Falling Into Boiling Trouble - Manatee_rex22 (2024)

Chapter 1

Chapter Text

The Multiverse is a VERY VAST place... countless dimensions and realms within it. No one knew that better than Stanford Pines. He had seen so many different dimensions that he lost count by now. Stanford had explored probably a small portion of the Multiverse by now, and he has been traveling it for five years! Or was it ten? Twenty? He didn't know anymore... each dimension he visited had it's own rate of time, so it was hard to know EXACTLY how long he has been away from his home dimension.

All Stanford knew was, it has been a long time.. his hair turning gray, a lighter patch showing where his metal plate had been installed. His joints also ached from time to time, especially during horrible weather, or freezing temperatures.. when did he become an old man? The thought causing him to chuckle to himself. He never thought that such a thing would cross his mind, by all accounts.. Stanford should be dead by know, the Multiverse is a cruel place to be... but somehow, Stanford has survived. Running and surviving on adrenaline (90% of the time), wit, stubbornness, trial and error (mostly error the first "two" years), and knowledge from other travelers.

Stanford lets out a breath as he comes out of his thoughts to see how far he has walked, the blue grass thick under his boots and the purple trees surround him on all sides. Looks like he had wandered into a forest after leaving the marketplace of Dimension 294~20. The human male lets the breeze caress his stubbled face, taking a mental note to use his trusty Zippo lighter from Earth--21.23 to "shave" later on tonight.. for now, the sun is still high, so he has time to find a safe vortex to continue his mission. After taking a moment to catch his breath, Stanford sets off, heading downhill carefully.

"Thank goodness I kept this Zegorn walking stick from Dimension 38." Stanford mused to himself

The human male uses the reddish-brown walking stick to help him with the steeper parts of the hill, a few bird-like creatures fly overhead screeching loudly. Not concerned about the creatures in any way, Stanford keeps pressing on. The smells of various wild flowers was a welcoming one, the marketplace had been filled with all kinds of scents... including ones that had been none too pleasant. Stanford breathed it in as he made his way down the hill, he stopped long enough to silently watch fox-like creature to scurry by with her four young-lings, Stanford smiled at their beautiful silver fur.

"Have a good day, Ma'am." Stanford says to the mother "fox"

The creatures disappear into the blueish green bushes a few yards away, and out of sight, letting out sounds that reminded Stanford of the wind-chimes that his mother hung on the outside of Pines Pawns during the spring and summer when he was growing up.

After a couple moments, Stanford starts walking again only to feel something very strange. At first, Stanford thinks his walking stick found a hole in the ground.. but that's not it at all! It feels like there's no ground under him at all anymore! The male yells out as he falls, closing his eyes on instinct and wrapping his arms around his head to protect it from hitting anything hard when he lands. After falling for at least two minutes, Stanford feels his body hit something.. soft? He smells dirt and pollen.. so he landed in some sort of vegetation then.

Stanford slowly uncurls his arms from his head, and opens his eyes only for them to widen in fear when he sees glowing spears being pointed at him. The "people" holding the spears and other weapons at him are wearing strange white cloaks and gray masks that reminded Stanford of his studies on the Black Plague in the seventh grade.

"Hands up!" one orders

Normally, Stanford would fight back, using one of his various energy-based guns to his advantage.. but he's outnumbered 18-1. So, Stanford slowly raises his arms up, opening his hands to show that he'll go peacefully. One of the "people" tilts their head as the others gasp at what they're seeing.

"Six fingers? On each hand?" a male asks in awe "Is that even possible?"

"Does it even matter?" a female replied, irritatedly "He destroyed the Emperor's prized Dragon Bush!"

"If I may..." Stanford speaks up "I didn't mean to land on the bush... I quite literally fell into this place."

"SILENCE!" the female orders "Be grateful that we haven't killed you, peasant!"

Stanford wisely stays silent as the male cloaked guard helps him onto his feet and forces his arms behind him. The male guard places red glowing cuffs around Stanford's wrists, and gasps when he notices something else.

"Rounded ears!" the male announced "He's a human!"

"What?" another female asked "That's impossible Steve! There's only one human on the Isles right now.. and that's the young female."

"I'm not kidding! He has round ears just like the Owl Lady's human!" Steve replied, pointing at Stanford's large ears

The female guard that ordered Stanford to be silent walks forward to observe him closely, Stanford narrows his eyes at her, looking threatening even though he's cuffed. The female guard looks to the others.

"Take him to Emperor Belos... he'll know what to do with this human." she ordered

The other guards salute instantly "Yes, Ma'am!"

"You better hope that Emperor Belos is a good mood today, human." the female guard warned "He's NOT a merciful man..."

Chapter 2

Chapter Text

Stanford grunted under his breath as he tried working the red glowing cuffs off his wrists, but no luck. What were these things made of? What kind of technology is this? He has never seen anything like it before.. and he's been cuffed before due to being incarcerated at least twice. All Stanford could do was move his fingers occasionally so they wouldn't go numb, that was about it. A guard shoved him from behind, telling him to keep moving, how could they know where they're even going? All the halls in this massive castle looked the same to him!

"Can you at least tell me where I am?" Stanford asked

"Silence, human!" a male guard barked

"Easy there, Jotie." another male said "He's asking a normal question."

"I don't go easy on prisoners, Steve.. and neither should you." Jotie huffed

The guards turned down yet another hallway, Stanford following unwillingly. He looked at some of the tapestries that hug on the walls, a few of them sent shivers down his spine.. especially the one of a golden masked guard bowing in front of an imposing figure. Stanford wasn't sure why, but he got the feeling that the imposing figure was not a good man to anyone... including those who do as he asks.

"Here we are." Jotie announced "Hope you're ready, human. You won't be alive for too much longer.. try not to let your blood stain the tile, okay?"

Before Stanford could snark back, he's pushed from behind by one of the other guards. Stanford grunts as he walks through large open doors, and into a massive throne room. The male blinks and swallows thickly when he sees a heart beating above a throne, what the heck? He has definitely never seen anything like that!

"What has you in the throne room?" a voice asked "You're on patrol duty in the gardens today."

Stanford's attention is drawn to the throne. Upon it sits the imposing figure from the tapestries. He wears a golden mask with two long upward-facing horns. The eyes of the mask are hollow, creating the appearance of having empty eye sockets. He wears a large white and brown cape with gold trim, golden gloves, a baggy gray tunic, and black pants tucked into brown boots.

Jotie bows "I'm sorry to disturb you, Emperor Belos.. but we arrested this man, he fell from the sky and landed on your prized Dragon Bush."

"And you brought him here why?" the Emperor asked "You could kill him yourselves behind the castle."

"The Captain told us to bring him to you." Jotie replied "Steve noticed that this man is human."

The throne room goes completely silent as the Emperor instantly turns his attention to Stanford, due to the eye of the mask being hallow.. Stanford can't tell what the Emperor's current emotion is right now. The Emperor stands and approaches, the guards stayed bowed down except for the one keeping Stanford from running off. Stanford can only grit is teeth as the imposing Emperor observes him for several long moments, the scent of smoke and dirt causes Stanford to wrinkle his nose. The Emperor straightens up, his posture doesn't give any hints as to what he's feeling either.

"It seems that Steve is correct." Emperor Belos stated "This man is a human.. how interesting. He fell from the sky, you say?"

Jotie nods "Yes, Emperor Belos. He fell from the sky and landed on the Dragon Bush, it's a complete mess."

"Terra Snapdragon can fix any damage done to my Dragon Bush." Emperor Belos said dismissively

"But how do you wish to punish him?" a female guard asked "He deserves to be punished for his crime."

Crime? Stanford blinked, falling onto a bush by mistake is a crime? That doesn't make any sense at all! Stanford ended up here by pure accident! He didn't know that he would literally fall into this place!

"Oh, he will be punished." Emperor Belos assured "Tell me human, how did you end up here?"

Stanford shifts a bit "I'm not entirely sure.. I literally fell into this place. Before hand, I was in a place known as Dimension 294~20."

Emperor Belos sits back down on his throne, his hands folded under his chin, like he's thinking deeply about Stanford's reply. What did the question have to do with punishment? Stanford wasn't sure.. but he felt it would be best to answer the questions truthfully... it could help reduce his punishment somehow.

"I'm not familiar with Dimension 294~20... do humans live there?" Emperor Belos asked

"No humans, it's populated by bipedal beings with blueish-purple skin and black eyes." Stanford replied "They're very peaceful beings, they seem to live off the land."

Emperor Belos raises his head "What were you doing there?"

"Getting a few supplies with the few coins I have." Stanford responded "Then I went searching for a safe vortex... the safe ones are usually green, blue, purple, and silver."

"Wait... you're speaking like you have experience with this." Emperor Belos stated "Why is that?"

"Because I have been traveling the Multiverse for years now, I have learned what vortex is safe and what isn't." Stanford replied

The entire throne room goes silent again except for the beating heart, Stanford knows that his reply is a shocking one.. apparently, other species view humans as "weak and frail".. or "inferior." Such nonsense!

"You have been traveling the Multiverse.. for years?" Emperor Belos asked "How are you not dead?"

"I'm not sure... I have come close to death, but I just keep surviving somehow." Stanford shrugged

"This must mean that you're strong and intelligent... you can assist me with a side project that I have been working on for many years as part of your punishment." Emperor Belos said "Unfortunately, I won't be able to keep an eye on you all day, so I will need someone to make sure you don't cause trouble..."

"Do you need us to find someone, Emperor?" Jotie asked

Emperor Belos shook his head "No... I have the perfect woman in mind, bring Lilith here at once."

Steve salutes "Yes, sir, Emperor Belos!"

Steve quickly leaves the throne room, the other guards stay where they are as Emperor Belos looks back to Stanford.

"So, what is your name, human?" the Emperor asked

"Stanford Pines." Stanford replied

Emperor Belos chuckled menacingly "Welcome to the Emperor's Coven, Stanford."

Chapter 3

Chapter Text

Lilith Clawthorne has grown used to the busy schedule she has in the Emperor's Coven, especially now that she is towards the top. Awake at dawn, asleep by moon-peak, only one day off a year. It wasn't what she pictured for herself, but she had to keep her head held high... she is SO CLOSE to having her sister's curse being healed! The trouble was getting Edalyn to join the Coven, free-will or capture.. both routes have failed so far. Unfortunately, Eda was being even MORE illusive and shifty than before now that she had taken on a human as her apprentice, apparently Eda wanted to protect the teen girl at any cost. That could mean Eda's downfall and capture at some point, Lilith could feel it in her bones.

"Lilith!" a voice called

Lilith snapped out of her thoughts, and looked up from her book on Advanced Magic-Based Traps.. she sighed when she saw Steve approaching her. Lilith is no fool by any means, she knows full well that the scout has a huge crush on her... unfortunately, Lilith didn't really return the sentiment.

"Yes, Steve?" Lilith asked

"Emperor Belos requires your presence in the Throne Room immediately." Steve replied

Lilith found this quite interesting, she wasn't scheduled for any patrols or anything today... and she had already failed to bring Eda in earlier. So, why would Emperor Belos need her in the Throne Room? Did he think of another way to bring Eda in? Or was Belos going to punish her for her failure? Lilith suppressed a shudder, she had seen the results of Belos' punishments... most of them seen on the Golden Guard whenever his mask was off.

Lilith took a deep breath, and set her book aside "Very well."

Steve nodded and walked alongside Lilith to the Throne Room, surprisingly the scout wasn't making small talk or trying to ask her out, Lilith found this very out of character for Steve. What is going on? Did Steve know what was going to happen once they entered the Throne Room? Lilith shook her head, paranoia wasn't going to help her in any way, so she just kept her head high as she walked.

"After you, Lilith." Steve said as they reached the Throne Room

Lilith gave a small, thankful nod and walked into the Throne Room. So far, nothing seemed out of place or different.. it appeared that nothing had changed since she was in the room earlier. She bowed in front of the throne where Belos sat.

"You sent for me, Emperor Belos?" Lilith asked

"Yes, it seems that we've had a... development today." Belos replied "I need you to assist with keeping him in line."

Lilith blinked in confusion. What did Belos mean by "him"? Nothing like this has happened before... except when the Golden Guard reluctantly asked for assistance with popping his knee back into joint three weeks ago.

"I don't understand, Emperor Belos." Lilith said honestly

"We have a.. visitor in the Boiling Isles, he could be a future member to the Coven if he does well. He will be assisting me with a project that I have been working on, but I can't keep an eye on him all day, so I have decided that he will be in your care for now." Emperor Belos replied

The reply didn't make any sense to Lilith at all, she's a high ranking member of the Emperor's Coven! Not a baby-sitter!

"But this is... not under my usual tasks.." Lilith tried

Emperor Belos shifted a bit "It will be easy for you, Lilith... think of him as a companion, or a pet."

"Surely, there is someone better suited than me." Lilith stated "Perhaps, one of the scouts? They could easily handle a young visitor."

Emperor Belos chuckled "Oh, from the looks of him... he's not young."

Before Lilith could say anything else, a few Coven Scouts came into the Throne Room.. Lilith could easily tell that they were at least mid-level and seemed to have someone with them.

"The maids took the belongings, cleaned up, and dressed the human, Emperor Belos." a female scout reported

Lilith blinked with wide eyes again... human?! That's impossible! Humans are extremely rare! Lilith wasn't even sure how Eda found her human! Lilith's eyes drifted over to the man that the scouts brought in. He seemed to be average height, gray hair speckled with hints of brown... a horizontal silver-ish streak along the sides, blue eyes, glasses, narrow build, and was dressed in a gray shirt with long sleeves, a silver collar around his neck, black pants, and large brown boots coated in dirt. Sure enough, Lilith spotted the man's large, rounded human ears... this was... astounding!

"It looks like the maids did a good job cleaning him up." Emperor Belos noted

"I feel violated..." the human grumbled

Lilith couldn't help but blink again, the human male had a very distinct, deep baritone voice to him. Lilith straightened up and looked professional when Emperor Belos turned his attention back to her.

"Lilith, this is our visitor, Stanford Pines." Emperor Belos introduced "He will be under your watchful eye."

Before Lilith could say or do anything, the Golden Guard entered the Throne Room. It looked like the teenager had just returned from patrols... his artificial magic staff glowing, golden mask slightly smudged, and his cloak had a few leaves stuck to the bottom.

"And you don't have to worry about him running off, Vitimir and Osran put an enchanted collar on him." the Golden Guard stated "If he steps a single inch off castle grounds, he'll be shocked... painfully."

Lilith took note that the human male winced at the thought of being shocked, but didn't bother saying anything about it, no one enjoys the sensation of being shocked... except for maybe Vitimir.

"I expect you to keep an eye on Stanford when he's not assisting me with my project, Lilith." Emperor Belos ordered "So for now, your task of bringing in the Owl Lady will be given to the scouts... our deal will remain intact, however."

Lilith thought the terms over for a long moment, she wasn't expecting to keep an eye on an adult male... much less a lowly human, but no one questions Emperor Belos. Plus, if the scouts *somehow* bring Eda in... the deal of healing Eda's curse will stay intact! Overall, it didn't sound too difficult... but it seemed to be beneath her usual tasks. Then again, not even she would question Emperor Belos...

"Very well, Emperor Belos." Lilith bowed "I will take on this task, I will not fail you."

"Be sure that you don't, Lilith." Emperor Belos dismissed

"Show Stanford to your quarters Lilith, I'm sure you'll figure everything out from there." the Golden Guard said

Chapter 4

Chapter Text

Lilith couldn't believe this! Not only is her position in the Coven being wasted, she's stuck practically babysitting a grown man... a human one at that! She held back a growl of annoyance as he walked through the hallways, Stanford following a few steps behind. Lilith could only take comfort in knowing that her deal with Emperor Belos would stay intact "if" the Coven Scouts manage to capture Eda.

"Perhaps you can tell me exactly what dimension I'm in?" Stanford asked "No one has really told me much of anything."

Lilith broke out of her thoughts at the sound of Stanford's question, she only scowled.

"It doesn't matter, human." Lilith responded "You're property of the Emperor's Coven now.. and apparently my pet, so you don't need to know what dimension or realm you're currently in."

Stanford grunted "Pet? Are you actually going to refer to me as such? I'm not too different from you, by the looks of it."

Lilith laughed "Human, I am MUCH higher than you! Your ENTIRE species is the lowest rung on the ladder of all known species! So we are anything but equal!"

Lilith heard Stanford grind his teeth, but paid him no mind. If she was going to be stuck keeping an eye on him, she wasn't going to let him taint her status, or personality like Eda was allowing her human to do.

"I know you don't see us as equals, I'm use to other species seeing themselves as superior... but may I ask that you at least call me by my name?" Stanford asked

Lilith wanted to blink in surprise. The human was use to being treated as a lesser being? Has he encountered other races in the Multiverse? No! She wasn't going to allow herself to get curious, let down her guard, and become soft! She's Lilith Clawthorne! Head of the Emperor's Coven!

"Well, I suppose all pets should be called by their name. I'll allow that much." Lilith said

Stanford nodded "Thank you."

"However, you must refer to me as Lady Lilith, and do everything I ask of you... no questions asked, no hesitation! Do you understand?" Lilith asked seriously

A few silent seconds filled the air between them, Lilith could hear Stanford's teeth grinding again, followed by a deep sigh.

"Understood... Lady Lilith." Stanford replied slowly

Lilith smirked "Very good, I'm glad we could come to an understanding."

The two continued walking through the halls silently until Lilith came to a stop at her quarters, and opened the door. Stanford allowed her to enter first, and stepped in a couple seconds after. The human male looked around in interest, which was no surprise to Lilith... since she is the head of the Coven, she has one of the larger rooms in the West wing. It's quite lavish, yet cozy at the same time.

Using some of her magic, Lilith placed a simple blue bedroll on the floor near a corner with one blanket, and a single pillow.

"You can sleep in that corner, but you sleep when I do.. not before." Lilith ordered

"Very well." Stanford replied

Part of Lilith was quite intrigued. This human wasn't going to argue about sleeping on the floor? Didn't his kind prefer being more comfortable? After a moment, Lilith shook it off, Stanford's comfort didn't matter.. he was a new addition to the Coven, and her "pet".. so why bother making him feel comfortable here?

"Also, you are not to touch anything in this room unless I give you permission. You will accompany me to the dining hall at mealtime, but I will decide what you eat... if you deserve to." Lilith instructed

Stanford seemed to take the information well enough, nodding in understanding. Apparently, he was also accustomed to going without meals... what was wrong with this human?

"You will start assisting Emperor Belos with his 'project' tomorrow morning, so it's best that you stay in my sight until then." Lilith said "Do you have any questions or concerns?"

"Can you please remove the handcuffs?" Stanford asked politely

Lilith found this question odd, considering that Stanford is FAR from his home realm, became the property of the Emperor's Coven, and was being treated like a Coven Grunt. None the less, she could understand why Stanford would want the handcuffs to be removed... so she nodded.

"Very well." Lilith replied

With a small spell circle, Lilith removed the cuffs from Stanford's wrists and tossed them into her trash.

"Thank you." Stanford said, rubbing his wrists

Lilith nodded, but found her mint-green eyes drawn to Stanford's hands, not only were they rather large for a human, they each had six fingers!

"My Titan... your hands." Lilith blinked

"They're a little chaffed and numb, but I'll get the feeling back in no time." Stanford said, rubbing his wrists.

Lilith shook her head " No, I mean... you have six fingers! On each hand!"

Stanford nodded "Yes, I do. In my dimension it's known as Postaxial Polydactyly, I was born with it."

"I have never heard of, or seen such a thing... no one on the Isles has." Lilith stated

"That would explain why the guards were so surprised." Stanford mused

"I didn't even know that humans could have six fingers on their hands." Lilith admitted

Stanford stopped rubbing his wrists and sat down on the bedroll, he looked at his hands as he moved ALL twelve of his fingers. This was extraordinary to Lilith! She didn't even know such a thing existed, witches definitely didn't have Polydactyly of any kind.

"It's a very rare birth defect, most cases aren't fully formed or functional, but I am a... special case." Stanford said

By the expression on Stanford's face, his condition wasn't met with fascination often, if at all in his lifetime. Was he berated for it by his own kind? It wouldn't surprise Lilith, she heard that humans could be cruel to other species, and their own kind... but that wasn't her problem. The trails that Stanford has gone through are no concern of hers.

"Does your condition make it hard to work with your hands?" Lilith asked

Stanford shook his head in a negative manner as he turned his attention from his hands to Lilith.

"No, having an extra digit on my hands never made things harder for me to accomplish tasks." Stanford replied

Lilith smiled "Good, then you won't have any issues while you're assisting Emperor Belos with his project."

Stanford moved a bit "Do you know what he's been working on?"

"No, and I don't question him about it." Lilith responded "And neither should you, especially if you want to continue to exist."

Chapter 5

Chapter Text

The book on Advanced Magical Traps had been an interesting read, but using them had proven.. ineffective when trying to get a hold of Eda. "The Wildest Witch of the Isles" was far too crafty, and figured out how to trip the traps without being caught. Lilith didn't know how her sister was pulling it off, but somehow Eda managed to avoid eight traps in two days!

"Perhaps, I should find something else to trap her." Lilith thought, as she returned to the castle

Sighing with defeat, Lilith returned to her quarters to find Stanford sitting on his bedroll, reading one of the books she allowed him to read. Stanford looked up for a moment, curiosity crossing his blue eyes, but Lilith waved him off.

"Don't ask, Stanford.. it's been a long day." Lilith stated

Stanford set the book aside carefully "Is there something I can do to help... Lady Lilith?"

Even though Stanford has been in her care for two days, Lilith noticed that he still struggled with calling her by the title that she wanted him to. That didn't matter though, he would get use to it soon enough.

"You don't understand our realm, Stanford, there's no way you can help me." Lilith said

"I may not be able to help you with whatever task you snuck off to help the Scouts with, but I can listen if you need to talk." Stanford offered

Leave it to a man like Stanford to notice that Lilith would sneak away to "assist the Scouts from a distance" during certain hours. She didn't know how Stanford caught on so quickly, while other witches were none the wiser!

"I have no idea how you figured me out so quickly." Lilith sighed, sitting on her bed

"You can't survive in the Multiverse without being at least somewhat observant." Stanford shrugged

"You've only been here two days." Lilith pointed out

"I figured out the hunting habits of the Zing-Ling tribe in twelve hours in Dimension 427, I avoided being captured by guards in Earth 38-87, and much more." Stanford said simply "I learned quickly that being observant keeps you alive out there."

Lilith found it very interesting that Stanford had encountered other many dimensions and realms, somehow surviving each place. Lilith had been told by many witches (including other Coven Heads), that humans are incredibly weak and frail... but Stanford broke that mold easily. Not only did he look physically fit, his mind was also incredibly adapt! Stanford absorbed the information in books Lilith allowed him to read like a hungry Trash Slug. In a way, Stanford's thirst for knowledge reminded her of the Golden Guard when he was still in training.

"Stanford.. what I do with my time is no concern of yours." Lilith stated "So it's best not to stick your nose into it."

Stanford nodded slightly "Very well then. Is there a way that I can help you relax then?"

Lilith wanted to growl in annoyance, why was this man trying to make her feel better? Why was he accepting his role as her "pet" so easily? Hardly fighting it? Not giving her trouble? Then her mind stopped... Stanford is an observant man, he has seen her use magic at least three times by now. Stanford probably figured out that he's in a world where magic can be used regularly, and that it could be used to harm him.. that the collar around his neck isn't the only thing that could cause him pain and injury.

That's why Stanford is accepting this life as best as he can, he has no choice but to do so. If he fights against it, he could get hurt. If he tries to run, he will be shocked. Instead of being trapped in the Multiverse with no way to the Human Realm, Stanford is now trapped in the Emperor's castle on the Boiling Isles.

Lilith shook the thoughts and feelings off, she couldn't and wouldn't feel bad for this human! She wasn't going to allow it! Eda might be willing to let herself be softened by a human, but Lilith wasn't going to let herself fall into the same fate as her sister. With a sigh, Lilith stood up and headed to the bathroom.

"I don't need any assistance from you right now, Stanford." Lilith stated "Keep yourself entertained until I return."

Stanford nodded as Lilith disappeared into the bathroom and closed the door behind her. When he heard water flowing, Stanford let out a weary sigh. He couldn't figure Lilith out, sometimes she seemed rather interested in him, curious even.. and then, the coldness returned to her expressive mint-green eyes.

Lilith had mentioned to him before that she is the head of the Emperor's Coven, but that didn't matter to Stanford.. he now knew the importance of letting himself go every once in a while, that being to focused, or serious wasn't a good thing. Stanford even let himself go, and danced around a bonfire with the feline creatures of Dimension 326-8, what a night that had been! It felt good to let loose, unwind, and be himself for a night.

Stanford was curious why Lilith couldn't do the same in the safety of her own room? Stanford surely wasn't going to tell anyone, he was hardly allowed to speak when assisting Emperor Belos with his "project".. so who was Stanford going to tell? Answer, no one. Stanford sighed as he picked the book back up, and decided to read some more until Lilith returned.

Meanwhile in Gravity Falls, Oregon...

A groan of exhaustion and defeat was heard from the empty gift shop of The Mystery Shack, a vending machine popped off the wall, and a man came from behind it. He pushed the machine back into place, and set a lantern on the counter of the dark gift shop. The man sat down on a stool behind the cash register and sighed heavily to himself.

"What am I doing wrong? I really thought I had it this time." the man asked

A jar of eyeballs blinked at the man, offering hardly any feedback. The man sighed as he grabbed the lantern and left the gift shop, going into the residential half of the house. The man looked at himself in a mirror for a moment.

"C'mon Stan.." he told himself "You are NOT giving up! You owe it to your brother and yourself to get him back! Yes.. it's been almost 30 years, but you can do this!"

Stan stepped away from the mirror after a few moments, and sat down on his favorite chair, rubbing his large hands through his short gray hair.

"I'm going to get you back home, Stanford." Stan promised "No matter what the cost is..."

Chapter 6

Chapter Text

Stanford knew that each dimension and realm has a different flow of time, but he quickly learned that this one has a sunrise and sunset. By his count, he has been here for three weeks now. Three weeks of assisting Emperor Belos with his "project", which is mainly trying to figure out "vortex and/or portal energy". That sent shudders down Stanford's spine, it reminded him TOO MUCH of Bill.. but he didn't dare ask why Emperor Belos wanted that kind of information studied. Stanford had seen what happens if someone questions the Emperor too much, or asks the "wrong" question.

Today, Stanford could consider his day off. Emperor Belos is quite busy with meetings and other things, so Stanford was mainly in Lilith's quarters. However, Stanford had read ALL the books Lilith allowed him to read at least three times by now, and he even observed some birds flying outside for a while.. but he was getting quite bored. With Lilith "checking on the Scouts' progress", Stanford was alone in the room.. who would know if he left for a couple hours?

Even though all of the halls looked the same in the castle, Stanford had learned where certain rooms are located. He made his way through a couple hallways, hoping to locate the library, when something caught his attention. It was a small speck on the otherwise clean floor, but Stanford knew it all too well.. blood! Stanford moved his gaze along the floor, and sure enough, he spotted another.. and another, each spot a tiny bit larger than the other.

"Everyone has a difficult job in the Emperor's Coven, Stanford." Lilith's voice echoed in Stanford's mind "It's best not to get concerned if you see someone injured... they can easily go to a Healer."

Stanford knew that the Healing Ward was not in this area, and the blood was not leading to it... Stanford just couldn't let someone bleed out like an injured Zingfar! That wouldn't be right! Without thinking twice, Stanford abandoned his quest to find the library, and followed the drops of blood.. luckily, it looked like the maids haven't found the trail yet.

"The trail is thin, so whoever is injured isn't going to bleed out quickly..." Stanford said to himself "But, the consistency of the trail means that the injury is an area that's difficult to take care of unassisted."

Stanford turned a corner, following the trail.. one could compare it to a predator hunting prey, but that is not the case here. Stanford wanted to help. Sure, he still didn't know too much about this realm, but he wasn't going to turn a blind eye! He wasn't going to be heartless, and let someone suffer with an injury that could become a problem over time.

After a couple minutes, Stanford found himself in a hallway that he had never been in before... there were many doors, but most of them were closed. Could these rooms be quarters for other members of the Coven? Stanford noticed the trail of blood lead to the only open door in the hallway. Carefully, Stanford approached the room, finding it much smaller than he expected. It was no bigger than the bedroom he shared with Stanley when they were growing up.

Stanford spotted an ivory-colored hooded cloak with a golden triangle clasp hanging on a hook, there was a large hole and blood stains marring the fabric. Stanford's eyes then found a person with ash blond hair sitting on the bed, wearing a dark yellow long-sleeved tunic with a golden-yellow short-sleeved shirt over it and a dark brown belt, black leggings, dark brown gloves, and boots. The person seemed to notice Stanford's presence and looked up, the person wore a pointed two-faceted mask with a thin eye-slot across it. The Golden Guard!

"What are you doing here, Human?" The Golden Guard asked sharply

"I'm sorry if I'm bothering you, Golden Guard.. but I noticed some blood on the floor, and I followed it here." Stanford replied honestly

The Golden Guard tilted his head, thanks to his mask, Stanford couldn't tell what the other male was thinking. Stanford couldn't help but observe the Golden Guard's thin build, like he was underfed, or still developing.. is.. is the Golden Guard a teenager?

"Well, you found the source, you can go." The Golden Guard snipped "I can handle this on my own."

Stanford took mental notes of a medical kit on the bed, and a roll of bandages next to it. It appeared that the Golden Guard was trying to remove his clothing to take care of the wound when Stanford showed up.

"I know that we don't know each other that much, but... I am quite experienced with First-Aid, I could assist you." Stanford offered

The Golden Guard snorted "The Golden Guard? Needing help from a lowly human? Have you been into Lilith's stash of Witches Haze?"

"I don't know what that is, so the answer is no, but by the looks of things.. you need an extra pair of hands." Stanford responded "I can assist you with your wound for a few minutes, and leave.. I won't speak a single word of it to anyone else."

