A/N:
Thanks for the great support, what a motivational boost, you guys are awesome XD I just noticed that I forgot to put the code at the bottom of the last chapter. No worries, that'll be fixed right now, from now on at the bottom of each chapter there will be a code in the Atbash Cipher, meaning that A=Z, B=Y …. E=V etc. Have fun!
Dipper was at a loss for words. Of course he recognised that mass of hair and cocky grin, who else would it be other than Roxie? And it's not like you go and have an adventure of multiple proportions size-wise and go against that little twerp Gideon in the process and forget about it. Memories came flooding back. The day he and Mabel found her being kidnapped by the gnomes, taking her back and trying to figure out why she had been so small and having many arguments in the process… Not to mention being shrunk down himself and stopping Gideon's plans for using the size-altering crystals as a cheesy tourist attraction. Everything returned and hit him full in the face.
But thinking about her question, did he miss her? He opened and closed his mouth trying to both find words and to also cover up how intimidated he felt being this small and vulnerable, "Wh-wh… What're you doing here?"
"Oh that's a charming way to greet an old friend." She scowled, giving him another prod in the stomach.
"Cut that out!" he ordered, "And change me back!"
"Just as boring and panicked as always, Dippy. What, you can't have a catch up with your bestest buddy now?" she cooed, "That hurts…"
Yep, he huffed inwardly, definitely Roxie, taking every opportunity to get on his nerves. He noticed that she had the unfortunately familiar crystal on a chain hanging from her neck. There was a moment of silence, Dipper realising that he wasn't going to get anywhere by force and Roxie smirking at said realisation. Dipper took a slow breath and thought it best to try a different approach.
"So… what brings you back here?" he asked, getting to his feet.
Roxie sighed and rolled over onto her back, feeling the sun on her face and folding her arms behind her head, "Can't a girl come and visit her friends without suspicion?"
He arched an eyebrow and stood on tiptoes to try and see her face, "Well yeah sure; but it's been a while and considering what happened last time we met-"
"Give me a break, Dippy." She sniggered, turning her head to face his miniature stature, "You know, I'm still not sure if I've missed your paranoia or not."
"Well I'm not sure if I've missed your sarcasm or not." He retorted.
Narrowing her eyes, she jokingly reached out and flicked his cap gently, "Actually, I haven't missed it. In fact it's as annoying as ever."
"At least we understand each other." He smirked, to which she returned before looking back at the sky, "Are you planning on changing me back to normal anytime soon?"
"Maybe… maybe not…"
"Oh come on!" he groaned.
Roxie was about to laugh, but something stopped her. She suddenly sat bolt upright and looked anxiously around the woodland as if she could hear something. It was very discreet, but there all the same. It was coming closer. Dipper noticed her eyes widening fearfully and opened his mouth to say something but was cut off by having his mouth covered by her fingertip.
"Here's an idea. Fancy going back to yours? I haven't seen Mabel or Soos in forever." She muttered hurriedly, looking off in the opposite direction, "That way right?"
Before he could protest, or even answer either of those questions, Dipper found himself with his arms pinned to his sides and unable to move. Roxie enclosed him in her hand and took off into a sprint, curling her hands over him in a protective dome. She remembered how uncomfortable it was when she was in his position and normally she would have felt nothing in giving him a taste of his own medicine. But she had other things on her mind. So when she ran, she didn't stop.
Dipper gritted his teeth in unease as the world rushed by, bouncing roughly and leaving a sickly feeling in the pit of his stomach. What was she running from? Or a who maybe? Gideon? No she wouldn't run from him now that she was human sized. So what was it? Oh great, he'd been talking to her for less than ten minutes and already his brain was hurting from the overflow of questions and speculations. It was almost a blessing when the Shack finally started to appear in the distance. Only then did he start to feel Roxie slowing down and hear her pants of fatigue give way into sniggers of amusement. Or relief.
Mabel sat on the front step of the Shack, tracing shapes in the dirt with a stick and chewing her hair nervously. Dipper had been gone a long time. Too long, maybe, how long was too long? Her answer was given to her in the form of an unknown figure strolling up the path towards her. She jumped up and started bouncing on the balls of her feet in hopes of getting a better look. But instead of the boyish shape of her brother, this figure was a girl. A familiar girl.
"Oh my gosh! Roxie!" she squealed, darting forward and locking her friend in a tight hug, "You're still tall!"
"Yeah thanks for noticing," she grinned, giving a quick pat on the back for old times, "And I'd kind of like to stay breathing too."
Dipper, who had been perched on Roxie's shoulder, had made a leap for his life as the embrace took place. The only place he could go was up, and he now found himself in the uncomfortable position of being tangled in the waves of Roxie's mousy hair.
