That sounds terrible..." Pacifica looked at him pityingly.

"Anyways, things are better, I got a cool place, a sweet gal, an awesome family and a grand mix-matched bunch of friends. I even became friends with my business rival! Things are great!" Stan grinned.

"Except for you being pranked by tourist attractions. Why do they do it anyway?" Mabel asked as she set the food down. "That's just bad sportsmanship. Did Gideon ever prank you?"

"Well, not really. Unless you count deliberately taking my parking spaces and trying to sneak into my house, but I'm pretty sure his dad did it out of spite and the sneaking had nothing to do with his business. He did copy a lot of my tricks, though, like the disappearing money bag. Nothing to the extent of these guys, though. Upside-Down Town duct-taped Soos to the ceiling once!"

"I was up there for 78 hours last summer." Soos said solemnly.

"Yikes." Dipper cringed. "We better warn Gideon."

"Hah! I think it'd be more fair to warn them about Gideon! They've only ever seen his little shows and pictures, if that!" Stan grinned. "I can guarantee that he and Bill are gonna make them regret ever going to prank the Mystery Shack!"

"That's true. Gideon can get scary-protective." Dipper said, nodding. 'And scary-possessive.' He thought.

–

"Alright, the next big place is..." Gideon frowned. "The play-house..."

"Oh no. COSMOS, no. We are NOT going to have people bunking up with Kryptos!" Bill said firmly.

"Bill, we have to think logically." Gideon said, sighing.

"If that rift bursts open, Kryptos will be at full power and anyone in here with him will be made into his slaves." Ford said firmly.

"How about this?" Tad suggested. "I'll set up base by the playhouse. As soon as I see any sign of the apocalypse starting, allowing Kryptos to leave that place, I'll drag him out by his ears and you can move people in."

"We can't seal the place until he's out. We'll just find another place." Gideon shook his head.

"Fine. What do we have so far?" Bill asked.

"Okay...we've sealed off the museum, the town hall, the Mystery Shack, the Tent of Telepathy, and I think we have enough hair for one more place. And then there's the bunker we have to get ready before that snowglobe you have it kept in blows open." Gideon said, tapping spots on the map he'd set on the coffee table.

"If it comes to it, could we put some people in your ring dimension?" Bill asked him.

"Hello, boys. Cookies?" Agatha said, walking over with a smile and a plate of cookies in her hands.

"Oh, mother, you should be resting." Gideon stood up to take the plate from her. "Where's father?"

"He's out with the men, fishing and hunting." Agatha said, brushing her hands off on her aprons. "And I just feel like baking so much right now."

"Hunting? In the woods? Tell me he took my map I made for him." Gideon frowned.

"Yes, he did. I made sure he took it, Dan made sure he took it, and even Tyler swiped it off the table and carried it himself, telling him to 'git it' into his pocket." Agatha giggled a bit.

"Where's Uncle Preston?" Gideon asked.

"He's moving all the valuables somewhere 'the common folk won't get it'. And he offers his home as a safe place during the apocalypse, so you can put that on your list." Agatha pointed to the map. "I suppose, after opening the gates to them for the party, he's just throwing his hands up about the whole 'common folk in my mansion' thing."

Gideon nodded and circled the mansion on the map. "There's our last place, then. And, uh, no Bill. We cannot put them into my ring dimension, I have many rare and valuable artifacts and books in there I do not want touched and Midna would hate the company." He folded up the map. "We'll go seal up Northwest Manor after we eat. Mother, please, sit down. I'll go turn off the oven, I know you left it on again." He got up and went to the kitchen.

"You're going to give him anxiety." Ford chuckled. "I wonder if this is how Shermy acted when our mom was pregnant with Stan and I?"

"You mean Pine Tree and Shooting Star's grandfather? He seems nice. Wish I could meet him." Bill said, grabbing a cookie.

Agatha sat down and rubbed her belly gently. "You know...I never thought I would want another child with Bud. But...I want this one. And I just know she'll be beautiful."

"You assume it'll be a she." Ford remarked.

"Bill, could you check? With your Sight?" Agatha asked.

"You sure?" Bill asked.

"I'm just...I don't want to wait. I feel like a child waiting expectantly to open her present. Please?" Agatha asked.

Gideon came back into the room. "You almost forgot a tray in the oven."

"Oh, thank you, Gideon." Agatha smiled and then looked at Bill. "Well?"

"What?" Gideon asked.

"Your mother wants to know if she's having a boy or girl." Bill told him.

"Wait, we can find out? Already?" Gideon asked.

"Sight." Bill tapped next to his eye. "I know many things."

"Well, then find out. Please." Gideon sat next to his mother.

Bill chuckled. "Okay, okay." He brought his hands up to his eye in a triangle shape. Then his eye glowed and images flashed by in his iris. "I see...a beautiful little girl. Brown hair, green eyes, and the sweetest smile. And, oh, how she adores her brother."

"Does she have a name?" Agatha asked.

"You sure you don't want to decide that yourself?" Bill asked.

"I suppose you're right." Agatha nodded.

"Besides, the future's not set in stone." Bill shrugged, lowering his hands. "Isn't it enough to know it's a girl?"

Agatha gently rubbed her belly. "You're right. I just got so excited..."

Gideon nodded, smiling at her. "A little sister...I can't wait."

"You'll have to, kiddo." Ford picked up a cookie. "These things take time."

"Let's focus on making sure there's a world for her to to be born into." Tad reminded them all. "That casing won't hold forever. We need battle strategies."

The others nodded solemnly, their reality sinking in once more.