The Golden Guard seemed skeptical, his body language communicated that much. The guard then looked to the medical kit for a moment, then back to Stanford.

"Close the door behind you." The Golden Guard ordered

Stanford entered the room, closing the door behind him without a single word. The Golden Guard moved so that his back was facing Stanford, sure enough there was a long vertical slash through the clothing and thin armor.

"My word.. what happened?" Stanford asked

"You don't understand the Boiling Isles, Human..." The Golden Guard replied "Things are very different here."

Stanford carefully helped the teen remove his clothing to see the wound better, the slash was to the left of the teenager's spine at least six inches in length, and thin. The wound was still bleeding at a semi-sluggish rate, and the skin around the wound looked slightly jagged.

"The Boiling Isles? So that's where I've been... I remember reading about it in a book of mythical worlds." Stanford stated, opening the medical kit

"No one has told you? Not even Lilith? That's surprising." The Golden Guard said

"Everyone here seems to think I'm better off not knowing exactly where I ended up." Stanford sighed "I have come across many places and species.. but at least I knew what dimension I was in... eighty-five percent of the time."

The Golden Guard didn't ask anything to expand on the statement, he just sat there as Stanford cleaned the wound, only tensing up and giving a small hiss when Stanford applied a liquid that acted like hydrogen peroxide. Part of Stanford wanted to know what happened to the boy, but he knew that the Golden Guard wouldn't give him an answer, so he quietly and carefully took care of the injury.

"Did you get hurt anywhere else?" Stanford asked

The Golden Guard shook his head "My back is the only open injury... the other is a simple bruise on my shoulder. I can deal with that completely on my own."

"Alright then... I appreciate your honesty." Stanford said "But why didn't you go to the Healing Ward?"

"No one is there this time of day, it's their lunch." The Golden Guard replied "Besides, it's not the first time I've taken care of my own injuries."

Stanford held back the need to become ill as he listened to the reply, instead Stanford turned his attention to wrapping bandages around the wound. Stanford is definitely no fool, he noticed scars on the young guard's chest, sides, and back as soon as he helped remove the clothing.

"Lilith has mentioned everyone having difficult jobs within the Coven..." Stanford said

"She's correct, some of us... have it harder than others." The Golden Guard responded

Stanford couldn't help but feel badly for the teen, but he didn't voice it.. he didn't want to cross a boundary that would upset the Golden Guard. So, Stanford finished wrapping the wound and stepped back.

"That will do it, just keep it clean to the best of your ability, and it won't get infected." Stanford said "And I'm a man of my word, I won't speak of this to anyone."

The Golden Guard gave a nod "Be sure that you don't... you best return to Lilith's quarters, you don't want to get into any trouble with her."

Stanford nodded and left the room, the gray haired male sighed to himself as he headed back to the West Wing to Lilith's quarters. This day was truly something that Stanford would not forget any time soon.

Chapter 7

Chapter Text

By Stanford's count, he has been on "The Boiling Isles" for a total of four months now. Unfortunately, today... pain is the only thing his body can process, he can hardly move without pain, let alone think. Even twitching his fingers causes his nerves to light up in pain, it flows through him like electricity! He can only blink heavily as he lays on his bedroll in Lilith's quarters, his wounds sloppily healed by an understudy in the Healing Ward.

Stanford heard a concerned "scraw" come from the nightstand, his eyes slowly move to see Lilith's Palisman sitting there looking at him. The white raven observes Stanford with worried eyes, tilting his head a couple times.

"I'm.. I'm okay, Alphius." Stanford assured "Believe it... or not, I've been in worse pain."

Alphius blinked a few times and hopped off the nightstand, the white raven landed by Stanford's head and carefully pecked at some stray gray hairs. Stanford chuckled a bit, it wasn't often that Alphius was out of his wood form, the bird was nothing but kind toward Stanford... which was the polar opposite of Lilith's aloofness.

"Thank you, Alphius." Stanford said "You're a good, bird."

Alphius clapped his beak and gave a small "scraw", Stanford couldn't understand, but smiled none the less. It seemed that the only kindness Stanford was experiencing so far, was from a Palisman. It was a bit of a sad thought, but a little bit of kindness was better than none at all, though. Stanford had experienced total lack of kindness once before.. okay twice.. alright, he lost count by this point.

The sound of footsteps caused Stanford to break out of his thoughts, the door opened to reveal Lilith. It looked like she had returned from her meeting with Emperor Belos, and the other Coven Heads.

"Leave Stanford be, Alphius." Lilith stated "He deserved his punishment, thus he doesn't need to be coddled through his pain."

Alphius retuned to the nightstand with a dejected look as Stanford let out a light scoff at Lilith's words, it caused him a bit of discomfort, but he handled it.

"I don't see how I 'deserve my punishment', I did nothing wrong." Stanford said

Lilith put a couple scrolls on her bookcase, acting like a living being wasn't in pain on the floor of her quarters, she only gave Stanford a quick glance.

"You claim to have traveled the Multiverse for years, Stanford. A mark of intelligence and resilience. And yet, you have failed to show any results in assisting Emperor Belos with his project." Lilith pointed out "So yes, you deserved to be punished by the Emperor for your failure."

"They're not claims... Lady Lilith, it's the truth. Do you really think that a human would willingly travel the Multiverse for as long as I have? I ended up in the Multiverse by accident... caused by my own HORRIBLE mistakes..." Stanford paused

Lilith recognized a few things in Stanford's tone at the last part of his sentence... guilt, regret, and remorse. Apparently, Stanford had done something seriously wrong to someone in the past, and immensely regrets it.. just like she does.

"You must understand... what Belos wants me to help him with is VERY difficult to do without advanced technology. I don't have that at my disposal, if I did... I would have used it a long time ago." Stanford finished

Part of Lilith felt an emotion connection to Stanford, it seemed that the both of them have done something seriously wrong in the past... they had something in common. Lilith couldn't help but feel a bit bad for Stanford, she had done something horrible in the past as well, and she regrets it everyday.

Lilith shook off the feeling after a few moments, she couldn't let him get under her skin! Granted, it sounded like they have something in common, but she wasn't going to become soft! Eda has already developed a weakness due to her human apprentice, Lilith wasn't going to do the same because of her human pet!

"It doesn't matter, Stanford... a failure is a failure." Lilith said "It doesn't matter if you're new to the Emperor's Coven, and a human... failure is punished."

Stanford moved his gaze to the ceiling with a sigh, but said nothing else. Lilith looked to the human man as he stared at the ceiling, she could see dark circles that put the Golden Guard's to shame.. and a light in his eyes that spoke of someone who experienced much trauma and strife.

"I know it doesn't sound fair to you, but it is what it is." Lilith stated "Emperor Belos can be patient when he wants to, but he has been working on that project for many years. Considering your intellect, you could help him finally complete it."

Stanford didn't fully know what Belos had planned, but Stanford couldn't say anything about what he was helping Emperor Belos with, he was ordered not to say a word... so Stanford only blinked as he stared at the blurry ceiling. Stanford just kept his gaze above him, he hadn't bothered to put his glasses back on, he had a feeling that he would find sleep after his body adjusted to the pain... it's happened many times before during his travels.

"What Emperor Belos wants to do is... difficult to accomplish without the aid of very advanced technology. I know magic exists here, but the task is a high bar to reach." Stanford responded "I'm doing my best, Lilith, I truly am."

"Well, you will have to do better than that, Stanford." Lilith said "The Coven Scouts are laughable with their attempts to capture Eda the Owl Lady. At this rate, I'll go out and bring her in myself."

Stanford blinked "I've heard whispers about this 'Coven system ', and wild magic being 'bad'.. but I don't understand why you're connected to the capture of that specific witch."

"She's a... relative." Lilith responded "I made a deal with Emperor Belos, if I bring Eda in, and she joins the Emperor's Coven... Emperor Belos will heal her curse."

"I... I hear a lot, considering everyone thinks I'm lower than them, thus not worthy to be taken seriously. But, I have heard about Emperor Belos possibly having a 'curse' of his own." Stanford said

Lilith nodded "It effects him from time to time, it causes him a lot of pain. From what I've heard, it's a very NASTY curse."

"If Emperor Belos is capable of healing curses... and has promised to heal the Owl Lady, why hasn't he healed his own curse?" Stanford asked

Lilith blinked with wide eyes as her mind went blank for several moments, such a thought has NEVER crossed her mind before.. especially after she heard about the curse Belos had. How could a simple human have thought of this? Someone who had little knowledge of the Boiling Isles, and even less knowledge of Emperor Belos?! But, there was a bit of a point to Stanford's question... could Emperor Belos REALLY heal Eda's curse?

Chapter 8

Chapter Text

The world outside the castle was mostly silent, most witches and demons had gone off to bed hours ago. Unfortunately, Lilith was just heading to her quarters to finally get some sleep. She had been in back-to-back meetings all day, so she wasn't able to keep an eye on the Scouts today.. but it looked like they once again failed in capturing Eda.

Lilith yawned as she entered her quarters, she found Alphius already snoozing on his perch on the nightstand. Lilith didn't need him in staff-form today, so she allowed her Palisman to do what he pleased. Her eyes then found Stanford quietly reading on his bedroll, it looked like the human's wounds had healed quite well.. of course it has been two weeks since Stanford was punished by Emperor Belos.

"Still awake, I see." Lilith stated

"You told me that I sleep when you do... Lady Lilith." Stanford replied "So, I'm following the rules.. even though it's a very late hour."

"The last meeting ran longer than usual, we had to wait on the head of the Plant Coven... she is so vain about her appearance." Lilith said

Stanford nodded in understanding as Lilith disappeared into the bathroom. He understood in a way, Stanley's ex-girlfriend Carla was always keeping Stanley waiting forever when the two were dating, due to her wanting to "look just right for the occasion". Stanford even remembered that Carla once cancelled a date with Stanley the very last minute due to a pimple on her neck!

"Some people.. or witches in this case, are naturally vain." Stanford noted

Lilith sighed as exited the bathroom, wearing her night clothes and freshened up. She tapped a few of the light balls floating around causing them to vanish, Lilith did this every night, but left a couple lit up so Stanford could see his way to the bathroom during the night.

"Terra Snapdragon is the picture of the word vain! Honestly... the woman was thirty-five minutes late! Even Adrian showed up before she did!" Lilith ranted

"You mean the guy with the weird tail, that sounds like he should be a director on Broadway?" Stanford asked, closing his book "Wow... that has to be a record for tardiness."

Lilith sat down on her bed "Darius was tempted to start the meeting without her, but Kikimora kept reminding him that the meeting had to include ALL of the Coven Heads."

Stanford sucked a breath between his teeth "Ouch... that had to have been a boring wait."

"Immensely." Lilith replied

Stanford removed his glasses as Lilith laid down in her bed, covering herself with a couple blankets with a tired sigh. Stanford set his glasses nearby and got comfortable on his bedroll, allowing the sounds of the night lull him to sleep.

Three hours later...

Lilith found her eyes opening to see it was still relatively dark, why was she suddenly awake? Usually, she sleeps soundly until sunrise, not needing to get up for anything... Lilith sat up to see her Palisman still fast asleep, so Alphius wasn't the cause. What could have awakened her at this hour?

A groan caused Lilith to look over to Stanford, the human was tightly curled on his bedroll, the blanket kicked away. She noticed beads of sweat on Stanford's forehead, his eyes tightly closed, and his six-fingered hands digging into the material of the bedroll.

"Stanford?" Lilith whispered

No verbal reply came, just a groan and a huff from Stanford. This meant that he was still fast asleep, but Stanford's breathing told Lilith that his mind was experiencing something negative.

"S-Stanley..." Stanford groaned "I'm.. I'm sorry."

Lilith tilted her head instantly. Who was Stanley? Was he close to Stanford? Given the similarities between the names, Stanley had to be a relative in some way to Stanford. But.. why would Stanford be saying that he's sorry? Is Stanley one of the reasons why Stanford carries around so much guilt?

"Stanley... please! I'm sorry! I'm so sorry! I... I didn't mean to... I'm... I'm so terribly sorry!" Stanford groaned out "P-please forgive me...."

Lilith felt part of her heart break, she was correct. Stanley must be someone that Stanford had wronged in the past, a regret that Stanford still carries with him to this very day. She could hear the guilt in Stanford's voice, the plead for mercy and forgiveness... was Stanford experiencing a memory? Or something else? None the less, it sounded like Stanford was emotionally gutted.

"Please.. Stanley... I.. I can make this better... I can explain e-everything!" Stanford called out

Lilith couldn't bear to hear more, so she got out of bed as Stanford's hands clench tighter into his bedroll, knuckles turning white. Lilith walked over to Stanford's corner and nudged him, the human instantly woke up with a gasp, body jolting upright instantly. Stanford looked around wildly, sweat dripping down his face, and breathing erratic.

"Easy, Stanford.. breathe." Lilith instructed quietly "It was just a nightmare."

Upon hearing Lilith's voice, Stanford's attention moved to her, his eyes unfocused as he tried to regain regular breathing.

"L... Lady Lilith?" Stanford asked in a confused tone

Lilith nodded "Yes."

Stanford swallowed thickly, looking around the room, no doubt only seeing blurs of shapes due to having his glasses off. Lilith noted his breathing still being elevated, and the sweat staining Stanford's shirt, but she didn't want to cause a fuss.. Stanford was still trying to regain himself.

"I'm... I'm sorry that I disturbed you." Stanford stated, his voice rough

Lilith used her magic to pour a glass of water, and handed it to Stanford carefully. Stanford's slightly shaking hands accepted the glass, and he took a slow sip of water.

"It's okay, I've had nightmares myself... I didn't want yours to cause you to possibly roll into the wall, and hurt yourself." Lilith responded

Stanford nodded silently, still holding the glass of water. The shaking of his hands lessened and his breathing was slowly going back to its normal rate.

"Tell me.. who is Stanley?" Lilith asked "You said his name a few times in your sleep."

Stanford's eyes focused on the floor "Stanley is.. he's my twin brother."

Lilith blinked, on the Boiling Isles the possibility of a witch having twins is 200-1! It's a very rare occurrence here, but she had to remember that Stanford is from the Human Realm... it was probably a more common thing there.

"I... My mistakes caused us to... drift apart." Stanford said without prompting "I wouldn't be too surprised if he... he hates me, and believes that I'm dead..."

That statement broke another piece of Lilith's walls, she could relate to that in quite a few ways. Even though, Eda doesn't know that Lilith cursed her... Lilith wouldn't be surprised if Eda secretly hates her for putting the Emperor's Coven first.

"I can't say any more than you can about your brother, Stanford." Lilith said "However, we all make mistakes in our lives, and they effect those closest to us..."

Stanford shakily nodded "I-indeed.. they do."

Lilith went back over to her bed and sat down, her eyes still on Stanford as he drank the rest of the water, and the glass disappeared thank to Lilith's magic.

"Do you feel better?" Lilith asked "Physically?"

"Yes... I do.. thank you." Stanford replied "I'll try not to wake you up like that again."

Lilith laid down on her bed "I'm not going to punish you for what happens while you're sleeping, Stanford.. no one can. Just try to get some more sleep, okay? You'll need it."

Stanford nodded silently and laid back down on his bedroll, Lilith stared at her ceiling until she heard Stanford's breathing settle into a slumbering rhythm. As she rolled over, Lilith found a foreign thought coming to her mind.

"Stanford needs to go back to the Human Realm."

Chapter 9

Chapter Text

The afternoon sun hung over the outskirts of Bonesborough, bathing everything in light and soft heat, a few Cattleman's Crows flew through the sky fighting over a freshly caught fairy, but Lilith paid them little mind.

It has been five days since Stanford's nightmare about his brother, and since then, the man has had another intense nightmare.. something about running for his life, and being gravely injured by a "Rava Mole". Also, Stanford had been on the receiving end of one of Kikimora's tantrums, (which resulted in a nasty bruise on Stanford's side). Lastly, Lilith secretly witnessed Stanford playing a hauntingly beautiful tune on a piano in the Bard Room... a song that Stanford must had heard from the Human Realm. Lilith even saw tears roll down Stanford's cheeks as he finished the piece.

After all of that, Lilith came to a decision, she HAD to help Stanford get off the Boiling Isles somehow! The man had been through far enough! By the sounds of it, Stanford has been though far more than any person ever should in their lifetime! He made a huge mistake, ended up in the Multiverse, has traveled countless dimensions/realms for MANY years, has been hurt/incarcerated/hunted/stalked by many different species, and suffered from who knows how many mental/emotional issues by now! Stanford also struggled with going to sleep at night, Lilith could tell that he was sometimes unwilling to sleep, like he was afraid to.. but she didn't question Stanford about it.

The trouble was, Lilith didn't know what to do about helping Stanford at first. The Boiling Isles doesn't experience portals/vortexes opening and closing very often... at least, she didn't think so. Lilith couldn't exactly ask anyone in the Coven about it, they would get suspicious as to why she wanted to know. Then, it hit her! Edalyn! As a wild witch, Eda knew how to avoid getting caught by the Coven System, maybe one of her ways was using a portal of some kind?

It seemed like a solid plan, but the hard part would be talking to Eda, herself. Ever since the Convention escapade, the "body swap incident" (that Lilith DID NOT want to reminded of), and the adventure to the Bloom of Eternal Youth... it was hard to say how things would go between the sisters. Lilith had to try though, Stanford has been through enough, the man had to leave the Boiling Isles.

Lilith took a deep breath as she caught sight of Eda's house through the bushes and trees, it looked like her "bird worm" was feasting on some bugs, and the little furry demon was digging in the sand for some strange reason. Lilith then caught sight of Eda hanging some wet clothing on a line tied between two trees, it reminded Lilith of helping their mother do the same thing many years ago.

"King!" Eda's voice called out "What in the name of Titan are you digging for?"

"Luz told me a story about the pirates of the Human Realm, how they stole treasure and buried it to keep it safe." King replied from the hole in the sand "I thought maybe the pirates here, do the same thing!"

"Alright." Eda said "Let me know if you find anything, we'll split it 50/50 since the beach is on my property."

Lilith stifled a snort of amusem*nt, go figure with her sister.

"What about Luz?" King asked "I know she's at school, but she inspired me! Can I share treasure with her if I find any?"

Eda shrugged and nodded "I don't see why not."

Lilith took a deep breath, it was now or never! She stepped out of the bushes, the sound alerting both Eda, and her security system.

"I've got this, Hooty." Eda assured "King, go inside!"

The young demon headed the order, jumping out of the hole he had been digging, and going inside the house. Owlbert flew out of Eda's hair, and turned into his staff form, Eda instantly grabbing hold, and standing defensively.

"Take it easy, Edalyn... I'm not here to fight." Lilith stated calmly

Eda eyed her in suspicion as Alphius sat on Lilith's shoulder, he was given orders by Lilith not to go into his staff form unless absolutely necessary.

"Playing the 'nice card', Lilith?" Eda asked "I told you, I am not joining the Emperor's Coven."

"I'm not here for that... infact, I'm not supposed to be here at all." Lilith replied

Eda dropped her defensive stance and tilted her head slightly, studying her sister for several moments.

"Isn't one of your duties for the Emperor, capturing me?" Eda asked "So that I'll join the Coven, and he will 'heal my curse'."

"Usually, but that task was given to the Coven Scouts for a while." Lilith responded

"Ouch." Eda snorted "What happened, Lilith? Get demoted?"

Lilith shook her head "No, I was given a different task. I have been keeping an eye on another human that ended up on the Boiling Isles."

Eda's golden eyes widened, another human on the Isles? That's nearly impossible! How in the world did something like that happen?

"I can't explain everything, it would take too long.. but I need your help." Lilith added

"My help? Why would I help you?" Eda asked "You have been treating the Emperor's Coven as your number one priority for years, Lilith! Wake up, and smell the Apple Blood! Emperor Belos is using you like a tool! He can't help me!"

Lilith wanted to rebuttal, but she was on a mission! She had to help Stanford, she could hash things out with Eda later.

"The help isn't for me, it's for the human." Lilith said "His name is Stanford Pines, he has been through... a lot, Eda. He needs to get off the Boiling Isles, and find his way home."

Eda raised an eyebrow, seeing the expression on Lilith's face caused Owlbert to return to his live form and perch himself on Eda's shoulder with a "hoot-hoot".

"I know that you don't trust me, that's fine, you don't have to in order to help someone who has suffered enough griffin dung to last several lifetimes." Lilith said

"Titan... that's.. do I wanna know?" Eda asked

"Stanford has told me a few things here and there, but I think he hasn't even told me a third of it." Lilith replied honestly

Eda blinked a few times, Lilith could practically see the gears moving in her sister's head as she thought things over for a few minutes.

"Okay... here's the deal, Lilith." Eda announced "I know of two things that can help this Stanford guy."

Lilith tilted her head "Two?"

"Yes, but I definitely don't trust you for the first one... that's my own little secret." Eda replied "So that leaves number two."

"Which is?" Lilith asked curiously

"There's a small vortex that opens and closes at the same time everyday, it's a different color every time.. so I believe that it doesn't lead to the same location." Eda explained "It could lead to the Human Realm, or it could drop him in the middle of the Multiverse."

"I see... I'll have to speak to Stanford about it, but something tells me that he'll be willing to take the risk." Lilith said "Where does the vortex appear?"

"In a small area in the woods not too far from here, it opens up exactly at sundown... and closes exactly as the Moonlight Flowers pop open." Eda replied

Lilith took mental notes of this, the vortex would only be open for at least two hours.. that is a small time window, but it's not impossible. Lilith nodded, and looked to her sister.

"Thank you, Edalyn... I appreciate the information." Lilith stated "I will talk to Stanford when I return to the castle. He'll be thrilled to know that there is a way to leave the Boiling Isles."

"You're taking quite the risk, Lilith." Eda pointed out "Won't Emperor Bonehead notice the absence of a human in his castle?"

"I'll cover any corners." Lilith assured "I'm a Clawthorne, after all, we're known for being crafty."

Eda smirked "Yes we are."

Lilith turned, heading off of Eda's property. "See you soon, Edalyn."

Eda's smirk grew "Only if you can catch me."

Lilith found herself smiling slightly as she headed her way back to the castle, she knew of a way to help Stanford! Plus, it would still be a while until Stanford was done assisting Emperor Belos for the day. Perhaps, she could spend some time in the library researching curing curses. IF Emperor Belos knew how to cure Eda's, it had to be in writing... Right?

Chapter 10

Chapter Text

Stanford sat on his bedroll, his mind going a mile a minute. This wasn't completely out of the ordinary for him, but in this situation.. it wasn't because of an idea, or the prospect of studying a new cryptid. No, this time, it was because of Lilith! The woman had gone out of her way to speak with Eda yesterday, AND even got the information she asked of.

Yes, the thought of leaving the Boiling Isles was a good one, but why would Lilith go through all this trouble for him? Stanford was still technically her "pet", after all. Was Lilith tired of looking after him when he wasn't assisting Belos? What was her reasoning?

"Are you alright, Stanford?" Lilith asked "You've been sitting there in silence for ten minutes."

"I'm fine." Stanford assured "I'm just a tad... confused."

"I explained everything to you efficiently enough, Stanford." Lilith said "What is there to be confused about?"

Stanford let out a sigh "I'm trying to figure out why you would do this for me."

"You don't belong here, Stanford... that's easy enough to figure out." Lilith responded

"I haven't belonged anywhere for years, Lilith." Stanford pointed out "I have been here for months, and now you're willing to help me leave? I just find it rather... strange."

Lilith sighed as she sat on her bed, Alphius perched on her shoulder. She had a feeling that a brilliant man like Stanford would find her slight change in demeanor towards him quite odd.

"Stanford, you have been through so much in your life... more than anyone of any species ever should." Lilith said "You deserve to find your way back to the Human Realm, to finally live your life as anyone should."

Stanford blinked a couple times, he wasn't expecting to hear something like that from Lilith.. but he had been surprised many times before during his travels. Trouble was... Stanford had made MANY mistakes before he ended up in the Multiverse, had wronged a few people... he didn't know if he could put things back together.

"I know that all of this has risks, Stanford..." Lilith paused

"Very big risks." Stanford stated "You could get yourself into trouble with Emperor Belos."

"I will cover that." Lilith assured "Stanford... it's the only way. Eda doesn't trust me enough to use the other method she knows of."

Stanford scratched the side of his neck, his fingers brushed along the side of the enchanted collar that was forced on him when he first arrived. He wouldn't be able to leave the castle with it still around his neck.

"Do you know how to remove this?" Stanford asked, pointing to the collar

"Unfortunately, no.. both Vitmir and Osran enchanted that collar." Lilith replied "However, we can trick either one of them into removing it."

Stanford noted the smirk on Lilith's face, he had to admit that it looked good on her.. instead of the neutral expression that she usually had.

"How do we trick them?" Stanford asked

"To be honest, Vitmir will be easier to fool." Lilith responded "The man is dumb enough to poke a Static Fern."

"Alright... I'm in." Stanford smirked

Two Hours Later...

Lilith made her way into Vitmir's potion making room, Stanford following her. Vitmir looked up from his bubbling cauldron and sighed.

"What has you bothering me, Lilith?" he asked

"Normally, I wouldn't be.. but this is very important." Lilith responded neutrally

Vitmir tilted his head "Oh?"

"Stanford and I were outside a while ago, I witnessed him unknowingly step off of castle grounds." Lilith started

"And?" Vitmir questioned

"The enchanted collar didn't shock him, I had to pull him back onto castle grounds myself." Lilith responded

"Interesting." Vitmir hummed "The collar should have shocked him the moment he stepped off the grounds."

"It didn't." Lilith said "I don't want something like this happening again, especially if I'm not right there to grab Stanford."

"Very well, I'll remove it, and take a look at it." Vitmir huffed "I need to finish this potion first, I don't want it going stale."

"Fair enough." Lilith nodded

With the aid of a small spell circle, Vitmir removed the enchanted collar from around Stanford's neck. Lilith noticed a spark of relief pass over Stanford's eyes once the collar was completely removed.

"It's best that you keep a close eye on him, Lilith." Vitmir cautioned "Don't need him running off."

"I reported the incident to Emperor Belos, he's going to allow Stanford a day off from his duties while the collar is being repaired." Lilith said "My day is mostly open, so he will be with me."

Vitmir nodded as he put the collar on a table, and turned his attention back to his cauldron. Lilith walked out of the room, motioning for Stanford to follow. Once the two were in the hallway, Stanford looked around for any guards or scouts.

"Well, we've got part of Phase One complete." Stanford whispered "Now, we just need to find my bag of supplies."

"I have a feeling where the maids put it." Lilith replied quietly

Stanford quietly followed Lilith's through the halls, any guards that walked by didn't stop to question Stanford's bare neck. The plan was working like a charm! Lilith had thought of most of it, due to her knowledge of the Emperor's Coven.. but Stanford did think of the "unknowingly stepped off castle grounds" lie.

"Here it is, the Storage Room." Lilith whispered

Using a special spell circle, Lilith unlocked the room and the two quickly entered. Thanks to a few torches, the room was well lit... but it was huge and full of various items! The room was the size of the basem*nt of the Clawthorne homestead!

"This will be the hard part." Lilith admitted

"Not as hard as you think." Stanford said knowingly

The human male sat down and removed the boot from his right foot, Lilith noted a hole in the side of Stanford's sock... apparently the maids didn't give him new pairs of socks. Stanford reached into the other side of the sock (without the hole), and pulled out a small device. The strange thing was about the size of Stanford's thumb. Alphius let out a confused "scraw" as he sat on Lilith's shoulder.

"Oh no worries, this remote is perfectly harmless." Stanford assured, putting his boot back on.

"I have never seen anything like that before, what does it do?" Lilith asked

"It'll help us find my bag." Stanford replied, standing up

Stanford pressed the button on the small device, and a strange muffled sound made Lilith's ears twitch. It sounded like the "ding" of a bell. The two followed the sound until they saw a bag in the far right corner, the bag itself looked quite aged.. sporting a few patches that were very well sewn.

"There it is!" Stanford smiled

The human pressed the "remote" again, and the sounds stopped. He grabbed the bag, and put it on his back.

"So that 'remote' is some sort of locater?" Lilith asked

Stanford nodded "I made it just in case I lose my bag, or if it gets stolen."

Lilith had to admit the idea of that is genius! Stanford is definitely on a different level when it comes to intelligence!

"Phase One is complete, but Phase Two will be harder." Stanford said "The guards and scouts will definitely notice my bag."

Lilith smiled "We're not going to encounter any guards or scouts from here on out, Stanford."

Stanford tilted his head "We aren't?"

Lilith walked over to the far left corner of the room, with the aid of a bit of magic she moved aside some heavy crates, revealing a wooden hatch door on the floor.

"I know many things about the castle, including things that others don't know of." Lilith smiled "Follow Alphius and I, you'll be just fine, Stanford."

Chapter 11

Chapter Text

The tunnel system that the door lead to was quite large, and dark. Lilith remedied the situation by making a few light spells that followed her and Stanford as they walked, their steps echoing on the stones. The ominous ambience didn't bother Stanford at all, he has been in FAR worse places than this, by himself. In a way, he was going to miss Lilith's company, but she can't go with him, the Boiling Isles is her home. Plus, Stanford is quite use to traveling on his own.

"How did you find out about this tunnel?" Stanford asked curiously

"The Golden Guard that served before... the child told me about it." Lilith replied "He was a good man, far better than the one who the Coven is stuck with now."

Stanford noticed the distain and venom in Lilith's tone as they rounded a corner. Granted, Lilith knows the Coven a lot more than Stanford does, but Stanford has learned how to read people through body language and their voices. Even though Stanford interacted with the Golden Guard a few times, Stanford could tell that the teenager lead a hard life, and was desperate to prove his worth to the Emperor and to the Coven.

"I may not know the Golden Guard as well as you do, Lilith... but he is still just a young lad." Stanford said "He will become a good man, I can tell."

Lilith scoffed "I doubt that highly, Stanford."

"Just wait and see, you never know what can happen." Stanford responded

The two rounded another corner, the light spells following them easily as they traversed the tunnel system.

"We'll reach the exit in about ten to fifteen minutes." Lilith stated "Then, we can travel to where the vortex opens... we should get there exactly at sundown."

