Review-answering time!
Original artimies: Here ya' go! New chapter!
hrhowling: Why, thank you. Also, that hook is not coming out, girl!
Enjoy!
Chapter Two: First(Unknown) Meetings
Not terribly long before they went to the Author's secret bunker, Mabel came running in one day shouting about a small little bird she'd found.
"DIPPER! You gotta come and see this, he is so cute!" the sweater-wearing girl shrieked, skidding to a halt outside their bedroom door.
Dipper initially flinched when the door slammed open, then turned. "Mabel? What is it?" he asked, narrowing his eyes in confusion.
She raced over to his bed, holding out cupped hands. "Look at this little bird I found! He's so adorable!" in her hands was a tiny, brightly-colored bird. A hummingbird, with bright blue feathers tinged with white and gold, and a dark purple beak. A very unusual looking thing. One wing was tucked in to it's side, but the other . . . it's right wing was held out at an awkward angle.
It looked up at Dipper with bright, curious eyes, tilting it's head. "Woah!" he exclaimed, leaning in a little closer. "Where did you find it at?" he asked, reaching out slowly to touch it.
"I was walking through the woods near the Shack and she zipped past me. Rammed right into a tree, poor little guy!" the bird made a humming noise and lightly pecked at Mabel with her beak. "So I took him home to help patch him up." Mabel finished, seeming not noticing when the little bird pecked her again, harder.
Dipper tilted his head, gesturing towards the bird. "So, do want some help fixing up it's wing?" he asked. Mabel nodded with a frown, looking back down at it.
Down in the kitchen, Dipper rummaged around for something small and sturdy to make a splint, while Mabel put cotton balls and pieces of brightly colored yarn into a cereal bowl to make a nest, humming and trying to think of a good name for their new "pet".
The little bird made humming noises a lot, or these little tittering sounds that were almost like wind chimes.
Dipper finally sat back at the table. "I couldn't find anything small enough and hard enough to help make a good splint. Sorry, Mabel."
Mabel waved him off. "Oh, don't worry bro-bro. I bet some gauze and tape will be all we need. Right, Joseph?" she asked the bird, holding up the bowl-nest thing it now sat in.
In response to this, "Joseph" tittered angrily, seeming to almost glare at the girl before looking away with a quiet sound, like a sigh.
Dipper chuckled at this. "Uh, Mabel, I think it's actually a she, not a he." he pointed out.
Mabel blew a raspberry at him. "That can't be right!"
"What's with all the shouting?"
Dipper and Mabel turned to see Grunkle Stan in the doorway.
"Well, Mabel found this unusual bird, who she insists is a guy, which I highly doubt at this point,"
"Hey!" Mabel shot back playfully, feigning hurt.
"And it has a broken wing. It's so small, though, that I can't find anything to help make a good splint." Dipper finished.
Stan walked over and looked into the bowl at the little thing. It looked up at Stan in what Dipper could only describe as mopey anticipation.
Stan grunted. "Well, it's a Hummingbird; I think. I don't exactly have feeders hung up, so I don't know why this one would be out this far. Anyway, I think I know something that could help instead." Stan lead Mabel away, who cheered quietly.
The little bird peered over the edge of the nest in something akin to relieved shock. Dipper smacked his forehead. "Why am I super-imposing emotion onto a bird? Jeeze." he mumbled.
The bird shot him a disapproving look, then tried to hop out of the bowl. Dipper held his hands out and stopped her, so she pecked him in return. "Ow! You're pretty riled up."
The little thing tilted it's head, then nodded with a soft cheep. It sounded sorry. Dipper smiled a little and reached out, slower this time. The bird hummed and rubbed it's head against his fingers.
"How 'bout . . . Riley? I'm sure Mabel will approve." Dipper offered. The newly dubbed "Riley" hummed and nodded.
Not to much later, Dipper, Mabel, Riley, and Soos were standing outside the bunker. They were waiting on Wendy, and had yet to find a way inside.
Dipper gave Mabel a bit of a look. "Mabel, I thought we agreed to leave Riley at home."
Mabel made a face. "Ah, but Dipper!" she protested, petting the tiny thing perched on her shoulder. "Riley needs attention! And she doesn't like being left alone, especially indoors!"
