"Miss Nystr m, it's good to see you," the smallest of the dwarves and ironically their 'leader' said kindly, inviting her to sit with a pat of his small hand against the table. Elina sat down, feeling far too big for her own good. "Is the professor on his way?"
"By Gressenheller's word of mouth, yes," Elina replied. She scarcely met the dwarves in person, more so by letter, and acted as their spy. She tended to keep away from other people to disguise her height, but she didn't get as many stares as the dwarves ever would, and she was more intimidating for squeezing information out of people.
"Excellent," one of the taller dwarves remarked. "It's about time this damn problem of dwarfism got settled."
A dwarf came racing in. "Miss Nystr m! The professor is here!"
Elina rose from her seat, hatred flashing across her eyes for a second.
She strolled outside into the town. Professor Hershel Layton, Luke Triton and Flora Reinhold were standing outside the Laytonmobile, gazing out at the town.
"Excuse me, Professor Layton?" Elina asked softly. Layton turned to face her. She towered above him like a menacing beast.
"Miss Nystr m, I expect?" Layton said, tilting his head sideways.
"That is correct. Welcome to the town of Dwarves and Giants," Elina said.
"Now why do you call it that?"
"Because we're all changing, Professor. Our heights are being dramatically altered by something. I am one of the few giants; most are turned into dwarves. Like my friends. All of them."
"Is there a chance we will be affected by this?" the Professor asked, worried for his, Luke and Flora's safety.
"It shows up in those who have lived here for three months or more," Elina reported. "Please, Professor. If we cannot return to our original sizes, please stop this. For all of us."
"I'm afraid I can make no promises," the Professor said truthfully, "but I shall try my best to stop this."
"That's all we needed to hear," Elina admitted. "Nice to meet you, Hershel Layton."