"Sounds good to me." Stanford replied

"I just hope that it takes you straight to the Human Realm." Lilith said "You have spent enough time in the Multiverse."

"I appreciate the sentiment, Lilith." Stanford admitted "If I do end up back in the Multiverse, I'm well prepared for it."

Stanford motioned to his backpack, and the black coat that had been in the bag, and he was now wearing. Lilith found herself smiling a bit, she found it interesting that an intelligent man like Stanford was also quite confident... was he always like this? Or did the horrors, and dangers of the Multiverse "help" Stanford's confidence?

"I think I can see the exit!" exclaimed Stanford

Lilith looked ahead, traces of sunlight could be seen, and she could hear Alphius letting her know that the coast as clear. She had the white raven Palisman fly ahead to keep watch, that and Lilith knew that Alphius did not care for being in tunnels for very long.

"Step lightly, one wrong step and you'll fall into a deep ditch." Lilith warned

Stanford chanced a slight look downward at the edge of the tunnel's exit. Sure enough, there was a very deep ditch just below a few sturdy boulders. The ditch appeared to be at least twenty feet deep, definitely could cause major injury if he fell into it.

"Good thing I have done something like this before." Stanford mused

The two carefully exited the tunnel, Alphius returned to Lilith's shoulder for now, and they made their way to a path surrounded by trees. Lilith knew that the Coven Scouts never patrol this area due to them being terrified of Fungi Snakes, but as long as you don't bother the serpents.. they're harmless.

"Stay close, don't want you to get lost.. or get bitten by anything dangerous." Lilith advised

"I will keep close." Stanford replied

Stanford looked around in awe, even though the trees did not offer the best views of the Isles, he could still see enough to be fascinated. In a way, it was similar to his treks through Gravity Falls forest. Stanford blinked with wide eyes when a griffin soared overhead, he had only seen them in books about mythical creatures! This place is truly amazing!

"In all my years... I have never seen anything quite like this!" Stanford marveled

"Really?" Lilith asked

"Don't get me wrong, I have seen interesting things.. but this place is truly amazing!" Stanford enthused "I have never came across a species that can control magic like you can, and I have certainly never seen griffins before!"

"Well, believe it or not... the Boiling Isles was once linked to the Human Realm." Lilith said

"It was?" Stanford asked

"Many, many years ago.. yes." Lilith replied "Back when Titan's Blood flowed throughout the Isles.. but it unfortunately... there's none left. So the link between the Demon Realm and the Human Realm disappeared."

"My goodness..." Stanford said "That does make sense, resources can vanish over time. I have seen it happen in other dimensions.. and in my own Realm."

Lilith continued to lead the way through the thick trees, keeping an eye out for anything dangerous to her and Stanford, but they were in the clear so far. Stanford looked to Lilith, his mind curious about something else now.

"What are you going to do after I leave the Boiling Isles? Stanford asked curiously

"I'm going to continue some... research." Lilith replied "You really got me thinking, Stanford."

"I have? About what?" Stanford asked

"About Eda's curse..." Lilith responded "I know Emperor Belos said that he can heal her curse, but.. what if it doesn't work? I need to see if there's another way to help her."

"Do.. do you really think that Emperor Belos can really help her?" Stanford questioned

Lilith sighed "He has told me that he can, but... he has his own curse. I need to see if there's another way to help Eda... just in case."

Stanford nodded "I understand... just be careful, I don't want you getting into even more trouble with Emperor Belos."

"Don't worry, I'll be just fine, Stanford." Lilith assured

Stanford nodded and the two continued to travel in silence, Alphius occasionally left Lilith's shoulder to scout for any trouble, but found nothing to worry about. Soon enough, the two reached the outskirts of Bonesborough, relief came to Lilith when she noticed the trees thinning out. They must be getting close to the clearing that Eda told her about! The light of the setting sun and cooler air caused Lilith to shiver a bit, so she put on her cloak to keep warm.

"Lilith... I think we found it." Stanford reported

In a small clearing just ten feet away, stood a pulsing vortex colored a soft purple. The vortex stood between two tall trees, and the clearing was full of Moonlight Flowers that were still closed, for at least the next half-hour.

"Edalyn was right... I guess wild witches do know more than Emperor Belos thinks they do." Lilith said

The two entered the clearing, Stanford studied the vortex for a couple moments, observing the color and vibrations of it. He observed from a safe distance, Stanford knew that some vortexes can be unstable.

"It looks stable for now, and thanks to my past experiences, purple vortexes lead to safe dimensions." Stanford stated "I guess... this is where we part ways, Lilith."

Lilith noticed a spark of sadness in Stanford's blue eyes, in a way, she was going to miss him as well... but Stanford has been through enough! He couldn't stay here, who knows what could happen in the future. Lilith didn't want Stanford in the middle of something that could possibly kill him!

"It's for the best, Stanford.. but I did bring along something that should be a good reminder of your time here on the Boiling Isles." Lilith said

The dark-navy haired witch handed a simply wrapped package to Stanford with a soft smile, definitely something that Stanford would file away in his head, it looked good on her face.

"I couldn't sleep last night, so I got into my stash of Witch's Wool. It comes in a variety of colors, so I chose one that I thought would suit you best." Lilith explained

Stanford unwrapped the gift and blinked with wide eyes. It was a beautifully knitted, red turtleneck sweater! Stanford ran a six fingered hand across the fabric, the softness reminding him of a blanket his mother made him MANY years ago.

"Thank you, Lilith." Stanford said "I will treasure this gift."

"You are most welcome." Lilith replied

A sudden "scraw" from Alphius had the two take their attention off of each other, the sun had completely set and the stars were beginning to appear in the sky. It would only be a matter of minutes until the Moonlight Flowers open, and the vortex disappears!

"You don't have much more time, Stanford." Lilith said "You have to go now, we can't risk the vortex closing until tomorrow."

Stanford nodded, Lilith has already risked a lot to do this for him, he couldn't let her risk anything more. He carefully put the new sweater in his backpack, and pulled Lilith into a friendly hug. Stanford felt her freeze at the action, witches must not be familiar with the gesture.

"Thank you, Lilith." Stanford said "I owe you so much for this."

Part of Lilith wanted to melt into Stanford's hold, but she knew that she couldn't do that.. they would miss Stanford's chance to go through the vortex! Lilith patted Stanford's back instead, in quite a few ways, she was going to miss this intriguing man.

"You don't owe me a thing, just... be careful, Stanford." Lilith responded

Stanford smiled slightly as he let go of Lilith, and petted Alphius on the head with two fingers.

"I will." Stanford assured

The human male turned and walked towards the vortex, he put a pair of goggles on over his glasses to help with the brightness as he got closer. He stopped and turned to look at Lilith, the witch and her faithful Palisman had become more than just reluctant acquaintances. Stanford raised a six fingered hand in a wave goodbye.

"Take care, my friend!" Stanford called

With that, Stanford walked through the vortex, disappearing into the purple energy. Lilith watched as the Moonlight Flowers started opening a few minutes later, the vortex shuddered a few times and disappeared with a "snap, snap, crack!"

A chilled breeze wafted by, moving Lilith's long hair as she stood in the clearing for a few more minutes, Alphius on her shoulder looking saddened for losing a comrade. Lilith took a deep breath and let it out slowly, she turned and walked out of the clearing, heading back to the castle.

"Farewell, Stanford... my friend." Lilith said to the night sky

Chapter 12

Chapter Text

The bright, hot sun that hung overhead bathed everything in its light and oppressive heat. The air was also muggy, and there was no breeze, it reminded Stanford of Summer days in New Jersey, but at least he and Stanley could go for a swim across the street from the Pawn Shop. As of right now, Stanford had yet come across any water source to cool down in, (after testing it for safety, of course).

The current heat was also not doing Stanford any favors either, he was already feeling grungy and disgusting BEFORE he ended up in this dimension, now he just felt worse! His skin felt scratchy underneath a good layer of sweat, his hair felt greasy and weighted down, plus his body odor was definitely not pleasant. By extension, the clothes that he was wearing did not exactly smell like a spring breeze.

None of this was Stanford's conscious doing, it has been many days (or weeks) since he left the Boiling Isles, and he hasn't had much luck finding a safe source of water to bathe in. He had found small brooks that had safe water to fill his canteen, and wash his hands.. but that was about it. He had to find something deeper in order to get himself cleaned up and feeling more... human, but that has been quite the task so far.

Stanford stopped and looked around, the orange-brown grass of this dimension stretched in many directions, much like a prairie.. the gray sky overhead held no clouds and the bright sun. However, a bit of hope filled Stanford when he spotted a thick expanse of trees in the distance, there had to be a deep source of water somewhere in those woods!

The gray haired male set off in the direction of the trees, unfortunately he no longer had his walking stick (the Captain of the Coven Scouts broke it in half when they found him in the Castle Garden), so the uneven terrain of this dimension would take him a bit longer to traverse. Stanford didn't really mind, he had traveled many years without a walking stick, he could do it again.

After entering and exploring the thick woods of dark brown trees, Stanford finally heard a wonderful sound! Moving water! The man followed the sound, carefully stepping over roots, and avoiding prickly bushes as he went. He was definitely hopeful that the water would be safe, he was desperate at this point!

After what felt like hours, Stanford finally came to the source of the sound, a large pond! The water was a crystal blue color, and looked to be plenty deep enough for Stanford. However, he couldn't just jump in, he had to make sure it was safe. Bending down, Stanford used his second middle finger to test the water, there was no burning sensation and the temperature felt quite nice on the appendage. It was tempting to just strip down and jump in, but Stanford knew better than that, his current clothing deserved to be cleaned.

The man put down his bag by a tree and opened it up, he pulled out a clean pair of blue boxers, socks, and pants. Due to his travels, it looked like the only clean top Stanford had in his bag is the red sweater that Lilith gifted him. Carefully, he wrapped the sweater around the pants setting them next to his bag, the clean boxers and socks were set by the edge of the pond for later. He emptied the NUMEROUS pockets of his coat, putting weaponry, a Zippo lighter, mini first aid kit, small remote, and an old photo in his bag for now.

**WARNING! SLIGHT NUDITY AHEAD! If you wanna skip it, go for it!**

Working efficiently, Stanford grabbed a soap bar out of his bag and walked over to the pond. He removed his boots, socks, coat, shirt, pants and black boxer shorts. This left Stanford as naked as the day he was born in the middle of the woods, by a pond.. but this didn't bother him like it used to.

Muscles made from constant physical activity gleamed with a layer of sweat, Stanford's impressive manhood hung soft between his toned legs, but this was normal for him. Dealing with the near constant danger and horrors of the Multiverse left Stanford very little time to feel arousal of any kind. Countless scars covered sixty to seventy percent of his entire body (except for his face). They ranged from teeth marks and talon slashes, to horrible burns and bullet wounds. Stanford knew all too well that his body was not the best sight to behold.

Stanford set about washing the dirty clothing first, it was well deserved at this point. Once finished, he hung the garments on a tree limb to dry, each garment smelled a lot better thanks to the soap. Stanford removed his glasses, setting them on the clean pair of boxers, and plunged into the water of the pond. A deep sigh of relief escaped him after he surfaced, this was just what he needed! Not only a way to escape the heat, but also a place to get himself clean!

**OKAY! I THINK IT'S SAFE NOW! Just be warned, future chapters could change the rating of this fic! Wink! Wink!**

One hour later...

Stanford sighed as he put on the clean pair of boxers and socks he had set aside earlier, he felt SO MUCH better now, his skin and hair felt cleaner! The pond definitely helped him cool down as well, he no longer felt like he was roasting like a marshmallow. Stanford hummed to himself as he put on his glasses as he allowed the air around him to dry his hair. A rustling in the bushes nearby caused him to look up in alarm, his guard going up at once.

Stanford stood up and looked around, but he didn't get the chance to go to his bag for a weapon, a quick sound pierced the air and a sharp dart hit his shoulder. Stanford pulled it out quickly, but four more hit his side and leg, feeling suddenly lethargic Stanford hit the ground with a thud not noticing a crack form in the left lense of his glasses.

When Stanford awoke some time later, the sun was hanging low and he could smell... burning wood? The man groaned as he opened his eyes, finding himself tied to a pole a short distance away from a large burning fire! He could see his bag and freshly cleaned clothes in it, but he couldn't find the sweater or other pair of pants. Stanford pulled against the bonds that held him to the pole with a grunt.

"Ah, tu es réveillé." A voice said

Stanford's Multiverse translator instantly picked up on the statement.. it's French? An odd language to come across out here, but he was able to understand it with ease.

"Que veux-tu?" Stanford asked "Pourquoi suis-je ici?"

A humanoid man with dark blue skin came into Stanford's line of vision, he had black eyes and wore tanned animal skins as clothing.

"Vous êtes contaminé. Nous vous donnons à notre divinité." The man replied "Nous utiliserons le feu enchanté pour vous tester."

Stanford groaned and shook his head. "Let me guess... they view my polydactyly as being 'tainted'. Not the first time I've heard this."

The man walked over to a green skinned woman who was dressed like some sort of sorceress, the woman was tossing herbs and glittering sand into the fire while chanting a spell, turning the flames from red to silver. The man asked if the enchanted fire was ready to test the "sacrifice", to which the woman nodded. Stanford's eyes widened, and his heart shot to his stomach when he spotted the sweater Lilith gifted Stanford in the man's hands!

"Non! C'était un cadeau d'un ami spécial!" Stanford yelled

The blue skinned man only smirked and tossed the red sweater into the enchanted fire without a care! Stanford pulled against his bonds, but they held tight. The silver fire didn't roar, spit, crackle, or even grow bigger like everyone was expecting. To everyone's surprise, the sweater snuffed out most of the flames and laid there completely intact!

"What the..." Stanford breathed

The green skinned sorceress blinked "Le test a échoué, la divinité ne veut pas de lui!"

In a matter of moments, Stanford was being untied and his clean clothing being returned to him with bowed heads. The people said things under their breath that translated to "unholy", "witchcraft", and "strange creature", but Stanford had heard FAR WORSE. The villagers didn't look him in the eye, but did apologize for any injury or emotional turmoil, Stanford shakily accepted the apology as he dressed himself and left the village as quickly as he could.

As Stanford walked through the tall grass, a dark sky and two moons coming out to greet him, he looked to the red sweater in his hands. The fabric was completely unharmed, not a single fibre was singed, no holes... it was like it was never tossed into a fire!

"You gave me a truly wonderful gift, Lilith." Stanford said as he put the sweater in his bag "I will treasure it until my last breath."

Chapter 13

Chapter Text

Usually sleep was an easy thing to find for Lilith, especially her days back in the Emperor's Coven, being so busy all day made it easy to sleep at night. However, the days of the Coven were behind her, but she still could find sleep pretty easily... Lilith could count the number of times sleep eluded her with two hands.

This time was definitely one of them. Anxiety, fear, and countless other emotions gnawed at Lilith's nerves as she laid there staring at the wall. Logically, Lilith knew that she should be getting some needed sleep for tomorrow, but she was finding it very difficult to accomplish. Tomorrow, they were going forth with the plan of mucking up the Draining Spell by having Eda replace Raine. Not only would this mean that Eda would be branded with a Bard Coven sigil, it would also mean that Eda could possibly be consumed.

Lilith did not want to lose her sister, not after everything! They have only been on good terms for a couple months now! Lilith didn't want Eda to put her life on the line like this, but Eda wanted to try stopping the Draining Spell just as much as everyone else. Even though Lilith didn't completely agree with Eda's choice, she had to accept it... Eda is well known for doing as she sees fit.

Lilith was forced back into reality when she heard a concerned "scraw" next to her, Lilith looked to Alphius who was nestled down next to her pillow, looking at her worriedly. Lilith reached out and petted the Palisman on his head.

"Just having a hard time sleeping, Alphius..." Lilith stated "Tomorrow... I'm just really scared for Edalyn."

Alphius nodded at the whispered statement and nuzzled the side of Lilith's face with his beak, he moved a bit closer and gave a soft sound to help soothe his chosen witch. Lilith smiled slightly at the action, Alphius always knew how to help her frazzled nerves.

"You're such a good boy, Alphius." Lilith said with a yawn

Alphius kept nuzzling until Lilith's eyes finally started to feel heavy, as Lilith started to drift off, Alphius made himself comfortable again and closed his eyes.

"Good.. bird..." Lilith praised sleepily

***Lilith's Nightmare*** **GRAPHIC VIOLENCE AND TORTURE AHEAD!**

The sounds of muffled screaming and panic caused Lilith to sit up, looking around she found herself in a very strange place. It was dark hallway, the walls made of some sort of stone, and held a very... evil atmosphere. Lilith stood up and wandered the hallway, her steps echoing as she walked.

"What is this place?" Lilith asked

No answer came, it appeared that Alphius was nowhere to be seen! This worried Lilith immensely, Alphius was almost always by her side... there were only a select few places the Palisman refused to go. Did Lilith end up here somehow and Alphius was looking for her? It was a probable idea... so it was best to try and figure out exactly where she is.

After several minutes, Lilith could finally see the hallway opening to a larger room, maybe she could find answers in there. Maybe she could find out why there was muffled screaming, were there people outside this place who were in trouble? Was it Eda? Luz? King? Lilith shuddered at the thought. No! She couldn't afford to let her fear get ahead of itself, she was going to find answers somehow!

Lilith stepped into a MASSIVE room, the evil atmosphere and residual electricity of the room sent Lilith's senses through a loop. The massive area looked a lot like a throne room, but it was far bigger than the one in the castle! Lilith's ears caught the sound of loud voices and demonic laughter, and found herself looking at several demons standing near a large throne... made of petrified humans?

"What in the name of Titan...." Lilith breathed

The navy haired witch could hardly believe the size of the various demons, even her Raven Beast form would pale in comparison! However, they seemed to be underlings, they couldn't have turned all those people into stone and built a throne with them. No. These demons had a leader of some sort.

The sound of rattling chains and grunting had Lilith looking up as far as she could. Light blue glowing chains dangled from the ceiling, holding a human man hostage. Wait... two toned gray hair, glasses, strong jaw, red sweater? It... couldn't be!!

"Stanford?!" Lilith gasped

The human man couldn't seem to hear her, his focus was on trying to remove himself from the glowing chains, his face red with strain. Lilith could see rips, burns, and tears in Stanford's tan trenchcoat and black pants, but the sweater was completely untouched!

"He must be wearing the sweater that I made him out of Witch's Wool." Lilith said to herself

Stanford kept struggling against the chains stubbornly, but the poor man seemed to be tiring and even seemed to be having trouble breathing properly.

"Stop struggling, Human!" A pink demon ordered "Unless you want another 500 watt jolt from Bill when he comes back for round two."

Lilith could only blink in confusion. What was going on here? How did Stanford end up chained like this? Who was Bill? Where exactly was this happening? Unfortunately, Lilith didn't have any answers... Stanford only told her so much of his past before he ended up in the Multiverse.

"If I had ears, they would be ringing!" A voice said "Are you causing trouble already, Sixer? I thought you'd need a break from being tortured."

Lilith blinked "Tortured?"

The witch watched as a yellow triangular shaped demon floated into the room, he sported one eye, a strange hat, and bowtie. The evil energy coming from the demon was nothing that Lilith had ever sensed before, a strong shudder raced down her spine. She swallowed as Stanford stared at the demon with hatred and malice.

"I am not going to give in, Bill!" Stanford growled, his voice rough

"I thought you were smarter than this, Stanford." Bill said "You know how to end the torture, but you refuse to do it."

"I am NOT giving you anything, Bill! I'm not giving you the equation, I'm not going to let you into my mind!" Stanford responded

Bill suddenly grew in size, his threatening energy growing with him, but Stanford didn't flinch.. he merely curled his hands into fists.

"I WAS GOING EASY ON YOU BEFORE, STANFORD!” Bill bellowed "I HAVE OTHER WAYS TO GET YOU TO CRACK LIKE AN EGG!"

Stanford stared Bill down "Bring it on, Cipher!"

Bill reached forward and grabbed Stanford's trenchcoat, removing it and tossing it aside for now. He then removed the red turtleneck sweater from Stanford, with a satisfied look. Lilith could only blink with wide eyes at the numerous scars that littered Stanford's chest, neck, sides, shoulders, and back.

"Be grateful that this thing is Witch's Wool, it protected you from most of my electrical torture... but it would only make this next part more difficult." Bill said

Bill chuckled as he changed his fingers into sharpened blades.. or claws, and experimentally tapped one on Stanford's burnt cheek, cutting a thin line in the delicate flesh. Stanford pulled away as much as he could, feeling a drop of blood dribble off his chin.

"Is that all you can do, Bill?" Stanford asked

"This is just a warm up." Bill replied "LAST CHANCE BEFORE I ACTUALLY DO SOME REAL DAMAGE, SIXER! WHAT IS THE EQUATION?”

Lilith could tell that everything in Stanford's mind was telling him to stop resisting and give up what Bill wanted, but he wasn't going to give in, that he was going to suffer through this in order to keep the demon at bay.

"YOU CAN STOP YOUR SUFFERING RIGHT NOW, STANFORD." Bill growled "GIVE ME THE EQUATION!"

"I would rather bathe in acid!" Stanford spat

"CAN'T SAY THAT I DIDN'T ASK NICELY, SIXER!" Bill grunted

Stanford gritted his teeth as Bill's sharpened finger was pushed into the skin of his mostly toned and scared abdomen. Bill then quickly tore his finger downward, and Stanford saw bright stars glittering his vision. He didn’t hear Bill and his followers laughing, everything around him was distant. All Stanford could feel was pure, immeasurable pain, causing his wrecked vocal cords to cry out in pure agony from the depths of his soul.

***END OF NIGHTMARE.*** **OKAY, IT'S SAFE TO READ NOW!**

Lilith shot up, breathing quickly, Stanford's painful cries ringing in her ears, the copper scent of Stanford's blood in her nose. Alphius instantly woke up, concerning coming to him again when he noticed the sweat in Lilith's forehead, and her panicked breaths. Alphius perched himself on Lilith's legs and gave a "scraw, caw?"

Lilith could only shiver and try regulate her breathing, her body feeling like it had endured the pain she had witnessed Stanford experience. She could only somewhat register Alphius pecking lightly at her hands, and hearing his concerned words.

After ten minutes that felt like an eternity, Alphius could finally see that Lilith was slowly calming down. Her breathing was mostly back to normal, her heart rate was settling into the correct rhythm, and her eyes were no longer glazed over. Alphius looked to his witch with a "caw?"

"I'm... I'm okay, Alphius." Lilith whispered "Just.. just had a really... detailed nightmare, or something."

Alphius settled himself on Lilith's bent legs, determined to continue helping his witch calm down and perhaps get a little more sleep before they have to head out. Lilith appreciated Alphius' concern and soothing sounds, but part of her was beginning to wonder about what she had seen. Perhaps, when this was all over, she could try figuring out what happened to Stanford... but for now, she had something else to worry about. The safety of the Boiling Isles.

Chapter 14

Chapter Text

The sound of salty seawater lapping, seagulls squawking, and the smell of a sea breeze is something that Stanley Pines thought he would never experience on a daily basis. He thought he would only get to experience these things if he ventured to the coast himself in his faithful car, spend a few days enjoying it... only to return to his work.

Now, however, he is finally retired from being the owner of The Mystery Shack.. and he gets to experience the sights and smells of the ocean everyday! It's everything he had wanted in life! Sure, he could do without the occasional memory lapse, but those were unavoidable... he got through them, though. He didn't have to suffer through them on his own either, he had someone to help him, Stanley had his twin brother Stanford by his side after so many years apart.

That thought was something else that Stanley thought would never happen! For many years, Stanley believed that his brother was lost in the Multiverse forever... and IF somehow Stanford returned to Earth, Stanley was unsure if his brother would want anything to do with him. Yes, at first, the two men were at odds with one another.. but that was far behind them now. Both of them realized that their anger and resentment was best left in the past.

Stanley had to admit that being on the Stan O' War 2 with his brother was FAR different than being at the Shack, but it was a good form of different. They got to air out old grievances, share some past events, and even talk about things that happened in their childhood. There was some yelling, followed by deafening silence but the two would have a calmer talk after calming down for a while. It wasn't perfect by any means.. no life is, but it was a content life none the less.

Stanley stretched as he sat in his favorite fishing chair, relaxing after exploring the town that shared the docks. It was a quaint place, definitely something that Stanley didn't expect for Virginia, the brothers even found a restaurant that they planned on having breakfast tomorrow morning.

The exploration of the town had been fun, but Stanley was glad to be back on the boat for a while, he wanted to relax after getting supplies and walking around the town for a couple hours. Plus, Stanley could tell that his nerdy brother needed some time to relax as well... Stanford isn't as social as Stanley, so it's important for him to take time away from groups of people. Stanford even goes to his small workshop for a few hours when it's just the two of them, Stanley tends to refer to it as: Stanford's Nerd Time.

There has been quite a bit to learn about Stanford, really. Stanley knew that his twin brother wouldn't be the same as thirty plus years ago, but there were many things that Stanley wasn't expecting. Stanford wasn't a thin, nerdy, self-conscious, highly introverted teen anymore. He was now a well-built, confident, slightly introverted, nerdy old man now.. but Stanley wouldn't have his brother any other way. The Multiverse had been a harsh place for Stanford to be in for thirty years, his personality and mannerisms were bound to change.

As if Stanley's thoughts summoned him, Stanford stepped out on deck. The salt and pepper haired man handed Stanley a mug of "boat-made" hot chocolate, and sat down in his own fishing chair with a relaxed sigh.

"I was wonderin' what you were up to." Stanley stated

"Considering it's a chilly day, I figured that I would make something warm and comforting to drink." Stanford responded

Stanley sipped at the beverage and sighed in content, if he closed his eyes he could swear he was back in the apartment above the pawn shop in New Jersey!

"Tastes just like Ma used to make." Stanley sighed in bliss "How do ya do it, Stanford?"

"Ma gave me some of her recipes before I went to college, I kept them in a special box hidden away in a cubby in the kitchen after I moved to Gravity Falls." Stanford said "I dug it out before we set sail."

"Squirrel." Stan snorted "Hiding away crap so that no one else can find it."

Stanford chuckled "Sometimes hiding things away came in handy during my travels in the Multiverse."

"Why hide Ma's recipe box, though?" Stanley asked "That was way before the Portal."

"I went to a low class college, Stanley... students and staff stole things from dorm rooms all the time. I got into the habit of hiding the box away while I was there... I guess the habit followed me to Gravity Falls.. and beyond." Stanford replied, sipping at his drink

"Remind me to have you bring out those recipes, I'd love to see 'em." Stan said

"Of course!" Stanford responded instantly "Perhaps, they might even spark some memories that are still hiding."

Stanley nodded in agreement quietly, Stanford has been nothing but helpful with trying to recover lost memories. Stanley definitely noticed his brother's efforts and determination, and the fact Stanford would drop everything to help Stanley through a memory lapse. Even though Stanford didn't have a single M.D. to his name, he researched heavily into renewing lost memories as thoroughly as he could.

"Speaking of memories..." Stanley thought

The younger twin's eyes moved to his elder sibling. Stanford was still seated in his chair, his blue eyes watching the movement of the waves, a content smile on his face, and the mug of hot chocolate keeping his large polydactyl hands warm.

Stanley noted that his brother was wearing a blue jacket, his red turtleneck sweater, black pants, and boots... not an unusual combination for Stanford. What Stanley did wonder about was the sweater, to the best of his memory Stanford started wearing it his first night back on Earth.. so Mabel didn't knit it. Where did the elder twin get the sweater? Did he purchase it in a strange dimension?

"I can hear the gears in your head, Stanley." Stanford chuckled "You can ask me anything, you know that."

"It's not really a question." Stanley said "I'm just... curious about somethin', that's all."

Stanford raised a silent eyebrow, encouraging his twin brother to continue.

"What's with the red sweater?" Stan asked "I've seen you wearin' it off and on since you returned... I think, unless I'm remembering wrong."

"You are correct, I have been wearing this sweater as often as I can since I've returned." Stanford replied "I had no choice but to throw out the black sweater... it was not salvageable."

"Huh, and here I thought you had a closet full of red sweaters like Mr. Rogers." Stanley stated

Stanford chuckled "No, I have just this one.. and my three 'Mabel-knit' sweaters. I hand wash this and my other sweaters in the sink with mild laundry detergent."

Stanley sipped at his hot chocolate "So it came from the Multiverse, then."

Stanford nodded "Yes, it was a special gift."

"A gift?" Stanley asked "Who gave it to ya?"

Stanford leaned back in his chair, he wasn't exactly sure how to reply. He had told a few stories of his time in the Multiverse, most of them being of what he had seen, or interesting creatures he had met. Would Stanley believe that Stanford had been in a realm of magic, demons, and witches? Yes, Stanley lived in Gravity Falls for thirty years, but the magic and inhabitants Stanford had encountered on the Boiling Isles were far more different. Plus, Stanford's time in the Boiling Isles had been interesting, but it started as a form of "slavery".. he knew that those kinds details could possibly make Stanley feel bad about the "Portal Accident" more than it does already.

"All I can say right now, is that this sweater was given to me by a special friend." Stanford replied

Stanley finished his mug "It's got to be made of some special yarn or somethin', I mean... the whole Weirdmageddon thing, it looked untouched even though the rest of ya was singed."

"I don't know much about the material, but even Bill had a distaste for it... he removed the sweater each time he... tortured me." Stanford admitted with a shudder "After each round, he would rebuild my body, and the sweater was back on."

Stanley found himself shuddering as well, a big part of him still felt awful for not wanting to save Stanford while the elder twin was being held captive by a demented demon. Stanley shook the feeling off, Stanford had forgiven him for that during one of their LONG chats after they set sail.

"Wow... it must be some sort of yarn from a super sheep!" Stanley laughed

Stanford chuckled "Perhaps, I'm not entirely sure, but considering the realm I was in at the time... I wouldn't be surprised."

The brothers continued to laugh as they watched the glittering waters around them. It felt good to be in each other's company, laughing and joking around like they did in their youth. In many ways, it felt like no time had passed.. like their thirty years separation never happened. However, looking in a mirror would tell them differently.