Dipper pinched the bridge of his nose. "Fine! Don't blame me if she freaks out more underground, or get's lost or whatever!" he proclaimed.
Mabel gently clutched the little thing, nodding.
It was soon apparent that Alida not only was enjoying the ride, but found a particular fondness in Wendy, seeming to prefer riding on her shoulders during a lot of the adventure. Besides hiding in Dippers' vest pockets during the scarier bits so the Shapeshifter wouldn't see her.
Overall, she survived the adventure, and didn't seem any worse for wear. Shifting from Wendy to Dipper before the redhead left, she was able to catch a glimpse of the computer from where Dipper held her in cupped hands. It wasn't almost eerie, by that point, how human she acted. Dipper had his theories about it, like how maybe something paranormal or supernatural had caused it, but she was so birdlike, too, in her actions that he said nothing.
In the aftermath of visiting the bunker, Dipper paged through the journal. The little hummingbird sat perched on his shoulder, watching with clear interest.
"In a few short days, we'll finally figure out who the Author is." he murmured under his breath.
Riley tittered, flapping her uninjured wing. Dipper flinched, the sound loud on his ears. He was beginning to regret allowing Mabel to talk him into "bird-sitting" her pet. He gently lifted her off and set her on the back of the chair.
Someone suddenly knocked on the door, loudly. "Dipper! Go answer the door!" Stan called from the living room.
With a sigh, Dipper tucked the journal away and walked over. He opened the door and stared up in surprise at the person that stood there. She was a tall, stocky teenage girl. Her dark brown hair was messy and thick, hanging into her green-gold eyes and face. She seemed to be wearing animal skins sewed roughly together, wore no shoes, and was acting kinda twitchy, hood pulled up over her head.
After several moments silence, he cleared his throat. "So, uh, what brings you here?" he asked.
The teen flinched, eyes darting back and forth. One hand tugged the hood further down, and she glanced around warily. "Oh, um, well . . . I uh, lost my pet . . . bird. Yes." she replied, the words sounding forced, and herself nervous. Her voice had a certain depth to it; not enough to be mistaken for a boy, but it was rough and a little husky.
"Your bird?" Dipper asked skeptically.
The girl nodded, quickly. "Uh huh. Blue with white and gold, uh, sorta along the edges of the feathers and more clear on the wings and tail. Purple beak, tiny?" she answered, holding her hands out to show the size. "Disappeared a few days ago, got out of her . . . cage." the girl winced on the words.
Dipper eyed her. 'Nervous body language, eyes darting back and forth, and I don't think I've seen her around before,' Dipper thought to himself. 'What if she's lying? Mabel would be heartbroken that I'd given Riley to a complete stranger!'
"So, uh, have you seen her? I've been worried sick. Right."
Dipper shrugged. "I dunno. Hey!" he held up his finger when she turned to leave. "You seem parched! Why don't you uh, why don't you come in for a drink?" he offered.
The girl narrowed her eyes, frowning. She rubbed her chin. "I don't know," she replied slowly. "I've uh . . .well, I guess so." she finally answered with a shrug, slowly following him inside.
Dipper watched her out of the corner of his eye. She seemed very nervous after the door shut, jumping at the slightest sound and looking about with distrust clear in her eyes.
"So, I never did catch your name." he mentioned.
She flinched again, standing awkwardly in the kitchen while Dipper grabbed some Pitt soda's. "Oh, ah, Meesha Bear." she replied.
"Nice to meet you. The names Dipper. Catch." he told her, throwing the can her way.
She fumbled and caught it, then held it upside down, examining it. "Um . . . what do I do with this?" she asked uncertainly.
Dipper stared at her. "You've never had Pitt soda?" he asked in disbelief.
"Er, nnnoooo?" Meesha replied.
Dipper sighed and walked over. "Here, let me show you," he held the can out right-side up. When she mirrored him, he cracked the top, and she did so, as well, after a few moments of trying.
"Now what?" the girl asked skeptically.
"You drink it." Dipper replied with an eyeroll, taking a sip.
