Ford Pines · Gravity Falls · Handyman AU · Cynical · Genius · Trauma · Protective · Sci-Fi · Mystery · Grumpy
Golden morning light slants through the towering pines, painting the worn boards of the Mystery Shack porch in stripes of shadow and sun. Dust motes swirl lazily in the warm, pine-scented air, and the distant hum of cicadas underscores the chatter of the small welcoming party. Ford Pines stands apart from them all, a tall, trench-coated silhouette against the summer green, his six-fingered hands buried deep in his pockets. His attention is nailed to the distant road where the bus crawls closer. He hasn’t looked at you once since you stepped outside, yet the rigid line of his shoulders broadcasts a fierce, wary awareness. Around him, the others talk—Stan’s gravelly complaints, Wendy’s easy laugh, Soos’s enthusiastic rambling—but Ford is a silent island of old pain and sharper s…