After quieting down, Stanford started wonder how Lilith was doing. He found himself doing this from time to time... the two had become unlikely friends after all. Stanford had no way of knowing what was going on in the Boiling Isles, all he could do is keep Lilith in his thoughts and prayers.

Chapter 15

Chapter Text

Ever since leaving the Emperor's Coven, Lilith had a feeling that the Boiling Isles would be FAR better off without Emperor Belos. That without his rule, everything would be peaceful.. like she had seen when she and Luz went through the Time Pool. So far, Lilith has been right! It has been several months since Belos (Phillip) was defeated, and the Isles returned to its (mostly) natural state. Yes, there was A LOT of rebuilding to do, but the inhabitants of the Boiling Isles were more than willing to put in the effort to make things better.

Lilith herself had been preoccupied with cleaning up debris, rebuilding, and coming up with plans for the library. However, she found time to spend with Eda, King, and Luz (when the human came to visit). Lilith hardly remembered a time where she felt so content, like she could finally take a deep breath and allow herself to feel peaceful. It was a good feeling, one that Lilith enjoyed immensely.

Lilith smiled as she fixed a curl of her short red (and gray) hair as she walked through Bonesborough. Today, Eda had decided that everyone was going to take a well deserved break from clean up and rebuilding, so there was quite a few demons and witches enjoying the beautiful day. Eda was off and about with King, and Luz was back in the Human Realm spending time with her mother.. so this left Lilith time to herself.

Even though Lilith was also required not to do any work, she had a plan of how she was going to spend the day. She had been wanting to do something important for a while now, and today would be the best day to do it! Lilith had sent message scrolls via Alphius to both Amity and Hunter... Why? Lilith sighed to herself, she had wronged Amity and Hunter in the past, in ways that the teens did not deserve... it was about time she made up for that! Lilith wasn't sure how things would play out, but she had to set things straight, make things right.

"Ms. Lilith!" A feminine voice called

Lilith looked ahead to see Amity standing by the outdoor tables of The Griffin's Roost Cafe, the lilac haired witch waved a greeting, a smile on her face. The fact that Amity looked happy to see Lilith seemed to be a good sign, one that made Lilith's mood lift.

Lilith noticed that Amity was wearing a black shirt with a white cat on it that was surrounded by stars (no doubt a gift from Luz), blue jeans, boots, and her hair tied up in a medium length ponytail. The teen looked good, she looked.. happy, something that was FAR overdue in Lilith's opinion.

"Amity! It's so good to see you again." Lilith greeted

The two women shared a short hug in greeting, something they never did when Amity was Lilith's apprentice (because it is a Human Realm gesture), but it felt quite nice.

"I got us a table that has equal parts shade and sun, it's over here." Amity said, leading the way

"You didn't have to go to extremes, Amity." Lilith pointed out with a smile

"I kinda had to, Hunter likes being in the sun for some strange reason." Amity responded "Even when we were in the Human Realm, could easily find him in a patch of sun, and somehow not get burned."

Lilith found the statement quite interesting, Luz had told stories about getting "sunburnt" in the Human Realm before.. which sounded quite unpleasant and painful. Even witches could get irritated patches of skin if they spent too long in the sun, so for Hunter to not experience either of these was intriguing.

"It must be a product of him being a Grimwalker." Lilith said "No one truly knows what habits and characteristics they have."

Amity shrugged a bit "Maybe, but it wasn't a bad thing. It was interesting to see him enjoying something so... simple."

The two women approached the table, when Lilith spotted a male with ash blond hair, her heart sped up in nervousness. She has hardly spent any face to face time with Hunter since Belos was defeated, but thanks to Luz.. knew all too well what the young man had gone through in the Human Realm. Just remembering some of those details made Lilith want to kill Belos all over again! Lilith took a deep breath, pushing away those thoughts for now, she had to keep a calm mind.

As both Lilith and Amity sat down at the table, Lilith noticed just how much Hunter has changed in such a short time. Hunter's ash blond hair was cut in what Luz referred to as a military style (done by Luz's mother Camila a couple weeks ago), he was wearing a plain gray shirt, black jeans with patches on them, sneakers, and a watch given to him by Darius.

"The order come while I was gone?" Amity asked

Hunter looked up and nodded, pushing a platter of fresh fairy pies to the center of the table. Seeing Hunter's newly acquired copper eyes and facial scars made Lilith's heart clench, the poor young man had suffered so much in the Emperor's Coven.. only to suffer even more after leaving it behind him.

"So... Lilith, why did you want Hunter and I to meet you here?" Amity asked, stabbing her fork into a fairy pie

Lilith wanted to smile, leave it to Amity Blight to get straight to the heart of the issue, the girl had always been like this... but it isn't a bad thing, really.

"I wanted to talk with the both of you about something... very important." Lilith replied

Amity tiled her head a bit, blinking in confusion.

"I have been trying to make up for my past mistakes for a while now. I have DEEPLY apologized to Edalyn for what I did to her, I'm so happy that we get to be sisters again... I thought that we would never have that back." Lilith started

Hunter said nothing, but raised a curious eyebrow, encouraging Lilith to continue.

"I also have been making things up to Luz, putting her life in danger the way I did is another deep regret I have." Lilith continued "I didn't expect her to forgive me so easily, but she did... and even considers me apart of her family."

Amity smiled "That's Luz for you, she's one of the most kind-hearted people I've ever met."

Hunter nodded in agreement, stabbing a fork into his own fairy pie.

"Eda and Luz aren't the only people I have wronged in the past, I have done wrong by the two of you as well." Lilith said "Amity... I completely embarrassed you in that Witches Duel at the convention. I should have had faith in your abilities as a witch, something that is important to nurture. I'm sorry for everything that embarrassment may have caused you."

Amity blinked a couple times, taking note of the sincerity in Lilith's eyes and tone. She then looked down at the table for a moment, collecting her thoughts.

"I was severely embarrassed, I even lost quite a bit of faith in myself, the Emperor's Coven.. you." Amity paused "But, after the sting of embarrassment wore off... I trained harder. I realized that I had much to learn about magic and myself, that I didn't have to look down on others to feel superior. I ended up becoming a better person because of that realization.. and I found myself forgiving you for what happened that day."

Lilith smiled, patting Amity's hand "Thank you, Amity."

Lilith then turned her attention to Hunter, the young man had silently been watching and listening. Thanks to so many years being behind a mask, it was hard to tell what Hunter was thinking by looking at his current neutral expression.

"Hunter... I have wronged you just as much, if not more so, I treated you HORRIBLY at the Emperor's Coven. Ignoring you when you were injured, calling you a 'brat', outright dismissing you when you wanted to learn something new about magic, allowing the other Coven Heads push you around... there's no excuse for any of that! You were a child!" Lilith stated, gritting her teeth

It was Amity's turn to observe and listen as Hunter merely stayed silent, his eyes not giving away very much.

"Like Amity, I should have nurtured your eagerness to learn despite the fact you don't have natural magic. I should have thought about how were feeling.. about how to help you learn more about the world around you. I should have taken the time to help you, or even take care of your wounds from Belos! I remember what Steve told me about when you got deeply cut on your cheek when you were seven." Lilith continued

Hunter shuddered as he touched his cheek, apparently the memory was one that Hunter preferred not to think about.

"I am so sorry for not doing any of that. I know the both of us were in the Emperor's Coven and things were a certain way.. but that is no excuse! I shouldn't have been treating a child so badly." Lilith finished

Hunter's copper eyes observed Lilith the entire time, only moving minutely and blinking, he gave no hint as to what he was thinking or feeling... nothing out of the ordinary for the young man sometimes. Instead of speaking his peace like Amity had, Hunter slowly reached forward, his scarred hand curled over Lilith's and squeezed it gently for a moment, before returning to Hunter's side. Lilith smiled and blinked back tears.

"Thank you, Hunter..." Lilith said

After everything had been aired out, the three were able to enjoy their time together at the cafe. Amity and Lilith talked about various things, Hunter merely listening but did laugh at the story of Eda cutting Lilith's hair.

"So, you were able to crack the elixir? Wow! How'd that turn out?" Amity asked curiously

"It works, but... unfortunately it tastes worse than the elixir that Eda buys from Morton." Lilith replied "I just don't know how to remedy the foul taste, if I add in something wrong... the elixir won't work."

Amity drummed her fingers on the table "That is quite the conundrum, maybe I can find something in an old scroll or tome in the Forbidden Stacks or something."

"That could work... I could help you look." Lilith said

"Maybe you won't have to do that." Hunter spoke up

The two women looked to Hunter, he hadn't spoken a single word up until now, but he seemed serious about his statement.

"We won't?" Lilith asked

"Think about it Lilith." Hunter replied "Something that tastes good, and helps with healing."

Lilith raised a confused eyebrow, what was Hunter getting at?

"Fire Bee honey." Hunter said simply

Lilith smiled brightly "Hunter, you are a genius!"

The older witch went over to Hunter and pulled him into a hug.

"There's one problem with that idea." Amity stated "None of us have ice spells, and King is still discovering his powers as a Titan."

Lilith let go of Hunter "That's right... I didn't think of that."

Hunter stood up from the table "Give me ten minutes."

With that, the young man put a handful of coins on the table and started walking toward the Palistrom forest.

"Is he gonna..." Amity paused

"Darius is going to kill me if that boy gets hurt." Lilith said

The two women left their own payment on the table, and jogged off after Hunter. Thanks to planting Palistrom seeds with Eda, Dell, Gwendolyn, and Willow.. Hunter seems to know exactly where he's going. The young man approached a giant, dead Palistrom tree that a VERY LARGE hive of Fire Bees have taken up residence in, walking in as easily as anything.

Lilith stopped right at the tree "I am so dead..."

Amity clicked her tongue "Here lies Lilith Clawthorne. Killed by the ex Head of the Abominations Coven."

Lilith found a hint of teasing and mirth in Amity's tone, a small smile coming to her face despite the circ*mstances. The two female witches didn't hear anything from the hive, no aggressive buzzing, no yelling from Hunter... just calm buzzing. What was going on in there?

"What the..." Amity breathed

Lilith followed Amity's gaze, Hunter was walking out of the hive holding four jars of Fire Bee honey in his arms. Lilith ran over to the young man with a worried expression on her face. She instantly noticed that Hunter didn't have any stings or burns anywhere on his body.

"Hunter, are you okay?" Lilith asked

"How did you not get hurt?" Amity questioned

Hunter shrugged "I'm a Grimwalker, I'm part Palistrom wood."

Lilith smiled brightly "You truly are a genius, Hunter. Thank you for going in there for the honey."

Hunter nodded with a smile as he handed a jar to Lilith "It's no problem, Lilith."

Lilith placed the jar in her bag, smiling when Hunter handed a jar to Amity as well. Amity thanked him, promising to share it with her family.

"What about the two other jars?" Lilith asked curiously

"One is for Darius and the other is for Willow." Hunter replied

Amity smiled knowingly, which made Lilith giggle a bit. Even she had noticed that Hunter had taken a shine to Willow, spending a lot of time with the plant witch. It looked like the young man had allowed himself to experience things that all teenagers should be able to, it was a good thing to see... Hunter was really becoming a good young man.

"I may not know the Golden Guard as well as you do, Lilith... but he is still just a young lad. He will become a good man, I can tell." Stanford's voice echoed in her head

Lilith smiled, it seemed that Stanford was right about Hunter all along. Perhaps, she could find a way to find out a way to share everything that has changed in the Isles with Stanford somehow in the near future.

Chapter 16: Special Thank You

Chapter Text

I know this isn't technically a chapter, but I wanted to stop by. I want to thank EVERYONE who has read, subscribed, bookmarked, sent kudos, and commented on this fanfiction! I am so glad that several of my Tumblr fans suggested that I post Falling Into Boiling Trouble here on AO3! I did not expect it to do so well, but here we are! I am just so... surprised and touched that you all are enjoying this fanfiction!

Due to AO3 being more lax in terms of "risky content", I have more confidence in including some (like the nudity, and the torture). I might include some other risky content in future chapters, you never know! 😉 No worries though, I will let you know ahead of time by changing the rating, and possibly including warnings!

Thanks to a friend on Tumblr and her sister, I finally got through a roadblock that I've been dealing with for a while now, so expect to see a new chapter soon! I hope you all enjoy how things will go from this point forward! I will be seeing you all shortly!

Chapter 17

Chapter Text

A peaceful breeze and the scent of fresh cut grass greeted Lilith as she stepped through the portal door that connected the Boiling Isles to Gravesfield, Connecticut. Lilith herself didn't use it much due to being busy with clean up and rebuilding in the Boiling Isles, but Luz wasn't the only one who could use the door.. anyone could, as long as its power wasn't abused. The Collector and King were very clear that they didn't want anyone to use the door to cause trouble in the Human Realm, and vice versa.. so Luz, Camila, and Vee didn't tell anyone about the door.

Lilith stepped off the porch of the house, and started walking to where she knew Luz would be. Sure, Luz visited the Isles quite often since the door was installed, but Lilith needed Luz's knowledge of the Human Realm. Lilith knew that she wouldn't be able to figure out much by herself here, so she would need someone who already knows what they're doing... Luz Noceda!

Why did Lilith need Luz's help? Well, Lilith has found herself thinking about Stanford a lot since Belos was defeated. *Did Stanford find his way back to the Human Realm? Is Stanford in the Multiverse again, forever trapped in its grip? Is Stanford still alive?* Lilith didn't have answers to any of these questions, sadly.. but she could narrow things down a bit. She could start with seeing if Stanford had made it back to the Human Realm first, if he wasn't here, Lilith could try finding Stanford a different way.

Stepping out of the treeline, Lilith smiled when she spotted Camila in the backyard of her home hanging clothing and sheets out to dry with help from Luz, Vee, and Stringbean. Alphius perked up and flew off of Lilith's shoulder, finding Stringbean and inviting her to play tag. Luz giggled when she saw this, and smiled brightly when she spotted Lilith walking over.

"Hey, Lilith! It's good to see you!" Luz greeted

Luz instantly followed her greeting with a hug, one that Lilith returned without a second thought.

"Hola, Lilith!" Camila called "Come by for a visit?"

"In a sense, yes." Lilith replied honestly

Luz let go of Lilith and looked around for a moment.

"It's just you and Alphius today?" Luz asked

"Yes." Lilith nodded "King is playing with The Collector, Hunter and Willow are at Flyer Derby practice, Amity is spending time with her father, and Eda is probably causing mischief somewhere."

"That's okay, you can visit with me by yourself, you are my cool Aunt after all!" Luz smiled

Lilith smiled at the title she had gained from Luz, she was touched that Luz saw her as family even after all of the dark things Lilith had done in the past.

"To be honest, Luz... I'm not here just to visit." Lilith stated

Luz tilted her head "Oh?"

"I also need your help." Lilith admitted

Luz blinked in confusion, Lilith is one of the smartest people she knows, why would she need help from a human teenager?

"I can certainly try to help." Luz said

"You're quite knowledgeable about the Human Realm and its technology, Luz. I need your help with finding someone." Lilith explained "When I was in the Emperor's Coven, a human appeared one day and I was tasked with keeping an eye on him..."

"Wait, a human appeared in the Boiling Isles? Like, 'poof?!' Out of thin air?" Luz asked

Lilith nodded "Yes. I wasn't happy about the task at first, but over time... he became an unlikely friend of sorts. Thanks to Edalyn, found a way to get him off of the Boiling Isles, but... it wasn't a direct link to the Human Realm."

Luz had interest and surprise in her eyes as she listened to Lilith's short story, she can be an avid listener sometimes despite her ADHD.

"So, I need your help with trying to locate him in the Human Realm first." Lilith said "I know that will be quite the undertaking, but I want to try."

Luz smiled and gave a nod "I will do my best, Lilith! So, who are you looking for?"

"His name is Stanford Pines." Lilith replied

Luz put a hand under her chin in thought for a moment, she knew quite a few people in Gravesfield, but the name is unfamiliar to her.

"Mamá! Do you know anyone by the name Stanford Pines?" Luz asked

Camila shook her head "Not that I know of, try the phone book."

"That will be a good place to look first! Follow me, Lilith!" Luz beamed

Lilith followed behind Luz, letting Alphius play tag with Stringbean as Camila and Vee enjoyed the beautiful day now that everything was hanging to dry. Lilith smiled as she stepped into the Noceda home, the place always feels so cozy and welcoming... and to think Gus, Amity, Hunter, and Willow spent months here at one time.

"I found the phone book!" Luz called from the kitchen

Lilith stepped into the kitchen to find Luz at the table, flipping through the pages, a bottle of water next to her.

"Want anything while I look?" Luz asked

"No, thank you." Lilith replied as she looked around

Luz smiled slightly and went back to looking through the phone book, the sound of the clock ticking and the slight hum from the refrigerator filling the silence.

"Okay.. let's see. I only found one person in Gravesfield, Connecticut with the last name Pines." Luz said "Gerald Pines, to be exact.. definitely not who you're looking for."

"I had a feeling this would not be an easy task." Lilith stated "Do we keep looking in other phone books?"

"That would take forever, trust me." Luz replied "We can try something else, though!"

Luz grabbed a flat, metal device from the counter and carefully placed it on the table. Luz opened it easily and pressed a button on the side, Lilith could only blink with wide eyes.

"We can try Google." Luz said tapping away on the device "It pretty much has information on everything."

"This is why I came to you, Luz." Lilith stated "Human Realm technology is quite confusing."

"I don't mind helping in the least, Lilith." Luz smiled

Luz typed in Stanford's name, and clicked on 'SEARCH'. Forty seconds seconds later, Luz scrolled down to see what she could find, Lilith quietly watching and waiting next to her.

"Hey! We've got a match!" Luz announced

"Really?" Lilith asked

Lilith was desperately hoping that Stanford had found his way back to the Human Realm, the poor man had suffered enough at the hands of the Multiverse.

"It says here that Stanford Pines lives in Gravity Falls, Oregon." Luz said "Oh boy, that is.. wow!"

Lilith blinked in confusion "What's wrong, Luz?"

"If you're planning on going to see him, that is not going to be easy." Luz replied "You're only way of flying is Alphius, considering you haven't unlocked your Harpy Form yet."

"The Raven Beast is being quite stubborn..." Lilith admitted "But, why would visiting Stanford be difficult for me to do?"

"Let me show you." Luz said

After a short while, Luz pulled up something on her device, it looked like a picture of some sort of land-mass. Lilith looked at it with interest, it looked FAR different than the Titan.

"This is a picture of the United States, the country we're in right now." Luz explained "The United States has fifty states in total."

"Very interesting, is Oregon a state?" Lilith asked curiously

"Yes, but there's a problem." Luz replied "Connecticut is here."

Luz used a capped pen to point to where Connecticut is located, Lilith nodded in understanding.

"And Oregon is WAY over here." Luz added

Lilith's eyes followed Luz's pen to where Oregon is located, and blinked.

"Are you sure?" Lilith asked

"Yup! I know where every state is, we learn it in school." Luz replied "So, if you REALLY wanted to see Stanford, you would have to fly across the country."

Lilith looked at the picture on Luz's device. Yes, she now knew that Stanford is alive and back in the Human Realm, but she hasn't seen him since he left the Boiling Isles. She wanted to see him again, she needed to know if he was okay. Lilith highly doubted that Luz's device could tell her if Stanford was doing well.

"I'll have to bribe Alphius with A LOT of Rattle Worms, but I think it's possible to make that kind of trip." Lilith stated

"Since you're sure about this, I highly recommend that you go back to the Boiling Isles to get some supplies for the trip, bribe Alphius, and let Eda know where you're going... so she doesn't interrogate me later." Luz said

Lilith nodded "I can do that."

"In the meantime, I can print out a map of the United States, and make a travel route for you. Trust me, you'll need it. I'll also see what I can find out if there's any major weather fronts." Luz stated "Sure, weather is good here, but I can't say the same for the rest of the country."

"Don't worry, Luz. I will fully prepare myself for the trip, I never do anything halfway." Lilith assured

Luz giggled as she stood up "Well, that is true."

Lilith pulled Luz into a thankful hug, one that the human returned with a smile.

"Thank you for all of your help, Luz." Lilith said

"You're welcome, Lilith." Luz responded "Just be VERY careful."

Lilith let go of Luz "I will, you can count on that."

"Since the Internet doesn't know absolutely everything." Luz said "I hope you find your friend Stanford in good health."

"I certainly hope so." Lilith agreed

Chapter 18

Chapter Text

Lilith went through her mental checklist for the fourth time as Alphius happily finished up his plate of fresh Rattle Worms, the white raven drove a hard bargain, but ten Rattle Worms was a fair deal. At first, Alphius wanted twenty for the long trip, but once Lilith mentioned they would be seeing Stanford again, Alphius instantly edited the deal.

"Are you sure, you want to do this, Lilith?" A voice asked worriedly

Lilith turned her head to see King sitting on the couch, the young Titan had a look on his face that told of concern and hesitance.

"I'm quite sure, King." Lilith replied "I haven't seen Stanford in quite some time, and Luz's flat device can't tell me if he's okay or not."

"I can understand that he became an unlikely friend, but... the Human Realm is a REALLY BIG place!" King pointed out "I mean, you're going to be flying over an entire country..."

"I know it's quite the risk, but there's no other way for me to travel that far." Lilith said "I'll be just fine, King, you have my word."

King gave a small nod, still looking concerned, but Lilith didn't blame him. Smiling slightly, Lilith walked over to the couch, and pulled her nephew into a gentle hug.

"Are you sure you don't want to wait until Eda gets home?" King asked, returning the hug "That way, she can say goodbye too?"

Lilith chuckled "To be honest, I think Eda would try talking me out of taking the trip. I want to see Stanford again... see how he's doing, if he's okay."

King nodded into Lilith's shoulder "Okay... I understand."

"I will be back before you know it, and in one piece, I promise." Lilith stated "Until then, try to keep Eda from panicking after she finds my note."

"I'll do my best." King assured

The two hugged for several moments, until Lilith gently let go of King and went back to her pack to zip up the top. King hopped off the couch and sneakily placed one of his stuffed animals into a side pocket while Lilith wasn't looking, the young Titan knew that Lilith would need something to offer comfort other than Alphius.

"That is everything I'll need for the trip." Lilith announced

Alphius gave a "scraw" as he opened up his wings, giving them a good stretch as Lilith put her pack on her back. Lilith turned her attention to King, who was still looking a bit concerned.. but she knew how to help ease King's nerves.

"Stay here until Eda returns from whatever trouble she's getting into." Lilith instructed "Hooty can go over the clean up plans for the library, but don't let him go crazy."

King saluted "You got it!"

Lilith smiled at the action, it's definitely something that her nephew picked up from Luz at some point, but it's cute whenever he does it.

"I don't know exactly how long I'll be gone, so you might need to help Eda with shopping next week." Lilith said "Do you think you can do that for me?"

"I certainly can! I'll be a really big help!" King assured "I'll make sure she buys extra jars of Sizzle Jam, and Burn Butter."

Lilith was quite thankful that she already ate, otherwise her stomach would have rumbled at the mention of the two items, they are her favorite impulse buys at the marketplace.. but they make wonderful sandwiches!

"That sounds wonderful, King." Lilith smiled "You behave as well as you can for Eda, okay?"

King nodded, giving Lilith's leg a quick hug. Lilith couldn't help but melt at the action, she was quite happy that King had grown to love her so much.

"Travel safely, Lilith." King said

"I will, Luz said she would have a map for me to use." Lilith replied

With that, Lilith went through the portal door, waving goodbye to King as Alphius sat on her shoulder. Stepping into Gravesfield, Connecticut once again, Lilith took a deep breath to steady her nerves.

"Okay, let's go get our map." Lilith said

Alphius clapped his beak a few times, giving a "caw" as he sat on Lilith's shoulder. The two spotted Luz on the porch of her house, she had a plastic bag by her feet and a folded piece of paper in her hand.

"I had a feeling that packing wouldn't take you long." Luz greeted

"Usually never does." Lilith replied

The two females shared a quick hug, Lilith could tell that Luz was concerned about the situation as well, but it's normal for Luz to worry about those closest to her. After a couple minutes, Luz handed over the paper with a small smile.

"This is your map, Mamá and I plotted out the safest route for you to take. You'll have to go over a couple Great Lakes, and go into Michigan... parts of Pennsylvania and Ohio are experiencing some nasty thunderstorms." Luz explained "You do not want to get caught in those! I also wrote Stanford's on the back of the map."

"Thank you, Luz." Lilith stated, putting the map in the pocket of her jacket "I really appreciate all of your help."

"Of course! Anything for members of my familia." Luz replied "Oh! Before I forget, we wanted to send you off with this."

Lilith blinked as Luz handed her the plastic bag, inside was... fabric? No, there had to be more, the bag has a slight weight to it.

"Mamá, Vee, and I put all kinds of goodies in there! Mamá's famous beef wraps, some cornbread, a container of Vee's vegetable soup, bottled water, butter crackers for Alphius, a rain poncho, a Zippo lighter, flashlight, and a cozy blanket that I made!" Luz beamed

"I.. I certainly wasn't expecting this... thank you." Lilith said with a grateful smile

"You're welcome." Luz replied "It's a little something extra for your trip, you'll need some delicious food when you take a break from flying. The other items will help you out too, make things a bit easier."

"I greatly appreciate all of this, Luz." Lilith smiled

Alphius turned into his staff form, Lilith tied the bag to the end nice and tight, that way she wouldn't lose the thoughtful package.

"Safe travels, Lilith. I hope to see you soon." Luz said

"You will, you can count on it, Luz." Lilith replied

The older witch got onto her staff, and took the map out of her pocket so she could check it whenever she needed to. Lilith waved goodbye to Luz as her staff took to the sky, leaving the small town of Gravesfield behind. As Lilith studied the map a bit, she took a deep breath of the fresh air.

"Keep a steady pace, Alphius." Lilith stated "We're in for a long trip.. but it'll be worth it."

Alphius responded with slowing down just a bit, he knew his witch was right, the two of them had quite the journey ahead of themselves. A few worries were present, but Lilith had faith that she and Alphius would be just fine. Even without magic, Lilith could protect herself from pretty much anything.

Lilith's main worry was Stanford. She was hopeful that she would find the human male, but there was a small chance that Luz's device was wrong about Stanford's location. Lilith was also hoping to find Stanford in good health... the man could be dreadfully ill, and in a human hospital for all she knew! Lilith shook off the thought, she couldn't let uncertainty cause her anxiety to spike. She was going to hope for the best, and prepare for the worst... that's all she could do right now.

"Hopefully, I'll be seeing you soon my friend..." Lilith said

Chapter 19

Chapter Text

Lilith breathed in the evening air as she sat by a campfire she had made, Alphius resting on a tree branch nearby. The Zippo lighter that Luz included in the bag had greatly come in handy, it made starting the campfire a lot quicker! The woods of Minnesota were quite interesting, quiet and peaceful... a good place to rest for a while, maybe even sleep for the night.

Granted, Lilith had wanted to travel a bit further today, but Alphius deserved a break after flying over multiple states. They would have a longer flight tomorrow, but for now, it was time to rest and relax! Lilith had already ate a beef wrap, and had given Alphius some butter crackers for dinner.. which was quite filling for the both of them.

Lilith leaned up against the trunk of a tree, and looked up at the changing sky above her. She had seen how sunsets turn the sky in the Human Realm before... but it was always beautiful to watch none the less. Part of her wondered if Stanford has been able to see the same thing, or if the information on Luz's device was outdated.

"I guess we'll find out when we get to Oregon." Lilith whispered

Alphius didn't reply, his eyes fighting to keep open, Lilith merely smiled and stroked the raven's head with her fingers. This relaxed Alphius even more, causing his eyes to fall shut and slip into a content slumber.

"Good boy, Alphius." Lilith praised quietly "You deserve all the sleep you can get."

Alphius cooed a bit as he snoozed, Lilith smiled as she went back to relaxing and observing the sky above her. Even though, she was on her way to see Stanford, the witch wondered how things were going back on the Boiling Isles. She hoped that Eda wasn't turning everything upside down, trying to find her.

The older witch yawned as she fully leaned against the tree trunk, placing the blanket that Luz had given her over herself to keep warm. Before she knew it, Lilith was drifting off to the sound of chattering squirrels, and the song of chickadees.

Meanwhile in the Boiling Isles...

Eda read over the note Lilith had left for the seventh time, it did very little to help her emotional state. The gray haired witch paced across the living room as she looked over the piece of paper.

"I don't get it!" Eda stated "Everything is great here! Belos is gone, we're rebuilding the Isles, everyone is the happiest I've ever seen them! Why would Lilith go to the Human Realm to track down Stanford? He left the Demon Realm quite some time ago!"

"She said that she wanted to see if he was okay, see him for herself... Luz's weird device couldn't tell her much other than where Stanford possibly lives." King replied

Eda continued to pace around the room, her thoughts going a mile a minute... if she still had magic, it would be sparking right about now.

"I can't tell you not to worry, Eda... but Lilith assured me that she would be okay." King said as calmly as he could

"She can't guarantee that! The Human Realm has its own dangers, and Lilith doesn't have any magic or a Harpy Form!" Eda pointed out "I'm gonna go over there, and find her! I'll bring her back by her neck if I have to!"

King hopped off the couch "Calm down, and breathe for a minute! You don't have to go that far! Lilith really wants to see her friend again, she wouldn't make this trip if it was something that she didn't want to do."

Eda took a deep breath, and let it out slowly. Deep down, she knew King was right... Lilith wouldn't do something like this unless it was something that she really wanted to do. Eda knew that Lilith referred to Stanford as an "unlikely friend", but she had a feeling that Lilith wasn't being completely honest.. both with herself and with others when it came to Stanford.

"Okay, I'll give it three days." Eda stated "If Lilith isn't back by then, I'll talk to Luz, and find Lilith myself."

"What about us?" Hooty asked "I would like to meet Lulu's friend!"

"No dice, Hooty! There would be no way to disguise you in the Human Realm." Eda replied "If and when I have to go looking for Lilith, I'm going to have Raine keep an eye on you two."

