A/N:
Code Answer: Mabelzilla to the Rescue!
The landing was a lot softer than he anticipated. His eyes cracked open a little just in time to see the roof above him slam shut in darkness. The only source of light was from a small, oddly-shaped hole in the wall. Wow, this room was so small, he thought to himself, and what's with the fall? Don't tell me Gideon's got some secret underground tomb for intruders? Nah that was ridiculous… but not impossible…
"Get off."
Dipper flinched at the muffled growl. He looked down to see that the soft landing had been given by a girlish figure. The mass of mousy hair was instantly recognised and he jumped to his feet in panic. Just as he opened his mouth to apologise, after all landing on someone her size in comparison to his must be painful if fatal, when something clicked inside his head… She was the same size as him…
"Roxie? That's you, right?"
She allowed him to help her up, but snatched herself away as soon as she was steady, "Oh I'm sorry, did you mean to land on someone else?"
"Huh? No, I just…" he paused, scanning her from head to toe, "What's going on here?"
Looking irritated, Roxie pushed past him to peer through the hole in the wall, "Oh lets see; Gideon is using the crystals just for an attraction not some evil plan! He's doing a very good impression of you by analysing me and you have just fallen for the biggest' I'm right behind you' trick in the book!" she took a breath and turned to face him while throwing her arms out sarcastically, "So welcome to the Captured Crusade, we've been expecting you!"
He blinked, taking in the information with growing dread, "Can you repeat that last part?"
Roxie took a step closer to the boy and moved her hands between them to compare heights, which now only has the difference of him being an inch (theoretically speaking) or so taller than her, "Figure it out."
Dipper furrowed his brow. He thought back to the blinding pink light that had covered him, the tight vice-grip around him and the fall… "Oh you've got to be kidding me!"
"Ding-ding, we have a winner." She rolled her eyes.
"Why didn't you yell or warn me or something?" he groaned.
Roxie glared at him and swiftly shot out her hand and smacked him upside his head, knocking the cap to the floor, "You're an idiot, you know that, Dippy?"
Dipper clenched his fists but didn't respond out of pure annoyance. He ignored her and replaced his cap, taking a turn peeking though the keyhole. Gideon was nowhere to be found, lurking out of sight like a shark. An attraction, seriously? Wow, he thought, I was way off, I should really stop jumping to conclusions… not that Gideon helps that though. Shrunk again, why? This was insane! What was that creep going to gain from it? Oh yeah, he was still on that whole revenge thing, right? Perfect… He reached up and jumped, slamming his hands against the lid of the box, but it was stuck tight. His hands felt along the inside of the lock for any sign of altering it. Typically, it was useless.
"Dipper," Roxie muttered, quieter this time. The use of his regular name instead of her altered version took him by surprise so he looked over his shoulder at her. She swallowed, "What about Mabel?"
He understood the need to keep quiet, if Gideon overheard anything now then he might use it against them, "She'll be okay, I told her not to come in until I call for her. So… realistically there's about a fifty-five percent chance she'll listen to me."
"At least that's a little over half marks."
Roxie hated this. It reminded her of the hundreds of times her siblings used to do this kind of stuff like some sick game. Sometimes she would even wake up to find herself inside a watch case or even inside a locked jewellery box like this. She never understood why they did it, but it wasn't like her parents ever really punished them for it. The walls looked so dark and threatening, like they were going to close in any moment. Her arms wrapped around herself slightly and she subtly tried to lean into a corner without coming across as scared. Fear was pointless, it wasn't going to get them anywhere.
"You look a lot different close up." Dipper commented, noticing the hint of worry in her eyes.
She scoffed, "Yeah well, I must look different when you're not peering at me through a colour-blind magnifying glass. Which, by the way, he is seriously miffed at about you taking."
"Well that means it means something," Dipper muttered, taking said object from his pocket and holding it up to his eye.
Once again, the grey aura clouded around Roxie's body, darkening considerably behind here were he remembered the scars were. His hand lifted to scratch his head, travelling into the glass' viewpoint. He jumped in awe, holding his hand before him. The mist was also clinging to him. He examined his torso and legs, the grey clouds faint but still very visible around him. At Roxie's questioning looks, he handed the trinket to her. She followed suit and lifted it to her eye, tilting her head in confusion. She didn't keep it long, handing it back and stepping back into the corner.
"Weird as anything else around here…" she mumbled.
"What's that all about?" Dipper wondered aloud, "Hmm… I didn't start showing that until after the stones were- Hey!" he snapped his fingers, "It picks up on the stuff that's been affected by the crystals! But, that doesn't really explain why yours is darker than mine, mostly around your marks. Unless they pick up on oddities anyway…" he trailed off when he saw that her eyes were closed, "Uh, you okay there?"
Roxie chewed her lip, picturing that she was outside somewhere with wide open spaces, open air, anywhere but here, "I'm fine." She forced through gritted teeth, "Just… keep talking. Uh, you wouldn't happen to know what an Adhene is, do you?" Her voice was rushed, hoping for a distraction from the dark, "Something to do with a Manx, anything like that?"
