Chapter 4

Haley wasn't thoroughly pleased with that day's outcome.

First she'd met two more kids she could cross off her friends list. Neither one of the Pines twins seemed to stand on common ground. Second, she had to share a room with Jake. And third, she had been completely ignored practically the whole day. And to top it all off, she had to spend her precious summer here!

She remembered the last thing Sun had said to her before she left. She had sounded just like a mother when she said it.

"Don't forget to put on sunscreen!"

Mabel turned to her. "Huh?"

Whoops. She had said it out loud on accident.

"Uh, nothing," she lied. "Just repeating what my... friend... Sun said before I left. No goodbye or anything."

Mabel tried for a smile. "It's better than what my parents did. Hand me a bag, toss a visor on my head, and slap some sunscreen on my nose, and poof! One gift-wrapped Mabel, ready for shipping!"

Haley smirked. "That's pretty funny."

"Yeah," she agreed. "They put a full-on hat on Dipper, though. It looked good on him- 'till he went and lost it."

"Looks like we both have irresponsible brothers then."

Mabel shook her head. "Oh, no. It wasn't his fault he lost it. Dipper's really responsible."

"Oh." Now she felt guilty. Dipper had seemed nice. Maybe he just wasn't much for first impressions.

They actually started into the forest, after having gotten lunch at the diner and seeing the town from the top of the water tower. Haley noticed that Dipper hesitated slightly before continuing. Mabel must have noticed too, because she went back a bit to walk with him, leaving her alone.

Haley could easily see why Dipper was afraid to go near this place. It was dark and eerie, and every sound echoed in her ears. The wind didn't really help. It pushed the trees ever so slightly, which didn't ease Haley's dragon instincts at all.

"Haley."

She jumped back, and only then did she notice that it was Jake.

"Oh." She regained her composure. "What?"

Jake raised an eyebrow. "Ease up, Haley. You're freaking out."

"What makes you say that? Is it something I did?"

He smirked. "You mean other than jumping four feet away from me? No. I can see it in your eyes. When you're agitated, your eyes get the slightest shade of purple. It happens to me, too, but not purple."

"Red?"

He nodded. "Deep breaths, Haley. You're overreacting. Forests are always dark and spooky. It's a way of life. You've got to get used to that cliché."

Far off in the distance, there was a giant snap! sound, like a tree bending.

Haley put her hands on her hips. "You were saying?"

Jake scratched the back of his neck. "Uh..."

The rest of the group caught up with the Longs.

"What was that?" Spud asked. "You guys heard it, right?"

Haley nodded. "It came from in front of us."

The sound came again, but much closer now. Haley realized it was coming straight toward them.

"Run!" she yelled. They took off and didn't stop until they were out of the forest. They doubled over, panting.

"What..." Spud tried. "What was that?"

"Probably Manly Dan just chopping down trees for the old fire," Dipper suggested. "He's Wendy's dad. Let's just go home," he added. "It's getting dark."

"Yeah," Jake said uncertainly. "Good idea."

They went back to the Shack, had dinner, and hung out for a while. Dipper and Mabel taught Haley how to have a syrup race, which she won every time. She just let out a puff of heat- not a whole flame, just something to melt the syrup and make it run faster- and victory was hers.

Finally it was time to go to bed. Stan wanted them to get a good night's sleep for work tomorrow. Haley and the others staying in the room went to bed quickly, and soon they were fast asleep.

Except Haley.

She was certain that it hadn't been Manly Dan in the forest.

Could it be... magical business?

She got up and gently poked Jake. When that didn't work, she swatted him. Nothing. With no other choice, she transformed her hand and jabbed him with a sharp claw.

"Ow-" He started to scream out, but she clamped his mouth shut. When she let go, he hissed, "What was that for?!"

"Just be glad you woke up after that," she said, completely ignoring his question. "I would have resorted to dragon fire. I woke you up because I wanted to go look for that thing in the forest."

He closed his eyes. "Didn't you hear Dipper? It was probably Manly Dan."

"Who lights a fire in the middle of the summer?"

He rolled his eyes. "Yeah, that's true. Ok, I'll bite. Let's go."

She smiled. "Thanks, Jake."

They crept out of the room and down the stairs. As they left through the back door, Haley tripped and crashed on the ground.

"Let's hope no one heard that," she whispered.

A light went on in the attic.

"Way to go, Haley," Jake commended. "Dragon up!" His body was engulfed in light blue energy. It faded, revealing a tall muscled red dragon. "Come on."

She transformed as well, and they both sped into the forest.

Haley wasn't exactly sure what she was looking for, so she decided to get an aerial view. She flew gracefully over the forest, but didn't see anything.

Haley tried to remember the last time she had gotten to just float with the wind and be free. Every other time, she had been flying for her life or chasing something, which wasn't much fun unless it was the ice cream truck.

She settled on the ground next to Jake. "See anything?"

He shook his head. He looked around, then up, and his jaw dropped. "Haley," he said, "look."

She looked and gasped. The sky was full of shining stars, interrupting each other, combining into beautiful constellations, and overall blowing Haley's mind.

She laid down on the ground, and Jake soon followed. They laid there for what seemed like forever, just staring and occasionally pointing out recognizable constellations. Jake recognized Orion, Haley saw Scorpius, and they both pointed at-

"The Big Dipper."

They both sat up sharply, not making a sound. Neither one of them had said that. So who had?

Haley looked around frantically. Finally she spotted two figures in the distance.

"Eye of the Dragon," she whispered as quietly as she could, then looked at the figures again. She made out a blue-and-white hat on one and a purple headband on the other.

"See it, Mabel?" Dipper asked. "My namesake."

Mabel crossed her arms. "Looks more like the Little Dipper."

"Aw, thanks for ruining the moment."

"Pleasure!" She beamed, and between the reflection of the stars and Haley's advanced eyesight, she got blinded by Mabel's braces.

"Ah!" she cried, rubbing her eyes.

Mabel and Dipper immediately turned to the sound.

"What was that?" Dipper said, pulling out a flashlight. He started walking toward her.

"Jake!" she hissed. "What do we do?"

"I don't know!" he replied.

"Who's there?" Dipper demanded. "Show yourself!"

Haley didn't know what to do, so she decided to make a run for it. She and Jake both stood up, but before they could take off, the flashlight shined on them. Haley was suddenly well aware that they were still in dragon form.

Dipper and Mabel stared in awe. Then, just when Haley thought all hope was lost, Dipper fell on his back and sighed. "Why can't my life ever be normal?!"

Oh, Haley. So confused and unknowing. Anyway, Chapter Five will be up soon, so hold tight!