"Raine?" Hooty asked "Are you sure they'll agree to it?"

"Of course!" Eda responded "Just because a new romance didn't work out between Raine and I, doesn't mean that we're not friends. I'm sure they will agree to keep an eye on you two."

King tilted his head "So, what do we do until then?"

Eda sighed "I guess we'll just have to do what we usually do, but I'm giving it three days... no more than that."

Back in Minnesota...

The sound of something sniffing around her caused Lilith to wake from her light slumber, her eyes widened behind her glasses when she saw several canine-like creatures prowling around her small campsite. She had seen these creatures a few days ago in a book about wolves that Hunter had gotten in the Human Realm, the young man was absolutely obsessed with the majestic creatures.

Seeing them in a book was one thing, but in reality... Lilith was not prepared for how big wolves really are! Smaller than a Slitherbeast sure, but still an impressive size for a predator of the Human Realm.

"My word..." Lilith whispered

Her eyes drifted over to Alphius who was still fast asleep, which wasn't a total surprise... the wolves hadn't made any loud noises that would cause the white raven to wake up. Lilith continued to watch them curiously snuff the area, even sniffing the bag next to her, but not trying to get into it.

"I must be in their territory." Lilith whispered

A large gray furred wolf turned its head suddenly, golden eyes locking on her. Lilith swallowed thickly as she sat completely still, she didn't want to do anything to cause the animal to harm her, or vice versa. The animal slowly approached, its large paws silently aiding its movements, Lilith felt her pulse increase but she kept very still. The gray wolf stopped and sniffed Lilith's face, surprisingly the predator didn't smell of blood and rotten meat.. instead it smelled of dirt, fresh air, and pine trees.

Lilith kept completely still as the wolf continued to inspect her with its powerful nose, even sniffing her curly red and gray hair until it sneezed. Lilith couldn't help but smile and giggle at the action, the wolf tilted its head at the sound but didn't act aggressively or strike out. Instead it turned around and started walking toward a thicker part of the woods, the rest of them following shortly after.

Once the wolves were out of sight, Lilith fully relaxed against the tree trunk as she listened to the sounds of the woods now that it was late evening.

"My word... that was quite the experience." Lilith breathed "Hunter is right... they are truly magnificent creatures."

Lilith adjusted the blanket again, placing her bag closer to her as she looked up at the countless stars that littered the night sky above her. The Human Realm had its dangers, but it also held a lot of beauty as well... she could see why Stanford wanted to return to his rightful home after spending so much time in the Multiverse. Lilith would want to return to the Boiling Isles if she had spent years away from it, so it made a lot of sense.

After observing the stars for quite some time, Lilith took off her glasses and set them on a rock nearby, settling in for some more sleep as Alphius made himself more comfortable on the tree branch a short distance away.

Chapter 20: New Year's News and Updates!

Chapter Text

I know this isn't technically a chapter, but I wanted to stop by and let you guys know about a few things before I go back to work in a few days. Not to worry, though! A new chapter is on its way! That way you all can read what happens next, because I'm not going to be giving anything away! 🤐

Happy New Year, everyone! Welcome to 2024! Hopefully, this year will be a better year for a good percentage of the population. But, I must admit, 2023 had its good moments. I mean, I certainly did not expect to post this fanfiction here in my AO3 account, and have it completely take off! I've had to strap myself into my chair to keep from falling out so much! 😆

Okay, let's start with Falling Into Boiling Trouble. This fanfiction has been doing so well, and surprising me at every turn with how much you all are enjoying it! I will continue to try and post new chapters as often as I can, even though I have work and other stuff going on. I can't quote exactly how often new chapters will be posted, so you guys will have to stop by and check to see if there's anything new.

Next, I have some news on something interesting! I have been given permission by my sibling to post a fanfiction that they have posted on their Tumblr account. It has a modest following, and I told my sibling about how well Falling Into Boiling Trouble has been doing on AO3. I told them that I could help them get an account, and stuff like that... but they have been uncertain about it. Yesterday, they gave me permission to post their fic on my AO3 account! 😮 So keep an eye out for that in the near future!

I can't give away too much what it will be, all I can tell you is that it is not Owl House or Gravity Falls related. My sibling is a fan of both cartoons as well, but they don't have any fanfictions about either Fandom online. All I can tell you is that the fic in question is Marvel related, but I will not give any more hints! Now, it won't be a complete "copy and paste" sort if deal, I have been given permission by my sibling to add details, and/or dialogue as I see fit.. and I plan on doing so!

I have a feeling both projects will be In-Progress on my account, but I will do my very best to keep both of them going. Trust me, I'm not going to forget about Falling Into Boiling Trouble at all! How can I? You guys are devouring it like a plate of freshly baked cookies! 😆

Okay... I think that's about it for now! I hope you all have a good day! I will be seeing you all again very soon! Byeeeeeeeee!

Chapter 21

Chapter Text

Having solid ground underneath his feet again was something that Stanford knew he would have to get use to again, especially now that he and Stanley were back in Gravity Falls. The two had enjoyed every minute of their sailing adventures.. discovering new anomalies and cryptids, meeting interesting people, eating wonderful food, and reconnecting as brothers. It had been a wonderful time, one that Stanford knew he would never forget!

The reason behind them returning to Gravity Falls is an easy one to answer, Mabel and Dipper had begged their parents to go to Oregon again for the summer and the couple eventually agreed. Yes, it was in the middle of May right now, but both Stanley and Stanford wanted to have time to settle into the "Guest Cabin" that Soos asked Manly Dan and his family build for the occasion... plus, it was a good idea for the older men to get their "land legs" back after being on a boat for several months.

The two have been back in Gravity Falls for a couple days now, and it felt good to be back. Stanford had missed the weird energy that Gravity Falls seems to radiate, and he has missed visiting his favorite cryptids as well. Stanford had decided that would be something he'd do tomorrow, he had plans to take care of a few chores today and put away a few of the items he collected during the voyage upon the Stan O' War 2.

Stanford had gotten up early (no surprise there), and got started on some laundry after drinking his coffee. The man had carefully washed his sweaters in the sink with mild laundry detergent, and hung them outside to dry while the rest of the laundry went through the washing machine. This left Stanford wearing one of the T-shirts Stanley bought him as a gag gift, one that reads: 'Danger! Nerd Zone Ahead!' Stanford had accepted the gift with a chuckle, but he didn't wear it often, due to the collection of scars that littered his neck and arms.

Now that it was just after noon, Stanley washed up the plates from lunch as Stanford went outside to see how his sweaters were doing. Each one felt dry, and smelled pleasantly of lavender and fresh air. Stanford hummed to himself as he took the sweaters inside to carefully hang them in his closet, as he did so Stanford took off the T-shirt with a slight sigh.

"I need to find a way to stretch this out a bit, it's tight around my shoulders." Stanford said to himself

Stanford set the shirt aside, and picked up the red sweater that Lilith had gifted him when he left the Boiling Isles. His thumbs ran across the softness of the Witch's Wool, feeling just the same as the day he received it. Stanford smiled as he put the sweater on, the perfect fit of it causing him to feel relief almost instantly.

Stanford sighs as his thoughts drift to Lilith, part of him wishes he could visit the Boiling Isles, to see how Lilith was doing.. but he was pretty sure that was an impossible task. Stanford couldn't risk getting lost in the Multiverse again, he didn't want to put Stanley (or himself), through that again. All Stanford could do was hope for the best, and pray that Lilith is doing well.

Meanwhile...

The massive trees that surrounded Lilith were absolutely amazing! She had never seen anything like it! Even the tallest trees on the Isles paled in comparison! Alphius looked at the trees with wide eyes as well, the two of them could hardly believe that such a thing existed in the Human Realm!

"Oh my Titan..." Lilith breathed

Alphius agreed with a "caw" as he sat on Lilith's shoulder, trees this tall and thick would make it hard to traverse.. so the Palisman was glad they landed by a road. Hearing the "honk-honk" from a vehicle, Alphius turned into his wooden form, and Lilith put him safely in her bag. The red and gray haired witch could see a truck pull to the side of the road, and a large man stepped out.

"Well, hello there!" The man greeted

Lilith blinked, this man seemed to be as talk and broad as Mason! She was half expecting him to be carrying a large hammer with him. The man sported red hair, beard, and thick red chest hair that peeked through the neckline of his shirt.

"Are you lost, Miss?" The man asked

"A bit, I'm heading to Gravity Falls to visit a friend of mine." Lilith replied

The man smiles "I'm heading back to Gravity Falls, I can give you a lift."

"That's very kind of you, sir." Lilith said "Thank you."

"No need for formalities, you can call me Manly Dan, everyone does." The man chuckled

Lilith got into the passenger seat of the truck, placing her bag on her lap. Manly Dan got the truck back onto the road, driving towards Gravity Falls. Lilith could hardly believe her luck! A local had found her, and was giving her a lift to where she could possibly find Stanford!

"So, who are you planning to visit?" Manly Dan asked

"I traveled a long way to visit my friend Stanford Pines." Lilith replied

A thoughtful look crossed Manly Dan's face, like he was trying to figure out who exactly Lilith was referring to.

"He has two toned gray hair, blue eyes, glasses... strong jawline." Lilith described

"Oh! You're looking for Doctor Pines!" Manly Dan responded "I know exactly where he lives!"

Lilith blinked, she had no idea that Stanford was referred to in that way, but at least Manly Dan knew where Stanford lived. Lilith was just hopeful that she would be able to see Stanford after all this time. Lilith watched the world go by, still fascinated by the massive trees that seemed to be native to the area.

"Here we are, Miss." Manly Dan announced "Gopher Road!"

"Thank you so much for the lift, do I owe you anything?" Lilith asked

Manly Dan stopped his truck, and shook his head "No charge, I don't mind helping out those who need it."

Lilith smiled as she stepped out of the truck, keeping a hold of her bag since Alphius was inside it keeping a low profile.

"So, how do I find Stanford?" Lilith asked

"Just walk down this road here for five minutes or so, and you'll see a cabin not too far from The Mystery Shack." Manly Dan replied "I'm not totally sure if Doctor Pines is there today, but you can try there first."

Lilith nodded "Thank you again, Manly Dan."

The large man nodded and drove off, Lilith took a deep breath and started walking down the dirt road like Manly Dan instructed. The unknown massive trees surrounded this area a lot more than where she and Alphius landed earlier, a truly magnificent sight to behold! After walking for several minutes, she spotted a cozy looking cabin and a very unique vehicle parked nearby.

"This has to be the cabin where Stanford lives." Lilith thought

The witch adjusted the white and powder blue bandana she had been wearing, and approached the cabin. She could see someone near the porch, pulling weeds out of the ground near some lovely flowers. Due to amount of shade the roof was providing, Lilith could only see that it was a human man wearing a blue jacket, black pants, and boots.

"Excuse me, I hate to bother you, but I'm looking for a friend of mine." Lilith stated

The man stopped what he was doing, and stood up, wiping dirt from his hands.

"It's no bother, Miss." The man said "I can assist you."

Lilith blinked with wide eyes, she knew that deep baritone voice anywhere!

"Stanford?" Lilith asked

The man nodded as he stepped into the sunlight. The change in lighting instantly highlighted the man's two toned gray hair, blue eyes, glasses with a crack in the left lense, large polydactyl hands, his blue jacket, black pants, and boots. Lilith could also see that he was wearing a red sweater underneath the jacket as well, it was the sweater she made from Witch's Wool!

"Have.. have we met, Miss?" Stanford asked in a confused tone

Lilith could see Stanford's eyes observing her short red and gray hair, her mismatched eyes, and her outfit with interest and confusion. She didn't blame him any, it has been quite some time since they last saw each other.

"I'm thrilled to see that you still have the sweater I gave you." Lilith smiled

Stanford froze for a moment, his eyes wide, Lilith could practically see the gears moving in the man's head.

"Lilith?" Stanford asked "I-is that.. really you?"

Lilith's smile widened "In the flesh."

Stanford's smile instantly brightened, the man rushed over an pulled Lilith into a tight hug. Lilith returned the gesture immediately, feeling her anxiety vanish with the breeze as she placed her chin on Stanford's shoulder.

"My goodness.. it.. this is..." Stanford paused "It's great to see you again, my friend."

Lilith blinked back tears as Stanford tightened the hug, it feels so good to see him again after all this time.

"I'm quite happy I found you... my friend." Lilith said with a happy sigh

Elsewhere over Wisconsin...

Owlbert hooted as he sat safely in Eda's hair as the witch flew over a forest in her harpy form. Eda's mismatched eyes moved up a bit as she listened to her Palisman.

"I know I said three days, Owlbert.. but two and a half is close enough." Eda said

Eda had worried for those two and a half days, not knowing if Lilith is okay or anything else.. so she had gone to Luz about exactly where Lilith was headed. The human teen agreed to hand over the information after seeing how worried and concerned Eda is about her sister being so deep in the Human Realm. Owlbert hooted again as he stayed in Eda's thick hair.

"I know she's trying to find her friend, but... I need to know that she's okay. The Human Realm can be a dangerous place." Eda stated

Owlbert gave a small hoot, and hunkered down, knowing that he wouldn't be able to talk his witch out of her decision.

"We'll find Lilith... I know we will." Eda said

Chapter 22

Chapter Text

Stanley was use to the content silence of Gravity Falls, even though he has been away from it for a several months, he was accustomed to it. He was also use to Stanford's occasional bouts of silence when his focus was entirely on a task, journal entry, or experiment. That being said, it was too quiet outside the cabin, Stan hadn't heard anything from his brother in nearly half an hour! No grunts while pulling out weeds, no gentle words to the flowers.. nothing! Something was going on, and Stanley was going to figure out what it was.

Stanley finished putting away a few things, and stepped outside. Confusion instantly hit him when Stanley spotted his twin brother hugging a woman a short distance away from the flowerbed.

"What in the world..." Stanley whispered

Stanley is well aware that Stanford has been working on displaying physical affection to others he is acquaintances with (like Soos, or Wendy), but Stanford still seems to prefer displaying such things to family members, and those he is very close to. So seeing this is not only surprising, but also very confusing! Stanley's eyes observed the woman's red and gray hair.. the curls ending near the middle of her neck. The woman's outfit also seemed a little strange, but Stanley wasn't going to judge too harshly.

"I hope I'm not interrupting somethin', but... what's goin' on here?" Stanley asked

Stanford seemed to blink himself back into reality, slowly letting go of the woman and wiping at his eyes with a handkerchief.

"My apologies, Stanley." Stanford stated "I didn't hear you come outside."

Stanley blinked with confusion when the woman turned around to face him, she had one silver colored eye and one light green eye, pale skin, spectacle-like glasses, long black fingernails, and a bandana on.

"I was checking in on you, and well... saw you hugging a stranger." Stanley said

"Oh no, she's no stranger.. not to me anyway." Stanford responded

Stanley took off his beanie and scratched his head, his brother was hardly making any sense! Granted, the two men spent a lot of time apart in the past, but Stanley knew that Standford had a very difficult time talking to, let alone making friends with someone of the opposite gender.

"Mind filling me in? I'm completely lost here." Stanley admitted

"Oh yes, of course!" Stanford responded instantly "Stanley, this is my friend Lilith Clawthorne."

Lilith smiled as Stanley stepped off the porch, the two shook hands in a greeting. Stanley felt a bit of surprise when Lilith's long fingernails didn't scratch the skin of his large hands.

"Lilith, this is my twin brother Stanley." Stanford said

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Stanley." Lilith greeted

Stanley smiled "The pleasure's all mine."

After the two stopped shaking hands, Stanley turned his attention to his brother.

"So how do you two know each other?" Stanley asked "Did ya two go to Backupsmore University together, or something?"

Stanford chuckled "My goodness, no. The only friend I made at Backupsmore University was Fiddleford. I met Lilith in... well, the Multiverse."

Stanley blinked with wide eyes, Stanford had told a few stories of his time in the Multiverse to Dipper and Mabel before they went home back in last August.. but Stanley had a feeling Stanford was telling the "safer" travels he had. Stanford shared a few of the harsher tales with Stanley during their sailing adventures, but didn't go into TOO much detail for obvious reasons. With that in mind, Stanley couldn't remember if Stanford told him about any women he met during his time in the Multiverse.

"Come on, let's go inside and make ourselves comfortable." Stanford stated "I'll explain more the best I can."

Stanley nodded, letting Lilith walk in first, and then following his brother into the cabin. He had a feeling that what Stanford was about to tell him was going to take a while.

Meanwhile in western Montana...

Owlbert hooted happily as he plunged into a field of overgrown grass, effectively disappearing into it with a small rustle. Eda yawned as she sat underneath a tree, she knew that her Palisman would be fine, Owlbert has been in the Human Realm enough times to know what to do if danger comes his way.

Eda had to admit, it felt good to take a break after flying for so long in her Harpy Form. She needed to rest for a while, so the witch decided to land and shift out of her Harpy Form for a while.. she deserved it. Granted, she was worried about Lilith, but Eda knew that running herself thin wouldn't help.. it would only cause more issues, and she already had plenty of those!

Eda smiled to herself when she heard a few hoots from Owlbert, followed by some rustling. A couple moments later, Owlbert flew out of the grass with a fieldmouse in his tiny talons and landed by Eda.

"Great work, Owlbert." Eda praised "Looks like you caught a nice fat one."

Owlbert puffed up in pride for a minute before tucking into his freshly caught meal, Eda leaned against the tree, watching the wind play with the tall grass.

"I almost forgot how beautiful the Human Realm can be sometimes." Eda stated

Owlbert hooted in response.

"I know, but.. just because it has its beauty doesn't mean it's not dangerous." Eda responded "We know that from firsthand experience, Owlbert."

The little brown owl blinked for a moment, then nodded, he and his witch have seen dangerous things in the Human Realm before.

"I'm just hoping that Lilith made it to that Oregon place, and hasn't gotten into any danger." Eda said

Owlbert hooted again, tapping his feet on the dead mouse and then pointing his beak at Eda's bag. The witch rolled her eyes good-naturedly, and sighed.

"Okay, okay. Enough worrying, and eat something... I get it." Eda said "You can act like a mother hen sometimes, you know."

Owlbert gave a few hoots in reply, causing Eda to huff.

"Hey! I do not do the same thing to Luz and King!" Eda defended herself

Owlbert's dry look was enough of a rebuttal, Eda gave a defeated sigh as she opened up her bag.

"Okay, you made your point." Eda stated "You win this time, but don't let it go to your adorable head, mister."

Owlbert puffed up again, turning his attention back to his meal as Eda pulled a container of stew out if it. The witch looked up to the vast sky, watching it turn various colors for several moments, she knew pretty soon it would be too dark to fly.

"After we eat and get a good night's sleep, we'll head back out." Eda announced "According to the map, Oregon isn't too much further."

Back in Gravity Falls...

Stanley could only sit in his chair silently, blinking as he took in what Stanford and Lilith had told him. He had a feeling a few things were left out, but everything he had been told was enough to be quite the shock! Lilith's white raven sat on Stanford's shoulder, letting out happy squawks, all if this was just... Wow!

"So.. you fell into a different realm? Is that even possible?" Stanley asked

Stanford nodded "It's a very rare occurrence, but yes.. it's possible."

"And you were 'in charge' of him?" Stanley questioned

"It was ordered by Emperor Belos, I didn't have much say in the matter." Lilith responded "At that time, no one in the Coven questioned him..."

"Please tell me that sinful man is dead." Stanford said

Lilith nodded "He has been for several months."

"Thank goodness..." Stanford grumbled

Stanley leaned back in his chair a bit.

"I don't fully understand everything, naturally.. but.. by the sounds of it, you two were not exactly friends." Stanley said

"At first? No." Stanford admitted "After I observed things for a while, I came to realize that Lilith wasn't so bad."

"And Stanford grew on me like Rust-back Moss." Lilith said with a smile

"Moss is usually a good thing, so I'm guessing that's a compliment." Stanford chuckled

Stanley watched the two for a moment, he might not be the brightest color on a pallet of paint, but he's not dull either. Stanley can see that his brother and Lilith are a bit more than what they're letting on... either that, the two don't know what to label it themselves.

"Well... I think after absorbing all of that, I believe it's time to turn in." Stanley said "My brain needs some time to cool down, and we did get quite a bit accomplished today."

"Yes, very good points." Stanford agreed "All of us could use some sleep."

Lilith stood up "I could camp outside if you don't have room."

"Outside? Goodness no! We have plenty of room here." Stanford said

"Yeah, there's a room upstairs that's free." Stanley added "We're not expecting the kids until June."

"Are you sure? I don't want to be a bother." Lilith ventured

"It will be no bother at all, trust me." Stanford stated "There's no need for my good friend to camp outside on a chilly night in mid May."

Stanley stood up, and stretched "You could stay all week, and we wouldn't mind."

"You two are sweeter than Mother's homemade Blizzard Pie." Lilith smiled "I really appreciate the hospitality."

Both men smiled "It's a recent Pines thing."

Chapter 23: I'm so sorry, everyone!

Chapter Text

Sorry everyone... I was going to post a new chapter yesterday, but plans fell apart! I was about six paragraphs into it, when the power went out for HOURS! I unfortunately didn't save anything, so I would have to start from the very beginning! By the time the power came back on, it was time for bed.. so I couldn't do any typing.

I tried to do some this morning, but I got only four paragraphs done when my coworker calls me, begging me to come in on my day off. Apparently, two people called in saying that they can't come in for various reasons. I won't go too deep into detail about the "reasons" they couldn't show up to work. This would leave my coworker by herself for cleaning duty, so I agreed to come in to help the poor dear.

I can't guarantee that I will type more today, it'll depend how achy and frozen I am when I get home later on. So, it maybe another day or so until a new chapter is up. I feel bad because the chapter was going so well before the power went out yesterday! It had some humor, and teasing between the Stan Twins. I was quite proud how well it was going, but I don't have any control over the current events right now.

I best get going, I need to get myself off to work. Hopefully, I will see you guys soon!

Chapter 24

Chapter Text

The morning sights and sounds of Gravity Falls vastly differed from the Boiling Isles. Instead of being woken up by Hooty or King, Lilith woke up to the sounds of songbirds and woodland critters running across the roof of the cabin. At first, when Lilith woke up, she thought that everything had been a long, very detailed dream.. but when she put on her glasses and found herself in a different place, Lilith knew that everything had actually happened! She finally got to see Stanford again!

Lilith had to admit, Stanford looked A LOT better than she last saw him. The man's body language was loose, it seemed like he didn't carry as much guilt on his shoulders, the circles under his eyes weren't as dark, and his eyes were a lot brighter! It was a very good thing to see! Lilith even noticed that Stanford's hair added a bit more gray since she last saw him, but the man looked as distinguished as ever.

Meeting Stanley had also been very interesting for Lilith. In quite a few ways, she could see how Stanford and Stanley are brothers. Not just by looking a lot alike, but also in how they interacted with each other... however, their personalities greatly differed. Stanley claimed that he has "the gift of gab" and "a silver tongue", but Lilith didn't know what either of those meant.. so she couldn't say for sure. All in all, Stanley is quite.. interesting. In fact, Stanley's unpredictable personality and lack of verbal filter reminded Lilith of Edalyn!

After a delicious breakfast of "Stancakes", Lilith felt at a bit of a loss of what to do next. She didn't want to intrude on any plans Stanford and Stanley may have planned ahead of time, or upset their morning routine just because she appeared out of nowhere.

"Lilith?" Stanford asked

Lilith broke out of her thoughts, turning her attention to Stanford who was standing at the doorway of the kitchen, Alphius already sitting amongst Stanford's salt and pepper hair.

"Sorry about that, got a little lost in my thoughts for a moment." Lilith stated

Stanford chuckled "No need to apologize, it happens to me quite often."

"It happens more often than Mabel knits sweaters, Sixer!" Stanley called from the other room

Stanford instantly laughed, the baritone vibrations sounded absolutely enchanting to Lilith. She never heard anything like this from Stanford during his time in the Emperor's Coven for obvious reasons, but it was a lovely sound nonetheless.

"Yes, yes, I know!" Stanford called back to his brother

Lilith heard Stanley chuckle and head outside the cabin, what the man was up to, she had no idea.. but it was probably something important. Stanford then turned his attention back to her.

"Anyway, I wanted to know if you wanted to accompany me today." Stanford said "I'm going into the forest to visit some local cryptids."

"Wouldn't we get lost amongst those massive trees?" Lilith asked

Stanford chuckled "With me as your guide, there's no fear in getting lost, my dear. I have explored the forest of Gravity Falls many times, you'll be just fine with me."

"Well, I can't say no to a stroll in such a beautiful place.. and having a knowledgeable guide would be beneficial." Lilith said "I would love to go with you."

Stanford smiled "Great! Let's get our jackets, and head out."

The two put on their jackets and footwear, stepping out of the cabin into the slightly chilly morning air. Lilith raised an eyebrow when she and Stanford spotted Stanley underneath the interesting vehicle parked nearby.

"Oh dear, looks like I've lost Stanley once again to the depths of his car." Stanford chortled

"Stanmobile would never eat me, she loves me too much." Stanley responded "She's just givin' me lots of oily kisses."

"I'm sure she is, you do take wonderful care of her, after all." Stanford said

"Off to the forest?" Stanley asked knowingly

"Yes, and Lilith will be coming along." Stanford replied "We should be back by lunch."

Stanley reached out to grab his toolbox, pulling it closer to him.

"You two have a good time, and say 'hi' to the Scampfires for me." Stanley said

"Will do!" Stanford assured

Lilith followed Stanford, the two going through the treeline. The red and gray haired witch looked at them with extreme interest, she had never seen trees like these before! Not even the tallest Palistrom tree could compare!

"These are Redwood trees, a subfamily of coniferous trees." Stanford said as they walked

"They are truly magnificent!" Lilith marveled

"To be honest, the Redwoods are the most normal things of Gravity Falls forest." Stanford said knowingly "Many different and fascinating creatures call this place home, including ones that may even surprise you."

Lilith smirked "You do remember that I'm from a different realm, correct?"

Stanford chuckled "Oh trust me, I remember.. but most of the creatures that I've seen here... I never saw in the Multiverse."

Lilith blinked "Really?"

"Yes." Stanford replied "There's the Abominable Bro-Man, Beard Cubs, Eye-Bats, Gnomes, Scampfires, Gobblewonker, Plaidypus... just to name a few."

"My word, I have never heard of those creatures before." Lilith said

"In many ways, Gravity Falls is like a world of it's own! Attracting strange, yet fascinating creatures to it..." Stanford paused "It's records of such paranormal and anomalous activity is what lead me here."

Lilith found her eyes going to Stanford's large polydactyl hands as he held back a large branch so Lilith could go through safely.

"Well, you are an anomaly all your own, Stanford." Lilith stated

A slight blush came to Stanford, coloring his cheeks. Lilith couldn't help but smile at the man's reaction as they walked through the beautiful forest.

"So which creature are you planning to visit?" Lilith asked curiously

"We're going to visit one of my favorite cryptids, the Plaidypus." Stanford replied

Stanford came to a stop by a large pond, the water shimmered in the morning sun and looked almost like glass with how calm the wind is, hardly disturbing the water's surface. Stanford sat down on a flat rock, Lilith followed his lead quietly.

"Observe." Stanford whispered

Lilith watched as Stanford pulled a large sealed bag out of his jacket pocket, it was filled with the crust of toast, stale cereal, raisins, pieces of bagels, granola clusters, and seeds. Alphius observed the bag from Stanford's hair, but made no move to go after it, apparently still full from breakfast, the raven merely just nestled further into the fluff. Stanford opened the bag, and tossed a handful of the mixture on the ground.

Before Lilith could ask any questions, she saw something come out of the pond. The creature seemed to be bigger than Ghost, but smaller than King's current size. The creature's fur has red and black stripes... it was like the flannel pants Stanford wore last night before retiring to bed. The intriguing little creature started nibbling on the mixture, stuffing its cute little bill with it.

"Oh my Titan, how cute!" Lilith whispered with a wide smile

"It gets cuter." Stanford said "I happen to know this particular Plaidypus."

Lilith blinked in confusion for a moment, Stanford set the sealed bag aside, and turned his attention to the Plaidypus.

"Peaches!" Stanford called softly, patting the rock with his left hand

The Plaidypus instantly perked up, its flat tail thumped the ground once, and it scampered over to Stanford. The little critter climbed up next to Stanford, making little sounds as Stanford stroked its red and black striped fur. Lilith couldn't help but blink with wide eyes, even Alphius was speechless!

"My word! How did you..." Lilith paused

Stanford chuckled "I know her father Perry, and her mother Paulina. I was here at the pond when the eggs hatched.. it was a week before Stanley and I set sail."

"There's more of these adorable creatures?" Lilith asked

Stanford motioned to the pond "See for yourself."

Lilith turned her attention back to the pond, more Plaidypus had come out to munch on the mixture. Stanford tossed out more for them, causing Peaches to join in on the dining experience. Lilith mentally counted all of them, coming up with thirty-four!

"My word! There's so many of them!" Lilith breathed

"This pond has two groups.. or 'clans' that live peacefully with each other." Stanford said "Clan Perry, and Clan Philbert."

"Oh my Titan... this is simply amazing!" Lilith marveled

Stanford smiled "Trust me Lilith, there is much more to see."

Chapter 25

Chapter Text

Exploring the forest of Gravity Falls with Stanford had truly been a wonderful experience! Lilith couldn't get over how beautiful it is! The Redwood trees, the thick grass, the flowers, the cryptids... everything had been an experience that Lilith wanted to do again! Plus, seeing Stanford in his true element was nothing short of intriguing.

Sometimes it's hard for Lilith to believe that a man like Stanford experienced the beauty, constant dangers, and horrors of the Multiverse for so many years. Going from place to place, dimension to dimension, even realm to realm! Despite his travels, experiences, and even being abused by other species... Stanford somehow kept the instinct to be kind. Even though the man was thrust right back into the Multiverse after leaving the Boiling Isles, Stanford still kept his gentle nature.

