I do not own Gravity Falls.

A collection of one-shots, focussing on the bonds between the Grunkles and their niece and nephew. Might be heavy on Ford and Mabel fluff, because they are my weakness. If you have a prompt, feel free to share, and I'll see what I can do.

Summary: In which Mabel scares Ford, and tries to escape retaliation.

Gotcha!

A rubber clown mask strapped to the top of her head by a thin piece of string, Mabel slowly approached the living room. She peeked around the doorframe, spotting Ford reclining in the armchair, watching a documentary on television. Grinning wickedly, she slid the mask to cover her face, so that only her eyes were visible.

Ford had spent years keeping on guard against hostile threats in the multiverse, so it wasn't easy to sneak up on him. There was also his fighting instincts to keep in mind, as Stan had caught a fist to the face a few times when trying to scare his brother. But Mabel was well equipped for her little mission. She would be sure to keep her distance and she knew where every squeaky floorboard was located.

With light steps, she moved across the floor, keeping her eyes on the back of Ford's head. Her great-uncle seemed engrossed in the documentary and after a brief glance at the screen she realized he was watching a special on the Mayans.

Giving a fond roll of her eyes, she tiptoed to stand behind the armchair, crouching slightly to keep out of view. She did a mental countdown before suddenly rearing up, clutching Ford's arm and screaming at the top of her lungs.

Ford shouted out, his arm instinctively flying at his attacker. Mabel, who had already jumped about a foot away after releasing her scream, was safely out of striking range. She took a millisecond to appreciate the labour of her work, from Ford's wild, panicked eyes to the hand clutching at his heart.

The terror immediately fled when Ford took in the long brunette hair attached to the old Halloween mask and he breathed, "You little devil!"

"Gotcha!" cried Mabel triumphantly, lifting the clown mask to rest once more on top of her head.

His heart still pounding madly in his chest, Ford's eyes narrowed at his niece. "That was not a wise decision."

Not missing the menacing hint to his tone, Mabel let out a shriek and spun on her heel, sprinting out of the living room. She could hear Ford shout after her and she cast a quick glance over her shoulder, spotting the shifting of his shadow as he moved from the armchair.

"Gotta hide gotta hide gotta hide," she chanted, taking the attic steps two at a time.

When she burst into her bedroom, her eyes darted about for a hiding place. Her heartbeat quickened at the sound of Ford's footsteps falling on the stairs and she hastily shut the attic door before moving quickly but silently to the closet. She wiggled her way inside, easing it shut behind her. She then crawled into her dirty laundry hamper, covering herself with sweaters, and held her breath in anticipation.

There was a creak as the attic door opened. The footsteps were slow as Ford took his time entering the room, no doubt scanning with a critical eye for the spot where she would most likely be hiding. After a few beats the steps came closer to the closet. Mabel clasped both hands over her mouth when the door swung open.

A pair of hands suddenly seized her and Mabel let out a yelp as she was pulled from her cozy spot. Ford held her aloft by the waist, eyes gleaming with triumph. "Gotcha."

"Wait! Wait!" squeaked Mabel. "How did you find me?"

"The bedroom closet is usually the prime place for hiding," replied Ford, trying to hold back a smile at the way Mabel wiggled in an attempt to escape. "Think its funny to scare me, do you?"

"You bet," said Mabel cheekily.

"Let's see how funny you find it after this."

Mabel opened her mouth to retort, but any words she planned to say were overtaken by high-pitched laughter as Ford tickled her sides. "Grunkle Fooooord!" she shrieked, batting at his hands. "Stooooop!"

But the onslaught did not cease and Ford mercilessly dug his fingers into his niece's torso, eliciting helpless laughter from her. "Still think its funny?" asked Ford, unable to keep holding his grin back.

"Okay! Okay! I surrender," Mabel gasped.

Ford ceased his attack and Mabel slumped forwards, wrapping her arms around Ford's neck and resting her forehead against his shoulder. As she caught her breath, Ford used one arm to hold her close and the other to pluck the mask from her head.

"Where on earth did you get this?"

"Found it in Grunkle Stan's room," she said, a few stray giggles leaving her lips.

"And your first thought was to frighten the dickens out of me?"

Mabel lifted her chin so she could peer innocently at him. "I'm just keeping you on your toes."

"I've had enough of that in my life, thank you," chided Ford, lightly tapping the mask against her nose. "I very nearly hurt you before I regained my senses. You should be more careful."

"I made sure you wouldn't accidentally punch me," assured Mabel. "I planned it out."

Shaking his head, Ford said, "Between you and Stan, I'm losing a few years off my life." He tossed the mask onto Mabel's bed. "I believe I was watching a documentary before a little gremlin interrupted. Would you like to join me?"

"Sure, but I'll doing more snuggling than watching."

A soft smile crossing his features, Ford reached up to brush some of her loose strands of hair back into place. "That's fine with me."

Setting Mabel down, the pair left the attic. Tucking her hands behind her back, Mabel sent Ford a grin as she said, "And yes, I still thought it was funny. Your face was priceless!"