Hey.

Chapter 15: Gideon

Dipper looked at the two older boys, waiting. Danny just sat there, resting on his elbows, eyes shrouded in sleepy shadows, hair ruffled. His gaze informed Dipper that what he'd just said hadn't even registered with the ghost boy. Randy, on the other hand, looked distinctly unimpressed. He was crouched down, carefully positioned above Danny, his scarf still lying over the teen's waist. Even though the ninja was masked, Dipper got the impression his catastrophic news wasn't that big a deal to him. There was too much sarcasm in Randy's exposed blue eyes.

Danny opened his mouth slowly. "….who?"

Dipper glared slightly. In a hushed voice, he said "Gideon's this creepy self-righteous child psychic who's trying to find all the journals. He's the one who summoned Bill the first time!" at that, Danny's eyes widened.

The ninja shook his head. "Wait a minute. A kid has your journal? That's all we have to deal with? Another twelve year old?"

Dipper swallowed his anger at the twelve year old comment. He took a deep breath, and was about to retaliate, when he felt Sam's hand on his shoulder. He glanced behind him, and she looked at him with an expression that said 'let me handle this'. She turned to the two boys.

"This is no ordinary stuck up kid. I'd put him up with our billionaire buddies as far as crazy goes. You two better just come see for yourself."

The four of them crept through the air shaft as quietly as they could. Dipper took the lead, and Sam followed behind him with the duffle bag. She was trying hard not the let the metal weapons clank against each other, given how well sound travelled through the vent. Luckily McFist's enraged screams drowned out most of the noise. After Sam came Randy, who was using his scarf as tether to help Danny along. Danny was trying his hardest stay awake, but he was exhausted. Every now and then his eyes would start to droop, and he'd fall forward on top of Randy. The third time it happened, Dipper glanced back in time to see Sam take a picture. A few minutes after that, they arrived at the vent over Gideon's room. Dipper and Sam made room for Danny and the Ninja. The two boys peered curiously through the vent. Two pairs of bright blue eyes widened in surprise and horror.

The room was lit by candle light. Old fashioned and rotund wax candles lined the shelves and table spaces throughout the room. One wall was covered in pictures of the Pines family, particularly the twins. Several headshots of Dipper and Stan had been vandalized with an angry red marker. Maps, charts, photographs, and a web of red string blared 'stalker' to the petrified boys. Below, on the desk, was a DIY Popsicle stick replica of the mystery shack, with decapitated Dipper and Stan dolls. Mabel's doll was in a small bird cage. Next to the mystery shack was a handmade gray and green pyramid that sent chills down Randy's spine, and a tiny Fenton works that turned Danny and Sam's blood cold. Both Danny and Randy's alter egos had headshots on Gideon's wall. A ninja and phantom doll were lying disregarded on the table. Danny and Randy were speechless.

"This kid is….worse than Vlad…" Danny muttered.

Sam and Dipper leaned back in at the sound of laughter, wild laughter from below. There, in front of his desk, was Gideon, swiveling giddily while flipping through Dipper's journal. Randy choked slightly.

"It's pigmy demon Elvis!" he whispered. Dipper saw Danny's mouth twitch slightly, as if he'd thought of a similar comparison. But that twitch was quickly replaced with uncertainty.

Below them, Gideon began talking to himself.

"The time is nigh, the hour of retribution is almost upon you, Gideon. This journal has been more useful than you could have imagined. That boy will lose his mind to cypher, Dipper and Stan and that ninja will be torn asunder by that green dead guy, and Mabel will finally be yours!" Gideon giggled to himself in the flickering light. His eyes were wild and crazed with glorious psychotic purpose. Up in the vent, Sam turned to Dipper.

"What did you guys do to him?" she whispered. Dipper was too unnerved to respond. His eyes started to water. Weird. He tried unsuccessfully to discreetly wipe them dry.

"Hot biscuits, Vladford, how long is a minute? Are you reciting poetry to that ghost fool?" Gideon mused. He picked up a Ninja doll and began creating a noose out of its tiny scarf.

Dipper's eyes were definitely watering. He looked over and saw that everyone was blinking back tears. Danny coughed.

"I hope that brat didn't get away. Plasmius said that Danny's worst fear was something to see. Even he doesn't know what it is." Gideon cooed to the ninja doll. He took the scarf-noose and fastened it around Phantom Doll's neck, and hung the two heroes from a tack on the wall. Dipper felt Randy clench his fists and tense beside him.

Danny coughed again. So did Sam. Then Dipper coughed himself. And then, like an idiot, Dipper understood.