Seeing how Stanford interacted with the Plaidypus, Scampfires, and Geodites was indescribable! Being so calm and friendly to the interesting cryptids, was something that Lilith did not see much from Stanford during his time with the Emperor's Coven. It made Lilith's heart beat quicker just by observing it.

Even though Lilith could easily spend the entire day with Stanford in the forest, when Stanford saw that the sun was reaching its highest point in the sky, the man said that they should return to the cabin for lunch. Lilith couldn't really argue though, hunger was starting to set in due to all the walking she had done, so she followed Stanford without a fuss back to the cabin.

Now, Lilith was seated at the table with Stanley and Stanford, enjoying a lunch of ham and cheese sandwiches.. which had a very interesting taste to Lilith. There was also some vegetable sticks, potato chips, and lemonade to go along with the midday meal. Alphius happily pecked at some cubed meat on the table, situated between Lilith and Stanford.

"So, how did the Stanmobile's check-up turn out?" Stanford asked

"She's as healthy as a horse, and purring like a kitten.. as always!" Stanley replied proudly

Lilith didn't know anything about Human Realm vehicles, but she could tell that Stanley has quite the bond with his, and takes very good care of it. Even though the vehicle wasn't a living thing, it seemed that Stanley saw his "Stanmobile" as something more than a way to get from place to place.

"How are the Scampfires?" Stanley asked as he placed a potato chip by Alphius

"Doing very well!" Stanford replied "Good thing I took a small bag of marshmallows with us, they devoured those quite quickly."

"They are very intriguing creatures." Lilith admitted "I've never seen living fire before."

"Sounds like you had a great time out there with Sixer." Stanley smiled

Lilith nodded as she finished her sandwich, she had truly enjoyed herself out in the forest, and spending more time with Stanford was definitely an added bonus.

"I had a wonderful time." Lilith agreed "I certainly hope that I can do it again sometime."

Stanford smiled "Of course! I'd be thrilled to show you more of the forest anytime you wish."

Stanley subtly rolled his eyes as Alphius shook his head before turning his attention to the potato chip.

"If you decide to stay another night or two, I'm sure Stanford can take you out into the forest again." Stanley said

"I'm not sure if I can stay for nearly that long... I've been away from the Boiling Isles for quite a few days now." Lilith responded "Edalyn is probably quite worried about me."

Stanley titled his head "Edalyn?"

"My younger sister." Lilith clarified "We've been reconnecting as sisters for quite a while now.. it's nice to have our relationship solid again. So, I would hate to have her worry even more."

Both Stanford and Stanley nodded in understanding, considering the men had been reconnecting with each other as well for quite a few months.. they could understand where Lilith was coming from about being uncertain about staying for too long.

"Whatever you decide to do, we'll support it." Stanford said "Just having you come all this way to see if I made my way back home is more than enough for me."

"I wanted to, Stanford." Lilith stated "You had been in the Multiverse for so long.. and I could see how weary you were. Not just from traveling, but from everything.. what you had done, what you had seen! It's more than any person should ever carry on their shoulders."

Stanford didn't argue those facts, he knew through firsthand experience just how much the Multiverse could wear on someone.. be it mentally, emotionally, physically... it's not for the faint of heart.

"I wanted to see if you had made it back to the Human Realm, to your proper home... you deserved it after everything you went through." Lilith said

"Well, thanks to you helping me.. I was able to finally come home." Stanford stated

Lilith tilted her head "I thought it was your brother activating your portal that brought you back."

Stanford nodded "Yes, Stanley was responsible for that, but I don't think the portal would have been able to reach me in the Demon Realm.. considering just how deep it is in the Multiverse."

Lilith blinked with wide eyes, processing Stanford's statement as Alphius settled by her arm.

"So, if it wasn't for you helping me find a way off of the Boiling Isles... I wouldn't be here right now." Stanford finished "I would have never gotten to see Stanley and reconnect as brothers, or meet Mabel and Dipper... and they're truly wonderful kids."

Lilith found herself speechless, she didn't think of that. She only saw herself as an unlikely friend who helped someone who desperately needed it. She never saw herself as the one who was responsible for Stanford being located by his portal, and brought back to the Human Realm.

"The more I think about it, the more it makes sense." Stanley admitted "It's kinda like a domino effect."

"And since you thought of my well-being when you helped me find my way, Lilith... I can return the gesture." Stanford said "When you're ready to go back, I can help in any way I can, that way your sister doesn't have to worry anymore than she probably already has."

Lilith gave a nod "Thank you, Stanford... that is very sweet of you."

"It's no trouble at all, I understand that you don't want your sister to fester with worry." Stanford responded

Lilith smiled, but before she could say anything else, the sound of crows, ravens, and other birds flying off in a hurry caused the three to straighten up. Alphius let out a few "caws" himself, Stanford stood up from the table, his eyes on the world outside the kitchen window.

"That's odd..." Stanford mumbled

Lilith and Stanley stood up as well, but before they could think deeper into what could have spooked so many birds, it sounded like something.. or someone was outside the cabin!

"Lilith?" A voice called out

Lilith blinked "Edalyn?"

The red and gray haired witch rushed out of the cabin before either Stanley or Stanford could say anything. As Lilith went out the front door, she spotted her sister looking around, Owlbert on her shoulder.

"Eda?" Lilith asked "My goodness, what are you-?"

Lilith's question was cut off by being pulled into a tight hug by her sister, Lilith noted that Eda was wearing her replacement arm that Alador had made for her last month.

"Lilith! My Titan! I have been so worried about you!" Eda said into Lilith's short hair

"I left a note." Lilith pointed out with a small laugh

"I saw it.. but I got worried anyway." Eda responded, pulling back a little bit "I gave it a few days... but I couldn't wait any longer. I know firsthand how dangerous the Human Realm can be. So I left King and Hooty under Raine's care, and set off to find you."

Lilith felt her heart clench a bit "I didn't mean to worry you, Edalyn... I just really wanted to see if Stanford found his way back to his home."

"It's okay... I'm just happy that I found you in one piece." Eda said

"Lilith is perfectly fine, not a single scratch on her to my knowledge." Stanford stated as he stepped off the porch

Eda let go of Lilith, her eyes curious. She took in Stanford's appearance, from the two-tone gray hair, to what he was currently wearing. Eda didn't meet Stanford on the Boiling Isles, so she didn't know what to expect.

"Is this the guy?" Eda asked

Lilith nodded "Yes, this is my friend Stanford Pines."

Stanford smiled and extended a hand to shake "It's a pleasure to finally meet you, Edalyn."

Eda looked at Stanford's hand with interest for a moment, but surprisingly didn't say anything about his polydactyly for now. Instead, Eda shook the offered hand with a greeting smile.

"You can call me Eda, it's what I prefer." Eda said

"Can't say that I blame ya, more often than not, I just go by Stan." Stanley said as he exited the cabin

As soon as Eda turned her attention to Stanley, Lilith noticed her eyes widen and her body language freeze. Lilith had never seen this from her sister before, she could even see a thoughtful expression cross Stanley's face as well. Stanford looked to his brother, putting a hand on Stanley's shoulder.

"Are you alright, Stanley?" Stanford asked worriedly

Stanley's eyes took in Eda's current hairstyle, her bodybuild, eyes, skin tone, sharp tooth, and long fingernails. Stanley blinked a couple times, and shifted a bit from foot to foot.

"Marilyn?" Stanley asked breathlessly

Chapter 26

Chapter Text

Eda felt like someone had encased her in ice, she couldn't move a single muscle... Titan, she could hardly even breathe! She could hear Lilith's and Owlbert's concerned voices, but couldn't find a way to respond. All she could do is blink with wide eyes, her eyes on the man apparently called "Stan". Why does he sound, and somewhat look so familiar? He knew the name she used whenever she would visit the Human Realm, but Eda felt like she knew this man... like, intimately knew him.

Eda's mismatched eyes watched as Stanford carefully moved in front of "Stan", placing himself in the middle of everyone.

"Stanley, are you alright?" Stanford asked with concern

"Yeah, I'm okay..." Stanley paused "It's just, she looks and sounds a lot like Marylin."

"Marylin?" Stanford asked "The ex-wife that you mentioned a few times when we were sailing? Are you certain?"

"I'm not one hundred percent sure, but... I know I'm not crazy... or senile.. yet." Stanley replied honestly "She has to be Marylin, my ex-wife."

Eda's heart rate picked up, to the point that she felt her bilesac vibrate. Now everything was clicking into place! If she concentrated hard enough, Eda could picture the man nearly thirty years younger... a bit rounder gut, no glasses, long brown hair, and slight scruff on his strong jaw. Eda swallowed thickly, slowly regaining herself, she could see Lilith looking at her with confusion and concern.

"Edalyn? Are you okay?" Lilith asked "How does Stanley know your Human Realm name?"

Eda's eyes once again moved over to Stanley, who was rubbing the side of his head as Stanford comforted him.

"Daniel..." Eda breathed

Everyone went silent, both Stanford and Stanley turned their attention to Eda. Confusion etched itself on Stanford's face, but Stanley had a look of recognition on his.

"Daniel Greenwood?" Eda asked

Stanley stepped around his brother, his chestnut colored eyes still observing Eda closely until he was standing just three feet away from her.

"Marylin Hawthorne..." Stanley breathed "I... I never thought I'd ever see you again."

"Okay.. I'm definitely confused." Lilith admitted

"As am I." Stanford agreed "How about we go inside and make some sense out of this."

Eda nodded slowly, following everyone inside.. even though part of her brain was telling her to grab Lilith and fly back to Connecticut as fast as she could.. that voice was being overruled by the movement of her body. Stanford and Stanley sat down in a couple chairs, as Eda and Lilith sat on the couch, Stanford rubbed his chin a bit before speaking.

"Alright... let's start with the basics here." Stanford stated "You're Marylin Hawthorne?"

Eda nodded "Yes, I used the name whenever I visited the Human Realm via my Portal Door... before it was destroyed."

"And you used the name Daniel Greenwood, Stanley?" Stanford asked

"Considering I was banned by quite a few States at that point.. yes, that was one of my ID's." Stanley responded

"Did you know of Eda's fake name, Lilith?" Stanford questioned

"Eda and Luz told me a little bit about 'Marylin', apparently she's banned from a cafe in Gravesfield." Lilith replied "Eda also mentioned having a relationship with a man here in the Human Realm, but she... had difficulty going into detail."

Stanford nodded as he listened, a thoughtful look on his face.. Eda could practically see the gears moving in the guy's head.

"Stanley has told me quite a few things about his ex-wife, including the fact that the marriage lasted less than a day." Stanford said

Eda shifted a bit on the couch, Owlbert nuzzled her cheek to help soothe her a bit, but she could practically feel the need to escape right now.

"Now, I'm not going to point fingers.. or play the overprotective brother card right now..." Stanford paused "However, I do believe some things need to be cleared up, find some closure between the two of you."

Eda and Stanley looked at each other for a moment, Eda was surprised to see that there wasn't any anger or resentment in Stanley's eyes.. just confusion and slight hurt. It seemed that this situation had opened up an old wound for him as well.

"Stanley told me how you two met in Vegas at the casino..." Stanford started

"We reached for the same slot machine." Eda said "I had met a lot of men in the Human Realm at that point, but I had never felt such a... connection to a Human male before."

Lilith moved a bit "Really?"

"We got along like Griffins and Manticores!" Eda responded "We got into all kinds of misadventures."

Stan smiled "That's for sure."

"I'm definitely not surprised." Stanford chuckled

"We also had our quiet moments too." Eda went on "Like when he took me for a ride in his car, and it blew a tire just after sunset. I watched the sky, as he was fixing it up, Titan's Teeth... I never knew that the Human Realm sky had so many beautiful stars at night."

Lilith noticed the look on her sister's face, like she was reliving the memory right there in the living room of the cabin.

"You two spent a lot of time together, didn't you?" Lilith asked

"We sure did, I hung around in Vegas for at least.. a month or more. Marylin was my only reason to stick around." Stanley replied

"What about the elixir?" Lilith asked, turning to look at Eda

"I had a habit of packing along a full sack of elixirs whenever I visited the Human Realm.. that way I could explore until my heart's content." Eda replied

"Elixir?" Stanford asked

Stanley shrugged "I have no idea what they're talkin' about."

The Clawthorne sisters looked at each other, and sighed.

"During that time, I had to drink an elixir everyday.. to keep my curse at bay." Eda said

Stanley blinked "Curse?"

Eda nodded "It was hard to handle sometimes, but the elixir helped greatly... it kept me from turning into a beast. One that attacked without being provoked, capable of killing.. luckily I never did that."

"So this curse.. was something you had very little control over?" Stanford asked

"At the time, yes." Eda admitted "I... I wasn't even thinking of the curse when Daniel.. Stanley proposed. I was just so happy! For the first time since my breakup with Raine... I was genuinely happy with someone that accepted me."

Stanley moved a bit in his chair "So... your curse caused you to leave?"

"That night, after we 'celebrated' our marriage, I checked my sack of elixirs... I only had three bottles left. Which meant, I would have to go back to the Isles in three days, or risk running out and.. turning into the Owl Beast." Eda sadly sighed "I didn't know what to do, I didn't want to leave such a wonderful man! But.. could I really risk his life? Or tell him everything, and hope that he didn't think that I was insane?"

Silence ruled the air as Eda took a red handkerchief put of her hair, and wiped away the tears that escaped her eyes. Owlbert gave a small 'hoot-hoot', nuzzling Eda's cheek in a soothing manner.

"So, even though it killed me inside... I took off the ring, placed it on the pillow, kissed his cheek.. and left through the Portal Door." Eda finished

"Oh my Titan... Eda..." Lilith whispered "I am so sorry you had to do something so emotionally difficult."

Both Stanford and Stanley were quiet for quite some time, neither of them really knew what to say about everything that had been revealed. A confused look suddenly came to Stanley's face.

"But.. the authorities told me that a strange woman tried stealing my car. I always thought it was you." Stanley said

Eda shook her head "I knew how much that beautiful car meant to you, I left it well enough alone... I was already doing enough to you as it was. But, I did take about forty percent of our winnings.. later converted them over to Snails, it got me quite a bit in potion ingredients and apple blood."

Stanford tilted his head "Don't you mean apple juice?"

Eda and Lilith smirked "No."

Chapter 27: An interesting comment has lead to some ideas!

Chapter Text

I get a lot of wonderful comments for this fanfiction here on AO3! It makes me so happy that you all are enjoying this crossover fanfiction so much! Thanks to fans like you, I got past TWO major roadblocks! So, this means that the online version of Falling Into Boiling Trouble has more chapters than the incomplete written version! 😱

Anyway, I got an interesting comment from a Guest that has lead to some possible ideas! The comment reads as below:

**"Ok. I held off commenting until now because I was to engrossed in this story. But now I can write my thoughts down!

First of all, this is one of the greatest crossovers that I've read so far. It is one of the only crossovers I've seen that actually sticks to the canon events of both shows, while still being perfectly good in its own right.
I was very happy to read your near-perfect grammar. It made the reading even more enjoyable.

I have 3 main requests of things that I personally would want to see in future chapters. You don't have to do them, this is just my wishful thinking.

1) first and foremost, I want all the Pines to meet king and react to the fact that he sounds and acts like Bill cipher.

2) I want Dipper to meet Luz and discover everything about eda and lilith being witches from another dimension. A cherry on top world be seeing the Pines twins meeting the Hexside squad.

3) I want to see lilith get her harpy form.

Anyway, I absolutely love your story so far. Thank you so much for writing it, and I can't wait to read more!"**

Not only did this comment put a MAJOR smile on my face, but it also got me thinking about where this fic will go in future chapters!

1. I am not totally sure just yet if all of the Pines family will meet King or not. I will definitely consider this plot point, and go from there.

2. Dipper and Mabel will more than likely meet Eda and Lilith in future chapters, and be brought up to speed how their Grunkles are connected to the sisters Clawthorne. They may, or may not meet the Hexside squad, this will be decided later. 🤔

3. Believe it or not, I have been thinking about Lilith getting her Harpy Form for a couple chapters now. I got a pretty good idea in the shower, (I get some really good ideas in there) and I might just make it a reality! Unless, a better idea hits me at some point. Depending on what idea takes hold in my brain, I might ask a friend to draw something out for me.

4. There will be Lumity and Huntlow content in future chapters as well, or side-chapters that focus on those couples, I'm not sure yet.

All of the comments I receive since I posted here are absolutely wonderful, and make me smile! You all are just so amazing! You guys are just so nice, and I am so glad that this crossover fanfiction is being enjoyed by fans!

Oh, and before I go. Due to the hits going above 3,300... my brain has imploded 🤯 and I had to find the pieces of it around my home. I also had to replace the strap that I use to keep myself in my chair, so I don't fall out! You guys are just... setting record after record!

I will be seeing you all again soon! Take care, be safe, and enjoy yourselves!

Chapter 28

Chapter Text

As Lilith stared at the ceiling of the extra bedroom, she couldn't help but have different emotions running through her mind. Today had been a rollercoaster of emotions and revelations! Not only Eda showing up out of nowhere, but discovering Eda's connection to Stanford's twin brother Stanley! It was just so... much! Lilith could hardly believe that Eda's past relationship in the Human Realm had been a marriage that lasted less than a day!

Luckily, it looked like Stanley didn't have any lingering negative emotions toward Eda for what she had done to him as "Marilyn" all those years ago. Yes, the man seemed shocked and confused, but Lilith didn't see any anger, resentment, or bitterness in Stanley's eyes. It was something that brought a small amount of peace to Lilith, but everything else... was running wild through her head.

"Can't sleep either, Lily?" Eda asked from her bed a short distance away

"Not really..." Lilith replied

Lilith heard Alphius worriedly "caw" at her, along with a "hoot-hoot" from Owlbert. Lilith definitely appreciated their concern for the two witches, the two Palismen had been nothing but understanding and calm through all of this.

Eda whispered "Bag of Snails for your thoughts?"

"I'm just feeling... horrible." Lilith said honestly

"Feeling horrible? About what?" Eda asked

Lilith sighed "Stanley..."

"Lilith, you have no reason to feel bad about that..." Eda started

Lilith sat up "Eda, you left him because of the curse! The curse that I gave you!"

"It was the biggest reason, yes." Eda admitted after a minute

"And the relationship you had with Raine fell apart because of the curse, too..." Lilith added

Eda sat up as well, looking at her sister through the semi-darkness of the room, the only sounds being the forest outside at night.

"Part of the reason Raine and I broke up back then was because of.. me keeping details of the curse away from them." Eda said "The other part was that Raine was joining the Bard Coven, and couldn't associate with a wild witch anymore. So, either way, we would have split up. Granted, Raine and I tried having a romantic relationship again, and it didn't work out... I'm glad that I can still be friends with them."

Lilith pulled her legs to her chest, placing her chin on her knees. Guilt clawed at Lilith's mind and heart, causing her bilesac to vibrate slightly.

"I know you feel horrible about the curse, and how it has effected my life for many years, Lilith... but I have already forgiven you for it." Eda stated "Yes, I was beyond angry at you when you told me, but... you took the first step of making up for that mistake by sharing the curse."

Lilith wanted to reply, but Eda stopped her by shaking her head.

"While it is true that I didn't get to experience everything I wanted to because of the curse... a partner, kids, the whole deal... I still have a pretty good life." Eda added

"You can't honestly mean that, Eda." Lilith said "You had to sacrifice happiness..."

"I have happiness, Lilith.. just a different form of it." Eda corrected "I have a relationship with Mom and Dad again, I have King and Luz.. at this rate, I might as well adopt Amity! Willow is a sweetheart, Hunter's growing on me like Sniper Moss, and I have you back in my life!"

Lilith blinked back a few tears as she listened to her younger sister. Granted, Eda didn't have the life she wanted.. but she had more than she could ever need now. Although, Lilith still felt bad that Eda had to leave a marriage due to something she had very little control over at the time.

"Did.. did you love him?" Lilith asked

"You mean, Daniel.. Stanley?" Eda asked

Lilith nodded "Yes, did you love him?"

Eda moved a little bit on her bed, her gaze going to the window, watching the half moon bathe everything in its white light. The gray haired witch let out a sad sigh, and nodded.

"Very much so." Eda replied "I fell for him, and I fell hard! We just clicked on a level that I never experienced before."

Lilith moved so that she was sitting cross legged on her bed, watching and listening to her sister as Eda kept her eyes on the world outside the cabin.

"I couldn't help but accept his proposal, he was just so... sweet to me, so caring, and loving. I couldn't say no to that face! I loved him so much that I said yes without thinking about it." Eda went on "When I realized that I only had three elixirs left, my blood ran cold..."

"You didn't want to leave him." Lilith said knowingly

Eda slowly nodded "I was up more than half the night... arguing with myself about what to do, he was such a good man... I didn't want to hurt him, or worse."

"So, you left him.. to protect him." Lilith whispered

Eda nodded again "I hated myself for doing so... it killed me inside, but I had to."

Silence took over the bedroom for several minutes, Lilith didn't know what to say, ask, or do next. Eda had gone through SO MUCH because of the curse, things that even Lilith wasn't sure she would want to experience.

"But, if I haven't left... I would have never found King, I wouldn't have met Luz and promptly had my entire life turned upsidedown." Eda said

Lilith gave a small nod "I suppose that is true..."

"Luz coming through my Portal Door, and deciding to stay on the Boiling Isles changed my entire life, Lily." Eda stated "That wouldn't have happened if I stayed here in the Human Realm."

"The Boiling Isles would be a burning husk of... death." Lilith shuddered "Belos... Philip would have gotten what he wanted, the extinction of witches on the Boiling Isles."

Eda nodded as she looked back to Lilith, the older sibling couldn't quite tell how Eda was feeling just by her eyes... that and it was a tad bit dark in the room.

"So... I guess things happened the way they did for a reason." Eda said

"When you put it that way... I guess so." Lilith responded

The two sisters laid back down on their beds, staring at the ceiling as the forest outside vibrated with nocturnal life.

"Do.. do you think you could.. get to know him again? As Stanley Pines this time?" Lilith asked curiously "From what I've observed, Stanley has a good heart, and is pretty open-minded."

"I'll... I think I'll talk to him some more, especially before we go back home." Eda replied

Lilith found a small smile come to her, Eda deserved to spend some time with Stanley to completely air things out.. maybe even become good friends! While those two talked, Lilith planned on spending more time with Stanford.

"You want to spend more time with Stanford, don't you?" Eda asked

"Well, yes I would like to." Lilith replied "It has been quite a while since I've seen him, and I don't know when I will be able to visit again..."

"Then that's all that you need to tell me." Eda smirked "No need to play coy with me, sister"

Lilith blinked at her sister's words, what in the world was Eda trying to say? Lilith knew that she and Stanford are just friends that haven't seen each other in quite some time... catching up, and getting to know each other more.

"What are you insinuating, Eda?" Lilith asked, her cheeks turning pink

Eda gave a chuckle "Don't worry, I'll make sure Stanley and I aren't anywhere near your make out in the woods with Stanford."

Lilith's cheeks instantly heated up even more, going from pink to red, and spreading to her ears very quickly. Eda's laughter at Lilith's reaction was quickly smothered out by a pillow being flung at her.

Chapter 29: Bad News and Good News

Chapter Text

Bad News: I had to post a Tumblr post a couple days ago because of some developments that happened. It reads as follows:

**I am quite disappointed in some of my followers here on Tumblr. My last post about getting title ideas for my sibling's fanfiction unfortunately gained very negative comments (some people even accusing my sibling of plagiarizing a different fanfiction). Due to these negative comments, my sibling has decided not to let me post their What If/MCU crossover fanfiction. I know that the details that I did share were a bit confusing, but some of you DID NOT need to be so vulgar with your comments! My Tumblr page is a place of peacefulness! Even though I am disappointed in some of you, I will not punish others that were being nice. I will return with a new chapter Falling Into Boiling Trouble in a week or so.**

So, that particular fanfiction that my sibling has on their DeviantArt account will not be posted here on my AO3 account due to some people being rude and vulgar. My sibling was definitely upset, they worked hard on that fic, wrote everyday for at least THREE WEEKS! It took a while to calm them down, I had to bring out the big guns... a big bowl of popcorn and binge watching The Owl House!

Good News: There will be a new chapter of Falling Into Boiling Trouble very soon! So get ready for more Stanley, Stanford, Eda, and Lilith! There will also be future chapters with Lumity and Huntlow! Dipper and Mabel will make an appearance at some point, along with a cryptid that a Tumblr friend drew out for me! So prepare yourselves for that!

Also, my sibling came to me yesterday about posting a fanfiction that they have in a notebook, there's already a title so I won't have to ask my Tumblr fans and risk more vulgar comments. It's their first crossover fanfiction for The Owl House and Gravity Falls, I made sure that they are 100% positive that they want me to post it, and they assured me that it's okay. I can't really say EXACTLY when it will be posted, so keep a look out!

Chapter 30

Chapter Text

Breakfast with Stanley and Stanford the next morning was a slightly awkward affair, considering everyone now knew Eda's connection to Stanley. However, when Eda pointed out some cute photos on the refrigerator and asked about them, the conversation easily flowed and the atmosphere lightened. It turned out the children in the photos were Stanley's and Stanford's great niece and great nephew by the names, Mabel and Dipper. They appeared to be nice children through the photos, and Stanley instantly cemented that fact! The two men eagerly told Eda and Lilith about the kids until breakfast had been completely eaten, and everything had been cleaned up.

Lilith had to admit, she was definitely shocked that there were so many pairs of twins in the Pines family. Let alone, discovering that Stanford's and Stanley's eldest brother is a grandfather! Then there was the fact of Stanford missing out on so much of the kids' lives due to his time in the Multiverse, including his time on the Boiling Isles. However, Lilith did note how animated Stanford talked about their "niblings", and how much he enjoyed the two despite not being around them when they were growing up. It was good to see, just like it was good to see him talk about the local cryptids in the forest.

Once breakfast was finished and things were cleared up, Lilith wasn't really sure what was going to happen next. Both she and Eda had been away from the Boiling Isles for quite a few days now, no doubt Luz and King were probably starting to worry... however, Lilith didn't want to leave Gravity Falls just yet. She wanted to spend at least a little more time with Stanford, it would probably be quite a while until she can see him again.

Eda could somewhat read the look on Lilith's face, so she decided to speak up before the "Stan Twins" started thinking about how to help the witches get back to the Isles quicker. So, as Stanley headed outside with some cleaning supplies, and a bucket... Eda looked to Stanford as the man put away the orange juice.

"Lilith mentioned last night, that she got to see some interesting creatures here." Eda stated

Lilith gave her sister a warning look of: I Know What You're Doing.

Stanford turned "Yes, there are MANY interesting creatures here! Including ones that I just recently discovered, it's just so... fascinating!"

Eda smiled "Recent discoveries, huh? I bet you'd like to see those, Lilith."

"Well, yes I would, but..." Lilith tried

"No 'buts', Lilith." Eda interrupted "You go off with Stanford to see more interesting creatures, you'll enjoy it."

Stanford brightened at the idea "I was planning on checking in on a new cryptid that I found, see if I can make any new observations."

"That sounds right up your alley, Lilith." Eda said nudging her sister

Lilith couldn't say "no" to the look on Stanford's face, or the excited look in his bold blue eyes, so she nodded.

"I'll go along, it sounds quite exciting." Lilith stated

Stanford's smile grew "Wonderful!"

Eda smiled as Owlbert perched on her shoulder, giving a few hoots.

"Of course I've still got it Owlbert, never lost my touch." Eda whispered to her Palisman

As Stanford and Lilith put on their jackets, Lilith turned her attention to her sister as Alphius perched himself on Stanford's head with an excited "caw".

"What about you, Eda?" Lilith asked "What are you going to do?"

"Don't worry about me, I'll find something to entertain myself." Eda replied

Stanford zipped up his jacket "If you need anything, Stanley's outside cleaning up his car for the Car Fest in a few days."

"Noted, you two have fun." Eda said

"Alright then, we'll be back in time for lunch." Lilith stated "And try to stay out of trouble, Edalyn."

Eda stepped off the porch, following her sister and Stanford as they left the cabin. Eda waved at the two as they headed to the forest.

"I promise nothing!" Eda called

"Those two goin' into the forest again?" Stanley's voice asked from behind Eda

Eda turned a bit to see Stanley filling the bucket with water from the hose, adding some soap to it as the bucket filled up. Eda nodded as she fully turned around.

"Yeah, Stanford's going to show Lilith some recent discoveries he made." Eda replied "There's no harm in it, let those two have more time together."

Stanley chuckled and smiled "You pickin' up vibes from them too, aren't ya?"

Eda smirked "Oh yeah, for sure! I haven't seen Lilith this way about someone since she had a massive crush on Alador's brother, Engelric, back when we were kids!"

Stanley turned off the hose, and stood up, stretching out his back a little bit as his smile grew on his face.

"I hear ya, even after all these years... Stanford's still an easy read when it comes to him bein' interested in a gal. I mean the last time was in our Sophom*ore year in Highschool." Stanley said

"Really?" Eda asked curiously

"Did not go well, Ashley Bradshaw ended up slappin' him... callin' him a 'freak of nature'. He was real down for a couple weeks after that." Stanley replied

"Ouch..." Eda winced

Stanley picked up the bucket "Gotta give you a fistful of points for pushin' those two in the right direction, though. Maybe they'll take the hint."

"One could only hope." Eda shrugged

The gray haired witch watched as Owlbert explored the nearby trees, hooting loudly with delight... it looked like her Palisman would be occupied for a while.

"Say, how about you give me a hand?" Stanley asked

"Sure, why not?" Eda replied "Stanford did mention that you're cleaning up your car for a festival."

Stanley started walking toward the driveway "I entered her into the May Day Car Show at the Car Fest in a few days. I've got a good feelin' she'll come home with a prize or two."

Eda followed along, she hadn't heard the man speak of a car that way since Las Vegas all those years ago. Did Stanley find a different classic car that he was proud of?

"Here she is!" Stanley announced "Recognize her at all?"

Eda's eyes instantly widened, in the driveway stood a burgundy 1965 El Diablo convertible sedan that was all too familiar! She could hardly believe her eyes! The vehicle looked just like she remembered it! Like the hands of time hardly even touched it! There wasn't even any rust in the old vehicle!