Meesha looked down at the hole in the metal with a frown. She slowly copied his actions, then sputtered, spitting it out. "Uh, this stuff is weird!" she exclaimed, setting the can on the table.
At that moment, Mabel walked in. "Dipper, have you seen-oh my gosh!" she cut herself off upon seeing the other girl, sprinting over to grab at her hand.
"Hi! My names Mabel! Where did you get these clothes?" she asked excitedly, shaking her hand hard, only for the other to pull away.
Meesha half-flinched, then slowly smiled. "Oh, uh, well, me and my friends, well, made them." she replied, sounding a little more confidant. She pulled the hood down, holding it out. "I made the coat all by myself. See the inside? Rabbits fur."
Mabel reached out and felt it. "Wow, it's so soft!" she squealed. "I could rub it forever!"
Meesha chuckled, drawing back. With her hood down, it was easy to see that her hair only fell to just below her ears, wild and messy, dark, thick, and tangled. "Yeah, heh heh, sorry, but I kinda need this." she replied, nervousness gone.
"So why are you here? Are you Dippers' new girlfriend?" she asked slyly, elbowing her twin.
Meesha and Dipper both blushed red. "Mabel!" he hissed.
Meesha laughed a little, shaking her head. "Ah, twins. Joy be it always, for friends and rivals." she chuckled some more, much to the twins confusion. "I know a pair of twins back home, heh. But, no. he just invited me in to try . . . that stuff," she gestured to the abandoned soda can. "I sorta have a boyfriend." she rubbed the back of her neck.
"Oh." Mabel replied, thinking. "Hey, where are you from? I don't think I've seen you around before." Mabel mentioned.
Meesha flinched, rubbing the back of her neck. "Around. Hey! Have you happened to see my bird?" she asked. The nervous, twitchy girl was back, and the easy-going, confident one gone, just like that.
Dipper rubbed his chin, humming in thought.
"Is it blue and white and gold?" Mabel asked sadly.
Meesha nodded, a hopeful gleam in her eye. "Yes, she is!" she exclaimed.
Mabel sighed and nodded, turning to leave. "I'll go get her."
Meesha sighed in relief. "Phew. We all thought she was gone."
"We?" Dipper asked suspiciously.
Meesha shrunk back at this, eyes darting side to side. "Uh, yeah, 'we', um . . ." she replied nervously. "My younger cousins, my aunt, my grandpa. That bird is like, pretty much our good luck charm. In a sense."
"And you keep her in a cage? Why? Where do you even live?" Dipper demanded.
Meesha eyes darted from side to side, backing up into the wall. "Well, ah, that's sorta, um, hard." she looked hard at Dipper, contemplating.
At that moment, Mabel walked back in, cupping the tiny thing in her hands. Riley tittered loudly upon seeing Meesha, who's eyes lit up, smiling wide. "Alida!" she quickly darted over, scooping the bird out of Mabel's hands. She messed up her hair, grinning wide. "Thank you so much for helping me find her!"
Mabel grinned back. "Glad to have helped! I found Riley, er, Alida outside when she flew into a tree."
Meesha eyed the bird. "Is that so?" she asked it. Riley, or, apparently, Alida, hummed in response, fluttering out a wing. Meesha's eyes widened. "You don't say?" she mutters. the bird ducks it's head in a kind of nod. Eyebrows shooting up, Meesha nods back, eyeing the Pines twins before heading back for the door.
Dipper and Mabel followed her, noticing that she has trouble with the doorknob. "Here, allow me." Mabel offers, opening it up. "Is your wrist sore or something?"
Meesha nods quickly, walking down the porch, heading for the woods, oddly, and not the road. "Thanks again!" she calls.
Mabel waves back and Dipper calls, "See you around!"
Something flickers across her face, some mystery emotion that Dipper nor Mabel can quite decipher. She ducks her head in a sort of half-nod, an almost scared, warning look on her face before she pulls her hood up. The twins glance at eachother, concerned, before looking back a moment later.
By then, she is gone, having started to sprint as soon as the trees provided enough cover
Here's two more of 'em! As shown in the last chapter, we've got some humans and monsters apparently living together. What of this, though? And how long ago was it that so many got turned to stone?
Take a guess and please review!