"Mabel! Mabel let go and give me a hand here!"
Mabel released her grip and looked around in confusion, "Dipper? I thought he was still in the woods… Did you hear Dipper around here?"
Roxie had already started to pry the boy from the tangles and held him out by the back of his jacket, "Yeah, right in my ear!" She scowled.
The brunette widened her eyes as her miniature brother scrambled in the air desperate for release, "Dipper? Whoa… Wait a minute, do you know how worried I was waiting around here?" she snapped, eyes narrowed. At the deflated look her brother gave her, she huffed, "Roxie you've still got the crystal haven't you!"
"Of course she does!" Dipper cried, "Now do you mind using it!"
"But Dippy, if you get any smaller you'll disappear… Hey that's not a bad idea actually."
Mabel giggled, "Come on, Roxie, change him back before I start thinking up mini-sweater ideas. Oh I might make some of those! They'll come in handy."
"No one's making mini-anything!" Dipper insisted, "Change me back, right now!"
"Alright, Dippy, don't get your panties in a twist." Roxie sniggered, setting him down on the ground with a playful roughness that made him stumble a little. Pinching the crystal from her neck and holding it to the light, she squinted as Dipper was drowned in blue light until he was at his average height again, "Is Dippy feeling better now?" she pouted, "So come on, what've I missed this summer?"
Inside the Shack, the twins and Roxie were sat around the dining table with a soda each and were chatting endlessly. Mable had enjoyed telling the stories of the weeks past. The body-swap carpet, the boy band, Summerween, and she'd just finished showing off another letter left to her by Mermando. Although Roxie was in awe at the adventurous tales, she was currently in tears of laughter at a certain detail from the merman tale.
"Wow, twins really do share everything." She snorted, "Tell me Dippy, did he taste like sushi?"
Dipper tugged his cap over his eyes, "Never… say that… again…"
"So what about you?" Mabel asked eagerly, "Did you find your family?"
At that, Dipper peeked out a little in time to see Roxie deflate considerably, "Uh, yeah I found them. Needless to say they were a little more than surprised. But I was right, I don't need them anyways. Who needs a family when you can live the fun and fancy-free life, right?" she asked, putting on a smile which was clearly strained.
Mabel patted her shoulder, "Sorry."
"Pfft, don't you say sorry, it's them that's missing out. And I don't want to hang around with a bunch of liars anyway."
"Liars?" the twins asked.
"Yeah, uh, apparently the story they told me about me getting lost in the woods and being found in mini-me form was a load of hooey. Turns out my sis-, I mean, their daughter… was the one who got lost and she happened to find me as is and wanted to keep me as a pet. The rest is history."
Mabel shook her head pitifully and even Dipper winced at the harshness of it, "Man, that's rough."
"They were finally honest with me. Can't fault them on that. But anyway, I would have thought you two would be thrilled that you were proved right about me."
"Well yeah but…"
"…Not like that." Mabel finished for him, "So what've you been doing since?"
"Not as much as you guys." Roxie chuckled, "But I've been around, met a few people and I figured I'd come back for a visit."
"And the thing you were running from in the woods?"
Mabel widened her eyes and almost choked on her soda, "That thing was chasing you too? Wow we were running like maniacs from it earlier, I wonder what it is. I probably could have found out if you'd let me get a closer look."
Dipper frowned, "Mabel, we don't know what that thing is, and last I checked marching right up to something that's hunting us down is not the best thing to do…"
"He's not wrong, Mabel, that thing is best left alone."
"Ha! So you do know what it is!" Dipper cried in triumph.
Roxie arched an eyebrow, "Dippy, I know you're not going to believe me; yet I can honestly say that I have no idea what that thing is, but I do know that it's not something you want to have normal conversation with."
The look she gave him gave a clear message that this was all the information he was going to get out of her, if there was any more to get. The twins exchanged a look and shrugged in acceptance. Or rather, they gave the illusion of acceptance. Mabel felt her curiosity bubbling, but she knew to trust her friends judgments. Dipper on the other hand, felt his fingers twitching in eagerness to search the journal. He had followed Roxie's prediction, he didn't believe that she didn't know more. But from experience he knew that pushing her wasn't going to achieve anything either.
"Wow this turned morbid." Roxie said suddenly.
"I'd say ominous." Mabel nodded, "Anywho, how long are you staying for?"
"Not sure yet, but I might stick around a while. Search these woods a little more maybe."
"Do you have a place to stay?"
"Something like that." She shrugged, "Hey, you know what, let's go and do something."
"Huh?" Dipper started, "Like what?"
She stood up and snatched his cap from his head and put it on herself, tugging Mabel along in the process, "Surprise me!"
A/N:
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