Gems in the Woods

A blog dedicated to a Gravity Falls / Steven Universe Crossover AU

[gemsinthewoods]

I did this forever ago and it’s just been lying around in my computer files. Might as well share it.

I thought it would be a high note to bring the AU back on.

[gemsinthewoods]

hi! i really like your au, and i'm a huge fan of both steven universe and gravity falls but i'm having trouble location good cross over or universe fusion au and i was wondering if you could recommend some good ones?

Hello! Thank you very much, I’m glad there’s more people who like this combo. I haven’t actually seen many fusions/AUs that weren’t based off the Crystal Pines AU. This AU basically just places the GF characters in the role of SU ones. The main reason I created this AU in the first place was because I didn’t see much variety.

Crystal Falls AU is another common title/tag, but that one is just a commonly used name for AUs that fuse the two shows at this point. Crystal Twins AU is cute, though, and the most internally consistent with a concept for setting and characters.

I haven’t seen much anything with actual Steven Universe characters, however. That might be because I know the GF fan content better. I haven’t really dwelved into the full creativity of the SU contents.

[gemsinthewoods]

did stan or ford ever experience night terrors? how did they deal with tose if they did?

Well, canonically, while the Crystal Gems insist that they don’t need sleep, Gems can get tired and we’ve seen them sleep and dream. We even know they’re capable of nightmares, but night terrors are more like panic attacks and I’m not sure if Gems are capable of those, although Centibeetle’s trauma could indicate a capability for that, as well as other disorders.

Now, Stand and Ford are dumb aliens and their reaction to such a thing would probably be to stop sleeping, which would make the issue even worse, at which case Ford would research the matter, regardless if it was himself or his brother with the problem, trying to figure out a solution. Neither one would look for help from someone else. Basically, their “dealing” would be very counterproductive, at least at first.

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what exactly does stan's crack hinder?

It dulls his senses. Mostly he can’t hear well or see very far. I will probably start showcasing it a bit when I finally get to writing the next part of Fragments since that’s gonna have Stan out in the woods where it can be a bit disorienting with something like that hindering you.

He also drives like he does in canon, like he can’t see where he’s going, but Ford isn’t commenting on it because he was just so glad Stan was coming with him so he didn’t want to start another fight.

So, comparing it to canon cracks, it’s more like Lapis’ except that instead of messing with his thinking and use of powers, it’s perception.

[gemsinthewoods]

what made you want to pick the stones you did for the stans?

I actually had the original research notes still left from when I picked the stones. This was my thought process:

Basically, I started from the idea that the two should have the same host crystal, Beryl, which became what their fusion is. Then it was simply matching attributes of beryl-based stones.

Aquamarine is an intellectual stone that encourages perseverance and discipline. These are all Ford’s strengths so it was an obvious pick. Ford is not only intelligent, but also values intelligence and holds himself to high standards and is very, very stubborn.

Emerald, on the other hand, is a stone of love, loyalty and faithfulness. I thought it fit Stan, who holds the bonds of family as the most important thing in the world. Love, loyalty, faithfulness, the things that made him work on the portal for 30 years in the canon.

[gemsinthewoods]

how does the transporter work differently from the warp pads besides being more powerful?

Saying it’s more powerful might be inaccurate, but it does take more power to operate. That’s because it doesn’t transport between physical locations. Telling more would be a spoilery spoiler.

[gemsinthewoods]

do i was thinking of ford losing his arm reaching for stan and i realized that's a drastic & dramatic not mention sudden change to his form angst his will. everytime a gem in canon undergo this in canon their form needs to reboot and recharge. in other words they need to poof. oso i got to thinking about and i'm like 'oh ford would definitely poof in that moment. not only is form vastly damaged but his mental stability over himself would be shattered from losing stan. (1/2)

I was trying to figure out how to answer this, but it all just amounts to: “Yes, basically.”

Anonlicious, you’re onto something here. ;)

[gemsinthewoods]

Just dropping by to let everyone know that the AU’s been on hiatus, it’s not dead. I’m going to be working on it again soon.

Also, another thing. The canon Aquamarine is the best thing ever.

If I were to imagine Ford as a villain, I’d probably go with an Aquamarine-esque interpretation, personality-wise. I picked his gem correctly.

Apparently they’re going to be introducing a canon Emerald soon too. Looking forward to that.

[gemsinthewoods]

Random GitW note #31

Dipper doesn’t connect with Ford as easily in the Gems in the Woods AU as he does in canon. This is because Ford’s paranoia manifests very differently from his canon version because of their different experiences. Canon!Ford is battle-handened in a way that makes his paranoia seem like he’s just Crazy Prepared. In the AU, however, Ford is just twitchy in a way that doesn’t really endear him to Dipper.

Dipper doesn’t dislike Ford, however. He very much respects his great uncle’s intelligence and desires his attention and approval. However, Ford’s twitchiness here functions a lot like Stan’s standoffishness in canon. It causes Dipper some degree of resentment and it makes him wonder just how much this weirdo loner of a relative actually cares about him and Mabel.

Mabel is, of course, just as willing to give Ford a chance as she is to give one to Stan in canon. She also responds to Ford’s jumps and starts a lot more easily than Dipper due to her own flighty personality. She easily goes on tangents herself, so she doesn’t begrudge Ford for focusing on odd details a bit too intently.

Ford also manages to help Mabel appreciate the supernatural a lot more than she does in canon, giving Dipper a much more willing and helpful partner in his escapades. Because of this the twins are going to be doing a bit more exploring and mystery-solving than they did in canon.

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Random GitW note #30

According to the IRL Journal #3, Fiddleford had an encounter with a Gremloblin that was a part of him developing a paranoia and fear towards the supernatural. That doesn’t happen in Gems in the Woods.