Taken aback slightly, he pulled out the now miniscule journal and skimmed through it, "Uh… it doesn't go into detail, just that Manx are a type of sprite… um, and here it says that there're different kinds of Manx, Adhene being one of them. That's pretty much it, so the guy must have written about it elsewhere… Why?"
"It's nothing."
"Roxie, you ,uh, don't look so good."
"Sure, because you look great right now." she sighed. It's not musky wooden air you're breathing, she told herself, it's fresh air from outside, "Outside…"
"Huh?" Dipper arched an eyebrow. What was up with her? The way she was hunched slightly, eyes shut and muttering, it was like she wanted a distraction, trying to make herself smaller than she already was. That was strange, even for her. Suddenly, after some thought, it hit him, "Roxie, uh, are you, uh, claustrophobic?"
The girl snapped her eyes open to glare at him, "It's just space, why would I be scared of space?"
He raised his palms in defence, "Calm down I-"
"Never tell a girl to calm down, Dippy, it never works!"
"Okay, okay!" he nodded, blinking in shock at her sudden heavy breathing. Gingerly, he braved a step forward and debated putting a hand on her shoulder but chose against it, "We're going to get out, alright?"
"I know we are, I'd just prefer it to happen sooner than later."
"You and me both." Swallowing his pride and lightly patted her shoulder. It felt so freaky being the same height as her, he'd only just found a system of comfort for her when she was smaller than him, now this was just throwing him off. "Just keep looking through to keyhole and take a breath, got it?"
Nodding a little, she allowed him to guide her to the opening. She leant her forehead against the cool metal and inhaled the slightly cleaner air from the dressing room, keeping her eyes on the other side of the room and the distance between. Admittedly, she felt a little better, but not as much as she would if she really was outside.
"How's that?" he asked, a little unsure of what to do now.
"Okay, I guess." She muttered sheepishly.
"Good." He muttered, adjusting his hat, "Great."
"Mmm-hmmm…" Before he could reply, she tensed again, "Uh, you know you said there was about a fifty-five percent chance of Mabel listening to you?"
He didn't like where this was going and was already dragging his hand down his face, "Yeah… That's lowered, hasn't it?"
"Yeah, lowered by exactly fifty-five percent."
"Great…"
Mabel had grown tired of waiting out on the grass. Her skirt was getting damp from the ground and frankly it was just boring. What was taking him so long? She huffed, don't tell me he's found some goggles that turn things blue or something like that! Sometimes Mabel thought that her twin was like a puppy; one little thing dashes past him and he's got to run off and investigate. And coming from Mabel, that was saying something.
She lay on her stomach and lifted the bottom of the tent wall up a fraction, peering inside and grinning when she saw the coast was clear. Rolling over a few times, she ended up inside the dressing room on her back. Stealth-mode-Mabel, she mused, keeping perfectly still and scanning the room, and roll to the side again, coast still clear! She jumped to her feet and crouched behind the desk, checking the room for a third time.
"Dipper? Roxie?" she half-whispered, and when that didn't work, "Marco?"
"Polo… I win."
Mabel turned at the southern voice twisted into pretence of welcoming and just managed to throw herself out of the way just as a beam of pink light shot out towards her. Inches away, a forgotten comb was coated in the light and instantly closed in on itself so that it was no bigger than her fingernail. Gideon loomed over her, twirling a crystal between his fingers. Behind him on the desk was a large woven bag, more of the sparkling gems poking out from the top. She jaw slacked in awe, she'd never seen so many together before! But if he had them and was using them… She bit her lip. Now it made sense why Dipper was out of sight.
"You haven't won anything you cheat!" she snapped, "What've you done with Dipper and Roxie?"
"Why Mabel, what did I ever do to you that gave you such an ill impression of me?" he chuckled.
She got to her feet with narrowed eyes, "How about you forced me into dates, nearly killed my brother, shrunk and kidnapped us and now you're doing it again?"
"Oh those old chestnuts?" he waved his hand passively, aiming the gem again, "Let's not be so short-sighted, Mabel."
Mabel let out a cry of effort as she ducked the beam once more, nearly crashing into the dressing table. The bottles of product rattled in protest, some spilling on the floor and rolling in all directions. Gideon smirked and held the crystal up to the light, a thin pink strip pointed downwards at the floor. He tilted it slightly so that the light crept threateningly along the floor ever closer to her feet. Mabel flattened against the desk, looking for a way out of this. She couldn't just run, there was nowhere to go without getting caught outside too. And she would never make it under the wall and into the open in time before getting zapped. And she'd never leave without Dipper or Roxie. Of course she could just let herself get hit, at least then she'd find out where they were, but that was stupid. Not to mention she'd have to let that creep pick her up. She cringed, bleugh!
"Finally, with you two out of the way, it'll only be a matter of time before Stanford comes a-looking for ya! And then, once he's taken care of, the Shack will be mine!" he cackled.
"That didn't work the first time, what makes you think it'll work now?" Mabel demanded, cheeks darkening in frustration, "You're not getting away with this you jerk-face!"
