"That's great!" Stanford's voice laughed from the other end of the phone. "When can you be here?"

"Uh.." Fiddleford thought about it for a second. He didn't want to leave immediately, he'd just found out about this job. However, he also didn't want Stanford to have to wait too long for his arrival. "I was thinking maybe Tuesday, in the afternoon?"

"Yeah, that works."

"Is there anything I should bring, aside from the obvious?" Fiddleford wondered. He was going to be in a strange town for a long time, and didn't want to forget anything.

"Whatever will make you more comfortable, I guess. But other than that, I've got everything we'll need right here." Stanford assured his friend.

"Alright, then. What's your address again?"

"Gravity Falls, Oregon, and my house is at 618 Gopher Road." Stanford gave Fiddleford the complete location, and the latter wrote the information down, muttering it to himself.

"Great. See you in four days, then."

"I look forward to it!" The two men bid each other goodbye before hanging up the phone.

The next four days past far too quickly for Fiddleford's liking, and before he knew it, the day had come to set off for Gravity Falls. He'd packed his bags and loaded up the family's vehicle with everything he'd need. The small family stood on the front lawn of their small property, saying their goodbyes.

"I'm gonna miss you, Da." Tate hugged his father tightly.

"I know, buddy. But I'll be back to visit you two before you know it." He assured the five year old, who nodded.

"He'll be back for Christmas, Tate." Ada reminded her son, bringing a huge smile to his face.

"Of course I will." Fiddleford glanced at his watch. "I'd best be going in the next few minutes." He frowned a little before taking a step forward to embrace his two family members. "I love you guys."

"We love you too." Slowly, reluctantly Fidd took a step backwards and walked around to the other side of the vehicle.

"Bye!"

"Bye!"

"See you in a few months!"

"Yup. I'll call you tonight!" Fiddleford promised before climbing into the old pickup truck. He waved once out the window before turning a corner, his house disappearing from his field of view.

The drive to Gravity Falls wasn't terribly long, and at about three in the afternoon, Fiddleford McGucket pulled onto the driveway of Stanford Pines's cabin. After gathering up his few, albeit heavy, bags, Fiddleford waddled up to the cabin's front door. Before he could figure out how to knock on the wooden door without setting his luggage down, it was thrown open.

"Fiddleford!" Stanford exclaimed, visibly excited.

"Stanford!" Fiddleford responded, just as elated.

"Here, let me help you with that." Stanford reached out and took one of Fiddleford's two bags before stepping back to invite the taller man inside.

"Nice place." Fidd grinned, looking around at the scattered papers and textbooks lying on every available surface, except for the floor. Aside from that, the wooden house was quite undecorated, with many boxes stacked and swaying precariously.

"Yeah, yeah." Stanford rolled his eyes, but his exuberant smile didn't diminish. "Good to see you, too."

"Aw, I'm just joking."

"I know." Stanford shook his head slightly, and there was a brief silent spell. "So you want to go to your room and get settled in first, or see the interdimensional portal blueprints?"

"I can get settled later, can we take a look at the blueprints?" Fiddleford's eyes gleamed with wonder.

"Of course! I knew you were going to say that." Ford winked before walking briskly towards another room. "Come on then!"

"Oh my.." Fidd's jaw dropped when his eyes fell upon the dark due paper. He picked up the paper, examining the design of the machine. "You're really goin' all out with this, aren't you?"

"Not really. I mean, now that you're here, the calculation and construction should be much easier." Stanford shrugged.

"Even so, this thing is going to be huge!" Fiddleford exclaimed, still not taking his eyes away from the lines.

"Heh, yeah..." Stanford put a hand to the back of his neck.

"When can we start, Stanford?" Fiddleford asked eagerly, finally setting the large pages back on the desk where they had previously lain.

"Oh, please, I go by Ford now." Ford told his friend politely. "But, as to your question, we can start whenever you're ready. You must be tired- I take it the drive was long?" He continued.

"Not too bad, actually. I'd be ready to start tonight, even. I'm seriously excited to see the finished product!" Fiddleford gazed expectantly through a tinted glass window to where a large empty cavern sat, where the interdimensional portal was to be built. Already, supplies covered the ground, everything from welding masks to wood and steel support beams, to square sheets of metal and odd looking tools that even the blonde haired engineer couldn't name.

"Are you sure about that? You don't want a night to just relax before we start working?" Ford asked, one eyebrow raised. "We won't have breaks very often." He warned.

"Alright." Fiddleford relented. "Was there something you had in mind?"

"No, not really." Ford stated as he walked around, shutting off light switches. "But I guess there is a diner in town that has some really great food. Would you want to just go out for supper, and I can tell you about everything that I have planned for the next year or so?" He finished, turning to face Fiddleford in the dim light. The two started towards the stairs, heading back to the main floor of the building.

"Sure. I'd like to know what the plan is." Fiddleford agreed quietly. At the top of the stairs, Ford nodded.

"Great. Now can I show you your room?" He inquired with a polite tone.

"Of course." Fidd laughed. "Thank you." Stanford led the way down the hall, already beginning to tell Fiddleford almost every unusual or paranormal event that had occurred since his arrival in Gravity Falls. He explained the town's strange properties, and some of the most memorable creatures he'd thus far encountered. It didn't take long to reach the room.

"Here it is. Sorry I couldn't get an actual bed for you." Ford apologized, gesturing to the cot that was set up in the small beige room.

"Oh, don't worry about that. These are fine arrangements." Fiddleford assured his friend.

"Ok." Ford shuffled his feet a little and shoved his hands deep into the pockets of his tan overcoat. "Make yourself at home. I'll leave to let you get comfortable." He backed out the doorway and turned to go.

"Thank you, Ford." Fidd called to the other man walking quickly down the hall. He responded with something that sounded like "Don't mention it, buddy!"  Setting his bags down, Fidd surveyed his surroundings. His mind drifted back to the basement, and the blueprints he'd seen. He just knew that once it was completed, the portal was going to be breathtaking.

Hey, guys! I am so sorry this took so long. Thank you all for being so patient, I really appreciate it! ;)

I know these first two chapters have been a wee bit short. The chapters will hopefully get longer as the story progresses.

I learned something from this chapter- I don't like to write fluff. I'm just not a very affectionate person by nature, so writing about it is weird for me. The rest of it was fun to write though, I enjoyed it. \(:D)/

Anyways, thanks for reading, and I will see you soon with chapter three. Later!

~GreyJay13