I do not own Gravity Falls.

It's that time of year again! It's the second-annual Pines Family Christmas collection of holiday-themed one-shots, following the order of the alphabet. There will (hopefully) be one upload a day leading up until Christmas.

It's the second 26 Days of Gravity Falls Christmas. I hope you enjoy.

Prompt: Angels

Angel Among Us

Sitting on the well-worn armchair stationed in the living room, Stan's brow furrowed as he attempted to properly pin the folds of the long fabric draped over Dipper's body. His slender frame was nearly consumed by the burgundy and white cloth that piled against the hardwood floor. There were about a dozen silver sewing pins holding up portions of the material in what may or may not have been the correct manner. Dipper was standing as still as possible, an expression of amusement on his features.

"Grunkle Stan, you have no idea what you're doing."

It wasn't a question but a statement, one that was true but Stan refused to admit it. "I'm gettin' there, runt," he said stubbornly, squinting as he gathered a bunch of the fabric up so that it did not touch the floor. He stuck a couple of pins to keep it in place and studied it. "Geez, why couldn't ya have been a sheep or somethin'?"

"Because I just auditioned and they assigned me the role of the wise man who gives the gift of gold," replied Dipper matter-of-factly. "This was the only outfit they had in storage."

"Ya need to eat more. If ya weren't so skinny this wouldn't be so difficult."

"Oh sure. It's my fault. I can ask Mabel to help if you don't want to do it."

"Your sister is working on her own outfit. Besides, I started this and I'm gonna finish it. Now stop wigglin'."

It perhaps wasn't the smartest idea to volunteer to be the one to alter Dipper's costume for the Gravity Falls Christmas pageant. The two fourteen-year-olds had been in attendance when they visited for the winter holidays last year and decided they wanted to participate this time around. Though Stan never had much interest in the holidays, he suddenly saw the festivities in a new light now that he had a family to share them with again.

He paused his efforts when he realized he had run out of pins. Staring at the abundance of fabric for a moment, Stan finally let out an annoyed sigh. "All right, I ain't a seamstress. Happy?"

"I really appreciate you trying to help," said Dipper sincerely. "But maybe we should call in the expert."

"Mabel!" Stan called. "Sweetie, if you're finished we could really use you out here!"

"I'll be right there!"

A few minutes later the sound of footsteps fell against the floor and Mabel appeared in the living room, dressed fully in her costume. Stan found himself transfixed for a moment, watching as her white feathered angel wings swayed gently as she moved, long brown hair tumbling down the back of her pure white long-sleeved dress. Gold glitter sprinkled down from her wings, hair and face, causing a bright trail on the plain wood floor. A shiny gold halo was attached to a matching headband by a thin piece of wire.

"What's up?" she asked, coming to stop near her brother.

"We're having a little trouble," replied Dipper.

Mabel studied the multitude of pins and let out a soft giggle. "I can see that. It's a good try, though."

Stan watched as she removed his haphazard work with nimble fingers. She moved around Dipper with light feet, replacing the pins in the proper spots before grabbing the needle and thread to hem the material. Her toothy smile never wavered from her face, musical laughter leaving her lips whenever Dipper cracked a joke.

"There," she said after ten minutes of work. "How's that?"

Dipper did a small spin, studying the way his robe moved around him. It no longer touched the floor and the excess fabric had been neatly taken care of. "Thanks," he said gratefully. "You're a lifesaver."

"You're not lookin' right, kiddo." Stan swept Mabel into his lap, causing her to giggle in surprise. "She's a guardian angel. I know there's plenty watchin' us from above, but as far as I'm concerned, we've got an angel right here among us."

Mabel beamed, her smile shining brighter than any of the stars Stan had ever seen.