I mean, it almost does. The Gremloblin corners him and he’s defenseless but, before it can do anything to him, Stan suplexes the thing.

All in all, it was pretty scary, but Fiddleford kind of realized at that point that he was friends with the two most dangerous things in Gravity Falls, so it was no use worrying about what was in the woods.

[gemsinthewoods]

What will Gideon's role in the story be? Does the tent of telepathy even exist?

Okay, so, this is kind of tough to answer because Gideon’s role in tied up pretty tightly with the main plot of Dipper and Mabel’s arc and I want to keep some things as surprises.I will give some clues, though.

Gideon does still put up his Tent of Telepathy and he does know some of the secrets of Gravity Falls. The twins will try find out what he’s up to, which makes him grow interested in Mabel.

TBORO GRO TBCOVOS CL TMWL. TBOY TMMH SMKOTBCLA CKPMRTGLT.

[gemsinthewoods]

Possible human/part-gem fusions for the AU

Mabel+Candy+Grenda: The Ultimate Friendship Fusion. The problem here is that I can’t decide if they should just have a trio combo fusion or if Mabel should also have individual fusions with them both. Fusions with only two members of the group breaks the group cohesion somewhat, and would probably be more unbalanced than the hypothetical fusion of all three of them.

Dipper+Wendy: This could only be achieved once the two start being fully honest with each other, being formed out of their friendship and understanding. In that way achieving synchronization with Wendy would mark the point where the two are on the same page and where Dipper understands who Wendy is outside of his idealized crush on her. Wendy, on the other hand, always appreciated Dipper’s friendship for what it was.

Mabel+Pacifica: The two would need to put in a lot of work to make this happen, but it could work considering how much I’ve altered Pacifica’s role in the twins’ adventure. I also imagine it would be something Pacifica would want to happen, being jealous of how easily Mabel and can fuse with Candy and Grenda and feeling self-conscious over being a “worse” friend to Mabel.

[gemsinthewoods]

If Ford ever gets poofed then reforms back, is his arm ever going to go back to its normal state?

There are two ways I can see a situation like that happening. One, it goes just like you described. Two, he comes out blue all over. It depends on how alien he’s feeling.

[gemsinthewoods]

Random GitW note #29

While the Stans both dance to the lindy hop style when fusing, Dipper and Mabel actually have different fusion dances from each other.

Mabel has Jitterbug.

And Dipper has trainee-level Salsa (like, level one).

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Is Ford going to learn more about the origins of gems or at least what they are from the crystal gems?

Gravity Falls offers Ford lots of clues on that front even before he meets the Crystal Gems, but meeting them will certainly help him put everything in perspective. The construct (let’s call it that) he finds in Gravity Falls isn’t exactly the Gem norm, but he doesn’t have a way of knowing just what he’s stumbled into before he meets the Crystal Gems.

PAT PIWTL BM BHVTLMTS. PAT PLBCHUFTM CLT BHVTLMTS. PATY WTLTH'P MTLVBHU PAT SBCGIHS CQPAILBPY. TVTLYPABHU BM WCLJTS. C NQFP PATY SBSH'P EHIW COIQP. WACP SBS BP WILMABJ?

[gemsinthewoods]

How is Soos doing in this AU?

Ah, yes, everyone’s favorite handyman. Of course I’m including him because I adore him. I’ll try to sum up my new backstory for him, from lost, abandoned boy to the Shack handyman.

So, Soos has kind of been desperate for positive reinforcement from adults since he figured out that his dad wasn’t coming back in the tender age of twelve. But his Abuelita raised him to be a kind and helpful boy so he actually figured doing favors for people around town was great for getting those fond headpats and “you’re such a good boy”s. Until he got his first big growth spurt, at least. That was when he started getting pocket money in return instead and he guessed that was fine even though he was a bit disappointed.

Then, one day he helped the town recluse, Dr. Pines with his errands around town and Dr. Pines noticed that this kid knew how everything in the town worked and offered him a salary if he’d take care of anything that would keep the scientist from tinkering and studying the woods all day long. Soos agreed because Dr. Pines really did seem uncomfortable among the overly familiar townsfolk who kept pestering him with questions.

Soos is a pretty clever kid, though, so he quickly realized that Dr. Pines was really lonely for someone who seemed to want to be alone, not counting the visits to and from one Mr. McGucket. So, he tried talking to his employer whenever he was dropping off deliveries. Just casual chitchat with no overly probing questions. And then Dr. Pines started teaching him how to fix the things he broke with his experiments and “test subjects”. Soos considered it progress and has since grown very fond of his Dr. Pines.

He has figured out that Dr. Pines misses someone too, and he hopes that Dr. Pines’ missing person at least will come back to him one day.

So, in general Soos is kind of the same. He’s still the handyman around the Shack and devoted to the Pines family. However, there are some differences. Soos is prone to feeling more lonely, because Ford is terrible company, even comparatively. Ford is also a bit more confused about him than Stan would have been so their relationship is more “there is literally no one else” than “I’m actually quite fond of you”.

MLQD'R KLS SLL BLLD HS AYEKB CTJHK VESCLTS RSHK. RSHK'R SCY JERREKB OEYNY SCHS'II JHGY YUYQXSCEKB VLQG.

[gemsinthewoods]

Is the creature Mabel have been seeing in her dreams really Bill Cipher or is it another creature he's possessing?

Oh, yeah, the unicorn. That’s just Mabel’s imaginary friend. Don’t worry about him. He eventually turned into a prince.

SBO IKPPTLSDKJ IKHOQ RPKH SBO CDUHKJCQ, WBK UPO UGQK QYHNKGDZOC NY SPDUJAGOQ.

BOP GKVO BOUGOC BDH.