"Enough with the sweet-talk, darlin', now it's down to business."
The beam darted upwards and Mabel was forced to clamber onto the dressing table to avoid it. Taking a chance, she leapt over to the other side of the room, landing awkwardly and tumbling into the cabinet against the wall. The wall shook slightly, making the objects inside tremble. Extremely faint and muffled yells sounded from inside. Dipper? Roxie? It must be! But right then, Mabel couldn't take too much notice. Instead she was looking to see what she had landed on and gritted her teeth in irritation. It was a fallen hairspray can.
"And with you and your entire family in my control, nothing's getting in the way of you being my queen!"
Not this again! "Gideon, I will never be -" She cut herself off as an idea skipped across her mind. Subtly, she reached for the can and hid it in the baggy sleeve of her jumper. Straightening up, she batted her eyes at the boy and giggled sweetly, "I will never be happier until I'm your queen."
Inside the box, Dipper and Roxie exchanged a look, what was Mabel doing? Was she insane? Dipper called out to his twin, but they apparently fell on deaf ears. They watched in awed panic as she braved up to the confused yet cautious boy. She flicked her hair slightly and batted her eyes again, keeping her hands behind her back. Gideon blinked in surprise.
"Excuse me?"
"You're excused, silly!" she giggled, "Thinking about it, I guess I've been a bit quick to blame in all this, you were just doing what you thought what right, right?"
"That's right…" he cocked his head warily.
"So, you know," she adjusted his lapel one-handed with a shy smile, "Maybe I'd be willing to forgive you…"
By just a fraction, Gideon lowered his arm baring the crystal, a hopeful glint in his eyes, "Is this another trick? Or, are you serious?"
"Well…" she grinned. Suddenly, her smile vanished and she glared at him, pulling out the can of hairspray and shooting the nozzle in his face, "What do you think you phoney?"
Gideon cried out in pain at the chemicals in his eyes and out of shock dropped the crystal. Mabel caught it and pushed the boy aside, grabbing the sack of gems and spilling them over the floor. Her foot lifted and she thought of all the trouble these things had caused. No, she thought with a nod, not anymore. Mabel crushed the gems until they lay in shattered shards strewn across the floor. She jumped on the spot for added effect. As each one broke, the colour drained from them as the magic spilled away. From the commotion, there was a faint sound of shifting and footsteps from the next room.
"Uh, son, is everything alright in there?"
Mabel squeaked in panic, Gideon was still trying to blink away the spray from his burning eyes. In a brief moment of guilt, she scanned over the can's label. Non-toxic, if sprayed in eyes, wash out within one hour. Oh, that's okay then, he's still got fifty-eight minutes left. Ignoring the boy, she swiftly forced open the cabinet door and listened carefully. Dead centre, a small trinket-box was shifting slightly, muffled voices calling out from inside. In the keyhole, two pairs of eyes were fighting for a view. Grinning, Mabel picked it up carefully and clutched it to her chest, skidding to the floor as she ran so that she slid easily under the wall of the tent and out into the open. Behind her, the sounds of Gideon echoed out angrily at his father. Not that Mabel was paying much attention, she was already sprinting off into the woods, not stopping until she was sure they were a safe distance away. Carefully, she sat the box down atop a boulder and removed one of her hairpins and crouched down to examine the lock.
Inside, Dipper ducked just in time to avoid the thick metal strip jabbing him in the eye. The pair waited eagerly, silently begging for the lid to open. Dipper gave Roxie a nod of encouragement to which she simply shrugged, but also flashing a hint of gratitude in a smile. Suddenly, there was the sound of a satisfying snap and the lid sprang open. Fresh, summer air washed over them and they actually let out a half sigh-half laugh at the feel of it. Mabel grinned at them.
"Who da alpha-twin?" she asked smugly.
"You, without a doubt." Roxie beamed, scrambling from the prison and loving the feel of smooth rock beneath her.
"Well I wouldn't go that far." Dipper shrugged.
Mabel playfully tousled his head with her pinkie finger, "There's no denying the height difference now, Dipper, alpha-twin wins again!"
He swatted her away and allowed a smirk in spite of himself, "Okay, okay, you get this one. You were great back there."
"I know." She smiled, "But thanks for noticing."
"Modest much?" Roxie asked jokingly.
"Sometimes." Mabel replied with a shrug.
Dipper looked around and suddenly didn't like how darkly the forest loomed over his tiny form, "Uh, why don't we get moving, we've still got to find a way to get those crystals from Gideon before the show tomorrow." And get me back to normal, he added to himself.
"Oh don't worry about that." Mabel scoffed, "That plan went to pieces, literally!"
He froze, "You didn't…"
Roxie and he exchanged a look before looking up at their saviour worriedly. Mabel arched an eyebrow in confusion, but then upon looking at her twin again, she saw the problem. "Oh… I kinda did…"
OZHG XSZKGVI MVCG!
A/N:
Whoops… What now? Find out next time XD Don't forget to review!