**Jack Frost's POV**
I was afraid I'd have trouble sleeping, or even fail completely because of Nightlight's very nature, but I was just being paranoid.
I fell asleep easily after a few seconds in bed.
It seems I underestimated the stress and mental fatigue.
"I wonder how other transmigrators handle it... *yawn*," I mumbled as I got out of bed before heading to the shower.
In classic or cliché isekai stories, protagonists adapt so easily to a new reality. But in truth, it's much more complicated.
I don't regret accepting ###'s offer, and I don't miss my old world, but I'm just... lost with how many things I need to accomplish.
I don't really have an ultimate goal or a great dream, for now.
But, in a way, I have a "duty" to fulfill because of my nature as a winter spirit.
And there's also this Divine Fire within me.
I can feel its warmth in my very essence at every moment.
It uses the faith of the few people who still believe in Jack Frost to strengthen me, and it feeds on this energy passively.
Too bad these changes are incredibly slow and minimal.
I'm really going to have to study and experiment on this thing, to find a way to speed up the process of restructuring my very nature.
After all, who wouldn't want to become a god?
"You're up early."
Coming downstairs after my shower, I ran into Stan, who was already dressed in casual clothes.
"Yes, I was able to rest properly thanks to you. Thank you again."
"Nah, nah, it's nothing," he said, with an uncomfortable tone.
Despite appearances, he's really weak against sincere thanks.
'Damn, I'm not really used to handling teenagers when they don't work for me...'
I caught this thought without difficulty on the first try.
Unlike Nightlight in the original story, I now prevent the person I'm talking to from reading my thoughts when I use telepathy.
I also pay attention to their emotions, to avoid yesterday evening's situation.
I'm not comfortable enough to let just anyone dig through my emotions, and I have... things to hide.
Yes, it's hypocritical, but it's necessary.
It's really unfortunate that Ford's and McGucket's minds are inaccessible to me.
"Anyway, are you feeling better?" he asked in a casual tone, even though I could sense real concern behind his words.
He's probably thinking about yesterday, when I froze in front of him for no apparent reason from his point of view.
"Yes, yes. I'm just a little hungry."
In truth, I'm not really hungry.
I don't even know if this body can feel hunger...
In Leylin Farlier's universe, divine bodies are extremely resistant, and Nightlight survived centuries locked up with Pitch without showing the slightest sign of physical weakness.
But eating is part of my old human habits.
"Wait, I'll prepare one of my specialties for you."
"No, no!"
I reacted a bit too... quickly.
I remembered very well that in Gravity Falls, Stan is a... let's say... catastrophic cook.
His cooking level? Pure and simple food poisoning.
I still wonder how Dipper and Mabel survived his cooking or his driving despite his extremely advanced cataracts.
"Do you have a problem after all?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.
"No, I just like to prepare food myself."
"Hmm..."
He observed me for a moment before crossing his arms.
"I understood, from Sheriff Blubs, that you have memory problems, right?"
Of course he remembered that detail. He's a con artist, he's good at spotting inconsistencies.
Not surprising that he resisted Bill Cipher's offers unlike his twin brother.
My gaze also instinctively went to his crossed arms, which often means that a person is on the defensive.
This means that Stan is a bit wary and is instinctively creating distance between him and me.
Yes, I read some psychology stuff during my years of being bullied.
At the time, I wanted to understand "why me?"
Spoiler: there's often no real reason behind bullying.
Surprisingly, this unpleasant experience in my life made me good at understanding and analyzing ordinary people.
"That's right. But that doesn't mean I'm incapable of doing simple things like going to the bathroom or cooking."
He stared at me for a moment, seeming to think, before shrugging.
"Make me a portion too, then," he said as he went back to the living room.
"Okay."
I just hope to find something in this kitchen... that isn't expired.
....
Narrator's POV
In the end, breakfast preparation was more complicated than Jack had initially planned.
He first had to go grocery shopping because of a severe lack of kitchen ingredients, and the limited budget offered by Stan didn't help in carrying out the task.
The only good news that morning was the good taste of the food.
'I've cooked this breakfast several times in my past life, but it never tasted like this.'
Jack couldn't help but wonder about the logic of the fictional world, particularly regarding food.
"That was really good, you should cook often."
"No problem, but where are you going?"
After the meal, Jack cleans the dishes.
It wasn't just those used for breakfast, but also those accumulated over an unknown period of time.
Judging by the state of the trash can, Jack concluded that Stan prefers to just order things and not cook himself.
'He must surely be aware of his awful cooking,' thinks Jack as he looks at the older man now dressed in his emblematic costume.
"I'm going to open the Mystery Shack, even if this place isn't as crowded as during the summer vacation, there can still be occasional customers," he says while adjusting his tie before heading to the door.
"Opening the Mystery Shack? Customers? This place isn't your residence?"
Jack preferred to play ignorant in this conversation.
He knew he had made a small mistake because of the cooking, since he wanted to avoid possible food poisoning from Stan's cooking.
Thus, he seized this opportunity to reinforce his image as an amnesiac to Stan.
"Oh shoot, I forgot to tell you about it," after slightly hitting his forehead with the palm of his hand, Stan gave Jack a simplified summary of his Tourist Trap.
Of course, he didn't present the Mystery Shack as a huge scam.
He described it as an honest local business.
"You're amazing to have opened your own business."
Jack quickly flattered the man's pride, to gain points with him.
'Even if I don't plan to stay in Gravity Falls after Bill, it's not bad to be on Stan's good side.'
Stan puffed out his chest with pride, anyone could see that the flattery had quite an effective impact.
"Hehe ~ it wasn't that incredible, you just need to have a gift."
Stan began to boast shamelessly about the success of the Mystery Shack and his gift for providing customers with the objects of their desire.
Jack just nodded and showed interest throughout the conversation.
"I find your job really fascinating, could I... help out in the shop from time to time?"
Stan was pleasantly surprised by the sudden proposal.
This was the effect Jack was looking for, since it's often difficult for people to refuse proposals from someone who puts them in a good mood.
He thus stroked the old man's ego by flattering him.
All this with the aim of getting closer to the lonely man and completely erasing his mistrust and the distance between them.
"Of course, given my situation, I'm not asking for a salary."
Jack is literally without papers and without an official legal guardian.
"I just want to help the man who is sheltering me in a selfless way while I'm in difficulty."
This essentially makes Jack another Soos, but money doesn't really interest him at the moment, and he can earn it quickly in Gravity Falls.
'I just need to access Ford's journal number 1, 2 and 3 are easy to obtain.'
Jack doesn't have the confidence to literally beat Bill. At best, he can just neutralize him for centuries, like with Pitch Black.
This pushes him to worry about his current timeline.
'If I'm in one of the infinite versions where Bill wins, then I would really be forced to flee or sacrifice myself...'
Neither option pleases him.
Thus, he just wants to cover his bases by creating copies of Ford's three journals before the beginning of the canon.
Jack hopes that the twins will be able to resolve the situation, but if not...
'I really don't want to work in this life, but I must have various backup plans, like a personal dimensional portal to escape,' he concludes mentally.
"Of course, you can, my boy," replied Stan, wrapping his arm around his shoulders.
"You can work from time to time at the Mystery Shack to help out."
As Stan and Jack head to the gift shop, the sound of a bell rings.
This signals the arrival of a person.
"Sorry for being late, Mr. Pines," a female voice caught Jack's attention.