"Oh my Titan..." Eda breathed "You still have this old car?"

Stanley set down the bucket by the Stanmobile "I never got rid of her! Stanmobile is my girl! My most prized possession."

Eda could only blink as Stanley gently patted the hood of the car before grabbing a couple large sponges, and a few microfiber towels. After all these years, Stanley still had the very vehicle that he liked to cruise around in, Eda remembered sitting in the passenger seat many times... watching the lights of Vegas go by.

"So, you up for helpin' me clean her up?" Stanley asked "She's got some judges to show off for in a few days."

Eda shook herself back into reality, she walked over and grabbed a sponge. The gray haired witch used the soapy water in the bucket to get the sponge wet, and smiled.

"Oh yeah, I can help you out." Eda replied "Between the two of us, she'll leave all those judges completely speechless!"

"I like the sound of that!" Stanley beamed "Stanmobile will knock them dead!"

Eda nodded in agreement as she and Stanley started scrubbing the car, it was just so hard to believe that the old car still looked so good! It was definitely obvious that Stanley took really good care of his car, even though he struggled with finances until he started running his own business.

"I have to admit, this old girl still looks good for her age." Eda stated

Stan gave a smile "Well, so do you... so it's definitely not an impossible task."

Eda froze a little bit, her cheeks turning pink at Stanley's statement. The man could still find ways to make her blush, that has definitely not changed in the slightest... and for that, Eda found herself to be grateful for.

Chapter 31

Chapter Text

Venturing into the forest with Stanford again has been another wonderful experience for Lilith, she was grateful that Eda nudged her to go... not that she would admit to Eda right now. She loved seeing more cryptids and interesting sights, watching Stanford excitedly tell her about anything she asked about. So far, they have seen Beard Cubs, a few Eye-Bats, visited the Plaidypus clans, and observed a Woodpecker-pecker. Stanford was more than willing to give Lilith plenty of information about each cryptid, including some more facts about the Plaidypus that he hasn't shared yet.

Right now, the two were walking through a part of the forest that Lilith hasn't explored with Stanford yet. She followed the salt and pepper haired male along, enjoying the beautiful Redwood trees, light blue sky, and the local fauna. Stanford assured her that he had been in this section of the forest before, so Lilith followed him with full trust. She was also quite curious about the "new discovery" they were going to observe today, was it something cute like the Plaidypus? Or something unpredictable like the Scampfire? Either way, Lilith was happy to be spending some more time with Stanford... there was no way of knowing when she would be able to see him again.

Stanford helped Lilith over a large log with a smile, Lilith accepted the help and got over it without getting hurt. Stanford didn't mind helping her navigate the forest, helping Lilith whenever she needed it... which wasn't too often.

"So, what is this new discovery of yours?" Lilith asked, curiously

"Quite the interesting creature really." Stanford replied "At first, I thought she was just a large patch of foliage. Came to discover, that is just her coloring and appearance that makes wonderful camouflage."

"She?" Lilith asked

"Discovered her guarding a nest, and her noises sound feminine." Stanford responded, honestly "I'm hoping to discover a bit more about her."

Lilith blinked "A nest? Really? Is there anything in it?"

"Not that I could see at the time.... I couldn't get a good look." Stanford replied

Lilith had to admit, her curiosity has definitely increased! She was even more excited to see this discovery now! She could help Stanford study it more! Maybe they could even see if there was anything inside the nest! They could make so many notes, and they could share everything they discovered with Stanley and Eda at lunch! Alphius flew above them, letting out a "caw, caw, scraw."

"Alphius says there's a large nest surrounded by foliage just ahead." Lilith reported

Stanford smiled "That's her! Come on!"

Lilith followed Stanford easily, even though they picked up the pace a little bit. Soon, Lilith spotted Alphius sitting on a tree branch, the white raven returned to her shoulder with a "caw, whrrt, scraw".

"Right over there." Lilith said, pointing to the left

The two hunkered down in some brush, staying out of sight as they looked to a large nest made of small branches, dandelion fuzz, grass, leaves, flower petals, and other things. Outside the nest there was a pile of fresh apples, pears, a dead rabbit, and some berries... it looked like a stockpile of food. Inside the nest looked like a large pile of foliage, with two long ivy growths sticking out of it.

"There she is." Stanford whispered

"Are you sure?" Lilith asked

Stanford nodded "Positive, she curls up like that to blend into the surroundings."

Lilith looked back to the nest, she watched closely, trusting that Stanford knew what he was talking about... he has observed this creature before after all.

"What do you call this creature?" Lilith asked

Stanford smiled as he let out a small, sharp whistle. The foliage let out a sound and started moving upward! After a couple moments Lilith found herself looking at a serpentine dragon with dark brown scales, light brown underside, turquoise eyes, and bold green ivy-like "horns" on her head!

"Meet the Ivy Crested Dragon." Stanford whispered

The dragon looked around, apparently trying to find the source of the whistle. She let out a couple rumbles, stretching out her arms and long body... it looked like she had been sleeping when Lilith and Stanford showed up. Lilith had never seen a proper dragon before, full-blooded dragons had once lived in the Boiling Isles according to legend, but slowly faded from existence. The reason this happened, no witch or demon remembered.

"What have you been able to discover about her? Other than the camouflage?" Lilith asked excitedly

"Not too much, sadly." Stanford admitted "However, I did observe that she has an Omnivorous diet... which is quite odd for a dragon."

"So, she eats meat, fruits, and vegetables... that is quite unusual." Lilith said "The dragons that once lived on the Boiling Isles were Carnivores."

The Ivy Crested Dragon yawned, revealing a lot of sharp teeth. Stanford took a book out of his pocket and started writing in it as the dragon stretched out some more with a few more rumbles... definitely had a feminine tone to them.

"Interesting, her teeth are sharp like a predator... but her diet isn't just of meat." Stanford mumbled

"She is a beautiful creature, though." Lilith said as she watched

Stanford looked up from his notes "Indeed she is."

The Ivy Crested Dragon looked around again, as if making sure she was safe, before moving out of the nest. Using her hands, she placed some leaves in the nest and slithered off into the forest... moving like a Boiling Isles basilisk.

"She must be looking for water, she already has a supply of food." Lilith said

"We can use this as an opportunity to take a look inside the nest!" Stanford smiled "Perhaps it holds her hoard... myths state that dragons hoard gems and other precious things. We could see if she has the same instinct."

The two quietly left their hiding spot, heading to the large nest, the size of it dwarfed Eda's nest back at the Owl House! It was a good way to understand just how big this dragon truly is! She had to be at least fifty feet long, if not more! Alphius took off to the sky, acting as a lookout as Stanford and Lilith got closer to the nest. The large thing mainly smelled of foliage and earthy tones, which Lilith appreciated greatly... sometimes Eda's nest did not have the best odor.

"Let's take a look, shall we?" Stanford asked

"Definitely! I'm curious to see what she has in here." Lilith replied

The two stepped up on a couple large rocks and peeked over the rim of the nest. Stanford moved aside a few of the leaves, and the two gasped in unison. Inside the nest were three large eggs! Each one had a different color pattern, but all of them were as large as a griffin egg! Lilith could hardly believe her eyes, and by the looks of it... neither could Stanford.

"She's a mother!" Stanford breathed "That means she either has a mate somewhere... or her kind produces offspring asexually."

"My Titan! This is a major discovery!" Lilith marveled "I never thought I would ever see dragon eggs!"

The loud "CAW! SCRAW! CAW!" from Alphius told Lilith and Stanford all they needed to know, the Ivy Crested Dragon was coming back! Stanford quickly moved the leaves back into place and grabbed Lilith's hand.

"We best make tracks; we don't want to upset her." Stanford said

Lilith nodded in silent agreement, curling her thin fingers around Stanford's Polydactyl fingers with surprising ease, the two of them quickly rushing away from the nest and back the way they came. They could hear the rumble of the Ivy Crested Dragon but didn't want to stick around just in case she spotted them... they didn't want to anger a mother dragon! After a few moments, they stopped to catch their breath.

"My goodness... that was c-close." Lilith panted "Thank you for the warning, Alphius."

The white raven puffed up as he landed on a nearby branch.

"Are you alright, Lilith?" Stanford asked with concern

"Perfectly fine." Lilith replied "Our outing definitely exceeded expectations."

Stanford let out a breath, glad to hear that his friend was unharmed. The man then noticed their hands were still intertwined; a bright blush came to Stanford's cheeks... quickly spreading to his large ears.

"I... I... umm..." Stanford stuttered "You're.. not uncomfortable a-are you?"

Lilith noticed Stanford's unusual stuttering, and followed his gaze to their hands, a blush coming to her cheeks as well.

"No, no! I'm not bothered in the least... it feels nice, actually." Lilith admitted

A bashful smile came to Stanford's face, his blush darkening in color, but he didn't release his hold on Lilith's hand... instead he tightened the hold slightly.

"Let's head back to the cabin, it will be t-time for lunch by the time we get back." Stanford said, still blushing a shade of pink

"Lead the way, Doctor Pines." Lilith smiled

Chapter 32

Chapter Text

"Both Eda AND Lilith are in an unknown part of the Human Realm?!" Amity asked "And they've been gone for DAYS?!"

Luz winced at her girlfriend's sudden exclamation as she sat at the picnic table in the backyard of the Owl House. Hunter, Willow, Gus, King, and Raine sat at the table as well, a platter of sandwiches on the table, along with some snack cakes Luz brought from home, and a pitcher of juice.

"They're not in an unknown location, I know where they are." Luz gently corrected "I located Lilith's friend in Gravity Falls, Oregon."

"Luz... do you know anything about that place?" Amity asked seriously

Luz rubbed the back of her neck a bit, she had done some research on Gravity Falls using her laptop, but there wasn't a lot to go on. All Luz could find was the strange history of the lumber town, the "massive amount of anomalous activity" it had, and a few other details.

"I don't know a lot about it, considering Oregon is on the West Coast of the United States... but Lilith really wanted to see her friend again, wanted to see if he made it back to his proper home." Luz replied

Amity ran a hand through her lavender hair "My Titan this is bad... anything could happen to those two."

"I know, Amity... but I couldn't say no to either of them." Luz said

Willow set down her glass of juice "I know you're worried Amity, we're all concerned about Eda's and Lilith's safety."

King swallowed his bite of sandwich "Maybe we can go to the Human Realm and look for them, see if they're okay."

"The Human Realm is mostly unknown to us." Hunter pointed out "We've never explored anything more than Gravesfield."

"I can't allow any of you kids to go into uncharted territory in the Human Realm, including you, King." Raine stated

King looked to Raine "But... Eda and Lilith have been gone for days; they haven't been gone this long before."

"We could locate them and help them get back home... they could have gotten lost or something." Amity added

Raine shook their head, not liking the idea of any of the teenagers going any further than Gravesfield in the Human Realm. Plus, Raine knew that if the teens and King went off willy-nilly, they could possibly get lost or worse... Eda would not be happy about that.

"I'm concerned about Eda and Lilith as well, but I'm not going to let you go through with such a crazy idea." Raine said calmly "Eda and Lilith could be on their way home as we speak, it's best to wait another day or so."

King let out a small sigh, he was really concerned about Eda and Lilith... he was missing them quite a bit as well. Amity didn't look too thrilled about Raine shooting down the idea of finding the Clawthorne sisters and helping them get back home.

"Just stay patient, kids." Raine said "I'm positive Eda and Lilith will be back very soon."

Meanwhile in Gravity Falls...

The soft smile on Stanford's face hadn't gone down at all as he walked back to the cabin with Lilith hand-in-hand, he had never been able to do this with anyone of the opposite gender before! Usually, Stanford was slapped if he tried holding hands with anyone... he was even punched in the nose once. So, this was uncharted territory for him. He was both glad and flustered that Lilith was willing to hold his hand like this, his heartrate was going crazy... and his cheeks were a shade of pink.

The sudden sound of laughing and some squeals pierced the calm air as Lilith and Stanford started getting closer to the cabin, the two looked at each other for a moment. Alphius even looked quite confused by the noises.

"Do you hear that?" Lilith asked

Stanford nodded "The laughter sounds like Stanley's."

They stopped walking to listen closer, hearing more laughter and a loud squeal of surprise.

"That sounds Like Edalyn... I haven't heard her squeal like that since the time we went swimming with Raine when we were teenagers." Lilith stated

"We better go check on them." Stanford said

The two quickly headed toward the cabin again, their hands still intertwined. Going through the tree line, and into the property, they came to a sudden stop and blinked with wide eyes. Eda and Stanley were soaked with water, a few suds on them, laughing loudly and smiling from cheek to cheek. Both Lilith and Stanford could hardly believe what they were seeing, two gray-haired adults acting like teenagers! Owlbert was sitting on a tree branch, watching everything from a safe distance.

"Did we miss something?" Lilith asked

Eda turned, dropping the soaked sponge and trying to give an innocent smile... and failing miserably. Stanley dropped the hose that he was holding, it looked like the two had gotten each other completely soaked by using the sponge and hose.

"Oh, hey... lunchtime already?" Eda questioned

"Yes, it's ten minutes to Noon." Stanford said, looking at his wristwatch "And it appears that you two had a fun time washing the Stanmobile."

Stan rubbed the back of his neck "Yeah, we were finishing up... I accidentally got Eda with the hose."

"Accident? Is that what you're calling it?" Eda asked "You did it on purpose and you know it, buddy."

"Apparently it escalated from there." Lilith noted

"I got him back, by putting the sponge down his shirt." Eda said folding her arms across her chest

"And calling it an accident afterwards!" Stan grunted "Accident my ass!"

Eda huffed "You deserved it!"

Stanford and Lilith shook their heads good-naturedly and started to laugh a bit, finding this quite amusing. Stanley and Eda heard the slight laughter, turning their attention to their siblings, instantly they took notice of something quite interesting... both smirking.

"Well, it looks like you two had a good time too." Stanley said

Eda's smirk grew "You must be glad that I nudged you into going with Stanford, huh?"

Stanford's blush came back with a vengeance, turning his cheeks a dark pink, and Lilith looked away in slight embarrassment at being called out by her sister.

"Come on, Stanley and I will dry off while you lovebirds make lunch." Eda said, trying not to cackle with laughter

"You'll have to stop holdin' hands though, don't wanna make things harder for yourselves." Stanley chuckled

Two hours later...

Lilith glanced out the window of the living room observing the light blue sky, a few clouds were drifting through it... but it was hard to say what the weather was like in other places on the way to Gravesfield, Connecticut.

"Everything okay, Lily?" Eda asked "You were kind of quiet during lunch."

"We should really think about heading back to the Boiling Isles." Lilith replied

Eda blinked "You want to go so soon? You've only been here visiting Stanford for a couple days."

"I know and I'm going to miss him, but we have been away from the Isles for even longer." Lilith said "Everyone is probably getting worried about us by now."

"That is a good point." Eda nodded "It will take us a couple days to get back to Connecticut."

Stanley walked into the living room "Sixer and I have been talking about that... we think we know someone who can help."

"Really?" Lilith asked

"Yes." Stanford replied entering the room "It's a longshot, but it's worth helping you two get back home without all the trouble."

Eda and Lilith looked at each other for a moment, before looking back to Stanford and Stanley.

"I don't want it to seem that we're eager to leave..." Lilith said "I'm so glad that I got to see you again Stanford and getting to know your brother as well... but we have family and friends that are worried about us."

"No need to explain, I understand completely." Stanford stated "I have enjoyed your visit immensely, but I can't be selfish. You two need to get back home safely, so your friends and family don't go looking for you."

Eda tilted her head a bit "So, who do you think can help us?"

"Wendy's grandmother, Jasmine Corduroy." Stanley replied

Chapter 33

Chapter Text

"Are you quite sure a human can help us get to the Boiling Isles?" Lilith asked curiously

Stanley and Stanford nodded as they lead the way down a dirt path, apparently it led to the Corduroy homestead. Eda and Lilith followed the two men, not really sure if this obscure plan was going to work.

"Jasmine is more than just your normal, old woman." Stanley stated "She's a... she's a human witch."

"A human witch?" Eda asked "I can understand how it works for Luz, she has Stringbean, but how can an old woman be a human witch?"

Stanford looked to the light blue sky for a moment, trying to think of the best way to answer Lilith's and Eda's questions. He could understand their curiosity, he had only met Jasmine a few times before he made his deal with Bill Cipher, and everything fell apart from there.

"I'm not sure EXACTLY how she is a human witch, it was local gossip when I first arrived in Gravity Falls many years ago." Stanford replied "However, I did witness her using some sort of magic to grow a special herb in an empty pot of soil."

"And I saw her fix Wendy's axe just by touching it." Stan added

Eda and Lilith blinked with wide eyes at what they were hearing, apparently an old human woman could use a form of magic here in Gravity Falls!

"Perhaps if we explain things a bit to Jasmine, she can help you two get back to the Boiling Isles without having to fly across the country." Stanford said

"You're... you're willing to do this for us?" Lilith asked

Stanford turned his head slightly, his blue eyes finding Lilith's mismatched orbs.

"Lilith, you put everything on the line to help me leave the Boling Isles... I know the circ*mstances aren't exactly the same, but I'm more than willing to do this for you and your sister." Stanford replied honestly

"Plus this isn't some dangerous quest or anythin'." Stanley said "Jasmine is a humble old gal, she won't hurt anybody."

The four started approaching a large cabin that looked hand-built, a greenhouse stood a short distance behind it and there was a very large axe stuck in a tree stump. It was almost as rustic as the cabin that Stanford and Stanley had, just had more of a lived-in feel to it. They all spotted a teenager with long fiery red hair sweeping the porch wearing a blue and white hat, a green plaid vest over a white shirt, blue jeans, and brown boots.

"Hey there, Wendy!" Stanley called

The redhead looked up "Stan! Good to see you back in Gravity Falls again, you old coot!"

"What have I told ya about callin' me that?" Stanley asked with a smile

Wendy chuckled "Hey, it's not like you can fire me."

Wendy put the broom to the side, stepping off the porch to give Stanley a short hug, and offered a greeting smile to Stanford.

"Good to see you too, Doctor Pines." Wendy said

Stanford returned the smile "You as well, Wendy. I know it's a bit rude to come by unannounced, but we need to speak with Jasmine."

"Nana?" Wendy asked "Of course you can talk with her, she's in the greenhouse."

Wendy began leading the way to the greenhouse, looking over her shoulder a bit.

"I see you two silver foxes even found yourselves some lovely ladies, good on ya." Wendy said with a smile

Stanford's cheeks heated up quite a bit, along with Lilith's, Eda and Stanley gave slight coughs.

"These are our friends Lilith and Eda Clawthorne." Stanford introduced "We're hoping that Jasmine can help them with an important task."

"Ah, I see." Wendy said "I'm sure Nana can help you all out, she's great at that."

The redheaded teen led the way to the greenhouse, the smaller building looked like it was as old as the large cabin, and quite well taken care of. Wendy entered the greenhouse, which caused some wind chimes to move.

"Hey Nana, the Stan Twins are here to talk to you." Wendy said

A woman with gray and white hair tied back in a braid turned, green eyes sparkled with kindness as she stood up. She wore a light blue blouse, a long blue plaid skirt, boots, and a gray gardening apron. The woman smiled at all four visitors, her skin wrinkling by her eyes as she did so.

"Stanley! Stanford! So good to see you boys again!" the woman greeted "How was your sailing trip?"

"Absolutely amazing, we will tell you about it the next time we visit." Stanford said "You have my word, Jasmine."

"Sounds good, dear." Jasmine accepted "So, what brings you by today?"

"Our friends need some help." Stanley responded, motioning to Eda and Lilith

Jasmine studied the two women with her emerald green eyes for a moment, before giving a short nod. Jasmine then turned her attention to Wendy.

"Wendy, could you go make some tea for us, dear?" Jamine asked

"Sure thing, Nana." Wendy replied, leaving the greenhouse

Jasmine dusted her hands on her apron and approached Eda and Lilith, her eyes still soft and kind.

"I never thought I would ever live long enough to meet naturally born witches, this is certainly something." Jasmine said

Lilith blinked "You can tell that Edalyn and I are witches?"

"Magic is in your aura, but it has a silver tint." Jasmine replied

"Lilith and I share a curse." Eda supplied

Jasmine nodded "Ah, that explains it..."

"What about you? How do you have magic?" Lilith questioned

"Magic was granted to me by a cryptid that once lived in the forest a long time ago." Jasmine replied "I will keep it as long as I use it with good intentions."

Stanford blinked "My word... that's really something."

The older woman went over to a set of wicker chairs that were set up in a corner in the greenhouse and sat down, motioning for the other four to do the same.

"So, what do you witches need from me?" Jasmine asked

"We were hoping you could help us get back to the Boiling Isles in a quicker fashion than flying across the country to where the Portal Door is." Lilith replied "We don't want our friends and family worrying about us to the point they go looking for us and putting themselves in danger."

Jasmine leaned back in her chair a bit, adjusting her long braid as her eyes took on a thoughtful look.

"The Boiling Isles, huh?" Jasmine asked "Which Realm is that in?"

"The Demon Realm." Eda responded

"Oh good! That makes things a lot easier!" Jasmine bubbled

Stanley blinked "Really?"

"Oh yes, the Demon Realm and Human Realm use to have countless connections to each other MANY years ago... but they started disappearing." Jasmine said

Stanford straightened "Lilith mentioned something like that to me once."

"All I need to do is tap into that old connection..." Jasmine mused "I know just the thing."

Wendy came in with the tea and set it on the little table, the teen didn't stick around, saying that she had to pick up her younger brother from soccer practice. After Wendy left, Jasmine took a sip of her tea and stood up, walking over to a large bookcase. The object was filled with jars, books, small boxes, and various old tokens.

"You have exactly what they need?" Stanford asked curiously

Jasmine nodded "I sure do! I use them to get herbs from a dimension known as Omega 23~B."

Stanley looked to his brother, asking him if he had encountered such a place with his eyes, Stanford replied by shaking his head in a negative manner.

"Looks like my son moved my jar of Teleport Stones again..." Jasmine sighed "Stanford, could you reach that jar on the fourth shelf, dear?"

"Of course." Stanford said

The salt and pepper haired male walked over to the bookcase and grabbed the jar in question, he handed it to Jasmine carefully, the gesture making Lilith's heart swell and melt at the same time.

"Thank you, Stanford." Jasmine smiled as she opened the jar

The old woman pulled out a purple stone, it was roughly the same size as the gem on Eda's sternum, but it had a rough rectangular shape to it.

"This is a Teleport Stone, just place it on a door or a tree and say the name of the place you want to go... and 'poof', you're there!" Jasmine explained

Lilith blinked "My Titan! I didn't know things like that existed!"

"They're very rare, so keep this one close." Jasmine said, handing Lilith the stone

Lilith placed the stone in the inside pocket of her jacket for safekeeping, she and Eda definitely wouldn't want it to get damaged in any way.

Eda stepped forward "Do they only work once?"

Jasmine shook her head "No, they work as long as they hold power. As long as it doesn't get damaged, it will continue to work."

"So they'll be able to travel back and forth freely?" Stanley asked

Jasmine gave a nod and smile to answer the question, she couldn't help but let her smile grow when she saw the positive reactions from the Stanley, Eda, Stanford, and Lilith.

Lilith smiled "Thank you so much, Jasmine... this is very kind of you."

Jasmine smiled kindly as she sat in her wicker chair again.

"You're very welcome, dear." Jasmine stated "Just be sure to say goodbye to these wonderful men before you leave."

Jamine motioned to Stanley and Stanford, who both had a blush dust their cheeks at the statement.

Eda smiled "Don't worry..."

"We will say our goodbyes and extend great thanks to them." Lilith added, also smiling "They've been absolutely wonderful."

Chapter 34

Chapter Text

Amity was doing her best not to pull on her lavender hair as she paced, she couldn’t believe that Raine told them to wait ANOTHER day or so for Eda and Lilith to return to the Isles! Amity could understand that Raine was looking out for the safety of the Hexsquad and King, but someone had to go find Clawthorne sisters! The two older witches could have gotten lost, captured by humans will ill-intent, or anything else!

“Cálmate, amor.” Luz soothed *

Amity turned to look at her girlfriend, who was sitting on a tree stump nearby, Ghost and Stringbean on her lap. King was seated on the ground by Luz's feet, curled up like a ball.

“How can you ask me to calm down?” Amity asked “You should be just as worried as I am… if not more!”

“I’m plenty worried, Amity.” Luz replied, stroking Ghost in between the ears “However, I’m also trusting Lilith’s and Eda’s capability of taking care of themselves.”

Amity let out a groan as she paced, trying to keep herself from unleashing everything she wanted to say. Willow and Hunter also stood nearby, watching and thinking about the situation at hand… the couple weren’t quite sure what to say to help Amity calm down.

“I know you’re a good person with a good heart, Luz…” Amity said “But giving into Lilith’s wild Griffin chase? AND telling Eda where her sister went, allowing her to go chasing after Lilith?”

Luz looked down at the ground, her fingers fell still on Ghost’s head, Stringbean looked up at her owner worriedly.

“Ease up on your girlfriend, Blight.” Hunter advised “She wanted to help Lilith out with something that she evidently really wanted to do.”

“You’re okay with that, Hunter?” Amity asked “Lilith has never explored the Human Realm beyond the library in Gravesfield!”

“I know that Lilith is just as unfamiliar with the Human Realm as most of us are, but I understand why she wanted to go looking for Stanford.” Hunter responded

Amity, Luz, King, and even Willow looked to Hunter with various expressions on their faces. It wasn’t often that Hunter would voice relating to someone, considering the complex past that Hunter had… let alone the very complicated “family dynamic” he had grown up with.

“You can?” Willow asked curiously

Hunter nodded in reply “Of course.”

Amity stopped pacing “How? It’s not like you and Lilith have the best relationship.”

Hunter sighed “I know that Lilith and I were not exactly friends in the past, but I can tell that she’s trying to make up for the bad things she has done… something that I can relate to quite a bit. So, I’m willing to see if her and I can be friendly with each other.”

“Fair… but how can you be okay with Lilith going after this ‘friend’ of hers?” Amity asked “You didn’t have any friends until Flapjack came along, and then us.”

Hunter lightly gripped the front of his shirt for a moment, but calmed when Willow patted his left arm in a soothing manner.

“You sometimes forget who I was back then.” Hunter said

King tilted his head “A bad, but sad boy?”

“I was the Golden Guard.” Hunter stated “I knew pretty much everything that happened within that castle! I had just returned from patrol when Stanford was put in Lilith’s care.”

“So, you saw him?” Luz asked with interest

“Yes, he was an interesting looking human… definitely experienced in traveling the Multiverse from what I saw of him, let alone heard.” Hunter replied

Amity folded her arms across her chest “And let me guess, you didn’t care what happened to him, or how he was treated. Just as long as he followed everything your ‘uncle’ told him to do?”

Hunter did his best not to allow his Selkidomus vocal cords to vibrate in a growl, Clover buzzed from her spot within his ash blond hair, the vibrations soothing the Palistrom wood of his skin, skull, and most of his bones.

“Pretty much everyone in the Coven had that mentality of him, including Lilith at the time.” Hunter responded “However, even with that… I did not treat him too badly whenever I interacted with him.”

“How often was that?” Gus asked from a thick tree branch

“I interacted with him at least four times, three times were keeping an eye on him while… Belos had to leave for one reason or another.” Hunter replied

Luz tilted her head curiously at Hunter as Amity sat down next to the tree stump, seemingly trying to calm down. Ghost jumped down from Luz’s lap and joined her witch with a soothing purr.

“What about the fourth time?” Luz asked

“Stanford helped take care of a wound I had on my back.” Hunter replied honestly “I didn’t want to accept the help at first, I was used to taking care of my own wounds most of the time, but he assured me that he could help.”

“Part of me doesn’t want to ask where you got such a wound.” Willow admitted

“It’s best that I don’t say, Captain.” Hunter said honestly

Amity scratched Ghost’s back “So, a handful of interactions gave you the capability of understanding why Lilith took off to the Human Realm?”

“I also observed Lilith and Stanford a few times when Stanford wasn’t assisting Belos.” Hunter responded “From what I saw, they became unlikely allies. I didn’t understand it at the time, but I didn’t question it.”

Amity, Luz, Gus, King and Willow blinked as Hunter finished explaining what he had seen, heard, and experienced during Stanford’s time with the Emperor’s Coven. Then a stray thought came to Luz’s mind, causing her to straighten up a bit, and for Stringbean to be slightly jostled on her lap.

“Lilith told me about how she helped Stanford escape the Emperor’s Coven, out of the castle and to the vortex! She also told me about how she covered her tracks with Belos, so she wouldn’t get in serious trouble with him.” Luz said

“Where are you going with this, querida?” Amity asked*

“Hunter said that he saw Lilith and Stanford become quite close, and even after Stanford ‘escaped’ the Emperor’s Coven, he didn’t say anything to Belos about what he saw... that would possibly connect Lilith to what happened.” Luz replied

“Meaning?” Gus asked

“Which means, Hunter didn’t sell Lilith out to Belos!” Luz finished

Hunter vehemently shook his head “Of course not, I might not have gotten along with Lilith at the time, but I wasn’t going to sell her out."

“Well… now we know how and why Hunter understands why Lilith is in an unknown part of the Human Realm.” Gus said “But… what do we do if Eda and Lilith never come back?”

Amity clenched her free hand into a fist “We go look for them! We’ve been in worse danger before, and we got through it just fine!”

Luz patted Amity’s shoulder “Hopefully, it won’t come to that.”

Before anyone could say anything else, the large Palistrom tree next to the one Gus was seated in started to vibrate a little bit and the tree started glowing a faint silver color.

“Qué demonios?” Luz asked *

Gus fell out of the tree he had been sitting in, falling into a Freckle Berry bush with a yelp.

“Are Palistrom trees supposed to do that?” Gus asked

“No.” Hunter and Willow replied

Everyone stood up as the trunk of the Palistrom tree glowed a little bit brighter, and a thin vortex about six feet tall opened! Two figures stepped out a few moments later, but it was too bright to tell who they were.