"Guys!" he hissed. "It's the candle smoke! (cough) cover your (cough cough) mouths!"

Hastily the three teens pulled their shirts over the noses, but the damage was done.

"Whose there?!" Gideon called. Everyone in the vent froze. Dipper watched as Sam leaned over and whispered in Danny's ear. He cringed, then vigorously shook his head no. Sam hesitated, then unzipped the duffle and pulled out the Fenton thermos. Danny's eyes widened.

"No way, Sam, I said no-"he started.

"I'm sorry Danny," she hissed, "but Gideon can't see you, and you're in no state to fight!" she unscrewed the thermos lid and aimed it at Danny. He sent her a murderous glare as a blue beam encased him and sucked him inside. Dipper could only stare at the scene in shock.

"He just… you…" he stuttered. Sam hastily fastened back on the lid and put the thermos back in the duffle. She looked at Randy with a determined gaze.

"Think you can take him?" she asked. Randy grinned.

"Ninja-Please."

The Ninja silently open the vent and swung down behind the villain. Sam and Dipper hastily pulled the vent door closed and the Ninja threw down a smoke bomb. Gideon turned and choked on the orange smoke, gagging as the clouds revealed the ninja.

"Look man, I don't know you, but I'm pretty sure stalking people is a no-no." declared the Ninja.

Gideon snarled.

"I do as I please, Ninja!" he squealed. Gideon slammed Dipper's journal down on his desk as he stood up. "And I believe it's called 'know the enemy'"

The ninja folded his arms. "You've got quite the collection of enemies, my pigmy friend. Say, did anyone tell you that thievery-"the Ninja scarf-snatched the journal "-is also a big no-no?"

Gideon lunged. "Give me that!" but Randy hastily back-flipped out of the way.

"I don't think so. NINJA COLD BALLS!"

Sam and Dipper landed with a small thud on the floor of the room, dusted their pants off, and considered the new Gideon ice sculpture the ninja was casually leaning against. Sam cocked an eyebrow.

"Cold balls?"

"Ninja cold balls." Randy corrected. "And yes. Rather effective on hot heads like albino Elvis here. So, we ready to go?"

Dipper looked at Gideon's frozen eyes. They burned madly at the sight of him. Suddenly, green smoke billowed up from a nearby mirror and phased into the icy mass. Dipper gulped. "uh, Ninja?"

Randy spun and watched as the smoke lazily drifted around Gideon's angry head.

"What the juice? That's not possible, he's locked away in Norrisville…" he sputtered. He handed the journal back to Dipper without looking away. But as the three teens watched, the smoke seemed to lose interest in the frozen child, and instead retreated to the mirror, where a wrinkled green face in a brown hood swirled into existence. The Ninja groaned.

"Sorcerer, why you gotta show up where ever I do?"

The ancient face just laughed. "Oh, and miss all the wild emotions of your new friends? Like that ghost child, who's afraid of his own shadow? Viceroy figured out how to amplify my powers. No one is safe from me, Ninja."

"GO HOME, SORCERER!" droned the ninja patronizingly as he punched out the glass. Dipper and Sam just stared. Randy shrugged.

"He's not a nice guy."

The trio's peaceful gathering was interrupted then by the sounds of angry banging and running. Mcfist and Viceroy were making their way down the hall. Sam quickly unzipped the duffle as Randy threw a sheet over the Gideon ice sculpture. She unscrewed the lid and Danny came spilling out. He was asleep. Sam leaned down and shook him awake.

"Danny, I really need you to get us out of here! Could you manage to phase us all through the floor?" she pleaded. Dipper and the Ninja plopped down next to her.

"ah…mm…mmhhmm…" Danny grumbled in agreement. He took Sam's hand, who took the Ninja's, who grabbed Dipper's, who claimed Danny's other free hand. Danny's face contorted in concentration, and the four floated through the floor into the room below.

Danny let go and fell back onto the floor, gazing at the ceiling. Sam and Dipper looked around. The Ninja stood defensively.

They were surrounded by Robo apes. All of whom recognized the ninja. A hundred pairs of mechanical green eyes simultaneously burned red.

"Dammit" hissed Sam.

"This is so Wonk." admitted the ninja.

Yeah. Cliffy. But the evil-ness doesn't stop there. I gonna have to put this story on hold for a bit, partly to work on a DP fanfic and partly because I have been struck with mild writer's block. I welcome suggestion in the reviews. So sorry, but rest assured, this story isn't over yet. And, that's not the last we'll see of Gideon. But let's be real, Gideon's only tough next to Dipper. Stan took him with a broom!