WARPED
Chapter 15
Lucy's eyes widened into saucers. What the hell just happened? she wondered, her anger gone and replaced with frantic confusion.
See? I told you the three of you have something I want, came a voice in Lucy's head in reply.
This voice that Lucy hadn't been able to shake did nothing to ease her confusion and unease about being in Gravity Falls. It didn't help that this voice was oddly familiar…
"Jocelyn!" Hazelle yelled as she ran over to her lifeless friend. "What's wrong with her? And what the hell was that?!"
Dipper was frantically flipping through the journal for answers. "I don't see anything in here! But I… I think that might have been… Jocelyn."
"Well, whatever it was," Hazelle replied, "we can't just leave her here! We've gotta get her back to the shack! Lucy, come get her legs!"
Lucy cautiously approached Jocelyn's lifeless body and crouched down, taking Jocelyn's wrist in her hand. "She's still breathing, and her pulse is steady. She should be fine."
"We still need to move her," retorted Hazelle. "Now grab her legs!"
"Lucky she's so skinny, otherwise Dipper's arms couldn't handle her! WOMP!" quipped Mabel, trying to lighten the mood.
"Mabel, please," Dipper replied, tucking the journal away in his vest, and moving to help Hazelle get Jocelyn's arms. "Now is not the time to be commenting on my physical appearance."
"Okay," Hazelle said, getting a good grip on Jocelyn's upper body. "One, two, three, lift!" Dipper, Lucy, and Hazelle hoisted Jocelyn's lifeless body into the air and began to carry her back in the direction they came.
"I'll lead the way!" shouted Mabel, forging ahead of the group and into the forest. "Watch out for those roots!"
No one said anything as the four of them made their way back through the forest with Jocelyn hanging between them. The silence was deafening, and Lucy couldn't take it. Mostly because it left her alone with her thoughts, and the voice that wouldn't leave her alone.
I told you that you have something I want. And this is it. All three of you can do this. And it's dangerous. I'm only trying to help.
Lucy couldn't help but reply to the voice in her head. LEAVE ME ALONE! I don't want anything to do with this! I just want to go home!
Oh, but here's the thing, Pen, I can send you and your friends home. All you need to do is trust me.
Lucy couldn't take the silence anymore.
"So what do you guys think that… thing was?" she asked, starting a conversation.
"I'm not really sure what it was…" Dipper replied, sounding uneasy. "There wasn't anything in the journal, but I'll look more when we get back to the house."
Ah, Pine Tree, came the voice again. Always faithful in that journal of his. Lucy stopped and shook her head, trying to scatter the voice.
"Hey! Watch out for Jocelyn!" Hazelle exclaimed, as Lucy had almost dropped her.
"Sorry," Lucy muttered, tightening her grip on Jocelyn and continuing on with the group.
Hazelle's eyes narrowed. "Are you sure you're okay, Lucy?"
"Yeah, it was just a bug," Lucy replied, not meeting Hazelle's eyes.
"Okay then…"
"Hey slowpokes!" came Mabel's shout from up ahead. "There's the shack! Let's go!"
Hazelle quickened her pace. "C'mon guys, we gotta get her back."
"Hey, watch out for those roots!" protested Dipper against the quicker pace, but Hazelle had already nimbly stepped around the roots, dead set on getting Jocelyn safely inside the Mystery Shack.
Once they crossed the threshold of the shack, Mabel's yell rang out, "GRUNKLE STAN! WE NEED YOU!"
Grumbling, Stan came down the stairs and into the living room. "What did you kids get into this ti— what in blazes happened to her?"
Hazelle, Dipper, Mabel, and Lucy exchanged a look. "Um, it's kind of a long story," Dipper answered, seemingly unsure if they should tell Stan about their encounter in the woods.
"But she's breathing, and her pulse is steady," Lucy interjected, "so she should be fine."
Stan thought for a moment. "Lay her out on the chair until she wakes up." He then picked up his coffee cup and shuffled back into the gift shop, grumbling under his breath.
"So now what?" Mabel asked, eyeing Jocelyn warily.
"Well," replied Dipper, plopping down on the floor with Journal #3 in his lap, "I guess now we wait."
Silence once again took over the group. The only sounds were Dipper turning the pages of Journal #3, and the clack of Mabel's knitting needles. Hazelle kept a watchful eye on Jocelyn, waiting for signs of life. There was a clock ticking on the wall, and the noise combined with the silence made Lucy want to scream.
So how's it feel to be the odd one out, Pen? asked the voice in Lucy's head. Always pitted against, never agreed with. You're the third wheel in every which way.
"I'm not!" Lucy yelled, making everyone in the room jump.
"You're not what, Luce?" asked Hazelle tearing her gaze away from Jocelyn.
"I… I, um… Nothing."
"Ooookay…" Hazelle replied, obviously not convinced. She turned her eyes back to Jocelyn.
Smooth moves, Pen.
"Hey guys?" Dipper called, breaking the silence. "I think I found something. Listen to this." Everyone crowded around Dipper and the journal. "In my goings in Gravity Falls and the surrounding world, I have discovered a small number of individuals that I refer to as 'portal jumpers.' These portal jumpers have the ability to open portals to other dimensions in moments of extreme emotion, when inexperienced, or at any time at all if they are able to control their abilities. There are not many of these individuals left, as they seem to be killed off by bizarre, inexplicable accidents. However, I have come to the conclusion that some of these accidents may have been triggered by the portal jumpers own actions. Some of these individuals' powers are stronger than others, but, regardless, these individuals are dangerous. If these portal jumpers cannot control their powers, their powers are a danger to themselves, and anyone they may come into contact with. In some cases, these portal jumpers can be deadly."
"So… does that mean that Jocelyn is…?" Hazelle began.
Just then, a voice behind the group made everyone freeze.
"Hey guys," Jocelyn asked groggily. "What happened?"