“What in the Titan…” Amity said

The vortex disappeared with a soft ‘crack’, the tree instantly stopped vibrating, and the familiar hoot of an owl was heard.

“Owlbert?!” Luz asked

The teens blinked, seeing Owlbert and Alphius happily greeting the other Palismen… that could mean only one thing!

“EDA! LILITH!” King beamed

The two older witches smiled brightly, standing right in front of the tree that the vortex had opened in.

“Hey, there’s my little Titan…” Eda started

The gray-haired witch couldn’t finish her greeting, being promptly bowled over by hugs from Luz and King. Although, Lilith couldn’t rib her sister about it, due to being hugged tightly by Amity and relieved fretting from Hunter.

Chapter 35

Chapter Text

Both Stanley and Stanford had been looking forward to having their niblings for the summer in Gravity Falls, it was the main reason why the two older men came home early. The cabin was more than ready for the twins’ stay, they had plenty of food stocked up in the kitchen, and they got to enjoy seeing the Stanmobile bring home three trophies.

Stanley was looking forward to spending time with the young teens and his brother without a literal apocalypse looming over them, he even had plans to take the family to a carnival in a couple weeks… but that was a surprise that he was keeping to himself. Stanley wanted to spend as much time with everyone as he could, he had greatly missed Mabel and Dipper, so he was eager to have the kids around again.

Stanford, on the other hand was just as eager as his brother, but for slightly different reasons. He was eager to spend time with the young teens and get to know them even more without the world ending around them. He wanted to know what new things were interesting to the younger twins, what activities they liked to do the most, and what they wanted to do this summer. Stanford wanted to be surrounded by family again, it was a good feeling.

Yes, both Stanley and Stanford were missing Eda and Lilith, but the two men were certain that they would see the two witches again. The Clawthorne sisters had promised that they would visit again very soon, insisting that they wanted to see the Stan Twins again and see more of Gravity Falls. Stanford even came up with the idea of Dipper and Mabel possibly meeting the two witches, something that Stanley agreed with easily… the young teens had met a witch before, but Stanley knew that he wouldn’t lose his hands this time around.

Today, however, was not a day for the Pines family to go out and about… or even into the forest. Dark gray skies hung overhead, rain was pelting the roof and windows of the cabin, and the winds were whipping around at times. The weather wasn’t fit for man, or beast… it would be a surprise if the mail was delivered in this summer storm. Luckily, there were plenty of things to do inside the cabin. Mabel had already painted her nails, and even painted all twelve of Stanford’s toenails since the man didn’t refuse when she asked. Now, Mabel was styling Stanford’s salt and pepper hair while Dipper was contently adding some pictures to Stanley’s photo album, most of them being pictures he and Mabel took while they were in California.

“I swear, Grunkle Ford, your hair is just as soft as your red sweater.” Mabel stated as she combed Stanford’s hair

“Why thank you, sweetie.” Stanford replied as he turned the page in his book

Mabel smiled “You’re welcome.”

Dipper looked up from his work “What kind of wool or yarn is it made of Great Uncle Ford? Even I’ve noticed how soft it is.”

Stanley looked up from the newspaper, his eyes finding Stanford’s in a silent question. Stanford returned the look, the two communicating without words for a few moments until Stanley gave a small nod.

“It’s made from a material known as Witch's Wool.” Stanford replied honestly

Mabel stopped what she was doing and tilted her head, Dipper went quiet as well, it was obvious that the two were trying to think if they had ever heard of such a thing.

“Witch’s Wool? I’ve never heard of it.” Dipper said “Is it from your travels in the Multiverse?”

Stanford nodded with a smile “Yes, it is.”

Dipper’s eyes lit up at the reply, turning his full attention to Stanford. Mabel put down the comb and joined her brother on the floor, her eyes on Stanford as well. The twins liked hearing Stanford’s stories about his travels through the Multiverse, they knew that their Grunkle hadn’t told them everything and the stories were probably edited to be PG-13… but they liked hearing them, nonetheless.

“So, how did you get the sweater?” Mabel asked “Did you knit it with the Witch’s Wool? Or did you buy it somewhere?”

“Slow down, Pumpkin.” Stanley advised “Let Stanford get his thoughts organized, he’ll tell you what you want to know.”

Stanford chuckled; he enjoyed the enthusiasm the younger twins displayed. It reminded him so much of Stanley and himself at that age, it was uncanny at times, but also quite heartwarming.

“To answer your questions, Mabel, I did not make nor buy this sweater.” Stanford said honestly

Mabel and Dipper blinked with slight confusion, their minds trying to figure out their Grunkle had something from the Multiverse that he didn’t make or buy.

“Did you steal it from a merchant or something?” Dipper asked curiously

“Granted, I did steal countless times during my travels in order to survive, but I did not acquire this sweater through stealing.” Stanford replied

Stanley had heard a few stories from Stanford about having to steal food, clothing, even parts to build his blasters… Stanley was far from judgmental about it, he had stolen ALL kinds of things over the years.

“I’m officially stumped.” Mabel admitted

Stanford closed his book and leaned back a little bit in the comfortable chair he was sitting in, he placed a large polydactyl hand on the front of his burgundy red sweater.

“This sweater is actually a gift from an unlikely friend.” Stanford stated

Mabel’s eyes sparkled “Really? A friend from the Multiverse? Tell us! Tell us!”

Stanford chuckled again; he couldn’t refuse such an innocent request from his great-niece. He made himself a bit more comfortable in his chair and looked at his family.

“Well, it happened shortly after I left the marketplace of Dimension 294~20…” Stanford started "I was walking through a beautiful meadow of blue grass and purple trees, but then out of nowhere, it felt like the ground was no longer underneath me..."

~Meanwhile in the Boiling Isles…~

King smiled as he curled up on Eda’s lap, the gray-haired witch was focused on fixing a hole in one of her extra dresses. Owlbert hooted as he played tag with Alphius, Clover, and Stringbean. It was a beautiful day to be outside, the sun shining, and the temperature was perfect! Lilith was nearby pulling weeds with help from Willow, the two witches chatting about all kinds of things.

“How are you doing over there, Luz?” Eda asked

“I think I’m getting the hang of this.” Luz replied

Eda looked up to check Luz’s progress, the human teen had been learning how to knit with Witch’s Wool and had been doing pretty good at it. Luz already knew how to knit thanks to Camila, but Witch’s Wool can be a little tricky to knit with sometimes. Eda smiled as Luz held up a wonderfully knitted sweater, it looked like Luz had been practicing in her free time (which is sparse). Eda was impressed with Luz’s capabilities.

“Great work, kid!” Eda praised

Luz smiled widely “Thanks!”

“What made you decide to knit a sweater?” Eda asked curiously

Luz went back to knitting “I kind of got inspired after Lilith told Amity, Hunter, Willow, King, Gus and me about knitting a sweater for her friend Stanford.”

Eda nodded “I can understand how’d that inspire you, but I don’t think that sweater is going to fit Amity, it would be way too small.”

Luz looked at King who was steadily falling asleep on Eda’s lap.

“It’s for King.” Luz whispered

Eda felt her heart swell at the admission, Luz is such a sweetheart. Part of Eda was hopeful that she could introduce Luz to Stanley sometime soon, the old witch had a strong feeling that the two would get along quite well.

“Make it bigger, give him something to grow into.” Eda whispered back

Luz nodded “I’m on it, Owl Lady.”

Chapter 36: I'm Still Here!

Chapter Text

I'm so sorry that things have been quiet with me for a while. I have been busy with work, life stuff, and just... emotionally exhausted from being torn into, trolled, and harassed by a Tumblr user. I'm not going to give any names or anything, I'm not that kind of person. I found a way to block them because though, they were trying to cause trouble again, and continue harassing me.

Infact, the whole thing is because the Tumblr user came across Falling Into Boiling Trouble through the tags (not sure if they were referring to AO3 tags, or Tumblr tags). They were kind at first, making sure that I was aware that Lilith is canonically asexual and aromantic. I told them that I am aware of that fact, that I have nothing against that kind of sexuality, or any other kind of sexuality.

The next day, the Tumblr user promptly tore into me! Accusing me of taking away Lilith's sexual identity and calling me "aphobic"! Going on and on that I should be ashamed of myself for "pro shipping" Lilith with Stanford and "forcing others to like it as well"! I ASSURE YOU ALL, THAT IS NOT THE CASE! I don't mind if people follow the Canon and prefer Lilith as asexual and aromantic... that's fine!

I don't know if you all know or not, but the written version of this fic (that I started writing after New Years of 2023), is unfinished! Stanford and Lilith didn't meet up again after Stanford left the Boiling Isles, I got hit by a MAJOR roadblock when I was writing it. So, I decided to type and post what I had... thanks to chatting to someone very nice, she and her sister helped me get beyond that roadblock!

Future chapters of this fanfiction came from my brain, and romance was not even on my radar for Stanford and Lilith. Not until I had several dreams about the two being more than just "unlikely friends", and saw some fan art of the two together. I thought it was adorable, so I found a way to hopefully add in the romance organically.

Anyways, I am doing my best to come back with new chapters like I promised. You all deserve it after waiting so long for them! Thank you to those who have TRULY been kind, courteous, understanding, patient, open-minded, and just so nice! I really appreciate it!

Chapter 37

Chapter Text

The warm summer air of Gravity Falls, Oregon glided along, causing tree branches to dance as the morning sun brightly beamed in the light blue sky. Lilith breathed in the scents of the forest as she and Eda walked through the dappled shade of the Redwood trees. Owlbert and Alphius played tag amongst the trees, having a ball. Both Lilith and Eda had been wanting to visit Stanford and Stanley again, the weather in both Realms allowing the trip to happen.

“I hope they won’t mind us just popping up out of nowhere.” Lilith stated

“Stanford didn’t mind it when you showed up last time, I’m sure they’ll be happy to see us.” Eda assured

Lilith gave a small nod “True enough, but they’ll probably have their great niece and nephew by now, I don’t want to possibly interrupt family bonding.”

Eda chuckled “You heard Stan when we were here a few weeks ago, he was eager for those kids to meet us.”

Lilith nodded again; Eda had made a good point. Stanley was the first to express interest in the Clawthorne Sisters meeting the younger Pines Twins, with Stanford instantly agreeing to the idea.

“Considering that we will probably meeting the kids today, maybe we should have talked to Luz and the others about coming along.” Eda added as she stepped over a log

“I can understand the eagerness, Eda… but I don’t want to overwhelm anyone by bringing over more witches, a young Titan, and a Grimwalker.” Lilith said

Eda gave an understanding shrug “Good point, Lily.”

“We’ll see how things go today and go from there, Eda.” Lilith said “I just hope the younger twins will like us, Stanford and Stanley seem to have a very tight bond with them.”

“Come on Lilith, what’s not to like about us?” Eda asked with a laugh

Lilith found herself smiling at Eda’s usual carefree personality, not a surprise, Eda really didn’t mind what others thought of her.

“Cabin, dead ahead!” Eda announced

The two witches smiled when they could see the cabin a short distance away, Owlbert hooted when he spotted a few people outside the cabin, one of them being Stanley. The two women headed out of the tree line, with Eda leading the way. Lilith followed her sister, noticing a young teenaged girl talking with Stanley animatedly about something. The girl had long brown hair, chocolate-colored eyes, wearing a white shirt with cats on it, a purple skirt, and white shoes.

“Umm, Grunkle Stan, looks like we have visitors.” the girl said

Stanley turned to look, and a smile instantly came to his face. The man was wearing his red beanie, a light blue shirt, gray pants, and brown shoes. To Eda, Stanley looked just as good as he did all those years ago.

“Eda! Lilith!” Stanley greeted brightly “Good to see ya gals again!”

“Wait… you know them, Grunkle Stan?” a voice asked

Eda and Lilith blinked as they saw a young teenaged boy hop out of the backseat of Stanley’s car. The boy had short brown hair, hazelnut eyes, wearing a navy-blue vest over a white shirt, gray shorts, a blue hat, and gray shoes.

“Sure do.” Stanley assured

Stanley greeted Eda with a smile and a quick hug, doing the same with Lilith. Owlbert and Alphius watched from a nearby tree branch, observing everything closely.

“How have you two been?” Stanley asked

“Very well.” Lilith replied

“That’s wonderful to hear, my friend.” Stanford’s voice said

Lilith smiled when she saw Stanford step off the porch of the cabin, the salt and pepper haired male pulled Lilith into a hug. Stanford was dressed in a gray shirt under a thin blue jacket, black pants, and his boots. Lilith had to admit, Stanford really pulled off the look.

"No sweater today?" Lilith asked, hugging Stanford

"Tomorrow is laundry day, I'll be hand washing it." Stanford replied, returning the gesture

The teens looked on in confusion, their eyebrows raised, Stanley noticed this and turned his attention to the younger twins.

“You two remember the ladies Ford and I told ya about?” Stanley asked

The two nodded “We remember.”

“Mabel and Dipper, meet Lilith Clawthorne and her sister Eda Clawthorne.” Stanford introduced

Lilith and Eda greeted the teens with soft smiles, Mabel instantly brightened and bounced on her toes.

“You two are Lilith and Eda?!” Mabel asked with bright eyes “You must tell us everything from your perspective! I want to know how you knitted Grunkle Ford’s sweater so intricately, Lilith!”

“And I have so MANY questions about you two being witches!” Dipper added with an excited smile

Both Eda and Lilith looked at each other before looking to Stanford and Stanley, the two men rubbing the back of their necks.

“I know we should have cleared telling such information to the kids, but we didn’t want to leave them in the dark.” Stanford said sheepishly

“It’s alright, Stanford.” Lilith assured “They’re your family and you felt that they could handle learning such details.”

“We’re used to the weirdness of Gravity Falls, and we survived a literal apocalypse created by a demented demon.” Dipper said “But learning that our great uncles know ACTUAL witches is so awesome! There are so many things I want to know!”

“You kids can ask all the questions you want during the trip.” Stanley stated “I’m sure the gals will be happy to answer them.”

Eda tilted her head “Trip?”

“Yeah, Grunkle Stan said we’re taking his car to somewhere special today.” Mabel replied, still bouncing on her feet

“Although, he won’t give exact details about where we're going.” Dipper said “Not even Great Uncle Ford knows.”

Eda faked a gasp “How shocking! Keeping details from all of you, tsk-tsk.”

Stanley smiled “It’s called a surprise for a reason.”

Eda wanted to reply, but stopped herself, she had a feeling that her witty retort would be a bit much for the young teens to hear.

“Are you sure we wouldn’t be a bother joining all of you?” Lilith asked

Stanford shook his head “It won’t be a bother in the least! We would love it if you two joined us, I bet everyone will enjoy what Stanley has planned!”

Lilith looked at her sister, who gave a grin, her golden tooth gleaming.

“Alright, we’ll come along.” Lilith said

Stan smiled widely “With that all settled, everyone into the Stanmobile!”

“I call shotgun!” Eda called “I haven’t ridden in that car in ages!”

Everyone piled into Stanley’s car, Eda sliding into the passenger seat as easily as she remembered. Owlbert and Alphius followed Lilith into the back seat with Stanford and the twins, it was a slightly tight fit, but Mabel made it easier by sitting on Stanford’s lap. As Stan guided his car onto the road, Dipper and Mabel instantly started asking all the questions that they had in mind that Stanford and Stanley didn’t have answers to. The two witches answered each question as honestly as they could, enjoying the enthusiasm the younger twins displayed.

An hour into the drive, Dipper and Mabel ran out of questions to ask until they thought of more, so everyone mainly just talked about different things. It was a good way for everyone to get to know each other and learn more about the differences between the two Realms.

“We’re almost there.” Stanley announced

“Really?” Mabel asked “Already?”

“Time flies when you’re having fun, Pumpkin.” Stanley replied

“So, what is the surprise?” Dipper asked curiously “Where are you taking us?”

Stanley pulled into a large parking area that already had quite a few other vehicles parked in it, the smell of popcorn and other foods instantly coming through the open windows of the car. Stanley stepped out to stretch, popping a few joints, the others following him out. The excitable screams of children caused Owlbert and Alphius to retreat into Eda’s hair to keep themselves out of sight.

“Welcome to the summer carnival!” Stanley announced

Excited, bright smiles instantly crossed the faces of Mabel and Dipper as they observed the rides and attractions with shining eyes. Even Stanford was rather captivated as well, he hadn’t been to a large carnival in decades! Sure, he and Stanley went to a few small fairs during their sailing adventures, but nothing like this!

“Oh my…” Lilith breathed

Lilith and Eda looked at the sights with interest, Luz had described Human Realm carnivals to her Boiling Isles family, but seeing one was a different thing entirely!

“So, what do ya think?” Stanley asked

“This is amazing Stanley!” Stanford replied “How did you know about this carnival?”

“I have my sources.” Stanley responded smugly

Eda looked around, she was quite glad that she and Lilith brought bandanas to cover their pointed ears just in case, this place was already hopping with activity. Her pick-pocketing senses were nipping at her, old habits die hard.

“There are so many different things! This is awesome, Grunkle Stan!” Mabel marveled

“I had a feeling you’d like it.” Stanley said

Everyone started walking to the front entrance, Lilith and Eda staying close to the Pines family.

“Since we’re not too familiar with the area, we’re sticking together, okay?” Stanford asked

Dipper nodded “Yessir!”

“You bet!” Mabel assured

Stan smiled widely as they all walked into the carnival grounds.

“Alright then! Let’s have some fun!” Stanley cheered

~Hours Later… ~

Lilith couldn’t help the smile on her face, today had been a wonderful day! Not only did she get to see Stanford again and spend time with him after being home for a few weeks, but she also got to meet Mabel and Dipper as well. Just as Lilith had figured, the younger twins are sweet kids, behaving a lot better than some of the children they saw at the carnival. Lilith even helped Mabel win a large stuffed bumble bee by tossing darts at balloons, the young teen thanked Lilith repeatedly while hugging her… it was a very sweet moment.

The carnival itself had been a wonderful adventure, not as intriguing as exploring the forest with Stanford, but it had been a lot of fun! Stanford won a large stuffed griffin by tossing plastic rings over bottles and gave it to Lilith without a second thought, a blush coating his cheeks and ears… an adorable thing that Lilith enjoyed seeing. Lilith wasn’t the only one with a prize, Stanley won Eda a stuffed owl by knocking over bottles by throwing a ball at them, which must had been difficult since the man behind the counter was shocked when the bottles fell.

Stanley was driving everyone home, Eda was contently seated in the passenger seat again, her stuffed owl on her lap and Owlbert looking at it curiously. Alphius was cuddled up in Stanford’s hair as the man let Mabel doze on his lap, and Dipper use his shoulder as a place to rest as well. The car was quiet except for the radio and the engine, everyone tuckered out after having so much fun. Most of the prizes that were won were in the trunk of the car, along with a few purchases from a store that a short walk from the carnival grounds.

“Thank you for letting us come along, I haven’t had this much fun in years.” Lilith stated

“You’re more than welcome, my dear.” Stanford replied “I’m happy that you two agreed into coming with us.”

Stanley smiled “You and Eda can even spend the night again if ya want to, you two can bunk on the pull-out couch or in the sleeping bags.”

“Travel won’t be too bad; Lilith and I have our special stone.” Eda yawned “Plus, I promised King I would be back home tonight.”

“That’s alright, maybe next time.” Stanford said

“Plus, after meeting your great niece and nephew… having so much fun, we’re defiantly considering in bringing over very special people for you to meet.” Lilith added

Stanford smiled brightly “That sounds wonderful! We’ll look forward to it!”

“You won’t be waiting too long.” Eda said “I have a feeling it won’t take much to bring them over.”

Stanley smiled “We’ll set up some tents in the backyard, it’ll be like a mini campout!”

“That’s a wonderful idea, Stanley!” Stanford said excitedly as he rubbed Mabel’s back as she dozed

“Really?” Lilith asked “You’d go to that much trouble?”

“It’s no trouble at all, Lilith.” Stanford assured “We would want everyone to be comfortable while they’re visiting.”

Lilith reached over to Stanford’s free hand and placed hers over it.

“If you sweet men insist.” Lilith said, smiling

Stanford’s cheeks and ears turned pink, but Stanley didn’t notice through the rearview mirror, his focus on the road and listening to the conversation.

“Then it’s settled!” Stanley noted “We’ll have what we need by the time you gals come over again with your friends.”

Eda patted Stanley’s knee “Trust me, you’ll love them.”

Chapter 38

Chapter Text

Owlbert hooted playfully as Alphius and Stringbean chased after him in a game of keep away. Luz chuckled as she watched, her packed overnight bag by her feet as she waited for the others to arrive.

“You’re quite certain Luz will be okay in Oregon, Eda?” Camilia asked worriedly

Luz turned her attention to her mother, who had come along with Vee to speak with Eda about Luz and her friends spending a night or two in Gravity Falls. Luz understood her mother’s concern, Luz had never been to a state like Oregon before, and the teens didn’t know Stanley or Stanford at all... they were perfect strangers. Luz trusted Eda’s and Lilith’s judgement though, the two witches wouldn’t bring up the idea if they didn’t trust the older men.

“I’m one hundred percent certain, Camila.” Eda assured “I know the kids haven’t met Stanley and Stanford yet, but I’m positive everyone will get along swimmingly. Besides, Lilith and I will be there, the kids will be perfectly safe.”

Camila ran a hand through her hair “I’m just not completely sure about this...”

Luz walked over “It’s okay, Mamá. I’ll be with Eda, Lilith, Amity, Hunter, Willow, King, and Gus. Most of them have magic, and I’ll always have Stringbean with me.”

Vee looked at Camila “She has a point.”

Camila sighed “I’m fretting too much, I know…”

“You’re being a good mother, Camila.” Lilith said as she exited the Owl House “We all understand why you’re hesitant.”

Eda placed her bag and King’s on a tree stump “Everyone will be just fine; Luz will return to Connecticut in the same physical condition as she left.”

Camila gave a nod “Alright.”

Luz smiled as she hugged her mother tightly, followed by a hug for Vee, which the basilisk returned without a second thought.

“Have fun at Masha’s sleepover.” Luz said

Vee smiled “I will, we plan on playing a video game they got from their uncle.”

King bounded out of the house, his fur freshly cleaned and dried. Eda picked the young Titan up for inspection, King had a habit of forgetting to clean behind his horns. After passing inspection, Eda set King down so he could double-check the contents of his bag.

“Hey guys!” a voice called

Luz turned and smiled when she saw Amity and Gus walking toward the house, Luz instantly greeted her girlfriend with a hug. Gus rolled his eyes good-naturedly at the scene, Ghost and Emmiline trotted over to the tree stump, cheering Owlbert, Stringbean, and Alphius on in their Palismen language.

“This is so awesome!” Luz gushed “You guys get to come too?”

“My dad was a little concerned at first, but I mentioned that Eda and Lilith will be there too.” Gus replied “That seemed to calm him down pretty quickly.”

“It didn’t take much for me, my dad knows that I can handle myself and I’ll be fine.” Amity said

Luz let Amity out of the hug as buzzing was heard, Clover quickly flew over joining in on the game of keep away. Luz squeaked with joy as she rushed over to hug Willow as the plant witch appeared around the corner, Willow returned it easily.

“Looks like Gilbert and Harvey signed off.” Eda noted

Willow smiled “They were kind of hesitant at first, but I told them that there would be plenty of adult supervision.”

“And she will be with her friends, so it's fine.” Hunter added as he appeared

Lilith was surprised to see that Hunter was coming along as well. Granted, his closest friends were going, but the Grimwalker was still working on forgiveness when it came to Lilith and their shared past. Lilith wouldn’t have been surprised if Hunter had decided not to go at all, just to avoid any uncertainty and awkwardness.

“Decided to go along as well, Hunter?” Lilith asked curiously

Hunter nodded “I’m quite curious about Oregon after what you two told us, and it would be nice to see Stanford again… actually face-to-face.”

King titled his head “Huh?”

“Stanford never saw me without my mask on.” Hunter clarified

It was an understandable statement; things were a lot more different when Hunter and Lilith were a part of the Emperor’s Coven while Stanford was on the Boiling Isles.

“Well then, we’ve got everybody, I say we head out.” Eda said grabbing her bag

Camila gave Luz one more hug, whispering in her daughter's ear to be good and have fun, Luz agreed with a nod and whispered assurances. Lilith got the stone out of her pocket and placed it on the side of a tree.

“Human Realm.” Lilith ordered “Gravity Falls, Oregon.”

The stone flashed a deep blue and opened a vortex within the tree, the teenagers blinked with wide eyes.

“Trust me kids, this will not be the weirdest thing you’ll see.” Eda stated

The gray-haired witch disappeared through the vortex, King following her excitedly. Lilith motioned for the teens to go in with a soft smile on her face, Luz, Amity, Gus, and Willow walked thorough… but Hunter stayed near the threshold.

“Hunter? Everything alright?” Lilith asked curiously

“Ladies first.” Hunter replied

Lilith nodded, going through the vortex, Hunter stepped through as well with the Palismen following him. The blond-haired Grimwalker blinked a few times as his vision had to readjust, gasping when he saw tall, thick trees surrounding him and his friends.

“Welcome to Gravity Falls, Oregon!” Lilith announced

Luz blinked “WOW! I’ve only seen pictures of Redwood trees! These things are massive!”

“This place is so cool!” Gus marveled

Eda chuckled “This is just the tree line a short distance away from the cabin, you’ll see more later.”

Everyone followed Lilith and Eda along the dirt path, the teenagers and King looked around in awe as they walked. Both Lilith and Eda knew how the teens felt, the two sisters were always amazed how beautiful the sights were in Gravity Falls.

“It’s going to be interesting meeting both Stanford and Stanley.” Luz stated

“I think it’ll go well, everyone seems to like you, Luz.” Amity said

Luz smiled in reply, holding her girlfriend’s hand as they walked.

King raised his nose “I smell a small fire… and yummy food!”

Before the young Titan could run off, Eda scooped him up with a smile.

“Easy there, King.” Eda said “You’re staying close until we get to the cabin.”

Everyone left the tree line, spotting a cozy cabin a short distance away. They could see a campfire burning in a fire pit, some folding chairs, a few tents, and a grill in the backyard. It looked like the Pines Family had gone the extra mile for this, which made Lilith and Eda smile.

“Hey, there!” Staley’s voice called “Welcome to the party!”

Eda’s smile grew as they approached the cabin, putting King down so she could hug Stanley properly. Lilith found Stanford setting up a folding table, greeting the man with a smile and a hug that he returned with slightly pink cheeks. When the teens saw this, Amity, Luz and Willow giggled a bit.

“Everyone, meet Stanford Pines and his twin brother Stanley.” Lilith introduced

“Greetings.” Stanford smiled

“Heya.” Stan greeted

Before anyone could say anything else, Dipper and Mabel came out of the cabin with a few items for the table.

“Just in time, kids.” Stanley said

“Hi, Eda! Hi, Lilith!” Mabel greeted

"Glad you guys could come over again!" Dipper smiled

“Good to see you again Mabel, you too Dipper.” Lilith said

Mabel smiled brightly and hugged both sisters at the same time, something that even Luz found impressive. After being let out of the hug, Eda motioned to Luz and the others.

“Pines Family, meet Luz Noceda, Amity Blight, Willow Park, Gus Porter, Hunter, and my adopted son King.” Eda introduced

“OH, MY GOODNESS! HE’S SO CUTE!” Mabel gushed

Mabel instantly scooped up King and started hugging him, King let out a surprised sound and blinked with wide eyes.

“Mabel loves anything that’s adorable.” Dipper said

Eda smiled “It’s okay, something similar happened when Luz saw King for the first time.”

“I’m having flashbacks.” King said

Mabel froze and instantly let go of King as if she had been burned, backing up until she was close to her brother, even Stanford seemed to be on edge… his right-hand twitching near his trench coat pocket. Eda and Lilith took note of this and grew concerned instantly, what had upset the human family?

“Everything alright?” Lilith asked

“It’s… it’s just… King sounds a lot like… Bill Cipher.” Mabel replied

King shook off “The only Bill I know is that demented Titan Trapper guy.”

Stanford cleared his throat “Bill Cipher was a demon, one that caused great chaos, strife, and... pain.”

“Bill is nothing more than a statue in the forest now.” Stanley added “I’m sure King soundin’ like him is just a coincidence.”

Dipper, Mabel, and Stanford nodded visibly calming down. The atmosphere instantly became lighter as Stanley showed everyone where they could put their bags and Mabel apologized to King for dropping him.

~Hours later…~

Luz, Amity, Hunter, Willow, Gus, Mabel, Dipper, and King were all spread out on the grass of the backyard looking up at the night sky as the moon and stars started to appear. The Palismen cozy in a pile by the warmth of the fire. They all had seen a night sky in the Human Realm before, but they had never seen so many stars before! As they admired the stars, Eda, Stanley, Lilith, and Stanford relaxed in the folding chairs by the low campfire. It had been a wonderful day, full of chatter, fun games, great food, and amazing company.

“I knew everyone would get along swimmingly.” Eda stated

“They are truly wonderful teenagers… hard to believe that Hunter was the Golden Guard.” Stanford mused “He’s turning into quite the well-rounded young man, just like I knew he would.”

Lilith smiled as she put her head on Stanford’s shoulder “You have a way of seeing what is inside of a person, regardless of their species.”

Stanford smiled in return, placing his head closer to Lilith’s, enjoying the peaceful evening and the lovely presence Lilith provided. Stanley smirked as he noticed this, nudging Eda a bit.

“Can you believe the level of sap goin’ on over there?” Stanley asked

“Enough for the rest of my teeth to fall out.” Eda replied with a chuckled snort

The two chuckled a bit more as they looked up at the star-filled sky.

“So, what else do you and your brother have in store, Hunk?” Eda asked

Stanley chuckled; he hadn’t heard that nickname in a long time! It was like being in Las Vegas all over again!

“We were thinking about showing the kids around the town, maybe even show them some of the cryptids that Stanford introduced to Lilith.” Stan replied “Don’t ya worry, it’ll be an experience that none of us will forget.”